So what is a Secret Keeper? The Short answer, a mystic creature that has the ability to take on your secret, erasing it and the associated consequences.
Sounds pretty sweet, right? After all, everyone makes mistakes, everyone wishes they could erase the things that make them feel shameful—but there’s a catch. When you give away your secret to said enchantress, you agree to certain conditions, the most important, the next time you have a secret you will not be able to tell it—even if you want to. In The Secret Keeper (book 1 of the series) Winter thought she was done having secrets and made the deal with her beautiful, but insidious Secret Keeper. Little did she know that she would be the only one to witness the murder of her parents and because the murdering called out to her as she fled, “if you tell anyone, I’ll kill you”. Despite needing to tell her second secret, Winter’s tongue was bound by the curse leaving everyone she loved in imminent danger.
Yeah, holy something profane that I would never say…. and this is where the story really picks up steam.
Learn more or purchase the series here:
Amazon click here
Barnes and Noble click here
Ibook click here
Also, if you want to take your chances, I’m holding a giveaway for a digital copy of the first two books in the Secret Keeper series. All you have to do is click on this link a Rafflecopter giveaway "> and enter to win by telling me someone in history that you think really could’ve used a secret keeper or you can choose a different easy-peasy ways to enter, like follow me on twitter or like my Facebook page.
Now that you know a Secret Keeper is, we are going to talk about who could’ve really used one!
I’ll get the ball rolling. A famous person who, I'm pretty sure could’ve used a secret keeper is Shia LaBeouf.
We all loved him in the Transformer movies but he got a little crazy in 2015 when he decided to rap battled using plagiarized lyrics, on line. Some famous people need a secret keeper to hide their devious deeds, but not Shia. He could've used a secret keeper just to hide his silly mistake. Worst of all, when he publicly apologized for his plagiarism, he plagiarized his apology. Guess that would've been his second secret and he wouldn't have been able to apologize for that. We feel your pain buddy. We've all said dumb things, unfortunately, part of being famous is that big-lo-spotlight on your every move. That's why in this post, I chose you as someone who could have really used a secret keeper.
Who would you have picked? Tell me when you enter to win. I’ll be posting your “people who could’ve used a
secret keeper” on twitter all week so favorite the tweet if you see your guy or
gal!
Below, I’ve attached lots of ways to
connect and an excerpt for Book 2, In The Dying Light. Come and find me. I love
my readers even more than I love chocolate!
connect and an excerpt for Book 2, In The Dying Light. Come and find me. I love
my readers even more than I love chocolate!
A little about Angela
Angela Carling was
raised in Palm Springs California, but lives Arizona with her husband, three
kids and five felines. After years of
denial she finally admitted that she is a hopeless romantic which led her to
write her first Young Adult book Unbreakable Love. Since then she’s published
three more books, Shackled, Becoming Bryn and The Secret Keeper. Shackled won
the silver IPGA award in 2012 and has been optioned as a screenplay. She always
eats the frosting off her cake and leaves the rest, and can be caught singing
in public bathrooms. When she’s not
writing YA novels, she’s mentoring teen writers, making pizza with her family
or dreaming of taking a nap, not necessarily in that order.
raised in Palm Springs California, but lives Arizona with her husband, three
kids and five felines. After years of
denial she finally admitted that she is a hopeless romantic which led her to
write her first Young Adult book Unbreakable Love. Since then she’s published
three more books, Shackled, Becoming Bryn and The Secret Keeper. Shackled won
the silver IPGA award in 2012 and has been optioned as a screenplay. She always
eats the frosting off her cake and leaves the rest, and can be caught singing
in public bathrooms. When she’s not
writing YA novels, she’s mentoring teen writers, making pizza with her family
or dreaming of taking a nap, not necessarily in that order.
Links to connect with Angela
Website http://www.angelacarling.com/
Facebook https://twitter.com/angelacarling
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/angelacarling/
A book
excerpt from Winter’s perspective
excerpt from Winter’s perspective
Chapter 1
I knew he
had a secret. After six months as a secret keeper, I could always tell. Usually
their eyes gave them away. This time it was his body language: his shoulders
slumped and his hands hung low, barely touching the sides of his pressed
business suit. I wasn’t fooled by his expensive clothes. Rich people do stupid
things, too, and this was going to bad one—one that would break hearts and
destroy lives. It might be infidelity or a business deal gone wrong. Whatever
it was, his confession was going to be painful to me. He was the cocky
type, bound to do something stupid again. He might even come back to me. I
could entice him to make a final deal, and I would be free of the secret keeper
curse. I pushed aside my own despicable thoughts. He prodded along,
inching ever closer to me. He knew I was his savior. I didn’t know who’d told
him, but he was sure I could make his secret go away. I leapt up from the park bench and ran. My bare feet
made almost no noise on the long sidewalk that pushed me deeper into the city.
“Wait!” he called, his footsteps pounding overly-loud like angry blood
coursing through my veins. I ducked behind a one-story building and slid my
body against the scratchy stucco wall. My shirt snagged and tore, leaving my
tender skin vulnerable. He kept in pursuit. “I have to tell you my
secret,” he screamed into the long alley that bridged the distance between us.
“You have to fix it!” The word it reverberated off the walls like an
odd, taunting echo. I turned, and the man behind me was inexplicably next to
me. He grabbed me, pinning me to the wall with his whole body. He smelled of
rot, stinky wet forest rot, of life breaking down and disappearing forever. I
hated that smell. It was the scent of the secret keeper before me. Now, because
I bore her curse, it would become my stench. I thrashed against him, but
he held me firm. Every muscle in my body tensed. I closed my eyes and braced
myself. “I killed my partner so I could have control of everything,” he
confessed. Words sank through my porous skin and into my defenseless
soul. I arched my back in pain as I absorbed and erased his unthinkable crime.
A scream tore through me and out into my dark apartment.
had a secret. After six months as a secret keeper, I could always tell. Usually
their eyes gave them away. This time it was his body language: his shoulders
slumped and his hands hung low, barely touching the sides of his pressed
business suit. I wasn’t fooled by his expensive clothes. Rich people do stupid
things, too, and this was going to bad one—one that would break hearts and
destroy lives. It might be infidelity or a business deal gone wrong. Whatever
it was, his confession was going to be painful to me. He was the cocky
type, bound to do something stupid again. He might even come back to me. I
could entice him to make a final deal, and I would be free of the secret keeper
curse. I pushed aside my own despicable thoughts. He prodded along,
inching ever closer to me. He knew I was his savior. I didn’t know who’d told
him, but he was sure I could make his secret go away. I leapt up from the park bench and ran. My bare feet
made almost no noise on the long sidewalk that pushed me deeper into the city.
“Wait!” he called, his footsteps pounding overly-loud like angry blood
coursing through my veins. I ducked behind a one-story building and slid my
body against the scratchy stucco wall. My shirt snagged and tore, leaving my
tender skin vulnerable. He kept in pursuit. “I have to tell you my
secret,” he screamed into the long alley that bridged the distance between us.
“You have to fix it!” The word it reverberated off the walls like an
odd, taunting echo. I turned, and the man behind me was inexplicably next to
me. He grabbed me, pinning me to the wall with his whole body. He smelled of
rot, stinky wet forest rot, of life breaking down and disappearing forever. I
hated that smell. It was the scent of the secret keeper before me. Now, because
I bore her curse, it would become my stench. I thrashed against him, but
he held me firm. Every muscle in my body tensed. I closed my eyes and braced
myself. “I killed my partner so I could have control of everything,” he
confessed. Words sank through my porous skin and into my defenseless
soul. I arched my back in pain as I absorbed and erased his unthinkable crime.
A scream tore through me and out into my dark apartment.
I sat up,
abruptly woken from my nightmare, gasping for air. My hand went to my face to
find it sticky with sweat, and my heart raced as if I’d actually been attacked.
The dreams were getting worse. The longer I was a secret keeper, the
more real they felt. Now I wasn’t just taking on secrets during the day, I was
reliving them at night with unforgiving clarity. Is this what my secret keeper
experienced? No wonder she hid herself in a forest so no one could find her. No
wonder she was willing to let me suffer so she could be released. I
blinked my burning eyes and tried to focus. With fumbling fingers, I reached
for my phone. It was a gift from my boyfriend Liam so that I’d never have to
feel alone. Once I’d become a secret keeper, no one, not even my parents
remembered me. My heart rate was slowing down, but I still struggled to
push the right buttons. I hit send, and my eyes darted to the clock. I’d been
in such a fog, I hadn’t considered the time. It was 3:00 a.m. Liam would be
sleeping, exhausted from his classes and work. I quickly mashed the glowing
rectangle with the words End Call. The screen went blank, and then a picture of
Liam and I standing in front of a sign that read Welcome to ASU filled the dark
space. I ran my hands down my face as if I could wipe away not just the
bad dream but the last six months of my life. I let myself fall back on the
bed. On my unclad arms I felt the dampness left by my sweat. I’d have to wash
my sheets again tomorrow. I’d do it after I met Liam tomorrow night.
abruptly woken from my nightmare, gasping for air. My hand went to my face to
find it sticky with sweat, and my heart raced as if I’d actually been attacked.
The dreams were getting worse. The longer I was a secret keeper, the
more real they felt. Now I wasn’t just taking on secrets during the day, I was
reliving them at night with unforgiving clarity. Is this what my secret keeper
experienced? No wonder she hid herself in a forest so no one could find her. No
wonder she was willing to let me suffer so she could be released. I
blinked my burning eyes and tried to focus. With fumbling fingers, I reached
for my phone. It was a gift from my boyfriend Liam so that I’d never have to
feel alone. Once I’d become a secret keeper, no one, not even my parents
remembered me. My heart rate was slowing down, but I still struggled to
push the right buttons. I hit send, and my eyes darted to the clock. I’d been
in such a fog, I hadn’t considered the time. It was 3:00 a.m. Liam would be
sleeping, exhausted from his classes and work. I quickly mashed the glowing
rectangle with the words End Call. The screen went blank, and then a picture of
Liam and I standing in front of a sign that read Welcome to ASU filled the dark
space. I ran my hands down my face as if I could wipe away not just the
bad dream but the last six months of my life. I let myself fall back on the
bed. On my unclad arms I felt the dampness left by my sweat. I’d have to wash
my sheets again tomorrow. I’d do it after I met Liam tomorrow night.
Thanks for stopping by and may you never need a Secret Keeper!
