Exclusive Excerpt & Giveaway: Thrall by Roan Parrish & Avon Gale

Posted October 3, 2018 by Dale

Dating Sucks & Love Bites

Happy couple Mina Murray and Lucy Westenra have begun to garner national attention for their quirky New Orleans true-crime podcast, Shadowcast. When Lucy’s brother Harker disappears while researching the popular new dating app Thrall, they’re thrown into a real-life mystery. Aided by their social media expert, Arthur, and Harker’s professor, Van Helsing, they follow the trail, hoping to find Harker before it’s too late.

When their investigation crosses the path of a possible serial killer, the line between fantasy and reality begins to blur. And as they race against the app’s countdown clock, so does the line between friendship and love. What starts as a flirtatious rivalry between computer-savvy Arthur and techno-averse Van Helsing becomes much more, and Mina and Lucy’s relationship is tested in the fires of social media.

As they get down to the wire, the group discovers that nothing on their screens is as it seems—including their enemy.

A modern retelling of Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

Goodreads | Amazon | Universal Link
Release Date: September 27th

WELCOME TO

THRALL

THE APP THAT TAKES YOU ON DATES

COME FALL IN LOVE…

username:

password:

location services [ON OFF]

* * *

Google Hangouts

8:31 PM

Arthur Quincey

Soooo…about that Thrall date 😉 You interested in going on one with me? FOR SCIENCE.

A. Van Helsing

For science, eh?

Arthur Quincey

Well. Among other things. For…what was it…desk stability checks?

A. Van Helsing

Feeling insecure, Arthur? Putting oneself out there is difficult. Yes, I will go on a date with you, though I have never done online dating.

Arthur Quincey

Yeah, and I mean, I said I was interested so I don’t want to go on a date with someone else. Even if it would just be for science—seems dishonest. I probably could have just said it that way.

And our date won’t be online, you’ll just need to dl the app on your phone and fill out the profile so that we make sure we match

A. Van Helsing

Honesty is exposing. Baring yourself to another person and showing them all the ways that they could hurt you.

And, allow me to remind you, I have a flip phone.

Arthur Quincey

I do try and be honest. Even when I’m being…well. How I am, sometimes. Just so you know that.

Oh God, right. Well, I’ll fix that for you.

A. Van Helsing

I appreciate the effort, Arthur. I am not… I am aware that I have my own methods of obfuscating the truths that feel vulnerable.

Arthur Quincey

Are you a Mac or an Android guy, that’s the question. I’m betting you use a PC and Windows, because Macs strike you as too fancy.

A. Van Helsing

Ahhh…I have a MacBook Air that the university gave me.

Arthur Quincey

If I ever had to take a class and hear you talk like that in person it would be the most uncomfortable class ever

Damn, and here I thought I was being savvy. Okay, so, iPhone it is.

A. Van Helsing

I’m sorry if I’m making you feel uncomfortable.

Arthur Quincey

It’s the good kind of uncomfortable, Van.

A. Van Helsing

I see. Well, in that case…I’m…pleased.

Arthur Quincey

I almost typed about four flirty things but I’m restraining myself

A. Van Helsing

Ah, a sense of restraint in addition to tenacity? You know that “tenacity” means “to hold fast to something.” Your choices of vocabulary are painting a picture I’m not sure you would stand behind, Arthur.

Arthur Quincey

I’m a terrible artist

A. Van Helsing

I believe I’ve made you uncomfortable again?

I apologize.

Arthur Quincey

No, I just—I’m not sure what you meant by that, that’s all.

A. Van Helsing

Ah. I suppose that was evidence of my own brand of obfuscation. I merely meant that your word choices…that they had shades of, well, bondage, if I’m being explicit. But perhaps not everyone chooses words with the same eye toward subtle nuance as I do. Also, I must confess that when you first wrote “SM” in your email, I read it as “S&M,” so perhaps it is I importing the shades of meaning, and not you at all. Again, I tend to overanalyze.

Arthur Quincey

…somehow that’s literally the hottest chat message I think I’ve ever received.

Avon Gale

Avon Gale was once the mayor on Foursquare of Jazzercise and Lollicup, which should tell you all you need to know about her as a person. She likes road trips, rock concerts, drinking Kentucky bourbon, JRPGs and yelling at hockey. She’s a displaced southerner living in a liberal midwestern college town, and she never gets tired of people and their stories — either real or the ones she makes up in her head.

Avon is represented by Courtney Miller-Callihan at Handspun Literary Agency.

Connect with Avon: Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Website

Roan Parrish

Roan Parrish lives in Philadelphia, where she is gradually attempting to write love stories in every genre.

When not writing, she can usually be found cutting her friends’ hair, meandering through whatever city she’s in while listening to torch songs and melodic death metal, or cooking overly elaborate meals. She loves bonfires, winter beaches, minor chord harmonies, and self-tattooing. One time she may or may not have baked a six-layer chocolate cake and then thrown it out the window in a fit of pique.

Connect with Roan: Parrish or Perish FB Group | Twitter | Instagram | BookBub | Newsletter