Fateful Voyage by Danielle Van Alst
What lengths would you go to for love? A terminally ill heiress trying to make the most of what little time she has left and a suave mobster on the run from the executioners electric chair, meet and fall in love on a trans-pacific crossing from San Francisco to Tokyo, each without knowing the other’s tragic secret. Little do they know, they are each journeying toward their doomed fate while cheerfully masquerading under ballroom lights, breezy late-night dinners, cocktail conversations, and a whirlwind shore excursion in Hawaii. Along the way, they encounter a cast of characters who help bring them together and who seek to drive them apart. Communicating their innermost thoughts and desires through letters slipped under each other’s cabin door, their bond becomes deeper than anything that they have ever known. The clock is ticking… they have weeks to find happiness in each other’s arms.
Find more from this author on:
Amazon
Author SiteAbout the author:
Danielle grew up with a passion for all things literary. She first put pen to paper writing articles for a newspaper she designed and created during elementary school. Danielle’s creative channels evolved into writing poetry, short stories, essays, and children’s books. When not writing her own material Danielle loves reading everything and anything she can get her hands on especially mysteries, suspense, and historical fiction.
Some of Danielle's other talents include finding new and creative ways to use sarcasm, spilling/dropping things, being supremely weird without even trying, graphic design, and photography.
Danielle attended California State University Northridge where she majored in Psychology and minored in Child Development. She continued her educational pursuit and attended Phillips Graduate University where she earned a Master’s Degree in Psychology with a dual emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy and Professional Clinical Counseling. Months after graduating with her degree, and growing more miserable every day that brought her closer toward a career she truly didn’t want, she finally realized writing was the only career that would make her happy and nourish her soul.
Danielle is a proud member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and The Alliance for Independent Authors. Danielle is now gleefully concentrating full time on bringing to life her stories and sharing them with the world. Danielle currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
What inspired you to write your book?
The inspiration for the book is my fascination with fate and destiny and how two very different lives can collide together in a chance meeting. I think it’s interesting how there are billions of people on this planet yet, we only have meaningful relationships with very few people. It’s almost like those lives were meant to intersect…like it was written in the stars and that’s what makes those particular relationships extra special.
Here is a short sample from the book:
“The only heart you need to decide about is your own, William. It’s up to me if I want to risk my own.” Gwen reached out to take his hands. “I’m sorry. Running away was childish but seeing you with the Countess… that first night, when she was with you, I could see the emotion in her eyes. I thought maybe the two of you were already together.”
“No, and that’s never going to happen. Alice is… Alice. I do care about her, but she’s only ever going to be a friend. Nothing more.”
Gwen nodded. “Why do you only see her as a friend?”
Finding a way to word what it was he wanted to say wasn’t easy. William knew there was so much he couldn’t say, because he didn’t want Gwen to know who he was before he set foot on the ship. “Alice is one of those people who can be whoever she wants to be. Sometimes I don’t know for certain if I’m really dealing with Alice, or if I’m dealing with someone else entirely. She’s almost always putting on an act for someone, whether that is for the person she’s talking to or someone who happens to be watching her. If I’m with someone I want to know who it is I’m dealing with. I want to be able to see them and know that there’s nothing hidden. You are one of the easiest people to read. Your emotions are right there. I don’t need to worry about anything.”
“Except for my jealousy.”
“Being jealous is normal. It’s how we deal with that jealousy that has an effect on our lives. Are you this is what you want? I don’t mind if it’s not. I just want to know, Gwen, so that I don’t waste my time, or your time.”
Related products
-
The Love Spell by Heath Buckley
Take four modern day Wicca witches, a new neighbour with marriage difficulties, an unspoken affair and a triple strength customised spell that goes wildly out of control and you have the ingredients for a funny, fast paced drama comedy called ‘The Love Spell’ from local writer Heath Buckley.
Marjorie, Anita, Francis and Dorothy are four best friends who share a secret; they are modern day witches and the leaders of a coven in the leafy London suburb of Oak Dale.
With a major festival approaching, their lives are turned upside down with the arrival of new neighbours who present them with a dilemma that will change everything.
The women have an incident in the past to atone for and so they decide to act the only way they know how with unexpected consequences that will touch them all.
As if that was not enough they must resolve the situation before Halloween and stop a national newspaper reporter from exposing them all in this hilarious tale of friendship, redemption and above all, love.
-
Skye Fall by Taymika Byrd
In this, her first solo Write On Press Publication, Taymika G. Byrd brings the reader three amazing tales, each one steeped in adventure, fantasy and lust so steamy you’re gonna need a cigarette!
First, Ms. Taymika G. Byrd of the now famed Crescent City Connection series brings you In the Vieux Carre’. A tale of sex and seduction in the city that time forgot. Who knows how a life can change when a young attorney moves into a haunted French Quarter apartment.
Next, Beinvenito a Miami takes you on an all night flight through the club scene in one of the hottest cities around with a sexy witch who’s on the run from some bad decisions.
Finally, Skye Fall introduces Skye Morgan a young woman on the run from evil demons who want to use her newly discovered talents for their own dark purposes. Will she stay hidden long enough to develop the strength to save her own life?
-
Teaching Tori by Annie Rehmann
Tori has put up with Gerard’s bullying for so long, she is surprised when Tom, a visiting adviser to her school, turns into an ally she doesn’t really want. Fiercely independent and wary of people (except for children, of course), she is perfectly capable of dealing with Gerard by herself.
Despite her efforts to keep Tom at an arm’s length, he manages to gain her trust, and a tender relationship starts to form. A future with Tom looks certain until a misunderstanding leads Tori to pull away from him. When she recognises her mistake, it is too late to win him back.
The breakup affects her greatly, down to the one constant she could always fall back on in times of crisis: her love of teaching. Tori fails to meet her own high expectations of an inspiring teacher which leads her onto a downward spiral of feelings of inadequacy and guilt.
After weeks of misery, Tori takes to the hills of Central Otago to clear her head. High up in the tussock country she loves so much, she realises that it is time to move on and let go of the past.
The decision comes as a relief, but a sudden weather change gives Tori little time to dwell on it.
Will Tori make it home safely to put her decisions into action? And will Tom ever find out what happened to her?
-
Breaching His Defenses by Allyson Lindt
What happens in Vegas… Can break hearts and destroy careers.
Years ago, heartbreak corrupted Jared Tippins’s outlook on love. He spun the betrayal into a rapid climb up the corporate ladder, and swore off any relationship with a morning after. Luckily, the playful siren who rescues him from singing a duet alone in a karaoke bar doesn’t want anything long term.
If only he could stop fantasizing about ways to make her moan. Sure, she could’ve mentioned he works for the competition. At least she’s not behind the security concerns that have plagued his company for almost six months.
If she were, he’d be screwed on a whole new level.
-
To Forgive & Hold Safe by Carey Decevito
Loss, pain, guilt…
Those are the emotions Ben Carpenter feels as the lone survivor of a terrible night, three years before, where fate was so unkind.
On a quest to forget, aware of only one thing—overwhelming misery—he submerses himself into running Fairfax, the pub he and his wife had once planned on opening together, and his side gig as a volunteer firefighter.
Resolved to a life of loneliness, Ben is sideswiped when envy takes hold after he’s asked to stand as Best Man at his best friend’s wedding.
Before he can deal with the idea of opening up to love again, tragedy strikes…just not for Ben this time.
As secrets to his wife’s betrayal come to light, Ben is faced with the reality that an opportunity to heal stares him straight in the face—albeit, in the form of Hannah.
Bonded by their similar losses, Ben begins to wonder.
Is there really such a thing as second chances?
-
Invasion of Privacy and Other Short Stories by Jim Liston
Invasion of Privacy
If you’re the person who murdered my wife and think you’ve gotten away with it, think again. I’m looking for you, and I’ll eventually find you.
Is it wrong for me to try and find the person who ruined my life, even at the expense of stealing a few moments of someone’s privacy? If I invade a person’s privacy without them knowing it, what’s the harm? I guess it all comes down to the question of whether I’m willing to risk the consequence of going to jail if I’m caught. I am. What do I have to lose?
The other stories included are:
The Tourist Attraction
I’m sick of it. Every day there’s a group of them tourists, standing by my fence watching us, pointing and whispering. I don’t know what started it, but I’ll be damned if I’m gonna put up with it much longer.
A Novel Murder
“I’m going to kill her today,” he said, “I’ve had her tied up in the basement for three days; it’s time to end it.”
The Doctor’s Pet Fly
A fly only lives for about a month. It seems like a waste of time to train a fly and then have it die after only a month. Maybe he’s found a way to keep them alive longer. He is a doctor, after all.
The Show
Rita looked around at the crowd of smiling, excited faces, concentrating on every detail to commit it to memory; she didn’t want to forget any of it. She shouldn’t have worried; she would remember this for the rest of her life.
Carl and Tabitha
Carl hated his boss and was determined to find a way to get even with him.
Tag, You’re It!
We looked across the valley at a breathtaking scene of red lakes and forests of blue and orange that were alive with activity.
Before They Come Back
Running his claw-like hand along my spine while making an odd whistling noise that I surmised to be their way of communicating, I began to realize they were preparing to cut me open.
Justin’s Love
When Justin first saw Lucille, it was love at first sight. He knew that she was perfect for him. All of his friends and co-workers were envious; she was beautiful.
Ronnie and the Smoke Bomb.
I didn’t tell Ronnie the police had found him sitting on the curb near the car, crying. They said he was sitting there mumbling, “It’s only a smoke bomb.”
-
Against Her Will by Peter Martin
Rape is every woman’s worst nightmare, an act so vile, so devastating, it robs the victim of any sort of dignity, leaving scars that can last a. lifetime. Having family and friends rally round can make all the difference in the world. But without this support the victim may never fully recover.
Donna is such a victim. When she is brutally raped, her life comes crashing down, bringing with it memories of an unhappy childhood. Having lost everything dear to her, she almost succeeds in making the ultimate sacrifice, but for a young male nurse, who slowly helps her come to terms with the past. Just when she thinks she’s over the worst, she makes a horrifying discovery that puts her in mortal danger.
-
My Gift To You by Faye Hall
Rush Mullens saw her parents, Joseph and Carmen, being murdered before her eyes as an 8 year old child– ten cloaked figures destroying her once peaceful life. She did not know the men responsible, but she would find them. She wanted revenge…she needed it.
When Lord Justin Maston came to take her in to his care, she vowed she would use this opportunity to find the murderer’s she chased. She did not think she would also find a boy she could love more than her own life.
Bailey Maston had never supposed to mean any more to her than a friend, one who could protect her from the new lifestyle she had been forced into. What he had become though was a young man who could take her breath away, and steal her heart.
Rush knew Bailey knew nothing of her family, or the life she was raised to live. She doubted should he learn the truth that he would understand. She could not let him endanger the revenge she so craved to seek. Nor could she ignore that she was willing to risk all – her past, her life, her reputation – just to sample an ounce of passion from this man.
Bailey Maston wanted to find a woman – the perfect woman – to give his heart to. He wanted to trust that such a person could exist that would never betray him. Everything he had seen in his young life, both at home and in society, told him what a foolish dream this was. Such a woman could never exist. Even if she did, he doubted she would ever willingly give her heart to a love-starved boy like him.
Foolish though his dream was, Bailey could not help being drawn to the young orphaned girl his parents had taken in.
He wanted her friendship and the attention she so willingly offered to him.
He craved to feel the passion he knew was hidden deep inside her.
What he did not want was to fall in love with her.
When Bailey finally discovers the truth of Rush’s life, and the revenge she was enacting, he feels betrayed. Foolish though it was, he hopes that beyond this betrayal may yet lay the woman he has always yearned to find…a woman he craved to give his well-guarded heart to.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.