A Trace of Romance by Ann Swann

The first day of her new second-grade school year in tiny Beach Way, Oregon, Laynie and Trace became fast friends.

Welcome to one of the March 13th stops on the blog tour for A Trace of Romance by Ann Swann with Goddess Fish Promotions. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.

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About the Book

A Trace of Romance
by Ann Swann

Published 6 February 2024
5 Prince Publishing

Genre: Romance
Page Count: 95
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!

Laynie & Trace. The first day of her new second-grade school year in tiny Beach Way, Oregon, Laynie and Trace became fast friends. Through the years, their friendship deepened into young love. They did everything together. Then tragedy took the life of his beloved sister, and because of the circumstances of her death, Trace felt compelled to move as far from Beach Way as possible. Laynie was left behind, heartbroken, and alone. But she was no quitter. She picked herself up and, with her family’s help, made a wonderful new life for herself. She heard he’d done the same down in Texas. But now he was back, standing in the doorway of her precious flower shop, taking up all the space the same way he’d always done. Her Trace, larger than life. What was he doing here, after all this time?

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Excerpt

They’d walked their usual route up the sand toward the rocky shore known as Struggle Beach. It was one of their favorite places to observe sea creatures trapped in tide pools. But on this day, they didn’t walk side by side so much as Trace rushed headlong in front of her while she simply tried her best to keep up.

After a few minutes of rushing forward as if running away, they left the Beachside Community, where Laynie and her mom lived, rushed all the way up and over the first rocky outcropping that began Struggle Beach and continued directly to the Shell Beach community without stopping.

With barely a pause Trace had pushed further on, down the coast, toward Trey Arches where the interconnected beaches ended abruptly. Neither of them said a word. It would’ve been impossible at that pace, into that wind.

Finally, Laynie had endured enough. “Trace!” She yelled his name directly into the wind, got no response, then yelled a second time, hands cupped around her mouth. “Trace! Stop!”

He hesitated but didn’t turn around. His jacketed shoulders were hunched up around his ears against the cold. “Lane?” He glanced at her, and at their surroundings, as if seeing them for the first time.

She ran to catch up, grabbing his elbow so he would be forced to pay attention to her. “Trace! What are we doing?”

About the Author

Ann has been a writer since junior high school, but to pay the bills she’s waited tables, delivered newspapers, cleaned other people’s houses, taught school, and even had a short stint as a secretary in a rock-n-roll radio station. She also worked as a 911 operator and a police dispatcher.

Ann’s stories began to win awards in her college days. Since then she’s published novels, novellas, and short stories. But even if no one ever bought another book, Ann wouldn’t stop writing. For her, it’s the cathartic pause in a sometimes-crazy world. Most of the time, it even keeps her sane.

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Giveaway Alert!

Ann Swann will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.

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