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The Waystation Guardians #1
Guarding Charon
One should always read the fine print...especially with an inheritance from a relative you didn't know existed.
In a rut doesn't even begin to describe Grace's life at 22. Her ex is using his position as a cop to stalk her, getting her fired from every job she finds. Her parents, not knowing how abusive he could be, believe all her problems would vanish if she'd simply marry him.
After losing yet another job, a lawyer arrives. A relative has died and left her entire estate in Maine to Grace. Eager to shake the dust of Bruce and small town Texas off of her for good, she leaps at the chance. She even changes her name.
Then she learns that her great aunt was a Witch...and the house has some big secrets. Secrets that she has to protect for six months if she hopes to inherit the entire estate and truly be free of her past.
In a rut doesn't even begin to describe Grace's life at 22. Her ex is using his position as a cop to stalk her, getting her fired from every job she finds. Her parents, not knowing how abusive he could be, believe all her problems would vanish if she'd simply marry him.
After losing yet another job, a lawyer arrives. A relative has died and left her entire estate in Maine to Grace. Eager to shake the dust of Bruce and small town Texas off of her for good, she leaps at the chance. She even changes her name.
Then she learns that her great aunt was a Witch...and the house has some big secrets. Secrets that she has to protect for six months if she hopes to inherit the entire estate and truly be free of her past.
132 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 13, 2016
3 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
KateMarie Collins
25 books5 followersBorn in the late 60's, KateMarie has lived most of her life in the Pacific NW. While she's always been creative, she didn't turn towards writing until 2008. She found a love for the craft. With the encouragement of her family, she started submitting her work to publishers. When she's not taking care of her family, KateMarie enjoys attending events for the Society for Creative Anachronism. The SCA has allowed her to combine both a creative nature and love of history. She currently resides with her family and two cats in what she likes to refer to as "Seattle Suburbia".
You can find KateMarie at the following sites:
Twitter: @DaughterHauk
FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/KateMar...
Her blog: http://www.katemariecollins.wordpress...
Via email: katemariecollins@gmail.com
You can find KateMarie at the following sites:
Twitter: @DaughterHauk
FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/KateMar...
Her blog: http://www.katemariecollins.wordpress...
Via email: katemariecollins@gmail.com
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 11, 2017
This was a fast, fun read. I was immediately pulled into the suspenseful plot and anxious to turn each page. The characters were interesting and I particularly liked that we were able to witness something of a coming of age for our main character, in terms of both spirituality and self esteem. I appreciated her strength and independence, as well as her positive attitude and sense of humor. I look forward to checking out other books by Ms. Collins!
October 3, 2020
Grace Adams’ life in small town Texas has been a living hell for the twenty-two year old brunette. While in high school she dated school hunk Bruce Davis, son of the town’s ruling family. After their senior prom, Grace wanted nothing to do with him, who turned out to be a brutal and controlling misogynist. However, Bruce had other plans.
When he returned home from college, Bruce joined the police force and commenced to do everything in his power to control the disinterested Grace, making her life miserable. She couldn’t even hold down a job without Bruce pressuring employers to fire her.
Then one day, when things couldn’t look bleaker for Grace, a Maine lawyer shows up at her door. Grace is the sole heir to a fortune. But there is one catch. She has to move to Cavendish, Maine and live in an ancient mansion for at least six months. What Grace isn’t told is that great aunt Amanda Cross was a witch.
International bestselling author KateMarie Collins does a marvelous job at developing a gripping novel that will keep readers entranced from the start. The characters in Guarding Charon are well developed, the plot moves quickly, and the setting descriptions are vivid.
Collins builds her plot expertly to the final mind blowing climax that I felt could have been described more elaborately for increased dramatic effect. However, Guarding Charon is a wonderful read and contains a sweet romance that won’t disappoint her New Adult readers.
When he returned home from college, Bruce joined the police force and commenced to do everything in his power to control the disinterested Grace, making her life miserable. She couldn’t even hold down a job without Bruce pressuring employers to fire her.
Then one day, when things couldn’t look bleaker for Grace, a Maine lawyer shows up at her door. Grace is the sole heir to a fortune. But there is one catch. She has to move to Cavendish, Maine and live in an ancient mansion for at least six months. What Grace isn’t told is that great aunt Amanda Cross was a witch.
International bestselling author KateMarie Collins does a marvelous job at developing a gripping novel that will keep readers entranced from the start. The characters in Guarding Charon are well developed, the plot moves quickly, and the setting descriptions are vivid.
Collins builds her plot expertly to the final mind blowing climax that I felt could have been described more elaborately for increased dramatic effect. However, Guarding Charon is a wonderful read and contains a sweet romance that won’t disappoint her New Adult readers.
October 3, 2019
Thoroughly enjoyable
I loved this book, it would even serve as a gentle door to Wicca for someone who knows nothing of the Path.
It was just the right length, easily keeping the reader engaged throughout the drama and tension to get to the sweet denoumat .
I loved this book, it would even serve as a gentle door to Wicca for someone who knows nothing of the Path.
It was just the right length, easily keeping the reader engaged throughout the drama and tension to get to the sweet denoumat .
September 21, 2016
In the opening pages of Guarding Charon we meet Grace Adams, who is one miserable girl. She's trapped in a town and a family that have her future mapped out for her. A future she can't bear to imagine. She's meant to marry the rich, brutal, and controlling Bruce Davis, whose family makes the rules for just about everyone and everything in town. Grace can't keep a job because the Davis's pressure employers to fire her, then spread the rumor that she quit. Bruce figures if he makes it impossible for Grace to become independent, she will eventually see him as her only alternative. Her family is enthusiastic about the prospect of their daughter marrying into money. Complicating factor: Bruce is a cop, so he's got a badge and gun to back up his efforts. Thus, if Grace tries to leave town, he, and his father, the chief, can use police resources to track her down.
Thus, Kate Marie Collins in a few pages has placed her protagonist in as ugly a situation as one can imagine, and we readers feel Grace's despair. Then, Mr. Dixon drops in with news.
Dixon carries the message that Grace has a long lost great aunt in Maine. Lost because she and her mother are estranged (to put it mildly), and her name has not been mentioned in the house ever before. The aunt's name is Amanda Cross. She is getting on in years and is ready to drop her legacy in a place where it will be treated properly. That somewhere is in the care of Grace Adams.
I'm not quite sure how Collins pulls it off, but she makes it completely believable that Grace would step out the door of her childhood home and fly away with a total stranger on his word that great things await her. I guess it's the fact we can't conceive of anything but torture for her if she stays put.
I won't go too far into the rest of the plot of Guarding Charon because I don't want to mar the delicious experience of discovery that Collins has created when we land in Cavendish, Maine, meet Amanda, and see Grace build a new life with a new name to keep Bruce from following. It is enough, I think, to say that Amanda is a practicing Wiccan, and Grace becomes immersed in the religion as she gets acquainted with the estate she is to inherit. The paranormal elements of the novel are not here merely to shock or amaze, but are so grounded in the plot that we become as convinced of the appearance of Charon and the River Styx and other supernatural phenomena as Grace herself.
With Guarding Charon Collins has made an exciting and admirable addition to her canon of such triumphs as Daughter of Hauk and the rest of the Raven Chronicles. I know we can look forward to more that's wonderful from her.
Thus, Kate Marie Collins in a few pages has placed her protagonist in as ugly a situation as one can imagine, and we readers feel Grace's despair. Then, Mr. Dixon drops in with news.
Dixon carries the message that Grace has a long lost great aunt in Maine. Lost because she and her mother are estranged (to put it mildly), and her name has not been mentioned in the house ever before. The aunt's name is Amanda Cross. She is getting on in years and is ready to drop her legacy in a place where it will be treated properly. That somewhere is in the care of Grace Adams.
I'm not quite sure how Collins pulls it off, but she makes it completely believable that Grace would step out the door of her childhood home and fly away with a total stranger on his word that great things await her. I guess it's the fact we can't conceive of anything but torture for her if she stays put.
I won't go too far into the rest of the plot of Guarding Charon because I don't want to mar the delicious experience of discovery that Collins has created when we land in Cavendish, Maine, meet Amanda, and see Grace build a new life with a new name to keep Bruce from following. It is enough, I think, to say that Amanda is a practicing Wiccan, and Grace becomes immersed in the religion as she gets acquainted with the estate she is to inherit. The paranormal elements of the novel are not here merely to shock or amaze, but are so grounded in the plot that we become as convinced of the appearance of Charon and the River Styx and other supernatural phenomena as Grace herself.
With Guarding Charon Collins has made an exciting and admirable addition to her canon of such triumphs as Daughter of Hauk and the rest of the Raven Chronicles. I know we can look forward to more that's wonderful from her.
June 20, 2016
I was given this novel to read as an advanced reader's copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. Ms. Collins offers and easy read for all of us who want to start again.
The intriguing plot captured me from the first few pages and involved me completely in the heroine's plight. Each one of her actions become mine by way of the skillful writing. Ms. Collins doesn't tell us about making a cup of coffee, she involves us in the actions, the smell and the need—just like everything else that follows. Who hasn't found life working against them? But, in this case, the character who will change her name to Amber, has no incentive to carry on working. She grabs at the chance to escape from her circumstances. Of course, when she realizes the wealth and privileges that come with the offer, she's ready to go. And we, as the reader, set off with her on the adventure. But lurking in the background, her foe clings on.
The intriguing plot captured me from the first few pages and involved me completely in the heroine's plight. Each one of her actions become mine by way of the skillful writing. Ms. Collins doesn't tell us about making a cup of coffee, she involves us in the actions, the smell and the need—just like everything else that follows. Who hasn't found life working against them? But, in this case, the character who will change her name to Amber, has no incentive to carry on working. She grabs at the chance to escape from her circumstances. Of course, when she realizes the wealth and privileges that come with the offer, she's ready to go. And we, as the reader, set off with her on the adventure. But lurking in the background, her foe clings on.
June 19, 2016
The perfect summer read
A story about trust, faith and love, “I don’t think of myself as a victim anyway. I’m a survivor…”
Grace took her chance and left everything behind. But she had a past; a man would haunt her soul forever.
Enough meant nothing to Bruce. Grace had said no to him and he couldn’t accept it.
But Miracles do happen…
A story about trust, faith and love, “I don’t think of myself as a victim anyway. I’m a survivor…”
Grace took her chance and left everything behind. But she had a past; a man would haunt her soul forever.
Enough meant nothing to Bruce. Grace had said no to him and he couldn’t accept it.
But Miracles do happen…
April 4, 2017
This is a tough one to review, mostly because it's so far outside my usual comfort zone. It leans heavily on the romance side of things, although there are strong elements of suspense to give the plot its engine. That is probably my favorite element of the story. The heroine is sympathetic, realistically drawn, and has a lived-in quality that many books lack. The villain... well, let's just say I was counting the minutes until he got his.
The supernatural elements are a relatively minor part of the story, although they do help with the resolution a bit. They end up serving two purposes: our heroine's (her name is Amber... I have no idea why I'm apparently dancing around that...) worldview expands during the course of the story, coming to accept that the supernatural is really just the natural. Charon and the river Styx are just sort of part of the world.
It also gives the book the feeling that it exists in a much larger world than its otherwise relatively small scope would imply. I'm not certain if the author left it open with sequels in mind, but there's certainly room for it. If I had one complaint it was that: the world was too big to be adequately explored in the work's slim run time.
But if you ask me "it should have been longer" is the kind of criticism you want.
The supernatural elements are a relatively minor part of the story, although they do help with the resolution a bit. They end up serving two purposes: our heroine's (her name is Amber... I have no idea why I'm apparently dancing around that...) worldview expands during the course of the story, coming to accept that the supernatural is really just the natural. Charon and the river Styx are just sort of part of the world.
It also gives the book the feeling that it exists in a much larger world than its otherwise relatively small scope would imply. I'm not certain if the author left it open with sequels in mind, but there's certainly room for it. If I had one complaint it was that: the world was too big to be adequately explored in the work's slim run time.
But if you ask me "it should have been longer" is the kind of criticism you want.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews