Blog Tour & Excerpt: Her Dark Lies by J.T. Ellison

Title:Her Dark Lies by J.T. Ellison
Publisher: MIRA
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 416 pages

Summary:

Fast-paced and brilliantly unpredictable, J.T. Ellison’s breathtaking new novel invites you to a wedding none will forget—and some won’t survive.

Jutting from sparkling turquoise waters off the Italian coast, Isle Isola is an idyllic setting for a wedding. In the majestic cliff-top villa owned by the wealthy Compton family, up-and-coming artist Claire Hunter will marry handsome, charming Jack Compton, surrounded by close family, intimate friends…and a host of dark secrets.

From the moment Claire sets foot on the island, something seems amiss. Skeletal remains have just been found. There are other, newer disturbances, too. Menacing texts. A ruined wedding dress. And one troubling shadow hanging over Claire’s otherwise blissful relationship—the strange mystery surrounding Jack’s first wife.

Then a raging storm descends, the power goes out—and the real terror begins…

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Excerpt

Two massive silver-and-black dogs burst around the corner, braying at our intrusion. I have never seen such gorgeous creatures. Jack told me all about his family’s dogs, all descended from an original brother and sister, bred specifically for protection and companionship. Lupo Italiano—Italian wolf dogs—a supposed cross between a wolf and a German shepherd.

These two look more like wolves to me. Sleek and huge, they look like they eat elk for dinner. One elk to one dog. Good grief.

I stand still. They reach Jack first, but only give him a cursory glance—it is me they’re interested in. I wait, allowing them to come to me. They do, snuffling delightedly at my sneakers, rubbing against my jeans. The slightly bigger of the two puts his nose into my hand.

The second dog is yipping in excitement. Jack gets down on one knee, grabs the beast by the ears, and starts talking to him like he’s a baby. “You’re a good boy, aren’t you? Who’s a good boy?”

The bigger dog is still nosing my hand. I move slowly—he could take it off with one bite should he want to—but when I scratch his ear, he closes his eyes in bliss and leans against my leg.

“He likes you.” Jack is grinning, looking at me in admiration. “That’s Romulus. This is Remus. They’re my grandfather’s, but we get along fine, don’t we, boys?”

Jack picks up a small branch and launches it up the path, and the dogs tear off after it.

“I’ll teach you their training words, but you aren’t going to have any issues with them, I can tell. Romulus isn’t a people person, he fell in love the moment he saw you. Just like I did.”

“Awww. He’s a beauty. His fur is so soft.”

Jack gives me a small kiss, and the dogs come back, dancing merrily around him. He heaves the branch again and off they go.

I glance back down the path, but my view of the pier—and the body—is obscured. I can see the circular top deck of The Hebrides, the helicopter landing pad like a spaceship rising over the trees. The clouds gathering in the distance are ominous, but for the moment, the sun is out, and the birds sing in the trees. Idyllic as a postcard. Except for the old bones.

Jack seems consumed by nervous excitement, hurrying ahead to pick a bright red flower to tuck behind my ear, running back to retrieve the dropped hairclip he knocks loose, throwing the branch for the dogs again and again. I laugh obediently at his antics, but my heart isn’t in it. He is trying to distract me. He’s always been so good at creating distractions.

Or maybe he is distracting himself?

Don’t ascribe your emotions to him, Claire.

I run my hands through my now-freed hair, which has taken on a life of its own in the salt air. I twist it back up in a chignon and secure it with the clip he hands over. A rock has somehow found its way into my shoe. I stand on one foot, balancing with a hand against his shoulder, dump it out and slide back into my Converse.

Every motion feels like a delay. Jack finally stops goofing around and squeezes my hand.

“Darling, what’s wrong? You’re a million miles away.”

“No, I’m not. I’m right here, on this gorgeous, lovely island.”

He pulls me close. “You might be here physically, but you’re distracted. You aren’t worried about the wedding, are you? Getting cold feet?” He’s joking, but I can see the tiny furrow between his brows.

“No cold feet. I guess I’m just a little bothered by the body down at the pier. On top of the break-in. It’s a lot.”

Not exactly true. Not exactly a lie, either.

The horn of the hydrofoil ferry floats up from the base of the path. I’m relieved to hear it. I’d like some of my people around to buffer the Compton grandeur.

“Ah. Good. Some of our guests are arriving,” Jack says.

“So it seems. Should we wait for them?”

“No. Let’s hurry ahead so we can get a few more minutes alone. I want to talk to you for a second.” He sounds grave and it makes me nervous.

“We’re alone now. Talk.”

“Come on. I’ll race you.” He grins and starts jogging backward, gesturing with both hands for me to follow. I rise to the challenge. I’m pretty quick; I ran track in school and getting out of the blocks fast was my biggest strength. I’m not much of a runner now, I prefer yoga and my bike, but back then, I was a cheetah, built for blisteringly fast but short sprints. I burst into motion and beat Jack to the top of the hill by two whole seconds.

“Take that, Compton.”

He reaches me a heartbeat later, barely out of breath, and kisses me on the nose.

“Look,” he says, and spins me 180 degrees to see the Villa.

Author Bio

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J.T. Ellison writes standalone domestic noir and psychological thriller series, the latter starring Nashville Homicide Lt. Taylor Jackson and medical examiner Dr. Samantha Owens, and pens the international thriller series “A Brit in the FBI” with #1 New York Times bestselling author Catherine Coulter. Cohost of the Emmy Award-winning show, A Word on Words, Ellison lives in Nashville with her husband.