Temptation: A Novel (39 page)
Read Temptation: A Novel Online
Authors: Travis Thrasher
Tags: #Solitary, #High School, #Y.A. Fiction, #fear, #rebellion
Behind the Book: Sixteen Candles
Music matters. And teens know this.
Sometimes a song can speak for you. It says things you’d never dream of saying. It sums up how you feel. It sums up you.
Someone else can sing your sadness.
Someone else can come up with symphonies.
You don’t know what’s out there but you think you have ideas.
The songs spell it out with their suffering and their swelling hearts and their majestic lyrics.
You feel the despair of The Smiths.
You feel the fear of The Cure.
You feel the joy of New Order.
You feel the passion of Depeche Mode.
You feel things you’ve never felt before because you’re growing up and your body is changing and your life is changing and you are absolutely terrified but trying to play it cool just like the music.
You are living in a decade called the eighties, and you have no idea how much things will change after that.
To you, sixteen is eternal.
To you, sixteen is epic.
A teen opens his eyes wide and takes it all in. It’s only after enough years and enough broken dreams that he starts to shut them and drown out the songs.
The songs remind him of all the failed ambitions. Of all the lost loves. Of all those naive things that a teen can only think and dream and believe.
So many grow up and get busy and sometimes the music fades away.
You blink and find yourself forty years old.
But you are still a teen at heart.
The songs still matter.
And you still wake up and go to bed with your eyes wide open. Still dreaming in the good and refusing the bad.
You still find your heart swelling with these songs, these symphonies, these sweet melodies.
They will always—always—be a part of you.
They will always be remembered.
A Snapshot
This eleventh grader wanted—no, he
needed
—a change of scenery. A big change. And boy did he get it. In the middle of his school year, he ended up moving. Not just to another city, but to another culture. The Windy City was calling his name, and he tried to never look back. But sometimes looking back allows the imagination to roam free.
For more information on Travis Thrasher,
visit
www.TravisThrasher.com
.
Praise for …
Solitary
“A YA novel for the hip, the savvy, the thinker-outside-the-box—and anybody else who wants a great read. And don’t even try to predict this one. Just hang on and let it take you straight into the real world of the newest generation.”
Nancy Rue,
best-selling author of tween and young adult fiction
“
Solitary
is a cautionary tale, startling and suspenseful. The characters are unforgettable, the prose stark, and the dialogue masterful. Travis Thrasher is a versatile storyteller who walks his readers through life’s uncertainties while leading them toward glimmers of hope.”
Eric Wilson,
New York Times
best-selling author of
Valley of Bones
Praise for …
Travis Thrasher
“Thrasher just keeps getting better.”
Publishers Weekly
“Each time I read a novel by Travis Thrasher, I close the cover and tell myself that was his best. But I find it hard to imagine that Thrasher is going to be able to surpass
Broken
easily.… The story literally drove me to tears. The action is intense, the pace breakneck, the aura of mystery palpable, the sense of the supernatural mysterious. In the vein of
Isolation
and
Ghostwriter
, Thrasher gives us
Broken
, one of his best stories to date.”
Josh Olds,
author and book reviewer at LifeIsStory.com
“How does Christian horror actually work? I’m not really sure, but fiction writer Travis Thrasher has successfully figured out the formula. He’s combined Christian faith with a Stephen King–esque setting to explore what happens to your psyche when you are in the midst of a spiritual attack.”
Rachel Laudiero,
author and book reviewer at OldMustyBooks.com
“Not only will
Isolation
scare you, it will also challenge your faith and remind you of the all-encompassing power of the love of our Savior. [Travis] only gets better with each new offering, and this latest tale might just be his best yet.”
Jake Chism,
author and book reviewer at FictionAddict.com
Praise for …
Solitary
“A YA novel for the hip, the savvy, the thinker-outside-the-box—and anybody else who wants a great read. And don’t even try to predict this one. Just hang on and let it take you straight into the real world of the newest generation.”
Nancy Rue,
best-selling author of tween and young adult fiction
“
Solitary
is a cautionary tale, startling and suspenseful. The characters are unforgettable, the prose stark, and the dialogue masterful. Travis Thrasher is a versatile storyteller who walks his readers through life’s uncertainties while leading them toward glimmers of hope.”
Eric Wilson,
New York Times
best-selling author of
Valley of Bones
Praise for …
Travis Thrasher
“Thrasher just keeps getting better.”
Publishers Weekly
“Each time I read a novel by Travis Thrasher, I close the cover and tell myself that was his best. But I find it hard to imagine that Thrasher is going to be able to surpass
Broken
easily.… The story literally drove me to tears. The action is intense, the pace breakneck, the aura of mystery palpable, the sense of the supernatural mysterious. In the vein of
Isolation
and
Ghostwriter
, Thrasher gives us
Broken
, one of his best stories to date.”
Josh Olds,
author and book reviewer at LifeIsStory.com
“How does Christian horror actually work? I’m not really sure, but fiction writer Travis Thrasher has successfully figured out the formula. He’s combined Christian faith with a Stephen King–esque setting to explore what happens to your psyche when you are in the midst of a spiritual attack.”
Rachel Laudiero,
author and book reviewer at OldMustyBooks.com
“Not only will
Isolation
scare you, it will also challenge your faith and remind you of the all-encompassing power of the love of our Savior. [Travis] only gets better with each new offering, and this latest tale might just be his best yet.”
Jake Chism,
author and book reviewer at FictionAddict.com
Also by Travis Thrasher
The Promise Remains
The Watermark
The Second Thief
Three Roads Home
Gun Lake
Admission
Blinded
Sky Blue
Out of the Devil’s Mouth
Isolation
Ghostwriter
Every Breath You Take
Broken
40
Letters from War
Paper Angels
101 Writing Tips
T
HE
S
OLITARY
T
ALES
Solitary
Gravestone
Temptation
© studiosmith 2010
The author of over a dozen works of fiction, including
Isolation
and
Ghostwriter
, T
RAVIS
T
HRASHER
has been writing since he was in the third grade. His writing is known for its honesty, depth, and surprising twists. Thrasher lives near Chicago with his wife and three daughters.