Escape from the Past: The Kid
by Annette Oppenlander
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GENRE: YA historical/sci-fi
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BLURB:
Time-traveling gamer, Max, embarks on a harrowing journey
through the Wild West of 1881! After a huge fight with his parents, Max tries
to return to his love and his best friend, Bero, in medieval Germany. Instead
he lands in 1881 New Mexico. Struggling to get his bearings and coming to terms
with Dr. Stuler’s evil computer game misleading him, he runs into Billy the
Kid. To his amazement Billy isn’t at all the ruthless killer history made him
out to be. Trouble brews when a dying Warm Springs Apache gives Max a huge gold
nugget to help his sister, Ela, escape from Fort Sumner. Shopping for supplies
Max attracts the attention of ruthless bandits. Before Max can ask the Kid’s
help, he and Ela are forced to embark on a journey to find his imaginary
goldmine. This is book 2 in the Escape from the Past trilogy.
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EXCERPTS (Please choose only ONE to use with your post):
Excerpt One:
My chest began to throb
without warning, then tighten. Had it been this painful last time? Ten months
had passed since I’d last played. I smiled despite the pain. I couldn’t wait to
sneak up on Bero. Hug Juliana. The pressure on my body increased. She’d be mad,
of course, but then she’d kiss me. Maybe we could sneak into the barn tonight.
The weight on my lungs grew.
Breathing stopped. My vision filled with the red haze of oxygen deprivation. I
tried to gulp, but my ribs were glued to my sides. I was stuck...and terrified.
The fog turned gray...then black. Like last time, I managed to stand, but my
legs and feet stood rooted like the giant oaks in Hanstein’s forest.
My heart pounded in my neck,
the only sign I was still alive. The fog deepened. Why was this taking so long?
Still the pressure held as if I’d been thrown under a boulder. I was dying.
I’d made a huge mistake.
It’s easy to forget fear.
Stuff happens and you get distracted. After a while all you remember are the
good things. Now that I was unable to move, unable to do anything, I remembered
the way I’d felt the first time I landed in the game. I’d felt terror.
And terror was back now in
full force, squeezing my middle and poking at my heart. As the pressure lifted
and the fog cleared, the sense of impending doom gripped me with such force
that I fell forward. I’d made a horrible mistake.
Stumbling, I stubbed my toes
and suppressing a shout. In the near darkness, a rock or cliff rose wide as a
house and three stories high. I only saw its outline, a black edge against the
starry sky above.
The whistling I’d heard
earlier definitely came from between the giant rocks. The air was filled with
the scent of grasses, grit and something like sage. Had I returned in the
summer?
Behind me the area appeared
more open. Maybe I was down near the river and Luanda’s house. Should I move in
the dark or wait? I’d get lost, wandering off in the wrong direction.
A cold
wind dug under my shirt and nipped at my skin. I tugged my sweater closer around
me when I saw something glowing on the ground like a huge red eye.
“Not a move, Boy,” the
voice hissed. “Or I’ll blow a hole through your gut.”
Author Interview:
1.When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?
Becoming a writer/author was a process that took several years. In the
beginning–the late 90s–I wrote children’s stories for early readers. I didn’t
know anything about writing for children, the market nor the submission
process, so this went nowhere. In 2002 I interviewed my parents about their
lives during WW2 in Germany which led to a number of short stories. I didn’t
really imagine writing a novel, let alone several, I merely wanted to preserve
the memories for my family.
But I grew aware how much I enjoy the writing process. How I felt while
I did it. I worked for a PR agency and did lots of business-related writing.
I’d go home at night and write some more, spent my weekends writing fiction. I
grew more and more invested, took classes, read books on craft, attended
conferences and joined a critique group. In 2009 I attended a short story class
at Indiana University and that’s when the light bulb turned on fully. I’ve
known ever since that writing is my passion and I must do it even if
publication is light years away. I finished the first manuscript in 2010. The first
two books were published in 2015.
2. Besides yourself, who is your favorite author in the genre that you write?
I like a lot of authors and I particularly like James Alexander Thom’s
books of historical fiction. Many of his stories are set in the American West
and explore the lives of Native Americans.
3.What are reading right now?
I’m reading “The Night Watch” by Sarah Waters. It’s a story set in WW2
and post-war London. I like her style and voice and I’m in the middle of
writing a story set in WW2 Germany, so I get myself sort of into the mood of
the times.
4.Which one of your characters is most like you?
I don’t think I can name any one character. Of course, I’ve spent
months researching the Wild West, Billy the Kid and Warm Springs Apaches. So, a
lot of filtering has been going on and the important parts made it into the
book. I also believe that a writer’s subconscious determines what flows onto
the page. In a sense all story is a part of me because I created it. I can’t
pin it down though into a single personality.
5.Which
of your books is your favorite? Why?
I don’t have a
favorite because my books are quite different. My first novel, “A Different
Truth” is a mystery set
during the Vietnam War era and tells the story of a sixteen-year old kid who’s
banished to a military boarding school where he has to solve the hazing crime
of his best friend. It’s a rather serious tale that makes people think about
moral choices.
In comparison the “Escape from the Past” trilogy is
a historical adventure about nerdy gamer, Max, trying out an experimental
computer game and time-traveling to medieval Germany and the Wild West. The
stories are full of action, but overall much more light-hearted. Within the
trilogy it’s also hard to pick a favorite. Books one and three are based on
medieval castle Hanstein in Thuringia, Germany, while book two, “The Kid”
includes Billy the Kid and an ancient Warm Springs Apache warrior.
Maybe I’ll be able to chose in a
few years, once I’ve had more distance and a few more books published.
Thank you very much for having me!
AUTHOR Bio and
Links:
Annette Oppenlander writes historical fiction for
young adults. When she isn’t in front of her computer, she loves indulging her
dog, Mocha, and traveling around the U.S. and Europe to discover amazing
histories.
“Nearly every place holds some kind of secret, something that makes
history come alive. When we scrutinize people and places closely, history is no
longer a number, it turns into a story.”
Social Media Links
Twitter: @aoppenlander
Buy Links
Annette
Oppenlander will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly
drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Use the link below to enter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
A Midwesterner and self-proclaimed nerd, Evan has been an avid reader most of her life, but five years ago got bit by the writing bug, and it quickly became her addiction, passion and therapy. When the voices in her head give it a rest, she can always be found with her e-reader in her hand. Some of her favorites include, Shayla Black, Jaci Burton, Madeline Sheehan and Jamie Mcguire. Evan finds a lot of her inspiration in music, so if you see her wearing her headphones you know she means business and is in the zone.
