Series Excerpts (and a Giveaway!): The Seven Trilogy by Sara Davison

Welcome to the blog tour and giveaway for The Seven Trilogy, romantic suspense novels by Sara Davison, hosted by JustRead tours!

Title: The End Begins (Seven Trilogy #1)
Author: Sara Davison
Publisher: Ashberry Lane/WhiteFire Publishing
Genre: Romantic Suspense

One of them is a prisoner and one of them is free. The same one.

Bookstore owner Meryn O’Reilly and Army Captain Jesse Christensen are on opposite sides of a battle. When martial law is declared, Jesse and his platoon are sent to Meryn’s city to keep an eye on the Christians and make sure they are not stepping outside of the confines of the law.

Fiery and quick-tempered, Meryn chafes under the curfew and other restrictions to her freedom. Jesse is equally amused, intrigued, and terrified by her spirit, knowing she could find herself in prison if she shows defiance to the wrong soldier.

His worst fears are realized when she commits a crime he cannot protect her from. Now they both face an uncertain future, and the very real threat of losing everything, including their lives. With time running out, Jesse works feverishly to convince the authorities to show leniency to Meryn. And to convince her that love can overcome any barrier that lies between them.

A cool breeze whispered across his damp skin. As he started back toward the base at a jog, he drank in the sight of the maple trees lining both sides of the road, their red, yellow, and orange leaves rustling in the wind.

The sound of gravel crunching beneath shoes up ahead brought his gaze back down to the road. His chest tightened as he recognized the soldier jogging toward him: Lieutenant Gallagher. So much for a relaxing run in the country. He slowed his pace to a walk again as the lieutenant drew close, and Gallagher did the same.

“Captain.” The nod and the title were protocol, but the smirk that seemed a permanent feature on Gallagher’s face undermined any hint of respect.

“Lieutenant.” Jesse stopped and swiped his arm across his forehead.

“Things seem to be going well here, don’t you think?”

Jesse shrugged. “As well as can be expected, I guess.”

“What do you mean?”

“Any time you start imposing new rules on people, there’s going to be some resistance.”

“We may need to bear down and deal with that resistance. Make it clear it won’t be tolerated.”

Jesse’s eyes narrowed. Maybe he should suggest to Caleb that they build a boxing ring on the base. Nothing would give him more pleasure than going a few rounds with Gallagher and relieving the festering irritation that tunneled holes in his stomach lining whenever he was forced to deal with the man.

Title: The Darkness Deepens (Seven Trilogy #2)
Author: Sara Davison
Publisher: Ashberry Lane/WhiteFire Publishing
Genre: Romantic Suspense

(formerly The Dragon Roars)

Their Secrets Protect Them … But Secrets are Hard to Keep

No one in the army can find out that Captain Jesse Christensen has become a believer. He and bookstore owner Meryn O’Reilly are forced to meet in secret, facing imprisonment or worse if they are found together. Their relationship deepens, but so does Lieutenant Gallagher’s hatred for the Christians in their city. As Gallagher’s power grows, it becomes clear that his connections go much further up the chain of command than anyone realized, putting all believers, especially Jesse, in extreme danger.

Meryn wants to give her heart to Jesse fully, but her past holds her back. Although circumstances conspire to keep her silent, she needs to tell him her secret. When he finds out what she has been keeping from him, nothing will stand between them anymore.

Or nothing will ever be the same.

His throat tightened. “Please tell me you’re not thinking about doing it.”

Meryn rubbed both palms over her jeans. “Someone has to.”

The front legs of the chair hit the floor with a thud as he stood up. “That someone doesn’t have to be you.”

“Why not me?” Her voice faltered as he walked toward her, but she lifted her chin, clearly prepared to do battle.

Well, he was a trained soldier. Battles were what he knew. Bring it on. “Because it’s not safe.” He stopped inches from her and drew himself up to his full height. He wasn’t particularly proud of using the stance to intimidate her, but he was desperate enough at the moment to employ any tool at his disposal.

Meryn looked at him and he read in her eyes what she was going to say before she said it. “Why should I be safe?”

Jesse’s fists clenched. Using his own words against him was low. Effective, but low. Because I want you to be. Because I need you to be. His shoulders slumped. Not good enough arguments. Unfortunately, no others would come to mind.

Title: The Morning Star Rises (Seven Trilogy #3)
Author: Sara Davison
Publisher: Ashberry Lane/WhiteFire Publishing
Genre: Romantic Suspense

In the Midst of all the Fear and Confusion, Only One Thing is Clear … This Isn’t Over Yet

Jesse Christensen is out of the army, but the real battle has just begun. Major Gallagher has taken over the city and his oppression of believers has intensified. But is Gallagher acting in a professional capacity, or is he carrying out a personal vendetta?

Meryn O’Reilly faces a dark and uncertain future after shocking revelations devastate her life. She is determined to follow God’s call, but her plans could cost her everything. She and Jesse struggle to surrender fully to a God who is always in control, even when circumstances suggest otherwise.

With the world descending into chaos around them, Meryn and Jesse face the greatest barrier to their love yet—a barrier that may prove too strong to breach.

Meryn turned away and opened a cupboard door, searching for a container for the leftover cake. She found one but had to crouch down and reach into the back of the cupboard to retrieve the lid. The back of her head burned. As aware of his presence in the room as she had always been, she had never felt it as keenly as she did at that moment, when he stood silently behind her, watching. Was he waiting for her to throw herself at him and beg him to give them another chance? Or was he counting the seconds, like she was, until Kate and Hope came back?

Meryn scraped the cake from the platter into the container and shoved the lid down hard to snap it into place.

A rosy glow fell across the counter. Sunset.

Gripping the container in both hands, she spun around. “It’s getting dark. Please tell Kate I had to leave.”

Jesse nodded but didn’t move out of her way as she approached the door.

Meryn stopped and looked up at him.

“I thought we were going to be friends.”

She clutched the container tighter. “I said I’d try, and I am.”

“By running away?”

“I’m not running away. I just don’t want to get caught out after curfew. I have no desire to get arrested again and go through what I went through the last time.”

He flinched. A direct hit.

Meryn closed her eyes for a few seconds. That wasn’t fair. She opened her eyes. “I apologize, I shouldn’t have—”

“No, you’re right; you’d never want to go through all that again.” His voice was tight. “You should go.” He stepped to the side and held his arm toward the door.

Sara Davison is the author of the romantic suspense novels The Watcher and The Seven Trilogy. She has been a finalist for eight national writing awards, including the Word Award for Best New Canadian Christian author, a Carol, and two Daphne du Maurier Awards, and is a Word and Cascade Award winner. Sara has a degree in English Literature and currently resides in Ontario, Canada with her husband Michael and their three children, all of whom she (literally) looks up to.

CONNECT WITH SARA: website | Facebook | Twitter

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive:

• a set of all 3 books in The Seven Trilogy (US/CAN only)
• $25 Amazon gift card

Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Giveaway will begin at midnight January 7, 2019 and lasts through 11:59pm January 21, 2018. Void where prohibited by law. Winners will be notified within a week of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Launch at JustRead Tours

All posts expected to be up by 12 Noon eastern

January 7
The Power of Words
Angela Walker’s Reviews

January 8
Robin’s Nest
Heidi Reads

January 9
A Baker’s Perspective
Faithfully Bookish

January 10
Fiction Aficionado
Meagan Davenport

January 11
Kitty’s Roar
Rev. Rebecca Writes

January 14
The Fizzy Pop Collection
Wishful Endings
Reading Is My SuperPower

January 15
Genesis5020
Inklings and Notions

January 16
Book Butterfly in Dreamland
The Fizzy Pop Collection

January 17
Remembrancy
this chattanooga mommy saves

January 18
Living Outside the Line
The Fizzy Pop Collection