Title: Angie's Promise
Author: Toby Heathcotte
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Published in August 2004 by Wings ePress
IBSN: 1-59088-318-7
45 year old Angie Brock is in the prime of her life. She is in love and basking in its heady glow. After being apart from her lover Ty Beckman for more than 25 years the two are finally reunited and about to be married. Once upon a time Angie loved Ty with all of her heart. They were high school sweethearts who first experienced the true taste of passion in each others arms. But when Angie discovered that Ty cheated on her, she could not find it within her to forgive him, despite the fact that she still loved him. Ty immediately settled for a substitute and ended up marrying another woman. Years later, he knows that what he once shared with Angie could only be found when he is with her and so the two rekindle old flames. Their old desires are brought back to life and the two are closer than ever before. Sharing days and nights full of passionate lovemaking and plans for a future that encompasses them both and her grown son Luke.
Angie and Ty are relaxing aboard his boat, Destiny, and enjoying their day together in the warm sun. Suddenly Angie is assailed with a vision so terrifying in its extreme that she is left shaken up as she tries to sort out its meaning. When Angie falls overboard in a storm and Ty saves her, they strengthen their verbal vows to each other. Angie tries to warn Ty of her premonition. Knowing that deep down, something awful is about to happen to him when he gets on his plane. Ty reassures her that he believes in her, but he must carry out with his plans. Angie makes a solemn and heartfelt promise to Ty. That not even death will part them, and if it does, she would find a way to reunite them. Tragic events unfold the week before their wedding when right before Angie's eyes, Ty's plane crashes to earth in a brutal and extremely horrifying accident. Ty is killed immediately and Angie's world is in thrust into torment. She believes herself guilty and because of her trying to stop Ty, so does the military. Now Angie spends her days looking for Ty in hopes of connecting their spirits once more.
Luke Brock wants nothing more than to comfort his mother in her lonely grief. He sees her quickly becoming lost to him and drowning within her own misery. He too loved Ty and had hopes of the two of them building a father/son relationship. Never having his own dad around had given Luke insecurities that his devoted mother helped to erase. He seeks to repay her favors by being there for her at a time that she needs him most. Having suffered from epilepsy all his life, Luke knows the pain she is in. Whenever his attacks struck, she was always the one to pull him through. Her voice is the soothing balm that takes his pains away and gives his body relief. When Angie tells him that she has found a way to reunite with Ty, he believes her. After all, her visions were always a big part of their lives. They also saved him when she would show up out of the blue, knowing that he needed her to survive. He lets her have her time with Ty but also tries to coax back into the world of living with him.
When Luke meets Melinda Chacon, he knows that he has found his true love. Melinda is a mystery to him with her come hither smiles yet standoffish attitudes. He longs to get beneath her icy exterior and free the passionate woman he sees lurking beneath. He wants the kind of relationship that Ty and his mom shared. An all consuming and perfect love that offered the two of them no boundaries. He lets Melinda know that their differences in way of life and ethnicity have no bearings on his feelings for her. He also admires her desires to succeed and bring jobs and opportunity to her people. When he introduces her to his mom he is a little put off with his mom’s apparent hesitancy in embracing his relationship. He is at first angry and proceeds to spend more time with Melinda leaving Angie to her pleasure filled times with Ty.
When Ty lets Angie know that they have to part again, she feels that all is lost to her. With the recommendation from a psychic who couldn't help her, she then turns to Dr. Evelyn Powers. A therapist who uses past life regressions to bring clients the answers they seek. With Dr. Powers' help, Angie discovers startling things about herself and Ty that forces her to make changes within her life. The two lovers were set on a course long ago to eradicate mistakes they've made with each other. They both need to learn to accept what the other considers important and to compromise that into their lives. Until then, the lovers will always be doomed for tragedy. While trying to bridge the gap between her and Ty, Angie see that her son is on the same path to destruction with Melinda. Despite her warnings, Luke wants to live his life and make his own mistakes. Even if it costs him the woman he loves. As two sets of lovers struggle to battle overwhelming odds Angie is sure of one thing, all isn't as it seems with Melinda and she is about to bring heartbreak to them all. The promise that Angie made, and all that she holds dear, is brought to startling clarity and a dramatic climax with the talented pen of Toby Heathcotte.
As Angie prepares to face her toughest obstacles yet, she has to realize that life and love are the same, and it’s only in letting go and accepting, that she and Ty will ever stand a chance. ANGIE'S PROMISE was not the typical ghost love story that I expected it to be. It was a story meant to embrace life and all that it has to offer its participants. All the characters have lessons to learn and Angie has the biggest hurdle to overcome of them all. A hauntingly beautiful and sweetly romantic read, ANGIE'S PROMISE delivers it all with a mesmerizing warmness that caresses the reader’s very soul. Even though Ty's character wasn't a major part of the story, the love he had for Angie was evident from page one until the final and most gratifying scene of them all. I recommend this truly romantic tale to all of you who hunger for a romance that satisfies from start to finish. Published by Wings ePress Books and available in August of 2004, ANGIE'S PROMISE doesn't break its word, it delivers it with a finesse that encourages the heart to believe.
Happy reading,
Joann Ruffen
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