We're celebrating the release of BRED by Ginger Scott! It's a coming-of-age romance inspired by Great Expectations that you won't want to miss!
A coming-of-age romance inspired by Great Expectations
My life was irrevocably changed the moment I stepped foot inside Elena Alderman’s grand front doors. A lifeless tomb on the edge of Chicago’s Southside, the Alderman home sat in one of the city’s oldest and wealthiest neighborhoods, and Elena Alderman was the queen.
She was also mad.
Not the kind of madness that’s readily apparent. No, her psychopathy was far more surgical—more…insidious. She was surrounded by beautiful things—most notably her grand piano and her adopted son, Henry.
I fell in love with both.
My gift blossomed when my fingers touched her black and white keys. But my life began when I became haunted by the boy. Henry Alderman was a handsome blend of arrogance and seduction, and as we grew up together, I found it more and more impossible to separate him from my thoughts. I envied his life. I imagined how my name—Lily—would look with his. I became his closest friend…and more. I gave him my kiss, locked away his secrets, and loved him even when it was hard to.
But we were just a game. Elena Alderman made the rules. And when she decided to change them, she broke everything.
Almost.
Review
* * * *
I've read so many books by Ginger Scott that I've experienced highs, lows and the in betweens with her. She's given us youthful innocence, gritty personalities, wounded souls and generous hearts, but Bred is something different entirely. If I had to describe it with one word, I'd borrow it from Scott's acknowledgements: bleak. It's the perfect summation of this story about two teenagers who feel rather like misfits in their worlds and find a strange sort of solace in each other's company.
When Lily and Henry first meet they're mere children and Lily can already tell that Henry and his adoptive mother, Elena are different. Henry remained somber through the years as Lily continued her piano lessons with Elena who so generously offered her time and piano so that the naturally talented Lily could learn. Despite Henry's often aloofness, Lily became enamoured with him and they formed a tenuous bond that was so unusual and unique to anything I think either of them had. Elena's home life is a far cry form Henry's who has money and wants for nothing. Hers is strained. When Lily's parents died, she went to live with her mother's distant cousin, Alice and her husband. Neither were ready to be parents and were already struggling financially. Lily was basically counting down the days when she could be on her own so it's come as a blessing when she's accepted into the elite boarding school that Henry attends. She hopes that now that they're at the same school they'll see more of each other and even hang out. Much to her disappointment and confusion Henry continues to remain a mystery to her.
Ginger Scott took on quite the project with her retelling of Great Expectations. I'm unfamiliar with the original and have no way of comparing the two but I was none the less captivated by the story even if there were only a few moments of joy. Much like the book's cover I saw everything as mostly gray or muted colours, including the people. The bright spots came during some unexpected moments such as Lily singing in front of a crowd, a night club scene; basically anytime when it wasn't just Lily and Henry stuck in their bubble. There's also this underlying sinister feeling that comes across, and thanks to Scott's enthralling writing I wanted to get to the bottom of Henry's behaviour and Elena's motives. She's a devious one that Elena.
Ginger Scott takes risks with the stories she wants to share with us. I like that Bred was unlike anything of hers I'd read before and it would be a perfect read for you if you're in the mood for a retelling of a classic.
~ Bel
Excerpt
(Copyright Ginger
Scott, 2019)
“You know this stuff…” he starts, but I
interrupt with an emphatic shake of my head. When his fingers splay out
over my back I freeze. I follow the path my book takes back to the place
it started in front of me as Henry slides it in place, flipping open to
the chapter I’m trying to memorize. Knelt down next to me, he leans
closer, resting his right arm next to my left one—we are touching.
I swallow. I’m going to fail. I cannot memorize something like the varied historical degrees of differences between a Protestant hell and a Lutheran one while the master of all hotness is sharing a desktop with me. My arm hairs are literally electric, standing up and reaching to plant themselves in his skin. I’ve gone completely primal—my body convinced that I am the gatherer in need of this hunter.
“Look,” he says, leaning in even closer and reaching to flip the pages. I barely register the movement of his thumb under a bold section of words. When his eyes catch mine still stuck on his face, I jump in my seat a little.
“Sorry,” I say, clearing my throat. “I’m just overwhelmed. Maybe a little slow, too, from being in here so long.”
It’s partly true, but I’m also just crushing. Crushing—that’s what Nicki calls it. She rolls her eyes every time she catches me doing it too, then labels it with that word. I crush in the dining area. I crush between classes when Henry pokes my arm with his index finger as we pass in the halls. I crush when I watch him sprint across the lawn every day at three in the afternoon, late for rowing. It’s literally become how I know it’s three o’clock! My body just instinctually glides toward my window at exactly 2:59. Pathetic!
At this point, we should just say that I’m crushed rather than crushing. Crushed and utterly destroyed of all pride.
I am gatherer.
“What you need to do is make up a rhyme. Something that will help you keep all of the key words in your brain so when it comes time to write them down in order, you’ll have them there.”
I draw in my lips and let the acid climb up my throat.
“I don’t even understand that. Ugg, I’m hopeless,” I say, letting my head fall flat against the book. I bounce my forehead there lightly while I eke out a desperate laugh at my own expense.
“You aren’t hopeless.” I feel the warm breath from his chuckle and smell the mint of his gum, and it’s intoxicating enough without his touch, so when the warm hand slides the hair from my cheek I go full hypnosis. His fingers trace my jaw, and my head lifts from the light pressure of his hold. For a moment, I believe in myself just because of the look in his eyes when our stares meet. He’s dead serious—and God, the way he’s looking at me, hair all tousled, smile soft and true, cheeks lifted as if they’re glad to see me.
Like a drunk, I lean closer, my lips parting and ready—my mind imagining everything I’m about to feel—Henry’s mouth on mine, the graze of teeth against my lips, us standing as his arms sweep around my back before his hands rush up my spine into my own messy hair.
None of that happens.
I get an inch away from his mouth, my eyelids fluttering with nerves and uncertainty whether they should close or remain open, and Henry turns a few inches to his left, stiffening and backing away just enough to keep me from making this worse—as if I can make this worse somehow. The rush of heat that coats me isn’t from passion—it’s from humiliation. My eyes remain open just long enough to see the movement in his neck as he clears his throat. His soft smile is replaced with a hard line, drawn under the pity that slants his eyes.
I think I understand hell a little better now. It helps that I’m in it.
“I’m just tired. I…” Why I try to speak, I don’t know.
“It’s fine.” His voice is laced with discomfort. In one blink I erased everything that was easy between us. All because of my damn fantasies.
Fine. That word—so short, so four-lettered. Such a lie. I ruined everything.
I swallow. I’m going to fail. I cannot memorize something like the varied historical degrees of differences between a Protestant hell and a Lutheran one while the master of all hotness is sharing a desktop with me. My arm hairs are literally electric, standing up and reaching to plant themselves in his skin. I’ve gone completely primal—my body convinced that I am the gatherer in need of this hunter.
“Look,” he says, leaning in even closer and reaching to flip the pages. I barely register the movement of his thumb under a bold section of words. When his eyes catch mine still stuck on his face, I jump in my seat a little.
“Sorry,” I say, clearing my throat. “I’m just overwhelmed. Maybe a little slow, too, from being in here so long.”
It’s partly true, but I’m also just crushing. Crushing—that’s what Nicki calls it. She rolls her eyes every time she catches me doing it too, then labels it with that word. I crush in the dining area. I crush between classes when Henry pokes my arm with his index finger as we pass in the halls. I crush when I watch him sprint across the lawn every day at three in the afternoon, late for rowing. It’s literally become how I know it’s three o’clock! My body just instinctually glides toward my window at exactly 2:59. Pathetic!
At this point, we should just say that I’m crushed rather than crushing. Crushed and utterly destroyed of all pride.
I am gatherer.
“What you need to do is make up a rhyme. Something that will help you keep all of the key words in your brain so when it comes time to write them down in order, you’ll have them there.”
I draw in my lips and let the acid climb up my throat.
“I don’t even understand that. Ugg, I’m hopeless,” I say, letting my head fall flat against the book. I bounce my forehead there lightly while I eke out a desperate laugh at my own expense.
“You aren’t hopeless.” I feel the warm breath from his chuckle and smell the mint of his gum, and it’s intoxicating enough without his touch, so when the warm hand slides the hair from my cheek I go full hypnosis. His fingers trace my jaw, and my head lifts from the light pressure of his hold. For a moment, I believe in myself just because of the look in his eyes when our stares meet. He’s dead serious—and God, the way he’s looking at me, hair all tousled, smile soft and true, cheeks lifted as if they’re glad to see me.
Like a drunk, I lean closer, my lips parting and ready—my mind imagining everything I’m about to feel—Henry’s mouth on mine, the graze of teeth against my lips, us standing as his arms sweep around my back before his hands rush up my spine into my own messy hair.
None of that happens.
I get an inch away from his mouth, my eyelids fluttering with nerves and uncertainty whether they should close or remain open, and Henry turns a few inches to his left, stiffening and backing away just enough to keep me from making this worse—as if I can make this worse somehow. The rush of heat that coats me isn’t from passion—it’s from humiliation. My eyes remain open just long enough to see the movement in his neck as he clears his throat. His soft smile is replaced with a hard line, drawn under the pity that slants his eyes.
I think I understand hell a little better now. It helps that I’m in it.
“I’m just tired. I…” Why I try to speak, I don’t know.
“It’s fine.” His voice is laced with discomfort. In one blink I erased everything that was easy between us. All because of my damn fantasies.
Fine. That word—so short, so four-lettered. Such a lie. I ruined everything.
About the Author
Ginger Scott is an Amazon-bestselling and Goodreads Choice Award-nominated author of several young and new adult romances, including Waiting on the Sidelines, Going Long, Blindness, How We Deal With Gravity, This Is Falling, You and Everything After, The Girl I Was Before, Wild Reckless, Wicked Restless, In Your Dreams, The Hard Count, Hold My Breath, and A Boy Like You.
A sucker for a good romance, Ginger’s other passion is sports, and she often blends the two in her stories. (She’s also a sucker for a hot quarterback, catcher, pitcher, point guard…the list goes on.) Ginger has been writing and editing for newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and towns. For more on her and her work, visit her website at http://www.littlemisswrite.com.
When she's not writing, the odds are high that she's somewhere near a baseball diamond, either watching her son field pop flies like Bryce Harper or cheering on her favorite baseball team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ginger lives in Arizona and is married to her college sweetheart whom she met at ASU (fork 'em, Devils).
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