Tuesday, May 10, 2016

"Furious"

T.R. Ragan (Theresa Ragan) is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. Her exciting Lizzy Gardner series (Abducted, Dead Weight, A Dark Mind, Obsessed, Almost Dead, and Evil Never Dies) has received tremendous praise. In August 2015 Evil Never Dies hit #7 on the Wall Street Journal bestselling list.

Ragan applied the Page 69 Test to Furious, the first book in her Faith McMann series, and reported the following:
From page 69:
Miranda pulled her gaze from Adele and looked at Mother, who had taken some time to do her hair and makeup. Her faded brown strands had been swept to the back of her head, then rolled and pinned. Lots of stray flyaway hairs stuck out every which way, but no one dared point that out or look at her for too long. With her hair pulled back away from her face, it was plain to see that Mother might have been considered pretty in her younger days. Nobody knew how old she was. Jasper once guessed her age to be thirty-five, but there was no way—forty-five minimum, Miranda figured. She did have high cheekbones, and every once in a while, like now, there was a brightness to her light-colored eyes that made her look younger. She’d exchanged her tattered blue jeans and faded gray T-shirt for a flowery print dress and a blue sweater with sleeves that stopped just above her elbows. If she’d resisted applying the powder-blue eye shadow and false lashes, she might look less like the street hookers Miranda used to see hanging out on Watt Avenue and more like one of the school moms at the market.

“I’ve got a surprise,” Mother said, her gaze sweeping over each and every one of them. “We have a very important guest today. He’s driven a long way, so I need you all to be on your best behavior. Mr. Smith has only a few minutes to make a decision before he leaves for San Francisco. A week from now, the girl who is chosen will get to spend time with Mr. Smith at a luxury hotel in San Francisco. You will be treated like a princess. Pampered and served whatever your heart desires. But . . . if you misbehave, even so much as frown, there will be consequences. Severe consequences. Do you understand?”

Every girl nodded in unison.

Mother forced a grin as she pointed at both sides of her mouth. “See this smile on my face?”

Again they all nodded.
The “Mother” character on page 69 of Furious represents the evils of human trafficking, and the selling of a lie. Human trafficking is all about manipulation and money. That this woman forces young girls who have been taken against their will to call her Mother, is more than disturbing. Faith McMann, the protagonist, is a mother herself.

The Faith McMann trilogy takes readers on a wild journey as Faith, family, and friends traverse their way through the horrible and gritty world of trafficking. The people they’re up against are ruthless. But they’re about to learn that nothing is more dangerous than a mother fighting for her children—especially one who’s earned the nickname Furious.
Visit T.R. Ragan's website.

--Marshal Zeringue