Mary Montague Sikes

Today I welcome Mary Montague Sikes to the blog

Hi Mary, tell us abotu yourself and your books.

Mary Montague Sikes is a native Virginian who grew up in the historic city of Fredericksburg in the shadow of Civil War battlefields near the boyhood home of George Washington. Motivated by her surroundings, she started writing and painting at an early age. In high school she developed a fascination for the works of Edgar Allen Poe and was inspired to write short stories. Always intrigued by far-away places, as an adult she began traveling and writing about her journeys to exotic locations. Her first novel, Hearts Across Forever, is set in Jamaica and relates to her interest in the legend of the white witch of Rose Hall.


Using both her writing and her artistic skills, Monti wrote and illustrated a coffee table book, Hotels to Remember. Her publisher created the Passenger to Paradise series for her exotic destination books. Night Watch, set in Trinidad, is the latest book in that series. She also has a gothic e-book, Dangerous Hearts, by Red Rose Publishing. All of her novels are available as Kindle Books from Amazon.


A professional artist with a MFA in painting, Monti teaches art to almost 400 elementary school children. Besides her interest in painting, she plays tennis, follows Major League Baseball, does step aerobics, loves to travel, and enjoys her family of three adult daughters. Monti and her husband now reside in a little Virginia town situated on three rivers accessed by two beautiful new bridges.

BLURB:

What has Lily "walked" into?

From the moment Lily’s plane lands in tropical Trinidad, things go awry. She planned for rest, relaxation and photography, but instead faces mistaken identity, a gun running operation and danger. Her transportation to her lodging does a no show, and she is mistaken for someone named Katherine by Kyle Warren.

Over the next few days, Lily’s resemblance to another puts her in danger and Kyle’s attempts to protect her further complicate the uncanny memories and feelings that she may indeed know him from the past.

With her life in peril, Lily discovers a deep kinship with her doppelganger and a growing attachment to Kyle.


EXCERPT (rated PG):

Chapter One
Port of Spain, Trinidad
November 5, 1986

"Katherine?"

When Lily Henri turned toward the voice, she saw a tall blond man dash out of
the crowd toward her. His hurried footsteps clicked on the gray floor tiles and
resounded sharply above the clamor of the airport terminal.

Her name was not Katherine. She looked around for someone else standing
near her but saw no one. Confused, Lily shrank back from the approaching stranger, allowing her shoulder bag to fall on the luggage stacked next to her.

His tawny gold eyes narrowing, the man paused a few feet away and stared at
her. Lily watched his face pale and his eyes fade to a tarnished color.
The man looked as if he were seeing a ghost and she was it. An involuntary shiver slithered down her spine.

"Katherine?"

"No. My name’s not Katherine."

The stranger’s serious eyes and tense voice made her uneasy. She wanted to edge away, but she could not move far without abandoning her luggage.
As if hypnotized, the man continued to stare.

"I’m sorry, but you’ve mistaken me for someone else," Lily said in a level voice.
She raked back unruly strands of pale blonde hair that clung to her cheeks.
The man frowned, but he did not turn away. Instead, he continued to study her
with piercing eyes that left her bewildered and confused. He looked confused as
well.

"No. No. I see that you’re not Katherine," he said after what seemed a very long
time. He shook his head.

Lily detected an English accent to his subdued voice. And it held an edge of
sadness that tempted Lily to reach out and touch him. Of course, she did not,
but it took considerable discipline to keep the impulse in check.

With sudden resolve, the man straightened his broad shoulders, and a pleasant
smile replaced the confusion on his handsome face. "My apologies. I didn’t intend to stare. It’s just… It’s that you look so very much like her…
"Except…"

"Except what?"

The handsome stranger had captured her curiosity. Lily wanted to know more.
Before the man could reply, a blue-eyed beauty, long, flaming red hair cascading
over her shoulders, stepped from the crowd and caught hold of his arm.

"It’s time to board the flight."

Her voice was low and sultry. A green silk dress clung to the woman’s ample breasts and curved tight to her hips. She tilted her face and smiled up at the man. Without looking at Lily, she guided him toward the departure gates.

"Sorry to have bothered you," the man said, his voice now more deep and
confident than before. He pulled away from the woman, came back, and pressed a white business card into Lily’s hand.

"If you should need me, do call," he said. "Sometimes people in Trinidad need
help," he added, then rushed away into the crowd with the tall redhead on his arm. The space where the man had stood turned cold and empty. Lily shivered as she read the name, "Kyle Warren," in bold black letters. A local number was listed at the bottom, a telephone number, no other information.

She stared after Kyle Warren and the beautiful woman, watching them disappear
into the crowd of people headed toward the gate. Now Lily felt much lonelier than before. To add to her confusion, she sensed someone she knew had left her. But, of course, that could not be. It was late, and she was tired. Yet something about the tall blond man was familiar… And Lily didn’t quite like the way that redhead latched onto his arm.

She shrugged. She couldn’t be jealous of this stranger’s friend. What was she
thinking?

The trip—a working vacation—to Trinidad was a big step for Lily. She’d chosen
a foreign destination, completely unfamiliar to her, in hopes the sights and sounds of a new place would somehow enhance her photojournalism career.

The brochure advertising the remote Trinidad resort intrigued her. She needed
to get away from the family and friends she didn’t seem to know anymore.
Things were strange for her since the accident…




Night Watch, Secrets by the Sea, Eagle Rising - Passenger to Paradise
Dangerous Hearts, a Shadowed Hearts gothic romance


www.marymontaguesikes.com


http://marymontaguesikes.blogspot.com


Blurb by
Betty Ann Harris
Author Promotions & Marketing




You have a varied and active life Mary. Good luck with your books and thank you for visiting.