Hiya peeps, we have Ki Brightly and the upcoming release The Paranaturalist stopping by today, we have a fantastic guest post and a great excerpt, so check out the post and get a feel for this spooky book! <3 ~Pixie~

The Paranaturalist

Ki Brightly

As a kid, Joseph Appleyard saw things hidden from others. Now he is The Paranaturalist, an investigator and cohost of a television show that seeks to prove the existence of the paranormal. Some think Joe is crazy, but they don’t realize he knows firsthand there’s more to the world than what most perceive. The trouble is, somewhere along the way, Joe lost his vision and it left his world flat and dull. One night an investigation goes horribly wrong, and a powerful ghostly manifestation sends Joe tumbling into a river. Spirit worker Owen Watson saves Joe’s life, and once they are back on dry land, whatever has been blocking Joe’s vision has been washed away.

When a haunting goes from annoying to dangerous, people turn to Owen Watson. He hates those infuriating hacks from TV, but when he pulls Joe from the river, his mind begins to change. Joe is scared and confused, and Owen realizes he might just be the real thing. Together, they work to understand the part of Joe that has been shut away for so long. But just as Joe is reacclimating to his abilities, his career as a paranormal investigator is in danger of being ripped away. Owen would gladly battle a bloodthirsty spirit for Joe, but he’s out of his element in the world of reality television.

Ki Brightly!

For as long as I can remember I was scared of the dark. There’s just something about it. You never know what’s in there…but on the other hand the dark is so forgiving. It hides every fault, every flaw. Two people are simply voices and spirit in the dark. If you’ve ever had a long conversation with the lights out you probably know it’s suddenly easier to talk about all those embarrassing moments.

The Paranaturalist is my exploration of what it means to be scared of the dark. The physical dark, because…boy howdy, lots of creepy stuff could be out there, but also those things we hold inside ourselves, that we trap there, and allow to take us over, make us different people than we might have been otherwise.

Fun fact:

My father once took me out into the middle of the woods near our house at night when I was around 8, I think, and left me there (he told me years later he watched me the entire time, but I thought he was gone) with a flashlight and told me to find my way home. He was trying to break me of two things at once, my fear of the woods—inspired by the movie Pumpkinhead which I probably shouldn’t have sneak watched—and my fear of the dark.

It really, truly didn’t work.

I cried. But…eventually I did pick my way home through the darkness.

And those house lights never looked so perfect, so warm.

And that’s kind of what finding that person who is just right for you is like, but it takes Joe and Owen a while to figure that out.

I hope you enjoy this excerpt!

Excerpt

This is Owen’s point of view and Owen and Joe are in the basement of the Dew Drop In where Joe’s crew is investigating a haunting.

“God. That really happened to you?” I nod, and he lets out a shaky breath.

“I… I… um… I don’t want to do this anymore,” he says, breath hitching.

“Too bad. It’s your gift.”

“Curse.”

“Only if you’re stupid about it. You’re able to do something not many people can,” I point out as I shuffle half a step forward. Any closer and we’ll be the same person. I know what I want to do right now. I don’t rub myself all over him like a horny high-school kid, but it’s a near miss. The taste of him earlier wasn’t enough.

“What is that? Be a puppet?” He turns his head to let out a cough, and I hold my own breath, only letting it go with relief when he clears his throat, going silent again. I rest my hands on his shoulders and squeeze. He doesn’t seem upset to have me between him and the rest of the dark basement. Happiness close to pride swells in me, along with the insistence I do more than stare like a moron at lips that only ever really look approachable when they’re smiling.

“No, be their voice. Help them. Other people can’t see them, let alone help them.” A tidal wave of approval crashes around inside me from Otto. Good. Maybe I’ve fulfilled whatever obligation he thinks I have.

“Then why do some of them want to hurt me?” I knead my fingers into his tight shoulders and his lips tilt up at the corners.

“Death doesn’t change bastards into saints. And sometimes even good people don’t want help. Some spirits aren’t even human. That piece of shit you just chased out sure isn’t. They’re something else. Some good, some bad.” I shrug, losing myself in thought. I’ve seen a lot over the years. Mostly bad, but I don’t want to say it out loud. People don’t generally call me for help with nice hauntings.

There’s a question he’s not asking written in the tightness around his eyes. Oh, how badly it can all go when you ignore your gifts.

About Ki

Ki grew up in small town nowhere pretending that meteor showers were aliens invading, turning wildflowers into magic potions, and reading more than was probably healthy. Ki had one amazing best friend, one endlessly out of grasp “true love”, and a personal vendetta against normalcy.

Now, as an adult, living in Erie, Pennsylvania, Ki enjoys the sandy beaches, frigid winters, and a wonderful fancy water addiction. Seriously, fancy waters…who knew there were so many different kinds? It’s just water…and yet…

Ki shares this life with a Muse, a Sugar Plum, and two wonderful children.

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