Neverland
Academy
Author: Daelynn
Quinn
Genre: YA
It was
the worst day of Daphne’s life. Not only had her parents moved her from Atlanta
to the middle of nowhere, but her boyfriend broke up with her in the middle of
a crowded club and her parents grounded her for a month for sneaking out and
stealing the BMW. All in one night! If she were back home in Atlanta it would
be no problem. She could always find ways of getting around her punishments.
But this was rural Georgia. And there was nowhere to go but woods and farmland.
That is, until Finn showed up at her window.
Finn was the invincible mascot of Neverland Academy where Daphne’s brothers attended. For the five years since he’d been expelled from the all-boys boarding school, he lived in the old slave tunnels under the former antebellum plantation home. He and his band of outcast boys lived for pulling pranks on the school’s professors, and especially the headmaster, Byron Trappe, who had a personal vendetta against Finn.
Daphne grew to love life under the academy. But there was one problem. She was falling for Finn. Hard. She knew he didn’t want a relationship or anything that resembled growing up. But when the wall she built between them begins to crumble before her eyes, will she stay at the academy and face impending heartbreak? Or will she leave her heart behind and escape the dangers of criminal life, including a perilous encounter with the vengeful headmaster?
Finn was the invincible mascot of Neverland Academy where Daphne’s brothers attended. For the five years since he’d been expelled from the all-boys boarding school, he lived in the old slave tunnels under the former antebellum plantation home. He and his band of outcast boys lived for pulling pranks on the school’s professors, and especially the headmaster, Byron Trappe, who had a personal vendetta against Finn.
Daphne grew to love life under the academy. But there was one problem. She was falling for Finn. Hard. She knew he didn’t want a relationship or anything that resembled growing up. But when the wall she built between them begins to crumble before her eyes, will she stay at the academy and face impending heartbreak? Or will she leave her heart behind and escape the dangers of criminal life, including a perilous encounter with the vengeful headmaster?
Excerpt:
“You’re not a student here,” a voice drifted from
behind her as if a breeze carried it through a drafty window.
Daphne jumped nearly two inches off her seat and her
heart thumped wildly against her chest. Quickly she hit “Send” and stood,
guarding the computer screen. She was shocked to meet face to face with a boy
who looked not much older than she. Judging by his stature, tall and athletic,
he looked like he couldn’t possibly be young enough to attend, but his boyish
face complete with deep-set dimples defied that thought. His hair, black as
coal was spiked up in that “just got out of bed” look and he was dressed in a
black V-neck tee shirt and jeans, which had worn holes in the knees. She was
well familiar with the style, being in the crowd she was in, but this didn’t
exactly look like a fashion statement. Especially not with bare feet that
looked like they’d been through a few mud puddles since his last shower. It
certainly didn’t meet the dress code for Neverland Academy.
“Apparently neither are you,” Daphne retorted, letting her
gaze scan him from head to toe, but she refused to meet his eyes. There was
something intimidating about this boy. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it,
but there was something about him that made her incredibly nervous.
The boy smiled, showing off a perfect set of teeth.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, leaning back against
the bookcase and crossing his arms in a cocky manner.
Daphne twitched nervously. Surely this guy wasn’t old enough
to be a professor, was he? “I was just sending an email. See, my parents
haven’t set up the Internet at our house yet and I just needed to get in touch
with some old friends from—”
“No not here, in the library. I mean what are you doing at
the academy? Don’t tell me Professor Pervpot has changed the rules to allow
girls in.”
“Professor who?”
The boy rolled his eyes and sighed. “Trappe?”
“No!” Daphne laughed. “My brothers are starting school here.
We came to help them move in and do the tour and stuff, which was incredibly
boring, I might add. And speaking of Trappe, is it just me or is he a really
creepy guy?”
“Don’t I know it.”
For the first time Daphne met his eyes and did not look
away. She was dazzled by the clarity of them. It was like somebody sliced a
lime in half and stuck the two halves in his eyeballs, with the flesh facing
out. She’d never seen green eyes that looked so bright and clear. She struggled
to look away, but couldn’t. His gaze remained on her, audacious and
enraptured.
Author Bio
Daelynn
Quinn was born and raised in southern Maryland where she spent her youth
exploring and falling in love with nature in the woods behind her house. She
graduated the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in dietetics, which
she promptly abandoned to pursue writing. Daelynn’s writing is fast-paced and
laced with current issues that concern her. Her first dystopian trilogy, Fall
of Venus, focused on climate change and the role we as humans play in it. Her
YA novel, Neverland Academy, delves into child abuse and negligence. Daelynn is
excited to be commencing a new series, which will tear into the animal
exploitation industries. While she is not reading or writing, Daelynn enjoys
brainstorming while mowing her lawn, cooking healthy meals her kids refuse to
eat, and watching old episodes of Mr. Bean with her three boys.
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