The Angel Scroll: Prophecy. Destiny. Love - A Spiritual Romance, Mystery/Thriller Novel by Penelope Holt Book Tour with Guest Post & Giveaway

  

THE ANGEL SCROLL

Penelope Holt

 

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GENRE:  Spiritual Romance, Mystery/Thriller

 

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BLURB:

 

ONE ANCIENT PROPHECY, TWO HEARTBROKEN LOVERS, AND A WORLDWIDE SCAVENGER HUNT FOR THREE MIRACULOUS PAINTINGS.

 

After her husband’s death, New York artist Claire Lucas has baffling dreams and waking visions as she channels an enigmatic and healing painting of a holy man in India at the deathbed of a young woman. When widowed antiquarian Richard Markson announces that Claire’s canvas is one-third of three paintings prophesied by the Angel Scroll, a recently discovered Dead Sea parchment, she is pulled into an international scavenger hunt to find the stolen scroll and the paintings it predicts.

 

As she pursues the paintings with Richard across historic and holy sites in America, Israel, and Europe, Claire encounters a series of remarkable teachers. A Buddhist, a Benedictine monk, and a professor of early goddess worship all provide rich explanations for the artist’s compelling and perplexing psychic experiences — until she assembles the incredible triptych and deciphers its inspirational message for the modern world.

 

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EXCERPT 

Richard looked at the beautiful young woman who strolled beside him, the sun picking up copper highlights in her rich dark curls and catching golden flecks in her green eyes. She had been through a lot. He wanted to put his arm around her shoulder and draw her close, hold her, and protect her. Instead, he pressed his hand for a moment on the small of her back, allowing himself to feel her warm skin through her white cotton artist’s blouse before he let his hand drop.

 

His touch caught Claire by surprise. The gentle pressure on her back felt so intimate and filled her with unanticipated pleasure that stirred sensations in her groin. She felt an aching need to lean into him. Instead, she wandered away from his side to regain her balance. Looking in a shop window, she let herself be distracted by the display of distinctive, hand-painted pottery.

 

Richard felt chastened. She was so light and free with me on that amazing afternoon we spent together in Jerusalem, he thought. She seemed to love exploring the old city and markets, but since London, she’s been cool. Whenever I get close, she tenses up. I should keep some distance and not crowd her. It’s a bad idea to push unwanted affection on her when she’s obviously still grieving for Jake. It’s too soon for her to think about being with another man. And then there’s the lie I told her about Hilde.

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GUEST POST

The Writing Muse: A Timeless Source of Inspiration

By Penelope  

 

We know the Muses originate in Greek mythology. Nine beautiful, ethereal goddesses; each one presided over a different art and science, bestowing brilliance on human creators. Most writers are familiar with Calliope, the Muse of epic poetry, or perhaps Melpomene, the Muse of tragedy.

 

Although this idea of a mystical force guiding genius dates back to ancient times, it’s one that still intrigues modern writers. Elizabeth Gilbert believes that creative genius is not something internal to a person but an external force or entity, a muse, that visits and inspires them.  Creativity is unpredictable and whimsical. Rather than expecting constant brilliance, she says, artists might instead dial down the internal pressure as they work. Relax, knowing that the muse will appear if and when she’s ready.  

 

Muse Struck

At the height of creativity, when brilliance or originality flashes, we’re transported almost into an altered state. There is a heightened sense of awareness, excitement, power, and potential as we flex our creative muscles. When getting ready to channel inspiration into a new work of fiction, there is, for me, a definite sense of being struck by an outside force that is gifting me with brand-new insight or direction.

 

And I’m not alone. The world’s greatest artists have paid homage to the muse that imbued them with genius.  Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci believed they were tapping into something beyond themselves, a higher force that resided not only in the heavens but lived alongside them on earth, a personal companion that guided their hands. 

 

Poets such as William Wordsworth and Lord Byron often described an even more intense and personal connection to their muse, which spoke to them through the sublime beauty of nature, life, and love.

 

Mystical Beginnings

Celebrated contemporary songwriters such as Paul McCartney and Paul Simon talk of the music and lyrics of a song flowing effortlessly, or coming to them in a dream, delivered by a generous muse. Traveling back in time, Samuel Taylor Coleridge claimed that his famous poem Kubla Khan, which reads almost like a mystical incantation, came in a dream, an inspired eruption from the subconscious. He woke up and wrote feverishly, desperate to capture the ephemeral experience and set the words down on paper, but he was interrupted by a visitor and his muse fled, leaving the poem unfinished.  Victor Hugo, author of Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, credited his muse with forcing him to lock away his clothes, so he wouldn’t venture outside and abandon his writing.

  

One Percent Inspiration, Ninety-Nine Percent Perspiration

Most writers admit to sometimes sitting around, waiting for the muse to strike. All the while knowing that while inspiration can hit on a walk, in a dream, in the shower, or during a Netflix binge, it most reliably shows up when we sit at our laptop, in our favorite writing spot, ready to roll up our sleeves and put in the effort.

 

I’ve learned to invest equally in both sides of the writing equation. I do believe in the intangible but powerful experience of being blessed by a muse. The delight of a gripping idea that comes unbidden, and the excitement of wrangling it into an original work. I’ve also learned from professional writers like Hemingway, Stephen King, and Maya Angelou, who preach the gospel of discipline and sound writing habits. Writers write. Every day if possible. They show up and get to work even when their muse is a no-show.

 

 

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Penelope Holt was born and educated in England and now lives in New York. She is a novelist, playwright, business writer, and marketing executive, whose work has been performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, York Arts Center, and New York’s American Folk Theater. In addition to writing fiction,  The Angel Scroll, and The Apple, based on the controversial Herman Rosenblat Holocaust romance, Holt is a prolific writer, editor, and co-author of non-fiction, including Business Intelligence at Work A Personal Operating System for Career Success, Singing God’s Work, the story of the Harlem Gospel Choir, and many other works. She is married with two children.

 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Scroll-Prophecy-Destiny-Novel-ebook/dp/B0D56KD3N5/ref=monarch_sidesheet_title

 

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 GIVEAWAY  

 One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $25 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

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