Cin
by
Christina Leigh Pritchard
Genre:
YA
Blurb:
Seventeen year old Lisa Brown’s
life is falling apart. First, her mother and father divorce, then their house
forecloses and now, her mother has decided to commit herself to a psychiatric
hospital.
If that weren’t enough, she must
leave sunny south Florida to attend a boarding school full of geniuses in cold,
Lynn, Massachusetts. The city where the locals chant “Lynn, Lynn, city of sin;
you never come out the way you went in.”
And, they aren’t kidding. Lisa
must live in a tiny shack with two strange teenagers, a dog named Pig who
growls when you look at him and a cat named Rat. “Mind the cat,” everyone says.
What the heck is wrong with this place?
Lisa thinks she’s landed in her
own house of horrors with the anti-social Alex and his facetious sister Ally.
But, the real drama begins the day she is struck by lightning…
Excerpt:
The Doctor said I should be dead.
My heart beat furiously. I looked
up at the flashes of lightning in the sky. Yes, I should be dead.
Why wasn’t I?
One
Amber Checks In
“Lisa, if you don’t finish
packing your things, I swear you’ll go with nothing.” My mother, Amber,
threatened. She wrapped duct tape around a medium sized box and carried it out
to the car.
Our home foreclosed and it was
eviction day. My mother couldn’t keep a job; no matter how simple or easy it
was. She was beautiful with long blond hair and bright green eyes that sparkled
when she spoke. She landed every job she applied for but several weeks later
and her new employer realized all Amber really was; was a pretty face.
I looked nothing like my mom. I
was seventeen but still didn’t fit into my body. My hips were too big, my boobs
too small and I had Dumbo ears which of course meant that I had to wear my hair
down—always. I had long bangs that helped cover up my oddly round, black eyes
and I could never find shoes that fit my big feet.
“Lisa, I’m not going to tell you
again, we leave in twenty minutes. I can’t afford to miss your train.”
“Yeah well you could try to hide
your enthusiasm.” I rolled my eyes and grabbed an empty box. I surveyed my
room. What could I possibly take? I lived in Florida, the sunshine state. I was
going to Lynn, Massachusetts. The old saying, “Lynn, Lynn, the city of sin”
played over and over inside my mind. How could my mother just drop me off in
such a place? Lynn was filled with high crime rates, lack of good paying jobs
and supported virtually on nothing more than fish markets and the GE factories.
At least it was by the water. I couldn’t imagine life without the ocean and
sand between my toes. I could do without the sun tans, I guess, or the hot skaters
who practiced on the benches but not the salty water and my toes buried in the
warm sand.
“LISA! Get in the car.”
I evaluated the few things I had.
I grabbed two pairs of jeans and anything with sleeves. I picked up my sneakers
and my Adidas jacket from off the floor and I tossed my book bag over my
shoulder. Inside the box, I put the only family heirloom I had; a picture of my
mother and father; before I was born. …When they still loved each other, still
laughed, still hoped. That must’ve been something to see. The only time my
mother smiled or laughed was during an interview. It was never real and when
her eyes set on me, she only frowned.
I placed the few articles of
clothing on top of my picture and carried the box out to the trunk. My mom had
an old 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage with hardly any paint left. The worst part—the
air didn’t work; complete suicide in a place where the temperature stayed
around ‘90 degrees.
“Just take your sweet, precious
time there Lisa.” She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. “I hope you
don’t act up with your Aunt Millie. She would be just devastated and when she
falls over with a stroke or heart attack from your disrespectful behavior you
will have to carry her twenty miles to the nearest town.”
“A little dramatic, don’t you
think?” I snapped, tossing my book bag into the back. The seat belt
automatically locked me in when I closed the door. (The air conditioning didn’t
work, there was hardly any paint left on the vehicle but, hey, at least the
automatic seat belts still worked!) “Roll the windows down, mom, it’s hot in
here.” I leaned my head out the window to catch the last, hot Florida breeze
I’d probably ever feel.
“Aunt Millie said you could help
her out with her chickens and she’d pay you so that you could buy some warmer
clothes while you’re there. I’m sorry I am such a bad mother.”
“Why are you leaving me with some
woman I don’t know? That’s bad parenting. Mom, you’ve never met this lady. What
if she’s a serial killer or a chicken thief or some kind of lunatic?”
“I have to do this.” Her eyes
stayed glued to the road, “I need to figure out what is wrong with me. I ran
off your father with my emotional problems and I don’t want to drag you down
with me too.”
“Mom, I don’t want to go stay
with some stranger.” She couldn’t hear me. She blasted the radio and sang
loudly, bouncing her head from left to right. She slapped me in the shoulder.
“Stah—op!”
“Sing with me, Lisa, it may be a
long time before we get to do this again. I may be in that loony bin for a
while.”
I didn’t think it was funny at
all. Who wanted a mother that was crazy? What would I tell people when school
started? So, Lisa, where is your mother? Oh, new potential friend, she’s
probably in her padded cell wearing a strait jacket. How about your mom? I’ll
be miss popularity for sure.
1. Being a teen is one of the most awkward times in your life. What inspired you to write Cin?
I had a dream about Alex and Ally with their crazy pets. I didn't have a clue what the book would be about until Tony, my boss' father read, the one paragraph I had. That's when he quoted "Lynn, Lynn, the city of sin; you never come out the way you went in." He told me all about the geography and history of Lynn and wha-lah! I had a place, then the words took over from there.
2. Lisa's family is disintegrating. Has divorce touched you and how did you handle it?
Unfortunately, it has. Both my parents have been married and at least 3 times and both my grandmothers and grandfathers have been married at least 3 times as well. That's 12+ grandparents and 6+ mothers and fathers!How did I handle it? I considered it a blessing to have so much family. I'm still very close to most of them! And, of course, I wrote my heart out through the not so good times.
3. Having a family member committing themselves to a mental hospital has to be tough. Where did that story line come from?
Experience. My grandmother has been committed several times to a mental hospital. She has a chemical imbalance and sometimes, when her medication is off whack she tries to kill herself. It's very sad.
4. I love stories about creepy boarding schools. What are some of your favorites?
The Dangerous Lives of Alter Boys by Chris Fuhrman and School for Dangerous Girls by Eliot Schrefer
5. Do you have a playlist for Cin?
Yes I do! It's long and set up by chapters. C I N
Christina Leigh Pritchard’s Play List
Chapter One
“Everything to Everyone”
By Everclear
“Jane Says”
By Jane’s Addiction
“Dear Mama”
By Tupac
Chapter Two
“Father of Mine”
By Everclear
“Evil Deeds”
By Eminem
“Creep”
Radiohead
Chapter Three
“#1 Crush”
By Garbage
“I Would Die 4 U”
Prince
Chapter Four
“Cinderella”
By Britney Spears
“Funhouse”
By Pink
“Eat It”
By Weird Al Yankovic
“Danger Zone”
By Kenny Loggins
Chapter Five
“Weird”
By Hanson
“I‘m Just A Girl”
By No Doubt
Chapter Six
“Murder Was The Case”
By Snoop Dogg
“Eyes Without A Face”
By Billy Idol
Chapter Seven
“Hurt”
By Nine Inch Nails
Chapter Eight
“Guilty Conscience”
By Eminem featuring Dr. Dre
“Let Me Be”
By Britney Spears
Chapter Nine
“Girls Just Want to Have Fun”
By Cyndi Lauper
“Insane in the Membrane”
By Cypress Hill
“Run Away Run”
By Hanson
Chapter Ten
“Pictures of You”
By The Cure
Chapter Eleven
“Purple Pills”
By D-12
“Dock of the Bay”
Otis Redding
Chapter Twelve
“Gin and Juice”
By Snoop Dogg
“Send The Pain Below”
By Chevelle
Chapter Thirteen
“Chicken Head”
By Project Pat
“When Your Gone”
By The Cranberries
Chapter Fourteen
“Helena”
By My Chemical Romance
“The Ghost of You”
By My Chemical Romance
Chapter Fifteen
“I’m a Slave 4 U”
Britney Spears
“Spider Webs”
By No Doubt
Chapter Sixteen
“Boys”
By B.O.N
Chapter Seventeen
“Teenage Kicks”
By The Undertones
“Think of Me”
By Andrew Lloyd Webber
Chapter Eighteen
“Love is Blind”
Eve
“Just Pretend”
By Elvis Presley
Chapter Nineteen
“It’s Gonna Be Me”
N Sync
“I Just Want To Make Love To You”
By Etta Jones
Chapter Twenty
“Girls Just Want to Have Fun”
By Cyndi Lauper
“Torn Between Two Lovers”
By Mary McGregor
Chapter Twenty One
“Kids”
By MGMT
Chapter Twenty Two
“Caught Out There”
Kelis
“Comfortable Liar”
By Chevelle
“Don’t Want You Back”
By Backstreet Boys
Chapter Twenty Three
“Heart Strings”
By Secret Garden
“Lonely”
By Britney Spears
Chapter Twenty Four
“Don’t Speak”
By No Doubt
6. Are you a plot liner or a seat of your pants writer?
Both. Mostly 'seat of your pants' but I do go by a lose--very loose--outline or plot.
7. What is your favorite thing about writing?
Being able to step into another world and create life on the printed page.
8. Do you have any pets?
I do! I have 2 dogs, Teacup, who is half German Shepherd and half Teacup Yorkie (she looks like a mini shepherd) and Buddy, a black lab/pit bull mix!
9. What is the weirdest scene you have ever written?
I can only pick one?! :o)
One of the weirdest scenes I've ever written has to be from The Fall of Gadaie (A pure, straight, dark fantasy novel of mine). The main characters are falling from the sky and land in some weird orange goo that resembles Jello. If that weren't enough, in that same section, they meet a talking horse who says he's not a horse, walk through a village made of candy and one lead character is taken by a loony who has roller-skates for feet...
10. What are you working on now?
Several things! (I can never just write one book) I'm working on a dark mystery, a horror (first ever) and fixing up a Novel entitled Shame. It's about a teenage girl who has to chose between protecting her brother and doing the right thing. No matter which choice she makes, she's going to hurt someone. And, of course, I'm working on more books in the C I N Series!
Thanks!!
What I Liked:
This book grabs your attention on the first page. You really feel for Lisa and the position she is being forced into because her mother is a bit of a kook. Sending her to live with a relative she doesn't know in a weird boarding school with creepy animals and even weirder room mates is just plain awful.
What I Didn't:
Some of the dialogue was a little odd. Also, there were some reactions from the room mates that felt forced and not natural. I totally got that they were supposed to be above average intelligence and to the rest of us mere mortals, misunderstood, but it came off a little stilted.
Overall:
The creepiness factor got this one for me. Having Lisa go and live in a spooky boarding school with pets that are beyond weird, classmates that are even weirder and paying for her keep by feeding chickens was pretty wild. Other than some awkwardness with the dialogue and some of the action with the roomies, I liked the book and was engrossed in it. I wanted to find out why Pig (the dog) was so cranky and the cat was untouchable. What was up with the roomie that hated to be touched and a whole host of other little tidbits. Great story, original plot and a page turner. The element of family drama also pulled some heartstrings. Divorce is really tough, and so is mental illness. Both subjects are great plot elements and add depth to the story.
3.5/5
About the Author:
Christina Leigh Pritchard was born and raised in South Florida. Her first stories were written at the age of nine in $0.15 wide ruled, spiral notebooks (which were supposed to be used for class), and in the various diaries she kept. Stories she wrote from age nine to twelve fill about four storage boxes!
Since she's upgraded to a computer, she's completed over fifty books and still going strong. Her genre's include dark fantasy, young adult, drama, suspense, historical romance, multicultural, comedy, poetry and many more.
5. Web and social media links:
Book trailer: http://youtu.be/yRdrGVinWdQ
C I N Series Blog: http://cinseries.com/
Author Blog: http://teeny120.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/teeny120
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