Insomnia Blog Tour: Excerpt & Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the Insomnia blog tour! Today I have an exclusive excerpt from the book chosen by the author! Read on to experience the awesomeness - and don't forget to pick up your own copy of Insomnia today!


Insomnia (The Night Walkers #1)
Author: J.R. Johansson
Genre: YA Fantasy/Thriller/Mystery
Release Date: June 8, 2013
Publisher: Flux

Buy Links:
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Description:

It’s been four years since I slept, and I suspect it is killing me.

Instead of sleeping, Parker Chipp enters the dream of the last person he’s had eye contact with. He spends his nights crushed by other people’s fear and pain, by their disturbing secrets—and Parker can never have dreams of his own. The severe exhaustion is crippling him. If nothing changes, Parker could soon be facing psychosis and even death.

Then he meets Mia. Her dreams, calm and beautifully uncomplicated, allow him blissful rest that is utterly addictive. Parker starts going to bizarre lengths to catch Mia’s eye every day. Everyone at school thinks he’s gone over the edge, even his best friend. And when Mia is threatened by a true stalker, everyone thinks it’s Parker.

Suffering blackouts, Parker begins to wonder if he is turning into someone dangerous. What if the monster stalking Mia is him after all? 

 Quick Intro from the Author: This is the scene that happens fairly early in Insomnia. It's when Parker first meets Mia...and she lies and tells him her name is Megan. She's got her reasons, but this will give you a little piece of their characters. Hope you enjoy!

I sighed, turned off the car, and climbed out. The ends of her long, dark hair curled out from beneath the hood of her jacket and her eyes felt as dangerous as a loaded gun barrel. Dragging an umbrella out of the back seat, I held it over our heads.
“Hey, umm, that your truck?” I ran my hand through my hair, shaking away some of the water, and tried to charm her with a grin. She looked stunned for a minute, and I thought I might get away with it, but then she clenched her teeth and growled.
“A genius, huh? I half expected a stuntman from the way you were driving, but apparently you’re a rocket scientist. Why is a prodigy like you driving a piece of crap like this?”
There was a hint of southern drawl in her voice that threw me off, and it took me a minute to realize she had insulted me and my car in under ten seconds. That had to be some kind of record. She kicked my tire with the pointy toe of one black boot.
“Come on. Leave the car out of it. You didn’t even get a scratch,” I said.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “No, but in your hands I’d consider even this oversized roller skate a lethal weapon.”
I had a knack for “maneuvering” people, at least that’s what I called it. Kind of like manipulation but not. It wasn’t a separate ability, more like a side-effect from spending my nights watching people’s expressions while feeling their emotions. It made it pretty easy to read people.
Most of the time, I used it on my mom. If I could tell her mood from her movements, her minute facial expressions, it was much easier to choose a good time to ask for things. One night, when she was feeling particularly guilty for working so much after my dad left, I ended up with a car. Not a great car, but a car. Considering I was only fifteen at the time, I didn’t complain.
I tried not to maneuver people too often, but this seemed like an appropriate time. The girl’s anger was getting us nowhere. This was a residential road that didn’t see much traffic, but one motorcycle had already passed and I didn’t want to be sitting in the middle of the intersection, in the rain, when the next car showed up. I opened my free hand, palm up, rolled my shoulders back, and focused on keeping my face calm and honest.
“Listen, I’m sorry—um, what’s your name?”
After glaring at me in uncomfortable silence for a full ten seconds, she finally answered.
“Megan.”
“Okay, Megan. I’m Parker, and I’m really sorry I ran that stop sign. I had a long day. I’m really tired, and it was totally my fault. I didn’t mean to scare you.” I kept my voice soft and level to show sincerity, then extended my hand to her, hoping the little hothead would accept my apology.
She seemed slightly mollified, took a deep breath, and glanced back at her pick-up again before sticking her small hand into mine. When she finally relaxed and all the little angry lines on her forehead went away, I noticed a bruise and a few scratches near her temple.
“Oh, hey, are you okay?” A wave of guilt swept me and I reached a hand toward her face, but she flinched away from my fingertips. Her body language shifted so fast it nearly made me dizzy.
“No, that’s a few days old. I’m fine. Anyway, I’ve got to go.” Megan stumbled back around my car, but stopped when she got to her door. “Pay a little more attention, okay?”
“I will. Are you sure you’re all right?” Something in her expression made me uneasy.
With a dismissive wave, she climbed into the truck and was gone before I could even get my car started. 


Praise for INSOMNIA:

“The perfect blend of everything I love in a story. I hope a sequel comes soon!” –James Dashner, New York Times bestselling author of THE MAZE RUNNER

“Completely unputdownable. I’ve decided to nickname Johansson: Scary McScarypants, because she spooked me in all the best ways.” –Carrie Harris, author of BAD TASTE IN BOYS

“Cleverly written and dangerously dark, Insomnia will take you to the brink of insanity. A must-read for thriller and romance fans alike.”—Elana Johnson, author of POSSESSION

“A riveting story of terror and despair that will keep you up long past your bedtime.”—Jennifer Bosworth, author of STRUCK

J.R. JOHANSSON is a young adult thriller author published with Flux & FSG/Macmillan. Her debut, INSOMNIA is coming June 2013. She has a B.S. degree in public relations and a background in marketing. She credits her abnormal psychology minor with inspiring many of her characters. When she's not writing, she loves reading, playing board games, and sitting in her hot tub. Her dream is that someday she can do all three at the same time. She has two young sons and a wonderful husband. In fact, other than her cat, Cleo, she's nearly drowning in testosterone. 

Jenn’s Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JennJohansson 
Blog: http://www.jennjohansson.blogspot.com/ 
Site: http://www.jrjohansson.com 
Tumblr: http://jrjohansson.tumblr.com/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenn.johansson 
J.R. Johansson on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5100095.J_R_Johansson

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