The Harper Effect by Taryn Bashford
Publication date: May 15th, 2018
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Synopsis (according to Goodreads):
Sixteen-year-old Harper was once a rising star on the tennis court--until her coach dropped her for being "mentally weak." Without tennis, who is she? Her confidence at an all-time low, she secretly turns to her childhood friend, next-door neighbor Jacob--who also happens to be her sister's very recent ex-boyfriend. If her sister finds out, it will mean a family war.
But when Harper is taken on by a new coach who wants her to train with Colt, a cold, defensive, brooding young tennis phenom, she hits the court all the harder, if only to prove Colt wrong. But as the two learn to become a team, Harper gets glimpses of the vulnerable boy beneath the surface, the boy who was deeply scarred by his family's dark and scandalous past. The boy she could easily find herself falling for.
As she walks a fine line between Colt's secrets, her forbidden love, and a game that demands nothing but the best, Harper must decide between her past and her future and between two boys who send her head spinning. Is the cost of winning the game worth losing everything?
A sizzling tennis romance perfect for the summer months, The Harper Effect, will be a grand slam for fans of Kasie West, Miranda Kinneally and Simon Ekeles.
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Excerpt
"Let's play a game you're going to get extremely good at. It's called mirroring. Colt, get down here, next to Harper."
The bleachers rattled as cold moves beside me. His shoulders hunch, elbows on knees, attention on Milo. "It works like this. You become the other person's need and your hands fulfill the need."
"Sorry, explain again. I don't understand," I say, sensing this is going to be embarrassing.
"No problem." Milo pulls at my shoelace. "Colt. you see Harper's shoelace is untied. You are Harper's hands. Do up her laces."
Laughter bursts out of me. "No way. Wait. Yes way. Colt, go ahead. I can live with that." Colt scratches the back of his neck then bends to tie the lace.
"Harper, Colt's neck is itchy. You're his hands. Scratch his neck." My laughter breaks off. Milo isn't kidding.
I lean forward to reach around Colt's square shoulders.
His neck is sweaty. I scrunch my nose and rub my fingers on my skirt.
"Colt, Harper's ponytail has come loose. No way can she play tennis. Fix it for her."
Colt gets up, kicks at his bag. "Am I going to take a leak for her as well?"
"Quite possibly," says Milo, stern. "But not now. The problem right now is her hair needs fixing. Up, Harper."
I comply, amazed that Colt is taking orders from Milo. Colt moves behind me.There's no gentleness as he abruptly scrapes my hair back into a ponytail and secures it with the elastic. I wince.
"Sorry if I pulled," he says, stepping back.
"Harper. You're Colt's eyes. What does he need? Look at him."
Colt's squinting into the sun, impatient. "The sun's blinding him."
"Get his hat." Milo points to Colt's bag. I unzip it and find the tennis cap--next to a motorbike helmet. Mum and Dad won't like that--they've warned me to stay clear of motorbikes. I pass the cap to Colt.
"Stop," says Milo. "You're his hands. Put it on." I step closer, perch it wonkily on Colt's head.
Colt straightens the hat. "When do we play tennis?"
The bleachers rattled as cold moves beside me. His shoulders hunch, elbows on knees, attention on Milo. "It works like this. You become the other person's need and your hands fulfill the need."
"Sorry, explain again. I don't understand," I say, sensing this is going to be embarrassing.
"No problem." Milo pulls at my shoelace. "Colt. you see Harper's shoelace is untied. You are Harper's hands. Do up her laces."
Laughter bursts out of me. "No way. Wait. Yes way. Colt, go ahead. I can live with that." Colt scratches the back of his neck then bends to tie the lace.
"Harper, Colt's neck is itchy. You're his hands. Scratch his neck." My laughter breaks off. Milo isn't kidding.
I lean forward to reach around Colt's square shoulders.
His neck is sweaty. I scrunch my nose and rub my fingers on my skirt.
"Colt, Harper's ponytail has come loose. No way can she play tennis. Fix it for her."
Colt gets up, kicks at his bag. "Am I going to take a leak for her as well?"
"Quite possibly," says Milo, stern. "But not now. The problem right now is her hair needs fixing. Up, Harper."
I comply, amazed that Colt is taking orders from Milo. Colt moves behind me.There's no gentleness as he abruptly scrapes my hair back into a ponytail and secures it with the elastic. I wince.
"Sorry if I pulled," he says, stepping back.
"Harper. You're Colt's eyes. What does he need? Look at him."
Colt's squinting into the sun, impatient. "The sun's blinding him."
"Get his hat." Milo points to Colt's bag. I unzip it and find the tennis cap--next to a motorbike helmet. Mum and Dad won't like that--they've warned me to stay clear of motorbikes. I pass the cap to Colt.
"Stop," says Milo. "You're his hands. Put it on." I step closer, perch it wonkily on Colt's head.
Colt straightens the hat. "When do we play tennis?"
About the Author:
Taryn lives the typical writer's life alongside supportive husband, teen children, and characters from her latest book insisting they help make dinner. This can be disconcerting as Jacob is always sticking his fingers in the cheese sauce and Harper can't cook.
Taryn's been an English Literature Honours student, an advertising sales rep and a CEO of an internet company, but writing is her first love. The Harper Effect is her debut novel.
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