Spotlight & Giveaway: People in Glass Houses by Jayne Castle

Today, HJ is pleased to share with you Jayne Castle’s new release: People in Glass Houses

Two people desperate for answers wade through smoke and mirrors within the alien world of Harmony in this new novel by New York Times bestselling author Jayne Castle.

His name is Joshua Knight. Once a respected explorer, the press now calls him the Tarnished Knight. He took the fall for a disaster in the Underworld that destroyed his career. The devastating event occurred in the newly discovered sector known as Glass House—a maze of crystal that is rumored to conceal powerful Alien antiquities. The rest of the Hollister Expedition team disappeared and are presumed dead.

Whatever happened down in the tunnels scrambled Josh’s psychic senses and his memories, but he’s determined to uncover the truth. Labeled delusional and paranoid, he retreats to an abandoned mansion in the desert, a house filled with mirrors. Now a recluse, Josh spends his days trying to discover the secrets in the looking glasses that cover the walls. He knows he is running out of time.

Talented, ambitious crystal artist Molly Griffin is shocked to learn that the Tarnished Knight has been located. She drops everything and heads for the mansion to find Josh, confident she can help him regain control of his shattered senses. She has no choice—he is the key to finding her sister, Leona, a member of the vanished expedition team. Josh reluctantly allows her to stay one night but there are two rules: she must not go down into the basement, and she must not uncover the mirrors that have been draped.

But her only hope for finding her sister is to break the rules…

Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from People in Glass Houses 

THE PAST . . .
Before Molly could understand what was going on, two women appeared in the opening. They had flamers in their hands and knives on their belts. Both wore small day packs, the kind adults carried when they went into the Underworld, but aside from the weapons and the packs, neither of them was dressed like Jake Carlisle, Underworld Explorer.
The shorter one had shoulder-length, silver-blond hair. She wore tight faded jeans, a crisp white shirt, a wide leather belt studded with amber, and boots. The taller woman had on a blue pantsuit and low- heeled dress shoes. There was a pretty scarf around her throat. Her dark hair was pinned up in a knot.
Both women wore matching wedding rings.
“Told you the dust bunnies were not playing a game,” the one with blond hair said. “Hang on while I de-rez the shadow trap.”

A moment later the strange darkness that had barred the doorway disappeared. The dust bunnies chortled approval.
Molly gazed at the two women. A part of her was thrilled, but she was also worried about hallucinations. “Are you angels?”
The one with blond hair chuckled as she strode through the opening. “Sorry, no. Charlotte and I were out partying at a bar the night the angel recruiter came around looking for talent.”
“What?” Molly said.
“Never mind, honey,” Charlotte said. “Eugenie here likes to make dumbass jokes at inappropriate times.”
“Ms. Inskip doesn’t like it if we say dumbass,” Molly said.
“Screw Ms. Inskip,” Eugenie said cheerfully. She surveyed the room. “On second thought, forget that idea. What the hell is this place?”
“It’s a laboratory,” Molly announced. “I saw one in the career video.” “Good observation,” Charlotte said.
She went to the smaller table and scooped up the notebook.
“Here’s the deal, kid,” Eugenie said. “We’re no angels but we’re the next best thing. We’re the team from Griffin Investigations.”
Molly was dazzled. “‘Want answers? We’ ll get them for you,’” she recited.
“‘Call now. No waiting.’”
Charlotte glanced at Eugenie. “And you said those signs were a waste of money.” She turned back to Molly. “Your sister, Leona, called us. When we showed up at the Inskip School, she told us what had happened and gave us your necklace. Helen Inskip claimed you’d been adopted, but we didn’t believe her for a second, did we, Eugenie?”
“Nope.” Eugenie snorted. “It was pretty clear Inskip was lying. But we’ll let the authorities deal with her. Right now our job is to get out of here.”
The dust bunnies chortled and took off through the doorway. “I guess they figured their work here was done,” Charlotte said.
“Ours isn’t,” Eugenie said. “You take Molly. I’ll handle security.”

“Right.” Charlotte stuffed the notebook into her pack. Flamer in one hand, she extended the other hand to Molly. “Ready to leave?”
“Yes, please,” Molly said.
When Charlotte’s fingers closed around her small hand, she knew everything was going to be all right. Eugenie went out into the hall, checked both ways, and then beckoned.
“All clear,” she announced.
Molly was so happy to be out of the green chamber she almost cried again. But she managed to avoid embarrassing herself in front of the brave team from Griffin Investigations.
Eugenie led the way. When they reached an intersection, she motioned for Charlotte and Molly to wait.
She moved out into the intersection. “Well, shit,” she said.
Molly started to say that Ms. Inskip did not approve of the word shit, but there was not time, because Eugenie was diving back into the corridor where Charlotte and Molly waited. A bolt of fire flashed in the intersection. Thanks to two seasons of Jake Carlisle, Underworld Explorer, Molly knew that she had just seen a blast from a flamer.
“How many?” Charlotte asked.
“I only saw one. Not a pro. Bad beard. Bad hair. Bad glasses. He’s wearing a white lab coat.”
“That fits with the lab stuff we just saw,” Charlotte said. “He may have security working with him.”
“I don’t think so. Pros would have done a better job of guarding the kid.”
An outraged male voice thundered in the other hallway.
“You can’t take the child. She is a subject in a very important research project. She will be returned to the school unharmed when I have completed the exam.”
“This case just keeps getting weirder and weirder,” Charlotte said.

“The situation seems pretty straightforward to me.” Eugenie crouched at the entrance to the intersection and raised her voice. “You’re guilty of kidnapping. There are witnesses. I’m making a citizen’s arrest.”
“You stupid woman, you cannot interfere with my work. You don’t know what you’re doing.”
Two more bolts of flame flashed across the intersection. Eugenie leaned around the corner, fired once, and ducked back into the hallway.
Molly heard a muffled thud.
Eugenie risked a quick glance and then got to her feet. “He’s down.
Stay here. I’ll take a look.”
She reappeared a short time later. “He’s alive but unconscious. I took his nav amber. He won’t be going anywhere even if he wakes up before the Guild gets down here to make the arrest.”
“Good,” Charlotte said. “Let’s get out of here.”
The next several minutes were a chaotic blur. Molly glimpsed a man in a lab coat lying on the quartz floor. The next thing she knew, she and the team from Griffin Investigations were climbing a green quartz stair- case. At the top Eugenie opened a steel vault door. They entered a dark basement, climbed a few more steps, and emerged inside an old house.
There were two vehicles in the backyard—a dirty white van and a plain gray compact.
The three of them piled into the compact. Eugenie got behind the wheel and drove around the house, heading for the street.
“Why don’t you have a bigger car?” Molly asked. “Like the kind Jake Carlisle, Underworld Explorer, drives?”
“Big SUVs like that monster vehicle Jake Carlisle drives on the rez- screen series tend to be noticed,” Eugenie said. “Private investigators like to drive cars that don’t stand out.”
“Oh,” Molly said. She pondered that information for a moment, decided not to show her disappointment, and moved on to the next question. “How did you find me?

“We used the Inskip School’s security camera footage to ID the owner of the van that took off with you in it,” Charlotte said. “I dug up the ad- dress online. His name is Nigel Willard.”
“Creeps like Willard tend to keep their activities close to home,” Eugenie added. “Probably a control thing. Sure enough, we found the van in his backyard and his hole-in-the-wall entrance to the tunnels in his basement.”
“Willard is not what you’d call a professional criminal,” Charlotte added. “Deranged, disorganized, and delusional would be better descriptors. We were on our way to you when the dust bunnies found us. Which re- minds me—I’ve got something that belongs to you.”
She reached into the pocket of her suit jacket and took out a familiar amber necklace. “Leona gave this to us. She said it would help us find you.”
Molly took the amber and clutched it very tightly. Then she remembered her manners.
“Thank you for rescuing me,” she said.
Eugenie met her eyes in the rearview mirror. “You’re welcome, honey.”
“Are you going to take me back to the Inskip School?” Molly asked. Charlotte turned in the passenger seat. Her eyes were very intent.
“Do you want to go back?”
“No, but I have to go back because Leona is there,” Molly explained. “When we’re older we’re going to leave, though.”
“Where will you go?” Charlotte asked, sounding genuinely curious. “We don’t know yet,” Molly admitted. “Somewhere.”
There was another silence. Eugenie and Charlotte exchanged glances.
Charlotte turned back to Molly. “One thing is certain. You won’t be staying at the Inskip School for Girls.”
“Why not?” Molly asked.
“That orphanage won’t be in business after today. The authorities

will shut it down. Do you think you and Leona might like to come home with Eugenie and me until you decide what you want to do?”
“Are you going to adopt us?” Molly said, hardly daring to believe. “That would be awesome.”
“Uh,” Eugenie said. She flicked a sidelong glance at Charlotte. “Well, we haven’t had a chance to discuss anything as serious as—” She broke off because she got tangled up in a cough.
“That would depend on whether you and Leona wanted to be adopted by Eugenie and me,” Charlotte said.
“We will,” Molly said. “This is so high-rez. Wait until I tell Leona we’re going to get a real last name.”

Excerpted from People in Glass Houses by Jayne Castle Copyright © 2024 by Jayne Castle. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Excerpt. ©Jayne Castle. Posted by arrangement with the publisher. All rights reserved.
 
 

Giveaway: 1 finished copy of PEOPLE IN GLASS HOUSES (U.S. only, 18+)

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Meet the Author:

Jayne Castle, the author of Sweetwater and the Witch, Guild Boss, Illusion Town, Siren’s Call, The Hot Zone, Deception Cove, and more, is a pseudonym for Jayne Ann Krentz, the author of more than fifty New York Times bestsellers. She writes contemporary romantic suspense novels under the Krentz name, as well as historical novels under the pseudonym Amanda Quick.

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