Lakebridge

Synopsis of Spring:

Vermont, picturesque and lovely, attracts visitors from across the country in search for the perfect picture, the perfect fall foliage or perhaps a taste of maple syrup. Stansbury is best known for the odd covered bridge that spans Stansbury Lake and goes nowhere, connecting no roads and serving no known purpose. The locals call it the Lakebridge. Very few know of its mysterious origins and fewer care to know more. Those visiting the town perhaps take a few snapshots and leave, their curiosity quelled by an uneasy feeling that they shouldn’t think on it anymore.

The tourists will eventually leave Stansbury, but its residents strangely linger, seemingly held captive by a force they barely recognize. They also do not think about the town’s mysterious artifact much except in passing, all but Gil, his father, Ben, and a few others. They know of the bridge’s dark history and understand that it is responsible for every horror that ever befell the people of Stansbury: the people who fear the bridge but will not speak of it. The bridge makes people do things – bad things – so that it can continue to love and care for them all.

Some have tried to destroy the bridge, but as long as the bridge is fed with the lives of the innocents of Stansbury it will go on – loving the people of Stansbury.

Lakebridge: Spring is the first of a four book cycle revolving around Stansbury and the Lakebridge

Synopsis of Summer:
In the aftermath of a tragic spring day, the people of Stansbury, Vermont, are unable

to forget what happened, as they have all the tragedies of their past. After the media exploited their pain, they have become uneasy with the world beyond their town and with any outsiders.

In the aftermath of the media deluge, latecomers straggle into Stansbury looking to pick up the scraps of stories left behind. What they find, however, is that the powerful forces that have guided the destinies of the people of the town for hundreds of years are now at war with one another and in need of pawns.

In the aftermath of Spring, there is Summer.

EXCERPT

Dana was a bit perplexed. But she often found herself confused by the kitties most of all. For some reason, they all spoke like Mommy’s professor friends from her seminars. But she liked talking to them because they were cuddly and if she was nice to them, they would go and find things out for her. It’s not that they were sneakier than dogs, it’s just that they could…sneak better. Dogs were nice, too. But they didn’t want to talk to her too much. They loved her and told her that all the time. And she loved them right back. But they didn’t have too much to say beyond that and the news that they heard. Dogs loved talking about the news. Who was doing what and where. Dogs knew it all and they would blab about it to everyone around. And they always wanted to know what she heard or saw. Like she would tell any of that to a dog. Then everyone would know! But she also knew that if she didn’t tell them anything at all, they would get a little cross with her. She knew that if you were going to talk to a dog, you have to give them just a little scrap of news, something for them to tell all their friends. It was how they felt important and dogs really needed to feel important. At least that’s what the cats were always telling her. The cats didn’t have much use for the dogs. At least that’s what they told her. But she wasn’t sure. Sometimes, when they thought no one was looking, they would cuddle up to a nice dog if one were around. Dogs are always good for a cuddle. She loved seeing Inigo Montoya this morning. He had a funny name and he loved doing his little flips and he was always trying to impress her with his tricks and all the cool stuff he knew. Every time he would do a flip, he would tell her some weird old thing.


Flip. “Odontophobia is the fear of teeth.” And she would clap and nod appreciatively, having no idea what he just said but it seemed silly to be afraid of teeth. She liked her teeth. They were good for all sorts of things and made her mouth look better than if she didn’t have any. She did that thing where you pull your lips in over your teeth to pretend that you didn’t have any and she thought she looked silly and wouldn’t want to look silly all the time like that. Teeth were definitely good.


Flip. “1 in 5,000 North Atlantic lobsters are born bright blue.” She never saw a blue lobster. She thought it might be a wonderful thing to see. She loved all blue things and wanted there to be more of them in the world. She thought she would go home and paint pictures of all kinds of blue animals. She thought a moose, in particular, would be pretty in blue. Or an owl. A blue owl the color of the sky just before nighttime. That was her favorite color of blue. She wondered what kind of blue the lobsters were.


Flip. “If you had enough water to fill one million goldfish bowls, you could fill an entire stadium.” How would he even know that? Who would even think of that? She wondered if a bunch of people got together and filled a million bowls and poured them into a stadium. She had only gone to a stadium once to see the Patriots play, but that was before Mommy had decided that football was stupid and she didn’t really care all that much because there wasn’t anyone to talk to at the game and everyone just yelled a whole bunch.


Flip. “The first known contraceptive was crocodile dung, used by Egyptians in 2000 B.C.” She didn’t know what a contraceptive was or what dung was. She knew the Egyptians made pyramids, though. So she thought that must have something to do with the pyramids and she decided she would ask Mommy about it later.


Flip. “There are twice as many kangaroos in Australia as there are people. The kangaroo population is estimated at about 40 million.” She thought kangaroos were funny. She had met one at the zoo once and it had a funny accent and kept telling her jokes like, “What animal can jump higher than the Sydney Harbor Bridge? All animals because bridges can’t jump!” And she thought they were the funniest jokes even if she had no idea what the Sydney Harbor Bridge was because she knew about other bridges and so it was funny just the same. She thought Australia must be a really funny place with all those kangaroos jumping around telling each other jokes all day long.


Book Links
Lakebridge: Spring
Paperback link
eBook link

Lakebridge: Summer
Paperback link
eBook link


About the Author:
Natasha grew up in Southern California and received her Bachelor’s degree from UCLA in

Comparative Literature. She also holds Masters Degrees in both Secondary Education and Creative Writing. Natasha currently lives in the Phoenix area with her spouse, son, daughter and menagerie of pets, including a Basset named Moose and a very overprotective collie dog. Aside from writing and teaching high school students to love theatre.