The Family That Finds Us
by Phoenix Blackwood
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GENRE: LGBTQIA+ Coming of Age
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BOOK BLURB:
Phee hides her secrets well, until they become too much to bear. Her biggest secret is one she’s kept even from herself. Her longest-kept secret is one that hurts her every day. Her final secret is one that will set her free.
In a school that doesn’t accept them, Phee, Theo, and Alex fight for a community close to their hearts. The community desperately needs the trio to help the rest of them leave the shadows without fear of violence and discrimination. Through some heroic activism, the three push the school officials to their limits — forcing them to act — for better or worse.
For Phee, the fight for a place where she can be herself doesn’t stop when she gets home. The strain of taking care of her alcoholic and abusive mother threatens to break Phee away from her family bond forever. Her mother can go from a messy drunk to an angry one in an instant, turning Phee’s home life from an obligation to a war zone.
Theo’s house offers respite to Phee. With compassion scarce in her life, Alex and Theo are Phee’s light in the dark. They protect and cherish her. At Theo’s, Phee is free to be herself and explore her identity safely — her chosen family ready to catch her if she falls. That’s what family does, how family finds us when we feel lost and alone.
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EXCERPT ONE:
“Thank you, my preciou-ous-es son.” She slurred her words as she spoke into the table, and I sighed inaudibly.
At least she wasn’t angry-drunk. This was the drunk I could handle, the drunk I knew how to care for. I’d been doing it half my life, it would be strange if I weren’t good at it by now. I finished the dishes and laid them out on the drying rack after wiping them dry with a kitchen towel, then sat down in the chair next to her at the table.
“Do you need anything, mom? Have you eaten? Drank anything?”
“Mmno.” She rolled her face to look at me, her deep dark eyes glistening but not completely there.
I got a plastic cup from the cupboard and filled it with some ice water and handed it to her. Her hands shook as she tried to lift the cup from mine, so I helped her guide it to her mouth and take a couple sips, then set it back down on the table in front of her. I rummaged through the fridge to pull out some milk and went to the pantry for some cereal. Only, as lifted the milk to pour, I felt objects hit the side of the carton. I opened the cap to take a whiff and gagged; the milk was sour. Sighing, I dropped the carton into the trash and opened the barren fridge to search for another option.
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GUEST POST:
My favorite scene in The Family that Finds Us has to be the scene about mid-to-late book where Theo’s triggered by the school principal yelling in their face and runs off, without Alex or Phee knowing where they’re going. Alex starts to panic, her mind going to all the worst places as she and Phee run out of the school to try and find them. Phee keeps a cool head under pressure, and makes a plan with Alex to spread out and search. Alex runs towards home, Phee goes to check the skate park. As Phee is running past the woods behind the school, she remembers something that Theo had told her earlier – about how the forest was a safe place for them, they could hide and no one would find them. With Phee’s gut urging her to try, she runs into the woods while dialing Theo’s number.
Phee starts to hear Theo’s ringtone as she gets deeper into the woods, confirming her thought as she runs farther. She stops when the tone is at its loudest, dumbfounded and looking around anywhere for the phone as Theo’s nowhere in sight, until she looks up. Theo’s climbed the tree above, and Phee less than gracefully climbs to the branch where Theo’s sitting.
Theo’s lost deep in a panic attack, and Phee isn’t sure what to do at first. Theo’s never shown her this side of them. Phee knew Theo could get like this from knowing of their history and how Alex interacts with them sometimes, but she’s never actually seen it. She then remembers what Alex had told her once about Theo’s panic attacks, that a lot of things people usually do don’t help, and that she would just hold them and talk to them through it. Phee’s afraid at first, not wanting to encroach on the boundaries of their friendship, but she knows that she has to do something – Theo’s breathing is erratic, they’re wheezing with tears running down their cheeks.
Lovingly, Phee draws Theo in, squeezing them tight. They cry, and eventually relax into her. Phee fights back her own tears – she hates the amount of pain Theo’s in. She’d do anything to make it better. Eventually, Theo’s able to regain some lucidity, and hugs Phee back while taking a few deep breaths and wiping their eyes. They’re both able to climb down from the tree, and they talk for a bit afterwards.
This scene perfectly demonstrates all the love and care Phee has for Theo, how she still views them as strong and admires them even in a moment of weakness. I think it shows how strong people can still be vulnerable, and how even the most independent people still need someone to have their back, to notice the little things about them and respond to their needs. It shows how important their friendship is to both of them.
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AUTHOR BIO:
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Born and raised in New England, Phoenix has always been a creative – whether it’s painting or writing. From a very young age, Phoenix has envisioned and created characters, writing them into existence and exploring them through visual arts. Having graduated to first-time short story author, Phoenix is embarking on a journey towards novel writing as they finally bring characters they’ve known for years into the world. Phoenix is neurodiverse and intersex and hopes to bring more representation to both topics with their writing. They believe in creating relatable characters that people can find themselves in and empathize with.
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Amazon US eBook:
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
Phoenix Blackwood will award a $10 Amazon OR Barnes and Noble Gift Card (Winner's Choice!!!) to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.
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ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a good story.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great read
ReplyDeleteThis looks really interesting. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the guest post.
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