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About Gia Cribbs
Gia Cribbs is an author and lawyer who lives in Maryland with her husband and daughters. When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found reading, eating too much chocolate, or fantasizing about her next vacation.
Sloane Sullivan’s Favourite Things
To say I’ve moved around a lot would be an understatement. Except no one’s supposed to know that. Because when you’re in the witness protection program, everything’s a secret. Other than Mark, my WITSEC handler, and the other Marshals, no one knows how many places I’ve lived and who I’ve been. But I’m about to become Sloane Sullivan and start what’s supposed to be my last placement before I’m officially released from the program. And I think something that momentous deserves a little something different. Just one tiny slip in the rules, to mark the fact that I’m never going to have to move again if I don’t want to. So here’s a list of my favorite thing from every place I’ve lived while in WITSEC. These aren’t listed in any particular order, and I’m not telling you the cities or anything specific enough for you to really figure out anything about me, but I need to do this. To remind myself of how far I’ve come, and of what I’ll never have to do again.
Wisconsin
This one particular wooden bench in the middle of the botanical gardens. There was something oddly calming about losing myself in the green of the plants and the smell of the flowers and the gurgling of that little pond.
Kentucky
Basketball. Or more specifically, a basketball hoop in the driveway of a small white house with red shutters, and a ton of one-on-one games.
Nebraska
Midwestern people. Honestly, they were just so friendly and genuinely nice. It gave me a little bit of hope about people again at a time when I really needed it.
Tennessee
The barbeque. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of great things about Tennessee. But I couldn’t get enough of the barbeque.
Montana
The cold, clear nights where you could see a million stars.
Missouri
There was a small deserted park not far from our place where I learned every self-defense move I know. That was my favorite place in Missouri.
Wyoming
A lot happened here, and it wasn’t good. But I’m trying to focus on the positive, so I’m going to go with cotton candy and caramel apples and carnivals.
Minnesota
Best. Pies. Ever. Slightly stalkerish guys, not so much. But that little pie shop was my favorite.
Ohio
There was only one good thing about Ohio, and that was meeting Mark.
Colorado
The mountains. For being a beach girl, I was surprised how much I liked seeing those snow-covered peaks.
Nevada
We lived in a big city. I didn’t go out in it very much, but I loved the feel of it, the crowds and the buzz and the excitement. It felt like people were really living.
California
Being near the water. Not the ocean — we stayed away from anything even remotely close to home. But there was a lake. And that was enough.
Utah
There was an amazing library in Utah. It wasn’t super close, so I didn’t get to go very often, but when I did I made a whole day of it. It had a rooftop garden! And fireplaces! And floors and floors of books! Why would anyone want to leave?
Oregon
Nature. Seriously, everything outside was so beautiful. I especially loved that day trip we took to Multnomah Falls. At over 600 feet, it’s the tallest waterfall in Oregon. Native American legend says it was created to impress a young princess who wanted a hidden place to bathe. And Benson Bridge was named after Simon Benson, a businessman who owned the falls in the early 1900s. And, yeah. My geekiness is starting to show, so I’ll stop.
Idaho
My school. Not the teachers or classes, but the building itself. I just loved the architecture and all the windows and how open it was. It was my favorite of all the schools I’ve gone to, and that’s saying something.
Texas
A gorgeous single-story stone rambler at the top of a hill surrounded by acres of lush green grass and fences and animals, and the boy that ranch belonged to.
Washington
I lived in Washington for a grand total of 22 days, so there wasn’t much time to like anything. Maybe the days it didn’t rain?
Arizona
This little independent bookstore with a coffee bar that had the best hot chocolate. The perfect place for someone without many real friends to find as many as I wanted in all those amazing stories.
North Carolina
I don’t know yet what Sloane Sullivan’s favorite thing about North Carolina will be. But I can’t wait to find out.
Title The Disappearance of Sloane Sullivan
Author Gia Cribbs
Pages 400 Pages
Intended Target Audience Young Adult
Genre Mystery, Thriller
Publication Date May 29th 2018 by Harlequin Teen
Find It On Goodreads ● Amazon.com ● Chapters ● The Book Depository
No one wants me to tell you about the disappearance of Sloane Sullivan.
Not the lawyers or the cops. Not her friends or family. Not even the boy who loved her more than anyone. And most certainly not the United States Marshals Service. You know, the people who run the witness protection program or, as it’s officially called, the Witness Security Program? Yeah, the WITSEC folks definitely don’t want me talking to you.
But I don’t care. I have to tell someone.
If I don’t, you’ll never know how completely wrong things can go. How a single decision can change everything. How, when it really comes down to it, you can’t trust anyone. Not even yourself. You have to understand, so it won’t happen to you next. Because you never know when the person sitting next to you isn’t who they claim to be…and because there are worse things than disappearing.
