Book Tour & Giveaway for Benchmark by Georgie Hanlin and Shannon Swann

Benchmark

Georgie Hanlin and Shannon Swann

Release: December 12, 2014 from Evernight Teen

55K/ contemporary/romance/minor fantasy element

Editor's Pick

Harper Kingsley has the perfect life until her brother, Braydon, commits suicide.  After his death, Harper returns to North Star, a sailing camp on Whidbey Island where she and Braydon spent eight summers together.  Joining her are her three best friends who are ready to rule Senior Hill. Harper just wants to escape to the only place she feels is truly magical.

At North Star, Harper tries to forget her reality, but it’s impossible because she comes face-to-face with her brother at a hidden bench in the garden.  Is it really him or just her imagination?  She knows Braydon is dead. Why is appearing in front of her? Scared at first, Harper rejects his presence, but once he explains that she is the one who brought him back, she wants to hear him out.

Harper chooses to keep these encounters to herself. Who would believe her anyway?  It’s Jeremy Miller, the camp’s ultimate heartthrob and Piper’s ex, to whom she will eventually reveal her secret. And he has a secret of his own.  Their camp romance turns Harper’s friends against her, giving her one more thing to juggle this summer at North Star. 

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Excerpt: 

“Seriously, Harp,” she began, “if you and Jeremy like each other, you should just be honest about it.” It was obvious to me that the three of them had been talking about this behind my back.

“That’s not even the point, Anna,” I barked defensively.  “We don’t, I mean, I… he… look, Jeremy’s a nice guy and he was friends with my brother.” I felt short of breath trying to explain myself.  “But that’s all irrelevant. The point is: everything in this world can’t always be about Piper.  At school, at camp, wherever we are, it’s always about Piper and her boyfriends or her exes or her soccer or her clothes or her life or whatever. I am so tired of her.” Those were my honest feelings right at that moment, but deep, deep down, I knew I was just jealous of her uninterrupted life. 

“Look, I know you’ve gone through a lot, this year Harp,” she whispered sympathetically, undoubtedly trying to calm me down before we started to draw a bigger crowd. 

There was the pity. I hated being pitied.  I could feel my eyes start to well up so I began to blink frantically to stop tears from falling down my face. I was so sick of crying. 

“Thanks anyway, Anna, but you actually have no idea.” Anna had been nothing but a friend to me, and I knew my words had hurt her. “One year ago, my life was normal. It was happy and calm and predictable.  I was up here having fun with my brother and you guys, loving it all, probably just like you are this summer.  But, for me, it’s different now. Everything’s different. And it won’t ever be the same again.” I was barely able to finish my sentence, but I could see through my teary eyes that Anna looked uncomfortable, like she didn’t know what to do with me.  We had inched our way from the center to the edge of the art shed, far enough from other people’s earshot, but close enough for anyone paying attention to clue in on all the drama.  I had to get out of there. People were starting to stare.

Friendships as teenagers can be fabulous, but they can be tricky too. Have you ever felt like the odd man out? In fact, writing some of those "mean girl" scenes flashed us right back to our own teen years. When you're a part of a group of friends, at some point, inevitably, someone will feel left out -- which is exactly what happened to Harper when she discovered her three best friends were in a cabin at camp without her.

Anna was walking at a very fast pace toward a group of campers who were

clumped together on the other side of the lawn. Keeping my eyes on her, I followed her

path steadily. I didn’t want to lose her in the crowd. She walked directly toward Piper

and Charlie, who were waving eagerly as she got closer to them. All at once, the three of

them launched into a huge bear hug, which they held for a solid minute. Unable to look

any longer, I turned away with a big lump in my throat. Was it really true? Were my

three best friends in a cabin together this summer?

During those teen years, emotions always seemed to be on the highest alert...now imagine how complex Harper's emotions were while balancing the suicide of her beloved brother in addition to living her regular teenage life. Her friends couldn't ever truly identify with her pain and the suicide was something that Harper didn't want be pitied for or talk about -- but it was also a reality she couldn't escape.


“Look, I know you’ve gone through a lot, this year Harp,” she whispered

sympathetically, undoubtedly trying to calm me down before we started to draw a bigger

There was the pity. I hated being pitied. I could feel my eyes start to well up so I began

to blink frantically to stop tears from falling down my face. I was so sick of crying.

“Thanks anyway, Anna, but you actually have no idea.” Anna had been nothing

but a friend to me, and I knew my words had hurt her. “One year ago, my life was

normal. It was happy and calm and predictable. I was up here having fun with my

brother and you guys, loving it all, probably just like you are this summer. But, for me,

it’s different now. Everything’s different. And it won’t ever be the same again.” I was

barely able to finish my sentence, but I could see through my teary eyes that Anna looked

uncomfortable, like she didn’t know what to do with me.


Then, of course, there's the ripple effect of dating your best friend's ex:

“What made you decide that because you went out with Jeremy last summer, you

have to hate anyone else who goes out with him?” I snapped harshly from across the

Piper looked up, startled, clutching onto her pot and sponge.

“What are you talking about?”

I could tell by her tone, it was about to get ugly.

“Is it just that you want everyone’s attention or is that you still like him?”

“Shut up, Harper. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Maybe it’s that you don’t want to see me happy with Jeremy?”

It’s like I had no control over the words coming from my mouth.

“Are you serious, Harper?” she yelled.

“Are you serious?” I yelled back.

“What the hell is your problem?”

Still wading in the water, I angrily dragged my feet along the sandy floor and

inched closer to her.

“What’s my problem?” I replied bitterly. “Maybe my problem is that I just had

the worst year of my entire life and something good is finally happening to me and you

can’t let me have it.”

“Have what? My ex-boyfriend?” She stomped toward the beach. “I don’t like

Jeremy like that, but that doesn’t make it right for my supposed best friend to like him

one year later.”

“Why, Piper?” I shouted. “Because last time I checked, we’re fifteen, not twenty-

five and by the way, don’t you have your own boyfriend?” I knew that my tone had

crossed the line. I was purposely trying to be rude. I didn’t care about her feelings

anymore. “Remember Mark? The guy you’ve professed your eternal love for? Why does

Jeremy matter to you anyway? You’re the one who kept going on about how you

couldn’t even stand the sight of him.”

Then, against my every intention, I started to cry. It felt like I had hit a brick wall and that

she’d never see my perspective. I never tried to intentionally hurt or betray her.

I dragged myself closer to her. She was standing on top of a large, flat rock on the

“You know what? I’m sick and tired of walking on eggshells around you just because

your brother died. I’m sorry that he killed himself, but that doesn’t give you the right to

ignore the most basic rules of friendship. Life goes on,” she scolded.

But when you're a teenager, just as when you're an adult, friendship really and truly matter. Like that old song goes: make new friends but keep the old, some are silver and the other gold. When it's all said and done, Harper and Piper will be friends forever.

Piper was the last to speak. As she took the pin from Anna’s hand, she said that

sharing just one memory was too hard since we had fifteen years of them. She said I was

the most special friend she’s ever had and that I always would be...no matter what.

Moved by everyone’s unexpected sentiments, I felt a few teardrops seep out of the corner

of my eyes. For once they weren’t sad tears. Piper opened her fist to reveal the pin. It

shined against the light of the fire. I stared down at my new piece of jewelry in her hand.

“Who planned this?” I asked, my voice a little shaky.

“Braydon planned it,” Piper replied, reaching over to gently touch the pin with

her index finger.

“Braydon? What do you mean Braydon planned it?” I whispered. That didn’t

make any sense.

“I mean...Braydon planned this ceremony. Last summer, on the plane ride back

to San Francisco. Remember, I sat next to him? He told me that you deserved your North

Star pin since it would be your last summer as a camper. He said he was given his pin his

last summer as a camper and he wanted the same for you. We all know that you’d live up

here if you could. You embody everything that North Star stands for, Harper. So, on that

plane ride, I promised Braydon we’d plan your ceremony together. But, then...well...it

was his idea, and we all agreed it was a great one. I was just the one who carried out the

plan,” her voice trailed off.

I brushed my finger over my new pin. I could feel Braydon.

“Thank you,” I whispered, overcome with emotion. “Thank you so much. You

have no idea what this means to me.”

Georgie and Shannon have been friends for 14 years.

 About the Authors:

Georgie Hanlin

Georgie Hanlin grew up in San Francisco. She has a Bachelor’s degree from Scripps College in French and History and spent her Junior Year abroad studying in Paris. Georgie has Master of Arts degree in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University.  Her writing has been featured in The New York Times/International Herald Tribune, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, The San Francisco Chronicle and NPR.  Georgie is a teacher in Mill Valley and lives in San Francisco.

Shannon Swann

Shannon Swann was born in Honolulu, but moved to New Jersey as a child. She has a Bachelor’s degree from California State University, San Francisco in Liberal Studies with an emphasis on Speech Communication. For close to a decade, she worked in the fashion industry for some of most well-known retail giants (GAP, Coach, Reebok) in San Francisco, New York and Boston doing Product Development. She currently owns her own small business, MooseCouture, and resides in Chicago where she is an avid animal rights supporter (PAWS Chicago).

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