Finding Evie by Catina Noble is a Summertime Books Event pick #fiction #yalit #summerreads #giveaway
- N. N. Light
- Jun 24
- 4 min read
Title: Finding Evie
Author: Catina Noble
Genre: Fiction
Book Blurb:
I’m sure we all must have told ourselves, at least once while growing up, that life couldn’t possibly get worse. As Rod Serling, host of the ancient TV show, The Twilight Zone, actually never said, “Imagine if you will,” being the eldest female child in a family with no parenting. Imagine being “Mommy” to a pari of irresponsible, substance-addicted adult children. Imagine taking on the responsibility of being the nanny for younger siblings, the maid for lazy,, hungover parents, the literal whipping girl for her father’s outbursts. Catina Noble has nailed it in Finding Evie. She has managed to portray Evie Feathers as though she herself had lived through each and every soul-destroying experience and come out, not merely as a survivor, but as a thriver. Finding Evie holds hope between its covers for neglected children.
Excerpt:
She turned and her eyes met mine. She spoke quietly. “Evie, you know better than to upset your father. You know better than that.”
The thing was, I hadn’t done anything. It was the same as it always was. I was being punished for something I hadn’t done. My father hated me for things I didn’t do. There was something wrong with him. He needed help.
All I had wanted to do was sleep at a friend’s place because Dad was completely drunk. My sisters had already gone to spend a night with their friends. I didn’t want to be his punching bag. That’s what it basically boiled down to. He seemed to be on a fresh wave of rage. I thought I might vomit. I glanced back at the screen door where my friend PJ stood waiting, just outside. She was fifteen. I’m sure she could hear every word. I had not time to be embarrassed about what she might hear. Right then, I had to keep my wits about me.
My father had noticed my eyes looking toward the door. He took another swig from his Molson Canadian beer—I can still picture that bottle—and through his gritted teeth he spoke.
“I’ll give you one warning and only one.” He pointed his beer bottle at me. “You try leaving this house and I will slice your throat.”
I could feel my eyes bulging. This was not happening. This wasn’t real. I looked over in my mother’s direction once more, my eyes pleading for help. She never even looked up. /she continued sitting there, immersed in her all-important puzzle.
My father sucked down the last of the beer then smashed the bottle against the door jam. His hand reached down to the shards of it and taking the biggest piece, he lunged at me.
I ran for my life.
PJ’s mother was super sick and had been for months. I had visited PJ several times and every time I was there, her mother was in bed, too sick to come out. Once we got to her place, PJ explained what had happened and I was told that I was welcome to stay at their place for as long as need be.
Half an hour after arriving at PJ”s I heard the phone ring. PJ answered. It was my mother. She wanted to talk to me, I refused.
There was nothing my mother could say to convince me to come home. I didn’t want to hear anything. I needed space. There was a lot to process. My father had just threatened to kill me. My father had come after me with a chunk of broken beer bottle to slice my tooth. My mother had sat there ignoring the entire thing. Was this another of my nightmares?
“No.” PJ had assured me.
Had I asked that out loud? No. I was going crazy. PJ had been there. PJ had heard everything.
So this was really happening.
My mother informed PJ that if I weren’t home in the next fifteen minutes, she was going to call the police.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
What makes your featured book a must-read?
It explores Evie, a child’s, childhood filled with neglect, resilience, and the unknown. Even though the odds always seemed to be stacked up against her, she keeps trying to find a way out. Every child should feel like a person, never go hungry and feel wanted. Evie’s deepest desires is to feel at least one of these things. Maybe someday. Maybe.
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $15 Amazon gift card:
Open Internationally.
Runs June 23 – June 30, 2025.
Winner will be drawn on July 1, 2025.
Author Biography:
Catina Noble is a Canadian, multi-genre writer. Her work is eclectic and provides something for everyone. She has over two hundred publications including her books, short-stories, poetry and articles. Her work has appeared in several publications, including, but not limited to; Chicken Soup for the Soul: Your 10 Keys to Happiness, Woman’s World Magazine, Bywords Magazine, Y Travel Blog, Canadian Newcomer Magazine, The Prairie Journal, The Mindfulword, Perceptive Travel and many others. In 2013 her poem, You Can’t See Me, won first place in the Canadian Author’s Association (NCR) poetry contest. Four of her books Finding Evie, Vacancy at the Food Court & Other Short Stories, I’m Glad I Didn’t Kill Myself and Everest Base Camp: Close Call have won the Reader’s Favourite silver seal of approval. She has a B.A. in Psychology from Carleton University and a Social Services Worker Diploma from Algonquin College. She currently writes, works full-time as a Community Integration Worker and is enrolled in the Addictions & Mental Health Program and the Creative Writing Certificate program at Algonquin College. Her favourite place to write is at a local coffee shop. Sometimes her dog Aspen, and cat PJ, supervise the creative writing process. To read more about her work please visit http://crowecreations.ca/catina-noble.html
Social Media Links:
IG: @catina_noble_writer
