All These Things I’ve Done – book one
In 2082, New
York City is almost unrecognizable. Water is scarce, crime is rampant and
coffee and chocolate are illegal. Central Park is an arid wasteland and city
leaders are ineffective. Museums now house nightclubs and speakeasies serve
coffee. Alcohol is available to all. Those under eighteen are bound by midnight
to 6am curfews. City services are almost nonexistent.
Anya
Balanchine is the daughter of the former head of Balanchine Crime Family which
produces chocolate. Both of her parents are dead due to hits. Her grandmother
is her legal guardian even though she is in failing health. Anya is the true
head of her immediate family. Besides being a normal sixteen-year-old, she must
not only care for her Nana but her younger sister Natty and her brain damaged
older brother Leo. No longer has a part of the crime family, the family is trying
to find a way back into Anya’s life.
The night
before the first day of her junior year at Holy Trinity School, Anya and her
boyfriend Gable Arsley spent the evening at a speakeasy drinking espressos. For
once, Gable walks her home but with ulterior motives. Begging for some
chocolate, Anya relents and gets some from the safe in the closet. Gable is
asleep on her bed when she returns and will not wake up. She breaks him off a
piece, hides the rest and decides to take a shower. Wrapped in a towel, Anya
goes back into her room to find Gable awakens and he has eaten the entire
chocolate bar. Not sorry in the least, he then begs her to finally sleep with
him she refuses but Gable isn’t about to take no for an answer. Anya yells at
him and Leo comes to her aid, gable is escorted to the door.
Even without
email (too costly) or cell phones (illegal for those under eighteen), the
rumors of Gable dumping Anya are rampant before the school day can start. Even
about a visit to the confessional booth with Mother Piousina in which she has
sinned for wishing harm to come to Gable, Anya becomes enraged when he sneers
at her in the cafeteria. She throws her plate of lasagna at him. Her day will
end with a visit to the Headmaster’s office.
While waiting
to see the Headmaster, Anya meets the new boy in school that her best friend
Scarlet was mooning over earlier. Anya realizes right away that the cute boy in
front of her is not her usual type. He introduces himself as Win Delacroix and
asks her what she is looking at. His calloused hands, Anya says. Win tells her
that he is from upstate where they grew their own food and he plays the guitar.
Before she can introduce herself, Win states that he already knows who she is
since she has been the topic of conversation all day. Well then, he must also
know that she is a crazy, addicted, slutty mafia princess. Win lets her know
that where he comes from people come to their own conclusions about others.
Gable was the person who was in the Headmaster’s office. She asks Win if
she can meet with Anya first. He consents. Anya is placed on probation and
assigned lunch duty for the rest of the week. The Headmaster doesn’t want to
call and upset her grandmother but she is concerned what kind of reputation
Anya’s behavior is earning her. When she leaves, Win has been entertaining
Natty while she waits. The girls leave to go home and Natty comments on how
cute and nice Win is.
It turns out
that Win Delacroix in the son of the new assistant DA or the unofficial top cop
in NYC. Scarlet is crushing on Win. Wanting to ask Win out, she gets Anya to
agree to a plan to get him to go out with the two of them. Later, Natty tells
her sister that she should let Scarlet know that she is interested in Winn.
Anya denies it but Natty says she knows just by looking at Win that he is
interested in her. Win agrees to go with them to a legal nightclub.
On their
group outing, the nightclub is raided and shut down. Leo has shown up with
Jacks, a cousin, who is trying to make a name for himself in the family.
Outside, Leo suffers a seizure and Jacks is nowhere to be seen. Scarlet locates
Anya and they find Win taking care of Leo. He is alright but the time the four
of them make it back to that Balanchine apartment but it is past curfew. Win
must stay the night. Staying over anyway, Scarlet tells Anya that Win is not
the boy for her and that it is okay if Anya wants to pursue him, Anya goes to
get Win settled for the night and thanks him for taking care of Leo he that his
sister suffered from seizures before she died. Anya notices that his cheek is
bruised and goes to get a bag of frozen peas. Anya says good night but Win asks
her to stay. She apologizes for the night but Win says that interesting things
happen around her. Anya says that she is trouble but he says that she just has
a lot of responsibilities.
Cousin Jacks
delivers a case of chocolate bars the following night for the family. Before
Anya can put them away, Gable is knocking on the door. High on caffeine, he
begs Anya for chocolate. They have words and she ends up giving him two bars
just to get him to leave. When Gable doesn’t show up at school for several
days, it is rumored that he is dying in the hospital. Before Anya can even wrap
her mind around the situation, the Headmaster tells her that the police would
like to talk with her.
Turns out
that Gable ate some poisoned chocolate that was traced back to the Balanchine
company. Anya is arrested and before she knows it, she finds herself in a
juvenile detention facility.
Just who
poisoned the chocolate and who was it meant for? Does Gable survive? Can Anya
find a way to clear her name? is Win interested in Anya? What happens when
Win’s father warns her to stay away from his son? Can a mafia princess find
love with the DA’s son? Who can Anya trust and who is just out to use her? And will
Anya be able to leave the stigma surrounding her family name?
Because It Is My Blood – book two
SPOILER ALERT! Don’t read any further
if you haven’t read All These Things I’ve
Done in its entirety.
Anya
Balanchine is trying to get her life back on track after the deal she made with
Charles Delacroix. Picking up the pieces of her life, all she wants to do is
finish high school. But with Mickey Balanchine and Yuji Ono wanting her to get
into the chocolate business and Delacroix willing to punish Anya to win the
election, Anya is once again a pawn. When she finds herself back at Liberty, it
isn’t long before she is in the hospital. Someone has poisoned her. Anya
decides to leave New York for her own safety. Yuri makes arrangements for Anya
to stay at a cacao farm in Mexico in order to learn more about her birthright.
Who poisoned
Anya and why? What does she learn about the chocolate business in Mexico? Why
is Charles Delacroix so intent on destroying Anya? Are Yuji Ono’s motives
strictly professional or does he hope something more will develop between
himself and Anya? Can Anya get Win Delacroix out of her system? Will she ever
be able to return to New York? Who is she able to trust? And will Anya finally
claim what is her birthright?
Anya Balanchine’s
story will conclude on October 29, 2013 with In the Age of Love and Chocolate. Observant readers will note that
the three titles in the Birthright series make up a sentence beginning with the
first title (All these things I've done/ because it is my blood/ in the age of love and chocolate) that tell a synopsis of the trilogy.
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