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    The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles
    The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles
    The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles
    Ebook73 pages1 hourI Am Margaret

    The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles

    By Corinna Turner

    ()

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    About this ebook

    In a dystopian future, an innocent picnic turns deadly.

    Margo and Bane have planned the perfect Saturday - a bike ride, a train ride, a nice picnic...
    But when they're mistaken for terrorists, the army pursue them with deadly force.
    Can two teenagers evade a massive manhunt?
    Their lives—and those of their families—depend on it.

    PRAISE FOR BOOK 1: I AM MARGARET
    “Great style ... like The Hunger Games.”
    EOIN COLFER, author of Artemis Fowl and former Children's Laureate of Ireland

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherCorinna Turner
    Release dateJan 1, 2020
    ISBN9781910806906
    The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles
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    Author

    Corinna Turner

    Corinna Turner has been writing since she was fourteen and likes strong protagonists with plenty of integrity. She has an MA in English from Oxford University, but has foolishly gone on to work with both children and animals! Juggling work with the disabled and being a midwife to sheep, she spends as much time as she can in a little hut at the bottom of the garden, writing. She is a Catholic Christian with roots in the Methodist and Anglican churches. A keen cinema-goer, she lives in the UK with her Giant African Land Snail, Peter, who has a six inch long shell and an even larger foot!

    Read more from Corinna Turner

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      Book preview

      The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles - Corinna Turner

      PRAISE FOR CORINNA TURNER’S BOOKS

      LIBERATION: nominated for the Carnegie Medal Award 2016.

      ELFLING: 1st prize, Teen Fiction, CPA Book Awards 2019

      I AM MARGARET & BANE’S EYES: finalists, CALA Award 2016/2018.

      LIBERATION & THE SIEGE OF REGINALD HILL: 3rd place, CPA Book Awards 2016/2019.

      PRAISE FOR I AM MARGARET

      Great style—very good characters and pace. Definitely a book worth reading, like The Hunger Games.

      EOIN COLFER (Author of Artemis Fowl)

      An intelligent, well-written and enjoyable debut from a young writer with a bright future.

      STEWART ROSS (Author of The Soterion Mission)

      This book invaded my dreams.

      SR. MARY CATHERINE BLOOM OP

      ***+***

      THE UNDERAPPRECIATED VIRTUES OF RUSTY OLD BICYCLES

      CORINNA TURNER

      Copyright 2019 Corinna Turner

      ***+***

      License Notes

      This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite eBook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      ***+***

      CONTENTS

      The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles

      I AM MARGARET Sneak Peek

      Other Books by Corinna Turner

      About the Author

      Connect with Corinna Turner

      Boring Legal Bit

      ***+***

      Note from the Author

      This short story was first published as part of the anthology ‘Secrets: Visible & Invisible’ by Catholic Teen Books in 2018.

      ***+***

      The Underappreciated Virtues of Rusty Old Bicycles

      Trees flashed past as I peddled, my bike thumping and jarring as it bounced over the branches littering the path. Last night’s storm had been replaced by utter stillness, but it’d left its calling card, all right.

      Squeak-creak-thud.

      My mountain bike’s ancient suspension and rusty frame complained as I successfully cleared yet another obstacle. I focussed intently on the path just ahead. I didn’t want to crash, and I really didn’t want to write off my bike. It might have been made waaaay back in the early decades of the twenty-first century—okay, okay, it wasn’t quite as old as that, but it was the only one I—

      Whoa!

      I skidded to a halt, a whisker from Bane’s cracked mudguard. Bane! A little warning!

      He jerked his head forward. What, Margo, you think I should’ve tried to jump that? On this heap of scrap?

      Ah . . . a fallen tree blocked the trail. Quite a big one.

      I checked my watch. Look, we’re in good time. Why don’t we leave the bikes here before we totally wreck them, and hoof it the rest of the way?

      Good plan.

      We hid the bikes in an area of dense bushes and headed on up the path at an easy jog.

      It was wild last night, said Bane. Did you see the lightning?

      I was, uh, otherwise occupied. And what a lovely Mass it’d been. Safe and successful, too . . .

      Oh, Uncle Peter was there, right?

      "Yeah. And ‘Cousin’ Mark."

      Bane shot me a grin. You know, I really like him. He’s cool.

      Uncle Peter’s cool, too, I said loyally. Father Mark had been there only a month or two. I did like him a lot, though I couldn’t help wondering if he’d ever been an assassin. Probably why Bane admired him, alas, despite the fact that the young priest had clearly turned his back on anything like that.

      "Uncle Peter’s a different kind of cool. Bane jumped over another fallen bough without breaking his stride. Father Mark’s like, cool-cool."

      Bane! I shot him a scowl for using the dangerous title out loud. Come on! We were fourteen; we were old enough not to make slips like that.

      He shrugged, but then pulled a face and spoke more penitently. Yeah, sorry. I guess it’s better to be careful. Do you want to give me the lunch?

      I’m okay. I always insisted on carrying the rucksack with our sandwiches at least part of the way. Even though Bane was big for his age, and a guy to boot.

      Bane sighed and rolled his eyes but said, Did Sue invite you to her party?

      What party?

      "Well, that answers that. I told her I had something else on, but she was like, oh, well, I haven’t really fixed the date yet, so you might as well tell me when you’re free. So I need to get really busy for the next little while. Can you help me think of some stuff to be busy with, ‘cause otherwise, sorry, I’m going to lie."

      I laughed, warmth spreading and filling my insides. He isn’t interested in Sue. The tourist season’s just starting. We could wash cars like we did last year. Get you a new bike before yours really does fall apart.

      That’s a good idea. Maybe we could...

      Bane, shsss . . .

      He fell silent.

      No, I’d not imagined it.

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