Beyond the Precipice

A young man with a dark secret must choose... Trapped by the wishes of his dead father and his brother’s blackmail, Bret Killeen suppresses his musical talent for years—until he meets Nicole, a university cello player with big dreams. As Bret wrestles with unresolved grief and guilt over his father’s death, Nicole stirs his passion for music until it can no longer be ignored. Her supportive father provides a striking contrast to Bret’s own family, an enlightening that drives him to the breaking point. At the threshold of adulthood, Bret must resolve his past in order to seize his future. The truth his mother needs to know, the power his brother holds over him, and the man their father really was are the sources Bret must tap to earn his freedom.

Eva Blaskovic does not like cold weather but has a fascination with it. The gas station scene in chapter 23 is real. Most Canadian children are warned not to touch metal playground structures in the winter with their tongues, but in Alberta, one cannot touch metal with bare hands at extremely low temperatures. Eva likes to test herself with physical feats during weather extremes, such as jogging at -30°C or +35°C in Alberta or spending time outdoors in Ontario's 50°C humidex. As a teenager, she waded through hip-deep snow in the woods in Ontario to acquire "experience" to help her write her books.

To this day, she reads books about adventures in Canada's North, from the historical quest for the Northwest Passage to realistic fiction about survival in the cold. As a teacher, she has studied Brian's Winter (Gary Paulsen) and Far North (Will Hobbs) with her students. Another favourite book is With Scott to the Pole (retold by Howard Marshall), Captain Scott's trek in the quest for the South Pole.

Eva has a passion for music and numerous musical genres, has played eight instruments, and spent many years immersed in Taekwondo and Karate. As a youth in Ontario, she was an avid canoeist. Eva was born in Prague, Czech Republic, grew up in Ontario, Canada, and moved to Alberta in 1988, where she raised four children.

Currently, Eva teaches at a specialized clinic in Edmonton, Alberta. She regularly writes and teaches 27 to 33 individualized lesson plans per week for students from grade one through university. Her multi-faceted background in the sciences and the arts allows her to teach both the math and language programs. She also mentors young authors.

Eva is a multi-genre author of short and long fiction. She also writes articles about travel, parenting, education, and writing. In 2014, she received the Seal of Excellence for the Top 100 Certified Writers at Angie's Diary Online Magazine (Netherlands).