Hi, everyone! I am so excited to share this Feature Post and my Book Review of Jennifer Probst’s new book A Brand New Ending. Below you can read a post from the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review, author info and a Rafflecopter giveaway.
This is an wonderful second chance romance that I highly recommend! Good luck on the Rafflecopter giveaway.
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Kyle’s Top 5 Memories With Ophelia from A Brand New Ending by Jennifer Probst
In A Brand New Ending, Kyle Kimpton and Ophelia Bishop are only eighteen years old when they decide to run away together to pursue their dreams. Leaving the family farm behind, they escape to Hollywood to get married and chase their careers. Kyle plans on being a famous writer, and Ophelia longs to be a singer as great as Adele.
Unfortunately, their paths diverge and rip apart their relationship. As Kyle thrives in Hollywood as the new hotshot screenwriter in town, Ophelia falters when she realizes in order to be famous in the music industry, she needs to change who she is. Choices are made that rip them apart, and Ophelia returns to the family farm with her heart shattered and dreams destroyed.
Kyle realizes he’s made a big mistake letting go of the only woman he’s ever loved. His memories haunt him. Here are the top five he thinks about constantly:
1. He remembers the first time they kissed when they were sixteen years old. Riding on horseback through the meadow, Ophelia falls off her horse, and when he frantically checks on her, they gaze into each other’s eyes and he realizes at that moment, he is in love with his best friend. They share their first kiss, and when they walk away hand in hand out of the meadow, everything has changed.
2. When Kyle’s abusive father blames him for his mother’s death, he runs to the only place he’s ever felt safe: the Bishop family farm. Ophelia opens the door and instantly senses his pain. She holds him tight and for the very first time, Kyle cries in her arms.
3. When they were young, they hung out with Ophelia’s brother, Ethan, and were called the Three Musketeers. They’d run around the small town of Gardiner, raising hell, and ending up at Bea’s Diner for her famous burgers and pies, detailing the glory of their future.
4. Ophelia would sneak out at night to meet him at the barns. They kept their relationship secret from Ethan and Harper (Opehlia’s siblings) and spend nights lying on a blanket, under the stars, holding hands and talking about their dreams and future.
5. Kyle vowed to wait until they were married to claim Ophelia as his. They get married in Vegas in a tiny chapel, by Elvis, and when they return home to their tiny apartment, they make love for the very first time.
After a decade, Kyle returns to his hometown and back to Ophelia. He intends to create many new memories with the woman he loves. He dreams of running the Inn with her side by side as he writes his new books on his terms. He wants to raise a family with her in their childhood town, and be surrounded by the people and animals he’s always loved. He wants to watch her sing again, making people happy, finally owning her special gift without fear. And this is where A Brand New Ending begins…
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Excerpt: A Brand New Ending by Jennifer Probst
He parked the car and cut the engine.
Ten years.
Ten years since he’d come home to the small upstate New York town of Gardiner and gazed upon the staggering Shawangunk Mountains. Ten years since he’d touched snow. Ten years since he’d been surrounded by the eerie beauty of nature’s silence.
And too many years since he’d seen the only woman he’d ever loved.
They’d been the three musketeers—Ethan, Ophelia, and him—caught in a world of their own making. Memories assaulted him. Of running through the woods when they were young and racing horses barefoot as the green meadow flashed below. Of moonlight walks and late nights at Bea’s Diner, squeezed into the cracked red-vinyl booths as they spun dreams of the future and feasted on greasy burgers. Of his first kiss with Ophelia. The taste of innocence and passion mixed with Juicy Fruit chewing gum.
He closed his eyes, staggering under the raw emotions the images brought. Some of those dreams had come true for him, but the price had been brutal.
It was time to make things right.
It was time to reclaim what he’d lost.
Kyle glanced at the passenger seat, his fingers already reaching to stroke the leather laptop case. He’d left a fancy mansion behind, along with rooms filled with expensive trinkets meant to amuse, entertain, and distract the masses. He’d walked away from a gourmet chef, housekeeper, and personal trainer. His garage still held the laser-blue Lamborghini and the sleek black Hummer. He’d left the tuxedos and designer clothes in his closet; the cedar wine cellar still filled with rare, expensive wine; and the four-poster mahogany bed that had seen too many lonely nights.
Now all he had to his name was one battered suitcase, his laptop, and a Ford Fusion rental car.
And for the first time in way too long, he felt the beginning of a creative spark—the sexy wink of his muse beckoning him closer to his childhood home, where he’d sworn he’d never return.
He grabbed his phone and tapped out a text to Ethan.
I’m here. How bad is she going to take it?
He waited a bit, until the familiar gray bubble with ellipsis popped up.
Don’t know—depends on how pathetic you look. Still have no clue why she’s mad at you.
Kyle winced as guilt punched through him. Falling in love with your best friend’s younger sister was a no-no. Running away with her was even worse. But eloping and not telling his friend about it?
There was no making amends for that one.
He cursed, then tapped his fingers again.
Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
Don’t be stupid—it’s a great idea! The inn isn’t booked up and she’s just being stubborn. Go inside, make nice, and I’ll be there in an hour.
He groaned and resisted the urge to bang his head against the steering wheel. When he’d asked about staying at the inn for three months to work on a new project, he’d worried Ophelia would refuse. When Ethan told him to book his ticket, he’d been relieved.
Until he found out on the plane ride that Ophelia had actually said no. Ethan had conveniently left that part out, citing in true guy code it would all be fine.
Her refusal to see him hurt more than he’d imagined it would, but now he had no choice. Everything was set in motion, and he wasn’t about to return to LA. Not only had he committed to writing this screenplay surrounded by his memories, he’d sworn to fight for a second chance with Ophelia. It was time they both faced the past, put some ghosts behind them, and figure things out. After all, it had been eight years.
She had no idea he was about to walk through her door with the intention of staying for the next three months—in the dead of winter.
That’d be bad enough, but when she heard his other piece of news?
Things were gonna get a hell of a lot worse.
He stayed in the car a few more minutes, trying to psych himself up. Maybe she’d surprise him and be open to talking things through. Maybe she wouldn’t be horrified when he told her about what he’d discovered a few months ago. Maybe it would all work out fine, just like Ethan said.
Even better?
Maybe he’d find himself again.
Grasping at all those positive possibilities, he gritted his teeth, grabbed his bag, and got out of the car.
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
A BRAND NEW ENDING (Stay #2) by Jennifer Probst is a second chance contemporary love story that could not be more perfect! I gave the first book in the Stay series, “The Start of Something New” 5 stars and I want to give this book even MORE! Jennifer Probst has now become a “Must Buy” romance author for me.
After high school, Ophelia Bishop and Kyle Kimpton knew they are meant to be together forever and they have big dreams. Ophelia wants to become a famous singer and Kyle wants to become a famous screenwriter. They take off together for Hollywood. As dreams begin to come true, not everything is the way they thought it would be. Ophelia returns home to run the family B&B and Kyle returns to their Hollywood apartment to find her gone.
Ten years have passed and Kyle feels he has to return to his hometown to write his current screenplay. He has built his fame and reputation on action films, but this project takes him in a new direction. He wants to write a love story. His and Ophelia’s story, but he wants to change the ending.
Ophelia still has feelings for Kyle, but he broke her heart before and she knows it could happen all over again if she lets him in. Can Ophelia forgive Kyle and learn to trust in his love again and can Kyle learn the reasons Ophelia returned home and understand her true feelings?
This is a beautiful second chance love story. Forgiveness is a major theme throughout, not only for the H/h, but also for Kyle and his recovering alcoholic father. Keep the tissues handy. Ophelia is such a multilayered heroine. Kyle has to learn to listen and actually see things from her point of view to understand the truth of their relationship problems. This story delves into the gray areas of a relationship and not just the black and white. I also enjoyed Kyle writing his romance story within this story. It highlighted and contrasted well with Kyle’s shifts in understanding from the past to the present. The sex scenes are explicit, appropriate to the story and fun.
Ophelia and Kyle’s story is heartwarming, funny, sexy, a tear-jerker and everything I want in a second chance romance. This book can be read as a standalone, but the first book in the series was also a great read that I recommend. I laughed at Hei Hei’s antics once again. I love the realistic secondary characters of this small town community and cannot wait to return for Harper’s story.
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About the Book
Title: A Brand New Ending
Author: Jennifer Probst
Release Date: October 23, 2018
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary
Ophelia Bishop was a lovestruck teenage girl when she and Kyle Kimpton chased their dreams to Hollywood. Kyle’s dreams came true. Ophelia’s did not. When Kyle chose his career over their relationship, Ophelia returned home to rural New York to run the family’s B & B—wiser, and more guarded against foolish fantasies. Now Kyle has come crashing back into her life, and all her defenses are down.
Kyle can’t think of a better place to write his latest screenplay than his hometown. After all, that was where he met the heart of his inspiration—his first love. He knows the damage he’s caused Ophelia, and he wants a chance to mend their relationship. If anyone can prove to Ophelia that happy ever afters aren’t only for the movies, it should be him.
As much as Ophelia’s changed, she still has feelings for Kyle. But her heart has been broken before, and she knows that Kyle could run back to Hollywood at any time. She gave up her dreams once, but maybe she can dare to change her own love story…one last time.
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Author Biography
Jennifer Probst is the New York Times bestselling author of the Billionaire Builders series, the Searching For series, The Marriage series, the Steele Brothers series, and The Start of Something Good, which is the first book in the Stay series. Like some of her characters, Probst, along with her husband and two sons, calls New York’s Hudson Valley home. When she isn’t traveling to meet readers, she enjoys reading, watching “shameful reality television,” and visiting a local Hudson Valley animal shelter.
Social Media Links
Website: https://www.jenniferprobst.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenniferprobst.authorpage
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jenniferprobst
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2965489.Jennifer_Probst
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