Today is my turn on the Virtual Author Book Tour for THE WATER’S FINE by Janice Coy. This is an intriguing read that is a women’s fiction story with a suspense sub-plot.
Below you will find a book description, an author Q&A, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links and a giveaway. Good luck and enjoy!
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Book Description
Catalina Rodrigues believes she’s living her best life,
traveling to exotic locations around the world as a scuba dive master, spending
every moment possible in her beloved ocean.
Bertie Clark is excited for a week-long scuba trip with her
husband exploring the underwater wonders of an ocean teeming with life – the
Sea of Cortez.
But a tragedy on their dive boat sends both women into uncharted
territory, questioning what they’ve always thought to be true, and fostering an
unlikely friendship. Will either trust the invitation to “come on in, the
water’s fine” again?
Water’s Fine: Suspense Novel by Janice Coy
Publisher: Independently Published (April 22, 2019) Category: Suspense, Family Fiction, Women’s Fiction Tour dates: January/February, 2020 ISBN: 9781795669047 Available in Print and ebook, 312 pages
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Author Q&A with Avonna Loves Genres
What is your favorite scene in “The
Water’s Fine?” why?
I have many favorite scenes in “The Water’s Fine,” and
I hope readers will agree. One is when Catalina and the rest of the boat crew
welcome the newest guests on board the Calypso for a week-long scuba dive trip.
Catalina believes it will be just another group of strangers to shepherd on
dives for a week, and then back to the port where the people will depart never
to be seen again. All she cares about is being assigned the more experienced
divers this time around. She doesn’t know that before the week is out her life
will be changed forever.
How long did it take you to complete “The
Water’s Fine”?
Including research, the novel took me about two years
to complete. When I’m done with the first draft, I like to set my novel aside
for a while so I can come back to it with fresh eyes. By the time I’m ready to
publish, I’ve written about seven to eight drafts, and gotten feedback from
several first readers. Even then, I must take a deep breath and let it go. Someone
said once that a novel is like a painting, even when the art is done, the
artist or writer can always find something to fix.
Where did you get the inspiration for your
cover?
One of my favorite things to do as a scuba diver is to
look back up to the water’s surface. If the water’s clear, it’s amazing to see
how deep the sun’s rays can penetrate through the layers. Twilight is
especially beautiful when the water is like liquid gold above, and already
getting shadowy below. The cover of “The Water’s Fine” is from the perspective
of a scuba diver looking back up at the surface. The bubbles are the expended
air the diver has used; the bubbles closer to the surface are open.
What draws you to this genre?
I read a lot of Fairy Tales and Nancy Drew when I was
growing up. I loved the suspense of wondering what was going to happen next.
Would Nancy solve the crime? Would the princess live up to her bargain to sleep
with the toad on her pillow? Alfred Hitchcock once said a mystery is for the
intellect while suspense is about emotion. Typically, in a mystery, the crime
happens immediately, and a detective sets about solving it. In suspense, the
protagonist only gradually becomes aware of the danger, much like a frog in a
slowly heating pot. I have a lot of fun
putting my characters in unexpected situations and discovering what they will
do next.
What writers have you drawn inspiration from?
Are there other inspirations you draw from?
As an avid reader, I enjoy reading books by authors
who are great storytellers and writers like Sue Monk Kidd, Amor Towles, Anthony
Doerr and Larry McMurtry. They all inspire me to become a better writer as do
Liane Moriarty, Kate Morton and Kristin Hannah. I also am inspired by
adventures I’ve had, the stories people tell me, and the choices people make.
While writing “The Water’s Fine,” I relied on my own week-long stay on a scuba
dive boat on the Sea of Cortez.
What book/s are you reading at present?
I just finished “A Gentleman in Moscow”; I’m starting
“The Lilac Girls” and am waiting on “What Alice Forgot.”
Are you currently working on another book?
Yes! I’m in the very rough draft stages of my sixth novel. I don’t outline, so I use the rough draft as a general outline. I didn’t know if I would have a sixth story to tell, but one day a hazy vision of the story evolved in my head. Tony Morrison said, “I always know the ending; that’s where I start.” I have a beginning and an ending. It’s how my characters will get from A to Z that’s challenging!
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My Book Review
RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
THE WATER’S FINE: A NOVEL by Janice Coy is an intriguing women’s
fiction story with a suspense sub-plot. This is a standalone book which takes
you on a journey into the love and perils of scuba diving, friendship, family
and suspense.
Catalina took off immediately after graduating college to work
as a scuba dive master. She was going to travel the world for one year, but she
is now on her sixth. She is currently on The Calypso and getting ready for a
new group of vacationers for a week-long trip. She is very pleased because her
group of six are all experienced divers.
Alberta “Bertie” and her husband Matt are looking forward to
this new experience of diving in cold water. Previously they have only gone on
warm water dives. Bertie is very outgoing and friendly, but she also comes off
as being a know-it-all because she always researches and prepares for
everything.
Catalina and Bertie hit it off. Neither has many friends and
they find they enjoy each other’s company. When a tragedy strikes that ends the
trip, the two are determined to keep in touch even long distance. Catalina
returns to San Diego to get her Masters degree and Bertie and Matt return to their
jobs in Michigan.
Bertie and Matt decide to move to San Diego. Catalina is
very happy they are on their way because strange and dangerous things have been
happening to her. Is it a just stress and/or coincidence, or is someone really trying
to hurt Catalina?
I enjoyed this fiction novel even though it does not neatly
fit into any one genre. Catalina and Bertie are both strong women going through
different life decisions in this story, but they also click as friends. Ms. Coy
gives a complete description of scuba diving including all the beauty and
danger involved that paints a picture and is not an information dump. The family
members of both women are fully fleshed and realistic. The tragedy in the first
part of the story ties into the suspense in the last third of the book. It is
easily figured out and I was not completely sure if I liked the addition of
this sub-plot, but I kept turning the pages.
Ms. Coy has written an entertaining novel and it is worth
the read.
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Author Bio and Social Media Links
Award winning Janice Coy is the
author of five suspense novels. Her work is also published in four anthologies.
She was a finalist at the San Diego Book
Awards Association annual contest. She’s received the IndieReader Seal of Approval. A former journalist, Ms. Coy
has received several awards for her reporting including a national award for best feature story in a
community newspaper.
Ms. Coy is an advanced certified scuba diver; she’s run five
half-marathons and summited Mt. Kilimanjaro. She lives in Southern California
with her husband.
“I just finished The Water’s Fine by Janice Coy which means I am must bid farewell to the characters I have become attached to and I must close the cover on a plot that kept a firm grasp on my attention and continued to surprise. The act of reading this book can cause laundry to pile up, dust to gather and dirty dishes to dry crusty because one cannot stop reading from chapter to chapter – – from scuba action, to mystery, heartache, friendship, suspense and self discovery. The author is artfully descriptive in all areas of scene and character development which draws you in and holds you! In fact, I would like to invite you to do a little scuba diving and not get wet? Slip on those fins, adjust your mask, get your regulator set and start reading The Water’s Fine.”- Kjans, Amazon
“Oh wow, what a well written book! Being someone who thinks that scuba diving is too scary to try I was drawn in by the author’s imagery. It captured all the anxiety of “breathing underwater”, the suspense of what dangerous creatures you could encounter as well as the absolute beauty and serenity you could feel while exploring the deep blue sea. I fell in love with her characters and was sucked into the mystery and suspense and enjoyed joining them on their journeys of self discovery, life and loss. I really enjoyed this book.”-Amazon Customer
Praise Smallest of Waves by Janice Coy
“Thanks to Coy’s descriptive, immersive world, the waves of Agave Beach leave a distinct impact in The Smallest of Waves. – Indie Reader
“A seaside mystery with an appealing heroine…Coy uses her beachside setting well, contrasting Agave Beach’s innocent sand castles and clueless tourists with the mysterious ocean – so foreign with its dark depths, sharks, kelp forests, and sea caves.” Kirkus Reviews
2017 Finalist San Diego Book Awards Association
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Giveaway
This giveaway is for the winner’s choice of one print or ebook copy of the book. Print is open to Canada and the U.S. only and ebook is available worldwide. There will be 3 winners. This giveaway ends February 27, 2020, midnight pacific time.
I am very excited to be once again be posting for the Harlequin Romance & Women’s Fiction Blog Tour for Winter 2020.
This Feature Post and Book Review is for Rebecca Raisin’s new book THE LITTLE BOOKSHOP ON THE SEINE. It is book 2 of her “The Bookshop” series, but can easily be read as a standalone.
Below you will find an author Q&A, and excerpt from the book, my book review, a book summary and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Author Q&A
Q: Have you ever been to Paris? If so, what are some of your favorite Parisian things?
A: I’ve been lucky enough to go Paris four times and do a bit of exploring for the books. It’s my favourite city in the world and if I could up and move I’d do it! I love the bookshops of Paris, particularly the secondhand shops that are dusty and musty and disorderly. You never know what you’ll find and that makes it magical. If you’re in Paris find the Abbey Bookshop, it’s full to bursting with English books and it’s a treasure trove if you have time to hunt! I also love French food – who doesn’t?! My favourite place to eat is the Christian Constant bistros. He has one for every budget and they’re all glorious. If you splurge once, I highly recommend it’s there.
The Ritz is also a must-see, from Bar Hemingway to Salon Proust, it’s an experience like no other walking in the footsteps of those literary greats. Buly 1803 is the most beautiful perfume shop in all the world, it’s like stepping back in time. My favourite is the rose oil… ooh la la. And holding a special place in my heart is Point Zero Paris, the exact centre of the city and a place where magic happens – you’ll have to read the book to find out more…
Q: What authors were/are a huge influence on you as you began writing? Or Now?
A: I have always loved Maeve Binchy and Joanne Harris and the style in which they write. I love Maeve’s ability to write everyday relatable characters, and I love Joanne’s sense of whimsy. I love writing foodie books set in exotic locations and I think I probably fell in love with France through Joanne’s books, they managed to transport me fully and I must’ve reread them a hundred times by now.
Q: What’s some of your favorite novels? What are you currently reading and what’s on your TBR (to be read) list?
A: I loved Me Before You. I cried ugly, ugly tears at that. I must be a sucker for punishment because my all time favourite is The Fault in Our Stars. And also Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance. Three books that you need to read in the privacy of your own home with some cucumber slices to apply after for puffy eyes! I’m currently reading the Seven Sisters series by Lucinda Riley, so a nice change of pace from sobbing my heart out. I love how different each sister is and how you still find common ground with them.
Q: What inspired you to write your The Little Bookshop on the Siene?
A: My love of Paris and its bookshops! And truthfully, I wangled the family there so I could do some ‘research’ which included eating my body weight in macarons and walking until I couldn’t feel my feet anymore and feeling that I was a little bit French on the inside if only the locals could see that!
Q: What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?
A: I hope you do something reckless, something that scares you, jump out of that comfort zone and do that thing you’ve always dreamed of! What’s stopping you – fear, money, work, life? You can make it happen if only you take the plunge! Open yourself to new experiences and people and don’t take the taxi, walk until your feet are numb and find those lost laneways and hidden alleys and see what you find!
Q: What drew you into this particular genre?
A: I love love, but Little Bookshop is also about another kind of love, the love of a place, or a feeling…writing this genre leaves it open to interpretation and anything goes as long you tie it all up at the end in a satisfying way!
Q: If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?
A: I’d sit down with bookworm Sarah and ask her what she really thought of Luiz… I am still conflicted about that thread and what I could have done but didn’t!
Q: What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?
A: They’ve all been good in different ways but I’d say Facebook is my favourite. I have a great group of people who follow me there and really interact. It’s a nice place to stop and chat and they’re all really lovely. Instagram is good too. I love how creative book bloggers are with their photos, they’re very inspiring to me.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?
A: I’ve said this before and it’s really this simple. Write every day. I think it was Stephen King who said writing is like a muscle, the more you use it, the stronger it gets and it’s true! Carve out a time and stick to it.
Q: What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?A: I’m currently editing Aria’s Travelling Bookshop, which is about a Van Lifer who sells her wares as she explores France! (Are you detecting a pattern here!?) It’s the follow up to Rosie’s Travelling Tea Shop, which was released last March. Both books are about a different way of living, about having less but gaining more as you go. I’ve loved writing Rosie and Aria!
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Excerpt
CHAPTER ONE
October
With a heavy heart I placed the sign in the display window.
All books 50% off.
If things didn’t pick up soon, it would read Closing down sale. The thought alone was enough to make me shiver. The autumnal sky was awash with purples and smudges of orange, as I stepped outside to survey the display window from the sidewalk.
Star-shaped leaves crunched underfoot. I forced a smile. A sale wouldn’t hurt, and maybe it’d take the bookshop figures from the red into the black—which I so desperately needed. My rent had been hiked up. The owner of the building, a sharp-featured, silver-tongued, forty-something man, had put the pressure on me lately—to pay more, to declutter the shop, claiming the haphazard stacks of books were a fire risk. The additional rent stretched the budget to breaking level. Something had to change.
The phone shrilled, and a grin split my face. It could only be Ridge at this time of the morning. Even after being together almost a year his name still provoked a giggle. It suited him though, the veritable man mountain he was. I’d since met his mom, a sweet, well-spoken lady, who claimed in dulcet tones, that she chose his name well before his famous namesake in The Bold and the Beautiful. In fact, she was adamant about it, and said the TV character Ridge was no match for her son. I had to agree. Sure, they both had chiseled movie star cheekbones, and an intense gaze that made many a woman swoon, but my guy was more than just the sum of his parts—I loved him for his mind, as much as his clichéd six-pack, and broody hotness. And even better, he loved me for me.
He was the hero in my own real-life love story, and due back from Canada the next day. It’d been weeks since I’d seen him, and I ached for him in a way that made me blush.
I dashed inside, and answered the phone, breathlessly. “The Bookshop on the Corner.”
“That’s the voice I know and love,” he said in his rich, husky tone. My heart fluttered, picturing him at the end of the line, his jet-black hair and flirty blue eyes. He simply had to flick me a look loaded with suggestion, and I’d be jelly-legged and lovestruck.
“What are you wearing?” he said.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I held back a laugh, eager to drag it out. So far our relationship had been more long-distance than anticipated, as he flew around the world reporting on location. The stints apart left an ache in my heart, a numbness to my days. Luckily I had my books, and a sweeping romance or two helped keep the loneliness at bay.
“Tell me or I’ll be forced to Skype you and see for myself.”
Glancing down at my outfit, I grimaced: black tights, a black pencil skirt, and a pilled blue knit sweater, all as old as the hills of Ashford. Not exactly the type of answer Ridge was waiting for, or the way I wanted him to picture me, after so many weeks apart. “Those stockings you like, and…”
His voice returned with a growl. “Those stockings? With the little suspenders?”
I sat back into the chair behind the counter, fussing with my bangs. “The very same.”
He groaned. “You’re killing me. Take a photo…”
“There’s no need. If you’re good, I’ll wear the red ones tomorrow night.” I grinned wickedly. Our reunions were always passionate affairs; he was a hands-on type of guy. Lucky for him, because it took a certain type of man to drag me from the pages of my books. When he was home we didn’t surface until one of us had to go to work. Loving Ridge had been a revelation, especially in the bedroom, where he took things achingly slow, drawing out every second. I flushed with desire for him.
There was a muffled voice and the low buzz of phones ringing. Ridge mumbled to someone before saying, “About tomorrow…” He petered out, regret in each syllable.
I closed my eyes. “You’re not coming, are you?” I tried not to sigh, but it spilled out regardless. The lure of a bigger, better story was too much for him to resist, and lately the gaps between our visits grew wider. I understood his work was important, but I wanted him all to myself. A permanent fixture in the small town I lived in.
He tutted. “I’m sorry, baby. There’s a story breaking in
Indonesia, and I have to go. It’ll only be for a week or two, and then I’ll take some time off.”
Outside, leaves fluttered slowly from the oak tree, swaying softly, until they fell to the ground. I wasn’t the nagging girlfriend sort—times like this though, I was tempted to be. Ridge had said the very same thing the last three times he’d canceled a visit. But invariably someone would call and ask Ridge to head to the next location; any time off would be cut short.
“I understand,” I said, trying to keep my voice bright. Sometimes I felt like I played a never-ending waiting game. Would it always be like this? “Just so you know, I have a very hot date this afternoon.”
He gasped. “You better be talking about a fictional date.” His tone was playful, but underneath there was a touch of jealousy to it. Maybe it was just as hard on him, being apart.
“One very hot book boyfriend…though not as delectable as my real boyfriend—but a stand-in, until he returns.”
“Well, he better not keep you up half the night, or he’ll have me to answer to,” he faux threatened, and then said more seriously, “Things will slow down, Sarah. I want to be with you so much my soul hurts. But right now, while I’m freelance, I have to take whatever comes my way.”
“I know. I just feel a bit lost sometimes. Like someone’s hit pause, and I’m frozen on the spot.” I bit my lip, trying to work out how to explain it. “It’s not just missing you—I do understand about your job—it’s…everything. The bookshop sales dwindling, the rent jacked up, everyone going on about their business, while I’m still the same old Sarah.”
I’d been at this very crossroad when I’d met Ridge, and he’d swept me off my feet, like the ultimate romance hero. For a while that had been enough. After all, wasn’t love always the answer? Romance aside, life was a little stagnant, and I knew it was because of my fear of change. It wasn’t so
much that I had to step from behind the covers of my books, rather plunge, perhaps. Take life by the scruff of the neck and shake it. But how?
“You’ve had a rough few weeks. That’s all. I’ll be back soon, and I’m sure there’s something I can do to make you forget everything…”
My belly flip-flopped at the thought. He would make me forget everything that was outside that bedroom door, but then he’d leave and it would all tumble back.
What exactly was I searching for? My friends were getting married and having babies. Buying houses and redecorating. Starting businesses. My life had stalled. I was an introvert, happiest hiding in the shadows of my shop, reading romances to laze the day away, between serving the odd customer or two—yet, it wasn’t enough. In small-town Connecticut, there wasn’t a lot to do. And life here—calm, peaceful—was fine, but that’s just it, fine wasn’t enough anymore. I had this fear that life was passing me by because I was too timid to take the reins.
It was too hazy a notion of what I was trying to say, even to me. Instead of lumping Ridge with it, I changed tack. “I hope you know, you’re not leaving the house when you get home. Phones will be switched to silent, computers forgotten, and the only time we’re leaving the comfort of bed is when I need sustenance.” A good romp around the bedroom would suffice until I could pinpoint what it was that I wanted.
“How about I sort out the sustenance?” he said, his voice heavy with desire. “And then we’ll never have to leave.”
“Promises, promises,” I said, my breath hitching. I hoped this flash of longing would never wane, the sweet torture of anticipation.
“I have to go, baby. I’ll call you tonight if it’s not too late once I’m in.”
“Definitely call tonight! Otherwise, I can’t guarantee the book boyfriend won’t steal your girlfriend. He’s pretty hot, I’ll have you know.”
“Why am I jealous of a fictional character?” He laughed, a low, sexy sound. “OK, tonight. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
He hung up, leaving me dazed, and a touch lonely knowing that I wouldn’t see him the next day as planned.
I tried to shake the image of Ridge from my mind. If anyone walked in, they’d see the warm blush of my cheeks, and know exactly what I was thinking. Damn the man for being so attractive, and so effortlessly sexy.
Shortly, the sleepy town of Ashford would wake under the gauzy light of October skies. Signs would be flipped to open, stoops swept, locals would amble down the road. Some would step into the bookshop and out of the cold, and spend their morning with hands wrapped around a mug of steaming hot tea, and reading in any one of the cozy nooks around the labyrinth-like shop.
I loved having a place for customers to languish. Comfort was key, and if you had a good book and a hot drink, what else could you possibly need to make your day any brighter? Throw rugs and cushions were littered around seating areas. Coats would be swiftly hung on hooks, a chair found, knitted blankets pulled across knees, and their next hour or two spent, in the most relaxing of ways.
I wandered around the shop, feather duster in hand, tickling the covers, waking them from slumber. I’m sure as soon as my back was turned, the books wiggled and winked at one another, as if they were eager for the day to begin, for fingers of hazy sunlight to filter through and land on them like spotlights, as if saying, here’s the book for you.
Imagine if I had to close up for good, like so many other shops had in recent times? It pained me to think people were missing out on the real-life bookshop experience. Wasn’t it much better when you could step into a dimly lit space, and eke your way around searching for the right novel? You could run a fingertip along the spines, smell that glorious old book scent, flick them open, and unbend a dog-eared page. Read someone else’s notes in the margin, or a highlighted passage, and see why that sentence or metaphor had dazzled the previous owner.
Secondhand books had so much life in them. They’d lived, sometimes in many homes, or maybe just one. They’d been on airplanes, traveled to sunny beaches, or crowded into a backpack and taken high up a mountain where the air thinned.
Some had been held aloft tepid rose-scented baths, and thickened and warped with moisture. Others had childlike scrawls on the acknowledgment page, little fingers looking for a blank space to leave their mark. Then there were the pristine novels, ones that had been read carefully, bookmarks used, almost like their owner barely pried the pages open so loath were they to damage their treasure.
THE LITTLE BOOKSHOP ON THE SEINE by Rebecca Raisin is a new women’s
fiction novel that is the first book in the author’s “The Little Paris Collection”
and the second in “The Bookshop” series. This book is set in Paris during the
holiday season, but it can be enjoyed any time of the year and it can be read
as a standalone.
Small town bookshop owner Sarah Smith is feeling something
is missing from her life. She has all her books that she loves, wonderful
friends and a gorgeous, adventurous, reporter boyfriend, but she feels stagnant.
When her friend and fellow bookstore owner, Sophie offers Sarah the chance to swap
running of each other’s stores for the holidays, she jumps at the chance to be
in Paris for the holidays.
Once Upon a Time has been located on the Seine for
generations and Sophie is enchanted as well as overcome in the city of love. This
small-town American is challenged by the craziness of this new store, the
attitudes of the staff and the separation from her friends and boyfriend.
Will Sarah find the Paris she has dreamed about, or will the
reality destroy her dream?
This is a sweet story of a woman finding her strength within
to grow and blossom in new and challenging surroundings. I love Sarah and her
love of books. Sarah and Ridge’s romance is a subplot that twines in and out of
Sarah’s personal growth. The author takes her through her transition slowly,
but at a believable pace. All the secondary characters play an important role
in Sarah’s adventure and are fully fleshed characters. Paris is beautifully
described and not just the tourist attractions, but the real day-to-day jewels
to be found by those who live there and adventure off the beaten path.
This is an enjoyable read with charming characters, a love
of books and romance and the beautiful setting of Paris.
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THE LITTLE BOOKSHOP ON THE SEINE
Author: Rebecca Raisin
ISBN: 9781335012500
Publication Date: 1/7/2020
Publisher: HQN Books
Book Summary
It’s The Holiday on the Champs-Élysées in a great big love letter to Paris, charming old bookstores and happily-ever-afters!
When bookshop owner Sarah Smith is offered the opportunity for a job exchange with her Parisian friend Sophie, saying yes is a no-brainer—after all, what kind of romantic would turn down six months in Paris? Sarah is sure she’s in for the experience of a lifetime—days spent surrounded by literature in a gorgeous bookshop, and the chance to watch the snow fall on the Eiffel Tower. Plus, now she can meet up with her journalist boyfriend, Ridge, when his job takes him around the globe.
But her expectations cool faster than her café au lait soon after she lands in the City of Light—she’s a fish out of water in Paris. The customers are rude, her new coworkers suspicious and her relationship with Ridge has been reduced to a long-distance game of phone tag, leaving Sarah to wonder if he’ll ever put her first over his busy career. As Christmas approaches, Sarah is determined to get the shop—and her life—back in order…and make her dreams of a Parisian happily-ever-after come true.
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Author Bio
Rebecca Raisin is the author of several novels, including the beloved Little Paris series and the Gingerbread Café trilogy, and her short stories have been published in various anthologies and fiction magazines. You can follow Rebecca on Facebook, and at www.rebeccaraisin.com.
I am very excited to be included on the Harlequin Romance/Women’s Fiction Blog Tour 2020! This Feature Post and Book Review is for Emily Belden’s new standalone Women’s Fiction release HUSBAND MATERIAL.
Below you will find an author Q&A with Emily Belden, an excerpt from the book, my book review, a book summary and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Author Q&A with Emily Belden
Q: When you begin writing a love story, do you know how you want it to end? Or do you decide as you develop the plot?
A: I generally have an idea of how I want things to wrap up, but what I always struggle with is that final sentence. How do you know you’re REALLY there? I often ready my theoretical last sentence out loud, followed by saying “The End”, and if it feels like it has a certain “ring” to it, then I can shut the laptop. If not, then I know it’s not my stopping point. Wrapping up that final thought with a bow on it is super important. It’s what I want when I read a book, at least.
Q: How was it to write about grief, pain and love for the same character?
A: It was new. That’s really the best word to explain it. HOT MESS has so many autobiographical elements to it (i.e., restaurant industry know-how, dating an addict, etc.) but HUSBAND MATERIAL was all unchartered territory for me. I realized right away that in order to write about the grief of losing a spouse/partner, I had to curate a focus group of real-life women like Charlotte and really learn from them to bring the level of authenticity and nuance needed to successfully write the book.
Q: What type of love stories do you like? Or were there ones you looked to as you began writing Husband Material?
A: I like really unexpected love stories. In today’s literary landscape, there’s certainly a formula that is pretty common. So it’s the books that break or stray from that formula that really do it for me. I like stories where it’s not innately clear who the protagonist is going to end up with. Even with HOT MESS there’s a moment where (I hope) the reader is like “OMG WHAT IS HAPPENING” insofar as Allie’s love story goes. Same with Charlotte in HUSBAND MATERIAL.
Q: Do you prefer to write by planning ahead (ie outlining, etc) or just go with the flow as inspiration hits?
A: I prefer to go with the flow. My general writing pattern is banging out 1-2 chapters at a time and then ending my work with a bulleted list of what I think needs to happen next. That way, when I open up my laptop and start to write the next 1-2 chapters, I’m not totally lost or forgetful of where I left off. It helps me figure out what would make sense in the flow of the pages.
Q: When did you know you wanted to become an author? What are you currently reading and what’s on your TBR list?
A: It’s been my only god-given talent since I was a little kid. It started with really creative letters to Santa or the Tooth Fairy. I won a contest to be a kid reporter for the Chicago Tribune when I was 12 years old and after that, my fate was sealed. I knew I wanted to write at the highest level I could! I am currently reading a book called Lulu’s Cafe by an author who is also repped by my agents, Browne & Miller. I really love it and can picture it as an adorable Hallmark Movie.
Q: What inspired you to write this book?
A: I heard a news story on the TV when I was doing dishes at my (former) home in San Diego. It was about a developer who wanted to buy the land a mausoleum was on so they could tear it down and build luxury condos overlooking the ocean. I thought, how crazy if your loved one’s ashes just got mailed back to you one day and the resting place you thought was final, wasn’t. It wasn’t easy, but turned that general premise into a light-side-of-heavy rom-com.
Q: What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?
A: Over all, that second chances at love take all different forms. You never know the circumstances someone has found themselves in, so be kind. For Charlotte, I intentionally wrote the first few chapters as if she was divorced–talking about her “first marriage”. Then you find out “Oh, sh*t, she’s a widow,” and all the sudden your emotional connection with her changes. I also find it interesting writing about death. We don’t talk about it in society, especially not in contemporary women’s fiction. A tragic, unexpected death is the crux of this book. Let’s dig in!
Q: What drew you into this particular genre?
A: I saw there was room to carve out a spot for someone like me who writes unexpected, voicey, edgy, authentic women’s fiction and so I went full steam ahead with the help of a great agent to make it happen.
Q: If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?
A: I would sit down with Charlotte. I’ve met the “real life” versions of her when doing my focus groups for research, it would be my honor to meet her. I’d ask her if she wanted to team up and develop a dating app framed around people’s dogs.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?
A: Be patient. Be patient with the process – success as an author is fluid and can mean many different things. Nothing happens overnight. It’s a process. And be patient with yourself. If you aren’t vibing your writing, don’t put pressure on yourself to tap keys just because you said you were going to do 1,000 words tonight. There are times two weeks go by and I haven’t opened my Word doc once. But then when I am vibing it, I can cruise for 10K words and absolutely rock it. There’s an ebb and flow, for sure.
Q: What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?
A: I am working on a third novel at my own pace right now. I’m very excited about it and just exploring where the plot takes me. I would love to work on a film/TV/podcast adaption of any of my existing works as a next step, too. I also got married nine months ago and am enjoying life with my soulmate, Matt.
***
Excerpt
Well, that’s a first.
And I’m not talking about the fact that I brought a date to a wedding I’m pretty sure didn’t warrant me a plus-one. I’m talking about grabbing a wedding card that just so happened to say “Congrats, Mr. & Mr.” on my way to celebrate the nuptials of the most iconic heterosexual couple since George and Amal. This—and a king-sized KitKat bar from the checkout lane—is what I get for rushing through the greeting card aisle in Target while my Uber driver waited in the loading zone with his f lashers on.
It’s Monica and Danny’s big day. She’s my coworker, whose gorgeous face is constantly lining the glossy pages of Luxe LA magazine. Not only because she’s one of the leading ladies at Forbes’s new favorite company, The Influencer Firm, but because this socialite-turned-CEO is now married to Daniel Jones—head coach of the LA Galaxy, Los Angeles’s professional soccer team. If you’re thinking he must look like a derivative of an American David Beckham, you’re basically there. Let’s just hope their sense of humor is as good as their looks when they see the card I accidentally picked out.
Before I place it on the gift table, I stuff the envelope with a crisp hundred-dollar bill fresh from the ATM. Side note: I think wedding registries are bullshit. Everybody wants an ice cream maker until you have one and never use it, which is why I spring for cold, hard cash instead. I grab a black Sharpie marker from the guest book table, pop the cap off, and attempt to squeeze in a nondescript s after the second “Mr.,” hoping my makeshift, hand-drawn serif font letter doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. I blow on the fresh ink, then hold the pseudo Pinterest-fail an arm’s length away. That’ll do, I think to myself.
I lift a glass of red wine from a caterer’s tray as if we choreographed the move and check the time on my Apple Watch, which arguably isn’t the most fashionable accessory when dressing for a chic summer wedding. But aside from the fact that it doesn’t quite match my strapless pale yellow cocktail dress, it serves a much greater purpose for me. It keeps my data front and center, right where I want it, not on my phone buried somewhere deep in my purse. Bonus: the band, smack-dab on the middle of my wrist, also covers a tattoo I’ve been meaning to have lasered off.
Other than telling me the time, 7:30 p.m., it also serves up my most recent Tinder notifications. I’ve gotten four new matches since this morning, which isn’t bad for a) a Saturday, since most people do their Tindering while zoning out at work or bored in bed at night; and b) a pushing-thirty New York native whose most recent relationship was the love-hate one with a stubborn last ten pounds. That’s me, by the way. Charlotte Rosen.
Though present and accounted for now, the battle of Tide pen vs. toothpaste stain went on for longer than I intended back at my apartment, causing me to arrive about half an hour late to the cocktail hour. Which means I for sure missed Monica and Dan’s ceremony in its entirety. I, of all people, know that’s rude. I’m someone who is hypersensitive to people’s arrival tendencies (well, to all measurable tendencies, to be honest; more on that later). But I’m sort of glad I missed the I Dos, as there is still something about witnessing the exchange of vows that makes me a little squeamish. I got married five years ago and, well, I’m not married anymore—let’s put it that way.
The good news is that with time, I can feel it’s definitely getting easier to come to things like this. To believe that the couple really will stay together through it all. To believe that there is such a thing as “the one”—even if it may actually be “the other” that I’m looking for this next go-round.
Late as I may be to the wedding party, there are some perks to my delayed arrival. Namely, the line at the bar has died down enough for me to trade up this mediocre red wine for a decent gin and tonic. Another perk? Several fresh platters of bacon-wrapped dates have just descended like UFOs onto the main floor of the venue, which happens to be a barn from the 1800s. Except this is Los Angeles, and there are no barns from the 1800s. So instead, every creaky floorboard, every corroded piece of siding, and every decrepit roof shingle has been sourced from deep in the countryside of southwest Iowa to create the sense that guests are surrounded by rolling fields, fragrant orchard blossoms, and fruiting trees. The reality being that just outside the wooden walls of the coveted, three-year-long-wait-list Oak Mill Barn stands honking, gridlocked traffic on the 405 and an accompanying smog alert.
As I continue to wait for my impromptu wedding date, Chad, to come back from the bathroom, I robotically swipe left on the first three guys who pop up on Bumble, another dating app I’m on, then finally decide to message a guy who looks like a bright-eyed Jason Bateman (you know, pre-Ozark) and is a stockbroker, according to his profile. We end up matching and he asks me for drinks. I vaguely accept. Welcome to dating in LA.
I’ve conducted some research that has shown that after the age of thirty, it becomes exponentially harder to find your future husband. What number constitutes exponentially? I’m not sure yet, but I’m working on narrowing in on that because generalities don’t really cut it for me. Thinking through things logically like this centers me, calms me, and resets me—no matter what life throws my way. All that’s to say, I’m officially in my last good year of dating (and my last year of not having to include a night serum in my skin care regimen), and I’m determined not to wind up with my dog, my roommate, and a few low-maintenance houseplants as my sole life partners.
“Sorry that took so long,” says Chad, returning from the men’s room twenty minutes after leaving. “Did you know the bathroom at this place is an actual outhouse? Thank god it was leg day at the gym—I had to squat over the pot. My quads are burning nice now.”
Confession. I didn’t just bring a date to the wedding, I brought a blind date.
No worries, though. Monica knows how serious I am about the path to Mr. Right and supports the fact that I go on my fair share of dates to get me there quicker. Plus, he isn’t a total stranger; she knows him—or, she met him, rather. He attended her work event last week at the LA County Museum of Art and is supposedly this cute, single real estate something or other. Of course he tried to hit on her and, unlike most beautiful people in Los Angeles, Monica actually copped to being in a committed relationship with Danny. (Who doesn’t like to brag they’re marrying Mr. Galaxy himself?) So she did the next best thing and gave him her single coworker’s Instagram handle and told him to slide into my DMs. It’s a bold move on her part, but I appreciate her quick thinking and commitment to my cause, Operation: Reclassify My Marital Status.
Since Chad first messaged me a week ago, I’ve done my homework on him. And I’m not talking about just your basic cyber stalking. I’m talking about procuring and sifting through real, bona fide data. It’s essentially a version of what I’m paid to do for a living—track down all the “influencers,” people with a lot of fans and followers on the internet, and match them to events we plan for our clients so they can post on social media and boost our clients’ profiles.
Some may think my side-project software, the one that computes how much of a match I am with someone, is a bit…much, but I don’t see it that way at all. I’m on the hunt for a man who is a true match for me—one who won’t just up and leave in the blink of an eye. I left things up to fate once and look how that turned out. I’ll be damned if I do it that way again.
While I studied up on Chad, I conducted a hefty “image search,” yielding about a hundred photos of him that have been uploaded across a variety of social platforms over the years. In real life, I’m pleased to say he checks out. Chad is over six feet tall, tanned, and toned, with coiffed Zac Efron hair that’s on the verge of being described as “a bit extra.” From the shoulders up, he’s an emoji. A walking, talking emoji. But as I step back and admire him in his expertly tailored suit, he looks like a contestant on The Bachelor. In retrospect, Chad is just the right amount of good-looking to complement my physical appearance, which can be described as a made-for-TV version of an otherwise good-looking actress.
“Something to drink, sir?” one of the caterers asks Chad.
“Yes. A spicy margarita. Unless… Wait. Do you make the margarita mix yourselves? Or is it, like, that sugary store-bought crap?”
Eek. I had forgotten my discovery that Chad is a bit of a…wellness guru. I guess so is everyone in LA, but I can’t help but be taken aback when I hear that there are people who actually care about the scientific makeup of margarita mix.
“Fuck it. Too many calories either way,” Chad announces before giving the waitress a chance to answer his question. “I’ll just take a whiskey.”
“Splash of Coke?”
“God, no. So many empty calories.”
With his drink order in, Chad rolls his neck around and pops bones I never knew existed. Then, one by one, the joints in his fingers. The sound makes me a bit queasy but I’m trying to focus on the positive, like his beautiful hazel eyes and the fact that cherry tomatoes and mini mozzarella balls with an injection of balsamic vinegar are the latest and greatest munchie to hit the floor.
Chad turns to me with a smile, his palm connecting with the small of my back. “Should we find our seats? What table are we at?”
Good question, I think to myself. I’m at table six. Chad is…on a fold-up chair we will have to ask a caterer to squeeze between me and Monica’s great-aunt Sally? I kind of forgot to mention to him that I didn’t really get an official okay to bring him tonight.
“Table six,” I say pleasantly with a smile.
“Six is my lucky number. Well, that, and nine, if you know what I mean,” Chad says with a wink accompanied by an actual thumbs-up.
The waitress comes back with his whiskey neat, and he proposes we clink our glasses in a toast to meeting up as we make our way to the table. Still not over the lingering effects of his immature, pervy sixty-nine joke, I reluctantly concede to do the cheers with the perpetual high-schooler.
“So, what did you think of Monica’s event?” I say to break the ice as we take our seats at the luckily empty round table.
“Well, I don’t really know what she does for a living, but she is fine as hell. I mean, that’s why I hit on her last week at the LACMA. Sure, I saw the ring on her finger, but couldn’t resist saying hi to a goddess like her. My god, that woman is something else.”
I nod in agreement. Partly because, yes, Monica Hoang needs her own beauty column in Marie Claire, stat. And partly because I’m too shocked by his crass demeanor to really do or say anything else. Did I say Chad reminded me of a contestant on The Bachelor? I think I meant he reminds me of a guy who gets sent home on night one of The Bachelor.
“She said you’re a real estate…attorney, was it?” I awkwardly segue. “What’s your favorite neighborhood in Los Angeles?”
It sounds like I’m interviewing him for a job, which in a way, I am. But had I known the conversation was going to be like forcefully wringing out a damp rag, just hoping to squeeze out something semidecent, I would have never invited him to join me at the wedding. In fact, I likely wouldn’t have gone through with a date, of any kind, at all. Conversation skills rank high on my list of preferred qualities in a mate. Looks like he’s the exception to the rule that attorneys are good linguists, because my app sure as shit didn’t predict this fail.
So how does my software work, then? Well, it’s all about compatibility. My algorithm is programmed to know what I like and what I’m looking for in the long term. So to see if a guy is a match, I comb through his online profiles, enter the facts I find out about him, and generate a report that indicates how likely he is to be my future husband or how likely we would be to get a divorce, for example. One of the most helpful stats is how likely we are to go on a second date. I’ve determined that anyone scoring above 70 percent means that chances are good we’d go out again. And, well, a second date is the first step to marriage. You get the point. Anyone below a 70, I ignore and move on. Chad pulled a 74, which is a solid C if you’re using a high school grading system. Not stellar, but certainly passable with room for improvement.
As it’s turning out, there’s a lot of room for improvement.
HUSBAND MATERIAL by Emily Belden is a contemporary women’s fiction
story with elements of rom-con and romance genres included. This is a
standalone book that deals with a young widow and how she deals with her life
and those around her.
Five years after the death of her husband, Charlotte Rosen
opens a box that contains the urn and ashes of her late husband who she thought
was in a mausoleum in Pala, California. Suddenly, all her work at avoiding those
who knew of her marriage and rebuilding her life based on mathematical
algorithms is in jeopardy.
The return of Decker’s ashes and a secret to be revealed
about his past are going to force Charlotte out of her controlled bubble of
simple acquaintances, algorithms over emotions and her unresolved grief.
Charlotte took me on an unexpected journey. There were times
Charlotte really annoyed me and yet the author had a way of revealing through another
character or discovery, why she was the way she was. The whole situation of reading
about being a widow at such a young age could feel uncomfortable and did at
times, but I feel Ms. Belden handled Charlotte’s journey with empathy, humor, forgiveness
and love. The secondary cast of characters in this story all start out on the
periphery of Charlotte’s emotional life, but Ms. Belden does a beautiful job of
one-by-one showing Charlotte why and how they should be let in even when her
algorithms disagree.
I enjoyed Charlotte’s journey and Ms. Belden’s writing style,
but I also know this is going to be one of those books that everyone reads
through a differing emotional lens.
***
Husband Material : A Novel
Emily Belden
On Sale Date: December 30, 2019
9781525805981, 1525805983
Trade Paperback
$15.99 USD, $19.99 CAD
Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy
304 pages
Summary
Told in Emily Belden’s signature edgy voice, a novel about a young widow’s discovery of her late husband’s secret and her journey toward hope and second-chance love.
Twenty-nine-year-old Charlotte Rosen has a secret: she’s a widow. Ever since the fateful day that leveled her world, Charlotte has worked hard to move forward. Great job at a hot social media analytics company? Check. Roommate with no knowledge of her past? Check. Adorable dog? Check. All the while, she’s faithfully data-crunched her way through life, calculating the probability of risk—so she can avoid it.
Yet Charlotte’s algorithms could never have predicted that her late husband’s ashes would land squarely on her doorstep five years later. Stunned but determined, Charlotte sets out to find meaning in this sudden twist of fate, even if that includes facing her perfectly coiffed, and perfectly difficult, ex-mother-in-law—and her husband’s best friend, who seems to become a fixture at her side whether she likes it or not.
But soon a shocking secret surfaces, forcing Charlotte to answer questions she never knew to ask and to consider the possibility of forgiveness. And when a chance at new love arises, she’ll have to decide once and for all whether to follow the numbers or trust her heart.
***
Advance Praise for Husband Material
“Tackling thorny questions of widowhood and dating after trauma, Belden’s second novel is witty, full of heart, and blindingly au courant. Packed with pop-culture references, it will appeal to fans of Sophie Kinsella, Rosie Walsh, and Plum Sykes. Belden writes twists and turns to keep readers hooked.” —Booklist
“Charming.” —Publishers Weekly
“Sensitive, thoughtful, and touching.” —Library Journal
“In this touching, witty, and timely book, Emily Belden deftly explores the complexities of human relationships in our increasingly tech-obsessed world. By turns heartbreaking and laugh-out-loud funny, Husband Material beautifully demonstrates that you can’t reduce love to a bunch of 1s and 0s.”—Kristin Rockaway, author of How To Hack a Heartbreak
***
Author Bio
EMILY BELDEN is a journalist, social media marketer, and storyteller. She is the author of the novel Hot Mess and Eightysixed: A Memoir about Unforgettable Men, Mistakes, and Meals. She lives in Chicago. Visit her website at www.emilybelden.com or follow her on Twitter and Instagram, @emilybelden.
Today I am excited to share my Feature Post and Book Review for a new women’s fiction/contemporary romance from Colleen Hoover titled REGRETTING YOU.
Below you will find a Q&A with the author, an excerpt from the book, my book review, a book summary, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway for $100 gift card from Amazon. Good luck and enjoy!
***
Q&A with Author Colleen Hoover
You are
‘label-less’ in the fact that you write in several genres. Readers never know
what to expect next. If someone asks, how do you label yourself?
When I self-published my first novel I had no
idea what genre to put it in. I thought I had written a drama but it turns to
that I had written a romance. I’ve learned a lot since then, but I still don’t
put a lot of weight in genre when I write. When your best friend is begging you
to read a book, it’s not going to matter what genre it is when someone you
trust is passionate about the story.
To keep all of your stories and characters
straight, you must be very organized.
I’m the most disorganized person you will ever
meet! I have no schedule. I can’t wake up before nine in the morning. I
probably don’t go to bed until like three in the morning. I usually work about
16 hours a day.
What happens if you get blocked when you are
writing?
If I get stuck writing, I go for a drive and
play music. Music really helps me plot. I love The Avett Brothers, X
Ambassadors, Airborne Toxic Event…I could go on and on.
What can you tell readers about your latest
release Regretting You?
I would spoil it if I told you about it! Most
of my books are like that. I can’t say what they are about or it spoils it. But
I can say that Regretting You is told from a dual
point-of-view centered on the inner lives of both a teen and adult protagonist.
Sounds like lots of different types of readers
will be interested!
Absolutely. I wanted to write a book that
bridged the gap between young adult and contemporary romance so that mothers
can read with their daughters. I think it’s exciting to see people sharing
reading experiences.
***
Excerpt
Despite
knowing I just pissed my mother off by being half an hour late for curfew, I
still can’t stop smiling. That kiss with Miller was worth it. I bring my
fingers to my lips.
I’ve never been kissed like that. The guys I’ve
kissed in the past all seemed like they were in a hurry, wanting to shove their
tongue in my mouth before I changed my mind.
Miller was the opposite. He was so patient, yet
in a chaotic way. It was like he’d thought about kissing me so often that he
wanted to savor every second of it.
I don’t know that I’ll ever not smile when I
think about that kiss. It kind of makes me nervous for school tomorrow. I’m not
sure where that kiss leaves us, but it felt like it was a statement. I just
don’t know what exactly that statement was.
My phone buzzes in my back pocket. I roll over
and pull it out, then fall onto my back again. It’s a text from Miller.
Miller:
I don’t know about you, but sometimes when something significant happens, I get
home and think of all the things I wish had gone differently. All the things I
wish I would have said.
Me:
Is that happening now?
Miller:
Yes. I don’t feel like I was entirely forthcoming with you.
I roll onto my stomach, hoping to ease the
nausea that just passed through me. It was going so well…
Me:
What weren’t you honest about?
Miller:
I was honest. Just not entirely forthcoming, if there’s a difference. I left a
lot out of our conversation that I want you to know.
Me:
Like what?
Miller:
Like why I’ve liked you for as long as I have.
I wait for him to elaborate, but he doesn’t.
I’m staring at my phone with so much intensity that I almost throw it when it
rings unexpectedly. It’s Miller’s phone number. I hesitate before answering it,
because I rarely ever talk on the phone. I much prefer texting. But he knows I
have my phone in my hand, so I can’t very well send it to voice mail. I swipe
my finger across the screen and then roll off the bed and head to my bathroom
for more privacy. I sit on the edge of the tub.
“Hello?”
“Hey,” he says.
“Sorry. It’s too much to text.”
“You’re kind of freaking me out with all the
innuendos.”
“Oh. No, it’s all good. Don’t be nervous. I
just should have said this to you in person.” Miller inhales a deep breath, and
then on the exhale, he starts talking. “When I was fifteen, I watched you in a
school play. You had the lead role, and at one point, you performed a monologue
that went on for like two whole minutes. You were so convincing and you
looked so heartbroken I was ready to walk onto the stage and hug you. When the
play was finally over and the actors came back out onto the stage, you were
smiling and laughing, and there wasn’t a trace of that character left in you. I
was in awe, Clara. You have this charisma about you that I don’t think you’re
aware of, but it’s captivating. I was a scrawny kid as a sophomore, and even
though I’m a year older than you, I hadn’t quite filled out yet, and I had acne
and felt inferior to you, so I never worked up the courage to approach you.
Another year went by, and I continued to admire you from afar. Like that time
you ran for school treasurer and tripped walking off the stage, but you jumped
up and did this weird little kick and threw your arms up in the air and made
the entire audience laugh. Or that time Mark Avery popped your bra strap in the
hallway, and you were so sick of him doing it that you followed him to his
classroom, reached inside your hoodie, and took off your bra and then threw it
at him. I remember you yelling something like, ‘If you want to touch a bra so damn bad, just keep it, you perv!’ Then you stormed out. It was epic. Everything you do is epic,
Clara. Which is why I never had the courage to approach you, because an epic
girl needs an equally epic guy, and I guess I’ve just never felt epic enough for you. I’ve said epic so many times in the last
fifteen seconds—I’m so sorry.”
He’s out of breath when he finally stops
talking.
I’m smiling so hard my cheeks ache. I had no
idea he felt this way. No idea.
I wait a few seconds to make sure he’s done;
then I finally respond. I’m pretty sure he can hear from my voice alone that
I’m smiling. “First of all, it’s hard to believe you were ever insecure. And second, I think you’re pretty epic, too,
Miller. Always have. Even when you were scrawny and had acne.”
He laughs a little. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
I can hear him sigh. “Glad I got that off my
chest, then. See you at school tomorrow?”
“Good night.”
We end the call, and I don’t know how long I
sit and stare at my phone.
***
My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
REGRETTING YOU by Colleen Hoover is a mash up of a
story containing women’s fiction/mother-daughter drama and contemporary romance
elements all written seamlessly into a book that I could not put down.
This book starts by giving you a glimpse of two young couples
that consist of two sisters and two best friends.
Flash ahead seventeen years, and the four are back together until a tragic accident that shatters all of the people left behind. The mother/daughter relationship is one focus of this story and also the relationship of the daughter and her new boyfriend, but there are also long-lasting consequences for everyone around them.
I recommend you just get this book and start reading because
any type of summary will give preconceived notions which will not even come
close to the expectations and emotional upheaval you will experience yourself
while reading this book. Even with all the heartbreak and anger, the author takes
you on a journey of differing types of forgiveness and love.
This is definitely a book that will stay with you even after you finish the last word.
***
About the Book
Title: Regretting You
Author: Colleen Hoover
Release Date: December 10, 2019
Publisher: Montlake
Summary
Morgan Grant and her sixteen-year-old daughter, Clara, would
like nothing more than to be nothing alike.
Morgan is determined to prevent her daughter from making the same mistakes she
did. By getting pregnant and married way too young, Morgan put her own dreams
on hold. Clara doesn’t want to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Her
predictable mother doesn’t have a spontaneous bone in her body.
With warring personalities and conflicting goals, Morgan and Clara find it
increasingly difficult to coexist. The only person who can bring peace to the
household is Chris—Morgan’s husband, Clara’s father, and the family anchor. But
that peace is shattered when Chris is involved in a tragic and questionable
accident. The heartbreaking and long-lasting consequences will reach far beyond
just Morgan and Clara.
While struggling to rebuild everything that crashed around them, Morgan finds
comfort in the last person she expects to, and Clara turns to the one boy she’s
been forbidden to see. With each passing day, new secrets, resentment, and
misunderstandings make mother and daughter fall further apart. So far apart, it
might be impossible for them to ever fall back together.
***
Author Biography
Colleen Hoover is the #1 New York Times bestselling
author of several novels, including the bestselling women’s fiction novel It
Ends with Us and the bestselling psychological thriller Verity.
She has won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance three years in a row—for Confess (2015), It
Ends with Us (2016), and Without Merit (2017). Confess was
adapted into a seven-episode online series. In 2015, Hoover and her family
founded the Bookworm Box, a bookstore and monthly subscription service that
offers signed novels donated by authors. All profits go to various charities
each month to help those in need. Hoover lives in Texas with her husband and
their three boys. Visit www.colleenhoover.com.
Today I am very happy to share my Feature Post and Book Review for Carolyn Brown’s new release THE FAMILY JOURNAL. This is my favorite of Ms. Brown’s books to date. Being able to read about your female ancestors in their own words for generations and while doing so, rebuilding your bond with your own daughter leads to a story that is heartfelt and endearing.
Below I have included an interview with the author about her 100th book!, an excerpt from the title, my book review, the author’s bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway for a $25 Amazon gift card and a digital copy of the book. As always, good luck and enjoy!
***
Carolyn Brown Answers Questions About Writing a Hundred
Books
1.
Tell us about the first time you remember ever putting pen to paper. Was it a
slow evolution to becoming an author, or did you have an epiphany that this is
what you were supposed to be doing?
I really can’t remember when I didn’t write stories, but I got serious about
writing a book when my third child was born. She had her days and nights turned
around. Since I had to be up until the wee hours of the morning, I got out a
notebook, sharpened some pencils and started my first novel. I was twenty-four
that year. For the next twenty-five years I collected rejection slips. I do
believe I have enough to wallpaper the White House. I don’t mean that little
two holer down at the end of the path in Grammie’s back yard, but the one in
Washington, D.C. When I was forty-nine, I got “the call”. That was twenty-two
years and one hundred books ago, and I know in my heart and soul that this is
what I’m supposed to be doing.
2. Is there anyone in your family that writes? Did you have a mentor that
helped you push forward to become a full-time author?
My husband, Charles C. Brown, has written nine mysteries and is working on his
tenth. He’s been my biggest supporter through my whole career. He’s a retired
high school English teacher and he does the first edit on my books. Commas are
not my friend, but they are his buddies—thank goodness.
3. How have you evolved as an author? What are some things that have changed
since when you started writing up until now?
In the physical part of the business, lots has changed. I wrote most of my very
first book by hand. When Mr. B bought a used typewrite at a garage sale and
brought it in to me, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. In those sent in
proposals with SASE (that’s self-addressed stamped envelopes) and if the editor
wanted to see more, we sent in the full manuscript by mail. Now everything is
sent over cyberspace. I will be donating the typewriter Mr. B bought me to the
Johnston County Chickasaw Bank Museum on November 16th. My display shares a
room there with Te Ata, Gene Autry and Blake Shelton. I’m signing copies of The
Family Journal there on that day from 2 to 4 p.m.
In
the evolution as a write, I hope that each book is better than the last and
that all my books resonate with readers, touch their emotions and make them
anxious to get the next one.
4. Do you have a set schedule for writing? Do you have any writing rituals
or things that get you in the mood to write?
I’m very disciplined. I write somewhere between three and five thousand words a
day. Sometimes it’s pure trash, but you can fix trash. You can’t fix nothing.
From the time I start a book, my characters are in my head. They eat with me,
sleep with me, talk to me…. shhhh…don’t tell anyone I hear voices!
5. Tell us about some turning points as a writer – some big things that
happened that really changed your career.
One of the biggest things that changed my career was when Amazon bought the
literary company, Avalon, and turned more than forty of my titles into
paperbacks and digital. That made them financially available for more people,
and my readership grew by leaps and bounds. Another was when I finally made the
New York Times and the USA Today bestseller lists. But I have to
say that hitting the number one spot on Amazon was a really the icing on the
cupcake.
6. What does your writing future look like?
My future will simply be to keep on doing what I’m doing, and hope my readers
continue to love my stories. There are five books on the docket for 2020, and
four or five novellas. And we’ve already got a few scheduled for 2021.
7. What made you want your book, The Family Journal, your hundredth
book? What makes this story and these characters special to you?
Family! Plain and simple. What better way to celebrate reaching one of my
goals—to publish one hundred books—than to write about family? This story is
about several generations of strong women in the past, a mother who’s at her
wit’s end in the present, and a young daughter who represents the future. It’s
family from the emotional first scene to the last.
***
Excerpt:
Lily
reached for her tea at the same time Mack was setting his glass back down.
Their hands touched again. Her breath caught in her chest, and her pulse jacked
up several notches.
“I’m
going to ask you a dumb question,” he drawled. “Do you feel chemistry between
us?”
Her
chest tightened. Of course she felt something between them, but she damn sure
didn’t want to talk about it like they were discussing the price of goat feed.
And yet . . . they were adults, not hormonal teenagers who jumped into the fire
with both feet when they felt something for another person. How many times had
she told her clients in therapy sessions to talk things out?
“Why
is that dumb?” she asked.
“It
kind of sounded dumb in my head, and even more so when I said it,” he
said.
“Yes,
I do feel something between us.” She nodded. “I’ve wondered if it’s because I
haven’t dated all that much. How about you?”
“No
dates in three years. Nothing serious since Natalie,” he admitted.
“Do
you think it’s because we hav-haven’t,” she stammered.
“No,
I think there’s definitely an attraction between us, and I’ll tell you right
now, up front, you deserve better than me,” he said.
Lily
frowned so hard that her eyes became mere slits. “Why would you say a stupid
thing like that?”
“I’m
a high school vo-ag teacher, and I’ll never be rich. Hell, I’m forty-one, and I
don’t even own a house. I’ve just got a pickup that’s paid for and a herd of
goats,” he said.
“Why,
Mack Cooper, are you thinkin’ marriage?” she joked. “You haven’t even kissed me
yet.”
“I’m
just thinking that we shouldn’t start anything without being completely honest,
and, honey, I can remedy that kissing part anytime.” His green eyes
twinkled.
Lily
felt heat rising to her cheeks when she thought of kissing him. How in the
devil would it even work if they did decide to go out, or got into a
relationship beyond friendship? They lived in the same house with Holly and
Braden underfoot all the time. “I’ve got two kids,” she blurted out.
“I’ve
got forty goats.” He grinned.
“Did
you say it’s time to go feed the goats?” Braden came across the room and leaned
his arms on the back of the sofa.
Point
proven, she
thought.
“Yep,
it is,” Mack answered. “I reckon we both need to get changed so we don’t ruin
our good clothes.”
“I’ll
be down in five minutes.” Braden ran up the stairs.
Mack
crossed the room and bent to brush a sweet kiss across her lips. The tenderness
of his mouth barely touching hers and his drawl combined to send a heat flash
through her whole body. If that brief contact created such an effect, a
relationship might burn down the house.
***
My Book Review:
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
THE FAMILY JOURNAL by Carolyn Brown is her 100th novel
and it is my favorite to date! This is a wonderful, heartfelt and endearing
story of a divorced mother who has decided to make a new start with her
children in her childhood home in rural Texas.
Lily Anderson has had enough. She caught her disrespectful
teenage daughter smoking a joint and has found out her preteen son is sneaking
out to drink beer and smoke cigarettes with his friends. Her ex-husband gave
Lily full custody in the divorce, so she has taken all their electronic devices
and is packing up and moving out of Austin to her rural childhood hometown of
Comfort, Texas. Lily is desperate to get her children back on the right path.
Mack Cooper has been renting Lily’s home since the death of
her mother and raising goats on the property while also teaching ag classes at the
high school. Lily is willing to share the house with Mack until she decides if
they will be staying or moving back to Austin when the school year is over.
Never married and having been cheated on not once, but twice Mack is happy with
the company, but wary with his heart.
As Lily and her children begin to find a new normal, friends
and reconnect, Mack plays an active part in their lives. Lily is also able to bond
with her daughter over an old journal found in her mother’s desk. Passed down
in her family for generations from mother to daughter, Lily and her daughter learn
of all the strong women in their family’s past in their own words.
Will Lily be able to make this move work for herself and her
children? And will she stay in Comfort to take a chance on a new man to make
her house a home?
I curled up on my couch to start this book after lunch and I
could not stop reading until the end. Having raised my son as a single mom, I
could easily empathize with the trials Lily was going through with her children.
Mack was a strong and steady hero for both Lily and her children and I feel the
cozy romance was written perfectly for their situation. All of Lily’s childhood
friends in Comfort added depth to the story. The most intriguing parts for me
were reading the journal entries. I had to keep turning the pages because I was
as interested in the women’s stories as Lily and her daughter.
This is an all around wonderful story of family love that I
can highly recommend!
***
About the Book:
Title: The Family Journal
Author: Carolyn Brown
Release Date: November 12, 2019
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary:
At the end of her rope, single mom Lily Anderson is
determined to move her rebellious children in the right direction. That means
taking away their cell phones, tablets, and computers—at least temporarily—and
moving to the house where Lily grew up in the rural town of Comfort, Texas. But
Lily has a bigger challenge than two sulking kids.
The house comes with Mack Cooper, high school teacher and handsome longtime
renter. The arrangement: just housemates. But Mack’s devoted attention to the
kids starts to warm Lily’s resistant heart. Then Lily finds an old
leather-bound book in which five generations of her female ancestors shared
their struggles and dreams. To Lily, it’s a bracing reminder about the
importance of family . . . and love.
Now it’s time for Lily to add an adventurous new chapter to the cherished family journal—by embracing a fresh start and taking a chance on a man who could make her house a home.
***
Author Biography:
Carolyn Brown is a RITA finalist and the New York Times,
USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Wall Street Journal bestselling
author of one hundred books. Her genres include contemporary and historical
romances, cowboy and country music romances, and women’s fiction. She and her
husband live in the small town of Davis, Oklahoma, where everyone knows
everyone else, knows what they are doing and when . . . and reads the
local newspaper every Wednesday to see who got caught. They have three grown
children and enough grandchildren to keep them young. Visit Carolyn at www.carolynbrownbooks.com.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for Liz Talley’s new standalone release ROOM TO BREATHE.
Below you will find a guest post from the author, an excerpt from the title, my book review, a book summary, the author’s bio and social media links and Rafflecopter giveaway for $25 Amazon gift card and a digital copy of the book. Good luck!
***
Author Guest Post: Starting and Starting Over
Room to Breathe is a story of two southern women at very different stages in their lives who are experiencing the same sense of “starting over.” Daphne Witt is weeks from turning forty, in a career that she never expected, and ready to start dating after a divorce. Her daughter Ellery is essentially untested in the world. Young, beautiful, accustomed to everything going her way, Ellery finds herself with a less than dazzling job, a distracted fiancé and, for the first time ever, doubts about who she is and where she’s going. When the novel begins, we find Daphne dealing with an awakened libido she thought long dead, and Ellery struggling to accept working for her mother and living with a fiancé who has little time for her. Both women redirect their dissatisfaction toward secret desires – Daphne for a much younger contractor, and Ellery for a secret email pal who thinks she’s her mother. Like the vines of a vineyard, things get tangled quickly by decisions that not only threaten the fragile mother-daughter relationship, but each woman’s future.
One thing I really like about Daphne is her self-awareness. She’s been content to stand in the wings while everyone else in her life commandeered the spotlight, but now she’s ready to take her turn on the stage. She’s bumbled into a dream she never knew existed as a children’s author, and she’s really good at what she does and becomes an overnight success. But her family, even her ex-husband, can’t seem to let go of the woman she once was. They want the old Daphne, the one who put everyone else before herself. I intentionally gave Daphne a secret crush on a younger man and had her pay attention to her sexuality. Women of a certain age are often set aside, as if their “ sexiness” has a shelf life. I wanted Daphne awakened to the fact that as a woman entering her forties, she still needed intimacy and affection. I wanted her to struggle with the guilt, be tempted, and have a little fun with someone…young enough to date her daughter.
Ellery is the girl I once was. I remember being invincible, tossing my curls over my shoulder as a flounced around in my cheerleading skirt. The world was about me and what I wanted, what I thought I deserved. I wasn’t a bad person, but I do remember my brother once bringing my requested shoes on a throw pillow, bowing, and saying “your slippers, my lady.” I led a charmed life…until life punched me in the face. It has a tendency to do that in your mid-twenties when you find out (gasp!) the world doesn’t revolve around you. So I wanted to take a princess, toss her in the mud, and see what happened. Ellery isn’t always likable, but she’s authentic. And by the end of the book, she sees her mother as a person and not just her mother. Both Ellery and Daphne have a big growth arc in this book.
Room to Breathe has secrets, twists, bad decisions, surprises, and angst, yet it also has humor, heat, and heart tugs. I love the guys in the book – Clay (the hot contractor), Gage (Ellery’s surprise crush) and Evan (the vineyard owner) and I really like the interactions between Ellery and Daphne. I think readers will recognize themselves most in Daphne, but they’ll also remember how hard it is standing on one’s own two feet as Ellery must do. I’m proud of this book about letting go and taking the lemons that life hands you, tossing them, and pouring a glass of wine. Cheers to all the women who aren’t afraid to start over and create their own new paths!
***
Excerpt
“What are you trying to say?” Daphne
asked. Ellery always tried to get her to go to exercise classes, but Daphne
preferred running most days. Organized classes had never appealed to her.
Exercise was her escape, a time she could jab in her earbuds and listen to
podcasts or a book that didn’t feature poodles and tea parties.
“That you isolate yourself out here.
Hanging out with Pop Pop and Tippy Lou isn’t exactly being social. You can make
friends in these classes, plus use muscles you never knew you had.” Ellery rose
and smoothed the T-shirt swing top she wore over a pair of ripped boyfriend
jeans. Several strands of delicate gold chain were layered around her neck. Her
daughter somehow managed to look stylish and trendy in sloppy clothes. Daphne
always looked . . . well, sloppy in sloppy clothes.
“Maybe,” she conceded, only because
her daughter was unfortunately correct. She enjoyed visiting her father and
playing dominoes with his friends, even if they were out of her age range. And
her neighbor Tippy Lou Carmichael, while delightfully droll and enigmatic to
the point of oddness, wasn’t going to go shopping with her or out to drinks.
Tippy Lou preferred herbal tea on her front porch while she watched the feral
cats she fed every morning chase lizards and laze about in her garden.
Daphne had always been the type of
person to have only a few close friends. Though she’d cultivated friendships
with many of the other teachers at Saint Peter’s Day School, where she’d worked
as a teacher’s aide for fifteen years before staying home to write, she’d never
been good at being social. She had church friends, a book club, and knew a few
local writers who wrote professionally, but her best friend, Karyn Little, had
moved to Idaho with her new husband over a year ago.
In a few short years, she’d lost her
husband to self-centeredness and her BFF to the land of potatoes.
“Not maybe. Definitely,” Ellery said,
looking over at her.
“Maybe I’ll try it.” Going to the
class with Ellery might help their relationship, something that Daphne couldn’t
seem to get back on track. She didn’t know what was wrong, how she should act,
whether she should have given Ellery a job or not. Daphne had only wanted to
make things better for Ellery. That’s what every mother did, right?
But Ellery had grown more and more
distant over the past few months. Daphne suspected that it had something to do
with something Rex had said, but Ellery wouldn’t open up. Any time Daphne asked
her what was bothering her or if she wanted to talk, her daughter would tell
her everything was “fine.” She’d begun to hate that word.
“I’m pretty much done for the day. I
have to mail these packages. These are a few of the winners from your online
party.” Ellery picked up a bag full of colorful pink envelopes, walked out the
door and right into Clay.
“Whoa, hey, Elle,” he said, grabbing
her elbow and steadying her. “I haven’t seen you in forever.”
“I saw you last week at Elmo’s,”
Ellery said, shrugging off Clay’s hand. “But I guess you were too trashed to
remember?”
“Hey, I was celebrating a new contract,
but, yeah, I guess I had a few too many.”
“Honestly, Clay, it’s time you grew
up,” Ellery said, pushing past him before spinning back. The Tom Ford scent she
wore tickled Daphne’s nose.
“Guys never grow up, do we?” Clay
joked.
“Some don’t.” Ellery gave him a flat
look.
Her daughter had dated several guys in
high school but had been tight-lipped when it came to information on what had
happened between her and Clay. Daphne vaguely remembered a dustup with the head
cheerleader for a rival school. Ellery had been only a sophomore, and Daphne
remembered Clay being her daughter’s first heartbreak. Ellery had rebounded
quickly with the quarterback for the Riverton Falcons. She had an uncanny
ability to hook a new, even cuter guy after each successive breakup through
high school and college.
Point in case—Josh was so pretty
angels sang when he walked by.
Daphne still didn’t know her
soon-to-be son-in-law very well because he was always studying, but he seemed
to truly care about her daughter. And that was what mattered most.
“I’m out, y’all.” Ellery disappeared.
Clay turned his pretty blue eyes on
Daphne. “Sorry to interrupt. I wanted to get your opinion on the marble. They
sent two different samples in your color range. One has a lot of movement, the
other is pretty simple.”
“Sure, I’ll take a look,” Daphne said,
following him outside her office and into the heat of late morning.
Ellery tossed the bag of packages into
the narrow back seat of her sleek new Lexus and gave them an absentminded wave.
“She’s a firecracker,” Clay said with
a smile before jogging down the front porch steps. Today he wore a T-shirt.
Thank God. The jeans fit him like a second skin, though. So now she had to
contend with the butt thing.
Not only had she practically drooled
over a shirtless Clay yesterday, but she’d actually rated the bag boy’s
backside that morning at the grocery store. Thankfully Steve the bag boy was
older than Clay, but she was now convinced her libido had written a memo titled
“Take Care of Your Sexuality before You Mount the Bag Boy.” She wondered if
something was wrong with her hormones. Or maybe she was ovulating. Something
other than going middle-aged crazy.
Wait, was turning forty years old
hitting middle age?
Nah. And technically she was still
thirty-nine for the next two months.
***
My Book Review
RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
ROOM TO BREATHE by Liz Talley is a new women’s fiction novel
focusing on a mother/daughter relationship that is struggling with shifting
roles.
Daphne Witt was pregnant and married all before she finished
high school. She made the most of her life and for years was a supportive wife
and mother. While working part-time at a pre-school, she shares a story she
wrote and illustrated. It is sent by one of the other children’s mother to a
publisher and suddenly she has a new career. As Daphne finds herself
flourishing, her husband and daughter are not happy to no longer be the sole
focus of Daphne’s attention.
Divorced and moving on with her life, Daphne attempts to
keep her close relationship with her 22 year- old daughter, Ellery, but it is
not working. Ellery is Daphne’s assistant to help with bills as she takes a
year off after not receiving the internship she dreamed of and she resents it.
Ellery has a plan that is piece by piece falling apart.
After the disappointment of losing the internship, she decides to come home to
live with her pre-med student fiancée. Ellery has been spoiled her whole life
and she is overspending, living on her father’s money and not happy in her
relationship or with her life in general, but she continues to deny there are
any problems.
Everything comes to a head on Ellery’s 23rd birthday
weekend at One Tree Estates Winery.
This story is easy to read and the narrative flows
effortlessly while the characters all go through serious issues. The focus is
on Daphne and Ellery’s relationship, but Daphne’s ex-husband and best friend
all play pivotal roles is the misunderstandings and eventual healing. I felt
the emotions and dialogue were realistic and believable for each character.
I enjoyed this story and all of the memorable characters.
***
About the Book
Title: Room To Breathe
Author: Liz Talley
Release Date: November 1, 2019
Publisher: Montlake
Summary
For a good part
of Daphne Witt’s life, she was a supportive wife and dutiful mother. Now that
she’s divorced and her daughter, Ellery, is all grown up, Daphne’s celebrating
the best part of her life, a successful career, and a flirtation with an
attentive hunk fifteen years her junior . . . who happens to be her
daughter’s ex-boyfriend.
Ellery is starting over, too. She’s fresh out of college. Her job prospects are
dim. And to support her fiancé in med school, she’s returned home as her
mother’s new assistant. Ellery never expected her own life plan to take such a
detour. With no outlet for her frustration, she lets an online flirtation go a
little too far, especially considering her pen pal thinks he’s corresponding
with her mother.
As love lives tangle, secrets spill, and indiscretions are betrayed, mother and daughter will have a lot to learn—not only about the mistakes they’ve made but also about the men in their lives and the women they are each hoping to become.
***
Author Biography
A finalist for
both the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Golden Heart and RITA Awards,
Liz Talley has found a home writing heartwarming contemporary romance. Her
stories are set in the South, where the tea is sweet, the summers are hot, and
the porches are welcoming. She lives in North Louisiana with her childhood
sweetheart, two handsome children, three dogs, and a naughty kitty. Readers can
visit Liz at www.liztalleybooks.com.
