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Thanks – Dawn & Abby
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Review: MATCHPLAY by Dakota Madison
Synopsis
A Girl, a Guy, a Tournament and a Challenge
The Girl: At a time when most girls obsess about homecoming and high school prom, Rainy Dey spent her senior year caring for her dying mother. So when her father drops her off at college to start her freshman year, his words of advice to his bookish daughter are to start acting like a young person and finally have some fun.
The Guy: College senior, Aaron Donavan, aka Mr. Hot-and-Knows-It, is President of the Clubhouse, a social club for the college’s most wealthy and popular guys. Aaron can have any girl on campus except the one who challenges and excites him the most—Rainy Dey.
The Tournament: Every year, the senior members of The Clubhouse engage in a golf-inspired tournament to see who can sleep with the most freshman girls. When Rainy finds out about the tournament, she believes Aaron’s only interest in her is to score points by taking her V-Card.
The Challenge: Can Aaron convince Rainy that his feelings for her are true and that she won’t be just another notch on his tournament scorecard?
Find the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Matchplay-ebook/dp/B00BW9LKQG/
Review
When I initially read the synopsis for Matchplay, I was ready for an angst-filled, drama-filled story that would make me want to throw my e-reader across the room a few times. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel that was entirely the case. Instead, I found myself reading a sweet, romantic story between Rainy and Aaron. Yes, the Tournament that Aaron is involved in factors into the challenges in their relationship. Overall though, I felt that the biggest challenge was Aaron’s inability to stand up for their relationship with friends and family. This is what made me want to reach in and shake Rainy a few times for letting him do that to her! Repeatedly! Argh!
With that said, I felt the dialogue flowed easily and there were many tender moments in the building of their relationship. The secondary characters like Rainy’s roomie, the roomie’s brother, Aaron’s friend, and a few others added nicely to the story without taking over. I had a very good mental picture of Aaron but I didn’t ever get a very clear image of Rainy other than height and weight. That mental image is very important for me as I’m reading.
Overall, this was a read that left me wanting more. The end wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly for my drama-loving mind. It was a light, sweet read that I wanted to finish to see if Aaron was going to eff it up or pull it together and realize what he could have with Rainy.
ARC provided by Author for honest review
About the Author
Dakota Madison has been writing since she learned to read and fell in love with books. When she’s not at her computer creating spicy new romances, Dakota is traveling to exotic locales or spending time with her husband and their bloodhounds.
Author social media:
http://12novels12months.tumblr.com/
Blog Tour: RESTORE ME (Wreck Me #2) by J.L. Mac
Blurb
Navigating the world alone is all Josephine Geroux has ever known. Life altering tragedy struck early on for her. She endured an admirable struggle through her youth and learned the hard way how to adapt and survive. She managed to arrive at adulthood in one piece in spite of it all.
After such chaos, maintaining a life free of complications is a priority for her.
Everything changed when a man with amber eyes came through her door and claimed her heart. She fell hard in more ways than one. The pull between Jo and Damon seemed like fate bringing things full circle.
With another devastating loss looming, Jo fights to hold on to the very thing that brought her to her knees. She finds herself torn between a promising future and clinging to a devastating past.
But that’s not the most worrisome problem on her hands.
She must convince more than just herself to let the past stay in the past, where it belongs, but on her journey to find closure and resolution, she does the exact opposite. An old wound caused by a heinous act becomes exposed for what it is. The truth is catastrophic and Jo is helpless, watching as the ruins of her fragile world endure more turmoil.
Can something conceived from tragedy and malice end well? Can something so completely poisoned conquer adversity? Jo is left to make a decision; accept the circumstances she finds herself in or fight with unwavering ferocity to restore what has been damaged.
*Restore Me is the second book in the Wrecked series*
Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Kobo
Our Interview with Brian
Today we are very excited to bring you our interview with Brian, Damon’s assistant and Jo’s friend!
Hey Brian! Thanks so much for joining us on Up All Night Book Blog! We are excited to talk with you. We thought we would start off with a few lighter topics today, including fashion. You ready?
Of course I am! I’m young, gorgeous and gaymous. Famous and gay for those who don’t speak my language.
When you first met Jo, what did you think of her?
Excuse me while I dig my own grave? Seriously? Gah! Okay fine. I thought that maybe that man whore boss of mine had lost his mind. Don’t get me wrong. She’s smokin’ hot but she’s not the usual for him. I guess there was a reason. I love my girl, Jo.
If you could dress Jo in any particular designer or style, what would you choose for her?
Oh she is definitely a skinny jean model! I’ve only seen her in them twice but she can make a person cry with envy. If I could play dress up with Jo, I’d love to put her in a pair of designer skinny jeans paired with a flowing scoop neck blouse and a pair of those sinful wedges she loves wearing. Trust me!
How did you know what to pick out for her the first time you shopped for her?
Well I just went based on her hair, skin, and eye color to choose the perfect color pallet for her. She has these deep green eyes that kinda glow in the light, and medium wavy brown hair. Vibrant blues and purples make her eyes and hair even more gorgeous.
If there is one fashion ‘Oh hell No!’ that you could eliminate from the world what would it be?
Oh sweet baby Jesus! Oh please there are so many can I choose three? At least three? 1. Mullet hair styles are like fashion suicide. Seriously a forbidden thing. 2. The camel toe is NOT a fashion choice. It’s a fashion FARCE! Don’t do it! 3. The muffin boob! Never under any circumstances is the muffin boob cute. Ladies with boobage to spare… get the right size bra for the love of lace!
For the love, people!
How do you feel about Damon’s wardrobe? Do you shop for him?
Um.. Damon’s wardrobe is impeccable. I shop for him mostly because he knows I love it but he has done his fair amount of his own shopping and he does quite well. That man can wear a suit like none other.
(We would agree! *sigh*) Speaking of Damon, he seems quite intense and demanding. What’s it like to work for him?
He is actually the easiest person to work for. He’s pretty predictable so my job is far easier that way. He’s a creature of habit. He’s 99% testosterone so that makes him even more predictable. I know what to expect from him and he of me.
Just between the three of us, do you have a secret crush on him? (We do!!)
I’ve cursed the Gods since the day I saw him that he doesn’t have a homosexual hair on his head. *sigh*
Does Damon act different now that Jo is in his life?
Very! He’s all over the place. But Jo is his match. There’s no doubt about it.
Agreed!
Okay we are going to get a bit more serious on you. What was it like when Jo called you from the hospital and told you about Damon?
I was in shock. I drove to the hospital in a haze. And then when I saw how destroyed Jo was, it hit home. I was scared out of my mind that he wouldn’t make it.
That was gut-wrenching!
What did Damon say to you when he kicked Jo out of the room and wanted to talk to just you when he got home from the hospital?
He went into bossy mode and spouted off a dozen things for me to get done. He wanted to make sure that the cover story I planted was holding up okay and it did. He asked how Jo has been and I was honest. I told him that she has been trying to keep it together but that he better work hard to get his head straight because she’s the one. He said “I know.”
*sigh*
What do you think about Jo writing the letter…you know, THE letter?
I think she’s got balls! I don’t know how the hell this is going to play out. Last I asked her about it, she told me she hasn’t heard back but I am 90% sure that I know my Jo well enough to know that she was lying right out of that pouty mouth of hers. I’ll force it out of her. You watch!
Oh, we believe if anyone can do that, it will be you!
So before we wrap up our time together, anything you would like to share about Jo or Damon?
Just that I love them both and I’m super excited to see what life deals them! If they have babies I hope I’m the God-father… wait… God-mother? How about Gay-uardian? That works.
We can’t wait to see what life deals them! And we think you’d make an outstanding Gay-uardian!!
Thanks so much for your time, Brian! We enjoyed spending it with you!
Anytime, sweety!
Abby’s Review 4.5 stars
Whoa, Okay I was laying in bed last night balling. Big fat tears, have to take a break from reading and go blow my runny nose tears. Yep be prepared, this is a tear jerker, well for me at least.
I really enjoyed Wreck Me and Restore me was a great second book. You do have to read Wreck Me first. Restore Me picks up where Wreck Me ends. Wreck Me ends with incredible heartache and Restore Me sure doesn’t disappoint with total despair.
Okay the whole book is not devastating. There is plenty of steam. And wow is it hot ehhemm can I say Strawberries for dessert.
This story is a quick read filled with passion, pain and an underlining amount of love.
Dawn’s Review 4.5 Stars
As Abby mentions in her review, it is a must that you read Wreck Me before Restore Me. Without doing so, it would be difficult to jump straight in as this picks up essentially right where book 1 leaves off.
Holy crap! Talk about my heart being in my throat from the beginning! This book took my breath away and threw me into a very painful place for a while. My heart hurt so hard for Jo.
Familiar hopelessness swallows me up and I let it. Fuck it. There’s no running from this, so I might as well not fight it. It’s better to embrace the hurt than to struggle against it.”
JL Mac had my emotions on a tightrope almost the entire book! I felt all of Jo’s anguish and her determination. It may have been the circumstances at the beginning, but I missed some of her spark that was in Wreck Me which did end up reasserting itself later in the story.
There was also an intense passion, love, and a need for giving and receiving acceptance.
My heart beats for you. Let me save you.”
Sigh…
Restore Me was a quick read that packed an emotional punch. Highly recommended!
*ARC provided by author for honest review
About the Author
USA Today Best Selling Author,J.L. Mac is twenty-six years old and currently resides in El Paso, Texas, where she enjoys living near her family. She was born and raised in Galveston, Texas, until she married her husband in July of 2005. She has two young children and is married to a soldier in the United States Army. J.L. and her family have lived all over the United States and have enjoyed each new experience in each new place. J.L. admittedly has had a long and sordid love affair with the written word and has loved every minute of it. She drinks too many glasses of wine on occasion,and says way too many swear words to be considered “lady-like.” J.L. spends her free time reading, writing, and playing with her children.
Website http://jlmacbooks.blogspot.com/
twitter username https://twitter.com/JaimiLMcCormick
Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jlmacbooks
Goodreads Page http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6654493.J_L_Mac
Cover Reveal: LOVE LIKE FIREWORKS by Lauren Melinda
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Expected publication date: June, 2013
Kendall Hartley first kissed Logan Jordan when she was eighteen. As an up-and-coming player at her father’s tennis academy, his explosive talent on court and sexy blue eyes were like fireworks to her soul. But when their love for each other met its first test, it crashed and burned. Devastated, Kendall fled to college, vowing to forget the boy who once set her heart ablaze.
Four years later, Kendall returns home to find her father’s academy in the process of foreclosure. Unless he can find a way to pay off his debts, he will lose everything he’s worked for. Kendall would do anything to save her father’s dream – even if it means breaking her promise and seeing Logan again. For Logan is now an international tennis icon – and the only person with enough starpower to raise funds for the academy.
But Logan is no longer the boy Kendall fell in love with. He’s hot, he’s arrogant and he’s used to getting what he wants. And when Kendall walks back into his life, it’s clear he wants one thing.
He wants Kendall.
And he’ll do anything to reclaim her.
ABOUT LAUREN MELINDA
Lauren Melinda lives in sunny California with her boyfriend. She loves romantic plots, scorching sexual tension, gorgeous first kisses and smexy love interests.
Cover Reveal: FOLLOWING ME by K.A. Linde
Blurb:
“I knew you were running the first time I saw you…”
Devon didn’t have a game plan when she decided to leave St. Louis on a Chicago-bound train for the summer. Just a reason. One she couldn’t share with anyone.
Not Hadley, her best friend from college, who lets her stay in the guest bedroom; no questions asked. Or Brennan, the bartender at the local restaurant they frequent, who she actively tries to avoid. Or Garrett, Hadley’s boyfriend, who befriends her when she has no one else to turn to.
“I just didn’t know what you were running from….”
Desperate to hide at all costs, Devon plunges into her new life in the city. Everyone around her starts to reveal sides of themselves Devon never expected. And just when she starts to get comfortable, her world flips upside down…
“…but I think all along you were running toward me.”
4 lives.
All connected.
All with secrets that just keep following them.
Excerpt:
Sweat beaded on Devon’s temple, and she wiped it off her forehead and out of her eyes. The party had been going all night, and it was nice to loosen up and get lost in the music and dancing. She hadn’t partied in so long, and she couldn’t resist when Amy had actually invited her out. Either she was getting over her hatred for the new girl, or Devon had just been there long enough that she wasn’t considered the new girl any longer.
People were packed into the club shoulder to shoulder, many even closer than that. The music was ear-splittingly loud. Crazy lights traversed the warehouse-sized room, and they alternated to strobes slowing everything down to slow motion. She hadn’t had much to drink, but she was dizzy with dehydration and the energy in the room. Her tank top was sticking to her back, and she had long since pulled her hair up off of her neck into a ponytail.
God, I need another drink, she thought.
Her eyes moved around the room taking in as much as she could from her vantage point. It really only ended up being the two feet encircling her. Amy had to be somewhere inside the building. How had she lost track of her?
Well, she knew how. There were too many damn people in the place. It was easy to lose track of one person, especially when that person was as short as Amy. Still, she should have done better. She didn’t like being alone in dark places. Whether she was surrounded by people or in a back alleyway at night, she was still alone.
She craned her head to look for her, but was having no luck. It felt like more and more people were being crushed into the space. How was this in line with fire code? Surely the place would be shut down soon.
Walking in the direction of the bar, Devon tried to find Amy in the crowd. Seriously it was getting harder and harder to maneuver through. She was literally having to elbow people out of the way. This wasn’t okay, and it wasn’t fun. They shouldn’t let any more people in. Things could get out of control.
Devon looked up over the heads of people in front of her and sighed. It felt like she was never going to reach the bar, and there was a huge line anyway. She thought maybe the bathroom would be a better alternative…at least there she would have some privacy.
She turned to walk the other direction and slammed right into a meaty guy in front of her, who glared at her as she lost her balance and tumbled to the floor. Someone stepped on her hand as she tried to get up. Devon swore and hissed pulling her hand away from the ground where someone else could do the same thing. She stood as best she could, cradling her aching hand. It wasn’t easy pushing through people with one hand pressed between her breasts to keep from someone else smashing into it. All it did was cause people to unknowingly smash into other parts of her. She hadn’t made it more than a few feet toward the bathroom, and she had already been elbowed in the arm, gotten her foot stepped on, and been drunkenly body slammed knocking the breath out of her. The club was getting dangerous.
A space opened in the crowd, and she took advantage, rushing forward through the throng of people. It took her closer to the bathroom but not close enough. Then she felt it. Eyes on the back of her head. She didn’t even know how it was possible. There were hundreds of people in the place. No one could be focusing that intently on her, but she could swear that someone was watching her.
K.A. Linde graduated with her Masters in political science from the University of Georgia in 2012. She also has a bachelors in political science and philosophy. She wrote the Avoiding Series while struggling through advanced statistical modeling and writing her thesis. She enjoys dancing and writing novels that keep you guessing until the very end. She currently resides in Georgia with her boyfriend and two puppies, Lucy and Riker.
![Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000038_00071]](http://upallnightbookblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Following-Me-jacket.jpg)
Cover Reveal: RELINQUISHING LIBERTY by Maureen Mayer
Tentative Release Date: August 26, 2013
On the outside, Liberty Davis appeared to have it all…a loving family, a tight knit circle of friends, and a bright future ahead of her. Everything was perfect. That is until her brother tragically took his own life, turning her whole world upside down.
Left to pick up the pieces of her broken family, Liberty is faced with focusing all of her attention on helping her parents cope with the loss of their son, while putting her own life on the back burner. But what no one seems to realize is that she is just as broken inside.
Now, four years later, twenty year old Liberty is taking back the reins of her life. She leaves behind everything she’s ever known, hoping to make a fresh start…one where she isn’t faced with the constant reminder that her brother is nothing more than faded memory. What she didn’t expect to find along the way was Shayne.
Tall, dark and tattooed, Shayne Thompson has developed quite a reputation for being a player. Despite everyone’s negative perception, Liberty still finds herself drawn to him. When she learns that Shayne knows all too well what it feels like to lose someone you love, she finds that they have a lot more in common than just a physical attraction.
When Liberty discovers a secret from Shayne’s past that threatens to tear them apart, she begins to question everything she’s ever felt for him. Will Liberty choose to follow her heart or will she give up the one person who finally made her feel whole again?
About the Author
Ma
ureen Mayer was born, raised and currently resides in Buffalo, NY with her loving and supportive family and boyfriend of 8+ years. She’s always had a love for the outdoors, and when the city isn’t buried under snow, she can be found hiking, fishing, camping or lying on the beach. She’s a sucker for off-color humor, but holds a sweet spot for sick and twisted horror films.
ureen Mayer was born, raised and currently resides in Buffalo, NY with her loving and supportive family and boyfriend of 8+ years. She’s always had a love for the outdoors, and when the city isn’t buried under snow, she can be found hiking, fishing, camping or lying on the beach. She’s a sucker for off-color humor, but holds a sweet spot for sick and twisted horror films.Thanks to authors like J. K. Rawling, Stephanie Meyer and E. L. James, Maureen has rediscovered her love for reading. When she’s not writing, you can find her curled up in bed with her kindle, diving into a steamy romance novel. She is currently working on her first new adult novel and hopes to self-publish it late this summer.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.
Goodreads page: http://www.goodreads.com/
Twitter: @AuthorMoMayer
Cover design by Robin Harper at Wicked by Design.
A Different Blue, Amy Harmon
Blue Echohawk doesn’t know who she is. She doesn’t know her real name or when she was born. Abandoned at two and raised by a drifter, she didn’t attend school until she was ten years old. At nineteen, when most kids her age are attending college or moving on with life, she is just a senior in high school. With no mother, no father, no faith, and no future, Blue Echohawk is a difficult student, to say the least. Tough, hard and overtly sexy, she is the complete opposite of the young British teacher who decides he is up for the challenge, and takes the troublemaker under his wing.
This is the story of a nobody who becomes somebody. It is the story of an unlikely friendship, where hope fosters healing and redemption becomes love. But falling in love can be hard when you don’t know who you are. Falling in love with someone who knows exactly who they are and exactly why they can’t love you back might be impossible.
Review 4.5-4.75 stars
“I’m nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody too? Then there’s a pair of us Don’t tell-they’d banish us, you know.”
Sometimes you come across a book that reads almost like poetry. A book where the lines flow off the paper so effortlessly that it doesn’t really feel like you are knees deep into an incredible novel. But you are. Before you know it, you are deep, turning page after page to find out what happens with Blue.
“The beauty of that poem is that everybody can relate, because we all feel like nobody, we all feel like we are on the outside, looking in. We all feel scattered. But I think it’s the self-awareness that actually makes us somebody. And you are definitely somebody, Blue. You may not be a work of art, but you are definitely a piece of work.”
‘This is a story of one woman’s loss of herself and her search to find her self again. She finds love in her search but most importantly she finds herself.
There are so many things about this book that make it special. Some of my keys, that I look for in a great read is, the pace, this one is flawless. Uniqueness-Blue is a half Indian woodworker. (how original is that for a main character)Depth, don’t believe me check out this quote,
“Regret is just life’s aftertaste. No matter what you choose, you’re gonna wonder if you shoulda done things different. I didn’t necessarily choose wrong. I just chose.”
There is also love. The love between Wilson and Blue, is slow building. He is patient and kind. In his slow ways he teaches her so much.
The visuals this book gives you in your imagination is breath taking. You know a book has hit its mark, when perfectly crafted images take flight. When I finished the last page, I didn’t see The End, I saw a black bird soaring in the sky.
About this author
Amy Harmon knew at an early age that writing was something she wanted to do, and she divided her time between writing songs and stories as she grew. Having grown up in the middle of wheat fields without a television, with only her books and her siblings to entertain her, she developed a strong sense of what made a good story. Amy Harmon has been a motivational speaker, a grade school teacher, a junior high teacher, a home school mom, and a member of the Grammy Award winning Saints Unified Voices Choir, directed by Gladys Knight. She released a Christian Blues CD in 2007 called “What I Know” – also available on Amazon and wherever digital music is sold. She has written four novels, Running Barefoot, Slow Dance in Purgatory, Prom Night in Purgatory, and coming March 29, A DIFFERENT BLUE.
http://www.authoramyharmon.com
https://www.goodreads.com/amyharmon
Cover Reveal: AFFLICTED by Sophie Monroe
Cover Designer: Sophie Monroe & Chris Correia (CJC Photography)
Release Date: June 1st (tentative)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Cover reveal organized by: The Little Black Book Blog
Blurb:
Afflicted is expected out in early to mid June. Official release date still pending.
Fresh off tour Blake Potter, the sexy bassist for Battlescars, is in Smithville, Ohio to work on their next album ‘Coming Clean’. Still pining after Aubrey’s best friend, Piper, it’s going to be harder than he expected to see her back with her long-term boyfriend, Cole. He’s trying his hardest to forget her, but no matter how hard he tries to stay away circumstances keep bringing them together. Being burned before, he refuses to let it happen again. He’s still struggling to let go of Rowan, the girl that made him the way he is.
Piper is fighting an uphill battle of her own. She’s working her ass off trying to make a name for herself as a tattoo artist. Her long-term boyfriend, Cole, was recently discharged from the Marines turning her world in a way that she never expected. When he begins leaving for days at a time Piper starts struggling to help him pick up the pieces. She calls the one person that might be able to help, Blake. He becomes the friend that she needs no matter how much it’s killing him.
What will happen when one phone call changes everything for both of them leading them in a path that neither anticipated? Pasts will come out of the shadows and threaten to ruin everything.
About the Author:
Sophie Monroe is an author from New Jersey. She’s obsessed with music and loves a good story. She released the Amazon Best Seller Battlescars in March. Afflicted is a spin-off of Battlescars with different characters but has appearances of the reader’s favorites Jake, Aubrey and Granny Jean, along with the rest of the gang.
Where to Buy the First Book in the Series: Battlescars
Therapy Kathryn Vance Perez
Therapy, by Kathryn Vance Perez
Sometimes you have to get lost in order to be found…
Depression, bullying, and self-inflicted harm . . . These are just a few of the things that Jessica Alexander struggles with daily. The torment she suffered in high school broke her. Wanting to escape and leave her demons behind, Jessica is forced to bury her secrets and abandon the only love she has ever known. Leaving Jace Collins nearly destroyed her. He was her savior and one true friend.
After six years of suffering in silence, Jessica is forced to face her past. When a series of unexpected events arise, will secrets be revealed and will lies become truth?
This is a story of friendship, heartache, self-discovery, redemption, and one girl’s journey through the trials and tribulations of mental illness.
And now check out this poem from the upcoming book that is not yet finished by the awesome Kathryn Vance Perez
BACK TO EMPTY
Back to empty
Here’s my cup, fill it on up
Runneth it over
Pour me something stronger
Don’t want to feel this way any longer…
Drown the me I can’t let anyone see
Force it down
Swallow it all
Just pour me something stronger than me…
It was enough
Once I could see
Carried to me
On the waves
Of a blue eyed sea
I exhaled
I saw
I felt
To me, forever memories
To the sea, already forgotten
Turning the key
Again locking it all away
I step back up
To the bar of life
Society and reality joining me
Holding out my glass
I say…
Just pour me something stronger than me…
©2013 @Kathryn Vance Perez
Lastly here is a quote from Jessica,
“Sorrow bled from my pores and my insides felt hollow. How do I ever recover from this kind of pain, this kind of loss? My heart and soul just floated away with him and I’m not sure I’ll ever get them back.”
Kathryn Perez interview
UAN: Hey Kathryn thanks so much for joining us today! I must say I met you in Columbus at the author signing and I thought you were so sweet and genuine so I am really glad to have you be apart of our Mad Monday.
UAN: Can you tell us what is your favorite fan girl Moment?
KVP: Favorite Fan Moment was ALL of the people who came to see me in Columbus! I was in shock at the people who knew me and I was extremely humbled and VERY pleased to meet each of them!
UAN: YAY!
UAN: Who is your writing inspiration?
KVP: Coleen Hoover, I started writing because of her.
UAN: What are you reading right now?
KVP: Right now I am reading THIS GIRL by Colleen Hoover and I just finished reading In The Stillness by Andrea Randall and LOVED every word of it.
UAN: I read and really enjoyed Love and Truth, your debut novel. I love what vivid images Japan took on in my imagination. I know you lived there for a while, can you talk about that?
KVP: Love and Truth was all about Japan for me. It was a fun whimsical book and I loved getting to take readers on a mini vacation to the island that I had a six year love affair with! Okinawa stole my heart and living there was the best experience I have ever had. I learned the language and immersed myself in their culture. All of the places in L&T are real places that I have been to. None of the locations are fictional. I did have a very hard time learning to drive there though….wrecked two vehicles and once drove the opposite direction that I should have been going on a main highway! Driving on the other side of the road really took some getting use to!!!
UAN: Can you speak Japanese?
KVP: Yes I spoke a lot of Japanese while living there but now I have lost a lot of it. I still know the basics:)
UAN: You are currently working on a new book that is not yet done called Therapy, can you tell us about it?
KVP: Therapy has meant so many things to me while writing it. So many aspects of this story is very personal to me. It’s a very dark story and the female character is not entirely like-able But she’s realistic, she’s gritty and vulnerable. Jessica represent so many young girls today. Bullying is a very real and very tragic epidemic that hits close to home for me. I was bullied in school and was even beaten up badly once. Young girls have so many pressures upon them as teens and Jessica displays so many of those challenges in this story. Therapy also focuses on self-harm and mental illness. It’s a lot of very heavy subject matter but I think it’s so important to bring to light. I have cried many tears writing this book and I only hope people read it and learn something even if they hate it. Readers tend to enjoy reading a story about strong willed characters but Jessica is broken and she does the best she can with what she knows. So I hope readers will sympathize with her while reading and I hope that readers will at least consider that society needs to wake up and give more to our young girls. Inform, educate and support these girls that are suffering in silence. Jessica takes us on a journey of pain, heartbreak, love, loss and soul-searching that I hope readers enjoy going on.
UAN: Sounds like a journey I will enjoy!
KVP: A line from Jessica’s therapist in the book is one of my favorites in the book so far (I’m still writing it).
”Jessica all of your scars just represent where you have been. They never have to dictate where you are or where you are going.”
This is important because so many women in adulthood still suffer from the pain and scars of their past. They need to know that their past doesn’t have to define them today. That is the true journey for Jessica.
UAN: Sounds like Jessica is going to be intense. Any Hotties?
KVP: I won’t talk about Jace or Kingsley because it will give away too much of the story but I will say that we are dealing with two of the most amazing guys ever. I want to pull them from the pages and keep them forever!
UAN: It sounds awesome! Anything else you want to tell us about it?
KVP: There are three POV’s in the book. So readers get to hear from all of the main characters.
UAN: I have it added to my TBR!
UAN: What is something we don’t know about you?
KVP: I feel that I was born the wrong race. I 100% believe I am black woman in a white woman’s body! True Story. OR I should have been born a man, either or but a WHITE CHICK….. no just all wrong.
My poor mama wonders all the time wtf happened! How a white girl from small town Texas turned out to be me…LOL
UAN: (giggling) you crack me up!
KVP Also, I’m a HUGE advocate of anti-bullying.:
UAN: That’s awesome.
KVP: Please support me in my walk for suicide prevention and awareness! 18 miles walking from sunset to sunrise. I’m walking in honor of teen Amanda Todd and all of the other bullied teens that have taken their own lives.
http://theovernight.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=8362
UAN: I love that you are involved hopefully we can help you attain your goal! Thank you so much for visiting with us for our Mad Monday!!
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