#GiveAway #Interview Tapped by Liz Crowe

Tapped

by Liz Crowe

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Interview with Liz Crowe: 

Crystal: Today I have the pleasure of hosting Liz Crowe. Welcome Liz! I'm so excited to have you here today.  Would you share a little bit about yourself with us today?

Liz: Hi there, I’m Liz Crowe, author, Realtor, craft beer marketing expert, mom of 3 mostly grown-ups, sports fan, avid reader, preacher’s kid, dog lover, Bikram yoga practitioner.

I have over 30 books in my backlist including a top selling self published series about a family, called the Love Brothers series.

TAPPED is my first book with this particular publisher and a series starter.
Crystal: Do you have a favorite scene you would like to share with us?

Liz:  Hmm….so many….let’s see…

TAPPED is a “enemies to lovers Plus one” romance and I think the funny/sexy tension that bubbles between Austin Fitzgerald and Evelyn Benedict (the “enemies” at first) is pretty intense an enjoyable to read. Here’s one of their early exchanges:

This stupid job is the only thing between me and the homeless shelter.

Nothing would make her jeopardize what she’d built out of, essentially, nothing. A two-year associate’s degree was all she’d been able to afford before she’d started working in a trendy downtown craft beer and cocktail bar. When a Tri-City sales rep had mentioned they were hiring and how much she could make in commission, she’d jumped at it.

Who knew she’d be a sales star?

“Fine. But if you think I’m gonna suck up to the Chosen Son of the Fitzgerald fortune, you are sadly mistaken. He can ride in my car and go on calls with me, but he’d better understand that I have a full day already set and I won’t be giving him any special attention.” She drained the last of the caffeine then set the mug down on Grant’s desk with what she hoped sounded like a decisive bang. A sudden puff of air blew past her, ruffling the papers on Grant’s desk.

Her boss’s eyes widened. He pointed to something behind her and started to open his mouth.

“No,” she cut him off. “Don’t say another word. You know I’m right. Everybody knows he’s just a trust-fund baby, opening a brewery with his daddy’s money, then gallivanting around the world, getting his degree”—she hooked her fingers in the air around the word—“in brewing science. Jesus. Who needs a degree in that? He should just stick to improving his golf handicap and deflowering debutantes.”

The petulant sound of her own voice annoyed her, but stories like Austin Fitzgerald’s made her the maddest. She’d been raised by a single mother who’d waitressed by day and, she’d later learned, turned tricks at night while the young Evelyn had done homework and watched TV at her aunt’s house. Her mother had died during Evelyn’s second year of college, forcing her to quit after she’d figured out that the modest funeral would eat up every cent her mother had managed to save.

Grant cleared his throat and stood, buttoning his suit coat. She watched him, her brain still on fire with helpless frustration. Even if she’d agreed to haul Fitzgerald around, she had no plans to sell craft beer that day.

“I need to schmooze my wine buyers today, Grant. I can’t be babysitting this guy.” The back of her neck tingled when the ends of her hair fluttered in another sudden breeze. She frowned, observing her boss stick his hand out as if about to shake hers, a big smile pasted on his face.

“Well, if I weren’t deathly allergic to both golf and debutantes, that might have been a career choice,” came a low, raspy voice from right behind her.

Evelyn’s entire body broke out in goosebumps.

“Grant, good to see you again,” the voice continued.

She gritted her teeth and rose, giving Grant what she hoped was a sufficiently withering look before turning around. Deep green eyes met hers. She was struck dumb by their depth and humorous sparkle. Dark jeans and a simple navy blue crew-neck—undoubtedly cashmere—sweater, brown box-toe loafers and a camel-colored dress jacket completed the look. He would have been at home on a GQ model as easily as he navigated a brewery floor. Close-cut dark-brown hair topped a clean-shaven, angular face.

A face that seemed pretty amused by her at that moment.

“And you must be Evelyn Benedict, saleswoman extraordinaire.” His smile lit up the room, rendering Evelyn speechless. Grant nudged her arm until she stuck out her hand. Austin’s warm, firm grip lingered long enough to make her uncomfortable.

“I see she’s mesmerized by the size of my…trust fund already.” He glanced over her shoulder at Grant then at her, pinning her in place again with that intense, still amused gaze. “Austin Fitzgerald, the albatross around your neck for the day.” He gave her palm a friendly squeeze before letting go. “At your service.”

Austin’s gaze remained squarely on hers. She had on her best thrift store designer suit over a silk blouse open at the neck. Used to men eyeballing her from tip to toe, she found it refreshing for one not to automatically zero in on her cleavage.

“Never had such a lovely babysitter before, Grant. Thanks.”

She swallowed when his eyes narrowed, then frowned as he gazed quickly up and down her front, lighting an unwanted and unexpected fire in her belly. Since when did she like it when some guy checked her out in such an obvious way?

He shrugged, sidestepping as if to get out of her way, the moment between them over. “Ready to go when you are. Rumor has it you have a big day ahead,” he said, the expression on his handsome face suddenly neutral.

“Yes. I do.” She strode past him, needing to regain her composure. Loud, masculine laughter echoed in her ears all the way to the ladies’ room. She splashed water on her face and stared in the mirror while her heart took up a loud drumbeat in her ears.

He is nothing but a spoiled-rotten trust-fund brat. No matter if he wears it like a stockbroker-slash-daytime drama hero. I do not need this distraction right now.

Crystal: Where did you come up with the idea for your latest release?

Liz:  I’ve written a lot of novels set in the craft beer business as I helped found and market one myself for nearly six years. I love the setting as it’s unique, has its own distinctive characters, language (i.e. “world”) and I worked really hard with my editor to balance the story (and the sexy) with the world building.

Crystal: What are you currently working on?

Liz: I just turned in Book 2 of this Brewing Passion series. It’s called LightStruck and is a direct follow-up to TAPPED (which is not a cliffhanger but simply needs “more!”)

I’m also re-working a funny chick-lit style romance about a female sportscaster in Detroit that I will sub to agents.

Plus I have a trilogy of novellas coming out as part of The Love Brothers series that I’m noodling away at!

Crystal: Do you have any special routine that you follow when you are writing?

Liz: Nope. None whatsoever. I am very busy with jobs that pay better than bookselling so I have to mind those things first. Writing gets done in and around that so I always keep my laptop on me in case I have some time waiting for a client, at a boring open house, or other free time.
Crystal: Did you have to do a lot of research for this book or any other? If so do you have a fascinating fact that you have learned you would like to share with us?

Liz: My research  for TAPPED was basically the time I spent learning about the brewing process while I was helping to launch a successful craft brewery. I learned SO much during that time, I try to include fun facts about it within the narrative of my manuscripts.
Crystal: Who are some of your favorite authors that you like to read?

Liz: I love to read anything that I consider well-crafted, and carefully edited. But My go-to authors are Margaret Atwood, Lianne Moriarty, Desiree Holt and Stephen King.
Crystal: Is there a genre you haven't written that you would like to try?

Liz: YES! I actually ventured into a thriller novel a few years ago, shelved it, pulled it back and now plan to revise it to be more “romantic suspense.”
I also am jonesing about an idea for a contemporary/Time travel/ brewery-based novel set in a haunted old theater that gets converted into a successful brewery in downtown Detroit.

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BLURB:

When wealthy brewery owner Austin Fitzgerald meets sexy saleswoman Evelyn Benedict, angry sparks fly. They seem destined to clash, until a hot hookup in a cold beer cooler changes everything.

For Austin, it's a life-altering moment that sets him on a path away from his birthright, while Evelyn must face her fears about committing to a man considered the playboy of the micro-brewing world.

The power of preconceived notions nearly tears them apart—until they meet up with brew master Ross, who opens their eyes to a deeper, even more erotic connection. But three strong personalities don’t always make for the best emotional mix and when a simple misunderstanding causes chaos, it’s up to Ross to repair the tattered shreds of their relationship.

GENRE:   Contemporary Erotic Romance

Buy Links: 

Publisher | Amazon 

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Excerpt: 

Ross would know how to handle this.

Whenever there’d been a woman who’d needed a bit more convincing than their usual flirty banter, or the one-two punch of the handsome dark-haired American and the smoking-hot blond German brewer hadn’t convinced her, Austin had tended to drift away, lose interest. Then Ross used to move in and close the deal alone, give him a high sign, and the fun would commence. It was the ‘Ross Superpower’, they used to joke the morning after as they drank espressos and relaxed before a day of brewing or study.

Austin would admit that he’d never felt this way about a female, at least not this quickly. Women peopled his life, no doubt. Women thrust into his face by his meddling mother. An over-abundance of women during his years in Munich. And finally, the current one, the Chosen One, at this moment likely spending a small fortune on God knew what in Paris. This woman, this Evelyn, completely and utterly confident of her own independence—and of his predator status—would not normally appeal. Typically, he’d write her off.

This has the potential to be way too much trouble. You already have enough to worry about.

And yet…

He groaned and willed his cock to soften, without much luck. Shouldering his way back out to the noisy restaurant, he pulled up short at the vision of Evelyn seated in a chair in the hallway outside the women’s room. She was bent forward, adjusting her shoe, the strong line of her calf and thigh drawing his gaze like a magnet. He blinked as the fall of her thick blonde hair tumbled over her face, the ever-present phone held to her ear.

She laughed at whatever she heard and Austin jumped right into it, wanting more than anything to sleep and wake with that honey-rich sound in his ears. Every easygoing, go-slow bone in his body screeched to a halt and ushered in a need so deep he nearly choked on it.

Mine.

Without a single thought for the possible consequences, he squared his shoulders and pulled her to her feet.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Amazon best-selling author, mom of three, Realtor, beer blogger, brewery marketing expert, and soccer fan, Liz Crowe is a Kentucky native and graduate of the University of Louisville currently living in Ann Arbor. She has decades of experience in sales and fund raising, plus an eight-year stint as a three-continent, ex-pat trailing spouse.

Her early forays into the publishing world led to a groundbreaking fiction subgenre, “Romance for Real Life,” which has gained thousands of fans and followers interested less in the “HEA” and more in the “WHA” (“What Happens After?”). More recently she is garnering even more fans across genres with her latest novels, which are more character-driven fiction, while remaining very much “real life.”

With stories set in the not-so-common worlds of breweries, on the soccer pitch, in successful real estate offices and at times in exotic locales like Istanbul, Turkey, her books are unique and told with a fresh voice. The Liz Crowe backlist has something for any reader seeking complex storylines with humor and complete casts of characters that will delight, frustrate and linger in the imagination long after the book is finished.

Don’t ever ask her for anything “like a Budweiser” or risk bodily injury.

Website: http://www.lizcrowe.com/

Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/lizcroweauthor

Facebook Chat Group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/lizcrowefans

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Twitter Feed: http://www.twitter.com/beerwencha2

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Liz-Crowe/e/B00573TC7M

Goodreads Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4350864.Liz_Crowe

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