#GiveAway #Interview THAT NIGHT By Lisa McManus

THAT NIGHT

By Lisa McManus

Giveaway: $10 Evernight Teen GC and 1 ebook copy of THAT NIGHT. Please use the RaffleCopter below to  enter. Remember you may increase your chances of winning by visiting the tour stops. You may find those locations here. 

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Interview:

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

Lisa: When I’m not being a wife, a mother to two teen boys, an office worker, and a person longing for a nap, I write slice-of-life stories as well as fiction for kids and teens. A creative person at heart, books and knitting needles always at the ready, I am also involved in archery.  Like I said, I long for a nap….

Crystal: What are you currently working on?

Lisa: I’m working on a contemporary fantasy full-length novel about a boy and his genie.  I love the characters, love the story, yet struggle with finding long stretches of time to work on it. Word by word, I’ll get it done.  I wish….

Crystal: Where did you come up with the idea for either your current release or the WIP you are working on now?

 Lisa: Ideas are everywhere, but nowhere at the same time – the idea morphed and grew as wrote, yet I can’t pin down how it came to be. I knew I wanted to do a story about what a loved one of someone who attempts suicide goes through, and the story grew from there. Teen life is turbulent and confusing; gossip and alcohol consumption often making certain situations worse. I hope that Luke’s story and what he learned in the aftermath of his girlfriend’s suicide attempt helps someone through a similar situation.

Crystal: Do you have a favorite snack that like to munch on while writing? If so would you mind sharing what it is with us? 

Lisa: Mike ‘n Ike candies. I love them. I could easily substitute them for meals without question. No particular flavor or color is my fave – I love them all.

Crystal: Do you have a favorite scene you would like to share with us?

Lisa: I would have to say my favorite scene is Jessica confronting Luke in the library. Although that scene is not one of resolution of the conflict between the two characters, I hope I created a dramatic enough scene depicting Luke’s love and care for Jessica, despite the angst and drama unfolding between  them.

Crystal: When you are not busy writing wonderful stories to keep us lucky readers entertained, what do you like to do? Do you have a hobby?

Lisa: When I’m not writing, I knit and usually have a book at my side. My to-be-read pile is a big as my yarn stash, if not bigger (I hide books around the house – it’s embarrassing now many I have).  I have also in the last year taken up archery – something completely different for me. I love the meditative, focus-orientated nature of the sport, where for an hour or so I have to clear my mind and focus ONLY on getting the arrow in the middle of the target: easier said than done. I also write slice-of-life stories, and my story about archery, “Taking Aim at Excuses,” is in the book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Think Possible.

Crystal: Do you have a favorite background noise you like to have going while you write (TV, Music, kids playing)?

 Lisa: No noise is best, but I have often found that, despite my wishes, when there IS noise around I usually concentrate more – I strain to block out everything around me when there are other things going on (I write at the kitchen table), so in turn that only deepens my concentration. If there was something like a radio on, I’d end up singing to the songs (no autographs please – I can’t sing).

Crystal: Thank you for visiting today. It has been a pleasure to visit with you. Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

Lisa: Thank YOU so much for having me, and a special thanks to your readers for stopping by and reading about what I do. I hope your readers enjoyed this interview, and I look forward to connecting with them at my blog www.lisamcmanus.com  Happy reading everyone!

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BLURB:

It can take a whole day to figure out what happened…that night.

 On what was to be just another Monday morning at school, Luke’s girlfriend Jessica is nowhere to be found.  Names like ‘psycho lover’ follow Luke to his
locker, even from his best friend. Luke soon learns Jessica tried to kill herself at a party from the previous Saturday night, and she’s blaming him. With posts on FaceBook feeding the rumors of what happened that night, the school has to investigate. 

 Torn between worry, guilt, loyalty, priorities, and an urgency to clear his name and protect hers, he has to find her—he loves her no matter what. The teacher in
the middle of the investigation is also the same one to provide academic and character references for Luke’s college applications due by the end of the week. Luke knows he’s not to blame, but with no contact from Jessica and everyone blaming him for what happened, he’s at risk of losing everything—Jessica and his dreams of being a mechanic—all because of what happened that night.

Evernight Teen

Publishing,  31,000 words

Teen/Contemporary/Romance/Suicide/Bullying

Buy Links:  

 ARe | Amazon | Evernight Teen

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Excerpt:

 “Hey, man.” I nodded to Jeremy Waters as I started the long trek up the front lawn of
the school. He nodded back but gave me a questioning stare as I walked past.
Again, weird. What is with everyone today? I wondered.

I scanned the busy school grounds. Where was Jessica? I knew our
break-up was inevitable, but I dreaded it. I still cared about her very much,
but things were changing: me, her, and ‘us’––and I didn’t know what to do about
it. Neither did she.

At first I didn’t notice anything off, but as I passed group after group of unusually
silent guys and girls from all grades, I got that weird feeling, like I was being watched, like the whole school was focused on me or something.

Some of the guys pulled their buds out of their ears as I approached, their banter from
moments before silencing as I passed. One guy shook his head as if in disgust.
Another guy awkwardly picked at something on the ground with the toe of his
shoe, as if he were avoiding something.

I kept going, trying to walk as normally as I could. Hard to do when you know you’re being watched.

Where was Jess? I checked my phone to see if there was anything from her: nothing.

I shifted my backpack and made my way up the path to the front steps of the school. With every footstep, uncertainty and foreboding gnawed at my gut.

A group of girls from Jessica’s drama club huddled on the front steps like a bunch of
hens. They all gave me the once-over. One of them was crying and another gave
me the finger.

That stopped me in my tracks. “What the hell?” I stared them down. “What was that for?”

“Screw you, Luke!” The one with the ornery finger spat. “Stay away from Jessica!”

What the...? Whatever.
Bunch of gossips––they seriously need to get a life.

Jessica and I had been drifting apart for a while. Where she was involved in her drama
club, her social life, I preferred being under the hood of a car, alone. But it wasn’t that I chose cars over her or anything. I cared about her very, very much. At one time I even contemplated the L-word thing with her. But lately, something had changed, and I couldn’t figure out what. I mean, I knew I wanted to be with her but it was like we were drifting towards each other, then away, then back towards each other again. Only to then again drift further away.

But I would never do anything to her, to earn me the middle finger from her friends. So why were they acting like that? What the...? I shook my head and kept going. I hadn’t done anything to provoke their reaction, so they could just go back to their pointless chatter about hair or whatever.

With fifteen minutes to go until the first bell, I wanted to catch up with Jess before
classes started. She lived way on the other side of town, and as much I would have loved to pick her up every morning, her mom insisted on driving her. Her mom liked me, so it wasn’t anything against me personally, but Jessica said it was a ‘mom and daughter thing.’ And besides, we always met first thing at school and I would, at least, get to drive her home.

But that day, even though I wasn’t exactly about to have ‘the talk’ with her right
before class, I wanted to at least see her that morning to start the day––it was our ‘thing.’ A pang of regret fluttered in my gut. If we broke up, would we still meet in the mornings? She had become part of my day and I still wanted that.

I made my way through the doors of the school. The halls were already swarming with East Clark High’s student body. I searched for Jessica as I pushed and wove my way
through the crowd. But I soon realized I wasn’t pushing past anyone, anymore.
The constant buzz in the halls had all but died down, and people were stepping
aside giving me a wide berth as I went.

What the hell was wrong with everyone? I frowned at everyone practically plastered up against the lockers, avoiding me like I was contagious or something. Did I smell like dog sh––

“Psycho!” A familiar voice hissed in my ear, cutting off my thoughts. Great––Mark.
I stuttered to a stop but tried to keep going. I, along with everyone else, was used to his stupid ways, but I had to find Jessica. I didn’t want to waste time getting into it with him right then.

But he came at me again with, “Psycho-lover!” and that definitely had me coming to a full stop. I swear I felt spit on my cheek.

I refused to swipe it away, giving him the satisfaction of … I didn’t know what. Something.
I glanced up to find his buddies chuckling while Mark, the idiot himself, contorted his face into what he assumed was the look of a crazy person.

He didn’t have to try very hard. It came naturally.

And I hoped his eyes stayed crossed like that.

I stared him down, and just when I turned away he was up against me, his face so close to mine his eyes looked crossed. “Jessica almost knocked herself off the other night. Whadidja do? Screw her over?” he hissed.

I stared at him in confusion. My face numbed. My neck heated. What was he talking about? What did he mean, ‘knock herself off’?

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About the Author:

Lisa McManus has been an avid reader since her teen years, and is inspired daily by her teenage boys and the forests and beaches of
Vancouver Island, British Columbia where she lives. Along with writing for kids and teens, she is also multi-published with Chicken Soup for the Soul and numerous other magazines and anthologies.
When she’s not writing, reading or refereeing her family, she is either
hiking or out on the archery range.

Websites: www.lisamcmanus.com

www.lisamcmanuslange.blogspot.com

Twitter: @LisaMcManusLang

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8300457.Lisa_McManus

Amazon author page www.amazon.com/author/lisamcmanus

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Key By KT Grant ~ Book #2 in the Dark Path series ~ Bridging The Gap Promotions Book Tour ~ Giveaway

The Key 

Book #2 in the Dark Path series

By KT Grant

Giveaway:

K.T. Grant is giving away 3 ebook sets of the first two books in the Dark Path Series,  The Gate and The Key ! Please use the RaffleCopter below to enter. 

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Character Interview with Max from the Key:

How did you first meet your writer?
Max: I invaded Ms. Grant’s mind one day while she was thinking of the perfect man. I whispered my name, Maxwell Crawford in her ear and she brought me to life in The Gate.

Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?
Max: Hell no! I’m an extremely private person because of my eclectic hobbies. I have more than a few enemies who would love nothing more than to bring me down and screw me over 

What are your favorite scenes in your book: the action, the dialog or the romance?
Max: I think action speaks louder than words. I’m a hands on type of guy, especially with that special lady I want to seduce and take control of in and out of the bedroom.

Did you have a hard time convincing your author to write any particular scenes for you?
Max: I’m a force to be reckoned with and don’t like to be told, “no”. Me. Grant had some problems trying to keep my alpha tendencies with Erika under control. But she allowed some exceptions when it came to tutoring Erika as my submissive.

What do you like to do when you are not being actively read somewhere?
Max: I enjoy making money and relaxing at my sex club, The Gate. But when I have down times, I enjoy making dinner for Erika, the woman who owns my heart. 

Are you happy with the genre your writer has placed you in?
Max: I love that I’m in an Erotic Romance. I’m allowed to be as kinky as I want to be when it comes to sex, and when my story ends, there will be a happily ever after for myself and Erika (Ms. Grant better write a happily ever after and none of this cliffhanger crap!)

If you could rewrite anything in your book, what would it be?
Max: The moment I met Erika, I would have taken her to St. Thomas where I own property and married her there.

Do you like the way the book ended?
Max: I get what I want at the end of The Key, but there are some unresolved issues have to deal with still in order for me and Erika to be truly happy. Unfortunately those issues won’t be resolved until The Lock, the third book Ms. Grant is planning on write in 2015.

Do have any secret aspirations that your author doesn’t know about?
Max: There’s a part of me that wants to chuck it all away, take Erika and hide on some island where no one can find us.

What do you do for a living?
Max: I’m the CEO of one of the most successful media corporations in the US and part owner of a BDSM sex club called The Gate located in Brooklyn. I’m also a very rich and powerful man who shouldn’t be crossed.

What is your greatest fear?
Max: Loses Erika to my childhood nemesis, Chris Milton. I hate the fact Erika and Milton are friends and he was her first love.

What do you wear when you go to sleep?
Max: I sleep in the buff.

What is your most prized possession?
Max: Erika, my lady, and The Gate.

What do you think your greatest weakness is?
Max: I hate being vulnerable and not in charge of the situation.

What do you think is your strongest attribute?
Max: I can make most people do whatever I want. If I say jump, they ask, how high?

What are you proudest of?
Max: I can take down the competition and I always end up getting what I want.

What embarrasses you?
Max: When I’m caught biting my thumb nail if I’m nervous. Erika catches me doing that all the time. I swear that woman has a hidden radar.

What do you like most about where you live?
Max: New York City is the best city in the US. I have so many options available to me there.

What’s your favorite thing to do on a rainy Sunday?
Max: Making love with Erika.

What word makes you the happiest?
Max: Erika

What is your least favorite word?
Max: Milton

What turns you on?
Max: A woman’s moans of pleasure.

What turns you off?
Max: Whimpering.

What other profession would you like to try?
Max: College professor of English Literature

What would you not like to do?
Max: Not make money. I love making money and being rich so I never have to worry about where my pay check is coming from.

What is your most favorite memory?
Max: My mother singing to me and my two brothers.

What’s your favorite animal?
Max: A jaguar.

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BLURB: 

Erika has reinvented herself as an author of erotic romance under the pseudonym, Lily Fredericks. After her eight month sabbatical in New Orleans, she’s returning to Manhattan to promote her new book. Chris is handling her book tour and wants Erika to give him another chance. She’s forgiven Chris, but Max is always in her thoughts. Sick of waiting for Erika to come to her senses, Max takes matters into his own hands. He’ll go to New Orleans to claim her before it’s too late.
With Erika back in Manhattan, both Chris and Max try to seduce her in the hopes she’ll choose one of them. As both men battle for her heart, a woman from Max’s past reappears, bent on revenge. Chris will ruin Max anyway he can in order to make Erika his own. However Max has something up his sleeve to insure he’s the victor, but not without a price—Erika’s soul.

Amazon    Barnes & Noble    All Romance Ebooks    Smashwords    Kobo    iTunes

Google Play (coming soon)
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Excerpt:

The walk felt like an eternity but lasted mere minutes. When he reached the corner of his hotel, he placed Erika on her feet. Swaying, she latched onto his arms. He spotted the nervousness in her eyes, and his chest tightened.
As he set his lips on her forehead, he cupped her face. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. You say stop, and I will.”
She spread her palm over his rapidly beating heart. “Does my safe word still apply in this situation?”
“Yes, but only because it’s adorable when you scream ‘whiskers’ when you come.”
She smacked him in the stomach. He curled his arm around her waist and flicked the tip of her nose with his tongue. Her face colored an adorable pink.
He started walking backward and linked her hands with his. “Will you come up to my room and spend the night with me, Miss Walsh?”
She dug the edge of her front teeth into her bottom lip and tilted her head, acting shy. “What if I want you to be gentle with me, Mr. Crawford?”
He stopped and almost coughed as his breath caught in his lungs. “If…if that’s what I have to do in order for you to be with me, then yes.”
She lifted their combined hands, slipped his thumb inside her mouth, and sucked.
His dick jerked. That familiar tingling in his lower back spread around front and disembarked between his thighs.
“Enough,” he snapped and drew his thumb out of her mouth. He rubbed her saliva across her bottom lip. “Give me your answer. Now.”
She presented him with a smile worthy of an experienced seductress. “Yes.”
The walk across the lobby took too long for Max. Erika purposely taunted him by not rushing. He would have carried her in his arms like he had on Bourbon Street, but he needed to remain in control. He always stayed at the Hotel Monteleone while in New Orleans, and he didn’t want that to change. He kept his frustration at bay while she viewed the splendor, spying the lounge off to the right and the slow moving carousel inside making up the bar.
“Oh, my God, it’s a real carousel? And it moves?” She stepped toward the room, her face full of awe.
“At night, they have piano music and live singing. Next time I promise we’ll sit at the bar.” Hooking his arms around Erika from behind, he rested his chin on her shoulder. “But unless you want me to fuck you on top of the bar, we should go up to my suite as soon as possible.”
She laid her palm on his cheek and gave him an amused glance. “If we don’t, will you jizz in your pants in front of everyone here?”
He dropped his head into the crook of her shoulder and held back a laugh. If only she knew how close he was to losing it. “Put me out of my misery, and let’s go upstairs.”
She turned and, grabbing his hand, hurried to the set of elevators. She giggled loud, the sound of her joy echoing off the walls.
A few people loitering, including those behind the front desk, sent Erika and him curious stares, but he didn’t care. He chuckled along with her. When they reached the elevator doors, he pushed aside her hands, so he could punch the button first. She gave him a playful pout. He returned the favor by cupping her ass and squeezing her generous flesh.
“We’re grabby tonight, aren’t we?” She brushed up against him.
He continued caressing those two marvelous muscular globes, exultant her weight loss hadn’t affected her posterior. “I can’t stop touching you.”
“How about kissing me?” she whispered. When the elevator doors open, she yanked him inside by his collar.
He slapped the button to his floor then pulled Erika into the corner. He snuck a peek behind to see if anyone waited to enter—not that he would have allowed another inside. Once the doors slammed shut, he claimed Erika’s mouth, feasting on her lips, drunk on her taste.

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About the Author:

KT Grant is a self-proclaimed eccentric redhead who not only loves to read a wide variety of romances, but also loves writing it. Under her alter-ego, she is a well-known book blogger who doesn’t shy away from voicing her opinion. A proud native of New Jersey, KT is multi-published and writes Gay, Lesbian and Straight romance. KT has been a top ten best-selling author at Amazon, as well as being a multiple All Romance Ebooks best seller and a Night Owl Reviews Top Author Pick.

KT loves to hear from readers. You can drop KT an email at ktgrnt@gmail.com.

You can also find KT at these fun places:
Blog: Babbling About Books, and More!
Twitter: @Katiebabs
Facebook
Goodreads




a Rafflecopter giveaway

One Life by L.A. Cadieux ~ Bridging the Gap Promotions ~ Guest Post ~ Giveaway

ONE LIFE

A TEDDY OWENS STORY

by L.A. Cadieux

Giveaway:    L.A. Cadieux will to give away a $25 Amazon Gift Card via the RaffleCopter below. Please don't forget to enter.

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Guest Post by L.A. Cadieux: 

“I want to write a novel?” I said.
“What kind of novel?” my husband asked.
“Not sure, maybe fantasy. I’ve thought about trying to write a novel before I turn 30.”
He shrugged. “You’re only 23. Why don’t you?”
I laughed. “When would I find the time?”
“The only person holding you back from writing—is you,” he said. “Plus, if you like it, you’ll find the time.”

I’m L. A. Cadieux, a newly published Young Adult Paranormal Romance author. How does it feel to be published after seven years of struggling? Amazing, scary and surreal—all at the same time. I decided several years ago I wanted to try and publish my first novel before I turned 30. If it sounded like a crazy goal at the time, it is because it was. I didn’t realize the sacrifice and unreal amount of time I’d have to devote to my writing. Would I still do it over again…knowing what I do now? Definitely.
My work has been inspired popular children’s literature like The Secret Garden, and by beloved Queens of English Literature, Jane Austen & the Bronte sisters. I first read Pride & Prejudice, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights for fun in high school and grew to love all of their works. Austen in particular has been a huge inspiration—after all she did create the Bennet family and literary hunk, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.
It took a never say can’t attitude to make it through seven years or rejections before I found a literary agent and then a publisher for my second novel, ONE LIFE. Any success I’ve found did not happen overnight. The low points of this journey continue to be important for my creative growth -- as much as I may not have appreciated the value in those moments after receiving yet another rejection. It’s hard to appreciate success without knowing what it feels like to have failed. ONE LIFE released June 20, 2014.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB: 

Intent on leaving her troubled childhood in the past, snow-obsessed sixteen year old Teddy Owens has moved from Texas to her uncle's secluded Rocky Mountain estate—a beautiful place, but colder than she imagined. Curious about her surroundings she ignores the persistent advice of new friends and digs around to uncover the allure of the mysterious estate—only to discover her friends have terrifying secrets of their own. With each new revelation, Teddy is thrust further into a clandestine underworld where she is hunted for her dormant supernatural power…the ability to save just one person from death.

After her family's sordid history of betrayal is unearthed, Teddy’s world is rocked when she must travel to New York City and take an oath promising her power to an arrogant heir of the underworld, Leevi Koivu. Can she trust him?

And in the end someone she loves, but cannot save, will die.


…from Evernight Teen 
YA (romance, paranormal, shifters, suspense, contemporary)
77,000 words, Editor's Pick 
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Buy Links:  

Evernight Teen -  http://www.evernightteen.com/one-life-by-l-a-cadieux/

Amazon  -  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L4N2PYQ/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=211189&creative=373489&creativeASIN=B00L4N2PYQ&link_code=as3&tag=revibycrys-20&linkId=PVRQXYQMJSPMWESN

ARe -  https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-onelife-1555731-140.html

BookStrand  -  http://www.bookstrand.com/one-life

Createspace (Print) https://www.createspace.com/4867155



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt:

“Admit it, you’re a mess.” My words were thick with accusation as I showed her the bottle. The lines separating a mother from her daughter began to blur, the tighter my fist clenched around exhibit #1: the medication bottle. “I found this in the trash.”
Angelique placed the soda she’d been sipping onto the kitchen counter. “Stop worrying about me. Honey, I’m fine. It was an accident—those merely fell into the garbage earlier,” she said. A bead of condensation rolled down the side of the aluminum can, seeping into a chip in the counter.
“Do you take me for an idiot? The trash isn’t exactly accessible.” I pointed to the cupboard beneath the kitchen sink. As I leaned forward my wet hair hung over my face. I’d gone and dyed my locks red a few weeks earlier. Fortunately, the color had faded after two washes.
“It’s completely plausible it fell under the sink,” she argued. Angelique turned to search the deserted street outside our tattered screen door—her actions were a clear indication of what I’d suspected all along.
“Please, look at me for one minute, and don’t start with one of your conspiracy theories—seriously—I can’t take another. This full bottle was in the washroom trash. I found it after taking a shower.” A knowing expression dawned on her face…she’d been caught in another lie. “You haven’t been taking your prescription. Why?” I shoved a hand into the pocket of my cut-off shorts and pulled out the telephone wiretap.
Angelique’s eyes narrowed in on it. “Teddy, give me the bug,” she demanded, placing a thin hand on my shoulder.
I tore out of her grasp. “In case you missed the memo, this isn’t normal. It’s not okay to spy on me. Angelique, I’m not your naïve little girl anymore.” I held up the listening device. “Your sickness is worse than ever. Your paranoia is out of control—you need help. I’m tired of trying to fix it.”
“I’m fine,” Angelique shrilled. Her hair was matted to her forehead, saturated with the humidity. “You have to trust me. I have my reasons.”
“I want to trust you.” I noted how her cheeks and eyes had sunken in. God, she wasn’t eating again. Her anxiety had worsened significantly since my sixteenth birthday. Lately, she’d watched me like I was going to burst into a man-eating tarantula at any moment. “You make it hard.”
“You can’t possibly understand.” She reached over to tug at my arm, resulting in a tussle over the bug. “Give me that already—it’s not yours,” she ordered.
As I ducked out of the way, she jerked my arm. “Let me go!” I tried to snatch my arm away.
“Please, can you try to keep your voice down?” She released me, only to glance outside in search of her imaginary tormentors.
“Why can’t you try to be a normal mother?” I asked, red-faced.
“It was never in the cards for you, honey.” She pushed a limp strand of brunette hair out of her face.
“You don’t listen, not even to the doctors,” I said sadly. “Try to keep care of yourself.” Taking aim, I flung the bottle against the refrigerator and watched with disdain as it burst open, sending pills spewing across the floor. Many of them disappeared into a filthy crack in the linoleum floor under the counter. “I’m not your babysitter!” Angelique stood rigidly, staring down at the pills. Considering her current state of mental health, and knowing my mother, she was probably asking herself if they could possibly be poisoned.
I opened my mouth, then closed it, and then opened it again. “Forget this—I’m done.” I threw my fists up into the air.
“Teddy,” Angelique shouted as I ran from the house. “Get back here this instant,” she ordered. “It’s dangerous—”
I slammed the squeaking screen door behind me, cutting her off.
If I wasn’t so livid I’d have taken notice of the police car sitting at the end of our street, but it was too late: the cops were stepping out of the car. An officer waved me over. Angelique was going to lose it on them, and it was my fault.
Making my way toward the cops, I started to panic. What should I say?
“Hello there,” the first officer said. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, nothing to report.” I stared down at my sneakers, not wanting to meet their cynical gazes.
“What’s your name?” the second asked.
“Teddy Owens, sir.”
“How old are you?” He leaned against his cruiser, tilting his head to the side to consider me.
“Sixteen—at the beginning of August.” I cringed as the screen door on our house banged shut. The officers wore amused expressions as Angelique stomped toward us. They wouldn’t be smiling if they knew what she was capable of.
“It’s going to be one of those nights,” the first officer said under his breath.
It was one of the last times I’d play the role of an innocent spectator.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
About the Author:

"Our perception of the world is shaped by our experiences and imagery. As a genre fantasy writer it's my job to create new possibilities."
My name is L. A. Cadieux, I’m a YA/New Adult writer and social media-aholic born in Lac La Biche, Alberta, living in Calgary, Canada. Since childhood I've been mesmerized by stories of fairy tales, knights, Greek and Roman mythology and comic book heroes. Naturally, I wanted to create my own worlds/characters and set off on a long quest to write fantasy novels. Creative, yet business minded, I went on to earn a Degree in Management from the University of Alberta Augustana, specializing in Business Economics.
I'm a Project Manager by day and by night I work on my stories. After shelving some of my earlier manuscripts I decided to focus on ONE LIFE, the first in a series of Teddy Owens Stories.
As a proud mom of two – I spend my days and nights multi-tasking.
Random facts: Tim Hortons coffee and ketchup chips are my vices. I’m also a fan of the HBO and CW Networks. My favourite book is Jane Austen’s PRIDE & PREJUDICE.

Website: http://www.lacadieux.com
Blog: http://lacadieux.blogspot.ca

Contact:

Twitter: LACadieux_
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The Gull Motel by Amie Denman ~ Bridging the Gap Promotions Blog Tour ~ Interview ~ Giveaway

The Gull Motel

A Sweet Contemporary Romance

by Amie Denman

Giveaway

Amie Denman is giving away a paperback copy of The Gull Motel (US only). Please use the RaffleCopter below to enter.

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INTERVIEW: 

Crystal: Today as part of this Bridging the Gap Promotions Blog Tour I have the chance to ask Amie Denman a few questions. Welcome Amie, I'm so happy to have you here today. Would you share a little bit about yourself with us today?

Amie: I’m a middle child, a Sagittarius, I talk too much, and my curiosity has gotten me in trouble more times than I can count. I have a wonderful husband, two sons I adore, a sunny office to write in, a passion for what I do, and it’s getting easier and easier to find shoes in a size eleven. What more can I ask? 

Crystal: Do you have a favorite scene you would like to share with us?

Amie: My favorite scene in The Gull Motel is when the cast of characters are all dressed up for a Halloween costume party when they decide to pile in an SUV and head downtown to demand justice from a corrupt mayor. Imagine a gypsy, mermaid, cowgirl, and pirate raising hell at city hall. I wish I could have been there!

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

Amie: The Gull Motel was partially inspired by a shabby motel in my hometown. It was also inspired by many trips to Florida and by great suggestions from my two older sisters who live in Florida.

Crystal: What are you currently working on?

Amie: I am currently working on a trilogy about an amusement park somewhere in the Midwest called Starlight Point. It’s inspired by the amusement park where I lived and worked four summers during college. I love roller coasters, junk food, and carousel music.

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

Amie:  I wish I had a daily routine. With two pre-teen sons and various pets in the house, there is never a dull moment. In general, I plot/plan with my critique partner, write, edit, rewrite, and then hand it back to my critique partner. Then I rewrite again when she’s applied her brilliance to the manuscript.

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?

Amie: This book did not require a lot of research, but I should have pretended I needed a trip to Florida to get the story right. I can always use a vacation. I do generally “write what I know” and don’t tend to do a lot of research. The little fact about Flagler College (which uses the former Ponce de Leon hotel as a dorm) that appears a few chapters in was provided by my younger sister who did take an inspiration-vacation to Florida.

Crystal: Who are some of your favorite authors that you like to read?

Amie: I love books that are not too serious. Life is serious enough. I’m a big fan of Janet Evanovich, Maddie James, Jill Shalvis, and Kristan Higgins. I also love to read historical novels from May Williams, Julia Quinn, and Lisa Kleypas.

Crystal: Is there any genre you haven't written that you would like to try?

Amie: I would love to try my hand at a historical novel—perhaps a time travel. My favorite movie is Somewhere in Time and I’ve been intrigued by time travel for years. I’ve worked out a few time travel novels in my head, but I haven’t had the time or the bravery to put them on paper. Yet!

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BLURB:

Savvy Thorpe needs a vacation. Finally finished with college, she heads to her favorite shabby motel on Florida’s Gulf Coast where her aunt and uncle always save her room twenty-four. She quickly finds out, though, that The Gull Motel is not just her home away from home. It’s hers to manage while her aunt and uncle take an extended trip.

Skip McComber, The Gull’s former maintenance man, has been working on Savvy’s nuts and bolts for years. Now the new owner of the bar next door, his mission is to renovate a pirate bar while being a walking temptation for the girl he can’t get off his mind.

For Savvy, keeping her cool running a motel in Florida heat is one thing, but navigating the steamy waters of a former fling takes a whole other kind of savvy. In addition to the motel and the man next door, Savvy stumbles on a plot to swindle land from the residents of Barefoot Key. Devalued properties tumble like dominoes until Savvy musters her colorful crew from The Gull Motel to make the pillagers walk the plank.

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Buy Links:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | KOBO | SMASHWORDS 
ALL ROMANCE EBOOKS  |  TURQUOISE MORNING PRESS


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EXCERPT: 

Chapter One

Vacation. Despite my brainy reputation, this was one of the smartest things I’d done in a long time. When my middle school math teacher shortened my name from Savannah to Savvy, I took on a persona that drove me all the way through college at the top of my class. But now, I planned to put my brain on ice and my butt in the hot sand at my aunt and uncle’s lovably shabby beachside Florida motel. It was the most savvy thing I could do while I played an endless waiting game with the job market.
It was a hot September morning when I rolled into the steaming lot at the Gull Motel. Everything about it said Old Florida. A miniature palm tree grew in a concrete planter in front of the Office sign. The few cars nosed up to numbered doors looked hot enough to combust. It wasn’t a hotel, it didn’t have the cachet. But it looked like a four-diamond resort to me as my burly Uncle Mike swung open the frosted glass office door and grinned at me like Santa had just landed on his roof.
“Your aunt’s got the margarita machine going already,” he said, crushing me in a massive hug. The musty smell of hotel air conditioning permeated his aqua blue polo shirt. The whole range of my vision was aqua—the signature color of The Gull Motel. Its roof had aqua trim, the windows were edged in the same paint, and the sign squatting on top of a twenty foot pole in the parking lot boasted a white seagull outlined against an aqua sky.
 “Before lunch?” I questioned, the vacationer in me at war with my responsible side.
Uncle Mike opened the back hatch and manhandled my suitcase. He nodded toward his beloved motel. “You’re a special occasion,” he said. “Vacation is important. Trust me. I’ve built a business on it.”
For the long drive from Michigan—where autumn had started to show its colors—I wore old comfortable knee-length shorts and a t-shirt, but I was overdressed now. The clientele here was more short-shorts and spaghetti straps than college dorm casual. I could adjust. This was not my first trip to the Gulf Coast.
I followed Uncle Mike through the office—dingy but familiar—and paused as he deposited my suitcase behind the desk. Rita, the receptionist, had a phone hooked between her ear and shoulder as she simultaneously checked in a guest. Somehow she managed to wave to me and give me a raised eyebrow smile. An experienced multi-tasker, Rita could probably smoke a cigarette, do her nails, and handle three guest complaints at the same time. She pointed toward the patio.
Movement—blurred by condensation—grabbed my attention. When my uncle slid the door open, a blonde tornado hit me. I’d been coming to The Gull several times a year all my life. One fact I could still count on was that Aunt Carol got smaller with age but her hair got bigger. Compensation comes in many forms.
She pulled me into a tight hug. “You need a nice cold drink.”
Carol hauled me over to a concrete table surrounded by old metal chairs. The patio was large enough for several tables and chairs, all shaded by aqua umbrellas. The cracked concrete floor surrounded by a knee-high concrete wall didn’t necessarily invite guests to linger, but the view did.
The wide white Florida beach ending in a sparkling blue Gulf of Mexico said resort even if the stacked two story building with parking right outside the rooms said 1950s beach motel.
Carol raised the pitcher—also filled with aqua liquid continuing the theme of The Gull—and started to fill three glasses. She didn’t get to the third before Rita shoved the glass door open and leaned out with the cordless phone.
“Better take this one, Carol,” she said, holding out the phone.
Mike parked himself across from me while his wife went inside. “Your aunt’s all excited to have you down here for a few weeks. I think she wants to pick your brain about making a few updates around here, figuring you got some great ideas with your degree.”
Fresh from college and an internship to polish off my hotel and hospitality management degree, I wouldn’t be bragging to say I had some ideas. But telling my aunt and uncle they’d have to spiff up The Gull for a new generation that didn’t remember the moon landing was going to be a tough sell. They loved the old place just as it was. Truth is, so did I. I also loved my ancient slippers, but I wouldn’t wear them on a date.
“I think she wants someone to go shopping with, too,” he said, his broad smile highlighting deep wrinkles around his eyes and stretching out his age spots.
“I could shop,” I agreed. “My college clothes won’t work if I can land a spot in the management trainee program I applied to.”
“The Grand Chicago. Heck of a fancy place,” Uncle Mike said, raising his glass and clinking mine. “I’ll drink to that.”
Thinking about the gleaming floors, modern luxury, and five-star everything at the place where I hoped to start in January gave me a little feeling of disloyalty. I would always love The Gull. So what that it was a used Chevy and the Grand Chicago was a Rolls Royce? I’d put in a lot of miles in a Chevrolet.
Carol left the sliding door gaping behind her, striding quickly to our sunny table on the patio.
“My mother got arrested again,” she said, picking up one of the margarita glasses and slamming half of it.
Mike pulled Carol onto his lap and shook his head sympathetically. “What was it this time?”
“Trespassing again. One of her card buddies bailed her out, but the police chief thinks she needs a babysitter. That was him on the phone.”
“He’s a nice enough guy. But we’re starting to know him better than we should,” Mike said. “Does this mean someone’s headed for Michigan?”
Carol’s mother, Aunt Gwen to me, was pushing eighty and still did water aerobics, played cards, and hosted wine-making classes at her lakeside cabin. Located next to a vineyard, the owners used to look the other way when Aunt Gwen gathered grapes near her property line for her little hobby. I’d heard she sent them a bottle every Christmas as a neighborly gesture. However, the vineyard changed hands a few years ago and the new owners see her actions as more theft than eccentricity.
“Maybe just for a week until we can talk some sense into her or build a big enough fence,” Carol said. “Too bad she refuses to move down here. Says Florida is for old people.”
“Sounds like you’ll need reinforcements this time.” Uncle Mike blew out a long breath. “We haven’t had a vacation in a long time, and Michigan’s nice in the fall. Guess we’ll figure out someone to watch over the place while we’re gone.”
They exchanged a glance and turned a laser-beam look on me, making me feel like the one guy who knew the combination in a bank that was being robbed. They glanced away quickly like a search light moving on to its next target.
The loyal niece in me wanted to say sure, coach, send me in. I have a degree in hotel management, am nice to children and animals, and always flush the toilet.
The vacationer in me wanted to say…uh…I’m on vacation.
Carol sucked both lips into her mouth and watched a seagull fly over. Mike scratched the short whiskers on his chin and toed a chip in the concrete.
I tried drinking for distraction and effect. Not that I could sustain that tactic for long. I can’t hold my booze and I tend to crack under pressure faster than chapped lips in a Michigan winter.
“Maybe I could—”
Yelling and barking exploded next door and a half-naked man chased a huge yellow dog out of Harvey’s Pirate Emporium and toward The Gull.
I jumped up. “Tulip!” Tulip was a three-year-old yellow Lab who did not know she wasn’t a puppy anymore. She stole things, slept in inappropriate locations, ate stray cigarette butts, and was probably going to come home with a tattoo one of these days.
“Not again,” Carol said.
Tulip skidded to a stop, dropped something shapeless and slobbery on the patio at my feet, and put her front paws on my shoulders. I sat down hard in my metal chair, off balance and getting licked like a tootsie pop. I was afraid she’d actually find out how many licks it took to get to my center.
The man sweating and breathing hard as he finished the race behind the dog already knew how many licks it took to get to my center. Skip McComber had circled me for years, a bonus temptation every time I visited my aunt and uncle’s motel where he’d been the maintenance man since we were both sixteen. Last spring, the circle tightened considerably, aided by a reckless spring break attitude and fueled by tequila.
 I stood up and tried to compose myself discretely. He looked as tempting as always. Tall, shirtless, eyes and hair the color of caramel splashed with sunshine. In contrast, I looked like a refugee from a pajama party. Shorts twisted, t-shirt violated, ponytail askew. Given the heat burning my cheeks, it was safe to assume I was flushed like an eighty-year-old jogger.
“This must be yours,” I said, picking up the leather toolbelt Tulip had dropped at my feet. Covered in dog slime and violated with teethmarks in several places, it was the dog’s latest indiscretion. I could sympathize. Skip was my most recent fling, too.
He took the toolbelt and made a slow show of slinging it around his hips. He kept eye contact with me the whole time, like he was daring me to watch his seductive buckling up. I only let my eyes slide south once. I was on vacation. And he looked that good.
“Sorry about that,” my aunt said. “Tulip thinks it’s a chew toy. At least your tools are still in it this time and not scattered all over the sand. Most of them anyway.”
He broke his focus on me and smiled at my aunt. “It’s my fault for encouraging her to visit me.” He dug a treat out of his pocket and flipped it to the dog. She caught it in midair and tossed him a look of slutty affection.
“Savvy just rolled in a few minutes ago,” Carol said.
“I can see that,” Skip said.
“She was supposed to be enjoying a vacation after all her hard work in college,” Mike added, “but something has come up back home in Michigan with Carol’s mother.”
“Hope Aunt Gwen’s okay,” Skip said. “She’s a hoot.”
Carol rolled her eyes. “She’s a crazy old lady. Arrested again for liberating grapes from the neighboring vineyard.”
“Probably only stole what she was going to eat.”
“Or make into wine,” Mike said. “We were just talking to Savvy here about taking care of The Gull for us while we make a quick trip North.”
Mike, Carol, Skip, and even Tulip stood in a line, looking at me like I had a stash of free tickets to Disney World. Except Tulip maybe. She probably hoped I had bacon in my pockets.
“I believe I was just about to say yes,” I said with as much cheerful enthusiasm as possible. Of course I wanted to help my aunt and uncle. Hospitality is my business. And how hard could it be to manage a twenty-four room beach motel with an established clientele and a dedicated staff?
“Forgot to tell you we lost our maintenance man last month,” Mike said, nodding at Skip. “He bought the bar next door and he’s fixing it up.”
“Harvey’s Pirate Emporium?” I asked.
“Yep,” Skip said. “But I got rid of Harvey already.”
Harvey was a larger-than-life pirate statue who stood, shading his eyes like a tobacco store Indian, outside the bar entrance. After a few drinks, he looked either friendlier or more sinister, depending on the drunk.
“Gave me the willies,” Skip said, shrugging one shoulder. “Got him in cold storage in an old walk-in freezer.”
“Won’t be the same without him,” I said. What I was really thinking was that The Gull wouldn’t be the same without Skip and his extraordinary ability with his hands. “Who’s our new maintenance man?”
“Don’t have one. Muddling through for now, calling Skip over for emergencies,” Uncle Mike said.
“I can change light bulbs, but I draw the line at using a plunger.”
“That’ll work,” Carol said.
“Any other surprises I should know about?” I asked.
I thought a trace of tension transmitted from Carol to Mike to Skip, but Tulip didn’t seem to notice and I thought I was just seeing mirages in the heat.
“Gotta go,” Skip said. He ruffled Tulip’s ears, flicked me a look, and strode across the ten yards of sand separating his bar from my—temporary—motel. I had extension cords longer than the space between our buildings, and it was going to be one tough job keeping my focus on The Gull while my aunt and uncle were away.



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Amie Denman: Where Falling in Love is Fun!

Amie is the author of six contemporary romance novels:

The Gull Motel
Blue Bottle Beach
Her Lucky Catch
Her Lucky Prize
Will Work for Love
He’s on Her Trail



Please visit her at www.amiedenman.com
On Facebook https://www.facebook.com/amie.denman.1
On Twitter @amiedenman




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