Indie Author Spotlight: Shana Vanterpool (Guest Post & Giveaway)

Time for another Indie Author feature in a series of spotlights I'm going to be doing once a month!

This month, we're spotlighting a debut romance author...

Shana Vanterpool!

About Shana

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads

When I walk into a book store I feel at home. When I smell the pages of a brand new book things make sense. When I read I am who I always wanted to be. I read to escape and I write so others can as well. My family, my actress dog Bella, coffee, and a steamy love story are a few of my most precious things. My Sweet Demise is my debut New-Adult contemporary romance novel. Keep up to date with future releases by following on Twitter: @shanavauthor

Guest Post 

My name is Shana Vanterpool, and I was lucky enough to be a part of Jessica's wonderful book world to do a guest post for her Indie Author Spotlight. Thank you for having me Jessica! I'm going to talk about my debut release, My Sweet Demise, a steamy emotional new-adult contemporary romance that pushes the limits on trust and intimacy, how I came to write for the new-adult genre, and what it means to me and my writing.

My Sweet Demise isn't my first novel. For a long time I was submerged in the young-adult world. I devoured it, lived in it, and breathed it. I also wrote it, but after many failed attempts to get published I tapered off and started reading more. I tended to write more darker reads, pushing limits I wasn't sure were appreciated at the time. And then I discovered a new world about older characters that involved sex and emotion that young-adult did not possess. New-Adult. A strange intriguing intoxicating new world. I fell in love swiftly, not looking back once. There were no boundaries, no rules. There was nothing stopping the characters from falling and loving, from discovering who they were and living.

So I tried and wrote my first new-adult novel, testing myself. I knew how far my characters would go, having pushed them before, but how far would I go? I discovered fairly quickly that I opened a whole new can of worms inside of myself. I found a space in this writing world that called to me like nothing else ever had. Writing about love from the YA perspective was sweet, moving, and lasting. But writing from it from a NA perspective proved to be more rewarding. It was consuming watching two human beings come together, pushing them, feeling them push back, and believing in the world I created. I found my place and discovered what I'd been missing.

I don't write about perfect couples. People are imperfect. One persons actions and hurts are not another's, and each individual character garners a different response. I have a things for bad boys who want more, and heroines who are willing to look past what others can't see and find something special. There is beauty in the darkest places. There is love within your fears, and sometimes the harder paths in life turn out to be the most rewarding.

My Sweet Demise is a perfect example of this. Kent Nicholson and Raina O'Connor come together like gas and fire. They explode, and within their explosion they find their selves, struggling with trust and hurt and emotions they forbid themselves to have. Their intimacy was a wild ride to write about. Trust is an issue we all struggle with, but for others it can be a dilapidating hindrance. Healing can almost be as hard as the fall.

I wanted to find out what happened when you took a damaged man and a damaged girl who struggled with trust and put them together. I wanted to find out how far they'd hold on to their fears before they let them go. How hard were they willing to fight for the happiness their pasts told them they couldn't have?

My Sweet Demise is sexy, dark, painful, damaging ... and sweet.

About My Sweet Demise

Amazon | Amazon UK | B&N | Goodreads

Desperation makes a girl do crazy things…

When twenty-one year old Raina O’Connor is kicked out of her room on short notice, she’s thrown into a frantic search for a new place to stay. As the situation becomes more urgent, her choices have dwindled to her least favorite option—ladies’ man, Kent Nicholson.

Kent Nicholson loves women, just not as a roommate…

When a gorgeous blonde with big hazel eyes answers Kent’s ad for a roommate, his red flags start flying. He’s looking for a wingman, not a chick who will put a damper on his game or drench his apartment in pink. It’s clear she’s in a bind, and something about her makes him break his own rules. But when he reluctantly accepts, it’s with four concrete conditions.

Be his wingman. Don’t get in his way with other girls. No bitchy attitudes. And most importantly, she can’t fall for him.

Pretty sure this was the world’s worst idea—ever…

Trust is something earned. Raina learned that the hard way when her father broke her heart as a child, making it easy to steer clear of relationships. But living with Kent somehow stirs emotions Raina has always forbidden herself to have. Plus, he’s everything she never wanted—untrustworthy, pigheaded…and gorgeous. Something tells her Kent isn’t free of his own secret scars…

Love can drag you down and spit you out, and be worth every second.

More Books by Shana

   

Giveaway

Shana is sponsoring a giveaway for a kindle copy of My Sweet Demise! Check out the rules and then enter below!

- US & INT as long as you can provide a kindle email address
- MUST BE 18 OR OLDER  

- Ends at 12 AM on February 12th, 2016

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

Capture by Rachel Van Dyken (Review)

Genre:	New Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Publication.Date	August 22nd, 2015
Pages:	286
Published By:	Rachel Van Dyken
Website	Rachel Van Dyken
	Capture on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

Losing your ability to speak at the age of seventeen; it’s not normal or fair.
But trauma, has a way of throwing normality out the window.

Dani lives anything but a normal life.
Her sister is married to one of the biggest names in Hollywood.
Her best friends are rockstar duo AD2.
And she has more love around her than most people experience in a lifetime.
But that doesn't change the fact their parents are dead.
Or that it's her fault.

It seems her new normal is being a mute, living on the inside, unable to actually communicate on the outside.
That is until Hollywood’s newest heartthrob Lincoln Greene hires her as his assistant for the summer.
He's gorgeous, completely unavailable, and unobtainable.
But that doesn't stop her from wondering...if things were different...would he want her?
If she was whole, would he be the other half?

(Goodreads)

"Just be careful. Make good choices. And if he takes off his pants, use the Taser."
"What if his pants are on fire?"
"Always Taser first --- ask questions later. That's like Girl Scouts 101, sweetheart."

"Here's a tip," Jaymeson whispered in a low voice so Pris couldn't hear us. "Get it done on the first take so I don't have to cause an on-set accident where I set your trailer on fire and blame it on God smiting you for being a Hollywood heathen."

I reached out to her, meaning to touch her arm; I tugged her against my body and kissed her instead. "Ignore the fear. Embrace the triumph."

"You've met him once, and already I have this weird suspicion that if you met him for a second time, he'd have an accident or something."
"I was thinking something freak, nothing fatal. You know, like, 'Oh shit, sorry that you ran into that pole, man, I really didn't mean to push.'"

"Dani, listen to me very carefully." I braced her shoulders with my hands. "You could wear camoflauge and hide out in the bushes, and you'd still have all my attention. It doesn't take much, believe me."

Surprisingly, this is the first book I've read by Rachel Van Dyken. I've been wanting to read some of her stuff for a while now, which is evident by how many of her books are currently waiting on my Kindle. So when Capture released and people were talking about it and I was seeing teasers everywhere, I decided to pick this baby up. Reading Capture was a pleasant, entertaining experience.

Dani's a seventeen year old girl working to get over the death of her parents---and in doing so, she's mute. Even so, her character still communicates via text and has an incredibly vibrant personality. She's sad, obviously, but that doesn't define here, even though Dani may not agree at the beginning of the novel. As the story progresses, Dani begins to heal while growing closer to Lincoln. That growth was nice to witness.

Linc is... well, Linc. He's a great guy who needed an assistant. Dani's brother-in-law volunteered her for the position. And thus began the friendship-turned-more that began at the very start of this book, when we meet Linc. He's sweet and caring and wants nothing but the best for Dani. He wants to help her. His kindness and friendship clearly went a long way in helping Dani heal.

Linc and Dani's romance was lovely. They were cute and funny---I seriously loved their banter. These two spent loads of time together throughout the novel, and I enjoyed each moment of it. The only true bump in their relationship stemmed from the fact that Dani was seventeen, while Linc's in his twenties. For the characters, it was a conflict. From my perspective, though, I honestly could not understand what the big deal was. I get that Dani was seventeen. But she was only seventeen for another MONTH. As in, in thirty days she would turn eighteen. Sure, maybe they wanted to not risk it anyway, since Linc was a celebrity and all. Fine. But why did it mean they wouldn't be a couple? Sex could have waited for thirty days while they were still a happy couple living their cute lives. So yeah. I just didn't get that conflict. It seemed blown up more than it necessary.

While I've never read any of Rachel Van Dyken's books before, I know this is a spin-off to her Seaside books. I didn't feel lost or like I was missing out on much by reading this as a standalone, without reading those first. I do think I'll probably do back and read them at some point, however, because so many characters from that series were in Capture, and I loved them. They were so funny. Especially Demetri. Loved him!

As for the writing, I really liked Rachel Van Dyken's style. I enjoyed both Dani and Linc's voices, and the humor uniquely laced within each of their narrations. As far as developing characters went, Van Dyken did a great job. Driving the plot forward, however, was weaker. The story was about Dani healing and Linc and Dani's relationship---plus one extra little secret/twist that kind of throws things for a loop for a small period of time. I liked seeing Dani move on, and I definitely enjoyed Dani and Linc as a couple. But I did not see the conflict behind that, so that didn't really spur me on while I read. And I figured out the secret/twist WAY ahead of time, so that wasn't suspenseful at all. I wasn't as excited to push forward with the story as I would have liked. 

That said, I did enjoy Capture. I adored the characters and got so many laughs. And I am seriously looking forward to the second book in this series, which will be about Zane---another secondary character here that I absolutely LOVE. I also plan to dive into more books by Rachel Van Dyken as soon as I can, because I am so eager to read more of her work.

Sharing You by Molly McAdams (Review)

Genre:	New Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Publication.Date	July 1st, 2014
Pages:	336
Published By:	William Morrow Paperbacks
Website	Molly McAdams
	Sharing You on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

Twenty-three year old, Kamryn Cunningham has left all she’s ever known and moved to a small town where no one knows her name, who her parents are, or her social status in the horseracing world. Months after opening her own bakery and evading attempts of being set up by her new best friend, she meets Brody. Kamryn fights the instant pull between them because there’s a detail she can’t dismiss. Brody’s married.

To say that twenty-six year old, Brody Saco has had a rough marriage would be an understatement. After marrying his pregnant girlfriend, he spends the next six years in a relationship filled with hatred, manipulation and guilt involving a tragedy that happened five years earlier. When he keeps running into his sister-in-law’s best friend, Kamryn, he can’t ignore that she makes him feel more with just one look than his wife ever has; and soon he can’t continue fight his feelings for her.

When staying apart proves to be too difficult, Brody and Kamryn enter a relationship full of stolen moments and nights that end too soon while they wait for Brody to file for divorce. But the guilt that comes with their relationship may prove to be too much for Kamryn, and Brody might not be strong enough to face the tragedy from his past in order to leave his conniving wife.

(Goodreads)

"One thing I've learned in my life and my line of work is that life is short, and I know that I don't know you yet...but I know I couldn't be able to live with myself knowing I walked away from the only person who's made me feel alive in years, the only person who's made me feel--whatever the hell this is--ever. Tell me I'm not alone in this," I pleaded.

His breath washed over my mouth, and my lips parted in anticipation. I watched his eyes darken as the movement caught his eye. His chest rose and fell heavily as the air thickened around us, and I was close to begging him to kiss me. The hand at the small of my back pushed me closer to his body and the thumb at my jaw stopped moving--and I swear I stopped breathing until his eyes snapped back up to mine and realization hit them.

"Sweet dreams, Kamryn."

What was happening to me? And what happened in the entryway with Brody? My heart was still beating fast, and I swear I could feel his hands on my arms. The way his gray eyes had captured mine and held them, making it feel like time stood still, was unlike anything I'd ever experienced. This was fairytale shit, this kind of thing didn't happen in real life.

Except, it just had.

I love Molly McAdams. Her stories are my addiction, and she's one of my auto-buy authors. Whatever she writes, I am so in. BUT... I have to admit, Sharing You was a book I hesitated to pick up. Since it's obvious that this novel deals with cheating, I was pretty much like NOPENOPENOPE at first. But then I ran out of Molly McAdams books to read while waiting for her next and figured why not? I was so curious. So I picked up Sharing You, and I am so very glad I did.

There aren't many things that can make me automatically hate a book, but cheating is one of them. I absolutely HATE cheating. Like, I cannot even tell you. I am the most jealous reader in the world, and I get so incredibly twitchy when something that even FEELS like cheating is going on. I just can't deal with it, and that can ruin a book for me. So when I say that I am glad I picked up Sharing You, trust me, y'all--that's saying something.

While Sharing You does deal with technical cheating, in that Brody is married when his and Kamryn's relationship begins, it doesn't really give off a cheating vibe. Why? Because Brody and his wife (her name's Olivia, and I hate her so much) don't have anything that feels like a marriage. It's on paper, but it's not in the way they interact. It's not in the way Brody thinks. Honestly, it's more like Olivia's an annoying, evil ex-girlfriend that will not go away. I felt zero sympathy for her. I ended up not faulting Brody for getting into a relationship with Kamryn, either.

And I also ended up completely enjoying their story.

So what I'm trying to say here is: If you're skipping Sharing You for the sole reason of not wanting to read a story that involves cheating, I recommend giving it a shot. Especially if you've read other books by Molly McAdams (Taking Chances, anyone?). I wasn't bothered by this aspect of the book once I got into it and Brody and Kamryn's relationship developed, so I have high hopes others will be able to look past it, too.

NOW THAT I SAID THAT, let's talk about everything else...

The writing of Molly McAdams strikes yet again, drawing me in and keeping me flying through the story. It was so well written, particularly the relationship between Brody and Kamryn. It was passionate and fierce, and I was rooting for them from the moment they met. They had a bumpy road, but watching them work through it and love each other regardless...that sank deep into my heart. I think that's a big part of what made this story a winner for me--it hit me in the feels, and I seriously LOVED it.

The story is told in dual POV between Brody and Kamryn, which was especially effective here, showing both sides to the complicated situation they were in. Nothing was simple with them--other than that they loved each other beyond words, which was so beautiful. They had to work to be together, and seeing what each of them went through and struggled with through this made the entire journey even more worthwhile.

Deep, passionate, and complex, Sharing You is a love story that packs a punch. Molly McAdams has written another addictive story that I fell in love with, and I cannot wait to get my hands on another! But if you haven't given this one a go yet, I definitely recommend picking it up.

Indie Author Spotlight: Linda Kage (Author LOVE & Giveaway)

Time for another Indie Author feature in a series of spotlights I'm going to be doing once a month! If you'd like to know more, check out this post.

Before I jump into who we're spotlighting, I think I should explain how this month is different from other months. When I first started doing these spotlights, I had authors sign up to participate. So all the authors featured so far had signed up and I worked on the spotlight with them. THIS MONTH, I decided to change it up a bit. Instead of picking an author who signed up and working with them (though I will still be doing that most months), I'm going to spotlight an indie author I LOVE. Because I adore her books, and I may or may not be reading one of them right now and just enjoying it beyond words.

So this post is 100% me being a fangirl. It'll be structured the same as usual Indie Author Spotlight posts, but instead of extra content, I'll be talking about why I love this author. I'm actually really excited about this! If you guys like, I may switch it up every now and then and do this with other indie authors I admire. But for now, I am super mega pumped to spotlight this author. *SERIOUS FLAILING* So without further ado...

This month, we're spotlighting the author of one of my favorite New Adult companion series...

Linda Kage!

About Linda

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

I grew up on a dairy farm in the Midwest as the youngest of eight children. Now I live in Kansas with my husband, daughter, and our nine cuckoo clocks. My life's been blessed with lots of people to learn from and love. Writing's always been a major part my world, and I'm so happy to finally share some of my stories with other romance lovers.

I'm a member of Romance Writers of America and a local chapter, Midwest Romance Writers, who meets monthly in the Kansas City area. I've been through a writing correspondence class in children's literature from The Institute of Children's Literarture, and then I continued my writing lessons by majoring in English with an emphasis in creative fiction writing from Pittsburg State University.

Why I Love Linda Kage 

Sooooo. Let me walk you through what is now my love of Linda Kage. I'm going to focus strongly on her Forbidden Men series, because that's what I've read by her so far. And yes, it is enough to put her on a list of my favorite authors. This series is phenomenal.

But back to the story.

Earlier this year, Val (my co-blogger over on StuckInBooks) was reading a book. She got to a point where she wasn't sure how she felt about what was happening, and she was kind of freaking out, so OF COURSE she called me and we talked it out. We decided on a hopeful outlook, and then Val dove back into the book. Soon after, she was blowing up my phone with flail-y texts because she was loving the book. Like, loving it enough to ask the author if I could have an ARC, too.

Which led to me getting A Perfect Ten, which I got and devoured and ohmygod. I loved that book. So very much. I devoted about four days to just immersing myself in that story, and I regret nothing. It's one of my all-time favorite books, and as of right now, I'm pretty sure it's my favorite read of 2015. It's without a doubt making my top ten list (unless another Linda Kage book beats it out between now and then).

After A Perfect Ten, which is the fifth book in the Forbidden Men series--each book can totally stand alone, and the series can be read out of order without any problem; I am living proof of this--I obviously decided to go back and start at the beginning. Book one is Price of a Kiss, and I swear, y'all. It ripped out my heart. And then stomped all over it. And then put it back together, and it was all so beautiful.

So after THAT, of course I kept on and read book two, To Professor, With Love. And it was amazing and filled me with the feels, just like the others.

Which brings me to where I am now--reading the third book in the series Be My Hero. And falling in love yet again. With the story, with the characters, with the writing, with EVERYTHING.

And that is why I love Linda Kage. Because her stories always, every single time, pull me in. They pull me in and hold me under, and I love each second of it. Her characters make laugh and cry and swoon. There's sweetness and feels, and every book tugs at my heartstrings in its own magnificent way. They're each favorites, and they've each wormed their way into their own space in my heart.

I can count on this whenever I pick up a book by Linda Kage.

Did I mention that I love her?

The most recent book in the Forbidden Men series released on August 25th, so my mind has been all over these books and their fantastic ways. As I said, I'm currently on book three. I'm already in love with the characters, and I am head over heels for their story. I have no doubt I'll finish this one and read the fourth in the very near future--and then I miiiiight re-read book five (A Perfect Ten, aka my faaaavorriiiite) and then I'll jump into book 6, the most recent--Worth It.

I AM EXCITED FOR ALL OF THESE THINGS.

I love Linda Kage. I love her books. I look forward so, so much to reading more.


My Reviews

Price of a Kiss (book 1) <= my review

To Professor, With Love (book 2) <= my review

Be My Hero (book 3) <= to be posted in September!

With Every Heartbeat (book 4) <= probably in September, too

A Perfect Ten (book 5) <= my review

Worth It (book 6) <= soon!

About Worth It

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iBooks | Smashwords 

I fell in love once.
It was amazing. She was amazing. Life was amazing.

I lived for each time I could see her, and nothing else mattered, not that our families were enemies, our time together was forbidden, or we had to meet in secret.

Our love could conquer all.

Until it didn't.

So I was ripped away from the love of my life and shoved into hell, forced to continue without her.

It shattered me, broke the best parts of me, left me permanently damaged.

Or so I thought.

Years later, I swear history’s trying to repeat itself because she’s back in my life, and I’m just as drawn to her as I was before. But I'm older and wiser now, and I know she should stay away from a worthless ex-con like me.

So, I will not let her in. I absolutely refuse to hurt her. I will keep her away.

Then again, sometimes risking your greatest fear to get to a smile makes everything worth it, and besides, I’m not sure I can resist her, anyway.

This is the story of how Felicity Bainbridge changed my life forever, starting one summer day long ago after I was forced to change a dirty diaper...

--Knox Parker

More of the Forbidden Men Series

        

(More of Linda's books outside the Forbidden Men series can be found on her Goodreads Author Page!)

Giveaway

I'm giving away winner's choice of one e-book in the Forbidden Men series! Check out the rules and then enter below!

- INT

- Ends at 12 AM EST on September 16th

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

Unchartered by Claudia Burgoa {Book Review & Giveaway}

Genre:	Contemporary Fiction
Publication.Date	July 21st 2015
Pages:	373
Published By:	Amazon Digital Services
Author	Claudia Burgoa
	Uncharted Goodreads
My review copy:	From the author in exchange for an honest review

Where to get:

Jacob

As a rule, men don’t grow up believing in a happily ever after. We don’t believe in meeting the love of our lives; or the white picket fence, and 2.5 children. Every man thinks that those stupid dreams or fantasies are just nonexistent shit until it happens to them. We should have been forewarned.


I wish I was prepared for someone to appear in my life and change all my priorities. I suddenly wanted that fence and children. The part of meeting the love of my life became very real, but I wasn’t ready for suddenly losing it all, and my life plummeting into this shithole forever.
The heartbreak of losing your soulmate is one of the worst pains you will ever live with. I should campaign and warn the young people. Vaccinate against love because if you lose it, you could lose yourself for the rest of your life. The burden on your back will forever mark you and wither away your soul, darkening your days and the rest of your natural life.

This isn’t false advertisement or a dramatic display of one bitter soul.



Pria

I fought by my mother's side until her last breath, and tried to help my father until his last memories dissipated. My sister is the last one standing, but her life is a miracle that can end at any given moment. All my life I’ve never been alone, but always felt lonely.

Today, my options on how to live my life are endless, yet my heart and my best friend limit them. Stay in Seattle, close to the one person that will never let me inside his world.

The thug, as mom would've called him. A man with a bad boy attitude and a heart bigger than the ocean.

Tonight I belong to someone, and she belongs to me. 

As long as the stars shine, as long as there is a heartbeat in me, as long as you're out there, nothing will change what we share.  

Uncharted is the third book in the Unexpected series and is Jacob and Pria's story. You don't have to read the other two, in order to enjoy this one as each story is about different characters throughout the same family. However, the first two books are well written and beautiful so I would definitely suggest you pick them up! 

Jacob and Pria met in college and had a whirlwind, week long, romance before fate tore them apart. Ten years later they meet again but they are now very different people, both having gone through difficult and life altering times. 

Jacob is not the "happily ever after" type of guy. He is in to his music, loyal to his two twin siblings and just wants to have a laid back life doing his own thing. That is before he meets Pria who turns his heart, and makes his soul quiver with love. 

Pria has an extreme family obligation and doesn't believe that her life will ever be her own. She is expected to take care of her sister who is suffering with a deadly disease. Her mother is not warm or loving at all and Pria always feels like she can't do anything right. Then she meets Jacob and starts to hope for something more for herself but life gets in the way. Will she ever see Jacob again? 

I finished this book about a month ago and I am still feeling the book hangover. These characters were brought to life for me and I can't seem to let them go. The story is heart pounding, moving and emotionally driven. Even with all the heartbreak this story has, you will be routing and cheering for Pria and Jacob from the beginning and you won't stop hoping for "happily ever after' till the very last word. 

I am a HUGE fan of Claudia Burgoa's and have been since her very first novel. Her writing style is emotional and well thought out. Her books always seem to speak to me and she has this way of making all her characters come to life so that the reader has a REAL investment in her stories. 

You won't be disappointed if you pick this book up and read the companion novels as well. The Unexpected Series is so beautifully written, it is NOT a series you want to miss. 

About the author:

Born on the mystical day of October 30th in the not so mystical lands of Mexico City, Claudia grew up with a childhood that resembled a caffeine-injected soap opera. Seventeen years ago she ventured to the lands of her techie husband—a.k.a. the U.S.—with their offspring to start a new adventure.

She now lives in Colorado working as a CFO for a small IT company, managing her household filled with three confused dogs, said nerd husband, two daughters wrought with fandoms and a son who thinks he’s the boss of the house. To survive she works continually to find purpose for the voices flitting through her head, plus she consumes high quantities of chocolate to keep the last threads of sanity intact.

http://cyburg.tumblr.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaYBurgoa

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Indie Author Spotlight: Cassandra Giovanni (Guest Post & Giveaway)

Time for another Indie Author feature in a series of spotlights I'm going to be doing once a month! (I skipped April since the entire month was dedicated to Indie Girl April.) If you'd like to know more, check out this post.

This month, we're spotlighting a super sweet romance author...

Cassandra Giovanni!

About Cassandra

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Monthly Newsletter | Book Catalog

Cassandra doesn’t remember a time when she wasn’t writing. In fact, the first time she was published was when she was seven years old and won a contest to be published in an American Girl Doll novel. Since then Cassandra has written more novels than she can count and put just as many in the circular bin. Her personal goal with her writing is to show the reader the character’s stories through their dialogue and actions instead of just telling the reader what is happening. Besides being a writer, Cassandra is a professional photographer known for her automotive, nature and architectural shots. She is happily married to the man of her dreams and they live in the rolling hills of New England their dogs, Bubski and Kanga.
Cassandra Giovanni is published by Show n’ot Tell Publishing based out of Connecticut, USA

Guest Post 

I’m a romance author. That’s just what I do. In every single genre I write from contemporary all the way to historical or paranormal; I write romances. There’s just something so entrancing and beautiful about writing two people falling in love. That’s pretty much all I read, too. For me, there are a few key elements that every good romance needs:

1. A HOTTIE – Every romance needs a hottie, but there needs to be something more than looks that makes them that way. To me personality can make a hottie even more than smoldering gray eyes and slicked back dapper hair. 
2. PERSONALITY – Since we were just talking about personality, my version of hotties aren’t dominating or aggressive. Don’t get me wrong, I love a bad boy. I just prefer him to have a heart of gold. I am not a fan of cocky jerk-faces.
3. FRIENDSHIP – No good romance ever started with insta-love. Insta-attraction sure, but insta-love goes downhill to obsession and annoying inner monologue fast.
4. WITTY BANTER – Ah, yes. This is my favorite part of romances. It deepens the personalities, strengthens the relationship, and makes me giggle. I like giggling.
5. A GOOD CRY – I’m a fan of a romance that makes me cry. I don’t think all of them need it, but it’s nice to have one thrown in there every once in a while.
6. BEAUTIFUL COVER – Preferably, fully clothed. I know, I know, you’re eyes are probably super wide right now. I just prefer my covers to be more emotionally pulling than hormone driven.
7. THE SCENE – Speaking of hormones, every good romance has scenes. You know what I mean, don’t make me say the word. I’m a fan of clean romance, lots of kissing, emotions and fade to black. Use your imagination for the rest ;)
8. A PAIN IN THE ASS – Yeah, I said it. I’ve come to love that pain in the ass character; the jerk ex-boyfriend, the jealous friend, the annoying girlfriend or the horrible parents. It just can’t be the love interest.
9. STRONG BUT DAMAGED – I don’t want a protagonist who is constantly wondering why the boy loves her, or that she’s not beautiful. I also don’t want them to be a cocky ass. I relate to protagonists that are strong, but have some sort of damage they carry with them. Proving the statement, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
10. A HIGHER MEANING – I like my novels to have a deeper meaning, something stronger than the surface romance. A cut and dry romance lacks depth for me. I look for something deeper, character growth, and growth for me as the reader or writer.

Balance of these elements means that every book holds its own character and meaning. While I love romance, the reason I write so many sub-genres is so that I can explore additional elements that round out a novel. I internally fear the day that someone might say that my characters or novels have become formulaic, but I don’t think there’s a formula for a perfect romance. It’s the different formulas for each novel that make them different, intriguing and swoon worthy.


What about you? What makes a romance for you?

About Finding the Cure

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Ellie Abela’s life has been anything but easy. Tragedy follows her where ever she goes, and she’s been a lot of places. At twenty she’s lived in over ten different states, all because of her dad’s career in medical research. His career is just another list of the causes of tragedies in El’s life. He’s dying, and with every breath he takes closer to Heaven, Ellie dies a little bit inside too.
At twelve she lost her mom in a drunk driving accident, and in a matter of months she fears she’ll lose the last person she has in the world to cancer.
While Ellie’s life has been rife with sadness, Trent Wentworth’s has been a challenge. A drug-addicted mom and a dead-beat dad meant at twenty three he was the adoptive father of his two year old sister. Now at twenty five he’s working his way up the corporate ladder and a struggling single parent.
Each is searching for a cure to the things in their lives dragging them down.
Not all cures are black and white; not all cures save us–and sometimes saving isn’t what we need. Sometimes we just need to realize how lucky we are to be alive, at least for this moment.

More Books by Cassandra

      

Giveaway

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- Ends at 12 AM on July 15th, 2015

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