I’ve been working on editing Breaking Pointe so it is ready to sed to beta readers before I schedule time with my editor. I wrote the rough draft of Breaking Pointe for my first NaNoWriMo a couple of years ago. I really love this story and when it is ready to be released into the world, I hope others will love it too!
Breaking Pointe by Christie Cote
Release Date: TBD
Liv Foster lived and breathed ballet. She grew up training, and perfecting each move with hope to be a professional ballerina until her love of ballet was stolen from her. One night was all it took for her to become their prey, changing everything she believed in.
On the surface, Chelsea Greer has it all: A loving husband. A nice house. A good job. In reality, she works hard to maintain the illusion that is her life. She’s also missing the most important thing: Love. One night could change her life. One night could give her the strength to rediscover what’s important. In one night, she could find love when she most needs it and least expects it. All Chelsea has to do is follow her heart after One Chance Night.
One Chance Night was filled with intense emotion and had me swooning, swearing, wishing I could reach through the pages of the book and strangle a certain character and become best friends with others.
The novel had the right combination of romance mixed with difficult, life changing decisions. The reader followed Chelsea, who wasn’t perfect, had made her share of mistakes, and was in an awful situation, but I couldn’t help but feel for her. She was a creature of routine, and it took taking a chance and breaking that routine for her to get a much needed wakeup call, pushing her to change her life for the better.
I couldn’t help but immediately start the next chapter to find out what would happen next and what Chelsea would do. The words flowed and my eyes floated across them until the final page, which left me with a perfect ending to the story, not making me suffer through one of those awful cliff hangers, but I still wanted more of the beautiful characters who made me feel so much. If you read this book, which you should, then we are all in luck because it is a series, while the main characters won’t be central, they will make appearances so we can get our fix.
Eliza Boyd did an incredible job painting the pictures, introducing the characters and making them feel real, and created a poignant story that I think many people can relate to in one way or another, whether they survived a bad relationship or have fallen in love. This debut novel will make you stop and take notice of this new author and I know she will have much more to share with us.
Take a chance on One chance Night, you won’t regret it! I certainly can’t wait to read what she writes next!
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
Sam Hunt – Take Your Time
I first heard this song in November of 2014. On a trip to Houston for a book event, I rented a car—something I normally don’t do when I travel alone. I heard the song each of the four times I was in the car, and I absolutely fell in love with it. The spoken word, the lyrics, the feel of the song—totally dug it. And I so badly wanted to write the book about it. Then, in March of this year, I heard the song on the radio and it reminded me so much of Chelsea’s story, which I’d finished writing in October—before I’d even heard the song—that it made me cry. And I realized I’d already written the book for this song. 🙂
(Little known fact: The song actually appears in the book. It was a last-minute change when I made that realization in March. Originally, it was Thomas Rhett’s “It Goes Like This.”)
Brett Eldredge – Don’t Ya
This is on the list, but it doesn’t appear in the book. It’s the song that inspired the whole thing though—hence Brett’s name. I heard this one and pictured chapters 27-29. Something about the song triggered that whole scene, and I knew I had to write it. But I didn’t know what came before all of that, so I had to work through Chelsea’s story a bit backward. Knowing that it’d all be worth it in the end made her road easier to navigate. 🙂
Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire
I knew I had to include a wider spectrum of country music. I used new music and a song or two from the ’90s, so I wanted to add older songs. With the girls being at an open-mic night, I wrote in a band that covered older songs. And I didn’t want them to only show up just because, so this song and the Conway Twitty song I mention in the book come up again later on. But I love this song so much. I mean, truly. “The taste of love is sweet / when hearts like ours meet.” That’s a great line!
Blake Shelton – Mine Would Be You
Brett and Ian sing this song at a pivotal point in the book, and I think it really encompasses the feel of the moment. This song is all about regret and what you wish were different in regards to love. And at that point in the book, Brett is certainly feeling that way. It’s a very emotional song, and I think it brings some more emotion to the book when it shows up. 🙂
Sara Bareilles – Brave OCN is all about Chelsea and her journey, and truly, she needs to become brave in order to deal with all of the choices she’s made and make anything in her life different. This song represents that. Chelsea doesn’t have a lot going for her at the beginning, and she recognizes that it’s her fault. But in order to change, she has to do things she hasn’t done, which is the nature of life. I love her journey, and I hope you do too. 🙂
Eliza Boyd is a contemporary women’s fiction and romance author. Also an avid reader, she writes novels, short stories, poetry, and whatever else strikes her fancy. Born and raised in Northern Illinois, she now lives in sunny Arizona with her husband and her plethora of animals. When she’s not reading, writing, or working, she can be found walking around her neighborhood (for exercise, not for stalking), taking photos of her pets, or catching up on her favorite shows. Catching up really means binge-watching.
Good Morning Everyone! I’m very excited to participate in the Release Day Blitz for an incredible debut novel, One Chance Night by Eliza Boyd! I was lucky enough to be one of the beta readers and am very happy that the book can now be shared with all of you. I hope this post will pique your interest and sway you to go check the book out and maybe even buy it. It is definitely worth a read! My review will be posted on here for the blog tour, but you can read it now on Amazon and Goodreads.
In reality, she works hard to maintain the illusion that is her life.
She’s also missing the most important thing:
Love.
One night could change her life. One night could give her the strength to rediscover what’s important. In one night, she could find love when she most needs it and least expects it. All Chelsea has to do is follow her heart after One Chance Night.
Eliza Boyd’s Once Chance Night is out today! This is one New Adult romance that you will not want to miss and will make for a great summer read. The BLOG TOUR is currently taking sign-ups; it will run from June 15th to June 26th and Eliza would love for you to participate!
Eliza Boyd is a contemporary women’s fiction and romance author. Also an avid reader, she writes novels, short stories, poetry, and whatever else strikes her fancy. Born and raised in Northern Illinois, she now lives in sunny Arizona with her husband and her plethora of animals. When she’s not reading, writing, or working, she can be found walking around her neighborhood (for exercise, not for stalking), taking photos of her pets, or catching up on her favorite shows. Catching up really means binge-watching.
Good Morning Everyone! Words can’t describe how excited I am about this post! I’ve been dying to share this book with the world as one of the lucky beta readers. This book is amazing, filled with emotion and has ALL of the feels. I’m lucky to know this author and have counted her as one of my friends for years now. I hope you all will take the time to look at this book, add it to your TBR list and read it once it releases; you won’t regret it. I mean, just look at the cover. B-E-A-U-TIFUL! It is so nice to have a cover to go with the words that invaded my heart, made me curse and swoon all over. Okay, I could go on and on and on. The gorgeous cover reveal is below, and there also just might be some teasers ;). I hope you all enjoy!
Author: Eliza Boyd
Book: One Chance Night
Series: Make A Change #1
Release Date: May 15, 2015
Blurb:
On the surface, Chelsea Greer has it all:
A loving husband.
A nice house.
A good job.
In reality, she works hard to maintain the illusion that is her life. She’s also missing the most important thing:
Love.
One night could change her life. One night could give her the strength to rediscover what’s important. In one night, she could find love when she most needs it and least expects it.
All Chelsea has to do is follow her heart after One Chance Night.
One Chance Night Playlist
About the MAKE A CHANGE series:
One Chance Night, Two Pink Lines, and Three Years Gone are about women who are at turning points in their lives—and fall in love in the process. Each book focuses on one woman, and the women are connected to the other in some way. Though each could be read as a stand-alone as far as the main story is concerned, you’ll likely want to read them in order to the get most out of the series.
About Eliza Boyd: Eliza Boyd is a contemporary women’s fiction and romance author. Also an avid reader, she writes novels, short stories, poetry, and whatever else strikes her fancy. Born and raised in Northern Illinois, she now lives in sunny Arizona with her husband and her plethora of animals. When she’s not reading, writing, or working, she can be found walking around her neighborhood (for exercise, not for stalking), taking photos of her pets, or catching up on her favorite shows. Catching up really means binge-watching. Feel free to contact her on any of her social media sites. She spends too much time on the Internet, so she’ll probably get back to you right away.
“All right, all right,” he says, smiling and holding his palm up to stop me. Tomato juice is dripping from the top of his head down his cheeks, getting caught in the smile lines by his mouth. I can feel it running down my face, too, and I should be gagging, but I’m not.
I open my mouth to tell him how cute he looks even with juice all over him, but a light ploof! hits the center of the tub between our bodies, and I stare down at my froggy loofah, now covered in red.
“Oh no!” I frown, plucking the sponge up by the froggy’s arm, then looking up to the shower caddy over Eric’s head. Our splash war must’ve knocked my poor froggy right off his little perch. “My loofah.”
“That’s what it’s called!” Eric slaps the top of his knee, getting more juice on both of us. “I’ve been staring at that thing since you moved in, trying to remember what the hell people call it.”
A small bubble of laughter escapes through my slight frown. “Why?”
“That thing is creepy.”
I gasp. “It is not. It’s cute.” My lip pokes out as I look at the juice soaking into the blue frog’s face. “And now it’s ruined.”
He takes the loofah from my fingers, an adorable pinched look on his face.
“I don’t know how you can wash yourself with this,” he says, pulling at the leg poking from the big green sponge part.
“It’s soft on my sensitive lady parts.” I laugh as his face goes red again. I expect him to drop the loofah back in my hand—or throw it at me—but he doesn’t. He keeps pulling at it as if it’s the weirdest, yet most fascinating thing in the world.
“Is it really ruined?” he asks, tone suddenly nowhere near his usual playfulness. He actually looks worried about my sponge.
“It’s like a buck, Eric.” I adjust in the tub again as the juice creeps into nooks and crannies of my body I had no idea existed till now. “I can get another one tomorrow. Maybe an even creepier one just for you.”
I try to wink, but I’ve never been good at that. He sort of laughs, but his eyes go back to the froggy. He runs his thumb over the eyeballs, wiping the juice from it. I thought I knew Eric pretty well. But as I watch him stare at my loofah, head slightly cocked to the side, I realize I have no clue what he’s thinking. And that’s totally okay. The anticipation of finding out is better.
“Only a dollar?” His eyes lift to mine.
“Or two. Depending on where you go.”
His lips purse and he nods, then plunges the sponge into the juice. Before I can smack him for that, he pulls it from the bath and wrings it out over my head. My jaw drops to my knees.
In this electrifying novel from Cassie Mae, two close friends surprise themselves by shifting from platonic love to sexual attraction.
Eric Matua has one friend—his best friend and childhood sweetheart, who needs a place to stay for the summer. Mia Johnson has thousands of friends—who live in her computer. Along with her email chats and Facebook notifications, Mia also devours romance novels, spending countless hours with fictional characters, dreaming of her own Romeo to sweep her off her feet. When she starts receiving supersweet messages from a stranger who thinks she’s someone else, Mia begins to believe that real love is possible outside her virtual world.
When the two friends become roommates, Mia finds herself falling harder than she ever thought she could. But Eric keeps his desires locked away, unsure of himself and his ability to give his best friend what she deserves in a boyfriend. As her advances are continually spurned, Mia splits her time between Eric and her computer. But she soon realizes she’s about to lose the only real thing she’s ever had.
Advance praise for The Real Thing
“Cassie Mae is awesome! The perfect balance between laugh-out-loud funny and achingly poignant, The Real Thing is the ultimate escapist read. I didn’t want it to end!”—Lauren Layne, author of Isn’t She Lovely
“Watching two best friends figure out how to fall in love makes The Real Thing a summer read of swoon-worthy perfection.”—Jolene Perry, author of The Summer I Found You
“Cassie Mae’s The Real Thing made me want to close out every social media app and electronic device I have, but I couldn’t manage to stop reading!”—Rebecca Yarros, author of Full Measures
About the Author
Cassie Mae (who dawns the name Becca Ann on occasion) is the author of a few hundred… okay, maybe not that many… books. Some of which became popular for their quirky titles, characters, and stories. She likes writing about nerds, geeks, the awkward, the fluffy, the short, the shy, the loud, the fun.
Since publishing her bestselling debut, Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend, she has published and sold books to Random House, Swoon Romance, and Spencer Hill Press. She has a favorite of all her book babies, but no, she won’t tell you what it is. (Mainly because it changes depending on the day.)
Along with writing, Cassie likes to binge watch Teen Wolf and The Big Bang Theory. She can quote Harry Potter lines quick as a whip. And she likes kissing her hubby, but only if his facial hair is trimmed. She also likes cheesecake to a very obsessive degree.
Hey everyone! Today I am excited to be a part of the blog tour for a fellow author and blogger, Keren Hughes! There are a lot of goodies in this post, so stick around and make sure to enter her giveaway at the end! Nothing Like the First Time is Keren’s first New Adult book about the power of first love and the steam that comes with it. Thank you for having me on the tour Keren!
Guest Post:
Keren’s Favorite Book Boyfriends.
Honestly, this is a hard topic to discuss. I feel like I don’t know what to say and yet I could talk forever about the loves that I have encountered in the book world.
My first love was Dimitri Belikov. He is the epitome of raw sexiness. I read Vampire Academy some years ago and I absolutely fell head over heels for Dimka. He is the reason I got so sucked into reading.
To name other book boyfriends though? Well, there’s Christian Grey, Sergei Salkov (Queen of Someday by Sherry Ficklin), Luke Carter (Starting Over by Evan Grace), Marc Romano (Falling To Pieces by LT Kelly) these are just a few of my most recent loves.
Some of my older loves are Valek (Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder), Doyle, Frost and Mistral (Merry Gentry series by Laurell K Hamilton.
I have very eclectic tastes in books and I give my heart away to so many men. But my favourite book love of all has to be Greyston Sterling. He’s my main character in Nothing Like The first Time. I love him with all my heart and soul. Why? Well it’s a long story but to cut a long story short; Grey is a composite of several of my exes but mostly he is modelled after my own first love, Mark.
I was 18 when I met Mark and he was by far the most amazing man I had ever met. Though things didn’t work out between us and he is now married with a child, he is still my best friend and there is still a little piece of my heart lost to him, a piece that would take him back if he was single.
So Grey was a hard guy to write but also easy. That might not make much sense to you, but it’s true nonetheless. I made him the kind of guy that Mark is, with a touch of other exes here and there for good measure—certain elements of the book are real life events that happened to me—and I made the story something like how I wished Mark and I could have turned out.
Nothing Like the First Time
By: Keren Hughes
Limitless Publishing
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Released: May 20th, 2014
Synopsis:
Carly Summers and Greyston Sterling were each other’s first kiss, first sexual experience, first love, first everything…
They were a match made in Heaven, that was, until Grey took a job as a freelance photographer which took him to the other side of the world. When it came down to a choice between his career and his girl – he chose his career.
Now, 10 years later, Grey’s back in town and wants to see if they can rekindle what they had all those years ago. Carly has had relationships but nothing that lasted. No one ever compared to Grey.
But how can they if he’s engaged to somebody else?
Book Trailer:
Excerpt:
“So
your career comes before me?” I asked, already knowing the answer. “At least
look me in the eye and answer me, it’s the least you owe me Grey.”
“I
don’t want to have to choose Carls,” he said as he caught my eye. “I just don’t
want to miss out on the experience of a lifetime. I get to see amazing things,
capture them on film while I experience the different cultures.”
“Just
answer the question Grey – you want your career more than you want me.” I
started to cry again, I had wanted to get through this without crying but I was
fooling myself when I thought that.
“I’m
sorry Carls,” he said as he took my hand into his. “I love you, I always will.
But this is the opportunity of a lifetime, it may never happen again. I need to
do this. I’m not making a conscious choice to put you second but if you weren’t
so stubborn, you’d come with me like I asked.”
“This book really makes you believe in love forever and happy endings.” -Kay
“This book has everything you need in a romance novel: love, heartbreak and even a little suspense.” -Vikki Love
About the Author:
Keren lives in the UK and is an avid bookworm; she has been since she read things like Black Beauty, What Katy Did and The Hobbit as a child. Her first real memories of reading are the summers she used to lie on her bed and re-read What Katy Did and What Katy Did Next.
Over the years she has come to realise that she is a bit OCD about books. They have to be in perfect condition without the slightest bit of damage.
She is a book reviewer and has been for the past 18 months or so.
The idea for Stolen came to her one day but she never thought she’d actually write it let alone publish it. If it wasn’t for her author friend Kira Saito, the idea would still be stuck in her head not on paper. But constant love and support from Kira is why you are now able to read Stolen.
Stolen is her first novel but now that she’s written one, she knows she needs to write more. There will be one sequel, called Freed which will be from Bodhi’s POV. This will be set a couple of years on.
Then, the plan is for her to write either NA or Adult Contemporary Romances. She has a big crush on Lady Antebellum’s music at the moment and their songs have inspired a few book ideas.
Keren loves hearing from her readers and if you want to contact her, you can do so at any of the following places:
Throw Back Thursday-This is the prologue to the novel I wrote last November for National Novel Writing Month. It is a New Adult book that I plan to publish in the future. It hasn’t been edited yet, so the excerpt below could change. Tell me what you think! What is your throw back?
Breaking Pointe
Prologue
Pinned to the cold damp concrete floor dark menacing eyes bore down on me. I can’t do anything but stare back at the eyes full of darkness without an ounce of remorse. The smell of stale beer, mildew, and urine is thick in my nose. I try to tell him to stop, but I can’t seem to form words. He enjoys the ever growing panic in my eyes because a wicked grin spreads across his face, showing how evil he is. I try to move, wanting nothing more than to push him away and kick and scream, but my limbs and body are heavy and I can’t do more than twitch.
I watch in horror as he runs his fingers over my right cheek and continues to trail them down my neck, shoulder, and arm and continues down, further and further. It feels like I have cockroaches crawling all over me and I’m pretty sure if I had normal functions working in my body right now I would puke.
“You asked for it sweetheart.” His gravelly voice hit me as he continues to run his hands over me. The fog that has been clouding my brain wasn’t that thick because I know I never asked for this. I don’t even understand how this happened. I only had one drink, and I never put it down. I’m not that much of a lightweight; even if I were it wouldn’t inhibit my body from being able to move.
“Stop playing with your food before we run out of time,” another voice chastises, but I can’t see whom it came from. Dark eyes glares beyond my head, and if looks could kill, his sure as hell would. Flipping his attention back to me, he grabs my hair with one hand jerking my head back and rips my dress off with his other hand. I can feel the material cut into my skin before it gives away, and tears apart, and with it I’m ripped apart.
Hey everyone! Today I am excited to be a part of the Nothing Like the First Time by Keren Hughes Cover Reveal! Keren is a fellow blogger and author! I can’t wait to read this book. Check out the cover, isn’t it gorgeous? Don’t miss out on the teasers and excerpts either! ENJOY!
Nothing Like the First Time by Keren Hughes
Limitless Publishing
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Coming May 20th, 2014
Synopsis:
Carly Summers and Greyston Sterling were each other’s first kiss, first sexual experience, first love, first everything…
They were a match made in Heaven, that was, until Grey took a job as a freelance photographer which took him to the other side of the world. When it came down to a choice between his career and his girl – he chose his career.
Now, 10 years later, Grey’s back in town and wants to see if they can rekindle what they had all those years ago. Carly has had relationships but nothing that lasted. No one ever compared to Grey.
But how can they if he’s engaged to somebody else?
Excerpt:
“So your career comes before me?” I asked, already knowing the answer. “At least look me in the eye and answer me, it’s the least you owe me Grey.”
“I don’t want to have to choose Carls,” he said as he caught my eye. “I just don’t want to miss out on the experience of a lifetime. I get to see amazing things, capture them on film while I experience the different cultures.”
“Just answer the question Grey – you want your career more than you want me.” I started to cry again, I had wanted to get through this without crying but I was fooling myself when I thought that.
“I’m sorry Carls,” he said as he took my hand into his. “I love you, I always will. But this is the opportunity of a lifetime, it may never happen again. I need to do this. I’m not making a conscious choice to put you second but if you weren’t so stubborn, you’d come with me like I asked.”
About Keren:
Keren lives in the UK and is an avid bookworm; she has been since she read things like Black Beauty, What Katy Did and The Hobbit as a child. Her first real memories of reading are the summers she used to lie on her bed and re-read What Katy Did and What Katy Did Next.
Over the years she has come to realise that she is a bit OCD about books. They have to be in perfect condition without the slightest bit of damage.
She is a book reviewer and has been for the past 18 months or so.
The idea for Stolen came to her one day but she never thought she’d actually write it let alone publish it. If it wasn’t for her author friend Kira Saito, the idea would still be stuck in her head not on paper. But constant love and support from Kira is why you are now able to read Stolen.
Stolen is her first novel but now that she’s written one, she knows she needs to write more. There will be one sequel, called Freed which will be from Bodhi’s POV. This will be set a couple of years on.
Then, the plan is for her to write either NA or Adult Contemporary Romances. She has a big crush on Lady Antebellum’s music at the moment and their songs have inspired a few book ideas.
Keren loves hearing from her readers and if you want to contact her, you can do so at any of the following places:
It is thirteen days after the NaNoWriMo deadline to write 50,000 words in thirty days. That is a mere 1,667 words a day. That is realistic right? A challenge, but not too crazy when it is broken down like that. That is, if you actually write every day, and force yourself to at least reach that threshold. I started out strong, but here is the thing. I decided it would be a good idea to embark on this challenge while planning a destination wedding that I would leave for the morning after NaNoWriMo finished. Needless to say, November was flipping insane. I also had other obstacles come up that I was not expecting, and there were days that I did not write a single word, and other days that I wrote, but the word count was low. I had been thinking about my NaNoWriMo project, Breaking Pointe, for months before I was able to start on November first. The odds were against me, and I was very behind, but I kept writing.
I honestly did not think I would be able to reach the goal, but I was determined to write as much as possible anyways. It was a challenge and I like challenges. I completed my first draft of my first novel a few months back, Rain, which was a major accomplishment for me, so I figured the next logical step and challenge was to write a novel in a month.
The last week I made a decent comeback, but I was still behind by a lot. I looked at my word count and though, I can’t be this close and not finish. So that is what I did. I finished. I reached 50,025 words around 11:00PM November 30, 2013. Obstacles and the world be damned, I persevered, and I did it. I can only imagine how many mistakes there are and I’m not sure how good it is since I was trying to write fast, but I kept going until I reached 50,000. Unfortunately, I didn’t technically finish the first draft of the entire novel. I had to stop when I reached the goal and pack to leave the next morning since I hadn’t done that yet. I will be going back to wrap up the novel soon, before going back to editing Rain.
To sum it up, NaNoWriMo was an insane challenge, but I’m glad I did it. I have most of another novel under my belt, which once given some TLC will hopefully turn into something decent. Luckily by the time I finished, my fiancé still loved me and married me. Everything worked out, making 2013 a kick ass year! I plan to make 2014 even better, starting with publishing Rain.
To other writers out there, keep writing and never give up. If you haven’t written a full piece yet, pick something and just keep adding words every day. It doesn’t matter how much, just keep at it. Set small doable goals, eventually those small word counts will turn into large word counts and if you persevere, eventually you will have a book. If I can do it, so can you.
Did any of you do NaNoWriMo? What was your experience?
I am currently participating in my first NaNoWriMo. I have been waiting for this for months and been dying to get my new book idea, Breaking Pointe onto paper, or word document actually. Thirty Days and thirty night of writing is every Author’s dream, right? Well unfortunately life also continues. Those like myself who have other jobs they must work, commitments, friends, family, or planning a vacation and wedding that begins December 1st. Yeah I feel a little crazy right now, but hey I work good under pressure. Luckily I have time at work to write, or I would never have a chance at finishing this challenge on time. I’m a little behind right now at (7,040 words), but I got a pretty decent word count today and am pretty sure I can fully catch up tomorrow. If things go well, maybe I will be ahead by Friday since the weekends are trickier.
NaNo has been great so far and has encouraged me to write every day and given me a goal to work towards. I just finished writing my first book a few months ago, now I’m trying to write 50,000 words in thirty days. How amazing would it feel to achieve that? I think pretty freaking amazing! I have decided I am going to do it! Obstacles be damned!
I’m a bit out of my territory with this book, but it is fun and exciting as I get to know my characters and see where they take me. My main character Liv, is strong and feisty, and I look forward to getting to know her inside and out and seeing her take on her tormentors.
I have been looking forward to writing Breaking Pointe for a while and I hope it ends up being a good story. I also got to write my first Prologue for this book. I have never needed one before, but this story called for one.
I look forward to powering through NaNoWriMo! Is anyone else participating? My username is christiewriting if you want a writing buddy!
Christie Cote 