Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Author Interview & New Release: Unexpectedly His (Smart Cupid #2) by Maggie Kelley

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Unexpectedly His
Smart Cupid #2
By: Maggie Kelley
Releasing August 17, 2015
Entangled Lovesturck

Buy Links:  Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada


Synopsis


A match made in Manhattan...

By-the-book Marianne McBride wants to prove she's more than a computer geek in a pair of horn-rimmed glasses. But how did she end up hiding in a cake, waiting to sing "Happy Birthday" to Nick Wright, a sexy and arrogant serial-dater? Not exactly part of her plan. Especially when she finds herself kissing the birthday boy, and then running like hell...

Nick falls for no woman. No strings, no commitments, and no relationships. Not even with the sweetly curvaceous bombshell from his birthday. But then he's hit by a bombshell of his own. He needs to find the perfect faux fiancée, or kiss his key to the executive washroom goodbye. Fortunately, his matchmaker sister has the perfect girl in mind.

Now Nick and Marianne have to pretend they're in love for six weeks. No dating. No sex.
And definitely no acting on the wickedly-hot chemistry that could ruin everything...



Excerpt

“Do we have a deal?” he asked.

Not allowing for second thoughts, Marianne thrust out her hand, all up-front and businesslike in her Zumba gear. If he was looking for an unemotional entanglement, she’d give it to him. And she’d get the perfect date in the process. “We have a deal.”

He reached out to envelop her hand in his warm, masculine grip, and a zing of pleasure shot through her
body like a bolt of lightning streaking across a summer sky. Her hand tucked in his, Marianne wondered what she’d just agreed to with this engagement. Six weeks of heaven? Or six weeks of hell?

Still time to back out, a quiet, unadventurous voice whispered. Marianne took a moment to consider the well timed warning. Men like Nick were trouble, and not just for a woman like her, for all womankind. Keeping him off the market for six weeks was like a public service, a Venus vs. Mars takedown allowing the female side a break from the risks involved in hooking up with a commitment-phobe whose skills of sexual persuasion rated high enough to fall off the charts. At least, she imagined his skills rated so high.

Not that she planned to find out.

Then again, a little fact-finding mission might be fun, her inner siren whispered. Her stomach flipped. She drew in a long breath and fought to stay calm. No need to get flustered and back out. This engagement was all
business. He needed a short-term fiancée and she needed a date, preferably one that was guaranteed and as ridiculously sexy as Nick Wright. As long as she didn’t tumble head over heels for the man, which she would not, the deal was a win for both of them.

Easy peasy, right?

Nick shot her one of his killer smiles, and the butterflies in her stomach responded with a take-no-prisoners party.

Right.

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.



Goodreads | Goodreads series


Author interview

I'm delighted to have Maggie join me to answer a few questions for the blog. Please give her a very warm welcome ...

Thank you for having me here today!

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
The night before the release of my debut novel, Breaking the Bachelor, I went to see the fantastically talented Dennis Lehane. Yes, it was a seminar for me and approximately 400 other people, but I know if Dennis had locked eyes with me as I sat at the back of the orchestra section, amazed by his genius, he’d have run off with me to some tropical island, where we would’ve indulged in multiple umbrella drinks and talked fiction. Okay, maybe not, but a girl can dream. Leaving the lecture that night, my head full of new thoughts about truth and humor in writing —I felt like a writer.

Of course, I woke up the next morning, and my kids crabbed about getting ready for school and my husband ran late for work(where’s my wallet?) and a neighbor kid stopped by to grab a bowl of Cheerios, but still, the whole time, I thought…wow, I’m a writer.

What inspired you to write your first book?
Bed rest. LOL. Seriously, I spent three months on bed rest waiting for my first son to make his way into the world, watching too much Grey’s Anatomy (because, um, Patrick Dempsey in his prime!), and strangely, (perhaps because of Patrick Dempsey), the Smart Cupid series started developing in my mind. I blame the hormones.

(Deanna): Watching Patrick Dempsey in his prime will do that to you ...

Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?
I love Michelle Richmond for literary fiction. I think her writing is deep and beautiful and evocative, and in some instances, a little bit sexy. But Jennifer Crusie first inspired my love of romance—the humor, fun, craziness of her worlds and her characters…yeah, that feels like love to me.

What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Editing. Editing is torture.

(Deanna): Hah. You are talking to a person who has editing as a day job here. :-p I get the torture part some days.

What is your favourite quote?
“A character is defined by the kinds of challenges he cannot walk away from. And by those he has walked away from that cause him remorse.” This quote from Arthur Miller says it all to me about building a characters-as an actress and a writer. I believe he was talking about Death of A Salesman, but it applies to all characters. What a character values and loves the most, what he/she cannot walk away from---that is the core of who the character is. There’s truth there.

What advice would you give to your younger self?
Be daring.

(Deanna): That's great. I wish someone gave me that advice when I was a teen.

Which famous person, living or dead would you like to meet and why?
Gerard Butler. Do I really have to say why? ;)

If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why?

Do you ever get writer’s block?
No. I am an over-writer. My editor is always telling me to trim, trim, trim. My mind goes in a hundred different directions at a hundred miles an hour.

Any tips on how to get through the dreaded writer’s block?
While I don’t get writer’s block, I often need inspiration, which for me, means watching movies. A well-written, romantic story with a fantastic premise (yes, I’ve watched While You Were Sleeping hundreds of times) or a masterful performance (I’m lookin’ at you, Benedict Cumberbatch!) speaks to my heart in a way nothing else does and gets me rolling again when I’m feeling, well…grouchy in my bleached-out velour writing pants!

(Deanna): Ooo ... I love that movie too. I've watched it a few times but not quite as many as you, I'm guessing.

If this book is part of a series, tell us a little about it?
Unexpectedly His is part of the Smart Cupid Series with Entangled Lovestruck. This is a romantic comedy series, set in New York City, a fun, magical, romantic place (to my mind). The first story, Breaking the Bachelor, is a Kindle deal this month…on sale for just 99 cents. That book is the book of my heart.

(Deanna): Did you say sale??? ... heads over to one-click!

Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you. A thousand times, thank you. And thank you to Deanna for having me here today!

(Deanna): You are so welcome. I loved having you here.


Join the Facebook Lovestruck party on 20 August 2015. Maggie is giving away a copy of her first book Breaking the Bachelor at the Lovestruck party, so make sure you hop over to party and for another chance to win the book.


Author Info


jsAfter ten years of survival, aka working, in Hollywood, this former actress and current author of sexy contemporary romance is living happily-ever-after in Pittsburgh with her longtime sweetie and their two punky kids. When not carpooling to birthday parties or testing her gourmet cooking skills by throwing a frozen pizza into the oven, Maggie daydreams about sneaking off to Vegas or Napa, or even just the movies. A love of red wine, Italian food, and music round out her list of life's greatest joys. Oh, and Tuesday night karaoke, totally underrated fun.

Author Links:  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon Author Page | Email



Giveaway
An e-copy of the first in the series, Breaking the Bachelor.
To enter, simply leave a comment below and Maggie will pick a winner.

bkBreaking the Bachelor (Smart Cupid #1) by Maggie Kelley

Goaded by her competition, matchmaker Jane Wright makes a very public
bet that she can find the “perfect” match for Manhattan's hottest
confirmed bachelor—sexy-as-sin bartender Charlie Goodman. Unfortunately,
Charlie is also Jane's ex-lover, a man she broke up with on a cocktail
napkin. With her company on the line, Jane has no choice but to convince
the man of her most impractical dreams to dive back into the dating pool.

Charlie doesn't want to see Jane's business fail. He just wants a little
revenge. Determined to prove to Jane that chemistry always beats
compatibility algorithms, he plans to drive her crazy with desire...then
walk away. And his plan is working. A little too well, actually. Because
even as Jane scrambles to calculate Charlie's best match, the heat
building between combusts. But Charlie's been so busy outsmarting Cupid
that he hasn't noticed he's the naughty cherub's next target...



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16 comments:

  1. Maggie, you had me at Zumba gear! I love finding new authors to read. Heading over now to pick up the first 2 books. Great little interview! :)

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    1. LOL!!!! Yes the Zumba gear---that is like my worst nightmare...meeting an ex (or in my dating days...a crush) in my workout gear!!!
      Thank you for the kind words about the interview---it was so much fun. Deanna is great!

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    2. Argh! Zumba. I'm terrified of it. I'm all left feet.

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  2. Oh man. Gerard Butler, Patrick Dempsey, and While You Were Sleeping all in one interview. Perfect! I will definitely be checking out your books.

    P.S. My mom and I booked an Italian tour for next year, so of course I quoted the movie and said that I'll finally get a stamp that says Italy in my passport. Love that movie. One of my favorites!

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    1. Oh, that is so sweet!! I love the ending of WYWS when Sandra Bullock says, "Peter asked me once when I fell in love with Jack, and I told him...it was while you were sleeping." Sigh. So cute and funny. I want to write something that complete! <3

      Thank you for coming by Deanna's blog...this has been so much fun. :) LMK how you like the books!

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    2. I still haven't got an Italian stamp in my passport. We were supposed to go once many years ago, my brother, sister and I, but at the last minute my brother got sick and we had to cancel the trip. I still haven't gone since.

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  3. Oh these look cute... I added them to my growing TBR pile. But we are gonna have to fight for Gerard Butler - seriously.

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    1. You can have Gerard Butler as long as I can have a young Bill Pulman from While You Were Sleeping.

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    2. I don't know who that is so you can have the Pully person... just bring me Butler in a kilt first.

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    3. Okay, no one can object to The Butler in a kilt, but when Bill Pullman tosses the engagement ring into the toll booth and proposes ("Can I come in there?". LOL. Total swoonage! Thanks for coming by! Maggie

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  4. Let me try this again. I don't know what happened to my first comment. What a great interview. So good to see a down to earth author sharing. I added your books to my to be read list! Thanks!

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    1. I've added the books to my to read list too.

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    2. Tabatha, That's one of the sweetest things I've heard as a writer---honestly. Thank you. It was so much fun releasing Unexpectedly His into the world---if you read it, I hope you'll love it...and Deanna, thank you for having me here. Please LMK who wins the copy of Breaking the Bachelor, so I can deliver it! With <3! MK

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  5. Thank you everyone for being here and thank you to Deanna for inviting me...lots of fun. The winner of an e-book of Breaking the Bachelor is Bambi. Please email me at: maggiekelleyromance@gmail.com. Congrats. MK.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for stopping by and joining the fun, Maggie. I loved having you on the blog. Congrats Bambi!!

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    2. Thanks so much Maggie! I look forward to reading it. But just because you gave me the book - you are still not getting Gerard Butler. Seriously.

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