Showing posts with label book launch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book launch. Show all posts

Monday, September 15, 2014

Tour Launch: The Better Man by Amy Vastine

A Themed Tour through Prism Book Tours.

We're excited to be launching the BOOK TOUR for
The Better Man by Amy Vastine!

The Better Man, which is the beginning of the new Chicago Sisters Series, is set in the busy city of Chicago, but is full of family, friendship, and love. It's also from the clean romance Heartwarming line of books from Harlequin. Scroll on down to read a little about this book and series and to read an exclusive excerpt! We hope you enjoy the tour!

September Tour Schedule

28 - Grand Finale

The Better Man (Chicago Sisters)The Better Man
by Amy Vastine
Adult Romance 
Harlequin Heartwarming
January 1st 2014

Kendall Montgomery's six-year-old son has barely spoken in the past year, locked in his world of silent grief. Then one day, he spots his dead father across a crowded street.

Max Jordan moved to Chicago to be closer to his own son and prove he can be a better father than his deadbeat dad. His striking resemblance to Kendall's husband and his track record with fatherhood make her determined to keep her distance…until Max helps her little boy come out of his shell. But can she trust him with their future? How can she be sure he won't take off just when they need him most?


An Intro to The Better Man and an Exclusive Excerpt

The Better Man is the first book in the Chicago Sisters Series, which introduces us to the three Everhart sisters, Lucy, Kendall, and Emma. All three sisters live in the Lincoln Park area, and even though the story has a big city backdrop, the focus is still on family and community. These sisters always have one another’s backs, even though they couldn’t be any different. Funny how siblings can be raised in the same family but develop such separate identities! Lucy is the strong-willed, fanatical health-nut who takes up any cause she deems worthy. Middle-child Kendall is the shy artist, whose loyalty knows no bounds. Emma is the confident baby of the family who believes she has her entire life mapped out. The Better Man features Kendall and her son, Simon. Book Two, The Best Laid Plans, is Emma’s story and scheduled to come out in March 2015. Lucy’s story is told in the third book, with the working title, The Better Fight, and should be out at the end of 2015.

Here’s a little excerpt of the three sisters in action:

“And I am now, officially, the meanest mommy. Ever.”

Lucy put a hand on her sister’s head. “Oh boy. Just remember every mom has felt like that at one point in time. I know I crowned Mom the meanest when I was little. She was a repeat winner of the title for years.”

Kendall let out a breathy laugh. “I remember you being much meaner to her than she ever was to you.”

“Of course I was. I’m meaner than everyone,” Lucy said, unashamed.

“I still love you, though.” Kendall got up and grabbed a large bowl off the top of the refrigerator. From the pantry, she pulled out three bags of Halloween candy and tossed them on the kitchen table.

“You really shouldn’t give out candy. I could have brought over a whole bushel of organic apples.”

“We are not going to be that house.” The two sisters opened and emptied the bags into the bowl. Lucy offered to help with dinner. Kendall had bought the ingredients for chili and no one chopped vegetables better than Lucy. Kendall set her up on the cutting board with an onion and some peppers.

“It’s better that you rip the Max Band-Aid off now rather than later,” Lucy said while they cooked. “Simon will get over it. So will you. It’s always better to be the one who walked away instead of the one left behind.”

“Which one were you again?” Kendall asked, recognizing that Lucy’s guard was down.

“Ha-ha. I’ve been both. At the same time,” she added. “Now, stop making this about me.”

“You love when things are about you,” Emma said, joining the conversation. Dressed in her nursing scrubs and a purple witch’s hat on her head, she sat down at the table next to Lucy with a bag of cheese puffs.

Kendall held a hand over her heart. “Maybe knock next time and give a girl some warning. Isn’t it against your nurse’s training to give people heart attacks?”

“And isn’t it against your nurse’s training to put processed poison into your body?” Lucy added. She snatched the cheese puffs out of her sister’s hands and walked them over to the garbage.

“Hey!” Emma sprung to her feet. “I was eating those! I haven’t eaten all day.”

“Another reason you shouldn’t eat them. Your body needs fuel, not intestine-destroying acids.”

“Uh-oh, who’s eating junk food in front of Lucy?” Kendall’s mom popped her head into the kitchen. “Girls, don’t fight over food.” She took the bag away from Lucy and handed it back to Emma, who scrunched up her face and pursed her lips at her sister.

“It’s your body,” Lucy relented. “Sorry for trying to protect it.”

Their dad followed behind their mom and gave Lucy a hug. “You’re a good big sister, but never throw away someone’s cheese puffs.”

“I’m coming over tomorrow and helping Mom throw away all your junk food. We’re putting you on a diet.”

“What?” He looked at his wife for confirmation.

Maureen’s shoulders slumped and she glared at Lucy. “I wasn’t going to tell him what we were doing. If you don’t tell him, he doesn’t miss it. When you tell him, he gets all worked up.”


Amy Vastine has been plotting stories in her head for as long as she can remember. An eternal optimist, she studied social work, hoping to teach others how to find their silver lining. Now, she enjoys creating happily ever afters for all to read.

Amy lives outside Chicago with her high school sweetheart-turned-husband, three fun-loving children, and their sweet but mischievous puppy dog.

Website * Goodreads * Facebook * Twitter

Tour-Wide Giveaway


- Gift Card Grand Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card and a signed paperback (US) or ebook (INT) of The Better Man
- US Grand Prize: Signed paperback of The Better Man plus swag (shown above)
- 5 copies of The Better Man (paperback for US and ebooks for INT)
- Ends October 5th

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Prism Book Tours

Monday, April 21, 2014

The Weather Girl by Amy Vastine April Showers Book Tour with Giveaway


We're launching the April Showers Book Tour for
The Weather Girl


The Weather Girl
The Weather Girl
by Amy Vastine
Clean Adult Contemporary Romance
January 1st 2014 by Harlequin


Turbulence is in their forecast

Summer Raines knows when it's going to rain. She can feel it. That's why the local weather girl's so good at her job. Too bad she couldn't have foreseen the tumultuous arrival of Travis Lockwood, everybody's favorite star NFL quarterback. Make that former star NFL quarterback. Sidelined back to Texas after an injury, the golden boy is trying to steal her precious on-air time. Summer is reduced to reporting from…football games. It's enough to make her quit and become a storm-chaser like her parents. She's stuck with a career that's going nowhere and a man who delights in her refusal to be charmed. Falling in love isn't nearly as easy as predicting the weather.



More about The Weather Girl and Amy Vastine

What is your motivation behind this series? Why did you want to write it?
Well, I wrote this story for Harlequin's So You Think You Can Write contest back in 2012. I wanted to get some feedback from an editor in the romance business and the contest seemed like a low risk way of asking for some. I figured it was a big enough thing that my feelings wouldn't get hurt if I didn't win or get any response. I didn't win. I did however get some feedback, which was awesome and exactly what I wanted. I never expected them to like the story enough to want to publish it!

The story itself was written to reflect my love of sweet romance. I like a little angst now and again, but sweet love stories makes me smile. I like to sprinkle in some humor and create characters people can root for.

What do you hope readers take with them when they read your book?
I hope people walk away with the idea that love doesn't mean that you have to sacrifice who you are for someone else. When you follow your heart and your dreams, everything else will fall into place.

Do you have a favorite scene?
Oh that's tough because one of the rules I heard about writing is don't get too attached to scenes because those are usually the ones your editor will want you to cut! I do love a couple scenes, though. One is when Travis has lunch at Summer's grandparents' house and they are trying to get him to realize he knows exactly what he wants out of life but he is completely clueless. Mimi's frustration with him is priceless. The other one is the very end of the book, but I won't say what happens because that gives it all away!

Share something about you that is unique - maybe about how/where you write... or favorite snack foods?
Well, I am a school social worker by day, so I write at night and on the weekends. I'm not sure how interesting that is! I love monkeys? I mean, I love monkeys. I have a collection of them at work (thankfully I work in a middle school so it's not THAT weird!) It's like a jungle! I have stuffed monkeys, figurines, candles, pictures, cups, stickers. It's quite a collection. My students give me monkey gifts, so it grows every year! This is what happens when you tell someone you like something!

Amy VastineAmy Vastine has been plotting stories in her head for as long as she can remember. An eternal optimist, she studied social work, hoping to teach others how to find their silver lining. Now, she enjoys creating happily ever afters for all to read.

In September of 2012, she saw a tweet about Harlequin's So You Think You Can Write contest. She entered, hoping for nothing more than a little feedback from some people in the business. Amazingly, The Weather Girl made it into the semi-finals, thanks to the many wonderful voters out there! The manuscript didn't make it to the finals, but the editors over Harlequin were still interested. A few revisions later and The Weather Girl was contacted for publication with Harlequin Heartwarming - a dream come true!

Amy lives outside Chicago with her high school sweetheart-turned-husband, three fun-loving children, and their sweet but mischievous puppy dog.

Tour-Wide Giveaway


- Grand Prize: $25 Amazon gift card, red umbrella, signed copy of THE WEATHER GIRL, umbrella bookmark, and decorative box (US Only)
- 5 ebooks of The Weather Girl (INT)
- April 21 - May 11

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Monday, March 3, 2014

His Hometown Girl by Karen Rock Book Launch!


We're Launching the Book Tour for
His Hometown Girl

 Tour Schedule

3/16 - Tour Grand Finale

We're kicking it off with an excerpt that you can read below. First, let's find out about the book...

His Hometown GirlHis Hometown Girl
by Karen Rock
Mass Market Paperback, Large Print, 331 pages
March 1st 2014 by Harlequin


He'd always managed to best her…

Jodi Chapman will do whatever it takes to get top care for her autistic son. If that means going home and convincing local farmers to sell their land, so be it. Even if her biggest opponent, childhood rival Daniel Gleason, is equally determined to convince farmers to buy into his co-op plan. And he's not playing fair.

Facing off against Daniel is the last thing Jodi wants. The attraction that's always fueled their competitiveness is as strong as ever and just as distracting. But with both their futures on the line, and years of distrust between them, how can they ever be on the same side?


Excerpt
Airport Scene
     The sliding doors opened with a hiss and they stepped out into the cool, midmorning
drizzle. Daniel breathed in the smell of exhaust and couldn’t wait to get home, away from
all this concrete. He needed to strategize. Regroup and think about how he’d handle this
new, unflappable Jodi.
     She raised an eyebrow and gave him a measured look. “Where are you parked?” Her
stroller’s plastic wheels swerved along the parking lot’s asphalt.
     So she was letting his accusation go, her self-possession unnerving him. Gone was the
girl whose passion had once swept him away from his everyday life, her white-hot
temper later imploding it. How things had changed. At least the temporary cease-fire
meant he could find out her plans. Stop them before she put them in place. For that
matter, the drive home might soften her up with a tour down memory lane.
      “I’ve got a ground-level spot,” he said, raising his voice so it’d be heard over a plane’s
roar.
      “Great. The sooner Tyler gets his nap the better.”
      “Are you working right away or having some R & R first? I’ll show you some of the
old sights.”
      “I have to check in with my boss, then I plan to—” She stopped and shoved wet,
frizzing hair from her face. “Why am I telling you this?” Her eyes roamed over him,
mystified. Suddenly she looked like the girl he’d known years ago, the one who’d once
worn her heart on her sleeve and had captured his.
      “Because we used to be friends, Jodi Lynn.”
      “Friends?” She snorted and shook off the water collecting on the stroller’s canopy.
“And don’t call me Jodi Lynn.”
      “Would you prefer ‘ma’am’? Is that what country folks are supposed to say when a city
girl comes to town?”
      “Knock it off, Daniel.” She nudged him, and the warmth of her bare shoulder through
his thin shirt nearly burned.
      “That’s Mr. Gleason to you,” he joked to hide the response her touch ignited. Careful,
he warned himself.
     Jodi shot him a level look, then picked up speed when her son started to kick again, his voice sounding like a teakettle about to boil. No wonder. Daniel would scream, too, if he was strapped in when he could walk instead. Parking lots were unpredictable, but with a firm hand and a sharp eye the little guy could have had his freedom.
      “So why are you here instead of one of my aunt’s neighbors?” she asked once they
halted beside his muddy blue pickup. The misting rain had only streaked the dirt.
      “We’re all neighbors, and neighbors help each other.” He tossed her expensive-looking suitcases into the open bed, an echoing thunk sounding when plastic met metal. “In case you forgot.”
      “I haven’t. I’m helping my old hometown get a fair deal that will improve their lives.” She spoke without looking up at him, her movements practiced and efficient as she swept up her thrashing son and secured him in the child seat she’d detached from the stroller, buckling him into the center of the truck’s continuous front seat.
      “If you want something, use your words, Tyler,” she told her son.
     The boy screamed and pounded his fists against the dashboard, but Jodi slid in beside
him, looking as if it was any other day. And for her, maybe it was.
     Daniel felt his resistance weaken until he caught himself. Her “fair deal” would only
benefit Midland, not her former community. They’d either have to abandon their land or
become corporate drones, working for a Midland paycheck. No. Jodi was the enemy. No
matter that she made him remember good times he’d rather forget.
     If he couldn’t convince her that this was personal, not business, remind her of the good
times she’d had here and the people she’d cared about, then he needed her gone before
she wrecked havoc on his home and his heart.
     She’d done the latter the last time she’d left town. He’d be a fool to let her do it again.
     He wouldn’t let himself, or his town, fall for Jodi Lynn Chapman.
     No ma’am.

Karen Rock has adored romance since receiving Harlequin Presents books from her grandmother each summer. She formed her Young Adult writing partnership, J.K. Rock- pseudonym for the CAMP BOYFRIEND series, with her sister-in-law and Blaze author, Joanne Rock in 2011. When Karen heard of a call for submissions to Heartwarming, Harlequin’s latest line, she was inspired by the possibilities of writing unforgettable, deeply romantic, tender love stories that mothers would feel comfortable sharing with their daughters. When she’s not writing, Karen loves scouring estate sales for vintage books, cooking her grandmother's family recipes, hiking the ‘high peaks’, and redesigning her gardens. She lives in the Adirondack Mountain region with her husband, daughter, and two Cavalier King cocker spaniels who have yet to understand the concept of “fetch” though they know a lot about love. 

For more information about Karen's upcoming books, check out her website, Facebook page, or follow her on twitter. She’d love to hear from you!



Tour-Wide Giveaway


Grand Prize: Hand-stitched, authentic Amish quilt (uses their overlapping heart-stitching- pattern), with matching dust ruffle for a king-sized bed, signed copies of Wish Me Tomorrow & Camp Boyfriend, and some surprise swag (US Only)
1 - Paperback/ebook copies of Wish Me Tomorrow and Camp Boyfriend (format is winner's choice, paperback for US Only) and $20 Amazon gift card
2 - ebooks of Wish Me Tomorrow and Camp Boyfriend (INT)

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