That Guy and That Girl by Natalia Albrite (VBT, guest post, excerpt, and GIVEAWAY) GFT Updated

Whoops, my apologies! I forgot to add the wonderful post by author Natalie Albrite, who shares...

Top 5 Reasons Why Self-Publishing is My Chosen Path

by

Natalia Albrite

I started writing That Guy and That Girl in May of 2018. From the very baby beginning of the journey I knew that shopping it out to traditional publishers was not a route I would take. Here are my top 5 reasons why:
 

#1 Permission from myself is all I need. I got to tell myself go and I still get to tell myself go. I don’t have to wait for anyone’s approval or permission to write. The only permission I need is my own and I really appreciate that. At this point, it’s really hard to imagine any other scenario appealing to me.

#2 Freedom of choice about what I write: I get to decide. Right now, I’m solidly in a new adult sports romance phase and I enjoy the heck out of it. I am committed to seeing this series through. However, I love that within this series I can add any tidbits or plot points that I feel drawn to. Also, in the future, I can move into new genres if I choose. My goal is to build an enthusiastic and loyal audience that’s willing to take chances with me.

#3 Great authors to emulate on this path: wow, the examples are endless! So many of my favorite authors are self-published geniuses and I can do the research to discover and emulate their paths. Penny Reid, Elle Kennedy, and Sarina Bowen are just three of the authors who I’ve noticed are blazing some amazing self-publishing trails. I really appreciate that this path is not mysterious or out of reach. The steps are logical and clear.

#4 I get to be a creative and a businesswoman. This is the best combination of skills I have ever had the privilege of using. I adore getting to exercise my creativity and tell stories. It is so much fun and satisfying in a way that nothing else has ever been. I’ve also been surprised by how fun the challenges of marketing and building a business are. I get to use a totally different side of my brain and pat myself on the back for problems solved and infrastructure built. If you would have told me a year ago that I could build my own website and send out a newsletter, I would have laughed at you.

#5 All the benefits are mine (and all the risk too). All of this infrastructure that I am building now is all mine. I haven’t shot to the top of any bestseller lists yet but the key word is yet. I have a plan for the future and I truly believe that if I stick with it and remain consistent I can achieve my goals. I can do it at my own pace and luckily for me, I get to receive all the benefit of that building.

For me, self-publishing has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. Sure, I’d love the exposure of a major publishing house but truth be told, I love that I get to learn at my own pace. I can make mistakes and I can have victories and all of that belongs to me. I’m so grateful that the tools I need are within my reach. Who knows what the future holds but for now, I’m so grateful for this journey I’ve begun!



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That Guy and That Girl

by

Natalia Albrite

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GENRE:   New Adult Contemporary Romance

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BLURB:

Olivia Meadows is excited to finish her senior year of college as a volleyball national champion beside her teammates and best friends. A complication arrives in the form of John Hunter, that guy, her brother’s best friend whom she has had a secret crush on since she was eleven years old. Effortlessly charming and handsome, with a body honed by years of playing football, John initiates his charm offensive and Olivia finds herself unable to resist him.

John Hunter is pumped to finish his senior year of college as a football national champion beside his teammate and best friend. The only thing missing is that girl, Olivia Meadows, his best friend’s little sister. He needed to sow some wild oats before settling down with Olivia but now he is ready for something serious with the girl he has always admired. 

Be careful what you wish for. John and Olivia find themselves dealing with adult consequences very quickly and wondering if their young love can endure the pressures of adulthood. Will they find deeper love or implode from the pressures of their own making?

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EXCERPT

  

I spot Marcus in my dad’s hand-me-down Maxima with John in the front seat next to him. Oh jeez. John Hunter. He’s that guy. He’s the stuff of young girls’ dreams and I gave him up long ago by trying to turn my eyes to other guys. The way I see it, it’s like this: 1) he’s Marcus’s best friend and I have no interest in messing up their friendship; 2) he’s not an intentional player but he’s a player just the same; and 3) thank you, but I’ll skip the broken heart, please. I’ve grown up in proximity to this handsome devil for most of my life and he still manages to make my stomach drop when I see him.

It’s such a cliché to say that he’s tall, dark and handsome but clichés work for a reason—they’re inescapable kernels of truth. John is tall at a striking six feet and four inches. He’s dark with his almost-black hair and deep brown eyes. I can’t forget the handsome with his perfectly structured jaw line. Ridiculous. Just by looking at him, I can feel my adrenaline kicking in and the sweat gathering. Great.

I plaster an annoyed look on my face because that’s how we interact with each other. That’s part of our unwritten script. He plays the charming rogue and I play the cynical wallflower who is suspicious of all his kind gestures. He jumps out and does a half-bow. “Madame, your chariot,” he says as he gestures to the front seat.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Natalia is a lifelong reader and lover of romance novels. Before finally tapping away at her keyboard to create her own stories, she tried all sorts of professions: elementary school teacher, barista, seller of make-up, baker, and the list goes on. When she isn't pursuing the arts, she's hanging out with her husband, two wacky children, and full-figured Corgi.

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GIVEAWAY


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The tour dates can be found here

Flawed by Vivian Kohlman (Spotlight, excerpt, review, and GIVEAWAY) GFT

Flawed

by Vivian Kohlman

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GENRE: Contemporary Romance

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BLURB:

That guy—the one that most girls would run away from—captured Kara’s attention and wouldn’t let it go. As expected, he turned out to be a player. So she cut him off.

But he wasn’t done with her yet. He waited until the memory of their start would have been forgotten—at least, softened a bit. Then he returned to her life, and captured her heart.

Finally blissfully happy, they fall in love and decide to make it official…until his past catches up with him and he destroys her again. But this is it…this is the last time she’ll fall for him.

And she keeps telling herself that until she almost believes it.

This book is for mature audiences.

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EXCERPT

Chapter 9

A few minutes later, I heard the door open again.

“That was quick,” I said while shuffling cards, not paying attention to Anna’s return. But it wasn’t Anna. It was Naheed…he walked around the corner, and leaned next to me, putting a hand on the back of my chair.

“You forgot your drink,” he said, setting the drink down in front of me while keeping his hand on the back of my chair, essentially enclosing me in his arms.

“Thank you.” I felt the heat emanating from him and I know my face was bright red. I couldn’t breathe. Butterflies were storming around my stomach.

“You’re welcome. Aren’t you going to even say hello? You’re acting like I’m a stranger.”

“Hello,” I said. I haven’t even looked at him yet. I was avoiding that like the plague. I knew our eyes would lock, just like they used to…and I can’t let this get out of hand.

“So, you’re engaged to Dominik. Why him?”

A slight fit of anger made me look up to Naheed; he’s still standing incredibly close to me.

“Why do you care?”

“Because…he’s not the one for you.”

“Ah, how ironic. That’s what my friends said about you.”

“Yeah, I remember.”

“And you still have a girlfriend…so, I guess things ended up the way they were supposed to.”

I got to him; he looked pissed. He was quiet for a minute…then sat in the chair next to me.

“Kara, I’m with her because you walked away. YOU WALKED AWAY from us,” he said loudly.

“What did you expect me to do?”

 Amazon link

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Vivian Kohlman writes romance novels based on stories of love and loss under the backdrop of Washington, DC. She grew up in Maryland just outside DC, but lived in Los Angeles on and off in her 20's before returning to the Washington, DC area to live out her adult life.

Vivian attended a private university in Washington, DC for undergraduate and graduate school, and lived a very active social life. During her teens and twenties she and her friends lived through a lot of ups and downs—these experiences have fed the stories of this series.

Currently, she loves to travel with her husband and reads or writes romance novels as often as she can. When she’s not writing, she works a fulltime job and enjoys all of the bars, restaurants, and other hot spots of the nation’s capital. Born and raised in the DC metro area, she adores the culture of the city and is passionate about highlighting the city's attributes, lifestyles, and norms—not including politics.

Links

Flawed, Book 1 of the Y&P series (Kara’s story, part 1)

Found, Book 2 of the Y&P series (Kara’s story, part 2)

Let Go, Book 3 of the Y&P series (Billi’s story)

Girls Like Me, Book 4 of the Y&P series (Ava’s story, part 1)

Guys Like You, Book 5 of the Y&P series (Ava’s story, part 2)

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GIVEAWAY

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The tour dates can be found here

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My review:

3.5 out of 5 stars

Flawed: The Story of Kara and Naheed, Part 1 by Vivian Kohlman is the first book in the ‘Young and Privileged of Washington, DC’ series. This contemporary new adult story centers around Kara, whose love life is complicated and angst-filled. Her relationships with the men who capture her heart seem destined for failure but she always has friends to rely upon, even if they sometimes complicate the healing of her bruised emotions. The uncanny connection she feels for a man named Naheed may be mutual but the obstacles to their relationship may be more than they can overcome.

This story gives a glimpse of a hedonistic lifestyle as Kara and her friends party enthusiastically and patronize all of the “in” restaurants, bars, and night clubs. There is plenty of angst and betrayal accompanying this high life, and one can’t help feeling sorry for her even as it becomes apparent that the men in her life adore her but don’t necessarily make wise choices…but then again, neither does she. It is important to realize that this is Part 1, meaning that there is no clear resolution at the end of the story, not even a “happy for now,” therefore this is not technically a romance. Love scenes are off-page and there is a frequent shift between present and past tense, which I found very distracting. Despite this, I was intrigued by the men in Kara’s life—some of whom seem to be real sweethearts while others were definitely not, not to mention her jet-setting ways and ability to party all night and go to work the next day. Those who enjoy angst-filled stories featuring young fashionable twenty-somethings will undoubtedly like this tale but probably should have the sequel ready and waiting to avoid frustration!

A copy of this story was provided to me for review

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Catch My Fall by Jessica Scott (spotlight, excerpt, and review) New Adult tilte

Catch My Fall

part of the Falling series

by Jessica Scott

New Adult contemporary romance/military romance

Blurb:

Former Army Sergeant Deacon Hunter is trapped. 

Trapped in the friend zone. The woman who captured his heart when they were deployed in Iraq has never looked back at the time they stole.

Former Army Sergeant Kelsey Ryder has scars, the kind of scars that no one ever sees, no one ever knows about unless she tells them. Working around the guys at the Pint, she’s reminded of everything she lost when she left the Army behind.

But some scars refuse to stay hidden.

One fateful night changes everything and neither of them know if their relationship will ever be the same.

All Deacon knows is that he’ll be there to catch her when she finally falls.

Excerpt:

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"Are you okay?"

"Mostly." I should present to be a rational adult and have a reasonable conversation. Anything is better than the status quo, right? “I guess…sometimes things get to me that shouldn’t.”

"Yeah. I get that." I look up at her words, the frustration in her voice echoing the tension clawing at my heart, locking the words I need in my chest. “It’s hard, though. To say when something hurts.”

I say nothing for a long moment. Letting her words sink in. Letting their possibility wrap around me.

Then I move. Silent and slow, I back her up against the wall. "You don’t have to be strong all the time," I tell her softly. Her mouth is there, just there. She is soft against me, soft in all the ways I remember.

Soft in a thousand ways that will torture me for the rest of a lifetime.

"Neither do you." She’s goading me tonight. Crossing boundaries I know she’s set in place. I can’t figure out what’s changed. If it’s the fatigue I see in her eyes or the mixture of that with too much to drink. I don’t know.

And part of me doesn’t care. Part of me only cares that she’s here. That her body is pressed to mine. That I’ve penetrated the space around her and she has not pushed me away.

God, this woman is fierce and amazing. She doesn't back down, doesn't break against the threat anyone else would read in my body.

"I will never forget what happened between us in Iraq. Or when we came home." I reach for her then, cupping her face. Sliding my thumb along her full bottom lip. Wanting so badly to taste her. To end this unnecessary distance between us. “But we don’t have to keep suffering alone. Apart. It doesn’t need to be like this.”

And goddamn her, she presses her lips to my thumb. A gentle kiss. A thousand sensual memories slash through me, ripping away any shred of my composure.

It takes everything I have not to lift her, to urge her legs around my hips and grind against her. I'm hard as a fucking stone. I know she can feel me, solid and hard against her.

She's my addiction. The one woman I dream about when I'm with someone else.

And she knows it. She has to know it.

Her barriers hurt us both.

"We spent four weeks together when we got home and I don't remember any of them. Except the nightmares." She cups my face, brushing her lips against mine. "I can't do that again. I can't get lost in the alcohol and the sex. Because it doesn't help me forget. It only makes it worse."

I lower my forehead to hers, her quiet admission gutting me, ripping through me. That’s why she’s kept us apart. That’s why she’s walked away and pretended there was nothing between us.

Her words hurt; they slice at me, reminding me of how fucking self-centered I was when I first got home, wanting to do nothing more than drink and fuck, then drink some more.

I had no idea how much she was hurting. Because I didn’t bother to look.

"I didn’t know." It’s a pitiful confession. So insufficient. I step back then, releasing her from the wall.

Letting her go when it's the last thing I want. She disappears up the stairs, quiet as a ghost.

I lower my forehead to the wooden shelf holding parts of Eli's extensive and very expensive whiskey collection. We're a long fucking way from that bloodstained container where Kelsey used to live.

But we might as well never have left.

A piece of my soul stayed back there, mixed in with the sand and the bullets and the blood.

Forever entwined with hers.

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My review:

Note from ELF: Full review to follow

4.25 out of 5 stars

Catch My Fall by Jessica Scott is part of the new adult contemporary and military romance “Falling” series that centers around a small college town where military veterans are dealing with reintegrating into civilian life and pursuing higher education degrees. As always, the author paints a vivid portrait of the challenges and frustrations of coping with the indelible changes war has imprinted on their bodies and psyches and contrasts the lives of those who have experienced so much with those who are relatively naïve to the horrors of war. This story provides the added twist of pitting the veterans against those who will soon face the challenges that will test their ethics and morality but are not quite ready to hear the truths their more experienced brethren are trying to impart.

This couple (Deacon and Kelsey) also gives a glimpse of the horrendous catch-22 veterans are caught in while dealing with an overburdened VA and struggling to cope with their respective issues. The challenges of having any kind of relationship, let alone an intimate one, is sensitively portrayed and I ached for both of these strong people who are struggling to deal with civilian life. I was particularly struck by the frustration of being a female soldier and trying to work within a system that doesn’t even recognize one’s service, let alone value it.

It was delightful to get glimpses of some of the other characters from the series even as one's emotions are caught up in the struggle as we share in the frustrations, sympathize with the low points, and cheer at the little victories. The realism is sobering and reminds us of the sweeping changes that are needed to help those who have sacrificed so much to keep the rest of us safe. I always enjoy the stories penned by this talented author because she provides such compelling stories with realistic characters and this was no exception. I am particularly anxious to read the next story, especially after devouring the teaser at the end of the book, so I hope she has that one well in hand!

A copy of this title was provided to me for review

Other titles in the series:

                   

After I Fall by Jessica Scott (Release day blast and review) ADULT title

After I Fall
by Jessica Scott
ADULT title


Blurb:
Her entire life has been a lie. Being with Eli is the most honest thing she’s ever done.
Parker Hauser lives the perfect life and knows exactly where she's been and where she's going. Parker has to be perfect. Perfect grades, perfect body, perfect life.
Until she meets Eli Winter.
Eli throws her entire life into chaos when he denies her the one thing she wants from him.
One chance encounter stokes her desire for the man who refused to touch her and left her questioning everything.
When Parker tries to help his new business, the spotlight turns on Eli's military record. And sins from the war he's tried to forget may come back to destroy them both.





Excerpt:

PARKER

I needed to get out of my apartment and away from the creeping sadness that threatened to drown me if I stayed alone one more minute.
Tomorrow, I will find the owner of The Pint. Tomorrow I will figure out how to unfuck my life.
But right now, I’m standing in a closed-in space with a man who looks like a real-life rendition of Jason Momoa, and my panties are currently hosting their own episode of Celebration at the idea of standing just a little bit closer. I should be at the Baywater Country Club drinking top-shelf martinis and celebrating with Kylie and Bethany and Meaghan. But I can't see them tonight. For more than the obvious reasons.
I was planning on drinking myself stupid and forgetting everything about the last twenty-four hours in the human garbage fire that my life has become. It hurts and goddamn it, I'm tired of it hurting. I'm tired of being there for everyone else while I have to smile and look pretty.
Tonight? I thought I wanted the raw pulsing music and the bodies crushed together. I thought I wanted the contact. The distraction.
Don't make a fuss, Parker. Don't say anything to embarrass me, Parker. 
What did you do to deserve it, Parker? Why didn’t you just do what he asked? Why do you always have to argue? 
Anger crawls up my spine and squeezes my throat once more.
For once in my fucking life, I want someone to look at me and see me. Not my father's car, or my not-allowed-to-be-ex-boyfriend's tailored suits.
I want someone to see me. All of me.
I don’t know what I wanted when I left the apartment, but I think I may have just found it.
And the man standing next to me with the dark beard and dark eyes and terrifying tattoos seems like just the guy to take care of everything for a night.
Except that he might be a little too perceptive. I didn't plan on him seeing the bruises on my arm. Guess I need to rethink that career as a makeup artist if my graduate school plans don’t work out.
He's still watching me, a dark intensity in his eyes. An intensity that feels like a brushstroke over my skin.
I wonder what it would feel like to wake up wrapped in those massive arms, to feel those hands run over my skin while I sleep. What it feels like to be really touched instead of just positioned to receive.
My eyes burn, and I blink rapidly. I will not cry about the dumpster fire of my life and the garbage that surrounds me. I didn’t set out to solve anything tonight. I came out to escape. To try and find some release from the trapped air in my apartment.
Instead I think I’ve found a solution in search of a problem.
The Solution is a big man. Rough, too. The kind of man I would expect my father would call to lead the construction on a new project.
It’s his hands, though, that capture my attention. Big and flat and broad. They're a working man’s hands. Not polished. Not cupped in anger.
Just matter-of-fact hands. Hands that would be honest.
Hands that would feel like heaven on my skin.
I look up to find him watching me. I've never physically felt a look before this moment, this lazy caress of a man's gaze moving inch by inch over my skin.
I part my lips. Just enough that he notices. His nostrils flare.
"Careful, little girl." His voice is thick and deep and smooth. Like the gaze still trailing over my body.
"Or what?" I whisper. Kelsey’s voice slides through my brain.
This is foolish. Utterly stupid.
This is power.
And it is exactly what I need tonight. I need to feel needed. Wanted.
Tonight isn't about rational thought. It's about the opposite. About going in blind, completely on instinct.
"I'm not sure you want to find out."
But he has not moved away. He hasn't turned his back on me, and he hasn't dismissed me as some childish twat playing grownup.
God, but those words burn in my ears.
"Maybe I do."
The muscles in his neck bunch beneath the thick beard. "Do you always hit on random men at bars?"
I press my lips together and dare to take a single step closer. "Nope. You'd be my first."
He lifts one brow. "Oh yeah? What's the occasion?" He jerks his chin toward me. "It doesn't have to do with the bruises, does it?"
I lift my glass to my lips. Slowly I part them, letting the ice cube bounce off the tip of my tongue. When I lower it, his eyes are locked on my mouth. "No," I whisper. "It's got nothing to do with them."
Nothing and everything. But he doesn't need to know that. He only needs to take me some place and touch me.
Parker.
Me. I need him to see me.
He moves in then with a quickness that catches me off guard. In an instant, he is right there, right in my space. I can smell the faint, smoky scent of him. Something woodsy and spicy and smoky.
It's all I can do to stay still. To not back down from the challenge he presents in that single breath of space.
"What do you want?" His is a murmured question that feels like a demand.
The single word I need is lodged in my throat. It’s thick and heavy, filled with potential and promise.

"You," I finally say.




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Author information:

Jessica Scott is an Iraq war veteran, an active duty army officer and the USA Today bestselling author of novels set in the heart of America’s Army. She is the mother of two daughters, three cats and three dogs, and wife to a retired NCO.

She is the bestselling author of the Homefront series and the Falling series, both about soldiers and veterans adjusting to life after returning from the wars in Iraq & Afghanistan. Her bestselling Falling series features soldiers integrating into life on college campuses.

She's also written for the New York Times At War Blog, PBS Point of View Regarding War, and IAVA. She deployed to Iraq in 2009 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)/New Dawn and has had the honor of serving as a company commander at Fort Hood, Texas twice.

She's holds PhD in morality in Sociology with Duke University and she's been featured as one of Esquire Magazine's Americans of the Year for 2012.

Jessica is also an active member of the Military Writers Guild.

Her debut novel Because of You launched the return of Random House's Loveswept digital imprint and launched the start of the ever popular contemporary military romance genre. 

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My review:


After I Fall by Jessica Scott is a new adult contemporary romance that is a stand-alone novel that nonetheless connects to others in the ‘Falling’ series. I am always fascinated by an author’s ability to alter the reader’s perception of a character (hopefully for the better, lol) and it was intriguing to get a different perspective of Parker Hauser, since she wasn’t a very personable character in past stories. Watching her battle to be independent and valued for herself was a wonderful evolution that was matched by the gradual unfolding of her relationship with prickly Eli.

This author’s stories are both heartwrenching and inspiring, because they remind the reader of the myriad of ways people can be walking wounded and the paths they can take to cope with the wounds that may or not be visible. I love seeing the contrast between the hard-bitten exterior that houses such a nurturing and caring man as Eli is and the beautiful, intelligent, and underestimated Parker. There are sobering issues addressed in each of this author’s stories, and this one is no exception with its focus on the concepts of abuse, responsibility, sexual harassment, and family pressures. The gradual revelations of the layers of the folks spotlighted in this story remind us that nobody is perfect but true strength of character is demonstrated by how one responds to challenges that could be overwhelming.

I continue to enjoy the stories spun by this talented and prolific author and I am delighted to see that a couple of the striking secondary characters in this story will get their own time in the spotlight soon. I can’t wait to find out more about them and hopefully revisit some of my favorite folks from this compelling series.

A copy of this title was provided to me for review.