Sportscaster 'Plain Jane' Alexander was a late bloomer. Back in the day, she blended into the background, content to watch from the sidelines while Grayson Pierce soaked up the spotlight. Content until he broke her heart. Bitter, hurt and angry Jane did the college thing, came out of her shell, and never looked back. Grayson loves baseball. It was his pastime in high school, his passion in college, and now ... his career. However baseball isn't the only thing in Grayson's heart. The problem is that Grayson has the reputation as a bad-boy. He likes fast cars and loose women and expensive liquor. All things that make him deplorable in Jane's eyes, throw in his hot and cold attitude and she is ready to scream. When the promise of an exclusive interview brings a very reluctant Jane to Grayson's home, she realizes that not everything is as it appears.
How often do you get to text the author of a book the day you get it in the mail… signed by her? Not too often for me, but in this case I got to do just that. I am so honored to consider Morgan one of my great friends and promise not to have too much bias in this review… maybe!
I think that we can all relate to being someone who feels looked over by the hot guy. Jane Alexander experiences the same thing only hers comes back to face her high school problems when she least expects it. She has recreated herself and avoided Grayson Pierce up until now, but it seems that fate has something else in mind for Jane. Grayson seems to be your typical self-obsessed jock yet Jane can see a different side of him and yearns to let everyone else see that. Every time she sees a redeeming quality within him, he does something to shoot it down and remind her why she has avoided him all these years.
The plot, characters, twists and turns and especially the romance are sure to keep you turning page after page until you get to the end and are dying for more. In Morgan’s second novel you are left with a great sense of who the characters are and feel as if they are your long lost friends just as you did with her debut novel Fade to Black. Another great read!!
You can purchase Morgan’s book HERE and she will even sign it!! Enjoy all!
Can a rookie cop survive the men who cross her path in the NYPD?
When a psychic in a shopping mall tells Rita Del Vecchio that she is "destined for greatness," and she will "marry a man in uniform," the restless, wet-behind-the-ears, 22 year-old decides to finally take control of her life. Rita sets out on a quest to become a New York City Police Officer. But can a spry, feisty, single woman thrive in the gritty world of New York's Finest?
Leaving behind the suburbs of New Jersey and a job as an under-tipped waitress, Rita Del Vecchio hangs up her apron and ballet slippers for a bullet-proof vest. But will she wear it? And if she does, will it protect her on the mean streets of Manhattan? Can it also protect her from Cupid’s arrows if they should land amiss?
Rita is assigned to the New York City Transit Police Squad and gets more than she bargained for. Riding the Lexington Avenue Subway Line, Rita winds up meeting not one man in uniform, but many. Whom will she love?
Rita Del Vecchio is probably one of my new favorite characters. She’s a tough as nails girl who goes through the craziness life offers her and winds up finding herself in one of the least likely places... herself! This fast-paced novel kept me on my toes the entire read and I couldn’t put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. Multiple points of view tell us the story and that was great because we are able to see all sides of the story. There were parts where I wanted to scream at Rita for things that I as a reader knew about and that is a testament of great writing!
Being from the south, I don’t know much about the NYPD and this book definitely taught me some. Although there are many things that are particular to NY it was refreshing to read a plot that gives us insight into something we all probably know is there and yet don’t discuss: corruption, abuse and power. These topics are gracefully addressed though Kathleen’s plot and resolved within it. Kathleen’s fresh writing brings many things to light while keeping readers on their toes to see what is going to happen next with Rita. All in all, a great read that I am sure you will enjoy too!
I am lucky enough to have Kathleen herself today with a guest post and even a writing challenge!! Make sure you check out the bottom too. Without further ado…
Celebrate Independence Day Through Writing
You never know how a writer is born or where a story will come from...
Are you familiar with the work of suspense/thriller writer Mary Higgins Clark? She has had a long career and has written more than 40 books that have gone to become International Best Sellers. She used to live in my town. I was ten years-old when her first novel was released, Where are the Children? She set the book right in our hometown - even used the local lake as the crime scene. It was so exciting to know that this woman, who lived only a few blocks away, had followed her dream of becoming a published author and had shaped that dream into a reality.
Her success encouraged me to keep writing stories of my own. For more than 20 years, I have written and contributed short fiction and essays to magazines and anthologies and several of my plays have been staged and performed regionally and off-Broadway. Recently, my first novel was published, IN TRANSIT. It's a woman-in-jeopardy story about Rita Del Vecchio, a rather naive 20-something girl from New Jersey who feels stalled in her life. When a psychic in a shopping mall tells her that she is "destined for greatness" and she will "marry a man in uniform," it sets her on a course to take the NYPD exam. She ultimately becomes a New York City Transit Police Officer, patrolling the subway system. She does meet a man in uniform--she meets many men, actually--but will she marry the right man in uniform? You'll have to read the book to learn more...
Real life has always served as a springboard for me in writing fiction. Rita, the protagonist of IN TRANSIT, is very loosely based on a friend I've had since high school who did become a New York City Transit Cop. When she was in her early 20s, she sat for the New York City Police Exam and when she passed, she gave up her job as an early childhood educator (and her second job as a waitress) and completely transformed her life. I found her story so amazing that I took that premise and used it as a launch pad for my novel, IN TRANSIT. I took the preliminary facts of my friend's life and skewed the variables until I created a fictionalized, much more dramatic world than the one my friend was actually living.
That's what writing is - it's paying attention to the stories of peoples' lives...and everyone has a story. If you listen to people, really listen, they will tell you their stories. And your job, if you're a fiction writer, is to try to give meaning and form to those stories - by taking creative liberties. In the case of my novel, IN TRANSIT, I let my imagination lead me into a story that snowballs into something much more ominous and harrowing than Rita ever expected... innocence gone astray; secrets, lies and double lives; and how sometimes the choices we make have life-altering consequences.
Writing Challenge: Think about the people in your own life. What do you know about them - are they courageous, successful; are they heroes or are they riddled with failure? What stories have they told you? What stories have you heard about them, even through the grape vine? What don't you know about them that you wish you did? If you mine that terrain, there might be a great story waiting to be told. Start by writing what you know about a person or place and then let your imagination fill in the gaps of what you don't know...You'll be surprised at where things might lead.
To learn more about Kathleen Gerard and the story-behind-the-story of IN TRANSIT---and Kathleen's writing process--be sure to tune in to the cyber-book tour, stopping daily at different book blogs throughout the month of July... Check it out here!
Copyright 2011 by Kathleen Gerard. All Rights Reserved.
Now that you have a challenge, don’t you need somewhere to start writing? I think so!! Fill out THIS FORM to be entered to win a classy notebook created by yours truly to keep all of your thoughts in. Leave comments too and let me know who popped into your head as you read Kathleen’s challenge. They will be bonuses!! Good luck and happy writing!!
I am lucky enough to announce that I have not one, but TWO winners for Felix J. Palma's The Map of Time. Using Random.org to select the winners, congrats go out to...
Nan
and
Kayla L
Congratulations to both of you. I have sent you both an email!
Don't forget that I have another giveaway going on right now for Jay Ashers novel Thirteen Reasons Why that ends on July 7th. Check it out here.
In a single moment, everything changes. Seventeen year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall riding along the snow-wet Oregon road with her family. Then, in a blink, she finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken from the wreck...
A sophisticated, layered, and heart-achingly beautiful story about the power of family and friends, the choices we all make - and the ultimate choice Mia commands.
I have to admit that this book has been on my shelf for quite a while but I just haven’t gotten around to reading it. I have no clue why now. This novel was so beautifully written that I could not put it down for fear that I would miss something or get out of the zone. The accident changes Mia’s life in ways seventeen year olds rarely experience and she is forced with the decision of a lifetime… literally.
I couldn’t get away from the plot of the novel or the characters. Mia’s character was so well written that readers will feel as if she is a real person and a friend you are reading about. Mia introduces us to the other characters in the novel with her flashbacks and allows us to see into her life before the accident. Her parents have to be the most laid back parents ever but we find out why that is… they are a product of the music! I loved them. I could picture her little brother so vividly with his bouncy personality and blond curls. Mia also points out that she is different from them in many ways (from the dark hair to the classical music) but knows that there is a bond between her family that supersedes all of those differences.
As a writing teacher I am constantly reading to pull examples to show my students what good writing is. This is a novel my students will be seeing quite a bit of next year. Forman’s creative use of word choice creates characters whom are beyond real, a plot which is unlike any I have read before and shows how relationships play a definite role in our lives. Take a look at this portion:
The car is eviscerated.The impact of a four-ton pickup truck going sixty miles an hour plowing straight into the passenger side had the force of an atom bomb.It tore off the doors, sent the front-side passenger seat through the driver’s-side window.It flipped the chassis, bouncing it across the road and ripped the engine apart as if it were no stronger than a spiderweb.It tossed wheels and hubcaps deep into the forest.It ignited bits of the gas tank, so that now tiny flames lap at the wet road. p. 13
The imagery, figurative language and pure beauty of this section are astounding as are the rest of the novel.
Luckily, I have the second novel in the series right on my shelf (and actually I already started reading it) and will see where the story takes me next. I cannot wait.
Visit Gayle HERE and follow her on twitter (@gayleforman). You can also visit the site for the novel HERE.
I am a middle school Reading teacher and coach, an avid reader and book lover, a mom to Kylie and Jaxon, wife to Chris, and am dedicated to getting the good books in the hands of others!
