Review: The Hazards of Sex On The Beach by Alyssa Rose Ivy

Title: The Hazards of Sex on the Beach 
Series: Hazards #3
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy
Genre: NA Contemporary Romance
Pages: 225
Format: E-Book
Received: For Review
Published: July 19th 2014
Stars: 5/5

Book Description:
One broken heart, one drink too many, one steamy night in the sand... 

No one warns you about the dangers of drinking with a broken heart. At least no one warned me. I never imagined I'd fall for a musician, especially not one like Chase, but then again I never expected to have my heart broken into a million pieces by the frat guy I thought was the love of my life. 

Sometimes it's the rash decisions, like hooking up in the sand, that lead you to the best places—the kinds of places where it's possible to let yourself fall in love again.

Goodreads | Amazon| Barnes & Noble

Review of The Hazards of Skinny Dipping (Currently Free on Amazon)

Review of The Hazards of a One Night Stand

Review:
Alyssa Rose Ivy has quickly crept into my favorite authors list. I am in love with the Hazards series and I am praying that this isn't the last book. I adored this book and I think it is my favorite of the series. The Hazards of Sex on the Beach is a funny fast paced cute new adult contemporary romance that is still full of steamy moments.

The Hazards series is made up of companion novels that do not need to be read in sequential order. I would know because I read book 2, 3 and then 1. These books follow the same group of friends,  but each book follows one girl as they fall in love.

Cara and Chase's love story has definitely been my favorite. Cara wasn't a character that has been delved into much in  the other books and I loved seeing her more. She definitely grew in this book and I loved how this relationship was more than just a college girl falls for frat boy, there was more to the other ones but they all really had that. Chase is older and a musician which makes this Hazards book feel more mature and older. Cara is definitely not as whiny a character, but she has her insecurities that any girl would have with a guy on tour.

I loved that this series still continues on chronologically for readers who are reading the series straight through because you  get to see the characters from the other books and see how those relationships are turning out. This book you see Cara and her now ex-boyfriend which we had seen as this happy couple in the other books.

I need to read more of Alyssa Rose Ivy's books. She is now an auto-buy author for me. I hope this series continues because I would love to read about these characters more.

Check out my review of Flight by Alyssa Rose Ivy.
A Paranormal Romance that fans of the Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout would love.
Stars: 4/5

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FanFiction to Novel: A Discussion

This is a new post that I want to do. Just plain old discussions that come to my mind. You can definitely leave suggestions for discussion posts. I am really excited to just talk. 

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: FANFICTION TO NOVEL

Fanfiction:

Urban Dictionary definition of Fanfiction is  when someone takes either the story or characters (or both) of a certain piece of work, whether it be a novel, tv show, movie, etc, and create their own story based on it. Sometimes people will take characters from one movie and put them in another, which is called a cross-over. 

My Experience with FanFiction:

After I read the Twilight Saga, I was obsessed with fanfiction. This is before I started reading a lot of YA books. I was looking for something similar to Twilight because I was so addicted to reading. I started reading Twilight fanfic on Twilighted.net and then went to Fanfiction.net. 

Fanfiction comes in all shapes and sizes just like regular books. Some are way better than others and it isn't all crazy and extreme. I remember staying up late into the night reading fanfiction. I feel really nostalgic even thinking about this. 

I occasionally read fanfiction but I just can't find really good Twilight fanfic anymore. You can find fanfiction for pretty much any fandom. 

Fanfiction to Novel:

Recently there have been tons of fanfiction that got book deals and are now novels for you to purchase. Whether the story appeals to me or not, I think this is fantastic. Writers who wrote for fun and because they were so passionate about a fandom that they wanted to add to it are able to make a living off of something they did as a hobby. 

For the original creator though I think this may be a problem. I think it does infringe on some copyright for the author because their characters and world are being used to inspire another story. At the same time if the fanfiction is AU (alternate universe) in which only the characters are used from the original story than it is less of an infringement. 

I have read several fanfiction stories that were published. I don't remember reading these stories in their entirety when they were fanfics though. 

GENERAL OPINION:

I think it is a great opportunity for fanfiction writers to get their stories published because most of the fanfic is entirely their creation. For the original content author, I think there needs to be some changes in the edits where the publisher is concerned in changed the fanfiction to a novel to avoid infringing on the creation of that author.

Example: 50 Shades Trilogy by E. L James v. Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

 50 Shades retains a majority of similarities to Twilight except it has a completely new plot and character names whereas Wallbanger was less obvious that it was once Twilight fanfic and strayed a lot from the details of the original.

Here are some Fanfiction to Novels that you may or may not know:

50 Shades of Grey by E.L James

Probably the most known FanFiction that was published. It was originally called Master of the Universe. It will be a movie Feb. 2015. I think this goes to show that fangirling and being passionate about a fandom can turn into something more.

Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren

This is actually written by two women and their pen name is their two first names. I had read most of this fanfiction and I had started the novel, but never finished reading not because I didn't like it but because I remembered the fanfic. Christina Lauren published an entire Beautiful Bastard series and are now publishing a YA novel titled Sublime that is due to release in the coming year.

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

I recently read and reviewed this book and if you would like to know my thoughts on it you can go check it out HERE.

On a different direction: How punny Dana!

After by Anna Todd
A One Direction Harry Styles Fanfiction was picked up by Simon & Schuster and will be coming out in November. I am pretty sure the movie rights were picked up as well.


Questions for Discussion:

1. What do you think of Fanfiction being published?
2. Have you read any Fanfiction?
3. Does publishing fanfiction infringe on the content created by the original author? (Whether it is legal or not. Do you think it is wrong?)

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Review: Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

Title: Wallbanger
Series: Cocktail #1
Author: Alice Clayton
Genre: NA / Adult  Contemporary Romance 
Pages: 384
Format: E-Book
Received: Purchased
Published February 14th 2013 by Gallery Books
Stars: 4/5 

Book Description:
Caroline Reynolds has a fantastic new apartment in San Francisco, a Kitchen Aid mixer to die for, and no O (and we’re not talking Oprah here, folks). She has a flourishing design career, an office overlooking the bay, a killer zucchini bread recipe, and no O. She has Clive (the best cat ever), great friends, a great rack, and no O. Adding insult to O-less, she also has an oversexed neighbor with the loudest late-night wallbanging she’s ever heard. Every moan, spank, and—was that a meow?—punctuates the fact that not only is she losing sleep, she still has—yep, you guessed it—no O. Enter Simon Parker. When the wallbanging threatens to literally bounce her out of bed, Caroline, clad in sexual frustration and a pink baby-doll nightie, confronts her heard-but-never-seen neighbor. Their late-night hallway encounter has…well…mixed results. Because with walls this thin, the tension’s gonna be thick. A delicious mix of silly and steamy, this is an irresistible tale of exasperation at first sight.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble 

Review:

Wallbanger is a hilarious romance novel that I read extremely quick. I read this book on a whim and I am so glad that I did. I had heard about this book and it had sounded so familiar to something I had read. It turns out that Wallbanger was originally a Twilight Fanfiction and when Twilight was huge I was obsessed especially with the fanfiction. If you are looking for a fun new adult/ adult romance story along the lines of Losing It by Cora Cormack that has a great combination of humor and steaminess then you need to check out this book. 

Caroline is a great narrator and a breath of fresh air in this genre. I think contemporary romance is full of females who are slightly weaker characters. I prefer females who kickass and don't care who they offend. Caroline has no filter and I love her for that. Wallbanger or Simon is a great love interest. He had his cocky moments, but the way he justified himself and the more you delve into his character you can't help but fall in love with him.

I definitely want to continue on with this series and read more of Alice Clayton's books because of her writing. I love how funny this book is. There are some hysterical embarrassing moments that you can't read with out literally laughing out loud.

I have read several books that started out as Twilight fanfiction. I love that Wallbanger is so very different from Twilight. I was able to pick out which characters were based on twilight characters, but other than that there wasn 't much that I could recognize from it. 

The only thing I wasn't a fan of was the "O" thing. I think a few times it was funny, but it was over used and after awhile it was very grating on my nerves. I don't think it should have been referenced so many times. Personification in this case just didn't work.  

If you want a fun romance novel then you need to check out Wallbanger by Alice Clayton. 

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Summer Blogger Promo Tour Featuring Caught Read Handed

The Summer Blogger Promo Tour was created by The Book Bratz as a fun way to promote blogs and make blogger friends. 

Stefani has traveled a lot and when I say a lot I mean she has visited the majority of the states and she has been to the UK. I asked her to pick some books set in the UK that she loved the setting of!

Stefani:
Hi guys! Dana and I were discussing all the places I’ve been (3/4 of the States and five countries – Scotland, England, Ireland, Spain, and Italy) and she asked me to tell you about some of my favorite books set in those places. So today I’m giving you six of my favorite books set in places I’ve been (aka set in the UK –I haven’t read many books set in the other countries I’ve been) and two of my favorite books set in places I hope to visit one day.


Places I’ve been (aka I love the UK):

The Falls or any other book by Ian Rankin (he’s my favorite author) – Set mostly in Scotland, the Inspector Rebus series (of which The Falls is #12) is absolutely amazing and the setting becomes another character in the novels, which is super cool. The Falls is the first book out of the series I read and it is also my favorite. Edinburgh is my favorite place in the whole world, so reading books that are set there is something I really love, and when the city becomes a character that feels so real even when you aren’t there, you know it’s a good book. It really gives you a sense of the place and you feel like you really get to know Edinburgh.

The Humans by Matt Haig – if you have ever checked out my blog, chances are you’ve seen me recommend this book. I usually do it about once a week (if not more). It is an incredible book, set in Cambridge, England, and it makes you appreciate being alive and human. I never actually visited Cambridge, but I’ve been to several other places in England. I enjoyed reading about Cambridge.



The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon – Read this book. Just do it. K thanks bye.

Peter Pan by JM Barrie – My favorite story. The last time I was in London (which was the fourth time I’d been), I was FINALLY able to visit the Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens. I took about a hundred pictures and looked at everything on it for a long time (there are so many cool things – squirrels, bunnies, fairies, mice…). I loved it and I was very happy while I was there.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson – Essential reading if you want to read books set in the UK. Such a great book. I find it fascinating that there is a debate on whether or not this book is set in Edinburgh or London. RLS was Scottish, but most people think this book is set in London.


A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness – Please make sure you read the edition with the illustrations (I honestly don’t understand the point of the edition with no illustrations). It is gorgeous. Set in England. You don’t get much sense of the setting other than the story is quite British (imo).

Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh – This book is written in Scottish dialect and set in Leith, which is part of Edinburgh. It’s pretty difficult to read at first but once you get used to it, you (at least I) can hear the characters actually speaking with a Scottish accent and it’s incredible. You get such a perfect sense of the city as it was in the 90s; it was cool to be able to go to Leith when I was living in Scotland and see all the changes that have been made since then. So cool.

 Honorable mentions: the Harry Potter series, the Sherlock Holmes stories, and did I say ALL of Ian Rankin’s books?

Places I want to go:
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion – Australia is somewhere I’ve always hoped to go. I ADORE this book with everything I have.

 Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins – I’ve always wanted to visit Paris (who doesn’t?) and I especially want to after reading this book. Such a sweet book. I loved being able to see Paris through Anna’s eyes because she’d never been there either. I think if I ever went, I’d try to go to all the places that Anna went; I think that’d be a lot of fun. I love traveling and I can’t wait to see where I go next.

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Book Blitz: Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

Let's Get Lost

by Adi Alsaid

Release Date: 07/29/14

Harlequin Teen

Summary from Goodreads:

Five strangers. Countless adventures. One epic way to get lost.

Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named LEILA. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most.

There's HUDSON, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And BREE, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. ELLIOT believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And SONIA worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love.

Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila's own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth— sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you're looking for is to get lost along the way.

Pre-Order Today!
Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Indie Bound * Harlequin.com

Early Praise:

“Reminiscent of John Green’s Paper Towns and road trip novels that feature a teen paving the way to adulthood, Alsaid’s debut is a gem among contemporary YA novels.” – School Library Journal

“Five love stories, beautifully woven together by a special girl in search of adventure, hope, and full appreciation of life’s simple pleasures. A do-not-miss.  ” – Justine Magazine

“Moving and poignant.”  - Glitter Magazine

“An entertaining and romantic road-trip debut.” – Kirkus

"Leila's quest to find the Northern Lights takes readers on a captivating cross-country journey, where four strangers' adventures collide into one riveting tale of finding yourself." ―YABooksCentral.com

“This will likely be a popular summer hit, especially for older teen about to embark on their own journeys of self-discovery.” –Booklist

What Inspires Me to Write

I think people will never tire of asking this question of authors because we never tire of the answer, which, as far as I know, always has been and always will be: Everything.

If life in its entirety did not inspire us to write, we wouldn’t be writers. Obviously, we don’t walk around constantly inspired by every little thing around us, because that would make us go insane. But the reason that stories keep getting churned out, published or unpublished, it’s because writers can find inspiration anywhere, in any little detail of life, at any time, whether we like it or not.

The difference, of course, is how that inspiration gets turned into a story, what each writer connects to and finds worthy of writing about. In the little Q&A that included in a flap in the amazing-looking ARC of Let’s Get Lost, I said that what usually does it for me is people. To delve a little further, I think most of my writing is inspired by the need to explore the connections between people.

The muse itself, whatever catalyst sets me off exploring those connections in a story, well that can be absolutely anything. A little scene from daily life, a reaction to another story. An overheard line of dialogue, a dream, thin air. A bush, or a guy walking past a bush, or the guy’s bushy beard, or the thought of a world without bushes or beards or guys and how the people in that world would interact with one another, and maybe of just one teen living within that world.

 

There’s a story in everything, it only requires an author to come along and think so.

About the Author
Adi Alsaid was born and raised in Mexico City, then studied at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. While in class, he mostly read fiction and continuously failed to fill out crossword puzzles, so it's no surprise that after graduating, he did not go into business world but rather packed up his apartment into his car and escaped to the California coastline to become a writer. He's now back in his hometown, where he writes, coaches high school and elementary basketball, and has perfected the art of making every dish he eats or cooks as spicy as possible. In addition to Mexico, he's lived in Tel Aviv, Las Vegas, and Monterey, California. A tingly feeling in his feet tells him more places will eventually be added to the list. Let's Get Lost is his YA debut.  
Let's Get Lost Website!

Author Links:

   

***GIVEAWAY***

1 signed hard cover copy of Let’s Get Lost

1 Let’s Get Lost luggage tag

1 Harlequin TEEN notebook

1 Let’s Get Lost sachel

1 Harlequin TEEN tote bag

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Blitz Organized by:

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Release Day Launch: The Hazards of Sex on the Beach by Alyssa Rose Ivy

 

We are so excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Alyssa Rose Ivy's THE HAZARDS OF SEX ON THE BEACH! THE HAZARDS OF SEX ON THE BEACH is a contemporary romance and is a part of Alyssa Rose Ivy’s Hazards Series. It is priced at just $.99 right now. This will last for a limited time only to celebrate the release! This book, y'all. Holy cow.

   

Amazon | Nook | Itunes | Kobo | Google Play

THE HAZARDS OF SEX ON THE BEACH
Synopsis: One broken heart, one drink too many, one steamy night in the sand... No one warns you about the dangers of drinking with a broken heart. At least no one warned me. I never imagined I'd fall for a musician, especially not one like Chase, but then again I never expected to have my heart broken into a million pieces by the frat guy I thought was the love of my life. Sometimes it's the rash decisions, like hooking up in the sand, that lead you to the best places—the kinds of places where it's possible to let yourself fall in love again.

  THE HAZARDS OF SEX ON THE BEACH 
Excerpt: He took a strand of my hair and studied it. “Is this your natural color?” “Yes.” He dropped the strand. “I’ve never dated a girl with blonde hair.” “Well, you’re not dating me.” He gently brushed his fingers down my bare arm. “No, but I want to kiss you.” “Then kiss me.” I was used to pushy guys. The kind that knew what they wanted and took it. “Okay.” He smiled before leaning in. The kiss was hesitant at first, the kind of kiss that gets your whole body excited because you know there’s more to come. I waited—hoping he’d take it further. His hand slid just under the hem of my shirt, brushing against my skin. The touch was light, but it was still enough to get a response out of me. I moaned. That must have been what he was waiting for. He deepened the kiss, pushing into my mouth with such force I was taken by surprise. I kissed him back, enjoying the sweet taste of his mouth, and the way his hand slowly inched its way up my stomach. Blazer moved from zero to sixty. I didn’t mind it. I moved onto his lap, welcoming the arm he put around me to pull me closer. I wrapped my arms around his neck. His hand moved higher, cupping my breast over my bra. I was drunk and hot, and so turned on I was going to lose it. That’s when the door to the roof opened. The loud laughter of a group of girls pulled me half out of my lustful stupor. “Want to go for a walk?” His question was asking something else entirely. I knew that when I answered with an enthusiastic yes. Blazer held my hand as we made our way through the crowds. I looked briefly for Gabriella, but I didn’t see her. The normal Cara would have called her to tell her I was leaving with a random guy—but was Blazer random? We had chatted for hours already. Before I could worry about it long, we were walking along the dark and nearly vacant beach. It was January on the South Carolina coast, and the crowds were months away. “You never told me your name.” He said it as a statement as he led me further away from the party. “Cara.” “Hi, Cara. I’m Chase.” I smiled. “Isn’t it a little late for introductions?” I stopped and turned toward the ocean. “It’s never too late.” He drew something on my arm with his finger. The sensation felt good. I closed my eyes. “You look so gorgeous. The moonlight, that look on your face.” I opened my eyes and his face was inches from mine. “If you’ve never dated a blonde, does that mean you’ve never had sex with one?” “Why? Are you looking to change that?” His eyes were lidded. “I’d like to.” I slipped a finger into the waistband of his jeans. “Should we go back to my hotel room, or do you have one?” He looked down. “I’m going to be honest here. I haven’t done this before.” “Please don’t tell me you’re a virgin.” That would be just my luck. He laughed. “No. Not saying that at all. I just don’t generally hook up with girls I’ve just met.” “At least you know my name.” “I do know your name, don’t I, Cara?” Something happened to me when he said my name. I needed him. I reached up again, wrapping my arms around him. I crushed my lips into his. We came up for air only after ending up horizontal on the sand. He laughed. “Or we can just pick things up right here.”

  Alyssa Rose Ivy Bio: Alyssa Rose Ivy is a New Adult and Young Adult author who loves to weave stories with romance and a southern setting. Although raised in the New York area, she fell in love with the South after moving to New Orleans for college. After years as a perpetual student, she turned back to her creative side and decided to write. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and two young children, and she can usually be found with a cup of coffee in her hand.

     

Twitter | Author Goodreads | Pinterest | Website | THE HAZARDS OF SEX ON THE BEACH Goodreads | Facebook

 

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#SummerBloggerPromoTour Feauturing @YAClubBlog Aka The Breakfast Club @TheBookBratz

The Summer Blogger Promo Tour was created by The Book Bratz as a fun way to promote blogs and make blogger friends. 

Welcome the lovely ladies over at The YA Club who are based on the movie The Breakfast Club. 

The YA Club's guest post features YA books that go well with the stereotype of each character from The Breakfast Club as well as a few extra from their blog that also match each of them as picked by E. M Caines. 

From E. M Caines:

The YA Club started late one night when L.S. Murphy and I were talking about starting up a blog. We tossed a bunch of ideas out there, but what we ultimately came up with was something like The Breakfast Club, a collection of different people (writers, in our case) who come from different walks of life and hung out in different circles but who all had way more in common than they anyone would have guessed.

So for the Summer Blogger Tour, Dana asked me to pick a book that represents each of us. And since each of us is kind of our own archetype, this was tres fun. =)

So here goes:

THE PRINCESS

= E. M Caines

YA BOOK - Secrets of My Hollywood Life by Jen Canolita

THE BASKETCASE

= L. S Murphy 

YA BOOK - The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

THE ARTIST

= Precy Larkins

YA BOOK - Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

THE BAND NERD

= Rebecca Hackett

YA Book - Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist 

THE CRIMINAL

= L.C Walker 

YA BOOK - The Outsider by S. E Hinton

THE OVERACHIEVER

= Robin Hall 

YA BOOK - The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

THE BRAIN

= Amanda Burkhard 

YA BOOK - Conversion by Katherine Howe

THE ATHLETE

= Andrea Jackson

YA BOOK - Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog! Please go check out their blog, they have some amazing posts there!!

And I leave you with some amazing gifs!

And Have A Nice Day!!

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Review + Interview: Madly, Deeply by Erica Crouch {Giveaway}

Title: Madly, Deeply
Author: Erica Crouch 
Genre: NA Paranormal Romance/ Retelling
Pages: 209 
Format: E-ARC/E-Book
Received: For Review from Publisher/ I also purchased the E-Book
Published: June 17th 2014 by Patchwork-Press
Stars: 5/5

Book Description:
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea...

Annaleigh Wells and William Calloway had a love even the angels envied. It was as if the universe spun them toward one another, like the stars crafted their souls to fit perfectly together.

With a wedding on the horizon, fate had a change of heart. Whispered warnings from phantoms and morbid nightmares darkened every night—but even visions of the future couldn’t save Annaleigh.

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s poem Annabel Lee, Crouch’s period romance Madly, Deeply tells the tale of love so great, it cannot be contained in just one life.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Review:

I don't think I can fully express in words how much I love this story, it just isn't possible. I haven't cried this much while reading a book in a long time. This is also a really short book which makes the amount of tears that fell on my e-reader even more astonishing. 

Thank you, Erica, for all of these feels!

Madly, Deeply by Erica Crouch is a retelling of Edgar Allen Poe's poem Annabel Lee. Annabelle Lee is one of my favorite poems. I knew going into Madly, Deeply that it was going to be sad; I didn't expect the gut-wrenching emotion that I went through.

ALL BY MYSELF. DON'T WANT TO BE ALL BY MYSELF. 

The writing was stunning and gorgeous; perfectly matching the era. I think I have come to love Erica's beautiful prose the most about her novels. I want to purchase the paperback just to flag all of my favorite quotes! The writing just made the romance even more all consuming for me. Annaleigh and William have this soul mate type love and you never actually see them fall in love, that happened before the start of the novel. Despite not seeing how they feel in love it still pulled and exploded my heart with so many feelings.

This is how I felt after reading. 

This story has ghosts, love, and will leave you with a heartache that you won't believe. Madly, Deeply is ethereal and beautiful, but unbelievably sad. It is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year so far. If you are a fan of Annabel Lee, then you must read this. When you know the ending of a book will be sad and your heart gets ripped into pieces anyway, it has to be amazing.

You need to read this book. It is a fast read that you will fall in love with. GO FORTH AND FEEL ALL THE FEELS!!! P.S It is only $0.99, even more reason to go and read it!

Interview: 

What inspired the story?

I’d known for a while I wanted to write a Victorian ghost story. I thought combining the eery feeling of ghosts stories with that era would be really stunning — gothic writing already has a dark mystery to it! So when I began plotting a story for the Patchwork Press anthology (which this was originally supposed to be a part of), I started with the idea of a ghost haunting a boy who she fell in love with. The story remolded itself a couple of times before I landed on the plot that I did, and then based it on my favorite Edgar Allan Poe poem, Annabel Lee, which is a wealth of inspiration in and of itself.

When did you know this was no longer a short story for the anthology?

I think about halfway through. The anthology story was supposed to be between 15-25k, but I was only a few chapters in and nearly at the lower end of the word count goal. I originally thought that I could just keep writing and then go back to cut it down in edits, but once I started revisions, I found nothing that I could cut. Not that there wasn’t anything I wanted to cut (because I know sometimes you have to kill your darlings), but the story didn’t want to condense. So, with the encouragement of Kellie Sheridan, I ended up expanding it, and giving it the room it wanted to breathe.

How was writing this different from Ignite/Entice?

Wow, in so many ways. The story is completely different — in setting, tone, and characters. It’s not so action based, but it’s still dark. I think, in some ways, it’s darker than Ignite/Entice, maybe just because of its subtlety. There is more of a slow build to the “big event” in Madly, Deeply. I think the biggest difference is that Madly, Deeply is more focused on character while Ignite/Entice is more focused on plot, if that makes sense. It’s also much more romance-themed. Not to say that Ignite doesn’t have romance, but it’s not the focus of the story. I think both Ignite/Entice and Madly, Deeply are about love (family love and romantic love), loss, and survival.

What is one line from the story that you adore, above all the rest?

Ah, a tough one. I don’t think I have any one absolute favorite line (at least not one single line). I do have a lot of favorite scenes/moments… But if I had to pick, I think I really love this line: “He studied her like a blind man who had been gifted temporary sight, as if this were the first time he was seeing her and he’d never get another chance to behold her again.”

What are the new titles that are in the works?

The next title coming out will be the Patchwork Press anthology, where I have a short story involving séances and murder. Right now, I’m writing Incite which I’m hoping to keep on schedule to come out this fall. And of course, I have the new adult sci-fi series I’m writing (Cut, book one of the Undying series) and the Robin Hood re-telling!

Is there any advice you think every writer should hear?

You’re allowed to suck, and you will get better if you work at it. I think writers put so much pressure on themselves to be perfect. To write that perfect first draft, to release that perfect final draft. It’s not going to happen. Your first draft could be terrible, but you get so many tries to revise it, so don’t let that stop you from writing! And even if you love your final product, there will be someone who doesn’t. That’s okay! REALLY! It might not be their cup of tea. People have different tastes, and just because someone doesn’t like reading your book, doesn’t mean it’s not great. I also really think writing takes a ton of practice and thought. Be thinking about your stories when you’re not writing on it — always be working on something. Don’t let your writing muscles atrophy!

Is there a genre that you are afraid to write?

Hmmm… I don’t think so! I really want to write in every genre. I get bored working on one thing and I feel that boxing myself in to just one genre would drive me mad. I don’t think I’d be afraid to try everything — though I can’t say I won’t be nervous for certain until I’ve actually tried everything once!

If you were to fancast, who would play the three main characters?

I actually just wrote a post on my blog about the Madly, Deeply fancast! I never had a set of celebrities in mind when I went to write Madly, Deeply — and if it became a movie, I’d imagine the cast being filled with unknowns (there’s only so many times you can see the same actress play a book-to-movie role). So my three picks are relatively new/inexperienced, but I think they’d do a fantastic job:

Gabriella Wilde as Annaleigh Wells

Ben Barnes as William Calloway

Emily Rudd as Mary Calloway

What book have you cried the most while reading?

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (obviously) got me. But so did the ending of Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare. I remember crying hysterically watching The Book Thief movie, and I think it was nearly as bad as it was when I read the book! I’d call it a three-way tie.

What is your current read?

I’m jumping between two books right now: Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson and Fragments (Partials #2) by Dan Wells.

What is a great summer read that you would recommend?

The Throne of Glass series is spectacular! I absolutely loved the first book, and I just finished reading Crown of Midnight (book two) a few weeks ago. It was just… I don’t even have the words to describe how much I love it. I can’t wait until the next book comes out this fall!

What can we expect next from Patchwork Press?

A few new authors are joining the Patchwork Press team next year, so I feel like we’ll be getting a lot more diversity in our catalogue! The anthology, as I mentioned, will be coming out soon. I also will be releasing Incite, and an omnibus edition of the Ignite series as well as audiobooks for the series! We’re definitely looking at expanding both our titles (in genre/age group/tone), platforms (ebooks, paperback, audiobooks, etc), and our interaction with the blogging community! Hopefully, you will even be able to find us at some conventions! :)

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About Erica Crouch

Erica Crouch is a young adult author from the colorful city of Baltimore, Maryland. Her debut 

novel, Ignite, was published June 2013, and its e-novella sequel, Entice, was released Nov. 2013. 

The final book in the Ignite series, Incite, is expected 2014. A compilation of the series will be 

released winter 2014. 

Erica is the cofounder of Patchwork Press, an author-powered publisher of MG, YA, and NA 

titles. She is the head of editorial services and design, with more than ten projects to her name. 

Currently, she is studying English and Creative Writing with a specialization in Fiction at 

Southern New Hampshire University. She is a vlogger for the YAWordNerds with over 400 

subscribers. When Erica isn’t writing, she’s reading an overwhelming stack of books, watching 

an obscene amount of Netflix, and procrastinating. 

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