“Before long, the next victim in her story starts to bear an uncanny resemblance to the contractor next door...”
Tee hee!! 😂😂 It sounds right up our alley!!!
And the author is today’s newsletter sponsor, and we’re celebrating her new release with a fun guest post that she’s sent over, including 5 Fun Facts about the book, 5 Fun Facts about the author (there’s one fact about Jon Bon Jovi that made me gasp!!!) plus… an excerpt!
Hey, Maryse!!
Thank you so much for having me here today to celebrate the release of THE WAY THE STORY GOES!! This is book 7 in my Magnolia Sound series but can totally be read alone.
Here’s the back cover blurb:
Thriller writer Mia Kingsley has been hit with a serious case of writer’s block and she needs a little peace and quiet. A beach front property in Magnolia Sound seemed like the perfect escape and just the change of scenery she needs to get the words flowing again. That is, until her noisy neighbor starts running power tools and blasting music at all hours of the day and night. Before long, the next victim in her story starts to bear an uncanny resemblance to the contractor next door.
Austin Coleman never wanted to come back to Magnolia Sound. But sometimes, life takes an unexpected turn and the only way to get back on your feet is to go home. His plan is to avoid all things connected to his past, and renovating a beach house in the off-season is just the way to do that—there’ll be no neighbors and no distractions. Or so he thought until he almost maims his sexy neighbor with a flying sink. Despite his best efforts, trouble follows everywhere he goes.
At first she wanted to kill him. Now she wants to kiss him. Sometimes you have to wait and see where the story goes.
I had SO much fun with these characters. Mia is super intelligent, shy, and both her parents are college professors. She’s only been around academic types her entire life. Then she comes to Magnolia Sound and end up next door to Austin who is…well…definitely not known for his academics!
While she’s trying to deal with a severe case of writer’s block, Austin’s working on the house next door and making a LOT of noise. And when she can’t seem to get the words on the page for the book she’s supposed to be writing, she starts another one where the murder victim bears an uncanny resemblance to Austin.
He intrigues her, annoys her, and attracts her and as their relationship deepens, so does her little side writing project!
I could go on and on and on because it really is a fun story, but I’ll give you five fun facts about THE WAY THE STORY GOES:
- I don’t personally read thrillers or mysteries and knew I had to at least give a glimpse into Mia’s books. So I spent hours researching different titles and plots and actually created at least a basic back cover blurb for her five books.
- The book she starts to write where she kills the noisy contractor, really took on a life of its own and I’m toying about writing at least the last chapter of it and releasing it as a newsletter bonus! And when you read the book, you’ll know why!
- I based Mia’s parents loosely characters from The Big Bang Theory – Leonard’s parents specifically. I wanted her mother to be very stiff and snooty and kind of a know it all who’s clueless at how off-putting she is
- Magnolia Sound is actually based on a real coastal town here in North Carolina that I personally love – Emerald Isle. When I need writing inspiration, I love to go there!
- The house Mia is staying in is actually based on a real house on Emerald Isle that I’ve been DYING to have a writing retreat at, but Covid has prevented that from happening! But if you want to know what it looks like, here’s the link: https://reservations.emeraldislerealty.com/properties/a-gritty-palace/gallery
For fun, here are some additional facts about me!
- I’m a Walt Disney World fanatic
I had a 2017 Hallmark Christmas movie based on my book THE CHRISTMAS COTTAGE
- My guilty TV please is Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team
- I only love the beach when it’s not the summer
- I once dedicated a book to Jon Bon Jovi and then he started following me on Twitter!
Thank you so much for having me here today!! As a bonus, here’s an excerpt for you from THE WAY THE STORY GOES!! Enjoy!!
He caught a glimpse of Mia stepping out onto her deck, and he turned and studied her. She had a big red plastic cup in her hand and it looked like she was doing exactly what he was—enjoying the view.
For several minutes she simply leaned against the railing and stared out at the water, but she didn’t seem to be happy about it. Even from where he was standing, he could tell she was frowning. It was crazy to even wonder or care about what she was thinking, but for some reason, Austin was curious.
And even more curious about how long a person could stare straight ahead without moving because…she could almost pass as a statue right now. Maybe it was a little juvenile of him, but Austin felt the need to do something—to get a reaction out of her, even if it was just to flip him off and storm back in the house. Before he could second-guess himself, he quietly cleared his throat and began to belt out the first verse of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”. He got no further than “Living in a lonely world…” when Mia turned to him all wide-eyed.
Gotcha…
And because he had clearly lost his mind, he continued to sing badly as he walked down the steps to the sand and while he strolled over to the steps of her deck. She stood at the top of the stairs staring at him, but she was definitely trying hard not to laugh. Luckily, he was done with the first chorus by the time he was standing beside her.
“What in the world?” she asked with amusement.
He shrugged. “What can I say? I missed having my music blasting and I wanted to see how you felt about me just singing a cappella.”
“Your singing was more offensive than the volume of the music,” she said, but she was smiling.
“Well, damn. There go my dreams of auditioning on American Idol.”
“Trust me, America thanks you for letting that dream go.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” She took a sip of whatever she was drinking, but her eyes never left his.
“Are you this snarky with everyone or is it just me?”
Without hesitation she said, “Just you.”
His bark of laughter was loud even to his own ears. “Wow. Way to kill a guy’s ego.”
“I’m sure you’ll get over it.”
“So what are you doing out here?” he asked. “You were looking a little fierce so that’s why I had no choice but to break into song.”
“Most people would have just said hello and asked if I was okay, but…” She shrugged.
“I’m not most people. What were you thinking about?”
“Um…I was working,” she said hesitantly, and he thought she was joking, so he laughed. When she glared at him, he realized she was serious.
“What kind of work has you staring out at the ocean like you’re mad at the world?” He leaned against the railing and waited while she took another sip of her drink without offering one to him.
Mia let out a long breath. “I’m an author and…I was trying to work out a scene in my head. Listening to the sound of the waves really helps me, but I’m writing a very intense scene and…it just won’t gel. It’s extremely frustrating and I think the longer I stand out here willing the words to come, the worse it gets.”
“Author, huh?”
She nodded. “I write mysteries and thrillers.”
Now it was his turn to nod.
Mia stared at him expectantly and he wasn’t sure why.
“What kind of books do you like to read?” she finally asked.
“Oh, uh…I don’t read.”
Her dark eyes went wide. “You mean at all or just books?”
The mouth on this girl…
Leaning in close, he said, “Books.”
This time she chose not to comment and Austin figured maybe it was time for him to go. It seemed like he truly had interrupted something important and her rage toward him yesterday suddenly made sense. If she was trying to write, he had no doubt that the noise he was generating was completely interfering.
Straightening, he smiled down at her. Now that she wasn’t glaring at him, he took a minute to study her face more closely. Mia was a beautiful woman; he realized that yesterday. She was attractive in a girl-next-door kind of way. Long dark hair, dark eyes, and a smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose and her cheeks. There wasn’t anything overtly stunning about her, but he was definitely drawn to her and…now he was starting to feel creepy for staring at her for so long.
Forcing himself to look away, he took a step back.
“Sorry I interrupted you,” he said apologetically. “Had I known what you were doing…I mean, obviously I didn’t know what you did for a living, but I hope I didn’t ruin any progress you were making.”
She smirked at him. “You’ve been doing that for over a week. Why stop now?”
Wait…was she flirting with him or was that just ego or wishful thinking? And when he smiled back at her, he noticed she was blushing. “I did try to behave myself today. I’m not sure if you noticed, but…”
“I did, and it was greatly appreciated. Thank you.” Her voice was soft with a hint of huskiness and all in all, Mia Kingsley presented one very tempting package.
“Listen, I was just going to go into town and pick up some takeout. Care to join me? I can go pick it up and bring it back or…we can go eat someplace. It’s the least I can do to try to make up for ruining so much of your writing time. What do you say?”
Her blush deepened. “I appreciate the offer, but I’m really behind on this book and I think I’m in a good place to get back inside and get some words on the page.”
“Oh, okay. Sure.” It was stupid how disappointed he was. “Raincheck?”
“Sure. Thanks, Austin.” With a small wave, she turned and walked back into the house and he had no choice but to head back down the stairs and across the sand to his place.
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Meet Samantha:
Samantha Chase is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller of contemporary romance that’s hotter than sweet, sweeter than hot. She released her debut novel in 2011 and currently has more than sixty titles under her belt – including THE CHRISTMAS COTTAGE which was a Hallmark Christmas movie in 2017! When she’s not working on a new story, she spends her time reading romances, playing way too many games of Solitaire on Facebook, wearing a tiara while playing with her sassy pug Maylene…oh, and spending time with her husband of 28 years and their two sons in North Carolina.
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Thank you so much for having me here today!!