Chick Lit Central

Thursday, May 16, 2019

Christine Nolfi sees the silver lining

We're pleased to welcome Christine Nolfi back to CLC today to feature her latest novel, The Season of Silver Linings. She's here to tell us more about herself and what she has going on this summer!

Award-winning author Christine Nolfi’s debut Treasure Me is a Next Generation Indie Awards finalist. The Midwest Book Review lists the books in the Liberty Series as “highly recommended” and her novels have enjoyed bestseller status.

Sweet Lake and The Comfort of Secrets are 2018 International Book Award finalists, Women’s Lit and Cross Genre respectively; The Comfort of Secrets is the 2018 Reader’s Choice Gold Medal winner, Cross Genre. The third book in the series, The Season of Silver Linings is the 2018 International Book Award finalist in Cross Genre Fiction, Reader’s Choice Gold Medal winner in Women’s Fiction, and American Book Fest Best Book Award finalist in Women’s Lit.

Christine’s next release with Lake Union Publishing, The Road She Left Behind, is now available for pre-order and will be released on June 11, 2019.

Visit Christine online:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

Synopsis:
She can’t change what’s come before. But letting go could bring healing—and the rare love that comes once in a lifetime.

When Ohio pastry chef Jada Brooks and her two best friends restored the glorious Wayfair Inn, it was a boon to Sweet Lake—and to their own lives. Now Linnie and Cat are focused on private matters: one engaged, the other swept up in newlywed bliss. Jada has also begun looking to the future by dating widower Philip Kettering and forging a sudden, sweet bond with his six-year-old daughter.

But the past isn’t finished with Jada. When a curious guest checks into the Wayfair, her delving questions stir Jada’s guilt about the heartbreaking events that scarred the town seven years ago. The risks Jada must take by revealing the truth will test every assumption she’s made about the meaning of family and the magic of enduring love.

“An enchanting, impossible-to-put down novel that explores the truth of family. This heartwarming story nourishes the soul, and reminds us that love is what keeps hope alive.”
—USA Today Bestselling author Bette Lee Crosby

“Christine Nolfi joins the illustrious tribe of women’s fiction writers that have portrayed the powers and value of female friendships with grace, charm, and talent. This third book in her Sweet Lake series digs deeper into the heartbreak of protected secrets and the power of love. Guaranteed to delight both new readers and fans.”
—Peggy Lampman, bestselling author of The Promise Kitchen

What is a favorite compliment you have received for your books?
There’s nothing better than hearing from a reader who couldn’t put the book down. An “unputdownable” read is always high praise! For The Season of Silver Linings, I also received lots of mail from readers who fell in love with the characters—especially Fancy, with her little girl femininity. And many readers want to sign up to become a Sweet Lake Siren!

What is next for you?
Lake Union will release my standalone novel The Road She Left Behind on June 11th. The sheer volume of five-star reviews popping up on Goodreads, BookBub, and NetGalley have been heartwarming.

If you could give The Season of Silver Linings a soundtrack, what songs would be on it?
That’s a tough question. Unlike many authors, I don’t create a film version of my works-in-progress as I write. Before penning the first draft, I do spend months writing journal entries, first person, from each main character’s perspective. This process always turns up interesting facts about a character.

What has been a silver lining for you recently?
How to choose? The pre-release buzz around The Road She Left Behind has been fabulous. The Sweet Lake series books continue to delight readers. My middle daughter will wed in August, and my oldest son just got engaged. Lately it seems my world is rimmed with a silver lining.

If you could take us on a tour of the town where you currently live, what are some of the must-see locations?
I now live in the fabulous tourism capital of Charleston, South Carolina. When you come to visit, we must lounge at the beach, tour one of the remaining plantations in the Deep South, enjoy the wonderful shopping on King Street, and gain five pounds each as we sample the delectable food in Charleston’s many acclaimed restaurants!

What is the last movie you saw that you would recommend?
Lately, hubby and I have been on a Netflix binge. We recently watched The King’s Speech—probably for the third time. If your only familiarity with Geoffrey Rush’s work is in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, you must catch his award-winning performance in The King’s Speech.

Thanks to Suzy Approved Book Tours for facilitating this interview and including us on Christine's blog tour!

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Book Review: Acts of Infidelity

By Jami Deise

Although “I’ll have what she’s having” is the most-quoted line from the movie When Harry Met Sally, Sally’s exchange with her best friend Marie over Marie’s married lover Arthur is also often recited: “I don’t think he’s ever going to leave her.” “No one thinks he’s going to leave her!” Luckily for Marie, she meets Jess and moves in with him mere months later; Arthur is never mentioned again. Other women aren’t so lucky. Ask an older single woman about her life, chances are a married man strung her along for years, sucking up her time and energy with vague promises until it was too late to meet someone else.

In Acts of Infidelity, Swedish writer Ester Nilsson sets herself down that unlucky path. When actor Olof Sten is cast in a play she wrote, Ester immediately becomes smitten through their banter and chemistry. The two begin an affair, and Ester convinces herself that Olof is just about to leave his wife Ebba, despite all the signs to the contrary.

Written by Stockholm author Lena Andersson and translated by Saskia Vogel, Acts of Infidelity is told in third person, but readers have an up-close and personal look at the mental acrobatics Ester goes through to convince herself that Olof loves her. It’s painful to watch, as Olof treats Ester casually and cruelly, only to wheel her back in with attention and affection just as she seems to come to her senses. It’s a game that continues for years.

Although the novel lacks a firm three-act structure, the reader is compelled to keep turning pages by wondering when the hell Ester is going to wise up. Near the end, though, I did start to get a little bored – and I imagined Ester’s poor friends feeling the same way, having to listen to the same stories for years and watch as Ester ignored their advice again and again.

With the book’s Swedish characters and author, I read it looking for the difference between Swedish and American values and attitudes about infidelity, but I found none. Ester and Olof easily could be transferred to New York, and their story would be the same. The dialogue would be different, though – all the characters spoke in long, extremely detailed and complex paragraphs that sounded forced to my American ears.

All women, at one time or another, have had a friend like Ester or have been Ester ourselves – even unmarried men like to play games to keep women at a distance. If you have a friend caught in this trap, give her a copy of Acts of Infidelity. The spark of recognition may ignite the fire she needs to leave.

Thanks to Other Press for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Also by Lena Andersson:

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Spotlight and Giveaway: My Ex-Best Friend's Wedding

Today we're celebrating the publication of My Ex-Best Friend's Wedding by Wendy Wax. Thanks to Berkley, we have one copy to give away!

Synopsis:
A wedding dress passed down through generations unravels the tangled threads of three women's lives in a novel of friendship, family, and forgiveness from the USA Today bestselling author of Ten Beach Road.

Prized and stored away for safekeeping, the timeless ivory wedding dress, with its scooped neck and cleverly fitted bodice, sits gently folded in its box, whispering of Happily Ever Afters. To Kendra, Brianna, and Lauren it's a reminder of what could have been, the promise of a fairy tale, and a friendship torn apart. But as Kendra knows firsthand: it wasn't the dress's fault.

Once closer than sisters, Lauren and Bree have grown up and grown apart, allowing broken promises and unfulfilled dreams to destroy their friendship. A successful author, Lauren returns home to the Outer Banks, fiancé in tow, to claim the dress she never thought she'd wear. While Bree, a bookstore owner, grapples with the realities of life after you marry the handsome prince. As the former best friends wrestle with their uncertain futures, they are both certain of one thing: some betrayals can never be forgiven.

Now on the eve of her daughter Lauren's wedding, Kendra struggles with a secret she's kept for far too long. And vows to make sure the dress will finally bring Lauren and Bree back together--knowing they'll need each other to survive the coming storm.

Wendy Wax, a former broadcaster, is the author of fifteen novels and two novellas, including Best Beach Ever, One Good Thing, Sunshine Beach, A Week at the Lake, While We Were Watching Downton Abbey, The House on Mermaid Point, Ocean Beach, and Ten Beach Road. The mother of two grown sons, she left the suburbs of Atlanta for an in town high-rise where she and her husband are happily downsized.

Visit Wendy online:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

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Giveaway ends May 20th at midnight EST.

Monday, May 13, 2019

Mary Kay Andrews has her toes in the sand...plus a book giveaway

We welcome Mary Kay Andrews to CLC today to talk about her latest novel, Sunset Beach. Thanks to Tandem Literary, we have one copy to give away!

Mary Kay Andrews is the New York Times bestselling author of 24 novels including THE WEEKENDERS, BEACH TOWN, LADIES’ NIGHT, SUMMER RENTAL, DEEP DISH and HISSY FIT.

A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, she received a B.A. in journalism from The University of Georgia. After a 14-year career working as a reporter at newspapers including The Savannah Morning News, The Marietta Journal and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where she spent the final ten years of her career, she left journalism in 1991 to write fiction.

Her first novel, EVERY CROOKED NANNY, was published in 1992 by HarperCollins Publishers. She went on to write ten critically acclaimed mysteries under her real name, Kathy Hogan Trocheck. In 2002, she assumed the pen name Mary Kay Andrews with the publication of SAVANNAH BLUES. In 2006, HISSY FIT became her first New York Times bestseller, followed by eleven more New York Times, USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestsellers. To date, her novels have been published in German, Italian, Polish, Slovenian, Hungarian, Dutch, Czech and Japanese.

She is married to her high school sweetheart, Tom Trocheck, with whom she has a 40-year (and counting) collaboration yielding two grown children, two adorable grandchildren and countless memorable kitchen experiences. She and her family divide their time between Atlanta and Tybee Island, where they cook up new recipes in two restored beach homes, The Breeze Inn and Ebbtide, both named after fictional places in Mary Kay’s novels. In between cooking and plotting her next novel, Mary Kay is an intrepid treasure hunter whose favorite pastime is junking and fixing up old houses.

Visit Mary Kay online:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Pinterest

Synopsis:
Pull up a lounge chair and have a cocktail at Sunset Beach – it comes with a twist.

Drue Campbell’s life is adrift. Out of a job and down on her luck, life doesn’t seem to be getting any better when her estranged father, Brice Campbell, a flamboyant personal injury attorney, shows up at her mother’s funeral after a twenty-year absence. Worse, he’s remarried – to Drue’s eighth grade frenemy, Wendy, now his office manager. And they’re offering her a job.

It seems like the job from hell, but the offer is sweetened by the news of her inheritance – her grandparents’ beach bungalow in the sleepy town of Sunset Beach, a charming but storm-damaged eyesore now surrounded by waterfront McMansions.

With no other prospects, Drue begrudgingly joins the firm, spending her days screening out the grifters whose phone calls flood the law office. Working with Wendy is no picnic either. But when a suspicious death at an exclusive beach resort nearby exposes possible corruption at her father’s firm, she goes from unwilling cubicle rat to unwitting investigator, and is drawn into a case that may – or may not – involve her father. With an office romance building, a decades-old missing persons case re-opened, and a cottage in rehab, one thing is for sure at Sunset Beach: there’s a storm on the horizon.

Sunset Beach is a compelling ride, full of Mary Kay Andrews' signature wit, heart, and charm. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

How is Drue similar to or different from you?
Drue's so different from me in so many ways. She's prickly and distrustful and has intimacy issues, along with a wide stubborn streak. And she's an athlete! Which I'm not. But in other ways we're alike, strong, resilient and resourceful. We both hate any kind of injustice and tend to root for the underdog.

What were the most challenging and rewarding parts of writing Sunset Beach?
Figuring out the puzzle behind the intertwining mysteries was definitely a challenge, as was gaining an understanding of personal injury law and making it relatable to my readers. The rewarding part was writing a story set in my hometown and creating a character like Drue, who is capable of change. I also really enjoyed writing the 1970's-set scenes.

If Sunset Beach were made into a movie, who would play the lead roles?
Maybe Michelle Rodriguez for Drue. For Brice, John Slattery, for Jonah, Will Arnett

What are some must-have items in your beach bag?
Sunblock and sunglasses. A thermos of icy drinks. Glossy magazines. My smart phone so I can scroll social media and listen to my beach playlist on Pandora or Spotify.

What is the funniest thing you have seen or heard recently?
It's a tie between Randy Rainbow's hilarious parody songs and @PoochofNYC on Instagram, which showcases an adorable dog named Agador all dressed up and all about town.

Which TV series are you currently binge watching?
Season five of Bosch on Amazon.

Thanks to Mary Kay for visiting with us and Tandem Literary for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

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Giveaway ends May 19th at midnight EST.

Friday, May 10, 2019

Book Review: Only Ever Her

By Jami Deise

Marybeth Mayhew Whalen’s novel When We Were Worthy was one of my favorite books of 2017 (reviewed here), about the ramifications in a small Georgia town when a high school outcast causes a crash that kills a carload of cheerleaders. With its specific setting, strong character work, and ultimately uplifting message, the novel left me in tears. While Whalen’s follow-up, Only Ever Her, has many of these same elements, ultimately it is not as impactful as the earlier novel.

When Annie Taft was three years old, she was the only witness to her mother’s murder, and her testimony sent Cordell Lewis to prison for life. Now, twenty years later and two weeks before her wedding, Lewis’s lawyer writes Annie to say there’s evidence that Lewis did not kill Annie’s mother, and to ask for Annie’s support in reopening the case.

Four days before the wedding, Annie disappears.

With this set-up, I was expecting a strong mystery tying together past and present. Instead, Only Ever Her concentrates on the interior lives of certain people in the small South Carolina town where Annie’s mother was murdered and where she was raised: her Aunt Faye, who raised her and has romantic secrets of her own; her secret “best friend” Kenny, a town outcast; former high school rival turned newspaper reporter Laurel; and her cousin Clary, raised like a sister to Annie and who has a secret in her past as well.

While I enjoyed the setting and character work – the story reminded me somewhat of Steel Magnolias, and Annie is just as loved by the town as Shelby was – I did expect more mystery with my mystery, and a stronger connection between Annie’s mother’s murder to Annie’s disappearance. Instead, most folks were consumed with their own secrets or wondering about Annie’s fiancé Scott and her best friend Tracy.

Only Ever Her is a good story for fans of small sleepy southern towns. But for those who prefer tight, plot-driven mysteries, they may be left wanting.

Thanks to Little Bird Publicity for the book in exchange for an honest review.

More by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen:

Thursday, May 9, 2019

Kristy Woodson Harvey's slice of paradise...plus a book giveaway

We're pleased to have Kristy Woodson Harvey back at CLC today to feature her third novel in the Peachtree Bluff Series, The Southern Side of Paradise. Melissa A. has met Kristy in the past and can attest that she is as sweet and charming in person as she is on "screen." Kristy has a special prize to share with one lucky reader....all THREE novels in her Peachtree Bluff series!

Kristy is a Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s school of journalism and holds a master’s in English from East Carolina University, with a concentration in multicultural and transnational literature. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications and websites, including Southern Living, Traditional Home, Parade, USA Today, Domino, Our State and O. Henry. She has been seen in Women’s Health, The Washington Post, US News and World Report, The Huffington Post, USA Today’s Happy Every After, Marie Claire’s The Fix, Woman’s World, Readers’ Digest and North Carolina Bookwatch, among others. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and six-year-old son where she is working on her next novel. Visit Kristy at her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Synopsis:

**Contains SPOILERS for previous novels in the series.**

With the man of her dreams back in her life and all three of her daughters happy, Ansley Murphy should be content. But she can’t help but feel like it’s all a little too good to be true.

Meanwhile, youngest daughter and actress Emerson, who is recently engaged and has just landed the role of a lifetime, seemingly has the world by the tail. Only, something she can’t quite put her finger on is worrying her—and it has nothing to do with her recent health scare.

When two new women arrive in Peachtree Bluff—one who has the potential to wreck Ansley’s happiness and one who could tear Emerson’s world apart—everything is put in perspective. And after secrets that were never meant to be told come to light, the powerful bond between the Murphy sisters and their mother comes crumbling down, testing their devotion to each other and forcing them to evaluate the meaning of family. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

Who do you identify with the most in your Peachtree Bluff series?
Hmmmm… That’s an interesting question because in this series I really don’t feel like any of the characters are “me.” I do relate to Emerson having a bit of a life crisis because when I was 25 I was really searching for my passion and my purpose. (Although, I like to think I was a little more together than she was while I was doing it! Haha!) I think most people go through that at some point. Weirdly, I related a lot to Ansley because, although she is my mom’s age not mine, I have very much spent the past few years in a situation where I was taking care of a (much!) younger generation and an older one, and I could relate to that feeling of being torn sometimes between your responsibilities.

What is one piece of advice you'd like to share with aspiring novelists?
Be yourself and write for yourself first. Whenever I try to write for other people that’s when I find things going off the rails. You can’t please 100% of the people 100% of the time in life, and you can’t do it in writing either!

If you could cast the Peachtree Bluff series as a TV series, who would star in the lead roles?
I don’t know about all of them, but I think Sarah Drew would be a terrific Sloane. I can picture Jamie King being an amazing Caroline. And someone told me Diane Lane should be Ansley a while ago, and now that’s all I can think about! Not surprisingly, when this topic comes up readers are most excited about casting Jack!

What is your go-to breakfast item?
I’m a smoothie girl through and through. I throw in a couple handfuls of frozen blueberries, frozen cauliflower, a half banana, a couple handfuls of spinach, unsweet cashew milk, unsweet cocoa powder and greens powder and blend. It is so delicious and I look forward to it!

What are you looking forward to most this summer?
Long days on the beach with my son and husband. I live at the beach so when I’m gone on tour, usually for 4-6 weeks, I daydream about coming home and reading and relaxing for long hours with my toes in the sand!

Who is your current celebrity crush?
Well, I know who my celebrity girl-crush is, if that counts. Reese Witherspoon, for sure. I love how she continuously reinvents herself and has managed to stay supremely relevant in a career where so many people seem to come and go. And she has a book club!!!

Thanks to Kristy for visiting with us and sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

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Giveaway ends May 14th at midnight EST.

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Spring Into Style Hop

It’s springtime! The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and it’s time for everyone to get their pretty on with the help of Chick Lit Chat HQ, which is hosting another fantastic Facebook hop.

So, mark your calendars and Spring into Style! Starting Monday, May 6th and continuing through Sunday, May 12th, 50+ amazing and talented Chick Lit and Romantic Comedy authors will be celebrating International Chick Lit Month along with tons of fabulous books featuring sassy, stylish heroines you are guaranteed to love!

Every author will have an exclusive giveaway* on their own Facebook pages, including books, swag, gift cards, and/or beauty, fashion, and wellness-related items. And, of course, there will be a MASSIVE GRAND PRIZE* up for grabs on the hop
page—a $250 e-gift card to FabFitFun, which is a popular seasonal subscription box beloved by trendsetters and celebrities alike. We’re not stopping there either, because there will also be THREE Runner Up Prizes—six-month subscriptions to Allure’s Beauty Box, which comes every month.

Join the fun over at our Facebook event page, where you can hobnob with your favorite authors, meet some new ones, and win some incredible prizes. We’ll see you there!

*The Grand Prize giveaway is open to participants in the US, UK, and Canada. The Runner-Up Prizes are open to those in the US only. The individual author giveaways are open internationally.