Three weeks from today The Game Changer will be released into the world. *takes a deep breath and tries not to hyperventilate* I just finished the last round of revisions last night, so as you can imagine, I'm cutting it really close...but I'm going to talk more about that in a minute. Right now I want to share an excerpt from the book - my very first excerpt from The Game Changer! I'm going to have more in the next few weeks, along with teasers, but the first is always the most special. Be sure to keep reading after the excerpt, because I have something else I'd like to share!
Melody
Cartwright has never had a problem with change, but for the first
time in her life the changes are beyond her control—she suddenly has a
niece she never knew, but has to prove herself to; her best friend is
making huge life changes of her own; and she has to deal with her ex
and his crazy new girlfriend who has stalker tendencies.
When Melody meets confident, sexy Julian, she’s not interested in a relationship. He tells her it’s possible for a man and a woman to just be friends, and despite his ultra-charming ways there’s something about him that makes Melody believe he could be right.
During a time of change and turmoil, it doesn’t take long for Julian to become everything Melody never knew she needed in her life. But is it possible for them to remain ‘just friends’ or will Melody be a game changer for Julian the playboy?
Excerpt #1
From that moment
on, time passed in a blur of moving bodies and sweet, fruity drinks. Melody was
always at least vaguely aware of her surroundings, and made sure never to let
Olivia or Angelica out of her sight. She forgot about Rick, forgot about
everything but the need to move her feet and arms and hips in time to the
music. The bass vibrated up through the floor and pumped like adrenaline
through her body, throbbing inside her as if it were a living thing.
She saw Julian a
few times, mingling near the bar or sitting and talking to someone on the
couches where Rick had been earlier. Melody found herself scanning the crowd
for him, wondering if he ever came onto the dance floor. With her brain muddled
from the alcohol, she wasn’t sure if it was seconds or hours later when she
discovered him standing on the steps that led down to the dance floor.
Her heart stopped
when their eyes met. She still didn’t know what colour his eyes were, but they
appeared almost black from this distance as they swept over her. His gaze was
intense as it settled on hers. When he descended the last few steps onto the
dance floor and walked toward her, Melody’s head started to swim from more than
just the fruity drinks.
Taller than nearly
everyone else on the dance floor, Julian somehow managed to look almost
graceful as he wound his way through dancing couples toward her. Out of the
corner of her eye, Melody saw Angelica nudge Olivia with her elbow, and the two
of them turned to stare at Julian as he approached.
The minute Julian
stopped in front of her the song changed, almost as if on cue. All night, the
songs had been heavy on bass, but this song had a slower, sexier, almost
languid beat to it that sent a shiver rolling up Melody’s spine.
Julian’s lips
curved into a hint of a smile. One of the rotating spotlights on the ceiling
passed over him, and Melody finally saw that his eyes were a dark chocolate
brown. In the back of her mind, she heard the words ‘bedroom eyes’, and the
description seemed fitting since she could imagine the deep bass song being
played during intimate moments in the darkness of a bedroom.
Julian moved behind
her, pressing his body against the length of her back and resting one hand on
her hip. Heat rushed to Melody’s cheeks as their bodies began to move in time
to the music. She could feel the steady, slightly accelerated thump of his
heartbeat against her back, and tried to ignore how tightly her bottom was
pressed to his groin.
She had never
danced with anyone like this before. Usually when guys asked her to dance it
was to a faster beat, and they remained face-to-face. When she was out with
Olivia in Toronto, she tried to avoid the slow dance portion at the end of the
night, because she knew Rick wouldn’t like the idea of her dancing that close
with other guys. Not that he ever wanted to dance that close with her.
She could remember only one time they had slow danced—at her cousin’s
wedding—and there had been at least a foot of space between them as they danced
with hands on hips and shoulders, reminding her of elementary school dances in
musty gymnasiums.
Julian bent his
head and pressed his face into Melody’s hair. She inhaled sharply, surprised by
the gesture. When he remained like that, Melody’s eyes drifted closed, and she
drank in the moment with all her alcohol-soaked senses.
“You’re so
beautiful,” he said into her ear, causing renewed shivers to race up her spine.
The song switched
into something with a faster tempo, and someone took Melody’s hand. Her eyes
flew open and focused on Olivia’s smiling face. After a beat of staring at her
best friend, she realized Julian was no longer behind her. Had she imagined the
whole thing? Blacked out and dreamed those wonderful four minutes and the words
he’d said to her?
Now, onto the giveaway! First
of all, I need to give a little credit here. I got this idea from my friend
Giselle at Xpresso Reads - she’s recently started up a blog tour site and
she’s asked people to help her spread
the word in exchange for a chance to win a book (be sure to
check it out and enter her giveaway too!).
It got me thinking…
I
haven’t done a whole lot to promote The Game Changer.
When I was getting ready for the release of my debut novel, Blue Sky Days,
I spent about four months promoting the book, but I simply haven’t had the time
to do that with The Game Changer (between major delays with revisions, and having my 2-year-old nephew here almost every day, my life has been chaos). I had a four-week blog tour for BSD,
but I haven’t planned one for TGC, and I don’t think I will, at least
not until 2013. So…when I saw Giselle’s Spread the Word giveaway, it gave me an
idea: I’d come to you guys, my awesome blogging friends, and ask for your help
to spread the word about The Game Changer, and in exchange, you could win a shiny new book.
Sound good?
Here
are the details:
*Open
internationally.
*One winner gets to choose a book from the selection below. Most are YA, and are fairly new releases, but I threw in a few adult books too.
*You must be
13 years old or older to enter.
*Following
Ramblings of a Daydreamer is the first mandatory entry, and to qualify for the
giveaway, you need to spread the word at least once. That particular option is
one you can do daily, but you must do it at least once to qualify - however
many times you do it after that is up to you. All the rest of the entries are
optional and you don’t have to do them - they’re simply extra chances for you
to win!
Here are the books you can chose from if you win:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
If you would like an e-ARC (pdf) of The Game Changer for review, I’ll have them available by next week. I’m asking for reviews (both pre- and post-release) on blogs, Amazon, GoodReads, Chapters, YouTube, etc. If you’d like an e-ARC, please contact me at irishstar_83@hotmail.com
That's it! I'm so grateful to anyone who is willing to help me spread the word about The Game Changer. I've been really blessed with supportive blogging and writer friends, and I thank you for your continued support!
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Okay... first order of business after work today, SPREAD THE WORD for The Game Changer! Then other things. Lol. I adored that scene by the way. It was one of my favorites when I read it.
ReplyDeleteSo sooooo excited!!! :D