SERIES: Hidden Scars
SERIES PLACEMENT: #1
AUTHOR: Amanda K. Byrne
AGE GROUP: Adult
GENRE: Contemporary
RELEASE DATE: September 22, 2015
PUBLISHER: Radiodemon Publishing
PAGES: Approx. 247
BLITZ COORDINATED BY:
Xpresso Book Tours
BOOK BLURB:
Sometimes the past won’t stay where it belongs.
Sara’s number one rule of dating: closed off, secretive men need not apply. Years of therapy helped her move past the damage done by her emotionally abusive boyfriend, and she’s ready to date again. Someone funny, laid back, and easy to talk to. All things her coworker Taylor isn’t.
Taylor’s quiet. Too quiet. He operates in permanent stealth mode, and he hides his secrets as well as Sara does. She doesn’t want to be attracted to him, but after a night spent in a hotel room together, trapped by a blizzard, she can’t deny there’s a fire-hot connection between them, waiting to ignite. Their working relationship inches closer and closer to friendship, until one day she gathers her courage and kisses him.
It’s the match Taylor was waiting for.
What starts as a sweet, fumbling friendship quickly becomes a passionate and intense affair. Just when Sara’s starting to feel safe in Taylor’s arms, his secrets come out, and she wonders if she’ll ever be able to stop looking over her shoulder.
Join us as Amanda talks about
Guilty Pleasures and Alpha Heroes!
Guilty Pleasures and Alpha Heroes!
Guilty Pleasures...
You know these. The things where you dart furtive glances around, making sure no one can see you indulging in your…
Guilty pleasure.
I’m pretty up front about my likes and dislikes, but I’ve got a few that I’m not all that keen on revealing for the teasing and/or lectures it might get me.
Like movie theater popcorn. This stuff is sooooo bad for you, with its fake butter and double count of your daily ration of salt, but sometimes I just have to have it.
Or Thirty Seconds to Mars. The band has plenty of eager and vocal fans, but I’ve kept my fandom under wraps (until now). Why? My friends are music snobs. I’m kind of a music snob. And the BF is one of the biggest music snobs I know, but at least for him, it makes sense (he’s a classically trained musician). The sound of Thirty Seconds to Mars is too slick and overproduced for me to really take them seriously, but I like them anyway.
Reruns of The Hills falls on the list, too. When it was still on MTV, I was much, much better about going to the gym. I’d climb on the elliptical machine and stay there until the episode was over, and I got deeply invested in the pseudo-relationship between Lauren and Brody. Like, I was really disappointed when they couldn’t work it out and get back together.
This last one is going to make me sound like a total snob, but I can’t help it. I am a film snob. I have a membership to the Seattle International Film Festival, and I go every year. Foreign films are my jam. And while I’ll happily watch good action movies (you know, the ones with an intricate plot, fast pace, and preferably starring Andy Lau), I sometimes need to watch a particularly bad action movie. Ones with unnecessary explosions, fight scenes that go on forever, and ridiculous, over-the-top plots that are so far off the plausibility scale it’s laughable.
Are you game to admit your guilty pleasure?
The Alpha Hero...
We’re all familiar with the alpha hero – the badass who doesn’t take crap from anyone, who never hesitates in the face of danger, who’s overbearing and bossy and uber-protective of the heroine. And we know beta heroes, too. They’re the sweethearts, the nice guys, the ones who make you laugh and make you feel treasured, who are kind and smart and basically the one you’d take home to your parents.
When I wrote the first draft of Hidden Scars almost three years ago, most of the heroes I’d written to date (or the ones I liked the most, anyway) were beta heroes. There’s something about alphas that just turn me off, and while I’d written one or two before, they weren’t my favorites.
Then came Taylor.
Taylor sort of defied classification. He was quiet. That was his thing. He understood the value of silence, and he understood Sara’s need to come to him. So he couldn’t be an alpha. But he also had this fierce need to protect not just her, but his family, and he had no qualms about taking decisions out of her hands if he thought it was best for her. Those aren’t exactly beta qualities.
Enter the gamma hero. He’s a mythical combination of alpha and beta, and sometimes, if you’re really lucky, he’s got the best characteristics of both. And Taylor certainly qualifies. There’s no doubt he’ll take charge when he has to, but the most important thing to him is giving his woman what she needs. If that’s standing aside so she can fight her demons on her own, he will. If it means taking care of her, he’s all over it. And if it means telling her how much she means to him, well, he’s not afraid to do so.
What’s your favorite type of hero?
You know these. The things where you dart furtive glances around, making sure no one can see you indulging in your…
Guilty pleasure.
I’m pretty up front about my likes and dislikes, but I’ve got a few that I’m not all that keen on revealing for the teasing and/or lectures it might get me.
Like movie theater popcorn. This stuff is sooooo bad for you, with its fake butter and double count of your daily ration of salt, but sometimes I just have to have it.
Or Thirty Seconds to Mars. The band has plenty of eager and vocal fans, but I’ve kept my fandom under wraps (until now). Why? My friends are music snobs. I’m kind of a music snob. And the BF is one of the biggest music snobs I know, but at least for him, it makes sense (he’s a classically trained musician). The sound of Thirty Seconds to Mars is too slick and overproduced for me to really take them seriously, but I like them anyway.
Reruns of The Hills falls on the list, too. When it was still on MTV, I was much, much better about going to the gym. I’d climb on the elliptical machine and stay there until the episode was over, and I got deeply invested in the pseudo-relationship between Lauren and Brody. Like, I was really disappointed when they couldn’t work it out and get back together.
This last one is going to make me sound like a total snob, but I can’t help it. I am a film snob. I have a membership to the Seattle International Film Festival, and I go every year. Foreign films are my jam. And while I’ll happily watch good action movies (you know, the ones with an intricate plot, fast pace, and preferably starring Andy Lau), I sometimes need to watch a particularly bad action movie. Ones with unnecessary explosions, fight scenes that go on forever, and ridiculous, over-the-top plots that are so far off the plausibility scale it’s laughable.
Are you game to admit your guilty pleasure?
The Alpha Hero...
We’re all familiar with the alpha hero – the badass who doesn’t take crap from anyone, who never hesitates in the face of danger, who’s overbearing and bossy and uber-protective of the heroine. And we know beta heroes, too. They’re the sweethearts, the nice guys, the ones who make you laugh and make you feel treasured, who are kind and smart and basically the one you’d take home to your parents.
When I wrote the first draft of Hidden Scars almost three years ago, most of the heroes I’d written to date (or the ones I liked the most, anyway) were beta heroes. There’s something about alphas that just turn me off, and while I’d written one or two before, they weren’t my favorites.
Then came Taylor.
Taylor sort of defied classification. He was quiet. That was his thing. He understood the value of silence, and he understood Sara’s need to come to him. So he couldn’t be an alpha. But he also had this fierce need to protect not just her, but his family, and he had no qualms about taking decisions out of her hands if he thought it was best for her. Those aren’t exactly beta qualities.
Enter the gamma hero. He’s a mythical combination of alpha and beta, and sometimes, if you’re really lucky, he’s got the best characteristics of both. And Taylor certainly qualifies. There’s no doubt he’ll take charge when he has to, but the most important thing to him is giving his woman what she needs. If that’s standing aside so she can fight her demons on her own, he will. If it means taking care of her, he’s all over it. And if it means telling her how much she means to him, well, he’s not afraid to do so.
What’s your favorite type of hero?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR...
If she’s not writing, she’s reading, drinking hot chocolate, and trying not to destroy her house with her newest DIY project. She lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, and no, it really doesn’t rain that much.
Connect with the Author...
this looks and sounds awesome!! thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteI cant wait for this one too. Love her write up. Thanks for stopping by Erin!
Deletelooking forward to this! :)
ReplyDeleteMe too! And that cover? Yumz :D
DeleteThis sounds interesting.
ReplyDelete*nods* It's looking to be a great read! #Excited :D
DeleteThis sounds really intriguing. I'm curious to see how their relationship develops.
ReplyDeleteIm excited about this one. Can't wait to read it too. Thanks for commenting. <3
DeleteCan't wait to read this one.
ReplyDeleteMe too! That blurb? Sounds just like my kind of read. Thanks for stopping by, Nancy!
DeleteSecrets and affairs always make for interesting reads.
ReplyDeleteThey really do. I love reading about what the characters do in such situations. Can't wait to sink into this one. Thanks for stopping by, Sandra! <3
Delete