Category Archives: mermaids

Mermaids & Friends: Amy Patrick

August 8, 2014Books, Giveaway, Interview, mermaidsAmy Patrick, Channel 20 SomethingPintip

Friends, I am absolutely thrilled to welcome Amy Patrick to the pond today. Her debut, CHANNEL 20 SOMETHING, released earlier this week. It’s such a fun read, and I gobbled it up in one sitting. But don’t take my recommendation alone! Here’s a blurb:

22-year-old Heidi Haynes is almost one year into her “real life”. She has her first reporting job and her first apartment, but she’s yet to experience first love. Yes, she’s in a comfortable relationship with her college sweetheart, and according to her friends and family, he’s perfect for her. But for some reason she’s not as eager to talk about walking down the aisle as he is.

And while Heidi’s doing what she wants to do, she’s not where she wants to be. She longs for big cities, big-market breaking news, and real independence from her way-too-close-by helicopter parents. Problem is, the last time she left the security of home for new places and new people, things didn’t go so well. Disastrously, in fact, and she came running back to a local college and a “safe” boyfriend.

Well-traveled Californian Aric Serrano plans to stay in small-market-Southern-Hell just long enough to grab a cup of coffee and put together a kick-ass “escape tape”. He’ll serve his one-year contract, then he’s taking off for a higher rung on the TV sports ladder—alone—the way he likes it. But when he walks into the newsroom and meets Heidi, he may have finally found something and someone worth committing to.

Heidi would be so much more comfortable if she could avoid her new co-worker—he’s just her type—the type she’s so careful to avoid. But that becomes impossible when she and Aric are forced to work together on the weekend news. Now there’s no denying the attraction between them, and she’ll have to decide between settling for the “good enough” life she already has or taking the risk of going for what she dreams of, an exciting career and a real love.

This book was as fabulous as it sounds! Just as fabulous as Amy herself, who graciously agreed to answer a few of my questions…

Pintip: Amy, thanks so much for being here! You are particularly qualified to write this story. Can you tell us a little about your background in journalism?

Amy: This series is so much fun to write, because I get to call upon so many great (and not-so-great) experiences from my 12 year career in TV news. During that time I was climbing the career ladder, moving frequently, working at 6 different stations in 4 different states. I met so many “characters” through the years, and naturally they influence my fictional characters and events. I still work for a Boston TV station as a station host, so the story ideas keep piling up!

Pintip: Well, your expertise certainly showed in this book! Tell us the truth: did any of these scenes, or a version of them, ever happen to you? Such as, ahem, stealing kisses in the edit bay?

Amy: Hmmm. There was this one time… No actually I was not guilty of “fraternizing” during my first TV job, as Heidi and Aric are. But I was sorely tempted, because when I met my husband… he was the hot new sports guy. Unfortunately, the part about the nervous stomach and throwing up in front of the governor of Mississippi one minute before air time was also based on fact.

Pintip: Oooh. I didn’t know that was how you met your husband! How romantic! Or maybe I just think it’s romantic after reading your book, lol. What was your favorite scene to write?

Amy: I’m a sucker for first-kiss scenes, reading and writing them, so that was probably my favorite.

Pintip: What was the most difficult scene?

Amy: There were a couple scenes I cried through while writing, but I won’t tell you which ones– don’t want to ruin it for someone else.

Pintip: Good idea! We’ll see if the readers can figure it out once they get to those scenes. I adore your voice. Your heroine, Heidi, is utterly charming, and I love how she says, “Oh, sugar” when she curses. How did you come up with her character?

Amy: Oh, thank you! I’m so glad you found her charming– I can’t help but sympathize with her, because though she’s flawed, she tries so hard to please everyone (sometimes too hard), as many of us are apt to do in our early twenties. She’s a born and raised Southern girl, and there’s still a bit of a taboo about “ladies” cursing in the Deep South, thus the “sugar”. Also, Heidi has a really quirky boss who’s made public cursing, short skirts, and fraternizing grounds for firing at his TV station, so she has to be careful. She’s also living very close to her crazy-but-loving family, and struggling with being a daughter and sister to them while striving for real independence and trying to figure out who she really is. I started my first TV job at 21 years old, three weeks after graduation. So while I was a “professional” and a “grown-up” on TV, I was still very much developing as a person and sometimes felt like a kid faking my way through it all.

Pintip: Ha! I still feel like a kid faking my way through it all! You also write YA under the name Amy DeLuca. How is writing NA different from writing YA?

Amy: I’d say the voice is more mature, and the consequences of your character’s decisions are often more dire. By the time you’re out of college and starting life in the “real world”, you’re making decisions that can have lifelong repercussions, good or bad. And you’re making them with little (if any) influence from your parents. NA characters are in relationships that have a real chance of lasting forever, which is sometimes, but not often true of the relationships in YA books. Of course, everyone who marries their high school sweetheart and stays married for 60 years proves that wrong, but they may be the happy exception. My YA characters never even think about getting married, but I think twenty-somethings are much more likely to have that in their minds somewhere.

Pintip: So true. Lucky for us, we get to experience it all again by reading this book. And I hear there are going to be more books in the Channel 20 Something series. What’s coming up? Might these books involve Heidi’s friends, Mara and Kenley?

Amy: You guessed it! Book 2, STILL YOURS– A 20 SOMETHING NOVEL comes out in September and tells Mara’s story. She’s taken a new TV job in Providence, Rhode Island, the last place she wanted to work because it’s way to close to home and to him, the only guy who’s ever tempted her to abandon the Himbo-hunt and open herself up to actually loving someone.

And in October, Kenley’s story comes out. It’s called STILL ME- A 20 SOMETHING NOVEL. Kenley is reeling from a shocking change in her relationship status and regretting the day she ever left her on-air job for a man. Then she lands a new job at WNN in Atlanta and meets the network’s rising star, and even at the network level, what happens behind the scenes is the real story.

Pintip: Oh, wow! I can’t wait to read Mara’s and Kenley’s stories! I’ll be the first in line to purchase them. Thanks so much for being with us today, Amy!

Amy: Thank you for having me Pintip! It’s a thrill to be here with the Waterworld Mermaids today. And I’d love to give away a copy of the CHANNEL 20 SOMETHING e-book to one of the commenters. I’m curious to ask them: are there any moments from your own career that would make a great scene in a book?

Pintip: That’s a great question! Comment away, friends, and you’ll be entered to win this wonderful book!

BUY LINKS:
Amazon
NOOK/Barnes and Noble
KOBO
All Romance

Amy is a two-time Golden Heart finalist (2013 and 2014) who writes Young Adult fiction as Amy DeLuca and New Adult romance as Amy Patrick. She lives in Rhode Island with her husband and two sons and actually craves the heat and humidity of Mississippi, where she grew up. She’s been a professional singer and news anchor and currently narrates audio books as well as working as a station host for a Boston TV station.

Nationals!

July 23, 2014mermaidsSusan Jeffery

Already, our fabulous mermaids are storming the wilds of Riverwalk in San Antonio, Texas.

Yuppers, it’s #RWA14 – Romance Writers of America National Conference, 2014!

Yes, it’s hot (90 degrees at 10 p.m.). Yes, it’s crowded (4,000 women in one hotel means very crowded). And yes, it’s busy (just try to make all those workshops you had on your wish list!)

Yours truly isn’t in attendance this year, but already has intercepted various Facebook posts from others. We know they’ve survived, and some are probably, at this minute, buying cowboy boots.

Check back tomorrow, to see if I’ve managed to snag a few pictures from the Fishy Ones, and we’ll see just how sparkly their fins can be!

In the meantime, here’s what this Mermaid was doing in their absence…

We were artists!

At last the Internet Gods cooperate… here we are, painting our hearts out instead of writing.

Hey — better than San Antonio? Hard to tell, some people were feeling pretty good about themselves as the evening went on…

Pretty shakey, i must have been excited…

All said and done, I think we did pretty well for Left-Behinders.

Tomorrow: experience, planning and my full-on assault of a first draft.

Perspective

July 17, 2014mermaidsMasha Levinson

Life is about perspective. Or so we hope. Or maybe, so we are reminded. A number of years ago, I stood in front of my mirror, trying to lump my hair into something that didn’t resemble a villainous Star Trek character. To no avail. The strands refused to cooperate, as did the rest of my appearance. A frumpy outfit hugging a poochy belly.. green tinged skin glowering under fluorescent lights. Bloodshot eyes pegged into a puffy face. And a nice hint of a double-chin laughing at me from its less than obvious hiding place. I hated what I saw and was angry at all the maladies I felt had been unfairly heaped upon me. Why, oh why, I bemoaned, must I look like a freak show in a fun-house mirror? It wasn’t fair. Others didn’t have to go through this. Why did I? As I scrubbed my teeth, I silently grumbled about the days when my hair cooperated, my clothes fit and my face wasn’t a replica of the Grinch. I turned off the water, placed the brush on the counter and was about to shuffle from the bathroom when something caught my eye. A droplet of blood on the white tile. As I stood there, puzzled by where it came from, another splashed on the cold surface. Then another. And another. And then, before I knew it, blood poured down my legs. Big, gloppy clumps, churning as if someone forgot to turn off some unseen spigot. And at that moment, everything ceased to exist. My hair, my clothes, my skin. I hugged my belly with one hand, while with the other tried to catch the blood. As if somehow that was going to halt time. But of course, it was too late. The little being that had caused me all that silly angst was lying in a useless heap on the cold bathroom tile. A girl, as I would later find out.

She, is what it took to gain perspective. I wish I could say I always carry perspective with me. But I don’t. I get frustrated and annoyed and irritated at the little things in life. And make more of a big deal than is relevant or necessary. But then, there are times, when I get a hefty slap of perspective upside my pointy little head. For example, last week, I was riding the subway, minding my own business, when a woman stepped on my foot with her stiletto heel. Ouch, didn’t describe the pain. But like any self-respecting masochist, I refused to go see the doctor. Ignore it and it will go away; the Russian Field of Dreams. But under threat of ice cream cut-off from my hubby, off to the doctor I went. Fractured, of course. A wrap and a hideous half boot I must now wear; the latest in glam ortho gear. I grumbled and bellyached about the atrocity I had to lug around. How hideous I would look. How uncomfortable. All the way home, I kept my head lowered, convinced everyone was looking at me and my hobbled hoof. As I sat at my computer that night, I still groused about my stupid foot, the stupid woman, the stupid subway. Until I got an email about a dear friend. A terrible tragedy.

I don’t know why it takes a tragedy for me to gain perspective. To stop focusing on silly things, like an ugly shoe on a foot that will soon heal.

I know I can’t right the wrongs, stop the wars, heal the sick, but at least I can focus on the important things and bring a positive perspective.

Time Suck of Scheduling

July 15, 2014Conferences, Kimberly MacCarron, mermaidsconference schedule, RWA 2014Kimberly MacCarron

I just spent a good two hours trying to get my conference app up and running for RWA 2014. This was a colossal waste of my time and energy. All it managed to do was make me swear at my computer and threaten to throw it off my deck.

For the last five years I’ve made up my schedule for the conference in a regular document. Each year, I “Save As” that year’s location and start replacing. It seemed to work for me.

I try to add some humor into them as well. “Mingle at a bar” or “Find a buttertart” (that’s for you, Holly). At one conference, I put “Have Sex with Husband” right after my return flight landed. Well, said husband took advantage of my conference time to throw stuff away at home. My youngest called in tears that he had thrown away her American Girl dolls. Another was crying that he was making them get rid of half of the contents of their rooms. I’m a pack rat by nature. This was the worst thing that could happen. My heart was pounding. I could feel my blood pressure going through the roof, and I usually have blood pressure so low I’m practically a corpse. So, I immediately pulled out my schedule and drew a very thick line through that particular event.

On my Golden Heart® loop, the discussion about the conference app made me believe it’s necessary to my life. Now that I’ve tried to make the thing work for me—downloading onto my phone, opening on the web page and trying to make sense of HOW to insert all my wonderful workshops—I tend to disagree.

I’m not sure when conferences became so confusing and why we have to make them even more stressful by adding unnecessary things into the mix. Why do we have to tweet in order to meet up? Why do we have to hashtag stuff? Why, oh, why are people making this conference so stressful? First of all, half the strangers you’re arranging to meet for multiple dinners and drinks will undoubtedly get on your nerves after the first scheduled event. Or you’ll get on theirs. Now you’re both stuck. Be flexible. Don’t schedule yourself so completely that you don’t have downtime. That downtime is essential. Take a breather. Go to your room and paint your toenails if things become too much on the main floor.

Here’s the thing. Every year I make up a schedule. Every year I look at that printed personal schedule after the conference ended, and—without fail—I didn’t follow it at all. At all! With the conference set up the way it is, people get up and leave one workshop to go to another. To be perfectly honest, I’ll ditch a workshop for anyone who wants to grab a drink. Sometimes you make a new friend, and that friend wants to go to a workshop about costumes of the Regency period, and you write contemporary YA, but you go anyway. Why? Because you don’t want to lose your shiny new friend. What if she manages to find a better one in that workshop? It’s like high school all over again. ☺

I have some key workshops in my Word document and some events that can’t be skipped in my schedule, but for the most part I’m flexible. I’m free as a bird. So, if you catch this bird looking conflicted between two workshops—one on her schedule and one completely out of her genre or interests—please offer a third option.

“Wanna grab a drink?”

Online Shopping: Convenience or a Disease That Must Be Cured!

July 9, 2014Denny S. Bryce, mermaidsmore shopping, RWA Nationals, shoppingDenny S. Bryce

I shop online. And the Internet knows. It follows me to every site I visit. Facebook. USA Today. The Astrology page. The little box in the corner with my latest purchase haunts me. Reminds me. Yes, I did spend that money. Yes. I did buy that dress. Or even worse – No. No. No. You forgot to buy it! And here’s your chance to correct your mistake. Shop. Shop. Shop…

And don’t tell me to turn off the Internet. Don’t tell me not to visit all the places I love to visit. And don’t tell me to stop shopping (Bank of America has already got dibs on that, thank you very much). What is it about online shopping that makes it so – dang easy to spend money!

I was do some research for one of my WIPs, and learned about the DARK NET. It’s a place hackers go to hang out and create mayhem. Shouldn’t online shopping be considered some sort of black hole that eats money?

But worst than shopping online – I GO TO THE FREAKING MALL, too!

And OMG, two weeks before RWA Nationals? Have you started packing? Did you buy the new shoes? That great jewelry? What?

No, I know, I should be revising, and writing, and doing what aspiring authors do – searching for a dress to wear to the awards ceremony on July 26. That’s what! Right?

Okay, I just took a deep breath. I’m almost done ranting, so I can get to the good part:)…would you like to see some of the things I didn’t buy? And no, this is not an add for Nordstorm’s, it’s just the store where I window shop…and okay, shop, occasionally.

Now confess! What’s your online bad habit (or good habit) – it’s all a matter of perspective . Darn! I just bought something while writing this post!…and I shop to relax, by the way…not all the time…and I can control it…(sounding more out of control with every word I type..:)…

Magical Summer Memories

July 8, 2014Dana Rodgers, mermaidsDana Rodgers, inspiration, waterworld mermaidsDana Rodgers

It’s summertime again, and as always it’s passing too fast. Although schools out and we don’t have rehearsals and practices to rush to every evening, there is still that cursed day job and at least a thousand other things demanding my immediate attention. It makes me long for the simpler times and a slower pace of life.

Growing up, I loved visiting my grandparents house in the summer. They lived in a very rural area dominated by rolling mountains and lush green valleys. It is still litterally fifty miles to the closest fast food restaurant or Walmart. The cell phone reception is crappy and they are probably still using a dial up internet connection, but you know what? For me, my grandparents house represents one of the happiest places on earth.

My favorite part of the summer was when all of the aunts, uncles and cousins came for Fourth of July. After a day full of fun playing in the hayloft or swimming in the river you returned to the smell of grilling hamburgers, hot dogs and ribs. Tables piled high with deviled eggs, cole slaw, potato salad, pies and cakes. I fondly remember the lazy summer evenings where the adults gathered on the porch to talk and sip sweet tea or some other more adult beverage, while the kids played hide-and-go-seek and chased fireflys into the melting twilight. The sharp smell of freshly mowed lawn clung to the air as everybody ate watermelon, spitting seeds into the grass.

As the night grew dark the kids became more and more restless, begging for fireworks. There was nothing better than standing on the edge of my grandparents back field in awe as another rocket whizzed into the air, the explosive boom vibrating through my body. The colors showering down from the heavens set a magical backdrop to the Fourth of July.

Those are some of my favorite memories. I would love to hear some of your favorite summer memories in the comments.

Book or TV Boyfriend: How Far Would You Go?

June 26, 2014mermaidsDenny S. Bryce

As authors and/or readers of romance, we are passionate about the characters. We love our heroines, but the hero–well, we can get obsessed. They are strong, captivating, bad boys, decent men, with honor, revenge, loyalty or redemption top of mind. We want them silent and brave, sexy and broad-shouldered (a six pack can add to the love), but willing to do whatever they must do (once they’ve put aside that pesky character flaw) to be the man they were always meant to me (for that one special woman!). Yep. We love to write them and to read them. And we are fans.

But let’s talk about the extremes of fandom for a moment (since I understand extreme fandom better than most:)…

Scan 141770001 Back in the day, I fell for a show called Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and yes, around the Internet lately, I’ve been talking about my Whedon obsession. And yes, I know NOT a book, but a TV show that wrote characters as if they were in a book (IMHO). I traveled far and wide to have moments with my TV boyfriends. The photo here was taken at an event in London a few years ago. And yes, I was a happy girl that day:)! I was sandwiched between (and oh, how I wish:) David Boreanaz (Angel) and James Marsters (Spike).

My other TV boyfriend is truly my boyfriend although a few authors (Avery Flynn, Robin Covington, Tracy Brogan, and Michelle Monkou) have been tricked into thinking he belongs to them, or should be shared equally among his fans, or some rot. But Dean Winchester aka Jensen Ackles is MINE.

I have had many TV boyfriends, and have fallen for many a book boyfriend, but right now, I have fallen hard, and forever, for a man named Jamie.

Yes. I’m nearly two decades behind on reading the books – but OMG, I’m in it now and OUTLANDER is heaven. And Jamie is the pearly gates (prize at the end of the rainbow and everything else you can throw into the pot – he’s it!). And dang STARZ for producing the TV series starring a man who embodies Jamie in my mind, or at least who looks the part:)…

I am seriously thinking about heading across the pond to wherever they are filming OUTLANDER and vacationing (for a few dozen weeks). And do they have fan events like Outlander-Con? If they do, I also in!

So question of the day, name your latest book boyfriend or TV show boyfriend, and have you ever gone as far as London to meet them in person (me and the Buffy boys for example:), or fought with friends over pillowcases with their images on them (Tracy, Michelle, Robin, Avery, you know who you are!). How badly have you fan-girled an author? – The adjustment from normal to fangirl is a thin line…and slipping over the edge could be, you know, embarrassing! (Remember the root of the word fan – is fanatic:)…Full disclosure, please!

Living the Sorta-OCD Life

June 24, 2014mermaidsSusan Jeffery

Some of my mermaid friends know that my daughter returned to the nest two years ago. She made a brave decision, and walked away from an abusive and failing marriage.

She’s made a lot of progress since that sad day, but one thing hasn’t changed. Obsessive-compulsive living. I know, because I have it, too.

This condition, often dormant (or so we tell ourselves) has most recently emerged, yet again, as the two of us teamed up to redecorate our home’s main bathroom. The lavender color it sported for two years, on which we agreed only after hours-long discussions, was voted out. Unbeautiful, it lay on the walls with a sort of hyper-polite, John Gielgud air. Trust me, there ain’t no joyful living with a slightly grape-griege wall surface tapping on your brain in the morning as a person brushes her teeth.

She settled on a vibrant teal (inspired by a clock, but that’s another story). It’s very kick-ass. Then, she wanted a new shower curtain. And wouldn’t it be nice to replace the laundry baskets with a woven hamper? How about a curved shower rod? New wastebasket? And oh, yeah, that cute crocheted toilet paper caddy, Mom, that you made during the blizzard when the lights were out for thirteen hours? It has to go.

And on and on. I fear, at the moment, the decorating vibe is waning, however. Twenty minutes remains to paint the window woodwork. Another thirty is needed to mount the new blind. I see no movement recently.

That’s okay, because I also decided the master bathroom could use some updating.

I’ve bought five shower curtains and returned four. Two bath rugs bought, one remains. Ditto the trash can. Just one new shower rod and rings. By sheer good luck, I happened on a yard sale and found a framed poster that will replace the current artwork.

As a last salute to the OCD urge, I mounted the latest (and last!) shower curtain this morning, pleated the header into a neat bundle and dosed the knife edges with a nice shot of spray starch. OCD, some? Yeah, buddy.

My bathroom is done. I refuse to worry about the Daughter’s. It’s all good, you know, to let a thirty-year old claim her project. It has me wondering, though, as I trot here and there, both buying and returning:

Isn’t this a lot like writing?

Well, it’s not. If it were writing, I’d be doing the BICHOK thing, spinning out words (like now, and on deadline, too).

However, the back and forth of choosing, modifying, changing course, writing, rewriting, sticking to a program to create the best bathroom book possible?

Share with me, if you dare, your obsessive-compulsive moments with decorating writing. Maybe there’s a pattern!

Summer Reading Recommendations from the Dauntless

June 19, 2014Books, mermaids, PintipYA Book recommendationsPintip

I love book recommendations. I especially love YA book recommendations. And I REALLY especially love YA book recommendations from my writing friends. What’s more, I’m at the beach this week, and I needed to load up my kindle with lots of good reading.

So who better to ask than the Dauntless, my fellow YA Golden Heart finalists from this year?

Here’s what they had to say:

1. SWEET EVIL series/SWEET RECKONING.

I am crazy about the Sweet Evil series by Wendy Higgins! If you haven’t picked up these books yet, now is the perfect time to start, because the third book in the trilogy, Sweet Reckoning, was just recently released and shot right onto the bestseller list. The series features the sons and daughters of fallen angels, whose lives literally depend on being bad influences. Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna is fighting her fate until she meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe and her willpower is put to the test– he’s the son of the fallen angel responsible for Lust– like father like son? I am telling you, it’s been a long time since I’ve read a YA book this much fun, this well-written, and featuring a truly hot bad boy hero even a slightly “older” (ahem) YA fan can appreciate.

— Amy DeLuca/Amy Patrick, FOUR BULLETS, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist; CHANNEL 20SOMETHING, debuts August 12, 2014.

2. OBSIDIAN.

BETTER OFF FRIENDS.

I’d recommend Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout, which was published a couple years ago, to anyone who likes stories with a bit of a speculative twist. Obsidian was the first book in a long time where I didn’t skim any parts—at all. (I have this really bad habit of skimming the slow parts and then missing something and having to backtrack…not at all a recommended way to read books!) Obsidian’s plot was unique and interesting, the voice was fun and engaging, and the guy (Daemon) was hot. A recipe for success!

More recently, I read Better off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg and would recommend this to anyone who likes contemporary stories. The story switches POVs between a teen boy and girl, best friends. I normally don’t books with two different narrators because many times, they read choppy. This one did not. It was a cute story, and again, no skipping!

— Barbara Gerry, MACHA AND THE RIVER BLUE, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

3. VAMPIRE ACADEMY.

I recommend the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead. The heroine is kick-butt and feisty–she saves herself instead of waiting around for a guy to save her. There is a love story through the series that will break your heart at times (it literally brought me to tears), but stick with it! It’s worth it in the end. Make sure you carve out a chunk of time for these books–you won’t want to put them down!

— Jessica Ruddick, LETTING GO, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

4. ELEANOR & PARK.

I’ve read a bunch of fabulous YAs recently, but I loved this book because the characters aren’t your typical ones. Eleanor is on the fatter side of chunky with unruly red hair while Park is half Korean. Their romance is sweet and sarcastic and completely real. It’s about acceptance and love and putting yourself out there. I found this book refreshing, and it stands out even in the midst of this fabulous genre.

— Kimberly MacCarron, CHASING FIREWORKS and TO FEEL OR NOT TO FEEL, 2014 double GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

5. THE CITY OF HEAVENLY FIRE

I’d love to recommend The City of Heavenly Fire, by Cassandra Clare. I loved the conclusion to this portion of the Shadowhunter story. I loved seeing how Jace and Clary got together and worked all the problems out. And I think Clary is a real kickass heroine.

— Marnee Bailey, ALTERED, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

6. MEANT TO BE.
Looking for a fun summer read? Meant to Be, by Lauren Morrill is a spring break romance set in London. The romantic comedy between by-the-books, Shakespeare quoting Julia and her class clown nemesis Jason is entertaining and hard to resist. It’s quick, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and a nice little vacation from some of the darker YA that’s currently so popular.

–McCall Hoyle, THE THING WITH FEATHERS, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

7.THE MADMAN’S DAUGHTER.

The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd caught my eye because of its haunting premise. A book written from the point of view of Dr. Moreau’s daughter? Yes, please. The character’s voice drew me in from page one, and the world-building was gorgeous. Her Dark Curiosity, the sequel, was just as brilliant. I’m counting the minutes until the third book in this trilogy arrives.

–Stephanie Winklehake, CARMA ALWAYS, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist.

8. WHISPER FALLS.

One of the last books I read that stuck in my mind is Whisper Falls by Elizabeth Langston. It’s a YA time-travel romance — I do have a soft spot for those! A 21st-century boy meets an 18th-century indentured servant girl thanks to a waterfall portal. If you love history blended with a bit of mystery, you’ll love this book!

–Vanessa Barneveld, THIS IS YOUR AFTERLIFE, 2014 GOLDEN HEART® Finalist, Fall, debuts Fall 2014 by Bloomsbury Spark.

Wow! Don’t all those books sound awesome? Looks like I’m going to be busy reading this summer!

As for me, I’d recommend DANGEROUS GIRLS by Abigail Haas. After I read that someone had described it as a GONE GIRL for the YA genre, I downloaded it that very night and finished it in one sitting. This novel is about a spring break vacation in Aruba gone awry, in the worst imaginable way. Anna’s best friend Elise is brutally murdered — and the prime suspects are Anna and her boyfriend, Tate! Each chapter alternates among the trial, the few days leading up to Elise’s murder, and the previous year. I could not stop turning pages, and the ending left me thinking about the story all night long. In fact, a couple days later, I had to go back and reread parts of the novel in order to glean a new understanding of the whole story. This is a fun, fast-paced read, perfect for a sunny day at the beach — not unlike the idyllic Aruba setting!

What about you, mermaids & friends? What recommendations do you have for summer reading? (Does not necessarily have to be YA!) Please share — my kindle can never have too many books!

Gentle Endings

June 18, 2014mermaidsMasha Levinson

There’s no good way to end a relationship, especially if one party doesn’t want it to end. But how to react when the relationship never got off the ground?

A friend of mine is swimming in a tarn of internet dating. And I’m along for the ride. We have lawyers who can’t spell lawyer. A world traveler who has never heard of Machu Picchu and one bozo who only wanted to discuss the dimensions he would bring to the relationship. Yes, those dimensions. Within this jambalaya of bachelors, there are of course, nice, sweet guys, who by all accounts look good on paper, but just don’t have that “something” that connects her to them. So then the question arises, how to let them know, it’s just not there.

Asking me for advice, less so for my dating experience (ahem, 10-year wedding anniversary coming up) and more for wordsmithing, I give her my .01 cent of advice. Be nice, be gentle, but be honest. Something like, Mr. Bachelor, you are a wonderful person with amazing qualities but I don’t feel we should pursue anything more than a friendship.

Easy. Nice. Gentle.

How can anyone not like that response?

And then it came in the mail.

“Dear Masha. Thank for letting me read your submission. While you definitely have a way with words, I didn’t feel connected to this project and will not pursue requesting anything further. I wish you the very best in your future endeavors and I know you will find a right home for your work.”

Easy. Nice. Gentle.

Ouch.