A Fourth Book

Okay, so last week I posted about how I got 3 new books to read. Apparently, that was wrong. Because, not long after posting that, #authorfriendJen reached out and basically said, "Hey, that book you read a couple of months ago that I speed-wrote like some possessed spirit, I'd like you to proofread it. Do you have time?" (Paraphrasing for comedic effect. Obviously.) And of course I said, "I will MAKE time." (That one is a direct quote.) Thus, I have a fourth book to read!

For anyone who really doesn't pay attention to my blog (cuz why would you?), #authorfriendJen refers to Jennifer Anne Davis, author of SEVERAL YA Fantasy novels featuring #royaltycore and political intrigue. She also loves me dearly and throws in such tropes as assassin love interests and only one bed. What can I say? I am blessed in all my friends.

Well, she's branched out into NA Paranormal Romance and I am HERE for it. Her new book, Deceptive Inheritance, will be available in late May, I believe. (She told me the release date, alright, I just forgot.) So allow me to show some love, and give you details about the book.

Laney Lake transfers to Stonemore University with a plan: two years of freedom before real life drags her back home. After a lifetime of overprotective parents and careful rules, she’s determined to finally live by making friends, saying yes more often, and experiencing the things she’s always been told to avoid.

Then Rowan Ward notices her.

To the rest of campus, he’s the rugby captain. He’s charming, confident, and impossible to miss. To himself, he’s a werewolf barely maintaining control. Rowan is the next Alpha, bound to a future already chosen for him. His girlfriend is perfect on paper. She’s from a powerful bloodline, unquestioned loyalty, and the one his father expects him to marry. It should be enough.

It isn’t.

Laney pulls at him in a way nothing ever has, stripping control down to instinct and want. He knows he should stay away. Instead, he watches her. Circles her. Fights urges that feel older than reason.

Laney doesn’t know what he’s hiding. She only knows that when he’s near, her body wakes up and she’s warm, restless, and painfully aware of how badly she wants him to touch her. As Laney leans into her stolen freedom and Rowan teeters on the edge of breaking every rule he’s sworn to follow, old laws begin to strain. Because Laney isn’t ordinary. And if Rowan’s world discovers why she matters, choosing her could cost him everything.

She wanted two years of fun.

He was never supposed to want her.

But some instincts don’t care about rules.

And some sparks are born to burn.

One, I am dangerously envious of this woman's pacing. Y'all know I'm an overwriter. If I see it in my head, it goes on the page, whether or not it's relevant. ALL OF HER SCENES ARE RELEVANT, and I kinda hate her for it. She knows exactly how to get from point A to point B in a plot, and I just take the scenic route every damn time. Her writing is like one of those Japanese bullet trains that gets to each stop in a timely and efficient manner. My writing is like an old coal train taking travelers out West when the tracks aren't even fully built yet. Maddening. Purely maddening.

Anyway, I've already read the ROUGH draft of this book. (And that's the way I like it. Give me the absolute worst versions of a novel so that I can vent all of my frustration on it, and THEN give me the polished version so I can see that my words/thoughts/feelings were not ignored in how BEAUTIFUL the book then turns out to be.) Now, I get to see it in its prettily polished format. YAAAAYYY!

Since I am proofreading, this also means I'm kinda working while I read it. Which, of course, means that if you find any errors later on in the book, that means the rest of the scene was so engrossing that I forgot I was supposed to catch that, OR it was soooooooo far from egregious that I didn't even notice it. Trust me, I will catch the worst of them and limit contact to the general public. You're welcome.

Okay, I don't know why my attitude is coming off a little fiesty today, but I'm not mad about it. Actually I do know why: too much Youtube. I really need to install a timer on my phone that won't allow me to watch it for more than like 60 minutes a day. I got myself past the stupid pixel game, I can get myself past youtube shorts too! (She says with false bravado, and zero intention to do anything about it.)

On a more relevant note, I am reading this book first out of all my options because it has a deadline. So next week when you get the review, it's so that I can copy/paste it into Amazon, Goodreads, Bookbub, B&N, etc once it officially releases. You are forewarned.

And now I have some reading to get back to. And writing.

OH! I've passed 100 days of writing!!! And I'm still going strong! Coming for that 365!!!

Okay, now I'm done. Bye.