We are excited to have author Jessica Lemmon with us for an interview today. She is promoting
her new book, Bring Home the Bad Boy. Enjoy it after my thoughtson the book.
Publisher: Forever
Date of publication: January 2015
Creativity is his drug,
painting is his escape, but she'll be the addiction that brings him to his
knees.
Evan Downey buried a
part of his soul when put the love of his life in the ground. He knows he needs
to get his shit together for the sake of their son, but escaping into his art
is the only way he can begin to cope with Rae's death. When the chance to move
back to Evergreen Cove, one of the few places that has ever felt right to him,
he knows it's a chance he has to take. For his sake, and his sons. Charlotte
Harris would give anything to have her best friend back. But if she can't have
Rae, then she vows she'll at least be there to support the family Rae left
behind. So when she learns that Evan is looking to move home, she does
everything she can to help him and Lyon re-build their lives at the Cove. But
when sparks start to fly between Charlotte and Evan it's the first glimpse of
something bright and beautiful either of them has seen in far too long. And
they start to wonder if fate has offered them a second chance at happiness-- if
only their brave enough to take the risk and let love back into their lives.
My thoughts:
Bringing Home the Bad Boy was such a heart warming story. It's a story about moving through the grieving process and knowing when you are ready to move on with your life. Evan and his son Lyon have been grieving the loss of wife and mother Rae for four years. Evan is ready to move on and is hoping that his move back to Evergreen Cove will be the first step. Charlie (Charlotte) was Rae's best friend. Now that Evan is in town, they both realize that they have a mutual attraction. The problem is that Charlie has incredible guilt because she still see Evan as her best friend's husband.
I thought this was a very realistic story about two people who who are ready to move on, but are so afraid to take that step. I liked how the author dealt with the subject, especially the feelings that Charlie struggles with over wanting to love Evan. I loved Evan and Charlie together. Their chemistry was very hot! I don't think I'll ever look at finger paint the same way again!
I highly recommend this story! I can't wait for Rescuing the Bad Boy coming out later this year!
Kari& Autumn: What
inspired you to become a writer?
Jessica: I have always loved two
things: to write, and to draw. After obtaining a degree in graphic design, I
wasn't so sure about doing art for a living. (It’s mostly logo and website
design.) Then in the summer of 2009 I read a little book called Twilight and I
was inspired. One woman woke up from a dream and wrote down her idea. One idea
that changed the landscape of the world. I decided I wanted publish a book.
Kari& Autumn Where
do you come up with the ideas for your books?
Jessica: The honest answer is
EVERYWHERE. I know that's not a very interesting answer, but it is the truth.
It can be a show I saw on television, an experience I had personally, or
something a friend says. I have a scene in an upcoming book sparked from an
evening my husband and I shared Thai takeout on the couch. Once the idea is in
my head, the characters play out the rest. I just write it down.
Kari& Autumn: What exciting projects are
waiting in the wings?
Jessica: Bad Boys and more Bad
Boys! Book 2 is an enemies-to-lovers reunion story titled Rescuing the Bad Boy
(May 2015), and book 3, A Bad Boy for Christmas (September 2015), features an
ex-military landscaper pursuing and protecting a woman who is reclaiming her
independence.
Kari& Autumn: Who is
your favorite literary character and why?
Jessica: Oh, that is a tough one.
I'm so bad at favorites, because I love so many things! I’m going to go with
Charley Davidson from Darynda Jones's fantastic series. Charley is spunky,
she's sassy, and she's the Grim Reaper. So far there are seven books in the
series, and I am one behind. My plan is to finish my reading/judging for the
RITA award, then treat myself to reading it.
Kari& Autumn Just
for fun, if you could be any animal, what would it be and why?
Jessica: That's
an interesting question. I'm going to have to go with the bird. To be that
lightweight, be able to go anywhere--Yeah, that would be really cool.
Excerpt:
“Know why I moved here?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
She wrenched her eyes from his and focused on a spot over
his shoulder.
“Because you didn’t want to live in Columbus anymore.”
That’s what he’d told her. That he wanted a change. That he and Lyon had
outgrown the house. And, she imagined it’d be hard to live in the house where
Rae had passed.
“Um…”
His fingers grazed her jaw and turned her head, his palm
moving to her neck where he cupped her nape and forced her eyes to his.
Reluctantly, she met them.
“Rae’s more alive when you’re around, Ace.”
Her heart, oh her heart. Kicking against her chest in a
confusing, hectic rhythm.
“You bring her to life for Lyon—more than anyone else. I
need him to remember her because he can’t remember her alive.” His hold stayed,
his palm warming her neck, his gaze unwavering.
She tried to separate the two feelings she was having—one
that she was now talking about Rae with Evan and two, that he was touching her
while talking about Rae.
Before she could, his lips closed over hers.
Her thoughts short-circuited.
This wasn’t anything like a soft peck hello. This was his
lips moving over hers, slanting over hers, warm and firm and then his mouth
opened and—
Oh my gosh!
His wet, warm tongue slid along the seam of her lips and she
stopped being passive and started kissing him back. When she would have touched
her tongue to his, he relocated it, running along her bottom lip instead and
tugging with his teeth.
If she’d been standing, her knees would have given out and
dropped her right on her butt.
And then there was the palm on her neck, now spearing up
through her hair and clutching onto a handful of it. He held her captive, his
hand fisting her hair as he angled his mouth again. In response to the soft
whimper escaping her throat, he swept his tongue into her mouth. He tangled his
tongue with hers once, twice, and released her.
When he pulled his mouth away, a long, satisfied sigh
escaped her lips. Because that was a
kiss. A kiss to rival all other kisses.
She opened her eyes to realize A) she’d closed her eyes and
B) she’d at some point wrapped both hands around his forearms where she was
holding tight and C) Evan looked as please as she felt.
“God damn, Ace.
Your mouth.” His eyes flicked to her lips. Lips still tingling from the rough
scrape from the stubble surrounding his.
She concurred with that sentiment. Not that she said
anything. She’d gone dumb; completely mute.
He backed away, but held onto her chin and tweaked it
lightly with the rough pad of one thumb. “That’s
the way this is gonna go from now on.”
About Jessica Lemmon:
Jessica Lemmon has
always been a dreamer. At some point, she decided head-in-the-clouds thinking
was childish, went out, and got herself a job . . . and then she got another
one because that one was lousy. And when that one stopped being fulfilling, she
went out and got another . . . and another. Soon it became apparent she'd only
be truly happy doing what she loved. And since "eating potato chips" isn't
a viable career, she opted to become a writer. With fire in her heart, she dusted
off a book she'd started years prior, finished it, and submitted it. It may
have been the worst book ever, but it didn't stop her from writing another one.
Now she has several books finished, several more started, and even more
marinating in her brain (which currently resides in the clouds,
thankyouverymuch), and she couldn't be happier. She firmly believes God gifts
us with talents for a purpose, and with His help, you can create the life you
want. (While eating potato chips.)
Jessica's SM:
@lemmony
Buy Links:
The Harbinger: I was really hoping this was going to be an awesome conspiracy theory type book. Maybe it eventually get there, I don't know. The beginning was all religion and doom and gloom. It was not very interesting.
Year of Wonders: This might be a really awesome 
Big Little Lies: This is the second book that I have tried by this author. I actually made it through the first one, but really didn't like it. I tried Big Little Lies, but I hated the characters. They were annoying and so cliche. I didn't really care what happened, who died or why. I wasn't willing to finish to the end to find out.. I think I'm done with this author.
Sweet Damage: This one was so boring and frustrating at the same time. I didn't like the switch between Tim's first person POV to the third person of Anna. I lost interest about halfway through.
