Kiss Me by Moonlight
by Michele
Zurlo
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Hey
there. It’s Lacey again. Falling in love and landing Dylan hasn’t been the
panacea I thought it would be. For starters, he moved into my apartment without
asking, and he continues to have no respect for my need to have things in sets
of six. Pile that on top of my emotional upheaval after losing my stepfather,
and you have a recipe for disaster no amount of German chocolate cake can cure.
Yes,
Lacey Hallem’s life remains fraught with challenge, but you know she’s a
fighter. Forming a talent management agency with her best friends has been the
best career move she’s ever made—even if it’s the only thing currently working
according to plan. Lacey’s OCD is getting the better of her, and this time her
hands aren’t the only casualty. When her lies ruin her relationships with both
Kiss Me Goodnight and Dylan, she’s forced to confront her demons in ways she’s
never had to before. As she once again faces her past, can she learn once and
for all to let love and friendship through the barriers she’s built?
Both
harrowing and hilarious, this conclusion to the tale of Lacey and Dylan will
leave you laughing, crying, and fanning yourself—sometimes all at once. Michele
Zurlo triumphs again in this moving story about life’s quirks and what we all
have to do to get by.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt One:
On the way home, Dylan fumed silently. I drove this time, as
he tended to speed and cut people off when he was in a sour mood. When we were
almost to my apartment, he said, “Aren’t you going to apologize?”
I glanced at him, surprised he’d ask for me to lie. “I’m
sorry?”
“That’s not going to cut it.”
“I’m not sorry I said it. I’m sorry I hurt your feelings,
but you know how I feel about that song.” I turned into the parking lot and
found the space designated for my apartment.
“You called me a manwhore, Lacey.” His entire life, he’d
slept with two women, one of whom had been his late wife. “That’s not the image
we’re trying to project. We want fans to focus on our music, not our imagined
bedroom antics.”
I got out of the car. This was another “discussion” Dylan
wanted to have. You know what I’m spoiling for? An all-out fight. A lot of
pent-up frustration and anger mixed with residual hurt and grief inside me, and
that much emotion is going to demand an outlet if I don’t provide one.
On the plus side, the fact that I want to argue, scream, and
yell boded well for the conditions of my hands. Perhaps that’s why Dylan listed
those options earlier. He knew what I’d wanted before I did. I kind of resent
him for that. People you were mad at aren’t supposed to be right or
accommodating. Dylan managed to be both. Manwhore.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
I’m Michele
Zurlo, author of over 20 romance novels. I write contemporary and paranormal,
BDSM and mainstream—whatever it takes to give my characters the happy endings
they deserve. I’m not half as interesting as my characters. My childhood dreams
tended to stretch no further than the next book in my to-be-read pile, and I
aspired to be a librarian so I could read all day. I ended up teaching middle
school, so that fulfilled part of my dream. Some words of wisdom from an
inspiring lady had me tapping out stories on my first laptop, so in the
evenings, romantic tales flow from my fingertips. I’m pretty impulsive when it
comes to big decisions, especially when it’s something I’ve never done before.
Writing is just one in a long line of impulsive decisions that turned out to showcase
my great instincts. Find out more at www.michelezurloauthor.com or
@MZurloAuthor.
INTERVIEW WITH MICHELE
1) Is there a story behind this book or any of the characters you'd like to share with us?
1) Is there a story behind this book or any of the characters you'd like to share with us?
Michele: Two years ago, I had an accident, and I ended up with a
concussion. It took several months to recover. My brain wasn’t working right.
It was very frustrating and stressful, especially when my OCD kicked in and I
didn’t feel in control of myself. It changed my perspective on a lot of things.
I stopped writing and deleted all my personal social media accounts. When I
began to feel things normalizing, Lacey popped into my head. Her story took a
bit of time to unfold. I wrote the first chapter of Kiss Me Goodnight eight
times, and then I completely revised it again when my beta readers told me it
still didn’t work for them. Once I had that right, the rest of her story told
itself. She’s a strong woman, and she took over. I like her a lot.
2) What was the inspiration for this book?
2) What was the inspiration for this book?
Michele: When I signed the contract for Kiss Me Goodnight, it
included a sequel. I panicked, because I couldn’t think of a sequel. But then I
confided in my daughter, and she pointed out that Lacey had many unsolved
issues. “She still has a lot of problems, Mom. She needs to figure them out in
the next book.” She basically told me what the plot should be, and Kiss Me By
Moonlight was born.
3) If you used a real setting, how intimate are you with it? Have you been there just to visit or have you lived there? Or did you do a lot of research about it?
3) If you used a real setting, how intimate are you with it? Have you been there just to visit or have you lived there? Or did you do a lot of research about it?
Michele: I have lived in Michigan all my life. I’m very familiar with
the area where Lacey lives and works. Highland State Rec, where Dylan takes her
in both books, is near my house. My dog loves to run the trails, and my wife
and other daughter ran the Iron Dog there last year. The only location that
isn’t familiar to me is Lollapalooza. I can’t afford tickets to see the annual
Chicago event, but I did see it in 1992 when it came here and Red Hot Chili
Peppers headlined. The scene is mostly based on my experiences there. My sister
lived in Chicago for several years, so I’m familiar with the traffic problems.
4) Did you fall in love with you hero(es)? Why?
4) Did you fall in love with you hero(es)? Why?
Michele: I have to fall in love with my characters or else I can’t
make them real. If I can’t love them, then how can a reader fall for them? I
love Lacey’s resiliency, her intelligence, heart, and resourcefulness. I love
how Dylan grows and changes. Kiss Me Goodnight was mostly about Lacey’s
journey. Kiss Me By Moonlight is about their journey together, their quest to
become better people and to love one another well.
5) How long did it take to write this book and how long before you found a publisher?
5) How long did it take to write this book and how long before you found a publisher?
Michele: I had a deadline. The book took about six weeks to write.
Kiss Me Goodnight took about three weeks to find a publisher. I had been
eyeballing Omnific for a few months because I thought KMG was a good fit. I was
glad they agreed. If they hadn’t, I had planned to self-publish. I wrote both
books in 2013, and they each took about 9 months from acceptance to
publication.
6) What was the toughest part about writing this book? Did any characters misbehave and if so, how?
6) What was the toughest part about writing this book? Did any characters misbehave and if so, how?
Michele: Lacey’s attempted suicide scene was the hardest thing to
write. I lost my best friend/cousin through suicide eleven years ago, and I’ve
never recovered. We’d been together since birth. She was ten weeks older than
me, we grew up in the same subdivision, attended the same school, and our
mothers are best friends too. You don’t get over losing someone—you just learn
to live without having them in your life. But even then, moments will sneak up where
you want to tell them something and you can’t. Writing this scene brought those
memories up in a very poignant and painful way. Though the scene is very sad, I
also wanted it to be darkly humorous. I think that’s one way to deal with
tragedy. Except (thankfully) Lacey doesn’t succeed. She comes to some harsh
realizations, and when I think back about writing it, I can’t help but realize
how badly I would have liked for my cousin to be similarly unsuccessful. I
can’t deny that part of me was rewriting my cousin’s death scene. I would have
liked for her to come out of that dark moment with a glimmer of hope left in
her heart, just as Lacey does.
7) If this book became a movie, who would you cast to play the parts?
7) If this book became a movie, who would you cast to play the parts?
Michele: I would pick John Stamos from the 80’s to play Dylan, but
James Franco would also be a good choice, as long as he can sing. For Lacey, I
always pictured Emma Stone with dark brown hair.
8) What do you like to do when you need a break from writing?
8) What do you like to do when you need a break from writing?
Michele: I hang out with my kids, work out, bond with friends,
bother my wife, clean the house—anything to get me up and moving.
9) Where do you usually write? Do you write in silence or with music or other background sounds?
9) Where do you usually write? Do you write in silence or with music or other background sounds?
Michele: I need music or the TV as background noise. I can’t concentrate
in silence. I also can’t concentrate if the wrong thing is on TV or the wrong
kind of music is playing. At the pool where one of my daughters dives, they’ve
started playing music where kids sing popular songs. That’s the wrong music.
10) Tell us a little more about what makes you tick.
10) Tell us a little more about what makes you tick.
Michele: That is a question everybody who knows me is still trying
to answer. What ticks me off is a lot easier to figure out.
11) Is this book part of a series and if so, tell us about the series please.
11) Is this book part of a series and if so, tell us about the series please.
Michele: The Kiss me series tells Lacey and Dylan’s love story.
Kiss Me Goodnight (Kiss Me #1) is the story where they get together. Kiss Me By
Moonlight (Kiss Me #2) is the story where all their problems explode and ruin
their relationship, forcing them to examine hard truths in order to put it back
together.
CONTEST
Michele will be awarding a choice of signed paperback copy
of Wanting Wilder, Mina’s Heart, Kiss Me Goodnight, or Kiss Me By Moonlight,
and a $25 Amazon gift card to one randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during
the tour. (US ONLY)
Please follow Michele's tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chance of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
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6 comments:
Thanks for hosting!
Thanks for hosting me!
I enjoyed the interview.
Thanks for stopping by, Rita!
Nice interview
I enjoyed readding your post
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