Hey readers! Ethan here with you all on this awesome Wednesday with a fun post I'm so excited to share! Today I am the featured stop on the blog tour for Wicked Fate by the amazing Shannon Maynard! Today's post will feature an exclusive interview and a fun giveaway! Don't miss out! Here we go:
Wicked Fate (Wicked Luck #2)
By: Shannon Maynard
Release Date: August 25th, 2015
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Adventure, Romance
Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing
How can Ava Starr's dream come true be Dax Miller's worst nightmare?
Ava's mother always told her to be careful what she wished for. From the moment Ava woke up on Lamarai Island, she wanted nothing more than to find Preston. But now that she has, her heart is caught in a fierce game of tug-of-war. In a place where danger lurks around every tree, she must quickly figure out who she can trust, and who is out to destroy her dream of a happy ever after.
Dax's plan to capture Ava's heart was all falling into place. That is, until Ava's past showed up on the island in the form of a tall, dark, and handsome pilot named Preston, leaving Dax to wonder if he's inherited Ava's wicked luck. Preston is determined to pick up his relationship with Ava where they left off before a plane crash separated them, but Dax will stop at nothing to fight for the girl of his dreams and discover the truth behind the mysterious pilot.
But Dax isn't the only one troubled by the surprise appearance of Preston and his flight crew. The new visitors to the island have caused Dax's stepsister, Roxy, to develop a bad case of sibling rivalry, as well as managed to attract the unwanted attention of a vicious tribe of cannibals. Now Dax must figure out a way to keep his new tribe of misfits safe, while Ava is left to make the most important decision of her life. Will they succeed, or will fate decide for them?
Wicked Fate is the heart-pounding sequel to Wicked Luck, a new adult adventure romance series.
~Read what others are saying about Wicked Fate~
~Cali Mel
"I highly recommend this series, and now I’m desperately hoping for another book...There’s a love triangle, plenty of action, tragedy, and plenty of revelations throughout the entire book."
"If you want to read a unique romance, Wicked Luck and Wicked Fate are the books for you."
~Leah Nova Moss
*****
About the Author:
Shannon L. Maynard lives in Colorado with her five girls where she is a legal assistant by day and an author by night. In between working and writing she can be found driving kids to soccer, folding mountains of pink laundry, or eating her weight in chocolate. Other addictions include shoe shopping, reading YA, and Australian and British accents (which may be partly to blame for her massive crush on Thor). If she had one wish it would be for more hours in the day to spend enjoying all of the above. Okay, everything except the laundry.
Shannon studied art and criminology before getting a license in cosmetology, but eventually wound up an expert daydreamer; a skill that occasionally leads to getting lost while driving, but has been a huge asset to her love for writing. Her debut novel WICKED LUCK is set to release June 2015 and is the first book in the Wicked Luck Trilogy.
*****
Exclusive Interview with Shannon Maynard
1. Wicked Luck, book one in this series, introduces the readers to a tale of mystery, romance, and adventure. What was your inspiration for this captivating plot?
The only inspiration for my captivating plot involving cannibals was my crazy imagination and a desire to write a romance with an interesting twist. My kids were also an inspiration. They encouraged me to follow my dream of writing a novel and wanted me to write something with a little bit of mystery.
2. Based on what I’ve read so far, this series will deal with some mature themes such as love, maturity, self-responsibility, and more. What themes do you hope the readers take away from this series?
2. Based on what I’ve read so far, this series will deal with some mature themes such as love, maturity, self-responsibility, and more. What themes do you hope the readers take away from this series?
One theme I want readers to take away from the Wicked Luck Series, especially younger readers, is that you can’t run from problems because they will find you eventually, and the only thing you really have control of when life throws you a round of wicked luck, is your attitude and how you handle the situation. Bad luck is really just a case of life not going the way you planned. Another important theme is to never give up on your goals and dreams. And one last theme; the importance of keeping a journal.
3. Your bio shows us that Shannon Maynard is an author who wears many, many hats. What advice do you have for aspiring authors who, like yourself, find themselves operating a small haberdashery?
3. Your bio shows us that Shannon Maynard is an author who wears many, many hats. What advice do you have for aspiring authors who, like yourself, find themselves operating a small haberdashery?
My life is a careful balance of time management with working, raising five girls, and being an author. If I could have one wish it would be for more hours in the day. There just isn’t enough time to accomplish everything I want to on any given day, so I’ve learned to prioritize and focus on things that matter most, like my kids and my goals and dreams, the other stuff can wait. My advice for aspiring authors in similar circumstances as me is to take advantage of every minute of free time. I have become a master of multitasking because I brainstorm constantly while doing everyday things. One thing I have sacrificed is watching TV. I do take breaks to watch a good movie, but when you have so many things that need to get done you have to be careful to leave yourself enough time to write.
4. Wicked Luck was your debut novel, and I’m hearing amazing things thus far. Tell us what it’s like to be a debut author. How has this experience treated you so far?
4. Wicked Luck was your debut novel, and I’m hearing amazing things thus far. Tell us what it’s like to be a debut author. How has this experience treated you so far?
I am so excited! I always wanted to be an author so the fact that this dream has become a reality is an awesome experience. There is so much work involved that I’ve decided writing the actual book is the easy part. It has really been a learning process and I hope what I’ve learned will make releasing and promoting my future books much easier. I have a great team at Clean Teen Publishing that works miracles and they have been a joy to work with. This experience has also given me the opportunity to meet lots of wonderful people like you who are supportive and encouraging, and who are excited about the book. I hope we can meet in person in the future.
5. What sort of background research did you have to do to prepare yourself for writing the Wicked Luck series?
5. What sort of background research did you have to do to prepare yourself for writing the Wicked Luck series?
I did some research on cannibals. I also interviewed my brother and a few male friends to get some insight to how they would handle certain situations, and then I used the info to help me think like a guy in order to write Dax and Preston’s POV. Ava’s character has a lot of similar personality traits to me, and I actually used some real life experiences and interactions with people for a basis to create certain events in the story.
6. Can we talk about this cover for a moment? It’s my favorite cover I’ve seen in a very long time. I’ve been raving about this cover for MONTHS now. What do you think? Give us a little bit of insight on what the creation process was like. What is the symbolism of the skull? (*Spoiler free*)
6. Can we talk about this cover for a moment? It’s my favorite cover I’ve seen in a very long time. I’ve been raving about this cover for MONTHS now. What do you think? Give us a little bit of insight on what the creation process was like. What is the symbolism of the skull? (*Spoiler free*)
I love the covers! I like simple covers that really catch your eye. Wicked Luck is a romance laced with mystery and adventure so I wanted something to set it apart from typical romance covers. I thought a skull would be fitting because they are stranded on an island inhabited by cannibals. Book two, Wicked Fate, is similar but instead of the vine the skull is engulfed in flames. My daughter Mia came up with that idea, and I can’t wait for everyone to see the cover of book three. She had a wickedly clever idea for that one too. ;) Myra did an amazing job of creating exactly what I had in mind.
*****
You can grab Book One, Wicked Luck, for FREE on Amazon for a Limited Time!
For the past three years, Dax has been stranded on Lamarai Island with his stepsister and two tribes of cannibals. But now a beautiful girl named Ava has washed up on shore. After secretly reading her journal, he believes she is a perfect match to the girl of his dreams. He’s determined not only to keep her alive, but also to win over her heart by convincing her to forget about her past and the secrets that continue to haunt her.
Ava Starr has always been the epitome of bad luck, but she never imagined she would wake up and find herself on a cannibal-infested island with no memory of how she got there. The last thing she remembers is boarding a plane with her pilot boyfriend, Preston. But now he and his crew are missing, and she must find him before a tribe of hungry cannibals finds him first. But Ava’s troubles have followed her to Lamarai, where once again she’s surrounded by danger and people who want her dead. She finds herself caught in a web of deceit and soon discovers the answers to her mysterious past can be found in the most unlikely of places, and that no one is actually who they seem to be.
Blog Tour Organized and Hosted by:
There you have it, my stop on the blog tour for Wicked Fate by Shannon L. Maynard! This post was so fun to make. Interviewing an author is always a favorite part of my job. Special shout out to the author and my friends at Clean Teen Publishing for allowing me to participate, they rock my socks off! Don't forget to add this one to your TBR! Until next time, Happy Reading!
-Ethan
Raising five girls is bound to keep anyone busy! But I like that it really was her imagination that concocted this idea! Most authors need something to prompt them along, but I think we can see how crazy and wild her mind really can be seeing as she didn't need anything at all :3 I agree with her message about being unable to outrun problems - it is very true!
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