Hi Christy! Great to have you here today.
Hi Samantha, it’s a pleasure to be here.
Congratulations on your new release, Her
New Worst Enemy. Tell us a little bit about your lovely
self…
I’m a full time mum to three wonderful
children and I live in Bristol – which is a fabulous city, so vibrant and cool.
Before I had my kids I worked as a video and radio producer, which didn’t leave
much time for writing, so I’ve only been serious about getting published for
the last few years. It’s been a long-held dream of mine to see my name on the
front cover of a book, so I’m incredibly excited that it’s finally happened!
So, lets get straight to it….tell us about
your baby (AKA Her New Worst Enemy)…
It’s a friend’s to lovers/older brother’s
best friend story (my two favourite tropes). Ellie, my heroine, is in a bad
place when we first meet her. Her ex-boyfriend dumped her for someone else and she
feels as though her longed-for dream to have a family has been cruelly ripped
away from her. On top of that, she’s afraid her best friend, Penny, is about to
make a huge mistake in marrying a gold-digger. She needs help, but the only
person she believes can get through to Penny is Gideon – her older brother’s
best friend. Despite their differences, Ellie and Gideon are surprised to find
they get on rather well as they attempt to save Penny from certain doom. Not
only that, but they have a bit of trouble keeping their hands off each other.
How did you come up with the concept for
this book? And how long did it take you to write your first draft?
The concept is an amalgamation of a few
different ideas, one being based on an experience a good friend of mine had. I
wrote the first chapter a couple of years ago, but it went in a virtual draw
for a while. I dusted it off at the beginning of last year and wrote the rest
in about six weeks.
Your Hero, Gideon and Heroine,
Ellie, are they purely fictional or have they been based on someone you know?
The
characters themselves are entirely fictional, although I’m sure there are a few
characteristics that have crept in from people I know.
Tell
us something about Ellie and Gideon that nobody else knows…
Hmm,
interesting question. Ellie once stole a bar of chocolate on a dare, but she
was so wracked with guilt that she took it back again the next day. Gideon is
very skilled at archery.
Describe your book in just three words.
Spicy, snarky fun.
What’s the best thing about being a writer?
Getting lost in another world. I absolutely
loved getting to know the characters in HNWE and I was really sad to leave them
at the end of the story.
If your book was turned into a film, who
would play Ellie and Gideon?
I would love Carey Mulligan to play Ellie,
I think she could pull off her quirkiness. Aiden Turner would be my choice for
Gideon, he’s got the looks and the charisma.
What question have you always wanted to be
asked about your writing? And how would you answer it?
That’s a toughie! I’d quite like to be
asked what it feels like to be an award-winning, multi-published author, but
I’m probably going to have to wait rather a long time for that one.
Lastly, I saw this question in an article
the other day and couldn’t resist pinching it…If you were to write a book about
your life, what would the title be?
Good question! “Always look on the spicy
side of life” would fit pretty well.
Now, would you like to share a little
teaser of an excerpt with us lovely lot….
Absolutely…
***
Ellie
Holdsworthy took another long, shaky sip of wine as she waited for the perfect
moment to put her plan into action.
From her vantage point at the restaurant bar she had a perfect view of Gideon
and his date as they took turns impressing each other over their untouched
food.
He hadn’t changed a bit since she’d last laid eyes on him nearly a year ago.
His short, pitch black hair shone in the dim light of the candles flickering on
the table, and even from this distance she could make out the sharp contours of
his cheekbones and the full curve of his lips.
Her body thrummed with nerves. At least, that’s what she put the unsettling
feeling down to.
She continued to watch him charm his date, his athletic, rangy body draped
comfortably over the chair. A couple of women on a table to his left were also
surveying him surreptitiously, mesmerized by his striking looks and effortless
charisma.
Fools.
She snorted with derision as he tipped his head back and gave a deep growling
laugh at something his blond companion said. It was sad really, how the poor
girl had no idea what she was letting herself in for.
If she hadn’t known him since she was twelve and seen this very same act being
performed year after year with a different woman each time, she might have been
taken in herself. As her brother’s best friend, Gideon DeLancy had been in and
out of her life now for seventeen years. She was well versed in his womanizing
ways.
Ellie knew why women fell for him. He was an amazing looking man, confident,
funny...rich. In fact there wasn’t a single reason not to fall for him—if you
didn’t mind your relationships short-term and emotionless. That was why she’d
kept her own childish crush on him so well buried; there was no happy ever
after with him. It was men like him who gave women like her false hope.
A flash of scarlet skirt at his table brought her focus back. She watched as
his leggy blond companion rose and sashayed off towards the ladies room,
finally leaving him alone.
Show time.
***
Thanks for stopping by. I wish you the
biggest success with Her New Worst Enemy, I’m sure its going to be a huge hit!
Thank you so much! It’s been wonderful to
be here.
Buy links:
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