HELLO FRIENDS, TODAY I AM THRILLED TO BE A STOP ON THE BLOG TOUR OF THE EPIC BOOK, LEAVING FLOWERS BY DEBBIE McGOWAN AND RAINE O'TEIRNEY! I LOVED THIS BOOK AND SO WILL YOU! I HAVE MY REVIEW, BUY LINKS, AN EXCERPT, BOTH AUTHOR BIOS AND LINKS, AND A RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY AS WELL AS INFO ON THE REST OF THE BLOG TOUR! THAT IS A LOT TO COVER, SO LET'S GET STARTED!
THIS QUOTE IS SIMPLE, BUT OH SO TRUE! HERE IS MY REVIEW:
Leaving Flowers by: Debbie McGowan and Raine O'Tierney
reviewed by: Becky
Shy
and awkward since childhood, Aidan Degas is now a man lost. His
twin—Aidan’s other half, Nadia—died tragically young, leaving
him with nothing to get him through his days but his job at the
prestigious Grand Heights Luxury Apartments and the flowers he lays
upon her grave. When Aidan is assaulted on the job by a tenant, it’s
the graveyard he turns to for strength and solace.
Patrick
loves being assistant groundskeeper at the sprawling cemetery where
he tends graves and offers a bit of comfort to mourners. When he sees
a sad young man lingering over an old grave, his curiosity is
strangely piqued for reasons he doesn’t understand. He’s never
done this—struck up a friendship with a mourner. But soon that
friendship blossoms into a romance.
It’s
not going to be easy for the pair. Aidan is so damaged, like petals
crushed in an angry fist, and even with Patrick’s warm heart and
Irish charm, it might not be enough to bring him back from the edge.
This is the kind of story that breaks your heart then puts it back together again! These two ladies make it look easy to write a book together and make it flow seamlessly, and that has to be quite a challenge!
Aidan doesn't live, he merely exists day to day since he lost his twin sister. He has a job, but can't enjoy it anymore because of a incident (you say incident, I say violation ;P) that happened there. He is only at peace when he is at his sisters grave.
On one of his visits Aidan meets Patrick, who has a light in him that Aidan is drawn to, he craves Patrick's peace. Patrick is drawn to Aidan too, and soon they become friends, then more than that.
Aidan is scared to get close, scared to lose someone again, and those that he was close to he has pushed away, it is a bumpy road, but when someone is worth it, you navigate the potholes for as long as you have to.
This romance is not an easy one, but nothing ever is that is really worth it, you will love watching this beautiful bond unfold. Aidan learns to deal with his loss and cling to his beautiful memories, and it is a thing of beauty to watch his transformation!
Thanks Raine and Debbie, for giving us a beautiful story of a man who truly blossoms with the help of a beautiful man who treasures him!
the 5 poppy rating :)
TRUST ME, I DID THE POPPIES FOR I REASON! HERE ARE THE BUY LINKS, I IMPLORE YOU TO PUT 'EM TO GOOD USE :) :
Beaten
Track Publishing (Paperback):
http://www.beatentrackpublishing.com/shop/proddetail.php?prod=leavingflowers
NOW FOR AN EXCERPT:
Somehow,
in spite of the need to go home and shower off the grottiness of
digging earth for half a day, Patrick didn’t feel he could take his
usual subtle approach. Nadia’s passing was not recent; her grave
was not new; yet here was this young man, kneeling at her feet, his
eyes closed, hands resting in his lap, oblivious to the sun’s slide
from the sky, the increasing briskness of the breeze, Patrick’s
presence…
“Hello
there,” he said quietly, stopping on the path a few feet away. The
man was too far into his own mind to startle. Instead, he slowly came
to, his shoulders lifting slightly as he twisted to see what had
disturbed his meditation. Patrick smiled. “I’m afraid we’re
locking up for the evening.”
“So
soon?”
“It’s
going on for seven o’clock, sir.”
“Seven…”
The man’s voice petered away, his expression indicating he had no
idea how long he had been kneeling there. If he doubted Patrick’s
word, the confirmation came when the man tried to stand, and
staggered, numb-legged. He automatically reached out to steady
himself, catching hold of the front of Patrick’s coveralls, and
then almost collapsed again, unable to bear his own weight.
Without
a second thought, Patrick quickly grasped the man by the forearms to
steady him. “There’s no rush now. You just take your time. All
right?”
The
man nodded and swallowed hard. “Thank you. I only came to leave the
tulips.” He gestured toward the vase of closed tulips in front of
the grave and in the midst of the red and white carnations.
Patrick
kept his hold on the man and looked down at the flowers. “They’re
beautiful,” he said. “Really lovely.”
“Thanks.
Nadia loved flowers so much.” A glimmer of a happier time lit up
the man’s features for just a second, before it was blotted out
once more by the heavy cloud of sorrow.
Patrick
felt that sorrow in his heart. He wanted to offer comfort, warmth,
security, to soothe with his touch, his kiss… Oh
my—no, no, Patrick. You’re way over the line. You’re standing
at the grave of this man’s wife, and all you can think of is
kissing him?
But it wasn’t that
sort of kiss he had in mind. It wasn’t about passion, or lust; just
a desperate desire to take away the pain.
The
man seemed a little more steady on his feet and Patrick gently
released him. “OK now?”
“I
think so.” He took a long, deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Thank
you for your patience. I’m sure you’re eager to go home. It can’t
be fun working here.”
Patrick
shrugged and smiled. “I love my job. Fresh air, peace and quiet—”
“But
it’s a cemetery.”
“Well,
yeah,” Patrick said, the slightest hint of a chuckle in his words.
It was enough to prompt the other man to lift his head. For the first
time, his eyes met Patrick’s, and something bloomed inside, a heat
radiating from somewhere he couldn’t quite pinpoint. It rose up
through his chest, into his throat, filling his mouth and his nose,
as he gazed into those incredible steel-gray eyes. There was so much
pain there, and loss—anger—and yet there was more, so much more,
that Patrick could almost hear the emotion, like a distant cry for
help from someone who was drowning.
I REALLY JUST WANT TO HUG AIDAN, YOU WILL TOO! NOW FOR SOME BIO'S AND SOCIAL LINKS FOR THESE AMAZING LADIES:
DEBBIE
MCGOWAN is an author and publisher based in a semi-rural corner of
Lancashire, England. She writes character-driven, realist fiction,
celebrating life, love and relationships. A working class girl, she
‘ran away’ to London at 17, was homeless, unemployed and then
homeless again, interspersed with animal rights activism (all legal,
honest ;)) and volunteer work as a mental health advocate. At 25, she
went back to college to study social science— tough with two
toddlers, but they had a ‘stay at home’ dad, so it worked itself
out. These days, the toddlers are young women (much to their
chagrin), and Debbie teaches undergraduate students, writes novels
and runs an independent publishing company, occasionally grabbing an
hour of sleep where she can!
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/writerdebmcg
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DebbieMcGowanAuthor and http://www.facebook.com/beatentrackpublishing
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/deb248211
Tumblr: http://writerdebmcg.tumblr.com
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/writerdebmcg
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+DebbieMcGowan
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4401329.Debbie_McGowan
Website: http://www.debbiemcgowan.co.uk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DebbieMcGowanAuthor and http://www.facebook.com/beatentrackpublishing
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/deb248211
Tumblr: http://writerdebmcg.tumblr.com
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/writerdebmcg
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+DebbieMcGowan
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4401329.Debbie_McGowan
Website: http://www.debbiemcgowan.co.uk
RAINE
O’TIERNEY lives outside of Kansas City with her husband, fellow
author, SiƓn O'Tierney. When she's not writing, she's either playing
video games or fighting the good fight for intellectual freedom at
her library day job. Raine believes the best thing we can do in life
is be kind to one another, and she enjoys encouraging fellow writers!
Writing for 20+ years (with the last 10 spent on gay romance) Raine
changes sub-genres to suit her mood and believes all good stories end
sweetly. Contact her if you're interested in talking about
point-and-click adventure games or about which dachshunds are the
best kinds of dachshunds!
Homepage:
Raineotierney.com
LGBT
Author Interviews: http://raineotierneyhatparty.blogspot.com/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/RaineOTierney
Goodreads
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25176624-leaving-flowers
THESE BIOS ARE SO GREAT, AS ARE THESE LADIES! CHECK OUT THE REST OF THE TOUR AT THESE BLOGS, I KNOW I WILL!
8-May
11-May
12-May
13-May
14-May
15-May
LAST BUT NOT LEAST, CLICK THE RAFFLECOPTER PIC BELOW TO BE ENTERED TO WIN A $20.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD, BEST OF LUCK FRIENDS!
THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON THIS BLOG TOUR STOP! HAVE A GREAT ONE FRIENDS!
No comments:
Post a Comment