lunedì 23 luglio 2012

Blog Tour: Take This Regret by A.L Jackson; Guest Post + Excerpt + Give@way!

Take This Regret

Author: A.L Jackson
Published: 28th July 2011 by Sapphire Star Publishing.
Number of Pages: 242 more or less.
Format: eARC
Purchase: Amazon, Smashwords

From Goodreads:
There are some mistakes we make that we will regret for the rest of our lives. For Christian, it was the day he betrayed Elizabeth. ristian Davison has a plan for his life. He is determined to become an attorney and to one day take his place as partner in his father’s law firm. Nothing will stand in his way, not even Elizabeth Ayers and their unborn child. fter Christian cuts her from his life, Elizabeth spends the next five years struggling to provide for her daughter and willing to sacrifice anything to give her child a safe, comfortable life. For five years, Christian has regretted the day he walked away from his family and will do anything to win them back just as Elizabeth will do anything to protect her daughter from the certain heartache she believes Christian will bring upon them. hen Christian wrestles his way into their lives, Elizabeth is faced with asking herself if it is possible to forgive someone when they’ve committed the unforgivable and if it is possible to find a love after it has been buried in years of hate. Or are there some wounds that go so deep they can never heal? hey say everyone deserves a second chance.

My Review:
Take This Regret is a contemporary novel, written by the author A.L Jackson, that talks about the life of Christian, Elizabeth and Lizzie.  Five years ago, before Lizzie was born, Christian thought he had the perfect life, the one he had always dreamed about: he was attending the last year of University for becoming a lawyer and after his studies he would have worked for his father's firm. But most important of all, he has found an amazing girlfriend, intelligent, beautiful and with the same passion for law, Elizabeth, the woman he wanted to spend his entire life with. But when Christian is forced to face his girlfriend's pregnancy he discovers that maybe life wasn't quite as he has imagined it. Becoming a father would mean destroy his dreams and his ambitions and he's not ready to give up on everything he has worked for his whole life. So when he asks Elizabeth to choose between him and their daughter he's certain he has taken the right decision. But nothing is as it seems and when five years later he casually meets his daughter Lizzie, his only desire is to get in touch with his daughter. The mission is a very hard one because Elizabeth is not ready to forgive the man who had hurt her more than anyone;at the same time she's tempted by the vision of the three of them finally together, as a family. Will it be possible for Christian to repair to the mistake he has regretted his whole life? Will it be possible for Elizabeth to forgive the only man she have ever loved?

Well, when I've read the synopsis I thought that it was time for me to give a chance to contemporary romances. I really don't know how to express how I feel about this book because if I say that I didn't like it, that wouldn't be true, but at the same time I didn't enjoyed it as much as I thought I would. When I picked this book, I already knew it was quite an emotional read, full of romanticism, so, maybe not something I could have loved much, but there were some negative points that have nothing to do with my lack of romanticism.
- At first, the story was so slow, with no twists or events that upset the course of events. I felt like it was always the same: Elizabeth's feelings, Christian's feeling and stop, nothing more. There were a couple of unusual events which inverted the story but they were not well-developed or didn't really make a difference in the complexity of the book.
- I found a little bit annoying that sometimes a certain episode was counted by Christian's point of view and then, when the narration passes to Elizabeth that particular episode is retold by her point of view. Personally, I love reading about both the characters who are the protagonists of the story but I think that re-telling about the same episode creates an effect of repetition that I haven't particulary liked.
- Mmm maybe the story sometimes was a little bit too melodramatic, but I think this is completely subjective.

And now I think is really time to say what were the positive things in this book! In my opinion the author has a great talent in writing and I really liked her writing skills: I loved the concentration she took in describing her characters' feelings and emotions. I also think that the BASIC idea for the plot was a good one because in the end I was well interested in knowing about Christian and Elizabeth's future and especially I was really attracted by Lizzie's character; the problem was that sometimes the story was too FULL of emotions and this made it a little boring. As I was saying, I was really focused on Lizzie's character, probably my favourite in the book. I pictured her as an adorable little girl with big eyes with which she expresses all of her emotions; what I particulary liked about her was the incredible maturity she showed during all the struggles between her mother and her father and how she was able to understand them just like an adult would.

And in the end I chose to share with you one of my favourite quote from the book:

"I felt so unworthy of the affectiong she gave. She loved so freely, trusted so easily. Would she feel the same when the innocence of her mind faded away, when she understood the meaning of betrayal?"

Author Bio
A.L. Jackson first found a love for writing during her days as a young mother and college student. She filled the journals she carried with short stories and poems used as an emotional outlet for the difficulties and joys she found in day-to-day life.
Years later, she shared a short story she’d been working on with her two closest friends and, with their encouragement, this story became her first full length novel. A.L. now spends her days writing in Southern Arizona where she lives with her husband and three beautiful children. Her favorite pastime is spending time with the ones she loves. Publisher Website Twitter Facebook Blog
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Guest Post with A.L Jackson: 10 tips for becoming an author.
Hey all! I’m A. L. Jackson, author of Pulled and Take This Regret.
I spent some time contemplating whether I wanted to focus on the overall picture and lifestyle of being a writer, or if I wanted to focus on craft. In the end I thought I’d give you a little of both.
So here it goes ~ A. L. Jackson’s 10 Tips to Becoming a Better Writer
1. Never give up. Yes, this is a general philosophy that can be applied to almost any passion, but one that is essential to being a writer. If you’ve chosen writing or becoming an author as your passion and aspiration, then expect that there will be a lot of discouragement that will come with it. There will be times when it feels as if it is just not worth it. But there will also be times, like when you hold your published book in your hands, when it feels like the most amazing thing in the world.
2. Outline. If you’re writing your first book, I strongly recommend that you begin with an outline. It’s essential to know where you’re beginning, the direction you’re heading, and your ultimate destination. Be sure that the plot makes sense and you can clearly see how you can take your reader on this journey. You’ll have plenty of space to allow your characters and plot to grow and develop as you write, but an outline will help you to stay on the right track. After that first book, you should be able to tell if you’re a stronger writer with or without an outline.
3. Continue to read. Read the classics, read the bestsellers, and read in your genre. Allow yourself to be inspired!
4. Find a critique partner you trust. I can’t emphasize this enough. A critique partner can help you see the holes in your plot and characterization issues that we, as writers, can’t see. Often these things are clear in our heads, but it may not come across that way to the reader. Plus it’s so encouraging to have another writer friend who we can toss ideas around with and support each other in our writing. On a side note: Be sure this critique partner’s interest is in helping you become a better writer and not in tearing you down.
5. Look for common themes, words, and phrases in your manuscript. Most authors have favorite words and phrases. Identify them and be sure you don’t overuse them.
6. Get rid of those adverbs! I recommend doing a search through all the adverbs in your manuscript. If you can replace an adverb with strong verbs and descriptions instead (which you almost always can), do it.
7. Show, don’t tell. Bet you haven’t heard that before J Don’t tell us your character feels sad, but describe the scene unfolding that made brought on the sadness, the actions of the character in response to it, and give clear descriptions of what the character is experiencing and feeling.
8. Approach editing with an open mind. Our first instinct as writers can be to be defensive of our
work, but open your mind to suggestions given to you by your editor and/or critique partner. Editors are there to help make our books better, not tear them apart. If you disagree with a suggestion, take the time to discuss it with your editor and see if the two of you can work together to create a good solution.
9. Don’t let formatting or punctuation marks tell your story for you. Don’t overuse italics for emphasis or exclamation marks to show excitement. Let your story speak for itself.
10. Continue to write. The more you write, the better writer you’ll become. Plus, you love it, right? So sit back and enjoy what you do.

And now, I have for you an excerpt from the book,
so you can have an idea of wheter you would like to read it or not!

Two hours later, Christian sat at his desk studying for his politics midterm, all the while listening intently for the sound of footsteps outside his door he felt certain he would hear. He trained his attention on the heavy textbook in front of him, trying to ignore the growing anxiety he felt each time he picked up his cell phone to check if he’d missed any messages.
None came.
It was well after midnight when he crawled into bed, convinced she just needed some time to realize he was right. He had to be right. He wouldn’t allow himself to think otherwise, so every time that wave of guilt came, he pushed it aside.
He envisioned her awake, just as he was, tossing uncomfortably in her small bed that rested in the far corner of her studio apartment and slowly coming to terms with what she needed to do.
But when he dragged his unrested body from his bed the next morning, his phone was
still devoid of messages.
He had been cruel—he knew it. He could only hope he hadn’t pushed her too far, but that she would somehow understand he was just trying to protect their future.
Christian ate a bowl of cold cereal and then forced himself into the steam of his shower, desperate to find anything to chase away his fatigue. He found his head in a cloud, both from lack of sleep and from the scenarios running through his mind, ones including a life without Elizabeth.
What if she never came back?
Could he really give her up?
As he rubbed the soapy washcloth over his body, he tried to picture an existence without her. A life void of the perfect pitch of her voice, the way it rang out when she laughed. A life in
which he didn’t touch the softness of her skin or have the right to pull her body against his. A life without a child crying out from the next room as he tried unsuccessfully to study for the bar.
Groaning, he shook his head and forced it all away, telling himself it would not come to that.
He was certain when he saw her in class today, she would take her normal seat beside him in the lecture hall, lean in, and whisper in his ear that he was right.
But when her seat remained vacant, his unease grew, gnawing at his stomach. The moment the professor dismissed class, Christian raced from the room and to the café where Elizabeth and he studied every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He frantically scanned the room, finding several mildly familiar faces but not the one he wanted to see.
By the time he reached her apartment complex, he was panting, both from exertion from the mile he had run and the constriction fear had placed on his heart. He pounded on the door, giving her no time to answer before he yelled, “Elizabeth!” There was no sound from the other side, no rustling of curtains or faint shuffling of feet. Even then, he wasn’t satisfied. Fumbling with his keys, he found his spare and pushed it into the lock.
The door opened to the quietness, the small studio comfortably cluttered as always. The only thing that seemed amiss was the blankets from her normally neat bed were strewn on the floor. Christian crossed the space to the only separate room. The door to the bathroom rested ajar, that room as empty as the first.
Christian pressed his back against the wall and took a deep breath. He wasn’t prepared for this. He’d never thought it would go this far.
Reluctantly, he forced himself out of the apartment, shutting and locking the door behind him before he left, hating the voice inside his head that kept telling him this was for the best.

And now, for those who can't wait to read "Take This Regret"

a Rafflecopter giveaway
I am a member of Reading Addiction Blog Tours and a copy of this book was provided to me by the author. Although payment may have been received by Reading Addiction Blog Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for this review. There was no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, publisher, publicist, or readers of this review. This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning Use of Endorcements and Testimonials in Advertising*


2 commenti:

  1. I feel for these characters already. I like stories about second chances.

    RispondiElimina
  2. i love reading contemporary. my all time fav so far is Anna & The French Kiss

    -wni

    RispondiElimina

 
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