Roxy's Reviews: Guest Post, Review + #Giveaway: Three Broken Promises by Monica Murphy

Breakout New Adult sensation Monica Murphy returns with a hot new contemporary romance—a heartfelt story of second chances, forgiveness, and redemption.

Commitment. That’s what I really want from Colin. Ever since my brother, Danny, died in Iraq, Colin’s done so much to help me, including giving me a job at his popular restaurant so I can leave my crappy waitressing job at the strip joint. But lying in bed with him every night to comfort him from his horrible nightmares isn’t enough anymore. I know he feels guilty about Danny’s death, about not going to Iraq, but I can’t keep living this double life.

I love him desperately, but he’s got so many demons, and if he can’t open up to me now, then he’ll never be the real partner I need him to be. I gave him a month, and now I’m out of here. If he truly loves me like he says, he knows where to find me.

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Broken-Promises-Girlfriend-Quartet-ebook/dp/B00DK8L9HW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1387472283&sr=8-1&keywords=three+broken+promises+monica+murphy

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/three-broken-promises-monica-murphy/1115435243?ean=9780804176811&itm=1&usri=three+broken+promises+monica+murphy

GUEST POST

Writing a Series: The Mountains and Valleys

When I first started writing seriously for publication long, long ago (and under a different pen name), I created a lot of standalone novellas and books, little one offs that began and finished within that single story. After a while, I started to realize that what readers really wanted were series.

Oh, how they love a series. How I as a reader love a series too! A chance to revisit old characters and meet new ones, all of it set in the same place or close by. I loved reading a book with new characters introduced and thinking, Ooh, I hope that person gets their own story. It’s like hanging out with the same bunch of friends and getting to meet new ones.

When I wrote ONE WEEK GIRLFRIEND, I knew I was going to end it with a cliffhanger. Yes, I’m that mean. So I knew I was going to write two books but I had no plans to go past that. Until I created a character out of thin air, Fable’s boss Colin, who I brought in to create a little trouble in SECOND CHANCE BOYFRIEND. Originally Colin wasn't meant for much beyond causing trouble for Fable, but he intrigued me immediately and I knew he needed his own story.

So he got one and it’s the latest release from the One Week Girlfriend series, THREE BROKEN PROMISES. I also wrote a book about Fable’s little brother Owen entitled FOUR YEARS LATER (available 2/25/2014) and I went back to Drew + Fable with DREW + FABLE FOREVER (available 1/14/2014). So yeah, what originally was going to be only two books turned into four books and a novella. Kinda crazy.

But also a lot of fun…and a bit of a challenge. The biggest challenge? Staying consistent within the boundaries of the setting and timeline. Oh, timeline is probably going to do me in with the novella and the last book of the series. You see, I wrote them out of order. I wrote FOUR YEARS LATER over the summer and then DREW + FABLE FOREVER in the fall. But everything in the novella happens before FYL so I had to backtrack and double check myself constantly. To the point where I’d sit up in bed in the middle of the night and remember something I might’ve missed. I’d grab a notepad and scribble the reminder down so I wouldn’t forget to check in the morning.

Yeah. I have a distinct feeling that there are still a few timeline errors out there between those two books so go easy on me okay peeps? It was hard. ß Sounding like a whiny baby right there, don’t I? *winks*

My favorite part of writing a series is how well I (and the readers) get to know the characters. Owen Maguire has been in every book so by the time I got to writing his story, I felt like I had a strong handle on his personality and how he would act. I also loved offering those little glimpses of Drew + Fable for the readers so they can keep up on their lives. You spend so much time with these characters, you almost feel like they’re real and you don’t want to let them go…

Eventually though, you have to. And that’s tough. Can I admit something? After I finished FOUR YEARS LATER I went back and re-read it again. And again. I didn’t want to let go of Owen and Chelsea! Then when I was working on the line proofs (where you read the entire book looking for those little mistakes) for THREE BROKEN PROMISES, I fell back into the story and got involved with Jen and Colin’s troubles all over again. I didn’t want to let them go either.

And of course, there’s Drew + Fable and their final story. I cried writing the last part of that novella, my friends. Typing with tears streaming down my face because I knew deep in my heart that this was it. Their story was over.

I think it’s a good thing when you don’t want a series to end but then again, there are some series out there that have gone on too long and have run their course (and I’m not talking only books either. Lots of TV shows have this problem too). I’d rather leave the readers hungry for more than tired of the same ol’ thing and I’m sure most of you would agree. I feel that way when reading a series too.

None of these issues or troubles discourage me from wanting to write more series though. As a matter of fact, I might be working on a little something right now….

Tell me, what do YOU think of a series? Love ‘em or hate ‘em? I think you already know how I feel about the subject but I’d love your opinion. Let’s discuss.

REVIEW

Ms Murphy has done it again. I’m seriously starting to think she’s really Cupid in disguise, only a little more wicked than the angelic cherub he’s so often portrayed as, because she loves putting her characters through turmoil before they finally find that magical thing called love.

Drew and Fable have to be one of my favorite couples of all time, but they have some close competition, with Colin and Jen hot on their heels.

Love is hard. It is one of the most elusive things to find, and when you do it can be messy, but it can also be heart-wrenchingly beautiful. Loving someone so much your heart breaks just thinking about not having them in your life is exquisite torture, and it’s something Colin and Jen face in this amazing story.

They have so much stacked against them. Each is haunted by their past mistakes and failures, and they both have the worst stubborn streaks I have ever seen in any two people. They refuse to admit what they really want for fear of disappointing the other, thereby losing the friendship they share, so they rather torture themselves. There is a huge amount of chemistry between them and this book oozes with sexual tension, making it an exciting read. Who doesn’t love an angst-filled romance between two broken people, right?

This story will make you smile, it will warm your heart and soul, and it may even have you pulling your hair out as these two amazing people navigate the rollercoaster that is love. I loved everything about it.

GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Monica Murphy is a native Californian who lives in the foothills below Yosemite. A wife and mother of three, she writes New Adult and contemporary romance for Bantam and Avon. She is the author of One Week Girlfriend and Second Chance Boyfriend.