Books n Friendz: BLOG TOUR PROMO including AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Title:

Heart of Light

Author:

T.K. Leigh

Release Date:

August 25, 2014

Genre:

Romantic Suspense

Synopsis

RECOMMENDED FOR AGES EIGHTEEN AND UP DUE TO EXPLICIT SEXUAL SITUATIONS, STRONG LANGUAGE, AND GRAPHIC VIOLENCE.

Twelve years ago, Jolene’s adoptive mother died. Twelve years ago, a man showed up at Jolene’s door and promised to take care of her. Twelve years ago, Jolene was happy.

Then it all changed…

Jolene Bergio has spent the last twelve years of her life asking one question… Why? Why was she left in the custody of a man who would sell her each and every night to the highest bidder? After a few years, she shut off, giving up hope that anyone would ever find her. Until her luck changed one night and she escaped. Twelve years later, she finally feels something she hasn’t felt in a long time… Free.

Scared that her past will find her unexpectedly, she hides away in a rented beach house, trying to distance herself from everyone… Until Dr. Cameron Bowen enters her world and slowly tears down the walls that she has built up over the past twelve years of her captivity. Jolene begins to learn to love again.

And trust again.

But when a man from Jolene’s past emerges, will she be able to keep her identity hidden? When lies are told and hearts are broken, will the truth surface in time to bring Jolene back from the shadows that threaten to expose who she really is?

Heart of Light is a captivating story of love, strength, and survival.

Buy Links

Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Amazon CA ~ Amazon AU

B&N ~ iTunes ~ Google Play ~ Kobo

Excerpt

“Why don’t you like being touched?” he asked quietly in a bold move.

Jolene stopped dead in her tracks, glaring at him. “I just don’t, alright?” she hissed, her voice raised. “And it’s none of your fucking business why I act the way I do. I see what you’re trying to do, Doctor.” She spun around and stormed back toward the house, wanting to get far away from his prying, yet consoling, eyes.

“What, Jolene? What am I doing? I just want to get to know you. I want to spend time with you, and I need to know why certain things set you off so that I don’t do them!” He ran along the shore, catching up to her, stopping short when he almost reached out and grabbed her arm to force her to talk to him.

Feeling him approach behind her, she reeled around. The expression on her face was fierce. “You’ve been a therapist for far too long. You need to get it out of your head that you can help me.” The ocean wind whipped her hair in front of her face and her voice rose in anger. “You can’t! No one can! So just stop! Stop taking an interest in me! Stop with the whole nice guy act because, based on my experience, that’s all it is!” she cried through her tears, her voice becoming barely audible. “A fucking act.”

She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply before opening them, the pain of what she had experienced the past decade of her life visible in the look of unease on her face. She took a step closer, her eyes remaining glued to Cam’s.

“You show up on my doorstep acting like my savior when the world has gone to shit. You tell me how you’ll look after me and protect me. And you know what those are?” She could see the hurt that her words were causing him, but she didn’t care.

“Lies, Cam,” she said quietly. “Just lies. You say you’ll help me and watch over me, but you’ll turn. I can’t… I can’t go through that again. Please. I beg you. Just stay away from me.” She spun around and began walking briskly away from him.

“You don’t have to do this, Jolene!” he shouted, running to catch up with her. “You don’t have to choose fear.”

“Yes, I do,” she insisted, turning to face him once more. “It’s the only way that he won’t…”

“You can choose me instead,” he interrupted.

Her breath caught at his unexpected reply. “Cam, I…” She trailed off, hiding her tear-filled eyes.

“Don’t let your fear control you, Jolene,” he implored, his voice soft. He brought his body close to hers. “Please, choose me, not fear.”

About the Author

T.K. Leigh, otherwise known as Tracy Leigh Kellam, is the USA Today Best Selling author of the Beautiful Mess series. Originally from New England, she now resides in sunny Southern California with her husband, dog and three cats, all of which she has rescued (including the husband). She always had a knack for writing, but mostly in the legal field. It wasn’t until recently that she decided to try her hand at creative writing and is now addicted to creating different characters and new and unique story lines in the Contemporary Romantic Suspense genre.

When she’s not planted in front of her computer, writing away, she can be found running and training for her next marathon (of which she has run over fifteen fulls and far too many halfs to recall). Unlike Olivia, the main character in her Beautiful Mess series, she has yet to qualify for the Boston Marathon.

Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Blog ~ Pinterest

Amazon Author Page ~ Goodreads

I had the absolute honour to sit down with T.K Leigh, and interview her as part of her blog tour. Except in this case it wasn't face to face in a neutral room as I tried to turn the nerves in my stomach into something casual. This interview was conducted via the computer screen, on opposite sides of the globe via email. I can still pretend for a little while that it was your conventional interview :D I hope you enjoy it to.

Tell us a bit about yourself. What make you tick?

It's hard to say what makes me tick. I'm a thirty-something year old vegetarian who loves to run! Oh, and I can't say no to an animal in need.

Why writing?

Why not? Writing was never really something I set out to do. It was just something I started for fun while the hubs was on the road for work. I had a story in my head and wanted to write it. I had absolutely no intention of publishing. But the story wouldn't leave my head. I had trouble getting into any other book that I was trying to read, because my story was constantly there. I didn't think what I had written was any good, so imagine my surprise when i sent it to a bunch of BETA readers and they devoured it. I never expected my books to take off like they have, and I'm so grateful that I've achieved a modicum of success in this book world. It's truly an amazing and humbling thing knowing that my books have touched people in such a way. I love doing this and hope to be able to keep bringing people stories for a long time to come.

Which authors have influenced your writing?

That's hard to say. I'm not so sure any authors have really influenced my writing. I have stories in my head and just want to get them out on paper.

Who are some of your favourite authors?

Stephen King, Carl Hiaasen, John Steinbeck, and Hunter S. Thompson

Tell us about some of the books you've written? Are they part of a series, stand alone?

My first three books, A Beautiful Mess, A Tragic Wreck, and Gorgeous Chaos, are all part of my Beautiful Mess series. This is a series that needs to be read in order. It's the story of a girl, Olivia, who lost her family when she was just six years old in a car wreck. She was also in the car but survived, although with some head trauma. She was whisked away from the only home she had known and was raised by an uncle, and throughout her life she struggled trying to remember he life before the accident that took her family from her. Fast forward twenty-plus years and she's a 28-year old woman living in Boston when she runs into Alexander Burnham one night. There's something about him that seems oddly familiar, but she can't put her finger on what. The series chronicles there tumultuous and sometimes stressful relationship, while Alexander tries to keep Olivia safe from a threat that is lurking around any corner.

Heart of Light is a bit of a spin-off from my Beautiful Mess series. It is a stand-alone and you don't have to have read my Beautiful Mess series to read it. The main character, Cam, is someone that was first introduced in my Beautiful Mess series.

Can you sum up Heart of Light for us without giving to much away.

Heart of Light is the story of Jolene and Cam. The book opens with Jolene escaping a human trafficking ring with the help of a guardian angel, really. The story chronicles her journey to learn to love and trust again, despite her past, even when her past could be lurking around any corner.

What inspired the book?

I just wanted to paint the issue of human trafficking in a more realistic light. Dark romance books have become quite popular and I wanted to write something that makes people realize that human trafficking is a huge problem in our world. It doesn't just happen in third world countries. It happens in our own back yard. There are more human slaves today than there were in the Civil War era. Human Trafficking is projected to surpass the drug trade within this decade. It's a problem that people turn a blind eye to, and I wanted people to become aware of what is around them.

Do you have a favourite character? What makes them special?

Jolene is definitely high on my list. She was such a strong woman, regardless of her past. We see so many weak females in books these days and Jolene is certainly not that. She's been through more horrific things than any of us even want to imagine, but she is able to move on from those. I wanted people to realize that even in the darkest of times, there's always hope.

Whats next on the cards for you?

Well, the next book is "Heart of Marley". In "Heart of Light", Cam tells a story about his sister, Marley. This book starts with that story and progresses through their senior year of high school. It's a new adult coming of age novel that deals with depression and the potential ramifications of not getting proper treatment for this disease.