I am absolutely thrilled to be kicking off Ophelia London's Abby Road Blog Tour! Today's tour stop is a guest post by the lovely Ophelia London herself. After the guest post you will find my review of Abby road and then a Rafflecopter form full of wonderful prizes including an iPod shuffle, print copy of Abby Road and an e book copy of Abby road.
Last October I had the opportunity to
interview Ophelia London during her Playing at Love blog tour. It was at this time that fell in love with her writing - and learned that Ophelia is truly a wonderfully fun and genuine person. Since then I have read two more of her books, both have been exceptional and rank as some of my all time favorites.
More about Ophelia London:
Hey
there. Nice to see you. You might know me as Ophelia London—the chick writer
who signed with Entangled Publishing. (squeee!!) I sometimes go by that other
name, too—but she’s way less exciting. Born and raised in California,
my car broke down on my way to Florida, and
I've lived in Dallas
ever since.
During
daytime hours, I am the marketing department's “Head Babysitter.” But when the
sun goes down, the laptop comes out. I Am Writer. Hear Me Type.
"Playing at Love," the
first book in my Sweet Kisses series, will launch into the ebook universe on
September 25, 2012 Its spin off, "Speaking of Love..." will land in
January 2013.Both are part of Entangled Publishing's brand new Bliss imprint.
Isn't that the cutest name?
My dreamy little debut print novel,
"Abby Road,"
is slanted for a March 2013 release.
Until I find true love and/or
become a famous pop star, I’ll keep writing about it.
I love great books, sweet treats,
complicated sweaters, live music, looking at Adam Levine, and all things
Hitchcock. I can dwell for hours over changing a comma to a semi-colon. Pretty
shoes make me happy, as do pretty cupcakes and chocolate in general. I loathe
writing query letters. It sometimes takes me a week to read a 250-page novel because
I’ll read a sentence, smile, think about it, love it, then reread the entire
page to relive the full effect. I dream about being at the beach practically
every day but love being cozy at home most of all. I don’t deny that I’m not
cool enough for Coldplay but a bit too cool for Mandy Moore—both are all over
my iPod. I’ve attended 20+ shows at London’s West End, and I saw (in the theater, first run)
"Star Wars, the Phantom Menace" 16 times. Most days you can find me
wishing I was wearing a fabulous hat or singing karaoke in my car. I find Ryan
Seacrest both fascinating and repulsive. I firmly believe that my conflicting
personality makes me charming; as does my sarcasm.
Learn more about Ophelia on her
blog,
Goodreads and
facebook. Follow her on twitter @ophelia_london
Abby Road by Ophelia London
Touted by the tabloids as the biggest rock star of our generation, Abigail Kelly is used to being in the spotlight. But beyond the glam of Hollywood, her world is falling apart. Still reeling from the death of her brother and wilting under the iron fist of Max, her manager, Abby banishes herself to the secluded beaches of Florida for the summer, thinking some anonymity and sunshine are just what she needs. What she finds, instead, is Todd, an ex-marine eager to embrace life after war. Together, Abby and Todd find the balance Abby’s life has been missing.
That is, until Max resurfaces, demanding Abby return to Los Angeles to record her band’s newest album. As the pressures of public appearances, paparazzi, and late-night recordings start to mount, Abby will have to risk everything or lose the life she always dreamed of.
Ophelia London’s Abby Road is a love letter to music—both the kind you cherish and the kind you create—as well as a beautiful love story that proves even when everyone in the world can recognize your face, the only people who matter are those who can see inside your heart.
Hi, my name is Ophelia, and I write about romance. I read about romance. I eat, drink, talk and breathe romance. Romance makes me happy. Have I mentioned I love the romance? But let’s talk about the writing part.
Entangled Publishing recently released my first print novel, Abby Road. Yay! It’s got most of the elements of a standard romance: tropical setting, a likeable heroine with emotional baggage, and most importantly, a sexy hero with an accent. You’re welcome. Because my stories are heavy on the make-out sessions and light on the naked time, a lot of people have asked me why I don’t write YA.
“Surely,” they say, “there’s less pressure to write the bedroom scenes in YA stories, yeah?”
True. And good question. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a good YA. In fact, my book club has organically moved away from Oprah’s books to reading nothing but YA. So yeah, I’m a fan. And, generally speaking, yes, the apex of a YA romance isn’t necessarily when the hero and heroine tumble into bed. More often, it’s a first boyfriend, a first kiss or the first time they ever say “I love you” to someone. So sweet, those firsts.
When it comes to my own writing, however, I’m less interesting in telling stories about first loves, and more interesting in telling stories about last loves. The loves that stick. The forever soul mate kinds. The true happily ever afters.
Ooh! I get chills just thinking about all that love!
Admit it, one of the reasons we adore Jane Austen is because her stories end in a wedding. Darcy and Elizabeth against the world. Case closed. In romance, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as knowing that there really doesn’t have to be a next book…we know everything is going to be all right. Love had conquered all and we can go to sleep.
When it comes to contemporary, Katie Fforde is one of my favorite authors. I think what attracted me to her little love stories is, well first of all, they take place in the English countryside (the most charming setting ever!), but mostly because many of them end in a proposal—sometimes these proposals are shouted. Her heroes are bossy in the sexiest way. Look her up; she’s awesome.
As both a reader and a writer, I’ve been chasing those happily ever afters for as long as I can remember. So, here’s to first loves, last loves, and those of us who are somewhere in between. Until I find my bossy Mr. Darcy (and he better have an accent!), I’ll keep on writing.
My thoughts on Abby Road
What I liked:
Abby Road is an exceptionally tender, heart wrenching and unique book. Its endearing story touched me as I am sure it will you. I loved the moments my heart ached, when I laughed out load or when my heart warmed with the growth of the characters. I loved that Abby rescued herself.
I liked that Todd, the heartthrob, is flawed yet willing to work on the relationship and better himself. I like that he isn't threatened by Abby’s success and allows her to be who she is, challenges her to be more, and when needed can step away and allow Abby to figure out what she needs to do to be happy. I loved that he was a gentleman in every way.
I liked how Ophelia London cleverly wrote Abby figuring out
what kind of heartache she was putting her loved ones through and the
realization that she must forgive herself in order to move on.
I enjoyed Abby’s
friends and immediately felt the comradeship they had with each other. The guys
in the band were loyal and fun.
What I didn't like:
Max, the band manager, but I think
that was supposed to happen.
Who would I recommend Abby Road to?
I recommend Abby Road to adult readers who love
romance but shy away from the explicit sex scenes of traditional romance
novels. Abby Road
is full of kissing, hand holding and talking – all essential romance elements,
but it stops there. It is a feel good book that breaks your heart then mends it,
breaks it again and then makes it whole by fusing it with the best kind of love
there is – loving yourself.
While Abby Road is not a Young Adult novel, I
think those adult readers out there who prefer the YA genre will appreciate
reading it because it’s like an adult -YA book. (Hope that makes sense!)
Rating:
I give Abby Road 5 Skulls. It is an emotional
ride full of joy, pain, forgiveness, love and happiness. A ride I would gladly go
on again, because Ophelia London knows how to write a happily ever after.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
