Thursday, January 17, 2013

Giveaway & Blog Tour - "Away from the Spotlight" By: Tamara Carlisle


 Today we are welcoming Tamara Carlisle's new book,
 Away from the Spotlight


In the closing weeks of law school, Shannon Sutherland meets handsome and charming Englishman Will MacKenzie. Initially swept off her feet, Shannon finds that Will has a secret that, once discovered and the consequences realized, could destroy their fledgling relationship. Will and Shannon take great pains to have a normal relationship but, ultimately, find it impossible to do so. Will the pressures of their careers and the temptations of others drive Will and Shannon apart? Can Will and Shannon live a happy life away from the spotlight?

About the Author
Tamara Carlisle is a former attorney and business consultant. Away from the Spotlight is her first published work of fiction. She currently is working on two additional novels: one is about love in the music industry and the other is a work of paranormal fiction. Tamara currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her British husband and daughter. For further information, go to http://www.tamaracarlisle.com.


Tamara’s Goodreads Author Page also includes a blog detailing trivia relating to Away from the Spotlight.



Excerpt
I met someone. His name is Will. He’s English, I think.”

“That would be different for you.”

She wasn’t wrong. I had very casually dated a number of men I had met in the various pubs in Santa Monica. They were from all over Europe, but not one of them had been English for some reason. There were Scottish, Irish and Welsh men among them, but never English. I had commented on occasion on the fact that I never seemed to meet English men at the English pubs I frequented.

“I’m going to see him again tomorrow night.”

“What’s he like?”

“Drop-dead gorgeous, smart, funny and with excellent taste in music. Just my type. Well, better than my type, actually. It’s hard to believe someone that perfect has any interest in me.”

Please” Rachael said. “You get hit on every time we go out.”

“That’s overstating things quite a bit.”

“You seem oblivious to it half the time.”

I guess I did ignore some of it. When you spend time as part of a female minority in bars full of drunk men, it was hard not to think that some of them would have hit on me for no other reason than that I was female, regardless of how I acted, what I said, or what I looked like. I therefore learned that getting hit on wasn’t necessarily a compliment and, the later it happened in the evening, the less of a compliment it was.

My Thoughts
     First off, props to Tamara for writing such a fun story. Loved the main characters and the story was sweet. Perfect length and the ending is wonderful. Strange but true, my favorite thing of the story was the character Rachael. She spells her name the same way I do, she's funny, and seemed so real. Fun, fast paced, filled with great characters and a lovely romance, Away from the Spotlight is an utter delight.
  
Giveaway
Tamara will be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour. The more you comment...the more chances to win!!



Tour Dates

January 7:  DanaSquare
January 8:  SnifferWalk
January 8:  STOP 2  Harlie's Book Blog
January 9:  Maggie's Meanderings
January 10:  My Reading Obsession
January 10:  STOP 2  Journey with Books 
January 11:  The Bunny's Review
January 15:  My Devotional Thoughts
January 17:  The Brunette Librarian

21 comments:

  1. Thank you for your thoughts. It's quite obvious that you enjoyed AWAY FROM THE SPOTLIGHT a good deal.

    marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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  2. Away from the Spotlight looks like great book to read. Thank you for the opportunity.

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  3. I likws Away from the Spotlight by Tamara Carlisle on facebook.

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  4. I tweeted the giveaway. https://twitter.com/SusanKing111/status/291899540380999681

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  5. I shared this giveaway on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susanking111/posts/470227089679927

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  6. I became a fan of Tamara Carlisle on Goodreads.

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  7. I'm a new follower of Tamara Carlisle on twitter. (username susanking111)

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  8. I think the cover fits the book well too. I'm going to read my copy this weekend, after all the wonderful comments and reviews, I'm looking forward to discover the story for myself.

    Best
    Gala

    galaschick78 at gmail dot com

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  9. Good morning - thank you for hosting me today and for the wonderful review! I am so glad you enjoyed my book! Thank you also to Mary, Susan and Gala, for joining us here. I hope you all enjoy the book. Gala, I'm glad you liked the cover - I had an idea and the graphic artist did an excellent job of making it come to life - as Will and Shannon walk "Away from the Spotlight" and to their HEA. There's even a boat in the background (if you read the book, you'll understand). Susan, wow, thank you for following me on social media - I really appreciate it!

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  10. I wanted to add that I'm glad you like Rachael. She is based upon a real person with no changes from reality at all. She is based upon my good friend, Heather, who passed away from complications of a rare cancer at the time I wrote the book. I wished that I could have included her more in the story because she was absolutely hysterical. The world became a far less interesting place when she passed away. (Cheers, Heather!)

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  11. Thank you for the review, I have added Away From The Spotlight to my read list.

    Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

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  12. Thank you, Ingeborg, for joining us and for adding "Away from the Spotlight" to your to read list. I appreciate it and hope you like the book!

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  13. Rachael sounds like an interesting heroine, I think I'll have to add this one to my reading list.

    moonsurfer123 at gmail dot com

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    1. Hi, Anas! Thanks for joining us. Actually, Rachael is a friend of the heroine, Shannon. I hope you like Shannon as well although she is not as funny.

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  14. I really enjoyed your tour. I liked how this reviewer mentioned how funny Rachael was, which can be detected in your excerpt. This book is on my wish/TBB list.

    strive4bst(At) yahoo(Dot) com

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  15. Thank you, JBST, for joining us today! I'm glad you like Rachael and hope you'll like the book!

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  16. Thank you again for hosting me today and for your wonderful review. I am so glad you enjoyed the book! I look forward to continuing to follow your blog.

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  17. Good excerpt, Shannon and Rachael seemed very likable characters and good friends.

    lyra.lucky7(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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  18. I do love a fun, fast-paced, sweet romance. Thanks for the review. It sounds like my kind of book.
    catherinelee100 at gmail dot com

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  19. Hi, Lyra and Catherine! Thanks for joining me here. I'm glad you liked the excerpt, Lyra. I;m glad you like the sound of the book, Catherine. I hope you both enjoy my story.

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  20. Congratulations to Jess1, winner of the $25 Amazon gift card! I am extremely grateful to The Brunette Librarian for hosting me and reviewing my book, and to everyone who joined us here and elsewhere on my tour. Thank you and I hope you'll keep in touch!

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