DFRAT: Welcome!

Today’s the day!

We’ve joined the ladies at Book Binge, Tracy’s Place & The Book Reading Gals for the first ever Digital First Read-A-Thon. There will be lots of authors joining us here at Novel Thoughts for the month and at the host blog, Book Binge, as well as at Tracy’s Place and The Book Reading Gals.

For my Digital First Read-A-Thon pick today, I’ve started A THEORY OF ATTRACTION by Delphine Dryden. A new to me author I’ve gotten to know on Twitter and when she offered me an e-ARC, who was I to say no when I found out it had a geeky hero who liked to control things in the bedroom & liked for the heroine to call him “Professor.” *swoon* Am not too far but what I’ve read so far, I’ve been enjoying. 😉

Lillie’s first pick of the month is BETTING HEARTS by Dee Tenorio which is a Kindle Freebie at Amazon today so go grab it here while you can! 🙂

Have you started a Digital First book today? What did you decide on?

Happy Reading!

Fatin & Lillie

PS. Huge props to Holly & Rowena of Book Binge for hosting this and asking us to join them. ♥ ♥ ♥

For more information, I’ve grabbed Rowena’s post at Book Binge to share here.

And the madness begins…

Welcome to our very first Digital First Read-a-Thon. We’re super excited to be hosting this awesome event with some amazing book bloggers. It’s going to be a pretty crazy month filled with guest authors, guest blogs, giveaways and loads of digital first reviews going up. We hope that you’ll join the fun right along with us.

All you have to do to participate in this month’s read-a-thon is read as many books that were released digitally first as you can. To enter in the many giveaways we’ll be hosting throughout the month, all you have to do is comment and participate in the discussions posted at each blog. There will be plenty of opportunities for everyone to win something so really, join the fun. The more the merrier.

In an attempt to organize the chaos that will be here at Book Binge, Tracy’s Place, RR@H Novel Thoughts and The Book Reading Gals, we’re going to post a guest author calendar of events for each week, on Monday.

Here’s what our DFRAT Calendar of Guest Authors looks like for the first week of June (schedule may change but this is what we have so far):

June 1

• Book Binge- Carrie Lofty
• Book Binge- Moira Rogers
• Novel Thoughts – Kristen Beairsto

June 2

• Tracy’s Place- Kelly Jamieson

June 4

• Novel Thoughts- Sandy James

June 5

• Book Binge- Lauren Dane
• Novel Thoughts- Alyssa Everett
• Tracy’s Place- MacKenzie McCade

June 6

• Novel Thoughts- Elisa Page
• Tracy’s Place- Donna Alward

June 7

• Book Binge- Shiloh Walker
• Novel Thoughts- Rebecca Rogers Maher
• The Book Reading Gals- Cindy Spencer Page
• Tracy’s Place – Anne Patrick

June 8

• Novel Thoughts- Toni Anderson

There will be loads of great guest blogs going up and a whole lot of giveaways, so you will want to hit up each stop to find great goodies. The more you comment on all posts for DFRAT, the better your chances are of winning something!

Please remember, we’re hosting this month long read-a-thon to bring attention to the awesome books that you might be missing because you keep passing them up for those print books. There are tons of fabulous authors publishing digital books and you might be missing out. Stick around and find some new to you authors, you just might find a new favorite.

Also, your favorite authors might be publishing digital books as well so really, going digital isn’t such a bad thing. We promise!

Happy Reading!

-Rowena & Holly

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Interview and giveaway with Kristen Beairsto

Most women would probably be offended at being mistaken for a stripper, but Kit Conner finds the situation rather comical.

But despite Kit’s outward appearance of being able to handle just about anything, few are aware of the dark secrets Kit harbors and the demons she hides by cloaking herself in a wall of crazy antics and an outrageous fashion sense. As she returns to her hometown to play the role of maid of honor for her best friend’s wedding, Kit’s determined to hold on to those she holds dear for as long as she can. The only thing standing in her way is the absurd attraction she feels for Benjamin Mathews.

Benjamin Mathews is a guy who appreciates things to be slow, steady, and safe. Ben knows many consider him to be boring, but he’s happy with his life and loves the horse ranch he runs with his brother. The only thing he worries about is surviving the planning of his brother’s wedding.

With a wedding between Kit’s best friend and Ben’s younger brother fraying the nerves of everyone involved, Kit’s return home brings out her dark secrets into the light. The emotional overload starts to weigh on Kit and she begins to see Ben as an anchor. As their relationship intensifies, Kit struggles to believe they might actually have a future and soon finds herself fighting for the love she never thought possible.

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NT: Your new book is LOVE LIKE KRAZY. Can you tell us about it?

Kristen: Certainly, Love Like Krazy is a contemporary romance that takes place in a fictional small town in central California and shares the story of Kit Conner and Ben Mathews. Kit’s playful personality gets her into trouble as a kid, earning her the nickname Krazy Kit Conner. But what few know is Kit was abandoned by her mother at a young age and raised by an aunt and spent the majority of her childhood being bullied by others. As a teenager, she developed a crush on one of the town’s golden boys, Ben Mathews. Ben is a guy who appreciates things to be slow, steady, and safe, the exact opposite of Kit’s fiery spirit. After high school, Kit moved away and became a best selling author. Now she’s returning home to act as maid of honor for her best friend who is marrying Ben’s younger brother. In the middle of all the wedding craziness, Kit is forced to confront her past and Ben is her support during her emotional upheaval.

NT: Where did you get the idea for this story?

Kristen: I originally wrote the rough draft for this story over ten years ago, so unfortunately, I don’t remember exactly what sparked the concept. Isn’t that awful! But I do remember the start of it was the idea for the scene in the beginning of the story where Ben mistakes Kit for a striper. I just remember thinking the whole scene seemed really funny. As things tend to do, the story grew from there

NT: Of all your books, which one stands out for you the most?

Kristen: Well, this is my first serious publishing venture, but I have other completed manuscripts and of all of them, Love Like Krazy stood out the most to start things off with. I think it has a good balance of humor and solemnity. And I’ve always had a little soft spot for Kit. I love sassy, but vulnerable heroines.

NT: What do you like to do in your free time?

Kristen: Free time? What’s that?! Ha ha ha! = ) Well, between writing, my family, and a day job, I have very little free time. But on the rare occasion it does happen, I usually end up spending it with my family and friends doing any variety of things. On the rare occasion I’m not spending my free time with my loved ones, I love to — wait for it — read. Shocker, I know.

NT: What’s next for you? What are you working on now?

Kristen: I have one manuscript that is in the editing process right now and is slated to come out in the end of August beginning of September time frame. I’m also in the process of writing a new story, which if everything goes relatively smoothly will be out in December. Fingers crossed!

NT: Thank you so much for joining us today!

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To find out more about Kristen and to read an excerpt, visit kristenbeairsto.yolasite.com. And for a chance to win a digital copy of Love Like Krazy, just leave a comment below. Good luck!

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