The time it was about Bitter Pill

I signed up for Stacey Kade's blog tour for Bitter Pill because I really enjoyed The Rules and was really intrigued about this particular premise. Down below you'll find my review for the book as well as an interview with Stacey.

But before we get to all of that, let's check out the book, shall we?

The truth is a bitter pill...

Rennie Harlow is having a bad year. She had a handsome husband, a good job, and a renovated condo in Chicago. Now, thanks to one "exotically beautiful" paralegal, she’s divorced, faking her way through a writing career, and living above her hypochondriac mother's garage back in Morrisville, the small town she couldn't leave fast enough at eighteen. On top of all of that, she just found Doc Hallacy, the local pharmacist, dead behind his counter. And the worst part is, he's the third body she’s stumbled across this year.

Jake Bristol has lived in Morrisville his whole life. A former bad boy turned sheriff, he doesn’t believe it’s just Rennie’s luck or timing that’s the problem. He thinks she’s too nosy for her own good. The last thing he needs is her messing around with his murder investigation so that she can freelance for the Morrisville Gazette. But as they both delve deeper into Doc's death, they find that things don't add up. This isn't a robbery gone wrong or the work of a desperate junkie. Someone has a secret they're killing to keep. The only question is—who's next?

**Thanks to my pretty prancy PA, Christina from The Book Hookup, for letting me steal borrow her review format!**

Rating & First Reaction:

4.5 stars.  I really enjoyed this story.  It was a quick, entertaining read that left me wanting more.  No, really.  I hope there's more [and I'll be bugging Stacey about this] because the ending nearly had me screaming.  If it wasn't for the "The End" on the bottom of the page, I would have thought there was a problem with my e-book... 

MCs:

Rennie: Recently divorced, Rennie comes back to her small town home to live with her mom. She's quick to find trouble and whether she likes it or not, realizes that she has feelings for the very married sheriff. I feel like Rennie is the type of girl who would get arrested when she goes out with a group of friends, but not for anything serious.  It would be for something trivial law like wearing flip-flops while walking down a sidewalk on a Tuesday afternoon.  Does that make sense?

I loved being in her head.  She's hurting over the situation that she's in, but by the end of the book, I knew that she was strong enough to get through it all.  Even if we don't get anything else from these characters, I'm certain that Rennie is going to prevail in whatever she does.

Bristol: He is a good, strong man. A stand up man with convictions.  Bristol loves his job, the law in general, and seems to see most of his life in the same sort black and white. Except when it comes to Rennie, she's very much a grey area. The sparks between Rennie and him are very apparent and even if he's aware of the town whispering, he never shows it. I would have loved to have gotten even one chapter from his point of view [hint, hint], I'm very interested in the maybe history he and Rennie had...

There weren't swoons in the conventional way, but there were some moments where I gasped at what was happening.  But, as River Song says, spoilers.

Secondary Characters:

Max: Editor of the town newspaper and Rennie's sort of boss.  He's a Morrisville transplant and definitely gives off the vibe of "big, bad city guy".  But, under all of that gruff exterior, there's a bit of a gooey inside. His exchanges with Rennie are interesting.  His respect for her writing shows and sometimes it felt like there was a sort of father/daughter relationship, but it was the mood swings and erratic behavior that kept me curious.

The Rest of the Town: There's quite a mix of people in the small town of Morrisville and while we only got snippets of most of them, there are a few that I should have added to this.  However, I don't want to spoil anything, I want you to experience them for yourself and trust no one. Perhaps you'll be able to pick out the killer. ;)

Plot & Pacing:

Well, it doesn't get any faster than starting the book out with having the MC find a dead body. This book is fast paced from the get go.  There were several components happening all at the same time.  Not only is it a whodunnit, but there's a real exploration of different types of relationships that made for some interesting scenes.  There were some definite twists that I didn't see coming.  I spent the entire book thinking I knew who was behind all of it and I was way way off.

Rec It?

Absolutely. If you're looking for a fun murder/mystery with a sharp, trouble finding heroine and a smoldering, but straight laced sheriff, this one is for you.

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And now for the interview!

1. Where did the idea for Bitter Pill come from?

A couple of different places, actually. It's the only one of my books where a dream played a role. I woke up from a nap one day with the phrase "Pharmacists know all of our dirty secrets" running through my head. Then I had to figure out what that meant, in terms of a story.

But the idea for Rennie's personal life and her decision to go back home actually came from an incident in my newlywed days. My brand-new husband and I were arguing, likely over something stupid, like who emptied the dishwasher last, and I wanted nothing more than to walk out the door in a grand dramatic exit and slam the door after me. (No worries; the husband and I have been married form almost 15 years now!)

But I realized then, for the first time, that there wasn't a place for me to go. Once you're married, you've kind of tossed your lot in with someone else's...no matter how infrequently they unload the dishwasher. :)

So I gave that place to Rennie and tried to figure out what one does when one's life implodes, as hers had.

By the time my husband tracked me down in the downstairs family room, I was in full note-taking mode and not angry anymore! :D

2. What do you love most about Rennie and Jake and why should we root for them?

Jake Bristol is one of the most honorable men/characters I've ever written, I think. I both love and hate him for that. I want him to give in to temptation, but I know, as Rennie does, that it might change who he is, if he does. He's a total white hat but so very human and trapped in a bad marriage. To me, it was interesting to see which side of him would win out.

He needs Rennie because she is someone who sees him for who is is as a person, rather that a status symbol. And her wholehearted belief in his goodness/honor (vs. her lying, cheating ex) is what draws him to her and also makes things complicated. We all want someone who believes the best of us, you know? But if he follows through, then will Rennie see him as that good man? Will he be able to believe it himself?

Rennie is, I hope, one of those complicated people. She knows exactly how awful it is to have someone you love betray you with another person, and yet, she's dancing on the edge of being "the other person" and playing a role in the destruction of someone else's marriage. She's trying to figure out who she is and what she's capable of (good and bad). She's been battered and tossed around by her circumstances, and she has to figure out whether she's going to rise above and be the person who is worthy of Bristol, even if that means, rather contradictorily, that she can't have him.

You should root for them because they are two people who belong together. :) What remains to be seen is whether the world will cooperate with that idea.

3. What was the weirdest thing you googled while researching? 

I don't know that I googled anything all that strange, but I had a very detailed and awkward conversation with a lovely and obliging pharmacist about what kind of pills could be used to drug someone without their knowledge and how that might happen. It was one of those moments where I was pretty sure the phrase, "I promise, Officer, it's research for a book," was going to become very relevant to my life.

4. What was your favorite part about writing this book?

I loved writing this book. I cackled with glee every night when I settled in to write. It is almost an homage to all the mystery novels I loved as a kid (Rennie is my grown-up version of Nancy Drew) and I was writing it just for me, just for fun. I loved sticking Rennie in situations and then watching everything go wrong.

5. Describe Bitter Pill in 5 words.

A funny, small town mystery.

Speed [ish] round:

1. You get the call/email/letter that says you're being published for the first time. What happens next?

Does "shriek in disbelief and sheer joy" count as an action? :) Because that's exactly what happened.

2. What three things would you take to a desert island?

Short of a helicopter, an experienced pilot and a book to read on the flight of the island? I'd have to say sunblock, an iPad (with an endless battery and internet access) and an inflated air mattress. Sand makes me itchy.

3. You can only read one book for the rest of your life. What is it?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

4. What are you reading right now?

Parasite by Mira Grant

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Huge thanks to Samantha at CLP for providing the review copy and to Stacey for taking the time to answer my questions!  Make sure you're following her on Twitter, liking her Facebook page, subscribing to her blog and adding all of her books on your GoodReads shelves. 

Annnnnnnd?

If you head over to the CLP Blog tour page and leave a comment, you'll be entered to win all sorts of goodies.  You can also check out all of the other tour stops!

The time it was a weekend in Vegas

Going to Vegas Valley Book Festival was pretty much a given. I heard about it from Crystal when we went to her B&N for the Fierce Reads tour in June. She had said something about it in passing and when I looked it up and saw the glorious list of authors, my head almost exploded.

I slowly accumulated my books and made stacks around my office. The stacks fluctuated as authors were added and canceled....eventually, my total number of books was 47. 

We had plans to get to Vegas on Friday, the 1st, which was also Hubs's birthday. When I heard that AG Howard was doing an offsite signing at Crystal's B&N, I forced persuaded Hubs to go there first. 

We got there around 3:30 and sat in the cafe until Anita got there. And just after 4pm, I went over to the table armed with Godiva truffles, a couple of bottles of wine and some other prizes. Anita jumped up and we hugged and gushed and hugged some more. 

I ended up sitting at the signing table with her and in between her talking with other readers, we chatted about all sorts of things. 

She signed all eleventy billion copies I had for her and gave me some super cool Unhinged swag. Once the signing time was over, I fed Anita the books for her to sign and I may or may not have put some on the "YA Bestsellers shelf". 

 

We hugged and took photos with a promise to see each other tomorrow....and then started talking on twitter. From there, Hubs and I checked into our hotel and then headed to Gordon Ramsay's BurGR. 

The maître d' offered us a seat at the bar that faced the kitchens and by accepting it, we got to skip the 45 minute wait in line. While he was talking to us, he learned it was Hubs's birthday and gave him a free shot of Jameson. 

And the food? Gah. It was beyond amazing. 

After stuffing ourselves, we wandered the strip for a while before heading back to our hotel for some much needed sleep. 

Saturday morning found us heading down to the event area early. We found excellent parking and headed in around 10am. Mostly so I could make sure to get a finished copy of Crash into You. We grabbed some food and wandered back to the tents to see some panels.

 

We caught the last ten minutes of the Serial Killers and Surprise Endings panel. At the end of the panel, Kasie West turned around and saw me and shouted "STACEEEEEE". I went into the tent and hugged her and said hello. Natalie Whipple came over and said hi and then Michelle Gagnon came over and we chatted a bit.

We got to the Classical Remix panel just in time for it to start. It had AG Howard, Vivi Barnes, Gena Showalter, Mary Lindsey, Claire LaZebnik, Eileen Cook and Stacey Jay. [I wanted to take notes, but my phone just wouldn't let me.  I did do some live tweeting, so check out #vvbf for tweets during the event]

When Anita introduced herself, she saw me and said hi. [This woman is so damn adorable. Are you reading her books yet?] After watching most of this panel, we snuck over to the other tent. We ended up watching the last 15 minutes of the Then and Back Again panel with Tamara Ireland Stone, Rachel Harris, Alexandra Monir and others.

After that panel, I went over to say hi to Tamara [who waved while up on the panel]. We chatted for a minute and then went back over to find Anita and say hello again.

While we were standing there, Gena Showalter was signing books and taking photos with a small group of people who were waiting for her. I briefly thought about doing that, but I have so many books, it would be near impossible. I got a picture with Gena and told her I had eleventy billion books for her. She said that's what she liked to hear. :D

I then went to Anita to say hi and tell her how amazing her panel went. We chatted for a bit and then we had to go check on our parking situation. We stayed in the car until around 3:30. Hubs was sleeping and I was charging my phone.

We went straight to the Resurrecting the Future panel with Alexandra Bracken, Kimberly Derting, Anna Carey, Chris Howard, and Lydia Kang.

They started setting up the panel signing area around 4 and Hubs and I went over to set up a HQ of sorts.

I went to Stacey Kade first. We talked about The Rules and how she had arc requests of the second one up already. I told her that I had just gotten an e-arc of The Bitter Pill and we chatted about that. And of course, our conversations on Twitter.

 

From Stacey, I went to Mary Lindsey. She was surprised to see my arcs of Fragile Spirits and said they were the first she had signed. We talked about a possible third and when I told her that she sent me one of them for review, Mary asked my twitter handle. And with my telling, she jumped up and we hugged. We ended up chatting about what the tag line was going to be. And when it was all over, we took some pictures.

  

Gena Showalter was next. There were a couple of people in line for her, but it went quickly. She laughed when she saw my stack and said she remembered that I said I had a lot of books. She's a quick signer and had the stack done in no time. 

  

Josie Angelini was the last person I had for the tent one authors. We talked about the ending of the series, if I had liked it [I did], and the ending of Allegiant. Before we were able to really get into conversation about it, a line started forming.

 

While we waited for the switch over to the tent two authors, we chatted with Gretchen McNeil, Chris Howard and Tamara Ireland Stone. Then we took over the same table and Hubs watched my stuff while I ran around, getting stuff signed.

First up was Kasie West. We were chatting it up, talking about Tee Fury shirts and how many copies of The Distance Between Us I had while she signed. I got her to sign Xander over in one of Jaime's books. Annnnnnnd then we noticed that there was a huge line waiting for her.

  

Rachel Harris was the next author who was available. She asked who I was on twitter and I admitted that I was horrible at self promotion. She stocked me up with all sorts of swag after she signed.

  

I started to get in line for Amy Plum, but saw that the line for Katie McGarry was pretty short, so I went to her first. She told me that it was her first time being in Vegas, that she didn't travel a lot when she was young and in the past year, she's been all over the place. We talked about the awesomeness that is Crash into You and Isaiah and Rachel. I gushed over the book and the ending and really, just all of it.

I really wanted a photo, but Hubs was still standing guard. Thankfully, Crystal got in line behind me and was willing to take one for me.

  

Since her line had gone down a bit, Amy Plum was next. She was excited to see a big stack of books to sign. I told her that I was stocking up for giveaways since it's rare that she signs in the US. When she got to my arc of Die for Me, she said that the cover of Kate in the boat was super rare now. Amy offered bookmarks while signing.  I was able to get the woman standing behind me [not Crystal] to take a picture of us before I ran back to my table.

  

Seeing Jennifer E. Smith was a quick thing.  She signed my books, saying that she hadn't seen an arc of This is What Happy Looks Like in a while.  As she was signing, she started laughing, saying that her handwriting is already bad and it was only getting worse. 

  

While I was walking up to Lydia Kang, she immediately noticed that I had an arc of Control. She said that she only had one and people kept asking her if they could have it and she wanted to know where I got my copy.  I said that I thought I got it from ALA [now that I've been thinking of it, I think I actually got it from the super secret back room].

After she signed the book, she started pitching Chris Howard's book.  I told her that I already had it and Chris said, "Yeah, we went to Disneyland together." That made me start to laugh because it made it sound like we were BFFs who went to Disneyland together all the time.  Lydia admitted that she had never been to Disneyland and somehow that led to Chris telling Lydia that I needed to be her tour guide.

 

Alexandra Bracken was a quick stop. We said hi and she said it was so nice to meet me and then got to signing.  It was nearing the end of the time for the signing, so people were running around.  After she was done, I thanked her and ran back to the table.

  

Jennifer Lynn Barnes was also a quick stop.  I had her sign my arc of The Naturals and when she commented on it, I told her that I won it from Hyperion and showed her the post-it that they wrote me.  After thanking her, I ran off to see the last person I had books for.

 

Tamara Ireland Stone was my last authors for the entire event.  We chatted while she signed, she asked if she should sign my UK copy of Time After Time "To Kevin" since I'm her Kevin Bacon.  She said that it was a lot harder to sign to people that she knew, so I started laughing and saying, "You can have Bennett forever, I will never, ever give him to anyone else."

Did you see? Yep, Bennett is STILL mine.

After she signed my things, she stood up and we got some photos.  Tamara mentioned how we didn't get any photos of us during her launch party [I'm still bummed that I didn't remember to take photos when I was in Berkeley] and wanted to make sure that we took some. We hugged a few times and then I went back to the table/HQ to pack up the books and head back to the hotel.

As we were walking out, we saw Gretchen one last time.  I congratulated her [again] on the wedding and told her that I expected to see the dress...

Vegas Valley Book Festival was amazing.  The line up of authors was unlike anything I've seen before and I'm sure it'll be an annual trip for us...whether Hubs likes it or not.

The time it was about an alien in high school

I picked up The Rules from the super secret back room at MGRB.  It looked interesting and I ended up really enjoying the story.  So, when I was contacted to be a stop on Stacey's blog tour, I jumped at the chance.  And Stacey was nice enough to answer some questions...

First off, the book:

1. Never trust anyone.

2. Remember they are always searching.

3. Don’t get involved.

4. Keep your head down.

5. Don’t fall in love.

Five simple rules. Ariane Tucker has followed them since the night she escaped from the genetics lab where she was created, the result of combining human and extraterrestrial DNA. Ariane’s survival—and that of her adoptive father—depends on her ability to blend in among the full-blooded humans in a small Wisconsin town, to hide in plain sight at her high school from those who seek to recover their lost (and expensive) “project.”

But when a cruel prank at school goes awry, it puts her in the path of Zane Bradshaw, the police chief’s son and someone who sees too much. Someone who really sees her. After years of trying to be invisible, Ariane finds the attention frightening—and utterly intoxicating. Suddenly, nothing is simple anymore, especially not the rules…

Sounds good, right?

1. Where did the idea for The Rules come from?

It was really a couple of things that acted as a trigger. I LOVE earth-based science fiction set in our world (X-Files, Roswell, Starman, etc.) And I wanted to explore this idea of an alien hiding in high school. I vividly remember feeling like a complete outsider in high school and the overwhelming sensation that if I did or said something wrong the secret of my "outsider-ness" would be revealed. I think a lot of people feel that way during those years. So, I wanted to play with that idea, only I wanted the stakes to be much, much higher for Ariane. If I said the wrong thing, I'd be outed as a dork (not a secret, trust me) but if Ariane does or says the wrong thing, she'll be taken back the lab, where a horrible fate waits for her. 
 
2. Ariane is an interesting character and I love how she loves expensive jeans. How did she develop as a character?

Actually, Ariane was a bit tricky. Obviously, her upbringing is spectacularly different from mine (and everybody else's, hopefully). Plus, I really wanted to make sure she didn't come across in the way aliens are typically depicted on TV shows (goofy and not understanding words and customs, which is then played for humor). I wanted the fear and seriousness of her situation to really come through. And the fact that she's not completely human. But it was my brilliant editor at the time, Christian Trimmer, who gently reminded me that she IS partially human and has been raised among humans. So, Ariane needed to be a mix of alien and human. And it was fun to figure out what elements of human culture she would take and make her own.

French fries, Superman movies, expensive jeans! All with a certain logic behind them. She'd never had fried food before in the lab. She relates to Superman's conflicted identity. And the jeans, well, creature comforts weren't exactly a big priority in the lab! 
 
3. You wrote The Rules from two different POVs. Which was easier for you?

Zane's, believe it or not. His initial scene, the one with him by the pool at Rachel's house, was the first one that came to me for the book, even though it's actually the third scene in the story! 
 
4. Describe The Rules in 5 words.

Hmm. That's hard! How about this: Conflicted hybrid girl must choose.

5. What can you tell us about book 2?

Oh, boy, I think I have to be careful here, so as not to spoil anything. :) I'm in the process of revising it now. And I have to confess, I had SO much fun writing this one.

I can tell you we're going to meet some new characters, some of whom were referenced in The Rules but never seen "on screen" (including a parent). I can also tell you that the second book picks up pretty much immediately after book one, just a few hours later. And sadly, no Rachel Jacobs in book two. I'm saving her for book three. :D 
 
Speed [ish] round:

1. What's your go to guilty pleasure thing to eat?

 Raw cookie dough. I know, I know, salmonella. But I can't help it! :)

2. What are you reading right now?

A.G. Howard's Splintered. It's fantastic!

3. Who are your favorite swoony boys?

Love Rachel Caine's Shane, Tammara Webber's Lucas, and Jennifer Echol's John After

4. Are there any authors that you fangirl over?

Oh, gosh, yes. Too many to name! :D I try really, really hard to keep myself contained because you never know when you might be on a panel or at a meal with someone, and I don't want to freak them out. Sometimes, though, I can't help but gush a little. I will say this, my ultimate, all-time favorite YA author is Meg Cabot. And I've never met her. If I do, I will probably set new records for fan-girl babbling and gushing.

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Huge thanks to Stacey for taking the time.  And of course, for the invitation!

Catch Stacey on her website or Twitter and add her books to your GoodReads.

Now. 

Haven't been able to pick up a copy of The Rules? I've got one for you. Well, I don't have one, but I have people who have one. :D Winner will receive the book directly from Hyperion. 

Rules for the giveaway are on "terms and conditions" on the Rafflecopter widget.

**Good luck!!**

a Rafflecopter giveaway