New Release: Love Will Find You by Iris Blobel

I’m so happy to once again host author Iris Blobel. I “met” Iris through social media, since she and I are published through Astraea Press. She’s here to share her brand new release, Love Will Find You, was recently released by Limitless Publishing. 

Here’s a little bit about Iris:

Iris Blobel was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland, London as well as Canada where she met her husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper only emerged a few years back, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as their dog. Next to her job at a private school she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio.

And here’s the Cover and Blurb for Love Will Find You:

Can their new love survive the scrutiny of the public eye?

After his father’s heart attack, Australian Football League player Tyson Gaspaldi takes his parents on holiday to a small place at the New South Wales coast.

One morning, following a surfing lesson, he comes across a crying woman on the beach. Everything about her intrigues him, and he can’t walk away. She’s not only sexy and humble, but, as he soon finds out, vulnerable as well.

It’s only been a few months since Katie Cassidy lost her sister in a car accident.

Still overwhelmed by the loss, a chance encounter on the beach with an attractive stranger awakens unexpected emotions inside her. She’s instantly drawn to his caring nature, but also his looks.

However, Tyson’s past quickly catches up with them, causing Katie’s childhood demons to return, and the road to romance becomes anything but smooth.

Here’s an Excerpt:

Prologue

Tyson held the Brownlow Medal in his hand, but celebrating was the last thing on his mind. His fake smile was as much a lie as the last message he’d sent to Katie the day before. As a result, it was his mother who sat in the crowd amongst his teammates, his friends, the footy world, reporters, and whoever else was important—and not Katie. His gaze wandered around the ballroom, with all the round tables neatly positioned in nice rows. Each table was beautifully set with dinnerware, menus, and a floral arrangement. The TV screens on either side of him showed a close-up of the stage, and as he tried to protect his eyes against the bright lights, he watched them all, making toasts, their glasses filled with the best champagne, applauding his achievement.

The crowd settled and awaited a speech. His speech. Nervousness crept up in him as he stared into the audience. His throat burned as the acid in his stomach churned.

The Brownlow Medal was awarded to the best and fairest football player of the season, yet he didn’t think there was anything fair about the way he’d treated his girl.

Tyson Gaspaldi took a deep breath, unfolded his little note, and cleared his throat. The first word he focused on was her name, Katie. He blinked to refocus and thanked his mother as well as his family. It came effortlessly once he was past the initial hurdle and in only a few minutes he finished, held up his medal, and walked behind the stage.

Why had he said the things he had? Why didn’t he just answer her question?

A short time later, Tyson joined his friends and his mother at the table again.

“Congratulations, darling.” His mother took his face into her hands and gave Ty a kiss on his cheek. Only a few years ago, he would have been embarrassed by such open emotions in front of a crowd, but since his father’s death earlier in the year, he welcomed every sign of affection by his mother.

“Thanks, Mum.”

“Dad would be so proud of you.” Caroline Gaspaldi took a step back and gazed at him. Pride radiated from her eyes. “Look at you. You should wear a suit more often.”

His friends around the table gave him a quick clap on the shoulder and congratulated him before sitting down to proceed with the evening. Ty noticed his phone buzzing and with a flick of his finger, he scrolled down his messages. He stopped at Katie’s message from earlier in the day.

I don’t believe u!

With a heavy sigh, he switched off the screen, ignoring all the other new messages and the phone into his pocket. He took the beer in front of him and tried to concentrate on what the guy on stage was saying. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a woman at the other table. She looked incredible in her shimmering silver evening gown. The décolleté of her dress revealed tanned skin upon which a delicate necklace hung. Her curly brown hair was pinned up in a ponytail which made her look very sexy. When she smiled at him, he winked at her in return.

“What are you doing, Ty?” his mother whispered into his ear.

Love Will Find You can be purchased at:

Amazon Australia,  Amazon US,  Kobo, Barnes & Noble, and other ebook outlets   

Iris can be found at:

Her Blog: www.iris-b.blogspot.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/irisblobel

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4067254.Iris_Blobel

Twitter: @_iris_b

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/iblobel/

Google+:  https://plus.google.com/107759085454255573026/posts

New Release: Fresh Beginnings by Iris Blobel

I’m delighted to once again welcome fellow Astraea Press author Iris Blobel. Iris was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland, London as well as Canada where she actually had met her future husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper has only recently emerged, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as her dog. Next to her job at a private school she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio.

Iris is here to share her brand new release with us. Fresh Beginnings is the third in her series featuring the Levesque sisters. New Beginnings was published a year ago, and More Beginnings released in January. Let’s see how the story continues:

Blurb:

The small town of Hobart in Tasmania has witnessed many beginnings in recent years. At yet one more beginning, the wedding of a friend, Jared Fraser decides it’s time for some fresh beginnings to come his way… And he sets out for a holiday to the US to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome.

Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on holiday.

Then the arrival of family friend Mia Levesque and her boyfriend, Josh, turns Jared’s holidays upside-down when he’s forced to play arbitrator between the two teenagers.

Excerpt:

"G'day!" He stared at her and for some reason something tugged at his heart. Not that he wanted that. He had no room for women, let alone American ones. They all were on earth to make life complicated. Mark was constantly running around for Sophie or Hope, even though Mark's wife was one in a million and little Hope was simply adorable, especially when she was asleep.

"Ya know it's dangerous to hitch a ride," he finally said when she was still quiet.

She stared at him for a moment, but then replied with the typical American twang in her voice. "I know you said something, but I have no idea what."

He chuckled. "It is dangerous to hitchhike," he repeated with exaggerated pronunciation.

The woman stepped a bit closer to the window. "Are you from Austria?"

He laughed aloud.

"Australia, I meant," she added, seemingly embarrassed by the mistake.

"I am indeed." He watched her looking ahead towards the horizon. "So you wanna hitch a ride?"

Jared had a feeling she didn't want to, but her current situation didn't give her many choices. There they were in the middle of nowhere, with the next place a fair few miles away.

"Name's Jared," he said and then he opened the door and walked around the motorhome. Leaning against the vehicle, he looked at her. She was pretty. Thin, but pretty. When her brown eyes met his, he experienced another one of those heart tugs and wasn't impressed at all. He tried to look right past her. It wasn't happening though. They were like magnets.

"Jared," he repeated and held out his hand.

Her look went right past him into the distance, and he assumed she was fighting with herself, part of her wanting to get off the road, the other part being worried.

"Anybody else travelling with you?" she asked quietly.

He shook his head. "Nope."

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and, after a brief moment, reached for his hand. "Nice meeting you."

Acknowledging that she wasn't much into sharing details like her name, he opened the door for her. "Where are ya headin'?" he asked.

A smile started in her eyes and played with the corner of her lips. He felt himself smiling back. There was an appreciation in her smile.

"Could you drop me off at the next stop?" she asked hesitantly.

"Most certainly, but where are ya headin?"

She shrugged. "Kingman?"

"Is that on this road?"

Nodding, she said. "Yes, it is. It should be less than a hundred miles along this highway."

"Then hop in."

She turned to get into the motorhome, and he took in her small stature and the narrow shoulders which seemed even smaller in her tight, red T-shirt. Jared noticed her cargoes were just hanging onto her hips. A nice steak wouldn't go astray on these hips. Suddenly she stopped and moved to look at him. "Thank you," she whispered.

"No worries mate."

Jared held her gaze and wasn't sure what to say or do. She simply stood in front of him like frozen.

"My name is Ivy," she said after a long moment.

"Hedera. An evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plant in the family Araliaceae."

With a frown, she stared at him. "I really didn't understand that one."

He laughed. "Sorry, mate. I got carried away. I'm a landscaper. Ivy is a climbing plant." Scratching the back of his head, he added, slightly self-conscious, "And, of course, a beautiful name."

There was a small laugh as she stepped into the motorhome. He went around and slid behind the wheel before driving back onto the road. There was a long silence, and Jared wasn't really sure what to do or say. Usually, he was good with silence. Actually, he loved it. But at that moment, the silence made him uncomfortable.

"So, what brings ya out into the middle of the sticks?"

When there was no reply, he turned and looked at her. There was a big frown on her face, and he sighed.

"I thought you all speak English as well?"

"We do," she said with a slight giggle. "But I'm not so sure about you Australians."

With a grin he replied, "Now, don't be cheeky, Ivy."

"Don't bite the hand that feeds you, my mom always said." She laughed. "No way would I make fun of you."

"So, you're expectin' a meal as well?"

There was a moment of silence again, and he glanced over. The smile was gone and panic was written all over her face.

"I… I didn't—"

Quickly he reached out for her hand. "I'm pulling your leg." And when she didn't reply again, he muttered, "This thing with you Americans not understanding English is turning into a problem. I was kiddin'."

"Pulling your leg?" She shook her head. "Never heard of it."

A bark of laughter filled the small space. "Anyway. Talkin' about food. There's a small place ahead. Want some lunch?"

Fresh Beginnings is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble,  and several other ebook outlets.

Iris can be found at her blog and on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+

Iris Blobel: the Beginnings Series

I'm delighted to have Iris Blobel back at Creative Hodgepodge! Iris was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland, London as well as Canada where she actually had met her future husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper has only recently emerged, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as their dog. Next to her job at a private school she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio

Iris has been busy, as the second of her "Beginnings" series was just released from Astraea Press. She's agreed to share a little bit about the book and what inspired her to write it.

When you cannot let go of a character

When I received feedback for my first book “Sweet Dreams, Miss England”, everyone was asking for a sequel. I kind of understood, because there are book series I really enjoyed and I liked that the author wrote more than just the one story. But when I was asked to do the same, I was at an utter loss.

Then I “met” Sophie and Mia Levesque, the two sisters from “New Beginnings” who’ve become almost family members in this household. After “New Beginnings” had been written I felt there was more I could write about the younger sister, Mia, and so I started “More Beginnings”. But Mia was still talking in my head, begging me for more, and I agreed to expand on her new friendship with Josh. “Fresh Beginnings” is nearly finished. It’s a hard story to write as the story is following our family trip through the USA we did last year. Once the photos are out for “research”, we have a little family gathering… reminiscing! J

But I’m way ahead of myself – sorry!

I’m supposed to tell you a bit about “More Beginnings”. Probably a mix of YA meets Contemporary Romance, it’s set six years after Sophie and Mia inherited a house in Hobart, and the now teenaged Mia is dealing with new emotions – her feelings for classmate Josh, her friendship with “babysitter” Zach and the new arrival of a baby in the family.

I loved putting her story on paper and I hope you’ll enjoy reading it.

More Beginnings:

It’s been six years since Sophie and Mia inherited a house from Clara Bellinger.

Life is good for the now teenaged Mia, even if she does have to deal with a dragon lady for a teacher. But then a man named Darren Schuster shows up in Hobart. Mia knows something is up when Sophie and Mark cut their weekend away short and rush home in the middle of the night. When Sophie won’t answer Mia’s questions, emotions run high, and Zach, the neighbour from across the road, confirms Darren’s identity to Mia. Disappointed, angry and feeling alone, Mia runs away.

Zach had been watching Mia for his friends while they took a much needed weekend away. When the late Clara Bellinger’s ex-husband, Darren, showed up, bringing Sophie and Mark home from their trip, Mia is filled with questions. But it’s Zach who gives Mia the answers she’s seeking. When she runs off, he must find her. He enlists the help of her teacher, Miss Peterson, and finds out that the ‘dragon’, is really more of a kitten.

~♣~ You can purchase More Beginnings at Amazon.com, Amazon.com.au, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and other ebook outlets.

~♣~ Iris Blobel can be found at her blog, on Goodreads, and on Twitter.

What a Character!

With Halloween right around the corner, people all around me are deciding what character they want to become for the evening. I asked my fellow Astraea Press authors this question: "If you could become any one of your characters, which one would it be, and why?" Take a look at their answers. If you find one you like, you can click on the author's name to read more about the story and find ordering information.

So please allow me to introduce my newest friends who have graciously shared their idea of a Halloween makeover!

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Kay Springsteen, author of Lifeline Echoes and Elusive Echoes: I would be any one of the McGee women in the Orson's Folly series, because once their men fell in love with them, there was no one else in the world for those men. But of all of them, I admire Sandy Wheaton McGee (sexy bar owner and singer) the most because of her self-confidence and resilience.

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Meg Mims, author of Double Crossing: If I could be a character in Double Crossing, I would be Lily Granville -- young, wealthy, and adventuresome. I am NOT any of these, LOL. I tend to be a "stay-at-home" and plenty chicken. Which is why I love writing characters who are so different and who live exciting lives!

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J. F. Jenkins, author of Vala: Agendas: If I could be anyone from one of my stories, I would have to say it's a tie between two characters. First would be Jewl from "Vala: Agendas" because she's already a lot like me, but more importantly I think it would be super awesome to be a summoner. I'd probably have a little too much fun with that one. My other character of choice would be one of the flying dragons from the Dragon's Saga. Who wouldn't want to fly through clouds for a day and see the world?

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S. G. Rogers, author of The Last Great Wizard of Yden: I've always admired artists; so much of what they do seems so otherworldly. So if I had the chance to be a character from my novel, I'd be Jon Hansen. His wicked artistic talent translates to something even more fantastic on the magical world of Yden...everything he draws comes to life. How awesome is that?

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Sherry Gloag, author of From Now Until Forever (coming soon!): I'd like to be the heroine, Melanie Babcot, in my upcoming Astraea press book, From Now Until Forever, because she is a fighter, sassy, loyal and when she gives her heart it is for keeps.

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Chynna T. Laird, author of Blackbird Flies: Of all my characters, I think I'd want to be Payton from my YA novella, Blackbird Flies. The story is actually based on one of my real-life experiences but Payton made much better choices than I did in the same situation. He's stronger, more focused and surrounded with more goodness than I'd been. I love him. =)

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Linsday Downs, author of Emily Dahill, CID chose her canine hero. When asked why, she had Dakota answer for her: Patty, come on get serious, to start with I’m sexy as all get out. Check out my beautiful soft brown eyes. Eyes that any woman could and would lose herself in.

Besides being every woman’s dream guy, I’m smart as all get out, have a great sense of smell. I can also out run and out think just about any human except Emily.

Let’s put it this way folks, I’m the best hero any author ever came up with. Oh, and I work for table scraps, as long as the morsels are sirloin or porterhouse steak tidbits.

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Iris Blobel, author of Sweet Dreams, Miss England and Journey to Her Dreams: The character I like most in my books is Daniel, from Sweet Dreams, Miss England. He’s a wonderful character, the Peter Pan of today – he’s charming, thoughtful and kind. An Irish man who loves to live life. I’d like to be like him (though I’m getting better at being Peter Pan-ish).

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Joselyn Vaughn, author of Hauntings of the Heart: I want to be Minnie Schultz, from Hauntings of the Heart and CEOs Don’t Cry, when I grow up. She’s strong, fit and confident and happy with where she’s at. And she’s a heck of a lot of fun.

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Many thanks to my fellow Astraea Press authors for introducing us to their favorite characters! As for me, I'd like to be Francie, one of the main characters in Aegean Intrigue. As soon as I get the cover, I'll share it!