Good morning everyone! Please welcome author Patricia Leavy to Full Moon Dreaming! She is here to tell us about her new release, Constellations. Patricia will be awarding a signed set of 3 novels: Shooting Stars, Twinkle, and Constellations, to two (US only) randomly drawn commenters via Rafflecopter during the tour. The more you comment, the better your chances of winning. To find the other stops on her tour, go here. Don't forget to look for the Rafflecopter at the end of this post!
Constellations
by Patricia Leavy
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GENRE: Women's Fiction/Romance
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BLURB:
Constellations follows Tess Lee and Jack
Miller after three years of marriage as they navigate the meaning of love and
family over a series of holidays. Tess is a wildly successful and world-famous
novelist. Her inspirational books explore our innermost struggles and the human
need to believe that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Jack is a former
federal agent. After spending decades immersed in a violent world, a residue
remains. Both healing from past trauma, together they have finally built the
life they wish to live. What will happen to their blissful union when Jack’s
childhood family resurfaces? When Tess and Jack visit the Millers for Christmas,
how will insecurity, a sense of missed opportunities, and the need for
redemption test their relationship? When a terrible accident threatens
everything in an instant, will they learn the true meaning of unconditional
love? Their loved ones are along for the ride: Omar, Tess’s sarcastic best
friend who calls her Butterfly; the female president of the United States, with
whom Tess talks politics and bakes cookies; Joe, Jack’s friend from the Bureau
who understands the sacrifices he’s made; Bobby and Gina, their younger friends
who never fail to lighten the mood; and the Miller family. Constellations is a
novel about family – those into which we’re born and those we create – the
human desire to belong and feel connected, the true nature of intimacy, and the
power of love to heal and redeem. Written as unfolding action, Constellations
is a poignant novel that moves fluidly between melancholy, humor, and joy.
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EXCERPT:
The next morning, Bobby, Gina, Joe, and Luciana thanked
their hosts profusely for an unforgettable experience and then flew back to DC
on Tess’s jet. Omar and Clay spent the next two weeks enjoying their luxurious
honeymoon at the Four Seasons, meeting up with Tess and Jack several times.
They spent the last day of their vacation at Tess and Jack’s house.
The foursome lounged on the beach under umbrellas, and Omar
said, “Butterfly, do you want to take a walk?”
“Sure,” she said, rising. She slipped on her oversized straw
hat and took Omar’s hand. They walked along the ocean’s edge, letting the warm
water splash across their feet.
“You look so relaxed,” Tess said.
“Well, I’ve had two weeks of nonstop sex, days spent lying
on the beach, and a steady flow of rum cocktails; who would have guessed that
it’s a relaxing way to live?” Omar said with a smile. “Oh, and the
ninety-minute massage I had yesterday wasn’t too shabby either. Don’t tell
Clay, but wow, my masseur was quite the bit of man candy. If I weren’t married,
I tell ya.”
Tess giggled. “Was the wedding and honeymoon everything you
imagined?”
“More,” he replied. “I can never thank you and Jack enough
for making everything so wonderful.”
“There’s no need. We’re so thrilled for you and Clay. When I
see the two of you together, I could burst with joy.”
“That’s because you know how alone I felt for so many years.
Only people like us could really understand,” he said. “Of course we’ve always
had each other, which has been a lifeline in every way, but having someone to
grow old with, someone to wake up with every day, it’s immeasurably special.
I’ve had a lot of happiness in my life, sometimes more than you, ironically
because I’ve so enjoyed your spectacular life. But happiness and contentment
aren’t the same. Dare I say, I truly feel at peace now.”
Tess squeezed his hand.
“I knew you would understand,” he said.
“I was telling Jack the same thing recently. When you’ve had
to take care of yourself for ages, you don’t take it for granted when you find
someone you can count on to always be there. I think that’s why the connection
is so strong between me and Jack. People don’t understand why we’re always so
affectionate, but from the first night we met, we both knew the other had gone
without a certain kind of love, that we had each survived unspeakable pain and
loss. From the very beginning, we made an unspoken decision to just love each
other with everything we have.”
“You make it look easy.”
“It is easy,” she replied.
“Watching the two of you these past few years is what really
pushed me to make my commitment to Clay official. I’ve seen the change in your
eyes, and I guess I wanted to experience it too.”
“I’m so glad you have it,” she said, smiling.
“You know, I was thinking about how you said our senior year
Christmas together was your favorite holiday until you met Jack. Perhaps it was
more sacred than I realized, that toxic, all-American meal of ours
notwithstanding.”
She smiled.
“Promise me something, Butterfly.”
“Anything.”
“Promise me we will always have this,” he said, holding her
hand in his and giving it a squeeze. “We will always have us, together with
others and quiet moments alone.”
She stopped, hugged him tightly, and whispered, “Of course.
Now you promise me the same.”
“I promise,” he whispered, squeezing her tighter.
When they parted, she said, “Are you ready to get back to
our gorgeous men?”
“Well, I do love watching how they glisten in the sun. When
they come out of the ocean all wet, holy hell.”
They both laughed.
“But I think I could use a little more time alone with you,
Butterfly.”
She smiled. “Me too.”
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Patricia
Leavy, Ph.D., is a bestselling author. She was formerly Associate Professor of
Sociology, Chair of Sociology and Criminology, and Founding Director of Gender
Studies at Stonehill College in Massachusetts. She has published over thirty
books, earning commercial and critical success in both fiction and nonfiction,
and her work has been translated into many languages. She is also series creator
and editor for ten book series with Oxford University Press, Guilford Press,
and Brill/Sense, including the ground-breaking Social Fictions series. Patricia
has received dozens of accolades for her books. Recently, her novel Film won
the 2020 American Fiction Award for Inspirational Fiction, her 3-novel set
Candy Floss Collection won the 2020 American Fiction Award for Anthologies, and
her novel Spark won the 2019 American Fiction Award for Inspirational Fiction
and the 2019 Living Now Book Award for Adventure Fiction. She has also received
career awards from the New England Sociological Association, the American
Creativity Association, the American Educational Research Association, the
International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, and the National Art Education
Association. In 2016 Mogul, a global women’s empowerment network, named her an
“Influencer.” In 2018, she was honored by the National Women’s Hall of Fame and
SUNY-New Paltz established the “Patricia Leavy Award for Art and Social
Justice.” She has residences in Maine and Massachusetts where she lives with
her husband, daughter (when she’s not away at college), and her dog. Patricia
loves writing, reading, watching films, and traveling.
Website: www.patricialeavy.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WomenWhoWrite/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patricialeavy
Amazon
buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Constellations-Patricia-Leavy-ebook/dp/B0932N2DWZ/
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1)
You’re marooned on a small island with one person and one item of your
choice—who is that person and what item do you have?
If
I pick my husband, daughter, or best friend, the others will be offended. I
thought about picking my dog, Daisy, because she’s a sweetheart, but she’s not
the best conversationalist. So I’m going to go with Kiefer Sutherland. He seems
like a fun guy and I bet he has great stories. But since I don’t actually know
him, I’d bring along my iPod in case I made a mistake and need to tune him out.
2) What is your idea of how to spend romantic time with your significant other?
Not
on the internet, so I’m going to keep this private.
3) When you start a new story, do you begin with a character, or a plot?
I
always start with a character—someone I can see and hear in my mind as if they
were an old friend. I become invested in telling their story. Plots are
secondary. My novels are all character-driven.
4)
If they were to make the story of your life into a movie, who should play you?
Sarah
Jessica Parker. It would be a pretty boring movie though, since I spend most of
my time wearing sweats and sitting alone writing.
5) Who’s your favorite horror villain and why?
Charles
Logan from the TV show 24. He’s terrifying because he’s probably not so far off
from some politicians.
6) Is there a story that you’d like to tell but you think the world isn’t ready
to receive it?
Yes,
but I’m writing it anyway. It’s a novel I’ve been working on for many years about
three women at a crossroads in their lives, but really, it’s a dark story about
betrayal in small town America. It’s different from my other novels. People may
not be ready for it, but look out, it’s coming anyway.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
