Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Burning Up Blog Tour, Interview with Marie, Review by Sandie



Scorching heat...

Erotic pleasure...

Intense passion...

Layla Jennings thought she had it all figured out. The right time, the right place and the right guy.
After leaving behind her life and friends in Long Beach, Layla must now walk the path she has chosen, hand in hand with the man who holds her heart.

As the flame of love continues to burn brightly, she discovers more about herself and the man she loves every day. But what happens if the fire goes out? What happens when half of your heart is across an ocean?

With the other man in her life unwilling to give up his fight for her, and a danger she is too blind to see, Layla must battle between the safe and steady journey she has embarked on and the one that leads to destinations unknown



Hey Marie, thanks for taking the time to sit down and talk with us. We really appreciate it. Let's go ahead and get started.

Where did the inspiration from Burning Up come from?
The story itself is very loosely based on true events. By that, I mean the triangle. The rest was a story that I had penned some years ago and over the course of three years, it changed and increased into an angsty, sexy and complex novel. 

Are any of the characters based off of real life people you know? If so, who?
Oh, wouldn't that be telling. The men are based on real people, but again, very loosely. Two men I know personally. 
San: Can you give the Ollie gut my number? Hell if the jared dude really knows all that in the bedroom give him my number too 
Dee: wait.. excuse me.. NO! DO NOT give her Jared’s number.
 Oh, no danger of that! I’ve never been good at sharing. I won’t tell you which one is now my hubby. I’ll leave you to drool and grow green with envy.

What inspires you to write?
I'm always inspired! Everyday life, situations, conversations and even people watching. People can be fascinating when they think no one is paying attention. I sound like a stalker! 

How are you handling being a mom to a beautiful new baby and writing? How do you find time to balance it all out?
I love being a new mom but there is no way to balance it out right now! My gorgeous son just hit two months old and is keeping me on my toes and awake at night. But I try to write when I can. 
Dee: I remember when my little nugget was 2 months old. It was a nap when she naps, eat when she eats kind of world. I give you so much credit for doing all this while he's so young.
San: for reals! I remember how hard that was.
 I also work as a therapist and am currently studying for my Bachelor Degree.
Dee: Holy Shit, I think we met a real live SuperWoman.

What do you do to relax?
On the rare occasion that I can, I like a hot bubble bath and a book. 

Where and when do you do your best writing?
Sitting on my bed with the mac out and a cup of tea. Lush. 

How do you handle all the backlash against Layla and her decisions?
I remind myself that we were all young once and that at Layla's age...I was just the same. She's a young woman in a situation that's difficult. I mean, I have readers telling me all the time how hard THEY found it to choose! But Layla is growing now and in book three, she's a very different girl.
Dee: I did find it hard to choose, so I chose NO SIDE! I'm a fence sitter. I can't imagine having to choose. 
San: I actually can say Layla grew on me in Burning Up. She actually did some mature things and well not so mature things, but I feel she grew a lot
 It’s a learning curve. Layla is growing and discovering who she is and what she wants every day. 

Jared and Ollie have very loyal devoted fans, how do you think they will handle the end to the series and the final decision on who Layla should be with happens?
I think there will be mixed reactions. You can't please everyone but I'm not trying to. I'm writing my story, the story I want to write and read. I'm so happy others want to come along for the ride too, but it might not turn out how they hoped. In the end, they will all get their own happily ever after though.
Dee: I'll gladly give Jared his happy ending. Just throwin' that out there.
 I’ll be sure to tell him!
San: If by chance Ollie I don't know decides he still loves me passionately and I'm not with Nick, tell him I might take him back maybe. *smirks*
 I’m sure he’ll be pleased to know his options are open. 

What is your idea of the perfect date night?
 A nice meal in a restaurant followed by a walk on the beach (hubs and I spent our first date and a lot of dates since on the beach) and then coming home for a snuggle…

What was the last book you read?
Him & Me by Jack and Michael Whitehall. Jack Whitehall is a British comedian.

What is the cooling thing a fan has given you?
I haven’t received anything physical but my fans ALWAYS send me awesome pictures and book trailers! I love it.

Any plans on any author events this year?
Unfortunately not. Due to my new little bundle and my work commitments, the flights etc. simply aren’t practical right now. 

Well Marie, we want to thank you for sitting down and chatting with us. You know we will be chasing you down when Coming Down comes out. I'm sure we will have so much to say!

Layla…Layla…Layla! Ugh what can I say, this girl is a handful. There were many things that I disliked about her. I wanted to slap her at one point. I can say though that at least she did a few things right. She left Ollie and I mean okay the way she broke it off was an asshole move but she did it. She gave all her love to Jared to make the relationship work. She left her family, friends and Ollie all behind. That was admirable. She wasn't flip flopping between Jared and Ollie, she gave everything to Jared so that they could work it out. 

Jared, Oh man this guy. I am not at all a huge fan of his. Haven't been since Bound Together. In this book it just solidified, why I didn't like him. He is so controlling. I get he wants to keep Layla safe, I mean he loves her but geez lighten up Mr. she's not 5 or your daughter I think she is capable of managing taking care of herself without your stalkerish ways. I can say though that bedroom Jared I could tolerate, outside of that not so much.

Ollie *sigh* what can I say I love the guy. I know how much he loves Layla and being dumped by her that way I know hurt him and it showed when he told her off. She knew she deserved it and secretly I was proud of my Ollikins for telling her off. 

While Layla does seem to mature more in this book she still has a way to go. She did do things that made me cringe> At one point I was totally grossed out LIKE SERIOUSLY grossed out. That was just nasty and I couldn't believe she did that to Ollie! I understand that nobody is perfect and she is just trying to figure out where she needs to be. I am glad that she decided that while with Jared she would have no contact with Ollie. Yes, she thought about him and that is understandable. I mean she loved him and its not easy to forget him. I was just glad she was focused and not flip flopping. Well unless you consider her thinking of Ollie as flip flopping. 

Marie does a great job of keeping my interest. The characters by the end have all seemed to mature in some way. Realizing certain things about themselves. I was glad that Amy and Mel where always there for Layla, especially to tell her the truth and how they viewed Jared. I would have said the same things to her if she were my friend. 

I can not wait for the next book. I just hope that Layla's choice in this book stays Layla's choice. You never know because the heart does crazy things. Either way, I will be along for the ride.

I gave this book
4/5 hearts



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