Author Name: Becca Burton
Book Name: Something Like a Love Song
Release Date: November 19, 2015
Blurb:
One tragic night left Landon and Dylan’s dreams of happily ever after in apparent ruin. Forced to overcome physical and emotional trauma, the young lovers turn to a network of family and friends as they attempt to rebuild their lives. But can their one constant—their love—survive the changes both undergo on the road to recovery?
Pages or Words: 308 pages
Categories: Contemporary, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance
Excerpt:
Landon’s bed is in the center of the room, and Dylan’s heart begins to pound in his chest as he takes a step forward, hesitates. Landon looks so small, tucked into the middle of the bed, and everything about the scene is unnatural and wrong. His head is wrapped with thick bandages, for which Dylan is grateful—he isn’t sure he could handle that. Just the thought of what’s happening to Landon, to his fiancé, is enough to make his throat constrict, his chest tighten.
A ventilator tube parts Landon’s lips, and his chest rises and falls in equal, rhythmic whirrs. IVs line his arms; the wires snake from under his hospital gown. His freckles stand out starkly against the unnatural pale hue of his skin, except where the deep purple of a bruise creeps from under the bandages and swells down to his left cheekbone. It seems impossible that only hours ago they were laughing in the park, holding hands and eating ice cream from the small corner stand; it’s like some distant memory, a fading dream. But the ache deep in Dylan’s chest, the way his stomach is knotting itself, the too-clean smell of the hospital burning his nose, Landon’s face, battered and bruised—Dylan can’t look away—all this is too real to be a dream, no matter how badly Dylan wants to just wake up, wants all this to go away and everything to be okay.
“You can touch him, if you want,” Brittany says, her voice soft. “We need to make sure to reduce extra stimulation, to allow his brain time to recover, but it’s okay to hold his hand.”
Dylan looks up at her. Her smile is kind and understanding. Then he turns back to Landon and takes a small step forward. Landon’s hand is right there, resting above the covers, and Dylan doesn’t know why he’s so nervous; he’s held Landon’s hand more times than he could begin to count. But, surrounded by machines and tubes, Landon has never looked so utterly fragile, as if he could shatter at the lightest touch.
“It’s okay,” Brittany says from behind him, and Dylan squeezes his eyes shut, tears pricking behind his eyelids. “You won’t hurt him.”
Landon’s skin is cold; his hand is unnaturally still. Even in sleep Landon’s hand would always find Dylan’s, their fingers would curl together like a reflex.
Not now.
“I’m so sorry,” Dylan whispers, holding on a little tighter. “I’m so…”
His voice catches, the words bottling up in his throat, unable to escape. Landon’s chest rises, falls, in, out.
In, out.
“You’re so hurt, and it’s my fault,” Dylan manages, his voice barely audible above the machines keeping Landon alive. “It’s all my fault and I’m…” He exhales slowly. “I’m so sorry.”
He swipes his thumb across Landon’s knuckles, over the dips and grooves, and vaguely notes that Brittany has left them alone. He sinks down into the small chair beside the bed, not letting go of Landon’s hand.
“You need to fight, okay? I need you here, with me, and I can’t…” There’s nothing left inside him except an empty, hollow feeling and the knowledge that Landon can’t hear him. Landon’s engagement ring is in a dish on a table beside the bed, along with his watch, and Dylan fishes them out and tucks them into his pocket.
Buy the book:
Something Like a Love Song by Becca Burton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
i cannot believe this is ms. burton’s first book; it is so well written and such a great story. all of the characters are well developed and perfect for the story.
there is major tragedy at the beginning of the book. and it makes you really mad – i simply don’t understand hate crimes at all. i thought this book would break me; and while it did reduce me to tears several times it was also an amazing story of love, strength, perseverance and survival. dylan and landon have the love of a lifetime. it is so amazing to read about. they struggle through landon’s recovery – there are a lot of ups and downs for both of them. they learn a lot about what living really means. they really learn to appreciate each other and trust in each other. there are some adjustments in their lives that are hard to adapt to and they struggle through them, but they do so together which is the only way to make it through this life. their bone deep love for each other is always there but they almost have to re-discover their relationship.
these men aren’t the only two that experience growth in the story either. landon’s mom and brother go through some personal changes and become better people. i would love to read a story about janessa and tate!!
this is absolutely a must read story and i look forward to more amazing stories from ms. burton.
Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Becca Burton, author of Something Like a Love Song. Hi Becca, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.
Thank you for having me. Something Like a Love Song is my first novel, a story about two long time boyfriends who find themselves facing a life changing tragedy and have to find the courage and love for each other to fight through.
While this is my first novel, I have posted many stories online, and have been writing ever since I learned how. I currently work as a nurse in a Neonatal ICU, and medicine has been a big interest in my life, and always seems to find a way into my writing. I am passionate about diverse, LGBTQ fiction, and am very excited to contribute to this genre.
Q: How do you develop your plots and characters?
A: I seem to have a different method every time I write a story, depending on what fits the plot and characters of what I’m writing. Sometimes I will fill out a questionnaire for my characters, to help myself get to know them more in-depth. Often, I’ll leave behind my computer, and just take a notebook in my bag and go for a long walk. I’ll let my mind think through different possible plots and ideas and work through the characters, as a way to try and think in an open environment where all my thoughts are valid. I think it’s a really good way to get my brain working, and it’s usually what I do if I get stuck on something. Then, when I’m back at home I can write something more structured down.
Q: Who doesn’t love a good hero? Tell us about your protagonist. Was there a real life inspiration behind them?
A: I would say both Dylan and Landon are the protagonists of the story, and they both have to come to terms with the aftermath of the hate crime they are victims of in very different ways.
There wasn’t one specific story that inspired their creation, but rather from an accumulation of different real life accounts I had read of similar stories, and from working with individuals who had brain injuries. I was also inspired after watching several plays and movies that use a hate crime at the end of the story, as the climax, and I wanted to know what happened after. How a couple would recover from such an event.
Q: What real-life inspirations do you use when world building?
A: I’m often inspired by the feelings and emotions I get from the things around me. Sometimes it can be scenery while going for a walk or a drive, or even just in my daily life. Sometimes I can become inspired by a conversation I hear, or an interesting person I meet, or something I read or watch. It’s hard to say one specific thing, because I never know when something will inspire me. I remember, when I was younger, staring out the window of the car when we would be driving somewhere, and just completely absorbing what was around me and concocting stories from it. I think the same thing still happens, just in a more unplanned way.
Q: Did you learn anything from this book and what was it?
A: I learned so much from this book. Not just how to write and publish a book, but from all the research I did, and stories I read of similar, or even very different, accounts of couples who ended up in a caregiver-dependent relationship. When I was posting the original version of the story online several years ago, I would sometimes receive messages from readers who had gone through similar situations, and they would tell me how much they identified with my characters, or how they could relate to what they were going through. Those messages taught me so much. About how real this subject matter is to some, and how amazingly strong and brave everyone who has had to be a caregiver to someone they love, or have had to depend on someone they love, is.
Q: It’s your last meal on earth. What do you choose?
A: Veggie sushi with a side of every potato creation ever invented. Chocolate mousse drizzled with caramel for desert. And a trente sized pumpkin spice latte to clear the palate.
Meet the author:
Becca Burton penned her first Nancy Drew fan fiction at the age of nine and has been an avid writer ever since. Currently working as a Neonatal Intensive Care nurse, Becca is a recent Oregon transplant from the Midwest. Becca has a weakness for coffee, the smell of old books, rainy days and her cat, Luna. Something Like a Love Song is her first novel.
Where to find the author:
Facebook: facebook.com/missbeccaburton;
Twitter: @missbeccaburton
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26223074-something-like-a-love-song
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: C.B. Messer
Tour Dates & Stops:
19-Nov: Lee Brazil, Vampires, Werewolves, and Fairies, Oh My, Velvet Panic, It’s Raining Men, Cheekypee Reads and Reviews, Hearts on Fire
20-Nov: Three Books Over The Rainbow, Mikky’s World of Books, Happily Ever Chapter
23-Nov: Jessie G. Books, Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance, Michael Mandrake, Boys on the Brink Reviews
24-Nov: Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves, Because Two Men Are Better Than One, Divine Magazine
25-Nov: Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, MM Good Book Reviews
26-Nov: Bayou Book Junkie, BFD Book Blog
27-Nov: Alpha Book Club, The Blogger Girls, Elaine White
30-Nov: Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Dawn’s Reading Nook, QUEERcentric Books, Love Bytes
1-Dec: My Fiction Nook, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews
2-Dec: Gay Media Reviews, Just Love Romance, Inked Rainbow Reads, Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy
Rafflecopter Prize: Grand Prize: $25.00 Interlude Press Gift Card. First Prize: 5 e-copies of ‘Something Like a Love Song’
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Becca here – thank you for the lovely review and the interview!