Blog Tour Stop including Excerpt, Review, Author Interview & Giveaway – Life Worth Living by Tina Blenke

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Author Name: Tina Blenke

Book Name: Life Worth Living

Release Date: December 9, 2015

Blurb:

Jake has been hiding in plain sight, always a few rows behind his straight-crush Quentin during their four years of college. He’s been successful so far but just as they’re about to graduate, Quentin finds out Jake’s secret and Quentin shares one of his own. He’s in the closet.

Jake isn’t about to let this opportunity pass him by especially when Quentin is scheduled to leave for the East coast in a few short summer months. Willing to keep Quentin’s secret from his upper crust politically-fueled homophobic family, Jake shares his bed and eventually his heart.

Quentin’s life in the closet is non-negotiable. His family has strong political ties and any word about their son’s sexuality would cast him out of the family and out of his inheritance which he desperately needs to finish his education. He’s been successful keeping his sexuality a secret for years until he meets the irresistibly adorable Jake at an early graduation party.

Quentin is unable to ignore his desire for Jake and makes the life-altering leap that holds his future in the balance. Locked away from the public eye, the two men admit their love for one another. In three short months, they will be forced to part ways for graduate school but the challenges of potential scrutiny, family commitment and an un-promised future may prove to be more than they can overcome.

Pages or Words: 63,267

Categories: Contemporary, Erotica, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance

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Excerpt:

“Cora? He’s really gone, isn’t he?”

“You did what you had to do to save both your life and his career. You didn’t do a goddamned thing wrong, you hear me? You are one of the bravest men I know,” she growled.

“Yeah, right. I’m the gayest man you know.”

“You shut the fuck up right now, Jake. I don’t let anyone bad-mouth you around me and that includes you. It takes a real man to stand up for who he truly is on the inside. The easy way out would be to hide who you are and live in the closet for fear of what the world will say or do to you.”

“Now that’s not fair,” I argued immediately, thinking of Quentin’s situation.

“And for what? Admitting that you want to love another man? It’s a beautiful romantic notion, Jake. You throw yourself bare to the world for love, the noblest feeling in the world, and all you expect in return is someone to return the feeling. And what does that rat bastard do? He shows you what it feels like to be loved, only there was a condition on it, wasn’t there? As long as he could hide you from the world and not be proud of the honest, kind and decent man that you are. He should have been yelling your name from the mountains or something. Instead? Instead, he runs and hides so he can save his face from his family.”

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Life Worth LivingLife Worth Living by Tina Blenke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

this was a surprisingly emotionally great read. i really liked most of the characters in the book and the writing was pretty good. i love that most of the men are nerdy scientists!

i loved jake and how shy he was…it took him 4 years to finally talk to the man he was crushing on and then it was initiated by quentin! their summer together was sweet at times but tainted by quentin being in the closet and jake not fully investing himself know that quentin was leaving at the end of summer. the times they were fully invested with their guards down they were perfect together. they both go through long painful roads to get to a good place, stable enough to be in a healthy relationship.

there were a couple of really great scenes – the museum and the dancing were my favorites! steve, cora and phil were great supporting characters.

my only complaint is that at times the writing seemed a bit rushed, like the story was on fast forward. not all the time but a few times it really stood out to me while other times it seemed really slow with a ton of description of the scene.

overall, a great read that i recommend!

View all my reviews

 

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q-and-aToday I’m very lucky to be interviewing Tina Blenke author of Life Worth Living.

Hi Tina, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

Thanks so much for having me today. I’ve been in the M/M genre for a couple of years now and started out with a paranormal novel about a pansexual vampire with amnesia. I followed that with a series of wolf shifter short stories and now I’m following it up with my new contemporary novel. This story is a sweet college crush that grows into a summer love but there’s a lot of turmoil in their lives. So many secrets surround them, both their own and those of others, that threaten to upend their love and in the end they must choose to let go and be honest with themselves before they can have that happy ever after.

Q:  What’s the best line you ever wrote?

A:  This is a tough one but there was a quote from a recent review that I’ll share. “His kisses remained and his whiskers roughed over me causing the skin to pucker and jump underneath his lips. It was then that I noticed his tears.”

Q:  Do you listen to music while writing? If so, what kind?

A:  Not usually. I find that it’s distracting unless there’s a tone that I want to set for the scene prior to writing. For this story, there was a particular video/dance/music that I used when writing Quentin’s dance at the end and that one was on repeat for the duration of the chapter. Sometimes I’ll listen to music between writing sessions that plant the seeds for ideas and dialogue – those are fun!

Q:  If your book were made into a movie, what actors would you like to see star?

A:  Ooh! Interesting question. Zac Efron and Jack Schalossberg (he’s not an actor but he’d be perfect!)

Q:  What genres do you write in?

A:  I’ve written a novel and three short stories in paranormal, vampires and wolf shifters respectively. This is my first contemporary story and I think I’ll be writing in both genres going forward.

Q:  Where and when do you prefer to write?

A:  I’ll write just about anywhere the mood hits me. A lot of the time, I’m writing at my daughter’s gymnastics gym since she’s there four hours a week and it’s good down time for me. I have a home office and that’s an option but lately my favorite place is in front of my fireplace. The best mood lighting is there and it’s toasty and comfy for both reading and writing.

 

Meet the author:

madison_parker_MG_4227-WEB (1)Tina is a retired Air Force brat and has lived in several states as well as a handful of countries. She has always had a soft spot for literature and is a voracious reader. When she isn’t writing, she can be found cuddled up with a good book. Though Tina adores a thrilling novel with sappy lovesick heroes, she is terrified of things that go bump in the night. This makes for quite a complicated relationship with zombies, something that she just can’t get enough of.

 

Where to find the author:

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tina-Blenke-Author/487878157926041?ref=hl

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tinablenke

Other: http://tinablenke.wordpress.com/

Other: http://tinablenke.wix.com/author

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/author/tinablenke

 

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7257278.Tina_Blenke

Publisher: Wilde City Press

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Cover Artist: Adrian Nicholas

 

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Tour Dates & Stops:

23-Dec

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Full Moon Dreaming

30-Dec

Love Bytes, Kirsty Loves Books, Book Lovers 4Ever

6-Jan

Wake Up Your Wild Side, Divine Magazine, MM Good Book Reviews, Hearts on Fire

13-Jan

BFD Book Blog, The Hat Party, My Fiction Nook, Louise Lyons

20-Jan

KathyMac Reviews, Unquietly Me, Inked Rainbow Reads, Jessie G. Books

27-Jan

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Dawn’s Reading Nook, Alpha Book Club, Havan Fellows

3-Feb

Happily Ever Chapter, TTC Books and More, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Prism Book Alliance

10-Feb

The Novel Approach, Bayou Book Junkie, Molly Lolly, Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy

 

Final

Rafflecopter Prize: 3 – $5 Amazon gift cards (1 winner each)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

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One Response to Blog Tour Stop including Excerpt, Review, Author Interview & Giveaway – Life Worth Living by Tina Blenke

  1. Tina says:

    Thanks for having me! This has been a fun tour and I appreciate your honest review. <3