Tag Archives: wrecked and ruined
SPOTLIGHT ON ALY MARTINEZ
This Monday, we welcome Aly Martinez, author of Savor Me, Changing Course, Stolen Course, Among the Echoes and the recently released, Broken Course. Aly took some time out of her crazy schedule to answer some questions for us. Check them out below!
Don’t forget to head over to our Facebook page and enter to win a eBook of Broken Course!
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20 Questions with Aly Martinez
1. Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Yes…and no. I have always loved writing, but I never once in a million years thought I could pen a book. I mean seriously that is A LOT of words. It seemed impossible.
2. Has it become a full time job for you, or do you have another profession?
It’s both full time and part time. I am a stay at home mom to 4 crazy kids. Ages: 2, 2, 3, 5. Yes. You read that right. Technically, I guess that makes me a work at home mom?
3. Where do your ideas come from?
Randomness. My mind is always spinning. The amount of two sided conversations I have with myself should be alarming. It’s even worse because I can switch characters. “How would Brett answer that question?” then “What about Caleb?” then “Leo?” It’s a never-ending cycle. So if we ever meet in person and it takes me a few minutes to answer, it’s just because I’m trying to figure out which of my multiple personalities is going to answer. J
4. I would think that writing is something that happens when inspiration strikes as opposed to a 9-5 job. Have you ever been in the middle of dinner with your family when an idea hits and you have to get to the computer stat?
YES!!! I plotted out my entire first book on my iPhone Notes. I get ideas and have to write them down. I woke up at three a.m. a few nights ago because I had a fabulous idea for the Fighting Silence blurb. It’s really difficult trying to shut your brain down sometimes, even to sleep.
5. You write such emotionally driven characters. Is it hard to go where they take you?
It can be. It’s not unusual to find me in my room, curling a glass of wine to my chest, while sobbing over my laptop. I think the two scenes that affected me the most were: “The Balloon” scene from Stolen Course and the scene at the beginning of Among the Echoes, where Erica desperately tried to cling to Leo. I had to take a break while writing that.
6. Are there any characters you relate the most to in your books? I assume you haven’t been in witness protection, but other than Erica?
HA! No. Definitely, no Witness Protection Program! I relate to Sarah the most. While I didn’t have this traumatic event or the trials she has gone through (and that includes the horrible things she did). Sarah is ME. She is by FAR the easiest of all of my characters to write.
7. What are your biggest distractions?
My kids! It’s not like I can look at my 3 year old and say “Sorry, buddy. I can’t get you juice right now. Leo is about to get busy in the bedroom.” HAHA! However, if they are asleep at night, I would say Facebook is my biggest time suck. Why do people need to post all of those “Oh! Look at this amazing/sad/funny/scary video”? I am required to watch every single one of those. I can’t just scroll past them. It’s exhausting people! J
8. What is your least favorite part of the writing or publishing process?
Editing. Oh. My. God. EDITING is HELL!
9. Do you find it difficult, or challenging to write from the male POV?
Not really. Most of the time in my books, I know the hero better than I know the female at first. Sometimes it takes me a while to figure out the women.
10. What activities do you enjoy outside of writing?
Reading! And talking about books. I’m a nerd. What can I say? J
11. Do you have a favorite author?
Kristen Ashley. I will read absolutely anything she publishes.
12. Are they any books you wished you had written?
Nope! Because if I had written them, I wouldn’t have been able to fully experience them. My books are my ideas. I love losing myself in other author’s ideas too.
13. Do you have multiple stories swimming in your head at once?
Oh lord! YES YES YES!! The whole time I was writing Broken Course, Till Page (from my upcoming release, Fighting Silence) wouldn’t shut up! I was writing the end of Broken Course while plotting Fighting Silence. It was crazy!
14. The epilogue to Broken Course was perfection. Can we take that as a complete wrap up to the series?
I cannot confirm nor deny. This is the end….mostly. However I’d love to do a series with some of the spin off characters, so it is possible that we will see the gang in future books. I’ve tortured those people enough. It’s time I make some new couples to torment.
15. What does your writing workspace look like?
In my bed, wine glass on the nightstand, with a set of ear buds in my ears. I’m super simple! I like to be comfortable.
16. Sharing your baby with the public has to be scary. How do you respond to negative reviews?
You know negative reviews don’t really bother me THAT much. Especially if they are constructive. I’m a big reader so I know that not everyone will like my book. There is not a book in the world that is universally loved. However, it’s the personal attacks in reviews that hurt. Authors are people too. You can hate our characters, our stories, or even our style, but please leave the personal attacks out of it.
17. If you could cast the Wrecked and Ruined series, who would you choose?
Well…. Nick Bateman would be my Brett. Micah Truitt would be Caleb. Aaron Diaz would be Leo. Slate would be Jed Hill. I don’t really have women picked out.
18. Can you tell us what you are working on next?
My next book up is Fighting Silence. It will take place in the gym for underprivileged youth that Slate started in Indianapolis, On The Ropes. It will follow three brothers. Till, Flint, and Quarry Page. I’m calling this my “poor mans romance.” I can’t wait for y’all to meet Till. He is pretty incredible.
19. What is in your purse right now?
7 billion receipts. My wallet, stuffed with 7 billion other receipts (Why do I never clean that shit out?), about 30 sharpies (I think I have a problem.), Some bookmarks, a pacifier and diaper. (Kids!)
20. Where do you hope your writing career is in 10 years?
I just hope I still HAVE a writing career in 10 years. This market is tough and always changing. If even one person still wants to read one of my books, I’d be happy to continue.
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Our Reviews
Review of Among The Echoes
Review of Broken Course
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Aly Martinez’s Books
I lost my virginity at age thirteen. I know what you’re thinking, and the answer is no. I wasn’t raped or molested. Nothing horrible happened to me. I don’t have a daddy complex, or a shit life that I need to be rescued from. I just happen to like boys…a lot. I like them all. Tall, short, skinny, buff, light hair, or dark, I don’t discriminate.
I realized early on that one man wasn’t enough for me. It’s a simple mathematical fact. Why have one man when you can have two? Any more than two gets complicated. Hell, half the time even two gets complicated. But it’s worth it. Sometimes every woman has to make an exception though, two crappy losers or one smoking hot man.
The night I laid eyes on Hunter Coy, I made my choice. At least until he introduced me to Mason Wynn.
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My name was Dr. Erica Hill. I was a victim, then a witness, and then I ceased to exist altogether.
I may still be breathing, but stripped of my identity, I have long since stopped living. I am invisible, and my life depends on my ability to stay in the shadows.
But he sees me.
Slate Andrews is the embodiment of everything I have been taught to avoid. He’s rich and famous, and one image of him with a woman would earn millions for any paparazzi lucky enough to snap it. He has vowed to protect me with his life, yet he exposes me with his every breath. I should be stronger and walk away. I should disappear. But I’m terrified he would come after me.
I’m on the run, determined not to take him down with me but absolutely unable to let him go.
My name is Riley Peterson…at least for today.
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I met Sarah Kate Erickson when I was twenty-one years old. I was lucky enough to keep her for seven years before a tragic accident stole her from me. She didn’t die, but sometimes I think it would have been easier if she had.
I lived in a haze for those four years after the accident. Catering to her every need, even though she hated the very sight of my face. I tried to hold on to her and the future that we were supposed to build together. But you can’t hold on to someone that doesn’t exist anymore.
It wasn’t until I met Jesse Addison, a barista at the local coffee shop, that I realized I didn’t just lose Sarah that tragic night, I lost myself as well. Jesse taught me how to let go of the past and learn to love again. But what happens when your past haunts your present, and the woman you used to love refuses to accept the woman you can’t live without?
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I fell in love with Manda Baker eight years ago, and I loved her to the core of her soul. We were supposed to have that elusive happily ever after and spend a lifetime together. But that was all before she was STOLEN from me.
Her best friend, Sarah Erickson, killed her. It wasn’t intentional. It was far worse. Everyone claims it was just an accident, but I can see through the lies. Even if it’s with my dying breath, I will make her pay for what she did.
Fate hates me. It robbed me of my first love and left me to navigate through this world emotionless and numb. Then, one day, spiteful fate gave me a woman to fill my shattered soul and make me feel again. It gave me Emma Jane Erickson. Now I spend my days searching for the answers that will ruin Sarah and my nights falling in love with her sister—the one person who is bound and determined to save her.
But what happens when everything you know to be true explodes around you? Who will be left to pick up the pieces, and who will need to be saved from the wreckage?
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Seven years ago, my life changed forever. One accident and the person I saw in the mirror no longer resembled the woman I used to be. I was lost and confused inside my own body. I felt alone and disconnected from the world, carrying the incredible weight of guilt and loss that wasn’t even mine to harbor.
Then fate led me to Leo James. He taught me that crazy could be perfectly normal and it shouldn’t hurt to breathe. Don’t get me wrong. Leo isn’t perfect. He has his own cross to bear, and the truth is, that might be why I fell for him in the first place. But despite everything he does for me, learning to forgive myself is infinitely harder than overlooking the flaws of another.
Now, the secrets and lies of our past have begun to dictate our future—threatening to ruin us before we get the chance to try. Perhaps we were cursed from the start. Or maybe, just maybe, the remnants of our fractured lives will fit together to form one whole, where love isn’t questioned and being happy is…well, easy.
Can a second broken soul be enough to fill the voids of my own? Or will such scarred pasts prove too much for our love alone to overcome?
On The Ropes Series
Fighting Silence (February 2015)
Fighting Shadows (June 2015)
Fighting Forever (October 2015)
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About Aly Martinez
Born and raised in Savannah, Georgia, Aly Martinez is a stay-at-home mom to four crazy kids under the age of five- including a set of twins. Currently living in Chicago, she passes what little free time she has reading anything and everything she can get her hands on, preferably with a glass of wine at her side.
After some encouragement from her friends, Aly decided to add “Author” to her ever-growing list of job titles. So grab a glass of Chardonnay, or a bottle if you’re hanging out with Aly, and join her aboard the crazy train she calls life.
BROKEN COURSE by Aly Martinez – Jenn’s Review
*This review may contain spoilers from the Wrecked and Ruined Series and Among the Echoes*
“Nice to meet you. I’m Sarah Erickson”
I have not been patiently waiting for Broken Course since the last line of Among The Echoes. I could NOT believe that Aly went there! Seriously!? I recall begging for a spoiler group because the book had not yet been released and I needed to talk to someone about it. Thankfully, we didn’t have to wait too long to read all the goodness that is Leo James in Broken Course, and what goodness it is.
We first meet Sarah Erickson as the completely messed up ex-wife of Brett Sharp in Changing Course. Sarah has suffered a traumatic brain injury and can barely recognize herself, let alone remember any of the good from her marriage to Brett. She is mean, spiteful and does everything she can to ruin Brett’s life. Let’s just say I wasn’t sure how Aly was going to redeem Sarah, but if anyone can, it’s Aly Martinez.
One of the fantastic things about Aly’s writing is the characters pasts aren’t briefly mentioned and shoved under the rug. They are the forefront of the story. They are confronted, sometimes in painful ways, sometimes making you uncomfortable, but not having them glossed over just adds more depth to the characters and the story. This is a purely character driven story. Do Leo and Sarah feel an instant connection? Yes, but it’s explored. It’s nurtured. It’s not a, we met, we’re in love, let’s have a conflict, work it out and live happily ever after. Aly’s books are well thought out and developed. These characters are real and raw.
Oh Leo….. Prepare to turn into a puddle of goo when Leo turns on the charm and speaks Spanish. There were times I actually sighed out loud. Leo brings new meaning to swoon-worthy. On the outside, Leo James is a smooth, wealthy, good-looking owner of Guardian Security, protectors of Slate Michaels among other famous people. On the inside, he is a broken man, suffering from severe PTSD and who feels tremendous guilt for what happened to Erica when he was an undercover DEA agent. His struggle was real and difficult. My heart hurt so many times for the pain Leo was in. He tried to cover it up, but when it over took him, it was crippling. There were so many scenes between these two broken people that brought me to my knees.
“I hate you sometimes,” he fumes, but his voice cracks at the end.
“I hate you too. But only because I love so f*cking much and you always talk shit about my boyfriend….I’m not going to sit here and try to fill your head with all the ways what you did wasn’t wrong-even though it wasn’t. All that matters is how you feel about yourself. You know what I love about our relationship? We can forgive each other anything, but looking at ourselves in the mirror is damn near impossible. So how about this? I’ll love you and you love me. And maybe that will be enough.
To say I disliked Sarah before this book is an understatement. Yes, she suffered through a horrendous tragedy, but she was anything but likable. Aly gives us a tremendous amount of Sarah’s background in this story and the impossible happened. I felt compassion for Sarah Erickson. I wanted her to succeed, to get better, and to crawl out from under the burden she carried for way too long.
“Regrets will only hold you down. Own the wrongs and move on.”
Leo and Sarah are quite the pair. While Sarah doesn’t think she is healthy enough for a relationship, Leo pushes her to see what they could have together. When Leo doesn’t think he can hack it, it’s Sarah that pushes him. They are two shattered souls slowly putting each other back together. The sexual chemistry between Leo and Sarah is off the charts from the very start. They make Caleb and Emma look tame. Compatibility and love are not their issues. The ability of each of them to harbor secrets and cover up their pain could end up ruining their relationship.
With Broken Course, Aly Martinez gives us the best book in the Wrecked and Ruined Series and with that outstanding epilogue, gives us closure with all of the characters we have come to love throughout this series.
“In the end, no one was really wrecked or ruined. Our lives may have been changed, but we’re not broken and nothing was truly stolen but time. It was a journey, albeit a rough one, but we’re all better people because of it.”
6 ++++ STARS!!!!!
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*click on covers for more information*
AMONG THE ECHOES by Aly Martinez — JENN’S REVIEW
Among The Echoes by Aly Martinez
I have been staring at my computer screen for 20 minutes trying to come up with a way to express how utterly fantastic this book was. There are just not words yet created to convey my emotions, but I’ll attempt to give it my best shot.
From the blurb: “Slate Andrews is the embodiment of everything I have been taught to avoid. He’s rich and famous, and one image of him with a woman would earn millions for any paparazzi lucky enough to snap it. He has vowed to protect me with his life, yet he exposes me with his every breath. I should be stronger and walk away. I should disappear. But I’m terrified he would come after me.”
Erica Hill is no more… in her place lives Riley Peterson… for today anyway. When Riley meets Slate, for the first time in years, she feels safe and safe is a feeling she is not familiar with. Slate is just looking to get away from his celebrity life and hide out for a bit. Getting involved with Riley was not part of his plan, but it’s a detour he is grateful for.
Straight up, Aly Martinez can write! I was riveted from the very first line, until the very last. I don’t think I have ever read a book that started out that way. My heart pounded the entire time. It was as if I was looking over my shoulder, just like Riley. As wild and intense a book was, there was nothing unbelievable about it. Every line and emotion that came from the characters was real and you felt it right along with them. The back and forth banter between Riley and David (Riley’s “cousin”) is entertaining. They truly love and just want to best for each other.
“……I’m assuming he really is a boxer?”
“What gave it away? The way he lit into me tonight, or the muscles that turned you into a horny co-ed?”
Let’s not forget about Slate… talk about a swoon-worthy man. He knew he needed to be cautious with Riley, knowing he didn’t have the whole story. But he never held back from telling her how he felt.
“I’m not too naïve to admit that I’m reading in new waters with this, but you are highly underestimating the extent to which I will go to keep you.”
“Slate, I’ll understand if you need more time. I know this has to change the way you look at me at least a little.”
“Oh it really does. Because tomorrow I’m going to be looking at you from between your legs. Totally different view.”
From the first word to the last, this book was OUTSTANDING. For fans of Aly’s other two amazing books, Changing Course and Stolen Course, just wait until the last line of the epilogue. It was a total mic-drop moment. I literally shouted out “OMG! Did she seriously just do that????” Buckle in and enjoy the ride!
5+++++ STARS!
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More from Aly Martinez
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