Synopsis:
From New
York Times bestselling author Emily March comes Jackson,
the newest novel in the critically acclaimed Eternity
Springs series.
Sometimes
it takes a new beginning
Caroline Carruthers
thinks she buried her dreams along with the love of her life…until
a stranger named Celeste dares her to chase a dream all on her own.
Moving to Redemption, Texas, is chapter one in Caroline’s new life
story. Opening a bookstore is the next. Finding love is the last
thing on her mind as she settles into this new place called home. But
when she meets a handsome, soulful man who’s also starting over,
all bets are off.
to reach a
happily-ever-after
Jackson McBride came to
Redemption looking only to find himself, not someone to love. Ever
since his marriage ended, he’s been bitter. Sure, he used to
believe in love—he even has the old song lyrics to prove it—but
the Jackson of today is all business. That is, until a beautiful
young widow who’s moved to town inspires a change of heart. Could
it be that the myth of Redemption’s healing magic is true…and
Jackson and Caroline can find a second chance at a happy ending after
all?
Buy-Book Link:
Emily
March Blogger Q&A JACKSON
1.
You wrote a book! That’s pretty awesome. Why don’t you tell us a
bit about what inspired Jackson and the rest of the books in the
Eternity Springs world?
The
saying “Write what you know” says it all in my case. I’m a
small-town girl and my family and friendships are center to my world.
I write about love and family and friendships. I have roots in both
the Colorado Rockies and the Texas Hill Country, so it was natural
for me to set Eternity Springs and Redemption there. The idea for
JACKSON grew out of my interest in the music currently being written
and performed in Texas. I’ve always thought singer/songwriters are
romantic figures so I was excited to create a hero with this
background. Unfortunately, I’m not a musician and I’m definitely
not a singer, but I am creative so it was fun for me to explore that
aspect of a character.
2.
Introduce us to your main character!
Okay.
Well, Americana singer/songwriter Jackson McBride is a bit damaged
when the book begins. His famous, talented and wealthy ex has won a
custody battle that severely limits his access to his six-year-old
daughter, so Jackson goes home to the Texas Hill Country to nurse his
broken heart. He finds solace in Enchanted Canyon hiking the trails
with the dog he rescues and working to bring a historic dance hall
back to life. The last thing he expects is to find love again with a
woman whose heart is as battered as his own.
3.
Walk us through a day in the life of Emily March.
Ready
to be bored? Now that my daughter’s and niece’s weddings are
behind me—they consumed me for months—I’m boring and happy
about it. I split my time between Fort Worth where we have a condo
downtown in a 1930’s passenger train station and our lake house in
the Texas Hill Country. I recently gave up my office in town because
I’m spending more and more time at the lake. My husband also
offices out of our condo, so on days when we are both working in
town, I’ve started riding the new TexRail train that runs from our
building to DFW airport. It’s quiet and comfortable and I don’t
have Internet to distract me. And at $5 a day, it’s much cheaper
than office rent. :) When I’m at the lake I’m either working or
doing yard work. My new favorite toy is my power washer.
4.
Lots of aspiring authors out there. Any advice for them?
I’ve
always thought that one of the most important things you can do for
your writing is to read. And read. And read some more. Read across
genres. You absorb so much about pacing and plotting and character
development when you read. Plus, you get to READ! :)
5.
How is the Jackson trilogy different than your other series?
I
don’t think it’s necessarily different from the rest of the
Eternity Springs series. I write about love and family and
friendship—that doesn’t change. Readers will still see old
friends from Eternity Springs and a few scenes in JACKSON are set in
Colorado. What’s new is we get to spend some time in the Texas Hill
Country and meet a few new characters—Celeste’s cousin, Angelica,
for example.
6.
I know asking someone’s all-time favorite book is a loaded
question so what’s your current
favorite read?
I’m
a big fan of Patricia Brigg’s Mercy Thompson series and I’m
reading her latest right now, STORM CURSED.
7.
Alright, the ultimate question: why should we read your book?
My
goals as a writer are to touch a reader’s heart, to entertain her
and make her laugh, to maybe cry a little and sigh with satisfaction
upon reaching the end. With JACKSON, I believe I’ve achieved those
goals.
8.
Describe yourself in 3 words.
Family.
Family. Family. :)
9.
What is your most embarrassing memory?
Walking
out of the junior high school cafeteria in seventh grade, not
realizing that my very short dress—it was the 70’s—had gotten
hung up in my underwear and I inadvertently flashed my rear end to
the entire cafeteria—including the tables where the football
players sat. Thinking about it even today gives me the hives.
10.
Favorite quote or scene you wrote in JACKSON?
I
love the ending. Jackson is a songwriter who has lost his music and
when he finds it again…the song he sings to Caroline…just makes
me melt.
11.
What is one piece of advice you would tell everyone?
Call
your mother.
12.
What inspired you to become a writer?
I’ve
always loved to read, so that is part of it, but my father was my
primary inspiration. He was a fabulous storyteller. I grew up sitting
at his feet and listening to him tell stories about his youth and his
experiences in Europe during World War II. Listening to him tell his
stories was my favorite thing to do. I didn’t inherit his talent
for verbal storytelling, but I think I learned from him how to tell a
good story on the page.
13.
Do you have any interesting writing quirks or habits?
Like
I mentioned before, I’m pretty boring. My perks and habits are
always evolving. The train writing thing is new for me. I usually
write on a laptop and edit on a desktop. I listen to movie
soundtracks when I write and always finish a book with The Last of
the Mohicans.
14.
What has been one of the most surprising things you’ve learned as a
published author
I’m
always a little surprised and honored that readers are excited to
meet me. Like I said…I’m a boring person.
15.
What is your favorite state to visit?
Colorado, of course, because I
must keep returning to Eternity Springs. :)
16.
What are hobbies or interests do you have?
We
are lake people, so I love waterskiing and boating and fishing. As I
write this we’ve just finished Memorial Day weekend at the lake, so
I sort of feel like chief cook and sheet-and-towel washer, too. I
love, love, love hosting big holiday gatherings of family and friends
at the lake house, but I will admit I do tire of the mountain of
laundry in the aftermath.
17.
Can you tell us about what’s coming up next after this for you
writing wise?
I’m
writing Tucker’s story. Fun fact for this—as part of my research
I attended a survivalist training school for a weekend. I searched
long and hard to find one where I could return to town to spend the
night in a comfy hotel rather than sleep on the ground—I’m only
willing to go so far for my art. I did learn to start a friction
fire, though, something I’me VERY proud of. :)
18.
How can readers connect with you online?
My
website is www.emilymarch.com.
I’m active on Facebook. My Facebook page is
www.facebook.com/emilymarchbooks. You can also reach me by email at
emily@emilymarch.com.
Review:
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Jackson is the first book in the Eternity Springs: The McBrides of Texas Trilogy by Emily March which is a spin-off series. The original series is called Eternity Springs and I think you should those books first instead of this one. I got the feeling that I was missing things and that I had begun a series in the middle. The biggest issue I had with the book was the time jumps. Not only there were too many, but the reader was not getting a warning and suddenly boom we are 3 months later after the events of the previous paragraph or chapter. The thing is that the flow was continuous so it was like no time had passed, but suddenly they mention that a week or a month had passed. It was annoying and it made my reading harder. I am not sure if that will be fixed in the published version or not and I am hoping it will.
I also hated that Jackson got to spend a week with his daughter and we only got a short description of what they did in 3 lines. I would have loved to see him spend time with his daughter without the drama and the sadness that came later.
I was worried that the heroine would be still fixed on her husband after he moved on, but things are not what they seem and in the end, the whole situation was sad. The story is separated into two parts and in the second part both characters are single and it takes place one year after the end of part one.
Overall, the book did not left me with a good impression, but I am willing to give another chance to the author since I have liked one of her other books. I think another round of editing would fix many things.
Chapter
One Excerpt
Nashville,
Tennessee
Bang. The
judge’s gavel fell and officially crushed Jackson McBride’s
heart. He closed his eyes. Bleak despair washed over him. Up until
this very moment, he hadn’t believed she’d take it this far.
He’d thought she’d come to her senses. He’d thought she would
recognize that this proposal was not only nonsense, but truly insane.
He’d believed that somewhere deep inside of her, she still had a
spark of humanity. That she wouldn’t do this to him. To them. He’d
been wrong.
Damn her. Damn her
and the yes-men she surrounded herself with. Damn them all to hell
and back.
The enormity of what had just happened washed over him. Oh, God,
how will
I survive this?
On the heels of his anguish came the rage. It erupted hot as lava,
and it fired his blood and blurred his vision with a red haze of
fury. He’d never hit a woman in his life. Never come close, despite
plenty of provocation from her direction. In that moment had she been
within reach, he might have lived up her accusations.
It scared the crap out of him. That’s what she’s brought me
to.
Abruptly, he shoved back his chair so hard that it teetered, almost
falling over. He strode toward the courtroom exit. “Jackson?
Jackson, wait!” his attorney called, hurrying after him.
Jackson waved her off and didn’t stop. There was nothing left to be
said. Nothing left to be done. No place left to go.
No little girl waiting at home to hug and cuddle and kiss good night.
The tap on the toes of Jackson’s boots clacked against the tile
floor of the courthouse as his long-legged strides ate up the
hallway. He shunned the elevator for the stairs and descended three
flights at a rapid pace, then headed for the building’s exit. In a
foolish bit of positive thinking, he’d driven his SUV to the
courthouse this morning. Now the sight of the safety booster seat in
the back seat made him want to kick a rock into next week.
He didn’t want to go home to a quiet, empty house. He shouldn’t
go to a bar. Alcohol on top of his current mood could be a dangerous
combination. Somebody probably would get hurt.
He got into the car and started the engine. For a long moment he sat
unmoving, staring blindly through the windshield, his hands squeezing
the steering wheel so hard that it should have cracked. When his
phone rang, he ignored it.
A couple of minutes later, it rang a second time. Again, he ignored
it. When it happened a third time, he finally glanced at the display
to see who was calling. His cousin. Okay, maybe he would answer it.
“Hello, Boone.”
“How did the hearing go?”
Jackson couldn’t speak past the lump in his throat, so he said
nothing.
Following a moment’s silence, Boone got the message. He muttered a
curse, and then said, “I’m sorry, man. So damn sorry.”
“Well, it is what it is.”
“You can take another run at it.”
“Yeah.” In three years. Three years. Might as well be three
decades. He cleared his throat and changed the subject. “So, how
are things in Eternity Springs?”
“Good. They’re good. My friend Celeste Blessing visited my office
a few minutes ago and spoke of her granite-headed cousin. Naturally,
I thought of you.”
“Naturally,” Jackson dryly replied. But he felt a little less
alone.
“Do you have plans this weekend? I could use your help with
something.”
Pretty convenient timing. Knowing Boone, he had a spy in the
courtroom. But Jackson wasn’t in the position to ignore the bone
he’d been thrown. “I’m free. Whatcha got?”
“I’d like you to meet me at home.”
Jackson straightened in surprise. “You’re going back to the
ranch?”
“No. Not there. I’m never going back there. However, I am talking
about Texas. The Hill Country in particular. A little town west of
Austin called Redemption.”
“Redemption, Texas?” Jackson repeated. For some weird reason, his
heart gave a little skip. “Why there?”
“It’s a long story. Too long for a phone call. I’ll give you
the entire skinny when I see you. When can you get there?”
After today’s debacle, Jackson had absolutely no reason to remain
in Nashville. “When do you want me there?”
“I’ll be in later today. I’m in Austin now. I’ve been helping
a friend with a project. I have a flight back to Colorado Sunday
evening. The earlier you can get here the better, but I’ll make
anything work.”
Jackson figured the distance and the drive time. “I’ll meet you
tomorrow afternoon. Where?”
“Great. I’ll text you the info when we hang up. Bring camping
gear.”
When a sound behind him had Jackson glancing up into the rearview
mirror and the booster seat caught his notice, he made an instant
decision. “Can’t. I’ll be on my bike.”
“You’re gonna ride your motorcycle all the way from Nashville?”
“Yes, I think I am.”
“Okay. I’ll bring stuff for both of us.” Boone hesitated a
moment and added, “Hang in there,
Jackson. It’ll get
better.”
No, I don’t think it will. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Jackson ended the call and finally put his SUV in gear and backed out
of the parking place. With the distraction of the call behind him,
fury returned, and by the time he reached home, he felt like a
volcano about to explode.
He threw a handful of things into his tail bag, filled his wallet
with cash from his stash, and ten minutes after his arrival, he fired
up his bike and took his broken heart and headed out of Nashville. He
left behind his home, his work, and his one reason for living, his
six-year-old daughter, Haley.
From Jackson.
Copyright © 2019
by Emily
March and
reprinted with permission from St. Martin’s Paperbacks.
Author Bio:
Emily March is
the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the
heartwarming Eternity Springs series. A graduate of Texas A&M
University, Emily is an avid fan of Aggie sports and her recipe for
jalapeño relish has made her a tailgating legend.
No comments:
Post a Comment