INTERVIEW and GIVEAWAY
Into the Light
(The Dark Series Book Two)
(The Dark Series Book Two)
by Jennifer Burrows
Into the Light is the second book in Jennifer Burrows' The Dark Series. Also available: A Shot in the Dark (ON SALE for only $0.99).
Into the Light is currently on tour with Reading Addiction Book Tours. The tour stops here today for my interview with the author and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
Description
After Laney is shot at point blank range, Josh works tirelessly to repair her life threatening internal injuries from the gunshot wounds. What’s worse is he is forced to inform Laney’s parents about the tragic accident. Having only just begun a relationship with the woman he knows in his heart he will spend the rest of his life with, he now has to reveal to her parents that a stalker has been tormenting their daughter. While his only mission is to save Laney’s life, her parents have other plans for their daughter, none of which include Josh. They are determined to find a new doctor for Laney, and if her parents have their way, she will be taken thousands of miles away from him.
Just when Josh thinks his entire world has been turned completely upside down, he finds his sister Jillian has stopped taking her psychiatric medications and has become a person unfamiliar to him. Dealing with her psychotic world becomes even more of a shock, leaving Josh in a horrible dilemma. He is torn between trying to save Laney’s life, keeping her parents from moving her away from him, and providing his sister the attention and help she desperately needs before she has a complete psychotic breakdown.
Will Josh be able to save the love of his life and prevent her parents from taking her away? Will he be able to help Jillian through her mental illness before it takes over her life? Will Laney’s relationship with her parents ever be salvaged? Will Josh and Laney have their happily ever after, or will the hurdles they have to jump through prove to be more than they can handle?
Excerpt
Dr. Josh Stone stood helpless as Laney, seemingly in slow motion, fell to the floor. The thud as her body hit the tiles shot goose bumps through his flesh. For a brief moment he was paralyzed. His girlfriend, also a trauma nurse-had been shot by the patient they had been taking care of. The sight of the man sitting up and grabbing Officer Miller’s gun from his holster replayed in Josh’s brain. The man pointed it at Laney and shot her several times before anyone was able to subdue him. Now, Josh stood helplessly as she lay motionless on the floor. How could this happen in his trauma room? How could he let this happen to Laney? His knees seemed to buckle as he sank to Laney’s side, stethoscope dangling from his neck.
Laney’s curly blonde hair covered much of her face, but it was clear she was unconscious. Josh gently shook her hoping for the slightest response. There was none. She had been shot in the chest.
Someone shrieked. One of the ER nurses, Dinah’s eyes were wide, both hands covered her mouth. She pointed to the floor. A puddle of blood oozed from under Laney. The metallic aroma wrinkled his nose.
Josh fought the anger raging inside him. He wanted to make the son-of-a-bitch who shot Laney pay for hurting her.
For now, let the cops handle it. Josh took a deep breath and struggled to regain his composure, but failed miserably.
“My God! Laney! How could this happen?” His face was hot. He swiped at it with his blood soaked hands and realized he was crying.
“Dr. Stone. Dr. Stone!”
Josh looked up. Dinah’s lips were moving, but her words weren’t computing. A couple of techs and nurses eased Laney from his arms. Not only did he feel the emptiness, it plagued his heart and his soul.
Josh helped lift Laney onto a gurney. Dinah placed her hand on his shoulder. “You need to help her. She needs you now more than ever.”
Dinah put her cold hands on Josh’s flushed face. “Dr. Stone, I know you’re in shock, but you need to focus. You’re the only one who can save her.”
Josh turned his head, causing the frigid hands to fall from his face. He rubbed his swollen eyes and surveyed the room. The devastation was beyond words. Officer Miller had the man who shot Laney subdued in handcuffs. He lay on the table with his disheveled hair covering his face. Someone must have given him a sedative because he wasn’t moving. Equipment had been knocked over, and supplies thrown everywhere. Josh’s heart rate sped up as he cast his eyes down at the pool of blood surrounding his feet.
“Where is she?”
“They’ve taken her to the O.R to get her prepped. You need to get down there right now. Dr. Nessler is coming in to finish up with this guy.”
Josh darted out of the room with an urgency he never felt before. Each step he took, his pace quickened until he was in a full sprint to the O.R.
Review
PHEW!!! After reading A Shot in the Dark I definitely needed to figure out what happened! Finally everything became clear! I won't spoil the story, because what fun would it be if I did! All I have to say is that i absolutely relate to Laney's relationship with her parents (mainly her mother)! If I didn't already love Josh well I absolutely do now! What an emotional roller coaster though be prepared!
Interview With the Author
Hi Jennifer, thanks for joining me today to discuss your new book, Into the Light.
For what age group do you recommend your book?
I recommend the book to the adult population. While there are no steamy loves scenes like the prequel, it does have adult topics.
What sparked the idea for this book?
When I originally toyed with writing A Shot in the Dark, it was going to be a standalone book. However, I had so much going on and too many loose ends to tie up, I decided to write a sequel to it.
Which comes first? The character's story or the idea for the novel?
For me, I would say it’s the idea for the novel. I mull it over for often times weeks. I think about the characters and how I want them portrayed and then I start writing.
What was the hardest part to write in this book?
I was the decline of Jillian’s mental status. I had to show the gradual decline and how she slowly loses touch on reality. It wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be.
How do you hope this book affects its readers?
I hope people will be able to relate to it in some way. There are several things going on. First there is Laney’s and Josh’s love story. Josh sees the woman he loves dying before his eyes. Then there is Jillian’s struggle with mental illness. She declines throughout the story. And finally, there is the relationship between Laney and her parents. I’ve had many readers tell me they can relate to the parents.
How long did it take you to write this book?
It took me about three months to write the book and another three for editing. I got a new editor for this book and I learned quite a bit from her.
What is your writing routine?
When I sit down to write, I have to be very disciplined or I won’t get it done. I usually make myself write ten pages a day. I take the weekends off because I’m usually busy getting my kids to all their sporting events. Most day’s I’ll wake up at five in the morning and write for a couple of hours and get the kids ready for school. Then, I come back and finish what’s left for the day.
I have insomnia. Sometimes, I wake up at two in the morning and start writing. Those are my bonus pages. With this structure, I can usually have a book written in two to three months.
How did you get your book published?
I self-published this book. I had a publisher with A Shot in the Dark. I was so disappointed with their lack of follow through, poor marketing, and the lack of control I had over my own work. Most publishers won’t pick up a sequel unless you are well known because they have to buy the prequel. I didn’t even bother looking around. I wanted to try self-publishing and I wanted total control over my work.
Good to know. What advice do you have for someone who would like to become a published writer?
I got several publishers wanting to publish A Shot in the Dark. I picked the one I thought resonated best with me. I was wrong. Contact authors that have been published by that company. Do your homework. And if something doesn’t feel right, trust your gut. It’s your work. Don’t let someone take advantage of you.
Great advice, Jennifer. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
I work out at the gym religiously about two hours a day five days a week. It clears my mind and I feel good after sitting in front of a computer for hours on end. I also love to travel, camp, snowboard, hike, scuba dive, and just about anything outdoors. I’m a very active person.
What does your family think of your writing?
My kids couldn’t care less. My oldest is sixteen and prides himself on not reading. Ugghh. My other two are eight and ten. They see my books around and know I write but don’t think a whole lot about it. My husband is my biggest fan. He thinks I’m amazing. He always tells me I’m going to make it big and he’s going to quit his job. He’s a doctor and I never see him. I don’t know what I would do if he’s home all the time.
Too right! Please tell us a bit about your childhood.
My mom and dad divorced when I was one. They both remarried and as a result, I have two amazing sisters and two awesome brothers. That would probably be the best part of my childhood. When my mom remarried, we moved around a lot due to my step-dad’s business. I was never in the same school more than a year. It was hard for me to make friends or lasting relationships. I believe by the time I was sixteen, I had moved about twenty times. It’s weird for me today, because I’ve lived in the same house for about eleven years. I’ve tried to provide my children with that normalcy and stability. However, every few months, I get a hankering to move.
Did you like reading when you were a child?
I liked reading certain books. I read Island of the Blue Dolphins like ten times. I’ve read the Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer books, Little House on the Prairie books, and as I got older, anything by Dean Koontz or Stephen King. I never read that stuff now. I like non-fiction or romance.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I wanted to be a writer in high school. I wrote a lot of poetry, songs, and stories as a means to escape my reality. I was going to be an English major and write until I had a bad professor in college. After that, I didn’t write a thing for about another fifteen years.
Did your childhood experiences influence your writing?
Yes. I’ve had a lot of crazy things happen to me in my teenage years. Some I still struggle with today. I put a little bit into ever book I write. It’s very cathartic for me to get it out.
Which writers have influenced you the most?
This is a very hard questions. I look at writers and books for different things. Sometimes, I just read a certain author for inspiration, some I like their writing style, others just give good advice. Right now, I really admire Jamie McGuire. She has a FAQ section for writers on her website. I really appreciate how she tries to give other struggling authors advice. This business is very lonely and it’s nice to lean on other authors and have a social networking system in place with them.
Yes, that's great. Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
I don’t hear from my readers as much as I’d like to. I love to get feedback, opinions, and have conversations. I respond to every one of my emails from my readers. They inspire me and make me want to write more for them. I love it when they say they can relate to my characters or tell me how my book made them feel. That lets me know I’ve done a good job.
Fantastic! What can we look forward to from you in the future?
I am working on a new book called Surrender. I wrote it in November for NaNoWriMo. I didn’t finish the ending. Right now, I’m editing and working on the ending. I was going to try and get a publisher for it but was starting to think I might self-publish again and try to get it out by May. We’ll see how it plays out.
Thank you for taking the time to stop by today, Jennifer. I hope you enjoy the rest of your book tour.
Thank you for hosting me.
About the Author
Jennifer Burrows is a Registered Nurse, and she holds a Master’s degree in Nursing Administration. She has fifteen years of experience working in the Emergency Room and the Intensive Care Unit of a major trauma center. While she is equally adept at all facets of patient care, Emergency room nursing is her passion, and is the inspiration for this story and A Shot in the Dark. Currently, she resides in Southern California with her husband and their three amazing boys. A Shot in the Dark was her debut novel with Into the Light following as the sequel.
Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win some great prizes.
Links
