"You’ve Been Volunteered" by Laurie Gelman

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY

You’ve Been Volunteered
(Class Mom Book 2)

by Laurie Gelman

You’ve Been Volunteered is the second book in the Class Mom series by Laurie Gelman. Also available: Class Mom.

You’ve Been Volunteered is currently on tour with Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours. The tour stops here today for an excerpt and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.

Description

In the eagerly anticipated follow-up to Laurie Gelman’s “irreverent and hilarious” (The New York Post) hit Class Mom, brash, lovable Jen Dixon is back with a new class and her work cut out for her

If you’ve ever been a room parent or school volunteer, Jen Dixon is your hero. She says what every class mom is really thinking, whether in her notoriously frank emails or standup-worthy interactions with the micromanaging PTA President and the gamut of difficult parents. Luckily, she has the charm and wit to get away with it - most of the time. Jen is sassier than ever but dealing with a whole new set of challenges, in the world of parental politics and at home.

She’s been roped into room-parenting yet again, for her son Max’s third grade class, but as her husband buries himself in work, her older daughters navigate adulthood, and Jen’s own aging parents start to need some parenting themselves, Jen gets pulled in more directions than any one mom, or superhero, can handle.

Refreshingly down-to-earth and brimming with warmth, Dixon’s next chapter will keep you turning the pages to find out what’s really going on under the veneer of polite parent interactions, and have you laughing along with her the whole way.

Excerpt

I stare at my computer screen and ponder my email. Is it too short? Too kind? Too sincere? Normally I wouldn’t give a royal rip, but we have a new PTA president starting this year. I haven’t met her yet, but she sent out a note saying she wants to be copied on all class parent emails. This fact alone has me at DEFCON 3. Smells like a micro-manager to me. Nina would never have wasted her time on that crap.

Sadly, Nina is no longer PTA president, nor is she living in Kansas City. My best friend in the world now calls Tennessee home. She moved to Memphis with my former trainer, Garth, and her daughter, Chyna, in June, shortly after it was named the fattest city in the U.S. for like the hundredth time. The mayor decided to start a “Cut the Fat” citywide health initiative and Garth was recruited through one of his Wounded Warrior buddies to develop a middle school program. It was an easy move for Nina—she can run her web design business from anywhere, and Chyna was more than happy to start high school in a new city after her less than stellar middle school years, poor baby.

But all their change and excitement has left me without my best friend, my kick-ass trainer, and a great babysitter … and everyone knows how hard it is to find a great babysitter. Returning as class mom would be so much easier if Nina was still living here—especially since she was the one who, once again, convinced me to jump back into the thankless cesspool.

“Just do it. You know you miss it,” she said on our latest phone call.

“What I miss is you, you big jerk.”

And I really do. There is a little hole in my heart and an emptiness in my life that no number of texts or phone calls is able to fill. Truth be told, that’s why I agreed to rejoin the class mom-palooza. I need something to distract me.

Thank God she didn’t move away last year. I wouldn’t have gotten through it without her. Our family was thrown for a loop when my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was a rough go for quite a few months and Nina was pretty much the anchor of our care circle. No matter how bad it got, Nina never wavered.

Laura, my sweet second-born, was finishing her last year at KU, but she came home every weekend to cook and clean for my parents. Right before our eyes she went from lazy college kid to domestic goddess. I’m not sure where she learned to make a bed with hospital corners, but I’m thrilled she did.

My oldest daughter, Vivs, moved back to Kansas City from Brooklyn, where she was cohabitating with her architect boyfriend, Raj, and took a job as a nutrition consultant at our local Jenny Craig just to be close to all of us. I nicknamed her the Lone Arranger because she single-handedly scheduled all of my mother’s chemo and doctor visits along with a schedule of who would be taking her to said visits. Finally, her bossy firstborn personality was used for good instead of evil.

Max was eerily quiet but very cooperative no matter how many nights he spent with Chyna babysitting him. And my husband, Ron, was—well, he was a man and frustrated because he couldn’t just fix the problem.

As for me, I was not ready to lose my mother, no way, no how. But instead of standing strong and defiant, I was a very disappointing tower of Jell-O. Who knew I’d fold like origami when the going got tough? There were lots of tears (on my part) and prayers (on my parents’ part), and it was all very bleak and sad until one day my mother, Kay Howard, up and decided that cancer had picked the wrong bitch to mess with. She actually said that, out loud. It was the first time I had ever heard her swear and I learned very quickly it wasn’t going to be the last.

With my mom in fight mode, cancer became our punching bag, literally and figuratively. I hung a boxing bag in my basement workout area, aka Ron’s Gym and Tan, slapped a picture of a cancerous boob on it, and beat the shit out of the picture every day. It was Garth’s idea and it really worked. Not only did my arms get toned, I got out all my frustration, so I was ready to face my mother and her never-ending demands. Not demands for herself, mind you, but for my father. Kay was taking no prisoners, but Ray was struggling with the thought of a life without his darling girl, as he calls her. I always knew my parents loved each other, but I’d never realized how in love they still are. Mom was ready every day with a list of things my dad absolutely needed. It usually looked something like this:

The newspaper

A poppyseed bagel from Einstein’s

Snapple Peach Tea

That toothpaste that tastes like cherry

At least ten hugs

Praise for the Book

“Gelman gets right to the point reuniting readers with the main character they fell in love with in her debut, Class Mom … Her antics are laugh-out-loud funny, and she shows no signs of slowing down. The tone and pacing are excellent, and new characters, who come with their own issues and snark, are delightful.” ~ Library Journal

“Wisecracking Jen Dixon is back in Gelman’s enjoyable follow-up to Class Mom. This refreshing take on modern suburbia will appeal to fans of Lauren Weisberger.” ~ Publishers Weekly

“Dixon's emails to and escapades among the concerned parents of Kansas City have the same anodyne quality as an old-fashioned television sitcom, with a pratfall, a wisecrack, and a chuckle every few minutes like clockwork … Just add chardonnay.” ~ Kirkus Reviews

“All mothers will find themselves relating to Jen’s struggles as a mother and wife in You’ve Been Volunteered.” ~ WorkingMother.com

“I just wish Jen was real so I could hang out with her. Hilarious and the exact escape I needed at night after putting my kid down. Funny, heartwarming, and fulfilling. Brava!” ~ Katie Lowes, actress

About the Author

Laurie Gelman was born and raised in the Great White North. She spent twenty-five years as a broadcaster in both Canada and the United States before trying her hand at writing novels. The author of Class Mom, Laurie has appeared on Live With Ryan and Kelly, Watch What Happens Live, and The Talk, among others. She lives in New York City with her husband, Michael Gelman, and two teenage daughters.

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Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win a print copy of You’ve Been Volunteered by Laurie Gelman (US only).

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"What We Do For Love" by Anne Pfeffer

REVIEW and GIVEAWAY

What We Do For Love

by Anne Pfeffer

What We Do For Love by Anne Pfeffer is currently on tour with Xpresso Book Tours. The tour stops here today for my review, an excerpt, and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.

For another book by this author, please check out my blog post on Just Pru.

Description

Thirty-eight-year-old Nicole thinks finding love is like eating carbs. Both are bad for your system. The single mother prefers to focus on a few things that she cherishes - her sixteen-year-old son Justin, her friends, and her art.

When she convinces a major museum to show a piece of her work, and she thinks her career has finally turned a corner, her son brings home a girl, Daniela, to spend the night. Daniela's parents have thrown her out of the house: she is pregnant with Justin's child. Shattered, Nicole feels she has no choice but to take the girl in.

She finds herself falling in love with Daniela, but increasingly troubled by the behavior of the girl’s icy, tormented mom and hard-drinking, hard-fisted dad.

Nicole struggles as fear and deceit enter her formerly peaceful life. Forced to deal with people she doesn't trust or like, fearful for the future of both her son and the grandchild they're expecting, Nicole wonders if she can do what she tells Justin to do: always have faith in yourself and do the right thing.

What We Do For Love is a standalone story written by award-winning author Anne Pfeffer.

Excerpt

Funny how one’s life can make a U-turn.

My life made two. In a single day.

I started that day as a mere potter—yes, a person who hand-makes vases and dinner plates for a living—wearing borrowed clothes and driving to the most important interview of my life. A few hours later came U-turn number one: the board of directors of CCMLA, the Contemporary Crafts Museum of Los Angeles, offered me a place in their upcoming show!

In an instant, I had become an artist. I pondered this fact wonderingly as I drove home that afternoon. I was to provide them with a brand-new, never-before-seen mural in ceramics, an installation piece. My wall would be located at the entrance to the exhibit, the first thing you saw as you walked in. This was my chance, an incredible opportunity.

I was an artist!

It didn’t bother me that desperation clearly underlay the board’s decision. All the better when I saved the day with a great contribution to their show.

I hoped.

Flushed with success, I revved my ancient Toyota, Bernice, up to twenty-two miles per hour. We practically skipped over the potholes as we barreled our way up the Trail of Terror. This was the name my son Justin had given the rutted, one-lane road that wound its way up the side of Laurel Canyon to our house.

Of course, I was a fill-in, hired at the last minute. I’d gotten this job when Miriam Fletcher, a customer of mine who happened to be on the museum board, moaned to me that an artist had dropped out of a show scheduled to open in six weeks. “We’re in such a pickle! We don’t know what to do!” Though her crepey neck revealed a senior citizen, Miriam otherwise projected youth, running long acrylic nails through her cropped, bleached, and spiked hair, her copper earrings swinging.

My cue to pipe up. “I’m sure I could help you.”

Miriam trained her eyes upon me. She had recently ordered customized handmade pieces from me to give to her granddaughters—a miniature tea set for the youngest and a statuette of a mermaid for her older sister.

“You do such beautiful ceramics work, Nicole.”

“What you’ve seen is my commercial work, which I do through my business Clayworks. I create as an artist under my own name.” That is, I hoped to create as an artist under my own name, if I could ever get the proper start.

And now I had. I could hardly wait to tell my son the news.

[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]

Praise for the Book

“If Lorelai Gilmore of Gilmore Girls was dropped into a thriller, it might resemble this appealing novel.” ~ Kirkus Reviews

“Superbly written. Pfeffer has teamed a solid plot with great dialogue, effective narrative, and some nice romance for a well-rounded work of women’s fiction.” ~ Self-Publishing Review

“Anne Pfeffer’s latest contemporary women’s fiction, What We Do For Love, is an anxiety-ridden nail biter of a novel that has readers rapidly page-turning to find out what the consequences will be of how each character shows - and proves - love of every kind.” ~ Katherine Michael

“The well-developed characters really build up the story line and wonderfully convey the common struggles that many families must face. I would highly recommend this tale to anyone who enjoys a book that realistically conveys the strains, passions, and eccentric moments of life.” ~ cmakin17

“Her characters are always believable and relatable, and leave you feeling optimistic. I'm so tired of novels and TV shows where I can't find a single character I care about. In this book, I loved the whole-heartedness of Nicole, the main character, and really rooted for her. You will too! A must read for moms of all ages.” ~ Holly H. Brookstein

My Review

By Lynda Dickson

Nicole is used to compartmentalizing her life, putting things into boxes in her mind, to be dealt with at an appropriate time. But real life isn’t always that tidy; in fact, it has a way of being extremely messy. Just when she finally gets her opportunity to prove herself as an artist, her son’s girlfriend moves in with them. Then, her sister needs a place to live. So, a household of two suddenly becomes a household of four, and then it grows some more. Will they be able to make it work?

Nicole’s account of her present-day life is interspersed with memories of her own teenage years with her sister, her sister’s boyfriend, and her own brief romance with the man who is now her best friend. The story is a combination of romance, family drama, suspense, and psychological thriller. It highlights the lengths parents will go to for the love of their children, but it also shows what love will make us do for our husband or wife, our friends, our neighbors, and even our pets.

Some heavy moments but, don’t despair, there’s a happily-ever-after.

Warnings: sexual references, alcoholism, domestic violence, teen pregnancy, sex scene.

Some of My Favorite Lines

“I’d learned that personal information from a teenager was like rain in the desert. You waited for it, sometimes for months, and viewed every drop as a gift.”

“I had never understood the concept of multitasking. I put the parts of my life into boxes and handled one at a time. Pick up one box, attend to the matters inside, finish what you can, put the box away. Then move on to the next. And always make sure that each and every box was light enough and small enough to handle alone.”

“You never know how life’s going to go, honey. Things that seem bad turn out okay sometimes.”

About the Author

Hi! I grew up in the desert around Phoenix, Arizona, where I had a bay quarter horse named Dolly. If I wasn’t riding, I was holed up somewhere reading Laura Ingalls Wilder or the Oz books or, later on, Jane Eyre and The Grapes of Wrath. Horses eventually faded as an interest, but I ended up with a lifelong love of books and reading.

After college and eight years of living in cold places like Chicago and New York, I escaped back to the land of sunshine. I now live in California, one mile from the Pacific Ocean, with my dachshund Taco. I have worked in banking and as a pro bono attorney, doing adoptions and guardianships for abandoned children.

As a writer, I’d always been interested in children’s books, since they had meant so much to me as a kid. I’ve found I especially like writing books about teens and twenty-somethings, an age where you make so many decisions about who you are and how you want to spend your life.

Giveaway

Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card.

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"Louisiana Latte" by Rebecca Henry

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY

Louisiana Latte

by Rebecca Henry

Louisiana Latte by Rebecca Henry is currently on tour with Silver Dagger Book Tours. The tour stops here today for an excerpt and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.

Description

Deb hadn’t flown in over 20 years. In 1989, at the age of 22, Deb was enrolled at Griffiss Airforce Base to become a commercial pilot. Somewhere between dating her yuppie fiancé and planning their wedding in Chicago, Deb developed claustrophobia - a fear of enclosed spaces. I blame the yuppie. Deb couldn’t get on a plane for love that day, but she could do it 20 years later for money. Money was worth dying for.

Excerpt

Deb hasn’t flown in a plane for over twenty years. In 1989, at the age of twenty-two, Deb was enrolled in Embry Riddle aeronautical school, learning to fly commercial planes, but somewhere between dating her yuppie fiancé and planning their wedding in Chicago, Deb developed both agoraphobia, a fear of open spaces and claustrophobia, fear of closed spaces. I blame the yuppie. On their way from Syracuse NY to Chicago, the yuppie placed so much pressure on Deb with wedding arrangements and meeting the wealthy stuck-up family that Deb’s chest began to tighten. The cabin crew were preparing for their takeoff announcements as Deb began to feel trapped. The Boeing 737 was transforming into a metal tin can with wings. Deb took Adam’s hand, seeking comfort. He sat motionless in his neatly pressed J Crew shirt and ironed jeans. His face was freshly shaven, and he smelled of sex and desire. Deb sighed loudly as her seatbelt began to dig into her skinny lap. She tried loosening the strap, but her hands trembled with anxiety. She placed a manicured finger to her neck; her throat was beginning to tighten. Adam the yuppie was staring at Deb as she fidgeted with the belt. “What are you doing?” he said, annoyed. “Just leave it alone.”

Deb began to take deep breaths, exhaling as she fanned herself with her hands.

“Deb, stop that. People are looking at you,” Adam growled. He hated scenes and cared highly what strangers thought of him. Deb looked at the man she was going to marry and said, “Nope! Not flying today!”

Adam became agitated, annoyed by Deb’s sudden display of theatrics. “Sit down and calm down, Deb!” He ran a hand through his black hair. “Jesus, you fly planes for Christ’s sakes, don’t give me this shit that you’re suddenly afraid to fly.” He grabbed Deb by the arm as she tried to stand up from her seat.

“Look Adam, I don’t know what’s going on...I just know I need to get off,” Deb said in the most forced pleasant tone she could muster. Deb raised her hand to the flight attendant who was walking down the aisle. “Hi there, sweetie! Excuse me!” Deb called, as she stood up, releasing her grasp from Adam’s controlling hand. Her three carat diamond ring flashed the flight attendant in the eye. “Hi, sweetie. I’m so sorry to do this now, right before takeoff but...I got to get off.” Deb reached for the overhead compartment, grabbing her coach bag, her butt accidentally hitting the man next to her. “Oh, so sorry, sweetie,” she said to the passenger.

“Not much room on this thing.” Deb patted her clammy chest, which was beginning to break out in a cold sweat. “God, can you feel it, it’s getting hot in here. Oh boy...it’s time for me to go.” The flight attendant looked down at Adam who was now in a full rage.

“Deb, will you stop this nonsense and sit back down.” His voice was stern, a father directing a child.

“Nope, don’t think I will. But I’ll meet you outside, okay babe!” Deb pleasantly pushed past the flight attendant, excusing herself as she made her way to the exit. She was wearing her first pair of Gucci stilettos and was making sure to tiptoe gracefully as she raced down the speckled blue carpet. The flight attendant quickly scurried in front of Deb as she approached the exit door.

“Ma’am, please take your seat. You are not supposed to be out of your seat before takeoff.” Deb eyed the flight attendant’s name tag. “Donna, I need you to listen very carefully to me, okay sweetie. I have to get off this plane.” Deb was pushing down the edges of her miniskirt. She could feel the cabin closing in, the plane was shrinking.

Donna stretched out her arms, blocking Deb. “Ma’am, you can’t get off this plane. You must return to your seat and I will come around to speak with you momentarily.” Deb glanced at Donna’s bad dye job; black roots were showing through her bleached hair. Donna’s face had a perfect ring along her jawline where the foundation stopped. Deb wanted to give her a quick crash course in fundamental foundation rules on applying makeup, but Donna’s face began to swirl as Deb’s nausea began to rise. Deb placed a hand on her forehead, trying to steady the swaying. 

“Donna, I can’t go back to my seat, I can’t stay on this plane.” Donna raised an eyebrow at Deb. 

“What I need to do, Donna, is get off. So, if you would be a doll and just scoot over so I can fit through the aisle and make my way to the door, I would appreciate it.”

Donna glanced at the other flight attendant standing behind Deb. “Ma’am, the engines have started.” Donna pointed in the air. “Can’t you hear? I cannot let you off the plane.”

Deb began to panic. A burning sensation was rising up from her stomach, scorching her arms, making its way to her head. She felt hot all over. The cabin was closing in, crunching her.

“Donna, just go talk to the pilot, explain to him I need to get off. He’ll understand and open the doors so I can leave.”

Donna braced her arms against Deb’s body. “Ma’am, I will not tell you again. You need to go back to your seat, and someone will be with you shortly to talk you through this.”

Deb pressed her face against the window. She could see the wheels on the plane moving. An intense fear struck Deb, she realized she had to get off that second. “Talk to me!” Deb’s voice was frantic, growing louder with each syllable. “What the hell is talking going to do for me? I’M IN FEAR! I HAVE FEAR! I need to get off and either you will remove yourself from my path or go get the pilot!”

“The pilot? You want me to go speak to the pilot?” That’s when Donna realized Deb had lost her rabbit ass mind.

[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]

Praise for the Book

“I was hooked the whole time in this story of two sisters …” ~ Paul V. Rigsby

“That book caught me from page 1! I recommend it for those people that live life with full passion! I will be reading more of this author’s books for sure!” ~ Joann Solari

“Louisana Latte is character driven with a perfect pace for an afternoon sipping tea on the porch or cocktails on the beach. It is light and funny. I found myself giggling throughout the book. I also found myself caring about her characters. The last chapter is exactly how it needed to end.” ~ Elane Finn

“This short read is a must buy book. A funny and feel good chick-lit comedy like no other, the story flows smoothly and creates a unique bond between Becky and Deb that is rarely felt in novels, and yet will feel real and familiar to many families out there. If you enjoy a hilarious and quick witted comedy, then be sure to grab your copy of Louisiana Latte by Rebecca Henry today.” ~ Anthony Avina

“The author does a wonderful job of describing the characters and giving them a life of their own. A book full of humorous situations makes this a fun read.” ~ mbb0623

About the Author

Rebecca Henry is a newly published author. Her debut novel is The Lady Raven, A Dark Cinderella Tale, which was published in 2017. The Lady Raven, is for those who have an infinity for fairy tales retold with a link to witches, magic and the macabre. Her second novel, Louisiana Latte, a chick lit comedy was released February 28th 2019. Louisiana Latte, is a feel good comedy that focuses on the bonds of sisters, and how audacious life can be when you have a diva for one!

Rebecca Henry is a world traveler living abroad in England. Besides being an author of two published books, Rebecca is also a podcast talk host on the show The Latte Talk. The podcast was inspired by her latest novel, Louisiana Latte and her diva sister Deb. She is a serious vegan, gardener, crafter, wife and mom who practices yoga. She loves to laugh, her drug of choice and loves all things witchy with a hint of the macabre. Her favorite holiday is Halloween, and her favorite movie of all time is Practical Magic.

Giveaway

Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win a Louisiana Latte swag pack.

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