I am so
excited that SOULMATED by Shaila
Patel releases today and that I get to share the news!
If you
haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Shaila Patel, be sure to
check out all the details below.
This blitz
also includes a giveaway for a Perfectly Posh, Posh To Meet You Set ($20 value),
US Only courtesy of Month9Books. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the
bottom of this post.
Title: SOULMATED
(Joining of Souls #1)
Author: Shaila
Patel
Pub. Date: January 24,
2017
Publisher: Month9Books
Format: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 300
Two souls. One Fate.
Eighteen-year-old Liam Whelan, an Irish royal empath, has been searching for his elusive soulmate. The rare union will cement his family's standing in empath politics and afford the couple legendary powers, while also making them targets of those seeking to oust them.
Laxshmi Kapadia, an Indian-American high school student from a traditional family, faces her mother's ultimatum: Graduate early and go to medical school, or commit to an arranged marriage.
When Liam moves next door to Laxshmi, he’s immediately and inexplicably drawn to her. In Liam, Laxshmi envisions a future with the freedom to follow her heart.
Liam's father isn't convinced Laxshmi is "The One" and Laxshmi's mother won't even let her talk to their handsome new neighbor. Will Liam and Laxshmi defy expectations and embrace a shared destiny? Or is the risk of choosing one's own fate too great a price for the soulmated?
My mind wandered to a vision of what Laxshmi’s eyes would look like if I
kissed her. It caught me by surprise, making me cough. Grand. Now I was the one
with the concentration problem. If I kept this up, I’d have a hard time
blocking out my classmates’ feelings. I stretched my legs a bit and tugged at
my jeans. Jaysus.
Was I thirteen again?
Keeping other people’s emotions out of my head was like blocking calls on
my mobile. Normally, most empaths had about a ten- to twenty-foot reading
range, so it wasn’t too taxing on me, having been an empath since childhood.
Unless my concentration was shot to hell, blocking was as simple as breathing.
Soon, staying open to Lucky meant she’d have her own ringtone in my head, and
I’d be able to lock on to her feelings without having to do anything at all.
When the class bell rang, Lucky bent to pick up a small pile of textbooks
from the floor. I hoped she wasn’t one of those geeks who carried her books
around with her all day. Then again, maybe she was avoiding her locker because
of me. The thought left me frowning.
As she got ready to leave, I waited for her. “Going to your locker?” I
pointed at her books.
Her surprise came over to me in a gentler ripple than had her other
emotions. The gentleness reminded me of a calm day on Galway Bay—the sand,
small waves nipping at my toes, and the sun, glorious on my back. The surprise
felt like a warm ocean spray I hadn’t been expecting.
“Yeah,” she said with a sheepish grin.
“Brilliant. I’m heading there too.”
She bit back a smile, her excitement feeling like a frothy surf tickling
my toes.
When we approached the door, she rushed to catch it before it shut,
almost dropping her books. Most girls would’ve stood back and waited for me to
make a dash to open it, making sure I was being attentive. Lucky didn’t seem to
want any such nonsense, and I felt a bit off, like I’d put my trainers on the
wrong feet. I couldn’t shake the feeling of being in unchartered waters.
She stepped to the side and held the door open for me—for me—and I had to
dive forward to help her steady the load of books threatening to fall.
“Here,” I said. “I’ll help you carry these—”
“No. I mean, that’s okay. You’ve got your own to carry.”
I sensed a genuine concern from her, as if she were afraid to be imposing
on me, not something I’d been expecting. I stepped closer, meaning to convince
her to let me help, but then her eyes snapped up and met mine. The softness and
sincerity in them froze me to the spot. Lighter and more vibrant than the other
brown eyes I’d forced myself to stare into—all in the name of being romantic—
her eyes drew me in like a kaleidoscope, with amber and black flecks peppering
her irises. A soft gasp escaped her lips, and I understood how she felt. With
each blink of her long eyelashes, it felt like an eternity before I’d see her
eyes again. I had a strange urge to brush my finger over the tips of her
lashes.
I swallowed against the dryness in my throat. “I–I just have one book. In
my bag.” Jaysus Christ. What is she doing to me? I couldn’t get sucked in. I
wouldn’t. If I expected anything, it’d only turn into another disappointment.
When creating a characters personality do you use your friends/family/people around you as a base, or do you go in blind and develop it as you go?
Unlike some authors who develop a deep character profile from the start, I usually begin with a few basics, and then get a feel for the character as I go along. As for where I get my inspiration, there's always that little something I take from the real people in my life. It could be something that stands out to me about that person, like how they smile, their speech patterns, or even a nervous habit. It might even be their personality and how it affects me. Does that person being talkative make me uncomfortable or does it put me at ease? Does my friend who over-analyzes everything become the voice in my head or does it irritate me—or both? As the characters develop, it's like they tell me how to react to my scenes in their own way, and I trust them to follow their lead. In the end, the resemblance to the real person who may have given me the inspiration is nowhere to be found!
When creating a characters personality do you use your friends/family/people around you as a base, or do you go in blind and develop it as you go?Unlike some authors who develop a deep character profile from the start, I usually begin with a few basics, and then get a feel for the character as I go along. As for where I get my inspiration, there's always that little something I take from the real people in my life. It could be something that stands out to me about that person, like how they smile, their speech patterns, or even a nervous habit. It might even be their personality and how it affects me. Does that person being talkative make me uncomfortable or does it put me at ease? Does my friend who over-analyzes everything become the voice in my head or does it irritate me—or both? As the characters develop, it's like they tell me how to react to my scenes in their own way, and I trust them to follow their lead. In the end, the resemblance to the real person who may have given me the inspiration is nowhere to be found!
Giveaway Details:
- (1) winner will receive a Perfectly Posh, Posh To Meet You Set ($20 value), US Only.
- (10) winners will receive a SOULMATED Swag Pack, US Only.
As an unabashed lover of all things happily-ever- after, Shaila’s younger
self would finish reading Cinderella and fling her copy across the room because
it didn’t mention what happened next. Now she writes from her home in the
Carolinas and dreams up all sorts of stories with epilogues. A member of the
Romance Writers of America, she’s a pharmacist by training, a medical office
manager by day, and a writer by night. She enjoys traveling, craft beer, and
teas, and loves reading books—especially in cozy window seats. You might find
her sneaking in a few paragraphs at a red light or connecting with other
readers online at: www.shailapatelauthor.com
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