Thursday, January 30, 2014

This Could Have/Would Have Been our Song


 







This Could Have Been Our Song (Book One)
Lucia Mpobo-Riddell could have been a dancer like the rest of women of her family but instead she chose music. Marcus Grant could have been a doctor like the rest of his family but instead he chose music. She also could have not fallen for Marcus on her birthday but she did. And Marcus, he could have told Lucia the truth about his real reason for being in Toronto that night, but he didn't.
 Now they have to deal with big reveals and consequences: Marcus almost stealing her job and being force to work on an album together. Marcus, because he couldn't swallow his pride, leave Toronto and go home to London. Lucia, because she just couldn't give up on her first amazing opportunity to produce a whole album.
 And to complicate the situation further, the band they're working for is not the easiest one. Mary Gillis, Marcus' on and off flame, still has a hold on him. Greg McMullen, Lucia's close friend and former dance partner is back in town and has been in love with her for years. Then there's Marcus and Lucia, in the middle of their own a professional and personal tug-of- war with each over and the rest of the world. But maybe things could still work out... All things considered, this could have been one heck of a love song!

Excerpt:
LUCIA
“The meeting is now adjourned. We’ll meet again in two weeks’ time to discuss and finalize the hen party.” She (Axelle) pours herself another glass. “To D-Day minus one hundred and five!” she tells us, raising her glass. “Luce, be a dear and order another pitcher or two.”
I order the pitchers as well as a dirty martini for the bride-to-be.
Axelle turns to me, her glass in her hand. “So…what’s new? And you look fantastic, honey!”
“Hey, I look good too!” Noor scowls.
Axelle laughs and turns to Noor. “Oh my God! Did I just compliment the wrong sister? You’re Nooradine?”
“Jealousy is not a good color on you, Noor,” I sneer back, filling myself another drink.
“Please, you’re dieting,” she tells me. “She’s dieting, Axelle!” she says even louder and finishes her drink.
“I’m so not. I’m doing a cleanse and some yoga.”
“The one with Beesly,” Axelle says, serving Noor another glass. “I’ve heard of it. You have to do a lot of stretching with it.” She blows me a kiss. “Good for you, Luce, and shame on you, Noor.”
Nice try, Noor. My turn now. I pour myself another margarita. How many have I had so far? Three or four glasses? Do I even care? I feel warm and tickly. “Andrew is holding out on Noor…sexually.” Bam!
“You don’t say,” Axelle giggles. She finishes her drink and pours another. “What did you do to shift the balance of power?”
“I don’t want to have the suburban house and baby talk right now. It has only been a week.” She empties her drink. “Thanks, big mouth.”
Liar, liar, shorts on fire! “You told me five days,” I tell Noor. I turn to Axelle. “Anyway, did I tell you I was dancing again. Just for fun of course. Not like you or Noor.”
“Oh, I’m so happy!” Axelle gets up and hugs me. “So are you shagging anyone?”
So, I guess we’re back on me. I finish my drink. “Nope.”
“Why the bloody hell not? Isn’t that Marcus bloke still in town?” she asks. And another drink.
“She doesn’t know what she wants,” Noor interjects. Another drink there too. “Greg or Marcus.”
“Greg was in town? Don’t you dare break that young man’s heart…again!” She raises her glass to me and wiggling her finger.
“I never broke his heart!” I tell Axelle. “Greg is one of my closest friends. And I don’t have a lot of those.”
“Hey…you have us,” Noor says.
“My point exactly, Noor,” I say.
“That poor kid was so in love with you back at the dancing academy and he’s still in love you.” Axelle gives me the most loving look. “Who could blame him? My baby is breathtaking.”
“Aw, I love you too, Lelly.” I give her a kiss. “But I’m not going to sleep with Greg. Ever.”
“Right.” Axelle winks at me.
“Your loss. That man is ravishing,” Noor says.
I know he is, inside and out. Let’s change the subject. “Lelly, do you have a dress for the launch party?” I innocently ask.
“Yes I do. An original Renee G creation. She sent it to me earlier this week,” she proudly says. Of course anything for Mrs Anderson. “So… Are you bringing someone?”
Where did this come from? I look to Noor for cover, but she’s too sloshed to be of any help.
“Well are you?” Noor asks.
“Can I bring Beesly?”
“Are you going to be shagging her after? I thought she was married. And straight? And so are you. We were thinking about a man,” Lelly tells me, laughing.
“No! Gosh, Lelly… Marcus then,” I say and I can’t take it back.
“Are you going to be shagging him after?” Noor asks.
“It’s good PR for us. There will be no shagging! Please stop asking or saying it. Understood.” I’m losing my buzz. Another drink it is.
“Okay,” Noor chuckles.
“Right,” Axelle giggles.
“Somebody needs to take that stick out of her butt, or just–” Axelle says.
“Enough!” I clumsily get up. My buzz hasn’t gone after all. “I’m going home…in a taxi…I think.”
“I was just going to say–” Axelle continues.
“It has been months after all since–” Noor says at the same time.
“I got the picture, thanks. Bye.” I’m ready to leave.
“Please stay. We’re sorry,” Noor begs. “We just want you to get some because we care.”
“And you can’t leave yet. We haven’t played refugee African princesses yet,” Axelle begs.
I do like to play that bar game. Axelle is the best story teller. “One more drink and then we go home,” I say sitting back down.
“Okay,” Noor chuckles.
“Right,” Axelle giggles.
Our fourth pitcher arrives and Axelle fills our drinks.
“I don’t have to deal with that kind of shit when I drink with Beesly,” I say, sulking.
“She’s your soul sister. We’re blood and, Luce, it’s thinker than water and wine,” Noor literally burps out. She looks around. “We should get some wine!”
“We’re not going anywhere anytime soon are we?” I say, smiling at my crazy sisters. Let the game begin. We’ll worry about getting home later – much, much later…

Book Links:




Review: Get ready for a bit of music, drama, heartbreak, love...and...well, so much more!

Let's start off with Lucia. She's got a strong voice. She may not always know what she wants and how to go about it, but she's got some pizazz that kept me intrigued.  Can I spend a day with her? Sounds fun to me.  Lucia has expectations given to her, but chooses to follow her own path. Good for you, woman!  

Marcus...he's a little harder to read. He also has family expectations that are not working with his own dreams, and he's a bit of a mystery. His attitude sometimes drove me a little nuts, but I guess it's supposed to work that way, it brings on more interest on who he is, what he's doing and why.  

The story explores the idea of what could be. Lucia and Marcus have a lot of fireworks, and they aren't always the good kind. Their back and forth banter and comments kept me on my toes.  The secondary characters have a lot of their own drama, which at times could be a tad confusing, but it did bring some interesting things along in the book. I haven't had a chance to read book 2 yet, but I'm very interested to see how things play out! '

But, in the meantime, check out some info on book 2! 





This would have been their perfect love song…
It has been two years since Lucia Mpobo-Riddell has made her choice between the two men in her life. She and her beloved would have been perfectly happy if it wasn’t for… the constant distractions from her past, her sister Noor’s complicated life, her own doubts and fears. Maybe there wasn’t such a thing as perfection and this was a lesson that Lucia was going to learn the hard way.
Greg McMullen and Marcus Grant’s lives had been affected by Lucia’s choice that day in Glasgow two years ago. Since then one had been fighting to keep her when the other had been relentlessly trying to get her back. It soon became apparent to them that she wasn’t the Lucia they met and fell in love with anymore. Her life and priorities had completely shifted. To even consider keeping her or just getting her back, they would have to accept it or they would have to let her go. But would they ever be able to do either?  

Excerpt:
IV. Marcus - Out of love and air supplies…
“Nosy much?” I say sitting next to her. “I just wanted to be left alone and Mary isn’t always good at taking ‘no’ for an answer.” She looks lovely. No she looks wonderful. There’s been something so different about her since her arrival. I still cannot put my finger on it.
“Yes, I’m nosy you cheeky boy! Leaving Doddy and Patrick on their own downstairs! I came to check up on you. Now stop being rude. It doesn’t really work on me.” She puts her head on my shoulder and takes my hand. “I did the same thing on my dad’s funeral. People keep asking if you are fucking all right! I was just eight, idiots, I felt like I would never be all right again.” She lightly kisses my palm. “I promise you, you will Marcus,” she whispers.
“Luce…” I whisper back and kissing her palm. She’s this close to bolting out of here or retrieving into her shell. “Fancy a pity shag?” I say with a sad smug smile.
She knocks her elbow in my rib cage and winces. “That hurts! What have you been doing with yourself?” She asks me rubbing her elbow.
“Hitting the gym, takes the frustration out.” And I have been a frustrated lad.
“Not even my usual friendly nap today Sir! But I have something for you.”
“I said I would not touch you and I have been pretty good so far haven’t I?” I plead with my best puppy dog stare. Lucia has been falling asleep on my bed three times over the last two days. Jetlag…but last night she fell asleep in my arms…my bed smells of her intoxicating smell, it’s pure torture.
“Your mum gave me this. She completely forgot about this picture,” she smiles and hands me the photo. “You lied to me Marcus,” she adds.
“What?” She couldn’t know about The Plan…could she? I look at the photo and flip it. Mercutio and Lucia 1983. “Is this real?”
“Is your real name Mercutio?” she shivers with fake disgust.
“Yeah. I never liked it and wasn’t able to say it properly,” I shrug. It’s a two-year old me nicely kissing a very tiny cute baby. “Is this you?” I point at the baby in the photo.
She nods, “Mercutio…Cushion of course! I always thought that Cushion and a long stretch from Marcus. So…Mercutio, you kissed me first!” she laughs.
“Hey, I was two! It doesn’t count,” I laugh back.
“I don’t know about that. Doddy said that you wouldn’t stop snogging me and they had to take me away. You cried when you went out of the room… aww your first crush,” she smirks.
“You sassy–,” I laugh, I just can’t stop laughing. I haven’t laughed in days… “–how long–“
“She gave it to me when I arrived from London. I thought it would cheer Mercutio up,” she says a bit embarrassed. She’s finally letting her guard down and she knows it.
“I love you Luce.”
“Marcus don’t. You promised,” she says getting off my bed.
“What did you expect me to say or do after that?” I haven’t let go of her hand yet. The hand with the giant engagement ring.
“Let’s go back downstairs with the others.” She pulls me up.
“You’re avoiding the conversation,” I say following her.
“And you sound like a broken record Mercutio. I’m engaged, remember?”
“Yes, how can I forget? But I love you and I’m not ashamed of my feelings. So… pity shag is really off the table?” I ask when I close the door behind us.
She waves her ring at me. “Again, engaged!”
“Right, that you certainly are.”
But The Plan is working. 

Book Links:




“My life journey is like my playlist, amazingly unique but full of contradictions with surprising joys with every song...”
I was born in Quebec City, Canada from Gabonese parents but grew up in Paris and Libreville the Gabonese capital until the age of 18. Are you yawning yet? I am...
I moved back to Canada in 1999 after high school in Libreville to study Cinematography and Digital movie production in Laval University in Quebec then The International Academy of Design and Technology in Toronto. After graduating in 2003, I decided to sell my soul to the corporate world and worked in the Benefit Outsourcing Industry for seven in Toronto before reconnecting with her first passion writing.
"A teacher told me in high school that people didn't read anymore so I decided that I would make movies instead...so that didn't stick…"
I finally went back to school to study creative writing at Georges Brown College in 2010 and 2011. I started to write The Coulda Woulda Shoulda Song Series as an assignment and finished Book One in late 2011 before moving to London.
And the rest as they say is history... Almost two years later, I'm in London and wrote three novels: This Could Have Been Our Song! A coulda woulda shoulda ballad... (Book one) currently available on amazon and soon in iTunes, Kobo, Barnes and Nobles and Smashwords. The sequel This Would Have Been Our Song! Catchy tune and dancers’ tales will be released in January 2014 and the third part of the trilogy This Should Have Been Our Song! The happy ever after melody will be released in January 2015. Bird Of Prey, my first mystery romance novel has been released in October 7th, 2013. The first sequel The Plot Thickens (a novella) release date is December 27th, 2013. The second one Polliannah Got Married! will be released in April 2014 or earlier. 

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There is a giveaway with the tour, but the Rafflecoptor info is giving me fits today, so follow along with the tour and check out the other stops with the Rafflecoptor in it....hopefully Blogger will sort itself out and i can get the link in at some point! :D 





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