Author Guest Post
Embracing My Story
Many people tend to giggle when they hear about me being a romance writer. The words ‘fluffy fluff fluff’ show up or ‘cheesy’. But I assume that’s because they are thinking it’s ‘bubble gum romance’ aka—no depth, no real storyline, and two characters just having sexy time nonstop.
Stereotypes, perhaps? I think so!
I write about family challenges. I write about accomplishments and failures. I write about businesses. I write about death. I write about human connections. I write about things that make you cry. Things that piss you off. Things that make you laugh.
And if there is a sexy time moment *which there are in my stories!* it’s not just for the sex. It’s more than that each and every time. It’s the connection of two souls losing themselves in each other’s arms. It’s the feeling of the rest of the world fading out as you are lost in that intimate moment. It’s about releasing yourself from the stress of everyday life and finding an adventure in the arms of another.
It’s finding lust.
It’s finding a moment of peace.
It’s finding the romance in the world.
It’s finding love.
All of my novels have (I hope!) solid story-lines that move the story along. They have a depth to them, and true emotion behind the words. Each paragraph is written with an intent—not just to fill a page.
So I will keep writing my stories. I will be released from the shackles of the negative thoughts of what romance writers are. And I will write on. Enjoying the freedom of adventure that my stories bring to me. And always allowing the story that wants to be written to flow out of me without any judgment.
Always,
-Brittainy C. Cherry
About The Author
AUTHOR WEBSITE
GOODREADS
The Space In Between by Brittainy C. Cherry ~ Virtual Book Tour Page: Reading Addiction Blog Tours
Book Review
The Space In Between by Brittainy C. Cherry
Publisher: Independent Self Publishing
Publication Date: August 10, 2013
Format: Paperback - 292 pages / Kindle - 783 KB / Nook - 787 KB
ISBN: 0615866581
ASIN: B00EG37XTI
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
BUY THE BOOK: The Space In Between
Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Reading Addiction Blog Tours.
Book Description:
She’s scarred by her past.
ANDREA EVANS is traumatized and guilt-ridden by the death of her fiancée. Tired of the gossiping small town, she travels to New York City to pursue her dream of dance. When her dreams don’t instantly come to fruition, she ends up working at a strip club with her best friend.
He’s uncertain of his future.
COOPER DAVIDSON is a famous photographer and reality television star trying to flee from his own life filled with paparazzi, mental health clinics, and a cheating wife who is pregnant.
When Andrea and Cooper’s paths cross, they realize how damaged and in need of escapism they both are. The two create an arrangement to explore the space in between chaos and order with one another. The rules are simple—no emotional connections, no talking about the past, no speaking of the future, and when one finds order, the other walks away.
All is well until Cooper falls in love with Andrea. Will Andrea open up and let someone else into her closed off heart? Can Cooper stop the tabloids and his crazed wife from exposing his past and painting Andrea as a prostitute to the world before her life spirals back down to the land of chaos?
Book Excerpt:
I looked at myself and watched my bottom lip quiver. Ladasha tried to convince me there was another way to get the money for rent and I shouldn’t worry about such things. But I wasn’t ready to back down. I could do it. I just needed her to give me a few of her comforting words to ease the freak out that was about to be released into the world.
Ladasha could tell how seriously I was in need of a pep talk so she delivered her best one. “Pretty Woman,” she said.
“What?”
“Pretty Woman. Name the rules. Before she was stupid and went and fell in love and got rich and shit.” She was serious. Most of Ladasha’s best pep talks were based off movies. She was addicted to all movies, and it would be a shock if she didn’t know what was playing in the nearest theater.
I nodded as I thought over the rules of Pretty Woman. “No personal information. No kissing on the lips. No second meet up.”
“Unless it’s Richard Gere,” Ladasha tossed in.
“It’s not Richard Gere.”
“Listen. Just go in there and be your super sexy self. Shake your booty. Collect the cash. If it’s a freak, have Frank handle him. And leave. Easy!”
Right. Easy. Pretty Woman rules. I thanked my friend and left the dressing room. Walking through the strip club, I ignored the howls from the hungry perverts coming my way. I felt like a piece of meat about to be tossed into the ring with a pack of lions. As I approached the VIP rooms that had Frank, the security guard, standing in front of the door, I let out a halfway smile.
“You doing a VIP room, Andrea?” he questioned. I informed him it was a test drive; he nodded and opened the door. “You got fifteen minutes. After that, I grab you out.” I closed my eyes and did a quick prayer to God that it wasn’t a creep. Please, God. Don’t send me a motherfreakin’ creep.
I stepped into the room in my shiny heels and Frank closed the door behind me. When I opened my eyes and stared at the man sitting across from me, I gasped. He was beautiful. He wore a button-down black long-sleeved shirt with charcoal slacks. Even with the clothing, I realized how perfectly made his body was. He quickly rose to his feet and started speaking.
“Hi,” he said as he reached his hand out to me for a handshake. I stood there, confused. Did strippers normally shake hands with their ‘client’? How did I know? I was only a stripper-in-training after all.
“Right.” He pulled his arm back and placed both hands in his slacks. Involuntarily, my eyes watched his hips start to rock back and forth. “So, yeah. I don’t normally do this, but…yeah.” He murmured to himself and cussed under his breath. “My manager thought it would be a good idea. A new start, a fresh take…”
Did he not recognize me? He looked so different from the last time I saw him in person. Sure, I was only thirteen, but his dimples hadn’t changed. His crooked smile still remained the same.
Cooper Davidson had been sculpted by the gods. His tan, smooth skin, his low-buzzed blond hair, and his green intense eyes were like the ones of fairy tales. His lips were able to create a grin that made every woman melt and every straight man jealous. And to top it off, the gods had given him a voice box with a southern drawl that made all of the girls of my hometown crazy when he would come visit his cousin during the summers.
“You don’t remember me?” I whispered as I stepped closer to him. Sure, my hair was going through a strange gothic-black, short-cut phase, which was much different than my usual blond, long waves. But still. I was still me. What was I thinking? Of course he wouldn’t remember me…
Cooper stared at me and raised an eyebrow, his mind tracking through his past. My eyes followed his mouth, watching him bite his bottom lip and step closer. He stared into my blue eyes with such curiosity floating around in his greens. I saw it happen—the moment he remembered who I was. And then I remembered who I was. I was officially a stripper in training. A wave of embarrassment washed over my face. My eyes shifted to the ground. I didn’t feel worthy to look his way. I was so ashamed of the path I had traveled in the past months.
Cooper took a finger, lifted my chin up, and grinned widely. “Andie Evans.”
I cringed a bit, but I smiled. “Andrea. I go by Andrea now.”
He nodded. “Of course. Holy shit. How the hell are you?!” He pulled me into a tight hug and held me close. It felt good to be held. It had been so long since…
I pulled away and released a sad grin. A short gasp fell from my lips at the touch of his soft fingers brushing away tears that started falling from my eyes. My heart landed in my throat, filled with nerves and worry. The idea of my mom and dad finding out about my job was terrifying, yet Cooper quickly eased my fears. “I’ll never say a word. I promise. Holy crap. Andrea Evans as I live and breathe. It’s been, what? Ten years?” We were both in a state of shock. He took a seat and I sat across from him, removing my stupid safari hat.
“Ten years. You went to become a famous photographer and I went to become…” I laughed at myself. The red velvet walls in the room with the dimmed sex lighting told him exactly what I’d become.
“You look beautiful.” He praised me. He hadn’t changed a bit; he was as charmingly sweet as he’d been when he delivered me my first kiss on the cheek at the age of seven. “Last time I saw you, you were falling in love with a guy that wasn’t me.” He smirked.
I nodded my head. “Derrick Stevens.”
“Ah! That’s the jerk’s name! How is Derrick Stevens doing nowadays? Fat? Unemployed? Gay?” He laughed in a joking manner.
I shook my head, resting my hands in my lap. “Dead.”
Cooper’s eyes widened in horror as Frank knocked on the door and opened it to inform us that our nice ‘lap dance’ was over. I looked to Frank and then over to Cooper. He was frozen with a distressed look. I sighed, knowing I couldn’t leave him like that. I didn’t know why, but something inside of me felt like he deserved my attention. Something wanted me to stay in the room. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but it was an urge that I didn’t want to walk away from. Even if my mind hoped to run for the hills, my body was content with its whereabouts.
I turned to the security guard and gave him my fakest grin and a wink. “We’re gonna need a little bit more time, Frank.”
Ladasha could tell how seriously I was in need of a pep talk so she delivered her best one. “Pretty Woman,” she said.
“What?”
“Pretty Woman. Name the rules. Before she was stupid and went and fell in love and got rich and shit.” She was serious. Most of Ladasha’s best pep talks were based off movies. She was addicted to all movies, and it would be a shock if she didn’t know what was playing in the nearest theater.
I nodded as I thought over the rules of Pretty Woman. “No personal information. No kissing on the lips. No second meet up.”
“Unless it’s Richard Gere,” Ladasha tossed in.
“It’s not Richard Gere.”
“Listen. Just go in there and be your super sexy self. Shake your booty. Collect the cash. If it’s a freak, have Frank handle him. And leave. Easy!”
Right. Easy. Pretty Woman rules. I thanked my friend and left the dressing room. Walking through the strip club, I ignored the howls from the hungry perverts coming my way. I felt like a piece of meat about to be tossed into the ring with a pack of lions. As I approached the VIP rooms that had Frank, the security guard, standing in front of the door, I let out a halfway smile.
“You doing a VIP room, Andrea?” he questioned. I informed him it was a test drive; he nodded and opened the door. “You got fifteen minutes. After that, I grab you out.” I closed my eyes and did a quick prayer to God that it wasn’t a creep. Please, God. Don’t send me a motherfreakin’ creep.
I stepped into the room in my shiny heels and Frank closed the door behind me. When I opened my eyes and stared at the man sitting across from me, I gasped. He was beautiful. He wore a button-down black long-sleeved shirt with charcoal slacks. Even with the clothing, I realized how perfectly made his body was. He quickly rose to his feet and started speaking.
“Hi,” he said as he reached his hand out to me for a handshake. I stood there, confused. Did strippers normally shake hands with their ‘client’? How did I know? I was only a stripper-in-training after all.
“Right.” He pulled his arm back and placed both hands in his slacks. Involuntarily, my eyes watched his hips start to rock back and forth. “So, yeah. I don’t normally do this, but…yeah.” He murmured to himself and cussed under his breath. “My manager thought it would be a good idea. A new start, a fresh take…”
Did he not recognize me? He looked so different from the last time I saw him in person. Sure, I was only thirteen, but his dimples hadn’t changed. His crooked smile still remained the same.
Cooper Davidson had been sculpted by the gods. His tan, smooth skin, his low-buzzed blond hair, and his green intense eyes were like the ones of fairy tales. His lips were able to create a grin that made every woman melt and every straight man jealous. And to top it off, the gods had given him a voice box with a southern drawl that made all of the girls of my hometown crazy when he would come visit his cousin during the summers.
“You don’t remember me?” I whispered as I stepped closer to him. Sure, my hair was going through a strange gothic-black, short-cut phase, which was much different than my usual blond, long waves. But still. I was still me. What was I thinking? Of course he wouldn’t remember me…
Cooper stared at me and raised an eyebrow, his mind tracking through his past. My eyes followed his mouth, watching him bite his bottom lip and step closer. He stared into my blue eyes with such curiosity floating around in his greens. I saw it happen—the moment he remembered who I was. And then I remembered who I was. I was officially a stripper in training. A wave of embarrassment washed over my face. My eyes shifted to the ground. I didn’t feel worthy to look his way. I was so ashamed of the path I had traveled in the past months.
Cooper took a finger, lifted my chin up, and grinned widely. “Andie Evans.”
I cringed a bit, but I smiled. “Andrea. I go by Andrea now.”
He nodded. “Of course. Holy shit. How the hell are you?!” He pulled me into a tight hug and held me close. It felt good to be held. It had been so long since…
I pulled away and released a sad grin. A short gasp fell from my lips at the touch of his soft fingers brushing away tears that started falling from my eyes. My heart landed in my throat, filled with nerves and worry. The idea of my mom and dad finding out about my job was terrifying, yet Cooper quickly eased my fears. “I’ll never say a word. I promise. Holy crap. Andrea Evans as I live and breathe. It’s been, what? Ten years?” We were both in a state of shock. He took a seat and I sat across from him, removing my stupid safari hat.
“Ten years. You went to become a famous photographer and I went to become…” I laughed at myself. The red velvet walls in the room with the dimmed sex lighting told him exactly what I’d become.
“You look beautiful.” He praised me. He hadn’t changed a bit; he was as charmingly sweet as he’d been when he delivered me my first kiss on the cheek at the age of seven. “Last time I saw you, you were falling in love with a guy that wasn’t me.” He smirked.
I nodded my head. “Derrick Stevens.”
“Ah! That’s the jerk’s name! How is Derrick Stevens doing nowadays? Fat? Unemployed? Gay?” He laughed in a joking manner.
I shook my head, resting my hands in my lap. “Dead.”
Cooper’s eyes widened in horror as Frank knocked on the door and opened it to inform us that our nice ‘lap dance’ was over. I looked to Frank and then over to Cooper. He was frozen with a distressed look. I sighed, knowing I couldn’t leave him like that. I didn’t know why, but something inside of me felt like he deserved my attention. Something wanted me to stay in the room. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but it was an urge that I didn’t want to walk away from. Even if my mind hoped to run for the hills, my body was content with its whereabouts.
I turned to the security guard and gave him my fakest grin and a wink. “We’re gonna need a little bit more time, Frank.”
My Book Review:
Two broken people cross paths and are drawn together seeking comfort and release from the space in between their past and the future ...
Andrea Evans is wrought with guilt after the loss of her fiance in a car accident in which she was the driver. Unable to stand the gossip, Andrea leaves her small hometown to share an apartment in New York with her best friend Ladasha. She dreams of pursuing a career in dance, but lands the unconventional job as a stripper.
Cooper Davidson is a famous photographer and reality show star. He discovers that his wife has cheated on him and is pregnant with another man's child. After suffering a very public mental breakdown, Cooper does a stint in a mental health clinic. Upon his release from the clinic, all Cooper wants is to escape from the glare of the paparazzi and move on with his life.
When Andrea and Cooper's paths cross, they form a relationship that has no emotional ties. How long can their relationship stay in the space between superficial and love when passion and respect grows between them?
In her debut novel, author Brittainy C. Cherry weaves a wonderful tale about two broken people who come together and learn to move forward from the trauma of their pasts, in the hope that their lives can be made whole again. Told in alternating points of view, Andrea and Cooper takes the reader along on their emotional journey of healing and getting a second chance of finding love. You can't help but get drawn into Andrea and Cooper's story as their personal trials and tribulations, drama, secrets, betrayals, loss and romance unfolds. The development of Andrea and Cooper's relationship is phenomenal, the passion and chemistry between them is palpable, while their mutual respect and strength in helping each other heal is very touching. This riveting and gut wrenching story will pull at your heartstrings, causing you to feel the full gamut of emotions that will leave you spent.
With an interesting cast of characters who are realistic and have flaws that are easy to relate to; engaging dialogue and dramatic interactions; and a storyline that has a mixture of humor, drama, romance and surprising twists and turns that keeps the reader turning the pages, The Space In Between is a beautifully written romance novel that will leave a smile on your face.
RATING: 4 STARS ****
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