Interview with Jessica Lemmon

Hello Readers! 

Welcome to 5-stars Friday! 

Today we have an interview with 5-stars author Jessica Lemmon, another giveaway, and the announcement of the winner from the last 5-stars Friday. Jessica writes super amazing contemporary romance novels, and you can follow her on Instagram by clicking here.

***Risa's Interview with Jessica***

Risa: What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time before you were published?

Jessica: Calm down! You can’t run before you can walk. Savor every moment of the journey. They’ll be good times and not-so-good times, but you’re going to be better than okay.

Risa: That's really great advice! You've hit so many career milestones and reached destinations emerging authors are still striving for. I saw on your website that you have around 30 books (including the coming soon ones). How long does it take you to write a book?

Jessica: About 4 weeks.

Risa: Do you prefer ebooks, paperbacks, or hardcover?

Jessica: I find myself reading more and more paperbacks lately! I like to take a break from the screen.

Risa: Speaking of taking a break from the screen... what do you do when you're not writing?

Jessica: I’ve recently started a health and wellness blog called Lemmony.com. I hand-draw all of the illustrations on the website.

Risa: That's an awesome website! Okay, last question. What's one thing you can't live without?

Jessica: I’m incredibly adaptable and can live without almost anything, but if there’s one thing I prefer to always have in my arsenal, it’s coffee. 

Super thanks to Jessica for taking the time to answer some questions!

***GIVEAWAY ALERT***

One random and lucky commenter will receive a copy of Best Friends, Secret Lovers (Book 1, The Bachelor Pact). Not sure what to say in the comments? If you've read books by Jessica Lemmon, what title was your favorite so far? Or let us know if the last books you've read have been ebooks, paperbacks, or hardcovers. If you have a favorite local bookstore, what's the name of the bookstore?

***WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT***

Congratulations to Taylor R. Williams! You won a copy of Crime and Poetry by Amanda Flower, coloring bookmarks, and a sticker signed by Amanda Flower. By Monday, October 28, 2019, please confirm if you'd like a Kindle copy or mass market paperback of Crime and Poetry by Amanda Flower, as well as the U.S. mailing address for the coloring bookmarks and signed sticker. If you choose the Kindle copy, please provide an email for the Kindle copy to be gifted to you. This message was sent to the email you provided in the comment section. If you did not receive the email, please email assistant@theseymouragency.com. Thanks!

xox~Risa

IG: @thereisnobox

*GIVEAWAY RULES AND REGULATIONS
U.S. mailing addresses only. If prize is Kindle-related, winner must have a valid Amazon email to receive prize. Must be at least 18 years of age to win. Void where prohibited. Giveaway hostesses are not responsible for items once shipped. We reserve the right to change any and all rules or conditions as needed. Complete and correct information must be provided as requested, or the entry will automatically and immediately be null and void. Bounced email will automatically void an entry. If we cannot locate your follow or other entry options, your entry will be voided. Once the winner email is sent, that winner will have 48 hours to respond to the win with the information requested in notification email.

*Giveaway winner announced during next 5-star Friday. Contest closes on Thursday, November 28, 2019.

Review: Crime and Poetry by Amanda Flower

Hello Readers!

Welcome to 5-stars Friday!

I’m beyond excited to share with you my review of Crime and Poetry by Amanda Flower.

Crime and Poetry is the first book in the Magical Bookshop Mystery series, and I loved it. Like, five stars plus a glass of Veuve Clicquot and two macarons loved it.

Amanda Flower combined all the goodness I love about life - bookstores and magic mixed with a graduate student completing her dissertation. This book was exactly what I needed to read that rainy afternoon when I couldn’t make it to my own favorite bookstore.

Crime and Poetry by Amanda Flower is a cozy mystery. The protagonist is named Violet, and she’s a twentysomething doctoral student whose grandmother tricks her into returning home, with the hopes that Violet will agree to run the family bookstore. Violet wants to return to Chicago because she vowed never to return to the small town where she grew up, but then Benedict Raisin is found dead, and Violet’s grandmother is the prime suspect. So Violet decides to find out who really killed Benedict in order to save her grandmother.

Here are just a few of the perfect parts of Crime and Poetry:

Violet’s grandmother is called Grandma Daisy, and right away I wanted to meet her. Not only did she trick Violet to return home, she also owns a bookstore in a picturesque town.

What’s not to love about Grandma Daisy?

...and back to the picturesque town. Amanda Flower writes some of the best imagery I’ve ever read. Her words are smooth and flow into one another, so it’s impossible to stop reading. Not only is it a page-turner because of the mystery aspect, but each scene is filled with the kind of… perfect segue into the next piece of the puzzle.

This is hard — to not give spoilers. Okay. So obviously I’m recommending it.

And I’m recommending it because…

This novel is beautifully written and filled with wit and charm, and Amanda Flower takes the reader on a fascinating journey that provides plenty of wrong turns before solving the murder.

***GIVEAWAY ALERT***

One random and lucky commenter will receive a copy of Crime and Poetry, coloring bookmarks, and a sticker signed by Amanda Flower, so please leave a comment below.

Not sure what to say? Tell me if you have a cat, what’s your cat’s name. If you have a favorite local bookstore, what’s the name of the bookstore? If you’ve read other books by Amanda Flower, what title was your favorite so far?

Okay. Thanks for taking the time to read my review of Amanda Flower’s Crime and Poetry.

xox ~Marisa
IG: @thereisnobox

*GIVEAWAY RULES AND REGULATIONS
U.S. mailing addresses only. If prize is Kindle-related, winner must have a valid Amazon email to receive prize. Must be at least 18 years of age to win. Void where prohibited. Giveaway hostesses are not responsible for items once shipped. We reserve the right to change any and all rules or conditions as needed. Complete and correct information must be provided as requested, or the entry will automatically and immediately be null and void. Bounced email will automatically void an entry. If we cannot locate your follow or other entry options, your entry will be voided. Once the winner email is sent, that winner will have 48 hours to respond to the win with the information requested in notification email.

*Giveaway winner announced during next 5-star Friday. Contest closes on Thursday, October 24, 2019.