FFBC Tours: Our Year of Maybe by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Our Year of Maybe

by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: January 15th 2019

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis:

Aspiring choreographer Sophie Orenstein would do anything for Peter Rosenthal-Porter, who’s been on the kidney transplant list as long as she’s known him. Peter, a gifted pianist, is everything to Sophie: best friend, musical collaborator, secret crush. When she learns she’s a match, donating a kidney is an easy, obvious choice. She can’t help wondering if after the transplant, he’ll love her back the way she’s always wanted.

But Peter’s life post-transplant isn’t what either of them expected. Though he once had feelings for Sophie too, he’s now drawn to Chase, the guitarist in a band that happens to be looking for a keyboardist. And while neglected parts of Sophie’s world are calling to her—dance opportunities, new friends, a sister and niece she barely knows—she longs for a now-distant Peter more than ever, growing increasingly bitter he doesn’t seem to feel the same connection.

Peter fears he’ll forever be indebted to her. Sophie isn’t sure who she is without him. Then one blurry, heartbreaking night twists their relationship into something neither of them recognizes, leading them to question their past, their future, and whether their friendship is even worth fighting for.

Can you briefly describe what’s going on in Our Year of Maybe and their main characters?

Thank you for having me back! OUR YEAR OF MAYBE is about the aftermath of a kidney transplant between best friends, complicated by the fact that the donor, Sophie, is in love with the recipient, Peter. 

Sophie is a quiet, anxious dancer who really only feels alive when she’s with Peter, and Peter is a gifted pianist eager to experience life beyond his friendship with Sophie…which makes him feel guilty. The book is about how they move forward when they have such opposing goals, and what that means for their relationship, especially when Peter has a literal piece of Sophie.

Who would you say is your favourite character from the story and why?

There’s a special place in my heart for Sophie’s sister, Tabby. I didn’t set out to write another sister story (after YOU’LL MISS ME WHEN I’M GONE), but I love how their relationship turned out, and I haven’t read anything in YA quite like it. Sophie is older than Tabby, who is the teen mom of a one-year-old. Tabby is still with her boyfriend, the baby’s father, and while that relationships isn’t without its challenges, I wanted to show a teen mother in a positive light. Tabby also loves showtunes (as do I), much to Sophie’s annoyance. 

At the beginning of the book, Sophie and Tabby aren’t close. They don’t have a bad relationship—they just don’t have one at all, not really. So the book shows them slowing getting to know each other for the first time, which I really enjoyed writing. 

I also have to thank my past Pitch Wars mentee/current CP Carlyn Greenwald for the inspiration for Sophie’s sister! She was originally older, and I couldn’t get their relationship right. Carlyn suggested making her younger, and everything just clicked. 

How did the story occur to you? Did you find inspiration anywhere?

I’m fascinated by organ donation, and I have so much respect and admiration for donors. Since a lot of transplant books focus on what can go wrong, I wanted focus on the relationships. No one is ever rushed to the hospital, and Peter’s body doesn’t reject Sophie’s kidney—medically, everything goes pretty smoothly. But donating a kidney to your best friend who you also happen to be in love with, when a small part of you hopes that after the transplant, he’ll realize he loves you back? That’s the space I wanted to explore. 

What’s your favourite quote from the book?
The last line ;)


If you could choose one song to describe your book, which one would it be?
“Dreams” by Brandi Carlile—a line from it is the book’s epigraph

If the book was a movie/TV show, who would you imagine representing your characters?
I had Timothée Chalamet in mind while writing Peter, and Dutch actress/model Luca Hollestelle for Sophie—her freckles are so lovely.

Since it is still cold outside, what hot drink do you think will go with your book to have a perfect book date?

I’m not a coffee person (I know, it’s a waste for me to live in Seattle)—so I’d say chai or hot cocoa! :)


Can you recommend your readers any other books in case they are left hungry for more once they finish Our Year of Maybe?

Yes! I think fans of OUR YEAR OF MAYBE might also enjoy the following books:

THIS IS WHAT IT FEELS LIKE by Rebecca Barrow

THE DISENCHANTMENTS by Nina LaCour

I’LL GIVE YOU SUN by Jandy Nelson

PHANTOM LIMBS by Paula Garner

YOU ASKED FOR PERFECT by Laura Silverman (out in March) Touring with the FFBC Tours in February!


What’s next for you?

I’m working on my third book, scheduled for summer 2020 with Simon Pulse! All I’ll say right now is that it’s a rivals-to-lovers YA romantic comedy that takes place over 24 hours on the last day of senior year.

Rachel Lynn Solomon lives, writes, and tap dances in Seattle, Washington. Once she helped set a Guinness World Record for the most natural redheads in one place. She's the author of You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone (out now from Simon & Schuster/Simon Pulse), Our Year of Maybe (1/15/19), and Today Tonight Tomorrow (2020). A short story of hers will appear in the anthology It's a Whole Spiel (Penguin Random House/Knopf, fall 2019).

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Book Blitz + Giveaway: Kinda Maybe by Elise Daniels

WELCOME to the Release Day Party and Giveaway for KINDA MAYBE. KINDA MAYBE is a New Adult contemporary romance by Elise Daniels.

We’re celebrating the release with an awesome giveaway with lots of gift cards and books. To make things even better, the book is on sale for $2.99 for five days only! Go get your copy today.

Kinda Maybe
by Elise Daniels
Release Date: May 2015
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Synopsis:

Determined to live out a lifelong dream, Kat Hilliard moves cross country after college to New York City to chase her destiny. Knocking out 140 character tweets for a financial firm by day and engaging in all the sexy options New York has to offer by night, Kat is not prepared when New York’s most eligible bachelor, Reese Tremaine, bumps into her on a downtown train. Her simple life will never be the same.

Swept into the hideaways and haunts of the extremely rich and decadent, burdened by an unwanted celebrity, Kat fights to remain true to herself as great sex, a heated political campaign and the dark secrets of a soldier returned home push her toward the one mistake that could keep her from living out her New York fairytale.

Slowly fading into the shadows I step lightly away and down the street making my way to the white sports car with the dimly glowing dashboard lights within. I cross over to the passenger side door and knock quietly on the glass.

The door clicks unlocked. I hesitate before opening the door and getting down into the car. I stare at Reese’s tender eyes as I pull the door closed. The dome light turns off. His eyes continue sparkling with the reds and greens of the dashboard.

“I waited,” he says.

We stare at each other a long time. Eventually, I reach out and take his powerful hand and hold it. “What do you want?” I say. “A cookie?”

Reese grins. An electric tingle shoots through my belly. The car pulls away from the curb and begins moving quickly. The engine is so silent I didn’t even know it was on.

I keep his hand, gripping it tightly as I let both our hands rest on my left thigh. We don’t say another word while he drives quickly through the abandoned residential streets of the Brooklyn night.

The excitement of us fills up the small, contained space inside his expensive, low to the ground sports car. My defenses are down. I bathe in the drowning magic of our undeniable connection. I accept all the manipulation, the inconvenience, the likelihood of being used.

Right now it feels right. I am tired of thinking. I needed to get out of my mind and inside the moment. My eyelids drop. All is black. The only things I feel are his warm fingers laced with mine.

It’s three a.m. and we race alone across the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. I lift my hand to touch his beautiful face. When he exhales his lips form a relaxed smile. The air we breathe becomes rich with the buzzing need of our beating hearts.

COME JOIN US on Facebook where we’re having a great Release Party with steamy excerpts and flash giveaways!

Elise Daniels spends a lot of time on long walks through nature imagining all kinds of thrilling scenarios. Her novels are a necessary therapy, an attempt to write it all down. For Elise, as for all voracious readers, one life is just not enough.

Having traveled and dreamed of living in so many cities, Elise enjoys a scintillating location as much as she does sexy grins and hard bodies. Her BIG CITY NIGHTS series is an ongoing attempt to experience everything that can quicken the heartbeat, overwhelm the senses and get a good girl to chase after her darkest desires.

Elise loves hearing from readers, so drop her a line whenever and wherever.

Win (1) ebook copy of Kinda Maybe by Elise Daniels (INT)

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Blitz-wide giveaway (INTL):

$25 Amazon Gift Card

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$5 Amazon Gift Card

2 ecopies of Awake by Elise Daniels

Signed Paperback copy of Kinda Maybe by Elise Daniels

$3.99 ebook of choice

2 ecopies of Beautiful Ruin by Alison Foster

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2 ecopies of Kinda Maybe by Elise Daniels

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Cover Reveal: Maybe Me (Before & After #3) by Amber Hart

We're so excited to reveal the cover for MAYBE ME by Amber Hart! Maybe Me releases this fall from Kensington Teen!

Maybe Me (Before & After #3)

by Amber Hart

Publisher: Kensington Teen

Synopsis:

A sliver of a second is all it takes. 

Maria Reyes knows what it means to come from nothing. Escaping Cuba, the States have given Maria new dreams. Like graduating high school. Going to college. Making something of herself. Forgetting a past that always seems to creep up on her family. But mostly, staying out of trouble. Which is why falling for Hale is out of the question. 

An unguarded moment, a simple mistake.

Hale Watson is a flash of a second away from being locked up for good. With a rap sheet longer than the list of homes he comes from, Hale has one more shot at making things right. Graduate senior year. Don't mess up. Don't get caught. That’s the plan. Until he meets Maria. 

And everything changes.

Amber Hart grew up in Orlando, Florida and Atlanta, Georgia. She now resides on the Florida coastline with family. When unable to find a book, she can be found writing, daydreaming, or with her toes in the sand. She's the author of BEFORE YOU, AFTER US, UNTIL YOU FIND ME, and sequel to UNTIL YOU FIND ME (untitled as of yet). Represented by Beth Miller of Writers House.