Want

Welcome! Today it's my pleasure to host Upper YA author, Stephanie Lawton. Stephanie is touring her new release, Want. Isn't the cover just gorgeous? Check out the deets below, along with my review.

 Blurb:

Julianne counts the days until she can pack her bags and leave her old-money, tradition-bound Southern town where appearance is everything and secrecy is a way of life. A piano virtuoso, she dreams of attending a prestigious music school in Boston. Failure is not an option, so she enlists the help of New England Conservatory graduate Isaac Laroche to help her.

She can’t understand why he suddenly gave up Boston’s music scene to return to the South. He doesn’t know her life depends on escaping it. Julianne must face down madness from without, just as it threatens from within. Isaac must resist an inappropriate attraction, but an indiscretion at a Mardi Gras ball—the pinnacle event for Mobile’s elite—forces their present wants and needs to collide with sins of the past.

My Review:

Ms. Lawton has my admiration. I’m not from the south, but after spending several years there, I believe she’s done a fabulous job of capturing the intricacies of southern life and how it shapes the people who live it.

Julianne is a young woman trapped by societal mores who is determined to break free of them, and everything they represent. She yearns for acceptance, and love, yet feels unlovable. Her talent is huge, her dreams beckon, and yet her everyday life threatens to not only thwart her dreams, but crush them into dust.

Isaac is the wunderkind who has it all. He’s lived the life Julianne craves. And it didn’t work out exactly as he believed it would, due to circumstances beyond his control. With Julianne he may have another chance to live his dreams, but only if he’s willing to change.

Before I realized it, I was enmeshed in Julianne’s struggle. This story is a roller coaster ride, filled with twists you won’t see coming. By turns, it angered me, shocked me, and took me into dark emotional places I didn’t want to go. But I’m glad I did. Even days after reading it, the characters are still with me. If didn’t know better, I’d swear I’ve met some of these people. For fans of Upper YA, this story is a must read.

Author Bio:

After collecting a couple English degrees in the Midwest, Stephanie Lawton suddenly awoke in the deepest reaches of the Deep South. Culture shock inspired her to write about Mobile, Alabama, her adopted city, and all the ways Southern culture, history and attitudes seduce the unsuspecting.

A lover of all things gothic, she can often be spotted photographing old cemeteries, historic buildings and, ironically, the beautiful beaches of the Gulf Coast. She also has a tendency to psychoanalyze people, which comes in handy when creating character profiles.

On her thirtieth birthday, she mourned (okay bawled) the fact that in no way could she still be considered a “young adult,” so she rebelled by picking up Twilight and promptly fell in love with Young Adult literature.

She has a love/hate relationship with Mardi Gras –where does all that money come from?–and can sneeze 18 times in a row.

Links:

Blog: http://stephanielawton.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephanie-Lawton-author/192796874113180
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Steph_Lawton

Pre-order Want: http://www.inkspellpublishing.com/4/post/2012/02/want-by-stephanie-lawton.html


Thank you for letting Fox Tales review your book. Congratulations on your new release. Wishing you much success!!