Elli by Tina DeSalvo-Review, Interview and Giveaway

Elli
A Second Chance Novel
by Tina DeSalvo
Genre: adult, contemporary, romance, recovery

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/ Barnes and Noble

NOTE: All proceeds from the sale of ELLI will be donated to The Fight Against Breast Cancer

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 1, 2014

Elli Morenelli has lived through a nightmare and now is working on getting her dream…

Her life could have been over with her breast cancer diagnosis, but Elli had fought and won. Now she is ready to fight for other women facing the same nightmare, but to do so she is going to need money. And she is going to need it fast.

Fortunately, Elli finds herself with half ownership of a Louisiana plantation. A twisted inheritance has set her up with an interesting future. Unfortunately, Elli no longer believes in planning a future, she just wants to take the money and run.

Ben Bienvenu wants nothing to do with the woman from California who is certain to turn his world upside down. But the conditions of the will that left the property to both of them doesn’t give him much choice. Not if he wants to keep the property that’s been in his family for generations.

A snobby diva rental dog, an impossible will, a nosy Bienvenu family, a distracting Mardi Gras season and a man who thinks he is protecting his son by standing his ground against her… Elli knows that trying to find common ground with this man known as the Cajun Dog Whisperer is going to be an uphill battle.

Two broken people.
Both in need of a Second Chance….

•••••••••••••••••••••

Normally, when I write a review, I go through the plot without revealing too much to let you, the reader, know a little more about the book I’ve read and to let you know why I think you should read it. I’m going to veer off of that path a bit with this one and just tell you why you should read it.

I will be honest and tell you that when I received this book to read and review and read the blurb, I wasn’t thrilled. A lot of books, in my humble opinion, that deal with a main character surviving a life threatening event become, well, almost unreadable for me. But, I dove in and holy hell…… Am I glad I did. Tina DeSalvo has written a wonderful story with just the right amount of, for lack of a better word, everything. You will absolutely fall in love with EVERYONE in this story. Your heart will break for both Elli and Ben, but you will also find yourself cheering for them very early on. Elli doesn’t dwell on what has happened to her, rather she dwells on what she can do to help others to not have to go through what she has been through. That is the crux of her dilemma. Even though she’s entitled to half of the estate, and shows up with a plan, said plan goes down the tubes fast and she finds herself at a crossroads……….

Ben is hell bent on not liking Elli, and he stands his ground early on as he doesn’t want to lose his familial home that he and his son still call home. He just can’t fathom why someone would want to uproot all they’ve known, but when he finally starts figuring things out, with the help of his awesome, quirky and wonderful family, he has to decide what’s “right” for he and his son. And, yes, he decides that even though Elli is afraid to love anyone for fear of having to leave them if she gets sick again, he’s willing to risk his heart and put it all on the line.

Elli reminds everyone who reads it that life happens. The good, the bad and the ugly. Almost unbelievably, as I was reading this book, one of my best friends since 1988 was diagnosed with breast cancer, Stage 3 invasive lobular carcinoma. Talk about a shocker……….And for the first two days, I couldn’t read the book. I even thought about contacting everyone and telling them that I just couldn’t do it. But as I picked it up, I read one of the blog entries that Elli had written, and I thought who am I to be having a pity party? I don’t have this disease. My friend does. And information is power. So, I finished the book and am so glad I did. The insight in the few blog entries that we are privy to are insightful and touching, and yes, even funny at times. Please don’t get me wrong. This is in no way a sad story, but a very happy and uplifting one. Thrown together by chance, Ben and Elli sizzle together and you just can’t get enough of them. And, the fact that Ben and his family are Cajun has absolutely nothing to do with his hotness……really……not a bit……. J There is so much potential with the others in the Bienvenu family……All I can say is that I can’t wait to read about them as well. And, well done Tina DeSalvo, well done.

Copy supplied by the author

Reviewed by Vickie M.

TRC: Hi Elli and welcome to The Reading Cafe. Congratulations on the release of ELLI. We would like to start with some background information.

Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Tina: Hello, Sandy. Thank you for inviting me to be here on The Reading Café’. I am excited to chat with you about my book Elli, a Second Chance Novel. It is fun for me to now have my work in the fiction realm out-and- about. As far as background information on me, I can tell you I am now in what I feel is a second career, although my first career involved writing, too. I was a broadcast reporter and free-lance journalist for over 25 years. And, here is something I haven’t told anyone interviewing me, before I was a journalist, I had a summer job working in a hot, gritty, roofing-shingle factory. It was one of the jobs I held that helped pay my college tuition. At the factory, I drove a fork-lift, worked making tar-paper and shoveled out gravel silos. How‘s that for a body of work?

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Tina: All the who’s and what’s (sounds like a Dr. Seuss book, LOL) that pass or pause in front of me every day of my life influence my writing and therefore inspire my career in writing. I draw inspiration from everything. Sounds really broad and vague, I know, but that is the truth. I am an observer of people and life. What I don’t see and absorb, I make up. It kind of mixes all together into a gumbo of characters, plots, conflicts, resolutions and a whole lot of laughter. I will add that there have been many amazing individuals who influenced my career in fiction writing because of how they encouraged, educated or mentored me with knowledge for the craft and for the business of writing. To name a few, the late Kate Duffy, Cherry Adair, Stella Barcelona and Booksellers Molly Bolden and Kay Levine.

TRC: When not writing, what do you do to relax?

Tina: When I can carve a bit of relaxing time, it usually is outside with a book in my hands either reading for my pleasure or reading to the sweet kiddies in my life. That relaxes me and gives me joy. I also love planting or harvesting bright colorful flowers or yummy vegetables in my garden. Of course, this must be done in the shade with the breeze blowing…I do live in the sultry south. On that point, I also LOVE to go to the mountains when I can. It is such a departure from the humid beautiful flatlands of Louisiana that it stirs my soul and relaxes me to be in the cool, crisp Rocky Mountain air…even when I am hiking with my good-looking hubby up a steep path and the air is so thin I am wishing I had an oxygen tank strapped to my back or more accurately his (let him carry the heavy thing!). Oh, and did I tell you I like the beach, too? I just like being outside. Here’s a fast fact: I actually wrote a large portion of Elli, a Second Chance Novel, outside in my screened patio with the ceiling fan whirring overhead.

TRC: Let’s talk about Breast Cancer Awareness. All proceeds from ELLI will be donated to Women in the Fight Against Breast Cancer. How close does Breast Cancer Affect your family? What was behind your decision to donate the proceeds of ELLI to this fight?

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/ Barnes and Noble

Tina: Sandy, breast cancer definitely affects my family very closely. I had Stage 3 breast cancer. I had two paternal aunts who had breast cancer, too. I know firsthand how difficult it is to fight the fight when you have insurance, when you have family and friends who are helping you, when you have the where-with-all to be your own advocate, when you have a great medical team assembled. Not everyone who fights breast cancer has this. I saw this while I was in the chemo infusion lab getting treatment and learned on several occasions that there were people who didn’t receive their treatment because the cancer prevented them from working and they couldn’t afford to put gas in their cars or pay for cab rides to the cancer center.

I heard stories of how women were only allocated one prosthetic breast a year even when there were changes in their bodies causing it to fit poorly. There are many unmet needs that can affect a person’s quality of life and possible outcome. It’s hard enough to be in the fight of your life without having the right armor and weapons for battle. I wanted to do something to help improve a woman’s emotional and physical well-being while they fought. I want women fighting on this very day to know they are not alone in the battle. The money raised from the sale of Elli, a Second Chance Novel will help. It is a start. We are trying to help women find their SECOND CHANCE.

TRC: Would you please tell us something of the premise of ELLI?

Tina: Elli travels to Louisiana to sell the half ownership of a plantation she has inherited in order to save the foundation she started after a ruinous fundraiser. The problem is the twisted inheritance for the plantation requires that she convince Ben Bienvenu, the man who inherited the other half, to sell his share of Sugar Mill Plantation, too. That may be a near impossible task since the plantation has been in his family for over 200 years. Mischievous dogs, a nosey Bienvenu family, a distracting Mardi Gras season and a man who thinks he is protecting his son by standing his ground against her. . . Elli must conquer all of this for hope, love and a second chance. She is a breast cancer survivor and knows how to fight to win.

TRC: Are any of the characters or the premise based in reality or a combination of reality and fiction?

Tina: ELLI is a story of fiction that draws on the Cajun culture, people and setting that I know so well. The characters are only real in my mind where I created them, but they reflect bits of so many wonderful people whom I’ve encountered in my life. The premise is based in reality in two ways. First is that Elli is a breast cancer survivor and I have drawn her emotions from my emotions and experiences as well as from other survivors who live in that wonderful, difficult, joyful and fearful time after the cancer treatment ends and a renewed life begins. Secondly, some of the experiences Elli writes about in her blogs are based in whole or in part by what happened to me or others I know while going through treatment.

TRC: You grew up in and around NOLA. How much influence has the French Quarter and Cajun country of New Orleans had in your writing?

Tina: A lot. I love the people and culture of “the City that Care Forgot” and of Cajun country. There are similarities between the two areas, but there are a lot of differences, too. I hope I captured the nuances and wrote of it in a fresh, real way for readers to enjoy.

TRC: Is this a standalone storyline or a part of a series? If it is a part of a series, how many books do you have planned?

Tina: Yes, it is a standalone but we will see many of the same characters return in two more books of the Second Chance Novel Series.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties (research, logistics, background) did you encounter writing this particular story?

Tina: The challenges I faced writing this story is that I wanted to remain true to sharing a Breast Cancer survivor’s emotional journey once the cancer treatment ends but I didn’t want to make this a story about “cancer”. The heart of this story is that it is a love story. I wanted to stay true to that. I also wanted to be true to my writer’s voice which is light and somewhat humorous. I know that seems like an unlikely combination. In the end, I think I was able to craft the character-driven story I envisioned while staying true to my voice as I share Elli’s fears and hopes, too. I also weaved in Ben’s conflicts, his story, which I hope help to create a good book. Geez, I hope ya’ll like it. So far, the reviews and feedback have been really good.

TRC: What are your thoughts on writing a series and ending an installment with a major cliff hanger?

Tina: I think that is one fun way to tell a story. As a reader, I would prefer having the next book in that series in my hand ready to start as soon as I close the back cover to the one before it. LOL. That said, it isn’t the type of book I will write, although, I may have a secondary story line unfinished in one and pick it up in the next book. It won’t be with the main characters, though. Hmm? That gives me an idea for a secondary thread in Jewel and Beau’s story that I’m writing….(oh, did I just write a cliffhanger? LOL)

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Tina: Oh, without a second thought, I can tell you with full certainty that the characters direct, torture, tease and nag me to create the storyline. ☺

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writers fail in this endeavor?

Tina: I think you have to be sympathetic or empathetic or at least care about the characters a little bit to be able to experience their emotions. I think if you have no understanding of the characters or you can’t relate to them in any way, you won’t care about them. When an author makes me care about a character, either in a good or bad way, I am ALL IN the story.

TRC: Writers’ block is a very real phenomenon. How do you handle the pressures and anxiety of writer’s block?

Tina: I’m afraid to utter those words aloud or even type them for it might jinx me…I think, the only way for me to handle the anxiety is to sit down and start writing. If the writing is bad, oh well. Bad sentences can be fixed. Nothing can be done with NO sentences.

TRC: Many authors bounce ideas and information with other authors or friends and family. With whom do you bounce ideas?

Tina: That’s easy for me to answer. My husband, Corey. My sons, Hal and Nicholas. My writer buddies, Stella Barcelona, Cherry Adair, Deborah Leblanc and Eileen Dryer (and whomever is meeting with us when we get together)

TRC: What three things would you like to accomplish in the next five years?

Tina:
1. Stay healthy.
2. Spend as much time as I can with family and friends.
3. Write good books people want to read.

TRC: What is something that few, if any people, know about you?

Tina: I’m a southern Louisiana gal who lives in the best place on earth for seafood and I’m allergic to shellfish. I wasn’t always allergic to it, so I do know of the sweet, tender taste of shrimp, crab and crawfish. Sigh. I miss eating it, especially when we all gather for a seafood boil.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Tina: Jewel, a Second Chance Novel. It‘s Jewel and Beau’s story. We met Beau in ELLI. He is Ben’s cousin and attorney. He is a well-dressed charmer. Beau has a strong sense to protect the Bienvenu family because they had rescued him and his brother from a life of abuse and neglect when they were young boys. So, when antiques’ expert, Jewell Doucet, arrives at Sugar Mill Plantation with her grandmother, Mignon, asking questions that may involve an old, secret Bienvenu mystery, he becomes very suspicious and defensive. He doesn’t know that Jewel is there to investigate a story her grandmother has just recently told her. She wants to find out if her grandmother’s bizarre claim of having a sister is true. If it is, she wants to find the sister for her before her grandmother’s memory is stolen by dementia, forever. Oh, besides, Beau not liking the Doucet ladies coming to Sugar Mill, Tante Izzy isn’t happy about it either. The Bienvenu matriarch feels a sort-of rivalry with this woman interfering with her family.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Tina: Yes, I want to thank you for the opportunity to be here. This has been fun. Your questions were really great! I especially want to thank you for allowing me to share where the proceeds from Elli, a Second Chance Novel, will be donated. It is a cause that means a lot of me, more importantly it means a lot to women fighting breast cancer. I also want to invite everyone to visit my website for more resources on Breast Cancer. There you can all also enjoy taking a look at my photo gallery of the great people I’ve met at book signings, conventions and fundraisers. I invite you to sign up for my newsletter while you are there, too. www.tinadesalvo.com

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
Anything Italian with red marinara sauce and fresh mozzarella cheese

Favorite Dessert
Creamy Vanilla bean ice cream with warm chocolate sauce poured on top.

Favorite TV Show
Game of Thrones (I am Khaleesi, Mother of Dragons. Don’t we all wish? LOL)

TRC:  😉

Last Movie You Saw
Savings Mr. Banks

Favorite Song
I have so many favorites, how do I name one! I’ll go with Train’s “Drops of Jupiter” The lyrics are so ridiculously spectacular.

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Yes! All chocolate. All ways.

Secret Celebrity Crush
Viggo Mortensen and the Rock (Dwayne Johnson)

Last Vacation Destination
Key West, Florida

Pet Peeve
People who are impatient, rude or disrespectful to the elderly.

TRC: Thank you Tina for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on all of your success and we wish you good health.

Tina is offering a $20 Amazon Gift Card and a copy (ebook international/paper US only) of ELLI to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe

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3. LIKE us on FACEBOOK and then click GET NOTIFICATION under ‘liked’ for an additional entry.

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6. GIVEAWAY: Amazon Gift Card and ebook open INTERNATIONALLY / paper copy (USA only)

7. Giveaway runs from June 18 to June 23, 2014