Escaping Reality Blog Tour and Giveaway-INTERVIEW with Lisa Renee Jones
Escaping Reality (The Secret Life of Amy Bensen) #1
by Lisa Renee Jones
Genre: New Adult
Release Date: July 22, 2013
TRC: Hi Lisa and welcome back to The Reading Café. Congratulations on a very successful 2013. For anyone who does not know Lisa Renee Jones, would you please tell us a little something about yourself?
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Lisa: I write full time and live in Colorado. I use to be the CEO of a staffing agency but left that world behind to chase the dream of being a writer.
TRC: Please tell us about LISA’S UNDERGROUND ANGELS?
Lisa: The angels are just that. Angels! This is my street team and I am truly blessed with some very special ladies. I feel like I know many of them and like they are extended family.
TRC: How interactive are you with the Angels?
Lisa: VERY. I love these ladies. I talk with them on a yahoo group daily. I’ve gotten to feel like many are friends who live next door.
TRC: ESCAPING REALITY: The Secret Life of Amy Bensen (July 22, 2013) is your latest release and first entry into the world of New Adult fiction. Would you please tell us something about the premise?
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Lisa: This series is much like INSIDE OUT, narrated by the main female character and you live a mystery and a romance through her eyes. This is like that series in that way. It’s very different though. Amy is younger, sheltered in that she is running from something and cannot truly live. Mature in that she has had to survive on her own. Liam Stone is rich and talented and a mix of dominant and gentle at just the right times for Amy’s personality to click with him. He enters Amy’s life and dares her to live and experience passion at a time when the past has come back to haunt her.
Amy is on the run from danger, that I can’t say much about without spoilers. Her family is dead and she isn’t sure who did it, only that they are after her as well. She meets Liam Stone, a protege, prodigy architect who inherited a fortune from his mentor. He makes her feel she isn’t alone but she fears she will drag him into danger as well. And can she really trust him?
And Liam Stone is a bit of a cross between Mark Compton and Chris Merit in INSIDE OUT but very different in his own right. He handles things much different than either of the INSIDE OUT men.
TRC: How many books do you have planned for the series?
Lisa: Three books now. If there are more it will be like INSIDE OUT and feed off secondary characters.
TRC: WITHIN THE FIRE is book two in the series. Would you please tell us something about the premise and do you have an expected date of release?
Lisa: Actually the title has changed to INFINITE POSSIBILITIES. It is book 2 and it picks up at the end of book 1. So I really can’t tell because it’s a spoiler. But at the end of book 1 Amy is determined to find out what happened to her family rather than hiding. As for release date I haven’t set it yet because of some things going on with INSIDE OUT but will very soon. And it won’t be a long wait. I want them out quickly.
TRC: Are any of the characters or experiences based on events in real life? Or are they an amalgamation of many characters and your imagination?
Lisa: Actually it’s set in Denver in the exact area we plan to live and the area we stay at least one weekend a month. Last weekend I was there writing to get the scenes exactly right. I started getting to know Amy about two years ago, jotting notes and plotting, but it was all imagination. Now she feels very real.
The hotel is actually the real hotel I stay in. And I am from Texas:) Oh and there are many places in the Denver neighborhood including the coffee shop Diego proposed in that are in the book.
TRC: BEING ME is the second installment in your Inside Out Trilogy. Would you please tell us something about the premise?
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Lisa: Being Me is a continuation of If I Were You. It answers many many questions. People will be surprised just how many.
BEING ME picks up the moment after IF I WERE YOU ends and IF I WERE YOU ends with a huge cliffhanger. So all I can say is you will be shocked how many details you get in this book and how many answers. I have a long series plan so I knew I would reveal many things in book 2. There is much more you don’t know about yet to come.
TRC: REVEALING US (September 2013) is the final installment in the trilogy. Is there anything you can reveal about the storyline?
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Lisa: This is Chris’s book. Being Me was about Sara finding herself. Revealing Us is about Chris letting Sara find him. It has a mystery that leads into a spinoff series and readers will know what that is at the end.
TRC: THE MASTER UNDONE (August 2013) is a story written from ‘the master’s’ POV. Is it an epilogue (of sorts) or does the timeline follow parallel to Rebecca’s Lost Journals novella series?
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Lisa: No. This story takes place the day after BEING ME. It is not past and Rebecca is not part of the story. The Master Undone leads into books 4 and 5 that will be mainly about Mark. You meet a new female named Crystal and you get to see what really goes on in Mark’s head
TRC: What challenges or difficulties (logistical, research etc) did you encounter writing the Inside Out series and novellas?
Reading Order: Inside Out Series
Lisa: They were emotional dark books that pushed my limits. I lived those books sunup to sundown while writing them and the characters became a part of me in a way I have never experienced.
Timelines were critical since there are journals in all of the books.I had to make sure they matched up perfectly. I did a lot of planning to make that happen.Then I couldn’t write with names in the journals or I’d give away things. That was hard.
TRC: If you could virtually cast the main characters in The Inside Out series, which models or actors would be represent your ideal image?
Lisa: Well, I have my dream cast but I am doubtful they are available:) Chris Hemsworth is my Chris. He’s a little busy being THOR darn it! And Alexander Skarsguard was always my Mark and Tru Blood is going strong. For Sara it’s Odette Annablel who many know from the show House.
TRC: When a popular (both writer and reader) series comes to an end, do you go into withdrawal and hope to revisit the series or characters one day? Perhaps with a novella or epilogue storyline?
Lisa: I am in major Chris, Sara, and Mark withdrawal which is why I cannot wait to start book 4. I really have a hard time letting them go. And those who know Tall, Dark and Deadly know Blake Walker. I was so attached I had him show up in BEING ME and REVEALING US .
TRC: If you could change something about yourself personal or professional, what would it be and why?
Lisa: I worry and stress. It is just my nature and I’m thankful my fiancee is the opposite. He brings me down a lot and handles my stress so well he often makes me laugh when I think it is not possible.
TRC: Who is the first person you think about when you need someone to talk with and why?
Lisa: My fiancee. He gets me. He really does. And he really listens.
TRC: Is there a question that you would like to be asked in an interview, but nobody has asked? If so, ask away!
Lisa: No I think you covered them. Great questions!
TRC: What five things would you like to accomplish in the next ten years?
Lisa: Less stress! To travel and enjoy life a little more. I have some careers goals to but the main thing is just to be happy.Life is short.
TRC: What are your thoughts on book reviews-good or bad?
Lisa: Both come with being a writer. You have to take the bad with the good. Over time you get thicker skinned. I only have a problem if I feel someone is personally attacking an author. They know them or whatever. I had someone posting dirty messages and 1 star reviews on one of my books on Barnes and Noble a while back. Like 15 reviews and they would have graphics typed out to look like male body parts or be one bad word and nothing else. All in a matter of hours. Apparently there are kids that play games on there for points and have no care that it effects an authors sales.
Another time on Barnes I had a werewolf release. This same group of gamers all started posting things like “Sheba” and “Wolf wolf” with 5 star reviews. Then people accused me of fluffing my reviews. I guess they were getting points for posting on wolf books for this game.
Both times I got Barnes and Noble to take them off but it took days.
TRC: On what are you currently working?
Lisa: Aside from preparing Amy for Net Galley, I have a novella I’m doing for a NY house I haven’t announced yet, and then straight into book 4 of INSIDE OUT
TRC: Would you like to add anything else?
Lisa: Just thank you for all your support and thank you to all the readers and bloggers out there that do so much to support my books!
TRC: Thank you Lisa for taking the time to answer our questions. Once again, congratulations on all of your success. We are looking forward to ESCAPING REALITY, REVEALING US and THE MASTER UNDONE.
ORDER YOUR COPIES of Rebecca’s Lost Journals:
Rebecca’s Lost Journals are a supplement to The Inside Out series and should be read after IF I WERE YOU and before BEING ME.
THE SEDUCTION: Amazon.com / Amazon.ca/ Amazon.uk / Barnes and Noble / KOBO
THE CONTRACT: Amazon.com/ Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk /Barnes and Noble/ KOBO
HIS SUBMISSIVE: Amazon.com/ Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk /Barnes and Noble/
MY MASTER: Amazon.com/ Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk /Barnes and Noble/
ebook box sets by Lisa Renee Jones
THE WEREWOLF SOCIETY ebook box set ONLY .95cents
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TALL, DARK and DEADLY ebook box set ONLY .95cents
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THE DELUXE CINDERELLA CHRONICLES ebook box set ONLY .95cents
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ALPHA BAD BOYS ebook box set .95cents
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ESCAPING REALITY
Lisa Renee Jones’s first New Adult release
Book 1 of THE SECRET LIFE OF AMY BENSEN Series
Publication Date: July 22, 2013
RELEASE DATE: July 22, 2013
Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk
Infinite possibilities….
Infinite passion…..
Infinite danger….
His touch spirals through me, warm and sweet, wicked and hot. I shouldn’t trust him. I shouldn’t tell him my secrets. But how do I not when he is the reason I breath? He is what I need.
At the young age of eighteen, tragedy and a dark secret force Lara to flee all she has known and loves to start a new life. Now years later, with a new identity as Amy, she’s finally dared to believe she is forgotten–even if she cannot forget. But just when she lets down her guard down, the ghost’s of her past are quick to punish her, forcing her back on the run.
On a plane, struggling to face the devastation of losing everything again and starting over, Amy meets Liam Stone, a darkly entrancing recluse billionaire, who is also a brilliant, and famous, prodigy architect. A man who knows what he wants and goes after it. And what he wants is Amy. Refusing to take “no” as an answer, he sweeps her into a passionate affair, pushing her to her erotic limits. He wants to possess her. He makes her want to be possessed. Liam demands everything from her, accepting nothing less. But what if she is too devastated by tragedy to know when he wants more than she should give? And what if there is more to Liam than meets the eyes?
And look for Book 2: INFINITE POSSIBILITIES !
July 1 – July 31
Click HERE for the complete Blog Tour Schedule and List of participating tour hosts
The Reading Cafe and Lisa Renee Jones are offering an additional giveaway for two lucky commentors
First Prize: a signed copy of IF I WERE YOU (Inside Out #1) by Lisa Renee Jones
Second Prize: an ecopy of ESCAPING REALITY by Lisa Renee Jones
1. You must post a comment to qualify for this giveaway.
2. This giveaway is in addition to the rafflecopter giveaway and is the sole responsibility of The Reading Cafe and its administrators.
3. Giveaway runs from July 14 to July 31, 2013
4. ESCAPING REALITY ebook Giveaway open to US and Canada only.
5. Signed copy of IF I WERE YOU is open INTERNATIONAL
Lisa is giving away a canvas bag with Escaping Reality on one side and Revealing Us on the other side, and a package of signed INSIDE OUT and ESCAPING REALITY goodies to one lucky winner when the tour ends.
NOTE: The Reading Cafe is NOT responsible for the rafflecopter giveaway. If you have any questions, please contact the tour promoter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
When Sara McMillan finds a stack of journals in a storage unit, she’s shocked and enthralled by the erotic life the writer led. Unable to stop reading, she vicariously lives out dark fantasies through Rebecca, the writer—until the terrifying final entry.
Fascinated by the dark fantasies in the journals she’s discovered, and the two men who have now found a place in her life, Sara McMillan finds herself torn between her new life and her past. Now, more than ever, Sara identifies with the lost journal writer, Rebecca, and is certain that something sinister has happened.
I told him goodbye, and I will not call him. I know if I do, it will be my undoing, and I’ll once again be caught up in his spell. I will once again be…lost.
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones is the author of the highly acclaimed INSIDE OUT TRILOGY which has sold to more than ten countries for translation with negotiations in process for more, and has now been optioned by STARZ Network for a cable television show, to be produced by Suzanne Todd (Alice in Wonderland).
