Hello everyone! Today I am so excited to welcome the most fabulous Margueritte Labbe to the blog. Margueritte is here to talk to us about her new release from Dreamspinner, Make Me Whole. She has also brought a copy of the book to give away. So please join me in giving her a big welcome!
Hello everybody. Joyfully Jay has graciously allowed me to stop by today to celebrate the release of Make Me Whole, my new paranormal romance from Dreamspinner Press. This book was a wild ride from start to finish. It wasn’t in my list of projects to work on next, but when a friend asked me to come up with a short story centered around a museum, one of the main characters, Galen just grabbed hold of me and would not let go.
I had the short story plotted out in a couple of days and then I started writing. It was supposed to be a short, hot little read, a take off of the mythic tale of Pygmalion, the sculptor who fell in love with his statues. However, once I started it, Nick, the other main character decided he was not content to wait till the end of the tale to get his man. He wanted to be there for the whole journey. And I almost always lose when it comes to character arguments.
So instead of a tale where statues come to life and seduce the owner of the museum, I ended up with a story of reincarnation, healing broken hearts, and learning to trust again. The statues became a barometer to gauge the progress of Nick and Galen’s relationship. As they grow closer and start overcoming obstacles, the statues began to change.
I had so much fun writing Galen and Nick. They had so much they needed to discover about themselves and each other. They’d both been terribly hurt, Galen when his previous lover died in a car accident, and Nick when his mother abandoned him when he was a young boy, leaving him home alone. For me, this was a story about getting the courage to risk hearts again, and to discover what it means to be alive.
And in honor of this being release week, I plan on giving away one ebook copy to one commentor. Please comment and tell me about one of your favorite myths.
Blurb
After a grueling battle in ancient Greece, lovers Dexios and Lykon committed their lives to each other in the name of Goddess Cythera. After the war, fearing the strength of his love for Dexios, Lykon abandoned his vow and returned home. Heartbroken, Dexios called on Cythera, who changed him into four unfinished statues. In that form he would wait for his fickle lover to return, break the curse, and make him whole.
Thousands of years have passed when Galen Kanellis finds the disassembled pieces in the storeroom of a Seattle museum and makes them the focus of his new exhibit. Needing information, he contacts his ex-lover Nick Charisteas. Nick has a lifelong dream of finding the Dexios Collection, and the last thing he expected was for it to wind up in the hands of the man who broke his heart. As both men search for answers about the statues, worries of abandonment and fear of loss test their renewed relationship, threatening to separate them again—this time permanently.
Ebook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.
Print: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.
Giveaway
Margueritte is offering up a copy of Make Me Whole to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment at the end of the post for a chance to win. Margueritte would especially like hear about one of your favorite myths. The contest ends on Wednesday, July 28th at 11:59 pm EST.
- By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
- Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
- If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner may be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay.
- Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by Joyfully Jay.
- Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway either by Joyfully Jay or the person/organization donating the prize.
- By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
- Readers may only enter once for each contest. Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
- Void where prohibited by law.
Ok….Cupid and Psyche is my favorite myth. Please enter me to win Make Me Whole. Thanks!
Oooohhh, Lynn, Cupid and Psyche is a wonderful myth. I’ve always liked that one too!
Sounds good. Count me in.
Good luck, Kim!
I always liked Baucis and Philemon, who were transformed into two halves of one tree (I think Baucis was an oak and Philemon a linden) so they’d never have to be separated…
Oh Trix, that’s not one I’m familiar with. I’m going to have to read it. It sounds like such a lovely, romantic tale. Thanks for letting me know about it.
Persephone and Hades is my favorite by far. There’s so many different interpretations and twists you can put on something like that. Say, is there an M/M book based on that? Hmm…
Hee, Ashley, now that sounds like a it would be a dark and delicious tale!
Please count me in. Thanks. My favorite myth is the Loch Ness Monster.
One day, I will go visit Loch Ness and go Nessie hunting with my son. 😀
Loch Ness is amazing. So surprisingly quiet and unspoiled given that it is a world wide attraction. And much bigger than I expected. No Nessie sighting though.
Yeah I hear that it’s really a beautiful place.
Ah, Ancient Greece… lovely, and such fertile ground for manlove. What an amazing society to accept it, then for it to be lost in the west for the the longest time, just coming to acceptance again now.
I’d love a chance to win this.
Please add me too.
Greece is another place I’d love to visit. Ever since I worked for a Greek family in high school and I fell in love with the food, culture and people. And the history is amazing too. *sigh* one day. Good luck, Sue.
I don’t really have a particular myth I like more than another. In general I like all myths and think they’re all interesting in their own ways. Thanks for the giveaway =)
Me too H.B. I majored in comparative folklore and mythology and I was fascinated by the similiarites and differences in all the different mythologies around the world.
Please count me in. Thank You!
Good luck Gigi!
I don’t have one particular myth I like. The stories are all about flawed people and flawed Gods/Goddesses. I would say most of the time the stories don’t end happily and I like my HEAs.
Count me in please! Thanks 🙂
Lol, flawed definitely describes them and there’s nothing wrong with liking a good HEA. Some of those stories were a frustration for me, especially the ones where their decisions lead directly to their own doom.
I love all mythology but tend to lean more toward the Norse versions. Thor and Loki and Freya and the rest of the gang.
Oh yes, I loved reading the Eddas. If you like Norse, then you’d probably enjoy the Finnish Kalevala.
I find a lot myths really interesting, and when I got the chance to visit Greece a couple of years ago, some of those myths really came alive. For instance, I visited the palace at Knossos which is where they say the story of the labyrinth and the minotaur and Ariadne’s thread took place. It was a really interesting trip. Make Me Whole sounds great. Thanks for the chance to win.
If I had to pick just one place in Greece to go to it would be Crete and the Palace at Knossos would be the first place I’d go. One day I’d like to write a fantasy based off of there with the Snake Goddess and bull dancers.
No one myth I like more than any other. This sounds like a great story. Please count me in.
Thank you and good luck Renee.
Thanks for the giveaway. The story sounds interesting. I’d love to read it.
I have many favorite myths and Cupid and Psyche is one of them. I love to read stories inspired by this myth. The development of the couple’s relationship and their journey is even more heartfelt after the inevitable revealing.
I read one version by C.S. Lewis that’s always stuck with me. It’s been awhile. I’m going to have to go back and reread that.
thanks so much for the giveaway~~
Please count me in! 😀
Heh, My favorite Myth is the Mayan Myth of the Hero Twins. Of when they save the world by playing the ball game in Xibalba against the gods of the Underworld. 😀
Oh I remember that one. The Mayans loved bodily fluids. If I recall correctly, the Hero Twins came to be when the decapitated head of their father spit on their mother and she got pregnant with them. The Popol Vuh was an interesting read. I still have a copy of it with some gorgeous iconography.
Grece+Paranormal????? Please count me in, thank you!!!
*Greece, sorry for my English…
Lol, no problem Loren. I’ve had some typo doozies myself. Good luck.
I don’t think I’ve ever had a favorite myth…never thought about it before! Thank you for the giveaway.
No problem and good luck!
I love myths and legends and, when I find modern takes on them that sound this good, the book finds its way onto my wishlist. No idea when the funds will be around to read it however 🙁
You do realize Ilona that it’s entirely your daughter’s fault that I wrote this. She planted the idea in my head and kept telling me that I could keep it within word count. She still teases me about how far I went over.
I remember her telling me about it. I told her then, that I would be interested in reading it 😀 Now if only she would write more so that she can keep me in reading material I might not disown her 😉
I am definitely a fan of her writing more!
Oh pshaw to you both =p
I’m a fan of myths. One of my favorite myths is Eros and Psyche.
That definitely seems to be a favorite one. She could’ve had everything she wanted, if she just didn’t look. However, if I were in her shoes, I don’t know if I’d be able to resist either.