Today I am so pleased to welcome Chelsea M. Cameron to Joyfully Jay. Chelsea has come to talk to us about her latest release, The Girl Next Door. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

 

Did you know that in summer in Maine you can get lobster rolls at McDonald’s? It’s true! I’ve never had one from there, but you can get them. If you’re not familiar with a lobster roll, it’s chunks of lobster meat mixed with salt, pepper, mayo, and sometimes with celery, on a grilled hot dog bun. This is the Maine version, and what you will see anywhere from fine restaurants to food trucks to lobster shacks right next to the ocean.

When I first had an idea of writing a book about a lobsterwoman, I knew that lobster rolls were definitely going to be featured. How could they not? Only catch: I’ve only eaten one lobster roll in my life. This is my confession! Even though I grew up in Maine, I didn’t eat a whole ton of lobster growing up. Firstly, my dad didn’t like it. Second, it’s expensive. We would usually have it only a few times a year, during the summer especially, and also on New Year’s Eve. We’d have them the classic way: steamed, and then dipped in clarified butter. Everyone would get a lobster cracker and go to town trying to extract the meat from the shells without too many injuries. You’d end up with butter all over your face and a bucket full of shells and a full belly. Perfection.

It wasn’t until a few years ago when I decided to take the plunge and actually try a lobster roll. I swear, I can still smell the butter from the grilled bun. It was creamy and delicious and perfect. I was mad that I’d waited so long to eat one.

In The Girl Next Door, one of the first interactions that Jude and Iris have is when Jude asks Iris to come over and have some lobster. Iris still doesn’t know much about Jude, only that she’s also back in town like Iris and living next door. Jude has a surplus of lobsters, since she’s a lobsterwoman, and Iris is familiar with them since she worked summers at a lobster shack.

They make lobster rolls together and Jude opens up the tiniest bit to Iris, and Iris is completely and totally intrigued. She opens up as well, and finds someone to confide in, someone who knows what she’s going through. They make the meal together, and it’s a sweet moment for the two of them. They’re both so lonely, and think that no one in their hometown can understand them. This turns out to be untrue (as they find out, they’re not alone at all!), but that first dinner is a glimpse of what could be.

I can’t wait for summer so I can get a lobster roll in honor of Iris and Jude. I might have to wear a mask and wait in a social-distanced line, but it’s happening.


Blurb

New York Times bestselling author Chelsea M. Cameron is back with the opposites-attract, sweet-and-sexy small-town romance you’ve been waiting for. 

Iris Turner hightailed it out of Salty Cove, Maine, without so much as a backward glance. Which is why finding herself back in her hometown—in her childhood bedroom, no less—has the normally upbeat Iris feeling a bit down and out. Her spirits get a much-needed lift, though, at the sight of the sexy girl next door.

No one knows why Jude Wicks is back in Salty Cove, and that’s just how she likes it. Jude never imagined she’d be once again living in her parents’ house, never mind hauling lobster like a local. But the solitude is just what she needs—until Iris tempts her to open up.

A no-strings summer fling seems like the perfect distraction for both women. Jude rides a motorcycle, kisses hard and gives Iris the perfect distraction from her tangled mess of a life. But come September, Iris is still determined to get out of this zero-stoplight town.

That is, unless Jude can give her a reason to stay…

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise

Carina Adores is home to highly romantic contemporary love stories featuring beloved romance tropes, where LGBTQ+ characters find their happily-ever-afters. A new Carina Adores title is available each month.

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Bio

Chelsea M. Cameron is a New York Times, USA Today and internationally bestselling author from Maine who now lives and works in Boston. She’s a red velvet cake enthusiast, obsessive tea drinker, vegetarian, former cheerleader, and world’s worst video gamer. When not writing, she enjoys watching infomercials, tweeting, and playing fetch with her cat, Sassenach. She has a degree in journalism from the University of Maine, Orono that she promptly abandoned to write about the people in her own head. More often than not, these people turn out to be just as weird as she is. Visit her at www.chelseamcameron.com.


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