Fantasy Casting Call for RIGHT HERE WAITING by K.E. Belledonne (Book Tour & Giveaway)

Welcome to my stop on the book tour for RIGHT HERE WAITING by K.E. Belledonne, a M/M historical romance released on February 10 from Interlude Press. This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Click on the banner to visit other stops on this tour.

BLURB

In 1942, Ben Williams had it all – a fulfilling job, adoring friends and the love of his life, Pete Montgomery.

But World War II looms over them. When Pete follows his conscience and joins the Army Air Force as a bomber pilot, Ben must find the strength to stay behind without the love of his life, the dedication to stay true and the courage he never knew he'd need to discover his own place in the war effort. Good friends help keep him afloat, until a chance meeting on the home front brings him an unexpected ally—one who will accompany him from the stages of New York City to the hell of the European warfront in search of his love.

Written in the style of a 1940s film, Right Here Waiting pays homage to classic wartime romances from the Golden Age of Hollywood.

GUEST POST

 

If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of Right Here Waiting, who would play your main characters? Why?

As my book is written as a love letter to Old Hollywood, I'm going to go with the classic Old Hollywood movie stars I had in the back of my mind while I was writing the novel.

For the dashing and genial bomber pilot, Pete Montgomery, I would cast Gregory Peck: lanky and rawboned, but still dapper and suave. He's very comfortable in his own skin. Instantly likeable and trustworthy, you believe in his intelligence and are willing to go along with what he has to say.

For the role of the tailor turned USO singer, Ben Williams, I'd go with Gary Cooper. Tall and muscular, he's a bit more intense, a bit more guarded. He's perhaps a bit stoic and reticent, except with people he loves.

For the bombshell USO siren, Gwen Andrews, I would cast Rita Hayworth: sexy and smart, but with a very approachable sweetness. She gets in trouble from time to time, but no one can hold it against her for long.

Ginger O'Reilly is Pete and Ben's neighbor, and one of their closest friends. She's definitely Betty Grable. Very much the girl next door—perhaps a bit hapless and clumsy at times, she's loveable and funny.

Bets McCaffrey is Ginger's roommate, and also a very close friend of Ben and Pete. I would cast Jane Russell—just a really savvy and confident woman who is comfortable with herself, and rather forward.

EXCERPT

“And now, coming to you from a secret location, pre-recorded earlier today, in cooperation with the Armed Forces Radio Network, we are proud to present one of our brave young men, United States Army Air Forces Captain Peter Montgomery, performing a special song from all our troops here to all of you folks back home.”

Ben gasped and rushed to the radio to turn up the volume. He closed his eyes and pictured Pete standing in front of the microphone in his freshly pressed uniform—khaki, the color of his eyes when he laughs—standing surefooted and strong. Crowds never made Pete nervous; singing for millions of people over the radio wouldn’t be a problem for him. When they’d sung duets during Ben’s shows at the Black Cat supper club, Pete was always so smooth and sure, never a tremor or nerves. And now, Ben could just picture him: Pete’s eyes would be closed; he’d have a slight smile; his hands would be either gently folded behind his back or holding the microphone stand.

The honey sound of Pete’s voice singing “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”—a voice Ben hadn’t heard in two years—poured from the radio, simple and unaccompanied. He sank to his knees in front of the set and turned the volume even louder. He reached out with one finger to caress the wood, stained golden-red because Pete swore it was the same color as Ben’s hair in the summer. The set reverberated under his fingers. Ben put his entire hand on the set, feeling the vibrations of Pete’s voice through the wood in almost the same way as he’d felt Pete’s voice through his chest when Pete would sing him to sleep, Pete’s naked chest under Ben’s palm, their legs tangled and bodies satiated.

Ben didn’t feel the tears streaming down his face and ignored the pain in his knee as he knelt there—he only felt Pete. Pete’s happiness and joy in the world, Pete’s kindness and generosity, Pete’s caring and love—Ben was enveloped in thoughts of Pete. For this short song, a song of longing and dreams of home, which he knew Pete had picked as a secret code of their own, he and Pete were together, just as they’d be together again, someday soon.

After the song ended, Ben heard Pete whisper, “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” Ben whispered back. “Be safe, darling. Come home soon.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links

K. E. Belledonne is a writer, editor and translator based in the French Alps. A native New-Englander, Kat spends her spare time listening to Glenn Miller records, reading history books and cheering on her beloved Red Sox.

Ms. Belledonne describes her story as “like an old friend—the book you curl up with when you’re not feeling well. You know how it goes. You know how it will end, but it just makes you feel better reading it.”

Right Here Waiting is her first novel.

Connect with the author at http://www.kebelledonne.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KEBelledonne, on Goodreads at http://www.Goodreads.com/kebelledonne and on Twitter at @kebelledonne.

http://www.amazon.com/Right-Here-Waiting-K-E-Belledonne/dp/1941530222/

http://store.interludepress.com/products/right-here-waiting-by-k-e-belledonne-printed-book

http://store.interludepress.com/products/right-here-waiting-by-k-e-belledonne-ebook-package

GIVEAWAY

K.E. Belledonne will be awarding a $25 Interlude Press GC to a randomly drawn winner and a digital copy of RIGHT HERE WAITING to 10 randomly drawn winners via rafflecopter during the tour, and a $25 Interlude Press GC to a randomly drawn host.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Fantasy Casting Call for THE BONES OF YOU by Laura Stone (Book Tour and Giveaway)

Welcome to my stop on the book tour for The Bones of You by Laura Stone, a contemporary M/M romance released this month from Interlude Press.

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Click on the banner to visit other stops on this tour. Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning.

BLURB

Oliver Andrews was wholly focused on the final stages of his education at Cambridge University when a well-meaning friend up-ended his world with a simple email attachment: a clip from a U.S. morning show.

The moment he watches the video of his one-time love Seth Larsen, now a Broadway star, Oliver must begin making a series of choices that could lead him back to love—or break his heart.

The Bones of You is full of laughter and tears, with a collection of irritated Hungarians, flirtatious Irishwomen, and actors abusing Shakespeare that color Oliver and Seth’s attempts at reconciliation.

GUEST POST

If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of The Bones of You, 

who would play your characters? Why?

Oh, I love this question! When I write, I do actually like to “cast” the characters in my head, if only to have a physical reference in mind. (I also do location scouting, pouring over Google Earth pictures to make sure I'm describing neighborhoods accurately, or at least to affix the setting more firmly to mind.)

Oliver, without a doubt, was physically based off of an incredibly handsome male model, Tao Fernandez. I stumbled across a picture of a handsome, slightly scruffy man, long limbed, perfectly furred, hair mussed, nerdy glasses and a cup of coffee and knew that I'd fallen in love. With my character! I meant that I had fallen in love with the mental picture of my character. Ha. But who knows if that—very, very handsome—gentleman acts in addition to modeling, so I could definitely see Jack Falahee, who plays Connor on the amazing show “How To Get Away With Murder,” stepping in. He's such an amazing actor, sensual and emotionally controlled. As Connor, he's in total command of himself, even though he's falling apart inside. Perfect (in that respect) for my Oliver!

Seth is a tough one, because it would need to be someone adept with singing and dancing to portray a Broadway actor believably and also have a bit of a baby face in order to convince audiences he was the Immortal Youth. If I had my druthers, it would be Grant Gustin, currently playing the role of The Flash. He's a song and dance man, adorable, and can hold his own on screen. He looks youthful and sexy. Seth's dad needs to be Joe Manganiello. And not just because Joe Manganiello is absolute perfection: six foot five, muscled, handsome, can play gruff and sweet, looks astoundingly good astride a motorcycle, and could be made to look old enough to be the father of a twenty year old. But mostly that whole “perfection” thing.

Moira was one of the first characters I mentally cast back when I first wrote this story. (Hey, it's good to think positive!) There's an amazing Irish actress who is spunky, funny, and sexy, all in one: Nora Jane Noone. She's someone you want to go out for a drink with as well as curl up by a fire and talk all night about everything. She not only looks like trouble, but like someone who will bail you out of your own mess. Everything a beloved partner in crime should be.

Dough-Face Brandt was also an early mental casting after I had the chance of seeing this particular actor on a Broadway stage in “How To Succeed.” Christopher Hanke is a theater legend—funny, sharp, talented as all get out, and plays the most delightfully smarmy jerk you ever laid eyes on. And last, but not least, Janos. Does anyone know if the handsome Colton Hanes can speak Hungarian? Because he's perfect. No one can play a cocksure, headstrong jock as well as he can. Plus, I think the idea of him flirting with Nora sounds hilarious.

Now if we can just get movie rights sold to HBO... Thanks so much for such a wonderful question!

EXCERPT

They walked into the house, laughing (“I haven't seen one tweed cap, Oliver. I feel cheated.”), and realized that Janos was home. He was watching a football game, and looked over the back of the sofa at them and held a hand up in greeting before turning back to the television.

“He's not what I expected,” Seth whispered as they moved into the kitchen with their food.

“Oh? What did you expect?” Oliver asked, pulling out two plates and silverware.

“Viktor Krum.”

Oliver grabbed the edge of the counter and laughed loudly.

“American television has done the Iron Curtain a major disservice,” Seth whispered, jerking his head in Janos's direction. “I expected a sallow complexion and a black unibrow, not, well… that. Why are the good-looking ones always the homophobes?”

Oliver bit his lip to keep from laughing again and motioned for Seth to take his plate to the small table against the far wall. “Janos,” he called out, “there's enough for you, if you want any?”

Janos turned and looked their way, giving Seth a thorough once-over. “No, thank you,” he said; his voice sounded mildly disgusted.

Seth went still briefly and bristled with visible indignation. “Don't worry. We didn't order it with a side of homo, so you should be fine. Although it seems like you had a helping of jackass earlier; no wonder you're not hungry. Must have had seconds.”

Janos twisted on the sofa, his arm draped over the back as he gaped at Seth. Oliver was momentarily shocked into silence, but Seth had never really needed assistance in the face of bigotry—only support.

“Van egy nagy heréje, akkor a buzl. Én szeretem.”

Oliver and Seth both narrowed their eyes at him, Oliver trying to figure out what the hell Janos just said.

“Translate. Now.” Seth's voice was positively icy; he vibrated with anger. “Or you're going to learn in a very painful way that I'm a hell of a lot tougher than I look.”

Janos seemed to pick up on this and answered quickly, with his hands up in surrender. “I say: for a f-, uh… homosexual? You have… what, balls? Testicles.” He grabbed his crotch and continued. “I say I very much like this about you.”

With as droll a voice as Oliver had ever heard, Seth replied, “Isn't that interesting that you're fond of my testicles so quickly; normally it takes until the third date for me to hear that.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links

A life-long fan girl, Laura Stone takes a leave of absence from the glamorous life of motherhood while the kids were in school, devoting her days to writing full-time. In the past she's worn the hat of actress, Master Gardener, and computer geek, but now sticks mostly to a Texas Ranger's ball cap as she raises her children. They're not fully raised, but then again, she would say that she isn’t either.

She began telling stories to her parents at the age of four. She was so successful in catching her parent's attention that her father actually dislocated his back, trying not to sit on her imaginary cat, Doka.

She lives in Texas as proof that it's not totally populated by hard-line right-wingers—and because that's where the good tamales are from.


Connect with Laura:

Website: http://wwwlaura-stone.com

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/stoney321

tumblr at Stoney321

Twitter: https://twitter.com/StoneyboBoney

GIVEAWAY

Prizes:

A $25 Interlude Press GC to one randomly drawn winner and multi-format copies of THE BONES OF YOU to ten randomly winners via Rafflecopter.

One randomly chosen host will win a $25 Interlude Press GC.

a Rafflecopter giveaway