Blog Tour: Excerpt, Author Interview, Trailers, Review, and Giveaway for Falling Away by Penelope Douglas

I love how Penelope Douglas always manages to surprise me with every book of hers I read. Each book in this series has been a page turner and Jax's book is smoking hot as well! I think you're going to love everything I have to share with you!

Title: Falling Away (Fall Away, #3)

Author: Penelope Douglas

Genre: NA |  Contemporary Romance

Release Date: January 6, 2015

Synopsis

Jaxon is the guy she’s supposed to avoid.  K.C. is the girl he won’t let get away....

K. C. Carter has always followed the rules—until this year, when a mistake leaves her the talk of her college campus and her carefully arranged life comes crashing to a halt. Now she’s stuck in her small hometown for the summer to complete her court-ordered community service, and to make matters worse, trouble is living right next door.

Jaxon Trent is the worst kind of temptation and exactly what K.C. was supposed to stay away from in high school. But he never forgot her. She was the one girl who wouldn’t give him the time of day and the only one to ever say no. Fate has brought K.C. back into his life—except what he thought was a great twist of luck turns out to be too close for comfort. As the bond between them grows, he discovers that convincing K.C. to get out from her mother’s shadow is hard, but revealing the darkest parts of his soul is nearly impossible.…

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Excerpt

“You’ve got some ego,” I bit out. “I mean, yeah, all of a sudden you have money. Where you get it from is too scary to even think about,” I spouted off when I really should just shut up. “And you seem to have the town’s police in the palm of your hand. You’re clearly running the Loop now. Congratulations, Jax.” I smiled a big-ass, fake grin. “You’re the most powerful man in Shelburne Falls, Illinois!”

I planted my hands on my hips, pretty damn pleased at how good I’d gotten at putting men in their place. 

But then my smile dropped and my eyes rounded. Jax’s eyes—full of challenge and amusement—narrowed on me, and he tossed his towel down, heading right for me. 

Shit. I knew I should’ve listened to my mother. I talked too much. 

He nodded, a grin playing at the corner of his mouth. “There she is.”

I inched back to the wall as he advanced into my space. “What are you talking about?”

“The snarky girl I met at Madoc’s house years ago.”

Yeah, the one that was slightly drunk and hella confident? My head bobbed off the wall, signaling I was at a damn dead end, and a trickle of sweat skidded down my neck. I saw Jax’s eyes flash to it, and all of a sudden I was too dumb to even remember my own name. 

God, he was big. My chest vibrated with the heat of him only an inch away. He hovered over me, engulfing and consuming the space around me, making me feel as if I stood in the shadow of a tree. 

Staring straight ahead, I made a conscious effort to keep my face straight. But it was almost impossible, and it was pointless. Out of all the reasons I could come up with for hating Jax—he always challenged and pushed me, and he always did whatever the hell he wanted—I could never claim that he wasn’t smart. He knew I was affected. He knew my body liked him close. 

“I love it when you get mouthy,” he whispered down on me. “It makes me want to shut you up.”

Son of a bitch. I clenched my thighs together, feeling the moisture there. 

I needed to get out of here. “I have to go.” I pushed off the wall but hit his chest, closing me in again. 

“How do you like your community service?” he said low, trapping me by planting his hands on the wall on each side of my head. 

Huh? 

His smell was raw heat. Summer. Sticky cotton candy on a Ferris wheel and cool water on hot skin. 

“What?” He’d asked me a question. What the fuck did he just ask? 

He leaned on his hands, dipping his head close to mine. “Community service, K.C. How do you like it?”

I could hear the laughter in his voice. 

“I don’t,” I mumbled. “Teaching a bunch of kids who slacked off during the school year, because they didn’t get the attitude adjustment they needed, isn’t my idea of a good time.”

His arms lowered a bit, and I could hear him inhaling through his nose, as if he was smelling me. 

“Your idea of a good time got you here in the first place.” His voice was calm but firm. “And those kids don’t need an attitude adjustment. You do.”

I smirked. “Well, I’m getting one. Thanks to the great state of Arizona.” Then I pinned him with hard eyes. “You don’t know me, Jax.” And I pushed him away and turned for the door. 

But he hooked my arm, pulling me back. 

“You’re right,” he said quickly. “I don’t know you. So why don’t you enlighten me? What does 

K.C. stand for? What did you do at college that got you arrested?”

When I just stood there, not answering his stupid questions, he backed me into the wall again. “Let’s try something easier, shall we? Your favorite color. What is it?”

“Are you serious?”

“Are you stalling?”

I scowled. “Pink. It’s pink.”

“Is it?” he pressed. “How about music? Who’s your favorite band? What about books? Your favorite genre? When was the last time you ate chocolate or stayed in your pajamas past eleven in the morning?”

I didn’t know if the walls were closing in or if it was just Jax crowding me. “What are you getting at, you little shit?” I accused. 

And he got in my face, smiling at the challenge of my condescending name-calling. “How about a shower, K.C.?” The sound of his deep, husky voice swirled in my stomach and shot downward. 

I gulped, licking my sandpaper lips. “Huh?”

He stared at my mouth, looking hungry. “The little shit—who’s not so little anymore—needs a shower,” he whispered, still staring at my mouth. “Take a shower with me. Right now.”

Trailers

Falling Away:

Fall Away Series:

Author Interview

I was lucky enough to ask Penelope some questions.

1. Have you ever changed the stories you write based on reader feedback? 

Oh, good question. No. I’ve used feedback to do what I do and try to do it better but not to change the story. I always write what I want to, because if I go against what I want, I’ll love the story less. And if I love it less, you’ll be able to tell in the writing and plotting. I won’t be as into it. But I do use feedback to make sure—or try to make sure—that the characters and their actions are more understandable. Jared—in retrospect—was pretty one-dimensional in BULLY. So I attempted to correct that in Until You. For example. 

2. Who is one author, either indie or published you totally fangirl over? If there are others, please mention them. 

Abbi Glines, because she writes awesome young love, and she works really hard. I’m in awe of that. And Tijan, because her ideas are amazing. She really thinks outside the box with her stories.

(I totally fangirl over these fabulous women too!)

3. What's your favorite hair color? 

Haha. Yes, I change a lot, don’t I? I like blonde. It suits my pale face best.

4. Can you tell us one philosophy you live by? 

Be good to each other and make good choices. Other than that, there are no rules.

5. Besides Aflame and Corrupt, do you have any other books in the works? 

Misconduct

6. What was the last book you read? 

Ex-Factor by Elisa Dane

7. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? 

The French Quarter, New Orleans

8. What's one childhood favorite you've shared with your child? Book? 

Anne of Green Gables. Movie? Space Camp

9. If you weren't writing what would you be doing? 

I’d probably still be teaching. But I’m glad to be writing.

10. Who are you currently listening to?  

My Aflame playlist. It’s on my website!

Review

★★★★★ stars

Jaxon Trent is one guy I have been very eager to get to know better.  He's always been a brilliant bad ass, but he's also had the promise of being a guy who loved strongly and deeply.  He wasn't the only one I really wanted to get to know.  K.C. has been quite a mystery as well and as many of us know by now, that means there is a lot more to it than we can see.  

I thought I knew Jax quite a bit from previous books but I found out I didn't know as much as I thought I did.  After all I learned about him, I'm surprised he isn't more damaged than he is. He really kept his insecurities well hidden.  His father has a lot to answer for, as does his mother.  I think I was most astonished by how little I knew about K.C., rather Juliet.  Calling her K.C. no longer seems right.  My heart broke for the both of them.  Juliet just wanted to be loved and wanted for who she was, while Jax too just wanted to loved and be good enough.  Like I said, the adults in their lives have much to answer for. Both Juliet and Jax needed to get past their assumptions of one another.

Honestly, Juliet stole the spotlight from Jax in this book.  She really came into her own.  I was so happy to see her breaking from the bonds that had held her back for so long.  And Jax totally lived up his reputation as a lover.  He was so hot!  Put him and Juliet together and it was like fireworks!  The heat and chemistry were really intense. They had such a contentious relationship initially I didn't think they were going to be able to ever find a way to be together without hurting each other. And once they got past that I didn't think anything could keep them apart.

I read this book in one sitting, reading as fast as I could.  This story is passionate and emotional.  I loved seeing the Fall Away gang together again and happy for the most part.  I was very happy at how the story ended.  I may have cheered once my heart rate came back to normal.  I thought this book was going to be the end of all the strife, pain, and disappointment everyone had faced, but it seems not quite yet. Things between Jared and Tate became a little tense during this book and I'm happy to know they'll get a chance to work it out in Aflame.  Falling Away fully delivered on all I'd hoped for.  I couldn't have asked for a better story.  And for all you K.C./Juliet haters, I bet you wish you'd never talked trash about her!  :D

*Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for them in any manner.*

Other Books in the Fall Away Series

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About the Author

Penelope Douglas is a writer in Las Vegas. Born in Dubuque, Iowa, she is the oldest of five children. Penelope attended the University of Northern Iowa, earning a Bachelor's degree in Public Administration, because her father told her to "just get the degree!" She then earned a Masters of Science in Education at Loyola University in New Orleans, because she hated Public Administration. One night, she got tipsy and told the bouncer at the bar where she worked that his son was hot, and three years later they were married. To the son, not the bouncer. They have spawn, but just one. A daughter named Aydan. Penelope loves sweets, The Originals, and she shops at Target almost daily.

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