The Au Pair and the Beast by Aurora Russell - Book Tour - Guest Post - Giveaway - Enter Daily!

Bonjour, lovelies!  It gives me great pleasure today to host Aurora Russell and her new book, “The Au Pair and the Beast”!  For other stops on her Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.

Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!!  Also, come back daily to interact with Aurora and to increase your chances of winning!

Thanks for stopping by!  Wishing you lots of luck in this fabulous giveaway!

The Au Pair and the Beast

by Aurora Russell

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE: Contemporary Romance

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB:

Veronica’s new job comes with a darling little boy, a Gothic castle and…a beast?

When recently laid-off Francophile Veronica Carson is recommended for an au pair job by the elegant leader of her French conversation group, she isn’t sure what to expect—but a Gothic castle deep in the wilds of Maine is certainly not it. Still, she’s drawn in by her joyful little charge, Jean-Philippe, and even more drawn to his brooding father.

Ruthlessly successful businessman Alain Reynard has loved before and has no wish to repeat the painful experience. The tragedy of his recent past is still fresh in his mind, and he wants nothing to do with his son’s lovely new au pair. Despite his best efforts, though, he can’t seem to get her off his mind.

A passionate romance begins to blossom but is put to the test when painful reminders of Alain’s past return. As ugly rumors swirl, the truths of the past and the present collide. Veronica must decide if Alain really is a beast and, if so, whether she can love him enough to break through the dark memories and secrets that tether him to what once was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT ONE:

Monsieur Reynard was angry—furious, even—so that his eyes were thunderous and every line of his tall frame was taut with barely leashed rage.

“Who are you working for? Who sent you?” he demanded.

“What? I’m working for you—or I thought I was. Madame Montreaux recommended me.” Veronica was genuinely confused and a little freaked out, but she tried to be patient. Maybe something had happened to damage his memory in his recent accident? Still, the look he was giving her sent a chill down her spine. In spite of his injuries, this was a powerful, dangerous man—especially now, when the usually-charming façade was down.

“Yeah, sure. What newspaper? Website? Who are you sending pictures to?” He barked out the questions, stepping closer—so close that Veronica could smell his spicy cologne and feel the heat radiating off of him. And how the heck had he gotten down here from the house so fast?

Her mouth fell open. “I’m not working for anyone. I was just sending pictures to my friend. You can read them,” she offered, then added with a snap, “although I don’t appreciate your taking my phone from me.”

He glanced at the partially typed message. “Proof of life?” He raised his eyebrow.

“It’s…ah, an inside joke,” she explained.

He scrolled up and she swore he nearly smiled in spite of himself. “Locked in a dungeon, eh?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GUEST POST:

Carpe Diem: How Two Little Words Led Me to Adventure, Happiness, and Becoming a Published Author

First of all, thank you very much to Ally for having me as a guest on Fabulous and Brunette! Very excited to be here!

The most inspirational phrase that I have ever seen or heard has to be “carpe diem” (seize the day)…and I would say without exaggeration that it has guided all of the best decisions in my life, including the decision to become an author. For me, I guess this is the philosophy of saying yes…yes to risks, yes to opportunity, and living life to the fullest. This isn’t to say that it has always worked out for me – far from it! I have known disappointment and heartbreak with the best of them, but I have always felt good about having tried my hardest. I have put myself out there and sometimes it has really worked, and that’s a beautiful thing!

Right after I graduated from high school, I had the chance to spend a year in France as an exchange student. It was scary…no, terrifying – I had grown up in a small town in the Midwest, and I was painfully shy to boot – but it was also a chance to exponentially expand my knowledge of a different culture, of the world, and of myself. Carpe diem. I went for it, and it shaped me into someone much more confident in herself and her abilities than I had ever been before, and it also gave me a lifelong love of French language and culture that you will see woven into several of my novels, including my latest, The Au Pair and the Beast. Alain, the dark and mysterious hero, and Jean-Philippe, his young son, are both French, and the household keeps French customs and traditions.

Later, after having my heart not only broken, but shredded into tiny little pieces and then trampled and lit on fire, I was almost certain that I would never love again. I never wanted to put myself out there again to risk the same sort of pain, the same rejection. But deep inside of me, the little voice whispering “carpe diem” just wouldn’t give up, and finally, I listened to it again and opened myself up to new romance. I won’t say that I didn’t meet a few frogs, toads, poison dart frogs, and probably a salamander or newt along the way…but eventually, I met my now-husband. I cannot imagine life without having taking that risk.

The philosophy of “carpe diem” helped me become a published author, too. I have always loved writing, since I was very young, but I never thought that I would be a real author. Funnily enough, I was at a wedding on Cape Cod about ten years ago when I happened to meet another guest who was hosting an online novel contest. She gave me the details, and carpe diem, I went for it. I finished my first complete romance novel in about six weeks, and I was a semi-finalist in the contest. Although I didn’t win, it was a wonderful experience, and prompted me to submit to agents and publishers. There’s a long story about overcoming a lot of rejection there, too, and maybe a hint of the other philosophy that might be my second-favorite, “illegitimi non carborundi” (loosely translated as “don’t let the bastards grind you down” but no less true for all that it might not be grammatically correct Latin). At the end of day, I am truly living my dreams, and writing books that are just a ton of fun to write!

If I have the chance to go on a daytrip or vacation, business trip or conference, carpe diem, I will do it! I have volunteered for special projects, volunteered at events and museums, studied four different languages, taken cooking and art classes, and met amazing people and learned countless interesting facts along the way. I certainly think this philosophy has enriched my writing, especially with the wide range of settings in The Au Pair and Beast and in my Anywhere and Always series, but more importantly, it enriches my life and I hope that it enriches the lives of my husband and children, too. Whenever you have the chance, I say, “seize the day!”

********

Check out these beautiful pictures from Aurora’s recent adventures in Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR BIO:

Aurora is originally from the frozen tundra of the upper-Midwest (ok, not frozen all the time!) but now loves living in New England with her real-life hero/husband, two wonderfully silly sons, and one of the most extraordinary cats she has ever had the pleasure to meet. But she still goes back to the Midwest to visit, just never in January. She doesn't remember a time that she didn't love to read, and has been writing stories since she learned how to hold a pencil. She has always liked the romantic scenes best in every book, story, and movie, so one day she decided to try her hand at writing her own romantic fiction, which changed her life in all the best ways.

Find out more about Aurora, upcoming releases, and news at the links below!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CONNECT WITH AURORA:

Website:

https://aurorarussellauthor.wordpress.com

Email:

aurorarussellauthor@gmail.com

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/arussellromance

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/arussellromance

BookBub Author Page:

https://www.bookbub.com/authors/aurora-russell

BookBub Book Page:

https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-au-pair-and-the-beast-by-aurora-russell

Goodreads Author Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14316582.Aurora_Russell

Goodreads Book Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56522356-the-au-pair-and-the-beast

Amazon Author Page:

https://amzn.to/37PD93Z

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BUY LINKS:

Amazon Kindle eBook:

https://amzn.to/3aW90BT

Amazon Paperback:

https://amzn.to/2Nz865K

Apple Books eBook:

https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-au-pair-and-the-beast/id1545729100

Barnes and Noble NOOK eBook:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-au-pair-and-the-beast-aurora-russell/1138483939?ean=9781839434754

Barnes and Noble Paperback:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-au-pair-and-the-beast-aurora-russell/1138483939?ean=9781839439490

The Book Depository Paperback:

https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Au-Pair-and-the-Beast-Aurora-Russell/9781839439490

BAM! Books-A-Million Paperback:

https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Au-Pair-Beast/Aurora-Russell/9781839439490

First for Romance eBook:

https://www.firstforromance.com/book/the-au-pair-and-the-beast

First for Romance Paperback:

https://www.firstforromance.com/book/the-au-pair-and-the-beast-print

Google Play eBook:

https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Aurora_Russell_The_Au_Pair_and_the_Beast?id=IJEREAAAQBAJ

Kobo eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-au-pair-and-the-beast

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVEAWAY INFO:

Aurora will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this blog.  This does not cost you anything, it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here**

This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions.  Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.