Author: T.M.Franklin
Publisher: The Writers Coffee Shop Publishing House
Publication Date: June 12th 2014
Blurb Description: Seventeen-year-old Oliver Wendell Holmes (Yes, his parents are just that peculiar, but his brother's name is Sherlock, so it could have been worse) knows that he's different. He's quirky, awkward, and he's okay with that. Oliver also likes making lists-meticulous procedures for achieving his goals, step-by-step. Whether it's "How to Get an A in Chemistry" or "How to Get Accepted to MIT," he has a process, and it's worked for him so far. He doesn't even care that the popular kids mock him. Oliver's got his eye on the prize.
So when he decides it's time to declare his feelings for Ainsley Bishop, the girl of his dreams, it's only natural for him to make a list-a point-by-point strategy to win her heart. He knows it will take a grand gesture for her to see all he has to offer, and her approaching birthday provides the ideal opportunity for Oliver to put his plan into action.
Finding the perfect gift is a challenge Oliver meets with his usual dogged determination. He'll need to watch her carefully for clues to pinpoint exactly what he should give her. And along the way, he might just learn that what Ainsley really needs is not quite what he expected.
Ainsley is available now!
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T.M. Franklin started out her career writing non-fiction in a television newsroom. Graduating with a B.A. in Communications specializing in broadcast journalism and production, she worked for nine years as a major market television news producer, and garnered two regional Emmy Awards, before she resigned to be a full-time mom and part-time freelance writer. Her first published novel, MORE, was born during National Novel Writing month, a challenge to write a novel in thirty days. MORE was well-received, being selected as a finalist in the 2013 Kindle Book Review Best Indie Book Awards, as well as winning the Suspense/Thriller division of the Blogger Book Fair Reader’s Choice Awards.
In addition to MORE and its sequel, The Guardians, Franklin penned the Amazon best-selling short stories A Piece of Cake andWindow, which also won a Blogger Book Fair Reader’s Choice Award for Short Story/Fantasy. Her new YA romance, How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, is Franklin’s first love story without a paranormal or fantasy element, although she believes love is the best kind of magic.
TWELVE, the final installment in the MORE Trilogy will be released in the fall of 2014.
Connect with T.M. Franklin
GUEST POST: Fitting In and Standing Out
By T.M. Franklin
We’ve all heard it – being a teenager before is harder than is used to be. There’s increased pressure to perform, more competition to get in college, and no guarantee of a job, even if you do get a degree. On top of that is all the social pressure. And as the mother of a teen, it does seem to me like they have it tougher than back in my day (I say, at the risk of sounding like a grumpy old man.)
MIT. The Land of Opportunity.
MIT. The Land of Opportunity.
Kids today live in a world that’s faster and smaller than ever. News comes at them in an instant, communication is lightning fast and distilled to 140-character blurbs. Social media makes it easier than ever before to meet people, but it also makes it easier than ever before for someone to criticize or mock them. Anonymity makes cyber-bullying a very real threat – and one that can be just as devastating as the getting-pushed-into-a-locker kind.
Every teen wants to have friends, and the characters in How to Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You are no different. They deal with the pressure to fit in, however, in very different ways.
Oliver is very aware he’s not part of the popular crowd. He’s smart and funny, but a loner with only one true friend, Viney Palmari. The popular kids make fun of Oliver, but he really tries not to let it bother him.
I knew what people said about me. Geek. Freak. Nerd. The words stung, sure. It wasn’t like I didn’t have feelings, after all. But I also knew what so many of my classmates couldn’t seem to wrap their minds around. High school was four years of torture before life truly began. I understood that college was where I would one day shine, where I would find myself, and high school was simply a stepping stool to get me where I wanted to go.
So I ignored the insults as much as I could and kept mostly to myself, with the exception of Viney, of course. I kept my head down and my eyes on the prize.
Except . . .
Except when it came to Ainsley Bishop.
- How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, Prologue
I really wanted to write a story about a boy who was quirky and different, but was okay with that. I wanted Oliver to be a guy who doesn’t have to change or go through some kind of makeover to get the girl. I wanted him to realize that he just has to be true to himself, and people will come to realize what a great guy he is… including Ainsley.
As for Ainsley, she deals with things a little differently. Where Oliver focuses on his own goals and dreams, Ainsley puts other people’s needs – including her boyfriend, Ian’s - before her own.
Her eyes flashed, and she sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. “It’s not that big a deal, Oliver.”
I nodded. “Sorry.”
I glanced up at her, and her eyes softened. “No, I’m sorry. I guess I don’t think it’s that important. Not really.”
“It is,” I said quickly. “If it’s important to you, it’s important.”
Ainsley sighed and leaned forward on the table. “I just don’t want to make a big deal about it. If it means so much to Ian, why shouldn’t I give it to him?”
I was in untested waters, felt like the ground was moving beneath my feet. Ainsley seemed to actually be asking my opinion about something—something that meant something to her—and I didn’t want to let her down.
“I think . . .” I hesitated, but Ainsley was watching me with wide, expectant eyes. “I think it’s nice to do things for people you care about,” I said. “But I also think there are times you need to do things for yourself—to make yourself happy. And the play is something that’s important to you, so maybe . . . maybe Ian should be the one to give in to you? He’s not the one who’s going to be on that stage, you know? I mean, it’s your name in the program, right? It’s your responsibility. Shouldn’t it be the way you want it to be?”
Ainsley chewed on her lip, her gaze falling to the tabletop. “I don’t want to disappoint him,” she said quietly. And that one sentence, those seven words, spoke volumes about her. About why she shrugged off college. About why she seemed to think her own goals didn’t matter, or at least weren’t as important as other people’s.
- How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, Chapter 5
Of course, Oliver’s going to do what he can to help Ainsley realize that her own dreams are important too. And I have a feeling he’s up to the task.
**My Review**
This is the CUTEST book I’ve
read ever since I flipped open my first Meg Cabot book (think Teen Idol), all
those years ago!
Well, I’m not going to go
into the actual story line of this book- there is just no fun. (What would be the point of me telling you this happens and then that?) I am, however,
going to talk about the brilliant characters!
This book has so many aspects
that had me laughing out loud or just going ‘aww’ in my head! The funniest
character, by far, was Oliver’s brother- Sherlock! He has deducing habits, a
pet goldfish named Watson (which is kind of ironic- you know because Goldfishes have a fifteen second memory span) and uses words he doesn’t
fully understand! He was by far my favourite!
Ainsley Bishop. The first
time you meet her, you think she is kind of, well, a ditz or a doormat to be
more specific- but thank god, she realises it and tries to change! She is an
abnormally nice person, smart-ish but you just can’t help liking her. Somewhere
in the middle, she starts getting nerves around Oliver and it is just SO cute!
Oliver is a stand-up guy-
nerdy, awkward, nervous, and so ridiculously sweet you can’t help empathising with
him! His parents, with their own love story, his best friend and the whole
perfect gift debacle will have you smiling and wishing you were right there,
living it! Another aspect of this book that I loved was the fact that there were barely any 'mean' characters- that seem to be there in all high school romance books!
My Verdict:
A sweet, simple, laugh out
loud and all around perfect YA read!
Thank you so much for hosting me - and for the amazing review. I'm so thrilled you enjoyed Ainsley! :-)
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