An Unexpected June, a contemporary romance from L. B. Joyce

We are thrilled to welcome L. B. Joyce back to the blog this week. She is here to share her brand new contemporary romance, An Unexpected June.  We are all so excited to hear more about An Unexpected June and the Twelve Months, Twelve Love Stories Series. Without further ado, we hand it over to L.B. Joyce!

Hi,

My name is L. B. Joyce and I am the author of the Contemporary Romance series, Twelve Months, Twelve Love Stories. There are currently 6 books in the series with a 7th in the works.

I am a freelance artist by day and a writer by night. For the past thirty years, give or take a few years, I’ve lived in the city of Chagrin Falls, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. This is where all of the books of the series take place.

Except for Book 1, A Million Decembers, which takes place in Chicago. Since I hadn’t planned on writing a series, it was only when I started writing Book 2, For the Love of July, I decided to move the stories to a place I find more familiar.

For those of you who haven’t had the chance to visit Chagrin Falls, it’s the perfect little town for the set of a romance movie. For those of you who’ve had the chance to visit, you know what I’m talking about. I know you’d love the small-town atmosphere. And yes, as indicated in the name, there actually is a falls – as a matter of fact, there are two – one is natural, the other man made.

I’m surprised the Hallmark channel hasn’t found us yet.

But, let’s get down to business… What better time to read a love story that takes place in June, than in the month of June itself?

This would be – An Unexpected June – Book 5 of the series.

Those of you who’ve been keeping up with the series have already had the pleasure of getting to know a little bit about both Sam and Livy in Book 4, Promise Me November. You know what an explosive start there was to their meeting. The possibility they’d ever see each other again was pretty much up in the air. But as it’s been said, and written in so many songs, love always finds a way.

About An Unexpected June:

It’s not looking good for Livy Mazzori.

She lost her job. Then she lost the man she gave six years of her life.

So, it’s time to leave New York and shake the independent streak she’s been hanging onto. Along with the heavy glasses and shaggy hairstyle she’s hidden behind since high school. 

Yes, she’s almost thirty and she’s running away… but back home this time.

Sam Bridges is a big part of the draw. She met him last November when he was in New York. Since then, he’s been a persistent reminder in her thoughts of how things could be different. 

Maybe a good different?

Sam is bewildered by his feelings for Livy, that he can’t stop thinking about her. It doesn’t make sense, since she led him to believe she isn’t interested… not by a long shot. He hopes to figure it

all out when she comes home for her sister Carrie’s wedding.  

One little problem… he’s pretty sure she’s back with her boyfriend Zack, or whatever his name is. 

So, it’s not looking like a promising beginning for either of them.

Links to An Unexpected June:

***

Now let’s get to an actual excerpt from the book. This takes place when Livy still was having a hard time accepting that Sam had been the one to come to her rescue when her car broke down. When he teased her about the logo on her tee shirt she, of course, over-reacted.

Excerpt from An Unexpected June:

“Ah ha… here we go.” He handed her the sweater. “I remembered seeing this when I was loading all of your stuff. You might as well hold on to it, in case it’s cold in the restaurant. You know how they always blast the air-conditioning as soon as the weather starts to get warm.”

A grin hitched the corner of his mouth. “Unless you’d rather not. Hmm… maybe you’d rather show off that shirt of yours?”

With an angry intake of breath, she grabbed the sweater from him and yanked it on over her head, pulling it down with a jerk. The glare she was sending him was almost enough to wipe the smile off his face… but not quite.

“Again, do I need to remind you it was the best I could find at the time? And for your information, I think this is the first time I’ve ever even worn the shirt. I got it at a convention a couple of years ago. A romance writer’s convention. Believe me, this is not something I’d normally wear.”

He raised his eyebrows at this. “A romance writer’s convention? Interesting… and tell me, did you learn anything worth sharing at this convention?”

She gave an exasperated sigh. “I assure you, attending the convention was not my idea. I was forced to go since I was editing a romance series by one of our most popular authors at the time. I certainly didn’t need any additional information when it comes to romance.”

She shot him a warning look. “Nor do I need any now.” She frowned. “Anyway… everyone knows all of those books are just a glorified version of what really goes on. I can certainly vouch for that.”

He merely nodded. And darn if he couldn’t stop grinning. With his sweater way too big for her, practically down to her knees and the sleeves completely falling over her hands, it was a little hard to take her seriously.

She, of course, bristled at this. “I don’t know what you find so amusing. Because I’m completely serious.”

He leaned back against the SUV, his arms crossed over his chest. He studied her for a few moments before he gave a slow nod. “Hmm… I see. So, you don’t think it’s possible for two people to meet, let’s say, under unusual circumstances. And maybe, at first, they despise each other. But then for some reason, something keeps drawing them back to each other. I don’t know, maybe it’s the hint of passion? Desire? Or that instant feeling of being connected? Whatever it is, there’s something that feels so right when they’re together. And so wrong when they’re apart.”

He cleared his throat, his eyes intently searching her face. “You don’t believe this could happen?”

Lips parted in confusion, Livy stared back at him.

Was he talking about them? Because it sure sounded like he was. But surely, she was imagining this. 

She wanted to say something, but she couldn’t, knowing if she tried, it would come out in some kind of a sputtering mess.

Faced with her bewildered expression, Sam was gripped by the sudden urge to pull her into his arms, throw all caution to the wind and kiss her. If only to find out if she’d react in the same way as when he kissed her on that November night.

A kiss that had not only been a complete surprise to her, but even more so for him.

***

And, there you have it! If you like the combination of a sprinkling of humor, some serious chemistry and a whole lot of love – all with a happy ending – this book – and this series – is for you.

One last thing… I don’t know about you, but when I read a book or watch a movie, I want the satisfaction of knowing everything turns out well in the end. And with the huge following the romance genre draws, it appears I’m not the only one who feels this way. If you stop to think of all the movies made over the years, you’ll be hard pressed not to find a romance of some kind worked into the story line. And with all of the many sub-genres in the romance category, you’ll always find a book to fit your own personal taste.

How great is it to have so many choices!

Happy reading!

Linda

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One comment

  1. Maddy! Thanks for featuring An Unexpected June on your blog. I hope everyone enjoys the little I’ve shared about the stars of this book, Livy and Sam, as much as I enjoyed writing about them. Look for Book 7, coming out in the near future! Hmm… I wonder what month it will be?

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