Thank you so much for having me today. I am so excited to be here!

Since this is the first stop on my blog tour, I thought I’d begin by giving a little bit of background on the characters and story of the first book in the Hope Cove series, Brokenhearted.

 

Brokenhearted is the first of three books in the Hope Cove series and centers around Oliver and Mack.

Oliver is a sous-chef living in Seattle. He loves to cook, but is feeling more than a little hopeless about where he is currently working. On his way home from work one day, he finds a man sleeping on his doorstep. That man turns out to be the sheriff of Hope Cove, a very small town on the coast of Maine. He invites the sheriff up to his apartment to find out why the man flew across the country to find him. Unfortunately, Mack doesn’t have good news for him.

Oliver makes lunch while Mack breaks the news that Oliver’s sister, Maggie, had died. Only, Oliver didn’t know he’d had a sister. Raised in foster care, Oliver had been alone for his whole life. In one instant, he realizes he had—and lost—the only real family he’d ever had. Desperate to discover the link to Maggie, he flies back to Hope Cove with Mack.

Not long after he arrives, he begins to fall in love: with Hope Cove, with the sister he never knew… and with Mack, but he’s unsure of how many permanent plans he should be making.

 

I think that, for me, the best part about this story is the characters. I love Oliver and Mack so much, and Maggie feels real to me, even though we never get to actually meet her. There are a cast of secondary characters here too that have just burrowed their way into my heart: Declan and Haydn, who will each be getting their own books in December and January, as well as more minor characters like Jeremy, the kid-scientist.

The town itself almost feels like a character for me, and I hope that’s something that readers are able to take away from it too.

 

Here is the official blurb:

Oliver Parrish has been alone in the world since he was born. So when Sheriff Owen “Mack” Macklin shows up on his doorstep to deliver the news that Oliver’s sister has died, he’s beyond surprised. Still, Oliver returns with Mack to Hope Cove, Maine, hoping to get to know the sister he never knew he had. As he tries to snap these new elements into his solitary life, he’s not sure how they might fit.

His life is shaken up further as he falls in love with the irresistible town of Hope Cove, and with Mack, its equally irresistible sheriff. But when he receives devastating news about his sister’s cause of death, Oliver doesn’t know whether to stay and fight for love and a good life, or cut his losses and run.

Ebook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4358
Paperback: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4359

 

Excerpt:

“I’m really glad you decided to come, man. Seems right, somehow.”

“Down the rabbit hole, so to speak,” Oliver said, sliding his fingernail under the corner of the label and rolling it between his fingers. He had never been good in social situations, and there was no chapter in the etiquette rulebook for this. He wasn’t sure what to say.

“So you’re a chef?” Mack asked him, breaking the silence.

“Sous-chef, but yeah.”

“I envy you, man. I am hopeless in the kitchen. I could burn water. Mags tried to teach me to cook once, after she got home from culinary school, but even Maggie, the most patient woman in the world, gave up before anything edible came outta that oven. Did you go to culinary school in Seattle?”

“Not exactly. I learned to cook in Seattle, but never formally. I started working in a restaurant when I was fourteen. I was hired on under the table as a dish pig, and worked my way up the ranks. I kept my head down and ears and eyes open. I learned as much as I could from every guy that came through those kitchens.”

“Have you worked in lots of places?”

“A few. Mostly French and Italian places, but a couple of pubs and a Mexican place too.”

“Which was your favorite?”

“This little bistro that was a few blocks off the water I worked at when I was nineteen. It was the first place that let me do the cooking. It was hot as fuck, and even more hectic in that kitchen, but the adrenaline and perfect mechanics of a well-oiled kitchen? There’s nothing quite like it.”

The woman across the aisle glared at his use of colorful language, tsking under her breath. Oliver ignored her

“So why’d you leave?”

“I didn’t. Harvey, the owner, sold the place after his wife died. The new owner and I, well let’s just say we didn’t exactly see eye to eye on things. We had words, and I decided to move on.”

Mack gave him a knowing smile. “Words.Right. So how’s the place you work at now?”

Oliver smiled back. “Temporary. The kitchen staff are nice enough, but the owner’s an ass. He’s one of these guys that cares more about titles and prestige than about actual ability. I’m good enough to do the prep and work the line, but without a red-sealed certificate, I’ll never be executive chef material.”

“Well, I haven’t known you long, but if I were opening up an omelet restaurant I would hire you to be the executive chef in a heartbeat.”

Oliver laughed. “Yeah. I can make a pretty good omelet. And when I own my own restaurant, I’ll be sure to put it on the menu.”

“You’ll make a fucking fortune.”

“Here’s to hoping,” he said as he took another swig of his beer. “How about you? Have you always wanted to be a cop?”

“I think so, yeah. I mean all kids play cops and robbers, but I refused to be anything but the cop. Spent my whole life trying to protect people in one way or another, I suppose. It just seemed like the natural choice.”

“Was Maggie one of the people you had to protect?” Oliver had never met her, hadn’t even known she existed twenty-four hours earlier, but now the thought of someone hurting her, of Maggie growing up dealing with the same stuff he had, made him feel sick.

Mack chuckled. “I owed her for the Samantha Jensen episode. Crazy possessive girl followed me around for weeks trying to kiss me.” Mack shuddered. “Grabby thing cornered me in the back of the school bus and I thought I was done for, but Maggie saved me. She protected me when it counted, so I spent the rest of her life trying to return the favor. Don’t get me wrong, though, your big sister had sass. She was more than capable of holding her own against anyone.”

His eyes were bright, the corners crinkling with his laughter. The emotion was painfully obvious on Mack’s face.

“You really loved her, huh?”

“She was the best person I’ve ever known.”

“I wish I could have known her,” Oliver said, voice quiet.

“Me too.”

 

Author Bio:

Cate Ashwood wrote her very first story in a hot pink binder when she was in the second grade and found her passion for writing. Her first successful foray into romance writing came five years later when she wrote her best friend, who was experiencing a case of unrequited love, her own happily ever after.

Cate’s life has taken a number of different and adventurous roads. She now lives a stone’s throw from the ocean, just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two cats. Her life is filled with family and friends, travel, and, of course, books.

 

Cate loves to hear from readers. You can find her at:

Website: http://www.cateashwood.com

Blog: http://cateashwood.blogspot.ca/

E-mail: cateashwood@gmail.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cate.ashwood

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cateashwood

GIVEAWAY

Cate Ashwood is giving away a free ecopy of “Brokenhearted” to one lucky winner! All you need to do is leave a comment under this post, telling us why you are interested in reading this book. Don’t forget to leave an email ID through which we could get in touch with you, in case you win!!

CONTEST ENDS 13TH NOVEMBER,2013 @ 23:59 PACIFIC TIME