A warm welcome today to author Joe Cosentino joining us here at Love Bytes to talk about his new release “A Home for the Holidays”. Joe brought some guests with him, shares an exclusive excerpt and brought a Giveaway !
Welcome Joe 🙂
Joe: Hi Lovebytes Readers, this is Joe Cosentino, a la Anderson Cooper, interviewing the two leading characters in my new short holiday novella, A Home for the Holidays. Please welcome Bobby McGrath and Paolo Mascobello. Let’s start with Paolo, since the Lovebytes readers can’t see you two guys, describe Bobby for them.
Paolo: Bobby is adorable. He is twenty five years old with what you call in the states a cut swimmer’s body, ginger hair, and green eyes. More important to me, Bobby is sweet, kind, and going to be a very good lawyer someday. My cousin from America is also quite inexperienced in matters of the heart.
Joe: Your turn, Bobby. Tell us about Paolo.
Bobby: Though Paolo is my third cousin, we are very different. Paolo’s body is rippling with muscles, like a Greek god’s.
Paolo: You’re making me blush, Bobby, but don’t stop.
Bobby: Paolo is my age with olive skin, wavy chestnut hair, sapphire eyes, a straight nose, and full red lips. He wears the most amazing designers’ clothes, which makes sense since his goal is to become a fashion designer, though he works as a stock boy in his father’s company. Paolo is also best guide I could ever want to show me around the amazing island of Capri, Italy.
Joe: How did you come to visit Capri, Bobby?
Bobby: My mother arranged it with her Italian relatives who live in a beautiful villa in Capri. You’ll get to meet them as characters in the story.
Paolo: They are characters all right.
Bobby: Paolo’s family members are quite funny, and his mother is really sweet. But I was attracted to Bobby the moment I met him. We got off to a rocky start when his mother forced Paolo to be my tour guide around Capri. But once I sat behind Paolo on his motorcycle and wrapped my arms around his strong chest, our attraction to one another grew.
Joe: Where did you take Bobby, Paolo?
Paolo: We travelled to Via Krupp in the southern part of the island, and we walked hand in hand through what we Italians call “the villas of the rich and famous,” underscored by the sparkling turquoise sea below. We swam naked in a gorgeous white sand beach surrounded by artistic white stone formations.”
Bobby: And don’t forget we shared food—and something else at Mt. Solaro.
Paolo: How could I forget, cousin? Something very special happened there.
Bobby: Mt. Solaro is the highest point on the Isle of Capri.
Paolo: You learn more things than law, Bobby. You had a good teacher.
Bobby: The best. We also marveled at the stunning views of the Bay of Naples, the Amalfi Coast, and the mountains of Calabria in the distance.
Paolo: And when I took Bobby in a small boat through the Grotta Azzurra (the Blue Grotto) with its iridescent sapphire and emerald water in the cove, well, you have to read the story to find out what happened.
Joe: You two seem like the perfect fit—ying and yang.
Bobby: I am a serious person, and Paolo is rebellious and carefree—and afraid of commitment. When I invited Paolo back to America, our relationship exploded.
Joe: To find out what occurred, get to know Bobby, Paolo, and their families, and to see how their relationship resolved, read A Home for the Holidays. It is bursting with the sights, scents, sounds, tastes, and romance of the magnificent island of Capri. It’s also a lot cheaper than going there! And after you read it, let me how you liked it at: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com. Viva Italia! Thank you Bobby and Paolo for being my guests.
Bobby: Our pleasure.
Paolo: No problem. We owe everything we are to you, Joe. Everyone, read A Home for the Holidays. You’ll be glad you did. Amore.
A HOME FOR HOLIDAYS, a holiday story by Joe Cosentino, published by Dreamspinner Press
Cover Art: Paul Richmond
Words: 15,000
Release Date: 12/2/15
Blurb:
Bobby McGrath’s Christmas trip to the beautiful Italian Island of Capri to meet his eccentric, extended family offers stunning views—none more stunning than his third cousin, Paolo Mascobello, a real stocking stuffer. As the two young men embark on a relationship, Bobby, a driven law student, learns to relax and bask under the old Italian moon, and Paolo realizes there’s more to life than a frolic on the beach. For the two to find everlasting amore, Paulo must overcome his fear of commitment and learn to follow his dreams, and Bobby must get his wish for happily ever after. “Reading this little holiday treat is like taking a romantic trip to gorgeous Capri, Italy!”
Buy links:
Upon entering my room, I noticed Lucia had unpacked my things into a large mahogany wardrobe out of C. S. Lewis. Exhausted from my trip, I stripped off my clothes, leaped onto the gigantic, canopied four-poster bed, and slept until I felt a firm nudge on my shoulder. As I opened my still jet-lagged eyes, I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming or awake. Standing next to my bed was the most gorgeous man I had ever seen. About my height and age, his wavy chestnut hair framed piercing sapphire eyes, a straight nose, and full red lips. Wearing a skintight button-down red shirt, black pants, and black loafers, he gave Michelangelo’s David a run for his florin. To say his body was strong was like saying the Catholic Church had a little wealth and power. His taut, perfectly shaped muscles sprouted additional muscles of even greater magnitude. Bulging shoulders led to mountainous pectoral muscles, a narrow waist and hips, and a prominent lump between his sculpted thighs. His skin was olive-colored and so smooth it appeared as if he had no veins in his body.
“Mama said you should come down for lunch.”
Covering my rapidly growing erection with my thigh, I responded in a daze, “Who are you?”
He spoke perfect English. “I am Paolo.”
Next to Paolo, even with a swimmer’s body, I felt incredibly white and skinny. “Hello, Paolo. I’m Bobby. I think we’re related.” As I rose to get dressed, Paolo seemed to check out my body, or was that wishful thinking?
“Your grandfather and my grandfather were cousins.”
Doing the math quickly, I said, “So that makes us third cousins?”
“I guess it does.” He shook my hand. It felt warm and comforting. “We look nothing alike.”
I laughed at the understatement. “No.”
“Is this your first time in Italy?”
“Yes.”
“Do you like it here?”
“Yes.”
“Do you answer every question with ‘yes’ or ‘no’?”
“No.” I felt like a teenager at his first dance.
Paolo shrugged his massive shoulders. “You better get down to the dining room. Mama doesn’t like to hold lunch.”
Once dressed in a light blue sweater and dark blue pants, I said, “I don’t know how to get to the dining room.”
He smiled. “Follow me.”
Amazon Bestselling author Joe Cosentino wrote An Infatuation, A Shooting Star, A Home for the Holidays (Dreamspinner Press), Drama Queen the first Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press), Paper Doll the first Jana Lane mystery (Whiskey Creek Press), and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, Charles Keating, and Jason Robards. His one-act plays, Infatuation and Neighbor, were performed in New York City. He wrote The Perils of Pauline educational film (Prentice Hall Publishers). Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. His upcoming releases in 2016 are The Naked Prince and Other Tales from Fairyland (Dreamspinner Press short stories novella), Porcelain Doll the second Jana Lane mystery (Wild Rose Press), and Drama Muscle the second Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press).
Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4071647.Joe_Cosentino
Amazon: Author.to/JoeCosentino
Joe is giving away a copy of one of his backlist titles (AN INFATUATION, A SHOOTING STAR, DRAMA QUEEN, or PAPER DOLL) to one Lucky reader!
leave a comment to enter 🙂
Praise for Joe Cosentino’s In My Heart novellas, AN INFATUATION & A SHOOTING STAR, from Dreamspinner Press:
“unbelievably beautiful” “a masterpiece” Lovebytes Reviews
“as Joe Cosentino proves time and time again, with his wonderful writing and storytelling ability, love will prevail, and you will smile from ear to ear.” Kathy Mac Reviews
“a master class in how to write short fiction (or any fiction). Joe Cosentino has provided a work that will leave you thinking and wanting to savor and re-read it again and again.” GGR Reviews
“Like an onion, Joe Cosentino’s stories have layers.” “For those readers looking for something a little bit different – dare I say unique? For those readers who like to laugh. For those readers who appreciate the nuances of people and the way each character is different. For those readers who want to read a damn good story – check out this author. I’m glad I did.” “A truly fabulous read.” Boy Meets Boy Reviews
“This story just blew me away.” Cathy Brockman Romance/MM Good Book Reviews
“From the beginning I was enthralled and couldn’t wait to finish the book.” Inked Rainbow Reads
“really grabs you and tugs at your emotions” “unique and enjoyable.” Nautical Star Books
“It turned out exactly how I wanted it to.” BFD Book Blog
“This is polished prose at its best. Intelligent writing, a thought-provoking plot and characters befitting the theater genre” “one of my favorite reads this year.” Love’s Last Refuge Reviews
“Don’t miss this one friends, it is a heartfelt story magical in the telling! Thanks Joe for putting your heart on the page for us to savor!” Bike Book Reviews
“It’s unusual for me to get sucked into a book in the first chapter but it grabbed me early and I read the whole thing in one day”.
Nautical Star Books
“There were times I laughed and then there were times I cried…unforgettable.” Multitaskingmomma Reviews
“I really loved this book and having an ending that made me laugh and cry at the same time is testament to the brilliant writing.” BooksLaidBareBoys
“The author executed his storyline with a marvelous precision that would be the envy of many authors. He draws the readers into the lives of his characters, they become real and in turn, their emotions becomes yours.” “If you can only afford to buy one more book this year, buy this one.” Three Books Over the Rainbow Reviews
I have enjoyed following along the blogs. Added this one to my list.
Jealous of the visit to Capri!
It sounds like a story I’ll enjoy!
Great excerpt and who wouldn’t want to go to Capri?
Oh my! I love the sound of this one. Italy is a dream trip of mine. It’s going on my wish list.
book sounds great congrats
I enjoyed the character interview. Sounds like an enjoyable read.
Thank you for the interview and excerpt! Sounds like a great read =)
I absolutely love character interviews and this was no exception! I enjoyed it immensely! Thank you.