Love bytes says hello and welcome to author Beth Bolden who is joining us today to talk about her release “The Rainbow Clause”.
Beth talks about her music choices during the writing of this book, shares an excerpt and she also brought along a wonderful giveaway to participate in!
Welcome Beth 🙂

Title: The Rainbow Clause
Author: Beth Bolden
Release Date: April 3rd 2017
Genre: MM Contemporary Romance, Sports

BLURB

Heisman winner. Member of the National Championship team. NFL Rookie of the Year. Quarterback Colin O’Connor knows he’s become the ultimate romance novel cliché: all the success he’s ever dreamed of but nobody to share it with. Too bad it’s not as simple as asking out the next girl who intrigues him – because the next girl to intrigue him probably won’t be a girl at all.

Unexpectedly, the solution comes in one neat package: Nick Wheeler, lead journalist for a leading sports and pop culture blog. Hired by Colin’s team, Nick comes to Miami to shine a spotlight on the NFL’s most private quarterback.

The heat in Miami rises when Nick discovers that Colin is nothing like the hollow personality he pretends to be in interviews and he’s even hotter in person than on his Sports Illustrated cover. Nick knows this is the story of his career, and after spending his teenage years as a bullied, closeted teen, it hits very close to home. What he needs is to help Colin share his story while keeping their growing relationship from boiling over in the press, but what he wants is to tell the world.

Purchase: Amazon US | Amazon UK

The Rainbow Clause Playlist

 

When I’m writing, listening to music is a must. I can’t write without it. I’ve got pretty eclectic musical taste, everything from classical to pop to oldies, I’ll listen to it all. I tend to make tons of writing playlists, usually multiple per book, because for me, music is all about the mood and the rhythm of what I’m working on. Here are some selections from the playlists I put together for The Rainbow Clause.

 

“Come out of the Shade” The Perishers – sometimes when I’m working on a book, a song comes out of nowhere and grabs me by the throat and demands a spot on the frequent rotation. Sometimes it’s the music itself, sometimes it’s the lyrics, sometimes it’s the general theme of the song. Sometimes I can’t even tell you why it’s important, it just is. And that’s this song. Also, if we’re talking deep metaphor, in The Rainbow Clause, Colin O’Connor is taking his first steps out of the shade and into the sun.

 

“Gravel to Tempo” Hayley Kiyoko – Nick Wheeler has been a lone wolf for a long time when The Rainbow Clause begins. “Gravel to Tempo” is definitely his song. He’s been on his own, and he likes it that way, even as he struggles with it. The irony is that even though he continually insists on those high walls, he’s got lots of people who want to be there for him. His best friend Gabriel, and his co-worker Jemma, and of course, Colin.

 

“FOOLS” Troye Sivan – Troye makes such beautiful music, it was hard not to put his whole album onto this list. If you haven’t listened to Blue Neighborhood – run, don’t walk. Colin and Nick have a similar perspective through much of The Rainbow Clause. Both of them believe that they’re insanely lucky that the other person is giving them the time of day. Even though their feelings are mutual, they spend a lot of time going, “holy shit, I can’t believe this person likes me.” I think it’s one of the underrated parts of a love story, and I think this song really perfectly illustrates that.

 

“True Colors” Zedd & Kesha – first off, Kesha is a bad ass, so we’ll get that out of the way. Second, so much of this book is about revealing your true colors. Not just Colin coming out of the closet, though that is one of the main plotlines of the book, but Nick too, has a lot he needs to reveal, and not just to Colin, but to himself. Both Colin and Nick have been through rough times, and I love how this song celebrates making it through to other side. You might not be unscathed, but you made it, and that’s what’s most important.

 

“Free” Broods – I think the title of this one is sort of self-explanatory. Also, really great song.

 

“Ready for You” Years & Years – Like it was hard for me to pick a Troye Sivan song, picking the best Years & Years song was really hard for me, but this one seemed to resonate most strongly with me. I see Colin and Nick, both individually gone through the wringer over the last few years, have finally reached the point where they fit together. They might not have before, but they do now, and because fate is kind, they’ve met each other at just that perfect moment.

 

“Secret Love Song, Pt II” Little Mix – Unashamedly, this song makes me cry nearly every time I hear it. It’s such a heartbreaking, yet beautiful sentiment, and I can’t help but think of so many couples out there who have to suffer through this. I want to shout out to everyone who’s ever felt like they couldn’t be honest about the person they love when they wanted to be.

 

“I Really Like You” Carly Rae Jepsen – I feel like I should be getting royalties for this blog post, but Carly Rae’s last album, Emotion, was a masterpiece and if you haven’t listened to it yet, what are you waiting for? This song perfectly encapsulates that exhilarating moment when you really start falling for someone, and it’s one of my all-time favorite things to write. I’m a fluffy bunny at heart, apparently.

 

“Home” One Direction – I know, I know. Just trust me on this one, okay? This isn’t an album track, this is a single song that got released that absolutely bears a listen. This is not the One Direction of the 2012 Olympics, kids. What I love most about it is that it illustrates a journey, from being terrified of who you might be, to tolerating it, and then finally embracing it. Really special song about acceptance that I wish more people knew about.

Nick went through the cupboards one at a time, finding an obscene amount of protein shakes and powder, and a lot of basic staples that proved Colin probably did know how to cook. That hadn’t been an act, though he was beginning to wonder how much of the Colin O’Connor he’d seen wasn’t. Probably almost none of it, and that was terrifying.

He had just poured milk into his Cheerios when Colin jogged up to the patio and into the house, wearing a pair of loose-fitting athletic shorts, a thin layer of sweat, and nothing else.

Nick choked on air. So much for his peaceful breakfast.

“Good morning,” Colin said with that annoying smile. All innocence with just the tiniest edge of something more. Like he knew exactly what he was doing and how effective it was.

“Morning,” Nick mumbled into his cereal.

“I was going to wake you up for my jog, well our jog, but you seemed to be sleeping pretty soundly.”

Nick tried not to think about what that sort of picture that made. Or that Colin had looked into his room and had seen him sleeping.

“Do you jog every morning?” Nick asked, even though he already knew the answer. Anything to abort that line of thinking.

“Usually about ten miles or so. Went fourteen this morning, felt really good.” Colin reached for his forgotten t-shirt hanging over a barstool and shrugged it on. It stuck to his skin in sweaty patches, which shouldn’t have been attractive but apparently, Colin O’Connor defied logic.

“Bullshit,” Nick mumbled.

“Tomorrow you want to join?” Colin asked like he hadn’t heard as he grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge.

“Not for a fourteen mile jog,” Nick said.

“Not even for ten?” Colin wheedled.

“Not even for ten. You could probably convince me to do about half that.”

GIVEAWAY: WIN $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Beth Bolden lives in Portland, Oregon with her supportive husband and their beloved cat. She wholly believes in Keeping Portland Weird, but wishes she didn’t have to make the yearly pilgrimage up to Seattle to watch her Boston Red Sox play baseball. She’s a fan of fandoms, and spends too much of her free time on tumblr.

Beth has been writing practically since she learned the alphabet. Unfortunately, her first foray into novel writing, titled Big Bear with Sparkly Earrings, wasn’t a bestseller, but hope springs eternal. She’s published two novels, The Lucky Charm and Getting Lucky, and a short story, Eye of the Storm. Her next novel, Summer Attractions, will be released in August 2016.

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