Combining my passions

Cooking delicious meals is one of my passions. I like nothing better than entertaining at home – planning beautiful dishes to serve to my family and friends, then cooking up a feast. I also enjoy collecting cookbooks and watching cooking shows. The most recent show I watched was Masterchef (the Australian version). OMG, I’m in awe of some of those contestants – it’s hard to believe they are home cooks. I need to plan and then follow recipes. No quick thinking on my feet for me!

My love of cooking is why food often makes an appearance in my books and why one of the main characters often enjoys preparing meals. Sea of Love was such a fun story to write, because it gave me the opportunity to feature my characters on a reality TV show AND have them cook as part of the competition.

Evan is someone like me who watches cooking programs so knows his way around a kitchen – the basics at least. Poor Harry has no idea what he’s doing but he gives it his best shot.

Here’s a little snippet…

Evan had just put the hot water on to boil when Harry ran past. He came to a rapid stop and backtracked a few steps. “Mmm… you guys look like you’re going okay,” he said as he peered at the organised chaos that was his and Dennis’s meal preparation.

“We are. Sort of.” Evan grinned. “Not so sure I can say the same about you.”

Harry was a mess, his apron covered in some sort of red concoction. He even had a smear on his cheek, but the smile hadn’t left his face. Actually, he looked adorable, all dishevelled and—

“Bit of an incident with the tomato sauce, I’m afraid, but some of it made it into the dish at least.” Harry chuckled. “Now we need feta, supposedly. I obviously”—Harry looked down at his splattered apron—“have no idea what I’m doing, but Stavros sent me to get it. I hope I can find what he wants, but I figure it can’t be too hard. It comes in a packet with a label. At least, I hope it does.” He laughed again. “Got to go or Stavros will kill me. See ya.”

With a parting grin, Harry took off, leaving Evan standing there watching his retreating back. So much energy! He looked like he was having a great time completing the challenge, despite his admitted lack of cooking ability.

Title: Sea of Love

Author: Nic Starr

Publisher: Independently Published

Cover Artist: Covers by Jo

Release Date: 10/20/2021

Length: 45,000 words

Genre: Romance

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Description

The cruise of a lifetime. A reality TV show about romance. Falling in love is inevitable.

Evan Williams is the type of guy to stick by his friends, especially when they’ve been hurt and need a favour. And if that favour involves the cruise of a lifetime, then how can he say no? Even when it means pretending to be a devoted boyfriend to Amber and having their fake relationship play out on a reality TV show for all the world to see.

Realising his boyfriend is a conceited jerk and dumping him doesn’t stop Harry Bishop from winding up as one half of a supposedly loved-up couple on the Sea of Love TV show. And if that’s not bad enough, he’s faced with temptation in the form of Evan, the perfect blend of boy-next-door-meets-sexy-stud he once crushed on. It’s going to be a long two weeks.

Two weeks of competitions, challenges, and confrontations. They’re here to take out the Sea of Love title—just not with each other—and there can only be one winner. But it turns out that true love isn’t about winning a contest; the real prize comes when you follow your heart.

Sea of Love is a feel-good romance featuring hidden attraction, fake relationships, and friends-to-lovers.

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Nic Starr lives in Australia where she tries to squeeze as much into her busy life as possible. Balancing the demands of a corporate career with raising a family and writing can be challenging but she wouldn’t give it up for the world.

Always a reader, the lure of m/m romance was strong and she devoured hundreds of wonderful m/m romance books before eventually realising she had some stories of her own that needed to be told!

When not writing or reading, she loves to spend time with her family–an understanding husband and two beautiful daughters–and is often found indulging in her love of cooking and planning her dream home in the country.

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This giveaway is to celebrate the release of Sea of Love. Up for grabs is a set of 5 gay romance ebooks – Wild Card, Lies & Deception, More Than A Superstar, Rustic Melody, and Fragile Heart – by Nic Starr. Enter the giveaway HERE.