Friday, November 4, 2016

Blog Review and Giveaway - Love Literary Style by Karin Gillespie

Book Synopsis
They say opposites attract, and what could be more opposite than a stuffy literary writer falling in love with a self-published romance writer?

Meet novelist Aaron Mite. He lives in a flea-infested rented alcove, and his girlfriend Emma, a combative bookstore owner, has just dumped him. He meets Laurie Lee at a writers’ colony and mistakenly believes her to be a renowned writer of important fiction. When he discovers she’s a self-published romance author, he’s already fallen in love with her.

Aaron thinks genre fiction is an affront to the fiction-writing craft. He likes to quotes the essayist, Arthur Krystal who claims literary fiction “melts the frozen sea inside of us.” Ironically Aaron doesn’t seem to realize that, despite his lofty literary aspirations, he’s emotionally frozen, due, in part, to a childhood tragedy. The vivacious Laurie, lover of flamingo-patterned attire and all things hot pink, is the one person who might be capable of melting him.

Their relationship is initially made in literary heaven but when Aaron loses his contract with a prestigious press, and Laurie’s novel is optioned by a major film studio, the differences in their literary sensibilities and temperaments drive them apart.

In a clumsy attempt to win Laurie back, Aaron employs the tropes of romance novels. Too late. She’s already taken up with Ross, a prolific author of Nicholas Sparks-like love stories. Initially Laurie is more comfortable with the slick and superficial Ross, but circumstances force her to go deeper with her writing and confront a painful past. Maybe Aaron and Laurie have more in common than they imagined.

In the tradition of the Rosie Project, Love Literary Style is a sparkling romantic comedy which pokes fun at the divide between so-called low and high brow fiction.

READ an excerpt at Karin’s website, HERE.

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Purchase Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

 

My Review

When I first met Aaron Mite in the pages of Love Literary Style, I'll admit I did not like him.  He represented the most insufferable English majors I knew in school, who waxed rhapsodic about "the canon," while sniffing at "genre fiction."

 

But then something unexpected happened.  Aaron met Laurie Lee, a bubbly romance writer, at a writing colony in the North Georgia mountains.  He believed that she was a prestigious literary author, and they began a romance that seemed both well matched and ill matched at once.

 

When they inevitably came apart, I was surprised how much I wanted them to get back together, to find a middle ground where they could both be happy - both together and with their own writing.  And this speaks to the skill of a talented writer, Karin Gillespie.  She created two disparate characters who could have been stereotypes and made them both likeable and multi-dimensional.

 

This is my second read by the author, and I really enjoy her writing style.  It is brisk and lively, with smart dialogue that moves the story along.   I also enjoyed the descriptions and settings in the book, especially as a native Georgian who lives in the same area as the fictional Laurie Lee.

 

I really enjoyed Love Literary Style, both for the story of Aaron and Laurie, and also for the insights on different literary styles and genres.  I recommend it enthusiastically to other readers.     


Author Bio

Karin Gillespie is the author of the national bestselling Bottom Dollar Girls series, 2016 Georgia Author of the Year, Co-author for Jill Connor Browne’s novel Sweet Potato Queen’s First Big Ass Novel. Her latest novel Love Literary Style was inspired by a New York Times article called “Masters in Chick Lit” that went viral and was shared by literary luminaries like Elizabeth Gilbert and Anne Rice. She’s written for the Washington Post and Writer Magazine and is book columnist and humor columnist for the Augusta Chronicle and Augusta Magazine respectively. She received a Georgia Author of the Year Award in 2016.

 

Connect with Karen

Website | Facebook | Twitter

 

Giveaway

One lucky reader will win a copy of Love Literary Style.  This giveaway is open to readers in the U.S. and Canada, and will end 11/11.  The winner will be notified by email, and needs to respond within 48 hours.  The book will be sent to the winner directly from the author or her publicist.  

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I received a copy of this book from TLC Book Tours.

11 comments:

LauraJJ said...

Oh this sounds so good! I love that its themed around the authors and books! I cant wait to read and see who she chooses!

Deborah Wellenstein said...

The book sounds great-thanks for the opportunity to win one!

Unknown said...

This book looks like a great read.

VJSett said...

This book sounds like a great read! Always love a good RomCom!

Cricket Phillips said...

This book sounds amazing!! Thank you for the chance to win one!!!

Anonymous said...

This book looks like a great read.

Heather J @ TLC Book Tours said...

Glad you enjoyed this one! Thanks for being a part of the tour!

Nancy said...

This book looks like a great read!

Nancy
allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

Julie Waldron said...

Sounds like a great book.

reneejr said...

You had me at the title! I love the title! The title alone grabbed my attention without reading anymore about the book.

Martha said...

This book sounds like a good read!