Title: Whatever You Do (Try Again, #2)
Author: Stephanie Smith
Release Date: January 15, 2014
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Blurb
How do you trust someone who is everything you’re trying to avoid?
Harper Lindell is having a bad day. You know, if a bad day consists of getting fired from your cushy job and then catching your boyfriend red handed playing hide the salami.
Sick of meeting the same guys over and over, Harper decides to try her luck at Internet dating. How bad could it be? Right?
Tate Washington wasn’t looking to meet anyone. Still dealing with the consequences of his one serious relationship, all he’s interested in is revamping his family’s behind-the-times café.
He didn’t plan on seeing the beautiful receptionist from Argo again, walking into his life to use his café as a dating hub, and using him as a BFF.
Can Harper really trust Tate, who is everything she thinks she needs to steer clear of?
Can Tate wait while Harper works through her insecurities and fears?
Review by Tatia
If you were to look up the definition of BAD LUCK in the dictionary, next to it you would find a picture of Harper. She's got a rock chick type of vibe to her from her short black bob to her eccentric, yet fashionable clothing choices. Harper is fiercely loyal to her friends and loved ones, but she's also pretty sensitive. And she has the worst luck ever.
In the beginning of Whatever You Do, I did get a little confused. We went from her working with her closest friends at a company that her friend owned to the next chapter her getting fired from said company by someone else. It is all eventually explained, but I think it should have been done in the beginning.
Now let me get to the mysterious yet sinful Tate. We meet him in the very beginning when he delivers lunch to Harper and her friends. He's immediately drawn to her. He's very flirtatious and ca come across as a playboy, but once you get to know him, he'll win you over with his endless charm and boyish good looks.
Both he and Harper have been hurt in the past and try to keep themselves guarded. Tate wants nothing more than for Harper to give him a chance, but she's reluctant. After a series of horrible online dating attempts, she finally relents, hoping this isn't something that will ruin the great friendship that has formed.
I loved this story once I got past the beginning. Some of these guys that Harper went on dates with truly just amazed me. They were horrible. Once she gave Tate a chance, she realized what she was missing. I just hate that it was so hard for her to trust him. I know her past would make anyone a little jaded, but sometimes you just have to take life by the horns and hold on.
All in all, I loved the chemistry between them and how he wasn't willing to take no for an answer and let her get away. This is truly a romance that will have you smiling and happy that these two were happy and willing to give love another chance.
In the beginning of Whatever You Do, I did get a little confused. We went from her working with her closest friends at a company that her friend owned to the next chapter her getting fired from said company by someone else. It is all eventually explained, but I think it should have been done in the beginning.
Now let me get to the mysterious yet sinful Tate. We meet him in the very beginning when he delivers lunch to Harper and her friends. He's immediately drawn to her. He's very flirtatious and ca come across as a playboy, but once you get to know him, he'll win you over with his endless charm and boyish good looks.
Both he and Harper have been hurt in the past and try to keep themselves guarded. Tate wants nothing more than for Harper to give him a chance, but she's reluctant. After a series of horrible online dating attempts, she finally relents, hoping this isn't something that will ruin the great friendship that has formed.
I loved this story once I got past the beginning. Some of these guys that Harper went on dates with truly just amazed me. They were horrible. Once she gave Tate a chance, she realized what she was missing. I just hate that it was so hard for her to trust him. I know her past would make anyone a little jaded, but sometimes you just have to take life by the horns and hold on.
All in all, I loved the chemistry between them and how he wasn't willing to take no for an answer and let her get away. This is truly a romance that will have you smiling and happy that these two were happy and willing to give love another chance.
4.5 Stars
An Interview with author Stephanie Smith
2. Do your leading men come from any place in particular? Dreams? Movie stars? Your partner? Past partners? I think they are a mixture of everything. Something I’ve heard, something I’ve seen, something I’ve had happen, something completely made up.
3. What do you do in your down time? If I’m not playing with my kids and spending time with the Hubster I’m reading. I love to read and will miss countless hours of sleep to fit in even a few pages! hehe
4. When you walk into a book store, where do you head first? Romance. No question. I actually don’t think I look anywhere else!
5. Why did you decide to write romance novels? I decided to write my first novel, Wherever You Will Go, because the story was playing over and over in my head and I thought if I just wrote it down they would be happy and leave me alone. I never dreamed of actually publishing it.
6. Who, if anyone, has influenced your writing? My editor, Lauren McKellar. She is outstanding. She pushes me and challenges me in the best possible way.
7. What research did you have to perform to back up your story? Any research which really opened your eyes or gave you new respect for a topic or profession? To be honest so far I haven’t challenged myself in this area. I like to write what I know. What I’ve lived through, what emotions I’ve felt.
8. What is your method for writing a book? A certain amount of hours every day? A certain routine? Are you character/story builder or an outliner or some other method? I outline first. Not in too much detail but generally where it is going. I start from the beginning and just go. I normally give myself daily and weekly word targets to hit and I keep strict deadline and word count planners.
9. How do you get past writers block or distractions like Facebook? Oh Facebook. BIGGEST time waster. I don’t have the answer to this yet but if anyone knows it please message me on my Facebook page.
10. Favorite book from childhood? I wish I could remember the name of the book. It actually had no words and was a picture book they kept in my school library. The story was the same window frame but each page had a different view from it. I used to lay there for hours making up stories for each scene. I must have been only 5 or 6 but it amazed me I could read a book without any words.
11. What’s on your desk? Can you see your desk? Describe what you see when you look around. Paper, paper and paper! I’m not sure it’s even a desk anymore.
12. What's the weirdest thing you've Googled? HAHA OMG, no I can’t tell you that!
13. What is your favorite line from any of your books? My most recent favourite which has been a favoruite with readers too is from my new release Whatever You Do. “You’re so fucking sexy Harper,” he whispers into my ear. “I won’t be able to keep this friendship platonic if you keep shaking your ass like that in my kitchen.”
14. Do you believe in love at first sight? No not at first sight, as in from a distance, but definitely first meeting.
15. What do you do when you are not writing? I read, duh. LOL I run my kids around and spend countless hours cleaning up after them. I love socialising. Any excuse to have people over for a meal and a laugh.
16. What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment? I think reviews say it all. There are negative ones and positive ones. There is no greater feeling than a reader messaging you to tell you how much they loved your story or how it touched them.
17. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? I can’t name just one.
18. Is there a certain type of scene that's harder for you to write than others? Love? Action? Racy? I hate writing the steamy scenes. They are so much harder than you think. How to make original, different from the ones you’ve done before. Even the ones in that story. Using the right words and terms. My hands are shaking just thinking about it! LOL
19. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? It’s very important to me as an author because it’s very important to me as a reader. I don’t look at meaning I just go with what suits my characters looks and personalities with how I see them in my head.
20. What was the hardest part of writing your book? I think getting all the smaller details right. I have the best betas in the world and those girls pick everything up.
21. What did you want to be when you grow up? I remember being very young and wanting to be a Flight Attendant. I was too short at only 4’9 so I went into child care instead. hehe
22. Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it? I learn something new all the time with all my stories. Not only things I didn’t know about the world but things I didn’t know about myself, or the way I think.
23. What made you decide to sit down and actually start something? I wanted to get the voices to go away. LOL
24. Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your most recent book? I’ll let the readers decide that one. hehe
25. Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer just see where an idea takes you? I start with an outline and normally a few detailed scenes and then I just see where it takes me.
26. For your own reading, do you prefer ebooks or traditional paper/hard back books? Definitely ebooks to read but I have an addiction to purchasing paperbacks, though I would never read them as it would bend the spine and cover.
27. What book/s are you reading at present? The Law of Moses by Amy Harmon. I can’t put it down.
28. If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why? OMG Totally 50 Shades. Could you imagine seeing that type of success for your story. To be the name that people will know for years to come as the woman who changed the whole industry for the whole world. WOW
29. What advice would you give to your younger self? Find what you love and go do it. I wish I had done this 10 years ago.
30. How do you think you’ve evolved creatively? I don’t know creatively, but I have evolved as a person completely. Probably changes only I can see but I love them.
Wherever You Will Go (Try Again, #1)
Whatever You Do (Try Again, #2)
About the Author
I'm first & foremost a reader & fangirl, I will always be first & foremost a reader & fangirl. I am on street teams, I pimp and I brag. I LOVE my Authors!!
I have recently started writing as a way to relax and spend some time for me. My first novel Wherever You Will Go is due to release later this year. I'm having so much fun writing my first story and I'm looking forward to the journey it is taking me on.
Giveaway!
Thank you so much for the lovely review!! xo
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