And, thanks to Carina Press, we have an exclusive excerpt for those who are anxious to revisit Parker’s writing, as well as three (3) digital ARCs to give away!
For readers who may not want to be spoiled ahead of time, we’ve hidden the excerpt. Just click the pink bar to reveal the text!
“I kissed you. Technically.” Although he’d been a fairly active participant in the whole misguided, shivery shebang.
“It was—” He stopped, obviously intensely uncomfortable.
It was like coming home.
She couldn’t say that. She wasn’t this woman. She was not going to be, for the rest of her theatre career, the actress who got her first big stage break and slept with the director. Some of the less reputable papers had already implied as much, but there was made-up sex and scandal, and there was knowing and living the truth.
There was self-respect.
He was speaking stiffly now, back in his robotic comfort zone. “But I can assure you that it won’t happen again, and it will have no impact whatsoever on your role in this production or any other.”
“It’s okay,” she said quietly. “I know you wouldn’t punish or reward anyone professionally for anything that happened outside of work. You’re not that sort of man.”
That sent a flush of colour into his face. He tucked a stand of hair behind her ear. Apparently realising what he was doing, he swore and took a deliberate step back.
Lily lowered her hand from where she’d instinctively reached to hold on to his fingers. “Maybe we ought to keep some distance between us for a while.”
“Until Monday, you mean, when we go to Oxford together, and then the next four weeks of intensive, occasionally one-on-one rehearsals?”
Well, if he was going to be rational about it.
“You could try being pleasant and malleable,” she suggested. “I’d probably find it a complete turn-off. I didn’t realise I had this penchant for militant men. It’s giving me whole new insights into my personality.”
“Militant?”
“I thought it sounded more polite than ‘bossy.’ No?”
“I’m not bossy.”
He actually sounded like he believed that.
“Okay, Captain Von Trapp. Keep telling yourself that.”
She’d broken the stern director facade again. He was grinning. “Are you sure you weren’t fired from CTV? Because if you talk to Steve Warren like this, I’m surprised you didn’t find yourself falling down an empty lift shaft in the second episode.”
She would never dream of speaking to Steve, or any other director, like this. It was just hard to return to business as usual when she knew what his tongue felt like against the roof of her mouth.
“No, amazingly I left by choice.”
“When do you shoot your final scenes?” Luc seemed to be equally determined to get things back on a professional footing, and finding it as difficult. His eyes kept wandering over her lips and tousled hair.
“End of the week. Then I’m all yours.” She closed her eyes and groaned. “It’s like I’m reading from the script for The Cliché Film, the unresolved sexual tension scene, isn’t it? Do you want to kiss again? I think that was our cue.”
Don’t miss PRETTY FACE by Lucy Parker,
available February 2017 wherever Carina Press ebooks are sold.
www.CarinaPress.com
Copyright ©2017 by Laura Elliott
Now to the really good part: giveaway time!
To enter to win one of three digital ARCs, comment with your favorite stage play or musical. Maybe it’s an old favorite that you watching growing up. Or perhaps it’s something new that you’re excited to see performed. Let us know!
Standard disclaimers apply: We’re not being compensated for this giveaway. Void where prohibited. Must be 18 years of age. Be sure to study your lines and work on those jazz hands! Get those high kicks higher and remember to speak from your diaphragm. Open to international residents where permitted by applicable law. Comments will close at or near 12pm ET on Monday 23 January 2017 and winners will be announced shortly afterward.
Good luck!
Update: The winners are Marci, Camille, and Jessica! Congratulations and thanks so much to all the awesome stage/musical talk!
I don’t watch musicals much, but my absolute favorite soundtrack ever is Jesus Christ Superstar, which is actually pretty funny since I normally avoid anything with any religious overtones.
It’s very hard to choose, but my favorite musical is Into the Woods. I can quote whole chunks of it.
My favorite musical growing up was Cats. It’s the first musical my mom took me to. She bought me the piano music, and she played it all the time on the stereo and read me TS Eliot’s poems, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. To this day I still can’t make sense of the story line, but I can sing along with all the songs.
I haven’t seen Hamilton yet- but theater
Is always fun. I loved seeing Wicked and it’s still one of my favorites.
Runners-up: Rent, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Real Inspector Hound
Winner: What else? Hamilton
I am sort of a late bloomer in terms of popular culture stuff like music and theater. It’s the product of immigrant parents I guess.
One of the first musicals I ever saw was a television broadcast of Legally Blonde the Musical. It is fantastic. It’s not perfect, there are questionable moments with the “crazy feminist” trope but overall it keeps a lot of important good themes.
I love Book of Mormon. The music is great and it is absolutely hilarious.
Any Shakespeare play viewed sitting on a lawn with a picnic basket full of nibbles and wine.
I was lucky to grow up just south of Chicago, so we took field trips into the city to see plays quite often. I think a favorite memory of mine is seeing Peter Pan, it must have been sometime in the 1960’s?
I can not wait for her new book!
The musical I grew up watching was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.
I saw War Horse a few years ago and it was incredible!
COME FROM AWAY – a musical that tells the story of the townspeople of Gander, Newfoundland, who took care of all the international passengers from the planes that made emergency landings there on 9/11 when the US closed its airspace. It’s amazing. And the pilot of the plane the story features most is the first woman captain on United. She’s been in the audience for several productions. Her song – it’s heartbreaking. It’s amazing.
Come From Away is going to Broadway soon and if you have any chance, do what you must to see it.
(And I don’t need to be in the drawing, I’ll buy Lucy’s book – I just wanted to tell people about COME FROM AWAY).
SO excited for Lucy’s new book!
Wicked on Broadway, Lion King in the West End.
Hamilton! I don’t know what’s harder though; trying to get tickets or trying to get my husband to go watch it with me (he hates all musicals).
My favorite will always be Wicked, just for the impact it had on me as a preteen.
My favourite has to be The Lion King. I’ve seen it three times now and I still can’t get enough! It’s the best thing I’ve ever seen on stage!!
Fiddler on the Roof!
Thanks!
Musical: Wicked. Although there is still a 12 yr old phantom fangirl (phangirl?) deep inside
Play: much ado about nothing. Favorite version of that stars david tennant and Catherine Tate, because the doctor and Donna being lovers in a Shakespearean comedy is all I’ve ever wanted.
Yay Lucy Parker! I made all my friends get a copy of Act Like It after I read it so that I would have someone to squee with. The English attachment to interestingly shaped vegetables never ceases to amuse.
I think I would have to go with The Importance of Being Ernest, farce, word play, innuendo, it’s all just so Wilde.
Much Ado About Nothing
I love Wicked and so many other musicals. As far as plays, I would probably have to go King Lear or Much Ado About Nothing (despite the horrible gender politics).
“Singing in the rain ” for sure. Danced it with my “hate to dance” husband at our wedding and we killed it.
Jesus Christ Superstar – I can probably sing every word to every song (but I won’t)
My favorites are Ridiculous Fraud by Beth Henley and Born Yesterday.
I love musicals and it’s a draw for me between two awesome productions. I love Singing in the Rain and I saw in the late 90’s a wonderful version here in Finland. The other one is The Book Of Mormon, which I saw in London last year. LOVED IT!
Cabaret is a fave.
Beauty & the Beast I’ve seen it on stage multiple times and loved it every time. Yeah new Lucy Parker! I loved “Act like it” so much.
Les miserables is my favorite but I love wicked too!
Into the Woods– I adore it. Loved the stage show, loved the movie, loved the various amateur and professional versions I’ve seen.
I am SO excited for this book! My favourite musical has to be Hamilton as I’ve pretty much not listened to anything else until I discovered the soundtrack in the spring. I am ecstatic that I secured tickets for the show in London next year so I finally get to see it live.
1776!
So excited for this book to come out! I read the excerpt and now I’m even MORE excited! Favorite stage play–I just saw Mamma Mia with my daughter and it was super super awesome, so that is my current favorite. All time favorite though, probably Les Miserables. Just that music….so good.
I’m a dork but I love Hamlet and A Midsummer’s Nights Dream.
My favorite movie musical is Singin’ in the Rain. Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds are just so good!
Yay for more Lucy Parker! I loved Act Like It so much that I bought it in both eBook and audiobook format.
I don’t watch much musical theater, but I *loved* Into the Woods (pre-movie) and would assign it as extra credit for my Psychology of Women class.
The older I get the more I love plays about Madame White Snake. I just love that she’s a snake for whom turning into a human is a side effect of gaining enlightenment and has a lovely female friendship and also romance of course. And an evil turtle.
My absolute favourite stage play has to be Arcadia by Tom Stoppard.
I have a soft spot in my heart for Pirates of Penzance. I was in a production of it in college and it was just so much fun.
So many…but probably South Pacific. (Not the movie! See The Bitches comments for ALL THE REASONS.) But for the glorious songs and the tragic love story and social depth of the plots.
My favorite musical is Phantom of the Opera for the sweeping gothic drama and romance (even though I’m on team Raoul lol).