Spotlight & Giveaway: Frequent Fliers by Noué Kirwan

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Noué Kirwan to HJ!

Hi Noué and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Frequent Fliers!

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

FREQUENT FLIERS is a friends-to-lovers romance between two people who find themselves flying back and forth from NYC to London and fall in love along the way.
 

Please share your favorite line(s) or quote from this book:

My MMC, Ridley, is a bit of a grump and doesn’t make the best first impression on my heroine, Lanie. But for one moment, a situation does amuse him…unfortunately, it does not last long: “The amusement that was briefly on his face slipped back into its fetters, returning to whatever place a clearly joyless guy like him kept it caged.”
 

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• It’s “based” on my many trips back-and-forth to London
• Many of my characters have funny/quirky names (but it wasn’t deliberate).
• Like Ridley, I suffer from acrophobia but love to travel.
• My character reference for Ridley is an actor in both the Marvel and DC cinematic universes
• My character reference for Lanie is a HUGE Beyoncé-stan.
• Song list sample (full list available on Spotify):
  Don’t Get Me Wrong – Pretenders
  Kissing Other People – Lennon Stella
  I Want You Around – Snoh Aalegra
  Comfortable – H.E.R.
  Save Room – John Legend
  Send My Love – Adele
  Word Up – Cameo (actually mentioned in the book)
  Dance With Me – 112 (also mentioned by name in the book)

What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

To Lanie, Ridley seems pompous but non-judgemental. He takes her at face-value and appreciates her.
To Ridley, Lanie seems like a kindred spirit, but one with more of a sense of adventure than him. She pulls him out of his shell.

Did any scene have you blushing, crying or laughing while writing it? And Why?

Ridley and Lanie share an unscheduled overnight trip, I definitely blushed writing it.

“You don’t like it?”
“It’s not that,” he fibbed. “I’m worried I might miss Christmas if we can’t get on a flight tomorrow.”
Lanie’s eyes softened. “You’ll be there. I know you’ll make it.” Lanie glanced at her watch, clearly unsure of what to say next. “What I don’t know is, the time the kitchen in that restaurant downstairs closes. So, I’m gonna run down and see what I can grab.” Lanie turned and ran into the bedroom she’d chosen, climbing onto one of the beds and reaching for something in its center.
“Good idea,” he said while trying to banish the single thought that was running rampant in his head at the view she presented. Ridley’s mouth dried watching her crawl across the bed in the shaft of light that shone in from the main room. He had no right thinking the things he’d begun to.
“Can I get you something?” she called over her shoulder.
If Lanie knew what he was thinking, there was no way she’d willingly share a room with him. “Uh, no, thanks,” he replied, looking away guiltily.
He needed a shower. In fact, if they were going to last under the same roof all night, whether or not it was in entirely separate bedrooms, he was going to need a cold one.”

Readers should read this book….

You have ever or have imagined meeting the love of your life on your daily commute, on vacation, or in a waiting room, LOL!
 

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have in the works?

FREQUENT FLIERS is my upcoming release, but I’m working on something a little different for book #3
 
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: A print copy of FREQUENT FLIERS by Noué Kirwan – Open to US Winner

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Travel romance (as a genre or IRL): yay or nay? And what’s your favorite?

 
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Excerpt from Frequent Fliers:

Heading to the departure gate, Lanie could feel the stress of overseeing all the little details of Gemma’s wedding was taking its toll. In recent weeks, she barely thought about anything else—the perfectionist in her, a side she struggled to keep at bay, had reared its uncompromising head. If she wasn’t careful, she would barely even take the time to feed herself. In fact, she’d forgotten to eat today, she realized as her stomach growled loudly. It would never be clearer than it was at that moment that she needed to go home. With a convenience store sandwich in hand, she arrived at her departure gate, as usual relieved to be the first one there. She was alone.
Well, not totally alone, it appeared. There was someone else there sitting right by the gate. Almost directly in front of the customer service desk.
Lanie stopped midstride, dumbstruck.
She didn’t know how long she stood on the concourse as people walked past, in absolute shock. Now that she was closer, the person was wholly visible, sitting all alone with his roller bag, casually reading a paper and sipping from a paper cup. It was Ridley.
Lanie moved toward him slowly, glancing around, astonished. He was supposed to be in New York. “Ridley?”
He rested his newspaper in his lap and looked up. Pushing his tortoiseshell frames up the thick bridge of his nose, his eyes traveled up to her face like she was the one who wasn’t supposed to be there. “Hey,” he replied. “You okay?” There was a coffee caddy on the seat next to him with one cup, which he removed then handed to her as she nodded.
She took it, puzzled, and popped off the top to examine the contents. The heavenly scent of coffee beans, hazelnut, caramel and toffee sauce filled her nose. She took a sip. “Ooooh, and it’s still kinda warm! Sorcery! Thank you.” She exhaled with relief, nearly collapsing into the seat beside him. “What are you doing here?”
“I told you I was coming in this morning.”
“Yes, but that was this morning.” She checked her phone. “It’s twelve p.m.”
“Yes, well, I realized that you can get a lot of work done in the quiet of those airline club lounges.”
“You got into the Trans-Continental lounge?” It said a lot about the airline culture she’d already begun to fall into that she was a smidgen impressed by that.
“Apparently, since I flew business class today, I was eligible.” He shrugged.
“Ridley, what are you doing here?”
“It felt like too much of a coincidence and a missed opportunity to arrive the exact same day you depart and not see you.”
Okay, that is sweet. She’d dated men who’d done less. “But three hours, Ridley?”
“What’s three hours between friends?” His face was still incongruously serious.
She hemmed while he continued.
“You said it was unfortunate we’d miss each other. You also said you hated being at the airport all alone with nothing to do, right?”
He hadn’t told a lie yet. She nodded. In all their back-and-forth texting, she may have possibly said a lot of those things.
“Seriously, Ridley, aren’t you tired? Don’t you need to get home to your daughter?”
He frowned and pulled back slightly. Lanie hadn’t realized until then that they’d slowly begun leaning toward one another, their shoulders nearly touching. She immediately regretted saying anything, wishing she could coax him and his delicious bergamot-and-vetiver scent closer again.
He shook his head. “She has athletics all afternoon.”
Lanie wasn’t sure she understood what that meant.
His eyes roamed her face. “Track and field?”
Lanie made a small O shape with her mouth.
“So, she won’t be home until six-ish,” he continued, watching her face as if it could tell him things her mouth wouldn’t. And reminding her of the last time he’d looked at her like that. Right before he kissed her.
“A-and your work?”
“Lanie.” One eyebrow rose behind his glasses. “Do you want me to go? Because just saying so would probably be faster than running down each supposed item on my daily schedule.”
Lanie was momentarily speechless. Ever so slightly magnified by the strength of his lenses, in the light cast from the giant window right next to them, she could see all the whorls and swirls of his dark brown irises. The rich cognac brown of his eyes pulled her in like a sci-fi tractor beam.
“Lanie?”
“N-no,” Lanie backtracked when she could finally speak again. “No. I’m sorry. I just assumed you’d have better things to do than sit in the airport on the off chance you’d run into me.”
“Run into you?” His eyes narrowed, examining her face again as if he was trying to decipher something. “I didn’t run into you. I waited for you.”
At those words, Lanie’s heart took off like one of those out-of-control hansom cabs that circled Central Park, galloping wildly like a spooked horse.
He didn’t mean it like that, he didn’t mean it like that. He did not mean it like that, Melanie!
“You gave me your flight info, remember?” His delivery was deadpan as usual. But then he sat up straighter. “Wait, I just heard myself say that. Was that creepy? It sounded creepy. Oh my God.” Ridley put a hand to his face, like this was really just dawning on him.
She barked out an awkward laugh, and sniffled, nodding. “I mean…”
“I just thought it would be nice. You know? I know how much I hate waiting in the airport too. I miss the days when you could sit at the gate with people to see them off. Are you too young to remember back then? Anyway, I thought since I was coming and you were going—”
“Ridley.” Lanie chuckled, putting a hand on his arm. “It’s okay. I appreciate it. This was a really cool thing to do.”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Library Journal’s Romance Pick of May 2024!

“Heartfelt and romantic, Noué Kirwan has crafted an authentic love story about family—both born into and created—and the power of forgiveness that will stay with you long after you’ve read the last sentence.” —Tracey Livesay, author of American Royalty
Book Links: Book Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | kobo | Google |
 
 

Meet the Author:

Noué Kirwan has wanted to be a writer since childhood. Growing up in part on the West Coast taught Noué to appreciate the beauty of the outdoors, while living in the heart of New York City for the past 20+ years taught her she can sleep through anything. She enjoys critiquing films, binge-watching TV shows, and cozying up with a good book from her ever-expanding TBR list. She is a nervous flier but an avid traveler who can have her passport ready and a bag packed in under an hour.
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