Spotlight & Giveaway: JACKPOT SUMMER by Elyssa Friedland

Posted June 12th, 2024 by in Blog, Spotlight / 25 comments

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Elyssa Friedland to HJ!
Spotlight&Giveaway

Hi Elyssa Friedland and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, JACKPOT SUMMER!

 

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Jackpot Summer is about a mega lottery win which changes everything for the four grown Jacobson siblings. The siblings gather to pack up their beloved Jersey Shore beach house over July Fourth weekend after their widowed father announces he’s moving to Florida. While reminiscing and packing up mementos, Noah, the youngest Jacobson sibling, runs out to buy a Powerball ticket. His sisters, Laura and Sophie, throw in a few bucks to join the fun while the eldest sibling, Matthew, abstains because he thinks the lottery is for fools. Lo and behold, the ticket is a winner, and the Jacobsons’ lives are turned upside down. From dodging unwanted fame, to seeking pleasure in shiny goods, to quitting jobs, to trying to fix a marriage with money, the lottery win brings to light the complexities and troubles the Jacobson siblings had simmering just below the surface. Each Jacobson learns who they really are and what they need to be happy, but only after a roller coaster ride.
 

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

I love the epigraph, which is a quote from Notorious B.I.G. It sums up the book perfectly: “It’s like the more money we come across/The more problems we see.”

 

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

This book made me crave summer. It’s set at the Jersey Shore and after writing day in and day out about the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets, the stunning beaches, the incredible seafood and ice cream and the nonstop opportunities for old-fashioned fun, all I wanted was for summer to come. It wasn’t easy to write sentences oozing summer joy while it was ten degrees and snowing out of my window.
 

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

I cracked up writing the Thanksgiving dinner scene. One of the winning siblings, Laura, hosts the entire Jacobson clan at her new mansion. She hires a French chef and a million servers, the table looks like it’s out of Versailles and nobody can figure out which fork to use. It’s such a classic set-up where these regular folks are trying to be fancy but they have no idea what to do and won’t admit they’d rather be eating turkey in their laps while watching football.
 

Readers should read this book….

If they have ever thought about what they would do if they won the lottery – and who hasn’t? This book will make them rethink how a windfall would affect their personal wellbeing, satisfaction, and relationships.
 

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

I am about to start my seventh novel, another family dra-medy, set on a safari. I’m also hoping to write another children’s picture book this summer, but we’ll see! Time flies and it’s hard to find the time to work on all the projects percolating in my head.
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

 

Giveaway: A finished copy of JACKPOT SUMMER by Elyssa Friedland 

 

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: What would be the first thing you would buy if you won the lottery? Who would be the first person you would tell?

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 
 

Book Info:

After the Jacobson siblings win a life-changing fortune in the lottery, they assume their messy lives will transform into sleek, storybook perfection–but they couldn’t be more wrong.

The four Jacobson children were raised to respect the value of a dollar. Their mother reused tea bags and refused to pay retail; their father taught them to budget before he taught them to ride a bike. And yet, now that they’re adults, their financial lives are in disarray.

The siblings reunite when their newly widowed father puts their Jersey Shore beach house on the market. Packing up childhood memories isn’t easy, especially when there’s other drama brewing. Matthew is miserable at his corporate law job and wishes he had more time with his son; Laura’s marriage is imploding in spectacular fashion; Sophie’s art career is stalled while her boyfriend’s is on the rise; and Noah’s total failure to launch has him doing tech repair for pennies.

When Noah sees an ad for a Powerball drawing, he and his sisters go in on tickets while their brother Matthew passes. All hell breaks loose when one of the tickets is a winner and three of the four Jacobsons become overnight millionaires. Without their mother’s guidance, and with their father busy playing pickleball in a Florida retirement village, the once close-knit siblings search for comfort in shiny new toys instead of each other.

It’s not long before the Jacobsons start to realize that they’ll never feel rich unless they can pull their family back together.
 
 
 

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25 Responses to “Spotlight & Giveaway: JACKPOT SUMMER by Elyssa Friedland”

  1. erahime

    With that money, a celebratory food item to commemorate the significant event, and probably a spiritual being as the first “person” to proclaim my luck.

  2. Mary Preston

    I would travel – in style. I’d tell my daughter – we both would travel in style.

  5. LaurieGommermann

    I would buy the skills of an interior designer/ architect to update my house. We’ve lived here just shy of 40 years. It could use a breath of fresh air.

  9. Glenda M

    I’d tell my husband first. First thing I’d buy after finding out? The services of a great tax lawyer.

  11. Rita Wray

    I would tell my husband first and I would buy all the books on my list that I want.

  15. Amy R

    What would be the first thing you would buy if you won the lottery? land
    Who would be the first person you would tell? family

  17. Dianne Casey

    The first and only person I would tell is my Sister and I think we would look for a nice home on Lake Michigan.

  18. psu1493

    The first thing I would buy is a piece of land where I could build the house of my dreams. I guess I would tell my mom since we live together, but I would have to swear her to secrecy as she has a tendency to blab.

  19. Patricia B.

    My husband would be the first person I would tell. I wish our state didn’t require the names of winners to be released. The first thing I would spend the money on would be medical care for our son. He has cancer and no insurance.

  20. rkcjmomma

    My husband would be the first person i told and id buy a new house for us and our kids

  21. lindaherold999

    I would call my mom and my son and then I would pay off the mortgage on my house!!