Spotlight & Giveaway: There’s Something About Molly by Christina Hovland

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Christina Hovland to HJ!

Hi Christina and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, There’s Something About Molly!

 
Thanks for having me today! I’m so thrilled to chat about all things Molly!
 

Please summarize the book a la Twitter style for the readers here:

For the first time, dating coach Molly Princeton doesn’t have all the answers. Lucky for her, Gavin–her best friend’s ex–realizes there’s something about Molly he can’t resist…
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Of all the things Molly Princeton understood for certain, there was one thing in particular she had no doubts about—a woman was only as confident as her underwear.

For real, she’d ask anyone to hear her out on this point. A girl could always spit shine the outside, but it was what lay underneath that told the true story.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• Writing the two people who really SHOULDN’T fall in love was so epic. The two of them have a banter that was ridiculously fun to create.
• Molly’s son really wants to go to stuntman camp. Turns out, this is a real camp for kids. Who knew?
• Twin Lakes–where the book opens–is based loosely on Telluride, Colorado.
• This book just flowed from beginning to end. I loved every second of writing it. This is unusual because generally there are several times throughout drafting a novel that I feel intense frustration with the process. This time? Nope!
• Each of my books ends up with an anthem that I listen to over and over while drafting. For Molly, that anthem is: Jamie O’Neal’s song, Somebody’s Hero

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

Molly’s first attraction to Gavin is when he’s in a tuxedo at her best friend’s wedding. Then he has a moment of heroics with her son and she does not appreciate that she’s attracted to him because of it.

Gavin always thought Molly was pretty, but she didn’t care for him. He accepted this because he was pretty single-focused on his ex-fiancee. Now single, and he and Molly are spending time together, he’s realizing there’s something about her… something he likes….
 

Using just 5 words, how would you describe Hero and Heroine’s love affair?

Resistant. Fake. Hijinks. Hot. HEA.
 

The First Kiss…

How about the first *almost* kiss?

His breath caught, and someone pushed the pause button on life.

There were only inches of nothing but air between them. Her lips parted like she was either going to kiss the hell out of him or go after him with a verbal attack.

Honestly, he didn’t know which he would’ve preferred. But if she kissed him, she’d taste like caramel and chocolate and Molly, and he thought he could be really into that flavor combination.

The questions in her eyes echoed throughout him because, honestly, he didn’t know what the hell was happening between them.

Without revealing too much, what is your favorite scene in the book?

There’s a scene where they go on camera together for her WebTV show and I think it’s epic!

“Your sausage?” she asked.

He nodded like he did not know what he’d just said and how it could be interpreted.

He’d gotten to her. And he liked it. He wanted more of it, more of her.

He wasn’t supposed to want more of her. Wasn’t supposed to want to kiss her for real.

A guy on a relationship diet did not fall for his fraudulent—no, wrong F-word—fake girlfriend.

Yet, he was sort of mid-fall with no idea what to do about it.

Molly stared at him a solid three beats. Apparently, talk of sausage was what it took to make Persona-Molly get quiet.

Three beats was all he got, though, before she went all in and laid down her cards. “Tell me about your sausage, Gavin?”

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would be absolutely crucial to include?

The initial scene where she sees him in his tuxedo…

“That color blue makes you look like a real-life princess,” Gavin said from behind her, his deep voice rumbling over her nerve endings and stirring up butterflies she’d expressly reserved for Dan. “It suits you.”

What was his game?

She cleared her throat and threw up the wall she was so excellent at erecting. “You look handsome yourself.” Well, he did.

“I had a haircut,” he said, like this was a big deal and he deserved a gold star.

Before Ollie could tell her to be specific, she said, “Your ears are looking very symmetrical today.”

Readers should read this book …

because we all need a break from the chaos of the world. It’s nice to dive into some author controlled chaos with lots of hijinks and fun!

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

My next book that comes out in Spring 2022: Everything’s Fine, Emmaline. (Book 4 of the Mommy Wars series.)

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: I’d love to give away a eCopy of There’s Something About Molly!

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: If you could give advice about children — as a parent, aunt, uncle, innocent grocery store bystander — what would it be?

 
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Excerpt from There’s Something About Molly:

Her kiddo pulled his lips to the side and said, “You look pretty, Mom.”
Her heart dipped. That was…sweet.
“Bud.” Gavin shook his head. “We’ve got to work on your game. Be specific when you’re complimenting someone.”
“His compliment is fine. You don’t need to micromanage my kid’s compliments.” Molly said the last part under her breath.
“I do when he needs to up his game,” Gavin said, also under his breath.
Reluctant, she glanced over her shoulder to toss some glare daggers his way. Hey, it was sort of their thing.
Ollie stared at her, thoughtful, his tongue flicking to a crumb of toaster pastry at the corner of his lips. Finally, he seemed to settle on something—
“I like what you did to your face,” Ollie said cheerfully.
She smirked. “Thanks, kiddo.”
“The dress is a pretty color,” the oldest twin, Kellan, added.
“Thank you, Kellan. That’s very specific. Your mom picked it out.” She gave him a smile for his effort while ignoring his dad.
“That dress makes your butt look small,” Brady—the younger—added.
Say whaaaa?
“Brady.” Gavin shook his head. “No. Don’t mention her bum.”
“For the first time ever, I agree with your dad. No one mention my tush.” Molly shook her head. “But thanks for the complimentary effort.”
“What?” Brady said, apparently ready to defend himself. “It’s true. Mom says clothes are best when they make her butt look smaller.”
“Okay.” Molly closed the door to the fridge for a moment. “You shouldn’t compliment anything about a person that has to do with things in their swimsuit area.”
“Why are girls so weird, dad?” Brady asked with what seemed to be genuine curiosity.
“That is an excellent question.” Gavin shrugged. “We may never know the answer.”
That’s it, she was going to kick him in the nuts—right in his swimsuit area.
“He’s right. You do look pretty.” Gavin smiled again.
“Too little, too late,” she said, mentally tossing a few more daggers his direction. “You’ll need to up your game.”
“Be specific.” Ollie raised his little eyebrows at Gavin.
“I’m good.” Molly smoothed her dress. “I don’t need specifics.”
She pulled open the door to the refrigerator and scanned the shelves. Every soda lining the shelves was of the Pepsi product variety. Damn. Rachel wanted a Coke. This was her big day. If that’s what she wanted, then Molly would figure it out.
“That color blue makes you look like a real-life princess,” Gavin said from behind her, his deep voice rumbling over her nerve endings and stirring up butterflies she’d expressly reserved for Dan. “It suits you.”
What was his game?
She cleared her throat and threw up the wall she was so excellent at erecting. “You look handsome yourself.” Well, he did.
“I had a haircut,” he said, like this was a big deal and he deserved a gold star.
Before Ollie could tell her to be specific, she said, “Your ears are looking very symmetrical today, and I like the way the tuxedo helps you keep track of Ollie so I can fulfill my wedding duties.” The wink she tossed at the end was added to mess with him. This was her way.
He chuckled. “Yes, ma’am. We all clean up nice.”
She turned back to the fridge. Still no Coke.
She pinched her lips together.
“Everything okay?” Gavin asked, and dammit all, he was right there beside her staring into the Coke-less void with her. Didn’t he have a swamp to go lounge in or something?
“Rachel wants a Coke.” Molly forced herself not to bite at her bottom lip. The makeup artist who had troweled on Molly’s look had done a brilliant job. Now it was Molly’s job not to do anything to muck it up—like nibble at her lips.
“I don’t think staring at the shelf is going to make one appear.” He inched just a tad closer to her. “But I’m willing to try if you are.”
“Har.” She willed her feet to step away from him and lifted her hand to rub at the space between her eyebrows, but stopped herself. No. Messing. With. The. Makeup.
“Did you check the pantry?” Kellan asked, pointing toward a door near the back of the kitchen. “Maybe they’re in that refrigerator.”
“Were you going to mention the other fridge?” Molly asked, tossing more eye daggers at Gavin.
He nodded. Pulled his lips to the side. “I was getting to it.”
Molly gritted her teeth—another few minutes with Gavin and she’d need some serious dental work. “I’m not wearing enough underwear to deal with you right now.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Molly Princeton hasn’t met the right guy. Yes, she’s a dating coach. But she’s also a single mom with a rocky relationship history. She may be able to help others find love, but she doesn’t really need it in her life. Happiness doesn’t require falling in love. Winning a matchmaker competition however requires being part of a couple. And darn it, she needs to win this one. That’s when she sets her sights on Gavin Frank—the one man she would absolutely never fall in love with.

Gavin is her nemesis, her best friend’s ex, and yeah, okay, he’s sexy as sin. He’s also off limits. But she’s out of other options. Plus Gavin could use a fake relationship to keep his meddling mother from setting up blind dates with every available woman in the Mile High City. There’s no way he’d fall for Molly. None. Nada.

The two quickly learn there’s a thin line between hate and love, and she finds herself tipping onto the wrong side. For the first time, she doesn’t have all the answers. What the heck is she supposed to do next? Lucky for her, Gavin realizes there’s something about Molly he can’t resist…
Book Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Goodreads |
 
 

Meet the Author:

USA Today Bestselling Author Christina Hovland lives her own version of a fairy tale: an artisan chocolatier by day and romance writer by night. Born in Colorado, Christina received a degree in journalism from Colorado State University. Before opening her chocolate company, Christina’s career spanned from the television newsroom to managing an award-winning public relations firm. She’s a recovering overachiever and perfectionist with a love of cupcakes and dinner she doesn’t have to cook herself. A 2017 Golden Heart® finalist, she lives in Colorado with her first-boyfriend-turned-husband, four children, and the sweetest dogs around.
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