Color of You by C.S. Poe: Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt, Release Day Review and Giveaway

Bowen Merlin—yes, that’s his real name—accepts a position in the quaint town of Lancaster, New Hampshire, as the high school band director. He leaves New York City for the snowy countryside of New England just in time for the holidays. With class, homework, after-school activities, and a surprise Christmas concert to plan and rehearse, Bowen is plenty busy. And since he’s never had much luck with romance, factoring in time to find Mr. Right isn’t a priority….

Until he meets the proprietor of Snowy Ridge Apple Orchard, Felix Hansen. Suddenly, true love seems like a possibility for the first time in Bowen’s life. The two are a perfect match and fill the skipped beats of each other’s hearts. But as wonderful as Felix seems, he’s harboring scars that could end their budding relationship when someone in town goes to great lengths to sabotage their careers.

If Bowen is to survive the holidays, he’ll need to lean on old friends and new, convince Felix he’s worth any hardship, and prove they can come out of the catastrophe stronger if they do so together.

Hello, everyone! I’m C.S. Poe, and welcome to the final stop on the Color of You blog tour, here at Two Chicks Obsessed. We’re only a few days away from Christmas and the release of my first novel-length contemporary romance. I’m so excited, and I really hope you all enjoy Color of You.

I’m happy to introduce you to the main characters at each stop of the tour, and be sure to check out the unique giveaway at the end!

Name: Stephen Kelly

Nickname: n/a

From: Boston, Massachusetts

Current location: Lancaster, New Hampshire

Age: 45

Hair: White with hints of black

Occupation: High school accounting teacher

Hobbies: Reading

Favorite holiday: Valentine’s Day

Favorite piece of clothing: Socks

Summer or winter: Winter

Coffee or tea: Coffee

“I can’t wait to:” Meet someone

Interesting fact: Has always wanted a Dalmatian

Quote: ‘Never order the turkey, meatloaf, or chili.’

 

“Bowen,” he repeated. “I’m Stephen Kelly. Accounting and school newspaper advisor.”

Stephen had a pleasant green voice and a sort of Anderson Cooper thing going on. Nice. And definitely why I’d caught a passing group of girls staring.

“Not me,” he stated.

“Huh?” Stephen smiled and nodded at the girls after they put some distance between us. “A young, cute, new teacher. They were staring at you.” He held out a hand. “Can I carry those for you? I’ll walk you to the music room.”

“Thank you,” I said, offering Stephen the folders before collecting my instrument case and following.

“I used to get those dreamy looks from students…. You know, twenty years ago.” Stephen gave me a wink.

I laughed but felt my cheeks getting warm and hoped I wasn’t blotchy. “Ha-ha… well, I’m definitely not looking to relive acne, long division, and learner’s permits. Nothing is more attractive to me than maturity.”

Stephen chuckled. “Mortgages and worrying when that thin spot will suddenly become a bald spot.”

I stood on my toes to inspect Stephen’s hair. “Nah. Looks full to me.”

He grinned, eyes crinkling in the corners. “Better watch it, Mr. Merlin, or you’ll have more than just fantasizing sixteen-year-old girls hanging around outside your classroom.”

If you read the tagline for C.S. Poe, it is “Murder. Romance. And the bizarre.” And she never fails to slip something bizarre into her books. In this, a contemporary romance, one of the MC’s has a condition that I had never heard of, likely most people have not, synesthesia. For Bowen, that means sound to color synesthesia. He SEES sounds as color. I’d say that qualifies as a bit bizarre. But he is also an incredibly caring and (as this author always seems to do) entirely unique character. And I loved him. I loved all of the characters! Well, except… 😉

Anyway, the sweetness of this is offset by a dynamic that shows the reader that looks can be deceiving, and stereotypes are often miscalculated. And can bring some hotness and fun to your screen! J One of the best moments was with Felix’s son, Alan, as they went to cut down a Christmas tree for Bowen.

“Closer. On your knees,” Felix said.

“Hey.” I looked at him. “I say that.”…

“I can hear you,” Alan stated from nearby.

“Pretend you didn’t,” I called back.

I laughed so hard at that little scene. It showed that Bowen was never afraid to be himself, even at the discomfort of his boyfriend’s teenaged son.

As always, C.S. Poe brings intrigue, humor, sexy scenes and such clear descriptions that I felt like I could understand what it was like to have synesthesia. The characters were wonderfully drawn and clearly, undeniably themselves. And take a good hard look at that beautiful cover, it is so appropriate for this book. It tied it all in together. What a joy to read!

4.5 pieces of eye candy

Tour:

12/18 – Bayou Book Junkie

12/19 – Open Skye Book Reviews

12/20 – Sinfully Gay Romance

12/21 – Love Bytes Reviews

12/22 – Two Chicks Obsessed

 

 

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C.S. Poe is an author of gay mystery, romance, and paranormal books.

She is a reluctant mover and has called many places home in her lifetime. C.S. has lived in New York City, Key West, and Ibaraki, Japan, to name a few. She misses the cleanliness, convenience, and limited-edition gachapon of Japan, but she was never very good at riding bikes to get around.

She has an affinity for all things cute and colorful and a major weakness for toys. C.S. is an avid fan of coffee, reading, and cats. She’s rescued two cats—Milo and Kasper do their best on a daily basis to sidetrack her from work.

C.S. is a member of the International Thriller Writers organization.

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