Beck Justice knows holiday sparkle and snappy carols only mask December’s cruel, black heart. He learned that lesson even before he landed on the streets eight years ago, and his recent step up to a tiny apartment and a busker’s permit for Seattle’s Pike Place Market has done nothing to change his mind. But one day in the market, Oleg Abramov joins his ethereal voice to Beck’s guitar, and Beck glimpses light in his bleak, dark winter.
Oleg, lucky to have a large and loving family, believes Beck could be the man to fill the void that nevertheless remains in his life. The two men step out on a path toward love, but it proves as slippery as Seattle’s icy streets. Just when they get close, a misunderstanding shatters their hopes. Light and harmony are still within reach, but only if they choose to believe, risk their hearts, and trust.
Title: Falling Snow on Snow
Author: Lou Sylvre
Release Date: December 23, 2016
Category: Contemporary, Holiday
Pages: TBD (Novella)
Amazon
ARe
Dreamspinner Press
Beck and Oleg Quickie Author Interview
Hi! Lou Sylvre here, appearing for the very first time on Two Chicks Obsessed with Books and Eye Candy. Gotta love the blog name, and thank you much, TCO, for lending me some space. Okay, for my post today, I decided to answer the questions Beck Justice and Oleg Abramov, the (eventually) loving couple from Falling Snow on Snow, have been dying to ask me ever since they made me tell their story.
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First, from Beck: Why on earth did you have me feeding a crow?
Well, Beck, it’s like this. I love crows. And besides that, you are a really goodhearted guy, but I wasn’t sure you knew it. And if you didn’t know, readers might not know either. So when I saw King Coal (that poor old, damaged crow) trying to survive on the roof of your building, I figured if I made you aware, you’d start feeding him (which you did, all by yourself), and if you were feeding an old crow—and also providing a home for Parcheesi, the formerly homeless cat—it would start to clear a path to your heart, by which a yummy, sweet guy like Oleg could make his way into your affections. And it worked.
Oleg asks: Why is my voice a high alto?
Simple, dear Oleg. Because it’s beautiful, and so are you. And also, I heard your song echoing through the halls of the market in a dream. Thanks for that, by the way.
Beck again: I don’t understand John Gillette, my stepdad. Can you help me out, here?
Of course. See, here’s the thing, Beck. Every single person on the planet has the capacity for cruelty. Yes, even children, grandmothers, and dog-lovers. Stepdads are no worse or better than any other. Sometimes, when people endure horror, such as John endured at war, it wounds them in such a way that, when one more bad thing tips the scales, they can’t dredge up the goodness to deny that cruel streak. It’s a terrible thing. People like the boy you were when John put you out on the streets get hurt in awful ways. In one sense it’s unforgiveable. But cruelty is a double-edged blade—cuts both ways. When a person hurts another the way John did you, it drains them of their humanity, and their wounds fester. In John’s case, he became a hopeless alcoholic, and ended up in dire straits. But when you gave yourself permission to be compassionate toward him instead of returning cruelty for cruelty, you helped heal the wound of your own trauma, and you gave John back a little of the soul he’d sacrificed. Good on you. Of course, I hadn’t thought that through when I wrote it. I was just telling your story and John was in it. But it makes sense, don’t you think?
After giving Beck a comforting hug, Oleg asks: What’s your favorite place to get Pelmeni?
Ah, that’s easy. There’s a little shop downtown Olympia, Washington, called Rush In Dumplings. (Get it?) Love their Siberian Classic.
Oleg again: Okay, that was an easy one. How about this: How did you find me? I mean of all the characters out there you could have paired up with Beck, why me, a Russian immigrant with a big, loving family, who couldn’t figure out how to find the right man?
I didn’t! You found me. Or maybe I should say you found Beck. When I had poor, scrooge-like Beck stuck in the Market in Seattle playing Christmas songs he hated for tips, I could only think of two things that would change his perspective. One was snow, the other was a fine man whose music was a match for Beck’s own. You auditioned. Don’t you remember? After that, nobody else would do.
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So, that’s it, no more questions from Beck and Oleg. Readers, remember to enter the giveaway, and also I hope you’ll join me for the other stops on the tour—different kinds of interviews, an epic playlist, a day in Seattle, and more!
Thank you for reading!
Tour Schedule:
- December 16 – MM Good Book Reviews (An interview with Beck Justice.)
- December 21 – Oh My Shelves (A Little Love for Oleg Abramov.)
- December 23 – Prism Book Alliance (An author interview)
- December 23 – Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words (An exclusive excerpt)
- December 27 – Two Chicks Obsessed with Books and Eye Candy (Oleg and Beck interview the author!)
- December 28 – Love Bytes
- December 29 – Alpha Book Reviews (And epic playlist)
- December 30 – Dreamspinner Press Blog
- December 31 – Aisling Mancy
Lou Sylvre lives and writes on the rainy side of Washington State, penning mostly suspense/romance novels because she can’t resist giving her characters hard times but good love. Her personal assistant is Boudreau, a large cat who never outgrew his kitten meow, and he makes a point of letting her know when she’s taken a plot tangent too far. Apparently an English major, he helps a lot, but Lou refuses to put his name on the byline. (Boudreau invites readers to give their feedback as well!) When Lou isn’t writing, she’s reading fiction from nearly every genre, romance in all its tints and shades, and the occasional book about history, physics, or police procedure. Not zombies, though—she avoids zombies like the plague unless they have a great sense of humor. She plays guitar (mostly where people can’t hear her) and she loves to sing. She’s most often smiling and laughs too much, some say. Among other things and in no particular order, she loves her family, her friends, the aforementioned Boudreau, his sister George, and their little brother Nibbles, a chihuahua named Joe, a dachshund named Chloe, and a slew of chihuahua/dachshund puppies. She takes pleasure in coffee, chocolate, sunshine, gardens, wild roses, and every beautiful thing in the world.
Blog: http://www.sylvre.rainbow-gate.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLouSylvre
Twitter: @sylvre (https://twitter.com/Sylvre)
E-mail: lou.sylvre@gmail.com
Thank you for hosting me!