Come Back To Texas
by K.K. Hendin
(Twelve Beats In A Bar #1)
Publication date: August 18th 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New AdultSynopsis:
Everyone thought we’d be the ones who made it through high school. The ones who’d get married and stay married forever. The example of how young love can work.We thought so, too.Too bad life had other plans.It’s been three years since Hayley and Nate broke each other’s hearts. Three years, and a lot has changed. Hayley’s a freshman in Bushwick University, and the only things keeping her sane are stress baking, and her a cappella group, Twelve Beats in a Bar.Nate’s a Marine, stationed in Afghanistan. The only thing that’s keeping him sane is the last picture he has of him and Hayley, and the hope that maybe when the hell of deployment is over, he can find her again and apologize.One explosion will change everything.When a bomb kills all of Nate’s unit, leaving him missing a leg and eyesight in one eye, he’s sent back home to Texas. Texas, where he loved Hayley more than he could possibly imagine ever loving anyone else.With seemingly endless amounts of free time and needing something to distract himself, Nate starts making YouTube videos, imploring Hayley to come back to him, and come back to Texas.Hayley’s life is wrapped around the Beats, making sure she doesn’t flunk out of biology class, and babysitting Ohio’s smallest monster, Brandon. She doesn’t want to admit it, but she misses Nate more than anything.
It’s too bad she doesn’t know just how much he misses her, too…
Purchase:Will be found here come release day: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search- alias%3Daps&field-keywords= Come+Back+To+Texas+Hendin&rh= i%3Aaps%2Ck%3ACome+Back+To+ Texas+Hendin
COME BACK TO TEXAS EXCERPT TWO:
(A flashback to the first time Hayley and Nate met)
He turned around, and his eyes connected to mine. “Hey!” he called. “You!”
My eyes widened. “Me?” I pointed to myself.“Yeah.” He was far enough away that he was calling. “What’s your name?”Why was he talking to me? Was this some kind of joke? I glanced nervously at Josh, trying to see if this was for real. I couldn’t tell.“Hayley,” I said quietly- loud enough for him to hear if he was listening close enough, but quiet enough that I could deny I was talking to him if I needed to.“Hayley!” he called back, grinning. “What’s your stance on ice cream? Positive or negative?”“Why?”“For science.”“What kind of science?”“Does it matter?”“Well, if it’s for curing cancer or something, I’ll tell you the truth. If it’s for something else, I might not.”“You would lie to science?”“You can’t lie to science,” I said. “Science isn’t a person.”“Yeah, it is,” Josh said. “Science is the skeleton in the lab.”“I thought his name was Fred.”“His full name is Fred Skeleton Montgomery FisherHell the Twelfth,” Harrison said. “But I wasn’t actually talking about him. C’mon, Hayley. How do you feel about ice cream?”“If I tell you, will you let me do my homework?”“Deal.”“I feel positive about ice cream.”“Yes!” crowed Harrison. “One more question.”“No.” I tried to bury my grin as I bent my head down to concentrate on my English assignment.“Pleeeeeease, Hayley.”“You said you’d let me do my homework after the ice cream question.”“But science!”“No.”“You’re a tough one,” he said, standing up. Wait. What was going on? Where was he going?The next thing I knew, he was standing above me, blocking the sunlight completely. “You’re blocking my sun,” I said, not looking up from my homework.“What is science going to do without your answer?” he said, leaning down toward me. “It’s going to cry itself to sleep tonight because you don’t care enough to answer the question.”“You’re crazy, you know,” I said, trying not to giggle. “Maybe you should talk to science about your feelings.”“If I’m that crazy, talking to science would only make things worse.”Huh. That actually made sense.I rolled my eyes. “Okay, science’s best friend. What’s the second question?”“How do you feel about Rocky Road ice cream?”“I like it.”“A lot or a little?”“What does it matter?”“Well, those morons over there claim loving Rocky Road is unnatural.”
“You should find new friends,” I said.COME BACK TO TEXAS
Transcript, YouTube video uploaded by user ILoveHayley, entitled ‘Intro’.
-camera, probably a webcam, turns on to show a 20-something year old guy sitting on a hospital bed. His face looks like he’s been through hell, his hair sticking up and a bandage covering part of his forehead and one eye. There is a faint sound of beeping, probably from various machines.
ILH: Hi, Hayley. This is kinda weird, but this is the only thing I can think of. I don’t think if I sent a letter home anyone would send it to you. Can’t blame them for it, but still. So, hi. I’m just going to babble into this webcam, lookin’ like shit and hoping that maybe you’ll see this. So, I kind of got myself into a little trouble while I was… away, which kinda explains the shitty makeup I’m wearing.
ILH *laughs*.
ILH: I miss you, and I’m sorry I fucked up.
ILH *sighs*.
ILH: This video is depressing and fucking morbid. I know you’re not in Texas anymore, but I think you ought to come back and visit. And not just visit Austin like you’re just here for South by Southwest, but actually visit. Here’s one reason why you should come back to Texas: Noreen just told me that at the last county fair she was at, they were selling deep fried ham crackles, which I’m sure they’re not selling wherever you are. Although you probably wouldn’t actually eat them… remember when I dared you to try deep fried butter and you ate nothing but vegetables for a week after? But I can’t dare you to eat deep fried anything if you’re that far away. When Noreen finally lets me out of here, we’re going to find ourselves a county fair and we’ll clog our arteries with deep fried shit. And then figure out how to make deep fried sweet tea, because I’m sure nobody’s done that yet.
ILH *pauses* *makes a face at the screen*
ILH: I’m gonna end this now because I feel like an idiot as is. I miss you, Hayley May. Please come back to Texas.
The screen goes dark.
-End of transcript.
AUTHOR BIO
(No author photo)
KK Hendin's real life ambition is to become a pink fluffy unicorn who dances with rainbows. But the schooling for that is all sorts of complicated, so until that gets sorted out, she'll just write. Preferably things with angst and love. And things that require chocolate.'
She spends way too much time on Twitter (@kkhendin), and rambles on occasion over at www.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com. Author links:
Interview
Interviewer KK: Congratulations on your new book, KK!
Regular KK: Thank you!
Interviewer KK: So, a twelve book series? Are you crazy?
Regular KK: Apparently.
Interviewer KK: Wow. Good luck with that.
Regular KK: Gee, thanks.
Interviewer KK: Where did you get the idea for COME BACK TO TEXAS from? Was it a dream? Were you drunk? Did it really happen? Or did someone give you the idea and you wrote it and now you’re going to split the profits?
Regular KK: Well, there are a few different parts of the story, and they all came to me at different times. While I was awake. And sober. From my own imagination J The first part of the story that came to me was Nate and Hayley’s story, and that was inspired by Bowling For Soup’s song Come Back To Texas. (HEYYYY… WAIT A SECOND.) I loved the idea of a guy using everything but himself to entice a girl to come back to him, and I loved that it was Texas, because Texas. And as usual, the idea kind of started spiraling… and then Nate and Hayley talking ice cream showed up, and there was that. The series concept came while I was watching the Sing-Off. I love a cappella, and I’ve always wanted to write about an a cappella group. When everything clicked into place…. Well, let’s just say I happy danced so much I probably traumatized my neighbors.
Interviewer KK: So, did you have the Bowling For Soup song stuck in your head the whole time?
Regular KK: Not the *whole* time, but a fair amount of it. I listened to a lot of a cappella music and country music while writing CBTT, so some of those songs got stuck in my head. There are worse things that could happen J
Interviewer KK: Country music? Really?
Regular KK: I actively like country music. And when I find country a cappella music, my head about explodes with happiness. I’ve been listening to country music for quite some time, so getting to drop different song references throughout the book was a lot of fun.
Interviewer KK: It’s all just trucks and cows and your girl leaving you, isn’t it?
Regular KK: Nope. Well, there are some songs like that, but not all of them. There’s quite a range of music within country music. And even more of a range in a cappella music. J
Interviewer KK: Well, I’m glad you had a good playlist for this book. I know those are important to you. What was your favorite scene?
Regular KK: WHY MUST YOU ASK HARD QUESTIONS???
Interviewer KK: I *could* have asked you what your favorite book is. You’re lucky I’m asking you easy questions.
Regular KK: Geez. I hate you.
Interviewer KK: That’s professional of you, dear.
Regular KK: Phoof.
Interviewer KK: You didn’t answer the question.
Regular KK: Fine. I don’t have only one though, I have a few. The period scene, the work study scene, and the end. I’m really fond of the end J
Interviewer KK: Okay, real talk—are we going to cry while reading CBTT?
Regular KK: Maybe? I actually cried while editing it. Not while writing it, but editing. And I didn’t cry while writing or editing HEART BREATHS or ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG, so I don’t know what that means.
Interviewer KK: So, what’s up next with you?
Regular KK: More books! And vacation in which I will write all the words!
Interviewer KK: Well, that does sound fun.
Regular KK: It will be!
Interviewer KK: Well, thanks for answering all my questions, KK!
Regular KK: Anytime, Interviewer KK!
Blitz-wide giveaway
Three winners, each one gets their choice of any two signed copies of K.K. Hendin's books (Heart Breaths, Only The Good Die Young, Come Back To Texas) and a guarantee of an ARC of the second book in the TBIAB series when it's available.
Open US only; ends September 1st
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