Guest Post: Magnolia by Kristi Cook (Blog Tour & Giveaway)

 

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Welcome to the Magnolia Blog Tour. I thought this book sounded so sweet and romantic for a young adult. And the setting, Mississippi, just fascinates me even more. I hope to read Magnolia one day. Enjoy the guest post below and don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end.

Magnolia
by Kristi Cook
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Release Date: August 5th 2014
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Young Adult
Find It: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Summary

In Magnolia Branch, Mississippi, the Cafferty and Marsden families are southern royalty. Neighbors since the Civil War, the families have shared vacations, holidays, backyard barbecues, and the overwhelming desire to unite their two clans by marriage. So when a baby boy and girl were born to the families at the same time, the perfect opportunity seemed to have finally arrived.

Jemma Cafferty and Ryder Marsden have no intention of giving in to their parents’ wishes. They’re only seventeen, for goodness’ sake, not to mention that one little problem: They hate each other! Jemma can’t stand Ryder’s nauseating golden-boy persona, and Ryder would like nothing better than to pretend stubborn Jemma doesn’t exist.

But when a violent storm ravages Magnolia Branch, it unearths Jemma’s and Ryder’s true feelings for each other as the two discover that the line between love and hate may be thin enough to risk crossing over.

Favorite romances (YA in general, YA contemporary, all romance? It doesn't matter!) Star-crossed romances? Or even enemy-to-lover romances? Is there a better term for that?

by Kristi Cook 

My all-time favorite enemy-to-lover romance is AIN’T SHE SWEET by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (it’s an adult romance, not YA).  I think it’s one of the most brilliant romances *ever* written!  Basically, Phillips was able to take two very unlikable (at first!) characters (who have a “history” and absolutely hate each other—for good reason, at least on his part!) and turn things around so that by the end of the novel, we not only adore these characters but are desperate to see them together.  The heroine, Sugar Beth Carey, is very flawed.  She’s extremely hard to like…at first.  And when Phillips first introduces the love interest, Colin Byrne, she reveals him in a way that makes him seem so unattractive in both looks and personality.  And yet, by the end of the book, I am completely and totally head-over-heels in love with him.  The book never fails to make me cry, and the romantic tension is absolutely butterflies-in-the-stomach inducing.  Incidentally, it was also set in Mississippi!
 

Author Bio

As a child, Kristi Cook took her nose out of a book only long enough to take a ballet class (or five) each week. Not much has changed since then, except she’s added motherhood to the mix and enjoys penning her own novels as much as reading everybody else’s. A transplanted southern gal, Kristi lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.

That’s the official version–here are some other fun facts:

~ As an undergrad, I majored in History and minored in English at the University of Southern Mississippi. While at Southern Miss, I was a member of Phi Mu sorority, and I was a Dixie Darling. And yep, Brett Favre was our quarterback at the time!

~ I studied American History in grad school at Columbia University. I *love* history, especially the Civil War era (U.S.) and Regency- and Edwardian-era British history.

~ My all-time favorite book *and* movie is GONE WITH THE WIND. My favorite literary characters are Rhett Butler, Atticus Finch, and Mr. Darcy. I kind of want to add Peeta Mellark to that list!

~Weirdly enough (or maybe not so weirdly?) I’m also a big fan of STAR TREK (the original series). I never can remember if I’m supposed to call myself a “Trekkie” or a “Trekker,” though!
 

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