The Seduction of Esther by Guest Jennifer Wilck

I'm skipping my usual Monday gab-about post this week so that I can showcase a special guest--and a $25 Amazon giveaway!

Jennifer Wilck is touring her release THE SEDUCTION OF ESTHER until June 28. She will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card and chocolate to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. The more times you comment on stops along her tour, the better your chances! Her tour schedule/links can be found here.

The Seduction of Esther

by Jennifer Wilck

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 Samara Goldberg has a problem even the most beautiful singing voice can’t fix. She’s a walking disaster, especially when she’s around handsome men. To make matters worse, she’s in desperate need of someone to play the character of Mordecai for the Purim spiel she’s producing and the new congregant, Nathaniel Abramson, is a perfect fit. Nathaniel is a divorced dad who’s recovering from the biggest public scandal of his life. The last thing he needs is a relationship with the choir director at his new synagogue, who also happens to be playing the lead female role of Esther in the very play he’s been coerced into joining.

Woven around the Jewish holiday of Purim, The Seduction of Esther is a story of two people whose lives mirror the plot of the Purim story. Like Esther, who had to hide her Jewish identity from the King of Persia, Samara and Nathaniel are hiding key pieces of themselves. Evil Haman wanted to destroy the Jews, and the nasty Josh will do anything to keep Samara and Nathaniel apart. Will their love survive, like the Jewish people in Shushan, Persia, or will their fear keep them apart?

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EXCERPT:

She unlocked the door, the cold handle a relief after the warmth of her embarrassment, and led him inside. From the closet, she pulled out a bottle of club soda and a handkerchief. She thrust them at him.

“Here, you should probably do this. I’ll only make more of a mess.”

He chuckled and she bit the inside of her lip.

He thought this was funny? She’d just about ruined his shirt and tie, made a spectacle out of him his first time at the temple, and he laughed? He wouldn’t laugh when he realized who she was.

She was the rude lady who’d made a mess and left him to clean it up.

No, he would not laugh about it.

She stared at the corner of the room where the carpet met the wall and waited for him to finish. A quick peek out of the corner of her eye and she saw him dab the handkerchief on his shirt. The shirt stuck to his body and accentuated every pectoral muscle.

Her head whipped toward him and she could almost predict her next clumsy accident—she’d fall into him and feel his hard body against hers. She’d knock something on top of him and stroke his face in comfort. She’d trip him and wrap her arms around him to catch him.

Her face heated all over again. No way was she going near him. Not a chance. Any more accidents and he’d remember her. No matter how her fingers itched to trace those muscles beneath his soaked shirt, or slip beneath his sport jacket and loosen his tie. She planted her feet as if they were encased in cement, folded her arms around her waist and hummed as she waited for him to finish.

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About Jennifer Wilck:

When I was a little girl and couldn’t fall asleep, my mother would tell me to make up a story. Pretty soon, my head was filled with these stories and the characters that populated them. Each character had a specific personality, a list of likes and dislikes, and sometimes, even a specific accent or dialect. Even as an adult, I think about the characters and stories at night before I fall asleep, or in the car on my way to or from one of my daughters’ numerous activities (hey, anything that will drown out their music is a good thing).

One day, I started writing them down (it was either that or checking into the local mental hospital—the computer was way less scary) and five years later, I’ve gotten two book contracts from Whiskey Creek Press. A Heart of Little Faith came out in June; Skin Deep is coming out in November.

In the real world, I’m the mother of two amazing daughters and wife of one of the smartest men I know. I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, reading, traveling and watching TV. In between chauffeuring my daughters to after-school activities that require an Excel spreadsheet to be kept straight, I serve on our Temple Board, train the dog we adopted from a local shelter, and cook dinners that fit the needs of four very different appetites. I also write freelance articles for magazines, newspapers, and edit newsletters.

When all of that gets overwhelming, I retreat to my computer, where I write stories that let me escape from reality. In my made-up world, the heroines are always smart, sassy and independent. The heroes are handsome and strong with just a touch of vulnerability. If I don’t like a character, I can delete him or her; if something doesn’t work, I can rewrite it. It’s very satisfying to be in control of at least one part of my life. My inspiration comes from watching the people around me and fantasizing about how I’d do things differently.

I can be reached at www.jenniferwilck.com or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Wilck/201342863240160. I tweet at @JWilck, my blog (Fried Oreos) is www.jenniferwilck.wordpress.com and I contribute to Heroines With Hearts at www.heroineswithhearts.blogspot.com.

My books can be purchased through Rebel Ink Press,

Whiskey CreekPress, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.