INTERLUDE PRESS TOUR for And It Came to Pass by Laura Stone (author interview,excerpts and giveaway)

And It Came to Pass by Laura Stone
Interlude Press

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AND IT CAME TO PASS by Laura Stone

Today Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is very lucky to be interviewing Laura Stone, author of And It Came to Pass.

Hi Laura, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

Hello, hello! I’m thrilled to be here. Thank you so much for hosting me on my book tour for And It Came to Pass! This is my third novel with Interlude Press, and I just want to gush over the cover for a moment. When the book designer sent me a proof I honestly choked up. It’s everything I could have wanted. Growing up LDS (Mormon), the church’s logo on grey granite was everywhere, on our church buildings and temples, on our books and lesson guides, and the cover serves as a sort of “calling card” for other members or even ex-members to know what the book’s subject is. Sorry for detouring for a bit, but I just wanted to make sure that CB Messer, who designed the cover, gets a little shoutout.

This novel started off almost ten years ago as a short story I’d written for a cousin who was deeply in the closet because of his father. My family is Mormon—Handcart and pioneer Mormon—and the Mormon church is not okay with acting on “homosexual feelings.” (Don’t get me started on their stance regarding transpeople, or I’ll rant and rave.) The idea in the Mormon church is that you must be straight and have children. Or, you know, at least live that way if you’re not. They went so far as to state in November of 2015 that if any members are gay, they can’t act on it. Not ever. And if you have children and are gay, your children cannot be baptized as members of the church unless they renounce you after they become adults.

It’s been pretty devastating for many church members, as you can imagine. Unfortunately, it’s also led to an absolutely frightening spike in LGBTQ suicides, and the youth are particularly vulnerable to a sense of hopelessness and wrongness. Utah currently has four times the number of suicides than anywhere else in the nation, a fact that utterly breaks my heart.

I think we all agree here that love is love is love. It was important for me to write this book to serve as a beacon of hope for the many LGBTQ Mormons out there who have yet to see themselves with a happy ending or even a hopeful one. It was crucial for me to include a family who takes their son’s coming out in stride and stands behind him. As the mother of three LGBT kids, I’ve seen first-hand how damaging it is for the opposite to happen. (And if I may, I’m just so proud of my kids. They’ve given me the courage to come out, myself.)

We need diverse books, as we all know, and that includes books that show that there are those in LGBT communities who have belief in a higher power and who also have full romantic and sexual lives with a partner. It’s not crucial that you’re Mormon to understand and engage with the story, but there’s is a world that often lives in secrecy… in many ways.

I hope you’ll take a chance and follow Adam Young and Brandon Christensen on their journey to becoming their true selves: Young men of God, gay, and in love.

Summary

Adam Young is a devout Mormon whose life is all planned out for him, by both his strict father and by his church. He follows the path they’ve established for him, including going off to his mission to Spain with mission companion Brandon Christensen—a handsome, enthusiastic practitioner of Mormonism. But as their mission progresses, they both realize they have major questions about their faith… and substantial feelings for one another.

AND IT CAME TO PASS ~ EXCERPT

“You’re quiet back there,” the Mission President said, catching Adam’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “Tired?”

“A little,” Adam answered. “Mostly it’s just…” He nodded out the window. “Overwhelmed by it, I guess?”

“It’s a beautiful country. Beautiful people, too. Family-oriented, like we are. These should be two of the best years of your life, son.”

Adam smiled weakly and sank back into his seat as the two men up front continued their discussion all the transfers happening in various districts. He pushed his fist into his churning belly and strained to see the ocean as they wove through traffic.

All of his life, his friends, family and church leaders had spoken of how amazing this moment would be, how life-changing this experience was for those who answered the call to serve. His friends had been laser-focused on how much they were looking forward to becoming missionaries; Adam had always smiled and nodded but never with the same zeal. Over and over returned missionaries spoke with passion about how they were overcome with emotion the first time they heard the thousands of missionaries at the MTC singing “I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” in unison. For Adam, that experience had just been a reminder that there was something wrong with him, because instead of feeling overwhelmed with the Spirit, he’d felt like a failure for not.

* * *

As Christensen walked behind Adam to switch on the clippers, Adam shivered, closed his eyes and tried to stop the repetitive battle between thoughts of how this was wrong versus how desperately he wanted Christensen to get on with it. He wanted something to happen.
All thoughts were driven out when Christensen laid a strong, firm hand between his shoulder blades to hold Adam still while he worked. Everything, every thought and feeling, and heck, the very universe was centered on those minuscule points of contact between Christensen’s hand and Adam’s bared skin. Adam chanced a look after a while but shut his eyes again when he was confronted with his companion squatting directly in front of him, squinting at Adam’s sideburns to ensure they were the same length. Christensen’s breath moved over Adam’s lips, they were so close. He kept his eyes screwed shut; his heart beat a wild tattoo in his aching chest.

Christensen’s hand suddenly cupped the side of Adam’s neck, and, at the shocking sensation of a thumb sweeping softly over Adam’s pulse point, he let out a tiny gasp.
“Oh, my gosh,” Christensen said, his voice worried. “Did I nick you?” “Hmm? Oh, no, no, sorry. It’s fine. You’re fine.” Christensen laughed. His voice was still soft as he teased, “Oh! So, you’re just afraid I’m doing a bad job?” “N-no?” “Then relax. You look like you expect me to punch you.” He patted Adam’s shoulder and gave him a squeeze. “Just need to taper this bit in the back and you’re all done.” Christensen rubbed the palm of his hand over Adam’s head to dislodge any hairs. The friction centered itself in Adam’s skull, radiated in sensual ripples down his spine, then settled low with a pulse to match Adam’s heartbeat when Christensen leaned over to blow a few pale blond strays off the backs of his ears. Adam’s skin stippled with goose bumps. Was he imagining it? Was Christensen making an extra effort to get things just right, making sure every possible stray hair was carefully blown away or brushed off his neck and shoulders with the flat of his hand, merely in order to keep touching Adam? Or did Adam just hope so?

* * *

They pulled up to a low-slung, nondescript building in what appeared to be the business district. The Mormon Church usually bought apartment buildings in lower-rent areas for their missionaries to live in, so it was about what Adam had expected. It was nicer than some of the run-down apartment buildings in the older part of Provo, for sure. He climbed out with his backpack and duffel bag and blinked up at the bright blue sky; the spring sun was warm on his face. The driver grabbed Adam’s rolling suitcase from the trunk, handed it off and gave him a nod and a “buena suerte” before climbing back in the vehicle.

He’d always envisioned traveling his mission city on a bike—the stereotypical Mormon Missionary image—but they didn’t ride bikes in the Barcelona mission. A bicycle was too dangerous and cumbersome. He and his companion would walk almost everywhere, and he’d been told to be prepared to walk up to twelve miles a day, all in their suits and dress shoes.

The Mission President shook his hand curbside. “Well, welcome to Barcelona. Christensen will fill you in. We’ll touch base tonight, Elder. Do your best.”

“Yes, sir.”

Adam watched as the car pulled away, then jostled his gear in his arms just as the front door swung open, revealing a large, well-formed young man. He was about the same muscular build as Adam’s six-foot-two inches, except instead of Adam’s baby-fine blond hair and skin so fair his cheeks were perpetually ruddy, the new guy had inky black hair and deeply tanned skin. He almost looked Spanish himself. He was visually arresting and had an aura of confidence; his resting face radiated joy and optimism instead of the sanctimonious authoritarianism Adam had anticipated.
“¡Holá!” the young man said with a bright grin on his face that made Adam’s stomach twist in a completely new way. It was all so unexpected to find… this waiting for him. Adam had imagined a younger version of his father, a ham-fisted tyrant with the aura of perfect obedience pouring off him in waves—a far cry from this young man’s happy, relaxed charm.

“So, I’m Elder Christensen. Eh, but you can call me Brandon when it’s just us.” Christensen took Adam’s duffel, hoisting it with ease, and they shook hands. “You’re Young, right?” Adam found himself tongue-tied, then managed to blurt, “Um, yeah. Yes.” When their hands met, an electric shock ran up his arm and straight to his fast-beating heart. He dropped Christensen’s hand and fumbled for his other bag. Christensen jerked his head toward the building and led the way through the interior courtyard to their apartment.

Blinking away the after-image of his new companion’s smile, Adam snapped his eyes to just over Christensen’s shoulder. This had happened once before, this intense reaction to another person. Adam, after careful and fearful prayer had attributed it to a prompting from the Spirit, to the strength of the other man’s faith making itself manifest. His prayer and scripture study led him to understand that it was how God helped His followers find each other. Church history was full of stories like that. In fact, it was how people described their first meeting with Joseph Smith, the Church’s founder and prophet.

* * *

And It Came to Pass will be published by Interlude Press on May 18, 2017. Connect with author Laura Stone at laura-stone.com; on Twitter @StoneyBoBoney; and on Facebook at facebook.com/9LauraStone.

About the Author

Laura Stone, a descendant of pioneer polygamists from the early days of the Mormon Church and a former Gospel Doctrine teacher, now keeps busy as a media blogger, ghostwriter and novelist when she’s not raising her youngest child.

While the majority of her family still lives in Utah, she resides in Texas because it’s where the good tamales are. Her first novel, The Bones of You, was published by Interlude Press in 2014 and was named a finalist for a Foreword Reviews IndieFab Book of the Year Award. Her second novel, Bitter Springs, was published by Interlude Press in 2015.

* * *

And It Came to Pass will be published by Interlude Press on May 18, 2017. Connect with author Laura Stone at laura-stone.com; on Twitter @StoneyBoBoney; and on Facebook at facebook.com/9LauraStone.

Giveaway

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Coffee Sip and Book Break with Bitter Springs by Laura Stone (author and character interview, excerpt and contest)

Bitter Springs by Laura Stone
Release Date: December 3, 2015

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: Collen M. Good

Today we’re happy to be interviewing Laura Stone, author of BITTER SPRINGS, here at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words. Hi Laura, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book. I see you also brought along a character to interview. Welcome, Hank!

Oh my goodness, thanks for having me! I’m a single mother of three, and with the older two off to college, I have a bit more breathing room to write. BITTER SPRINGS is both my attempt to tackle a challenge—I’d never been invested in Western literature, honestly—and to write a love-letter to my home state, Texas. I’m a desert gal at heart, and nothing makes me happier than being out in the dry lonesome prairie or desert for days on end. It’s so fantastic.

And here is Hank to answer some questions as well:

Hank, what do you find attractive in a man?
How much print space can I have? Lord, but I love men. First and foremost, give me a kind man. I’m pretty tired of giving rude, hateful, arrogant men a pass by claiming they’re “complicated”. Nope, they’re self-absorbed. Take it from me, any younguns reading along: You can tell a lot about a man by the way he treats an animal or someone who works for him. Family should mean something. Creatures in your care should be treated with respect. If a man can’t do that, then I don’t think he’s much of anything, especially a man. You didn’t hear this from me, but hair you can tug on is pretty nice, too.

The first thing that went through your head when you saw Renaldo?
“Well, that doesn’t look like the runt of the litter.”

Do you think you’ll insist the author visits you again?
I don’t believe too much on insisting, but I’ll just say she’s barely scratched the surface.

Before you met Renaldo, what was your ideal man?
A family man. One who wasn’t afraid of working hard and who could appreciate the value in it. A man who could understand when it was time to be quiet, and maybe when they needed to draw me out of my head a little. I like a man with a passion for living, one who understands how you can’t take anything for granted. Life’s too precious for that.

You’re going out for dinner. What’s your favorite food?
Not too many opportunities for eating beyond Vista Verde, so I better just say anything Señora Valle Santos is cooking. That woman can work magic. Pretty fortunate that she likes cooking for me, I suppose, because Lord know I like eating it.

Blurb

In 1870s Texas, Renaldo Valle Santos, the youngest son of a large and traditional family, has been sent to train with Henry “Hank” Burnett, a freed slave and talented mesteñero—or horse- catcher—so he may continue the family horse trade. Bitter Springs is a sweeping epic that takes themes from traditional Mexican literature and Old Westerns to tell the story of a man coming into his own and realizing his destiny lies in the wild open spaces with the man who loves him, far from expectations of society.

Pages or Words: 302 pages
Categories: Fiction, Gay Fiction, Historical, M/M Romance, Romance, Western/Cowboy

Excerpt

The day before the wedding, a visitor arrived at Vista Verde an entire week early. Renaldo, ready to wash up and eat dinner after a long, hard day—his side ached from roping cattle as a part of Paloma’s training, his hands were full of bits of raw hemp from the stock lassos, and one of the calves had kicked him high on the thigh—walked back from the barn using his hat to slap at the dust on his chest and thighs. He noticed a tall, striking young black man standing at the door to their home speaking with their father. They didn’t see many black men this far from civilization—with the Civil War ending so recently, many were staying close to where they’d been forced to live, were heading far out west where there were more opportunities to make a new life or were going north seeking less hostile society. Who he could be?

He was about as tall as Renaldo, maybe an inch or two more, broad-shouldered and whip-thin, dressed in well-worn, simple clothes. He had a close-cropped beard, but instead of hiding the shape of his jaw, it accented its sharpness. His light eyes, almost luminescent even at this distance and glowing like amber, were ringed with thick lashes, nearly to the point of being girlish, but there was nothing feminine about the man. With his lean but strong-looking chest, muscular arms and curved backside, he managed to carry himself with a confident air while standing idly; his body was still, but in a way that made Renaldo think of a raptor sitting on an abutment, watching and waiting.

“Oh, here he is,” Estebán said, motioning for Renaldo to join them, saying, “Señor Burnett, allow me to introduce to you my son, Renaldo.”

This? This was the legendary mesteñero, Henry Burnett? He couldn’t be much older than Renaldo, who realized his jaw had dropped. He closed his mouth quickly and moved toward them as if drawn like metal shavings to a magnet.

Burnett, however, looked amused, as the edge of his mouth quirked up. “Pleased to meet you,” he said, his voice deep and husky.

Renaldo couldn’t look away, shocked that his expectations couldn’t have been more wrong. This was a vibrant young man. But… this was the man he would be alone with on the prairie for months? His stomach twisted at that thought, and at how unexpected it all was, causing his heart to race and face flush. Yes, it was unexpected. That Burnett had come so much sooner than they’d expected had to be why Renaldo couldn’t find his voice and felt so upended.

“Mijo,” his father said sharply.

Renaldo shook himself slightly, and then nodded, saying, “Señor Burnett, it’s very good to meet you, finally. Please forgive my shock, as I don’t believe we expected you so soon.”

Burnett laughed, a rolling, melodious sound, and replied, “Well, then just imagine my shock when I come here all the way from Nacogdoches expecting one Valle man, only to find him gone and you in his place.” He smiled. “Your padre seems to think you’re a better match, so that works for me.”

That smile, bright teeth framed by full lips, eyes crinkled at the corners, helped lessen some of Renaldo’s shock and, if he was being honest, some of the worry that he carried about spending a lot of time with a hard, taciturn man Renaldo knew he would be unable to please. At the realization that this was who he would be with on the plains, just the two of them with no one else for weeks on end, Renaldo became excited, finally looking forward to this task. A young man with an infectious grin wouldn’t be such a chore to be stuck with after all.

Buy the book:

Interlude Press Web Store: store.interludepress.com
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1Ybi7Ab
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bitter-springs-laura-stone/1122753096?ean=2940152391107
Apple iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/bitter-springs/id1046777460?mt=11
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/582322

Meet the author:

Laura Stone is a born and bred Texan, but don’t hold that against her. She’s a former comedian, actress and Master Gardener, and currently keeps busy as a media blogger, ghostwriter and novelist when not busy raising her three children. They’re not fully raised, but then, neither is she.

She lives in Texas as proof that it’s not completely populated by hard-line right-wingers. And because that’s where the good tamales are. Her first novel, The Bones of You, was published by Interlude Press in 2014 and was named a finalist for two Foreword Reviews IndieFab Book of the Year Award. Laura Stone at Laura-Stone.com and on Facebook at facebook.com/9LauraStone

Where to find the author:

Facebook: facebook.com/9LauraStone

Twitter: @stoneyboboney

Tour Dates & Stops:

3-Dec: MM Good Book Reviews, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Velvet Panic, It’s Raining Men, Hearts on Fire

4-Dec: Vampires, Werewolves, and Fairies, Oh My, Gay Book Reviews, Divine Magazine

7-Dec: Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy, Unquietly Me, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Bayou Book Junkie

8-Dec: Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves, My Fiction Nook

9-Dec: Elin Gregory, TTC Books and More

10-Dec: Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Michael Mandrake, Love Bytes

11-Dec: Inked Rainbow Reads, Jessie G. Books

14-Dec: Dawn’s Reading Nook, QUEERcentric Books, Happily Ever Chapter

15-Dec: Cheekypee Reads and Reviews, Emotion in Motion

16-Dec: BFD Book Blog, Prism Book Alliance

Giveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: Grand Prize: $25 Interlude Press Gift Card, First Prize: One of five e-copies of ‘Bitter Springs’. Must be 18 years of age or older. Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.

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And It Came to Pass by Laura Stone Interlude Press

About the Author

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Bitter Springs by Laura Stone Release Date: December 3, 2015

Goodreads Link Publisher: Interlude Press Cover Artist: Collen M. Good

Blurb

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And It Came to Pass by Laura Stone
Interlude Press

Bitter Springs by Laura Stone
Release Date: December 3, 2015

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: Collen M. Good