Look what was in my mailbox!

The new covers are even more gorgeous in person! And I LOVE how they are all going to connect to make one complete picture.

The Ones Who Got Away is already available and The One You Can’t Forget will be here this August and is available for pre-order! (just make sure you select the paperback size not the “mass market” paperback)

About The Ones Who Got Away:

"Absolutely unputdownable! Roni Loren is a new favorite."―COLLEEN HOOVER for The One You Can't Forget

Twelve years ago, tragedy struck a sleepy Texas town. Only a small number of those impacted survived―a group the media dubbed The Ones Who Got Away. This is their story.

THAT NIGHT: He was the star athlete. She was the sharp-tongued Goth girl who never failed to get under his skin. They were never meant to be together, and one terrible night was enough to tear them apart.

NOW: Liv Arias is ready to put the past behind her and move on from the trauma that shaped her young life. But when she runs into her former flame, Finn Dorsey, closure seems harder than ever. Finn almost got Liv killed all those years ago, and their relationship ended in a bitter rift. But when their attempt to say a final goodbye turns into a passionate kiss, Liv and Finn realize that the spark between them still burns as hot as ever.

Theirs was never supposed to be more than a fling, but as Liv and Finn sort through the pain of broken trust and slowly mending hearts, they may come to realize there's something buried deep that's worth fighting for.

By turns heart-wrenching and deeply romantic, this award-winning spicy contemporary romance will challenge the way you see life, love, and happily ever after.

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About The One You Can’t Forget:

Twelve years ago, tragedy struck a sleepy Texas town. Only a small number of those impacted survived―a group the media dubbed The Ones Who Got Away. This is their story.

HER SECRET SHAME: The world knows Rebecca Lindt as a survivor, but that impression would crumble if people discovered her secret…and realized she didn't deserve to be the one who got away. But nothing can change the past, so she's thrown herself into her work. She can't dwell if she never slows down.

HIS UNCERTAIN FUTURE: Wes Garrett is trying to get back on his feet after losing his dream restaurant, his money, and half his damn mind in a vicious divorce. But when he intervenes in a mugging and saves Rebecca―the attorney who helped his ex ruin him―his simple life gets a hell of a lot more complicated.

Their attraction is inconvenient and neither wants more than a fling. But when Rebecca's secret is put at risk, both discover they could lose everything, including the one thing they never realized they needed: each other.

My Favorite Summer Reads of 2019 So Far

Happy July! How’s your summer reading going? Is the pile getting any shorter or is it just growing as you add more books to it?

I’ve been reading like a maniac. This tends to happen when I’m in drafting mode for a book. After I dump all those words onto the page every day, I need my brain refilled with other people’s stories. I read 11 books in June, which is a high count for me, and I’m happy to report that there were some great ones in the mix.

So, I thought it’d be a good time to recommend my favorite summer reads so far. Also, if you like hearing my book recommendations, I encourage you to sign up for my newsletter, which is usually filled with my favorite book recs.

Most Fun to Read

Red, White, & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

I read all kind of books in the summer, so I don’t stick to only “breezy” books for summer, but if there was ever a perfect poolside read, it was this one. So funny and sweet and sexy. I gobbled this one up on my beach vacation and was left with a big smile on my face.

About the book:

A big-hearted romantic comedy in which First Son Alex falls in love with Prince Henry of Wales after an incident of international proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends...

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations.

The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. Alex is busy enough handling his mother’s bloodthirsty opponents and his own political ambitions without an uptight royal slowing him down. But beneath Henry’s Prince Charming veneer, there’s a soft-hearted eccentric with a dry sense of humor and more than one ghost haunting him.

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. And Henry throws everything into question for Alex, an impulsive, charming guy who thought he knew everything: What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?

Most Clever Read

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

I mentioned this one in my last post, but this is a modern Pride and Prejudice retelling. The way the author worked in so many elements of P&P in a completely different set up was so smart and fun. I loved catching all the little references back to the original but loved that I also got a completely fresh story.

About the book:

This version of the Bennet family and Mr. Darcy is one that you have and haven't met before: Liz is a magazine writer in her late thirties who, like her yoga instructor older sister, Jane, lives in New York City. When their father has a health scare, they return to their childhood home in Cincinnati to help and discover that the sprawling Tudor they grew up in is crumbling and the family is in disarray.

Youngest sisters Kitty and Lydia are too busy with their CrossFit workouts and Paleo diets to get jobs. Mary, the middle sister, is earning her third online master's degree and barely leaves her room, except for those mysterious Tuesday-night outings she won't discuss. And Mrs. Bennet has one thing on her mind: how to marry off her daughters, especially as Jane's fortieth birthday fast approaches.

Enter Chip Bingley, a handsome new-in-town doctor who recently appeared on the juggernaut reality TV dating show Eligible. At a Fourth of July barbecue, Chip takes an immediate interest in Jane, but Chip's friend, neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy, reveals himself to Liz to be much less charming. . . . And yet, first impressions can be deceiving.

Best Audiobook for a Nostalgic Summer Road Trip

Best. Movie. Year. Ever.: How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen by Brian Raftery

If you are of my generation or near it, this will be such a fun listen. I was 19 in 1999 and so going back in time and hearing about all the great movies that came out that year wasn’t just a fun nostalgic trip, it was also fascinating. There was so much interesting backstory on each of the movies featured, and it made me want to watch the ones I hadn’t seen and rewatch the ones I had. Be prepared to greatly expand your movie streaming watchlist. Also, I’m sure this reads well in print too, but the audio was fantastic.

About the book:

From a veteran culture writer and modern movie expert, a celebration and analysis of the movies of 1999—arguably the most groundbreaking year in American cinematic history.

In 1999, Hollywood as we know it exploded: Fight Club. The Matrix. Office Space. Election. The Blair Witch Project. The Sixth Sense. Being John Malkovich. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. American Beauty. The Virgin Suicides. Boys Don’t Cry. The Best Man. Three Kings. Magnolia. Those are just some of the landmark titles released in a dizzying movie year, one in which a group of daring filmmakers and performers pushed cinema to new limits—and took audiences along for the ride. Freed from the restraints of budget, technology (or even taste), they produced a slew of classics that took on every topic imaginable, from sex to violence to the end of the world. The result was a highly unruly, deeply influential set of films that would not only change filmmaking, but also give us our first glimpse of the coming twenty-first century. It was a watershed moment that also produced The Sopranos; Apple’s Airport; Wi-Fi; and Netflix’s unlimited DVD rentals.

Best. Movie. Year. Ever. is the story of not just how these movies were made, but how they re-made our own vision of the world. It features more than 130 new and exclusive interviews with such directors and actors as Reese Witherspoon, Edward Norton, Steven Soderbergh, Sofia Coppola, David Fincher, Nia Long, Matthew Broderick, Taye Diggs, M. Night Shyamalan, David O. Russell, James Van Der Beek, Kirsten Dunst, the Blair Witch kids, the Office Space dudes, the guy who played Jar-Jar Binks, and dozens more. It’s the definitive account of a culture-conquering movie year none of us saw coming…and that we may never see again.

Most Life-Affirming and Thought-Provoking

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed by Lori Gottlieb

As some of you know, I was a social worker/therapist before I left to be a full-time writer, so I’m already a psychology nerd. But this book was so much more than a look at psychology. Gottlieb is an experienced writer and storyteller, so what could’ve been dry was a rich and heartfelt page-turner. I got attached to the clients she featured and was invested in her own story as well. I have so many underlined passages in this one, and it made me think deeply about big life issues like mid-life crises and how to deal with fear of death and so much else. This one is sad at parts but ultimately uplifting and life-affirming. I want to put this book in everyone’s hands.

About the book:

From a New York Times best-selling author, psychotherapist, and national advice columnist, a hilarious, thought-provoking, and surprising new book that takes us behind the scenes of a therapist's world--where her patients are looking for answers (and so is she).

One day, Lori Gottlieb is a therapist who helps patients in her Los Angeles practice. The next, a crisis causes her world to come crashing down. Enter Wendell, the quirky but seasoned therapist in whose office she suddenly lands. With his balding head, cardigan, and khakis, he seems to have come straight from Therapist Central Casting. Yet he will turn out to be anything but.

As Gottlieb explores the inner chambers of her patients' lives -- a self-absorbed Hollywood producer, a young newlywed diagnosed with a terminal illness, a senior citizen threatening to end her life on her birthday if nothing gets better, and a twenty-something who can't stop hooking up with the wrong guys -- she finds that the questions they are struggling with are the very ones she is now bringing to Wendell.

With startling wisdom and humor, Gottlieb invites us into her world as both clinician and patient, examining the truths and fictions we tell ourselves and others as we teeter on the tightrope between love and desire, meaning and mortality, guilt and redemption, terror and courage, hope and change.

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone is revolutionary in its candor, offering a deeply personal yet universal tour of our hearts and minds and providing the rarest of gifts: a boldly revealing portrait of what it means to be human, and a disarmingly funny and illuminating account of our own mysterious lives and our power to transform them.

Best Sure Thing

An Offer From a Gentleman and Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn

Julia Quinn is one of those authors I can go to when I need a sure thing, when I don’t want to risk starting a book that might let me down. Her books are always fun, romantic, and bingeable. I know when I pick one up that I won’t be able to put it down until I’m done. And after I read these two, I heard that The Bridgertons series is going to become a TV show via Netflix and Shonda Rimes. SO. EXCITED. I can’t wait to continue on with the series.

About the book:

Will she accept his offer before the clock strikes midnight?

Sophie Beckett never dreamed she'd be able to sneak into Lady Bridgerton's famed masquerade ball—or that "Prince Charming" would be waiting there for her! Though the daughter of an earl, Sophie has been relegated to the role of servant by her disdainful stepmother. But now, spinning in the strong arms of the debonair and devastatingly handsome Benedict Bridgerton, she feels like royalty. Alas, she knows all enchantments must end when the clock strikes midnight.

Who was that extraordinary woman? Ever since that magical night, a radiant vision in silver has blinded Benedict to the attractions of any other—except, perhaps this alluring and oddly familiar beauty dressed in housemaid's garb whom he feels compelled to rescue from a most disagreeable situation. He has sworn to find and wed his mystery miss, but this breathtaking maid makes him weak with wanting her. Yet, if he offers his heart, will Benedict sacrifice his only chance for a fairy tale love?

Best Advice That Most of Us Need to Hear

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily and Amelia Nagoski

I think the title says everything you need to know. Great advice on how to relieve stress and deal with burnout.

About the book:

This groundbreaking book explains why women experience burnout differently than men—and provides a simple, science-based plan to help women minimize stress, manage emotions, and live a more joyful life.

Burnout. Many women in America have experienced it. What’s expected of women and what it’s really like to be a woman in today’s world are two very different things—and women exhaust themselves trying to close the gap between them. How can you “love your body” when every magazine cover has ten diet tips for becoming “your best self”? How do you “lean in” at work when you’re already operating at 110 percent and aren’t recognized for it? How can you live happily and healthily in a sexist world that is constantly telling you you’re too fat, too needy, too noisy, and too selfish?

Sisters Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are here to help end the cycle of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Instead of asking us to ignore the very real obstacles and societal pressures that stand between women and well-being, they explain with compassion and optimism what we’re up against—and show us how to fight back. In these pages you’ll learn

• what you can do to complete the biological stress cycle—and return your body to a state of relaxation
• how to manage the “monitor” in your brain that regulates the emotion of frustration
• how the Bikini Industrial Complex makes it difficult for women to love their bodies—and how to defend yourself against it
• why rest, human connection, and befriending your inner critic are keys to recovering and preventing burnout

With the help of eye-opening science, prescriptive advice, and helpful worksheets and exercises, all women will find something transformative in these pages—and will be empowered to create positive change. Emily and Amelia aren’t here to preach the broad platitudes of expensive self-care or insist that we strive for the impossible goal of “having it all.” Instead, they tell us that we are enough, just as we are—and that wellness, true wellness, is within our reach.

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WRITING WORKSHOP ANNOUNCEMENT

Fellow writers, my How to Write Love Scenes That Readers Won’t Skip class is now open for enrollment! Spaces are limited, so grab a spot if you’re interested. Click the link or the pic for more details.

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What’s been your favorite summer read so far this year?

COVER REVEAL: The One For You (Kincaid's story!)

Kincaid’s cover is here! I love the emotion in it SO MUCH. When you get to read the story, you’ll see how it fits perfectly. And the hero is just how I picture him (except that he wears glasses) and she could totally be Kincaid.

Here’s a little about the book, but this blurb will probably change. This is just the opening paragraphs of chapter one:

The highly-anticipated fourth book in Roni Loren's unforgettable The Ones Who Got Away series.

Sassy Kincaid Breslin finally gets her happy ending...
Kincaid Breslin was the girl who was supposed to die first in the horror movie. In high school, it had been a running joke among her friends during their annual Halloween marathon of scary movies that she'd be the first character to run, screaming for her life. 

She was the dance team captain. The girl with the superstar boyfriend. The non-virgin. 

But when Kincaid's life had turned into an actual horror movie, she'd somehow managed to get out alive. Most of those friends hadn't. Real life horror didn't follow movie rules.

PRE-ORDER NOW! (releases Dec. 31): Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Apple | Kobo (links coming soon)

***NOTE: There’s currently a glitch on Amazon where it’s showing reviews for book 3 on the page. We’re working on getting it fixed, but this book has no reviews yet because review copies haven’t gone out yet.

The One You Fight For is out today!

Happy New Year!

I’m celebrating a new year and a new book! The One You Fight For, book 3 in my The Ones Who Got Away series, is out today!

I’m really excited to share this one with you. It was the hardest book I’ve ever had to write, but I’m really proud of this story. You don’t have to have read the previous two books to jump in here but reading them in order can enhance the experience.

I wrote this one because I really wanted to explore the school shooting tragedy from an angle I (and I think a lot of other people) don’t often think about. What happens to the people in the perpetrators family? How do they go on with their lives after their loved one did something so horrible and so public?

The hero, Shaw Miller, is the older brother of one of the shooters. Taryn, the heroine, survived the shooting but lost her sister in the tragedy. Bringing the two of these two people together was an emotional journey, but I hope you’ll go along with them and see them through to their happy ending.

Here are the official details about the book:

How hard would you fight for the one you love?

Taryn Landry was there that awful night fourteen years ago when Long Acre changed from the name of a town to the title of a national tragedy. Everyone knows she lost her younger sister. No one knows it was her fault. Since then, psychology professor Taryn has dedicated her life’s work to preventing something like that from ever happening again. Falling in love was never part of the plan…

 Shaw Miller has spent more than a decade dealing with the fallout of his brother’s horrific actions. After losing everything—his chance at Olympic gold, his family, almost his sanity—he’s changed his name, his look, and he’s finally starting a new life. As long as he keeps a low profile and his identity secret, everything will be okay, right? 

When the world and everyone you know defines you by one catastrophic tragedy…

How do you find your happy ending?

Buy the book:  Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo | Indiebound | Books-A-Million | Google Play

Also available in audiobook: Recorded Books | Audible

I hope you enjoy this one and have a fantastic 2019 full of happy reading!

The Joy of a Private Reading Journal & How to Make One

If you've followed me for a while, you mostly likely know that I'm a big fan of paper planners and notebooks and such. However, I haven't talked much about one of my most favorite journals I keep--my reading journal.

Now I know what many of you are going to say--why have a journal when you have Goodreads, which is so easy? I'm a huge fan of Goodreads as well and keep track of all my books there. I love doing their annual reading challenge. However, Goodreads is very public. You have to think about your reviews, craft them to be read by others, respond to comments, etc. That's can be a fun thing to do, but it's a different kind of reviewing. It's reviewing for others' benefit, which is great, but what about for your own benefit?

When I read a book, sometimes I just want to scribble down my unedited thoughts. I don't want to worry about being eloquent. And as an author myself, I don't want to have to worry about writing a negative review and then running into the author at the next conference and feeling awkward. So, that's why in 2016, I started my own private reading journal as an accompaniment to my Goodreads account. I wasn't sure I would stick with it (I'm a chronic journal dropper) but omg, it was kind of life-changing for my reading life. I could read a book and then scribble whatever I wanted to in my pretty little journal. Sometimes it could be something as simple as "omg, this was amazing. I'm not buying everything else this author has ever written." or it could be a page long rant about how much I wanted to throw a book against a wall like a long entry I had in 2017 (this book shall remain nameless but it wasn't a romance.) 

Then, at the end of the year, it's so satisfying to flip through the pages and see all the books I've read and track the year that way. It's a great keepsake, and really, I'm already in year 3 in the same journal, so you can get a lot of mileage out of one nice journal. I also record movies I've watched, TV series I've completed, and I keep a page for DNFs (did not finish) books. You can add whatever you want.

So, I encourage you to give one a try for 2018! Below I'm going to show you mine and tell you the products I use, but if you want an easy, pre-made printable for your reading journal, just sign up for my newsletter and you'll get a free romance reading journal download emailed straight to you!

Don't want to make your own? Download my free printable reading journal!

Here's what that one looks like:

Or Create Your Own Reading Journal

My Supplies:

• Medium Dot-Grid Leuchtterm hardcover journal
• Stabilo Colored Pens
• A small ruler or thick cardstock bookmark (If you're in Book of the Month club, their  bookmarks are the perfect size for this and are what I use.)
• Stickers or washi tape if you want to get fancy

Steps:

1. Create a title page.

This isn't necessary but since I keep more than one year in a journal, I like to mark the start of a new year with a title page. I went simple with stickers this year.

2. Create a master list in the front because it's fun to get a quick at-a-glance overview.

Leave yourself a few blank pages if you're a heavy reader. (If you run out of space, you can always "thread" the list by writing on the bottom "continued on page 123) and then finish your list there. I usually leave two pages for this. And you can get as fancy as you want with lettering or design, but my drawing skills are limited so I keep it simple and clean.

3. Decide what extra pages or lists you want to keep and add those.

I like to include a list of movies I've watched, TV series I've completed, and books I DNFed (did not finish.) On the DNF list, instead of doing a full review, I just make a note of why I didn't finish it. On the movie list, I usually put a one line comment about if I liked it or not.

4. Decide on a review format that works for you.

This is where you can get creative. What do you want to record about a book? What details are important to you. You can go as simple or as elaborate as you want. Just make sure that whatever you choose, it's going to be easy for you to stick with. If you're going to do all out calligraphy on every review and draw pictures and add watercolor, you're probably not going to stick with recording every book. Make it EASY for you to use.

Here's what I capture for each book:

• Title
• Author
• Genre
• Date I completed the book
• A star rating
• What format I read the book in (ebook, print, audio, library book, etc.)
• What made me pick up the book in the first place (a review I saw, a sale, a friend told me to read it, whatever.)
• Number of pages (because I like to add up at the end of the year how many pages I've read total)
• Space for my thoughts on the book.

It's sounds like a lot, but it's not at all. It comes out looking like this and usually I can fit two reviews per page. I use the thick bookmark to make the lines and I use pretty colored pens to make it interesting.

And that's it. That's the extent of the set up. Really easy and simple. I know it's simple because I've never stuck with any journal in my life for 3 years and I have with this one. I've capture every single book I've read since I started it. I love it.

So, I'm curious, do any of you have a private reading journal? Anyone hoping to start one?

And in case you missed it, I have a new book out! If you haven't grabbed your copy of The Ones Who Got Away yet, maybe it could be your first entry in your new 2018 reading journal? ;) 

Have a great weekend!