THAT ONE SUMMER by C.J. Duggan: Blog Tour & Review

That One Summer (Summer #3)

by C.J. Duggan

Release Date: 12/17/13

Summary from Goodreads:

Loving Chris Henderson would be wrong. Diabolically disastrous. I mean, what is there about him to love? He’s moody, bossy, brooding, a control freak, and that’s on a good day … but there was one achingly obvious fact that haunted my every thought, every minute of every day …

He sure could kiss.

As the countdown to the new millennium begins, there is one thing everyone agrees on: no one wants to be in Onslow for New Year’s Eve.

So that can only mean one thing: road trip!

No longer the mousey, invisible, shy girl from years ago, Tammy Maskala is finally making up for all those lost summers. A new year with new friends, which astoundingly includes the bossy boy behind the bar, Chris Henderson.

She likes her new friends (at least most of them), so why does she secretly feel so out of place?

After chickening out on the trip, a last-minute change of heart sees Tammy racing to the Onslow Hotel, fearing she’s missed her chance for a ride. The last thing she expected to meet was a less-than-happy Onslow Boy leaning against his black panel van.

Now the countdown begins to reach the others at Point Shank before the party is over and the new year has begun. Alone in a car with only the infuriating Chris Henderson, Tammy can’t help but feel this is a disastrous start to what could have been a great adventure. But when the awkward road trip takes an unexpected turn, Tammy soon discovers that the way her traitorous heart feels about Chris is the biggest disaster of all.

Fogged up windows, moonlight swimming, bad karaoke and unearthed secrets; after this one summer nothing will ever be the same again.

Review:

I fell in love with the Onslow boys immediately in The Boys of Summer, and I can't seem to keep my hands off every time C.J. Duggan releases another book in this series. My favorite character? CHRIS HENDERSON! He's always been so elusive and mysterious with his serious manner and mother-hen-like approach to all the others in the group. So when I realized that the next book in the series was going to center around Chris, I about flipped my lid.

As usual, That One Summer is told through the eyes of the female character; in this case Tammy Maskala. Just like Chris, she's been somewhat of a mystery character within the series. So I was pretty excited to delve into her character as well. She's pretty mousy, and insecure and when you put Tammy and Chris in a van alone on a road trip... well, I wasn't sure what to expect. 

These two characters were so perfect together! Duggan did a wonderful job bringing both of them to life and making them and their interactions realistic. In fact, she excels at this in all her books. Through a multitude of misunderstandings, insecurities, and mishaps the relationship between these two overly serious, yet still fun-loving characters grows beautifully.

If you've read the other books in this serious, you will fall in love with this Onslow boy just as much as the rest. Even more so! If you haven't read The Boys of Summer and An Endless Summer (Books 1 & 2), I highly recommend them. These books are amazing coming-of-age stories filled with humor, love and growth. You'll watch both the characters and their relationships develop before your eyes and you fall more and more in love with the Onslow boys and the girls who love them with every turn of the page.

What's next in the Summer Series?

Ringer (pre-order on itunes here)

Forever Summer (pre-order on itunes here)

The Summer Series on Goodreads:

The Boys of Summer

An Endless Summer

Ringer (pre-order on itunes here)

Forever Summer (pre-order on itunes here)

 Purchase links and newsletter subscription:

http://www.cjdugganbooks.com/books.html

About the Author

C.J Duggan is a Number One Best Selling Australian Author who lives with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia. When she isn’t writing books about swoony boys and 90’s pop culture you will find her renovating her hundred-year-old Victorian homestead or annoying her local travel agent for a quote to escape the chaos.

The Boys of Summer is Book One in her highly successful Mature Young Adult Romance Series.

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C.J’s Street Team: http://www.cjdugganbooks.com/street-team.html

***GIVEAWAY***

1 winner will get ebooks of Book 1-3 of the Summer series (INT)

 RULES AND RESTRICTIONS: 

Contest is void where prohibited. Entrants must be 13 or else have parent or guardian’s permission to enter. Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond  or another winner’s name will be selected. Winning entries will be verified for authenticity.

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Release Day: THAT ONE SUMMER by C.J. Duggan

Book: That One Summer

Author: C.J. Duggan

Genre: New Adult Romance

Release Date: December 17, 2013

Hosted by: Book Enthusiast Promotions

Loving Chris Henderson would be wrong. Diabolically disastrous. I mean, what is there about him to love? He’s moody, bossy, brooding, a control freak, and that’s on a good day … but there was one achingly obvious fact that haunted my every thought, every minute of every day …

He sure could kiss.

As the countdown to the new millennium begins, there is one thing everyone agrees on: no one wants to be in Onslow for New Year’s Eve.

So that can only mean one thing: road trip!

No longer the mousey, invisible, shy girl from years ago, Tammy Maskala is finally making up for all those lost summers. A new year with new friends, which astoundingly includes the bossy boy behind the bar, Chris Henderson.

She likes her new friends (at least most of them), so why does she secretly feel so out of place?

After chickening out on the trip, a last-minute change of heart sees Tammy racing to the Onslow Hotel, fearing she’s missed her chance for a ride. The last thing she expected to meet was a less-than-happy Onslow Boy leaning against his black panel van.

Now the countdown begins to reach the others at Point Shank before the party is over and the new year has begun. Alone in a car with only the infuriating Chris Henderson, Tammy can’t help but feel this is a disastrous start to what could have been a great adventure. But when the awkward road trip takes an unexpected turn, Tammy soon discovers that the way her traitorous heart feels about Chris is the biggest disaster of all.

Fogged up windows, moonlight swimming, bad karaoke and unearthed secrets; after this one summer nothing will ever be the same again.

Warning: sexual references and occasional coarse language.

“So what do you think?” Chris stood with his elbow leaning casually on the open door of his jet black panel van. He looked up at me expectantly. “Pretty sweet ride, huh?” “If you’re a serial killer,” I said, cautiously descending the steps. Chris’s head snapped around with surprise, his eyes almost as dark as the van itself. He slammed the car door and folded his arms, glowering at me as I approached. “I’ll have you know, Toby and I have spent the better part of six months fixing this old girl up.” I wrinkled my nose. “Really?” “It’s got a 308 and a four barrel carby.” “Why, it could be grease lightning,” I smirked. I didn’t think a death stare could vary in so many ways, but Chris had mastered a variety of pissed-off stares like no other. The one he was now casting me was a whole new level of anger. Oops. I cleared my throat and looked away, suddenly super aware that the last thing I should do was alienate my ride, but then the thought did occur to me: did I want to be trapped in a car with Chris Henderson for three days? Three long, insufferable days – could I subject myself to any more death stares, sneers, scoffs and deep sighs? Maybe I would be doing myself a favour if I gave him good reason to leave me behind. Before I fully acclimated to the idea, my attention was snapped back to the present and the duffle bag that landed at my feet. I frowned toward the verandah where Chris had moved and was readying himself to turf my other bag down. “Hey! Watch it,” I snapped. “You might break something.” It was a possibility, though I didn’t know exactly what. Maybe Mum had slipped in a crockery set? Who could honestly guess? “Let me guess,” Chris said with a smirk as he slung my beach bag over his shoulder and trotted down the steps. “Hairdryer?” He threw a cocky smile and grazed my shoulder as he passed, heading for the van. My eyes burned into his back as he opened the double doors to chuck in my bag. He turned to me expectantly, his hand out for me to pass him the duffle. I snatched it up, trying not to let the strain of its weight show as I lugged it over and carefully placed it into the back. I attempted to, anyway. With a rather inelegant lack of grace, I hitched it up onto my knee, trying to be all cool and casual, as if I was totally in control … I so wasn’t. Chris plucked it from me as if the bag weighed nothing and turfed it into the back. “Careful!” “Relax, it landed on the mattress.” Mattress? I peered into the back. Sure enough, a mattress lined the whole floor up to the front bucket seats. The windows were blacked out and the inside walls were lined with black carpet. Oh, ick. All it needed was some leopard-print cushions and a disco ball. It would seem that black was a common theme throughout Chris’s van, and the colour matched his mood.
Chris slammed the back shut. Viewing time was over.
I half expected him to say, “Let’s get this show on the road,” or “We’re burning daylight,” but instead I got a rather lacklustre, “Get in.”Yep! Three long days.

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C.J Duggan is a Number One Best Selling Australian Author who lives with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia.For more on C.J and her highly successful ‘Summer Series’, visit www.cjdugganbooks.com

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BLOG TOUR: An Endless Summer by C.J. Duggan

Welcome to the Living Fictitiously stop on the An Endless Summer blog tour hosted by YA Bound Book Tours.  Click HERE to see the full blog tour schedule!

An Endless Summer (Summer #2)

by C.J. Duggan

Release Date: 07/17/13

Summary from Goodreads:

Sean looked out over the lake, squinting against the sunlight. He turned to me, his expression sobering as his eyes flicked over my face in a silent study.“Come on Amy, I saved you once, I’ll save you again.”
I met his stare unflinchingly. “I don’t need saving.”
A wicked grin formed slowly. “Don’t you?”

After a rebellious summer night that almost claimed her life, Amy Henderson – the Onslow publican’s only daughter – is sent away to suffer a fate far worse than any other punishment: Boarding School.

Three years on, a now nineteen-year-old Amy returns to Onslow for the summer. What once was a cauldron of activity with live bands, hot meals and cold beers, the Onslow Hotel now lies dark, deserted and depressing. All fond childhood memories of loitering on the hotel stairs and eavesdropping on customers’ colourful conversations are in the distant past.

How had her dad let it come to this?

With the new threat of putting the Onslow up for sale, Amy reluctantly turns to a local tradesman for help: Sean Murphy, the very same Onslow boy who saved her life all those years ago. With his help and that of some old friends, the task is clear: spend the summer building the hotel back up to its former glory or lose it for good.

In an endless summer, Amy soon realises that sometimes in order to save your future, you have to face your past, even if it’s in the form of a smug, gorgeous Onslow boy.

Review:
I love the SUMMER series! This is a fabulous follow up to book 1, The Boys of Summer, and it makes me want to take a trip down under. This is definitely an Australian beauty of a book. Does that sound corny? I don't care! I absolutely love every single one of C.J.'s characters. They are heartfelt and realistic and relatable.

An Endless Summer follows Amy, who was a minor character in book 1, and this story happens about 4 years after The Boys of Summer. All the wonderful characters from book 1 are back, and Sean Murphy, who was probably my favorite minor character from book 1, plays the leading heart throb in this exciting and romantically suspenseful  follow up. The friendships, relationships, and overall heart of this book will amaze you and you will be completely draw in to the life that these characters live. Trust me, you will fall in love with each of them and beg for more.

You can read An Endless Summer without having read The Boys of Summer, but book one introduces the reader to the group dubbed "The Onslow Boys" and in my opinion, you will totally be missing out if you don't read Toby and Tess's story. I'm certainly looking forward to book 3! I can't wait to see who this one will follow. I have some pretty high hopes, and so far C.J. hasn't let me down one bit. So check it out guys! You won't be sorry!

BUY AN ENDLESS SUMMER

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Have you read Book 1 in the SUMMER series, The Boys of Summer? 

Click here to check out my review.

The Boys of Summer is on sale this week only for $.99!  Get your copy now!

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About the Author:

C.J Duggan is an Australian author who lives with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia.
The Boys of Summer is Book One in her Mature Young Adult Romance Series.

Author Links:

   

***GIVEAWAY***

1 Signed paperback copy of either The Boys of Summer or An Endless Summer (INT) and 5 ebook copies of The Boys of Summer or An Endless Summer (INT).

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BLOG TOUR + GIVEAWAY: THE BOYS OF SUMMER by CJ Duggan

Welcome to my stop on The Boys of Summer blog tour hosted by YA Bound.  Click HERE to check out the full blog tour schedule!

The Boys of Summer (Summer #1)

by C.J. Duggan 

Release Date: 12/17/12

294 pages

Summary from Goodreads: 

It seemed only natural to nickname them the ‘OnslowBoys’. Every time they swaggered in the front doorof the Onslow Hotel after a hard week’s work, their laughter was loud and genuine as they settled onto their bar stools. I peeked through the restaurant partition, a flimsy divider between my world and theirs. I couldn’t help but smile whenever I saw them, saw him ... Toby Morrison.

Quiet seventeen-year-old Tess doesn’t relish the thought of a summertime job. She wants nothing more than to forget the past haunts of high school and have fun with her best friends before the dreaded Year Twelve begins.

To Tess, summer is when everything happens: riding bikes down to the lake, watching the fireworks at the Onslow Show and water bomb fights at the sweltering Sunday markets.

How did she let her friends talk her into working?

After first-shift disasters, rude, wealthy tourists and a taunting ex-boyfriend, Tess is convinced nothing good can come of working her summer away. However, Tess finds unlikely allies in a group of locals dubbed ‘The Onslow Boys’, who are old enough to drive cars, drink beer and not worry about curfews. Tess’s summer of working expands her world with a series of first times with new friends, forbidden love and heartbreaking chaos.

All with the one boy she has never been able to forget. 

It will be a summer she will always remember.

Warning: sexual references, and occasional course language.

REVIEW:

I'm in love! With the ONSLOW BOYS! Yep, they have stolen my heart. I thought this would be a cute little story about summer romance, and well, it is... but it's also a lot more. It's about bullying, and friendship, and love, and mistakes, and most of all, learning who you are. I really enjoyed watching Tess come out of her shell and learn by making mistakes. It's a valuable lesson, because really, no one can learn without making mistakes. I loved the Australian setting, which it took a little while for me to catch on to, but it was fabulous and I enjoyed the glimpse into a different culture. I know... I'm not worldly at all!

And due to the unworldlyness that is me... it took a while for me to catch on to some of the slang used, but it was also so very interesting to me. The story was well developed and well written and I finished it in one day... much to my husbands annoyance. (Yep, I sat on the back deck sunning my self and reading while he cut the grass in the backyard. Our very large backyard.) So I spent a day in the sun with the fabulous and lovable Onslow Boys. 

There's a significant age difference between the boys and Tess and Ellie, but the author did a wonderful job of pointing out the positives and negatives of this. I personally am married to a man 10 years my senior and yep, I met him when I was 18, so I am very aware of the positives and negatives.

Overall, this was a wonderful and enticing read and I absolutely cannot wait to read AN ENDLESS SUMMER! I need some more of those Onslow Boys!

Buy Links:

Add An Endless Summer (Summer #2) to Goodreads:

About the Author

C.J Duggan is an Australian author who lives with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia.

The Boys of Summer is Book One in her Mature Young Adult Romance Series.

Website | Blog | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook

***GIVEAWAY***

Enter below to win one of 5 e-book copies of The Boys of Summer, open Internationally!

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