No tears fell as I climbed under the covers. Like I always did, I told myself there was bound to be a light at the end of the tunnel . . . there had to be, because I refused to live the rest of my life in the dark.
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As always, a huge, sloppy thank you to anyone who picked up this book and gave it a shot. I love my readers so hard. I honestly wouldn’t know what it was like to have a dream come true without you. YOU ARE EVERYTHING.
Same to all the bloggers and book pimps out there. Thank you for doing what you do. Thank you for sharing your love of reading and romance with the world. Thank you for giving me a shot to share my stories with you.
There were a whole bunch of people who told me HELL NO when I told them about Retreat. A whole bunch. It was hard to hear, and frankly, did quite a number on my confidence. It’s hard to hear that you shouldn’t try something new, that what you think is a fun, romantic adventure isn’t good enough. It gets so boring hearing over and over that I should write this or that because it will sell better. I just want to write the stories I want to read. The ones that are in my head demanding to get out. It takes a lot to ignore all those no’s and go in search of the people who will say yes.
So, I really need to thank those people who told me yes.
My agent Stacey never tells me no. She never questions me when I tell her “I’m writing a story about this.” She embraces every crazy idea and believes in every book as much as the one that came before it. It’s cool when my confidence crashes because she has enough in me for the both of us.
When I told my mom I wanted to write about not-quite-cowboys she told me to “Fucking go for it.” She said people will read it or they won’t, but I would never know until I write the book and publish it. Sometimes it’s easy to forget my writing and publishing journey started with nothing more than chance and luck, and Mom’s good at reminding me anything can happen. It’s worth the risk.
Obviously, Mel has known about these wild boys for a while. She never told me I was crazy for wanting to go so far away from what I typically write. She encouraged me to write whatever it was that made me happy, and honestly, that’s something authors don’t hear often enough. When passion and business collide somewhere along the way, the actual work part of writing can take over the desire to create from the heart. Mel always . . . and mean always . . . tells me to write what I want.
I have to thank my friends, Ali and Denise, Stacey, and my bestie, Heather. They all agreed this book didn’t suck and immediately asked for Shelter when they finished, which made me feeling like I did something right along the way. Sure, they’re all biased because they love me, but still, hearing that they didn’t hate these words (even though Ali hated Leo) meant the world to me.
I had a dream team who helped me wrangle this book into professional shape in a ridiculously short time frame. The fact that they said “yes” when I sent out frantic emails begging for help so I could self-publish for the first time in four years, guerilla-style at that, was humbling and so very appreciated.
Elaine York manhandled this story into something that was far better than I ever imagined. I learned so much working with her, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so wonderfully challenged to make my story better and brighter. Edits and revisions are always tough, but this time around, the struggle was very rewarding.
I’ve always had a creative crush on Hang Le. I think she’s brilliant and her covers are stunning. I haven’t had the opportunity to work with her up until now and I was positive, since I decided last minute to get this book out this year, that she wouldn’t be able to help me out. I’m so stoked that she wiggled me in after the proper amount of begging and pleading. I couldn’t ask for a better cover or a better Cy. (That was all Wander Aguiar. The man knows his stuff and can take one hell of a photo!)
My friend C.J. Pinard has long been someone I turn to for making sure all my I’s are dotted and my T’s are crossed. She is meticulous and miraculous. I hated asking a friend to squeeze me in at the very last minute, but because she’s awesome, of course she said yes. You can thank her for making sure there aren’t ten million run-on sentences in this book.
I also need to thank my sweet, sassy friend CA Borgford. We’ve been book friends since the start and she has always encouraged me to do things my own way with my own slant. It was such a treat to get to work with someone I adore in a professional capacity! She made all my words so pretty.
I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my publicist, KP Simmon. When I dropped this project on her with no warning, she didn’t strangle me, not that I would have blamed her for wanting to. She jumped in with both feet and put a battle plan together like a boss with the limited information she had. It’s hard to keep a book a secret but still get people excited that something cool is coming. She always does a great job, but she really stepped up to the plate with these wild boys. It’s nice to have someone unwavering and rocksteady in your corner.
Last but never least, I need to thank my boy bestie, Mike Maley. This year was a shit show for me in a lot of ways and I think Mike was the one who held me together through all of it. He’s a good man and an amazing friend. I’m so thankful he is one of my people.
If you made it this far and read RETREAT I would be so stoked if you would take a minute to leave a review for the book on a retail site. Good or bad, telling other readers your thoughts on a book makes a huge difference.
Jay Crownover is the International and multiple New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men Series, The Saints of Denver Series, and The Point and Breaking Point Series. Her books can be found translated in many different languages all around the world. She is a tattooed, crazy haired Colorado native who lives at the base of the Rockies with her awesome dogs. This is where she can frequently be found enjoying a cold beer and Taco Tuesdays. Jay is a self-declared music snob and outspoken book lover who is always looking for her next adventure, between the pages and on the road.
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