by Mandi Beck
COCO:
My Indie. My monk. My so incredibly dope friend. You hate Deacon. HATE him. Yet you pushed through with your monkness and made sure that I wasn’t going to fall flat on my face. Your generosity never ceases to amaze me. You go above and beyond all day every day in every way. I stopped trying to stop you a long time ago because I know that you do what you want, but know that not a second goes by that I don’t appreciate every one of those gestures big and small. You’re my soul sister and I’d be lost without you and my words would still be in the yellow pad app of my phone. I love you friend. Even though you hate my guy and every book I’ve ever tried to make you read. No matter what, we’ll always have music and our insane love for everything British.
DEACON ORIGINALS:
Tam, Thistle and Goldie, what can I even say to you girls to thank you for always being there when I need you? Your faith in me never wavered, my biggest cheerleaders and champions. No matter what shite was happening in your lives across the pond you always made time for me and my boy. I left you hanging on more than one occasion and you may have cursed and threatened me but you never gave up on me. You taught me to believe in myself and my ability to write well and while I’m still working on that you never fail to remind me every day with your kind words and dirty f-bombs that I love more than anything! You never stop thanking me for allowing you to be a part of this journey but it’s I who should be thanking you for coming along for the ride. Love you my proper lady, my Scot and my Reggae queen.
ELITES:
You ladies have been my rock for more than two years now. We were thrown together and made to sleep in the same beds as strangers and amazingly enough we came out of it with a bond so true no amount of snoring or terrible bar service could ever break. You are and always will be, my Ohana
JODI THE BIBLIOPHILE:
I forced an ARC on you. Seriously FORCED it on you just because I wanted to give you something for all of the times you tagged me in posts and made me laugh my ass off at your wild inappropriateness. To say that I was floored that you actually read Love Hurts would be an understatement. You didn’t know me, We weren’t friends and yet you not only read my book you shouted your love for it from the mountains and I am so completely humbled and grateful and fucking out of my mind in love with you for that! You’re super stuck with my ass now as you are the trailer to my park. I love your face you C-U-Next-Tuesday!
JULES:
My book pimp! I asked you to read Love Hurts because I needed a fresh pair of eyes and because I valued your opinion. Never did I expect you to pimp it all over town! Lol I love you to bits Jules and can’t thank you enough for our friendship.
KARI:
My graphic artist QUEEN! Thank you so much for always having time for me and my constant need for teasers and banners last minute! You’re the best doll!
KRISTY:
I’m not sure if I told you, but it was you who inspired me to finally get serious about my writing again and to find the courage to share it with people. You, an everyday woman just like me. Mom, wife, cook, chauffer, losing yourself in the monotony that goes along with putting others needs before your own. Thank you for writing Driven just to prove that you could because it forced me to write Love Hurts for the very same reason. Thank you too for always having time for me and my silly questions. Even at your busiest you never turned me away. I love you to bits Switzerland.
LAUREN:
My photographer, cover artist and very dear friend! I can’t thank you enough for putting up with me and our quest for a mystical unicorn who turned out to be not so mystical. You are beyond wonderful and I’m so grateful to get the chance to work with someone as talented as you are and even more so to call you a friend! Love you lady!
LISA:
The very best editor I could ever have hoped for! Thank you so much for never trying to change my voice and for your limitless patience for me and my jacked up tenses. You helped me to make my story what it is and I am so incredibly thankful and proud of what we’ve accomplished. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, I can’t wait to work on book two! I’m dying to see where you’ll read from next!
MELISSA AND SHARON:
Thank you two crazy ladies so much for taking me on when you didn’t have too! I am so grateful and know that my release wouldn’t have been nearly as fantastic if it weren’t for you! Thank you!
NINFA AND JILLY BEAN:
Thank you so much for putting your hands all over Deac. Your love for me, your friendship is something that I can never thank you enough for. Never have I met two more giving women. You give freely no matter what it is and I’m in awe of your pure hearts. You’ll never know how much I appreciate you ladies and all of your love and support. You’re my little beta tag team and I can’t wait to do it again.
PCVPPC:
I have no clue where to even start with you ladies. Every moment of every day, one of you is around for whatever one of us might need. Sisters, anchors, sex experts, friends and so much more. There’s not a thing we can’t talk about and not a single time that I’ve felt let down by any of you. Your dedication and support have brought me to tears more than once and I’m not just talking about on this particular journey. You are all more amazing, more appreciated and more loved than you’ll ever know. Family by choice.
ROSSELLA:
I can't thank you enough for helping with my translations, no matter how naughty they were! Grazie cara Rossella!
SE DEAN AND PAULA:
Thank you both for all of your medical brilliance! Any mistakes are completely my own. You two were a wealth of information!
SSWC:
We started as three and now we’re five and I couldn’t be more proud of all that you ladies have accomplished. Kittyho, Creeper, Sauce, Woody and Cali, you girls have been a constant for the last few months. A safe place where we can all be us and new and a little clueless. This journey was better because we took it together. Love my ladies.
STEPHY POO:
My go to girl for EVERYTHING! I never have an issue that you don’t try to solve! You have become one of my dearest friends and I love you for tolerating my filthy sailor mouth, my constant “can we know him’s,” total lack of internet knowledge and just every other ridiculous thing that I hit you with! You’re a gem and I am so very thankful that you put up with me and all my crazy! Thank you for being you! I couldn’t love you more!
TO THE BLOGGERS:
Big and small you all are what makes this Indie book world go round! There are so many of you to thank for taking a chance on a debut author that I don’t even know where to start! There are a few of you that went above and beyond because you believed in me and my writing though: A Book Whores Obsession, Schmexy Girl, Smart and Savvy with Stephanie, Our Five Cents, Angie’s Dreamy Reads and my girls at Romance Bytes. Thank you all so much from the very bottom of my heart! I don’t know if people realize just how much work goes into running a blog but I do and I thank you for even taking the time out to promote me whether it was once or one hundred times. You aren’t required to do any of it and do it because you love to read and support authors. I think that you’re all rock stars no matter if you have ten followers or thousands. Thank you, so much for all that you do. The Indie book world wouldn’t be where it is without each and every one of you!
Mandi Beck has been an avid reader all of her life. A deep love for books always had her jotting down little stories on napkins, notebooks, and her hand. As an adult she was further submerged into the book world through book clubs and the epicness of social media. It was then that she graduated to writing her stories on her phone and then finally on a proper computer.
A nursing student, mother to two rambunctious and somewhat rotten boys, and stepmom to two great girls away at college, she shares her time with her husband in Chicago where she was born and raised. Mandi is a diehard hockey fan and blames the Blackhawks when her deadlines are not met.
Love Hurts is her debut novel and she is currently working on the next i
n the series along with whatever other voices are clamoring for attention in her mind.
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