How do you start a blog post...

...when you go silent for a while and then release a book?

Well, silence first, I suppose. I had uni finals, so I led myself not into temptation and failed most of them anyway—oops! Then it was knuckling down to finish editing my debut novel—more on that in a moment. About that time, I also started a new job. And roughly two weeks ago, enter second job. (Well, fourth, if you count the writing and proofreading I was already doing.)

So there you have it. Final exams, intense edits and new jobs aren’t conducive to writing blog posts when you’re an introvert who just wants to cower under the safety of your rock. Apologies for that.

But today, I’m crawling out from under my rock for some fabulously rainbow news: my debut novel is released today! The Truth About Riley is now available in ebook and paperback from Bottom Drawer Publications and other booksellers, including Barnes and Noble. (I still gibber with excitement and awe a little when I think about that.)

So what is the truth about Riley? Here’s the blurb to whet your appetite, and the cover to wet your mouth. (No, seriously. Is that not the most droolworthy cover model of all time?)

Riley Aylworth’s life has been completely devoid of intimate contact since a fire three years ago left him with horrific facial scarring, so when he finds an ad for a phone sex service, he decides to give it a call. Except that the number is not a phone sex service—it’s the revenge Cameron Kirkwood’s ex-boyfriend took on the uptight advertising executive after Cam forgot their anniversary and accidentally put him in the hospital. Needless to say, after thirty-nine disturbing calls seeking phone sex, Cameron is at the end of his tether and yells at his fortieth caller. What he doesn’t expect is for Riley to hit redial and yell right back.

The argument helps both Cameron and Riley vent about their issues, and when they’ve calmed down, they decide to exchange numbers and talk again. From this decision springs a friendship that, over time, grows into a gentle romance—all over the phone, because Riley is too scared to meet Cam in person. Showing a potential boyfriend his disfigured face is the fastest way to get rejected, right? Even a month of scorching hot phone sex can’t change his mind, no matter how hard Cam tries to persuade him that with their phone chemistry, the sex would be so much better in person.

Meanwhile, Cam is haunted by the scarred blond he seems to be seeing everywhere, and Riley can’t get the handsome brunet who always seems happy to see him out of his mind. It’s a shock to both men to realise that the guy they’re falling for over the phone is also the man who brightens their day with just a smile; but it’s one thing to let a stranger smile at you and quite another to let him close enough to see into your soul. If Riley can’t break down the walls in his mind and believe that Cameron loves him in spite of his scars, their relationship may be doomed before they’ve even had a chance to kiss.

And if that isn’t enough to convince you, you can find the whole of Chapter One HERE on a separate page of the blog. Don’t worry, this is sanctioned by my publisher. BDP released the entire chapter as three teaser extracts in the run-up to today—they’ve done a much better job of selling me than I have. Me, I’m just hoping the words will speak for themselves.