Discover why Kelly Jamieson calls the Pilots Hockey series
“fun and flirty, warm and sweet.”
UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT
Pilots Hockey #4
Sophia Henry
Releasing Oct 18th, 2016
Flirt
The
author of Delayed Penalty returns with the story of a free
spirit who believes she’s found forever with a playboy on a singles cruise. Discover
why Kelly Jamieson calls the Pilots Hockey series “fun and flirty, warm and
sweet.”
Kristen
Katsaros wants a life full of adventure and laughter. After a difficult
childhood, her motto is to live each day like it’s her last—because it just
might be. So when Kristen’s parents send her on a post-grad singles cruise in
the Caribbean to meet a Greek husband, she promptly hooks up with the hottest
guy she’s ever met. Pasha’s decidedly not Greek, but Kristen
gives him a pass because he’s got fun written all over his rock-hard abs.
Pavel
Gribov, the cocky playboy of the Detroit Pilots hockey team, can score any girl
he wants. But when a teammate drags him on a singles cruise, he can’t
resist the chance to help out a drop-dead gorgeous damsel in distress by
pretending to be her boyfriend. Before long, the fake fling turns
intimate, fueled by something much deeper than lust.
Kristen and
Pasha both agree to walk away once the cruise is over, but reality hits like a
slap shot when Kristen finds out Pasha lied about everything. Just when she’s
ready to start living again, the two stubborn survivors must decide if they can
bear to lose the best thing that ever happened to either of them.
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Sophia
Henry, a proud Detroit native, fell in love with
reading, writing, and hockey all before she became a teenager. She did
not, however, fall in love with snow. So after graduating with a BS in English
from Central Michigan University, she moved to the warmth of North Carolina for
the remainder of her winters.
She spends her days writing books featuring hot, hockey-playing
heroes. When she’s not writing, she’s chasing her two high-energy sons,
watching her beloved Detroit Red Wings and rocking out at concerts with her
husband.
What inspired you to write this book?
The song “I
Lived” by One Republic and Bryan Warnecke, the teen with cystic fibrosis (CF)
who is featured in the video for the song. The first time I heard “I Lived” I fell in love with the lyrics and the message
behind it. Then I saw the video. Around that same the time, I’d been thinking
about how I could write a diverse heroine—in my own way. Bryan inspired me to
write a strong heroine with CF who has the courage and drive to live life to
the fullest.
Do you have a favourite character,
and/or do you feel as if any of the characters adequately represent you?
Honestly, I love Kristen and Pavel
(Pasha). I started writing this book after I wrote DELAYED PENALTY, which is
book 1 in the Pilots Hockey series. I knew KK and Pasha were gonna get
together, but I didn’t want it to happen in the second book. Both of them had
growing up to do. I absolutely love how they balance and enhance each other.
All of my characters have a piece of
me in them. Auden’s childhood is most like my own. Gaby is an introverted
bookworm who comes out of her shell for friends and family. Indie is a smart,
strong mom. Kristen tries to have a positive impact on everyone in her life.
None of the characters are autobiographical, but many of the situations in my
books come from real life. I’ve just twisted them in to fiction. ;)
What surprises did you come across
when writing the book?
The biggest surprise was how hard it
would be to write a heroine with cystic fibrosis and do her justice. All the
people fighting for their lives every day deserve a kick a$$ representation of
how strong and amazing they are, so I didn’t want to get it wrong. It was very
important to me to show how Kristen LIVES. I don’t have CF, so I don’t know
what living with it is like. I did a lot (A LOT) of research and I spoke with
people who have it. I wanted to write a strong, normal, amazing person who has
to work hard to stay healthy.
Is there metaphor or simile that you
feel best represents the book, and if so, what is it?
“Life is like a camera. Focus on what’s
important, capture the good times, develop from the negatives, and if things
don’t work out, take another shot.” **I did not come up with this simile, but I
LOVE it!
What, if anything, would you change
about the book, i.e. plot, setting, characters, etc.?
Oh gosh, I’m my own worst critic, so
if I looked at it again I’m sure I’d take a pink pen to it and edit, change,
rearrange, delete, and add five hundred more times. There are always sentences
and words I would change. But there’s a point (deadline/production) that I have
to let it go. :) Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything about the characters
or settings that I would change. It’s my favorite out of the series and I
really like how it all played out.
Is there a commonly-known story or
real-world event that you can connect to this book, and if so, what is it?
Kristen and Pasha meet on a singles
cruise—which is a real thing! :) One of my friends went on one right after
college. The Greek community in her area of Metro Detroit put together a
singles cruise. It was supposed to be a fun way to mix, mingle and meet a Greek
spouse. I thought that was the coolest concept. And then I thought, okay, how
can I twist this? Kristen’s parents send her on the cruise thinking she’ll find
a nice Greek boy to marry, right? So I had Kristen fall for Pavel, a cocky
Russian hockey player who came on the cruise with his Greek teammate and is
lying about who he is. It was a fun way for me to use real life events and
twist them to make a cute story.
***Thank you so much for having me on
your blog! I truly appreciate it! ~ Sophia xx***
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