Eons ago, in a far away inbox, a girl who shall not be named for the preservation of her own pride received an email from the infamous Grace A. Johnson about a blog tour for her most recent book, Bound and Determined. Of course, the girl signed right up, then promptly forgot about her duties until months later, when Grace gently reminded her of her promise. Shocked at her own absentmindedness, the girl proceeded to do her duty on the fly, and was proud of the way it turned out, though not of the time it took for her to complete that.
That girl was totally not me.
*ahem*
Anyway, in honor of BAD’s release on November 17th, please join me for an interview with the six main couples of this historical romance series. (WARNING: romance and a few less-than-normal pirates ahead.)
The Interview
*waves* Let’s start off with all of you to describe the person to your left in three words.
*Rina glances to her left, where Xavier holds their twin boys in his lap* Only three words? I could go on for hours! *smirks at her husband, who rolls his eyes and chuckles* Well, first and foremost, Xavier is honorable. He’s brave (especially to put up with me). *winks* And…he’s loving.In truth, I never knew what love really was until I met him. *she leans in to kiss him, and Elliot and the twins echo ewww*
*Xavier smiles and nudges Keaton with his shoulder* Clarke here is… *shakes head* enigmatic, brooding, and… *scans Keaton up and down* big.
*Keaton glares* I appreciate the compliment. *he turns toward Daisy* Daisy is loyal, compassionate, and beautiful.
*Daisy beams up at him, squeezing his hand, then looks at Crimson* Crimola is passionate, dedicated, and fierce!
*Rina and Elliot glance at Daisy and Crimson curiously* Crimola?
*Crimson sighs* It’s an inside joke. *she passes Elliot their sleeping (and drooling) son, stretching her arms out* El is brash, brazen, and beastly. Although he can, at times, seem to be somewhat tolerable…mayhap even likeable…when he jumps in without any hesitation to help or scares away the monsters under the bed with his bear growl. *chuckles*
*Elliot laughs with her, cradling his baby against his chest* And now we circle back to Rina. *he nudges her with his foot* Cap’n is feisty all the time, meddling most of the time, and willing to sacrifice herself over and over again for someone she loves.
*Daisy reaches over to brush Rina’s arm* Or stowaways she doesn’t know.
*Crimson smiles gently* Or enemies she should hate.
*Keaton sighs* Or old friends who make mistakes.
*Rina wipes tears from her eyes* You’re all makin’ me cry, mates! *her twins run to hug her and she envelops in her arms them with a laugh*
*laughs at all y’all* Interesting. Crimson, what makes you say Elliot is “beastly”? Morning breath?
*Crimson snorts* You recall when I first met Elliot, he held me back like a huge bearded beast! Fortunately, I’ve encouraged him to shave and keep his hair brushed and tied back so he doesn’t appear so wild, but he’ll always be my giant bear.
*Elliot cocks an eyebrow* Encouraged? More like forced.
*turns to Xavier before this can get out of hand* What was it like when you found out Rina was carrying twins? Rina, when you were a teenager, did it ever cross your mind that you’d be married to someone like Xavier with two boys and another on the way?
*Xavier chuckles* I believe that was the happiest day of my life…and one of the hardest. I was simply overjoyed to learn that we would be welcoming a child soon, but when Rina told me she was already five months along and wanted to stay at sea for as long as possible, I admit, I was none too excited about that prospect. Of course, all things worked together for good, as God promises us in His Word, but that didn’t mean we didn’t face our share of trials. Wilde finally encountered Rina only days after she told me about the babe – well, babes. *he ruffles his son Mav’s hair while Dick latches onto his leg*
*Rina pries Dick off of his father and sits him in her lap* I’ve always loved wee ones – I half-raised my brother Julius and I cared for Elliot Jr. until Crimson came along – but I never once imagined myself being a mother in truth or being a wife. Well… *she stares out at the horizon* I take that back. I did dream when I was a young child, but I knew in my heart those dreams would never come to fruition, and once I had matured, I was focused solely on following in my uncle’s footsteps as a pirate. ‘Twas not until I met Xavier that I let myself dream again, this time of a life with him. *she laces her arm through her husband’s* And what a beautiful life it is!
*Crimson and Daisy aww*
*turns to Keaton* What is your worst nightmare? And don’t worry – I’m sure everyone gathered here will not use it against you. *stern glare*
*Keaton grimaces* I doubt that. My worst nightmare… *sighs* is losing people I care for. And being the one responsible for it. *grips Daisy’s hand*
Ooh, I would love to say something but #spoilers! Can’t give stuff away. *winks* What about you, Daisy? What’s your worst nightmare?
*Daisy closes her eyes for a moment* Either losing my sister Lissy forever or her making the same mistakes I have.
Aww. *hugs Daisy*
For all the couples, what is your favorite memory together?
*Daisy hugs Joelle back*
*Rina and Xavier share a tender look before Rina begins speaking* ‘Tis a difficult task to handpick a single moment out of three years, but I believe we shall always fondly remember the day we wed. Apart from it being the day I was baptized by Xavier’s father, it was also one of the most beautiful days…a simple but lovely wedding upon the shore…abruptly interrupted by Elliot and his cutlass. *she and Xavier laugh while Elliot winces*
*Crimson punches Elliot in the arm, then hugs him when he glares at her* I know one of my personal favorite memories with Elliot is when we were sailing up to Portsmouth after our wedding. We had little to do whilst on our voyage, so we spent an entire day experimenting with chocolate tea. If one could get drunk on chocolate, we would have for all the chocolate we drank that day!
*Elliot chuckles* That was fun. But I think my favorite moment was the day ye told me Erik was on his way. Ye led me on for hours before ye finally came right out and said we were havin’ a babe – but every hour was a treasure. *he tweaks Crimson’s nose and kisses her lightly*
*Keaton and Daisy glance at each other* *Daisy opens her mouth to speak*
*Grace clamps a hand over her mouth before she could say anything* Spoilers!!!
*laughs with Rina* That was honestly one of my favorite scenes EVER. The humor. *chef’s kiss* Just the wedding for you.
I’ll admit chocolate tea doesn’t exactly sound appealing. Here’s a quick question for all of you before we go – I believe you all are Christians (not sure entirely since I haven’t finished with Keaton and Daisy’s story). Summarize in one word what brought you to Jesus, in one word what you treasure most about him, and in one word what you think heaven will be like.
*Rina smiles* I’m glad you were pleased with it. And, believe you me, there is nothing more delightful than chocolate tea. *sighs wistfully*
*Grace jumps in before any speaks, crouching between Keaton and Daisy and whispering to them*
*Daisy looks up* To avoid spoiling the story, Grace has instructed us to talk about when Keaton and I first came to know the Lord as children. My word would be…Mrs. Clarke. And I know ’tis two words, but one name, so I hope it counts. I treasure most about Jesus…His grace. And I imagine Heaven will be…pure.
*Keaton nods slowly* Like Daisy, ’twas my mother and my father who taught me about God, so my word is parents. Faithfulness. And everlasting.
*Rina wraps her arm around her husband* Xavier, of course, shared God with me in a way that truly made me think. But ’twas my mother who led me to Him in the end. And Elliot’s first wife Mary and my bosun Charlie who planted the first seeds. So family is my word, I think. And I treasure His mercy the most. And when I think of Heaven, I think of God’s presence.
*Xavier smiles* ‘Twas my family for me as well, but most specifically my father. Not only because his life is dedicated to preaching the Word of God, but because he showed me first-handedly what it means to be forgiven, redeemed, and loved by God. I treasure God’s forgiveness, and I believe Heaven will be joyful.
*Elliot bounces Erik in his arms as he starts crying* My words are Rina, because she witnessed to me and led me in prayer – although had it not been for Mary, I wonder if I would have truly listened to Rina… God’s goodness. And I imagine Heaven as peaceful.
*Crimson glances at Rina* What can I say? Rina has been an example to so many…but I think my word is strangers. Because even though there have been people like Rina that I know well who have shared the Gospel with me, God used two strangers I’d never met to show me how much He loves me. So my other word is love, and I think Heaven will be perfect.
That is beautiful. *stands up* Thank you guys so much for diong this with me! You may all have some chocolate tea out in the parlor for your time. 😉
*Everyone echoes “you’re welcome” and “our pleasure”… except Rina, who dashes off in search of the chocolate tea*
*Grace gives Joelle a hug* Thank YOU, Joelle, for interviewing the main characters of Bound and Determined!! This was a ton of fun!!
*laughs and tells Xavier where the tea is as everyone leaves*
*returns hug* Of course!! Thank YOU for writing such great characters, even though they can be a bit unruly at times. *eyes the pirates among us*
Aww, I appreciate it, girl!! It’s my pleasure!! *chuckles* No doubt about that!
About the Authoress
Grace A. Johnson is a teenage Christian fiction authoress, book reviewer, and avid reader. She lives in beautiful (but humid) South Georgia, surrounded by farmland and forestry, with her parents and six younger siblings. She has written four novels, three of which are published, and a smattering of short stories and novellas, which you can find on Amazon. She’s also a homeschooler who loves learning about history, linguistics, art, and the world around her. You can find her on Goodreads, Pinterest, BookBub, or blogging on her website at www.graceajohnson.com. Join her for a virtual cup of tea and a free preview of her debut novel when you sign up for her e-newsletter!
There you have it, folks! Have you read either of Johnson’s other books? What did you think? Have you gotten a sneak peek at BAD? Preordered it? (You can buy it here!) Anything else with it? XD Even if you haven’t read the other books, based off of this interview, who do you think your favorite character is? Why?
Also! Grace is hosting a giveaway, which you can enter right here.
Until next time,
Take courage, pursue God, and smile while you still have teeth! ^_^
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