The Nantucket Beachfront Inn by Ainsley Keaton – Q&A and Giveaway

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What would we find under your bed?

I put winter things like blankets, sweaters and the like under the bed. I put them into shrink bags. And other junk like yearbooks and stuff like that – I put those into a box-thing that goes underneath the bed. Right now, it’s wintertime, so there’s not much under the bed.

What was the scariest moment of your life?

Two near-death experiences. One, I almost choked to death when I was very small on an orange membrane that got caught in my throat. I would have died if I didn’t have a small enough hand to pull it out of my throat. And one time, I almost drowned in a rip tide. A lifeguard had to come out and save me. There’s nothing scarier than swimming for your life and getting further away from the shore.

Do you listen to music while writing? If so what?

No, not really, but if I did, it would be classical, because it helps me concentrate.

What is something you’d like to accomplish in your writing career next year?

A successful launch for my new women’s fiction series, and starting the spin-off series that will feature people who will get a second chance to correct a mistake in their life.

How long did it take you to write this book?

Too long, because I kept completely re-writing it. Probably it has taken me six months, which is weird, because I used to be able to pound out a book a month.

She’s 54, broken-hearted, and starting over….

High-powered New York attorney Ava Flynn finds herself without a job or a future. Unemployable at her age, and broken-hearted by a husband who left her in the lurch, she desperately needs a Plan B. Her prayers are answered when a wealthy benefactor wills her a large house in the ‘Sconset Beach area of Nantucket. She heads out to the picturesque New England island with her two best friends, Luna and Mila, going along for the ride.

One catch…her estranged daughter also lives there. Charlotte Killeen, Ava’s daughter, is battling a crisis of her own. Her new husband, Matthew, wants a divorce, even though the couple have a newborn baby. Charlotte needs her mother more than ever, but the two have never seen eye to eye. Her marriage on the rocks and with few prospects for income, Charlotte is near the end of her rope. Then a life-threatening illness brings into focus what’s important after all.

Ava’s other daughter, Samantha, also lives on Nantucket Island, with her best friend and roommate, Grayson. Samantha suffers from a lack of direction in her life, and longs to meet a rich prince charming who will sweep her off her feet. When she meets the man of her dreams, she’s leaving behind the one man who loves her unconditionally – Grayson.

Jackson, Ava’s son, is an aspiring actor in Hollywood. Everything has always come easy to him, that is until Willow, Matthew’s cousin, shows up. Free-spirited Willow is just the kind of girl to break Jackson’s heart, which is difficult to do, as Jackson is always the heartbreaker.

And speaking of Willow…she’s a feminist island witch and artist. She and Jackson have been through many, many lifetimes together. Yet, Willow wants nothing to do with Jackson in this lifetime. She has no desire to give up even an ounce of her power, not even for her soul mate. Willow also is hiding a devastating secret from Jackson. A secret that is guaranteed to upend his life for good.

Mila, Ava’s best friend, is battling a devastating illness, information that she hasn’t shared with Ava and Luna. She never wants to be a burden, so she just doesn’t ask for help. But she’s going to need all the support she can get. She finds this support in a very surprising place, and, in doing so, gets closer to her own destiny.

Ava busies herself with fixing up her beautiful new beach home, so that she can open up a bed and breakfast. Contractor Deacon Cromwell, whom Ava hires to do the renovation, is the man who might thaw Ava’s cold heart, if only she’ll let him. However, he’s almost 20 years her junior and, Ava believes, out of her league. Can Ava overcome her insecurities and allow herself to love again?

In this feel-good beach read with a touch of magick, Ava and her friends and family will become your best friends. Come and share their joys and heartbreaks, their tragedies and triumphs. For fans of Susan Mallery, Jude Devereaux Nantucket Bride series and Elin Hilderbrand!

Enjoy an Excerpt

As Willow Killeen worked on a painting that she had to have completed for her show tonight, she also thought about her other “job.” Well, it wasn’t really a job so much as a calling, one that she refused to charge for. It was against her creed as a witch to make money off of her gifts.

She sometimes wished that she could charge for her services, as working as an artist wasn’t much of a living, it turned out. She was good at her art but not good enough. At least, her art wasn’t good enough to sustain her in ‘Sconset beach, the very expensive village she chose to call home. True, she lived in a guest house on a piece of property that was owned by her aunt, who only charged her $1000 a month, which, for Nantucket, was a steal – but there were months that she couldn’t hardly come up with that rent and still afford to eat.

Still, she was fortunate that she didn’t really need to leave her house to earn money, and she knew it. And, to keep her creative juices flowing, she found that the more she helped people out in the world, the better she did with her art. So, she kept a steady stream of clients who came to her for spell work, herbal remedies, crystal healing and chakra balancing, all of which she specialized in. Willow was a healer first, artist second, and that was how she preferred it.

She looked out her window and saw a young girl coming up the dirt path that led to her guest house, and she groaned. “Not her,” she muttered under her breath. The painting that she was working on, which was a brightly colored portrait of a beautiful couple she’d seen at the Farmer’s Market – she tended towards riotous colors throughout her subjects’ faces and hair, like Henri Matisse’s famous portrait of his wife – was forgotten.

About the Author:Ainsley Keaton lives in Southern California with her husband and two fur-babies, Bella and Annie. When she’s not binge-watching The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Downton Abbey and Succession, she’s reading historical and women’s fiction or scouring the beach for sea glass and sand dollars.

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