About the Book
Book: Honeymoon’s Over
Author: Carol McClain
Genre: Contemporary Christian Fiction
Release date: September 27, 2023
Honeymoon’s Over
For better or worse.
Easy vows for newlyweds Chantel and Charlie. Having been widowed, they knew the worst of love was years away. Furthermore, at fifty, they wouldn’t live long enough for the bad to blossom.
Then they came home from their honeymoon.
Chantel’s pregnant daughter Sissy, living with them during her husband’s deployment, must remain on bed rest. Histrionic and bored, she’s a … challenge.
Chantel’s vegetarian son Graham moves in for a few weeks to help with his sister, but something doesn’t seem right. He never got along with his military-loving, meat-eating sibling. He didn’t have ulterior motives for coming to help, did he?
Charlie’s married daughter, Margo, could certainly enumerate the issues these adult children her father’s new wife had. On top of everything, how could her father have chosen that woman?
Then there’s Charlie’s father—lost in old-age absentmindedness. Certainly, he was only forgetful.
Thank heavens for jobs they love that get them out of the house. Except …
Should they have vowed for worse or better?
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About the Author
Carol McClain is the award-winning author of five novels dealing with real people facing real problems. She is a consummate encourager, and no matter what your faith might look like, you will find compassion, humor and wisdom in her complexly layered, but ultimately readable work.
Aside from writing, she’s a skilled glass artist who has just made a foray into creating high-end jewelry. She’s also an avid hiker. She teaches Bible studies and mentors teens.
She lives in East Tennessee with her husband and too many animals to mention.
More from Carol
Disclaimer #1: Beware.
If we get to know each other, the humor of your life is liable to become fodder for my work. (Of course, with permission. Occasionally!) But don’t worry. I don’t write suspense, so you’ll never be in danger.
Background:
My brother married a widow when they were in their fifties.
He was a meatatarian. “Vegetables have rights,” he’d declare as he reached for a second round of bacon. He’d then heap on fried potatoes. The tubers were his nod to vegetables.
His wife was gluten intolerant and a health food lover of all foods green.
When he moved in with his wife, so did his vegan son who lived on gluten (and very few veggies). Gluten found its way onto her countertops, her refrigerator shelves, and dishes he didn’t wash.
Her son lived with her as well and came arrayed with the eccentricities my nephew lacked. The two sons made a complete, chaotic pair.
Add to them a diabetic mother who was starting dementia and my bet was on the fact this marriage was doomed.
Fortunately, I’m not prophetic. They remained happily married—despite my brother’s eating predilection. However, their situation made me laugh and became the fodder for Honeymoon’s Over.
Disclaimer #2: no HIPPA rules or privacy issues or personal matter have been disclosed. Names have been changed to protect the guilty (just don’t read the dedication, then the name change is mute.)
Disclaimer #3: If you’re expecting a sad, tearjerker, you’ll be disappointed. Oh, you will cry—tears of laughter. You’ll chortle throughout Honeymoon.
Interview with the Author
- What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?
Hands down, my favorite novel is 1984. Weird, huh?
I taught English for years. I always made my students read 1984—although, we always by-passed the long socialist, repetitive passage in the third section…snoozer. My students love the book.
Today, I quote Orwell’s concepts as we see totalitarian/socialists error slipping into society. Orwell had insight important for today, and he presenst that discernment in an engaging manner.
Overall, 1984 continues to be a favorite. I have others, but the books change as I read more and more.
- How do you select the names of your characters?
This depends. In Borrowed Lives three little girls are named Bean (she doesn’t know her real name), Roxie and Crystal. Their parents were drug addicts and gave the girls drug names. Bean, whose real name is Pearl, didn’t know her name. I based this on the situation of a friend of mine who didn’t know her name until she was sixteen. (Long story).
Other times, I simply am intrigued by a name. I loved the name Chantel. I lived, for years, on the Canadian border where the moniker Chantel is common. In the book, Chantel’s husband has the alliterative name Charlie. They are the protagonists in my latest release Honeymoon’s Over.
Sometimes I need symbolic names like Grace or Sunny. Other times, I use names that define the era or the character. In my work in progress, Tallie’s real name is Natallis, her sister is Avi. Her folks had been raised by hippies.
- What comes first, the plot or characters?
Without doubt, character comes first. My works are character and theme driven. I know the point I want to make, so I know the beginning and the end. I develop the characters to meet that goal.
Of course, all writing is fluid. Plot is critical—why else do we choose novels over non-fiction. We want to laugh and cry and sit on the edge of our seats. If we don’t care about the character, we can’t feel any of these emotions.
- Who is the author you most admire in your genre?
I love Lisa Wingate and Susan Meissner. For Wingate, most times I read her latest book without reading the blurb. Her name sells the novel for me. With Meissner, I’m a bit more fussy. I’d be a happy author if I had some of their skill.
- If you could invite one person to dinner, who would it be and what would you cook?
Carla Hall—the well-known chef featured on all my favorite baking shows. I love her personality. She’s a native Tennessean (I’ve adopted the state). She’s also one of the reasons baking surfaces too often in my work.
I own her cookbook, so I’m going to be a blatant fan. I’d serve her:
Appetizer: Peach and tomato salad.
Who doesn’t love peaches? Furthermore, there’s not much in this recipe I could mess up for an acclaimed chef.
Main Dish: Ham steak with cantaloupe and blackberry sauté.
Even my husband loves the way I cook this.
Dessert: banana pudding.
This isn’t necessarily my favorite. I am a northerner, and we’d eat something with maple syrup. All my friends in Tennessee love banana pudding. Seeing as Ms. Hall is Southern, this would round out the meal.
One thing I’ve discovered: I love baking/cooking shows. I’ve discovered watching someone develop a mirror glaze or pull isomalt means I could. (I’ll never be a chef). So, the above are simple and wouldn’t gross out my new friend, Carla Hall.
Blog Stops
Girls in White Dresses, January 8
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, January 9
Stories By Gina, January 10 (Author Interview)
Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, January 11 (Author Interview)
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 11
Artistic Nobody, January 12 (Author Interview)
Texas Book-aholic, January 13
Guild Master, January 14 (Author Interview)
Truth and Grace Homeschool Acdemy, January 15
A Reader’s Brain, January 16 (Author Interview)
Back Porch Reads, January 17 (Author Interview)
For Him and My Family, January 17
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, January 18 (Author Interview)
Locks, Hooks and Books, January 19
Fiction Book Lover, January 20 (Author Interview)
Simple Harvest Reads, January 21 (Author Interview)
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Carol is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.