5 Star Review
& Interview
with Katy Evans!
Manwhore (Manwhore #1)
By Katy Evans
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release: March 24, 2015
Synopsis
Is it
possible to expose Chicago’s hottest player—without getting played?
This is the story I've been waiting for all my life, and its name is Malcolm
Kyle Preston Logan Saint. Don’t be fooled by that last name though. There’s
nothing holy about the man except the hell his parties raise. The hottest
entrepreneur Chicago has ever known, he’s a man’s man with too much money to
spend and too many women vying for his attention.
Mysterious. Privileged. Legendary. His entire life he’s been surrounded by the
press as they dig for tidbits to see if his fairytale life is for real or all mirrors
and social media lies. Since he hit the scene, his secrets have been his and
his alone to keep. And that’s where I come in.
Assigned to investigate Saint and reveal his elusive personality, I’m
determined to make him the story that will change my career.
But I never imagined he would change my life. Bit by bit, I start to wonder if
I'm the one discovering him...or if he's uncovering me.
What happens when the man they call
Saint, makes you want to sin?
5 Star Review
I am never disappointed when I read a novel by Katy
Evans! Manwhore is another 5 star read to add to my fabulous Katy Evans
collection! With every page turn, I dreaded the fact that it was bringing me
closer to the end!
Rachel is the perfect example of how
every person is affected differently by the same or similar situation. Rachel’s
father was murdered when she was a child and she grew up feeling unstable and
longing for a comfortable place to land. Her mother, a painter, was forced to
stop doing what she loved to get a job and support them. Her mother has also
developed diabetes and between those two circumstances, she clings to goals of
being able to do what she loves and to give her mother everything she felt she
should have always had. By being so overly worried about her mother’s health (to
a point where she is smothering her a little bit) and so desperate to provide
her with luxury, she becomes overly focused on her job. When she is assigned
the task of writing an expose on the most notorious bachelor in Chicago, Malcom
Saint, she agrees, almost without thought.
Rachel’s attitude was a little bit
frustrating to me, she didn’t stop and think about the fact that the media may
have trumped up his image or the fact that people can change. That there are
depths to him that make him just like everybody else. On top of all of this,
one of her best friends has had her heart shattered by a man and she and Rachel
have made a pact not to ever be in a situation to let a guy do that to them.
So, when Rachel is confused by Malcom and his actions, and what she feels for
him, her friend is like that little devil on her shoulder whispering negative
things to constantly make her feel guilt and to question every moment with
Saint. Her friend really made me angry. She was constantly throwing Saint’s
past at Rachel and saying things such as implying that when he isn’t with her,
he is off with another of his floozies. She is just so negative. And not once
does she give a boost to Rachel is admitting that it’s possible that he could
change for her. How insulting is that?? Her friend is afraid to put herself out
there and if Rachel moves on to a relationship and love, she will be alone in
her bitterness. Then of course, there is the ridiculous notion that her boss is
pushing on her that this one piece would save their magazine, therefor guilting
her into thinking she holds the employees jobs in her hand alone.
Rachel really has so many angles
working against her that I had to give a little understanding to her confusion,
doubt, and guilt. However, once she realized that Saint wasn’t at all what she
thought, she should have bowed out of the piece much earlier. Honestly, the
very best thing she could have done was to right to Saint and explain the
situation. I would be willing to bet everything that he would have given her
the right information for a great piece, without exposing too much of himself.
Unfortunately, she doesn’t give in to her conscience until the last minute and
by then it’s too late.
I usually prefer dual POV in a book
and I would have loved if that had been the style of this book. However, being
solely from Rachel’s POV makes a bigger point as to the ambiguous nature of the
man they call Saint. He puts on a persona but nobody knows the real him. He is
so good at playing a part, hiding his thoughts and emotions that reading him is
next to impossible. So, only having Rachel’s POV adds to our concept of what
she was truly facing and why she was constantly playing a guessing game.
Although, he gave her some pretty strong hints and it was a little irritating to
watch her ignore them or questions them. However, as I said, this was so
heavily influenced by others, that I couldn’t help but see how she was lost in
the swirling opinions of everyone around her.
But, I’m hoping (hint hint hint!) that eventually, Katy will put out a
companion book that allows us to see things from Malcom’s POV.
Malcom is an enigma. There are so many
layers to him that we are constantly surprised and left guessing as to what he
will say/do/feel next. One thing that seems to abundantly clear is that Rachel
is changing something in him. Unexpectedly, he seems to be completely ok with
this new development, rather than being freaked out and fighting it. That alone
should have been a clue to Rachel that she was something special to him. He values
trust and honestly above all and has a quiet capacity for love and caring that
he keeps hidden but which is, in fact, huge! He’s sexy as hell, a gentleman
(outside the bedroom and only sometimes in the bedroom), he’s thoughtful,
charitable, etc, etc, etc. The way he pursues Rachel had me melting right off
of my chair and slithering to the ground to be a puddle of want. He sets off
sparks that lit the pages on fire. Together, Rachel and Malcom were fireworks
that came together to cause a massive explosion and the heat was palpable
coming right out of the book to surround the reader. Read this with a glass of
ice and a fan!
The secondary characters add a lot to
the story, especially Saint’s best friends. They are hilarious. As I mentioned,
one of Rachel’s roommates ticked me off and it will take fancy footwork to get
me to like her again. Her other roommate is a sweetheart though and she evened
it out a little bit.
I knew this was a duology and reading
the ARC meant I’d have to wait to continue their story, but never the less, I
wasn’t prepared! The book ends on a cliff hanger that will have you obsessively
stalking Katy for any tidbits and morsel she will throw your way about Manwhore
+1. I think I may have to go back and read this book just to make the wait not
so excruciating. This series will join the Real series on my re-read list.
That’s the ultimate for me, if you make that list, to me, the book is truly
extraordinary. This book ended up being unexpected to me, in such a fabulous
way. I highly, highly recommend any and all of Katy Evans’ books. She is
utterly fantastic and Manwhore is no exception. 5 standing ovation stars!
Buy the Book
Interview with Katy
Evans
What prompted you to write
your first book?
My love of
romance stories. I was an avid reader since I was young, but it was due to the
absolute obsession I developed with all those romances that I discovered what I
wanted to do. I wanted to make someone else feel the way I felt when I read my
favorite books and then longed for more when I came to the last page. I would
come up with scenarios, alternate endings, and new stories simply to satisfy my
craving for more. I've never wanted to be anything else.
Is there anything or anyone
in particular that you draw inspiration from?
Inspiration
is everywhere, the bad thing is that it's never on schedule. I used to get a
thousand and one ideas and because they all seemed so great, I could never
develop a single one. Now, what I try to do is stay focused on my current
project so that I don't allow any tempting new ideas to tease me away from my
baby. I stay loyal, completely devoted, and allow all my thoughts to be
directed towards it. But the moment I'm done, I'm open to life, songs, books,
television, friends, long walks, long drives, and usually in those moments,
while I'm open and welcoming and most receptive, is when the best ideas come.
Was it hard to let go of the
Real series?
Surprisingly,
I wasn't. I think we were both ready; my characters had their HEA's and I had
new characters waiting in the wings. It's hard to let go of my people the
moment I finish a book, though. That's the hardest part. But once it’s finished
and I know that the characters have achieved their main goals, I feel at peace.
I still hope to revisit my Real characters in the future and see what
they're up. I know my readers would love to revisit too, but I don’t want to
revisit simply for old time’s sake. There has to be a story there, waiting to
be told. :)
Which story has been your
favorite to write?
Real and Manwhore are
my favorites. Both felt fresh and exciting to me, the first book of a series,
where I get to meet "everyone" and explore their worlds.
Is there a book concept
you’re just dying to write?
I'm dying
to write a thriller one day. Dying.
Which character of yours, is
your favorite?
Each of my
characters represents different things to me and they all have a piece of my
heart, but usually, the characters I love most intensely are the ones whose
book I'm writing now. They're the ones keeping me up at night, stealing
into my thoughts even when I should be doing something else.
Do you have a favorite book?
I'm such a
devoted reader and I have so many favorite books. One of them is THE LYON'S
LADY by Julie Garwood. That book has stayed with me for decades and is still as
brilliant today as it was when I read it in the 1980's.
Who is your favorite Disney
character?
Maleficent.
And this was even before the Disney movie, I just find villains fascinating.
Though I admit, I love love, love the misunderstood, tender Beast in Beauty and
the Beast too.
Do you have a method to your
writing process? Outlining, etc.
I don't
outline, but I usually get a feel of my characters first, their goals and their
backgrounds. Once it feels clear, I sit down to write the first chapter and
continue to feel out the story, see if it starts with a bang. Once I've got my
first chapter down and a good idea of what the book will be about, I immerse
myself in the project for the next two or three months. I write all day, and
sometimes revise during the evening. Once I read a tip from another author who
said that you should always quit writing early for the day so that you knew
exactly where you would start writing the next day. I do that sometimes to keep
from getting stuck.
Have you
ever gone back to book you've published and wished you could have changed the
ending or some other major aspect of the story?
Definitely.
They're never perfect, no book is. I could edit a single book until the day I
die and it still wouldn't be perfect. This is why I give it 1001% of what I've
got when I'm writing it - I give it my heart, my soul, all the hours of my day,
my very breath. When I’m done I spend months tweaking, rereading, reviewing,
and then I get feedback from my beta readers, agent, and editor too. But when
I'm finally done, I'm done and I have to move onward or I'd only ever write
that one book that would never be perfect and, because of my endless tweaking,
would also never be read.
What is the one piece of
advice you’d give to new writers?
Reading is
the best teacher. Take your time to plot out your story, outline and do
whatever you need to in preparation of writing, but when the time finally
comes, just start typing.
Giveaway
About the Author
Katy Evans grew up with books and
book-boyfriends until she found a real sexy boyfriend to love. They married and
are now hard at work on their own happily ever after. Katy loves her family and
friends, and she also loves reading, walking, baking, and being consumed by her
characters until she reaches “The End.” Which is, hopefully, only the
beginning…
Author Links
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