The Ex Lottery
The Book Junkie Reads . . . Review of . . . THE EX
LOTTERY . . . One unlucky in love art school teacher, $600
million dollars, Ireland, a castle, a dragon, and a story that gave her hope
there was something more for her and her dreams. Tory never dreamed that her
bad luck with men would be the key to her future and her fortune. She never
dreamed that her grandmother would sell the only home she had ever known and
loved. She never expected to be truly going across the world, to a castle that
had been a part of her life since she could remember. She never expected that
her journey home would start with meeting a man that makes her feel more than
every. Tory never dreamed that all her exs would follow her across the world. I was very much invested in this story from the start all the way to the end. There were few parts that felt like something was missing, but I could piece things together. I loved Tory's best friends. I would have loved to have seen more of her. I really liked Tory. I could relate to her. She felt real.
Narrator Review of . . . THE EX LOTTERY . . . the narration gave this read a little something extra. Eva Kaminsky did a good job giving each character their own identity and uniqueness. The audio was smooth, hiccup free and kept pacing with the speed changes.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog
tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Kim Sanders.
The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
A WOMAN WITH A POT OF GOLD. AN IRISHMAN WITH A DRAGON'S CASTLE.
AND THREE EX-BOYFRIENDS.
THE EX LOTTERY, winner of three 1st Place Contemporary Romance Awards, is a modern fairy tale about a lonely art teacher who is unlucky in love, but lucky in numbers. Three times Tory Adams has loved, and three times her heart has been broken. On a whim, she buys a lottery ticket using the dates her ex-boyfriends dumped her. And wins. Wins $600 million dollars.
All Tory has ever wanted is love, a home, and a family. With her newfound pot of gold, she decides that though she may never have love, she can have the home of her dreams—an Irish castle where her grandparents met and fell in love.
Tory travels to Ireland to purchase the Castle on Dragon's Isle. But with money comes complications and a new chance at love. Tory soon discovers romance at every turn. First, a handsome Irishman appears followed by a trio of men all vying for her love. Now she must decide—do the men love her or are they simply romancing the numbers?
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THE EX LOTTERY honors include the follow award in contemporary romance: the Chanticleer Reviews Chatelaine Award, the NEC-RWA™ Readers' Choice Award, and the Chick Lit Get Your Stiletto in the Door Award.
Kim Sanders is a best-selling
author of contemporary romance who loves beaches, dragonflies, and rain on a
blue tin roof. But what she loves the most is a happily-ever-after story. Her
first novel, Shades of Gray, was an award-winning novel that was a number one
bestseller on Amazon’s Contemporary Romance Bestselling List. Her second novel,
The Ex Lottery, has won three prestigious first-place awards for contemporary
romance. Sanders’ work has been recognized by Kirkus Reviews, Chanticleer Book
Reviews, and Writers Digest. Before becoming an author, Sanders worked as a
photographer, a journalist, an editor, and an attorney.
Author Links:
Website⎮Twitter⎮Facebook
Q&A with Author Kim
Sanders
·
Tell us about the
process of turning your book into an audiobook.
o First, I had to find the best narrator. I went to Audible and
listened to samples of so many narrators. I could tell after a few lines. I
believe no matter how good a book is that picking the wrong narrator will ruin
it. My favorite was Eva Kaminsky and Karen White. I felt Eva just fit this book
perfectly. I sent her story notes and character summaries and character accent
descriptions. We talked back-and-forth a bit. I didn’t want Tory to have a
thick Southern accent because I find this distracting from the story. My
daughter recorded her voice for me and I sent it to Eva as an example. She
recorded the first chapter and sent it as a sample. Eva is so talented and
experienced, I trusted her to interpret the book and she did an amazing job.
·
Do you believe
certain types of writing translate better into audiobook format?
o Definitely. Romance books are tricky when transformed into
audiobooks. Some books have lots of graphic sex and hearing these scenes read
out loud would have me turning bright red. Others sound ridiculously corny when
read aloud. I love Nora Roberts novels, but when I read them, the characters
are brilliantly snarky. Fabulous, strong women whose conversations with their
love interests make me laugh. I’ve listened to a few of her audiobooks where
the narrator read the sarcasm in a sappy dreamy voice. This interpretation
ruined the book for me. Luckily, this is not true of most of her audiobooks so
I’ve listened to many Nora Roberts books while driving. Oh, and I’ve heard Nora
Roberts speak at conferences, and she is snarky and brilliant like her
characters.
·
Was a possible
audiobook recording something you were conscious of while writing?
o No, I wasn’t even considering an audiobook when I first wrote “The
Ex Lottery.” I did however read drafts of the book aloud while writing. Reading
aloud is a great editing tool. If parts of the book sound awkward when spoken
aloud then I edit it. Having used this editing tool, I felt much more confident
when I decided to create an audiobook.
·
How did you
select your narrator?
o I listened to so many samples of books by different narrators that
I kept notes. I also went through my own person audible books and tried to
remember the ones that had narrators that I loved. I actually believe it is
very difficult to find a talented narrator for romance novels because the
novels are so character driven. Eva Kaminsky had recorded numerous books by
Bella Andre, a very successful romance writer, and I loved the way she
interpreted these books. I looked back at my own audible library after running
across one of her recordings and thinking her voice fit the Tory voice in my
head. I actually had several of these books in my audible library so I looked
her up and listened to more samples of her narrations. I was torn between Eva Kaminsky
and Karen White (who had recorded books for Jill Shavis whose writing style I
also loved and had in my personal collections) because both narrators styles
and voices fit perfectly, but I talked to Eva Kaminsky first and loved her
experience with accents which was important for “The Ex Lottery” and she had
the perfect timeline available. I think she turned out to be the perfect match
for the book.
·
Were there any
real life inspirations behind your writing?
o Yes, actually my daughter inspired this book. My daughter is a
beautiful, amazing woman. She was in her twenties and brokenhearted. Her third
long-term boyfriend had just broken up with her. She was sitting at my home and
said that she was giving up on love. She was going back to graduate school and earning
a degree where she could have enough money to buy her own home and travel the
world. She planned to embrace a life without men. The next morning, I was
sitting on my front porch trying to think of a new book plot. I picked up a
book I had sitting on a side table and noticed that my bookmark was an old
lottery ticket. And the idea began. What if a brokenhearted young woman wins
the lottery? What if she uses the dates her ex-boyfriends broke up with her?
What if she uses the money to buy the home of her dreams? Why just a home? Why
not a castle—a castle in Ireland overlooking the Irish Sea? And with money,
comes love, and humor. I actually loved spinning this tale. And on a side note,
my daughter got her an MBA, travelled to more countries than I can count
(including Ireland), got an amazing job, built her own home, and then met the
man of her dreams, married and has the world’s most perfect baby girl. So
romance novels do come true.
·
How do you manage
to avoid burn-out? What do you do to maintain your enthusiasm for writing?
o I am not very good at avoiding burn-out thus I’m stuck in the
middle of writing two novels right now. I find that it is difficult to write
romance when the world around me seems so sad. Happily ever after is the key to
the books I write so I need to feel good about life to write them. I tend to
become very involved with my characters when I’m writing their stories. I must
admit I also find it difficult when people ask for sequels even while being
flattered that readers like my characters so much that they want to continue
following their lives. I’m working on sequels to both my books but sometimes I
think I should just abandon these books and write something completely
different because I’m not as enthusiastic about the story. But then I’ll go for
a walk on the beach, see something as simple as a jar of rice with barnacles
growing on a rusty lid, and a story idea spins that works perfectly with a
sequel. I write for fun so if my enthusiasm is curbed, I don’t write. But
today, I’m so enthusiastic about writing that I can’t wait to finish answers
questions and get back to my stories.
·
Are you an
audiobook listener? What about the audiobook format appeals to you?
o Yes, over the years I’ve become a big audiobook fan. I have lots
of books on tape so my audiobook listening goes way back. I love to listen to
books when I drive. My favorite audiobooks are mysteries and thrillers, but I
also enjoy listening to the books that my book club picks. I find that it
allows me to time manage. My favorite option is to flip between the book and
the audiobook—the best of both worlds. I’m actually listening to the Harry
Potter series right now and am amazed at how close the narrators are to the
voice in my head while I read these books. To me saying that a narrator’s voice
matching the voice in your head is the best commentary a listener can make
about an audiobook.
·
Is there a
particular part of this story that you feel is more resonating in the audiobook
performance than in the book format?
o The scenes with the Irish speakers. I love Eva Kaminsky’s Irish
accents. She is an amazing voice actress and does the accents much better than
I did them in my head. I laugh because Kirkus Reviews said that “The Ex
Lottery” was “equal parts comedy, fairy tale and travelogue” and readers have
said things like how much they love the sexy Irish accents in my book. I must
admit I’ve never been to Ireland, but I studied Ireland accents by watching
Irish videos, newscasters and interviewing Irish people and friends who have
travelled to Ireland. Also, I had an Irish exchange student live with me for a
year and helped watch my children when they were tiny. I loved her accent and
her laughter and her lovely attitude about life. My Maggie character would be
the elderly version of this student.
·
What bits of
advice would you give to aspiring authors?
o Write what you know. It makes your book so much more powerful. I
don’t mean that write a memoir, I mean put emotions you have experienced into
words, into scenes. We have all experienced pain, laughter, sadness, fear,
hope. Think of a powerful memory, how you felt during that time, what the world
looked like to you at that moment, and then use that emotion, that vision to
write a scene and then another and another. Your book will be powerful. Write
because you love writing. Write because you have an idea that you love. I wrote
my first book because I had an idea, I’d always loved romance novels, and I’d
always wanted to write but always been afraid to try. I suddenly had the time.
I never expected it to sell a book much less have a book reach number one on
Amazon’s Contemporary Romance List. So take a chance. You won’t regret it.
·
Do you have any
tips for authors going through the process of turning their books into
audiobooks?
o Listen and listen and listen. Pick audiobooks that are in the same
genre when you pick a narrator. It makes a big difference. Give detailed
character descriptions to the narrator. Characters come to life in a book and
it is important that the narrator gets to know the character. Tell the narrator
if your book is a comedy or a serious story. “The Ex Lottery” is a fun
lighthearted romance full of laughter and tenderness. It is a modern fairytale.
A narrator can make or break your book. Remember if the narrator is bad, people
will probably not want to read your book either.
·
What’s next for
you?
o I’m working on a sequel to “The Ex Lottery.” It is Carter’s story.
I don’t think it will be a comedy. I’m also working on two sequels to “Shades
of Gray.” I’m halfway through with two of these but I tend to make my stories
too complex and will be going back to focus the storylines. I’m not a fast
writer so it will be a while. But I’ll only publish a book if I think it is a
great book.
Eva Kaminsky is a New York born
and NYC based actor and narrator. A 2014 Audie nominee, she has recorded over
150 audiobooks in many different genres ranging from Romance to Young Adult.
Eva can often be heard on TV and radio commercials for such products as Intel,
Publix, Neulasta and Tide, and spent her earlier years in the world of
animation voicing characters for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Pokemon,
Yu-gi-oh, among many others. Recent recurring and guest appearances on
television include Chicago Med, Billions, Madam Secretary, Madoff, Blindspot,
and The Blacklist, and on the larger screen she can be seen in Extremely Loud
and Incredibly Close, Three Generations, and Stephen King’s The Dark Tower. She
has spent over 20 years working in the theatre, both on and Off Broadway, and
extensively in regional theatres all over the country.
Narrator Link:
Website
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