win a copy of Skater Boy

A couple of weeks ago, fellow Penguin author, Mari Mancusi, emailed me and suggested we do some cross promotion on our blogs. It seems that buyers of Blue Eyes and Other Teenage Hazards also buy her book Skater Boy. I have complete faith in my buyers, so I agreed. After I read Skater Boy, I did see some similarities in the stories. Both stories have awesome, mature hot guys, who we can tell are really smart even though they're not geeky about it. Both have heroines who are only children with overprotective, sometimes smothering parents. When new, wild girls move in to the high school and become BFs to the heroines, both of the heroines wonder if they're missing something with their goody-goody ways.

And both heroines have their first kiss with the awesome heroes. Ah, how sweet, right? So we're going to be talking about first kisses on the blog today, and then I'll be giving away a copy of Skater Boy to a lucky commenter. The book is a sweet romance (as opposed to a mature romance) but does have some swearing. Here is Mari's first kiss. I'll confess my first kiss in the next blog (if I don't wimp out first.)



My First Kiss - By Mari Mancusi

To be completely honest, my actual first kiss was kind of slimy and gross--to a boy I really didn't like. So I've decided to cheat a little--and tell you about my first kiss that actually counted--with my real life skater boy!

I lived on a small, dead-end street and we were all pretty close with our neighbors. Once a year the neighborhood would get together for a cookout and after dinner the kids would gather to play a game we called Snort-a-gator. It was a kind of hide-and-seek hybrid mixed with tag and played in the dark.

We weren't kids anymore--we were all in our teens--but that didn't stop us from our tradition. This year, however, I'd invited my crush, a skateboarder named Russ I'd met downtown. He'd come over for the cookout and was just learning the rules of our little game. I was worried, at first, that he'd think it was childish, but he seemed to be cool about it. And soon we were rushing off to hide.

Russ suggested we hide together and we ducked down in what we decided was a perfect spot right outside the nearby cemetery. There we were, crouched down in the dark, all alone, hoping not to be discovered. Russ turned to me, his face suddenly close to mine, and whispered, "Do you want to go out with me?"

It was all I could do not to squee with excitement and give away our hiding spot! Instead, I managed to contain myself and somehow manage to whisper, "Yes!" And then, without warning, he leaned in and kissed me. Alone in the dark, our very first kiss and one I will never forget.

So that's my first kiss story. And though, sadly, Russ and I didn't last, he remained my inspiration for a future book--about another first kiss. And let me tell you--I think Dawn's kiss from her skater boy is just as sweet!

About Skater Boy
Dawn Miller is sick of being good. Her parents have scheduled her to within an inch of her life and her popular friends can only think of hooking up and shopping. She's ready for a serious boyfriend, and it's definitely not the obnoxious rich boy everyone wants her to date.

Then she meets Starr, the headmaster's punk rock daughter who refuses to play by the rules. The differences between them are night and day but Dawn is fascinated. Starr introduces her to a world she didn't even know existed: hip indy record stores, all night raves, and cute skateboarders who hang out underneath a parking deck downtown.

Skateboarders like the gorgeous Sean, who's sweet, smart, and curiously serious --everything Dawn's always wanted in a boyfriend. Soon she finds herself head over heels and doing the unthinkable, lying to her parents and friends. Deep down she knows her parents will never approve of this boy from the wrong side of town...and her secret life is finally catching up to her. Will Dawn be forced to choose between the girl she was and the girl she is meant to be? And if she chooses, will she lose her skater boy forever?

Skater Boy is available on Kindle, Nook, Google Books and iBooks for $3.99.

For more, go to http://www.marimancusi.com Read an excerpt on Wattpad

About Mari Mancusi
Mari Mancusi used to wish she could become a vampire back in high school but she ended up in another blood sucking profession --journalism -- instead. Today she works as a freelance TV producer and author of books for teens and adults. When not writing about creatures of the night, Mari enjoys traveling, cooking, goth clubbing, watching cheesy horror movies, and her favorite guilty pleasure--videogames. A graduate of Boston University and a two time Emmy Award winner, she lives in Austin, Texas with her husband Jacob, daughter Avalon and dog Mesquite.

If you'd like a chance to win the book, leave a comment