Blog Tour: Going Home Excerpt & Character Bios + Giveaway

Book Info-

Title-Going Home

Series-Green Bayou Book #1

By-Rhonda R. Dennis

Publication Date-August 3, 2011

Blurb-

Paramedic Emily Boudreaux believes New Orleans is the perfect place for a young trauma junkie to see some action. Things start out fine enough, but years pass, and the job brings nothing but strife. Emily decides to make a fresh start by returning to her roots. She moves to the small town of Green Bayou, Louisiana. Thinking she will find peace and tranquility, Emily quickly learns that her imagination steered her wrong. Small town life offers far more tumult than she remembered! Mystery, excitement, deceit, and passion run rampant along the murky waters of Bayou Assumption. She struggles with the decision of which man to love: her amazing, new Paramedic partner, Jacob Templet or her handsome, former high school sweetheart, Deputy Pete Bergeron. Her ultimate struggle won't involve the decision of which man to be with. It is a quest for her personal survival! Praying to get out of a disastrous situation alive, Emily hopes that going home won't be the wrong decision.

Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Website

Character Bios

Thank you so much for asking about the characters!  As a whole, I have many readers tell me that they feel as though the characters are real people, so hopefully I can do them justice.

Emily Boudreaux is the main character.  When the series starts, she’s in her late-twenties.  She has long, curly blonde hair and a curvy figure.  She works as a paramedic and she’s really good at her job.  She’s kind, caring, and a little naive sometimes, though she doesn’t shy away from a confrontation.  She’s vulnerable when she needs to be and extremely strong when that is needed, too.  When others would have given up, Emily still hangs in there.

Connie Hebert is Emily’s best friend.  This petite, redheaded, ball of fire doesn’t really come into the spotlight until the second book, but once you get familiar with her, you can’t help but love her.  Connie works as a nurse for a local doctor, but she is jealous of the excitement Emily sees working on the ambulance.  She loves to be in the thick of the drama and is constantly the life of the party.

Pete Bergeron, was Emily’s boyfriend in high school.  After a fateful night, they went their separate ways, yet reconnected when she moved back to Green Bayou.  He’s now a gorgeous deputy who is eager to rekindle a relationship.  Tall, blue/green eyes, blond hair, muscular build--Pete is absolutely swoon-worthy, even though he does have a bit of a hot head.

Jacob Templet is Emily’s hot new work partner and he is the anti-Pete.  Jacob is relaxed, laid back, and protective in his own way.  He’s loyal and fair, almost to a fault.  He has dark brown hair that’s a little longer and beautiful deep brown eyes, one look from which can make even the most hardened heart soften. 

Alphonse Rivet is the Barney Fife of Atchafalaya Parish Sheriff’s Department.  He’s gangly man with gag-inducing features, yet you can’t help but fall in love with this walking disaster.

Those are some of the main characters from the first book in the series.  Other very notable characters who come about in future books are Holden Dautry, who is currently most reader’s favorite,  and Jackson Sonnier, who is right on Holden’s heels as fan favorite.  

Excerpt

“So the kiss we shared?  It was just one of those ‘caught up in the moment’ things?” he asked cautiously.

“No.  It’s one of those super-complicated ‘I don’t quite know what to make of it yet’ things.”  I looked away from him.  His handsome face and sad eyes were more than I could handle at the moment.  “Even though I admit that I enjoyed it, I’m not sure that we should do it again.  Not until I figure out where things are with Pete, okay?”

“So, you enjoyed it?”  He nodded his head a few times and then rose from his seat to make his way to the front door.  I followed him through the foyer and turned the handle of the door to open it.  Jacob thrust his hand against the door and held it closed.  He pulled me to him and kissed me until I thought my knees would buckle. 

“I just wanted to give you something to think about while you’re trying to figure the Pete thing out,” he taunted.

About the Author

Rhonda Dennis is proud to be born and raised in South Louisiana.  Her enthusiasm for the uniqueness of Louisiana’s culture is evident in her writing. Even though she loved writing, she put it on hold to work in the medical field.

 After starting a family, she went back to college where her passion was reignited and Rhonda wrote her first novel, Going Home, Book One of the Green Bayou Novel Series. Rhonda lives in a small town in South Louisiana with her husband, Doyle, and her son, Sean. She appreciates the outdoors, spending time with her family and friends, and loves cooking.

Find Her: Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Giveaway

One complete set of signed Green Bayou Novels paperbacks, one Green Bayou Novels charm bracelet, five e-book copies (Nook or Kindle) of Awakenings: A Green Bayou Novel Book Two, and 25 signed bookmarks.

*Paperbacks, bookmarks & charm bracelet open to US ONLY, ebooks open internationally* 

a Rafflecopter giveaway