The Big Love Letter Event: Melissa Landers

Welcome to week four of The Big Love Letter Event! For those of you who missed the introductory post several weeks ago, this event will run every Friday through March 13th and will consist of love letters written by some truly amazing authors. Danny from Bewitched Bookworms and I will each be hosting different letters every week (hop over there today for a little something special from Paula Stokes!), so be sure and check out both blogs for a bigger and better celebration of all things swoon-worthy. We'll also be hosting a fantastic giveaway, so don't forget to check the bottom of the post for all the details, as well as links to all the previous love letters in case you didn't get to them!

Today I'm thrilled to welcome Melissa Landers back to the blog to share with us a letter from Aelyx (he's a love letter first-timer!) to Cara, the–quite literally–starcrossed couple from her Alienated series. I have a bit of an Ohio theme going on with the event this year, with Kristen, Mindee, Melissa, Emery, and Sara all either currently living in or from Ohio, so I've been lucky enough to fangirl at all of them in person. Melissa was forced to endure my gushing during an interview last year, and thankfully I didn't scare her enough to make her want to run and hide when I approached her about participating. *pats self on back* If you haven't had the chance to read Alienated or Invaded yet, I hope you add them to your lists after reading Aelyx's letter!

Dearest Elire,

You might not believe this—or maybe you will—but I’ve never written a love letter before. Until now, there was no reason to. My heart has only ever belonged to you, and we both know that a pen and paper can’t compete with Silent Speech. But as much as I’d like to look into your eyes and show you how I feel, I can’t do that with multiple galaxies stretched between us. So for now, I suppose a note will have to do.

Gods alive, Cara, I miss you.

I miss the freckles on your cheeks, and the ones sprinkled across the bridge of your nose. I miss the way your eyes crinkle at the edges when you smile at me. I miss the scent of citrus in your hair and the sound of my name on your lips. I swear your presence is like a second sun, and without you, the air actually feels colder. (And trust me—winter in Manhattan is already miserable.) So wherever you are on L’eihr, please know that you are cherished.

I promise to mend this alliance as quickly as I can, and soon we’ll stand together on the shores of our colony and watch the stars, just like we did on board the transport. Our time apart is only a hiccup—you told me that once. I hope you still feel that way, and that you think of me every time you gaze at the night sky. You can’t see me, but I’m here. And I’m yours.

Much love,
Aelyx

These letters are brutal! *pounces on Aelyx and gives him a hug* Hopefully he and Cara find their way back to one another soon before I develop an ulcer from the stress of their separation ;-)

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ALIENATED
Alienated #1

Two years ago, the aliens made contact. Now Cara Sweeney is going to be sharing a bathroom with one of them.

Handpicked to host the first-ever L’eihr exchange student, Cara thinks her future is set. Not only does she get a free ride to her dream college, she’ll have inside information about the mysterious L’eihrs that every journalist would kill for. Cara’s blog following is about to skyrocket.

Still, Cara isn’t sure what to think when she meets Aelyx. Humans and L’eihrs have nearly identical DNA, but cold, infuriatingly brilliant Aelyx couldn’t seem more alien. She’s certain about one thing, though: no human boy is this good-looking.

But when Cara's classmates get swept up by anti-L'eihr paranoia, Midtown High School suddenly isn't safe anymore. Threatening notes appear in Cara's locker, and a police officer has to escort her and Aelyx to class.

Cara finds support in the last person she expected. She realizes that Aelyx isn’t just her only friend; she's fallen hard for him. But Aelyx has been hiding the truth about the purpose of his exchange, and its potentially deadly consequences. Soon Cara will be in for the fight of her life—not just for herself and the boy she loves, but for the future of her planet.

Amazon • Goodreads • B&N

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INVADED
Alienated #2

Cara always knew life on planet L’eihr would be an adjustment. With Aelyx, her L’eihr boyfriend, back on Earth, working to mend the broken alliance between their two planets, Cara is left to fend for herself at a new school, surrounded by hostile alien clones. Even the weird dorm pet hates her.

Things look up when Cara is appointed as human representative to a panel preparing for a human colony on L’eihr. A society melding their two cultures is a place where Cara and Aelyx could one day make a life together. But with L’eihr leaders balking at granting even the most basic freedoms, Cara begins to wonder if she could ever be happy on this planet, even with Aelyx by her side.

Meanwhile, on Earth, Aelyx, finds himself thrown into a full-scale PR campaign to improve human-L’eihr relations. Humans don’t know that their very survival depends on this alliance: only Aelyx’s people have the technology to fix the deadly contamination in the global water supply that human governments are hiding. Yet despite their upper hand, the leaders of his world suddenly seem desperate to get humans on their side, and hardly bat an eye at extremists’ multiple attempts on Aelyx’s life.

The Way clearly needs humans’ help . . . but with what? And what will they ask for in return?

Amazon • Goodreads • B&N

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MELISSA LANDERS

Susan A. Abt Photography

Melissa Landers is a former teacher who left the classroom to pursue other worlds. A proud sci-fi geek, she isn’t afraid to wear her Princess Leia costume in public—just ask her husband and three kids. She lives just outside Cincinnati and writes adult contemporary romance as Macy Beckett.

Website • Facebook • Twitter

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GIVEAWAY

Danny and I have (what we think) is a pretty fabulous giveaway that will run for the entirety of this event with 5 winners in total when all is said and done:

• Winners 1-4: Each will get a book of your choice from one of the participating authors. (Open internationally as long as Book Depository ships to you! )
• Winner 5  : Hardcover copy of LAILAH by Nikki Kelley plus some awesomely cute swag (international ). Prize is provided by author - thank you so much!
  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to check back both here and at Bewitched Bookworms every Friday in February for more letters and a whole lot more love from these fantastic authors:

• Kristen Simmons (The Glass Arrow)
• Mindee Arnett (Polaris, The Nightmare Dilemma)
• Melissa Landers (Invaded)
• Sara Raasch (Snow Like Ashes)
• Emery Lord (The Start of Me and You)
• Liza Palmer (Girl Before a Mirror)
• Anna Banks (Joyride)
• Heather Demetrios (I'll Meet You There)
• Nikki Kelly (The Styclar Saga)
• Paula Stokes (Liars, Inc.)
• & More!