The Bride Wore Chocolate Blog Tour: Interview + Giveaway

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming author Shirley Jump to the blog as part of the promotional tour for her adult contemporary romance, The Bride Wore Chocolate. As an enormous chocolate lover myself, I felt immediately drawn to protagonist Candace and have decided her ability to put together gourmet gift baskets would make her my new best friend if she were only real. Shirley was nice enough to answer a few questions for me, so I hope you all enjoy the interview and don't forget to check the bottom of the post for all the details on an epic giveaway!

Main character Candace runs a gourmet gift basket company. To help us get to know her a little bit better, please describe the contents of a basket that would perfectly suit her.

First off, thank you for having me on the blog! I love THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE and am thrilled to share it with readers! For Candace, the perfect gift basket would have all kinds of different chocolates—a few fancy ones with the flowers and designs on top, a few salted caramel chocolates (my new personal favorite), some Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (because they are the perfect candy) and some Birthday Cake M&Ms (have you had those? They are AWESOME). Plus maybe a bottle of wine and two glasses—to share with a friend or sexy stranger!

In the gift basket industry, Candace likely comes across some very entertaining messages for the intended recipients. What’s the craziest/funniest gift card message she’s ever included with a basket?

Hmm…that’s a good one! I can share one from my own life—when I turned 16, my mom sent my dad out to get flowers for my birthday. He came back with a dozen roses, and apparently didn’t read the gift card before he chose it. It read: Get Well Soon, The Gang All Misses You. Still one of the funniest cards I’ve ever received!

Let’s say you decide to switch careers and try your hand at planning weddings. What advice would you have for brides who find themselves, as Candace does, a bit out of sorts leading up to the big day?

Call on your friends for advice and hugs, for sure! My best friend Sherri was so great about being there for me in those crazy days before the wedding and she made it all seem like it was all going to be just fine, even when things would go wrong.

Obviously Candace is a huge fan of chocolate (a girl after my own heart!). What is your go-to comfort food when you’re having a bad day?

I LOVE food. And dessert. I mean, I wrote a whole book about chocolate (THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE) and another one about cheese (THE BOSS COURTED TROUBLE). And one about pasta (THE DEVIL SERVED DESIRE). My go-to comfort food is pasta with lots of cheese, followed by some kind of decadent chocolate dessert. So you can kinda see why I wrote those books, LOL. I think it was an excuse to try all those recipes!

Family plays a big role in Candace’s life, with both her mother and grandmother present and accounted for (for better or worse). Who is your all-time favorite fictional motherly or grandmotherly character?

I love Candace’s grandma in THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE. I really love wise and sassy older people who are just there with awesome advice. I created some matchmaking grannies in the Sweetheart Sister series (THE SWEETHEART RULES is out now) and those little old ladies always crack me up. They’re like Grandma Walton—only sassier!

If a sexy suitor like Michael was going to try and get your attention with a small gift or gesture of some kind, what would be the best way for him to make a lasting impression?

I like gifts that show that the guy is paying attention. Anyone can buy a dozen roses and give them to you but the guy who goes out and gets you your favorite candy every Christmas or lines the driveway with balloons to celebrate a milestone—that’s the guy who wins my heart (and in real life he did, so I married him ;-)

If Candace was to beta read your romance novels for you, what piece of advice do you think she’d give you about your leading ladies?

Give them a little chaos to shake them out of their complacent, predictable worlds! Candace is very much a planner, a no-risk-taking, dependable woman who needs chaos to show her when she’s making a horrible mistake. Michael is chaos personified, which is what both draws her to him and terrifies her about choosing the wrong man. Those are the best kind of relationships to explore!

Thanks so much for stopping by Shirley!

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THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE

Enter the sinfully delicious universe of New York Times bestselling author Shirley Jump's Sweet and Savory Romances with the USA Today and Amazon Top 20 bestseller - The Bride Wore Chocolate!

Life couldn't be more perfect for Candace Woodrow. Her gourmet gift basket company is thriving, and she's set to marry steady, dependable Barry. There's just one wrench in the fairytale. Two weeks before her wedding she wakes up in the wrong man's bed. Candace thinks she'll be able to run out the door and forget all about Michael Vogler, but the Boston millionaire has other plans for the jittery bride.

As the wedding approaches, Candace's life is further complicated by a thrill-seeking grandma and a meddlesome mother whose marriage track record rivals Elizabeth Taylor's. She attempts to drown her sorrows in chocolate, but with a sexy bachelor appearing on her doorstep at every turn - she finds herself wondering if there's enough of the sweet stuff in the world to stop her heart from racing every time he comes near.

*Special bonus material: Recipes written by the characters inside!*

Goodreads • Amazon

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SHIRLEY JUMP

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shirley Jump spends her days writing romance and women’s fiction to feed her shoe addiction and avoid cleaning the toilets. She cleverly finds writing time by feeding her kids junk food, allowing them to dress in the clothes they find on the floor and encouraging the dogs to double as vacuum cleaners.

Look for her new and improved re-released Sweet and Savory Romance series, including the USA Today bestselling book, THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE, on Amazon, and her Sweetheart Sisters series for Berkley, starting with THE SWEETHEART BARGAIN and continuing in April 2014 with THE SWEETHEART RULES. Visit her website at www.shirleyjump.com or read recipes and life adventures at www.eating-my-words.com.

Twitter • Facebook • Pinterest • Goodreads • Website

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GIVEAWAY

We have a fantastic giveaway accompanying this tour! Up for grabs:
 

• Two (2) Le Creuset Heart-Shaped Ramekins
• One (1) Le Creuset Square Covered Casserole
• $100 Amazon/iTunes/B&NGift Card (your choice) 
• Paperback Set of Shirley Jump’s Books: THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE, THE DEVIL SERVED DESIRE, THE ANGEL TASTED TEMPTATION, THE PLAYBOY SAVORED SEDUCTION, and THE BOSS COURTED TROUBLE

Please enter via the Rafflecopter form. Giveaway is open to US/Canada.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to check out all the stops on this tour for more interviews and giveaways!

 Monday, June 9th - Cassandra M's Place
Tuesday, June 10th - Curling Up with a Good Book
Wednesday, June 11th - Kindle and Me
Thursday, June 12th - Romancing Rakes for the Love of Romance
Friday June 13th - Supernatural Snark 

Monday, June 16th - On a Book Bender
Tuesday, June 17th - Bewitched Bookworms
Wednesday, June 18th - Laina Turner
Thursday, June 19th - Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews
Friday June 20th - Daily Mayo

Monday, June 23rd - Smexy Books
Tuesday, June 24th - Stitch Read Cook
Wednesday, June 25th - Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf
Thursday, June 26th - The Book Swarm
Friday June 27th - What's Beyond Forks?