Stan Crowe – LDS Women's Book Review

Love Spell by Stan Crowe – Countdown to Summer 2013

Jun 292013

From a young age, Stan’s mother instilled in him a love of reading and writing. At age five, he won a local library writing contest, and became “published” for the first time.

In 2004, Brigham Young University awarded Stan with a Bachelors of Science in civil and environmental engineering, and he spent several years designing homes and prescribing work for bridges.

In the midst of all this, he produced a science fiction anthology in 2006. In 2012, Breezy Reads Publishing picked up his romantic comedy The Cinderella Project. And thus he transformed himself from Captain Kirk into Don Juan.

Stan lives with his wife and children (final count to be determined) in Pleasant Grove.

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LDSWBR: What books do you plan/hope to read this summer?

STAN: I’d love to finish Mircea Eliade’s “No Souvenirs,” I’m also working on book 1 of “The Brotherband Chronicles” by John Flanagan. I’ve still got a couple of Hugh Nibley volumes to read, and those are beasts in and of themselves, but if I keep chipping away at them…

LDSWBR: Did you ever go to summer camp, and/or what is your most memorable camping experience?

STAN: I’ve been to several summer camps. My most memorable experience? Too many to name, but here are a few.

Getting locked in a porta-potty by scouts from another troop
Riding the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands Utah
Having one of our scout leaders go over a cliff and fall fifty feet in the middle of the night, and watching the EMTs carry him to a helicopter on a stretcher the next morning

LDSWBR: If you could have a summer home anywhere in the world, where would it be?

STAN: I agree with my wife’s choice: somewhere along the coast of the Olympic Peninsula, preferably up near the Quileute tribal reservation.

LDSWBR: Thanks, Stan!

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Find Love Spell

KINDLE | NOOK | SMASHWORDS | GOODREADS

Clint Christopherson’s love life is a running joke. When a crazed gypsy curses him with the best wish he could ever ask for, the punchline stops being funny. Now, even his barest touch drives girls mad for him. Desperate to reverse the curse, he turns to his last hope: an attractive private investigator who may be able to locate his missing gypsy. If only Clint knew who it was he just hired…

I asked a lot of camping-related questions this year. What question suggestions do you have for the next Countdown to Summer?

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To enter the LDSWBR Countdown to Summer 2013, leave a thoughtful comment below.

Comment on each Countdown to Summer 2013 post for more chances to win. Please click through to the website as only comments submitted directly on this post will be accepted.

Prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and the author-donated books listed below. This is raffle-style drawing where all entries throughout the contest period are entered into the same “hat” for all prizes. US only. 18 years and older please. See all contest rules and restrictions HERE.

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Book prizes generously donated by the authors as of 6/29/2013 (more added throughout the countdown!):

A Blind Eye by Julie Daines (signed), a bookmark AND a Mind the Gap temporary tattoo
I, Spy by Jordan McCollum (choice of paperback or ebook)
Sworn Enemy by A.L. Sowards (choice of paperback or ebook)
Glimmer of Hope by Sarah M. Eden
A Change of Plans by Donna K. Weaver
Fairy Godmothers, Inc. by Jenniffer Wardell (signed paperback)
Esther the Queen by H.B. Moore (Kindle or Nook)
Belonging to Heaven by Gale Sears (or winner’s choice of another book by Gale)
Farworld: Air Keep by J. Scott Savage (personalized copy)
A Way Back to You by Emily Gray Clawson (personalized paperback)
Deep Cover by Traci Hunter Abramson (personalized paperback)
Second Chances by Melanie Jacobson (signed copy)
Cragbridge Hall: The Inventor’s Secret by Chad Morris (winner’s choice of hardcover or audiobook)
When the Butterflies Came by Kimberley Griffiths Little (signed hardcover and bookmarks)
The Orchard by Krista Lynne Jensen
Wednesdays in the Tower by Jessica Day George (signed copy)
Isabelle Webb: The Grecian Princess by N.C. Allen (winners choice of Kindle copy or signed paperback)
Love Spell by Stan Crowe (choice of ebook format downloadable from Smashwords)

By commenting and participating in the Countdown to Summer 2013 you agree to the following:

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY; entrants must be 18 years or older; open to residents of continental US only; giveaway begins June 10, 2013 and all entries must be received by 12:00 Midnight June 30, 2012 Mountain Time; to enter, complete the required entry on each post and any additional entries of your choice if listed; LDS Women’s Book Review reserves the right to determine what is considered a thoughtful comment as per each post’s required entry; giveaway prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and a variety of book prizes donated by featured authors; the number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning; LDS Women’s Book Review is not liable for technical problems which may affect entry into the giveaway; winner identity will be verified by email address; winner will be selected July 2, 2013 by use of a sequence generator on random.org; winners will have until July 10, 2013 to claim their prize; if any prize winner forfeits or does not claim prize, prize will be re-awarded to next winner in sequence; all prizes will be awarded; limit of two prizes per entrant; this contest/giveaway is not associated with Facebook, Twitter or any other entity unless otherwise specified; by entering the giveaway you give LDS Women’s Book Review the right to publicize your name on the LDS Women’s Book Review blog; winner agrees to release LDS Women’s Book Review from any liability as a result of winning; email comments & questions to LDS Women’s Book Review – ldswbr (at) gmail (dot) com; giveaway subject to Utah regulations; VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

Guest Author Thursday & Giveaway: Inside the life & mind of romance author Stan Crowe

Posted by Shanda Contests, Guest Author Thursday, Special Features

Sep 062012

Last week I reviewed The Cinderella Project by Stan Crowe as part of the blog tour. I know LDSWBR blog readers are just as curious as I am about how Stan came to write contemporary romance, and I am so glad Stan agreed to write a guest post for Guest Author Thursday.

Publisher Breezy Reads has generously agreed to host an international giveaway for a copy of The Cinderella Project (physical copy – US only; electronic copy – US & International). Keep reading after Stan’s highly entertaining post to find out how to enter to win your own copy of The Cinderella Project.

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Inside The Life and Mind of Male Romance Author, Stan Crowe

There’s something to be said about being reared in a perpetual cloud of estrogen, lacking father or brothers in the house. My time growing up with just sisters helped me be less clueless about the opposite sex, and I was raised with a healthy respect for women in general. I also had a reasonable idea of what they hoped for in a man.

That still didn’t help my dating life. Ah, well.

Writing romance, specifically, started out as an accident for me. I entered a writing contest and found that it required writing a love story. I went ahead anyway. Even before that contest, however, relationships factored heavily into many of my earlier stories—even the science fiction and fantasy ones.

For me, genre is predominantly a setting for human drama. There are few things more potentially dramatic than romantic relationships. Romance can certainly trigger non-romantic conflicts (Why hello, Helen! How are the Trojans doing?), and provide a myriad of story hooks. So even when I’m not targeting romance as a plot I’m usually developing one as a subplot in a story. That’s almost proverbial, actually. How many good stories don’t feature some kind of love interests?

Being a male writing about love, emotions, et cetera has proven interesting. Not surprisingly, I’ve been the target of good-natured mockery from some male friends (one guy’s reaction, when he learned I had written “chick lit,” was particularly priceless). Others have been more supportive, though my dad didn’t have much to say; I hope he doesn’t think he spawned a pansy. Women have received the story much more eagerly—no surprise there.

Even in our post-women’s lib society, we still have some pretty clear gender expectations. Many of those make perfect sense, and are natural (e.g. women can have babies; men just get to help), while others (e.g. “real” men don’t wear pink) are more artificial. Suppressing certain emotions is one of those in the “other” category. It’s too easy to think of men in love as nothing other than hormonal animals trying to breed as frequently as possible. While it’s true that men do tend to think about sex much more readily than women, that doesn’t mean it’s all we think about, and it’s certainly not the biggest factor in mate selection. Well, not for most men.

I hope to bring an inside perspective on the fact that us guys also deal with complicated emotions during courtship, and even into marriage. “Does she actually love me?” “Can I really take care of her properly?” “What will her parents think of me?” “How will I know what she really wants?”

The life and mind of this male romance author isn’t much different from the life and mind of most male authors (though they probably had brothers). I just get to include more kissing in my books, and not feel ashamed of it.

My wife loves it. She lets me practice my lines on her.

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Thank you, Stan!

To enter the giveaway for a copy of The Cinderella Project, complete the Rafflecopter form below. The only required entry is to leave a thoughtful comment about Stan’s post below, though there are additional options if you want more entires into the giveaway. For your required entry to count, you must complete the Rafflecopter form and leave a thoughtful comment below.

Good luck!

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Cinderella Project by Stan Crowe – Blog Tour

Posted by Shanda Blog Tours, Book Reviews, Shanda's Reviews, Special Features

Aug 302012

The Cinderella Project

Author: Stan Crowe

Publisher: Breezy Reads

Published Date: August 30, 2012

Format: Kindle/Nook/ebook

Genre: Contemporary Romance

ISBN# 9781938327049

Reviewed by: Shanda

FTC FYI: I received a free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review

Summary

Committed to saving his marriage before it starts, doctoral student Nick Cairn embarks on a project aimed at finding the secrets of everlasting love. But when Moire DeLanthe, a smart and sassy research assistant, enters the picture, his Happily Ever After is put to the ultimate test.

First Line

“The first time I met Moiré De Lanthe, I was engaged to be married.”

Review

I LOVED this book. I had such a great time reading it. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this contemporary romance written by a man. The story is told in first person from the hero’s point-of-view. The reader gets the chance to hear the male main character’s internal dialogue as he struggles, succeeds, fails and recovers.

Grad student Nick is working on his dissertation and after hours of observing couples in romantic situations, watching hundreds of romantic movies, reading dozens of romance books, and studying nearly a thousand brain scans of couples in various stages of love, he is almost done with his research. When a beautiful woman that is not his fiancé shows up at the lab requesting to be hired as his research assistant, Nick is hesitant. He doesn’t want anyone potentially tempting him and distracting him from his devoted commitment to his fiancé, Ella.

Nick is a hard worker, a good student, and a great guy. I really liked him. He has a few thoughtless moments of being a jerk, which only made his character more believable to me as he stepped in it a few times trying to make up for those moments. He gets confused when his fiancé becomes overly emotional at times while planning their wedding, but makes a serious effort to keep the peace and show his love for and devotion to Ella.

I loved how the friendship between Nick and Moiré developed. I appreciated how devoted Nick was to his fiancé even though there were a few times I wanted to knock him upside the head. I loved the scene at the Italian restaurant, and the tuxedo shop, and the outdoor mall, and the park, and the cathedral. I laughed whenever male ego reared its head. I wanted to hug Nick when he was hurting and frustrated.

The Cinderella Project pulled me in from the start and I enjoyed it even more than I expected. It was refreshing to read this male-written romance from a male point-of-view. I hope that it won’t be the last. I would love to read more books like this one.

If you like good, clean, entertaining romance I highly recommend The Cinderella Project. I gladly add this book to my “Favorite Romances” list and look forward to reading it again in the near future.

Find The Cinderella Project on KINDLE | NOOK | SMASHWORDS.

Click HERE for a list of blog tour reviews and author interviews.

Author Bio: Born to a to a teacher, Stan was reading before age 4, and has loved books since. In kindergarten, he won a local writing contest and became a published author for the first time.

Stan Graduated from Brigham Young University in 2004 with a degree in civil and environmental engineering. Still, writing ran through his veins, and he continued producing fiction even while he was designing homes and preparing cost estimates for bridges.

Read more about Stan and The Cinderella Project on his BLOG.