I am pleased to be welcoming Lynda Wolters to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, The Placeholder. 

THE PLACEHOLDER, a mash-up of Thelma and Louise besties meet Eat, Pray, Love and Me Before You. 

Middle-aged Serenade Kincaid has lost everything: her stepchildren, her house, half her earnings, her sports car, and her husband, all to a decades younger–and more fertile–woman.

Sera now drinks boxed wine from a plastic cup as she attempts to start over from her new home, a seedy motel, as she kills time scrolling dating apps in search of a semi-decent-not-mass-murderer-please-just-spend-time-with-me port in the storm.

As Sera discontentedly leapfrogs through men, her snarky, meddling boss and sometimes-best friend, Carolyn, encourages her to focus more on finding a friend with benefits, just until Prince Charming comes along, of course. Zac fits the bill.

He’s a self-proclaimed “unsuitable boyfriend” who looks to have jumped straight from the pages of a romance novel. Zac also insists he, too is only looking for some fun, which is perfect for Sera.

Cue the booty calls. And wow, are they hitting the spot. But just when Sera is starting to figure herself out, get her life back on track and think she may have found someone, life takes a sharp left. And all fun and games come to a screeching halt.

Now, Sera, Zac, and Carolyn must race against time to disentangle their web of lies and deceit before it’s too late.

The Placeholder is an unconventional, unforgettable, unputdownable story of loss and love.

Lynda has shared an extract with us today. Enjoy! 

*****beginning of extract*****

I never had a sister, but I did have a best friend, and oh, did we get ourselves into some tricky situations; but we always had each other’s backs. Decades later, I still have that BFF, and while we live a thousand miles apart, we still have each other’s backs. While writing the friendship scenes in The Placeholder between Sera and Carolyn, I drew on my relationship and how crazy and daring, and trusting a good relationship is; I hope the same comes through in this fun, somewhat crazy scene where Carolyn is driving Sera’s sporty Barracuda to see Sera’s mom. Here’s the scene:

The drive north is otherwise uneventful. We rock out to seventies disco when my head and ears can handle the noise, with an occasional Etta James and requisite Pat Benatar – because no girls’ trip is complete without “Heartbreaker.”

“Detour,” I call out. “Take old Highway 7. I want to show you something.”

Carolyn follows my directions, keeping to the posted speed.

“Faster,” I blurt. We are at the bottom of a hill where the intersecting road sign reads, Greencreek 6 miles. “Go faster.”

“I’m driving at the speed limit.”

“Just do it.”

I see Carolyn push the peddle down slightly.

“Faster.”

Continue reading →

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