Gina Rae Mitchell

Partner Pursuit by Kathy Strobos (New York Friendship Book 1) | $30 GC Giveaway, Author Guest Post, Excerpt, Review

A book blog tour from Goddess Fish Promotions.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Marianne & Judy at Goddess Fish for providing me with the information for this tour.

Book Details

Partner Pursuit by Kathy Strobos
Series: New York Friendship #1
Published by Strawbundle Publishing on 10/18/2021
Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Contempoary Romance, Friendship, Humorous, Romantic Comedy
Pages: 390

When a workaholic lawyer meets a fun-loving music marketing executive for opposites attract, friends-to-lovers adventures, which partnership will she choose?

Workaholic lawyer Audrey Willems is not going to take any chances with her bid to become a partner at her New York law firm—especially with only six months until the decision.

Until she bumps into Jake—her new neighbor. Jake is a fun-loving music marketing executive who might just be The One.

He’s funny, caring, supportive—and able to kill water bugs in the bathroom.

But Jake will never date a woman married to her job. His father was a workaholic lawyer who never had time for family.

And she’s just got the case of a lifetime—the one she needs to win to make partner. Working 24/7 at the office may not even be enough hours to pull off a victory.

If only she had not met him now.

Audrey is determined to prove that she can juggle work and romance—even if managing court cases, candlelit dinners, and bike rides around Manhattan is a lot harder than it looks. She keeps canceling dates for yet another case crisis.

But when making partner is like a game of musical chairs and the last seat is a business class alone, which partnership will she choose?

Source: Goddess Fish Promotions, Received from the author or publisher for review.

 

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Excerpt from Partner Pursuit

Water bugs were at the top of the shortlist of things she hated about summer in New York. She grabbed the vacuum cleaner and rubber gloves from the closet. She pulled her socks up over her work pants so the bug couldn’t crawl up her legs. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and wrapped a scarf around her hair. She didn’t want it flying into her hair. She pulled on the rubber gloves. [skipped section]

She carried the vacuum cleaner across the bedroom to the sliding door and put it down. She wanted her weapon at hand should the bug escape into the bedroom. She went outside into her garden and peeked over the fence. The light was on. Jake was up. She slipped through the hole in the fence and, with the dim light peeking through the curtained windows, carefully followed the path to his sliding door. She banged loudly on the glass. Biscuit barked.

Jake, pulling back the curtain and opening the sliding door, looked shocked. Jake was bare-chested. All hard muscle. She flushed.

“Wow, is this like a 1960s cleaning visit fantasy?” he asked. “Not that I ever had that dream, but you know, I do like the James Bonds from that period—especially the headscarves. I’m not sure about the socks over the pants though.”

“Very funny. A giant water bug has invaded my bathroom, and I need you to kill it.”

“You look pretty equipped to do the job yourself.”

“Yes, well it’s up in a corner I can’t reach.”

“Okay. But I’m not particularly fond of them myself.”

“It’s tough being a boy,” she said.

“I thought you were one of those women who could do it all.”

“No one can do it all. And I especially can’t do water bugs.”

He grabbed his t-shirt from the couch and pulled it on. He started to put on his sandals and stopped. “Do I need to add the socks?”

“I’d recommend it unless you don’t mind if it crawls on your foot. You might want to put on long pants as well.”

“Too hot. But I’ll add the socks in case I try to step on it. I’d better get a heavy shoe as well. C’mon, Biscuit, we’re going to battle a bug.”

They walked back through the two gardens in the warm night air. Audrey opened the sliding door and picked up the vacuum cleaner, slinging the hose over her shoulder.

 He said, “You know, it’s the vacuum cleaner slung over your shoulder that really adds that flair.”

“You’re just jealous because you’ve only got a shoe.”

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Purchase Links for Partner Pursuit

Amazon     Bookshop/IndieBound

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My thoughts on Partner Pursuit

Partner Pursuit is a fun, fast, light-hearted read that has underlying messages about work-life balance and setting healthy life goals.

Audrey will resonate with many readers as she faces the same obstacles that many young professionals are butting up against today.

I enjoyed the New York City setting and the many excursions Jake planned for Audrey. He is the perfect foil for her chronic over-working lifestyle.

It only took me a few pages to become invested in the story. I just kept turning the pages to see what would happen next.

There is an undercurrent running through the book that women need to help each other in the workplace and not tear each other down to advance. Wouldn’t that make for a fabulous place to work every day?

The book never preaches these many lessons to you. They are artfully woven through this delightful romantic comedy tale.

I recommend Partner Pursuit to all lovers of romantic comedies and light-hearted fun books.

 

I received a copy of the book for the tour. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.

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I read as many books as possible through the Amazon Kindle Unlimited program. 

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Guest Post from Kathy

Topic:  Anything entertaining related to the story or author.

Hmm. The blind date in Partner Pursuit was inspired by a real date, but I made it much worse 😊

And related to me: I love to craft dollhouse miniatures, so my next story will actually feature a miniaturist. But I find that crafting is a great way to relieve stress. I started crafting dollhouse miniatures when my daughter was born, and I was still practicing as a lawyer. I’m not as good at crafting as writing or lawyering, so it also makes me want to keep my day job. But I find it’s really fun to play and to set up scenes that look real. I created a book store, and Partner Pursuit had its “first” book talk there.

We also did this as a project with my son’s class for his classroom auction project. All the children created their favorite books and painted the pieces of the dollhouse kit. I’ve attached a picture of how it came out. It was a huge success!

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Giveaway!

Kathy Strobos will be awarding a $30 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Visit more stops on the tour for extra chances to win!

October 18: Literary Gold
October 18: Long and Short Reviews
October 19: Fabulous and Brunette
October 20: Read Your Writes Book Reviews
October 21: Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews
October 22: Gina Rae Mitchell
October 25: All the Ups and Downs
October 26: Sandra’s Book Club – review only
October 26: Lisa’s Reading
October 27: Novels Alive
October 28: Rogues Angels
October 28: The Avid Reader
October 29: Harlie’s Books

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Purchase Partner Pursuit online from a local book store.

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