The
Fate of a Crush
by
Marie
McGrath
GENRE:
YA
Romance
BLURB:
Falling
in love with a senior was risky … especially when he was your best
friend’s brother.
Allie
Duncan started sophomore year with two aspirations, make her school’s
volleyball team and keep her crush on Hunter Baylor, her best
friend’s brother, a secret. If Mia found out, she would feel
betrayed. The crush was useless anyway. Hunter was a star basketball
player and she was a nobody. Or so she thought until his attention
was piqued after Allie went on the Baylors’ summer vacation. When
Hunter goes to homecoming with Allie’s sophomore rival, she’s
devastated and her confidence is destroyed, especially after his date
tells her the Baylors pity her. Hunter tries to make it up to Allie,
which leads to a kiss, leaving Allie confused.
Can
she push this crush out of her heart to save her friendship? Or is
Hunter worth the risk?
Purchase
The Fate of a Crush on Amazon
Excerpt:
“You
came out to the shore without Mia? That’s dangerous in the dark.”
“So
did you.”
“And?”
“And
what? I’m some defenseless girl who needs a chaperone?”
“That’s
not what I meant.”
I
retreated to my flip flops and plopped into the sand. I kept my gaze
on Hunter’s back as he stared into the water. Of all the places on
the beach, he had to stand at this one? This was my escape from my
feelings, and I hated that the other part of me was secretly excited
that we were here … alone. What did I expect to happen? I was his
sister’s best friend. Some useless sophomore. This was just a
convenient spot, directly in front of the house.
I
stood and slipped my feet back into my flip flops. “I’m heading
back. Have a goodnight.”
“Duncan,
wait. I didn’t mean to crash your walk and then insult you.”
“No
harm done, Hunter. I should head back anyway.”
“I
can walk with you.”
I
waved the flashlight, sending it haphazardly across his chest. “I’ll
be fine. Enjoy the view.” I turned to walk back.
I
would be lucky if I could sleep picturing what could have happened on
that beach. What I wished would happen. If only we were different
people, and it wasn’t forbidden.
Interview with Marie McGrath
How did you become involved with the subject or theme of your book?The trope of a best friend’s brother is one of my favorites and when I looked around, I didn’t see as many of them as I had hoped. It’s a soft spot because I had experienced it myself. As a high school teenager, my crush never went past that. Nothing had ever happened, but I liked the idea of what if it had. How would a character navigate that scenario: betraying her best friend while dating someone who you really liked. Once I started there, everything else sort of snowballed.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?My goal was to provide a feel-good young adult romance. I wanted the tension between the love interests and the room for the characters to be themselves, no matter what. I feel like this is my best book yet. I read passages and still laugh, even though I know what happens. I also think it deals with real life issues for a high schooler and I’d like to think that there are real positive outcomes from some of those events.
What was the hardest part of writing this book?The hardest part for me was making sure their relationship was believable. My crush on my best friend’s brother, never happened. So I was writing something that I hadn’t experienced. I had to dig deep to find out, why would he like her? When would that change happen? How would that impact what he did and said and how would she handle spending time with him without alerting her best friend? I like my plots to feel as real as possible, so it was important for me to build this relationship in the best way.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?Their banter. Allie and Hunter were so fun to write. Allie, who I’ve been told is a lot like me in real life, is nose deep in a book and volleyball, but only has eyes for Hunter. She notices everything about him, and yet has to pretend it’s not happening. Those moments were fun, but letting them explore their feelings was the best. Seeing how he would treat her, and how she would respond to his attention was fun to write.
Were there alternate endings you considered?Not really. The ending was originally a little different, but only in how the conflict was resolved. After my beta feedback, I needed to add scenes and changed where and when/how soon the conflict was resolved, but the ultimate ending in the epilogue was never any different.
Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?A lot of aspects of this novel are based on my experience. I played volleyball growing up, so it was easy to have Allie be a setter, which was my own position when I play. I also went to Outer Banks in high school … yes with my best friend’s family, just like Allie. So this novel didn’t require as much research to understand details, but it was fun to take something I had experienced and twist into their story. It makes the memories I have even more special to me.
What genre of books do you enjoy reading?I honestly read a lot of genres, but I focus mainly around romance in the different areas like historical, fantasy, etc. I really like reading about relationships, but a close second is epic fantasy.
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
Marie
McGrath lives in a small rural town in Maryland. She hopes to inspire
others with her stories. Her favorite genres to read are YA Romance
and Contemporary Fiction. She loves the color turquoise, tigers, and
listening to music.
Connect
with Marie McGrath
Website
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Instagram
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