Interview with Author Toni Shiloh

So excited to have author Toni Shiloh on to talk about her Faith and Fortune series. You are going to love this one! Check out the blurb, my interview with her, and an excerpt from the book!

The Trouble With Love Back cover Blurb –

I, Holiday Brown, have it all. A platinum record. Multi-million dollar home in Manhattan that I share with my two best friends. Life is looking fantastic until my roommate’s brother decides to bunk in our guestroom while his house gets renovated.
W. Emmett Bell has always been the bane of my existence. He’s annoying, stubborn, a know it all, and just might be the most gorgeous man I’ve ever laid eyes on. But I refuse to fall for him. Then his sister’s threatened by a stalker and dynamics change. His unwavering faith isn’t quite as self-righteous as I’d always thought, and maybe he has a good side I’ve overlooked all these years.

Or maybe it’s all too much trouble.

The Trouble With Love is the first book in the Christian Chick Lit series: Faith & Fortune. 

♥♥♥♥INTERVIEW:

Tell us a little about yourself!

I’m a huge reader and I’ll read just about any genre as long as it has romance in it. Whether it’s ya, contemporary, historical, suspense, speculative, etc, it doesn’t matter as long as a happily ever after is guaranteed. When I’m not reading, I’m playing video games with my sons, watching law enforcement shows with my husband, or chatting with friends. I’m an introvert that loves community and thankfully I get that from writer friends and Bible study friends.

Share with us the idea behind your Faith & Fortune Series. What inspired you to write the series?

I actually came across the stock photos when working on another book’s cover of mine. When I saw them I knew I wanted to use them. I just had to brainstorm a story that fit.
 
What is your latest book in the series about?

Faith & Fortune series is about three heiresses (and best friends) who live in New York City. We get a glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous and see their struggles in love and faith.
 
Where do your ideas come from?

It all depends. Sometimes a character will walk into my head and start talking to me. Sometimes I’ve brainstormed an idea until slowly a character surfaces and their backstory begins to take shape. Sometimes it’s a song, commercial, etc.
 
What authors do you enjoy reading?

So many! I’ve read all of the books of Sarah Monzon, Ronie Kendig, Becky Wade, Lynn Blackburn, and more.

What are some of your favorite books?

Becky Wade’s My Stubborn Heart will always be at the top of my list. I’d also add Francine River’s The Atonement Child, Kim Cash Tate’s Hidden Blessing, and Kasie West’s Love, Life, and the List.

Here’s a question I love asking: what book (that’s already published) do wish you could have written?

Oh, that’s a great question! I’ll pick Becky Wade’s My Stubborn Heart. There is such emotion in that book and it hits me in the feels every time.

We both write about fame, celebrities, singers, and models as well as writing about values. Who are some of the celebrities who you admire?

That’s a question I’ve never been asked before. 😊 Thinking about it, it would probably be an author who has reached famed status. Someone who was a trailblazer but also full of wisdom. Ladies like Toni Morrison or Maya Angelou.

If you weren’t a writer, what would your dream job be?

Being a writer is pretty much living the dream, but if I had to pick another one, maybe bookstore owner.

I write a lot about funny (and cringe worthy) middle school and high school moments. What’s a moment from either middle school or high school that you wish you could go back in time and do over?

I played band from 5th grade to 11th. I decided my senior to relax my schedule a little bit so I dropped band. If I could go back, I would add it back and pick something else to drop. I loved playing and I missed it more than I thought I would my senior year.

What are you working on next?

I’m currently writing a Christmas novella that will be in a boxset later this year. It’s taking me between New Orleans and Denver. 😊

Thank you so much for having me!
 
♥♥♥♥Excerpt:

I strolled down the path through Central Park and exhaled. My tour was over and I was now free to be me, Holiday Brown, lover of all things Manhattan and self-proclaimed foodie. Not that I necessarily placed labels on myself. I spent the majority of my life trying to shed the ones the world affixed to me. Rick Brown’s daughter. Platinum-selling pop singer. Heiress to the Brown fortune.

But here on the streets of Manhattan, I was just another dot from a bird’s eye view. One of the throng, heading to a destination only I knew.

As if I actually had a clue. I was living one day at a time, filling it with music and friendship. Life was more than I expected but lacking in ways I couldn’t seem to pinpoint.

My best friends and roommates would say I was burned out. They’d be right. My music career had already gone on longer than most artists dared hope for. My fuse had lit at an early age thanks to my dad’s ambition. He swears up and down I came out of the womb singing. No nonsense babbling for Rick Brown’s child. He’d groomed me, hiring a vocal coach before I’d even entered formal education. He also taught me how to play the guitar and piano, delegating lessons to professionals whenever he left to tour the world for his own career.

At seventeen, I landed my first record deal—without my father’s help, despite what the press believed. Honestly, my last name probably did help in that arena, but I worked my tail off to prove I was more than just Rick Brown’s daughter.

Still, every time my name was printed in the press, Dad’s was always attached. I couldn’t shake him or the expectations that came with his legacy, and I was so very tired of it all.

I shook my head, tilting my chin and letting my hair fall away from my face. Now wasn’t the time to sink into the exhaustion that threatened to drown me. A stroll through Central Park would clear my head and hopefully, by the time I made it back to my Upper East Side townhouse, give some direction.

The summer humidity cast a sheen of perspiration across my brown skin, making my arms glow beneath my tank top. The urge to stop in the middle of the walkway, fling my arms out wide, and swing around in a circle tempted me for a startling moment. Of course, I’d totally look like a tourist or the opening credits for a rom com set in New York. I snorted and continued walking.

As much as I wanted to find happiness again, that elusive feeling wouldn’t be discovered twirling in Central Park. I needed to get back to songwriting. I hadn’t penned a single word in six months.
 
♥♥♥♥Author bio –

Toni Shiloh is a wife, mom, and multi-published Christian contemporary romance author. She writes to bring God glory and to learn more about His goodness. Her novel, Grace Restored, was a 2019 Holt Medallion finalist and Risking Love is a 2020 Selah Award finalist.

A member of the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and of the Virginia Chapter, Toni seeks to help readers find authors. She loves connecting with readers and authors alike via social media. You can learn more about her writing at http://tonishiloh.com.

Endorsements —
“In her iconic soulful fashion, ToniShiloh has penned another heartfelt page-turner...this time with a dash ofsuspense thrown in!"- SarahMonzon, award-winning author of Finders Keepers

“Swoony, sweet and a little sassy, The Trouble with Love is Toni Shiloh's best novel yet! A beautiful story of friendship, romance, and brokenness meeting grace.” – Carrie Schmidt, Reading is my Superpower

“In The Trouble With Love, Toni Shiloh offers a fresh take on modern romance that will twirl you about the New York City high life, yet still manages to keep the characters completely relatable with their fears, longings, and faith struggles. The romance between Holiday and Emmett is flirty, fun, and completely squeal-inducing. Enjoy this escape from everyday life and dive into Shiloh’s world of faith and fortune!” – Janine Rosche, author of This Wandering Heart

Buy links –
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083S2SBVB
Shortlink: https://amzn.to/2NonmyR
Review: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=B0892HSZHD
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50426006-the-trouble-with-love

Social media links –

Facebook: www.facebook.com/authortonishiloh
Twitter: www.twitter.com/tonishilohwrite
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/tonishiloh
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tonishiloh
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/tonishiloh
BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/toni-shiloh
My BookCave: https://mybookcave.com/profile/toni-shiloh/
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/gcMfqT
Blogs I’m part of:
www.inspyromance.com  ; http://diversitybetweenthepages.wordpress.com