Andy and the Extroverts a YA Contemporary Sweet Romance by Jessica K. Foster Release Tour with Guest Post & Giveaway
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When shy 17-year-old Andy winds up at a summer leadership camp, she'll have to muster up all her courage to survive, meeting friends and a very special guy along the way.
Andy and the Extroverts
by Jessica K. Foster
Genre: YA Contemporary Sweet Romance
Seventeen-year-old bookish Andy has
no friends. When her over-involved mother has the audacity to ship
her off to summer leadership camp, she's thrust into an introvert's
nightmare. Everyone is a Communicator with a capital C, icebreaker
activities are scheduled into every waking moment, and horror of all
horrors: there's no coffee. Even the girls who take her under their
wing are the kind of self-assured people Andy could never dream of
becoming.
Then she meets Lucas—hot, attentive, and
everything Andy reads about in her books. Though the girls in her
cottage try to warn her about him, she's swept into the first romance
of her life. But when she discovers her friends may be right, she'll
have to find her inner confidence to save her summer and become the
leader she was always meant to be.
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Andy
and the Extroverts Excerpt
“Okay,
campers!” Suzie screeched the second we got back to the cottage.
It was like doomsday every time she used that phrase
because right after it, she’d announce the next stupid activity and expect
everyone to be excited about it.
“It’s time for the next awesome leadership activity! I
know you’ve been enjoying them so far, but you’re really going to like
this one.” She gave an exaggerated wink. Wait. That meant…
“We’re going to do this with our male
counterparts, Beavers, so pair on up so we can get started.”
Pair? I looked to Paige helplessly, but she was already
out the door. I sighed and followed her to where the Hippo cottage stood
outside waiting for us. How did they get here so fast? Even more alarming was
how fast everyone broke off into pairs. My hands tingled as Marshall sidled up
next to Paige. I craned my neck and looked for Emma.
“Good thing I’ve forgiven you,” Lucas said as he walked
toward me. “Or this might be awkward.”
I rolled my eyes. Like it was so hard to get pushed off a
dock when you had the skills of a gold medal swimmer. I raised my eyebrows, but
he didn’t say any more. Unlike me, he focused his attention on the instructions
Tyler gave the group.
“…so choose who the person with the blindfold will be and
who will give directions. We’ll start once you’ve got it sorted out.”
I peeked between Lucas and Paige and held back a groan
when the course came into view. A grove of trees spanned the area in front of
us, and pieces of red tape were strung between their wide trunks like trip
wires. Stumps littered the ground. I’d seen this before on reality television.
Minefield. One of us would have to be all yelly and tell the other one to go
right or left or whatever to get through an obstacle course.
“What do you want to be?” Lucas asked like I had a
choice. I couldn’t yell for crap, so it looked like I’d have to trust him not
to kill me.
“Blindfolded.”
He frowned. “What?”
I snatched the red bandana from his hand with a scowl. I
wasn’t talking that quietly.
“Oh, okay.” He smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll be with you
every step of the way.”
No, he wouldn’t. He’d be yelling at me every step of the
way.
“Now, remember,” Suzie chirped as I struggled to tie the
bandana around my eyes. “You can be next to your partner, but don’t touch the
unless they look like their about to fall. This is a trust exercise. It’s also
an exercise in giving clear, concise directions. Learn how to be the kind of
leader who knows how to follow. Don’t peek!” She giggled.
Lucas brushed my hands away when the bandana came undone
an tied it snugly around my eyes. He pushed the folds into layers until it
blacked out everything.
“Good?” he asked.
If good meant helpless, then yes. I should’ve chosen to
be his voice if partners could walk with each other the whole way—too late now.
I nodded.
“Okay, partners,” Tyler shouted, “the goal is to get them
around—that—and back to your starting positions. It isn’t a race. It’s about
finishing. Good luck! And go!”
“Okay, walk ten steps forward and then stop.” Lucas’s hot
breath on my neck made my heartbeat triple. This was such a bad idea. A very
sexy, very bad idea.
What
is something unique/quirky about you?
I
can roll my tongue in many different ways. I’m embarrassed to admit how much
time I spent in the mirror learning how to do this and to tie a cherry stem
with my tongue. I must have been really bored in middle school.
Where
were you born/grew up at?
I
was born in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania but two months later, my family moved to
Portland, Michigan. That’s where I grew up: in a four-square-mile town at the
edge of Lansing. It was country living with the city at our fingertips as soon
as we got our driver’s licenses.
What
are you passionate about these days?
I’m
passionate about happiness and enjoying life these days. It has come to a point
for me where if it doesn’t bring me joy or doesn’t have the potential to bring
me joy, I’m going to throw it out. That said, I still struggle to DNF books
because I’m an eternal optimist. If I just read one more chapter, I’ll probably
like it.
What
do you do to unwind and relax?
I
spend time with my family, take really hot baths, and listen to music. I
re-read my favorite romance books (shout out to Jude Deveraux and Elle
Kennedy!), and I am a big fan of the nap.
Describe
yourself in 5 words or less!
Determined,
Curious, Resilient, Caring… Sarcastic.
When
did you first consider yourself a writer?
I
have had a few poems picked up by journals before I began writing novels, but I
think the very first time I considered myself an actual writer was when I
signed a publishing contract with Winding Road Stories (my publisher).
Do
you have a favorite movie?
Yes!
It’s a little obscure, but I’m obsessed with the movie Gidget. It came out in
1959. It’s about a girl who learns how to surf when it was a male-dominated
sport. Obviously, she falls for another surfer. I have to have my romance!
Which
of your novels can you imagine made into a movie?
Andy
and the Extroverts!
It would be perfect for today’s audience, because we all want to see a
resurgence of the teenage romcom, and camp romance is the perfect way to do it.
Andy also struggles to relate to people, and we’re all coming off of Covid
years. A lot of teens are struggling with this right now, too!
What
literary pilgrimages have you gone on?
The
one that comes to mind was my first ever writing conference down in Chicago,
Illinois. I went there when I was querying my first book (which shall never see
the light of day). I learned so much about the publishing industry and got to
meet up with other authors and started some really great friendships. I hope
one day, when my kids are older, to go on a solitary pilgrimage to a really
lovely, remote place and write for a few days. Right now I’m content with my
couch!
Jessica K. Foster writes funny, heartfelt Young Adult Contemporary fiction with a dash of romance. She is a middle school Language Arts teacher with a penchant for hot tea and romantic beach reads. Jessica lives in West Michigan with her husband, two boys, and their ragtag crew of rescue animals.
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I enjoyed the excerpt and guest post. Thanks for sharing.
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