NBtM Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway: The Key to Circus-Mom Highway by Allyson Rice

Welcome to my stop on NBtM virtual book tour for The Key to Circus-Mom Highway by Allyson Rice. This book tour was organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. On my stop, I have an excerpt from the book as well as a great guest post from the author about if any of her characters are based on people she knows. There's also the tour wide giveaway for a chance to win a $20 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card. Be sure to visit the other stops on the tour for more content. Enjoy!

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Title: The Key to Circus-Mom Highway

Author: Allyson Rice

Publisher: The Total Human Press

Publication Date: January 3rd 2023

Print Length: 254 pages

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

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In an attempt to secure an unexpected inheritance—and hopefully find a few answers—two estranged sisters and their newly discovered brother embark on a comically surreal trip through the Deep South to retrace the life of the mother who abandoned them as infants.

On a Tuesday afternoon, sisters Jesse Chasen and Jennifer McMahon receive a phone call notifying them that their birth mother has died, leaving behind a significant inheritance. But in order to obtain it, they must follow a detailed road trip she designed for them to get to know her—and that includes finding a brother they never knew existed.

For the next week, this ill-assorted trio treks across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia to meet their mother’s old friends, from circus performers to a juke joint owner, each of whom delivers a shocking vignette into the life of a young mother traumatized by loss and abuse. Along the way, these three siblings—Jesse, whose fiery exterior disguises a wounded, drifting musician stuck in a rut; Jennifer, whose carefully curated family life is threatened by her husband’s infidelity; and Jack, whose enigmatic Jackie, Oh! persona in the New Orleans drag queen scene helps him escape the nightmares of Afghanistan that haunt him at night—must confront their own demons (and at least one alligator). But in chasing the truth about their real mother, they may all just find their second chance.

This uproarious debut novel is a reminder that sometimes, the family you’d never have chosen may turn out to be exactly what you need.

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble *

Book Depository * Books-A-Million *

Bookshop * Booktopia * Half Price Books *

IndieBound * Kobo * Target *

Thrift Books * Walmart

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EXCERPT:

Westley re-entered with five boxes of food that said Zunzi’s on the side. “Best sandwiches in Savannah! We’re going on a traveling picnic. There’s a young couple, just got married, staying here tonight too, so they’re going to join us. I hope you don’t mind.”

Duke and Ivy Parker had met at the Monster Truck Destruction Tour in Lubbock, Texas a mere two weeks ago. Christian Rock radio station KZOL was having their annual Monster Truck ticket giveaway to the first two callers who could answer these two questions correctly:

1) What former WrestleMania star has driven a Monster Truck in a movie and has also founded a church? (answer: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson); and,

2) According to Wikipedia, what Christian Grindcore band has said that their band name was inspired by Revelations 3:15-16? (answer: Vomitorial Corpulence)

Complete strangers, Duke and Ivy had been the first two correct callers, at number fourteen and number thirty-one, respectively. When they both showed up at the Monster Truck event wearing the same vintage edition Bigfoot Monster Truck t-shirt, they were convinced that it was The Lord that had guided them to each other in Section 104 Row 25 Seats 16 and 17. They knew it was literally “a match made in Heaven,” and so they eloped.

Right on cue, Ivy and Duke, an excruciatingly gung-ho couple in their early twenties dressed in color-coordinated NASCAR gear, entered, holding hands.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Allyson Rice is the author of the novel The Key to Circus Mom Highway. ("Fans of family drama, road trips, and non-stop laughs will love this cross-country adventure."–BookLife/Publisher's Weekly). She's an award-winning mixed media artist, and a producer with Atomic Focus Entertainment.

After spending many years as an actress on stage and on television, she left acting and spent the next decade running yoga/meditation retreats, women’s retreats, and creativity retreats around the country. After that, she pivoted to focus once again on her own creative work. In addition to her writing and art, she’s also a photographer (her work was most recently seen in an exhibition at the Soho Photo Gallery in NYC).

Some random bits of Allyson trivia: 1) She’s been skydiving, paragliding, bungee jumping, ziplining through a rainforest, and scuba diving with stingrays; 2) she has an extensive PEZ dispenser collection; 3) she played Connor Walsh on As the World Turns for seven years; 4) she’s been in the Oval Office at the White House after hours; 5) she’s related to the Hatfields of the infamous Hatfield/McCoy feud; and 6) her comedic rap music video “Fine, I’ll Write My Own Damn Song” won numerous awards in the film festival circuit and can now be seen on YouTube.

Also available from Allyson Rice is her line of women’s coloring books (The Color of Joy, Dancing with Life, and Wonderland), and The Creative Prosperity PlayDeck, an inspirational card deck about unlocking and utilizing your creative energy in the world. She’s currently at work on her second novel and her fourth women’s coloring book. But she is most proud of being mom to musical artist @_zanetaylor.

Website * Amazon * Facebook *

Goodreads * Instagram * Twitter

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GUEST POST:

How to Get Away with Murder (sort of)
by Allyson Rice

Most of the characters in my novel The Key to Circus-Mom Highway aren’t based directly on people I know. I would say that when it comes to the main characters, they’re a mash-up of elements of many people. And the funny/quirky/ridiculous supporting characters are mostly creations of my imagination. However, there was one character in the book…. (cue “ominous music”).

Let’s time-travel back to early 2016, shall we? I was a new member of the online dating community. I had gone on dates with a few guys – all very nice, but none of them felt like they were more than friend material. Then I went on a date with a charming, funny guy, and we had a great time. So we went out again. And again. On every date, he’d bring me flowers, hold the car door open for me, make me laugh, and treat me well in every respect.

But as the months wore on, the façade began to crack and I experienced behavior from him that was actually chilling. When I realized he was a pathological liar, I immediately got out of that situation. I couldn’t believe I had fallen for the façade. It was a first for me. I wondered if he might potentially be dangerous, but because I was able to leave based on his infidelity, he (thankfully) stayed away after I ended things.

By this point, I had already written a few scenes with this one character (not originally based on anyone). But after I broke things off with this guy, I changed the character’s first name and added new details to the scenes. Since I had no desire to speak to the real person ever again, much less have any kind of direct confrontation with him, there was a level of closure I wasn’t going to have. So I created my own closure.

This character isn’t in much of the book, just some flashbacks, but I had so much fun deciding how the fate of the character would play out. Even now, it makes me laugh. I feel like the Taylor Swift of novelists. I’m not going to tell you which character it is, but if you read the book… you’ll know. Honestly, it may make you want to write a novel yourself, just so you can decide the delicious fate of your most horrible ex. All of the satisfaction with none of the prison time. Lol!

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GIVEAWAY:

Allyson Rice will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Good luck!

(All the Ups and Downs is not responsible for this giveaway, its entries, or the prize. Goddess Fish Promotions and the author assume all responsibility over this giveaway.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway