Today we are so lucky to have Jaci Burton on the blog with us today. (*Fan Girl Squee* from MinnChica) Jaci is an accomplished author and has published with various epublishers: Samhain, Ellora’s Cave and Carina Press to name a few. She also has an ongoing series from Berkley and a new suspense series from MIRA. She’s touched on everything from sexy biker undercover agents to sports stars to everyday blue collar workers and even demon hunters.
Her newest release, Changing the Game, book 2 in the Play-by-Play series is out today! See MinnChica’s review here.
Jaci, welcome to The Book Pushers!
Jaci: Thank you so much for letting me guest here! I’m so excited. 🙂
Book Pushers: Can you give us a brief overview of Changing the Game?
Jaci: Chaging The Game is book 2 in my Play-by-Play series, and begins several months after the end of The Perfect Play. Elizabeth Darnell is avoiding Gavin Riley, afraid he’s going to fire her. But Gavin catches up to her, determined to have a serious talk with Liz. But when he takes her to his beach house in Florida, all that serious talk turns to something else entirely, resulting in a major change in the agent/player relationship they’ve had for the past five years.
Book Pushers: The Play-by-Play Series is one of Minn’s favorites. Can you give us a hint about what’s to come? How many books do you have planned?
Jaci: Thank you! I have to admit I’m having so much fun writing this series. I just turned in Taking A Shot, the hockey book and book three of the series. At this point there are least four books planned in this series. Maybe more. We’ll see how well the series does and go from there.
Book Pushers: What kind of research did you have to do with each sport you’ve written about?
Jaci: I love sports so much. There are some, like football and baseball, that I know a lot about, but when writing there’s always research involved to make sure terminology is accurate, that you have teams playing or doing preseason during the right time of year. And with brothers doing alternate sports like football and baseball, there’s overlap and timing issues. There are equipment and plays and sports lingo that have specific wording, so I do have to spend some time immersing myself in each sport. No hardship there. 😉
Book Pushers: Scores of your fans have proclaimed one of your covers as lickable, what input do you have with your book covers?
Jaci:  I’m so appreciative of all the cover love! I do a cover discussion with my editor for each book. For this series, my input has consisted of – Please give me a hot sports guy. Have they delivered or what? I worship Berkley’s Art Department. They’ve created amazing covers for this series and I’m so grateful.
Book Pushers: You have a new romantic suspense series coming out from Harlequin’s MIRA line. What can you tell us about it?
Jaci: I’m so excited about this romantic suspense series! Thank you for asking about it. The first book—Heart of a Killer—releases in late October and is about a group of foster brothers and the one girl they all protect. They’re involved in a murder when they’re teens. There’s a coverup, but twelve years later the murder comes back to haunt them when a similar murder occurs, bringing them all back full circle to that night twelve years ago. I can’t wait for everyone to read the first book in my Killer series.
Book Pushers: Your Wild Riders series has been going strong and you’ve teamed up with Lora Leigh for two anthologies now. How many books do you have planned for the series?
Jaci:Â Actually, Riding The Night was planned as the last book in the series. All of my original Wild Riders stories have been told. But Lora asked me to do another anthology with her, so I created a new Wild Riders character, and the series lives on!
Book Pushers: What other projects do you have in the works that you can tell us about?
Jaci: I’m also doing a contemporary romance series for Carina Press-my Kent Brothers series. There are three brothers—Ethan, Wyatt and Brody. All She Wants For Christmas released last December. That was Ethan’s story. The next novella in that series—Wyatt’s story, will release this December. These are straight contemporary romances set in a small Missouri town. I hope you all check them out if you haven’t read them yet! (Minn reviewed All She Wants for Christmas last year here)
Book Pushers: Do you have a favorite genre to write in?
Jaci: I love contemporary romance. It’s my favorite genre to read in, so it’s one I love to write. I like to vary by writing in straight contemporary, erotic and romantic suspense, but I’ve stuck to contemporary for several years now.
Book Pushers: If Mick and Gavin had to pick their all time favorite sport icon, who would it be?
Jaci: Ohhhh, tricky question! Good one. For Mick, he’d have to say Joe Montana, who he thinks is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game (I believe he and Tara discuss this in The Perfect Play.) For Gavin, it’s probably Albert Pujols from the St Louis Cardinals. And of course just because I was born and raised in St Louis and think Pujols is a master at first base has no bearing on Gavin’s decision making here. But Gavin also worships Lou Gehrig.
Book Pushers: If a bar brawl were to break out between the heros of the Play-by-Play Series and the Wild Riders Series, who would win?
Jaci: You want me to choose between my guys? No can do. My Wild Riders boys are from the streets. They’re tough as nails. But my Riley’s aren’t pussies, either. I’m going to call it even.
Book Pushers: Once said fight was over, what would the heroines say to their men?
Jaci: The heroines would call all the guys dumbasses, then take them home, clean their wounds and jump their bones. Come on—fighting is hot.
Thanks so much again to Jaci for being here today! She has offered one lucky commenter a signed copy of The Perfect Play. Leave a comment to be entered, open international. Ends August 8th. Good Luck!
The covers are sooooo lickable indeed. These are on my mammoth TBR pile, but I would love a chance to win!
Thanks!
Erika
Great interview. Smoking hot covers. Thanks for the awesome giveaway.
Crystal816[at]hotmail[dot}com
Thank you for this great (and funny) interview! 🙂 Actually, I can’t wait for the third book in this series, Taking a Shot, because I’m a sucker for ice hockey books! And the cover of that one is even more lickable than the ones of the two previous books, imo. 😉
I am so excited for this release!! The first book was amazing but just the little tease we got about Gaviz had me wanting more ASAP so I can’t wait to get my hands on it!! I also agree with everyone you have been blessed by the cover gods with these covers, Happy release day and great interview.
Pingback: Changing The Game Release Day! | Jaci Burton's Muse
Loved the interview!!! Can’t wait for your new series Jaci, it sounds amazing 🙂
Alyssa
I love the book, JACI! Cannot wait to get my hands on this new series. I may have to wear a bib while reading!
I love that Jaci has given her athletes so much depth while retaining their Alpha edginess. Perfect Play’s Mick had his own, realistic demons to conquer and Tara was no wilting wallflower. I’m very curious about Gavin (especially now that Jaci has said his fave player was Lou Gherig which I never would have called based on his TPP appearance) and how she’s going to let Liz unfold when she begins to acknowledge her feelings for Gavin.
I cannot *wait* for Jenna’s book in the series. I think she’s one of my favorite characters in romance right now.
the covers are awesome and so are the stories!! who is the cover model for this book? i know the first one was jed hill.
This is a great chance for a giveaway! I adore Jaci’s Play-by-Play series! I dont have my own copies unfortunately, I had to borrow, so I would LOVE to get my hands on my own copy! Keep up the great work!
Congrats on the new release! I have to say this series has the BEST covers, just makes ya drool! Loved the Perfect Play, can’t wait to read the new one!
I absolutely loved The Perfect Play. I read it in one day! It was so incredibly emotional and hot that it sucked me it 🙂 Awesome interview! Thanks for being here Jaci. I am so excited to get my hands on Changing the Game!!!
I sooo ♥ ♥ ♥ Jacis Books…wouldn’t mind winning either 🙂
Have a good day everyone
I loved The Perfect Play and cannot wait to read this one!
thanks for the giveaway and for making it international!!
thanks for the interview!the cover is droolworthy;)
GFC-Janhvi Jagtap
justjanhvi at gmail dot com
great interview! congrats on the new release Jaci. i can’t wait to read it. i love your books.
trvlagnt1t@yahoo.com
Great interview, thanks!
Damn, this covers are so sexy. I loved the first novel, can’t wait the new one.
Oh, and thank you so much for the international giveaway!
Great interview. I love the covers on this series. Love. Love. Love.
Dang, those covers are just… dang.
I’m excited to read these books, but now I’m going to have to add Heart of a Killer to my TBR list. It sounds so awesome & gritty!
Thanks!
sarace (at) gmail (dot) com
Wonderful interview. Thanks for the opportunity to win the book. Covers are awesome. Bet you never tire of hearing that. LOL.
Happy release day! I just love the cover! 🙂
I LOVE your books!! Mine downloaded on Kindle @ 12:01AM 🙂
Great interview. I loved the first book and can’t wait to get the second book. Not sure when that will be but I will definitely be getting it.
Happy Release Day to Jaci. Looking forward to reading this series.
I would love to read this book! I love stories about men in sports 🙂
These are the best covers to date this year!!! 😉
Thanks for the interview and giveaway!
Awesome interview! I’m a relatively new Jaci Burton fan (found her via Jill Shalvis’s blog, actually). I’ve been making my way through her other books, and I’m really, really enjoying her work! She’s definitely on my authors-to-look-for list, and I hope to get around to this series soon.
Love Jaci’s books. Great interview and her covers are very lickable. Happy release day Jaci. Can’t wait to read the new book!
Lisa B
modokker at yahoo dot com
I’m not entirely sure how I’ve missed these books since I do love a sports themed romance. Thanks for bringing them to my attention. 🙂
Jen
admin.bookblog AT gmail.com
Your covers are absolutely YUMMY! I always drool a little when I see one, lol. Thank you for the interview and for the giveaway.
GFC: June M.
manning_j2004 at yahoo dot com
The cover alone makes me want to read! 🙂
ferishia (dot) 1 (at) gmail (dot) com
Happy Release Day! Another lickable cover! *sigh*
I can’t wait to read this book!
chey127 at hotmail dot com
I have been waiting for this book. Love sports stories.
Congrats on your new release! Can’t wait to read it.
marieimy (at) gmail (dot) com
As soon as I get home I am going to download and start reading Changing the Game on my Kindle…but I will still have to get one in print just to have the cover. The covers are just that delicious!!!
Thanks for the great interview!
mmafsmith at gmail dot com
The covers are HOT! tWarner419@aol.com
I’m intrigued!!! Adding these to my TBR list!!! This is a great interview!!! Luv the covers!!! They’re HOT!!! 😉 Thanks for the great giveaway!!!
jfort357(at)bellsouth(dot)net
I agree – the covers for these books are smokin hot!
Can’t wait to read this!!
susanmik AT gmail DOT com
I really want to read this book. Please enter me in contest. It sounds very good. Tore923@aol.com
I’ve got the Perfect Play already, but I would love to win an autographed copy!!!
yadkny@hotmail.com
I’m loving this series. The covers are just too delicious.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
I love Jaci’s books and always want more. Thanks for the chance to win this one.
kacbooks(at)hotmail(dot)com
Love your books!! They are just wonderful. Enter me please for this one.
old gfc follower
mlawson17 at hotmail dot com
Loved this interview!! This series sounds fantastic– I have heard such great things about your books, Jaci!!
OMG the guys in the covers are HOT!!!!
and the books sound really interesting
please enter me in the contest!!!
Thanks!
Happy release day. I love the synopsis and the covers and would love a chance to start reading this series.
smccar1 at hotmail dot com
Yup unfair for you to have to pick between your guyr for a bar fight winner. Guess I would have to volunteer to go watch and give a verdict, twist my arm. =)
Perfect Play has been in my TBR list for a while,I would love the chance to scratch it off the lis and to grace my bookshelf with one of the most drool worthy covers I have ever seen.
eyesofblueice(at)gmail(dot)com
nice interview 🙂 i want to read that book, enter me pls
i would like to enter this giveaway please.
thanks for making it international.
This books seems really interesting