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Brenda Novak

When Lightning Strikes (Whiskey Creek) Mass Market Paperback – August 28, 2012

by Brenda Novak (Author)

1,409 ratings

Book 1 of 10: Whiskey Creek

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Welcome to Whiskey Creek— Heart of the Gold Country!

Simon O'Neal's causing trouble again.

And it's up to Gail DeMarco to stop him.

Gail DeMarco left Whiskey Creek, California, to make a name for herself in Los Angeles. Her PR firm has accumulated a roster of A-list clients, including the biggest box office hit of all— sexy and unpredictable Simon O'Neal. But Simon, who's just been through a turbulent divorce, is so busy self-destructing he won't listen to anything she says. She drops him from her list—and he retaliates by taking the rest of her clients with him.

Desperate to save her company, Gail has to humble herself by making a deal with Simon. The one thing he wants is custody of his son, but that's going to require a whole new image. He needs to marry some squeaky-clean girl who'll drag him off to some small, obscure place like Whiskey Creek….

Gail's the only one he can trust. She agrees to become his wife—reluctantly. But she isn't reluctant because he's too hard to like. It's because he's too hard not to love!

www.brendanovak.com

Print length

448 pages
Language

English
Publisher

MIRA
Publication date

August 28, 2012
Dimensions

4.21 x 1.19 x 6.62 inches
ISBN-10

0778313514
ISBN-13

978-0778313519
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Whenever I see a new Brenda Novak book, I buy it and read it, pronto. I can always count on her for a solid, exciting story, full of adventure and romance." -Linda Lael Miller, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Any book by Brenda Novak is a must-buy for me." -Reader to Reader Reviews

"Brenda Novak's seamless plotting, emotional intensity and true-to-life characters who jump off the page make her books completely satisfying. Novak is simply a great storyteller." -Allison Brennan, New York Times bestselling author

Novak's smooth plotting makes for a great read." -Publishers Weekly on Dead Right

"Strongly defined characters, sizzling sexual tension and a tautly constructed plot... blend brilliantly together in Novak's exceptionally intense, powerfully emotional novel." -Booklist on Every Waking Moment

"Novak is an expert at creating emotionally driven romances full of heat, sensual tension and conflict that not only satisfy her characters but her readers as well." -Writers Unlimited

Well-written, nicely paced, filled with appealing characters and laced with a few surprises." -Library Journal on Dead Right

"Believable characters and gripping action." -Carla Neggers, New York Times bestselling author

"I suggest Brenda Novak be added to your 'to buy' list today. You won't be disappointed." -Romance Readers Connection

"Imagery so vivid it leaves you breathless." -Christine Feehan, New York Times bestselling author

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Brenda Novak has penned over 45 novels. A two-time Rita nominee, she's won The National Reader's Choice, The Bookseller's Best, The Bookbuyer's Best and many other awards. She runs an annual online auction for diabetes research every May at www.brendanovak.com. To date, she’s raised over $2 million. Brenda considers herself lucky to be a mother of five and married to the love of her life.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

She was ruined. She'd become anathema—the Jerry Maguire of the Los Angeles public-relations biz. And it'd happened almost overnight. "You don't look so good."

Gail DeMarco turned away from the phone she'd just hung up to focus on Joshua Blaylock. Dressed in a pair of skinny black jeans with long-toed shoes, a designer jacket and rectangular-shaped glasses, her personal assistant hovered at the corner of her desk, a hopeful yet worried expression on his face. Like her, he'd been hoping they could pull out of the nosedive she'd caused by making one impetuous call, and then a number of thoughtless statements, three weeks earlier. But she could tell Joshua had overheard enough to understand what her other employees didn't grasp quite yet. They hadn't just lost a few important clients, like Maddox Gill and Emery Villere; they'd lost them all. Big Hit Public Relations had fallen from its lofty perch at the top of the PR food chain to crash and burn at the bottom. And it was all thanks to one man. Simon O'Neal, the hottest male lead in the movie business, had flexed his superstar muscles and brought down her company so quickly and easily Gail could hardly believe it. She kept thinking she'd wake up to find that their feud was all a bad dream—or that others would see Simon as the train wreck she knew him to be and side with her instead. But America loved him. He was their new James Dean. He was screwing up right and left, but he had the most loyal fans in the world, fans who were as fascinated by his self-destruction as his talent.

She should never have told him she'd no longer work for him. One client after another had deserted her ever since.

But any self-respecting public-relations professional would've grown tired of Simon's antics. He'd done everything she'd specifically asked him not to, created so many media nightmares, and that made her, as his personal publicist, look as bad as he did. How was she supposed to represent someone like that?

"Hello?" His smile gone, Joshua snapped his fingers in front of her eyes.

Gail forced back her tears. For more than a decade, ever since she'd graduated with a degree in advertising and public relations, then interned for Rodger Brown and Associates, she'd devoted herself to building her company. She had no husband, no kids and very few friends, at least in the L.A. area. Her ambition hadn't allowed time for that. There was only the group of childhood friends in Whiskey Creek six hours north. She saw them every couple of months. But by and large she'd left both family and friends to make her mark in the big city. Here, her employees were closer to her than anyone else. And now she'd have to let them all go. Even Joshua.

"That was Clint Pierleoni." She groomed her voice into a careful monotone to keep it from cracking.

He blinked rapidly, as if he was tempted to cry himself. It wouldn't be the first time he'd broken down in her office. He was always getting upset over one man or another. She usually consoled him, actually enjoyed living vicariously through him since it'd been so long since she'd had a love life. But today she had no words of comfort because his pain was her pain, too.

"Don't tell me—" he started.

She broke in before he could get the words out. "He said it's time for him to find another PR company."

"But… Clint's been with us from the beginning. I've slept with Clint—after signing that form agreeing not to reveal he's gay, of course."

Gail ignored the last part of what Joshua had said. She didn't condone her employees having sex with the firm's clients. But she'd already written Josh up for his inappropriate relationship with Clint. It seemed pointless to go over her objections again, especially at this late date. What Joshua said about Clint was true. He'd been the first up-and-coming actor to take a risk on her. And she'd done a hell of a job for him at a steal of a price.

She'd expected more loyalty. They'd come so far together. He was bigger now than he'd ever been, and she'd helped make that happen. "He tried to explain—"

Joshua broke in. "Explain what? That he was caving in to the pressure of the Hollywood heavyweights who've joined Simon O'Neal and turned against us?"

"He's afraid staying with us will adversely affect his career. Simon promised him a part in his next movie, and he's positive it will disappear if he doesn't kowtow."

"Simon's a bastard! An alcoholic bastard!"

She narrowed her eyes. "You haven't slept with him, have you?" For just a moment, she allowed herself to imagine what it would do to the almighty Simon's career to leak that information. He'd never be able to play a romantic male lead again. But she knew what Joshua was going to say before he said it.

"He's yummy enough that I'd sleep with him if I had the chance. I don't know many people who wouldn't, except you," he added as an afterthought. "But…he's not gay."

"Right." She attempted a shrug, even though she'd had her fantasies about Simon, too. Who hadn't? "Too bad."

He leaned on his knuckles as if he was planning to reveal a big secret. "He is a womanizer, though. I bet we could come up with all kinds of dirt—"

She waved him to silence. "Not the kind that'll surprise anyone. His wife left him because he couldn't keep his pants zipped. His exploits in that area are second only to Tiger Woods's." Even if she had the goods, she doubted she could bring herself to destroy him. She was hurt and angry, but she didn't believe in creating bad karma.

"So what do we do?" Josh asked.

"What can we do?" Drawing a deep breath, she tried to sit tall in her chair, like she was used to doing when barking out orders and handling calls in rapid succession. She thrived on the adrenaline that sustained her on any given day. But her groove was gone, along with her clients.

Sagging against her expensive leather chair, she thought about calling the actors who'd fired her. If only she could talk them into coming back…

But it was no use. She'd already tried that. No one would cross Simon, except a few inconsequential clients who didn't care enough about him to follow his lead, and three of them were charities she repped pro bono.

"He's going with Chelsea Seagate at Pierce Mattie," she added dully.

"No!" Joshua punched the air. "That bitch has everyone!"

Also thanks to Simon. He'd been with Big Hit for three years, knew they were rivals, so he'd gone to Chelsea and taken almost fifty of Gail's sixty-four other clients there, too. "Pierce will regret letting Chelsea sign him. Simon will ruin them. There isn't a PR firm in America, or anywhere else, that can protect the image of a client so bent on self-destruction. Since his wife left, he's worse than Charlie Sheen ever was."

"At least PM will die a slow death," Joshua said, dropping into the chair across from her. "How long before we have to close our doors?"

She pursed her lips as she glanced around her swanky office. There'd been days when she'd been unable to believe her own success. Now it all seemed to have been an illusion. "Two months?" Could she even hold out that long?

He rocked forward. "That's it?"

"Our overhead is huge, Josh. Rent alone is fifteen thousand. Together with salaries for twenty people…the money will dry up fast."

His next words were muffled; he'd buried his face in the stylish scarf he wore under the collar of his too-cool jacket. "When do we tell the others?"

She couldn't bear to see him slumped over like that. He'd told her not to cast Simon aside but she'd done it, anyway. Simon had deserved to be cut from her client roster—he'd been asking for it—but he wasn't anyone to mess with, and he'd proven that.

Struggling under the weight of her responsibility, she got up and walked to the interior window overlooking the expansive lobby designed to impress visitors. The staff cubicles and three other offices branched off to the right. They couldn't be seen from where she stood, but she could make out the back of Savannah Barton's dark head as she lounged in the doorway of Serge Trusso's office. Savannah was a single mom with two kids. Where would she go? Serge would land on his feet. He saved money, never took anything for granted. But what about Vince Shroeder, one cubicle over? He had a disabled wife. Then there was Constance Moreno, barely twenty years old. She'd come from New York two months ago and signed a year's lease on her apartment. How would she pay the rent?

These people depended on her. Why had she been so determined to punish Simon, to see that he received some type of backlash?

Gail tapped her forehead on the cool glass. "You'd better call a meeting. I'm sure they already know trouble's brewing. It's been dead around here. They're out there throwing spitballs at one another."

"You want me to get them now?"

She thought of Simon's movie premiere tonight and the fact that he'd be at the after-party, probably roaring drunk but enjoying the fame and fortune that followed him everywhere. He shouldn't get away with what he'd done. She'd been in the right, damn it. But…if she wanted to save her employees, she was going to have to humble herself and apologize, maybe even beg.

She'd rather throw herself in front of a bus, but there was more at stake here than pride. She had a good team; they didn't deserve to lose their jobs. "No, wait."

"You think something's going to change?" he said with a telltale sniff.

She didn't dare hope. But she had to make one last-ditch effort to save the firm, just in case it was still possible. "Give me until tomorrow."

He toyed with the expensive pen set he and the rest of her staff had bought her for Christmas. "For what?"

She turned to face him. "A Hail Mary."

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ MIRA; Original edition (August 28, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 448 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0778313514
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0778313519
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.21 x 1.19 x 6.62 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,043,695 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #9,014 in Women's Domestic Life Fiction
- #27,437 in Contemporary Women Fiction
- #101,892 in Contemporary Romance (Books)

Customer Reviews:
1,409 ratings

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Brenda Novak

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Join Brenda at one of 32 stops when she goes on a two-month traveling bookstore (Airstream) tour across the United States—from Sacramento to Connecticut—in April and May of 2023 to celebrate the release of THE SUMMER ON THE ISLAND, which comes out April 11th. For more information, go the events page of my website or sign up on my mailing list. www.brendanovak.com

It was a shocking experience that jump-started Brenda Novak's career as a bestselling author--she caught her day-care provider drugging her children with cough syrup to get them to sleep all day. That was when Brenda decided she needed to quit her job as a loan officer and help make a living from home.

"When I first got the idea to become a novelist, it took me five years to teach myself the craft and finish my first book," Brenda says. But she sold that book, and the rest is history. Her novels have made the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists and won many awards, including eight Rita nominations, the Book Buyer's Best, the Book Seller's Best, the Silver Bullet and the National Reader's Choice Award.

Brenda and her husband, Ted, live in Sacramento and are proud parents of five children--three girls and two boys. When she's not spending time with her family or writing, Brenda is usually playing pickleball or raising funds for diabetes research (her youngest son has this disease). So far, Brenda has raised $2.6 million!

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5

1,409 global ratings

5 star		65%
4 star		24%
3 star		8%
2 star		2%
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I loved it

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 7, 2014

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Great story. I thought it was very believable and probably more like the truth than the bull we are given in the media, etc. He is a big shot movie star, spiraling out of control, too many women, liquor, fast living. She is a PR Exec in charge of all his clean up. Finally at her wits end she cancels his business and then he retaliates and puts her out of business. This is what it looks like happened, but it didn't. So often these people have so many people working for them or hanging on that they don't keep tabs on everything that is going on in their life and then they wind up in big trouble. Much like a young man named Justin!

They wind up in a fake marriage to try and help him get his life back. She is going to have to dry him out and then clean up his reputation in order to save his career and help him get custody of his son and save his life. Of course, as he dries out he starts to see how bad his life had become and he starts to clean up his act. There are some things that are not adding up and who is trying to run this whole situation off the tracks. It is interesting how it all works out. I really enjoyed it and recommend it. I realize I am reviewer 201 but I still wanted to get down on the 5 star side. I really liked this book.

Now, some thoughts. I thought her brother and father were a very good representative of the people in the USA regarding believing everything they read without even knowing the person they are reading about. They got my temper up.

But the good friend Callie, to me, was a total bitc-. She was bossy, not giving her opinion but telling the heroine what to do and then gets mad when she doesn't follow orders. She was judgmental and continued to put negativity in the situation. She was hateful, especially toward Sophia. Good grief, the girl was boy crazy and snagged the heroines date from her jr year at high school. They are now all in their 30s and still holding grudges? They need a life. She was an absolute know it all and I really am glad I don't have a best friend like this girl.

Matt is the local boy that signs with the NFL and is a local hero. He is also a classmate of our characters. Now the heroine has a crush on him in high school. He obviously didn't know she was on the planet. As adults she has ONE DATE with him. She still has the big crush but he obviously has no feelings for her except that he almost has sex with her on this date but for some reason they don't. She still maintains the crush not really knowing the difference between crush and love. But she comes back to town married, Matt is back in town with an injured knee. Now the town is on pins and needles about the 3 of them being in town. There is tension between Matt, the heroine, and the new husband. A big to do is made over all of this and how he will respond to her being married, etc. Now, this clown NEVER CALLED HER ONCE after the date. He didn't head to Calif. to try and win her at any time, he probably would not have seen her if she had not return to town while he was on the injured list but yet she thinks that MAYBE there could have been something between them. Obviously she never heard the phrase, "He is just not that in to you!" If he had been, he would have made contact, which he did not. Why are we giving this guy the time of day????? Didn't get her crushing on this guy.

Love the hero. Even drunk I liked him. Was glad to see the HEA.

3 people found this helpful

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brazil nut

Devine Reading!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 23, 2022

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Brenda Novak does a great job writing a tasteful novel of the the hazards of stardom in Hollywood. Her characters are realistic as well as the dialogue! Everyone who wants to read a captivating story will find delight in this one.

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Carol Boutin

Absolutely loved this.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 26, 2014

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This first full length story from thw Whiskey Creek series was truly amazing. I enjoyed Gail and Simon's interactions. Gail has wanted to start her own PR form in LA since she got out of college. Simon is a hot Hollywood A-Lister who has totally come apart at the seams. Gail decides to stop representing him. Simon (through his manager the scum) takes her clients away to a rival PR firm. Gail is desperate. She apologizes to Simon. He tells her that he isn't responsible for it. And Ian is called on the carpet. But in the mean time, there's a firestorm out there from Simon's drinking, fighting and messing around with other women. His ex is a piece of work too. She keeps texting him pictures of her with another man saying that this was Ty's new daddy. Simon can't handle this. But in the end Gail and Simon agree to marry and stay married for 2 years. She will help clean up his image so he can at least get partial custody of his son. They go to Whiskey Creek. Simon is off alcohol and really shakey about it. But Gail knows he can do it. They have to prove to her father and her brother that Simon does "love" Gail and will not hurt her. The paparazzi doesn't know where they are. So it seems they are safe for the moment. Gail and Simon are fixing up the small house they bought. It is really small. But, they want to get out of her father's house and stay away from others. Everything works out in the end. We see more of the friends that Gail has had since childhood who want to protect her but Simon is charming to them and tries to tell them he really is in love. Paparazzi finally find them and take pictures of Gail on Simon's lap (which they don't know about). But, Simon's father also shows up thanks to Ian Simon's manager. He threatens Simon and Simon says go ahead and sue. He wasn't going to do a picture that his father was associated with. Gail goes to see Simon's father at the B&B in town, she wants him to leave Simon alone. Well, She is shocked to find out the secret that has torn up Simon. He had slept with his son's wife. (What a disgusting thing to do and Gail didn't even know about it.) Well, anyway, he release's Simon from the movie and leaves. There life is settling down when Ian appears with the ring that Simon wanted to get for Gail. Ian again tries to get Simon back to LA. Simon tells him no. And they go back to the house. Before Simon can give the ring to Gail, his ex calls crying and saying that she needs him to come see Ty. Simon is so distressed that he goes leaving Gail in Whiskey Creek. Little did Simon know he was being manipulated by Ian and Bella. Simon spends time with his son and then leaves but not before telling his ex that he loves Gail. Bella in her revenge puts up a video of her and some other guy and says it is Simon. Gail sees it and is heartbroken. She is in love with Simon. Anyway, Simon is livid. He goes to see Ian and finds out what has been going on. Long story short (I know not so short) they get everything straightened out and Gail and Simon stay together and they have Ty. I don't usually write such long reviews but I am too excited about this series to be short. Good going. Reading the next book now.

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Book Worm 93

An easy, feel good read!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 3, 2017

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This is the first full length novel in the Whiskey Creek series. The story focusses on Simon O'Neal and his PR rep, Gail. After an argument, she holds him responsible for the demise of her business and so do her staff leading to allegations that make Gail feel responsible for helping him, despite their earlier quarrel.

The overall idea isn't particularly realistic, but I found I really didn't care! I really liked both characters and wanted them to get their happy ever after! This is an enjoyable easy read and a great way to spend a lazy afternoon!

Amazon Customer

Another good story

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 13, 2015

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Another good story. Bit slow to start but then couldn't put down.

jank

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 29, 2015

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I love all the Whiskey Creek series!!

A. McCracken

A most enjoyable read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 12, 2015

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I found it to be slow at the start but as l continued reading l found it difficult to put down.

Kindle Customer

I need a whiskey

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 8, 2012

Verified Purchase

I have previously enjoyed this authors writing.But this one as not as entertaining as Brenda Novaks other works. The story didn't quite work. The two main characters -were not really very believable -this book was more like a modern Mills and Boon. I hope that in the next whiskey Creek book, the story will be more suspenseful> Sorry but i felt this was a bit of a light weight.

2 people found this helpful

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When Lightning Strikes (Whiskey Creek) Mass Market Paperback – August 28, 2012

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