New Maggie Next Week
I'm so happy to get myself immersed in the quaint Farmingham village world of secret lust. I spent the last week plotting this book and what will be the final Maggie book (sort of!) I love these characters and enjoy spending time with them. It felt so good to 'hang out' with them!
So, here's a preview of sorts. No spoilers, just enough to hopefully spark some fun conjecture. A careful eye might even note a partial page from a new novel called Happy Endings which should be available before Xmas.
So, here's a preview of sorts. No spoilers, just enough to hopefully spark some fun conjecture. A careful eye might even note a partial page from a new novel called Happy Endings which should be available before Xmas.
Hmm, i guess this runs counter to my thoughts on what happens in the near term after DM. Thats about all this spoiled ... Next week can't come soon enough.
ReplyDeleteNeat chapter titles though.
What runs counter? Did I just give away too much? Nooo ...
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DeleteNot that I would notice, thanks!
Deleteso Maggie an max have a night without cole..but its an unusual event...so Cole is still in the driver's seat. so maybe he let max an Maggie have a little fun together.. I'm sure he'll bust that up in due time. maybe let them get back to some semblance of a normal relationship then blow it up again...this time intentionally and on his own terms no consulting max or letting Maggie take the lead. but all this is just.... speculation....🤔
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to both of these, but there is something special about the new frisson found in the initial encounter we get in your one-offs. Any additional hints you'd be willing to give about what's to come in Happy Endings?
ReplyDeleteWell that was refreshing. Did he talk them out of their alone time or is this a few days later and the past few days will be summarized? Did he flip those switches already or is that why he's waking up so early?
ReplyDeletegreat spoiler :)
The last part of the previous chapter took place on October 12, and based on the screen shot it is now October 21, so 9 days have passed. The Max/Maggie/Cole throuple (am I using that right lol) is only a few days old...plenty of time for things to go pear shaped. And no doubt they will.
DeleteOh, I didn't catch the dates! Good news for Max then..seems like he weathers the storm.
DeleteYes, if you'll notice, LHW, LHW2, and Maggie all have time stamps, it's a nice piece in between books/episodes/parts to obsess about details, like right now.
DeleteIn preparation for the new chapter I reread the last one again. There are plenty of new themes here that I'm excited to see play out, especially the idea that Cole is the first of the "boyfriends" to actually have an established friendship with the cuckolded guy. So how is his loyalty and love for Max going to impact his feelings for Maggie as they get stronger?
ReplyDeleteBut in reading I also noticed a theme I think we've seen play out before. Guess I missed it a little in prior readings, but for Maggie, Cole is in many ways her "dream guy", the guy deep down she didn't really think she could ever attract. I think its similar to how Jess felt about Tyler, though that was also wrapped up in the idea that she could "recapture" the youth she lost by getting pregnant so early in life. And its a bit similar to Nia and Rocco/Dino, though that also had its own unique circumstances.
In each of those previous two, the woman was faced with a choice once it became clear an actual relationship with the "dream guy" was a real possibility. Stay with the safe, stable "partner" that they genuinely "love", or take a chance on passion and excitement with the new guy. Jess chose the new guy, and circumstances (and the consequences of her own decisions) forced Nia to choose the new guy, at least until the fantasy wore out. Will Maggie have the same choice and what will her decision be?
I know this isn't a LHW story, so we shouldn't compare them, but I do feel we're heading down a similar road, with unique distinctions. I do think Maggie is going to have this decision to make in the next chapter...I think I know what her decision is going to be, but I'm excited to see it all play out.
The other thing unique about Cole is that unlike Tyler or Rocco, he seems to have his head on straight and seems to be a good guy (I say seems because how much do we really know about him...what are his demons?...I suspect we may find out in the next chapter). But right now he seems to have the ability to be a stable partner for Maggie, something the other two couldn't really be. So maybe if Maggie chooses to be with Cole, the "fantasy" never wears off, and they go off and live happily ever after as yuppies with 2.5 kids and a white picket fence with 2 Audis in the garage. That would be a sad ending for Max, but not an unrealistic one for me at least.
Deletethsnks for hashing out the time line Jl. IDK if im chasing a red herring or the nuclear device that is Ken will have an impact on Maggie's choice. if that tidbit of info gets out and the missing tapes are discovered. could mom and pop kick max to the curb not wanting a cucky for Son in law. or is there a kindred spirit there in dad with tiger mom being the resident freak. We still have some time before the wedding. so it'll be interesting to see how KT moves us towards that date. still pulling for Jays dad..😉.
Deletethsnks for hashing out the time line Jl. IDK if im chasing a red herring or the nuclear device that is Ken will have an impact on Maggie's choice. if that tidbit of info gets out and the missing tapes are discovered. could mom and pop kick max to the curb not wanting a cucky for Son in law. or is there a kindred spirit there in dad with tiger mom being the resident freak. We still have some time before the wedding. so it'll be interesting to see how KT moves us towards that date. still pulling for Jays dad..😉.
DeleteMaggie's dad is smart -- there's no way he doesn't already strongly suspect what's going on given his interrogations of Maggie and Ken and of course Cole slipping by and taking his attached daughter on a date..
DeleteJL - I'm with you WRT Cole, I really don't know why so many hate him. Because he has an attraction to Maggie that he ignored until she came onto him in a strong way while his best friend watched? That he picked up on cues that said, 'both she and he likes what I'm doing, or this or that thing could improve what we're doing together, what if I take it further since they both seem to like THAT too'? I think if people really look at what motivates Cole's behavior, they could come away (at the very least) with the conclusion that he is doing it in part for Maggie or Max, or both. That he has a reason that isn't just pure self-interest. If you strip away all the pretense you could argue it's only himself he's thinking of, but when everyone else is doing the same thing too (again, in part), how can anyone just focus on what Cole's doing?
DeleteAlso, what's so great about Max? He's a nice guy, yeah, he's smart, cool, he cares about his wife, good on you ... he's also holding things back from his future wife because he's too afraid to confront her, he's too much of a coward to admit he's wrong (or exploited) at the Poirot or stand up for himself for deciding he might take advantage of Maggie's father's connections, and now he's trying to undercut Maggie through some sort of scheme. That's not a good person. I live in the real world where nobody is perfect, so I can't blame him for that, but it's because of those things that I can't conclude he's better than Cole or Jay based on what I know. Is it sympathy for him? I have that too, but that doesn't mean he should win Maggie does it?
Part of this journey of exploring things that Maggie hasn't done before has consequences doesn't it? Just because he gets to be the guy that says to Maggie there's a different path, doesn't mean that he gets to be on the one she goes down, right? Logic would dictate. Is Maggie a bad person if she likes something else better than Max? I think most people would say no. Not that they would have to like Maggie for making her choice, but it's there.
JL - what do you make of the Cole/Martin parallels? To me KT did this for a reason ... there's a there there (there). Why do that? For me it might be the secret to understanding why Maggie thinks Cole is such a dreamy guy. She's at a stage in her life where she is about to take another step into independence and maybe a secret part of her deep down doesn't want to accept all that responsibility and she's latching on to Cole who she hopes will help her out. Someone who physically looks and through his behavior, either personality-wise or just playing a part, acts like her unconscious embodiment of manhood (Martin).
John - you love Jay's dad, lol. Dude had like five lines and you think he's the one for Maggie. He's so old! I know you're joking around.
Ken - I'm just throwing it out there because we have nothing to go from with this 'teaser' but a chapter is called 'Witness.'
Maggie's dad - I agree that he's got to think something is up, because he was a hound to those security tapes even before Cole might be guilty of something in his eyes, now that he mysteriously takes his daughter out to dinner out of the blue, drives one of his cars, goes up into Maggie's room, the hand holding. That would make a non-domineering father question things, let alone a guy like Martin.
I guess I haven't put enough thought into Martin as a character. There are parallels there, Cole definitely is confident and has a take charge side, as we've seen in his encounters with Maggie and how he handled the Jay situation. And I guess they say we subconsciously look for a partner that reminds us of Mom or Dad (or have I just been reading too much Oedipus lol)...so that may be part of the attraction for Maggie. For me, I just think its more about the fact that she's getting in touch with her desirability as a woman, and the "cool" guy is picking up on that and paying attention to her. And its a guy she already loves and respects as a friend.
DeleteI guess I also sort of agree with you on Max, to me he's definitely more of a Pete than a Geoff. Whatever plan he has in mind, I could also see it backfiring and just driving Maggie closer to Cole.
I also see Cole as someone who genuinely is trying to make this work and doesn't want to hurt Max or take his girl away from him. But I do think there is more to him, that controlling side is a glimpse, so as he develops stronger feelings for Maggie will that usurp his loyalty to Max?
@ToBe=ToHave
DeleteI agree to having some preconceptions about Cole, given the role he plays in this story. Usually his kind of character is the bad guy, but in this story he's really not. It's unclear if his motivation is pure or not and the evidence points to pure. Misguided, wrong, naive, but still coming from a place of caring. At the very least it's guised behind this motivation.
I see Maggie as the character with the weakest moral center of the trio. After that confrontation in the pizza place, if I was in Max's shoes, I would have told her to have fun and moved on with my life.
I don't think it's fair to center the blame on Max for the night at the restaurant. He's young and gullible and was manipulated by Cole into going through with it. There's no situation where Max comes out of that closet smelling like roses. It was a terrible idea and was a lose-lose for Max.
At the end of the day, Maggie was the one who broke the trust -- twice -- and shouldn't be let off the hook for that. I hope those switches are nuclear bombs.
I see where you're coming from WA, and it's understandable to 'take sides' because that's the natural thing to do, and in both cases (Jay in TM, but maybe not the first time, and Cole), Maggie made the first move, or at least instigated the first move, i.e. one on one time with Jay, staring openly and intently on his genitalia wearing his shirt and little else. I just can't get to the point where I say any of them is more to blame. Maggie had desires but claimed to at least be holding back from going further with them ... forget about the fact that she willingly let a man get off to her, talking about how hot he is, etc. lol.
DeleteI don't know, what if Mila Kunis started, you know, right in front of you staring into your eyes? Like deep into them ... I'd probably run away scared to be honest, but i'd be turned on AF. If she asked me to describe her body, it'd be pretty hard not to comply ... and like it too ...
I guess what I'm saying is I love Mila Kunis.
My point in being so contrarian all the time is mostly because this web is weaved so fucking amazingly that I talk myself in and out of who I like or dislike more out everyone of these characters. I don't see how anyone can feel positively or negatively about this cast, and need to know how someone can!
Exactly! They're all flawed humans and are making mistakes left and right. But Max called dibs so lets go team Max!!
DeleteAnd JL - yeah you're right to look at Maggie and Cole and think it's natural for them to feel the way they are together is ok, I admit to feeling most strongly about that (talking about preconceptions), but when Maggie likes Cole to call her Margaret, asks him if she's a disappointment, tells him she doesn't want to be a bad girl, asks for spankings ... is she attracted to him, or who she thinks he is? And what is that?
DeleteHonestly, that side of Maggie wanting Cole to call her Margaret, telling him she doesn't want to be a bad girl, asking for spankings, etc, all are positive things to me. They show that is just exploring her kinks. It's not about Cole or Max, she's just having fun being bad. You can tell how she puts up a wall when Cole starts acting like his real self. All these things are good for Max, I think.
DeleteSo you fall into the 'sexualizing being bad because fuck you mom and dad I'm a good person and just want to be who I am, thanks Max for letting me realize that' camp?
DeleteI like that camp ...
I was in the hate Cole camp until I found out max was complicit..than I w1as cheering on jays dad with his "open door" policy. 😁
DeleteI'm frankly not sure who to trust between the three..cole maybe doing what you say but then there's that secret crush ...max will he always have this impulse to see Maggie with others I think so..
Maggie does she hang on to Cole as a result of daddy issues I think those tend to change over time into something more morose feeling than sexual curiosity.
or does she choose max always pushing into something not that she has to go but wouldn't that be a irritating nag after awhile. and if she denied max that would he go into A rejected funk.
I'm telling ya its jays dad all the way baby...maturity, money, status, big johnson and a hot son for those special nights. 🤣
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DeleteHaha, Professor Carmichael it is!
Deletethat's right and remember you heard it here first..
Deletehe may have had only a few moments with Maggie but they were tremendously impactful.....or I'm not Scooby doo!
Zoiks!
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ReplyDeleteSo I note that a couple of the "Maggie" books have been published as paperbacks, but not the more recent ones. Will they all be released in print form eventually? Seems strange to have only part of a series available in a given format. (For that matter, I'd love to see your entire catalog released in hardcopy. The massive paperback of "Learning Lessons" was my introduction to your work, and it's amazing. Might you consider more print publications, even for your older titles?)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the interest in the paperbacks! I did Secret Maggie this morning and it should be live soon. I will do the others as well, too, over the coming days. From now on the paperbacks will go up with the e-books. I will also do Obsessed soon in paperback. Also Cayman Proxy but I want to finish the new covers first ...
DeleteThanks so much to you, too! One more suggestion, if I may: maybe you could consider omnibus paperbacks of some of your shorter works? I'm thinking maybe a "size" themed volume containing "Size Curious Brat" and "Measured Next to Her Ex"? Or a collection of the various "Taken" titles? Anyway, don't mean to push my luck. Very much appreciate the reply, and will keep an eye out for whatever you choose to make available!
DeleteIt was already under way (boy, you're psychic!)—and now look at that, it's available today! (Taken series will be coming next month or the one after ...)
DeleteHere's a complete overreaction to the title of a chapter, "Valkyries," plural, Maggie and Carol? Who is the victim and what brought their wrath? Maybe Ken spills the beans? Maggie already knows about it, but doesn't know Max already knew about Ken. Maybe Carol hears something from Ken and is not pleased, then when Maggie finds out Max knew the whole time she will be equally mad.
ReplyDeleteI told myself I wasn't going to do this stuff when KT posted this too, ha. I can't wait!!!
DeleteNothing like being painfully wrong based on no evidence whatsoever.
The chapter titles are pretty non descriptive but if I had to guess the narrative based off the chapter titles, I'd say:
Deletereconnection/stability > switches get flipped, chaos ensues > conflict peaks in "grande" > Max is tormented at a convention, similar to the food tastings > Cole takes over for a while and it really sucks for Max, "crater" being the most hopeless > "twilight" could mean the end of an era, maybe Cole bows out > "security" shows Max and Maggie finalizing what exploring means now and going forward, Max finally finds some relief > "meat lover" is a hint at the future, maybe guest stars someone like Cole or Jay's dad
Also during Max's torment/separation from Maggie, Maggie has a falling out with her parents, maybe during the "witness chapter.
DeleteThe story bounces between perspectives, so it's also possible that it diverges from my first line of narrative at "best man". Instead maybe it's:
"best man" roles get reversed > Max morphs into a wet blanket in "crater" > "twilight" is the end of Max > "security" is from Maggie's perspective, basically a culmination of all the things we've talked about regarding Max's fuck ups and Cole's assistance in overcoming her childhood hurdles > "meat lover" is dialogue-filled fan service sex that doesn't include Max, but affects the reader all the same because of the things Maggie says
I'm much less confident in this interpretation but who knows?
Going Macro: title "uncovered"
Deletemax comes home Maggie's in bed max wants to see what Cole is doing And "uncovers" then and .....ohhh nooo it's jays dad chewing on a peanut.
😅
storm= disagreement
convention= someone goes away/seperation
valkyries=mom and daughter time.
best man = change up
crater= somebody get hurt
Ok take with a grain of salt as this is a result over thinking with a lust filled mind...😨
heh that definition of convention would make more sense
DeleteOh no, that could be terrible for Max. I'll have to read this chapter in a bathtub full of ice cubes to be safe..
DeleteAhh!!! November 14th!!!!!!
Deletei can hardly wait my mind is playing all kinds of scenarios out even some crossovers with rocko, and Reza. poor Maggie
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DeleteWe're at the one week mark on the countdown, and I've come to terms with the wait, I think it's acceptance in the stages of grief? I seriously feel like I went through all the stages since Sunday.
ReplyDeleteHow mad y'all gonna be tomorrow when you find out I put in fake chapter headings?
ReplyDeleteI'd call you a troll, but give you props for apropo fakes! I think you're bluffing your bluff though, which is meta.
DeleteWhat is this tomorrow stuff, you mean Tuesday!?
by tomorrow I assume you mean your submission day to the higher powers. after a day of review for release..
Deleteas far as the fake headings..im way ahead of you as I given fake opinions on those fake headings
...who's the fake now huh?!! booyaa!😆
🤔wait a minute ...i don't think that came out right....
Four-dimensional chess level! I can't out-fake you ...
DeleteAnd yes, I submit tomorrow and it should be available no later than the 14th.
Haha agreed, thats next level stuff John!
DeleteGot it regarding tomorrow, it is nice to know there's a chance tomorrow!
Yes, I believe weekends are bad luck to submit my erotic novels. Last book, Discovering Maggie, that model's cute, but politely covered, butt got that book put in the Amazon dungeon which practically tanked the Maggie series. Monday's only now!
Deleteok did you just up the four dimensional chess by adding a dungeon with a cute politely covered butt in it? or am I just oversexualizing again...?
DeleteNo, ha ha, you got it right ...
DeleteI don't know KT, you might have went for her picture in the nun uniform to be safe! 🙂
ReplyDeleteI don't think they like that either! Maybe a passport photo. No smiling.
DeleteSide note: The Reza books ... My grand scheme of trying out going wide and experimenting with the 99-cent shorts came to an abrupt end when the publishing company I was using decided to get out of the game. I moved the books over to Amazon myself but their rank and reviews didn't come along. That's why they disappeared for a while and then returned at the back of my queue. The reviews any of you left should show up on them again soon ...
And Reza will return with one more book I think, but it will be a longer format.