5 Fun Facts about Seven Seeds of Summer:

I don’t know about most readers, but I love learning about interesting things behind a story, whether it’s a movie or a book. (Behind the Scenes and Bloopers are my most favorite things to watch on a movie that I love!) So I decided to partake in the fun of giving some interesting and fun facts about Seven Seeds of Summer! I hope everyone enjoys!

·        #1: “Seven Seeds of Summer” was created in a Novel class hosted by Tom Bailey at Susquehanna University. Originally, I had presented a novel idea called, “The Dreamers,” which was a soul-shifting, paranormal romance that just didn’t seem to work as a novel. So during Spring Break, I went home and tried to re-think a “working” novel idea. I started to look at books that I really loved, and knew that I wanted to write a fairy-tale in a new way. I had always loved the story of Hades and Persephone and knew I wanted to do something with them. Hades and Persephone were actually the original characters, and each of them would go back and forth in Points of Views. It wasn’t until I started to think of a twist that the concept of Summer and Hades came to life – and the rest is history.

·        #2: I bombarded Robert(o) with pages upon pages of Seven Seeds of Summer. Honestly, without Rob, “Seven Seeds of Summer” would never be where it is. Without the help of the fantastic author, singer, movie-star: Shayne Leighton, who read and helped me do a run of edits, again, Hades wouldn’t be as amazing as he is now. (And I never would have discovered “The Fountain” score, which ultimately helped me write my novel.)



·        #3: I had never had a pomegranate until after I wrote a few scenes. I actually searched and searched grocery stores, until I finally found one, a few years into writing, and tasted one. It was a magical experience.

·        #4: Originally, Summer wasn’t going to remember anything about Persephone or Hades, until the very, very end of the book. I wanted Hades to sort of release the Persephone inside of her, but the struggle of the idea of suddenly losing Summer, into a character that mostly was only spoken of, but not developed, seemed a little unfair to our Summer. It was a challenge when writing Summer and Hades’ relationship when it came to the balance of Persephone Vs. Summer. Hades really wasn’t sure who he loved, and if he could love Summer for Summer. The conflict was very real in the writing process.

·        #5: I wanted to name Hades something else – like an everyday name. But it just never worked out that way. He wanted to be called simply “Hades.” That’s why Hades doesn’t have a human name.

Seven Seeds of Summer

Chantal Gadoury

Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Waldorf Press

Date of Publication: March 15, 2014

ISBN: 1630684775

ISBN-13: 978-1630684778

ASIN: B00J1PMYAE

Number of pages: 332

Word Count: 66,420

Cover Artist: Karen Davis and Terri Cooper

Book Description:

Seven Seeds of Summer follows the story of Summer, a college art student who has grown up in a house full of Greek mythology and legends. Summer grew up with a love for the darkest of all Gods: Hades, which caused tension between her and her mother. Summer comes home to Point Judith, Rhode Island, to find a mysterious figure on their family beach. The figure comes to her with questions about a familiar myth of her childhood: of Persephone and Hades. He proceeds to tell her of a new version of the story with a different ending that Summer never knew; an ending that includes herself.

A trip to Greece leads to tragic twists, leaving Summer in the arms of the strange figure whom she had met before. He takes her on a whirlwind through the busy streets of Athens, to the lowest point of Greece where his lair awaits: The Underworld. Determined to find out the secret of herself and her piece in the story, Summer goes with him, and tries to make herself at home in his world.

Summer has to decide to follow her heart or follow the same footsteps of the mysterious woman in her past life.

Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/klFPgDuwwSY

Available at Amazon LuLu BN iTunes

Excerpt Chapter Eleven: Seven Seeds of Summer

“Summer, this is only the beginning. The journey with me is far from over,” he said. I could hear the promise in his voice. I knew there was more. I knew that there was something more for me; I just didn’t understand it yet. I knew that there was still the journey of the underworld waiting for me— the gods and the souls. The stories that I thought were all just pretend.

“When are you going to take me down to your world? You took me. You have me. What are you waiting for?”

“I was waiting for you to recover,” he whispered. I heard him shift again in the chair and this time, I felt his hand on my wrist. His thumb was making light circles over my veins.

“You’re almost healed completely, and that’s good. If I had taken you down there the way you were, you wouldn’t have stood the chance of survival. Where I live, death dominates. You would have died.”

“And you wouldn’t have been able to do anything?”

“I’m only the ruler. I’m to protect the dead, not determine who lives or dies. The Fates decide that.”

“Why do you scare me?” I whispered after a long moment of silence. In his eyes I saw the truth, and saw the journey that he spoke of. There was much to be afraid of. I hadn’t meant to say it aloud, but it came out all the same. I saw his face more clearly, then. It was much closer than before. “I’m so scared, that I’m so drawn to you. I can’t help but want to be around you.”

“Yes…” he whispered. I felt his hands pull on both of my arms, lowering me to my knees. I was tucked in between his strong legs. He was warm, and much more than just a dark shadow. He was a dark Prince.

“Why have you done this to me?” I heard my voice shake, and tears started to fall down my cheeks.

“You haven’t guessed already?” he asked with concern. I felt his hands on my face and his breath was on my lips. His fingers were cool and rough, yet soft and warm, gentle and familiar. I wanted him to never stop touching me, and the thought scared me. I had no control over my thoughts, or my body. I felt my hands creep up onto his shoulders; my fingers twisted themselves into his long, black hair.

“Just tell me. Please tell me,” I begged. I needed to hear it. I needed to be sure that I wasn’t dreaming. He wasn’t a dream, and this wasn’t just a dream world that I was living in.

“Summer, the pomegranates? The paintings you drew of me? You’re drawn to me; I mean, look around you! You’re in Greece! You’re in the very setting of your own Greek story!”

“I know, I know!” Tears began to pour onto his fingers, and I tried to wipe them away. As I did, I felt him tip my chin up toward his face. I wanted this. I wanted this so badly. I wanted his lips on mine. I had dreamt about it, even before he had been real in front of me. My breath was asking to be kissed, and a moment later his lips crushed against mine. It was real. His hands were in my hair, and mine were tousled in his. He smelled like the beach, my beach, and it brought more tears to my eyes. He was my beach, my home, and my life. He was breathing air into me, giving me the will to do the unthinkable with him— to go beyond my human world, and enter his immortal one. He smelled like the waves, and the earth. A mixture of everything. I wanted to be consumed by him, live underneath his soft skin and exist through the crust of my old paints. He gently pushed me back, watching me as I struggled to keep my eyes open.

“I don’t know how to make it any clearer to you.” His eyes were wide and serious, and I knew all the answers were in the kiss. I knew what he was trying to say. I knew what I needed to know. I just didn’t want to accept it. How could this be happening to me? Me, of all the people in the world, of all the girls who existed, he picked me. My lips felt empty and cold without his there. Now that I had a taste of him, I wanted more. I wanted to grab his shoulders and press his lips against mine again, and take the heat and the life he offered.

“Do you need to sit on the bed?”

“Yes,” I murmured quickly, pushing his chest away, trying to regain my mind, my balance, and my pulse as I sat on the coverlet. I felt the kiss flow through my body, sending shivers down my spine. The kiss has shaken me; caused me to feel as if I were falling into tiny pieces that would fit so perfectly in his hand. Did he know he was my first kiss? I felt his hand grab my wrist and he gently pushed me down onto the bed. I didn’t know what to say, and I waited for him to speak, but he reflected the same silence.

“Why did you do that?” I whispered shakily, touching my lips with my finger tips and glanced at him. He stood silently in front of me. I could feel his dark gaze burning into my skin. I knew that whatever answer he was going to give me wouldn’t be the truth, or the answer that I wanted to hear.

“I think you should go to bed now, Summer,” he whispered softly.

About the Author:

Chantal Gadoury is young author who currently lives in a small town in Delaware with her two cats, Theo and Harper and her boyfriend, Robert. Chantal likes anything Disney, plays a mean game of Disney trivia, enjoys painting, and has a interest in British History. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues that love of writing today. As a recent college graduate from Susquehanna University, with a degree in Creative Writing, this is her first book.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cgadoury16

Blog: http://chantalgadoury.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chantalgadouryfans

Tumblr for Book: http://sevenseedsofsummer.tumblr.com/

Tumblr: http://changedmynametoariel.tumblr.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21470278-seven-seeds-of-summer

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