Blog Tour: Love Me With Lies ~ by Tarryn Fisher ~The Opportunist and Dirty Red

Olivia Kaspen has just discovered that her ex-boyfriend, Caleb Drake, has lost his memory. With an already lousy reputation for taking advantage of situations, Olivia must decide how far she is willing to go to get Caleb back. Wrestling to keep her true identity and their sordid past under wraps, Olivia’s greatest obstacle is Caleb’s wicked, new girlfriend; Leah Smith. It is a race to the finish as these two vipers engage in a vicious tug of war to possess a man who no longer remembers them. But, soon enough Olivia must face the consequences of her lies, and in the process discover that sometimes love falls short of redemption.

Dear Opportunist,

You thought you could take him from me, but you lost. Now, that he’s mine I’ll do anything to keep him. Do you doubt me? I have everything that was supposed to be yours. In case you were wondering; he doesn’t ever think about you anymore. I won’t let him go….ever.

Dirty Red

Leah Smith finally has everything she has ever wanted. Except she doesn’t. Her marriage feels more like a loan than a lifelong commitment, and the image she has worked so hard to build is fraying before her eyes. With a new role and a past full of secrets, Leah must decide how far she is willing to go to keep what she has stolen.

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dirty-red-tarryn-fisher/1114040069?ean=2940016148595

Excerpt

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She looks the same. Raven hair hanging wildly to her waist. She looks almost gypsy-like in her teal linen pants and a cream sheath shirt that hangs casually off one defined shoulder. I eye her gold hoop earrings, which are big enough to fit my entire hand through. They make her look exotic and slightly dangerous. She has always made me feel plain.

Her eyes rove over the handful of occupants in the diner, searching for a face she recognizes: an old man, a couple who share the same side of a booth, two servers folding silverware into napkins … and me.

I see the shock overcome her features — the parting of her lips, the slight spreading of white around her irises. Suddenly, she stiffens. Her eyes chase to the four corners of the room, and I know she is looking for him. I shake my head to tell her he’s not here. I take a sip of my coffee and I wait.

She moves with purpose toward my table. When she reaches where I am sitting, she doesn’t sit but stares at me expectantly.

“An old client?” She says dryly.

“Well, I am, aren’t I?” I motion for her to sit. I’d sent an anonymous message to her office, claiming I was an old client in desperate legal trouble. I’d asked her to meet me at a diner named Tiffany’s. I had no idea if she’d come or not, but it was better than showing up at her office.

She slides cautiously into the seat across from me, never taking her eyes from my face.

“Well, what the fuck do you want?”

I flinch. Louboutins or not, she’s still the same crass piece of white trash she used to be.

“I thought maybe you could look over this document for me.” I reach into my purse and pull out the papers I’d stolen from Caleb’s filing cabinet. Placing them on the table, I slide them toward her.

“What is this?” she asks. She eyes me distastefully. How dare she look at me that way? She has singlehandedly ruined my life. I’d have everything if it weren’t for her devious, overreaching hands.

I’d probably also be in prison. I push that thought away. Now is not the time for gratitude. Now is the time for answers. I poke the document in front of her.

“Take a look. See for yourself.”

Without moving her head, she looks at the papers then back to me. It’s a smooth, hard, impressive piece of intimidation. The art of her body language is something to be admired.

“Why would I want to do that?” she says.

She’s making me feel chilled. I get a flashback of being on the witness stand, and my heart rate spikes. I practice to see if I can do it too.

“It’s Caleb’s,” I say, only moving my lips.

I don’t know whether it’s the mention of his name or if my imitation of her body language is working, but she tenses.

A server approaches our table. Olivia reaches for the papers.

“Get her a coffee, two creamers.” I say, waving him away. He hurries off. Olivia, who is reading, briefly glances up at me. I spent almost every day with her for nine months. I know what she likes.

I sip my coffee as she reads, watching her face.

Her coffee arrives. Without looking up, she pulls the lids from the creamers and dumps them into her cup.

She lifts the mug to her lips, but halfway there her hand freezes. Coffee spills onto the table as she slams the mug down. Abruptly, she stands up.

“Where did you get that?”

She is backing away from the table, shaking her head. “Why is my name on there?”

I run my tongue across my teeth. “I was hoping you could tell me that?”

She bolts for the door. I stand up, tossing a twenty on the table and go after her.

I follow her into the parking lot and corner her by the newspaper stand. “You are not getting out of explaining why your name is on this deed along with my husband’s!”

Her face is washed of color. She shakes her head. “I don’t know, Leah. He never — I don’t know.”

She covers her face with her palms, and I hear her sob. That only makes me angrier. I take a threatening step toward her.

“You’re sleeping with him, aren’t you?”

She pulls her hands away and glares at me.

“No. Of course not! I love my husband.” She is clearly insulted that I would even accuse her of such a thing.

“I love mine!” My voice cracks. “ — So, why does he love you?”

She looks at me with true loathing.

“He doesn’t,” she says simply. “He chose you.” It pains her to give me those words. I can see the emotion spilling from her skin.

I hold up the deed and shake it. “He bought you a house. Why did he buy you a fucking house?”

She snatches the deed from my fingers and points to a date. “Did you miss this little detail? Long before you, Leah.” She shoves it back at my chest. “But, you know that. So, why did you really trick me into coming here?”

I swallow — a nervous reaction. She sees it and smiles cruelly.

“I should have let them throw you in prison, you know that.”

She turns away, walking toward her car door. Her statement infuriates me. I follow her, digging my fingernails into my palms, I breathe through my nose.

“So you could have him?” I blurt. My blood pounds in my ears. I ask myself that question all the time. I say it again. “You should have lost the case so you could have him?”

She freezes, looks at me over her shoulder.

“Yeah.”

I didn’t expect the truth. It frightens me. I open my mouth — force the words out.  “I thought you loved your husband.”

She blows air through her nose. The action reminds me of an agitated horse. Her eyes rove from my shoes and land in disgust on my face.

“I love yours too.”

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Abby’s Review for The Opportunist 5 stars

This is one of those stories that I kept seeing every book page rave about but when I read the synopsis I wasn’t sure so I kept putting it off.  I wish I hadn’t   This book is is so frustratingly wonderful.  It has taken me a few days to begin my review because I am left a little heartbroken.  This is a story of a flawed woman who is in love but she can’t seem to ever get it right with him or make it work.  She sees him at a music store and talks to him for the first time in years.  He has amnesia and she deceives him so that they can fall in love again. There are so many twist and so much heartache in this story.  This is a reminder that sometimes love is not always enough for a relationship to survive.  Sometimes it doesn’t work the way you want it to or expect it to, however maybe it works out the way it needs to.  I am anxious for the next book in this series to come out.  This is sad and incredible, so worth the read.

 

Abby’s Review for Dirty Red 5 stars

First let’s start off by saying you must read The Opportunist.  This was a book that I had to join the fan site, www.thepressedpenny.com.  When I finished The Opportunist I needed to talk about it.  It was such an emotional roller coaster.  Things happen in this story that I have never experienced from an author.  I was screaming at the end of DIRTY RED.

Read Dirty Red…

Still Screaming

If I could reach into a book and kick her red headed butt I would.  From the first page I still hated Leah.  She is wicked.  I have never read a book solely devoted to the evilness of one woman.  It was a ride alright for me, a ticked off one.

What an accomplishment by Tarryn Fisher to create this story where the reader can have such distaste for a character but still love the book.  She does an amazing job at character development.

We are given a lot of insight into why Leah is the way she is.  She was cultivated and made to be as dreadful as she is by circumstance.  I wanted to feel sorry for her but I couldn’t.

In the end I love this book. I was left in tears but still tears for Caleb and Olivia. There is no way that I could shed a tear for that evil Dirty Red. I can not wait to get the third installment of this series where we hear more from Caleb.

We did not hear that much from Olivia in this story and yet I still was rooting for her and cheering her on. I hope I hear more of her soon:)

Tarryn Fisher is so talented.

Dawn’s Review for Dirty Red 4 Stars

Damn that Dirty Red!! It has been several months since I read The Opportunist but it definitely did not take me any time at all to recall how much I truly loved to hate Leah aka Dirty Red. I remember being so pissed at Leah after reading The Opportunist that I couldn’t bring myself to read a book that would just make me hate her more. Thinking about it now, though, it might have given me that much better of a perspective on her actions in The Opportunist.

This book is primarily from Leah’s point of view and really helped me dig into her psyche and why she is the way she is. But then again, it also didn’t. I know, confusing. You just need to read it to understand. Truly, I felt very conflicted on my feelings for Leah. I didn’t like her or the way she behaved but I also found myself empathizing with her and seeing sparks of potential in her. Tarryn Fisher is an amazing writer and she took me into Leah’s world, showed me what made her so awful, and made me care and even feel a bit sorry for her while also hating her. I love it when an author can deliver a story that makes me feel so much!

Some other parts of Dirty Red that I loved: the introduction of Sam, the ‘manny’, who was hired to help care for Estella, Leah and Caleb’s daughter after Leah effs a few things up was a wonderful addition to the cast of characters. He was funny, sweet, and didn’t put up with Leah’s nonsense. I also like the way Tarryn Fisher flips back and forth between past and present. There is potential for that to be confusing, but I did not feel that way at all.

What I wanted more of: more of Caleb and more of Olivia. This is definitely Leah’s story; I just would have also loved a little more of Caleb and Olivia. Fortunately, Thief (Love Me With Lies #3) is already out and is told from Caleb’s point of view and you can bet I’m going to read that one all night!

Review copy provided for honest review

Abby’s 5 Star Review of Thief

Playlists

The Opportunist *Official*

http://open.spotify.com/user/1220955223/playlist/25JuDZ1vmuy6yH2Jim9Idq

Dirty Red *Official*

http://open.spotify.com/user/1220955223/playlist/0ff2uCux4MpGZRxP4DIpeT

The Opportunist

http://open.spotify.com/user/soundsthatmatter/playlist/0NIqvYEf4SAcLq8Q4YTeAq

Dirty Red

http://open.spotify.com/user/soundsthatmatter/playlist/7o1JAUITM1LkxNPvpovzZY

About the Author

I am a real life villain, truly. I drink sick amounts of Starbucks. Most of the time my hair smells like coffee. I was born in South Africa, and lived there for most of my childhood. I moved to Seattle just for the rain. Rome is my favorite place in the world so far, Paris comes in at a close second. I read and write more than I sleep. When I was eleven, I wrote an entire novel about runaway orphans, using only purple ink. I am addicted to Florence and the Machine and will travel to see concerts. I love scary movies and giraffes. I spend way too much time on Facebook. Meet you there?…

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/authortarrynfisher

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Tarryn__Fisher

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5410816.Tarryn_Fisher

Author page: http://www.tarrynfisher.com/

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/tarrynfisher/

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