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Welcome to the Ball & Chain virtual tour! If youโ€™re following along, youโ€™ll be able to win yourself some goodies that might just save your life! Iโ€™ve got five Survival Kits in a Sardine Can, perfect for traveling and hiking or taking with you to remote island weddings where people might be dying. And Iโ€™ve got five sets of trading cards with original artwork and character work-ups for the less adventurous readers!

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Hi Abi! Welcome back to UTC! Ty and Zane have quickly become my all-time favourite couple. They have come so far in the series, but in BALL & CHAIN, a significant change in their lives can alter the dynamics of their relationship. How do you think Ty and Zane will cope?

Ha! Nice try, but I already know how theyโ€™ll cope. I will spill that there is a proposal in this book. But then, itโ€™s about a wedding so is that really such a big surprise? Youโ€™ll have to keep reading to find out how Ty and Zane cope, though.

In comparison to the other books in this series, how would you describe BALL & CHAIN?

Ball & Chain is smaller in scale. The other books have been expansive, either in scope of plot, location, or character arc. Ball & Chain really only gives Ty and Zane a tiny island to move around on, and a small sampling of people to interact with. Theyโ€™re forced to deal with people they canโ€™t get away from, from circumstances they canโ€™t hand over, and the mystery is, on the surface, a simple one. It feels more intimate than the other books, which is what you want for a wedding, right?!

I have to say that pretty much all the books in this series have made me heart break in one way or the other. I would like to know which book has been the most emotionally difficult book to write and why.

I know people expect me to say Touch & Geaux, but I cackled my way through most of that book. Divide & Conquer was the hardest for me to write, emotionally. I knew how people would receive Tyโ€™s actions, and I knew there would be backlash, and it was hard for me to stick to the way it was supposed to go.

Along with the heartbreaking and the sweet moments, there are also a handful of laugh-out-loud moments. Which character would you say has the best one-liners and do you mind sharing that with the readers?

I honestly try to spread out the witticisms between the characters, and still keep them in character. Ty probably has the most one-liners, but I believe Kelly might have surpassed him in this book. Tyโ€™s humor is anchored in cynicism and sarcasm. Kelly, on the other hand, is more lighthearted. He can say something completely off the wall and crazy and the other characters can just shrug at him because thatโ€™s just his personality. No other character can do that without being wildly out of character. Overall, Liam Bell takes the prize for best one-liners, though. Heโ€™s so snarky and I love him.

The series has many, many wonderful sex scenes between the boys. They can get really hot, really quick. Which sex scene has stood out for you and why?

I think itโ€™s a tie between the jealous door sex in Divide & Conquer and the cowboy hat sex in Stars & Stripes. Those seem to be the two that readers mention the most.

Do you mind sharing us a little about your daily writing routine? What are some items that you absolutely need to write? How many hours a day do you sit in your chair and type away?

Lately, Iโ€™ve been writing for about 8 hours a day. Iโ€™ll admit thatโ€™s not normal production for me. I blame knee surgery and the snow. A typical writing day starts with going through messages and mail, wandering around my house like a zombie for a few minutes, and then settling in the living room. Probably 45 minutes out of every hour is spent on legitimate work. Sometimes I have to switch venues, so Iโ€™ll head for the sunroom and sit at my dining table. The only thing I really need to write is the internet. Even if Iโ€™m not talking to anyone, or doing anything online, just knowing that connection to the outside world is there keeps from getting too restless or lonely while Iโ€™m working. Itโ€™s all mental, but then, so is writing.

How much pleasure do you take in torturing your minions? Between your Tumblr posts and editors tweeting quotes from the upcoming book, you have minions pining for the next release. Whatโ€™s going through your mind as we sob with need?

Evil, evil laughter.

Letโ€™s do a little bit of word association. Tell us the first word that comes to mindโ€ฆ

Ty: Jackass.

Zane: Patience.

Deuce: Long-suffering.

M/M: Growing.

Ball & Chain: Mischief.

Minions: Hilarious.

 

About Ball & Chain

ball

Home from their unexpected deployment, the former members of Marine Force Recon team Sidewinder rejoin their loved ones and try to pick up the pieces of the lives they were forced to leave behind. Ty Grady comes home to Zane Garrett, only to find that everything around him has changedโ€”even the men he went to war with. He barely has time to adjust before his brother, Deuce, asks Ty to be his best man. But that isnโ€™t all Deuce asks Ty to do, and Ty must call for backup to deal with the business issues of Deuceโ€™s future father-in-law.

Nick Oโ€™Flaherty and Kelly Abbott join Ty and Zane at the wedding on an island in Scotland, thinking theyโ€™re there to assuage Deuceโ€™s paranoia. But when bodies start dropping and boats start sinking, the four men get more involved with the festivities than theyโ€™d ever planned to.

With the clock ticking and the killer just as stuck on the isolated island as they are, Ty and Zane must navigate a veritable minefield of family, friends, and foes to stop the whole island from being destroyed.

 

[about-author author=”Abigail Roux”]

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18 Comments

  1. My favorite series ever. Iโ€™m completely in love. Ty & Zane, Nick & Kelly are on my mind basically 24/7.
    Probably not healthy but I donโ€™t care. I love them! <3
    Ball & Chain was perfect. Can't wait for Cross & Crown and Lost & Found and all of the other other books ! (ยฌโ€ฟยฌ)

  2. Love the series and the boys! Looking forward to Cross & Crown for a little more Nick and Kels, and hopefully a cameo from Ty and Zane!!

  3. I can’t wait to read this. I’ve been putting it off because I hate when books are over, especially yours but I don’t think I’ll be able to much longer. Can’t wait for the next book as well.

  4. Knowing that this will be the last Ty & Zane book for a while saddens me a bit, but I do understand that when you’ve got a world inside your head and the chance to spread it and explore it and get it out there, the only reasonable thing to do is to do so!

    Back to B&C: the fact that the scale is so small is what really thrills me most about this book. I like it when characters have restraints, it often makes them act in ways you’d never imagine, and it puts them through quite a lot of suffering; it’s like seeing the lab rat trying to find her way through the labyrinth.

  5. Great interview! Can’t wait for more of Ty & Zane, Nick & Kelly, and the rest of the bunch. ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. On the 5th book of the series and loving it! I’m torn between hurrying to get to this book and taking my time so my Ty & Zane journey won’t be over so soon!

  7. I’ve only read the first book in this series so far, but the rest are on my TBR. I’m hoping to start Sticks & Stones in the next couple weeks. *so excited*

  8. I always learn knew stuff to help me appreciate the books from the author interviews. I look forward to reading this one.

  9. Love the interview! The tootsie roll is the most important thing in a survival kit! LOL
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