JENNA MILES

The Hold  is my long-awaited upcoming sequel to The Catch. I'm loving what's taking shape so far, and I genuinely believe it will blow your mind! It will release in mid-2024.

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Here's the blurb:

 

From the author of The Catch comes its long-awaited follow-up, The Hold. Equally enjoyable as a stand-alone book, The Hold tells Julia and William’s story of grown-up love and blended families in a way that’s poignant, powerful, and joyful.

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Since high school, aquarist Julia Beale and whale watching captain William Quinn have been each other’s one that got away. Now a gift from the past has brought them one more chance at happily ever after.

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Their bond runs deeper than ever, and their chemistry is still off the charts. But none of that matters if they can’t navigate disdainful kids, aging parents, erratic siblings, and the San Francisco housing market – all while staying afloat as small business owners. Along the way, throw in two of William’s ex-girlfriends – one whose son plays a huge role in William’s life, and another Julia sees at work every week. Stir in an ex-husband on the rebound, and garnish with a major move.

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It’s enough to test the strongest of bonds, so when fate throws Julia and William one more curve ball, can they hold on to the trust they’ve worked so hard to rebuild?

 

Set in 2012, The Hold is perfect for readers who can relate to life’s shades of gray. It celebrates the full humanity of humans with two X chromosomes – even when they’re moms staring down the barrel of middle age. Fans of It Starts With Us (Colleen Hoover’s sequel to It Ends With Us) and The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren will enjoy The Hold.

 

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OTHER BOOKS COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE

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I've already plotted out five new contemporary romantic dramedies, all involving characters you'll meet in The Catch and The Hold (if only briefly).

 

Here they are, in the order I propose to write them, complete with the MCs' names and the romance tropes in each book: 

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• Tula and Weston: enemies to lovers, opposites attract, reverse grumpy/sunshine, only one bed, forced proximity, disability and neurodivergence reps. 

• Rina and Gabe: reverse age gap, reverse nanny/boss, brother's best friend, he falls first, forced proximity, black cat/golden retriever, single mom, “It’s always been you.”

• Pippa and Finn: best friend's cousin, grumpy/sunshine, fake dating, single DILF. 🤩

• Maeve and Trevor: old unrequited crush, reunion, plus-sized (a.k.a. REAL-sized) and bespectacled veterinarian heroine.

• ______ and ______ (I can't tell without major spoiler alerts!): second chance / reunion, friends to lovers. 

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Here's the VERY rough draft of their book blurbs!

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TULA VOSLOO AND WESTON LIVELY

Working title: The Wilderness of Half-Truths

 

TULA

 

I’m a woman of science. The only thing I put my faith in is my family. After everything I’ve experienced, both in my own life and as a neurologist in a pediatric ICU, I’ve lost faith in almost everything else.

 

So when my brother says he’s getting married in Texas, I grit my teeth and go – even if it's the buckle of the Bible Belt. Even if it’s ground zero for one of my youthful traumas. And even if it seats me on the plane next to Weston Lively – the relentlessly-upbeat hospital chaplain who’s rocking serious Prince Harry vibes alongside that honeyed Texas accent.

 

WESTON

 

When a weather system diverts our plane, I find myself navigating the stormy backroads of the piney woods with a coworker who clearly hates me.  A coworker with blue eyes I could dive into and swim in for days. Still, I’m not eager to share this last remaining rental car with her. Or this last hotel room, with its one bed. But for some reason, when the raging Texas thunderstorm gives Tula Vosloo a panic attack, comforting the prickly doctor in my arms gives me a raging… need to know her better.

 

As I accompany her to her brother’s wedding and introduce her to my hometown, we miraculously cut through the wilderness of half-truths and misunderstandings that divide us. But when Tula uncovers my family’s shocking backstory, we’ll have to confront all of our lingering prejudices, or else sever the deep connection we forged in the woods.

 

Recalling elements of Pride and Prejudice, Tula and Weston’s love story is a contemporary romantic dramedy with the following tropes: enemies-to-lovers, reverse grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, only one bed. SUBSCRIBE AT THE ENGLISH BREAKFAST TEA-r OR HIGHER, and you'll help me actually bring it to you!

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RINA VOSLOO AND GABE CUCULLU.

Working title: The Next Beautiful Thing

 

RINA

 

At thirty-two, I’m a widowed single mom to an autistic eight-year-old. Saddled with my dead husband’s debts and suddenly deprived of our daughter’s caregiver, I can’t go back to my job as a winemaker until I hire a nanny – preferably one who accepts room and board as payment. The problem is, out here in the boonies, no one’s applying. 

 

Except Gabe Cucullu, my younger brother’s even younger best friend, who returns from the Peace Corps desperately needing a job. Oh – and a place to stay. Gabe was always cute, but now, at twenty-four, he’s a tall, dark snack of a man. The last thing I need is this hot distraction to further complicate my hot mess of a life. Nevertheless, out of options and confronted with Gabe’s spectacular, um, references, I swallow my misgivings and offer him the job – and my third bedroom.

 

GABE

 

I’ve spent the last three years teaching abroad, crafting the next Great American Novel – and trying to forget my married crush. Trouble is, I’m teaching in South Africa – her native country. And my Great American Novel keeps veering toward one theme that hits too close to home: the relentless torch a young man carries for his best friend’s sister. 

 

So the moment I hear of Rina Vosloo’s sudden widowhood, I impulsively fly home. I’m determined to offer her my help, my friendship, and maybe, one day – my heart. Now, we just need to tear down the walls of fear, cynicism, and insecurity that separate us from the next beautiful thing.

 

Rina and Gabe’s love story is a contemporary romantic dramedy that falls under the following tropes: Reverse age gap, black cat/golden retriever, brother’s best friend, forced proximity, reverse nanny/boss, single mom, “It’s always been you.” 

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MAEVE CARMODY AND TREVOR CLYNE

Working title: Not My Worst Mistake

 

MAEVE

 

I’m a curvy, bespectacled veterinarian with my own animal menagerie. I live with my parents and my disabled brother. Men aren’t exactly banging down my door, and I put dating on the back burner years ago. But that hasn’t stopped me from fantasizing about Trevor Clyne since seventh grade. 

 

Shy, nerdy Trevor stole my heart the moment he smiled at me across the lunch room. Or at least, he smiled somewhere in my general direction. Too bad I never worked up the nerve to find out. Also, I haven’t seen him since high school, and apparently, neither has anyone else.

 

That is, until he strides into my clinic, six-foot-more of solid grown man with a dog tucked under his arm – but still as delectably nerdy as ever.

 

TREVOR

 

I don’t know who I am – literally. I was an honest-to-God, real-life foundling, bouncing from one foster home to the next until the blind town psychic adopted me. But when a sudden tragedy left me alone again, I made a terrible choice that cost me ten years. At least I learned a valuable skill in prison – how to train service dogs for people with disabilities. Now I’m back in this empty house – only to find another squatter in the form of a half-starved stray.

 

Fortunately, when the mangy pup and I straggle into her clinic, Maeve Carmody, DVM, seems equally delighted to see me. On my first day of freedom, I’ve already found two more reasons to stay that way: a cast-off mutt with service dog potential, and a voluptuous angel with green eyes and a halo of curls. The only question is, how can I convince the good Dr. Carmody that I’m not my worst mistake, when even I don’t know who I am?

 

Maeve and Trevor’s love story is a contemporary romantic dramedy that falls under the following tropes: Old crush, reunion, plus-size (a.k.a. real-sized) bespectacled heroine, found family. 

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PIPPA AND FINN

Working title: The Scars We Carry

 

PIPPA

 

The last thing I expect at my friend’s wedding is to gain a fiancé. But that’s exactly what happens when Finn Carmody, her gorgeous older brother, recruits me to play the part opposite his ex and her date. I’m so stunned that I go along at first, but later, I give him a spicy helping of my formidable mind. 

 

The problem is, Finn’s six-year-old ragamuffin overheard the whole thing and now proclaims I’m her “new, improved mommy.” Besides, Finn is so profusely, adorably apologetic and – did I mention? – unfairly hot. I sense vulnerability under that gruff exterior, but I need to “fix” another broken man like I need a hole in my head.

 

FINN

 

I can’t believe I just yanked my sister’s bridesmaid to my side and pretended we were engaged. Of course, no one expected my narcissistic ex-wife to be there, either – as the clueless best man’s plus-one. But while this petite spitfire named Pippa chews me out, I can’t help wondering what those sultry lips would look like wrapped around my intraoral device.

 

No, really – I engineered an intraoral device for obstructive sleep apnea. And when I discover Pippa Cucullu is a pediatric intensivist, I do the second-most impulsive thing of my life: invite her to a business lunch.

 

As we work to win approval for a similar device for babies – like the son I lost to SIDS –  we’re locked in a dance that looks an awful lot like winning each other’s approval. And the longer we keep up the charade of the happily engaged couple, the clearer it becomes – the only barriers between fantasy and reality are the scars we carry.

 

Pippa and Finn’s love story is a contemporary romantic dramedy that falls under the following tropes: Fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, single DILF.