Welcome, friend! Today I have the pleasure of hosting Canadian author, Sophie Sullivan, to chat about her latest book, Get Lost with You. I just finished reading this heartfelt second chance romance was light, immersive and sweet. I will write about it in the coming days. Enjoy the interview!
Get Lost with You
A second chance at love, small-town romance that’s all sweet with just a hint of heat from the “queen of sweet romance” (Falon Ballard) Sophie Sullivan.
Jillian Keller took the long route to her best life, but is now happily settled in her hometown of Smile, raising her little girl alone while helping her brother run Get Lost Lodge. A lover of structure and routine, she doesn’t need anything, or anyone, disrupting her carefully curated life.
After chasing and achieving his culinary dreams, Levi Bright realizes he’s still missing something. Something he can’t find in a big city. Returning home to Smile, he intends to build a different future for himself that includes mending fences with his dad, reconnecting with friends, and creating elevated comfort food for a town he loves.
When Levi and Jilly run into each other one day in Smile, once requited feelings that never had a chance to bloom as teens flare between them immediately. Jaded from her past, Jilly is cautious and convinced that she can handle being just friends, as the two have to work closely together to prepare for Get Lost’s official summer opening, spending time together, camping, laughing, kayaking, and reminiscing. But when her brother hires sweet, funny, ridiculously hot Levi as the new chef at the lodge, and she and Ollie are getting more attached, things are moving more quickly than she anticipated–and Jilly has been hurt before. If she wants to be head over heels in love, she’ll have to learn that the past doesn’t always repeat itself. Sometimes, it just leads you where you’re meant to be.
Get to know the author: Sophie Sullivan
Hi Sophie! It is a pleasure to have you on Armed with A Book. Please tell me and my readers a bit about yourself.
Hi! Thank you so much for wanting to interview me 😊 I’m a Canadian, mom of two, wife, full time teacher, and a writer. I love writing romance and romcom but also love writing cozy mysteries. I’ve been writing since I was eleven.
What draws you to the romance genre, and what do you find most rewarding about writing love stories?
I think, now more than ever, the world needs romance stories. They’re built around hope and the desire to go after the good things in life, regardless of what it throws at you. I love reading and writing about the fall, that tummy spinning swoop that makes you root for the main character. The most rewarding thing, honestly, is when readers connect with the characters and their journey. I actually smile while I write. Romance, as a genre, reminds us of the good, that it’s okay to take chances, and the little moments matter.
Get Lost with Me is the second book in a series. How does it build upon the first book, and what should new readers know before diving in?
I absolutely love writing interconnected stories. In Get Lost With You, we reconnect with many of the characters from book one, including Presley and Beckett. This is a second chance, I’ve-always-loved-you romance that basically answers the question of, what would happen if your teenage crush worked out fifteen years later, exactly as you hoped.
I loved the dynamic caused by Levi being a childhood friend of Jilly’s brothers. What made their childhood crush evolve into a mature romance years later? How do you think someone can grow out of old established roles, like Levi did, and take on a new one in a relationship?
I love the idea that they had these hopes and perceptions for and of each other as teenagers. There’s a sweet innocence to it. They liked each other before they truly knew who they’d become and the lovely thing about coming back together is, now they not only remember who the other was, but love who they’ve become. Did that make any sense? They knew each other in their most awkward of phases and now they’ve been through so much individually and still want the person standing before them. I think that as long as people are willing to say, what’s my role in this, what can I do differently, we can do anything. Levi knows he needs to show Jilly who he is now; not just the teenage fantasy, but the flawed man. Likewise, Jilly needs to see that she can be loved even with her insecurities.
Levi left town when he was young and became a successful chef, returning home for his father but staying for a different kind of life. Can you share more about his experiences as a city chef and how they shaped the person he became?
Levi got exactly what he wanted at seventeen. More than, really. He went to a great school, worked his way up at restaurants, failed and learned along the way. Being a chef is actually considered to be one of the most stressful jobs out there. He gave his life to it. He ran an elite kitchen which left little time for anything else. He loved it. But he realized he wanted more. He’d achieved that dream and now he had others that didn’t include working sixty or seventy hours a week and coming home to an empty house.
Jilly has been hurt in her first marriage and has embraced the role of single parent beautifully, with support from her community and family. What role does her daughter, Ollie, play in bringing Levi and Jilly together?
Thank you for saying that. I appreciate it very much. I think kids are an amazing dose of honesty. It’s so simple for them and Ollie creates a nice parallel for Jilly and Levi of that youthful innocence, the belief that if I want it, it should happen and the reality of balancing lives and hearts, while knowing that others, including Ollie, could get hurt. But Ollie jumps in, both feet and she helps both of them find the courage to do the same.
Do you have a favourite quote or scene in Get Lost with You that you find yourself going back to?
It’s so simple and silly and probably a little juvenile but I absolutely love when Levi asks Jillian if she wants to be his girlfriend. When we’re young, we have no idea what those terms truly mean and for him to ask it of her when they’ve been through so much on their own is a little nod to the sweetness of their relationship.
Romance often balances emotional tension and lighter moments. How did you approach that balance in this book?
Romances are awesome that way. There’s so many layers and overlapping emotions to sort through. I try to be really genuine with my writing. Jillian’s been hurt; she’s scared. She’s protective because she feels like whatever she takes on for herself, it impacts Ollie, and it does. Levi is happy and easy going but frustrated and sometimes a little clueless. He didn’t realize the ramifications of taking off for ten years; how it hurt his parents. In particular, his dad. I wrote scenes that allowed those emotions to play out and then purposely infused fun and silly moments. Soft and sweet moments. Reflective and real ones to, hopefully, tie it all together.
What advice would you give to writers who want to create compelling love stories?
Read romance, figure out what you like about the stories and styles. Write. Even if you think it’s not good enough, write more. Have fun with it, be genuine, talk to other writers. Write from your heart. Hang onto that feeling you had when you were young and thought the story you wrote that was mostly full of “and then” was the most amazing thing ever. Write for you, the story you’d love to fall into. It’ll make others want to do the same.
Do you have plans for more books in this series, or other upcoming projects you can share with me and my readers?
I’ve turned in book three, Maybe This Once, which is Grayson Keller’s story. I’m so excited to get to share all three siblings. In September, I have book two of my holiday stories coming out. I released Can’t Help Falling In Love last September and this September, You Make It Feel Like Christmas will release. There’ll be one more in that series as well.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Thank you for reading my book and asking me such lovely, thoughtful questions.
Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me and share with my readers.
Thank YOU for interviewing me and sharing this.
Thanks for joining us! Connect with Sophie on her website and follow her on Instagram and Facebook.
I hope you will check out Get Lost with You on Goodreads. Review coming soon!
Many thanks to St Martins’s Griffin for giving me a chance to highlight this book on my blog in exchange for an honest review. 🙂
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