Exclusive Interview with Ryan Quinn, the Hero of
The Memory of You
1) Greetings Ryan! Thanks for joining us today. We know you have a lot going on--
youΒfre a single father and public defender and you just had a big move back to your
hometown. Can you tell us a bit about your day-to-day life?
Thanks for having me. At the moment, my day-to-day life is a bit chaotic now that IΒfve
temporarily moved in with my folks while my divorce is finalized. IΒfve started a new job and am
trying to get my young daughter to embrace a new school and make new friends. Meanwhile,
my meddling mother went and hired my high school sweetheart, Steffi, to remodel her house,
so now I have to see Steffi every day, too. Emmy, my daughter, is taking to her, which is a risk
because Steffi canΒft be trusted to keep her commitments anymore than EmmyΒfs mom can. But
I do love being home on Long Island Sound, and I look forward to getting back out on my old
sailboat.
2) Emmy sounds great, but it seems like your divorce has been really hard on her.
What has been her reaction to all of the change?
Pretty typical. Like a lot of kids, sheΒfs hoping her parents will reconcile. She misses her mom,
which makes me feel like a failure. My wife, Val, cheated, but on some level, I know I had a role
in our failed marriage. I absolutely hate that Emmy is paying the highest price for our mistakes.
3) Your daughter has recently made a very important connection--one with Steffi
Lockwood. You have quite the past with Steffi, care to share?
Steffi was my first love. I graduated before her and we ended up at different colleges, but we
stayed together until her sophomore year. Then, out of the blue, she ghosted me. That broke
me and drove me straight into ValΒfs open arms, then an accidental pregnancy pushed us to get
married right after graduation. Yeah, IΒfve made a couple of big mistakes in my life. IΒfm
determined not to make any more. With a daughter to protect from more pain, itΒfs time to lead
with my head instead of my heart.
4) In a way, you can say that Steffi, and what happened when you
were teens, changed the whole trajectory of your life!
Steffi, or more accurately, my response to disappointment, definitely had an impact on my life.
On the upside, part of my professional ambition came from a juvenile desire to become a big
success and make her sorry she dumped me. And I canΒft fully regret Val because I got Emmy
out of that relationship, and sheΒfs worth any heartache and missteps caused by Steffi and Val
put together.
5) Even after a decade of healing, you are still pretty raw from your breakup. Has this
time given you any insight into what happened?
I havenΒft been sitting and stewing over Steffi for a decade, but running into her so
unexpectedly sure ripped open my scars. Looking back, maybe I stifled Steffi a bit when we
were young. I didnΒft always listen to her dreams for herself. DidnΒft pay attention to some of the
things she needed, or how her having lost her mom and being raised by her dad and brothers
didnΒft give her anyone to really talk to about certain things. She was young. She says she has
regrets. Guess in that way, weΒfve still got something in common.
6) Now that you have unexpectedly reconnected with Steffi do you wish for a Βedo
overΒf? What might this look like for you? For your daughter?
Nothing surprised me more than the fact that, under all my resentment, I could still feel that
old surge of heat when I first saw her again. SheΒfs still the same capable, tough, no-nonsense
person she always was, and that smile—man, IΒfm weak in the face of it. But IΒfve got to think of
Emmy. I canΒft jump into something that could fall apart and cause my daughter another
disappointment. IΒfd need to know, with certainty, that Steffi was capable of real commitment
and total honesty this time around. But if it worked out, I think Emmy would be happy. So far,
Steffi has good values and has shown surprisingly maternal instincts when it comes to Emmy.
Right now, all I can say is that IΒfm not completely unhappy that Steffi and I both ended up
coming back home.
***
Sanctuary Sound #1
Stefanie Lockwood can repair anything, except her
heart—thatΒfs still recovering.
Steffi Lockwood has survived more than most. Now left with
puzzling memory lapses following an assault, she returns to
her coastal Connecticut hometown to rebuild her life the
best way she knows how: with her hands. But starting a
remodeling business with one longtime friend puts her in the
middle of a rift with another. Worse, being hired by her
ex-boyfriendΒfs mother forces her to confront old regrets.
Public defender Ryan Quinn wasnΒft shocked when his wife left
him, but he was floored when she abandoned their daughter.
With his finances up in the air, the newly single dad
returns to his childhood home in Sanctuary Sound. The last
person he expects, or wants, to see working on his family
house is Steffi Lockwood—his first love who shattered his heart.
Although Steffi and Ryan are different people now, dormant
feelings rekindle. But when RyanΒfs concern for SteffiΒfs
mental health prompts him to dig into her past for answers,
will what he learns bring them together or tear them apart
for good?
Romance Contemporary [Montlake Romance,
On Sale: October 30, 2018, Trade Size / e-Book, ISBN: 9781503903418 / ]
National bestselling author Jamie Beck's realistic and heartwarming stories have sold more
than one million copies. She's a 2017 Booksellers' Best Award finalist, and critics at
Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and
Booklist have respectively
called her work "smart," "uplifting," and "entertaining." In addition to writing, she enjoys
dancing around the kitchen while cooking, and hitting the slopes in Vermont and Utah. Above
all, she is a grateful wife and mother to a very patient, supportive family.
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