The Pitch: Review & Author Guest Post

The Pitch (The Boyfriend Sessions #2)
By: Belinda Williams
Now Available!!!
Publisher: Momentum
Source: E-galley received from Publisher
Ages: Due to content ages 18+
Synopsis (and cover image) courtesy of Goodreads:

She's in a long-term, committed relationship. With her business.

In three years Madeline Spencer has single-handedly grown her marketing agency, Grounded Marketing, into one of the country's fastest growing companies. But her success has been at the expense of her social life, and her girlfriends have had enough. They'll do whatever it takes, from speed dating to blind dates, to show her there's more to life than work.

Only Maddy is having a hard time forgetting about her business. She's about to pitch for her biggest client ever and the mysterious media mogul, Paul Neilsen, has volunteered to mentor her. Maddy might just be in with a shot of landing the account – if she can keep her mind on the job. Working with Paul is not at all what she'd imagined, and Maddy finds herself torn between her ever increasing workload and her feelings for Paul. She's discovering playing in the big league means making sacrifices ... and Maddy must decide what she can't live without.

Purchase Your Own Copy: Amazon

My Thoughts:

This series is perfect for fans of Sex and the City and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants!

I actually dove into the sequel before reading its predecessor, I would recommend reading book one to get the background of all four female leads, however, Belinda does an amazing job recapping the story that The Pitch could definitely be read as a standalone. What I really enjoyed about Belinda's writing, is that she chose to introduce her Boyfriend Sessions series from four points of view- our leading ladies, which read like Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants but with much more mature, Sex and the City-like, content. The Pitch, however, is told solely from the first-person-perspective of Maddy (and as you know, I'm a huge fan of this type of narration :)).

The plot moved along quite well, and Belinda does a great job of including each of her City Love ladies through Maddy's point-of-view. I think this read was very light and fast-paced that it would be perfect for taking with you to the beach, or to have outside by the deck.

The romance was sweet and at moments steamy, but also a bit complicated. Paul is a great male lead. He's charming, confident, handsome and sexy but he's got some baggage with him in the form of two young sons. I enjoyed the family dynamic of Maddy engaging with Paul and his children, and it was great to see ex's that remain mature and on good terms for their children, but I must admit the drama-lover in me was dying for some sort of conflict to throw a wrench is this narrative.

And then we get one! But I won't say what is to prevent spoilers, but it throws Maddy was off course and may be too much for Paul to handle. Will they make it through this hurdle? Well you'll just have to read the book to find out, haha!

I recommend this book to fans of chick-lit looking for a fun romance to read at the beach!

Happy Reading!!!

Author Guest Post:

Love or Business: which should the modern day woman put first? Does she have to choose?

This is a question I sought to explore in my latest release, The Pitch, the second book in my contemporary romance series City Love. In The Pitch, my leading lady Madeleine Spencer is a driven businesswoman. In the last three years she’s grown her marketing agency into one of the country’s fastest growing companies. So yeah, she’s a little obsessed. Think passionate workaholic with no time in her life for romance.

Not that Maddy is against the idea of a man in her life exactly. She even relents and goes speed dating with a girlfriend, and against her better judgment lets her friends set her up on a blind date . . .

But in reality she’s focused on landing the biggest client ever for her marketing agency, Grounded Marketing.

Then along comes media mogul, Paul Neilsen, who offers to mentor Maddy through the big pitch. Maddy’s a smart woman and she knows she’d be silly to refuse, but she also realizes straight away that she is attracted to Paul. Then again, she really wants to win this pitch.  So they start working together and that’s when things get messy.

The challenges of balancing work and relationships

In The Pitch, I wanted to write about the issues around balancing the competing demands of work and relationships. It’s something I wanted to explore because it’s a challenge a lot of women face. It’s also a world I’m personally familiar with. In my other life I work in marketing and have done for fifteen years. This profession, and indeed many professions that women work in today, demand a lot from us mentally, physically and emotionally.

Relationships make demands on us too. And it’s not always entirely fair but often we’re required to find a balance.

But work has no heart

This is true. However work isn’t all bad. It can provide for you financially, be a source of pride and stimulate you intellectually and emotionally. Work can set you up for retirement. If you’re doing well, work can create opportunities for new experiences in the form of conferences or promotions, enable you to afford world trips, and put you in touch with lots of interesting people. Work can be a huge source of satisfaction.

  

If work is so great, do I have time in my life for a relationship?

Just like work can make demands on us, so too can relationships. They require time and dedication to be successful. And if we’re being honest, sacrifices. After all, you’re making room in your life for another person.

But what happens when you shift over and make a little bit of room? Something pretty amazing actually. You have a person in your life who loves you, no matter what. Who believes in you. Who cheers for you when you succeed or who can be a soft place to land when things aren’t going quite so well in that kick-ass job you’ve been spending all those hours working on.

Wait. You want me to choose? Why can’t I have it all? Love and career?

This is a question Maddy faces in The Pitch. She’s met an amazing man, she’s got a fantastic company, and she might just have a shot at having it all.

Or maybe not.

Remember that little word I mentioned earlier? Sacrifices. Yep, that one.

But does making sacrifices mean giving up on something entirely? Or could it be learning to compromise? For Maddy, it might be that it’s less about choosing between the two and more about making room in her life for both.

Fortunately Maddy’s got some seriously good skills when it comes to prioritizing and she’s a very determined woman. I’ll leave it to you to read the The Pitch to find out whether she succeeds or not.

Thank you, Belinda, for such a thoughtful response!

About Belinda:

Photo and author bio taken from Goodreads

Belinda is a marketing communications specialist and copywriter who allowed an addiction to romance and chick-lit to get the better of her.

She is the author of the contemporary romance series, City Love, published by Momentum (Pan Macmillan). Christa's story, The Boyfriend Sessions, was released in 2014, while The Pitch (Maddy's story) is due for release on 28 May, 2015. Scarlett's story will follow in late 2015, and Cate's in early 2016.

Belinda was named a top ten finalist in The Romance Writers of Australia Emerald award in both 2013 and 2014. Her debut novel, Radiant, a paranormal romantic suspense, is also available on Amazon.

Connect with Belinda: Author Website | Twitter | Goodreads