How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You by T.M. Franklin ~*~*~*~ Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway

Today, as part of the blog tour for How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, by T.M. Franklin, we hear from the star of the story - 17-year old Oliver Holmes.

(Minor Spoiler Warning)

I Heart Books: Oliver, some people make lists because they like being organized, some like to see how much they have accomplished. Why do you make lists?
Oliver Holmes: A little of both, I suppose. I’ve made lists ever since I was a little kid. It helps me to see it all written out – what I need to do to accomplish a given goal. There’s also a lot of satisfaction to checking items off a list. *shrugs* It’s always worked for me.
IHB: Do you find that your name, Oliver Holmes, and your brother's name, Sherlock Holmes, is a disadvantage?
OH: You’d think so, wouldn’t you? For me, it’s not that big a deal. I mean, how many teenagers do you know who’ve ever heard of Oliver Wendell Holmes, anyway? Not that I go advertising my middle name around everywhere, but even if I did, most kids wouldn’t get it. I have a harder time with people calling me Ollie. I hate that.
As for my brother, he’s always embraced his name. He read his first Sherlock Holmes novel when he was five. Sure, it was a kid’s version, but he graduated to the real thing about a year ago. He’s seen all the movies. Made my parents get Netflix so he could watch the BBC version. He’s carried around a notebook to jot down so-called evidence since he could write, and he even used to wear one of those deerstalker hats. My mom drew the line at a pipe, though.
IHB: What the heck was your mother thinking when she named her children Oliver and Sherlock?
OH: *laughs* Well, our parents always say they gave us big names because they wanted us to have big dreams and big goals. Our parents are a little…different, I guess you’d say.
IHB: Why didn't you run when you were confronted at the parking lot after the play?
OH: Oh, that… *sigh* Yeah, I guess I could have handled all of that a little differently. But run? No, there really wasn’t any way to do that. I was in this courtyard and there were walls on three sides, and the only way out was through those guys. I didn’t stand a chance.
IHB: Were you interested in someone else before Ainsley?
OH: Oh, there was this little girl, Lucy, when I was in Kindergarten, but it didn’t last. I thought she liked me, but I tried to kiss her once and she gave me a black eye. She later told me I could be her boyfriend if I promised never to talk to her ever again. After that, girls pretty much had cooties until fifth grade, when Ainsley moved here.
IHB: What exactly is it about Ainsley that attracted you to her?
OH: She was just so…bright, I guess? She walked into the classroom in this yellow sundress with this shining red hair and huge smile and I just couldn’t believe my eyes. She was like sunshine all wrapped up in a person. I was in awe. It took me over a year before I could even say a word to her.
IHB: What happens when you guys graduate? Do you think T.M. will follow up this book with a sequel?
OH: Oh, I don’t know. You’d have to ask her that. I guess there could be a story there. I’ll be headed to MIT, of course, and Ainsley’s still figuring out what she’s going to do. The long-distance thing can be tough, I hear, but I do care about her a lot.
IHB: Now that you have the girl, what's the plan for both of you?
OH: We’re taking it one day at a time. We’re still pretty young, you know? So we don’t look too far into the future. But Ainsley’s definitely important to me, so I do whatever I can to show her that as often as I can. *pauses and smiles* I might have a list for that.

Seventeen-year-old Oliver Wendell Holmes (Yes, his parents are just that peculiar, but his brother's name is Sherlock, so it could have been worse) knows that he's different. He's quirky, awkward, and he's okay with that. Oliver also likes making lists-meticulous procedures for achieving his goals, step-by-step. Whether it's "How to Get an A in Chemistry" or "How to Get Accepted to MIT," he has a process, and it's worked for him so far. He doesn't even care that the popular kids mock him. Oliver's got his eye on the prize.
So when he decides it's time to declare his feelings for Ainsley Bishop, the girl of his dreams, it's only natural for him to make a list-a point-by-point strategy to win her heart. He knows it will take a grand gesture for her to see all he has to offer, and her approaching birthday provides the ideal opportunity for Oliver to put his plan into action.
Finding the perfect gift is a challenge Oliver meets with his usual dogged determination. He'll need to watch her carefully for clues to pinpoint exactly what he should give her. And along the way, he might just learn that what Ainsley really needs is not quite what he expected.

Ainsley is available now!

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I HEART BOOKS REVIEW

How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You by T.M. Franklin 
Review by Wennie Conedy

Stars: 5 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READ!

Perfect for teenagers and the young-at-heart.
An advanced copy was provided via NetGalley in lieu of an honest review.

I fell in love ... yes, I did ... I fell in love with Oliver. I am enchanted and thoroughly enamored.

Oliver is a bright (A student) high school student. He is very well versed in computers and gaming, has a best friend, Viney, volunteers at a retirement home, and oh, he loves to make lists. For anyone who gets the satisfaction of seeing a check mark against a task in his/her list, then you will understand Oliver's penchant for making them. I make lists, and I love seeing those check marks.
Oliver has a list of everything -- how to get to MIT, how to get good grades, and yes, how to get Ainsley Bishop to fall in love with him. One big drawback to his plan, good looking star football player with muscles-in-all-the-right-places, Ian, Ainsley's boyfriend. Clint's presence does not dissuade Oliver from his plan, and how he executes it will have you in parts giggling, clutching your chest with cuteness, shedding tears, and overall rooting for his success.

T.M. Franklin has written as very successful story that will keep you enthralled. The storyline and pacing makes a whole lot of sense, and each scene is crucial to the development of the plot. There are no 'fluff' chapters. Each scene is integral to the development of the story. The pacing is crisp, and the editing is very well done.

The book is written from Oliver's point of view, which is perfect in my opinion, as you get to savor and experience Oliver's self-deprecating humor, his frustrations, his disbelief and his "aha" moments.
The book's organization follows Oliver's list -- from joining the drama club to finding a birthday give -- no scratch that -- finding the PERFECT birthday gift. And Oliver attacks this list much like how Patton strategized to help win World War II. And interspersed with the action tasks are gems of a young boy's understanding of what it would take to get the girl of his dreams to notice him. And if you'll notice, it's not rocket science, but it does lead to self-discovery for Oliver and the people he loves.

T.M. Franklin successfully created a protagonist who I found endearing and unforgettable, but she didn't stop there. Her secondary characters, and Oliver's interaction with them make the story come alive. The pages pulse with the energy, angst, and frustration that permeates teenage life. I guffawed out loud when the name of his annoying brother was revealed, and it made absolute sense why his brother was doggedly observing Oliver. Oliver's friend Viney is the perfect foil for Oliver as Viney brings reality and understanding to Oliver's plans. And Oliver's parents are wonderful ... and as much as they impart what they know and learn to Oliver, they get so much more in return. Let's not forget Ainsley Bishop -- the object of Oliver's attentions -- as she is described in the book, I do now wonder why Oliver had such a big crush on her.

And Hank ... how can I not mention Hank? Oliver's very special relationship with Hank will touch your heart as it definitely touched Oliver's.

How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You is one book you MUST MUST MUST read. It is a book that I know I will read over and over and over again -- and truly, I think this one will make a wonderful movie.

T.M. Franklin started out her career writing non-fiction in a television newsroom. Graduating with a B.A. in Communications specializing in broadcast journalism and production, she worked for nine years as a major market television news producer, and garnered two regional Emmy Awards, before she resigned to be a full-time mom and part-time freelance writer. Her first published novel, MORE, was born during National Novel Writing month, a challenge to write a novel in thirty days. MORE was well-received, being selected as a finalist in the 2013 Kindle Book Review Best Indie Book Awards, as well as winning the Suspense/Thriller division of the Blogger Book Fair Reader’s Choice Awards.
In addition to MORE and its sequel, The Guardians, Franklin penned the Amazon best-selling short stories A Piece of Cake andWindow, which also won a Blogger Book Fair Reader’s Choice Award for Short Story/Fantasy. Her new YA romance, How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, is Franklin’s first love story without a paranormal or fantasy element, although she believes love is the best kind of magic.
TWELVE, the final installment in the MORE Trilogy will be released in the fall of 2014.

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