Blog Tour: Taking Shots by Toni Aleo - Guest Post + Excerpt

Hey guys! Welcome to today's blog stop! Alright, I know this is really late and I apologise! I just got home after a super tiring but very fulfilling day at school today! Hmm. I was supposed to do a review for this book but the review isn't complete yet! I'm in the process of writing it. But can I just say this book is really amazing? Definitely 4.5 stars from me. It is so so sweet and the hero is just everything you want in a guy! Sweet, hot, strong, loving, you name it, he has it! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I had just so much fun reading it. It's honestly a very good read and just so easy to read. Just escape into this world for a little while and enjoy it as much as I did! Oh yes, Taking Shots is the first book in the Assassins series! It's about hot hockey players:P hehe, so yep, let's get started!

Taking Shots by Toni Aleo

Elli Fisher has never thought she was good enough. Let it be her job, her weight, her love life, nothing, she was convinced she couldn't do anything right. She had walked through life for the past six years in a daze, never thinking that life could be good again after the abuse she endured from her ex boyfriend. She is lonely, sad, and depressed, that is until she meets Shea Adler. After doing a promotional shoot for the NHL team, the Nashville Assassins, she meets the hunky hockey player who shoots a puck, shattering her world.

Shea Adler was tired of the life he was living outside of the rink. The girls, the money blowing, the drinking, everything had to stop and it all did when he met Eleanor Fisher. He had never met anyone like her. She is feisty, witty, shy, and simply gorgeous. When he laid eyes on her, it was as if he was taking the hardest hit of his life into the boards, and he had to have her.

Elli is a little skeptical of Shea, but he knows that they were meant to be together, and he needed her in his life. But Elli just doesn't understand what Shea could see in her. She is overweight, loud, and not even that pretty, so why would someone so gorgeous and so amazing want to be with her? It seemed that no matter how hard she tried to shake Shea off, he wasn't going anywhere, and for the first time Elli didn't feel alone.

But could Elli throw her insecurities out the window and love Shea with everything inside of her? Or will she let a past relationship, and her family ruin any chance of her being happy?

Would Elli miss her shot at love?

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Toni Aleo

My name is Toni Aleo!
I am a wife, mother, and hopeless romantic.
I have been told I have anger issues, but I think it’s cause of my intense love for hockey!
I am the biggest Shea Weber fan ever, and can be found during hockey season with my nose pressed against the Bridgestone Arena’s glass, watching my Nashville Predators play!
When my nose isn’t pressed against the glass, I enjoy going to my husband and son’s hockey games, my daughters dance competition, hanging with my best friends, taking pictures, and reading the latest romance novel.
I love things that sparkle, I love the color pink, and did I mention I love hockey?
I hope to hear from you on here, my Facebook, or my twitter! Thank you so much!

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Time for a short excerpt!

“What is it?”
“Okay, so I know I’m not your regular type. I’ve seen you with the leggy blondes and never with the same girl twice. I even read somewhere that a girl isn’t allowed to sit in your box more than once. So I guess what I’m trying to say, or ask, is... um ..”
Elli took a deep breath, and he couldn’t help but smile at her, she was so sweet.
“We’ve been out four times now. I’m not seeing anyone else, and I’m not saying that you can’t see anyone else. That’s definitely not what I’m trying to say, it’s more like.. ah .. “
He could tell she was nervous and flustered, but he patiently waited for her to say whatever it was that she needed to say.
Finally, Elli asked, “Why me? You know? I mean, I’m pretty sure you’re not seeing anybody else. If you are, I would like to know. But why are you interested in me?”
He shook his head.
“There isn’t anyone else.”
“Okay, so why me? You can have any girl you want with the flick of a wrist. I mean, I guess it’s just hard for me to believe that you want to spend time with me.”
“Why is that so hard to believe?”
“Because I’m me and you’re you. I am just a normal person, while you’re a celebrity. I’m ordinary, while you’re gorgeous, and-”
“Okay, shut up,” he cut Elli off, since he had heard enough. She looked over at him, stunned. He smiled, and then reached for her hand, kissing her knuckles.
“I want to see you because I like you. I like you because you are amazing, sweet, and understanding. If I ever hear you say you are ordinary again, I might smack your ass. You are gorgeous, Elli. So freaking beautiful that sometimes, like tonight, I find myself speechless at your beauty.”
She looked down at her hands, then back up at him with a shy smile.
“I don’t know. It’s just so hard to believe.” Elli said softly.
He smiled before bringing her knuckles to his lips again.
“Then I’ll just have to work hard to make you believe me.”

And now, let's welcome Toni to the blog!

Inspiration for being a Writer

I never thought I would be where I am today. When I was younger, I wanted to be on Broadway singing to millions with my amazing talent. I was sure it was going to happen. But the Lord had a different plan for me.

I met my husband when I was 14. He gave me a cute little smile, pushed me against a school bus and kissed me.

I’ve been in love ever since.

I wrote a little bit more through high school, but nothing worth my time. A week after we graduated high school, we got married. A year later, we had our son, and three years after that, my daughter came. I will never forget the day that I was standing in my living room, a two and half year old running around the living tearing stuff up, newborn on my boob, and my husband laid up on the couch with a broken neck. I closed my eyes for only a second and suddenly this couple was arguing. I sat down in front of the computer and out poured this story a dancer that was in love with her brother’s best friend. I never finished that book or the 20 after that.

Then I met Shea Weber from the Nashville Predators. He was amazing, he was sweet, he made me giggle. When I got home, this story of this girl that meets and starts dating her hockey crush, poured out of me and I had it done in 7 months. So what is my inspiration?

My husband, Michael and Shea Weber.

Michael is the most amazing, sweetest, patient man ever. He is also the best dad. I love him more and more each day. We are coming up on our 9th year anniversary and I know in my heart that we will die old together. I am able to write these stories of love because he loves me the right way. He tells me every day that he is proud of me, and that I am sexy, and beautiful. He makes me laugh, he turns me on, and madder than hell, but I love him. I always say that our Love Story is my favorite and it is.

Shea Weber is this manly, scary, beast of a man that is my hockey crush. He inspires these hot, gorgeous hockey guys that I write. I love the way he skates, the way he smiles, and the way he crushes people on the ice.

I am lucky to have these two amazing men as my inspiration. I enjoy writing what they bring into my head. I wouldn’t be able to write such lusty, sexy, men that know how to love women if I didn’t have my husband’s love, and Shea Weber’s brashness.

So yep, that's about it for today! Go here to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D