{"id":58520,"date":"2021-04-08T08:00:41","date_gmt":"2021-04-08T12:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=58520"},"modified":"2021-04-07T20:11:04","modified_gmt":"2021-04-08T00:11:04","slug":"excerpt-reveal-not-pretending-anymore-by-penelope-ward-vi-keeland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=58520","title":{"rendered":"Excerpt Reveal: Not Pretending Anymore by Penelope Ward & Vi Keeland"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Not Pretending Anymore by <\/strong>Penelope Ward & Vi Keeland<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Standalone contemporary romance releasing 12 April 2021<\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Paperback Pre-order<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

Amazon live release alert<\/strong><\/a><\/h4>\n

No Amazon e-book preorder. Will go live on\/around release day and will be available in Kindle Unlimited.
\n(Ward and Keeland\u2019s *co-written books only* are available in KU. Their solo books are wide and not in KU.)<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Blurb<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Finding a good roommate through a classified ad isn\u2019t as easy as it sounds.<\/p>\n

I was starting to lose hope.<\/p>\n

Until a knock at my door came and God answered my prayers.<\/p>\n

Except\u2026uh\u2026wrong prayer, God.<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019d definitely requested the big guy find me a drop-dead gorgeous man on more than one occasion…just not as my roommate.<\/p>\n

Declan Tate talked me into interviewing him anyway.<\/p>\n

While he was amusing and charismatic, I wouldn\u2019t have been comfortable living with a man, so I regretfully declined.<\/p>\n

Then cupcakes showed up at my door\u2014freshly baked by Declan and just as sinfully delicious as he was.<\/p>\n

You could say he was persistent.<\/p>\n

I eventually folded.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t like I had another viable candidate anyway.<\/p>\n

Plus, I was interested in someone else. And Declan was into another woman. So it wasn\u2019t like anything would happen romantically.<\/p>\n

After he moved in, the two of us became the best of friends.\u00a0 We even started to give each other advice on getting our crushes to notice us.<\/p>\n

Eventually, Declan concocted an idea: we should pretend to be a couple to make our love interests jealous.<\/p>\n

I was hesitant, but went along with it anyway. To my utter shock, his crazy plan worked.<\/p>\n

Now I was dating the supposed man of my dreams, and my best friend had the woman of his.<\/p>\n

But there was one problem.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t stop thinking about Declan.<\/p>\n

Those feelings we were trying to fake?<\/p>\n

Yeah\u2026I wasn\u2019t pretending anymore.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Add to Goodreads<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Check out this SNEAK PEEK of CHAPTER 1!<\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

DOWNLOAD HERE<\/a><\/h4>\n

CHAPTER 1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Molly<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, what do you do for a living?\u201d
\nThe woman drummed her fingers on her thigh. \u201cI\u2019m a musician.\u201d
\nI glanced down at the renter\u2019s application in my hand. Lyric Chords<\/em> was the name listed at the top. <\/em>
\nI bit my tongue and tried to keep an open mind. This was the twelfth woman I\u2019d interviewed as a prospective roommate. Just because she had a few safety pins in her eyebrow and what looked like a dog collar around her neck didn\u2019t mean I should rule her out.
\n\u201cOh. That\u2019s nice. Are you a singer?\u201d
\nLyric shook her head. \u201cDrummer. Do you know the dimensions of the bedroom I\u2019ll be sleeping in? I have two sets of drums I need to fit.\u201d
\n\u201cUmm… I think it\u2019s fourteen by fourteen. But you don\u2019t practice at home, right? I wrote in my ad that I\u2019m looking for a quiet roommate because I work nights.\u201d
\n\u201cI do. But no worries. I\u2019ll practice in my room.\u201d
\nMy bedroom and my potential roommate\u2019s bedroom shared a wall, so that was the end of interview number twelve. I sighed and forced a smile. \u201cThank you for coming. I have a few other people left to meet with before I decide. I\u2019ll let you know.\u201d
\n\u201cGreat.\u201d The woman stood. \u201cAlso, I know your ad said two months\u2019 rent up front, but I\u2019m running a little short right now. Would one be okay?\u201d
\nI smiled. \u201cSure, no problem.\u201d Since you\u2019re not going to be living here.<\/em>
\nAfter Drummergirl, I interviewed two more candidates. One wanted her boyfriend to move into the room with her, even though my ad had specified I was only looking for a single. And the other arrived twenty minutes late, reeked of alcohol, and slurred her words\u2026at three thirty in the afternoon.
\nWhy in the hell was it so difficult to find a roommate in a city of almost three-million people? I needed my last interview of the day to be a miracle, or I was going to have to shell out money for another ad and start the entire process all over. And I definitely didn\u2019t have the time or the funds for that. Rent was due in two weeks. If I got stuck paying the full amount on this place myself again, I\u2019d be eating cat food for a month.
\nWhen my last appointment knocked right on time, I took a deep breath, looked up at the ceiling, and asked the big guy in the sky for a little assistance.
\nOpening the door, I blinked a few times.
\nUhhh.<\/em> I think you answered the wrong prayer, God.<\/em>
\nA man stood in my hallway\u2014and not just any man, an absolutely gorgeous one with a perfect, straight nose, cheekbones to die for, a masculine, square jaw, full lips, tanned skin, and the sexiest chocolate brown, almond-shaped eyes I\u2019d ever seen in my life.
\n\u201cUh. Can I help you?\u201d
\nHe flashed a killer smile, one that I immediately suspected had made countless women remove their panties.
\n\u201cHi. I have a four-thirty appointment with Molly Corrigan.\u201d
\n\u201cYou do?\u201d I had the last application in my hand and looked down at the name on the top. \u201cI don\u2019t think so. My appointment is with a D. Tate?\u201d
\nHe extended a hand. \u201cThat\u2019s me. Declan Tate.\u201d
\n\u201cBut\u2026you\u2019re\u2026not a woman.\u201d
\nHe smiled again. \u201cYou\u2019re correct. Very observant. I am most definitely <\/em>not a woman. But my last roommate told me I should\u2019ve been because I use moisturizer at night and cried at the end of Marley and Me<\/em>. And if I\u2019m being honest, I also got a little watery at the end of Toy Story<\/em>, so maybe I\u2019m a bit of a wuss. Either way, I think you should consider those my positive feminine qualities.\u201d
\nI was thoroughly confused. \u201cUmm\u2026 I\u2019m sorry. You must\u2019ve missed that my ad said female only<\/em>.\u201d
\n\u201cActually, I didn\u2019t. But if you\u2019ll give me just five minutes, I think I can convince you I would be a better roommate than a woman.\u201d
\nI chuckled. \u201cLet me get this straight\u2026 You hid your first name\u2014what did you say it was again?\u201d
\n\u201cDeclan.\u201d
\n\u201cRight. Declan. Anyway, you applied to an ad for a female roommate, intentionally deceiving the person who is going to decide if you get the room by leaving your first name off. And your strategy is to convince me I don\u2019t really know what I want in less than five minutes? Do I have that right?\u201d
\nHe flashed that boyish charm again. \u201cYou sure do.\u201d
\nI debated how to handle the situation. On one hand, he was going to waste my time, and I had done enough of that today. But on the other, my curiosity was definitely piqued. Something about his grin told me this could be amusing. Screw it<\/em>. I had nothing better to do anyway.
\nI opened the door wider and stepped aside, holding my hand out for him to enter. \u201cI\u2019m setting the timer on my phone, and I\u2019m getting a glass of wine before you start. I like a drink while I\u2019m being entertained.\u201d
\nDeclan smirked and strolled into my apartment.
\nI motioned to the couch. \u201cHave a seat. I\u2019ll just be a minute.\u201d
\nWhen I got to the kitchen, he called after me, \u201cHey, Mollz?\u201d
\nI turned back. \u201cYes?\u201d
\n\u201cHow about you make that two glasses of wine?\u201d
\nI chuckled. \u201cSure. Why not, Decs<\/em>.\u201d
\nI poured a couple of glasses of pinot grigio and returned to the living room.
\n\u201cHere you go. Hope you like white.\u201d
\n\u201cYou see? We\u2019re perfect together already. I prefer white over red.\u201d
\nI brought my wine to my lips. \u201cYes, perfect. A match made in heaven. I think we might even be soul mates.\u201d
\nDeclan showed me his pearly whites once again. He really did have a great smile, nice teeth, too. Too bad he also had a penis<\/em>. I knocked back half the contents of my glass and placed it on the coffee table. Picking up my cell, I swiped to the timer app and set it for five minutes.
\nI showed him the screen. \u201cYou ready?\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m always ready.\u201d
\nI pressed start, placed the phone face up on the coffee table between us, and folded my hands. \u201cGo.\u201d
\n\u201cOkay. Well\u2026what\u2019s your favorite color?\u201d
\n\u201cMy favorite color?\u201d
\nDeclan pointed to the timer. \u201cTime\u2019s a ticking, Molly. I\u2019m going to need you to not repeat questions.\u201d
\nI laughed. \u201cFine. My favorite color is pink.\u201d
\nDeclan reached into one of his pant pockets and pulled out a set of keys. The keychain had a bunch of pink beads with white letters between each one. The letters spelled out his name. \u201cMine too.\u201d
\nI arched a brow. \u201cDid you make that yourself?\u201d
\n\u201cNo. My niece, Arianna, made it for me.\u201d
\n\u201cSo how do I know that isn\u2019t just Arianna\u2019s favorite color?\u201d
\n\u201cGood point. Let\u2019s move on. Your ad said you work nights.\u201d
\n\u201cThat\u2019s right. I\u2019m a nurse. I work the night shift on the maternity ward.\u201d
\n\u201cSo you sleep during the day, then?\u201d
\n\u201cI get off at seven, and I try to get to sleep as soon as I get home.\u201d
\nHe held his hand to his chest. \u201cI work days. I leave for the gym by six and usually don\u2019t get home until after seven at night. So the apartment will be quiet when you need it to be.\u201d
\nI nodded. \u201cOkay. I\u2019ll give you that that would make you a good roommate. But most people work days, so it\u2019s not really something that makes you too special.\u201d
\n\u201cDo you cook?\u201d he said.
\n\u201cDoes macaroni and cheese count?\u201d
\n\u201cI grew up in a multigenerational Italian home. My nonna taught me how to make sauce from scratch.\u201d
\n\u201cSo you\u2019re going to cook for me?\u201d
\n\u201cIf that\u2019s what it takes to get this apartment, yes.\u201d
\n\u201cAs tempting as that might be, there\u2019s an Italian restaurant around the corner that makes great food. Funny enough, it\u2019s called Nonna\u2019s Place, and an actual nonna <\/em>makes most of my meals. Not a knockoff.\u201d
\nDeclan took an exaggerated breath and blew it out. He glanced at the cell on the table. \u201cThree minutes and thirty-eight seconds. I can see you\u2019re not going to make this easy. How about you tell me why you can\u2019t have a male roommate so I can address that head-on. Is it because of the toilet-seat thing? Because I have four older sisters, so I\u2019m appropriately trained. When I was eight, I made the mistake of leaving it up once, and my sister sat down where I\u2019d accidentally left a little pee. She dunked my head in the toilet bowl before<\/em> she flushed. That was the last time I left the seat up.\u201d He held up three fingers. \u201cScout\u2019s honor. It won\u2019t be an issue.\u201d
\nI smiled. \u201cIt\u2019s not because of the toilet thing.\u201d
\n\u201cAlright. So why don\u2019t you want a male roommate, then?\u201d
\nI\u2019d actually never given much thought to why my roommate had to be female. It just seemed natural to have another woman sharing the apartment. \u201cWell\u2026I don\u2019t really have a specific reason. I would just be more comfortable living with another woman. For example, I sleep in a T-shirt and underwear. When I get up to start the coffee, I don\u2019t get dressed. It would be weird to do that in front of a man.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cWhy would it be weird to walk around with my ass cheeks on display in front of a man and not a woman?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nI shrugged. \u201cI don\u2019t know. It just would. I guess because the women I\u2019ve lived with aren\u2019t attracted to other women, so it doesn\u2019t feel sexual in any way.\u201d
\n\u201cAh. Now we\u2019re getting to the crux of your issue. So you\u2019re afraid of some sexual tension going on between you and me? Is it because I\u2019m so handsome?\u201d
\n\u201cWhat? No! <\/em>And aren\u2019t you full of yourself, assuming I think you\u2019re handsome, and I\u2019m worried I won\u2019t be able to control myself.\u201d
\n\u201cJust keeping it real, Mollz. You\u2019re only giving me five minutes, so I\u2019m trying to get to the heart of the reason.\u201d
\n\u201cI guess I just don\u2019t want to feel like I have to cover up to come out of my bedroom. When I dry my hair, I wear a towel or a bra and underwear\u2014that type of thing.\u201d
\n\u201cWould you feel you had to cover up if I told you I was gay?\u201d
\nThat question gave me pause. Would I?<\/em> I wasn\u2019t sure. \u201cAre you?\u201d
\n\u201cFuck, no. I was just trying to pinpoint your issue. Is it the fact that I\u2019m a man, or the fact that I might admire your ass if it were on display? Sounds like it\u2019s the latter. So let me put your mind at ease: I won\u2019t.\u201d
\nI felt oddly offended. \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with my ass?\u201d
\nHe chuckled. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t know. I haven\u2019t looked. You know why?\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause I\u2019m in love with someone else.\u201d
\nAs insane as it was, I felt a pang of jealousy. \u201cOh. Well, why aren\u2019t you moving in with her?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause she doesn\u2019t return the feelings\u2026yet. So basically, if your concern about having a guy for a roommate is that he\u2019s going to be checking you out, you have nothing to worry about with me. I\u2019m a one-woman man. If you want, I can give you the numbers of some of my exes for references. I\u2019m no cheater.\u201d
\nHmmm<\/em>\u2026 \u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026\u201d
\nDeclan looked down at the clock. Thirty-one seconds were left. \u201cWe\u2019re running out of time, so we need to speed things up. How about if I just give you the facts you need to know?\u201d
\n\u201cThat would be good.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m twenty-eight years old. I make six figures. My credit score is eight hundred and ten, and I have references from previous landlords. I\u2019m neat and clean up after myself. I\u2019m not home a lot, but when I am, I\u2019m pretty quiet. I\u2019m also damn good with a hammer.\u201d He glanced around my apartment and pointed at a hole I\u2019d accidentally made in the wall when I flung the closet door open too hard. \u201cI can spackle that and put on a door stopper so it won\u2019t happen again.\u201d He pointed to the kitchen. \u201cAnd those cabinets are pretty tall. I\u2019m six foot one. No more having to stand on a chair to reach something on the top shelf. And\u2014\u201d
\nThe timer on the stopwatch buzzed.
\n\u201cCan I just say one last thing?\u201d
\n\u201cSure. Why not?\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019ll share my Hulu and Netflix passwords. I have the premium<\/em> Hulu account.\u201d
\nI laughed. \u201cWell, those are some pretty enticing qualities for a roommate.\u201d
\nHe smiled. \u201cSo I\u2019m in?\u201d
\nI sighed. \u201cI\u2019m sorry. While I appreciate your tenacity, unfortunately, you\u2019re not. Though I interviewed fourteen other people today, and I have to say, you do seem like you\u2019ll make some other lucky person a fantastic roomie.\u201d
\nDeclan frowned, but nodded. \u201cI figured it was worth a shot. This is a great building, and I work right around the corner. It\u2019s hard to find an apartment where it\u2019s only a six-month commitment.\u201d
\n\u201cMy lease is up then, and I haven\u2019t decided if I\u2019m going to extend or not.\u201d
\n\u201cSee? That\u2019s another reason I\u2019d be perfect. I\u2019m only in town for six more months.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m sorry. This is definitely a case of it\u2019s me<\/em> and<\/em> not you<\/em>.\u201d
\nHe picked up his wine and guzzled it down before standing and extending his hand. \u201cI appreciate you giving me your time. And thanks for the pinot.\u201d
\nWe shook. \u201cIt was nice to meet you, Declan.\u201d
\nAfter I walked him out, I shut the door and leaned back against it. What a shame; he really seemed like a nice guy and the best candidate I\u2019d met by a mile.<\/em> I was just about to go wallow in another glass of alcohol when there was a knock at my door. Checking the peephole before opening, I found Declan standing there.
\n\u201cI forgot something important,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cOh? What\u2019s that?\u201d
\nHe took out his wallet and produced a photo of a nun. \u201cThis is my sister Catherine, and it\u2019s not a costume from Halloween. She\u2019s a legit nun. How bad can a person be if his sister is a nun?\u201d
\nI laughed. \u201cIs this the sister who dunked your head in the toilet?\u201d
\nHe grinned. \u201cIt is, actually.\u201d
\n\u201cWell, I\u2019m not sure there\u2019s a direct correlation between your sister deciding to dedicate her life to the church and you being a good person. Though, even if I take your word for it, it still doesn\u2019t change my answer.\u201d
\nDeclan\u2019s shoulders drooped. \u201cHad to try. She tells me her being a nun won\u2019t get me into heaven. Thought maybe it was good for something<\/em>.\u201d
\n\u201cGoodbye, Declan.\u201d
\n\u201cLater, Mollz.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cSo\u2026how\u2019s the roommate search going?\u201d Emma poured a cup of coffee and sat down at the small table in our break room.
\nI sighed. \u201cWhy is it so hard to find a normal person these days? I\u2019ve interviewed more than a dozen people, and not one suitable candidate.\u201d
\n\u201cDid you post an ad on the employee bulletin board, like I suggested?\u201d
\nI shook my head. \u201cI don\u2019t want another nurse or tech. It makes it weird at work if things don\u2019t work out.\u201d
\n\u201cMaybe Dr. Dandy will apply.\u201d She wiggled her eyebrows. \u201cI heard he\u2019s sleeping on Dr. Cohen\u2019s couch until he finds a place.\u201d
\nThat information certainly perked me up. \u201cReally? Will and whatshername broke up?\u201d
\n\u201cYup. Lisa in X-ray told me Dr. Cohen told her he\u2019s staying with him. Apparently he and the wannabe actress are finito.\u201d
\n\u201cWow.\u201d
\nEmma smiled. \u201cYup. And fair warning, my friend\u2026 I\u2019m allowing a ten-day grace period for him to grieve the end of a year-long relationship. But after that, I\u2019m going to be up your butt making sure you let the man know you\u2019re interested. He\u2019s not going to be on the market for long, and you missed your opportunity last time he was single. You can\u2019t keep pining for the guy.\u201d
\nOf course she was right. And while I felt elated that Will was back on the market, the thought of coming clean to him about my feelings made me want to throw up. Will Daniels\u2014or as Emma called him, Dr. Dandy<\/em>, because of his last name and uncanny resemblance to a male model named David Gandy\u2014and I had been good friends for four years now. We\u2019d started on the very same day at the hospital and had gone through orientation together. I\u2019d had a boyfriend back then, and he\u2019d been seeing a girl from med school at the time, so even though I\u2019d always thought he was insanely handsome, things didn\u2019t bloom until two years ago. And most of the time since then, he\u2019d been seeing one woman or another. Emma was right that the man never seemed to stay single for long.
\n\u201cHe\u2019s going to be at happy hour this Friday night,\u201d I said. \u201cA few of the crew from CCU are meeting up over at McBride\u2019s. I\u2019m curious to hear what he says about the breakup.\u201d
\n\u201cDoes he know you\u2019re looking for a roommate?\u201d
\n\u201cI don\u2019t think so.\u201d
\n\u201cWell, he needs a place to sleep, and you need a roomie.\u201d Emma shrugged. \u201cTiming is everything. Maybe it\u2019s fate and he\u2019ll move in and take care of two<\/em> of your needs.\u201d
\n\u201cI think your imagination might be getting ahead of itself. Why don\u2019t we start by seeing if things are really over with him and whatshername? They\u2019ve split up a few times, but he always winds up going back.\u201d
\n\u201cOkay. But I have a good feeling about you two.\u201d
\n\u201cCould you possibly have a good feeling about me finding a roommate instead? I just had to pay for another damn ad.\u201d
\nEmma shook her head. \u201cI can\u2019t believe you didn\u2019t find one decent candidate.\u201d
\nRemembering my last interview, I said, \u201cActually there was one who would\u2019ve been perfect\u2014great credit score, neat, cooks, leaves early in the morning, and works long days.\u201d
\n\u201cSo why didn\u2019t you take her?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause she<\/em> was a he<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

About the Authors<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Check out our\u00a0Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward Author Spotlight<\/a> f<\/strong>or more great co-writes from this duo<\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Vi Keeland<\/strong> is a #1 <\/span>New York Times,<\/span><\/i> #1 <\/span>Wall Street Journal,<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>USA Today <\/span><\/i>Bestselling author. \u00a0 With millions of books sold, her titles have appeared in over a hundred Bestseller lists and are currently translated in twenty-five languages. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

FACEBOOK FAN PAGE<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0PROFILE<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0AUTHOR PAGE
\n<\/a><\/strong>WEBSITE<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0TWITTER<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0| \u00a0INSTAGRAM<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0GOODREADS<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0MAILING LIST<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Check out our Vi Keeland Author Spotlight<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Penelope Ward<\/strong> is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.<\/span><\/p>\n

She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism.<\/span><\/p>\n

With over two million books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over twenty novels. Her books have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

FACEBOOK<\/a> | WEBSITE<\/a> | TWITTER<\/a> | INSTAGRAM<\/a> | GOODREADS<\/a> | FB FAN GROUP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Check out our Penelope Ward Author Spotlight<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Not Pretending Anymore by Penelope Ward & Vi Keeland Standalone contemporary romance releasing 12 April 2021   Paperback Pre-order Amazon live release alert No Amazon e-book preorder. Will go live on\/around release day and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":57499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[290],"tags":[432,132,349],"class_list":["post-58520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-news","tag-excerpt-reveal","tag-penelope-ward","tag-vi-keeland"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Not-Pretending-Anymore.jpg?fit=200%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-fdS","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58520"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58520\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/57499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}