Author Interview/Review/Giveaway - Until Next Time - Amy Lignor (GIVEAWAY OVER)

Amy Lignor Bio: Amy Lignor began her career at Grey House Publishing in northwest Connecticut where she was the Editor-in-Chief of numerous educational and business directories.

Now she is a published author of several works of fiction. The Billy the Kid historical The Heart of a Legend; the thriller, Mind Made; and the adventure novel, Tallent & Lowery 13.

She is also the owner of The Write Companion, a company that offers help and support to writers through a full range of editorial services from proofreading and copyediting to ghostwriting and research. As the daughter of a research librarian, she is also an active book reviewer.

Currently, she lives with her daughter, mother and a rambunctious German Shepherd named Reuben, in the beautiful state of New Mexico. 

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Where are you from and where do you now call home?

I’m from a very small, small town in Northwest Connecticut, and I’m currently far away from the snow (which I despise) living in Roswell, NM - where that UFO once landed that everyone seems to still love so much.

When and why did you become a writer?

On a family vacation that was pure ‘ick,’ when I was thirteen. We had to all go to bed by 9:00 pm every night because there was a cat in the house who had to go ‘nightsie’ and we all had to be quiet. It was probably the only time my sister and I got along when we were younger because we both absolutely hated it, so we turned to each other. It was then that I wrote My Life: A Comedy and a Tragedy. My sarcasm bloomed on that trip J.

What has been your biggest inspiration in your writing career?

My family. My father was amazing and could be the hero of any novel. My grandfather was one of those epic individuals who had stories galore about his childhood and would tell them to me constantly (he also had that brand of sarcasm I now cherish). And my mother has to be the strongest soul I’ve ever met in my life. I’m inspired by her every single day; she made me a better Mom to my own little girl. It’s very easy to ‘birth’ characters in fiction when you’re surrounded by such powerful and amazing ones in real life.

Where did the idea for Until Next Time come from?

Here’s a very boring answer: A dream. When I lost my grandfather I was crushed. I had no belief in ‘higher powers’ at that time. Matt was the one who showed up in my dreams and we sat in that magnificent library, he walked me around the halls and through the doors that you read about in the book, and he made me see that everything was actually okay. He even taught me that although he lived in ‘paradise,’ I had the better deal because I was able to feel all these emotions - even the bad ones - and experience them first-hand. He wanted that.

Do you believe angels exist?

After what I’ve seen, you bet. Every single day there are angels down here. Some stand beside you, sometimes in front of you for protection, like Matt would do, and sometimes behind you, for support. They’re here. When you feel that odd sensation of not being alone in a room - that’s them.

As for Matt & Emily, where did you come up with them?

Matt was in those dreams, and I really wanted him to have that ‘life’ - that shot to feel all those emotions that he was so ‘giddy’ about. Emily came from a variety of things. She has my pessimistic attitude, but she has it for Earth. She does her job and does it well, but she thinks of it as a job. She thinks the ‘bad stuff’ comes from what we think down here. Sometimes, without Matt, I think she’d fall apart. She just doesn’t get why certain souls are worth saving if they’re just hurting other people. But the ‘final decision’ isn’t hers, even though she makes it sometimes.

Do you have any traits that  come from anyone in your life that help in your writing?

Mom - the lover of books. Mom is a career librarian and I can’t think of a time when her face isn’t buried in a book. She loves mysteries and suspense, but she’ll read romance, etc. That’s her television and internet; for her, books are what the world should be run on, and she gave that passion to me. Dad had that killer imagination. So those two people combined gave me what I needed in order to write.

I would love to ask Emily and Matt some questions…

Sure.

Matt shows up in a flash, smiling, bouncy, shakes Rose’s hand. He’s not into media attention, but he loves to talk to people. Emily comes in behind him, throwing Amy a glance that could mean anything from: “Hey, how are you?” to “You should’ve really kept your mouth shut.” J

Matt, what does it mean to be a warrior?

I know that everyone watches movies and things down here and the warrior is always a gladiator, or a guy with a big hammer in his hand, or those really cool Transformer things, but to me, a warrior isn’t about being the biggest or strongest. A warrior can lose a fight. He can screw up, but he needs to be able to ‘see’ and separate the good from the bad. He needs to be on the side that should win - even if they don’t. My life is a lot more black and white than my partner’s. I have to make a decision quickly and know it’s the right one. Em has to sit in that ‘gray area’ and find the good things that are in everyone’s soul and try to take the bad away…which sometimes is impossible. Probably why she’s not as personable as I am. J

Emily, how did your life as Liz affect your life in Heaven?

Thanks a lot, Matt (she grumbles at her smiling partner).  I liked Liz. I felt really bad for her that she couldn’t ‘hang on,’ but she’d been through so much down here that I can understand why she felt the need to get out. Being a human - Liz, or any other one I would assume, is hard because of everything you guys see, do, feel - I don’t know how you ever sleep. Even the really happy and content ones I’ve met along the way were always worried about something. Money, getting work, raising their kids - I felt bad that they couldn’t spend more time just sitting back and enjoying the small number of years they had. When I came back up…I was beyond confused. A soul can be so happy down there one minute, and then ripped apart the next. It’s a tough job…being a human.

What is it like being an angel?

Where we live is fun. We’re surrounded by some seriously amazing teachers. We train a lot, go to classes and try to prepare for our next trip, but there’s real enjoyment up here. When you go on a job it’s tough, like I said, but I do love meeting humans and helping them out, or at least supporting them, or standing up for them when they need me to. Being a friend is the best part about it.

What are your favorite colors?

Matt: It’s funny because mine is your name; I like Rose. It can be bright rose red, or it can come in the form of a soft pink like the sunsets we see from up there - it’s a color that can be found anywhere. It’s cool.

Emily: Pearl - it glistens. It makes everyone and everything sparkle.

What sort of activities do you two enjoy doing?

Emily: I like it when we train because I get to see him all mad when I win.

Matt: She doesn’t win - she cheats. We go into that pit you read about and as soon as I’m about to win - she just disappears. You think humans are prideful? Em has that in spades.

Emily: Don’t listen to him. He’s a sore loser. We also sit in the library a lot - that’s a really cool place and there’s SO much there. On the books there’s even a number that tells you where the person is up here. We got to meet Poe personally - he was cool.

Matt. Yeah, I liked him. Weird guy. We also got to meet that Jane Austen lady that girls love so much. Very smart - she helps me out a lot when I need to figure out what Emily’s head is doing.

Oh, and St. Francis is so much fun to hang out with! (Emily nods and smiles). He lets us help with new animals and experiments…and John is always around to have fun with. He lets us change him into things sometimes (which you’ll read about, too). That’s fun. We get in trouble, but it’s still fun.

What is it like entering another’s body and living their life?

Matt: The actual merge is a little bit rough because your brain is all jumbled up. But when that wears off, I think finding out about their lives and how they live is cool. I liked Daniel. I felt bad, like Em did for Liz, because Daniel had a rough home life and he wanted out. It’s difficult when you’re left with their thoughts and feelings, but it’s your soul in there - there’s a lot to learn.

How about the second time around? Did your first time down here affect your second trip?

Emily looks down, and Matt reaches out to take her hand.

Matt: The second time was really different. We knew more going in, but had no idea how much souls can change. Not what people love and believe in deep inside of them, of course, but how people are affected by their surroundings. What they see and hear, what they learn - it changes them and makes them do things, maybe, that they wouldn’t have done in their other lives. And the location was so different the second time around. It was so much louder and faster that we really had to keep up.

Not everyone is going to be what you ‘saw’ the last time - that’s impossible. So when you expect people - the souls around you to be and feel the same - you’re wrong. Society has changed them, and we now know that we need to be ready for that.

Emily smiles at Rose and nods at Amy, as her wings unfurl and she disappears from sight. Matt grins and shakes my hand.

Sorry…she just does that. What’s that saying you guys have down here? Oh, yeah. Maybe the third time will be the charm for us. You never know. As long as Em and I stick together I know we’ll solve this.

Solve what?

With the wink of an eye, Matt disappears in a rose-colored ball of smoke that, oddly enough, smells like lilacs. 

Thank you Amy, Matt and Emily for your great interview! I'll be keeping a lookout for your next adventure!

Until Next Time... please enjoy my review! 

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Blurb (From Goodreads)

How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul? 

Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. 

Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. 

What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, 

causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache. 

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. 

Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. 

Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. 

A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. 

Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans. 

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.

First of all, I'm SO happy to have my very first giveaway!! Thank you Amy and Tribute Books for providing the prize! 


I just gotta say that I absolutely loved this book!! It was simply amazing from start to finish! I found it to be a very captivating story and I instantly fell in love with the characters. I wanted to learn more about their lives, and how they lived within humans down on Earth. While in Heaven, Emily and Matt must learn the ways of humans and train for their journey's to Earth. We find out that Matt and Emily have to learn how to deal with human emotion and gather information at the same time, while living as Daniel and Liz. This book kept me wanting more and I will definitely be looking for book 2 in The Angel Chronicles. 


I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who is a fan of Angels! 

I gave Until Next Time 5/5 Butterflies!

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Now for the giveaway!

One(1) winner will receive an ecopy of

Until Next Time by Amy Lignor

in the ebook format of their choice.

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