Perception and Deception by Andrea Hintz 💕 Q and A, Series Tour & Gift Card Giveaway 💕(Spy Action Adventure Romance)

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Felix Jaynes is a special agent for the Real Life Immersion Program (also known as RLIP). A few months earlier, she had a traumatic experience that caused her to go from a confident agent who was a phenomenal expert in her field, to suddenly doubting her career. She has recently been sent to an extremely rural town called Toselville; playing the part of a young nature photographer. Everyone has their cliques in Toselville. As a twenty-one-year-old, she finds herself having to network with the younger people in town. Her mission: find the middle aged son of two weapons designers who created blueprints for the United States government. As time goes on, she befriends Ashton Mathis, the owner of the only grocery shop in town, and his best friend/employee. Ashton instantly becomes enamored with Felix's beauty and kindness she shows towards them and he begins to pursue her while she is in the midst of working on an incredibly dangerous mission.

RLIP agents have partners who talk to them through their small earpieces that cannot be seen. These agents are not allowed to see their partners or even know their names. Felix has had many partners who are generally cold and over-professional. But Felix has been assigned to Wolf, an older gentleman who becomes a sort of wise father figure to her. After going with Ashton and his friends to the town bowling alley, Felix finds that she is starting to get into a clique of her own. Ashton is there to hopefully win Felix's heart, and Felix is there strictly on business, hoping to get information for her case...or so she keeps telling herself. Against Wolf's initial words of wisdom, Felix finds herself thinking about Ashton and accepts his invitation to go out on a date. But Felix accidentally blows her cover, and soon, Ashton is attacked. Felix was able to save him once, but now her enemies will stop at nothing to get to them. Felix is reassigned to a new mission...witness protection for Ashton and herself. Their budding romantic relationship comes to a sharp halt as they now have to focus on working together to survive. They can run, but they know their enemies are never far behind. Their only option to save themselves is to solve this case. And it is not going to be easy.

Twenty-two year old Faith Evans (formerly known as Felix Jaynes) is a former special agent for the Real Life Immersion Program, an organization that the FBI calls upon in the midst of unsolvable cases. Faith has been enjoying her normal life outside of the agency by spending time with her boyfriend, Ashton Mathis. They have become inseparable since meeting during Faith’s final mission with the agency several months prior. Although they seem to be safe from the events that unfolded during that final mission, both of them are having feelings of uneasiness and find themselves looking over their shoulders at all times. After spontaneously eloping at the courthouse, things begin to take a strange turn when Faith suddenly disappears without a trace…

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Who designed your book covers?

I love creating my own book covers and have designed all of them on my own until recently! Some of my readers have been able to guess that my face (or parts of my face) are featured on most of them. When you're a starting author with limited resources and funds for purchasing images or hiring models, you might as well use what you have! Hahaha! Now that I'm an established writer and much further into my writing career, I invested back into some of my newer book covers. I have a short story pirate series (that is in connection to "The Tesoro Series") called, "Johnny Higgins." The story is supposed to have a Pirates of the Caribbean feel, so I went to a professional. If you are a fan of pirates, just click on this link and tell me that this spooky pirate ship cover doesn't give you cinematic vibes! (https://www.amazon.com/Johnny-Higgins-1-Andrea-Hintz-ebook/dp/B07BFRBHCH/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=johnny+higgins&qid=1583607240&s=digital-text&sr=1-4) I ordered it on Fiverr.com from an amazing book cover creator called, GermanCreative. Here is her link: (https://www.fiverr.com/germancreative). I was so impressed with her work that I ended up ordering three more book covers from her for the entire "Johnny Higgins" series. She receives her images from http://depositphotos.com and puts it altogether to create something magnificent.

As for the newest, "Perception and Deception" installment, since the first two books had my face, I will probably need to design it on my own again so it matches the first two. But I'm still considering my options!

If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

Nooo, I really love, "Perception and Deception III." There will be a shock ending for fans of the series that will give them chills and I'm incredibly excited to hear feedback on it. There's also going to be some surprising background stories from Juro and Wolf, Faith's partners, that've never been revealed until now.

Did you learn anything during the writing of your recent book?

I just learned more about my own characters. When I'm writing, there are certain elements of their background stories that come out literally while I'm writing and aren't pre-planned. I joked with my mom at one point during the writing of, "Perception and Deception III" that I was going to go write and couldn't wait to see what would happen next.

If your book was made into a film, who would you like to play the lead?

Oh man, I always wanted to be an actor, so I'll do it! Now if I couldn't, I would love to bring a new actor into the starring role to give them a jumpstart on their career and then make one or two of the side characters played by more established actors to draw attention to the movie.

Anything specific you want to tell your readers?

I hope that my books bring you the adventure and escape we are all looking for when we read. Thank you for reading my stories and for your support! Your love and feedback keep me going, especially your book reviews! They mean the world to me! Please leave your honest reviews!

How did you come up with name of this book?

For, "Perception and Deception," the first novel in this series, it stems off of the main idea of the series, which is that your very own perception can very well be your deception. Characters you thought may have been good could be bad…or not.

What is your favorite part of this book and why?

For, "Perception and Deception," I would say my favorite part was when Ashton finds out that Felix is really a secret agent after having dated her for awhile. I love writing the climatic parts of the stories.

If you could spend time with a character from your book whom would it be? And what would you do during that day?

That is a really hard one. I wish I could meet all the characters from all the books I've ever written. For the purpose of this question and this series, I will go ahead and say I would spend the day with Wolf. He's the wise, supportive figure we all need in our lives. He always knows what to say and do during any situation. We would probably just spend the day hanging out and talking about wise stuff hahaha.

Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

Really, I can't say that any of my characters were ever based off of any real people in particular. I'm sure certain characteristic traits probably came from myself or from people closest to me. But I would say that they all come from imagination.

Do your characters seem to hijack the story or do you feel like you have the reigns of the story?

Yeaaaah, they hijack the story about 80% of the time hahaha.

Convince us why you feel your book is a must read.

I'm going to go straight to the reviews of, "Perception and Deception" for this one. So I went to go take a look at Amazon Canada the other day and found a review for, "Perception and Deception" that I really feels sums up my feelings about this question:

"Become immersed in a world of spy and action! Honestly, I couldn't put this book down. Right from the start I was captivated by the story. Andrea Hintz has a wonderful ability to make the reader feel like it is a privilege/honor to be a part of Felix's journey. The twists and turns in the plot kept me on the edge of my seat and pushed me to keep turning the pages. The character development, creative use of dialogue and the ability to foreshadow large events are just some of the ways Andrea writes an in-depth action and romantic adventure. I have recommended this book to many people so far. I thoroughly enjoyed it!" -Tricia, Amazon Canada

The part that really stood out to me about this review was the part she included about how it felt like it was a privilege/honor to be a part of Felix's journey. Like…wow! That's how I felt when I was writing it! And my reader felt it too! Gives me goosebumps every time.

Here is another one that is amazing:

"This book is a definite page-turner. It has suspense, romance, intrigue, action. I was amazed by the research the author has done in describing how a secret organization with authorization to protect innocent civilians may possibly exist. I wouldn't be surprised if this is a fiction-based-on-fact type of novel." -David Lucero, Author

This reviewer felt the realness of the story that I felt when I was writing it. See? This is why reviews keep me going!

Have you written any other books that are not published?

Yes, my very first one! I could have published it but I ended up moving on to, "The Tesoro Series" and became so invested in it that my first book went to the sidelines. But I will come back to it at some point! It's a completed first draft that has been sitting idle for years.

If your book had a candle, what scent would it be?

Peppermint because it boosts focus according to the internet. Spies have to stay extremely focused.

What did you edit out of this book?

It's been awhile since I was going through the editing stages of, "Perception and Deception" so I really can't remember anything in particular, but I'm sure I did remove certain scenes and dialogue. When I do cut scenes, I save them in another document in case I ever want to come back to them or re-use the conversations later.

Is there a writer which brain you would love to pick for advice? Who would that be and why?

I would say Terri Farley. Her writing is so descriptive and amazing, you really feel like you're there. She also does an incredible job of making her characters feel real. And the really great thing is that I have had the opportunity to talk to her and pick her brain about the publishing industry! She is amazing. Check out her, "Phantom Stallion: Wild Horse Island" series if you love Hawaii or horse ranches.

Fun Facts/Behind the Scenes/Did You Know?'

A fun fact: I write my best at nighttime, around midnight.
Some behind the scene information: I've written a television pilot script for, "The Tesoro Series." I haven't shared it outside the family yet, but the story turned out even better the second time I wrote it!
Did you know: I've worked in sales and as an elementary school teacher.

from Perception and Deception I

Chapter 25

Felix

The white tent was filled with glowing lanterns setting on top of white-table cloths. The harsh street ground was completely covered in several rugs that had beautiful paisley designs of red and off-white.

There was a warm glow about the room that not only surrounded the people, but seemed to fill them as well. I was not used to such beauty and warmth. And that’s when I really discovered something important about myself.

I was cold on the inside. And I had allowed myself to become used to it. I could tell because of the discomfort that this atmosphere was causing me. I needed my heart to thaw. I still clung to Ashton’s arm as we walked towards an empty table.

“Wow,” I said.

I found myself resting my head on his shoulder for a moment. I wasn’t sure why. I could feel him turn his head towards me, so I lifted my head and looked him in the eyes. He smiled. Then he pulled a chair out for me.

He took the seat off to my left.

“So, tell me about your family,” Ashton said after we were situated. “What do your parents do?”

This was when it was usually nice to have a partner in my ear to feed me some fake information. But I could hopefully get by on my own.

“My dad is in business,” I replied. “He works in a corporate office in New York. My mom was a stay at home mom until I started high school and then she started working as an insurance agent.”

“Do you have any siblings?”

“Unfortunately, no,” I replied. “I sometimes wish I did.” That part was true. “What about you?”

“I was an only kid too.”

“Did you ever want any siblings?” I asked.

“Sometimes,” he answered. “I always thought it would have been really cool to have an older brother.”

That’s when a loud, booming voice interrupted our quiet discussion. “Why? So you could have someone to defend you against big, bad Kalvin?”

There was laughter coming from Kalvin and his friends as they all sat down at the table with us. Ashton stayed calm, but I could tell by the way he started to clench his hand under the table that he was getting either angry, uncomfortable, or both.

“What, did we interrupt something?” Kalvin asked, feigning innocence.

Lucas and Derrick started smirking. A moment later, Jamie came over to the table and sat down in between the two.

“Hello, Felix,” Jamie said. Her slight smile disappeared. “Ashton.”

“I think these guys are on a date,” Lucas said.

“Well then,” Kalvin said. “I don’t think they’ll mind if we join.”

“Actually, I do,” Ashton answered. “There are plenty of other tables around here. Why don’t you guys just go sit somewhere else?”

Kalvin just laughed. “I swear. You must be paying this girl to go out with you.”

I was getting angrier by the second, but before I could say anything, I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Janice.

“Hi, honey,” Janice said. “Could I borrow you for a second?”

I glanced at Ashton, who nodded and mouthed, “Go ahead.”

I hated leaving him there, so I made sure to keep an eye on the table while Janice led me away. When we were out of earshot, Janice took my arm and pulled me closer.

“Don’t let those nasty kids ruin your night,” she said. “Do you want me to say something to them? I can get them thrown out for causing trouble. They have no right talking to you guys like that. You have to be careful with Kalvin. He and his friends can be pretty violent if they’re provoked.”

“It’s ok, it’s ok,” I replied quickly. I was quiet for a moment and then I snapped my fingers. “I have a plan. I’ll take care of it.”

She looked at me uncertainly.

I grinned. “Trust me.”

She started to smile back and then gave me a pat on the shoulder. “Alright. But if you need anything, just come get me. I’m sort of like Ashton’s other mom, so I’m pretty protective of him and his friends.”

She walked away and I slowly began making my way back to the table. As I got closer, I heard everyone at the table burst out laughing except for Ashton, who set his jaw tight. I hadn’t heard what they had said, but it was obviously enough for Ashton, because he stood up to walk away. Lucas reached over, grabbed his arm, and jerked him back down into his seat.

Ashton yanked his arm away. “Cut it out and grow up!”

“Grow up?” Kalvin said. “Why don’t you try giving yourself some advice? Felix is going to be gone before the clock strikes eight. Watch me work my magic.”

Ashton gritted his teeth. “Stay away from her.”

“Make me,” Kalvin sneered.

I stopped and slowly turned away without them seeing me. Then I made my way over to the refreshments table. I picked up two glasses of punch and headed back over to the table. Then I set one down in front of Ashton and the other in front of myself before taking a seat.

“I brought us some drinks, handsome,” I said. “I hope I got what you like.”

Ashton suddenly looked over at me, obviously hiding his surprise at my sudden change of dialogue. “Oh, thank you.”

I dropped a straw into my drink. “I’m so glad that you are finally taking me out. It was hard to catch him, but I saw what I wanted and didn’t stop chasing until I got it.”

Jamie glanced at me funny and then frowned. Kalvin furrowed his eyebrows.

“You chased him?” Kalvin said, making a sound of disbelief. “You must be as big a dork as he is.”

‘Dork’ was such an immature term.

“Oh, I was a bit of a nerd in high school,” I replied. “Studying anthropology and the human condition. People just didn’t understand. But that’s how I ended up getting into photography. Well, it was actually my modeling career that got me interested in photography in the first place. One day, I just looked at the camera and realized the powerful influence I could have if I was on the other side of the lens.”

“Modeling career?” Jamie said.

“Oh, yes, I was a model for awhile after I graduated from high school,” I replied. “Then I used my photography skills to take photos that related to anthropology, traveling to different countries to study people and the way they lived. It was quite fascinating.”

“How did you afford the travel?” Jamie asked suspiciously.

“Oh, my parents financed everything,” I answered. “My dad was a farmer, and he struck oil on his land right after my mom and dad got married. They took care of all of my trips. But after I began making my own income, selling my photos to travel and social research magazines, I refused to use any more of their money.”

None of the others at the table said a word. Neither did Ashton, who just stared at me. He suddenly got a slight grin on his face and looked down. He knew what I was doing.

“You look so good tonight,” I said to him.

He looked back up at me, and the second he did, I grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and kissed him. I’ll admit, it was my first kiss, and it didn’t necessarily come about the way I had always expected, but I didn’t care. In fact, it turned out even better.

Chapter 26

Ashton

Ashton didn’t kiss back right away out of pure shock. But once he snapped out of it, he kissed her back. He didn’t really know if he was doing it right, but apparently he must have been because she wouldn’t stop kissing him. Ashton had no problem with that.

When she finally pulled away, there was a different look in her eyes. Something about the way she looked at him. Suddenly, the gaping stares of the others at the table didn’t exist.

“Let’s go,” Ashton said.

Felix got up. She put her arm through Ashton’s as they walked away and didn’t even look back at Kalvin or the others.

As they walked away, Ashton glanced at Felix, who was starting to grin.

“I think we won,” she said under her breath.

Ashton started to laugh.

“I want to go, though,” she said.

“You want to go?” Ashton replied. “We can do that. I’ll take you somewhere else. What did you have in mind?”

As they walked past Janice, she gave Felix a thumbs up.

“What was that about?” Ashton asked.

Felix just smiled.

They left the tent and walked out into the street. They let go of each other, and Felix started laughing.

Ashton broke into a smile. “Alright, how much of your story was made up?”

Felix looked him in the eyes. “Pretty much all of it. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Mind?” Ashton broke into a smile. He wasn’t sure if he should mention it, but it slipped out anyways. “What about the kiss?”

Felix suddenly turned very serious. “Does this feel real to you?”

She leaned forward and kissed him again. Only this time, it was different. They were by themselves. Kalvin wasn’t watching. And it was the realest thing Ashton had ever felt.

After she pulled away, he looked a little confused. “What’s going on here?”

“What do you mean?” Felix asked.

“I don’t know…I just can’t believe this is all happening…nothing like this has ever happened…”

Felix watched him steadily. “I know exactly what you mean.”

SEEKING BETA READERS FOR PERCEPTION AND DECEPTION III!

Email me at tesoroseries@gmail.com if interested in a free PDF copy in exchange for your honest review! This is the third book in a spy series, however, the first two books do not need to be read to get into the story. Each book has a stand-alone case to solve, so you won't get lost starting here.

Twenty-two year old Faith Evans is a former special agent for the Real Life Immersion Program, an organization that the FBI calls upon in the midst of unsolvable cases. After being betrayed by RLIP, she decides to cut ties with them permanently and move on to a normal life. So when she’s asked to return to the agency to help with a difficult case, her immediate answer is no. However, she soon discovers that the case involves the kidnapping of her former partner's teenaged grandson, Paul Spencer. There’s no way she can stay away and sit quietly.
Paul was being groomed to become a future tech agent, but having computer hacking skills of his caliber at such a young age may have exposed him to a dangerous cybercrime ring that wants to use him for something life shattering. The agency suspects that Paul’s computer club classmates may have been the associated link. Faith is the only agent young enough to pass as a high school student and must befriend Paul’s classmates to find out what’s going on. But when politicians suddenly get involved, this case may be far more twisted and dangerous than she initially realized. On top of everything else, RLIP seems to be attempting to recruit Faith's new husband, Ashton Mathis, into the agency.

Andrea Hintz has loved writing her whole life. She began college at the age of thirteen and graduated at seventeen with a Bachelor's in Public Management and Administration. Having endless stacks of books, she has a particular interest in fiction genres that contain lots of adventure and take her to other places of the world. She has written many books including the books in The Tesoro Series, the Perception and Deception series, additional short stories, guest articles for writing blogs and literary magazines, as well as a short guide for beginning authors. Andrea also plays the guitar, sings, and has written notebooks and notebooks full of songs and book ideas. Her favorite books were very special to her growing up, and she believes that if at least one reader feels that way about her work, she will have successfully done her job as an author.