Book excerpt: An award-winning magical romantic comedy in which a bookstore owner must choose between fantasy and reality after realizing the men she's dating are characters she'd created years before... "Locke breaks down tropes--the popular jock and the thoughtful poet--and puts cracks in their shining armor with humor and insight...Blending romance with whimsical fantasy, Locke's story offers up a look at the expectations of youthful fancy vs. the realities of an adult love." - Library Journal _________________________________________________________________________ What would you do if you discovered the men you were dating were fictional characters you'd created long ago? Thirty-five-year-old Catherine Schreiber has shelved love for good. Keeping her ailing bookstore afloat takes all her time, and she's perfectly fine with that. So when several men ask her out in short order, she's not sure what to do ... especially since something about them seems eerily familiar. A startling revelation -- that these men are fictional characters she'd created and forgotten years ago -- forces Cat to reevaluate her world and the people in it. Because these characters are alive. Here. Now. And most definitely in the flesh. Her best friend, Eliza, a romance novel junkie craving her own Happily Ever After, is thrilled by the possibilities. The power to create Mr. Perfect -- who could pass that up? But can a relationship be real if it's fiction? Caught between fantasy and reality, Cat must decide which -- or whom -- she wants more. Blending humor with unusual twists, including a magical manuscript, a computer scientist in shining armor, and even a Regency ball, A Man of Character is a whimsical-yet-thought-provoking romantic comedy that tells a story not only of love, but also of the lengths we'll go for friendship, self-discovery, and second chances. ________________________________________________________________________ 2016 HOLT Medallion Certificate of Merit winner for Best First Book 2015 Lyra Winner for Best General Fiction Genre: Light paranormal chick lit / romantic comedy Magic of Love Book 1: 327 pages