Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair | Author Interview | Book Tour

I’m so excited to be a part of the book tour for Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair by Laura Piper Lee that is hosted by TBR and Beyond Tours. I was really excited to also be able to interview the author for this book!

INTERVIEW

How would you describe Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair in one sentence?

With the help of a hot carpenter, a new, down-on-her-luck mom renovates a run-down mountain cabin to convert into an Airbnb that will financially save her and her family, but ends up rebuilding her own life in the process.

Can you introduce us to the main character(s) of Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair?

Hannah Tate is a hot-mess millennial mom who is so fixated on providing her baby Bowie a better, more stable childhood and family life than she herself had that she doesn’t realize she’s with the wrong guy, working the wrong job, and living a life that’s all wrong for her. When she gets fired and dumped back-to-back, Hannah has no choice but to move in with her loving, if irresponsible, mama and stepdad.
Growing up, Hannah took care of herself and her wild mama, so it’s hard for Hannah to believe that her mama could really be there for her for once. But Hannah’s mom has reinvented herself as Bowie’s adoring G-ma and is trying her hardest to be here for Hannah now even though she wasn’t there for her back then. G-ma is wacky, fun, and smart as a fox, and it’s through her good-natured meddling that Hannah’s introduced to the handsome neighbor next door.
River Aronson is the local vagabond hottie—a lonely, off-the-grid carpenter who lives in a fantastic treehouse of his own making next door to Hannah’s parents. After escaping his own corporate hell-hole job in Atlanta, River came back to his roots in Blue Ridge with a mission—live for the right now, in this moment, and never be chained to technology again. He’s hard to find and harder to pin down, but he’s kind, funny, and looks at Hannah like no one else ever has, not seeing all the ways Hannah fails to be a real “adult” (because he sure as hell doesn’t quite qualify as one) and instead seeing her for the beautiful, loving, creative person that she really is.

For Hannah, who is so preoccupied with becoming a certain kind of successful, River is the anti-corporate antidote to that way of thinking, while bright, funny, big-hearted Hannah is the embodiment of all that River’s been searching for–love, companionship, and the family he’s always craved.

Do you know from the beginning how your books will end or do you let your characters decide their journey?

While I always know there will be a happily ever after, how they get to the actual ending is the murkiest part of the writing journey for me! It often takes me several tries to get to the ending that feels best for my stories.

Do you have a favorite scene, moment, or quote from the book?

Wow, this question is amazing because it made me realize I have tons of favorite moments, lines, and jokes in this book! Whew. I’ve sat here way too long trying to think of my most favorite, and it’s just impossible, so I’ll pick a romantic one: After Hannah and River wrap up renovations on the cabin, their mutual crushing is in absolute full swing, but Hannah is fighting it. After growing up watching her own mama’s relationships implode one after the other, Hannah is scared to jump into something new with River on the heels of her major break up from her baby’s father. But when River unexpectedly joins Hannah and her friends for an evening at the local apple festival, her defenses finally crumble. Maybe it’s seeing him hold a sweet, baby chick in his palms, or the way he makes her best friends laugh, but she is gone. They have this moment on the hayride under the stars, and she feels that first thrill of his touch, his arm encircling her on a chilly October night, and it’s just dreamy sigh. Later, she gets some powdered sugar on her cheek from funnel cake, and he kisses it softly off, and ooh-la-la sigh! Writing that scene felt like reliving some of my own best romance.

What is something readers will find in Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair that they may not realize based on the
synopsis?

While being set in a small town in the Georgia mountains, Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair has a lot of queer folks living their best queer lives. Hannah herself is bisexual, and her two best friends are a lesbian couple. When Hannah first moves to Blue Ridge, she doesn’t know anyone, but she quickly meets Zoe Brennan, local vineyard owner and proud lesbian (and star of my second book!), who takes her under her wing and introduces her to a wonderful new group of friends. As a bisexual myself, I’ve always enjoyed stories that feature women in straight-appearing relationships with men that still have their full identities represented on the page. It doesn’t have to be a plot point—there’s value in showing that side to Hannah casually without making her as the character display it, because that’s how it is in real life, after all. Bisexual folks don’t have to prove anything to be who they are.

What’s something you hope readers will take away from Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair?

I hope that readers that beat themselves up for not being perfect adults can learn from Hannah’s own mistakes in that regard. It’s so easy to feel like we have to optimize every aspect of our lives to be successful, “real” adults—from saving aggressively for retirement to eating vegetables around the clock to buying local to home composting—the list of ways we should live our lives is virtually endless. And my God, if you’re a new mother? It’s even worse! I hope that Hannah’s story is a gentle reminder to anyone who feels chronically inadequate that you are the only person that gets to set the standards for success in your life.

What are three books you would recommend if someone enjoyed Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair?

Mrs. Nash’s Ashes by Sarah Adler: If you loved the fun and quirky characters in this romcom and their laugh-out-loud conversations and banter, you’ll love Hannah Tate, too. 

Planes, Trains, and All The Feels by Livy Hart: I adored the hot-mess heroine in this funny, steamy romcom, and if you did, too, voila! Hannah Tate is for you. 

The Lovelight series by BK Borison: Hannah Tate gets compared to this series more than any other, which absolutely delights me. Dreamy small-town romance fans, please come hither!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Synopsis:

Hannah Tate can hardly believe her sleep-deprived eyes when she finds an engagement ring hidden in the closet. Killian, her super responsible, incredibly attractive boyfriend—and the father of her new baby, Bowie—is finally going to propose. But a romantic night out goes horribly wrong when Killian reveals he’s dumping Hannah, not proposing.

Furious and heartbroken, Hannah takes Bowie and moves in with her mama and stepdaddy in the mountains of Blue Ridge, Georgia. Hannah realizes that her parents’ cabin has vacation property gold written all over it—and could save her mama from going broke. Again.

Only problem? The cabin’s décor is . . . mildly terrifying and it’s in desperate need of renovation. Hannah hires the hot carpenter living in the treehouse next door to fix up the place. Not only does River respect Hannah’s business acumen, he looks at her like she’s a woman, not a hot mess. And Hannah can’t deny that River awakens something new inside her.

Can Hannah embrace a future that looks different from the picture-perfect family she once dreamed of . . . and maybe start living life on her own terms?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR