Nathan’s European Adventure Itinerary for Lovers
Planning your own European adventure? Bringing someone you love with you? Nathan suggests that you try to visit these places. Take lots of pictures. Declare your undying love. Hopefully the universe is on your side and it won’t take ingesting a magic pot brownie to confess. *winks*
I know it looks like a hectic few days, but Nathan knows his stuff. I suggest marking all these places down and making your way through Europe the way Nathan and Preston did. I also suggest bringing your copy of No Holding Back with you and snapping pics with it. Send them to me if you do! Just tag @KateEvangelista and @SwoonReads on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
Paris, France
DAY 1
In the morning
Luxembourg Gardens (visit duration: 2 hours)
Pont des Arts* (visit duration: 15 minutes)
Royal Palace (visit duration: 1 hour 30 minutes)
In the afternoon
Sacré-Coeur Basilica (visit duration: 1 hour 30 minutes)
Place du Tertre (visit duration: 1 hour 30 minutes)
DAY 2
In the morning
Musée d’Orsay (visit duration: 2 hours)
Hôtel des Invalides (visit duration: 1 hour)
Rodin Museum** (visit duration: 1 hour 30 minutes)
In the afternoon
Eiffel Tower (visit duration: 2 hours)
River Cruise (visit duration: 1 hour)
Arc de Triomphe (visit duration: 1 hour)
DAY 3
In the morning
Pantheon (visit duration: 1 hour)
Notre-Dame (visit duration: 1 hour 25 minutes)
Holy Chapel (visit duration: 1 hour)
In the afternoon
Louvre Museum*** (visit duration: 2 hours)
Palais Garnier Opera House (visit duration: 1 hour)
Tuileries Gardens (visit duration: 1 hour)
Traveler’s Notes:
* Visit the Pont des Arts for the love locks. In the book, it is mentioned that they have been removed. If they are still there when you visit, please take a moment to bask in all the love attached to those locks. If they are no longer there, please have a moment of silence for the lack of locks.
**For every art museum you visit, think of Didi. I know she doesn’t make much of an appearance in this book, but that’s what Nathan and Preston did.
***Try not to criticize the Mona Lisa too much. Wouldn’t want to make a tourist cry.
Cork, Ireland
DAY 1
Blarney Castle* (in the morning)
The English Market** (in the afternoon)
DAY 2
The Beara Peninsula (all day)
DAY 3
Fota Wildlife Park (in the morning)
Old Midleton Distillery (in the afternoon)
Traveler’s Notes:
*The Blarney Castle is huge, so really take all morning to explore its nooks and crannies. Plus, you can’t pass up the chance to kiss the Blarney Stone. Grab that gift of gab for yourself.
**I say eat your way through the English Market.
Rome, Italy
DAY 1
St. Peter’s Basilica (in the morning)
Trastevere District (in the afternoon)
DAY 2
In the morning
Santa Maria della Vittoria (visit duration: 1 hour)
Santa Maria degli Angeli (visit duration: 1 hour)
Palazzo Massimo alle Terme (visit duration: 1 hour)
San Pietro in Vincoli (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
Via dei Fori Imperiali (visit duration: 1 hour)
Colosseum (visit duration: 1 hour)
Basilica of San Clemente (visit duration: 1 hour)
DAY 3
Casa di Giulietta* (all day)
Traveler’s Notes:
*If Nathan hadn’t gotten sick, he definitely would have taken Preston to Juliet’s House in Verona. It’s just a short trip out of Rome by train. Fact: Nathan’s favorite play is Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Santorini, Greece
DAY 1
Agios Georgios* (all day)
DAY 2
In the morning
Pyrgos Village (visit duration: 45 minutes)
Monastery of Profitis Ilias (visit duration: 1 hour)
Megalochori Village (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
Vlychada Village (visit duration: 2 hours)
Akrotiri
DAY 3
Day cruise to:
Nea Kameni
Palea Kameni
Thirassia Village
Traveler’s Notes:
*In the book, Preston and Nathan spend the entire day at the beach. Natasha ends up kidnapping them to Amsterdam. But if you want to keep with the three-day-tour stay that Nathan initially planned out, then stick to his original itinerary.
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
DAY 1
In the morning
Rijksmuseum (visit duration: 2 hours)
Vondelpark (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
Van Gogh Museum (visit duration: 2 hours)
Amsterdam Canal Cruise (duration: 2–3 hours)
Paradiso*
DAY 2
In the morning
Begijnhof (visit duration: 1 hour)
Flower Market (visit duration: 1 hour)
Anne Frank House** (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
The Jordaan (visit duration: 2 hours)
Red Light District
DAY 3
In the morning
De Oude Kerk (visit duration: 2 hours)
Royal Palace Amsterdam (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
Leiden Square*** (Leidseplein) (visit duration: 2 hours)
Albert Cuyp Market (visit duration: 2 hours)
Heineken Experience (visit duration: 2 hours)
Royal Concertgebouw (visit duration: 2 hours)
Traveler’s Notes:
*Paradiso is an awesome club. Make sure to take in a show and dance the night away. Preston and Nathan sure did. A pot brownie may have been involved.
**If you’ve read The Fault in Our Stars, then this is a place you cannot miss!
***Amsterdam is known for awesome street food. I say eat your way through the city as well. Try their döner kebabs, croquettes, french fries with mayonnaise, and the Automats. The food is seriously good.
Venice, Italy
DAY 1
In the morning
Doge’s Palace (visit duration: 2 hours)
Caffè Florian (visit duration: 1 hour)
In the afternoon
St. Mary of Health Basilica* (visit duration: 1 hour)
Ca’ Rezzonico (visit duration: 2 hours)
Campo del Ghetto (visit duration: 2 hours)
Paradiso Perduto (visit duration: 2 hours)
DAY 2
In the morning
Gallerie dell’Accademia (visit duration: 2 hours)
Ca’ d’Oro (visit duration: 2 hours)
In the afternoon
Ca’ d’Oro alla Vedova (visit duration: 2 hours)
Arsenale di Venezia (visit duration: 3 hours)
DAY 3
In the morning
Venetian Lagoon (visit duration: 3 hours)
In the afternoon
Duomo di Murano Santi Maria e Donato (visit duration: 2 hours)
Gondola Ride** (duration: 1 hour)
Locanda Cipriani (visit duration: 2 hours)
Rialto Bridge*** (visit duration: 2 hours)
Caffè del Doge**** (visit duration: 1 hour)
Traveler’s Notes:
*Preston and Nathan take one of their sweetest pictures here, where Preston realizes he and Nathan will be together forever.
**Preston took Nathan on a gondola ride in the hopes of it being romantic. It sort of wasn’t for them, but definitely try it when you’re in Venice.
***Go shopping at the Rialto Bridge and take lots of pictures.
****Don’t leave Venice without having coffee at Caffè del Doge. Their brew is to die for.
Preston’s Chicken Noodle Soup of Love Recipe
Someone you love feeling under the weather? Well, take Preston’s lead and make some chicken noodle soup. This recipe will serve three to four when you’re done, so make sure to keep the rest in a plastic container for reheating. You’ll have your loved one feeling better in no time!
INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
4 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth*
1 (14.5 ounce) can vegetable broth*
1/2 pound chicken breast (cooked and chopped)
1 1/2 cups egg noodles**
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter.
2. Cook onion and celery in butter until just tender, five minutes.
3. Pour in chicken and vegetable broths and stir in chicken, noodles, carrots, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper.
4. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer twenty minutes before serving.
Simple as four steps. I say if you know how to boil water, you can make this soup. Plus, at the end of the day, it’s the thought that counts. So, make your loved one swoon by taking care of him or her while he or she is under the weather.
Note:
*Preston makes his broth from scratch. You don’t have to if you’re in a pinch. Broth takes hours to make. The canned stuff is good too. Just be careful not to add too much salt, since canned broth tends to already be salty. As Preston says, “Season to taste.”
**For the noodles, Preston prefers the freshly made kind. But if you don’t have access to those (and those tend to cook faster), the dried kind works too.
A Coffee Date
with author Kate Evangelista and her editor, Holly West
Getting to Know You (A Little More)
Holly West (HW): What book is on your nightstand now?
Kate Evangelista (KE): I just finished Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. So good!
HW: Good to know! That’s coming up on my to-read list as well. What’s your favorite word?
KE: Debauchery. Four syllables and naughty to the highest degree. (Is that bad? *giggles*)
HW: Nah. You have to love a little bit of debauchery. In the right setting, of course.;-) And speaking of settings … If you could travel in time, where would you go and what would you do?
KE: Victorian England, because of the dresses. I always love myself in a corset. And I would stroll around Hyde Park in the afternoon.
HW: Do you have any strange or funny habits? Did you when you were a kid?
KE: I don’t know if you can call it strange, but I would always find myself in someone else’s house as a kid. Every afternoon I would sneak out of my house and walk around our neighborhood, knocking on doors, and somehow (I don’t know how) people would let me in and feed me. I guess you can say I’m like a cat that way.
HW: Nathan and Preston travel to several different European countries. Have you ever been to Europe yourself? Any fun travel stories to share?
KE: Confession: I have never been to Europe. *gasp* But the stories my parents told me were so vivid, it was almost like I was there. It’s on my bucket list. As for funny travel stories, I was once stopped by a beagle (basically Snoopy) at immigration as I was entering the US. I took a ham sandwich with me from the plane that I didn’t eat. Apparently airport security frowns upon that. I honestly thought they were going to deport me. *cries* They had all my bags checked because of it. And I only had a thirty-minute window between then and my connecting flight! The plane was already boarding when I got to the gate. Nerve-racking at the time. Hilarious now. Suffice it to say, I learned my lesson. Never bring food down from a plane.
The Swoon Reads Experience (Continues!)
HW: What’s your favorite thing about being a Swoon Reads author so far?
KE: Everything. I sincerely believe I have found my home. Please don’t make me leave. (Again, I’m a cat that way.)
HW: How has the Swoon Reads community impacted your experiences as an author?
KE: The support was overwhelming. This was during a dark time in my writing career. When I thought I was no good as an author. I guess you can say the Swoon Reads community put me back together and helped me heal.
HW: Did No Love Allowed being chosen change your life?
KE: In the best way possible. I get to work with awesome people. I get to write the stories I love. And I am honored to be a part of the best group of authors on the face of the planet. So yes: Life changed!
HW: Do you have any advice for aspiring authors on the site?
KE: Edit. Edit. Edit. Just because you weren’t chosen the first time, take a moment to reread your story, edit, and resubmit. Not being chosen the first time isn’t the end of the world.
The Writing Life
HW: Where did you get the inspiration for No Holding Back?
KE: I’ve always wanted to write an M/M romance. Because of No Love Allowed, I was introduced to Nathan and Preston. They were kind enough to let me share their story with the world.
HW: Second books are notoriously difficult. What was the hardest part about writing No Holding Back?
KE: Getting Preston’s voice right. He was such a quiet force in No Love Allowed that I couldn’t hear him properly as I was writing No Holding Back. Nathan, in all his fabulousness, was drowning him out. But I think, after several drafts, we finally got our cussing swimming god to open up. *laughs*
HW: What’s your process? Are you an outliner or do you just start at the beginning and make it up as you go?
KE: I used to start at the beginning and let the characters speak to me, but now that I’m writing straight-up romance, I find that it helps to lay out everything. Not the plot, per se. I still leave that up to what the characters tell me about their story. What I mean is I have a corkboard with multicolored index cards that show me the name of the character, what they look like, what their flaws are, what tropes I plan to use in the story. Little things that keep me on track as I write.
HW: What do you want readers to remember about your books?
KE: That everyone deserves to be loved.
No Holding Back
Discussion Questions
1. The book is dedicated to love and how it is too beautiful to hide in a closet. What does “too beautiful to hide in a closet” mean for you? How is the book connected to this inscription?
2. Nathan dreams of becoming a party planner at an early age. What were your dreams at the age of thirteen, and how have they changed now that you have gotten older? What dream are you working on fulfilling?
3. Preston is devoted to swimming. He eats, sleeps, and breathes it. Do you know anyone in your life with the same single-minded commitment to a goal? Has there been a time in your life when you’ve obsessed about wanting to get something or get into somewhere?
4. Do you agree with how Nathan handled Preston’s need to obsess? Why or why not? Would you have gone as far as taking his phone away?
5. Nathan is a romantic, as evidenced by his love for Pretty Woman and his plans for romantic confessions. Do you see yourself as a romantic? Has there ever been a time when you planned on telling someone you loved them? How did that go?
6. As the book progresses, we see Preston realize there is more to life than practice. Can you relate to how he was feeling? Or if not, why?
7. Natasha believes that Nathan is overthinking things—that he should have just come out and told Preston how he felt from the beginning. What would you have done in Nathan’s situation?
8. After Nathan’s confession, Preston seems not to address these feelings in favor of taking over the last leg of the trip. Put yourself in Preston’s shoes. Would you have come out with your own feelings during breakfast the day after or would you have kept things a secret so you could plan your own perfect confession?
9. When Preston finds out he got into the Bennett Club, he completely forgets about the date he had planned with Nathan. What did you feel in this moment? Should Nathan have reminded him of the date? Was he right to let Preston go?
10. Do you think No Holding Back is an issue book (a book that addresses a particular situation/problem in readers’ lives)? Why or why not? What are your thoughts on the author’s treatment of Nathan and Preston’s road to love?
What better way to get over a breakup than to set up your best friend?
Meg and Linus, two best friends bound by a shared love of school, a coffee obsession, and being queer, must break out of their comfort zones and learn how to stand on their own in this fun debut novel by Hanna Nowinski.
I quickly look back at my lunch tray as soon as I realize what I’ve been doing, but it’s too late—Meg has already turned her head to see what captured my attention, and when she looks back at me, there’s this little gleam in her eyes that rarely means anything good.
To make matters worse, I can feel myself blushing quite furiously.
“I see,” she says, sounding very smug about it.
“No, you don’t,” I try, but she just smirks widely.
“He’s cute.”
“I really hadn’t noticed.”
The way she is able to raise one eyebrow almost to her hairline has always been slightly frightening to me, and it’s even worse when that look is directed at me.
“Meg—” I start, but she interrupts me.
“Can it. He’s joining drama club, and you know it, don’t you? Your secret plot has been revealed.”
“There is no secret,” I assure her. “Please, just let it go?”
“No, we should totally join the drama club,” she says. “Trying new things is good. And it would give you the perfect excuse to talk to him.”
That makes me laugh. “Like he’d be interested in talking to me.”
She frowns at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
I shrug. “I’m kind of chubby and a bit boring and he is, like, really good-looking and probably has a million friends—”
“Okay, what does his number of friends have to do with anything?” she asks, confused. “And he’s a drama geek; they’re not exactly popular, either, are they?”
“He’s more popular than we are.”
“Sophia was in drama club,” Meg reminds me. “And she still dated me. For two years.”
“All right, but—”
“Also, you’re cute as a button,” she continues. “He’d be lucky to have you!”
“I’m not—”
“And since when are you boring? When have you ever been boring?”
“My idea of a perfect Friday night is rewatching Firefly and then reading until I fall asleep on the couch.”
“So?”
“I own not only a pair of Star Trek pajamas but also Batman pajamas.”
“Which are both awesome.”
“The Batman pajamas have a cape attached to them.”
“Even more awesome!”
“I actually like going to class.”
She groans and throws both hands up in frustration. “Because you actually like most things! You’re one of the most passionate and intelligent people I have ever met in my life—how is that a bad thing?”
I stare sullenly at my pasta that’s slowly getting cold and scowl just to prove her wrong, even if all the nice things she is saying about me just make me want to get up and hug her. “Meg, can you honestly see someone like him even looking at someone like me?”
NEED MORE DODGE COVE FUN FROM KATE EVANGELISTA? SEE HOW CALEB AND DIDI FIRST MET IN
And be on the lookout for Natasha and Jackson’s story in
COMING SOON!
