Jo’s Top 10 Romantic Comedies

I’m thrilled to welcome author Jo Richardson to the Power of 10 series. Today, Jo shares her favorite romantic comedies.

Here’s Jo!

I tease my husband from time to time (ahem) – because I really dig suspense and horror and he loooooooooves romantic comedies. But the truth is, I love them too. And the older I get, there are different things I love about them. I’ve adored so many over the years and dwindling this down to just 10 is difficult but in the end, I am giving you, my 40’s faves:

jo1
A swinger on the cusp of being a senior citizen with a taste for young women falls in love with an accomplished woman closer to his age.
Why it’s so great:

Jack Nicholson is brilliant at this role of a man who is used to seducing younger women but finds, surprisingly, that it’s Diane Keaton’s character he cannot live without. It reminded me of when he played “The Astronaut” in Terms of Endearment and that made me love him even more.


jo2When Harry Met Sally
Harry and Sally have known each other for years, and are very good friends, but they fear sex would ruin the friendship.
Why it’s so great:
Because “When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to begin as soon as possible.” – Cinched this story for me, made me laugh through tears and that is golden.


jo3He’s Just Not That Into You
The Baltimore-set movie of interconnecting story arcs deals with the challenges of reading or misreading human behavior.
Jenny Anniston, Ben Affleck, ….
Why it’s so great:
I enjoy movies like this one, where there are several couples’s stories that I’m getting. It’s crazy and fun and although I loved them all (ew, except for Bradley Coopers character), my favorite was Jennifer Anniston and Ben Afleck – the way those two came full circle did it for me. And when he went shopping and did the dishes for her family – heart squeezes.

jo4Life As We Know It
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1055292
Two single adults become caregivers to an orphaned girl when their mutual best friends die in an accident.
Why it’s so great:
Josh Duhamel was so flipping hilarious in this movie. I love watching him.



jo5PS I love You (because Gerard Butler)
A young widow discovers that her late husband has left her 10 messages intended to help ease her pain and start a new life.
Why it’s so great:
You mean, besides Gerard Butler?






jo6It’s Complicated
When attending their son’s college graduation, a couple reignite the spark in their relationship…but the complicated fact is they’re divorced and he’s remarried.
Why it’s so great:
The situation comedy and reactions from Steve Martin alone are worth it.



jo7The Proposal
A pushy boss forces her young assistant to marry her in order to keep her Visa status in the U.S. and avoid deportation to Canada.
Why it’s so great:
Dominate woman VS boy toy employee turned love at first fight? YES PLEASE.



jo8You’ve Got Mail
Two business rivals hate each other at the office but fall in love over the internet.
Why it’s so great:
Why isn’t it great? I cried so hard when Meg Ryan’s character had to give up her book store. I don’t know if I would have handled that any better. But the reveal of who her online chat buddy is, at the end, that is perfection.


thestoryofusThe Story of Us
Ben and Katie Jordan are a married couple who go through hard times in fifteen years of marriage.
Why it’s so great: I remember seeing this back in 1999 when it first came out. I didn’t like it that much back then. It was on cable a few weeks ago and I found myself watching it again with a whole new perspective. I bawled my eyes out at the end (and several places in between). Looking back now, I see that I couldn’t have appreciated this story for what it is, back then. I was still newly married, new to babies, new to everything really. Now, I get it. And I love it so much it’s on this list.

jo9This is 40
Pete and Debbie are both about to turn 40, their kids hate each other, both of their businesses are failing, they’re on the verge of losing their house, and their relationship is threatening to fall apart.
Why it’s so great:
OMG. So many moments where I’m going yup, yup, double yup. This couple totally nailed it with all the stress that comes along with being 40. Including money, parents, kids (and school!), and the ever elusive, alone time. Lots and lots of laugh out loud moments.

jo10Crazy, Stupid, Love
A middle-aged husband’s life changes dramatically when his wife asks him for a divorce. He seeks to rediscover his manhood with the help of a newfound friend, Jacob, learning to pick up girls at bars.
Why it’s so great:
I can’t begin to tell you how much I love this multi level, twists and turns, who’s in love with who now story. By the time you’re at the end and it all comes to a head (no pun intended) you are dying with amusement. Not a bad way to go, if I do say so myself. Plus I love how endearing a story can be, while making me laugh and cry at the same time. WIN.

Bio

jorichardsonA movie fanatic, a writer of stories, a lover of life.

Jo grew up in Maryland with four siblings, three parents and an endless number of cousins within the vicinity – but it was too cold up North for this thin blooded girl. So today, she lives in Florida with her two girls and a husband that shares her same sense of humor and basic take on life as we know it.

Life is too short to put dreams on the back burner.

Jo tells contemporary stories with paranormal, mystery, suspense, humor, action, romance, and anything else she can think up.
* * *

In 2012, she wrote Cursed be the Wicked, a character driven, paranormal mystery romance that was picked up by Soul Mate Publishing and released in March of 2014. Jo has also written a couple of short stories as well, and her most recent full length novel, Cookie Cutter, released through Little Bird Publishing in March of 2015, broke into the top 100 contemporary romantic fiction category on Amazon during its first week of publication.

When she’s not writing, Jo can usually be found spending quality time with her family and their furry animals.

Where to find Jo…

Website | Amazon | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

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Cover Reveal: Cookie Cutter

I’m thrilled to present the cover for Jo Richardson’s novel…

cookiecutter

Blurb

Iris Alden and Carter Blackwood couldn’t be more different. Change-averse Iris likes her life neat and organized, while Carter’s itchy feet mean he doesn’t plan to stay in the same place for long.

When Carter moves into the house across the street from Iris, to renovate it, she fights the disruption it causes in her life. Before long, though, it’s not simply the house Carter’s rebuilding, but Iris’s heart, too.

Teaser

“What are you doing here?”

It’s Carter freaking Blackwood. Of course.

He smiles that ridiculously bright, white smile of his and lets out a soft snicker. “I’m fixing a floor for a friend, what are you doing here?”

It’s completely obvious what I’m doing here, seeing as I’m carrying two huge trays of sugar cookies in my arms.

“A friend? You just moved in. How do you have friends already?” I say it a bit harsher than I probably should but honestly, how does he have friends already? James and I were here a good six months before people started really talking to me. It was a year before I could call any of them friends. The edges of Carter’s mouth turn down and his head dips to one side as his shoulders hunch then settle.

“People like me, I guess.”

The smug look on his face is enough to make me want to slap it. Or kiss it.

Wait. Not kiss it. I didn’t mean kiss it. Why am I staring at his lips?

“People who don’t want to kill me that is. Are you okay?”

I blink, and search my brain, but I’m still not quite sure what to say to him, so I extend my arms. “I brought cookies.” As soon as I say the words, I hear them. I sound ridiculous and Carter’s bright eyes crinkle with amusement.

He closes his lids and he breathes the baked goods in. Then hums. The sound of his voice sends a vibration through me and I shiver. I am eternally grateful that he doesn’t see it happen.

His eyes open slowly. When they reach mine, I’m glued to his stare like a deer in headlights.

“Those cookies smell really fucking good, Iris.”

The bedroom eyes catch me off guard and my mouth falls open so I snap it shut. I’m a buffoon with no ability to speak.

“Can I have one?” He reaches out and I balance the platter with one hand, then slap his fingers with the other while I find words. A word that is.

“No.”

“Ow.” He pulls his hand away, like a child getting reprimanded, only when we make eye contact again, he doesn’t seem child like to me.

I wouldn’t say he’s angry. He doesn’t exactly laugh, either. And his eyes gleam as he stares at me. I hate his eyes almost as much as I hate his teeth. Maybe more. Dammit, I’m staring, again.

“They’re for Ally’s class,” I tell him. “Fundraiser, I mean bake sale.” I fumble my words. He’s so frustrating.

goodreads

Other works by Jo

Cursed be the Wicked, a paranormal mystery romance, released March 2014 through Soul Mate Publishing

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Lost in Christmas, a short story included in Soul Mate Publishing’s 2013 Christmas anthology

Amazon | Goodreads

About Jo

jorichardsonA movie fanatic, a writer of stories, a lover of life.

Jo grew up in Maryland with four siblings, three parents and an endless number of cousins within the vicinity – but it was too cold up North for this thin blooded girl. So today, she lives in Florida with her two girls and a husband that shares her same sense of humor and basic take on life as we know it.

Life is too short to put dreams on the back burner.

Jo tells contemporary stories with romance, humor, the supernatural, the paranormal, suspense, mystery, action and anything else she can think up.

In 2012, she wrote Cursed be the Wicked, a character driven, paranormal mystery romance that was picked up by Soul Mate Publishing and released in March of 2014. Since then, Jo has also written a couple of short stories and her recently contracted contemporary romantic comedy, entitled Cookie Cutter, is set to release on March 23, 2015 through Little Bird Publishing.

Where to find Jo…

Website | Amazon | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Release Date: March 23, 2015

Cover Reveal–Cursed be the Wicked

I’m happy to present the cover for Jo Richardson’s debut novel…

Cursed be the Wicked final

Synopsis

Cooper Shaw lives his life under a pen name and enjoys the anonymity it provides during his journeys across the globe as a seasoned writer for a travel magazine. When his job lands him in his hometown of Salem, Massachusetts to cover the famous Festival of the Dead, he soon realizes that he can’t stay invisible forever as he faces ghosts from a past he’s been trying to forget ever since he left.

The city holds nothing but bad memories for Coop until he meets a quirky young woman with an old soul and curious insights by the name of Finnley Pierce. While she acts as his tour guide through a town he thought he knew, Finn helps him unearth the truth of his childhood and might even begin to open up his heart.

By unraveling the mystery of his father’s murder, Coop may finally accept who he is, where he came from, and perhaps even realize what he wants for his future.

Bio

jorichardson

A writer of stories and lover of life.

Jo grew up in Maryland with four siblings, three parents and an endless number of cousins within the vicinity. Today she lives in Florida with her two girls and a husband that shares her same sense of humor and basic take on life as we know it.

Life is too short to put dreams on the back burner.

She’s always loved writing, so in her spare time, she wrote a novel that’s been picked up by the good people at Soul Mate.

Where to find Jo…

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2014