the heartfelt formula | excerpt + giveaway

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about the book

After another breakup, Atlanta attorney Hope Elliot decides to stop waiting for her happily-ever-after and write it herself. Inspired by her beloved Christmas romance movies, Hope crafts The Heartfelt Formula: a foolproof plan including snowball fights, cookie baking, and a perfectly timed first kiss.

Trading the big city for coastal Georgia, Hope sets out to find her small-town soulmate. But the actors in her carefully plotted scenes keep shuffling—especially when Brennan Taylor, her ambitious co-counsel continues to fill in for Cole Walker, the carefree furniture maker, who Hope cast as her hero.

Between courtroom drama, a mismatched leading man, and a mistletoe mishap, Hope must decide if she’ll trust her formula or accept a plot twist that might leave her all alone, or perhaps, with the happiest ending of all.

A faith-filled romantic comedy for anyone who believes love, like Christmas, can still surprise you.

publisher: lanier price publishing

release date: october 22, 2026

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excerpt

Increasingly when I was with Brennan, pricks of joy penetrated my resolve like the Lite-Brite toy I’d played with as a kid. As each colored peg pierced the black paper, light seeped through, creating a pretty picture of Brennan and me. That pretty picture was supposed to be with Cole. Still, Brennan was the one sacrificing his time.

“I’ll admit that we made the best of what could’ve been a lost cause, and I had a smidge of fun in the snow,” I acquiesced.

“If you giggle and play like that when you’re only having a smidge of fun, I can’t imagine what you’re like when you’re actually having fun.”

“It doesn’t matter what level of fun I had. Enjoyment isn’t the goal, and our frolic in the snow wasn’t in my script—”

“Not in the one you wrote, anyway.” With a long stride, Brennan moved between me and the building, stopping my steps. As he peered into my eyes, a cord of tension gripped us, tightening with every second. If these moments kept happening, the cord was bound to snap, and then what?

Brennan closed his eyes, reducing the strain, but then he opened them, glaring. “Maybe it’s time to let go of the formula . . . give up control, and simply see what happens? If you’re meant to be with Cole, it shouldn’t take this much manipulation.”

“Keep your voice down. You’ll ruin everything.” I scanned the area.

“I’ll take that as a no. Hope, at some point, you’ll have to tell him the truth.”

“When he’s ready—when we’re ready, I’ll tell him.” I squeezed around Brennan and pushed open the door. “It doesn’t matter anyway. This was the only scene left, and he’s not here.”

“But I am . . . again.”

What was he saying? And why was he saying it now? It didn’t matter, because I wouldn’t risk everything I’d planned and worked for arguing with him when someone would likely overhear us.

about the author

PW Best-Selling Author Leslie Kirby DeVooght writes women’s fiction inspired by romcoms, coastal Georgia, and fried okra! While Leslie and her family live in Jacksonville, Florida, they often visit her hometown of St. Simons Island, Georgia, where she loves to go for long walks on the beach. A graduate of Florida Southern College and Mercer Law School, Leslie is always revising her life from prosecutor to judge to PTA president to author of happily-ever-afters.

Connect with Leslie by visiting lesliedevooght.com to follow her on social media and subscribe to email newsletter updates.

giveaway

(2) winners will each receive a Coastal Christmas ornament, plus signed copies of Taking a Second Shot, Stealing Magnolias, and The Heartfelt Formula!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight October 21, 2026 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on October 28, 2026. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

tour schedule

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