Jo Ramsey is here today to promote her new release, Midnight Chat. See our review here!
Best Intentions
There’s an old saying, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” I’m not sure how true that is, but sometimes the best of intentions can definitely go wrong.
That can be especially true if you’re trying to do something for someone else. You might believe you know what’s best for them, or what they want or need, but you aren’t necessarily correct. If you haven’t asked them, you don’t really know. You’re just guessing, and that might lead to hurt feelings or even to the end of a friendship if you’re wrong.
At the same time, it isn’t always easy to ask someone how you can help them. If you suspect that they don’t believe they need help, or might be offended by you asking, you might consider it better to simply do what you think is right for them. Another old saying: “It’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.”
But when it comes to intervening in someone else’s life, that quote doesn’t always hold true. People sometimes don’t take well to having someone else interfering. They might be handling things just fine on their own. Or maybe they don’t think there’s anything they need to handle. Even if you disagree, it’s their choice how to live their life, unless someone is actually in danger.
That’s when good intentions can become a bit blurred. If you know a friend is being harmed or might be, or they are harming or might harm someone else, you absolutely want to step in to help. And in those cases, you might not be able to ask whether they need help or what you can do for them. You might have to just step in and do what you can, even if it does mean losing a friend.
In my novel Midnight Chat, that’s a dilemma facing main character Mira MacDonald. Her best friend Rob Stevens is obviously struggling. He’s badly bullied, he’s showing signs of depression, and he’s made comments to Mira that imply he’s considering drastic action to change things. She doesn’t know whether she can help in any way other than continuing to listen to him, and she isn’t sure going behind his back is a good idea.
Her girlfriend Talia, though, completely believes that going behind Rob’s back to get help for him is the right thing to do. When Mira disagrees with Talia’s plan to talk to the school counselor without first consulting Rob, Talia goes anyway. Rob blames Mira and the friendship almost ends; Mira is furious with Talia and breaks up with her.
Did Talia do the right thing? That’s open for debate. And you can find out in the book how things turn out.
Blurb
For the past two years, since meeting in ninth grade, Mira MacDonald and Rob Stevens have been inseparable best friends. Rob’s struggles with depression, and his reliance on Mira, sometimes make the friendship difficult for Mira, but she wants to support Rob. Especially since he’s the victim of severe bullying at school due to his sexuality. Even though Rob isn’t out, he is gay, and the suspicion is enough for some people to torment him.
Now Mira has her first girlfriend, Talia Acevedo, and Rob’s jealousy is becoming even more of a problem. Rob insists that Talia doesn’t like him and is trying to break up their friendship. Mira tries to stay neutral, but it isn’t easy when Rob’s obsession with her escalates—along with his anger as the harassment gets worse.
One night, during one of their typical midnight text sessions, Rob tells Mira he’s decided to take drastic action at school to stop the bullying once and for all. And if she tries to stop him or tells anyone else, she’ll be first on his target list.
Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson
Midnight Chat is available from Harmony Ink Press, https://www.harmonyinkpress.com/books/midnight-chat-by-jo-ramsey-448-b.
Find out more about Jo Ramsey and her books on her website, http://www.joramsey.com; her Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/JoRamseyAuthor; her Twitter, http://www.twitter.com/JoRamseyYA; Tumblr, http://www.joramseyya.tumblr.com; and the Real Life Rising YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeeZBAEzSDIdPf7RS7iNQAQ.
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