Cherish by A.J. Llewellyn

They say these days that everything old is new again and that is very true of the humble Mixed Tape, which had its heyday in the 1980's and began to dwindle in the 90's with the phasing out of cassette tapes.

I've hung onto mine the way uncle hoarded his 8 Tracks. I've never actually heard him play them, but he still keeps them mounted on his wall above his fish tanks.

The two of us bonded early over vinyl. We've clung to our records, which have seen a huge resurgence in the last few years. What I was able to snap up for actual pennies at yard sales and swap meets now goes for up to a hundred bucks on eBay.

So it should be no surprise that the Mixed Tape has made a comeback.

I have a Mixed Tape that has traveled the world with me.

I have rarely played it, a) because the song Cherish is like poison spikes that cannot be removed from your brain once you play it and b) I am deathly afraid of breaking it, just like all my other cassettes have started to snap and tear.

Cherish.

Yep. I do actually cherish this gift from a man I once loved. And never dated. It was one of those loves that is special probably because it never got a chance. The imagination is one of the great gifts of life. You always get to think, "What if…?"

Dean, the man who made this tape for me was a very special person. I will never forget him. Looking back, it was an incredible gift, even if I don't actually love half the songs on the tape, his took his time, with no agenda, to share his favorite tunes with me.

I cherish the love he put into this. The time he took to record each song and the lenghts he went to in finding a red cassette tape cover because he knew it was one of my favorite colors.

"It's the color of love," he said. And so it is.

I will always hold onto this tape and play it in my head, because yes, Cherish is on automatic rewind in my mind.

When I decided to take part in the PAX Music anthology, I knew I wanted to write about Mixed Tapes. Funny how they are still called that but they are made on CD's these days.

You watch, the cassette will make a comeback next.

With Cherish the title and the inspiration, I came up with a story based on a former part of my life when I was a theatrical agent. The stories in this book are true but the names are changed to protect the truly crazy.

Here is the synopsis for Cherish:

When Hollywood theatrical agent Daren Marlowe celebrates his thirtieth birthday with friends, he’s more than surprised when his best friend gives him a CD that is a revamp of the old 80s’ mixed tape. He’s even more surprised when he realizes it’s a re-gifted mixed tape. The first song on the CD is the syrupy Kool and the Gang classic, “Cherish.” When Daren takes it home, he has no plans to look at the CD again, let alone play it, but his new lover, Rafael, puts it on the sound system.

Daren gets to Cherish the love over and over and over again because the darned thing is stuck. Forced to close off the sound system entirely, he frets over being held hostage by the song and he’s not wrong. In a bizarre set of circumstances, Richard is assaulted and almost dies. Will he survive? Can Daren actually forge a viable relationship with the sexy and hypnotic Rafael—for as long as they both shall live—in a town where the men don’t always cherish their men?

You can find out more including a juicy excerpt here: http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/Cherish.html

Cherish the love - today!

Aloha oe,

A.J.

www.ajllewellyn.com
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