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Men Under the Mistletoe – Christmas Yet To Come

Josh_Lanyon | December 7th, 2011

If you’ve already read the stories in Men Under the Mistletoe, you know that there are happy endings ahead for some lovely lads this year. But what about next year? Will the magic of Christmas last or will it melt away with the spring and the return to regular life? We thought it would be fun to take a peek at what our characters are doing come next holiday season.


Harper Fox:
It’s great to be part of Carina’s M/M holiday anthology again this year, and I loved writing my contribution, Winter Knights. My first topic for today’s blog – where will your heroes be this time next year – is an interesting one for me, because it sends me deep into “what happens after happy-ever-after” territory, and I really like that. It kills me to part with my protags at the end of a novel, and I welcome the chance of a speculative return visit! And I’ve got a little competition challenge for you too, details at the end of this post.

Gavin and Piers got their HEA after a short but very intense struggle. They’d been together for three years at the opening of Winter Knights. Gavin had created a world in his head where everything was okay in their relationship, and it took the shock of Piers breaking up with him to make him re-evaluate. So I left them at the end of the story passionately reconciled, but with a whole world of loving work to do. They were definitely just at the end of their beginning.

Christmas 2012 sees Gavin and Piers again in the snow up near Hadrian’s Wall. They won’t be staying in the dreadful backpacker’s hostel this time – no need for that; Gavin’s new theories in Arthurian folklore will be selling his latest book like hot cakes, and as for Piers, his compassionate nature and struggles with his own religious beliefs will have led him to a counselling post at a Catholic seminary. So materially they’re flourishing, and as far as their romance goes, they’re about as close as two such wildly different men can get. I reckon they’ll have spent a whole year arguing, adoring one another, having hot sex with and without the aid of love beads, and sitting up all night in ferocious debate about all those issues they kept locked up for their first three years. So they’ll have taken a room in a really nice Northumbrian hotel, and I’m not at all sure I’d want the room next door.

This year they’re doing the full romantic thing, and it’s Piers who’s fearlessly booked the double room and given stare for bold stare to the desk clerk who might have liked to make something of it. (You’d think there’d be no need in this day and age, but sadly around here you’d still get the odd surprise.) It’s an important anniversary for him and Gav. They’re getting everything right they got wrong before, and Gavin is on a pilgrimage. Last year at this time something extraordinary happened to him up here among these hills. He found out the benefits of having a man of faith as a partner when Piers believed unquestioningly in him, but all through this past year he’s thought about his encounter with the ghosts of Hallow Hill. And Piers has suggested that they walk up onto Sewingshields Crag late at night on Christmas Eve, just to see what will happen.

Nothing does, of course. They’re a bit shamefaced, wandering about through the snowdrifts, looking for an entrance into a magical cavern in the earth. But at least they’re together this time, and properly equipped with food and a nice hipflask. They find a sheltered spot among the rocks and one thing leads to another, as it generally does with these two extended honeymooners. They curl up together and talk for hours, about everything they’ve been through, Gavin’s fears about a recurrence of illness, the prospect of maybe one day adopting a kid. It’s a magical night, but only in a very earthly, human way, and Gavin is certain that the double set of hoof prints he sees freshly made in the snow on the way back to their hotel is probably only a pair of riders out to enjoy the Christmas dawn. Probably…

So, about this competition! Gavin didn’t do too well with his Christmas gift to Piers in Winter Knights. An engagement ring and a sex toy sent mixed messages, I would say. Do you reckon he did any better the year after? What do you think the long-suffering, lovely Piers should get in 2012? It would be my pleasure to send an ebook from my backlist – Life After Joe, Driftwood, The Salisbury Key, Nine Lights Over Edinburgh, Last Line, A Midwinter Prince or Winter Knights – to anyone who comes up with the best idea, and these will be judged on… er… the one I like best. Whichever makes me smile most, or touches me, or makes me snort with laughter. Further, I faithfully promise that if I ever write a sequel to Winter Knights, and I’d love to do it, I will include your suggestion!

I’m sure you’ll love reading about what the guys from Josh, Ava and KA’s books will be up to this time next year, so check out our other great Men Under The Mistletoe holiday anthology blogs, and all the best for a wonderful festive season to you all.

KA Mitchell:

“A Really Late Epiphany”

A cup of Kona coffee steamed on the table on the balcony, the rising sun turned the waves into a million diamonds, and Bryce’s arms slid around my waist as he rested his chin on my shoulder. It was a perfect morning. Beautiful. My schedule for the day consisted of tanning, brunch, a surfing lesson and a Catamaran cruise. And my stomach had more knots than a third grader’s attempt at a macramé snowman because it was so horribly wrong it was for December twenty-third.

“So. Your first Christmas off. What do you think?” Bryce stepped away, slurping his own coffee.

A year ago, I would have sworn I’d give anything to find myself somewhere but the tiny Pennsylvania valley that held my family’s tree farm. In fact, last year I’d had my whole escape to St. Thomas planned out. But I couldn’t seem to get in the spirit of Mele Kalikimaka, despite the battery operated Christmas lights Bryce had hung on the headboard in our suite at the Kahala Resort. It was just wrong.

I turned away from the sparkling ocean and sand, thinking of the frozen slush I’d be facing at home and pasted on a smile. “It’s amazing. Thank you.”

Bryce smiled back, then stared like he was reading the thought bubble he always claimed popped up over my head. He sighed, shaking his head. “I’ll call the airline and get us a flight back. You realize we’ll probably end up snowed in in Chicago.”

“I love you, too.”


Josh Lanyon:
When we last left Web and Mitch in Lone Star, Mitch had a decision to make regarding the guest artist role with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal. Web isn’t sure they can survive a long distance relationship. It’s never an easy situation, and to compound matters, Mitch is both highly ambitious and at the peak of his career. It’s a lot to ask someone to give up everything they’ve worked for.

Mitch admits he’s not sure a long distance relationship is a great idea either, but he badly wants the role of the Swan in Bourne’s Swan Lake. In any case, he can’t just up and quit, he has a contract with American Ballet Theater and he doesn’t want to jeopardize his entire future in ballet — nor does Web want him to. They’re both trying to be very logical but, having lost ten years, the idea of further separation is excruciating. They go back and forth, but in the end Mitch decides to take the guest artist role in Canada and he flies back to New York on New Year’s Day.

But this time it’s different. They’re not boys, they’re men and they’ve both learned the hard way that a healthy relationship takes work. Work as in patience, understanding, and commitment. They talk every night on the phone, no matter how late. And when spring comes and Mitch is dancing with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, Web takes his vacation and spends his two weeks in Montreal.

By the time December rolls around again, Mitch has packed up his New York brownstone, and negotiated his way out of his ABT contract. He’s agreed to act as lead instructor and liaison for the summer training course held by ABT in conjunction with the University of Texas in Austin. And he’s joined Austin Ballet Company as a principle dancer. He dances in the Nutcracker all season to great acclaim and sold out audiences. There’s something to be said for being a big fish in a little pond.

Meanwhile Web has moved out of the family homestead and into the Evans’ ranch and when he’s not working, he’s overseeing the renovations he and Mitchell have planned which include a dance studio for Mitch.

There are no performances scheduled on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Mitch and Web spend Christmas Eve with Web’s folks, but Christmas Day is spent together on their own. They sleep late, have breakfast in bed, sleep some more, and then finally **open presents beside their first Christmas tree. Later they prepare their Christmas feast together and both eat until they’re ready to explode. In the evening they take a long walk beneath the frosty bright stars, and when the wind rustles the brush, Web reminds Mitchell about the reindeer he thought he saw the previous year. Their laughter turns to kisses and they return to the house, holding hands and still smiling.

(**In the comment section tell me what presents Mitch and Web gave each other Christmas morning, and whoever I pick as coming up with my absolute favorite choice may pick any ebook from my backlist.)

Ava March:

With My True Love Gave to Me, it feels rather odd to think of a Christmas yet-to-come. Thomas and Alexander’s next Christmas is almost two hundred years ago, but to them, 1823 is ‘next Christmas’. Since it’s the past for us, I can tell you exactly how they spent their holiday as it’s already happened (the space-time continuum aside, I can also impart this little bit of info because, well, I’m their author and therefore their next Christmas went exactly how I say it went…or will go, depending on how you look at it).

Last Christmas, Thomas replaced Alexander’s dark memories of the holidays with a new one filled with hope and love. And next Christmas Eve, they go back to the place where the pain and heartbreak began, back to Alexander’s father’s hunting lodge in the country. A night together, a morning together, and a simple Christmas dinner. Just the two of them. And Christmas becomes Alexander’s favorite time of year.

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Posted in Authors, Behind the Scenes, Books, Carina Press, Contest/Giveaway | 18 Comments »

A Good Knight is Hard to Find

Ruth_Casie | November 15th, 2011

Heroes, they’re the stuff that dreams are made of. In the 1980’s all a  hero had to do was be handsome and chase the virginal heroine around in order to end up with a happily ever after. Readers wanted a man that displayed great courage and even perhaps made a personal sacrifice for the greater good in the face of danger, adversity, or a position of weakness. Isn’t that what heroism is all about?

Thirty years later, the heroism factor hasn’t changed but the hero certainly has. Romance readers want a man of today with true emotions and vulnerabilities. Many readers don’t care if he looks like PhotobucketPaul Giamatti or Gerard Butler. Handsome doesn’t always translate into muscular or even gorgeous. Maybe it’s his smoldering eyes (sex still sells) or his heart-stopping smirk when his heroine’s intelligence shines (he’ll let the reader know but he won’t tell her until page 300). It can be almost anything. Most of all readers want insight into a sensitive man who needs to work out his own emotions in order to get his prize. It’s how he faces and eventually resolves his internal conflict that keeps them reading.

Heroes can be swash-buckling, debonair, unassuming, and even unlikely. They don’t necessarily have to be handsome with perfectly developed bodies, although for me that is still a plus *cheesy smile*. Readers want to cheer on the hero who struggles through his emotional quest, emerges enlightened, and wins the girl.

For my story I went back to the 17th century and wrote about a knight, Lord Arik, an alpha male who saves damsels in distress. What would happen when he met Rebeka, a heroine who is competent, intelligent, and capable of fending for herself – a woman from the 21st century? It was great fun writing how he reacted and interacted with her. He’s a hero after my own heart.

Who is your ideal hero?

To celebrate the release of KNIGHT OF RUNES, I’m giving away a journal to write your own story. I’ll pick one random winner from anyone who writes a comment about their favorite hero or legend.


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Posted in Authors, Books, Carina Press, Contest/Giveaway, Cover Art | 12 Comments »

A Love Affair With Cornwall

Alix_Rickloff | November 2nd, 2011

PhotobucketCornwall. The southwest bit of England that juts out into the Atlantic. Bound by tradition and folklore to those other Celtic refuges—Wales, Brittany, Ireland, the Scottish Highlands.

King Arthur’s birthplace. Home to doomed lovers Tristan and Isolde. The fabled land of Lyonesse  lying beneath the waves off St. Michaels Mount. Stories of Jack the Giant Killer, knockers residing within the dark tunnels of tin mines, and winged piskies thick on the ground as the heather. These fireside tales alongside the wild, and potentially sinister reality of smugglers, wreckers, and revenuers combine to make Cornwall perfect for a writer’s wild imaginings.

PhotobucketI’ve always had a love affair with Cornwall. Ever since I discovered my family’s connection to this mystical corner of England. One ancestor from St. Michael Penkevil fought as a knight during the Wars of the Roses when the houses of York and Lancaster struggled for the English throne. I spent my childhood imagining Sir John riding off to battle, banners snapping, armor gleaming. His wife watching from an upper window, fear and worry for the man she loved clouding her heart. Did he ally himself with the Duke of Buckingham during his ill-fated rebellion or did he fight for Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth? What did he think when he heard about the death of the little princes in the Tower?

According to family lore, another Cornish ancestor—and another John—fought for Charles I’s cavaliers during the English Civil War and had to flee the country after the king’s death. Did he stand at his ship’s railing, looking back on the rocky cliffs and scattered seaside villages of his home with sorrow and bitterness, wondering what awaited him across the ocean? Did he and his wife comfort each other as they embarked on a journey to a new life, their love sustaining them through the tumultuous upheaval of exile?

See what I mean? I can’t stop myself.
And don’t want to.

PhotobucketI’ve taken this fascination with the legends and history of Cornwall, blended it with my ability to “what-if” and turned it into grist for my writer’s mill. DANGEROUS MAGIC opens in a tiny village on the Cornish coast. A place where the area’s mystical past reaches out to affect the Regency present. Gwenyth Killigrew is the embodiment of these Celtic roots with her gift of Sight and her honoring of the old ways. Rafe is a child of the Regency. A naval veteran of the Napoleonic wars and now a smuggler running the British blockade of France to bring contraband cargo ashore among Cornwall’s dark beaches and forested inlets. When the two strike an unusual bargain, their worlds collide and passion ignites.

PhotobucketAs I wrote the book, I used the striking landscape and the traditional legends to create a world both recognizable and extraordinary. I drew on research and my own travel experiences to paint a picture of a beautiful, magical place. A place of family history. A place where anything might happen. And where my “what-if” can and does run rampant.

To celebrate the release of DANGEROUS MAGIC, I’m giving away a Cornwall-inspired 2012 calendar. I’ll pick one random winner from anyone who writes in with their favorite family legend—any story repeated from grandparents to grandchildren down through the years. Any ancestor who inspires you to indulge your what-if. Or any place you hold dear because it means family and lineage and a connection to your roots.

A writer of historical-paranormal romance, Alix Rickloff creates a compelling world of magic and enchantment set during the British Regency period. Her books have been described as “sexy and intense”, “exciting and spellbinding” and “a universe you won’t ever wish to leave”. You can visit her at www.AlixRickloff.com, www.facebook.com/pages/Alix-Rickloff/101434889914147 or www.blameitonthemuse.com.

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Posted in Authors, Books, Carina Press, Contest/Giveaway | 13 Comments »

A Scandalous Proposition

Wendy_Soliman | September 13th, 2011

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What is it about men in tight-fitting breeches that’s so compelling? Okay, that was a rhetorical question and one that’s probably best not explored in exacting detail on this forum.

Hum, let’s start again. Call me a tart but I dream up heroes for my Regencies before turning my mind to his female counterpart. Well, there has to be some perks to being a writer! I think about his…er, physical attributes, his line of work, his place in Regency society, his integrity— that kind of stuff. I need to know what makes him tick and what hang-ups he has so I can invent difficulties that keep him from the heroine’s tender clutches.

A Scandalous Proposition is set in the middle of the Napoleonic Wars so it wasn’t unreasonable to have a soldier as a hero. Don’t know about you but whenever I think of those damned wars, images of Sean Bean, dressed in his dusty uniform of the 95th Rifles, springs to mind. (Pauses to fan herself). Once I got that picture in my brain it wouldn’t shift so I knew there was nothing else for it, my hero had to be an officer in that same regiment.

I like my romances mixed up with lots of intrigue, complications and even the odd murder, all of which you’ll find in A Scandalous Proposition. Major Lord Adam Fitzroy of you-know-which regiment gets involved with a Spanish émigré, (cue our heroine Florentina), who acts as companion to his mother, the Dowager Duchess of Southsea, and appears to have links to the local house of ill repute. Whilst wrestling with that delicate issue Adam also has to face his ex-intended, who’d calmly got herself hitched to his brother the duke whilst Adam was away fighting for king and county. Undeterred by the change in her marital status, she seems to think that she and Adam can pick up where they left off. What a floosie! Florentina doesn’t help matters by being far more complex than he’d realised, mixed up in all sorts of daring exploits that lead to those intriguing complications I mentioned earlier.

And that’s all I’m telling you, other than to say that whipped cream and strawberries come into the book! Want to know more? Go to my website at http://www.wendysoliman.com where you can read the first chapter. Enter the contest I’m running there and you stand a chance of winning a copy of the book.

Good luck!

Wendy Soliman was brought up on the Isle of Wight in Southern England where a plethora historic buildings littering the landscape spawned her love of bygone times. She lives with her husband and a rescued dog of indeterminate pedigree and divides her time between Andorra and the west coast of Florida.

Visit her website at http://www.wendysoliman.com
You can find her blog here: http://wendysoliman.blogspot.com/
Follow her on twitter: @wendyswriter
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/wendy.soliman.author?ref=ts

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Posted in Carina Press | 11 Comments »

Kilts, Brogues and Man Boobs – Oh, My!

Julie_Moffett | August 3rd, 2011

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I love Scotland. I adore the beautiful countryside, the rolling hills and the gorgeous castles scattered about the land. The people are friendly and will often offer a pint or two if you join them at the pub for a wee bit of conversation. But most of all, I love men in kilts and absolutely swoon at the Scottish brogue. For some reason it just totally works for me. A a result, I’ve written eight books that are either entirely set in Scotland or feature Scottish characters.

In my current Carina Press release, a historical romance titled HER KILT-CLAD ROGUE, my hero, Connor Douglas, is a combination of many things I like about Scotland. He’s a Scottish rogue with a wounded heart, lives in a castle near the sea and, of course, wears a kilt during the course of the story. On the cover, his bulging biceps are complimented by sexy and muscular man boobs. Wow! What more could a girl ask for? Connor has summoned the love of his life, an Englishwoman named Genevieve Fitzsimmons, to the castle to serve as a governess to his son. Unfortunately things are complicated. He left Genevieve years ago when he was maneuvered into an arranged marriage. She’s not feeling charitable toward him and has agreed to come only because of the death of her grandfather has left her in dire financial straights. Will Connor be able to convince her to believe in the magic of love again? I hope you’ll enjoy their journey.

So, have you ever been to Scotland? If so, what did you like best about it? If not, where is the one place that seems to tug on your heartstrings?

Here’s an excerpt from HER KILT-CLAD ROGUE:

“Christina Douglas.” The words came out like a revered whisper. “The resemblance is remarkable.”

Genevieve offered a small curtsey. “Mrs. MacDougal said you requested it. Given that we had little time to make a costume, I agreed this was a suitable choice.”

“Aye, I’m pleased that ye saw fit to indulge me. May I request the pleasure o’ this dance?”

“Now? But what about your guests downstairs?”

Connor grinned, his teeth flashing white. “Ewan, go on down to the ball and take my place temporarily as host, would ye, lad? Miss Fitzsimmons and I will join ye in a minute. I’d have her instruct me in a dance step or two.”

“Ye want me to host?” Ewan could barely contain his excitement. “Aye, da, I can do that.” He darted down into the corridor, presumably before his father changed his mind.

“He’s a good lad.” Connor turned to Genevieve and bowed. “Shall we begin, my lady?”

Genevieve nodded, trying to still the hammering of her heart. Connor held out his arm and she took it. He slid his warm hand down her arm, leaving a trail of fire before linking fingers with her. Together they began to dance, perfectly in step with each other. After a few minutes, Genevieve spoke.

“It’s clear you don’t need any instruction.”

“‘Tis only because I have an excellent partner.” He had a bit of the devil in his blue eyes.

She couldn’t help but smile. “You are quite incorrigible. And you do realize that wearing the kilt is illegal. The King has decreed it so.”

“Really?” Connor expressed mock surprise, pressing his palm expertly against hers and stepped forward. “And are ye intending to enforce the king’s decree?”

“Of course, not. But aren’t you worried that word of this will get back to the king?”

“Are ye?”

“Certainly, I am. You are my employer after all. If you are led to the gaol, who will pay my stipend?”

His warm fingers gripped hers as they stepped side by side. An air of command exuded from him, reminding her of just how powerful and virile he was. “Is that all that concerns ye? Your stipend?”

“I would worry for the effect it would have on Ewan, of course.”

He laughed. “Ye worry for naught. ‘Tis just a costume.”

She frowned. “A costume? And just who are you supposed to be?”

“Why Black Gavin, o’ course. If ‘tis necessary, I’ll remind the English that he was the one and only Douglas loyal to the crown.”

Genevieve stopped dancing. “You’re dressed as Black Gavin?”

In one forward motion, he pulled her into his arms. This was not part of the dance. “Aye, and for tonight at least, it appears ye are my wife.” His breath felt hot against her ear. “What say ye o’ that, Genevieve?”

Buy Her Kilt-Clad Rogue

Julie’s other Carina Press novels:

Buy NO ONE TO TRUST

Buy NO ONE TO TRUST (audio book)

Buy NO ONE LIVES TWICE

Buy NO ONE LIVES TWICE (audio book)

Julie Moffett is a bestselling author and writes in the genres of historical romance, paranormal romance and mystery. She has won numerous awards, including the prestigious PRISM Award for Best Romantic Time-Travel and Best of the Best Paranormal Books of 2002. She has also garnered several nominations for the Daphne du Maurier Award and the Holt Medallion.

Feel free to keep up with her at the following social media outlets:

Twitter
Facebook
eHarlequin
Julie’s website
Julie’s blog

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Posted in Carina Press | 19 Comments »

Voices from the Past

Leah Braemel | June 14th, 2011

I hear voices. They keep me awake at night, telling me stories, or telling me what I got wrong when I wrote their stories earlier that day. Occasionally they don’t wait for me to go to bed.

When I started writing Texas Tangle I had no plans to write a historical about Dillon’s great-great grandparents. But then I wrote a scene where Dillon’s grandmother planted the idea for Nikki, Dillon and Brett to consider turning their relationship into a permanent one. Grandma Barnett was a hoot to write. Strong willed, outspoken, she’s not exactly subtle, especially when she picks up on the vibes between Nikki, Dillon and Brett:

She leaned toward Nikki as if she was going to whisper a secret, but didn’t lower her voice. “My grandparents had a permanent threesome all their adult lives. Betcha Dillon never told you that before.”

Um, gee, Grandma, way to spring another Texas-sized plot bunny on me (have you seen the size of the rabbits in Texas? They’re HUGE compared to the ones we have up here in Canada.) Sure enough, that line stuck with me and soon the voices of Dillon’s great-great-grandparents, Jackson, Nate and Sarah started bugging me to write their story.

“But it’s a historical,”  I whined to them. “Texas Tangle is a contemporary; my reader’s won’t want to jump back 130 years into the past.”

Turned out the three of them were as stubborn as their granddaughter and didn’t stop nagging me until I gave in:

“Danged devil’s rope.” Jackson Kellar checked the stallion’s withers where the barbed wire had nicked it. “It ain’t too bad though, Nate. Shouldn’t be a problem for the trip back home, less it festers.”

“Good. McLeod was right about this fellow being high-spirited. It should be a treat to ride him.” Nate ran a hand down the horse’s neck and crooned softly until it gentled. Nate had mighty talented hands when it came to soothing the beasts. Or any other animals he came across.

Jackson included himself on that list.

As soon as I wrote those first three paragraphs,  I realized Grandma Barnett didn’t know the whole story about her grandparents’ relationship. Sure enough, a couple pages later that suspicion was confirmed when Jackson had the following thought:

Ah, well, he knew it was too good to last. Besides, it was probably better if Nate did take a wife. Their relationship was downright dangerous. A woman in the house would put any rumors to rest. Of course, he’d have to find somewhere else to live if Nate wedded.

Oh boy, yes, this was a story I had to tell. Of course that meant researching 1880s Texas as well as tackling how a woman back in those days would view finding herself legally married to a man in love with another man.

“Come on, Nate. You gotta fight this.” The tenderness in his voice brought tears to Sarah’s eyes. Especially when he leaned over the still figure on the bed, putting his mouth next to Nate’s ear. “You can’t leave me. Don’t die on me, you hear?”

She could barely hear Nate’s rasped response. “You’ve got Sarah now. You won’t be alone.”

“Damn it, you can’t die. I love you.” Jackson gathered Nate into his arms, cradling him like a child.

Sarah had to step back and rest her head against the hall wall, fighting the tears burning tracks down her cheeks. How she’d long to hear him say those words to her. If he could love Nate, maybe one day he’d come to love her too. Or was it even possible for a man who loved his friend that way to love a woman?

I fleshed out the first couple chapters of Tangled Past and submitted a proposal to my Carina Press editor Rhonda Stapleton. Normally you’re supposed to wait until the publisher comes back with a thumbs up or thumbs down before you write any more. (That’s because it’s no use wasting weeks or months writing something that’s going to be rejected.) But Jackson, Sarah and Nate demanded I not wait for a contract, that I tell the whole story of their tangled relationship.  So I continued to write, torturing them and teasing them, sometimes chuckling and sometimes crying as I wrote each scene. By the time my editor emailed me to say that Carina would be acquiring Tangled Past, I’d fallen in love with them as they fell in love with each other.  Now it’s finally out for you to read, I hope you’ll fall in love with them too. Now if all their descendents would just stop shouting at me to tell their stories too…danged voices…

Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of two sons, Leah Braemel is the only woman in a houseful of men—even their cat Spike is male. Shoving her writing in the closet while she raised her family, she gained some varied and interesting insights while working with former military alpha males in the security industry  and later teaching computers to women escaping abusive relationships. Now a full-time writer, Leah loves tormenting her heroes and heroines before rewarding them with a happy-ever-after. If you want to know more about Leah or her other books, visit her website. You can also find Leah on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.

By the way, because it takes place 130 years prior to Texas Tangle, you don’t have to have read one to understand the other but so you can read Grandma Barnett and the infamous dinner scene that inspired Tangled Past, I’m giving away a copy of Texas Tangle to a random commenter today. Just let me know if you normally read strictly historicals or contempories or if it depends upon the story…

*****

Tangled Past CoverForced to marry a man she just met, Sarah McLeod clings to the hope that she’ll finally find the love and acceptance she’s always craved. But her tenuous dreams of a happy life on the frontier are in danger of being dashed by the one thing she can’t change—her husband’s love for another man.

Jackson Kellar’s determined to do right by his bride, yet he’s torn between his newfound love for Sarah and his still-burning desire for Nate.

Ranch owner Nate Campbell loves them both. He hates to see Jackson’s loyalties so divided, and doesn’t want Sarah hurt either. But how can they fix the tangled mess they find themselves in? Nate suggests a possible solution – a permanent threesome.

With the open frontier closing in around them, is Nate’s solution their path to happiness? Or will others destroy what they’ve found together?

Tangled Past – now available from Carina Press

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Posted in Authors, Books, Carina Press, Contest/Giveaway | 27 Comments »

Which Came First?

Carrie_Lofty | May 4th, 2011

Greta Zwieg forges masterpieces. With her copies on their walls and the original paintings safely hidden, the noble families of Austria can rest assured their treasures will survive Napoleon’s advances. But now Greta’s uncle is changing the rules, selling her counterfeits as originals. Greta abhors the deceit. Anxious for her family’s safety in a perilous time, she is nevertheless determined to put things right.

Oliver Doerger is living a lie of his own. Acting as valet for his aristocratic half brother, Oliver thwarts an attempt on Greta’s life and is overwhelmed by the forbidden passion that flares between them. Although he’s not truly a servant, he is a bastard and a spy–certainly no match for a woman of such exquisite quality.

Though both fear discovery, they cannot resist each other. When the truth comes out, and the city falls into chaos, Greta and Oliver will be forced to choose: love or duty?

Rarely in publishing does an author’s original title make it all the way through from idea to release day. The demands of marketing and the preferences of editors–even advice from art departments–can necessitate a change. For that reason, I try not to get too attached to the titles I settle on while drafting a manuscript.

But Portrait of Seduction was a little different.

Not only did I keep the title, but the title inspired the book.

Last year in June, when my Austrian-set tale of passion and music, Song of Seduction, helped launch Carina Press, I was already thinking about the possibility of a sequel for enigmatic, reliable Oliver Doerger. Oliver was ostensibly a footman for a the hero’s noble patron, but he also wore military boots and handled tricky situations with unusual aplomb. Oh, and he was that same nobleman’s half-brother. Hmm….

Of course he needed his own happy ending!

The title clicked almost instantly. Song meant music. Easy enough. And I suspected that Oliver’s lady love would an artist–more specifically, an art forger. During the Napoleonic Wars, art forgers were in high demand as wealthy households tried to maintain the dignity of their previous decor while protecting valued treasures from Bonaparte’s armies. Thus, Portrait of Seduction happened in one of those instant kismet moments when tiny pieces of ideas come together in one big explosion.

And the strangest thing? Not only did the title inspire the book, but it stayed the same throughout its entire journey to publication. Unusual! But then again, any romance set in Austria could be classified as unusual! I hope you’ll take a sweeping, exciting, romantic, trip to Napoleonic Austria with me as we watch young Oliver blossom into a fantastic hero–one who is calm yet strong, highly skilled yet modest, and fully in command of his base desires. That is, until one particular woman grabs his heart and won’t let go…just as the city of Salzburg falls.

PS — If you haven’t read Song of Seduction yet, no worries! To help get you started on Oliver’s journey, Carina Press is selling Song of Seduction for just $.99, now through the end of May. Don’t miss out!

***
Born in California and raised in the Midwest, Carrie Lofty met her English husband while studying abroad–the best souvenir! Since completing her master’s degree in history, she has been devoted to raising their two precocious daughters and writing full time. Her latest historical romance, Portrait of Seduction, is available now. Later this year watch for her new Victorian series from Pocket, as well as her “Dark Age Dawning” romance trilogy from Berkley, co-written with Ann Aguirre under the name Ellen Connor. “Historical romance needs more risk-takers like Lofty.” ~ Wendy the Super Librarian

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Howdy Ma’am

Kelly_Boyce | April 20th, 2011

The Outlaw Bride I love me a good cowboy. I love the grittiness of the Old West, the challenges settlers faced, the lawlessness, the imperfect justice, the simplicity of life (not that it was simple by any means!), the sense of community and family. I was weaned on Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti westerns. My Saturday mornings as a kid were filled with re-runs of The Big Valley and Bonanza. I devoured Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series. I greeted my mother in the morning with a, ‘Howdy, ma’am.’ Writing in this genre was a natural fit for me.

Natural, but not easy. The Outlaw Bride took many twists and turns from first draft to final submission. Characters came and went, relationships changed, people lived, then died, then were resurrected, only to be killed off again. Subplots met a similar fate. At one point, my manuscript ballooned to 110,000 words (this was around Revision 4), before finally being culled back, streamlined, refocused. I was done.

Or so I thought.

An 11th hour epiphany sent me back to the drawing board. It was one of those moments where you’re shaking your head wondering how the heck you could have missed something so obvious. Of course Rogan should be Kate’s husband, not her brother-in-law! One final sweep of the manuscript fixed this last element then off to Carina Press it went.

I received The Call in August 2010 while at work. It came in on my cell while I spoke to my boyfriend on my office phone (I was hard at work as you can see…). I hung up on him then in stunned silence listened as Angela James told me they would love to publish The Outlaw Bride. In fact, I think my first words to her, once the brain freeze wore off, were, “That was so worth hanging up on my boyfriend for!” Luckily he’s the forgiving sort. But hey, no one ever did say the road to true love ran smooth.

A fact Connor and Kate learned the hard way.

Katherine Slade has two goals: to escape her outlaw husband and to find the family of the man who died saving her life. Taking the place of a mail-order bride isn’t part of her plan—until she’s forced to continue the charade and become Sheriff Connor Langston’s housekeeper to stay out of jail. Pretending to be another woman is hard, but Katherine’s real challenge is resisting her growing attraction to the handsome lawman…

Falling in love is the last thing Connor needs, even if the rest of Fatal Bluff wants him to. His hands are full with a band of outlaws threatening the safety of his town, and a child to raise. But Kate has a way of getting under his skin and into little Jenny’s heart. Soon Connor can’t get the fiery beauty out of his head—along with his suspicion that Kate isn’t who she claims to be.

When Connor learns the truth about Kate, is there any way for this outlaw bride to become the sheriff’s wife?

You can buy The Outlaw Bride HERE.

I hope you enjoy your journey to Fatal Bluff as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Website: www.kellyboyce.com

Facebook: Kelly Boyce, Author

Twitter: @KellyLBoyce

Bio: Kelly Boyce hails from Nova Scotia where cowboys are scarce but Scotsmen are plenty. A big history buff, she writes all time periods but has a soft spot for the Old West. She is currently at work on Book 2 in the Brides of Fatal Bluff series. She loves to hear from readers and hopes you’ll swing by and see her on Facebook and Twitter.

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My First Time

Susanna Fraser | April 13th, 2011

A Marriage of Inconvenience is my second published book, but it’s the first one I finished. And also the third.
A Marriage of Inconvenience
How is that possible, you may ask?  Well, the version I call my first book was, frankly, an unpublishable mess. It was 150,000 words, a fine length for, say, an epic fantasy, but just a tad long for a historical romance/coming-of-age story whose entire plot takes place over less than two months. I wrote it in the heroine’s first person point of view, which isn’t necessarily a bad choice, but one that imposes certain limitations on a romance plot. It had secondary characters enough for a Tolstoy novel and was written in a stylized, self-consciously historical voice.

After finishing that first draft, I tried to sell it (because I was too new to recognize an unpublishable mess when I saw one).  Upon getting universally rejected, I realized maybe I had something yet to learn about this whole writing business, joined RWA, started going to writing conferences and studied craft books. I wrote The Sergeant’s Lady, whose heroine is a secondary character in A Marriage of Inconvenience. By the time I finished Sergeant I knew I wanted to revisit Marriage now that I had a better sense of how to, you know, WRITE.

So I made a new outline that chopped out half the subplots and extraneous secondary characters, reconsidered the hero and heroine’s character arcs and started over from scratch. Not a single scene from the first manuscript appears in the published version of Marriage–which is why I say it’s also my third book.

But that first version of the book, the one you’ll never ever see, is as dear to my heart as anything else I’ve ever written. All because I finished it.

I’d been starting novels since I was 15 or so. In high school there must have been at least a dozen wish fulfillment YA romances with heroines who were brainy band/quiz team/drama geeks like me, only petite where I was tall and possessed of spectacular coloring (auburn hair! turquoise eyes!) where I had ordinary brown hair and eyes. I’d get about three chapters into each one before getting bored and abandoning them.

As I moved into college and my early 20’s, I didn’t start as many stories, but I got deeper into them before giving up. There were two about young women who’d left small-town Southern homes for urban East Coast colleges, so I hadn’t lost my autobiographical urge yet, but the wish fulfillment and rarely-found-in-nature coloring were toned down. And then there was the huge epic fantasy that I honestly believe I would’ve finished if I hadn’t gone to England for a year, met my future husband (another American volunteer in the same program) and got distracted getting married and moving from Philly to Seattle.

I loved to write and kept having ideas for stories. But I’d long since concluded I wasn’t capable of finishing anything and therefore wasn’t a real writer. When I first got the idea for Marriage, I resisted it for the longest time. Why put in the time if I was just going to drop it after 100 pages or so?

But the heroine, Lucy Jones, just wouldn’t leave me alone. I wanted to dive into her character and show readers how an outwardly quiet, meek and powerless woman could have tremendous inner strength that would lead her to triumph once she learned how to deploy it.

At last I said, “OK, since you won’t shut up, I’ll write you. Maybe after 50 pages or so, you’ll leave me in peace.” But she didn’t. I kept writing. Every week, and almost every day. I took a class at the local community college that expected us to bring in pages for critique, so on my worst weeks I at least managed 10 pages so I’d have something new to take in. And I think it made a HUGE difference that I was finally writing in a genre I actually READ. No wonder I never finished any of those YA contemporaries or semi-literary coming-of-age novels. 90% of the novels I read are set in either the past or a fantasy or science fiction world, so I don’t know why I expected myself to write anything different. (Susanna’s lesson for writers: Writing what you love is more important than writing what you know.)

It took a little over a year, but one day I wrote the last page. James and Lucy were married, they were happy together, and they had confessed their love to each other. I typed in five centered hashmarks below my final sentence, as a manuscript formatting guide I’d found recommended. I had finished a book. Never before or since have I felt that same combination of joy, power, and elation. On days when I’m feeling tired or discouraged, when I just don’t feel like sitting down at the computer, I go back to that moment and how happy I was. That’s when I knew I was a real author, that I was doing what I was meant to do.  A quote from Firefly came to mind  (I find that many of life’s most intense moments have appropriate Joss Whedon quotes): “No power in the ‘verse can stop me.”

Your turn! Tell me the story of the first time you fulfilled a dream. Or tell me your favorite Joss Whedon quote!

For more information about A Marriage of Inconvenience, including an excerpt, visit my website. You can also find me on Twitter and Facebook.

A Marriage of Inconvenience is available at Carina, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other retailers.

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Fairy Tale Retellings

Nicole_North | March 23rd, 2011

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We’re all adults here, at least I hope we are, so why would we be interested in fairy tales?

Folklore, fairy tales, myths and legends are timeless simply because they are so ancient. There’s no way to know how old some of them are because, even before they were written down, they were part of an oral tradition that likely goes back to prehistory.

Telling tales by firelight in the evenings was a tradition and one of the few forms of entertainment, along with music. TV hadn’t been invented and most people couldn’t read or write. Some of the elders, or maybe the bard in a castle, would tell stories in the form of poetry or song. These usually had a moral or expressed some larger truth than the simple story itself. Often they are stories of good vs. evil.

Many fairy tales have been rewritten, sometimes for children, and sometimes for adults… such as the hot or erotic fairy tales.

A fun aspect of retelling a fairy tale or legend is that you get to flesh out all the details that are missing from the original. For instance, the ancient Scottish legend which Laird of Darkness is based on, Combats that Never End, is only about seven pages in length. My novella is around a hundred pages, double spaced. In my version of the story, the worldbuilding and characterization are much more fleshed out and detailed.

I especially enjoyed transforming the flat, stock characters into three-dimensional, real people with difficult to solve problems, goals and dreams.

Here is the blurb for my story, Laird of Darkness, released on Monday, March 21 from Carina Press:

Half-Fae Laird Duncan MacDougall is cursed. His nights are haunted by Otherworld creatures sent to kill him. The only way to stop them is to possess the magic bow currently in the hands of his enemy half-brother, Kinnon MacClaren. In desperation, Duncan plans to take MacClaren’s bride-to-be hostage and exchange her for the bow.

Lady Alana Forbes has never met her intended, but she hopes he is handsome-and a good lover, for Alana is no innocent virgin. On her way to Castle Claren, Alana and her escorts are intercepted, and she is kidnapped by a man with extraordinary abilities-and every attribute she longs for in a mate.

Duncan didn’t expect the woman he thought of as a mere pawn would be so beautiful, and so arousing. Alana is drawn to him as well—but Duncan still needs the bow, and Alana is betrothed to another. How far will Alana go to save the life of the man she’s come to love?

—

One problem I saw with the original fairy tale was that the character Duncan is based upon had weak motivation for taking the heroine hostage—jealousy of his enemy. I created an in depth, strong motivation for him and in the process added loads to the worldbuilding aspect of the whole story. As a result, the former villain becomes a tortured but very sympathetic hero.

Another character who gets a transformation is the man who was the hero in the ancient legend. Kinnon MacClaren is based on him. In my version, he becomes a villain in Duncan’s eyes, and to an extent in Alana’s eyes as well. But she doesn’t fear him. When she confronts him, we see that he isn’t 100% villain. He has good traits and bad ones, like Duncan, and much like a real person. He sees the situation from his own perspective, just as the other two characters do. As they say, there are two sides to every story. Or in this case, three sides, because the heroine of my story, Alana, is a much stronger character than the ancient one she’s based on. As you can probably tell from the blurb, Alana isn’t just a kidnapped damsel in distress. She’s a gifted healer and a woman with experience who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and let Duncan know exactly what she wants.

In my retelling, there were several elements I changed including a twist at the end.

It’s fun to create a new story out of an old one, sometimes an ancient one.

Do you enjoy reading traditional fairy tales or legends retold and rewritten in new ways? What are your favorites?

Laird of Darkness is available at Carina Press and other online booksellers.

Read the first chapter of Laird of Darkness at my website.

Nicole North’s erotic romance novellas have been described by reviewers as “exciting, high octane, captivating, scintillating, sinfully delicious and pure romance.” Her stories contain “heart and heat, killer love scenes, magic and extraordinary characters.” She has sold four stories to Red Sage Publishing. Laird of Darkness is her first novella for Carina Press. Nicole’s stories usually focus on her favorite things: Scotland, Highlanders and hot men in kilts. She and her husband live in the Southeastern US, but she wishes she lived in the Scottish Highlands at least half the year. As she puts it, Scotland is a beautiful, magical and enchanting place where anything seems possible. She teaches online workshops about various aspects of writing, including sexual tension and how to write great love scenes. Though she has a degree in psychology, writing romance is her first love. Please visit her website at  http://www.nicolenorth.com/

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