trueromance

I’m a closet cowgirl.
I like to look pretty but underneath I need to be tough, and I need to be able to hold my own. Personally. Professionally.
I’m not the only girl in my family with this need for gritty toughness. It’s a family trait, inherited from Depression era grandparents who had to fight hard to make their dreams come true. My Texas grandfather had big dreams, too, and it fell to my quiet, articulate, educated grandmother to help him turn his dreams into reality.
My grandfather was handsome. My grandmother was not. But Grandpa knew something about my grandmother Elizabeth that not everyone knew—she was smart, she was exceptionally loyal and she worked very, very hard.
So Grandpa married Elizabeth and swept her away from her books, her music, and her family to a remote drought stricken valley in California. And there, with her assistance, he started his first company. My grandmother, while pregnant with her first child, became his office manager, accountant and receptionist.
She learned to ride horses to help with the cattle roundups on the ranch.
She was his co-pilot on long cross country flights when he flew his own plane.
And she did all this in the forties and fifties, combining the roles of wife, mother, business partner into the role of capable woman.
And then in the early sixties when my handsome Texan grandfather died tragically on the Parkfield ranch during a roundup, my grandmother who majored in college in French and PE, rolled up her sleeves and took over my grandfather’s construction company, and assumed management of the three cattle ranches.
I love this about her.
I love that she was plain and practical and yet had fallen in love with a gorgeous, swashbuckling Texan. I love that once my grandmother took over the company, she became chairwoman of the board, and continued to work into her 90’s.
went to the office every even into her 90’s.
And on a very personal level, I love that my immensely practical grandmother always, always believed in impractical me.
From the time I was a little girl, I knew this strong, quiet, seemingly unemotional woman absolutely adored me. Why? I still don’t know. But how lucky I was. How lucky I still am.
And this is why I write for women, and this is why my new release, SHE’S GONE COUNTRY, is such a special book for me. It’s an ode to Texas and family and handsome, rugged ranchers. It’s also an ode to strong women, remarkable women, like my late grandmother Elizabeth, who do what they have to do with grace and spirit and humility.
Were you close to your grandmothers? Did either of them play a significant role in your life? I’d love to hear about the women in your family, and have 5 special Texas themed prizes to give away to those who share.


Giveaway: for 5 lucky commenters - signed copy of SHE’S GONE COUNTRY tucked in a fun Texas theme tote bag filled with Texas cookbooks, BBQ stuff and more.

Between desire and love there are some things that can’t stay buried, even in the deep of the ocean.

Many thanks to Sue Grimshaw and Borders for letting me have an opportunity to post to their readers about my new book, Siren’s Call. Tomorrow is going to be the day my first mass market title debuts and I’m so excited I just can’t sit still, LOL.

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Devyn Quinn. Since 2007, I’ve written several titles for Kensington under their Aphrodisia imprint. Readers familiar with Aphrodisia titles are aware these are some pretty steamy books that really push the boundaries. My style is very dark and devious and downright dirty, so imagine my surprise when I received an email from my agent saying that Lindsay Nouis at NAL was looking for some darkly themed submissions.

Since that was right up my alley, I quickly wrote up a proposal and chapter for a vampire/slayer series I’d had in mind and sent if off. An answer soon came in from the editor. She liked my style of writing and saw potential in the proposal…But she wanted something differently dark.

She wanted mermaids.

Now picture Devyn sitting there scratching her head. How had a vampire series morphed into mermaids? I emailed my agent back to make sure I was reading the note correctly.

Correct, says my agent. Dark mermaids.

Well, as someone who lives in the desert and has never seen the sea (a nice mud puddle after a rain is as deep as the water gets around here), I was stymied. I knew nothing about mermaids, their lore, legend and I hadn’t even seen The Little Mermaid. What did I know about mermaids? The short answer was nothing.

Still, I am one determined cuss when presented with a challenge so I quickly went online and began to research popular lore. Armed with what I thought was a good angle, I wrote up the proposal and sample chapters and sent them back in. My agent soon got back to me with an answer from the editor. The news wasn’t good. Other writers were already using some of themes I had touched on and the editor wanted something else that didn’t use those elements.

Curses, thinks I. Foiled again.

So I dug a little deeper into mermaid lore (and there isn’t that much to work with, folks, these being mythical creatures and all…) Finally I hit upon the lore of the Assyrian mermaid and their goddess, Atargatis. Pretty soon a new story was boiling in my head.

I rewrote and resent the proposal. Once again the wait for an answer began. A week passed. Finally an answer came in. The editor liked the idea, but wanted some changes to the chapters to clarify some points.

By this time I pretty much figured I was well on my way to getting a turn down for the series. I went ahead and rewrote the chapters as requested, adjusted the lore a bit and sent the package back to my agent for forwarding. My initial hope wasn’t so much to make the sale, but perhaps the editor would be interested enough in my work to look at other proposals at a later date.

The weeks passed. And passed. And passed some more.

As much as a writer hates it, getting a rejection is disappointing. I had gone ahead and put the proposal out of my mind when my agent called. NAL had just made an offer for a three book series chronicling the lives and loves of my three mermaid sisters, and their search for their lost world even as they attempt to keep their secrets while living among humans.

Holy cow, Batman! You could have knocked me down with a feather. I was so shocked I burst into tears when my agent hung up and cried for the rest of the day. (Good news tends to do that to me) And, to tell the truth, I was more than a little scared. Writing a proposal and a few sample chapters is one thing. But writing a whole series about a world I’d just made up was one scary prospect. I didn’t have a clue of where to begin. After a few days of panic, I sat down and began to write. Slowly the story of Tessa Lonike and her sisters, Gwen and Addison, began to take shape on the page…

And that is how Devyn Quinn became acquainted with mermaids.

As I continue to write the series (Siren’s Surrender, book 2, will be released 2/11/2011) I’ve come upon some really great pieces of sea lore and other sea creatures, such as the Nyx, which I will be introducing in book 3.

Oh, and as for the vampire/slayer proposal. It did sell to NAL after all, and the first book will debut in Summer 2011!

So here’s a question for readers: What is your favorite bit of sea lore and why do you find it fascinating? Are you crazy for Poseidon, or do you really believe that Atlantis existed?

Give away 5 copies of Siren’s Call to 5 lucky randomly chosen commenters! Good LUCK!

Hi, everyone!

Everyone knows what draws them to romance. For some, it’s a quirky and fun storyline; for others, having a heroine as a main character, rather than a hero. While I dabble in all kinds of romance, mostly I’m drawn by intensity. I love the dark, brooding heroes with a secret, and the love that cannot be; the ache of unrequited love, or the secret fantasy unspoken.

I know where that started: Lisa Kleypas’ Dreaming of You. When Derek Craven first saw Sara Fielding, you could tell he fell in love with her instantly. Still, he felt like she was too good for a Cockney chimney sweep. When she was caught in the fire, and he thought she was gone forever…well, didn’t we all gasp? Or maybe it was Amanda Quick’s Ravished, when Gideon Westbook (otherwise known as the Beast of Blackthorn Hall) ruined the reputation of Miss Harriet Pomeroy.

I had the same feeling when I read Christine Feehan’s Dark Prince, and that started a love for paranormals that continues on to this day. There’s nothing like a tortured hero in a fresh new setting to really get me intrigued. Whenever I find an author that knows how to push that intensity to the edge, I know I’ve got more keepers for my shelf. (Which isn’t really a shelf, but several bookcases now. You know what I’m talking about, right?)

Today, we’re going to venture into the books you read at home, or that you put a cover on to read in public: erotica. My journey into the racier side of romance started when Borders started carrying Ellora’s Cave novels, and I found Lora Leigh’s Breed series. They had just what I was looking for: dark heroes with a secret, a touch of paranormal, and an abiding love story. It also had some scorching hot love scenes, which may have raised my eyebrows and my heart rate at the same time!

Erotica has become so popular that even mainstream news has started focusing on it. MSNBC just wrote a story on the popularity of erotica in publishing. According to the article, in the past few years, the big publishing houses- Penguin, Random House, Simon & Schuster and Kensington – have all created erotica imprints. It mentions that today’s authors have been raised on Madonna and safe sex lectures, and have seen the mainstreaming of pornography. In fact, Oprah dedicated an hour recently to the discussion of women and porn, and how that industry is changing due to the influence of female customers. (If you’d like to read the whole article, you can find it here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36835812/ns/health-sexual_health/ .The Oprah episode is not available online).

Personally, I think that a lot of this change is due to the internet. Once people began exploring the internet, they began to find and define what they are looking for in a good read. Conventions became discarded, and readers started figuring out for themselves where they draw the line.

For example, I still need a lot of love story with my spicy content, but I’m always intrigued by a new setting or situation. They often call that “romantica” now, but it’s published by the erotica imprints, in general. Some of my recent favorites are the Lords of Satyr series by Elizabeth Amber, which had some extreme content, but which were a historical/fantasy mix. I also really liked the Dark Elves series by Jet Mykles.

Still, I follow all my favorite authors who provide that same level of intensity, whether they are as spicy as a Dawn Thompson or as chaste as a Lynn Kurland. If they take me on an emotional rollercoaster ride, then I’m going to love them.

How do you feel? Does the graphic nature of some of this new “romantica” or erotica a little too extreme, or do you find yourself interested? Any authors you can compare to a more mainstream author to open our readers to some new books?

Most of all, what do you look for in your romance?

GIVEAWAY!
Winning ticket is good for ONE ($125) Reader Registration to RomCon 2010 - July 9-11, 2010 in Denver, CO. Winners must be US residents. The base ticket grants admission to all RomCon 2010 award ceremonies and core reader events, but does not include meals, travel, or hotel accommodations. Meals are available for purchase when the attendee registers. The ticket has no monetary value and cannot be redeemed for cash. Unclaimed tickets expire June 15, 2010.

Setting: Ashland, a dark, violent, gritty, corrupt, fictional Southern metropolis in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains
Subgenre: Urban fantasy and the second book in the Elemental Assassin series (after Spider’s Bite)
Hero: Donovan Caine and Owen Grayson (Hey, it’s urban fantasy – I can have more than one hero!)
Heroine: Gin Blanco

One sentence summary: Former assassin Gin Blanco comes out of retirement to help an old friend – and takes on her deadliest enemy yet in Web of Lies.

Scene you like most and would never cut: There’s a really great scene near the end of the book where Gin is trapped in a collapsed coal mine. I just love how she uses a combination of her wits and her Ice and Stone elemental magic to help her escape. It really shows how tough and self-reliant she is, along with the fact that she never, ever gives up no matter how bad the situation is.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying: Gin is a tough, sassy, sarcastic, kick-butt heroine, so she’d never, ever talk about going shoe shopping. She’d be more likely to kill you with the pointed heel of a stiletto.

What celebrity is your hero like: I always think of Donovan Caine as a Benjamin Bratt type of guy, back during Bratt’s Law & Order days. Owen Grayson is a darker, tougher, more mysterious man, like Daniel Craig in the James Bond movies (although he looks more like Pierce Brosnan in my mind). I don’t think a girl could go wrong with any of these gentlemen!

What celebrity is your heroine like: Gin has a lot in common with Jennifer Garner – or at least Garner’s character Sydney Bristow on the TV show Alias. Gin is definitely a take-charge, kick-butt heroine who always gets her man, just like Sydney.

What is your heroine’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing: In Spider’s Bite, the first book in the series, Gin retired from being the renowned assassin the Spider. At the beginning of Web of Lies, Gin is running the Pork Pit, the barbecue restaurant that her mentor left her, and taking classes at the local community college. But there are some skills that an assassin just never forgets …

What is your hero’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing: Donovan Caine is a detective with the Ashland Police Department and is one of the few honest cops on the force – which makes his attraction to an assassin like Gin all the more troubling. Gin’s other potential love interest is Owen Grayson, a wealthy businessman with his fingers in a lot of money-making pies. Gin isn’t quite sure what Owen wants with her, but she knows that he’s one of the most determined men she’s ever met and she finds that very, very attractive …

What you think readers will like best about this book: Since I’m writing urban fantasy, there’s a little bit of everything in Web of Lies – action, danger, drama, romance. I just hope that folks like the mix and that they enjoy reading more about Gin and her many adventures – romantic and otherwise.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet: Several folks have asked me about Finnegan Lane and whether or not he’ll get a love interest. Finn is Gin’s foster brother and general partner in crime who’s also a notorious womanizer (and the comic relief on occasion). I’m happy to report that Finn will meet his romantic match starting in book #4 in the series when he finally finds a woman who is immune to his many charms. Or at least appears to be …

What’s next: Venom, the third book in my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, is due out Sept. 28. Right now, I’m working on books #4 and #5 in the series, as well as a new urban fantasy series about spies – think Alias/James Bond with magic.

Discussion question: Which do you guys prefer – urban fantasy or paranormal romance? What do you like about both genres? Comment for a random chance to win a copy of Web of Lies (Canada & US residents only). Happy reading!

Setting: The story takes place in several locales: New York City, France and Mississippi, (nice cross-section!LOL)
Subgenre:
Hero: Nick Hunter and Sam Blackstone
Heroine: Parris Mckay is who my story centers around but she is the catalyst for the supporting cast of Celeste Shaw and Leslie Evans who both play very important roles in the novel.

One sentence summary: What Mother Never Told Me is a story of three women’s quest to discover the truths that will redefine their lives.

Scene you like most and would never cut: The moment when Parris comes to her mother Emma’s chalet in France and Emma realizes that Parris knows exactly who she is

What celebrity is your hero like: A tanned David Beckham!

What celebrity is your heorine like: A green-eyed Vanessa Williams.

What is your heroines occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing: Parris McKay is a singer.

What is your heroes occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing: Nick Hunter is a jazz club owner and plays a mean saxophone.

What you think readers will like best about this book: I think readers will appreciate not only the drama and the visual images of the novel but the idea that they can all, in some way relate. After all, we all have mothers and not matter what kind of relationship we have with them, they are very much at the foundation of who we are.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet: Eva & Jake Kelly from my novel Guilty Pleasures. Readers have been begging me to bring them back and tell them what happens next!

What’s next: I’m multi-tasking. I have a book coming out nearly every month this year—alternating between original titles and my reprints. I don’t want folks to think I actually write that fast. My next novel is Longing and Lies the final installment of my Ladies Cartel Series. In August be on the lookout for Harte’s Reward, a take on the reality television series Millionaire Matchmaker.

What would you do if you realized as an adult that your mother had been withholding information from you that would have turned your life in a completely different direction—for the good? How would you approach her? And how would you begin to forgive her?

Everyone who posts an answer to the question will be included in a random drawing. Deadline for commenting for a chance to win a Victoria Secret Gift Card and an autographed copy of What Mother Never Told Me is May 15, 2010! Thanks.

**********************************

Book Copy:
COMING MARCH 2010 What Mother Never Told MeThe long-awaited sequel to RHYTHMS. Parris McKay is confronted with a truth she never believed was possible. The revelation turns her life upside down as she begins a quest to answer a two-generation secret that her grandmother took to her grave. In her pursuit of the truth, she meets two incredible women who are battling with their own secret pasts. As the truth begins to unfold, these dynamic women come to realize that there truly is only six-degrees of separation.

A story of healing, hope, love and forgiveness. WHAT MOTHER NEVER TOLD ME is a book for every daughter, every mother, every family.

The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker

HOT OFF THE PRESS!! —- Press Release - As seen on Publishers’ Marketplace:
Report of Option Agreement Sale:
“Musical stage rights to Leanna Renee Hieber’s, The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker described as a Victorian “Ghostbusters” about an eerie young woman whose skin is white as snow and the cadre of characters who believe she may be the key to an ancient prophecy, sold to Mt. Clair Entertainment to be adapted by the author with music and lyrics by Kenny Seymour, Jim Abbott and Nicholas Roman Lewis.”
Further press details on the option agreement, care of Mt. Clair Entertainment:
“The ghostly, Gothic Victorian Fantasy The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker is heading for the legit musical stage. The author Leanna Renee Hieber will write the book of the musical with music and lyrics by Kenny Seymour (Broadway credits include music direction for Memphis and arrangements for The Wiz) and Nicholas Roman Lewis (creative development for The Alchemist and They Call Me La Lupe) with additional orchestrations and arrangements by Jim Abbott (Wicked, Bombay Dreams, Disney’s Tarzan).”
From Nicholas Roman Lewis:
“Kenny and I had been looking for a musical project for at least two years. Leanna’s book had enthralled me from the moment I first read it as a manuscript so it was literally always on my desk staring at me. I knew this would make a wonderful musical but perhaps slightly daunting, after all, the book is full of ghosts, magic and murder. And then I thought, “the book is full of ghosts, magic and murder…this MUST be a musical.” The characters and epic nature of the story lend themselves to song and I knew that Kenny shared my desire to incorporate sweeping cinematic themes with traditional musical theater styles. The icing on the cake is I think every writers dream; a lead character white as snow and strangely beautiful….I think I hear a song.”

Setting:
Grim, gorgeous, ghostly Victorian England, 1888; on the grounds of the formidable Athens Academy, the impressive Rychman Estate, and surrounding environs- such as the threshold of life and death.
Subgenre:
Gothic Fantasy Paranormal Romance
Hero:
Professor Alexi Rychman, the powerful, striking, brooding, enigmatic leader of The Guard who, unbeknownst to Victorian London, polices the restless spectres of the city.
Heroine:
Miss Persephone (Percy) Parker. Sweet and timid yet fiercely passionate when it comes to those she loves. An eerie, ghost-pale visionary, she is as white as the ghosts with whom she alone can see and converse and is only beginning to understand her powers and place in the Prophecy of The Guard.

One sentence summary:
Learning the truth of her mythic past is only the beginning, for young Percy Parker’s destiny is to defend both the world and her true love from the gathering undead minions of Darkness.

Scene you like most and would never cut:
The wedding / honeymoon and the scenes where Alexi and Percy begin making a home together. They are such different personalities and their sweet, romantic dynamic has been such a joy to develop.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying:
Considering any other man but Alexi. No other man exists. He makes the moon rise in her sky.

What celebrity is your hero like:
Alan Rickman

What celebrity is your heroine like:
The new Alice in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland.

What is your heroine’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing:
Newly appointed staff at Athens Academy; literary translation department. Ah yes, and saviour of the known world.

What is your hero’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing:
Professor of Mathematical and Alchemical studies at Athens Academy and leader of The Guard of spectral police.

What you think readers will like best about this book:
The tender, sensual passion between Percy and Alexi as they confront mythic, fierce supernatural danger; building to all-out spectral war on the grounds of Athens Academy. Timid Percy comes fully and into her own, and the irascible, compelling Alexi becomes even more difficult and wonderful. It’s an intimate and epic fantastical book; each element stronger for the other.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet:
Lord Elijah Withersby and Josephine Belledoux. I’m hoping they’ll get a novella like two other members of the Guard; Headmistress Thompson and Vicar Michael Carroll.

What’s next:
Headmistress Thompson and Vicar Michael Carroll get their due! I have the opportunity to explore their relationship more in upcoming Strangely Beautiful # 2.5, a series novella featured in Dorchester’s A MIDWINTER FANTASY Christmas anthology (releasing this October).

Thanks Sue and Borders for being such a wonderful home for Romance! Blessings to you, dear readers, please keep in touch via http://www.leannareneehieber.com, on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/sbsfan and Twitter http://www.twitter.com/leannarenee where I’ll be doing updates and plenty of contests!

Question for readers:
The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker picks up exactly where my debut novel, The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker left off, keeping Percy and Alexi in the lead focus for this second book. How do you feel about books continuing on with the same hero and heroine? Who are your favourite series couples?

Giveaway:
Comment to be entered to win either one of 2 signed copies of The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker - if you haven’t yet started the series- or a signed copy of The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker if you have begun the series, please note which book you’d like when commenting to be entered to win!

Scarred Heroes…and a Book Review!

Scarred heroes, beauty and the beast stories…oh, how they appeal.

Well, to me at least. There is nothing more appealing than the damaged man, either inside or out, or both.
That stunningly handsome man that has been damaged, and desperately needs love to make him whole once again.

We have romanticized stories like Phantom of the Opera (2005) and Frankenstein, classic examples of scarred, damaged men.

Frankenstein?? Yes. In this version anyway, Hallmark, 2004

You will not find some huge, bolts-in-the-neck, lumbering, mindless killer here. This creature is entirely different.
The creature does not have a love interest per se, But a deeply romantic soul, well read, soft spoken. He aches for contact, companionship, gets Victor to agree to make him a ‘mate’, this mini-series from the Hallmark channel follows Mary Shelley’s book very closely, and is tragic and sad on so many levels.
Because, scarred or not, don’t we all just want to be loved?

Many of these scarred men have poetic souls, they are either painters or writers, play the piano or organ mournfully as they hide their hideousness from humanity.

Mel Gibson’s “The Man Without A Face” (1993)
is another classic example of the handsome man scarred both inwardly and outwardly. Plus he is an ex-teacher and…yes, a painter.

What makes these themes so appealing? The tragic man, the physical beauty forever marred, either from war or some horrible accident. The tortured soul who cannot bear to face anyone, lest they flinch in horror or reject him outright, breaking his heart even more?

In romance novels? Oh yes, it is a big theme. The one book that stands out to me off the top of my head is Mary Balogh’s ‘Simply Love’ (2007) You talk about disfigured, Sydnam Butler is missing an arm, an eye AND scarred to boot. The Peninsular war certainly took his toll. Once a passionate and promising artist, how can he ever paint again? How will any woman ever look at him without revulsion? I cried reading this, I will admit it. Highly emotional read, and so very moving.

But the book review I will do today is a little different take of the scarred hero. This hero does not lurk about in dark corners of his estate, nor does he wear a mask.

Harlequin Historical Feb 2010
By Emily May
288 pages

BLURB ON BACK OF BOOK: Major Nicholas Reynolds returns from the Battle of Waterloo a hero. Once, his rakish good looks ensured he had his pick of beauties, but now his battle-scarred face exiles him from high society.

Lady Isabella Knox is horrified by the cruel gossip surrounding Nicholas, but intrigued by the man whose steely glance makes her blush on the outside…and burn deep on the inside.

A few stolen kisses later this beauty knows she’s lost her head–and her heart–to the most notorious gentleman of the ton….

Major Nicholas Reynolds is a dashing, wonderful hero. Does he hide himself away from life and society, does he wear a mask to hide the damaged side of his face? No. This man looks in a mirror everyday and counts himself lucky that he is still alive and survived the carnage that was Waterloo.

And because of this, he wants to live, have a family. Celebrate life. At 36, he buys out his commission, and begins to search among the haute ton for a pliable, malleable, quiet wife. He decides the younger the better, so he can mold the girl into the silent, biddable wife he wishes. It works with young recruits, why not a wife?

Nicholas’ choice of bride runs away rather than be married to the scarred man, the flighty thing runs into Isabella Knox, our heroine.

Isabella is like a lot of heroine’s in historicals lately, doesn’t want to be the property of a man, strong, proud. Where at times, those qualities can become annoying, here, it works. Isabella has a kind heart, she is devoted to her family, loyal to her friends, and adores animals, taking in strays and finding them good homes. She takes in the runaway bride who is lost at a stage crossing with no money. She listens to the girl’s plight and takes pity, to be forced to marry such an ogre!
Isabella at a ball, refers to Major Reynolds as an ‘Ogre’, it is soon all over the ballroom. Enter, the man himself. Isabella is mortified, and feels terrible she started such gossip. She proposes to the Major that they spend some time together, to stop the wagging tongues.

He agrees, even though Isabella is quite lovely, (though she had crooked bottom teeth, I LOVED that!) she is far too old, a confirmed spinster at 29. You can see where this is going. But both characters are so engaging, especially Nicholas. He really is to die for. He takes on the tittering and laughing at him front on, he shows up at a masquerade ball as…wait for it…an ogre. I think I fell in love with him myself right then and there.
I loved the slow, growing attraction between the two. A lot of heated kisses, Nicholas even sneaks over to her opera box to draw her into shadow and kisses her senseless. Wow. Nothing wrong with his lips!
I won’t give anyway any of the plot with regard to the runaway bride and how that affects Nicholas and Isabella. This was a very enjoyable read, I couldn’t put it down.
You got a hero your reader can fall in love with? That is half the battle. And you WILL love the Major.

3 and a half stars out of 4

Do you enjoy Beauty and the Beast stories? Do you like your heroes tortured and scarred, either inside or out? Tell me about your favorite books or movies that use this theme, or why this whole genre does not appeal to you at all.

GIVEAWAY - 3 randomly chosen commenters - GOOD LUCK!:
Winning ticket is good for ONE ($125) Reader Registration to RomCon 2010 - July 9-11, 2010 in Denver, CO. Winners must be US residents. The base ticket grants admission to all RomCon 2010 award ceremonies and core reader events, but does not include meals, travel, or hotel accommodations. Meals are available for purchase when the attendee registers. There is a $25 fee to transfer the winning ticket to a different reader attendee. The ticket has no monetary value and cannot be redeemed for cash. Unclaimed tickets expire June 15, 2010.

& to think, it all started way back when . . . . DARK SHADOWS . . .

Ok, thought it would be fun to get everyone’s feedback on their fav paranormal author & OMG — there was passion here — look at the votes!

Who’s your favorite paranormal Romance author?

* Christine Feehan
14, 3% of all votes
* Sherrilyn Kenyon
44, 9% of all votes
* JR Ward
78, 16% of all votes
* Lara Adrian
45, 9% of all votes
* Jeaniene Frost
48, 10% of all votes
* Yasmine Gaelenorn
6, 1% of all votes
* Nalini Singh
21, 4% of all votes
* Nicole Peeler1
16, 3% of all votes
* Charlaine Harris1
18, 4% of all votes
* Larissa Ione1
58, 12% of all votes
* Kresley Cole1
17, 4% of all votes
* Cynthia Eden1
4, 1% of all votes
* gena showalter1
8, 2% of all votes
* Meljean Brook1
4, 1% of all votes
* Sharon Ashwood1
1 ,0% of all votes
* Laurell K Hamilton1
12, 2% of all votes
* All of them1
30, 6% of all votes
* Christina Dodd1
1, 0% of all votes
* Mary Janice Davidson1
1, 0% of all votes
* Jayne Ann Krentz1
2, 0% of all votes
* Patricia Briggs1
4 ,1% of all votes
* G.A. Aiken/Shelly Laurenston1
2, 0% of all votes
* Marjorie M. Liu1
1, 0% of all votes
* Ilona Andrews1
2, 0% of all votes
* Shayla Black1
20, 4% of all votes
* Dara Joy1
1, 0% of all votes
* Shiloh Walker1
2, 0% of all votes
* not fair have too many fav’s Laurell K Hamilton, Jr Ward, Shayla Black. Lara Adrian, Charlaine Harris and the list goes on …sorry1
20, 4% of all votes
* Jacqueline Frank1
1, 0% of all votes
* I too cant choose bc I love all the authors I have read my list goes on and on1
3, 1% of all votes

Total Votes: 484

Are you surprised at some of the votes? What are some of the similarities you see in the authors that received the most votes; what is unique in their stories to hold them so high above the rest?

I’ve got my ideas — you tell me yours . . .plan to share this with our publishing partners so they know the type of books you want to read.

Happy Romance!

NINE RULES TO BREAK WHEN ROMANCING A RAKE
Setting: London, 1823
Subgenre: Regency
Hero: Gabriel St. John, Marquess of Ralston
Heroine: Lady Calpurnia Hartwell

One sentence summary: It’s a well known rule that a proper young lady should never steal into the home of a notorious marquess and demand a passionate kiss…but to romance this rake, Lady Calpurnia Hartwell will break all the rules.

Scene you like most and would never cut: There is a moment in a dressmaker’s shop during which Callie has a run in with Ralston’s mistress. It snuck up on me…and is now my very favorite scene in the book.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying: At the start of the book, Callie’s very focused on propriety…a few sherries and a late-night trek to the home of a notorious rake’s home later, she realizes that propriety isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. After that, there’s very little Callie wouldn’t be caught dead doing.

What celebrity is your hero like: In my head, Ralston is the perfect combination of John Hamm and Hugh Laurie. Yum.

What celebrity is your heroine like: Callie is the star of a 1950s romantic comedy; a plain, plump girl Friday who seems to blend into the furnishings until her smart mouth gets her into trouble. And then she’s not so plain…and all those curves get her into the very best kind of trouble.

What is your heroine’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing: Callie’s a prim & proper spinster…but her ability to get herself into all kinds of trouble makes me think that she’d be a terrific investigative reporter. As long as she had a brawny companion to help get her out of trouble.

What is your heroes occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing: Like most men of his ilk, Ralston’s idle and rich. But he proves himself an excellent fencing coach. And a tremendously capable bodyguard.

What you think readers will like best about this book: I hope that Callie will resonate with of readers. After all, we’ve all had those moments when we’ve wished we had the courage to do something we’ve always secretly wanted to do. Thank goodness for Callie, sherry makes for excellent liquid courage.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet: Callie’s brother, Benedick. He threatens to steal the show in a scene or two.

What’s next: Ralston’s twin brother Nick meets his match this Fall. Stay tuned!

For discussion: For all you historical fans out there…what’s the one rule that you just couldn’t help breaking if you lived in Regency England?
A lucky commenter below will be chosen to win a FREE book of NINE RULES TO BREAK WHEN ROMANCING A RAKE!

Kate Douglas - known for her sexy Chanku shapeshifters in the popular erotic paranormal series, Wolf Tales, but her newest series from Kensington, The DemonSlayers, takes her out of the realm of erotic shapeshifters and into a world populated by demons, mythological warriors, and the humans brave enough to join them in the ages old battle of good versus evil.
www.katedouglas.com

Tag line: It’s the ultimate battle of good versus evil—the demon’s the good guy, and he’s got just one week to save the world, or all hell breaks loose.

My thanks to Borders Books for giving me this great opportunity to post. This is a really exciting week for me as my very first mass market paranormal, DemonFire, the first in my new DemonSlayers series, is just out. I got to thinking about the dynamics of coming up with a new series, of changing genres, and the process that we, as authors, go through in order to create a story. And ya know what? It’s not nearly as mysterious as it sounds.

I’ve been busy with my Wolf Tales series for Kensington Aphrodisia now since the first book debuted in January 2006, but last year I realized I was ready for something else as well. My agent, Jessica Faust, and I were brainstorming new ideas—

Jessica: Demons are popular. Got any ideas for a demon story? Something big!

Me: Not really. Big? Good versus evil…that’s big. (laughing…what a stupid idea!)

Jessica: I like it! Send me a proposal…

And thus the DemonSlayers series was born. I imagine all books begin, at some point, with the author asking that simple question: What if…? Okay…good versus evil? What if the balance between good and evil were reaching a tipping point—in Evil’s favor? What if demons were streaming into our world unchecked? What if the only one who could stop them was another demon? And what if the one woman with the power to save that good demon’s life didn’t believe in demonkind at all?

Once I began asking myself that blasted “what if” question, I couldn’t stop. Ideas kept popping into my head and before long I knew these characters—Dax, a demon too good for hell, booted out of Abyss and hired by the good folk of Eden to save Earth from demonkind. He’s got a human body—an avatar, of sorts—that’s only good for one week, and all of his demon powers are stored within a tattoo of a serpent that snakes from his thigh to his heart. Unfortunately, he’s cursed by demonfire as he enters Earth’s dimension, and the curse turns his powers against him.

Then there’s Eddy Marks, a pragmatic newspaper reporter. She believes in things she can see and feel and understand, but the naked man she finds injured and bleeding—and impossibly under attack by a garden gnome wielding a pitchfork in her potting shed—knocks all her preconceptions out the window. Her biggest surprise comes when she learns she has the power to control Dax’s horrible demon curse.

Eddy’s got a foster dog—Bumper—a cross between a pit bull and a standard poodle, described as looking like a pit bull in a Shirley Temple wig, and Dax has Willow, a tiny will o’ the wisp who feeds him energy and helps him understand his human body. There’s Ed Marks, Eddy’s dad, who believes in all things paranormal, including Lemurians, the mythological warriors who supposedly live deep within the extinct volcano of Mt. Shasta that looms over the town of Evergreen.

So, what if Lemuria really exists? It must, because Alton of Artigos, the six foot, eight inch Lemurian warrior is every bit as real to me as either Dax or Eddy…or Bumper or Willow or Ed Marks. This is a good thing, because it takes every single one of them to battle the demons descending on the tiny town of Evergreen.

As Dax’s week flies by at breakneck speed, as he battles the demon curse tattooed across his torso and Eddy fights falling in love with a man with the lifespan of a moth, the demon king grows stronger and the threat to all mankind more ominous. The battle of good versus evil reaches an unimaginable climax on the slopes of Mount Shasta, but it’s a wild ride to the finish with unexpected results.

What’s next for the DemonSlayers? Book 2, HellFire, will be out in September 2010, when the Lemurian warrior, Alton of Artigos, teams up with Eddy’s best friend Ginny Jones to fight a new demon invasion near the town of Sedona, Arizona. In the ultimate battle of good versus evil, it often takes the strangest of comrades—and lovers—to even the odds.

For a first chapter excerpt of DemonFire (and one of HellFire!) go to www.kensingtonbooks.com/demonslayers.

And let me know, because I really am curious, if you’ve followed authors who’ve switched genres. A lot of us are doing it—for me, the change isn’t so drastic as I’m merely going from erotic paranormal to sexy paranormal, but what about the BIG switches—from contemporary to historical, for instance, or contemporary to paranormal? And what about those authors who write across the spectrum? Lately it seems that we’re just all over the board. I love reading old authors in new genres, but what about you?

GIVEAWAY: I’ll be giving away five copies of DemonFire, or if the winner already has the book, they can exchange it for a copy of one of my Wolf Tales or Sexy Beast books.