Epic Book Giveaway Contest!

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Epic Book Giveaway Contest!

If you haven’t already heard, five romance authors are holding an epic book giveaway contest of *their* five favorite romance authors’ books. But they’re not just giving away a few books—they’re giving away complete, SIGNED backlists of the following authors:

Julia Quinn (sponsored by Shana Galen)

Lisa Kleypas (sponsored by Elise Rome)

Julie Garwood (sponsored by Heather Snow)

Elizabeth Hoyt (sponsored by Lila DiPasqua)

Cynthia Eden (sponsored by Vanessa Kelly)

Yes, it’s an epic contest, and it’s being held on Facebook right now. All you have to do is visit the Facebook pages of Shana Galen, Lila DiPasqua, Vanessa Kelly, Heather Snow, and Elise Rome, and enter the favorite book (the hint is given on the contest tab) for each of these authors.

At the end of February the contest will be over—so hurry!—and five lucky winners will win a backlist of one of the amazing authors mentioned above. Elise has said that Lisa is even signing her books after the winner is chosen for her backlist, so if you win Lisa Kleypas’ books, they’ll be personally made out to you. Also, the five authors are giving away books of their own, too.

Good luck to everyone who enters,

and don’t forget to tell your friends!

 

Fan2Author Interview…Genevieve Graham!

K: Hello Genevieve! We want to sincerely thank you for granting us an interview.  We are thrilled that you are here!  I am excited to share with our readers your first novel, which is causing quite a buzz, as well as hearing a little bit about your plans for us readers for the future.

UNDER THE SAME SKY is your debut novel.  Can you tell us a little bit about how this novel took place in your head?  How did this wonderful story come to life for you?

GG: Hi Kristal! Thank you so much for inviting me here today. And thanks for saying that – it’s causing a buzz? I didn’t know that! Yay! I think people are finding it’s a different kind of romance, something unexpected, and they like that.

I never planned on being an author, and it didn’t happen until I was over forty. I was an obsessive reader, picking up anything and everything ever written by Diana Gabaldon. I absolutely love her writing, and have read the series at least four times (and listened to it an additional three times!). When I’d finished it the last time, I felt kinda lonely, kinda deflated after all that adventure was done … so I told my husband I was going to go off and write my own. I still remember the way he shrugged and said, “Okay. See you later.” Like it’s an everyday thing, right?

When I started to type, I had no idea of what I wanted to write. None. I just sort of sat there, staring at the screen. Then … it was almost as if I heard a voice telling me what to write, except it wasn’t that exactly. It’s was more like I felt what I was supposed to write. I felt Maggie, and I let her take over. She didn’t ask. She told me, showing me the dark details of her life, letting me in on her little secrets. I felt badly for her, because she’d obviously had a rough time of it, and I just knew things weren’t about to improve anytime soon.

Then I started to get a picture in my head of a quiet, dark warrior in a kilt, a man with a deep need inside him that he told no one about. No one but me.

Three hours later I came upstairs and plopped about twenty pages on my husband’s lap. He looked surprised, read them, than looked surprised again. “Hey, that’s not bad,” he said. And he’s supported me every step of the way since then. I’m so lucky.

K: I am hearing so many good things about UNDER THE SAME SKY!  People are writing that they can’t believe it is a debut novel because it is so wonderfully written.  It has been called EPIC…  Epic is a pretty big claim!  How does that make you feel, to hear that people love this book so much?

GG: I know! Epic! The book came out a month ago, and I’m still wandering around in a fog. I have to say that it’s very surreal; first of all, just knowing people are reading what I wrote. Then to realize they like it? I feel awesome, Kristal. Like there’s a part of me I never knew existed until all this happened, and that part of me is having a wonderful time.

K: I love to ask this question, because I’m a nosy girl.  And I’m always curious about how the mind works.  How do you get in the “mood” to write?  Is there something special that inspires you?  Music, lighting?  Somewhere special in your house that inspires you or lends itself to some solitude?

GG: I like to write every day if I can, though my other business is editing, so I’m often working on other people’s novels instead of my own. I have a quiet little office in my house, and I usually burn candles and sip on herbal tea while I write. If I can, there’s no noise at all, and definitely no music. It’s kind of strange, because my university degree is in Music Performance and I love classical music. Maybe it’s because I think too much when I hear it. I need quiet so I can disappear into the story without distraction.

K: UNDER THE SAME SKY is very, very well written.  I was hooked after the first sentence.  I was in awe of your ability to have these characters know and love one another from afar and yet make it work so beautifully.  How did you research for a story that spanned continents?  The Highlands and colonial America are wonderful, vast, wild places that I’m sure conjured up some wonderful romantic ideals but did it require a lot of research on your part to put it all together?

GG: Thank you, and yes. I had no idea how to research for it, but I knew it had to be right. Initially I wrote this book just for my own enjoyment, and if I’d put in bogus facts I would have disappointed myself. I loved using tiny details – for example, the name of the ship, the “Boyd of Glasgow”, and its captain are the actual real names for that date and port of departure.

I began by researching in the library, but I have the attention span of a gnat, so that didn’t work out. I started googling different topics and came up with all different kinds of answers. Eventually I ended up working with some incredible people online. For the Highlander information (among other sources), I worked with a terrific man named Guy from www.HistoricHighlanders.com, and he nitpicked about the tiniest—and yet incredibly significant—details. And for the Cherokee knowledge, I went to a man named Ironhead Vann, who is the great-great-great grandson of ‘Chief’ Rich Joe Vann of the Old Cherokee Nation. Ironhead’s gorgeous site is www.CherokeeByBlood.com.

K: Can you tell us a little bit about your next novel, SOUND OF THE HEART, which is coming out May 1, 2012?  I will say, it looks wonderful, but let you describe it for our readers.

GG: I don’t want to give too much away, but SOUND OF THE HEART focuses on Dougal, the brother of the hero in UNDER THE SAME SKY. The brothers were separated at Culloden Moor in April 1746 and both assumed the other had been killed in the battle. But Andrew escaped, and Dougal had a far rougher time of it. Along the way, though, he discovers true love … then loses it when the love of his life is stolen by the English and shipped to the new world as a slave. When I was researching for this book I discovered that white slavery, especially among Scots of that time period, was rampant. We never hear about that. The truth is that some of the transported Scots were called “indentured servants”, but others were actual slaves. I found that to be both horrifying and fascinating, and I plan on learning more about that. Anyway, the book follows both Dougal and his beloved through their own separate adventures, and we all just have to hope for a reunion … heh heh

K: What are your plans for after SOUND OF THE HEART?  Are there other books in the same vein as these two?

GG: Yes again. The third book, OUT OF THE SHADOWS features Maggie’s sister, Adelaide, and is already on my agent’s desk. I’m just waiting to see what will happen with it. This is a tough economic time for publishers and they have to be really careful signing debut authors. I have my fingers crossed! And … book #4 (untitled so far) is under way. It’s about Janet. So many readers said she deserved a book, and about a month ago she told me she had a great story to tell, so what else could I do?

K: Can you tell us who some of your favorite authors are?  What kinds of books you enjoy and genres that you prefer?

GG: I prefer what I call “Historic Adventure” over “Historic Romance” in many cases. I lose myself in heart wrenching suspense, gritty adventures, and the dangers that these people had to face. I think my favorite aspect of writing Historic fiction is that, well, who is to say those stories never happened? When I write, I feel like I’m “channeling”. Doesn’t that mean those people have passed?

I love anything by Diana Gabaldon, Sara Donati, Penelope Williamson, and Jennifer Roberson, and recently I’ve really been enjoying the work of Kaki Warner and Joanna Bourne. To hold my attention, a story has to be compelling, intelligent, emotional, and unpredictable … is that asking too much?

K: Thank you so much for stopping by and chatting with us and our readers!  We appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to spending time with us!

Kristal here. For one copy of UNDER THE SAME SKY please tell us when was the last time you read a debut novel that knocked your socks off?!

 

“Under the Same Sky” by Genevieve Graham

WOW!  I don’t know where to start to say how much I loved this book!  UNDER THE SAME SKY is absolutely amazing.  I have read that people believe it is EPIC and I thoroughly agree with that assessment.

The writing is superb and I never would have believed that it was a debut novel if I hadn’t been told.  The characters are vivid, alive in a way that I rarely see in a book.  From the first sentence of the first chapter I was hooked.

UNDER THE SAME SKY has the feel of a movie, the writing is that superb.  The way the story flows and is told, the way I felt like I was right there, inside the book for every moment from the very first sentence.

This book has depth, substance and character and I felt so many different emotions while I was reading, I cannot even name them all.  It is not a typical romance, and yet it is a stunning story of two lovers and all the pain, hurt, turmoil, joy and happiness imaginable.

It is a strong love, a fierce love, a love fraught with obstacles and many beautiful moments.

A love that spans space, time and country.  Andrew and Maggie are wonderful characters, with an amazing story to tell.  I fell in love with their story, with the idea that a love like theirs could span countries and planes and still make everything alright.

Outstanding work by Genevieve Graham.  Stunning, beautiful, EPIC.

UNDER THE SAME SKY will not soon be forgotten and will be going on my keeper shelf to be re-read as many times as I can manage.

Review by Kristal

 

Declarations of love…then & now…

From William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and poet himself Lord Byron, declarations of love have always made me feel so giddy!

 

 

How many of us have just sighed at Tom Cruise when he said “I love you. You complete me…” (Jerry MaGuire) or when Colin Firth said “No, I mean I like you very much. Just as you are.” (Bridget Jones’s Diary)?

 

 

Can you imagine someone looking deeply into your eyes and saying “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach.”?

No?! How about “You must know, surely you must know, it was all for you. You are too generous to trifle with me. I believe you spoke with my aunt last night, and it has taught me to hope as I’d scarcely allowed myself before. If your feelings are still what they were last April, tell me so at once. My affections and wishes have not changed, but one word from you will silence me forever. If, however, your feelings have changed, I would have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love… I love… I love you. And I never wish to be parted from you from this day on.”

When this brave hero spoke his vow “I will love you my whole life. You and no other.”  I had tears in my eyes.

I know I’m more likely to believe these lines “…I love you. Not like they told you love is, and I didn’t know this either — but love don’t make things nice. It ruins everything. It breaks your heart. It makes things a mess. We aren’t here to make things perfect. The snowflakes are perfect. The stars are perfect. Not us. Not us! We are here to ruin ourselves, and to break our hearts, and love the wrong people, and die. The storybooks are bullshit! Now I want you to come upstairs with me and get in my bed!”

I’m sure most of you romantics out there just went nuts over the scene that needed no words spoken aloud, but a simple poster board was quiet sufficient in helping this man’s declaration of love.

And then, just a simple “Ditto!” can accomplish and convey this man’s love that went beyond life…

We’ll be happy to giveaway THREE books to three winners who can ID the recipients of these declarations of love.

Tell us about your favorite declarations of love and you’re welcome (ENCOURAGED) to include yours as well!

 

‘A Royal Likeness’ by Christine Trent

“A Royal Likeness” by Christine Trent is a sequel to “The Queen’s Dollmaker” and while I never read that prequel, I can tell you that it’s not necessary for you to read the first in order to enjoy the second. Ms. Trent did an awesome job making sure that I enjoy this read as a standalone. She gave me plenty of explanation in regards to characters and events from the prequel and that made it very easy for me to follow this story all on its own. She also made me want to read the prequel as well.

Now, this novel starts off a bit slow, but if you, like I, stick with this read for about a hundred or so pages, you will discover a story that is fascinating, fast paced and very, very well written.

This is Marguerite du Georges’ (Ashby) story, a character that was first introduced in the prequel, and a woman that now owns Claudette’s doll shop. As her story opens, she is struck with a tragedy and now must fend for herself, away from London. She finds herself working with Madame Tussaud, who is now in a need of an apprentice. As she enjoys her work and lets Madame Tussaud guide her while she applies her old and develops new skills, she gets commissioned by the Prime Minister on a secret project which will take her on an unexpected adventure of a lifetime.

And that is where the book takes off. Real historical figures and events add a wonderful and exciting pace to this story. Our heroine might be ‘addled’ at times and she might get into some scrapes, but the woman was strong and courage’s. It was a pleasure to watch her grow and come into her own while she lives through some tragedies life throws her way.

‘A Royal Likeness’ was a treat to read and I found it one highly entertaining story that weaves historical figures and events with fictional ones with a perfect precision and wonderful prose. If you are a fan of historical fiction, you will want to read this story that is full of political intrigue, mystery, tragedy, high sea adventure and a touch of romance as our heroine Marguerite is pursued by couple of suitors, fictional and historical. I found her refreshing and bold; talented and creative; adventures and witty. Once you meet her, you won’t be able not to like her. Ms. Trent made sure to have all of her characters as three-dimensional as possible. She did an outstanding job researching and bringing to life an era in history that is not just exciting but intriguing as well. She takes us on a journey, along with our heroine, from England to Scotland and gives us a look at France in a time of French Revolution, a time in history that was perilous to all, not just the French.

I highly recommend this story to all you history buffs, romance and adventure seekers and bestow upon it all of my four quills!

*This review posted on Romantic Crush Junkies Reviews eZine*

 

‘The Queen’s Governess’ by Karen Harper

I am a bit conflicted about this story. As much as I love the Tudor era, this story was only okay for me. I’m not sure exactly why. It could be the pace of it, a bit too fast at the start and a bit too slow toward the end, which was a huge whimper. It also might be the character of Kat, who I found a bit too ambitious, too forward and maybe even a bit obsessed by her charge.

This is the story of Katherine Champernowne from Devon, daughter of a beekeeper, who like all girls has a dream that one day she would leave her simple life and find herself at King’s court. Her dream is realized and she ends up in that court as one of Cromwell’s spies and later one of Anne Boleyn’s ladies. She quickly learns to navigate the court’s life as she is well aware that even though one day you might be ‘in’ the next step you make it just might take you ‘out’. In time of uncertainty, she fights to stay ‘in’ and after Queen Anne’s execution, she’s given a position of Princess Elizabeth’s tutor/governess and eventually becoming First Lady of the Bedchamber to the Queen Elizabeth I. She’s given credit by many, and especially Elizabeth, for taking excellent care of her and being the mother of her heart if not blood, and for turning her into an intelligent, clever and capable woman. I was surprised by how close they became in spite of her raising her. For some reason I always thought that it wouldn’t be allowed for her to be so close to her charge.

I wanted to like this novel better and in spite of this author’s excellent and very detailed research, well developed characters and only a touch of romance, it left me wanting and I’m still asking myself why? Why couldn’t I connect more to Kat, or even Elizabeth? It left me questioning too many things, and that just might be the reason for me not liking Kat as much as I should have. Her interfering nature was very off-putting and made her unlikable. Was she really a spy for Thomas Cromwell? Was her relationship with Thomas Seymour as she depicts it? I did like her love story, if you could call it that, and the relationship between her and John Ashley. The choice that the author made of telling us the story from Kat’s prospective and in ‘her ‘ voice, also made for the story to come off more personal, and I liked that as well, but I still got the impression that at times this read more like history book, rather than historical fiction.

In the end, if you are a huge fan of Tudor era, you will find this book informative and at times enlightening, so you will probably read it. I on the other hand hoped for less of a history lesson and just a bit more of a romance novel so, sorry to say, I give only three of my quills to it.

*This review posted on Romantic Crush Junkies Reviews eZine*

 

‘Sweet Enemy’ by Heather Snow (A Veiled Seduction Novel)

As soon as I read this book blurb on Ms. Snow’s website, I knew I was in for one very entertaining ride:

“Geoffrey Wentworth, a war hero and rising political star, never wanted to be the Earl, but when his brother dies, he knows his duty—take up the responsibility for his family’s estates. His mother’s definition of duty differs from his, however, and can be summed up in one word—heirs. When Geoffrey rushes home to answer her urgent summons, he finds himself host to a house full of women, all vying to become the next Countess of Stratford. But his love is Parliament, where he wields his influence and reputation to better the lives of ex-soldiers, until a tempting houseguest and a secret from his past threaten his freedom…and his heart.

Liliana Claremont, a brilliant chemist, doesn’t want to be any man’s wife, much less a Countess. If she had tuppence for every time she’d been told her place was filling the nursery, not experimenting in the laboratory, she could buy the Tower Bridge. However, when she receives a coveted invitation to the Earl’s house party, she trades in her beakers for ball gowns and gladly takes on the guise of husband hunter—for the chance to uncover what the Earl had to do with the murder of her father.

Liliana believes the best way to get the answers she needs is to keep her enemy close, though romance is not part of her formula. But it only takes one kiss to start a reaction she can’t control…”

It tells you exactly who the main characters are and aims to pull you into the story without giving much away, yet hinting at the plots mystery as to who really killed our heroine’s father. I was very impressed with it, and it was a very good sign that the story within would be if not great, at least good. Well, let me tell you, this was not ‘just good’. This is a debut novel that should be talked about, re-read and remembered for some time. This book blurb should be included as one of the best out there.

Miss Liliana Claremont is one smart girl and chemistry is in her genes. It is her fervent wish and a dream to one day be allowed to enter the hallowed halls of the Royal Society as its member. At twenty four years of age, she is considered a spinster, and she has no intention of ever marrying. She likes her life of solitude and study and her life’s work and goal is to continue her father’s legacy as a chemist. Her beloved father was a man she revered and deeply loved until one day someone betrayed him by ending his life. She is determined to solve and finally put to rest the mystery as to who was behind her father’s death, and with only one clue to guide her, she sets on a path that will bring her much heartache and love she never could have imagined possible. All at the same time.

Geoffrey Wentworth, Earl of Stratford is a war hero who really never wanted to be an Earl, but after his father and brother die, he has no choice. With that title Geoffrey knows his duties are many and taking a wife and siring an heir is not on his priority list. His life’s work lies in Politics of the day and his passion is helping fellow soldiers that need work and housing so garnering support to pass the Poor Employment Act is foremost on his mind.

Well, try and tell that to his mother, who without his knowledge plans and invites the cream de la cream of debutante society to his home for a fortnight of entertainments. To assure his cooperation, she manipulates him by also including some of the men and their daughters that he will need in order to pass the legislature. One thing our hero most abhors is sneaky, manipulative and deceiving women, and he vows never to fall in love with such a woman. He knows that if he ever marries, the woman he chooses must be compatible with him his political aspirations, and be a good hostess as well as his partner.

From their first meeting, these two totally opposite people, and one of them with a secret that could blow in their faces, sparkle and shine. The ‘chemistry’ (pun intended) is so palpable, and sparks fly and fires ignite. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed their ‘courtship’ and the witty and humorous dialogue brought me to tears laughing.

If you’re in a mood for an entertaining, sensual and witty historical with a mystery element that will keep you guessing as to whom the ‘bad guy’ is, look no further than this fresh, exciting and very delightful novel.

‘Sweet Enemy’ gets my five quills, and I urge you to find it as soon as it hits bookstores on February 7, 2012. Welcome to my keeper shelf, Heather Snow.

*This review posted on Romantic Crush Junkies Reviews eZine*

 

‘How the Marquess Was Won’ by Julie Anne Long

I am such a fan of this author that truly I would read a paper bag from her!

Julie Anne Long can ‘prose’ so well, that every breath, every sigh and every move any of her characters make, you’re there. You feel it in your heart, in your bones. I never fail to fall in love and deeply care for Ms. Long’s heroes and heroines.

Ms. Long in her sixth book of the Pennyroyal Green series thought to introduce us to Julian Spenser, Marquess Dryden known to all the Ton as ‘Lord Ice’ for his cool demeanor, shrewd and impeccable manners as well as current trend-setter of London society. He is handsome, sought after by men, who will imitate and emulate, as well as women who will do and say anything to be noticed and bedded.

Jules is a man that always knows exactly what he wants and where he’s going. Nothing is left to chance. He plans everything he aims to do and naturally that extends to his way of picking a wife. She has to be beautiful, prim and proper and love is not required. What does matter is that this woman must fulfill his need of acquiring a piece of land that was long lost to his family by his gambler father. There’s only one woman that enters that equation and she is Lisbeth Redmond, the daughter of Isaiah Redmond, and he heads out with that purpose in mind to a house party at their home with firm intent of making this young woman his wife. Serendipity and chance however have something else in mind for this man and they cannot be ‘boxed’ in.

Phoebe Vale is a schoolteacher at Miss Marietta Endicott’s Academy in Pennyroyal Green and she’s very proud of that achievement, especially knowing that she came from the slums of Seven Dials. I loved her attitude toward life in general and toward herself in particular. This was a woman that embraced her life and always had an optimistic view of people around her, never shirking her duties or running from them. She accepted people for what they were and easily found humor in their silly behavior. And speaking of, there was so much humor in this story that made me laugh out loud that made my eyes water.

I loved the way she brought these two people that are so unsuitable-working class girl and a nobleman-together by pure serendipity and using her prose that is second to none, by building a sexual tension that was burning the pages.

The dialogue is superb and I was left holding my breath witnessing the exchange between these two smart, witty and flirtatious beings. Their repartee was so natural it left me breathless and at times made me feel like a voyeur. Every scene with the two in it was perfectly pitched and thoughtfully constructed that it made you wish they kept going, and going and going…never to end.

And just to give you a taste of what I’m talking about, here is my favorite excerpt and I dare you to breathe when you read!

“She looked down at the bundle in her hand, indecisively. And then:

‘Here.’ She extended it to him. ‘A gift for you.’

He stared it. All at once too many thoughts and impressions jostled for the exits, and none could escape in the form of words. So he did as she ordered: slowly, wordlessly, he reached for them.

And as she began to surrender them, her fingers brushed his.

He stopped breathing.

He’d once seen a man struck by lightning. He’d watched as the bolt held him helpless, motionless, arcing his body.

Having its way with him.

It wasn’t unlike that.

Breathlessly, dumbly, they both stared at the place where their fingers met. Stunned to at last, at last, be touching. Skin to skin.

He dropped the herbs and seized her wrist. ‘Enough.’

The word was low and dark. And it thrummed command and something like a plea.

Slowly, slowly, she levered up her head, as if spooling courage on the way up. Her jaw was taut; her eyes were wide when they met his, but comprehension flickered in them.

The air suddenly seemed full of snapping sparks. One would have thought he’d captured a unicorn, for God’s sake, for how enervated he felt.

As he watched, a flush painted her from her collarbone upwards. Beneath his thumb, placed over a pale blue vein in that silky hand, her pulse raced.

He turned her palm up. He wished he could be certain she was the one who was trembling, for one of them was. Her hand was achingly soft, too vulnerable. It was cold, which struck him as poignant. He wanted to warm her. He needed to warm her.

And so he brought her palm to his mouth.

He softly opened his mouth against her skin, touched his tongue there, burned her with a kiss that was at once chaste and perhaps the most carnal he’d ever given.

Her head tipped back hard; her eyelids shuddered closed. She made a soft sound, a gasp of shock and pure sensual pleasure.

Mother of God.

He lifted his head with some effort. He curled her fingers closed over the place he kissed her, as if handing her a keepsake.

He knew he ought to. And yet he found he couldn’t relinquish her hand.

Look at me, Miss Vale.’ His voice a low demand.

A moment’s hesitation. She opened her eyes. He was absurdly thrilled to see them again. They were dazed and starry and wary. The sun haloed her, and the light both set her aglow and obscured her. As he stared, he withstood bolt after swift bolt of impression, each distinct and pure and primal:

Who kissed you first? I will kiss the memory of it away. I will run him through with a sword. I can’t recall kissing anyone before you. I am ruined. I am happy. I’m afraid. I need to leave. You need to leave.

He was holding her hand as though it was as delicate as an egg. Which rather contrasted his expression, which, little did he know, was edging toward the thunderous.

“I didn’t know I was going to do that,’ he said finally.”

For a story with interesting, entertaining and witty characters who lack in any warn out clichés with secondary characters that are as equally developed as the primary, accompanied with a prose, plot and humor to die for, I give you leave to RUN not walk, and buy this novel, and I bestow upon it my five quills whole heartedly!

*This review posted on Romantic Crush Junkies Reviews eZine*

 

Behind the Scenes with Bastien and Raeven from Shana Galen’s ‘The Rogue Pirate’s Bride’

First of all, I want to say thanks so much to Melanie for inviting me back to b2b. It’s always a pleasure! Last time I blogged, I let Sophia from Lord and Lady Spy do most of the talking. This time I thought I’d bring Bastien and Raeven from The Rogue Pirate’s Bride. If anyone knows what was going on behind-the-scenes, it’s these two.

Shana: So, who wants to go first?

Raeven: I will.

Bastien: Shocking. You’re usually so meek and mild.

Raeven: No one was speaking to you, pirate.

Bastien: How many times do I have to tell you? I’m a privateer.

Shana: Imagine living with this day in and day out!

Raeven: Day in and day out? It took you forever to write our book. At one point, you didn’t write for three months.

Shana: Raeven, I had a baby in the middle of the book. I was too busy and tired to write. I still turned the book in on time.

Bastien: Then why didn’t it come out as scheduled, and why am I now a rogue pirate? I object to this title most strenuously.

Shana: I’m sorry, Bastien. Basically, what happened was the book was scheduled to release in April 2011 as The Making of a Rogue.

Bastien: Which fit perfectly with the titles of my brothers’ books, The Making of a Duchess and The Making of a Gentleman.

Shana: Right. The cover was similar too. But then my publisher decided to go bolder and to do something completely different, something similar to the cover for Lord and Lady Spy, which everyone loved.

Raeven: Why didn’t I get to be a spy? That sounds exciting.

Shana: Anyway, we had to push the publication back and the cover was changed as well as the title. Nothing inside the cover changed. It’s still the same book.

Bastien: Except now I’m labeled a pirate.

Raeven: You are a pirate. And let’s talk about ships and sailing, Shana. What were all those XXes about? Half the time I didn’t know what I was supposed to be doing or where I was going.

Shana: Raeven, I told you not to mention that.

Bastien: The woman cannot keep secrets.

Shana: Since the secret is out…I’ve always wanted to write a pirate—I mean, privateer—book, and so when I got this opportunity I jumped at it. Except when I started writing, I realized I didn’t know very much about ships or sailing or pirates.

Bastien: Or privateers. There is a difference.

Shana: Right. But I had a newborn baby and not much time to research, so I thought I would do it later. I put XX everywhere I needed to look something up.

Raeven: That explains why I skulk along the XX and shimmy down the XX.

Bastien: I kind of like the sound of that.

Shana: I finally realized I couldn’t write the book that way and I had to ask my dad for help.

Raeven: Oh, I hate that.

Shana: My dad is a bit more understanding than yours, Raeven. Of course, he’s not a British Admiral, and I never ran off with a pirate.

Raeven: He’s a privateer, Shana.

Shana: Anyway, my dad knows a lot about ships and sailing, so he loaned me some books and worked with me on the shipboard scenes and that was how I did a lot of research. Anything else?

Bastien: Mel probably wants to know where you got the idea for the book. People always ask you that.

Shana: Oh, good point, Bastien. In one of the earlier books I make a vague reference to the Harcourt brothers playing pirate. I say something along the lines of Bastien was always Captain Cutlass. That fit because I knew Bastien was the adventurous one of the three.

Bastien: Of course.

Shana: I sort of inadvertently set it up so this book had to be about a Captain Cutlass. And what better opponent for a pirate than an admiral’s daughter?

Raeven: Especially if that pirate killed the admiral’s daughter’s fiancé.

Bastien: He attacked me.

Raeven: Likely story. Everyone knows pirates lie.

Shana: So, Melanie, that’s a bit of the behind-the-scenes for The Rogue Pirate’s Bride. One thing is certain, my September 2012 book, which begins a new series about three glamorous Regency courtesans called The Three Diamonds, will not have any pirates. In fact, there isn’t even any water in When You Give a Duke a Diamond. Well, except for that one bathtub scene…

Have you ever gotten yourself into a sticky situation like mine (partway through the book I realized I didn’t know what I was doing!)? How did it turn out? I’m offering a chance to win one of two copies of The Rogue Pirate’s Bride to U.S. and Canadian residents who comment! I’ll check back later and join the discussion.

Melanie here! Thanks so much for stopping by Shana, Raeven and Bastien! It was most enlightening to host you all.

Bookworms, I swear you’ll have your sea legs long after you’re done reading this sea adventure filled with drama, humor and action galore!

To read a long excerpt from the novel, click on the cover; to learn more about the author, click on her photo and to buy this MUST have book, click on the titles.

 

‘The Rogue Pirate’s Bride’ by Shana Galen

STORY: Revenge should be sweet, but it may cost him everything…

Out to avenge the death of his mentor, Bastien discovers himself astonishingly out of his depth when confronted with a beautiful, daring young woman who is out for his blood…

Forgiveness is unthinkable but it may be her only hope…

British Admiral’s daughter Raeven Russell believes Bastien responsible for her fiancé’s death. But once the fiery beauty crosses swords with Bastien, she’s not so sure she really wants him to change his wicked ways…

REVIEW: FINALY! I’ve waited for this book it seems for EVAH! By now y’all know how much I love this author’s work and as much as I was looking forward to this story, once I found out they were changing the title (I will ALWAYS refer to this novel as THE MAKING OF A ROGUE) and then the cover (which is not consistent to the series), I was getting anxiety attacks in regards to the content. See, this is what happens to someone like me who takes her ROMANCE reading to a whole new level. And for that, I give Shana Galen full credit. If she didn’t write her characters so well, I doubt my feelings would be engaged at all.

Well, I should not have fretted at all, although there is one itty-bitty thing that I would have preferred, and that is the Prologue. The other two books in the series, ‘The Making of a Duchess’ and ‘The Making of a Gentleman’, both start with the Prologue of the faithful night as peasants break in and I hoped this one would be as well because I wanted to find out how Bastien got away. So this is one more thing that ‘they’ changed, and changing these three things in the middle of the series (or in this case at the end of it) aggravated me to no end. However, after reading the story, I’m now past it and let me tell you my thoughts on this wonderful end to this series.

If you’ve never read The Son’s of Revolution and this is your first book in it, S.T.O.P. Do not read it…YET. Please, please find the other two and read them in order. You will be glad you did. This third installment can stand alone, but it shouldn’t. This is a series that you’ll enjoy so much more once you read Julian and Armand’s stories.

Sebastien Harcourt, Marquis of de Valere has survived that night, but scars he carries are not on the outside but rather buried deep inside his heart. He is certain that he’s lost his whole family to the fire and to survive he needs to be far away from France and boarding a ship he heads out to sea.

Raeven Russell is an Admiral’s daughter with vengeance in her heart. She aims to avenge the death of her fiancé who, it was reported, has been killed by Captain Cutlass and she is more than ready to face the bastard pirate. Nothing and no one will stand in her way when she spots him in a local tavern and challenges him to a sword fight.

Bastien, now known only as Captain Cutlass, is taken aback by a challenge of this young ‘man’ who wants to cut him to pieces, and fighting ‘him’ isn’t what he’s looking for. He has much more urgent business to attend to, like finding Jourdain, the pirate who killed the man who taught him everything he knows about ships and sailing. He’s been on his trail for a while now and he knows that he won’t rest until he gets his revenge.

What a shock he’s in for to find out that the ‘boy’ is no boy but a young woman! And here’s where we’re off on an adventure along our impetuous heroine.

This ending was bittersweet for me as I said goodbye to Harcourt’s (until the next re-read only). Ms. Galen delivers high sea drama, humor and action, so well that you better bring your sea legs along for this adventure!

You’ll root for these two as they pursue the enemy while facing their individual vendettas and help each other heal. Together they’ll face her father, English Navy, nasty pirates, their past and the de Valere family.

This is a wonderfully entertaining, fast pacing conclusion to the Sons of the Revolution series that had me laughing out loud and shedding a tear or two. Harcourt men, Julian, Armand and Bastien stole my heart and I thank Ms. Galen for bringing them all to life! Highly recommend it; not to be missed and always to be re-read!

*To buy this book, click on the cover*

*To learn more about the author, click on her name*

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*