Sunday, April 22, 2018

Jacob “JT” Whitloch, Defending Her Heart by Laura Haley-McNeil @laurarmcneil #Cowboy, #Music World, #Western Romance


Jacob “JT” Whitloch, Defending Her Heart by Laura Haley-McNeil @laurarmcneil #Cowboy, #Music World, #Western Romance


I’d like to welcome JT Whitloch of Defending Her Heart by Laura Haley-McNeil

RW:   What's your story/back story? Why would someone come up with a story about you?

JTW:  Back story isn’t something I want to discuss. No one needs to know why I came to Crystal Creek. That secret should remain buried and would have, but then my entire past erupted and came to life in that petite bombshell who rocks the stage with her sultry voice and fathomless dark eyes.

RW:    Can you tell us about your heroine

JTW:  I can tell you she’s interrupting my life. She’s not who she pretends to be. The more I find out about her, the more I don’t like. The more I try to stay away from her, the more she interferes, stirs up memories and stirs up the past.

RW:    What problems do you have to face and overcome in your life?

JTW:  If I knew the answer to that, I’d have some peace in my life. That’s why I came to Crystal Creek—to find peace. What I wouldn’t give to have one night of restful sleep, but instead every time I close my eyes, the nightmares come full-blown.

RW:   Do you expect your heroine to help or is she the problem?

JTW:  She’s definitely the problem. She waltzes into town with more money than God, or at least more money than the Whitlochs have, and starts buying up the place. She wants the ranch, she wants the show horses. She’s putting down roots and she’s making it clear—she has no intention of leaving.

RW:    Where do you live?

JTW:  In the bunkhouse on the Crystal Creek Ranch. A far cry from my European estate, but I won’t stay in the place that turned my life upside down. Crystal Creek offers me peace and quiet. Or it did until she showed up.

RW:    During what time-period does your story take place?

A.                    Now.

RW:    How are you coping with the conflict in your life?

JTW:  If I could remember what happened that night, that would be a start, but it was a typical night at my estate—the parties, the beautiful women, the drinking. You can guess the rest. I must’ve blacked out or fallen asleep, but when I came to, the authorities were there pummeling me questions. I couldn’t answer them because I couldn’t remember. I still can’t remember.

RW:    City life or country life? E-Book or paperback? Zebras or elephants?

JTW:  I used to jet around the world to some of the most exotic place on the planet. My every whim was granted. I lived the life of luxury, until the night everything changed. Now the country offers more riches than all the money in the world.

Not that I have time to read, but I’d be happy to hold a dogeared paperback any day.

Zebras or elephants—that reminds me of the safaris my personal assistant used to schedule for me. The massive size and the intelligence of the elephants I’d see always appealed to me.

RW:    If you came with a warning label, what would it say?

JTW:  Stay away. You don’t want to be a part of my world. There’s no peace here. And if you get dragged into my nightmare, I can guarantee you you’ll never escape.

RW:    Party life or quiet dinner for two?

JTW:  A few years ago, it would’ve been the party life. It WAS the party life, now it’s dinner for one. I’ve already ruined the life of one innocent person. I’m not about to drag anyone else into my nightmare.

RW:    I'm always ready for (fill in the blank).

JTW:  I can’t say no to peace and quiet and solitude. Every chance I get, I’m on my horse and riding over the ranch. Colorado is a beautiful state and no place is more perfect than the Crystal Creek Ranch.

RW:    Those are all the questions I have for you. Thank you for speaking to me.


Laura Haley-McNeil

Bio

Laura Haley-McNeil is an award-winning author of romantic suspense and women’s fiction in novel length and in short stories. Her work has been featured in several women’s magazines. She has studied piano and ballet and has been a board member for two community orchestras. She and her husband reside in Colorado. When she isn’t writing, she jogs, bicycles and crochets.

DEFENDING HER HEART
Book 6 of the Crystal Creek Series

The Plot

JT Whitloch can’t close his eyes without seeing the body of the woman who drowned in his swimming pool two years ago. He doesn’t remember that night but blames himself for her death. He walks away from his affluent life and moves to Crystal Creek, but still he can’t find peace.

Then Gretchen Moore moves to town. She stirs up his desire and his past with a secret so deadly it could destroy her.

Gretchen wants nothing to do with JT. Because of him, someone wants her dead. The terror from his past forces them into an alliance that soon ignites their passion. Fighting these feelings leads them to the secret of the woman floating in JT’s swimming pool, but the knowledge doesn’t ease JT’s inner turmoil. Instead, it reveals an answer that could destroy him and Gretchen. His own destruction he could accept, but he’ll defend Gretchen to his death.

An Excerpt:

Chapter One

JT Whitloch sensed the woman the moment he set foot inside the auction stables. Through the scent of anxiety-ridden horses and a mass of humanity floated the fragrance of delicacy and wealth. A wave of disappointment dropped over him. He’d been twenty-three years old when he’d walked away from that life two years ago. He thought he’d suppressed his urges for women—at least that kind of woman. The desire pumping through him was a quick reminder—he’d failed.

The brim of the woman’s cowgirl hat cast a shadow over her I’m-a-celebrity sunglasses. Two words popped into his mind—elegant and stunning—as elegant and stunning as the Arabian stallion they both eyed.

Behind her glamorous exterior he sensed something else—cool strength and determination. She may be used to winning but if she planned to bid on the stallion, she’d learn she was no match for Rose Whitloch, JT’s stepmother. What Rose wanted, Rose got, and she wanted to add this horse to her Crystal Creek ranch stable.

The stud’s whinny rang in JT’s ears. It was a refined timbre practiced to receive immediate attention. And it demanded freedom.

That was what JT wanted—freedom from these urges pouring through him and freedom from the past.
The past didn’t let go.

Contact Laura At:

Website & Blog:  http://laurahaleymcneil.com
Amazon Author Page:  https://www.amazon.com/Laura-Haley-McNeil/e/B008S3WD10/

Book Links:

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Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Jana Richards, LIES AND SOLACE, @JanaRichards_ #Contemporary, # Romance, #SmallTown



I’d like to welcome Jana Richards, author of the Love at Solace Lake series to my blog today.

RW:    Tell us about yourself, your family, where you live, etc.

JR:     I live in Winnipeg, Canada. My husband and I have two grown daughters who we’re very proud of. One’s a journalist and one’s an RN and studying to be a nurse practitioner. Away from writing, I work part-time for the provincial veterinary medical association, doing mostly accounting. We like traveling, concerts and golf (my husband adores golf—I like yoga better).

RW:    How many hours a day do you spend writing?

JR:     It really varies. There are days I’ll spend eight hours at my computer, and days I don’t write at all. But most of the time, my limit is two to four hours at one sitting. Writing is such an intense mental exercise that it takes everything out of me. Unless the words are really flowing, after a few hours, my brain is fried!

RW:   Why did you decide to write? When did you submit your first manuscript and what genre was it?

JR:     After reading my first romance, I was hooked, and I got the feeling that I could write one, too. It was a strong feeling that wouldn’t let me go. Now I’m hooked on telling stories. It probably sounds trite, but I can’t not write.

I honestly can’t remember the first manuscript I submitted. It likely was contemporary romance and it would have been submitted twenty or more years ago. It was rejected, and so were several other of my early efforts. It took me a long time to produce a manuscript that was worth publishing.

RW:   Has your life changed since you became a writer? What’s the best thing about being a writer?

JR:     Well, for sure my house isn’t as clean as it used to be! Writing takes a lot time and energy. Then there’s all the time and energy needed to promote the writing and find readers. It’s meant a few things have gone by the wayside. Fortunately, my husband doesn’t mind cooking!

The best thing about being a writer is making up worlds and characters out of my imagination. I love that!

RW:   Who are your favorite authors? Who influenced your writing?

JR:    I have a lot of favorite authors—Mary Balogh, Julie James, Suzanne Brockmann, Lisa Kleypas, Kristin Higgins, to name a few. Probably the author who influenced me most when I first began writing was Nora Roberts. How can you not admire someone as prolific as Ms. Roberts who tells such amazing stories? I want to be Nora Roberts when I grow up!

RW:   Who are your favorite characters among the books you’ve written?

JR:     One of my favorite characters is Zane from A Long way from Eden. He’s a strong, alpha male character, someone who doesn’t take any crap from anyone. But he’s fiercely loyal to the people he loves, and he looks after them, even if his actions aren’t always welcomed by his loved ones.

Another of my favorite characters is Cameron from Secrets and Solace, book 2 of my new Love at Solace Lake series. Cam has faced a lot of struggles in his life, a dysfunctional family, an unplanned pregnancy with a cheating partner, and struggles with alcohol. But he overcomes all those things to become a caring father and loyal brother. But when he faces his biggest struggle, he has trouble accepting help from the people who love him.

RW:   What makes a good book? A great romance? Is humor important in fiction and why?

JR:     I think characters that readers care about are essential to a good book. To that I’ll add characters that readers care about who are facing a struggle. Unless there is some kind of conflict that forces the characters to act and to change, there’s not much of a story. That’s true for any genre.

A great romance has to have all of the above plus it has to show two (or more) characters falling in love. And not just any garden-variety infatuation. It has to be the love of their lives, something they can’t get with anyone else. Humor is definitely a part of that. Even a very serious story can use humor to lighten moments and to show the characters are human.


RW:    How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing?

JR:     Quite a bit, actually. A writer can’t help putting some of themselves into their writing because we’re reflecting the way we see the world. In a manuscript I’m working on right now, I’m relating my experience with my dog!

RW:   Tell us about your latest book. What motivated the story? Where did the idea come from? What genre is it? Does it cross over to other genres? If so, what are they?

JR:     My latest releases are the three books in the Love at Solace Lake contemporary romance series. Three sisters inherit their grandfather’s old fishing lodge in Minnesota and they work together to revive the failing business. They grew up at the lodge with their grandparents after their parents died in a murder/suicide. As the series unfolds, light is shed on old secrets.

What motivated the writing of this series is wanting to explore what happens to a child when there is a murder in the family. Each of the sisters reacts a little differently to the death of their parents: Harper struggles with issues of abandonment, Scarlet feels guilty, and Maggie, who was too young to know her parents, feels cheated.


RW:   What are your thoughts on love scenes in romance novels?

JR:     I’m all for them! I’ve come to the point in my writing where I like to include at least one love scene, even in a very short work. I know that there is a wide range of likes and expectations from readers when it comes to love scenes. In some of the reviews I’ve received for the first book in the Love at Solace Lake series, LIES AND SOLACE, Harper’s story, one reviewer said she skipped over the love scenes, while another reviewer said she wanted the book to be hotter. Different strokes for different folks!

RW:    Those are all the questions I have for you. Thank you for speaking to me.


JR:     Thanks Rochelle. It’s been fun!

LIES AND SOLACE

The Plot

She can’t live with one more lie. He can’t tell the truth.

Harper Lindquist is convinced she’s found the answer to her financial prayers. Unless she pours cash into crumbling Solace Lake Lodge, she’ll lose her family’s legacy. Her would-be savior arrives in the middle of a Minnesota blizzard and she’s determined to prove to her reluctant, and trapped, financier the lodge is a sound investment. But Harper isn’t completely honest with him. And she has no idea the lake is hiding secrets of its own.

Ethan James is a liar, but his money is very real. He isn’t convinced a broken-down inn is a smart investment opportunity. But the more he understands Harper’s dreams and desires, the more he wants to be the man to make them come true. The trauma in both their pasts means neither can fully trust the other. They must find the courage to love, to trust, and to accept, or yesterday’s sorrows will keep them apart.

An Excerpt:

As she stared into his dark eyes she realized how much she trusted him and relied on him. That was something rare for her. The only people she trusted as much were her sisters.

I’m in love with him.

The thought blasted through her brain with the force of a tsunami. The tension of the last few weeks, the insecurity, the mistrust, the fear, slipped easily from her shoulders. For the first time, her mind was clear. She was in love with Ethan and she didn’t want to wait anymore. She wanted him. She wanted him to be her first, her last.

Finding courage she didn’t know she possessed, Harper slid off the stool and walked around the island. She plucked the wine glass from his hand and set it on the counter, then placed his hand on her breast. “Make love with me, Ethan.”

A fire lit in his eyes, telling her he wanted her, too. But there was a question there, a hesitation. “Are you sure?”

She’d never been more sure of anything in her life. “Yes.”

“Harper—”

“Shhh. Let’s not talk anymore.” She placed one finger over his lips, then stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.

Ethan’s reaction was lightning swift. He wrapped his arms around her and brought her close, his mouth descending on hers in a wild, warm kiss. Their tongues tangled, slid over each other. She’d missed his touch, his taste. She moaned, and in the sound she heard thirty-two years of longing.

For this. For him.

Jana Richards

Bio

When Jana Richards read her first romance novel, she immediately knew two things: she had to commit the stories running through her head to paper, and they had to end with a happily ever after. She also knew she’d found what she was meant to do. Since then she’s never met a romance genre she didn’t like. She writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and historical romance set in World War Two, in lengths ranging from short story to full length novel. Just for fun, she throws in generous helpings of humor, and the occasional dash of the paranormal. Her paranormal romantic suspense “Seeing Things” was a 2008 EPPIE finalist.

In her life away from writing, Jana is an accountant/admin assistant, a mother to two grown daughters, and a wife to her husband, Warren. She enjoys golf, yoga, movies, concerts, travel and reading, not necessarily in that order. She and her husband live in Winnipeg, Canada with their elderly Pug/Terrier cross named Lou. She loves to hear from readers and can be reached through her website at www.janarichards.com

Book Links:

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Contact Jana Richards At: