"I am ready to meet my maker. Whether my maker is prepared to meet me is another matter."
-Winston Churchill
Showing posts with label historical romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label historical romance. Show all posts

Monday, May 5, 2014

Interview With Tina Christopher - Danger by Dalliance (Book Tour & Giveaway)




Welcome to IAB. I'm so glad you could stop in today to chat. May I offer you a beverage?

Hi there, thank you so much for having me. I’ll have a Witches Brew, please.



Now that we are settled in, let's get to know you better.

BK: Looking out the nearest window, describe the scene you see.

I wish I could say I look out on mountains or beach or a lake, all of which inspires my writing, but all I see through my nearest window is another apartment building. If the window is open, I also hear traffic noise.

BK: Tell us about your office. Is it a mess like mine, or is everything in its place?

It’s probably as messy as yours. My desk currently carries a collection of paperwork, paid bills, and post-it notes that fell off the wall and describe my WIP. In one corner I have a stack of empty boxes and in another a stack of bags filled with cat litter.

Over my desk I have a beautiful poster of steps in the woods leading into the unknown. Staring at it helps when I’m stuck. Beside it I have another poster called “Quotes from Shakespeare”. It highlights a number of the words and phrases that he first used and that now have become part of the language. Every time I read it I am amazed how his words have influenced us.

BK: What is a must-have, such as coffee or a favorite pen, that you need to write?

Tea, tea, and tea. Did I mention I drink a lot of tea? Oh, yes, a cup of tea at my hand is a must to write, no matter the weather. I also never go anywhere without my Seven Year Pen and a notebook. I do a lot of scribbling of random notes or reminders.

BK: Do you like to write in silence, or do you need music or background noise?

I can write anywhere and everywhere. Music, no music, the hustle and bustle of a busy coffee shop, none of it matters as long as I have tea.

BK: Tell us a bit about your hero/heroine, and their development.

All her life Sarah had to follow the rules and live up to all the expectations society has put on her. When things happen she has to decide if she will finally break out of the restrictions or if she will stay confined for love.

Archer and Warren have been lovers for years, but both had a tough upbringing. Both of them thought they looked for a third for one reason, but have to discover the truth may be rather different.

BK: What is your unique twist that you've brought to your storyline?

Warren and Archer, for the most part a happy couple, open their relationship to a third. Sarah, a proper English woman forced to follow society’s rules, ends up posing nude. And the seduction begins…

BK: As a writer myself, I'm always curious how other writers get through stumble blocks. When you find a story not flowing, or a character trying to fight you, how do you correct it?

Write or Die (http://writeordie.com/). You can either download it onto your computer or use it on the website. You choose how many words you want to write and how long it will take you. And the mode. If you don’t continue to add words the application deletes what you have already written;). Let’s just say that is enough to keep you going.

BK: Using the letters of your first name as an acronym, describe your book...

T-Tempestuous
I- Intriguing
N-Naughty
A-Absorbing

BK: How did your writing journey begin?

I always wrote stories in my head when falling asleep, but it wasn’t until a friend was editing an anthology and I asked if I could write a story for her. That story never saw the light of day, but the world I created and its hero and heroine made it into Tangled Shadows (http://www.ellorascave.com/tangled-shadows.html) as side characters.

BK: Using the letters from the word, Summer, how would friends and family describe you?

S- Surprising
U- Understanding
M- Meticulous
M- Mindful
E- Expressive
R- Resourceful

BK: What is the craziest thing you've ever written about, whether it got published or not?

My Celestial Surrender series (http://www.ellorascave.com/series/celestial-surrender.html) is about Vampires and Angels in space. Some would call that crazy…

BK: Tell us one thing you've done in life, that readers would be most surprised to know.

I jumped out of a plane. I am actually afraid of flying, something that I remembered very vividly when we took off. It was a tandem jump, so luckily I had no choice but to jump. I screamed my head off and may have had my eyes closed for the first ten seconds or so. After that I loved it. The view was utterly amazing and the silence up in the air was incredible.

BK: What can we expect from you in the future?

I have a steampunk Christmas novella coming out from Loose Id in December this year. This is the start to a James Bond inspired series. I am working on Tangled Redemption, the 4th and final book in the Celestial Surrender (http://www.ellorascave.com/series/celestial-surrender.html) series, which hopefully will be out late summer. After that I have an idea for a new series set in the same universe, starting with a young woman we first meet in Tangled Shadows.

This or That...

Coke or Pepsi? Coke

Night Owl or Early Bird? Night Owl

Fantasy or Mystery? Fantasy all the way

Pen/Paper or Computer? Computer when I can sit down, pen and paper on the go

Pizza or Burger? Burger as long as chips are involved

Rock or Country? Oh, depends on the mood…

Chocolate or Vanilla? Vanilla

Beach or Mountains? Mountains


Thank you so much for having us as one of your stops today. It has been great getting to know more about you and your book, and hope you will come back when the next release is out (*hinthint*)

Wishing you much success!

BK Walker




Danger by Dalliance
Tina Christopher

Genre: historic erotic romance with steampunk elements

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave

Date of Publication: 16th April 2014

ISBN: 9781419991783
ASIN:

Word Count: 70,000

Book Description:

Sequel to Rescue by Ruin.

Sarah Rigdon is desperate. Penniless with taxes due, she can either beg mercy from the ruthless tax collector or turn to the last man she wants to ask for help. Archer Latimer stirs desires no proper lady would ever admit to. Though their meetings always end in quarrels, she can’t deny the heat between them. When he agrees to help, Sarah thinks her luck has turned. But she should have known nothing with Archer is ever easy.

Archer and his lover Warren Dorvee have spent years searching for the right woman to complete their family. Both believe luscious Sarah is the one and now have a chance to pursue her. After all, the price of Archer’s help is for Sarah to pose for Warren’s latest painting. Nude.

But trust has to be earned and a crisis in London threatens their love. The three must navigate through lust, lies and secrets or risk being torn apart forever.

Inside Scoop: Contains m/m, GLBT and ménage.

A Romantica® historical erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave



About the Author:


Tina Christopher spent her early years flitting across the Channel between Germany and England. After touring the world extensively, she finally laid down roots in Toronto. And while Canada’s winters may be frigid, Tina’s characters are anything but!

Like most writers, Tina often hears voices in her head, but it took the encouragement of an editor friend before she actually put fingers to keyboard.

While those first stories will never see the light of day, she’s subsequently honed her craft and learned to build not just worlds, but entire galaxies. Her first book from Ellora’s Cave features a galaxy filled with Vampires, Humans and angel-like aliens called Naema.

When not imagining far away worlds and scorching hot encounters, Tina can be found on her sofa working through her never-ending TBR pile or venturing into the real world—whether to a nearby café or a passport-required destination. She’s a member of the RWA’s Toronto chapter. Her two degrees in environmental conservation, majoring in large animal studies, come in handy when wrestling with supernatural beasties.












Tour giveaway

5 ebook copies of Danger by Dalliance

4 items Steampunk inspired jewellery open to worldwide shipping















Thursday, July 25, 2013

Interview With Shehanne Moore - The Unraveling of Lady Fury



How much of yourself is hidden in the characters in your books?
I tell people nothing at all. Unfortunately that is not what they tell me. Obviously they see similarities in terms of the absolute niceness of my characters. The patience and serenity with which they greet life as a whole, accept defeat and never want the impossible. Ahem. Looking the other way here.

How much of a story do you have in mind before you start writing?
I see the beginning and that’s it. Obviously since it’s romance and you have to HEA, that too. Then I just hope I can get from one to the other.

Can you tell us about your Historical Romance?
Well, it’s set in Genoa, in a sort of émigré English community and it’s about a woman needing to conceive an heir in order to guarantee her future. All fine till husband meets with an unfortunate accident and then her ex-lover, the one man in the world who knows all her secrets turns up.

Will you write another book in the series?
It’s a stand alone, although they do have children so you never know.

How do you cope with writer's block?
I don’t think about it. To think is to fear.

How do you develop and differentiate your characters?
I like feisty characters, characters who are glaringly imperfect and not terribly self aware because let’s face it, which of us is truly self aware? I develop them by thinking of their lives before they got to the point where the actual story starts because the things that shape us as people are to be found there. I then think about what their goals are at the point the story starts, to see what little traits to give them they will soon shoot themselves in the foot with. Then I think about physical appearance. Their likes, dislikes.

Do you have specific techniques you use to develop the plot and stay on track?
A lot of candlelit baths and optimism.

How (or when) do you decide that you are finished writing a story?
When every end is tied and the conflicts external, then internal, are resolved.

Is there a message in your writing you want readers to grasp?
Even when the subject matter is weighty I think the ability to laugh is a huge thing. So I try to get these touches of humor even in the bleakest circumstances. Also real life isn’t perfect so why should my characters be?

What are you working on right now?
I am working on a story which I see as part of a series about an ex jewel thief.

Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Yes. I have actually. And I’ve stuck at all kinds of jobs in the hope that one day this dream would come true.

At what age did you discover your love of writing?
Seven. But it certainly wasn’t as simple as that.

What was the first story that you wrote?
A god-awful fairy tale. Some unoriginal claptrap about a princess in a forest.

When were you first published? How were you discovered?
It depends what kind of publication we are talking of. For years I’ve done all sorts of writing jobs, from girls’ graphic comics to non fiction. The Unraveling of lady Fury is my first published book. I subbed it to Etopia Press, I subbed it a lot of places actually, but they came right back offering a contract so...

What is the most difficult part of the whole writing process?
Probably accepting that you may fail. That no-one might want to publish your work and not necessarily because it’s no good either. Having a book out is no guarantee of anything.

What do you like to read?
I love historical stories. But some of my favs are oldies. I also love anyd of the forties noir books.

What writer influences you the most?
I would that impossible to answer when so many do. I love the sprawl of writers like Margaret Mitchell, F.Tennyson Jesse, the incredible detail of the times, but I also think these thirties/forties writers like Cain and McCoy had a huge talent for keeping it tight, while F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote the prose that is a delicacy.

If your book was made into a TV series or Movie, which actors would you like to see playing your characters?
Talking Margaret Mitchell I could see Vivien Leigh playing Fury. She has the right fire onscreen but I could also see Keira Knightley having that refined edge Fury constantly tries to maintain. Flint, I think Josh Holloway has the right onscreen mix of steel and grit.

Where can people learn more about you and your books?
  1. http://pinterest.com/shehanne


Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and your books?

Apart from giving them a chance..! Nah. 


About The Author

Shehanne Moore is a Scottish born author who writes gritty, witty, more risky than risqué, historical romance, set wherever takes her fancy–stories that detail the best and worst of human behaviour, as opposed to pouts and flounces.

For years she did various jobs while pursuing her dream of becoming a published writer, so she was thrilled to be offered a contract by Etopia Press for The Unraveling of Lady Fury, six days after subbing it.
Shehanne still lives in Scotland with her husband Mr Shey. She has two daughters. When not writing intriguing, and of course, sizzling, historical romance, where goals and desires of sassy, unconventional heroines and ruthless men, mean worlds do collide, she fantasizes about cleaning the house, plays the odd musical instrument and loves what in any other country, would not be defined, as hill-walking.




About The Book

Rule One: There will be no kissing.

Rule two: There will be no touching…

Widowed Lady Fury Shelton hasn’t lost everything—yet. As long as she produces the heir to the Beaumont dukedom, she just might be able to keep her position. And her secrets. But when the callously irresistible Captain James “Flint” Blackmoore sails back into her life, Lady Fury panics. She must find a way to protect herself—and her future—from the man she’d rather see rotting in hell than sleeping in her bed. If she must bed him to keep her secrets, so be it. But she doesn’t have to like it. A set of firm rules for the bedroom will ensure that nothing goes awry. Because above all else, she must stop herself from wanting the one thing that Flint can never give her. His heart.

Ex-privateer Flint Blackmoore has never been good at following the rules. Now, once again embroiled in a situation with the aptly named Lady Fury, he has no idea why he doesn’t simply do the wise thing and walk away. He knows he’s playing with fire, and that getting involved with her again is more dangerous than anything on the high seas. But he can’t understand why she’s so determined to hate him. He isn’t sure if the secret she keeps will make things harder—or easier—for him, but as the battle in the bedroom heats up, he knows at least one thing. Those silly rules of hers will have to go…



Book Excerpt

Fury sat down and dipped the quill into the ink. She detected the faintest trace of nerves. It must be the fact Thomas lay in the cellar. Why else would a man, so great, so stalwart, so worldly as Captain Flint be nervous of her?
“Well, yes,” she said, listening to the pleasing scratch of the nib on the soft paper.
“Babies are not always made in a night. Of course, you wouldn’t know that, being you. It will take time.”
“All the more reason then to just get going. After all this time, sweetheart, you don’t know how eager I am.”
He strode across the tiled floor and the ink trailed a long dark path across the paper as he dragged her to her feet. Had it blobbed it might have been something to worry about. But she was very set on this. And calm. As calm as one could be having this man in her bedroom, knowing what was coming next out of dire necessity, her husband in a box in the cellar and her cast off, potential lovers on their way out the door.
“No, James.” She held a hand up between their lips. “There will be no kissing.”
“No kissing? Why in hell not?”
It displaced her calm to see him grin. She would have preferred that he was indignant. Especially as he was a man who thought he could settle all his arguments—with women anyway—with a kiss. But she kept her face cold, blank.
“Because.” In some ways she was cold. Cold with rage.
“Aw, come on Fury, didn’t you like my kissing? Hmm?” His breath, hot and male, brushed her fingertips. He wrapped his arms around her, splaying his hands across her back, so her hand might as well not have been there for all the protection it was.
But she was calm. Didn’t she have to get into bed with him after all? So, even the impulse to squirm was one she would squash. When she thought of all he had done to her, she would give him nothing. Not even the knowledge she found his proximity so unsettling that she sought to pull away.
“Your kissing was fine, in its way, I suppose. But kissing is a sign of affection.”
“How do you make that out?”
She knew exactly why he scratched his head. Their love-making had been torrid. It had been sensual. It had been shaming. And it had been absent of any affection. Certainly on his part. So, why on earth would a kiss be a sign of anything? To him anyway. She was the damn fool who had thought it had. Who even now was forced to concede the pleasure it would be to take her hand across his face to assist his understanding of her feelings. The impertinence of the damn man, the stinging ignorance.
“It just is.” She eased the distance between them a whisper. “So there will be none. Not now. Not at all.”
“All right then. Saves time. It means—”
“Rule two.” She saw his eyes freeze as he readied himself to yank off his shirt. She persisted anyway. Why not? In many ways she walked a tightrope here. If she paused it might be to her detriment. “You will be fully dressed at all times.”
“What? How the hell am I meant to—”
“I am sure you will manage. You managed plenty before. But I do not desire to look at your body before, during, or after. Nor in any shape or form wandering about this house in just your breeches. Is that understood?”
He dropped his hands from his shirt and glared, so he must have. “You wanted to look at it plenty before. In fact, it makes my head spin, just how often you—”
True. But that was then. “Rule three.” Clasping her fingers around the cool edge of the dressing table to create another inch of distance, she continued.
“Rule three? You mean there’s more?”
“I will not touch you in any place, intimate or otherwise. I will lie. You will perform.”

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Nuncio The Gypsy Girl by Kristin Alexandre - Graphic Novel Review

Nuncio and the Gypsy Girl in the Gilded Age is the first in a series of three graphic novels narrated by the African Grey Parrot Nuncio.This is the story of Neci, the beautiful gypsy princess who is infatuated with the brilliant composer/pilot Ezra. Neci lives at the turn of the century in Dayton, Ohio, where inventors and engineers have turned the city into the Silicon Valley of the day.
Like everyone in America at this time, Neci and Ezra want to improve themselves and their lot. While Ezra is besotted with the gypsy girl, his head is turned when the well-connected Edith offers her love and her connections to Ezra.
The two women confront each other during the rescue efforts for survivors of The Dayton Flood. Edith recognizes that she is faced with a significant rival for Ezra s affections. She sets about to abolish he enemy.
As the story unfolds, Edith discovers inside information that the Lusitania faces a real threat of German destruction when it makes its crossing to England. Edith decides to keep this information to herself. She imperils the lives of Neci and the Hubbards.
Neci and Ezra s benefactors and friends, The Hubbards, choose to make the crossing. When Ezra takes Neci to the send-off for the Atlantic crossing, his emotions overwhelm. He is seen making his way on board.
After a friendly breakfast The Hubbards and Neci find themselves on deck as the ship is struck by a torpedo. The Hubbards choose death and Neci frees our narrator Nuncio and jumps into the Irish Sea. We must wait for the next book to uncover her fate and the fate of the man she loves.

My Review:

I loved it! I wasn't too sure what I would get when I was asked to review this graphic novel, but I'm so glad I accepted. I'm not a big fan of history, but Alexandre did a magnificent job with description and era that I was sucked right in. Tom Loepp is the illustrator and he did fantastic! It all blended so well together, you couldn't help but read it through.

It's a beautiful love story turned love triangle. While a young woman named Neci is in love with Ezra, he just doesn't feel the same way thinking she's too young. He goes his own way, leaving the gypsy community behind. This is when he meets the beautiful Marlene, who is almost appalled that she's fallen for him so quickly. They both share a love of music, and when Neci sends her animal friends to spy, she realizes that this Marlene may just be the one to make Ezra famous. With the new world being built and autos being introduced, Neci may be forgotten from Ezra's memories forever.

Marlene has her own agenda and though the book leaves you with a continuation, you're definitely going to want more. I definitely give it 5 flaming roses! Anxiously waiting book two.







Kristin’s last books, “Find a Great Guy: Now and Forever” and “The Perfect Gentleman: the Secrets Rich Girls Use to Find the Classiest Guys,” received excellent reviews from Amazon and Vanity Fair Magazine. The much trusted “Kirkus Review” recommends and lauds this relationship book. Read more reviews here.
Kristin is a relationship expert and her website is called www.thenewgentleman.com.
This author has also worked as a news reporter for Channel 13 and Channel 5 News in NYC and hosted and produced her own show called “Enough Is Enough,” a syndicated issue oriented talk show. She was a featured columnist for The Dayton Journal Herald and has written for many magazines including Town & Country, Harpers Bazaar and The Daily News Sunday Magazine.
Kristin works closely with The Humane Society of America and auditioned for Oprah’s new OWN network. Her audition proposes a show about the bond between animals and people http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8oPe86xt3s.
Kristin was a publicist for Rums of Puerto Rico and The Economic Development Administration of Puerto Rico. She also hosted a luncheon series for executives at The New York Yacht Club for The Chairman of Ammirati & Puris Advertising.
Kristin Alexandre is a producer with Dahooma Productions where she assisted with “Not For Nothing” – a soon to be released contemporary romantic comedy.
The author grew up in a fifth generation family from Dayton, Ohio and she currently serves as President of that family’s investment partnership.
She received her BA from Sweet Briar College and is a member of The New York Junior League.

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