Kay Springsteen's Blog, page 15

Something About August

Maybe it's because August is my birthday month. Maybe it's because of all the back-to-school commercials. Maybe it's because I can tell when Summer reaches her midpoint because the light changes. For whatever reason, the month of August has long been a time for me to reflect. I lost a bit of time this morning looking out my window at my garden, watching the butterflies and the hummingbird. The writing spiders have left. Did they complete their cycle so early last year? The sky overhead is clear blue – no haze to distort, no clouds to block out the color. When the air is this clear, even without the chilly bite of fall, the light puts on an amazing show, reflecting off every color in a most vivid manner. With the overbearing heat now at a livable level here in the mountains – upper 80s with low humidity – my garden has renewed herself and flowers have splashed color around her borders for my pleasure.

The first Mother's Day I lived here, one of my daughter's gave me a group of Knock-Out roses. I planted them in a hedge and they took off. These are amazing plants – disease-resistant, pest-resistant, winter-hardy through USDA zone 5, and heat-tolerant throughout the entire United States. They have flowered non-stop for me all summer, but with the slightly cooler days, they've gone into another flush of blooming. Butterflies and bees dance among their blossoms – my Knock-Outs are red, but there are many colors. Really, if you love roses, Google them.

Life can sometimes throw us for a loop. We get caught up in our troubles and the turmoil and we don't stop to smell the proverbial roses (Knock-Outs smell delicious, by the way – each color just a bit different from rosy-sweet to spicy-sweet). I'm no different from the next person. I experience problems of day-to-day living, and sometimes it's easy to lose the simple pleasures in the midst of our worries. That's why, when August hits and I begin the process of reflection, I first take stock by gazing out on my garden. Its peace and natural beauty and order is nearly perfect, and that peace settles over me like my comfortable old Blankie that I carried around as a child.

This year, as I was noticing my Knock-Out roses, I realized that I want to be like them – and in many ways, I have been. Disease-resistant, pest-resistant, hardy in wide extremes of temperature. As the heat of life is turned up or down, I adjust. This used to be called "going with the flow," I suppose. I'm at a point now where I can look back on my life, at my decisions both good and bad, and see that even throughout making numerous mistakes, I somehow learned, and grew . . . and survived. Diseases such as self-doubt, pests like the consequences and detours of my various errors in judgment, the extremes of uncertain times – I've been through them, and I'm still here. I've been blessed by as many ups as I've had downs. Life is a miracle, a journey to be savored for every little detail, whether these details are perceived as good or bad. Life, with all its wonderful up-and-down adventures, is a gift that I accept with gratitude. Will I continue to be exposed to diseases and pests and extremes? Of course. That's called living. Hopefully, like my beautiful Knock-Outs, I will continue to thrive.

Coming Soon

Heartsent by Kay Springsteen

With her strict no-dating-within-the-department rule, Firefighter Lina Standish has a nickname in the Salem Hills Fire Department: Lina "Standoffish". But Firefighter Kevin Daly has had his eye on Standoffish ever since a locker room incident nearly a year earlier, and now he plans to break all her rules. With the help of his niece and a hot-air balloon, he gets Lina's attention and she agrees to "hang out" with Kevin as friends off duty, to take it slow and see where things go between them. Then Lina's life is turned upside down by a surprise miracle who doesn't even have a name. Kevin's ready to step up, but is Lina?

Available now:

Heartsight:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Matrimonial Mayhem:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Elusive Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes print edition

Heartsight print edition

Sweet Saturday Sample

It's another random pick sampling this week. From Heartsight:

Dan flopped backward onto his sofa and laid there, one foot dangling over the edge. He stared upward at the blackness that had somehow slipped into being a normal part of his life. Trish's scent still clung on his clothing, his skin. Memories of the feel of her lingered in his mind. What are you thinking, Conway?

BLURB

On a secluded beach in North Carolina, three lonely people find hope in each other.

Trish Evers is an artist and single mother, who has inherited her grandmother's Bed and Breakfast in a North Carolina coastal town. Though she must sell the house, she decides to bring her daughter to the beach for one last summer vacation in her childhood town.

Bella is a six-year-old girl who has Down syndrome. Rejected by her father, Trish, is the only parent she's ever known. Bella likes to explore the beach and has a tendency to wander off. One day, Bella goes exploring on her own, and Trish finds her in the company of an intriguing stranger.

Dan Conway is a U.S. Marine, who had been born into a family of Marines. Now blind as a result of combat injuries and unable to "suit up," he feels he no longer has a purpose in life. He's come home to the beach, where he spends his days in solitude. Dan must learn to believe in himself and to love life again, which he begins to do through his interactions with Bella and Trish. When a hurricane strikes, and Bella wanders off again, her only hope for rescue is Dan.

Working within the confines of his blindness, he must overcome his fear of failure and recall his training in order to search for the little girl and bring her to safety.

        

Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Coming soon: Heartsent

See Amazon.com reviews of Heartsight

Heartsight on Amazon Reviews

Amazon Reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars A treasure and a pleasure,July 7, 2011

By Kathleen Ball "kathleen" (usa) – See all my reviews

This novel was so beautifully written. The relationships between the characters did tug at my heartstrings. Kay uses all five senses when she writes. You feel as though you are there watching the whole story take place- I couldn't put it down- and I was sad when it ended.

***

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally– an intelligent love story! (july 3,2011).,July 3, 2011

By Kathleen Bursaw "bookster" (st.paul,mn. usa) – See all my reviews

Came across this story by chance and I am so glad I did. My nephew is Down's Syndrome and is a loving adult now. Anyone who has come into a lifestyle like that will truly love this story. Kudos to Ms. Springsteen for a tender and intelligent love story. I will certainly read more from this author & ASTRAEA PUBLISHING.

***

5.0 out of 5 stars A Real Keeper for Me…………….,May 20, 2011

By Lady Linda – See all my reviews

Capt. Dan Conway, USMC (almost retired) after 4 years of rehab and "procedures" to restore his sight after being blinded on the wrong side of an IED, returns home to the beach he grew up on in North Carolina to just live and try to decide on a future path if there is one.

Trish Evers, single mom, divorced from the "jerk of the century" is busy clearing out the former B&B of her late grandmother a few houses away from Dan's. Trishs' 6 year old, Bella, is an adorable mentally challanged child who is adventurous and enjoying the very nearby beach. Bella's attraction to the beach mixed with overwhelmed mom's exhaustion find mom dozing and adventurous Bella on her way to the beach alone.

Panicked mom starts searching for her daughter who has found Dan on the beach and silently just sits down with him and takes his hand. Dan tries chatting with the silent child and decides to just wait for an anxious parent to find them. It takes several hours before he hears the panicked voice of a mom calling "Bella!". After Dan returns her shout Trish, of course, feels like "mom of the year" and Dan feels somewhat deserted after thanks from Trish and their ensuing departure. Seems Dan was quite taken with the quiet little one just sitting and holding his hand in the early morning sun.

Repeated encounters between Dan and Bella have mom somewhat knowing where to look for Bella who seems to have become very adept at scurrying away from her to adopt Dan (the MOST patient man ever)as her full-time buddy.

This is a wonderfully written, sweet, shelf keeper for me. Although all the main characters are sympathetic – they are also very strong in their intentions to be responsible to both themselves and Bella. Don't miss this wonderful, heartfelt story. The adventure depicted in the last half of the book will have you pulling for Dan, Trish and Bella. We later find out the sacrifice Dan may have made during that last "mission". Author Kay Springsteen writes in a very coherent style and really brings the poignancy of Dan, Bella and Trishs' lives home to the reader. I couldn't help the occasional tear for each of their personal obstacles.

It's toward the top of my re-read list, enjoy Heartsight!

***

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended!!,May 15, 2011

By Liz Velez (Dallastown, PA USA) – See all my reviews (Reviewed by: Dawne)

Single mom Trish Evers has a lot on her plate, from cleaning out her grandmother's B&B to dealing with her ex-husband and his custody issues to the mysterious ex-Marine neighbor and add in her mentally challenged daughter, Isabella. Her summer on the North Carolina beach will be life turning point in her life, physically and emotionally. With the help of mysterious neighbor, Dan Conway, Trish learns of true, unconditional love.

Over the weeks, Trish and Dan develop the sweetest romance ever witnessed. His caring and understanding of Bella's condition proves he has great compassion. Trish and Dan's relationship evolves from friendship to admiration to respect and love. Both want what's best for Bella and her development and stability.

When her ex-husband, who's fighting her for custody of their daughter, shows up unannounced, Trish has to stand firm her Bella's well-being. In preparations of leaving the beach side residence with a pending hurricane coming, Bella disappears. During the ordeal, Trish relies on Dan, who is blind due to an IED explosion overseas (happened during a scene involving Trish's ex's company) to find Bella. Dan, who is still dealing with some issues from his blindness and Marine life, must set aside his emotions and troubles to find Bella.

Springsteen creates three of the most memorable characters in this novel. From Dan and Isabella's connection to Dan and Trish's budding romance, Springsteen produces passion in her dialogue, laughter in the moments shared between Dan and Trish and unconditional love for all three.

I highly recommend this novel to everyone. The sweet romance was addictive and once I started reading, I could NOT stop. Springsteen has a glowing future in the publishing world of romance.

***

4.0 out of 5 stars Set your sights on Heartsight,May 15, 2011

By Joy at Edgy Inspirational Romance – See all my reviews

Dan Conyers is blind. He carries physical and emotional scars, but he's anything but helpless. This ex-military man was of the hottest heroes I've met in a long time. Kudos to the author for taking her leading man in a brand new direction.

I normally review Christian fiction, and probably wouldn't have read this if I had known it didn't really fit that category, but I'm glad I gave it a chance. Heartsight is a sweet/contemporary romance and a quick read. Springsteen crafted characters that wormed their way into my heart almost immediately.

She did a particularly great job writing the slime ball ex-husband. He made a fantastic antagonist, someone I loved hating.

If you're a fan of sweet romance, sets your sights on Heartsight.

***

5.0 out of 5 stars Tugging the Heartstrings Read,March 20, 2011

By Reader "Blue Crab Books" (Detroit, MI USA) – See all my reviews

I expected Heartsight to be a fast read, but its in-depth emotion made me slow down to savor the tugging-the-heartstrings story line. Dan Conway, a blinded Marine, meets Trish Evers and her Down Syndrome child, Bella, and forms a strong bond of friendship. Trish struggles with loss at many levels, especially when her ex-husband sues for custody of their child. The gripping climax at the lighthouse kept me turning pages as well, delivering a satisfying twist. Kudos to Kay Springsteen!

***

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartsight is Full of Insight and Great Writing,March 17, 2011

By J. Knauss "Author of Tree/House" (Mountain Top, PA USA) – See all my reviews

Kay Springsteen delivers a stirring love story full of well-crafted language, vivid imagery, and hope in Heartsight.

Heartsight is the story of Trish, the now single mother of Bella, a delightfully drawn girl with Down Syndrome. Although Bella's father couldn't handle her different needs, she is the center of her mother's life. She quickly captures the heart of Dan, a veteran Marine who was blinded in Afghanistan and has come to the remote Carolina beach to escape. The tension builds nicely as Dan and Trish try to understand the meaning of their feelings for each other, and Bella's father is reintroduced as an uncaring villain who could tear their world apart. But Mother Nature herself provides the culmination of the story in the form of a hurricane the characters must walk directly through in a truly life-and-death chapter. Masterfully switching between the perspectives of the two lovers, Kay Springsteen shows herself to be an experienced writer who cares as much about language as she does about her characters and her happy ending. Using Dan's "handicap" as a new way of experiencing the world, Springsteen creates sensory-intense scenes filled with perfumes, sounds, and textures the reader will not soon forget.

Heartsight doesn't hit you over the head with prescriptive morals and the characters have their doubts about the existence of God. Their lives have given them a realistic degree of uncertainty that makes it all the more rewarding when they make the final decisions of the book. While never crossing the bounds of propriety, the sensual scenes evoke the mixture of heartfelt longing and hesitation in the characters.

***

4.0 out of 5 stars Great read!,March 13, 2011

By SL Standish – See all my reviews

Such a beautiful story full of passion and love! The characters are so real and full of life. I really enjoyed this book.

***

5.0 out of 5 stars An intensely heart warming story,March 7, 2011

By Jeanne Theunissen (Melbourne, Australia) – See all my reviews

It's not often that people with less than perfect physical abilities end up as the heros or heroines in romance stories, but Dan is a perfectly believeable character worthy of love and respect, despite his blindness. Kay Springsteen did a wonderful job of bringing these characters to life, and telling their story in a sensitive, thought provoking manner. I've always been a romantic, and this is a very satisfying story. I'm looking forward to seeing more from this author.

***

5.0 out of 5 stars intelligent, well-written, and touching,March 2, 2011

By J. Gunnar Grey "the mystery writer" (Texas) – See all my reviews

I don't read a lot of romance, much less sweet romance. But this is a wonderful book and I enjoyed it tremendously. It's intelligent and well-written, with smooth writing that flows and a plotline that's solid. And the characters are truly believable. Kay Springsteen is a writer to watch.

Find Kay Springsteen's novels:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Sunday Best

Heartsight

On a secluded beach in North Carolina, three lonely people find hope in each other.

Trish Evers is an artist and single mother, who has inherited her grandmother's Bed and Breakfast in a North Carolina coastal town. Though she must sell the house, she decides to bring her daughter to the beach for one last summer vacation in her childhood town.

Bella is a six-year-old girl who has Down syndrome. Rejected by her father, Trish, is the only parent she's ever known. Bella likes to explore the beach and has a tendency to wander off. One day, Bella goes exploring on her own, and Trish finds her in the company of an intriguing stranger.

Dan Conway is a U.S. Marine, who had been born into a family of Marines. Now blind as a result of combat injuries and unable to "suit up," he feels he no longer has a purpose in life. He's come home to the beach, where he spends his days in solitude. Dan must learn to believe in himself and to love life again, which he begins to do through his interactions with Bella and Trish. When a hurricane strikes, and Bella wanders off again, her only hope for rescue is Dan.

 Working within the confines of his blindness, he must overcome his fear of failure and recall his training in order to search for the little girl and bring her to safety.

EXCERPT:

Using the sound of the surf and the sun's warmth for orientation, Dan sat on a large rock facing east and enjoyed the sunrise. The kiss of waves on sandy shoreline became louder, more insistent, as the gentle predawn breeze turned into an early morning wind. The air around him warmed rapidly, and the beach life started to awaken as well.

The cries of gulls in the distance held an eerie, human-like quality, which could as easily have been the delighted squeals of children playing or the terror-filled shrieks of children dying.

Dan breathed slowly in then out, and re-oriented himself to his surroundings. The sand beneath his feet was the foot-sucking grain-like consistency found on the beach, not the diamond-hard dust he'd grown used to in the desert. The air surrounding him was humid, not arid.

Beach grasses whispered, stroked by the onshore ocean breeze. Nearby, scuttling ghost crabs bulldozed the sand, each tumbling grain sounding like a rockslide to Dan's sensitive ears. The air smelled a bit of midsummer rain, hinting of possible relief from the early summer swelter by mid-afternoon.

His hand rested on the old guitar, unmoving, the instrument silent, as he considered a future in the dark. He had few options and limited time to make a decision that would affect the rest of his life. Did he try to maintain a semblance of the life he'd once planned for himself? Or leave all that and carve a new niche elsewhere?

Who was he kidding? No one wanted a wounded warrior, let alone one who could no longer see.

He caressed the low E string with his thumb, frowning at the dull, not-quite-in-tune sound. Automatically, he adjusted the string until he was pleased with the pitch, repeating the process for the rest of the strings.

Leaning over her, Dan hugged the guitar to him in the manner a man should embrace such a lady. She'd been his best friend since he was a kid, had never failed to bring him comfort and healing through the secret language they shared.

Dan played a few soft chords, walking his fingers up and down the fretboard, not playing anything specific, the tones coming more easily than he'd expected them to. He stopped to adjust the G string, then played a few more chords, falling into a slow rhythm, one good for thinking.

Without conscious thought, he inserted a simple, impromptu melody, making love to his lady in earnest now, expressing the deepest, most vulnerable aspects of himself through the movements of his fingers. The lonely sound drifted across the beach to join the cries of the gulls, as he laid bare the layers of pain for the audience of his solitude.

As he lost himself in the haunting music, Dan felt the first stirring of a curious sense of freedom. Recent memories were pushed to the rear in lieu of less troublesome ones from his boyhood, when scuttling crabs had held him enthralled, and thoughts of where driftwood came from had fascinated him. The music swelled under his hands as he revisited that time of innocence.

At his feet, Jack stirred and whined. Dan stopped playing, abruptly pulled back into the present. Barely a second later, he heard something shuffling through the beach grass behind him and the scents of caramel and cotton candy wafted into his awareness.

His private beach had been discovered.

The air next to him stirred softly as whoever it was took a seat on his rock. Dan was about to ask if the intruder had noticed the private property sign at the entrance to the beach, when sticky fingers were thrust against his palm. Startled by the sudden invasive touch, Dan nonetheless instinctively closed his fingers about the delicate hand that had placed itself into his.

"Well, hello." Dan listened for the sound of someone else approaching but heard nothing. "Is your mom or dad around?"

The only answer he received was a tiny contented sigh. He could feel the rhythmic movement of the child's feet swinging over the edge of the rock on which they sat.

CAMP WEDDING (part of the Matrimonial Mayhem charity anthology)

This is the story of the Heartsight wedding and is one of six short stories. The anthology is a 100% charitable donation – all proceeds are dedicated to the victims of the 2011 tornadoes in Alabama.

Becoming a wife is an amazing experience, both nerve-wracking and exhilarating. But becoming a military wife carries extra requirements, even as it offers extra joys and terrors. Kay Springsteen continues the story she so richly began in Heartsight, as Dan returns to active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps, Trish becomes his military wife, and Bella remains her adorable self.

  EXCERPT:

"Well, I'm about to take off the wedding gown, so you all can rest easy."

Dan's grin remained in place and he settled more comfortably against the doorjamb.

Trish chuckled. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for you." Dan crossed his arms over his chest. "Did you forget our meeting with Chaplain Higgins this afternoon?"

"No," said Trish, making a face. "I didn't forget."

Dan merely stood against the doorframe, a knowing smile playing around the corners of his lips. Trish allowed her gaze to linger on those lips for a moment, wishing they were alone so she could kiss that smug smile away.

"Okay, it may have slipped my mind," she admitted with a laugh. "But I had a wedding dress crisis."

"Oh, well, of course a dress crisis has to be resolved before we meet with the chaplain who's going to marry us."

"Okay, I get it. I'm being impractical trying to get everything just right." Trish struggled to reach her zipper, giving up and presenting her back to Ashley instead. "I know everything can't be perfect but I at least want to look nice."

"You always look nice to me."

Trish whipped her head up to glare at her fiancé.

Dan struggled to control a grin. "She's giving me the death stare right now, isn't she?"

Ashley leaned around Trish to check her face. "Umm-hmm."

Dan sighed. He pushed off the door but made no move to enter the room. "Trish, I really do think you're the most beautiful woman in the world. And I'm talking about so much more than how you look. I see who you are inside."

Bella looked up from her bucket of shells. "Daddy doesn't see with—his eyes, Mama. He uses—his heartsight."

In an instant, Trish's worries about her dress, about the venue, the preparations, and meeting Dan's family all fell away. She looked from the daughter she loved to the man she loved and smiled. "And aren't we lucky he does, baby?"

Heartsight:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Matrimonial Mayhem:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Elusive Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

 

 

Sweet Saturday Samples

For my first Sweet Saturday Samples, I'm offering a brief taste of Dan and Trish, from Heartsight, and then a quick tease from an upcoming release, Heartsent. If you want to get back to Sweet Saturday Samples, just click on the link at the bottom of the page.

Heartsight:

Nuzzling her neck, he feathered little kisses along her collarbone. "Just try describing them, see what happens."

"I…" She pulled in a deep breath. "I'm not going to be able to if you keep doing that."

"Is this you reining me in?"

Trish laughed. "This is me saying if you want me to describe my paintings, you have to stop breathing in my ear. Your choice of how we end this conversation."

Heartsent (available October 2011):

Was it possible to die from longing? Lina was beginning to think the slow torture Kevin was subjecting her to with the butterfly touch on her lips would surely result in death. Or maybe she'd just go not-so-quietly insane. He kept them poised, just on the verge of the kiss. What was he waiting for? She tried to move forward, to lean into the kiss but he held her in place with her braid wrapped around his hand like a rope. Unable to move forward, she surprised herself by not wanting to step back.

Currently available:

                       

Amazon, Astraea Press, Barnes & Noble

Return to Sweet Saturday Samples blog.

Dreaming In the Movies

I watched the story of J.K. Rowling on Lifeline Monday night. It's a very inspiring story that should give young writers – especially those with fresh vision and new characters – a lot of hope. Heck, I only write contemporary romance but her story gave ME hope. See, it wasn't so much WHAT she wrote that I found inspiring, but the way she gave up things along the way and even with the different twists and turns her life took, the obstacles in her way, she still stuck to her dream.

I was talking about J.K.'s story to one of my daughters this morning, and I said something along the lines of feeling like Rowling, that I'd given up things for my writing, that with every one of life's setbacks recently, I hadn't been able to shove my writing to the rear seat. Not that I'm anticipating any movie deals for any of my novels, and not that the story of my life is particularly inspiring…

And Dora, always one to dream big, says, "So what if Heartsight DID get made into a movie? Who can we cast?" (Yes, she's always one to jump on the proverbial bandwagon, too.) She figures we need some really great actors to play the roles of my main characters — why? Because she pictures us taking time from our lives to go watch the filming, and, well, you may as well meet the actors, and thus, they should be actors you like. It's kind of hard to argue with her reasoning.

With that in mind, we chose Sam Worthington (Jake Sully/Avatar) for the role of Dan Conway, and Rachel McAdams (The Notebook, The Time Traveler's Wife) for the role of Trish Evers. Hmmm. So, okay Hollywood, Dora and I are so ready for our big break! We'll still be here waiting for "the call." But, um…yeah, neither of us have quit our day jobs yet.

"If you've got yourself a dream, work hard, believe in yourself because I know dreams can come true."- Dennis DeYoung/Styx 1997.  Dream big, people. Whatever your dream may be, it's good to have dreams. Tell me about yours!

Six for Sunday

From Lifeline Echoes – and this week I scrolled through with my eyes closed and highlighted a piece – so this is literally chosen blindly (and then trimmed to 6 sentences lol):

"What was the weirdest run you ever did?"

He laughed again. "This is L.A. There'ʹve been a lot of weird runs."

"Tell me."

"I think the strangest was the time the house began shooting at us."

Hope you enjoyed it! Find more Six Sentence Sunday offerings.

Heartsight:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Matrimonial Mayhem:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Elusive Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes print edition

Heartsight print edition

A Journey of Books Blogfest

My name is Kay Springsteen and I write romance. But before I was a writer, I was a reader, and it has been the kinds of books I've read throughout my life so far that have influenced the kinds of stories I tell and the way in which I tell them.

I began my journey into books as a reader when I was about 4 years old. My mom, an English immigrant at the end of WWII, was an avid reader and a true Lewis Carroll fan. She started me into the wonderful world of fiction with Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.

I so loved those fantastical images created by Carroll, I went looking for more. I dug through my dad's prized possessions and found a very old edition of Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales. Oh, some of these haunted me – we're talking original versions of the stories, not the cutsied up Disney versions. The Little Tin Soldier, The Little Match Girl.

Of course I had the requisite collection of Little Golden Books – The Pokey Little Puppy, Tootle, and more. One of my most memorable books as a child was my very first Scholastic Book Club book EVER. Flip by Wesley Dennis. I read that and re-read that so many, many times I don't know how it didn't fall apart.

From the school library I found escape into the worlds created by Walter Farley, Marguerite Henry, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Beverly Cleary. and Madeline L'Engle.

And of course there were more Scholastic Books. Sometime in the third grade I found one called The Golden Sovereign by Dorothy Lyons. That became another of the books that I would read and reread. I was introduced to mysteries when I discovered Trixie Beldon, Nancy Drew, and The Hardy Boys.

By the time I was in seventh grade, I was oh, so worldly. Worldly enough to read more sophisticated books like Love Story and The Godfather.

I also found Harlequin Romances about that time. And I remember when most of these formulaic stories included one naive heroine, one alpha male who was also clueless, and a scheming witch.

By high school, it became pretty obvious that my romance habit would have to be an in-closet activity. So I tested science fiction, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, and Robert A. Heinlein. In college, it was James Michener whose books captured my interest. And by the time I was married and having children, Tom Clancy's technothrillers had my attention, along with John Grisham's legal thrillers, and the medical thrillers of Patricia Cornwall. Along about then, I also found the first book to make me cry uncontrollably – The Horse Whisperer by Nicholas Evans. Eventually, I decided I wanted to settle back into a softer, more gentle genre, and I sought out romance again. This time, it was Nora Roberts who commanded my attention. I bought every trilogy and mainstream book I could get my hands on. I scoured used book stores for her out of print Silhouette books. Then one of my friends who owned a used and new bookstore brought me into the world of Outlander by Diana Gabaldon and I lost myself in the lives of Jamie and Claire. More recently, I've read Nicholas Sparks; the man does know how to tug on the emotions.

And somewhere in all of this reading, probably as far back as my very first Scholastic book (Flip), I began writing my own stories. Now, I wouldn't want to even find anything I wrote back in those days, and much of what I wrote, even as an adult was more cathartic and for me as opposed to be marketable fiction. But more recently, after the last of my children moved out, I had time on my hands, and I decided to start writing in earnest. The results were some pretty pleasing contracts writing the kind of romances I like the most: edgy sweet, with huge measures of sexual tension and undeniable chemistry between the characters scattered throughout.

Heartsight:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Matrimonial Mayhem:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Elusive Echoes:  Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Lifeline Echoes print edition

Heartsight print edition

I'm sponsoring a giveaway today. The grand prize is the two-book set of Orson's Folly stories – Lifeline Echoes and Elusive Echoes along with five stories of your choice from this list:

1. Kim (Wayward Soul)

2. Jean (Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights)

3. Bri Clark (Cafe Seduzione)

4. Stephanie Taylor (Lucky For Her)

5. Stephanie Taylor (The Picture)

6.  Kay Springsteen (Heartsight)

7. Lisa Kumar (Through the Rabbit Hole)

8. Stephanie Smith (Lizzie and the Rebel)

9. Monique O'Connor James (The Keepers)

10. J. Gunnar Grey (Deal with the Devil, part one)

11. Felicia Rogers (The Perfect Rose)

12. Kristine Cheney (Spartan Heart, part one)

All you have to do for a chance to win is tell me what kinds of stories you read when you were growing up. Two randomly drawn commenters will win. Good luck, and I am looking forward to meeting you.
Return to A Journey of Books main.
Visit other participants:

">Keenly Kristin
">Kelly's Lucky You
">Keta's Keep Romance Blog
">KMN Books Blogspot
">Kritters Ramblings

This Sunday's offering once again comes from just-release...

This Sunday's offering once again comes from just-released Elusive Echoes. Hope you enjoy it!

She slid out a photograph, bent and worn around the edges. In faded color, it

showed the two of them playing on the tire swing that still hung from the tree in the McGee backyard. She sat on top of the swing, clinging to the rope for dear life, and he stood on the swing, one leg on either side of her, his head thrown back in an obvious war cry. They looked incredibly happy.

Sean struggled for breath, remembering exactly when his father had taken the picture. Sean had teased Mel until she climbed on the swing and let him push her higher than she was comfortable going.

Back to Six Sentence Sunday… or  Sunday's Seventh Sentence:  Then he'd jumped on behind her and together they had whooped and laughed until the swing had slowed down.

Elusive Echoes, now available: Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

They're two people caught between friendship and something more; they can't move forward, and they can't let go.

Drawn together from early childhood, Sean McGee and Melanie Mitchell seemed destined for each other. But at age thirteen, Melanie was wrenched from the people she loved and forced onto a path she loathed. Sean was no stranger to people leaving, but losing Melanie devastated him. When she suddenly reappeared in Orson's Folly, Sean was overjoyed. The Melanie who came home, though, wasn't the same girl. She's got a harder edge and she's obviously hiding something, but Sean no longer knows how to reach her.

Returning to Orson's Folly as an adult, all Melanie wanted to do was forget the years she spent away. But she soon learned that going home didn't mean she could return to her old life—or her childhood sweetheart, Sean. Even their mutual attraction to one another hasn't rebuilt the bond of trust and closeness they once shared. It's been seven years since she returned and now everything Melanie wants to forget has broadsided her. She must confront her demons and relive her past in an unexpected way or risk losing the only man she's ever loved. But even if she succeeds, Sean might be lost to her anyway.