Heidi Rice's Blog, page 14

The Riva Re-Launch Covers!

So have finally gotten ahold of my sample cover for the Riva Re-Launch which will be coming to a WH Smith's store near you in October (if you live in the UK that is!)

Tell me what you think? I like the fun, flirtatious style. It's a daring departure from the Series look of other Mills and Boon books but I think these new covers are going to stand out a mile on the M&B rack. I think it's a bit of a shame that this is a previously released book, but as the intention with these sample titles is to see if they can attract new readers to the brand, it makes sense. And in the 15 books on offer online and in stores there are some new titles (just not mine!)

Hopefully the new design will be a roaring success and we'll be back in stores with all new editorial in early 2013.... Fingers crossed.

In other news, I am having an absolute ball working on my first ever continuity with fellow Kiss authors Kimberly Lang, Aimee Carson and Amy Andrews... We were simply given a theme and we've worked something amazing out from there. Last night I had an hour-long Skype chat with Ms Lang in Alabama to sort out the backstory for our respective books (as my delicious Southern hero is her heroine's brother we needed to trash out their family background). Have to admit I was quite wary of getting involved in this project to start with, the thought of writing books with other writers characters in was daunting. But the brainstorming process with a group of such smart and talented women has been an absolute hoot... And now I've discovered Skype I may never talk to anyone without it ever again.

RWA Update + Tess and Nate's Story Gets a Cover!

So am just back from a fabulous week in Anaheim for the 2012 RWA Conference... Exhausted, excited and inspired!


Lots of thrilling news to report, but easily the highlight of the week was Sarah Morgan's triumphant win at the RITAs for Best Contemporary Series Romance for Doukakis's Apprentice. She gave a wonderfully witty speech and looked fabulous in her gold-fringed RITA-matching frock (and she let me fondle it for a minute - the RITA that is, not the frock - see below!). Can't think of a better ambassador for Presents than Sarah, she done us all proud. Incredibly this was the first RITA for a Presents book, may there be many more now.

Also on my agenda was a Riva lunch with lovely fellow authors Kimberly Lang, Aimee Carson, Sue Stephens and Fiona Harper. Needless to say there was much talk about the upcoming launch of Kiss which according to my ed the NA office are 'very excited' about. They're not the only ones!!

Had a fabulous brainstorming session with Aimee and Kimberly for our Kiss continuity which is starting to look completely AWESOME (if I do say so myself). My hero is going to be a nice Southern boy turned cynical and super-sexy CEO who had a steamy one-night stand in college with my sultry sassy British heroine. They meet again ten years later and the fireworks are going to be seriously hot! It's set in NYC and Savannah and that's really all I can say for now... But I'm so excited about this story and the others in the quartet.

The Harlequin Party was a dance-your-feet-off affair as usual and we had Nora Roberts sitting on the table next to us! Not to mention free cosmopolitans all night. Having already stalked Nora at the Literacy Autographing earlier in the week (and got a signed copy of her new In Death book! Yay!) I had to refrain from doing it again. So me and Ms Abby Green stalked the fabulous Victoria Dahl instead. Managed to get an early read of her new book Close Enough to Touch and fell in love with it. Check out my Goodreads review if you want to know more.

I finished off the week spending a day schmoozing with Abby Green and Fiona Harper on Santa Monica Boulevard and hanging out at  Abby's suite in a fabulously funky hotel in West Hollywood - before fi and I caught the flight home to London...

All in all, had such a brilliant time I didn't even shout at my sons when I saw the Mount Everest of Laundry waiting for me on my return!

In other news I've just got ahold of the cover for my next (and last) Presents Extra release One Night, So Pregnant . Absolutely love the cover and the back blurb which should whet your appetite. The book's out in December in the US and will hopefully be out in the UK when Riva relaunches next year, but I will be putting up a sneak peek shortly on my website.

 
What to expect when you’re unexpectedly expecting
• Shock: Telling a gorgeous (almost) total stranger that he’s going to be a dad is never easy!
• Cravings: The instant chemistry that catapulted Tess Tremaine into the wildest night she’s ever had isn’t going to just go away— and no one says no to Nate Graystone when he’s determined to be involved….• Hormones Gone Wild: Surely that’s the only reason she’s failing to keep Nate out of her bed, out of her mind…and why she keeps wanting more from the most unattainable man she’s ever met?

Kiss news and Chris Hemsworth in Leather Trousers...

So, I'm sure you've all heard by now the very exciting news that the Riva imprint will be launching in the US as Kiss in early 2013... That said, you'll need to look out for One Night So Pregnant, my next (and last) Presents Extra book in December in the US. Unfortunately in the UK it's got caught in the Riva relaunch so it'll be going out Direct to Consumer only in November, and hopefully get a full print and digital release when Riva relaunches in 2013... Will keep you posted on that.

One Night, So Pregnant is Tess and Nate's story - you remember Tess, best mate of The Good, the Bad and the Wild's heroine Eva Redmond, yeah, that's right, that Tess the tall, slim party planner with the big mouth... Quite a few peeps asked for her story and I couldn't resist. Anyway, I'll be posting more news about the book with excerpts, etc as soon as I have a cover. (That's Nate on the left! Phwoar!)

Now the book I'm currently working on is Zane and Iona's story. Zane is a drop-dead gorgeous Mexican-American private detective who runs his own agency in Carmel California and is the secret half-brother of Nate... You'll meet him in One Night and believe me, as soon as you do you'll wanna read his story. Well, I certainly had to write it. Anyhow I'm still plugging away at it. Fingers crossed it will be out in the new Kiss line next year and hopefully the brand spanking new Riva line too (if it gets accepted!)...  That's Zane and Iona doing something a little bit naughty on the right!

For more details about both books, check out my Coming Soon page.

But equally exciting is the very cool continuity I've just started brainstorming with fellow Riva Divas Amy Andrews, Aimee Carson and Kimberly Lang. So far we've been having a hoot pinging emails between the US, Oz and London and while the results of our labours are all hush-hush for now I can tell you that what we've worked out so far is TOTALLY AWESOME. This is gonna be a continuity to die for. Can't wait to get to RWA conference next week in Los Angeles and start brainstorming face to face with Miss Carson and Miss Lang... I've never done a continuity before so it's virgin territory for me (and there aren't many things I can say that about these days!) and I'm loving it...



In other news, I'm over at the Pink Heart Society today waxing lyrical about Snow White and the Huntsman or rather the  Chris Hemsworth and the Leather Trousers as it is now affectionately known by moi! So come and join me and have your say.

What they're saying about The Good, the Bad and the Wild!

So, in honour of the fact that The Good, the Bad and the Wild has just hits the shelves in North America, I'm posting a few of the reviews (the good and one not-so-good) I've discovered online and spreading the love.

RT Book Reviews gave the book a whopping 4.5 stars and said:

Opposites attract as Rice takes readers on an emotional roller coaster in this funny yet passionate story.
On Amazon the lovely Libby at Large gave it 5 stars and said:

A thoroughly enjoyable read packed with emotion and a few strategically placed laughs. One part that really made me smile when we're in Nick's head: "The sheen of grateful tears in her eyes when he stroked her to orgasm was a sign of her inexperience and not, as he'd assumed like a conceited jerk, his superstar abilities in the sack." Such a guy...'
On the Everyday-Is-the-Same-Blog,  RLA Thornton wrote:

I was really blown away by this book, it is amazing. There are so many different layers in this book that create such a maelstrom of moods. The hero and heroine fit together like, erm, well I can't think of a good analogy but you get the idea! 
HarlequinJunkie gave it a Top Pick and said:

Brilliant!!! I’m not just saying this because I’m a huge fan of Heidi’s writing.“The Good, the Bad and the Wild” was truly sensational! Passionate and Steamy! With a flawed Bad boy Hero and a goody two shoes heroine the spark were bound to fly, and boy did these two ever start a blaze…. Nick Delisantro was just De-licious with his abrasive yet caring bad boy personality and Eva was just adorable.
 On Goodreads Dalia gave it Five Stars and said:

This is a FABULOUS read that kept me hooked from the first page & kept me smiling all the time even in the most emotional & intense moments.
Now, LynnC at The Good, the Bad and the Unread didn't love it quite so much (C+, bummer!), but she gave it a well-reasoned review explaining the things that didn't work for her (fair enough) and included this:
What saves this book for me is the quality of the writing. Rice can make me smile and wrench my heart. Her prose flows so well, and sometimes it is so smooth, I hardly noticed the parts of the story I found unsatisfactory, until I actually sat back and thought about it.
 Which meant that my now enormously over-sized head didn't deflate too much!

So a big thanks to all the reviewers for taking the time and trouble to the read and review the book, I appreciate it, ladies.

I also wanted to do a quick shout out to Jackie Ashenden, who's sharp, insightful, funny and at times heart-wrenching blog I have been reading for a while - because Jackie is now a published author! We all knew it would happen sooner or later but huge congrats to Jackie for all her hard work and perseverance (as well as her talent, of course) and for proving that the most important thing is to believe in yourself no matter what, and never ever give up. If you're an aspiring writer and you need some inspiration check out her call story.

And now I can't wait to read the three books she's just sold to Entangled. Because I have a sneaking suspicion the first book might be the story I've already read the opening chapter of.... And fricking Adored!

And the winner is...!

Sheesh, have gotten so carried away with the Jubilee weekend here in Blighty (and watching all those boats floating about on the River Thames in the peeing rain) I completely forgot to announce the winner of my Book Comp..

First off, thanks to all the entrants, as usual I made the question far too easy and everyone got it right!

And, after picking winners out of my soggy Union Jack straw boater, they  are:

Shelley Bagby


Elaine Seymour

I'll be popping a signed copy of PS I'm Pregnant in the post to you both on Wednesday (when the post office opens again). Hope you enjoy.

Right, back to the tea and cupcakes.

It's good news time: 4.5 stars from RT, Riva fever and a comp!

Having a little whoopee party today with three bits of coolio news.

First off, my July Harlequin Presents Extra release, The Good, the Bad and the Wild, has got a whopping 4.5 stars from Sabrina Madan at RT Book Reviews Magazine. Always a nice little boost to the ego when a reviewer enjoys your story. So I'm gonna share the love here:

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE WILD (4.5) by Heidi Rice:
Eva Redmond, a “risk-averse academic,” and Nick Delisantro, a Hollywood scriptwriter, can’t resist indulging in an intoxicating night of passion. But Nick’s distress at discovering Eva was a virgin is nothing compared to his fury when he discovers her true motive for seeking him out. Nick believes his rebellious youth makes him unworthy of love, but his body can’t stop craving the sweetness of her touch. Can Eva persuade him that he really is a good man? Opposites attract as Rice takes readers on an emotional roller coaster in this funny yet passionate story.

Reviewed By: Sabrina Madan

Merci beaucoup Ms Madan, you made my day!

In another piece of exciting news my next book, One Night, So Pregnant - the story of freelance event planner Tess Tremaine and the fall-out from her one night of passion in a San Francisco closet with hot CEO Nate Graystone - has been given a November release date to coincide with the re-launch of Riva here in the UK in October (fingers crossed).

Can't wait to see the cover for this one, and as soon as I do I'll be posting a sneak peek on my website.

And last but not least, my lovely postman delivered a huge box of my Special Releases book P. S I'm Pregnant yesterday which is currently cluttering up my study...

So it's BOOK COMPETITION TIME again.

You have til Friday 1st June to send me the answer to this question at heidi@heidi-rice.com:

Q: Where do my two heroines, Daisy and Juno, in PS I'm Pregnant work?

(hint: check out the back blurb here)

And then I'll put names in a hat to give away two copies of the book.

Hooray for M&B Special Releases!!

Super excited to discover I have two  reprint anthologies coming out in June and July as Mills and Boon Special Releases here in the UK with wonderfully fun flirty covers and titles...

In June there's B.T.W. I Love You


No strings attached… No chance! 

Maddy Westmore is fed up of being Miss Fixit. This year will be different; no more Miss Nice Girl, no more Miss Pushover! She’s finally going to get what she wants. And, when it comes to relationships she’s going to try being the user! A hot fling with a gorgeous surfer – no problem. She’s going to leave her emotions at the door. 

Ruby Delisantro is the complete opposite! She’s feisty, challenging and always in-control. So, when Maddy’s brother, Callum Westmore - cynical but drop dead sexy - crashes his convertible into the back of her car on the busy streets of London she decides he owes her compensation…and she will decide how he pays it! That should wipe the smug, butter-wouldn’t-melt smile off his gorgeous face or so she thinks…

For those not in the know this is a compilation of my linked books Surf, Sea and a Sexy Stranger and Cupcakes and Killer Heels.

While in July we have, P.S. I'm Pregnant


This is a compilation of my two Brody Brothers books, Hot-Shot Tycoon, Indecent Proposal and Public Affair, Secretly Expecting, about two gorgeous (and exceptionally fertile!) Irish brothers - Notting Hill property developer Connor Brody and his Hollywood film star brother Cormac - and the two women who capture their wild Celtic hearts - Portobello Road market stall owner Daisy Dean and her tomboy best friend Juno Delamare.

I was so excited by this news in fact that I got my lovely web lady Heather at HR Web Concepts to update the Books page on my website with all the details. so if you want to read reviews, sneak peeks, etc, check it out!

I have no author copies as yet, but as soon as I do... It'll be Competition Time again here on my blog!!!

Bring me Sunshine!

So I've been given a Sunshine Award by the absolutely fabulous Sharon Kendrick... What does it all mean, I hear you asking. Well, it's my chance to spread a little sunshine by talking about some of my favourite things... (Oooh, I feel a Julie Andrews song coming on!)


So here goes, in no particular order.

Navajo Frybread in Monument Valley, Silver Dollar pancakes by the Shenandoah River, the morning dew in Wiltshire, a cold frosty day in North London, the open road, my youngest son when I wake him on a school day (not just for payback purposes, but because he looks just like my baby boy again when he's fast asleep), Breaking Bad, being naughty with Ms Abby Green at the RWA conference (I take no responsibility for the kilt incident btw!), bad boys, Mad Men, old soul music, new story ideas, dancing the night away with my favourite peeps, giving both my boys a cuddle, reading books that make me say "Damn, I wish I could write like that", the Marfa ghost lights, home-made margaritas with my best mate in her orchard in Kildare, writing epilogues (always the best part of writing for me, all gain, no pain!), feeling fabulous in my posh frock, Christmas morning and evening and everything in between (even the potato peeling) with my huge extended family and last but by no means least my gorgeous husband (who always makes me smile!)

Actually, those are just a few of my favourite things.... But it's time to shut up now, Julie! And pass the buck... I mean, the Sunshine Award, to my dear mate (and partner in naughtiness) Ms Abby Green.

Take it away, Abby...!

Yet Another Goodreads Giveaway

I'm at it again, doing another Goodreads Giveaway of The Good, the Bad and the Wild, this time for the US edition which is due out in July as a Harlequin Presents Extra - and it's open to everyone in the whole world!!!

Last count 241 peeps had already entered so get your skates on, just click on the Enter To Win button in the Giveaway widget on your right. Easy peasy.

Right, back to my gorgeous Mexican-American private detective and my cute Scottish wildlife artist. Discovered the other day that my hero Zane Montoya has a dog called Cookie Dough! How did that happen? I'm so not a dog person, and now I've got to write about a dog! Arghh.

Nate & Tess and Lucky7meme

Phwoar...! So have I got your attention? Good, because, as you may know I am a professional writer and I do not print nudie pictures of delicious men without proper cause. So here's the excuse... Er-hem, I mean, the perfectly appropriate and scrupulously professional reason.

Firstly, that gorgeous hunk is my hero Nate, from Nate and Tess's story, which I just had accepted, and which *Drum Roll Please* now has a title.

One Night, So Pregnant!

That catchy title pretty much sums up the plot! But just to tweak your interest a little more.
Tess Tremaine is a British event planner living in San Francisco who, after getting dumped by her boyfriend, had a torrid closet encounter with sexy stranger Nate Graystone. She ran out on him and she hasn't seen him since — but six weeks later she's sitting in the reception area of his company headquarters with news that has left her reeling, and is about to come as one hell of a shock to him too! I will be posting a sneak peak on my website shortly (with more delicious pics!) when I have a release date. At the moment the story is scheduled for November 2012 in the UK but as visitors to M&B's site may know, Riva is currently undergoing a makeover so you'll have to stay posted for a confirmation.

In the meantime, I also got tagged a few days ago by the lovely Ally Blake in the Lucky7eme on Twitter. At the time I did not have a clue what it was (Duh!) but after a visit to Jackie Ashenden's blog (which I like to pop into regularly cos she has loads of cool insights and advice for those of us who have chosen to pursue this insane profession) I discovered that it means you're supposed to go to page 77 of your current ms find line 7 and then print the next 7 lines. Well unfortunately Zane and Iona's story (which is my current ms) is still in its infancy (nowhere near page 77 yet, more's the pity!) so I turned to Nate and Tess's story.

Then hit another snag, because page 77 is at the end of a chapter and there were only 5 lines.... Cripes, this is getting to be a bit of a saga. So in the interests of full disclosure, here are the first 7 (or so) lines from page 78. Confused? Hopefully not for long.

 
As the jeep ate up the miles along Highway One the next afternoon, Nate squinted at the bug-cemetery on his windshield, his eyes gritty with lack of sleep. He’d woken up three times in the night, rigid with desire, after the sort of lurid dreams that hadn’t troubled him since puberty. And Tess Tremaine’s soft, supple, fragrant body, the heavy weight of her breasts and the tight, wet clasp of her fisting around him had been the star attraction in every one.He tapped his thumb on the steering wheel as the rush of heat hit his groin. Shifting in his seat, he stamped on the accelerator and cruised around another tight bend, the road hugging the rusty red earth of the cliffs. The ugly swear word whisked away on the wind.

See, what did I tell you, perfectly appropriate and scrupulously professional reason! And because it's Friday and I'm generous like this, to finish I have another hawt pic of Nate, which was the inspiration for a certain very sexy pool encounter later in the book! 

Enjoy your weekend....