3/25/2011

Katharine Ashe

Get Lost in This Story…





She would marry no man…

Serena Carlyle dreams of a happily ever after. Firmly on the shelf at twenty-five, instead she’s determined to find the perfect match for her beautiful younger sister. What better prospect than their neighbor, the wealthy, rakishly handsome Earl of Savege? Now Serena can beg his help in halting a local band of smugglers. Then, one night, stealing away from yet another disappointing ball, Serena finds herself trapped alone with a stranger …


Until he captured her—body and soul

His kiss was irresistible, his caress unforgettable, and he hides a devastating secret. A Robin Hood upon the sea, Alex Savege is the brazen pirate Redstone, seizing the yachts of spoiled noblemen to settle an old debt. Serena needs a hero, but her heart is in the gravest danger—for it is soon to be captured by a man as skilled at seduction as he is at plunder.


Today, I am thrilled to welcome historical romance author Katharine Ashe to the blog! The American Library Association’s Booklist named Katharine one of the “New Stars of Historical Romance” and her debut, Swept Away by a Kiss, was nominated for Best First Historical Romance in the Reviewers’ Choice Best Book Awards. Katharine lives in the wonderfully warm Southeast with her husband, son, two dogs, and a garden she likes to call romantic rather than unkempt. A professor of European history, she has made her home in California, Italy, France, and the northern US. Please visit her at www.katharineashe.com


So let’s get to know Katharine better!


Heather: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

Katharine: Moonstruck. It has everything: laughter, romance, heart-stopping speeches, gorgeous music, deep philosophical ponderings, cute dogs, New York City, family warmth, and a full moon that makes everybody go wild with love. Perfect!



Heather: How often to you get lost in a story?

Katharine: Often, and sometimes BIG. When I love a story — I mean really love it — I cannot stop reading it. I will stay up all night until it’s time to walk my dogs and get my son to school, and suffer the consequences of exhaustion in perfect bliss. Recently after one of these no-sleep-all-read binges, I wanted to immediately read the book again. Of course I had to go to work. So when I went to campus I actually (I kid you not) thought about taking it up to my lectern to read while my students were doing short projects. I didn’t! But I seriously considered it. Oh, but I did re-read it while walking the dogs and doing the laundry for about a week. Then I wrote the author a page-long fan letter (the first fan letter I’d ever written!) detailing what I loved about the book. That is how deeply I can get lost in a story.


Heather: What’s your favorite kind of story to get lost in?

Katharine: Any romance featuring a handsome, smart hero with a heart of gold and willingness to laugh at himself, and a heroine daring and delightful enough to win him. J


Heather: What’s your favorite “love” word?

Katharine: I simply adore “adore”. Adore has power and emotion and passion. It also has sweetness and depth and constancy. It is used for the emotion a person feels for another, for the earth’s creatures, for a god. It’s the word engraved on the inside of my wedding ring.


That said


“Love” is exquisite beauty, ecstatic joy, and profound pleasure all rolled into one. When I read a romance novel, I wait on the edge of my seat for the moment the characters declare their love with this simple, sublime word. It is The. Best. Thing. Ever.


Heather: What turns you off like nothing else?

Katharine: Hatred. Intolerance. Clique-ishness. Unkindness.


Heather: Who’s your favorite villain?

Katharine: Tragic villains! — villains who suffer emotionally for their crimes, or commit crimes because of their soul-deep suffering. In Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, when Captain Barbossa utters “I feel… cold” and the apple tumbles from his hand, my heart aches for him every time I watch it! Yes, he’s a blackguard. Yes, he has treated the fabulous Captain Jack Sparrow horridly. But he has lost all the beauty of his humanity while still being obliged to live as a human. His suffering is so poignant, I simply love him. (I love Jack Sparrow and Will Turner better, of course, but for rather other reasons.) ;)



Heather: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?

Katharine: Laugh. Weep in happiness. Shout with joy. Drink a glass of champagne. I actually write a lot like I read – thoroughly engrossed in the dance of desire a hero and heroine engage in while their hearts are gradually intertwining. I savor each moment of their story, which makes those final declarations of love so incredibly satisfying to write. And because my hero and heroine are deliriously happy at the end, I am too!


Heather: If you could interview one person (and it doesn’t have to be a writer) who would it be?

Katharine: Mahatma Gandhi, because he asked only for peace. But if he weren’t available, because, well, he’s not anymore, then Hugh Jackman, because… um… well… ;) (Does everybody know that Hugh starred in the 1999 Aussie film Paperback Hero as a closet, best-selling romance novelist? I’m sure I could come up with lots of fun facts about Mahatma, too, by the way. I’m just saying.)



Heather: What soundtrack or playlist do you recommend for your current release?

Katharine: Here are few songs from my playlist for CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD:


“Talk Show Host” – Radiohead

“This Kiss” – Faith Hill

“If You Were Here” – Thompson Twins

“Brave” – Nicole Nordeman

“Sweet and Low” – Augustana

“In Your Eyes” – Peter Gabriel

“Possession” – Sarah McLaughlan

“Carve Your Heart Out Yourself” – Dashboard Confessions

“For My Love” – Bethany Dillon

“God Made Woman” – Keith Urban


(I post my book playlists on the Exclusives page of my website www.katharineashe.com.)


Heather: What color would you make the sky if it wasn’t going to be blue anymore and why?

Katharine: I cannot imagine the sky any color but blue… or gray, or pink, or flaming orange, or black, or silvery white, or mustard. The heroes of my “Rogues of the Sea” trilogy are lords of Regency England, but they are also sailors. From their ship decks, they have seen skies nearly every color imaginable.


Heather: What’s in your refrigerator right now?

Katharine: Milk. Champagne. Pizza. Strawberries. Blueberry-pomegranate juice. Dill pickles. Champagne. Pimento cheese (forgive me; I live in the south!). Nutella (it moved there from the cabinet because the ants who live in the cabinet took a shine to it). Some vegetables with which I’m sure my husband will do something nice but which are otherwise irrelevant to me. Guacamole. Champagne.


Heather’s GOTTA ASK – Katharine’s GOTTA ANSWER J


Heather: So, Katharine, you are a professor of European History...How have your students reacted to your new career? Any of them dare rib the teacher?


Katharine: I like to keep my two professional worlds apart, so in academia I don’t talk about my fiction writing. But just last week, in fact, I discovered that some of my students do indeed know of my alter ego. I think it’s a lovely mark of respect that they haven’t mentioned it in my classroom (where our work is not about romance fiction). If and when they finally do mention it, I’ll let you know! J


GOT A QUESTION YOU’D LIKE TO ASK YOUR FANS?


Katharine: I could not resist saving this question from my lovely hosts to ask you: If you were given a chance to travel to the past, where would you go and specifically why?


WILL YOU HAVE A DRAWING FROM THOSE LEAVING COMMENTS?**


Katharine: I’ll give away an autographed copy of CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD to one randomly chosen commenter. J


Thanks so much for being with us today, Katharine! Where can your fans learn more about you on the web?






Thanks Katharine! And readers, here's the links to Katharine's current releases :)


CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD



A LADY’S WISH






**Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North American addresses only. If an Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) is available, the author may utilize that option for International participants. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants.


Join us next week when we celebrate Get Lost in a Story crew member, Maureen McGowan’s releases of Cinderella: Ninja Warrior and Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer!!!

37 comments:

  1. Katharine, welcome. The blurb of Captured by a Rogue Lord is phenomenal. Adding it to my TBR pile. It's now the size of Mt. Rushmore thanks to GLIAS.

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  2. Katherine, I hear nothing but wonderful things about Captured by a Rogue Lord. Congratulations!

    I would travel to Victorian Egypt. I'm on an Amelia Peabody rereading kick right now and would love to watch some of the actual archeologists at work.

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  3. I can't wait to read Captured by a Lord! I just love those 25 YO "old maid" stories. It's always fun to have a heroine fall in love by accident.

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  4. Good morning, Donnell! Thank you and Heather and your lovely co-bloggers for hosting me at GLIAS today. I'm so glad to be here. My TBR pile is epic too, and now I have an e-reader TBR file as well! It's like a never-ending Christmas morning. :)=)

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  5. Gillian, I adore (note use of word!) the Amelia Peabody books! Such adventure and mystery and intrigue and cool archeological stuff and always that yummy thread of romance. I may just have to join you when you make that trip!

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  6. Hi, Melinda. Thanks! Alex Savege in CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD is a confirmed rake, so falling in love is definitely not his intention. But Serena Carlyle is a very special sort of woman, the kind that takes a man by surprise quite swiftly. I hope you enjoy!

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  7. Hello Katharine!
    Great Q&A! If I could travel back in time it would be to the Old West. I would enjoy traveling thru the vast open spaces of the US. It was also a wild time in our history so it would be exciting to see how people lived. Cowboys and gunslingers wouldn't hurt either.

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  8. Hi Katharine! Thanks so much for visiting us at GLIAS today :) Your interview is lots of fun. Can't wait to read Captured.

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  9. Hi, Stacie! We do have a spectacularly beautiful country, don't we? I drove across it out west twice during graduate school (you know, sleeping in the back of the pickup truck kind of poor graduate student road trip). I remember those days so vividly, the endless plains, the mountains rising up in the distance, and the huge skies. I'd never seen skies so big before and never since. As for cowboys, I am *particularly* fond of a handsome man on a horse. It's one of the reasons I write historical romance! :)

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  10. Hi, Heather! Thanks for hosting me today! :)

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  11. Captured by a Lord sounds like a wonderful read. Congrats on its & A Lady's Wish (what a title) releases. :) If I could go back in time (just for a brief visit as I'd missed modern convenieces and such) it would prob be to Regency England or 1920's US -- both held such ritz, glitter & glamour (needless to say I'd be visiting as part of the upper class).

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  12. Patience is a virtue that I have never mastered. After reading a Lady's Wish and an exerpt of Captured by a Rogue Lord, I am even more impatient for Tuesday to come. I just hope my boys and husband will allow me some "me time" for a few hours in the evening so I don't feel like I'm fighting to read. If not maybe I will invest in some Bose earphone and ignore my surroundings and let my husband take care of everything for one evening.
    Absolutely love all your books so far, and I know after next week I will be antipating your third book in this series.

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  13. Hi, gamistress! Naturally, we would go back as the ball-gown-wearing, champagne-drinking elite! :)=) The 1920s were a wild time indeed, and of course I am particularly fond of the Regency. I have so much fun with the passion and danger simmering beneath the surface of Regency-era propriety. Delicious!

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  14. Ora, thank you so much! You are so kind. And funny. :) My husband has a pair of Bose headphones and I steal them every chance I get. It's like sinking into a soft quiet cushion of solitude while the whole world cavorts around me and I'm none the wiser. I hope you get your "you time" and that you enjoy Captured by a Rogue Lord!

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  15. Can I just say that I love your playlist! If You Were Here by the Thompson Twins is such a great song!

    I would love to go back and be a passanger aboard the Titanic. Though I want to get off of it before it hits the iceburg. I have always been so fascinated with it. I would love to have been able to see it in it's glory. Plus, to be able to dress in those dresses.

    I would also like to go back to the Regency era and experience a season. I just think it would be so much being able to dress up and be courted.

    I can't wait to read this book. I liked the first one immensely and this one looks so good.

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  16. Tough question! I think I would have to go to the regency era to find myself a rake to reform! LOL! I love whats in your fridge! I love some champagne and strawberries!

    evjochum[AT]aol[DOT]com

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  17. Thanks, Danielle. Big ships have always fascinated me (which is probably why I write the heroes I do!). But yes, when you've had your visit on the Titanic, get off that sinker before it's too late and come back home. ;)

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  18. I would have to say that I would go back to the Regency era, either England or Scotland, because I am most familiar with this due to the books I read.

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  19. Johanna, I love champagne and I love to celebrate, even when there's not a particular reason to celebrate! When my husband and I were (very) poor (and very overworked) graduate students, when I brought home tips from the cafe (my third job) at the end of each week we would head out on the town with the declaration, "We can do anything we want! We're on vacation!" Usually we ended up with a $5 bowl of noodles, but that felt like celebrating. Life is far too short not to celebrate as often as possible!

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  20. Hi, June. Me too! Absolutely diverting, with handsome gentlemen all vying for a lady's attention. It would be great fun!

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  21. Welcome, Katharine!

    I love the champagne to other contents ratio in your fridge. :) Girl after my own heart. LOL

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  22. Katherine,

    Congrats on all those great reviews for Captured by a Rogue Lord! Can't wait to read!

    Late Victorian London is definitely my timeframe––so much to see and explore!

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  23. Congrats on the new release, Katharine. I would love to visit ancient Egypt to experience the culture and the political intrigue.

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  24. Hi, Maureen and Jillian. It's lovely to be here today. Thanks so much! :)

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  25. Welcome to GLIAS Katharine. Awesome playlist. Awesome interview. Can't wait to read your books.

    ~~Angi

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  26. What a wonderful and insightful interview!
    Wow, you're a professor of European History! You must Love your job!!!

    And your playlist has an interesting array of songs!

    I loved your blurb, it sucked me right in and made me WANT more!!! Loved it!!

    Captured by a Roque Lord is right up m alley and will definitely be added to my TBR pile!!

    Oh, and I agree about the vegetables, lol, they're irrelevant to me too!!! :O)

    Wishing you all the best!!!

    Andrea
    atsnider@verizon.net

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  27. I had something intelligent to say, but the picture of Hugh Jackman has distracted me. Carry on.

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  28. Oo, Jane, I would love to visit ancient Egypt. I've always had a particular fondness for it, and in fact the hero of the book I'm currently writing goes by a very ancient Egyptian code name. =:) Thanks for commenting!

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  29. Thanks, Angi. It's so good to be here! :)

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  30. Hi, Chicks. Thank you so much! I'm glad to meet another vegetable-indifferent romance lover. I do LIKE them; it's just that they take too much effort to cook and I would rather spend the time reading or writing romance. Thank God for take-out and my dh, LOL. ;)

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  31. Happens to me all the time, Simone. ;) Thanks for having me on the blog today!

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  32. I would go to Victorian England, so I could wear all the pretty dresses that people would look at me crazy for wearing now :-)

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  33. I would love to see the Sphinx before the nose was shot/fell off. Also, maybe go back to ancient Egypt to see if the Sphinx was indeed another creature *before* it was the Sphinx. Hm... I would also love to see the Hanging Gardens of Babylon before it was destroyed by an earthquake.

    ironss [at] gmail [dot] com

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  34. Hi Katharine how r u? This is Nahal Momin here!!! i couldnt believe when v became friends on fb. i'm so glad though v did. I didnt knw abt you being a author either. But since now i knw i would love to win a copy of your book CAPTURED BY A ROGUE LORD. I love to read and cant wait till i buy your books in the stores.

    My question for you is....what do you do in your free time besides reading your fav. books?

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  35. If I could go back in time, then I would love to be in Regency England. Of course, I would only have wanted to be a member of "the ton" and not some poor soul struggling to make ends meet. Also, this "Lady's Wish" would be to have been "Captured By A Rogue Lord" and then "Swept Away By A Kiss".

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  36. Congratulations gamistress66 ! You are our winner! Please send your name and address to GetLostInAStory@gmail.com so we can forward it to Katharine :)

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  37. So good post i like this post and i like your all blog and i hope to visit my blog Ancient Egypt Pyramids and more like Ancient Egyptian Art thanks again admin ,,,

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