2/27/2013

Cantrell Desire

MARRIAGE WITH BENEFITS

Harlequin Desire, February
ISBN: 0373732252

Her ideal ex-husband

“Will you divorce me?” Those are the four little words Cia Allende wants to hear Lucas Wheeler say. Of course, they have to marry first. The gorgeous Texas real estate tycoon shuns commitment, but a six-month fake marriage will help them both. Cia can access her trust fund and build a women’s shelter, and Lucas’s playboy reputation is repaired. No strings. No romance. Simple.

Except it’s anything but. Lucas intends to seduce his in-name-only wife. It’s a battle of wills, and Cia is losing…and loving it. And now the divorce she needs is the last thing she wants….


THE THINGS SHE SAYS
Harlequin Desire, March
ISBN: 0373732317

Her Knight in a Shining Yellow Ferrari

One wrong turn on a Texas highway and heartthrob director Kristian Demetrious is breaking his first rule: don’t get involved. Beautiful, sassy VJ Lewis needs his help—and a ride to Dallas. Kris wants to give her both….

Yet his career depends on arriving without giving in to the passion VJ ignites in him. And denying temptation gets harder with every mile. VJ insists the heart of a hero beats beneath Kris’s suave exterior—and she intends to prove it, one hands-on lesson at a time. Suddenly this road trip is taking a whole new direction….

WHO'S KAT?
Kat read her first Harlequin novel in third grade and has been scribbling in notebooks since she learned to spell. What else would she write but romance? She majored in Literature, officially with the intent to teach, but somehow ended up buried in middle management at Corporate America, Inc.

Kat became a stay-at-home mom in 2009 and devoted nap time to writing. After three years and many thousands of words, her dream of publication finally came true. When she’s not writing about characters on the journey to happily ever after, she can be found at a soccer game, watching Friends or dancing with her kids to Duran Duran and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Kat, her husband and their two boys live in North Texas. She’s a proud member of Romance Writers of America®. Kat was the 2011 Harlequin So You Think You Can Write winner and a 2012 RWA® Golden Heart® finalist for best unpublished series contemporary manuscript.

ALL ABOUT KAT
ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?
KAT: I’m constantly lost in a story. Usually in my own head. I’m one of those who can’t see an abandoned car on the side of the road without spinning a tale instantly of what happened to the down-on-her-luck heroine.

ANGI: What’s your favorite “love” word?
KAT: Sacrifice. To me, that’s the embodiment of love.

ANGI: Can you tell us about a real-life hero you’ve met?
KAT: My husband. He inspires all my fictional heroes. I know everyone says that, but mine really does. J Yeah, he cooks and cleans, but he’s a hero to me because he always does the right thing no matter what and his first priority is taking care of his family. If that’s not heroic, I don’t know what is.

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
KAT: Definitely Cinderella, though I like the Drew Barrymore version—Ever After—the best because she rescues herself and her reward is true love. I’ve written my own version of Cinderella twice now and both my heroines do the same!
ANGI: AH !! A woman after my own heart. My absolute favorite version of this story. I sometimes  listen to the movie to hear Dougray Scott's voice. LOL

ANGI: What do you like about the hero of your book?
KAT: He likes to take care of people…see above about my husband. So many readers complain about heroes in books being unrealistic and it was important to me to write people with realistic qualities.

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?
KAT: I read at night before I go to bed. I usually only get about fifteen minutes in, so it takes me a long time to read an entire book, but it’s all I can manage right now. Unfortunately, reading time is one of the things I had to sacrifice so I could be a career author.

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?
KAT: Both. >>>big grin<<<

ANGI: What was the first story you remember writing?
KAT: Jane and the Rainbow in first grade. I was hooked! By fourth grade, I was writing Encyclopedia Brown and Trixie Beldon knockoffs and finally found my calling in ninth grade when I started my first romance. It was a historical. Set in 1971.

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
KAT: Lord of the Rings. I like all three equally so don’t you dare make me pick just one!

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: How are the gerbils? (BIG GRIN) I have to admit that those were one animal I never allowed in the house, so you can tell I’m not a fan. Keeping my fingers crossed they’re working out for not only your son, but also the mom that has to clean their cage.
KAT’S GOTTA ANSWER: Well…that’s a story. I guess I’m in the right place for that. J Turns out I’m allergic to gerbils so we had to take them back. Apparently it happens often because the store refunded 100% of my money despite the obvious use of the cage and other accessories. It’s a hard, hard thing to disappoint your kid and I think I cried over it for at least a week. But I learned I have a great son who handled the whole thing with maturity. I’m so proud of him!

FIND KAT
Twitter   @KatCantrell   Blogs
UP NEXT for KAT
MINDLINK
Carina Press, April
ASIN: B00APEXMHE
THE BABY PLAN
Harlequin Desire, August

ONE NIGHT IN VENICE
Harlequin Desire, January 2014

KAT's drawing for a print copy of either Marriage With Benefits or The Things She Says (before you can buy it!) North America readers only. Please leave your email for notification.

Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless specifically mentioned in the post. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Winners of drawings are responsible for checking this site in a timely manner. If prizes are not claimed in a timely manner, the author may not have a prize available. Get Lost In A Story cannot be responsible for an author's failure to mail the listed prize. GLIAS does not automatically pass email addresses to guest authors unless the commenter publicly posts their email address.

DON'T FORGET to FOLLOW us on Twitter #GetLostStories or LIKE us on Facebook to keep up with all our guest authors and their prizes. Join me Sunday when I host Lena Diaz who'll be kicking off Intrigue Week. And come back tomorrow when Donnell hosts Deb Coonts. And Friday when Kari Lee Townsend will be Maureen’s guest. ~Angi 

GOT A QUESTION FOR READERS TODAY? In MARRIAGE WITH BENEFITS, Cia wants to use her inheritance to open a women’s shelter—what would you do if you had a huge pile of cash dropped in your lap?

27 comments:

  1. Hi Kat,

    Congrats on your debut release. I would love to win your book. If I got a big pile of money, I would pay off all my bills and save the rest for a rainy day. yenastone at aol dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Tammy! Thanks for coming by. :) Ah, bills and rainy days. Such is the life of those of us here in the real world, isn't it?

      Delete
  2. Good Morning Kat and welcome to GLIAS ! Can't wait to take a few hours and read your book. It's right here at my elbow...just staring at me, taunting me to finish my word count and take a break. :-)

    RE: The Cash? After I paid off everything--and bought a car that wasn't 22 years old--I'd help St. Jude's. Those kids are so very brave...maybe I'd be able to combine it with an animal rescue--A warm summer camp for kids to play.

    ~Angi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for inviting me Angi! I'm so happy to be here. :) St. Jude's is an awesome charity. Their commercials make me tear up, every time! Such a worthwhile cause...Your books are taunting me too, by the way. My mom's reading Dangerous Memories and has been telling me how much she likes it.

      Delete
    2. THAT is so awesome to hear !!!
      Please have her let me know what she thinks. She's ahead of MY mom on this one. MY Mom's read the May release, but not DANGEROUS MEMORIES... LOL
      ~Angi

      Delete
  3. Hi! Congrats on your book! :)

    Re: The cash.. I would probably go on a vacation first and save the rest... Would probably do something charitable with it too since I do believe in karma....and it's the right thing to do...

    maybe31 at yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi May! You had me at "vacation". :) I'd like to see a few places, that's for sure! I love how everyone would donate to charity--I would too. Thanks for coming by!!

      Delete
  4. If I had a lump of money dropped in my lap I'd come visit you! :D (Or, you know, take the practical route and pay off all my bills. But that sounds really boring).

    I, too, love the Ever After version of Cinderella -- such a fun take on the fairytale and I love how the one stepsister ends up sticking it to her sister and mother. Yes, I'm vengeful that way. :)

    But I can't believe you love Lord of the Rings! I couldn't make it past the first movie. It was pure torture. I'll just cover my eyes and ears and pretend you didn't say that. ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oops! Forgot to say -- I don't need to be entered into the drawing! I've already read both these books and they're absolutely wonderful!

      Delete
    2. Hi Cynthia! It's my question, so I get to say you'd have enough to pay bills AND come see me. That would be the best of both worlds. :) Thanks for coming by.

      (Lalala. I can't hear you about Lord of the Rings...)

      Delete
  5. Hi Kat! Congrats on your debut release!! How exciting is this? Loved the interview. I already have a copy of Marriage with Benefits (snapped it up as soon as I saw it in my local B&N) and I can't wait to dig in. You got great covers, BTW!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Barb! Thank you SO MUCH for reading Marriage With Benefits. I really hope you like it!! Harlequin absolutely outdid themselves with my Desire covers, but that Carina cover is breathtaking, isn't it?? I hit the cover jackpot, that's for sure! Thanks for commenting. :)

      Delete
  6. Sounds exciting! Looking forward to sitting down with a copy and a cup of joe from Starbucks!

    Congrats on your release and doing what you love!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks DeLaine! I couldn't be happier with my debut book experience. :) I so appreciate you coming by today!

      Delete
  7. Kat, welcome to Get Lost in a Story. Third Grade. You read your first Harlequin in third grade :) You're a natural . Gosh,if I had a big pile of money dropped in my lap I'd probably donate a majority anonymously. I think people don't know what to do with it when they receive it and it seems to be more problematic than its worth. Funny, the older I get the less important momey becomes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much Donnell! Yeah, the Harlequins were a lot tamer back then...but I'm pretty sure my teacher would not have approved of one being in the book bin at the back of the classroom. I didn't tell. :) Money can be problematic if you're not careful--donating it is a great way to prevent that!

      I appreciate you having me here today.

      Delete
  8. The book looks great!! Can't wait to read it!

    If I had a small fortune find it's way to my lap I would buy a tiny house on a beach somewhere and enjoy the feeling of sand in my toes.

    And, I would continue to help people who are trying to help themselves by continuing to fun micro loans through Kiva.... only on a much higher level.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Taryn! The beach is my favorite destination too. I'd be right there with you! I've never heard of Kiva...I'm off to check it out. Thanks for the tip--and for commenting!

      Delete
  9. I like the sound of this book!
    if I had a huge pile of cash dropped in my lap I'd move someplace that doesn't have winter and donate to health research.
    chey127 at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Chey! I'm not a huge fan of winter weather either, especially not this week. :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  10. Travel around the world

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi BN. :) I'd love to travel as well. Thanks for coming by!

      Delete
  11. Hi Kat,
    Congrats on your release! It looks great! If I won a ton of money, I'd keep some to travel the world and donate some to a charity. Either an animal rescue group or a women's shelter.

    karilyn@karilynbentley.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Karilyn! Thanks, I hope if you read Marriage With Benefits, you'll like it--the heroine DOES open a women's shelter. :) I appreciate you coming by today!

      Delete
  12. I'm reading Marriage With Benefits right now and loving it. It was great meeting you in person at the booksigning!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Clover! I'm so glad you're enjoying it and meeting you was great for me too. :)

      Delete
  13. Taryn Carter, CONGRATULATIONS.
    Random.org selected your number as the winner of Kat's book, but you have to contact us at GetLostInAStory@gmail.com since you didn't leave your email.
    ~Angi

    ReplyDelete