Karin Harlow

L.O.S.T. operatives are the hunters, the cleaners, the end of the road for the bad guys. Immortal. Or not.

No boundaries.
No laws.
No compromises.

When the balance of humanity is in jeopardy, failure is not an option.

ENEMY MINE
Book 2 in the L.O.S.T. Series
Pocket Star
ISBN: 10: 1439177872

The Gold Coast at midnight had come alive. Like a living, breathing rock star high on cocaine, it pulsated with vitality and energy unlike any other.

Nikko stood across the street from Lost Souls. Scents and sounds swirled around him, blending into an indistinguishable blob. But he didn’t need to be told Selena was inside. He could smell her. Exotic and sultry, her scent overrode all others. He had thought that learning she was alive, then seeing the proof positive in pictures, had elicited a strong reaction from him at the compound, but the reality of it now created an emotional maelstrom inside him. Longing, hate, and betrayal jockeyed for the top spot in his heart. Worming itself between all of those feelings was the unmitigated desire to hold her again, to make love to her—not the cold-blooded killer she was today, but the innocent girl he’d fallen in love with so long ago, before she—Nikko mentally shook himself. He allowed the hatred and his need for vengeance to take control. That would get him through this mission. Keep him sane as his body, his mind, and his soul continued to evolve into something and someone so foreign to him, he would admit only to himself that it terrified him. He was unpredictable even to himself. He battled impulses he had always had control of. His emotions raged. It was becoming unbearable, this thing inside him. He sneered, wanting to bend her to his will, to—he squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to acknowledge the visions of his taking her until she screamed for him to stop.

No, his desire wasn’t simply to have her again. Since his arrival in Miami that morning, a new hunger had taken root. For blood. Anyone’s would do, but he craved Selena’s blood most of all.

Nikko struggled for composure. He was Ice, damn it. He would not blow this mission apart. Put this team at risk. Or himself.

“You smell her?” Cross asked from Nikko’s left.

While Nikko did not have the nuances of a vampire that Cross possessed, he had enough of the primal part to make him dangerous. His senses were honed, his strength impressive, and now his desire for blood was driving the vampire in him. Once he had looked at Cross as a freak, one without feelings or humanity. Now, walking in his shoes, Nikko understood what drove him as a man and a vampire and was impressed at how Cross managed to maintain his iron control. Nikko was having extreme difficulty with that.

“Yeah.”

“Marcus and I will go in first and get the lay of the land,” Cassidy said from Nikko’s right.
He nodded, fighting the craving to get to Selena first. Get her alone. At his mercy. The things he wanted to do to her were inhuman. But hadn’t what she’d done to him made her a monster? Nikko set his jaw. What he had done to her made him every bit as much a monster.

He had dived headfirst into love with Selena. Given her every part of him. Only to be betrayed in the most heinous way a woman could betray a man. He had reacted viciously. He had paid for it with his soul. Now his only regret was that she was still alive. How long that would continue was up to him, and he wasn’t feeling particularly generous at the moment.

“Cruz, I don’t like that look,” Cassidy said, staring up at him, her face wrinkled in consternation. “Plot your revenge later. After we get what we came for.”

Nikko set his jaw. His revenge would be slow, methodical—

“Cruz, if you give in to the bloodlust, it will destroy you,” Cross quietly said. “It’s like a drug. If you don’t control it, it will control you.”

Nikko closed his eyes and only saw red. “I just want to tear her apart.”

Cassidy touched his hand. He looked down into her serious but compassionate eyes. “I know you do, Nikko. I don’t blame you. But if you can’t get a handle on your emotions, millions of lives could be on the chopping block.”

Nikko exhaled. Cassidy was right. This mission was bigger, much bigger than his hatred for the woman who owned Lost Souls.


ENEMY LOVER
Book 1 in the L.O.S.T. Series
ISBN: 10: 1439109826
Read More




KARIN HARLOW
For a long time, controlled chaos ruled Karin’s life. Busy mother of four, owner of her own successful business and wife to a street cop, she harbored thoughts of twisting plots and hot romantic scenes. Now, with only one child left at home and hubby retired from law enforcement, Karin happily pounds out those steamy scenes at her keyboard.

Still semi-distracted by her adult children (Yay! no more phone calls from the high school!) and her husband now a successful football coach (Yay! No more worrying when he’s out on the street!), Karin turns out paranormal romantic suspense or as Karin Tabke, stories about hot cops, bold knights, bad boy werewolves, and the women who bring them to their knees.

LOST WITH KARIN
ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?
KARIN: Every time I sit down to write. If I don’t get lost my characters, no one else will. I love go to bed each night and wake each morning with my characters and their love story on my mind.

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading?
KARIN: The Wolf and the Dove. le sigh

ANGI: What’s your favorite “love” word?
KARIN: Passionate

ANGI: Can you tell us about a real-life hero you’ve met?
KARIN: My husband aside, my late father-in-law. Truly a great man.

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
KARIN: Beauty and the Beast

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?
KARIN: the sound of my granddaughter’s laughter.

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?
KARIN: Action Adventure Fairy Tale *grin*

ANGI: What was the first story you remember writing?
KARIN: so not worth mentioning!

ANGI: Be honest, when reading...do you put yourself in the heroine’s role?
KARIN: not when reading, but I sure do when I’m writing. ;)

ANGI: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?
KARIN: I love my job. LOVE. IT!

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: I noticed that you write several different genres of romance…which do you find comes most naturally to write?
KARIN’S GOTTA ANSWER: That’s a mixed bag. When I first began writing, I wrote romantic suspense with a historical voice. Go figure. I think, I have a natural historical type voice. But my contemporary voice is just as strong, it just took me awhile to find it and then trust it.

GENEROUS KARIN
I’d love to give away a signed copy of one of my backlist titles (except ENEMY LOVER :\ I don’t have any copies left!)

Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only. If an electronic 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.

QUESTON FROM KARIN
What is your preference when it comes to books in a series: connected series or stand alone books in a series? Answer and be eligible to win a signed copy of one of my backlist!

KEEP UP WITH HARLOW:
Website Facebook Twitter FB Fans
Her first Get Lost Interview
OR AS TABKE:
Website Facebook Twitter

AND 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 us tomorrow when Donnell will be here with Sandra Orchard and come back on Friday for Cat's interview with best-selling author Susan Wiggs. Remember to check back daily to GET LOST in your favorite stories! ~Angi

Lisa Kessler

A NEW RELEASE OF A SOULFUL TIMELESS LOVE
Night Walker

By Lisa Kessler

Entangled Publishing

He gave up his soul for a second chance to love her…

Two and a half centuries ago, Calisto Terana lost everything when a zealous priest murdered the woman he loved. Now, desperate for another chance to love her, he wants redemption for the mistake that cost her life.

She’s haunted by dreams of her own death…

After catching her fiance with another woman, Kate Bradley returns to San Diego to clear her head. The last thing she needs is romance, but after meeting Calisto she’s drawn to him in ways she doesn’t understand.

They’ve waited in the shadows for centuries…

Calisto has no doubt Kate is the reincarnation of his lost love, but the Fraternidad Del Fuego Santo has a new watcher with dark ambitions of his own. As old enemies reemerge and a new threat arises, the betrayal that enslaved Calisto to the night might destroy the only woman he’s ever loved again.

Purchase Links:

http://www.amazon.com/Night-Walker-ebook/dp/B005EYT7JW/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Night-Walker/Lisa-Kessler/e/2940013150492

http://www.booksonboard.com/index.php?BODY=viewbook&BOOK=1063616

Welcome back to Get Lost In A Story, Lisa!

Lisa Kessler is an avid reader and writer of dark fiction. Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award.

Lisa recently signed a 4 book deal with Entangled Publishing to release her Night Series. The first book, Night Walker, is scheduled to be released August 5th.

When she's not writing, Lisa is a professional vocalist, performing with the San Diego Opera as well as other musical theater companies in San Diego. You can learn more at

http://Lisa-Kessler.com/

Lisa lives in southern California with her incredibly fun husband and two amazing kids.

Jillian: Is there a playlist you’d recommend for reading your latest release?

Lisa: I wrote much of the book while listening to the Mask of Zorro movie soundtrack.The Spanish music kept me in the right mood for writing Calisto. In the book I also use many classical piano pieces. I posted all the music from the book on my website. You can check it out here… http://lisaslair.com/NightWalker.html

Jillian: Where do you read and how often?

Lisa: With all my writing deadlines, my personal reading time is usually during my lunch hour at work. Right now I’m finishing Kelley Armstrong’s Spell Bound and it’s been painful to turn off my Kindle and go back to work! LOL I’m loving the book.

Jillian: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?

Lisa: I really do squeal at my computer every time a reader sends me a picture of them with Night Walker! LOL It is SO cool to see you with my book in your hands, or in your eReader!

Jillian: Which of your characters would you most/least to invite to dinner, and why?

Lisa: I would love to invite Calisto over for dinner just to listen to him talk. I’m a sucker for his Spanish accent! LOL

Jillian: Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?

Lisa: I do read them, and they haven’t influenced my writing. You can’t please everyone, so I happy dance when I see it did please someone! I try not to sweat the small stuff…

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

Lisa: Purple… I can lose myself in the color purple. It’s my favorite color because it’s so rich and versatile.

Jillian: What would you say is your most interesting quirk?

Lisa: I usually chew gum while I’m writing! (I’m chewing it right now! LOL) So by the end of a book I have to dig my way out from under all the gum wrappers. It’s not pretty!

Jillian: What’s your favorite kid joke? What’s a pirate’s favorite kind of movie?

Lisa: Rated Rrrrrrrrr! (Pirate jokes are my favorite kid jokes… LOL)

Jillian's Gotta ask and Lisa’s Gotta Answer Question!

“A soulful, timeless love story and an engrossing new take on immortal mythology—if you’re looking for a touching paranormal romance, Kessler’s got one for you!”
~Christine Cody, author of the Bloodlands series

Jillian: After reading this wonderful author endorsement, I’m curious about your new take on immortal mythology. Please share something about the series with us:

Lisa: When I set out to write Night Walker, I wanted to write a vampire book that took place on the west coast. A beach vampire in San Diego. LOL! In the end, I found so much history in the Americas that I created Night Walkers which are vampire-like in their blood drinking and avoiding the sun, but Night Walkers are actually alive at night, breathing with a heartbeat. They also have a spirit animal that they can shift into at will.

Instead of the typical European immortal, Night Walkers came from the Maya, and the series really delves into Mayan and Native American mythologies for what I hope is a new and different take on vampires.

Lisa will give away one digital copy of Night Walker to one of today's commenters!***

To find out more about Lisa and her other novels visit the links below:

http://Lisa-Kessler.com/

http://twitter.com/LdyDisney

http://facebook.com/LisaKesslerWriter

http://facebook.com/NightSeries

http://goodreads.com/LisaKessler

http://www.entangledpublishing.com/night-walker/

***Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America 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.

Katharine Ashe

Get Lost in The Arms of a Marquess…

She had never forgotten him…

Miss Octavia Pierce is witty, well off, and shockingly unwed. Still, she is far too successful in society to remain on the shelf forever, and her family has hopes that Octavia will finally make the perfect match. What they do not know is that years earlier Octavia was scandalously tempted by the one man capable of sweeping her off her feet—the man now known as the Marquess of Doreé.

A third son, never meant to inherit, Lord Ben Doreé has abandoned his past and grown accustomed to his illustrious new position of wealth and power. But he has never forgotten Octavia, and now she desperately needs his help in a most dangerous, clandestine matter. Although she claims she has put the memories of the passion they shared behind her, Ben is determined to once again have her in his arms—and in his bed.

Excerpt from IN THE ARMS OF A MARQUESS

Ben pushed to his feet in the gin-soaked pub. His clogged head spun.

Styles laid a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll take you to Hauterive’s. Why you came in here when the company there would welcome you, I haven’t the slightest.”

“No. I’m for home.” He started toward the door.

“You disappeared from Lady Ashford’s party so swiftly I hadn’t an idea of it until you were gone. If I’d have known you were heading here I would have dissuaded you.”

“Couldn’t have.” Ben pushed through the lollers at the tavern’s entry and headed toward the mews down the alley with bleary eyes but hound-like precision. If he hadn’t trekked this path hundreds of times in his university days, he would be lost now. Lost in London’s hells and lost in confounded memories, neither of which locations he particularly wished to be.

“Who was that girl you were dancing with, the one that looked like an Irish Athena, all sublime figure and eyes of soft steel?”

Ben blinked to shut out the image of Octavia’s body wrapped in the shimmering gown, her soft lips, pinkened cheeks, and the sensation of her trembling fingers within his. But behind his lids the image was even stronger, and his hand still felt hot where hers had lain.

“Good God, Walker,” he grunted, “you and Constance would make a perfect pair, both of you curious as a couple of magpies.”


“Lady Constance asked about the girl too? Is she jealous?”

“Only of your paramours.”

“Then the lady at Ashford’s is a paramour?”

Ben shook his head, his stomach rolling. “Not mine.” Not any longer.
He moved across the street in unsteady strides.

But why not? No one controlled his destiny now. His life was his own. Why not seduce a beautiful, deceitful woman, a woman whose flavor yet remained upon his tongue? Why not take pleasure where he wished?

Because he could not then and still could not believe in her deceit, although he had tried to convince himself of it again and again. To absolve himself of guilt.

He stumbled into the stable and pressed his face into his horse’s satiny neck. Taking to the bottle tonight had been a mistake. He needed clarity. A pitcher of icy water over his head would do it, just as her smile had earlier, so brief it seemed she didn’t even know she smiled, washing his vision clear for an instant as it always had…


Today, I am thrilled to welcome historical romance author Katharine Ashe to the back to the blog! (Be sure to click the link at the end of her post if you missed Katharine’s first visit for more fun interview questions). I got the chance to hang out with Katharine this summer at RWA’s conference in New York, and I can tell you that not only is she a fabulously talented author, but smart, savvy and wickedly funny! Please visit her at www.katharineashe.com

So let’s get to know Katharine better!

The American Library Association’s Booklist named Katharine Ashe among its “New Stars of Historical Romance” and her debut, Swept Away by a Kiss, was a 2010 nominee 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.

And now, for the Get Lost Interview!

Heather: How often do you get lost in a story?
Katharine: Always. I adore deep, powerful romances that hurl me up and down through bliss and torture then joy and torment and back to complete happiness in the end. The more roller coaster-y the romance, and the more it makes me feel deeply, laughing and crying on the same page — as long as the conclusion is deliciously satisfying — the more likely I am to get lost in it. Lost In A Story is my middle name: Katharine Lost In A Story Ashe. Honest. Check my driver’s license.

I also get really lost in the story when I write. (see below!)

Heather: What sound do you love?
Katharine: Favorite: The sound of one person saying to another, “I love you.” Second favorite: The ocean breaking on the shore with gull cries above.

Heather: Do you write while listening to music? If so what kind?
Katharine: While writing I prefer silence (or the sound of my dogs snoring, which is, um, kind of inevitable). I do make a playlist for each book, and I listen to it all the rest of the time — in the car, walking the dogs, running, grocery shopping, gardening, rotating my tires. I have a tough time stepping away from a story while I’m writing it. I adore every moment of the lovers’ tangled journey toward their happily ever after. Listening to the playlist is my way of staying in their emotions even when I must be somewhere else.

Heather: If you couldn’t be a writer anymore, what profession would you take up?
Katharine: Writer. (I can’t believe you asked that question.) Actually, I’m also a professor of history. But I’d like to be a gardener. Or a dog walker. Or a meteorologist. Or a Shakespearian actor. Or a test driver for Mustang convertibles. Or a professional champagne taster.

Heather: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?
Katharine: Weep and laugh with joy for my hero and heroine. Dance around the living room. Crack open the bubbly. Not necessarily in that order.

Heather: What do you do to unwind and relax?
Katharine: I build model nuclear submarines and solve calculus equations. No. (Ye-ah.) I walk my pups, hang out with my son, watch romantic comedies, sit on my deck listening to cicadas in the treetops or basketball players in the nearby park.

Heather: What soundtrack or playlist do you recommend for your current release?
Katharine: Here are a few songs from my playlist for IN THE ARMS OF A MARQUESS:

“You’ll Ask for Me” – Tyler Hilton
“Moonlight Serenade” – Klaus Badelt (from POTC: Curse of the Black Pearl)
“Replace You” – Samantha Moore
“Vulnerable” – Secondhand Serenade
“Animals on Fire” – Kate Walsh (The beat of this song is like a heartbeat. It’s amazing.)
“Fear” – Sarah McLachlan
“Am I the Only One?” – Barenaked Ladies
“I Shall Believe” – Sheryl Crow
“New Divide” – Linkin Park
“Here with Me” – Dido
“Come What May” – Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman (from Moulin Rouge)
“You and Me” – Lifehouse
“Shine” – Rosi Golan

Heather: Tea or Coffee? And how do you take it?
Katharine: Coffee for breakfast, decaf (because when I drink caffeine I start thinking I should become the captain of a tall ship and have perilous seafaring adventures, but that just wouldn’t be practical at this time in my life, you see), with heated milk. I became accustomed to this while living in Rome, taken with a plumcake, a little breakfast treat that, having mentioned it, I am now of course craving. (*opening my browser to search for a store that will mail plumcakes from Italy*)

Tea late at night when all are abed save me and my laptop. Tea when I am in the British Isles where the misty rain at dawn and the lush green hills of Wales and the winding stone walls of Scotland and the clattering streets of London require such elemental comfort. Tea when the sniffles threaten. Tea when a friend comes over to chat. Cream Tea when True Snacking is a must.

Heather: What does it mean to love someone?
Katharine: To give your heart without reservation. To protect the beloved’s heart, body, and precious uniqueness from danger. To inspire the beloved to become the best person possible.

Heather: Have you ever written a character who wasn’t meant to be a hero/heroine but he/she wouldn’t go away?
Katharine: Octavia Pierce, the heroine of IN THE ARMS OF A MARQUESS. She was the little sister of a heroine I was writing at the time, on the verge of sixteen, a straightforward, shockingly honest miss with an adventuresome spirit. A very minor character.

At first Octavia didn’t actually tell me she must have her own story. Ben did. Her hero. He saw her (from a distance, when I wasn’t paying attention) and he told me quite clearly that he wanted her for his heroine. Since I barely knew him at the time, frankly I didn’t have any reason to trust him — not even twenty and full of confident, tall, dark and handsome lordliness. But he wouldn’t leave me alone about it. He was very certain. And you know, when a mysterious and powerful lord insists on something like this, it’s kind of hard not to buckle under. So I said he’d have to wait until she became a lady, about three years, and then, well, he’d have to lose her after that… for a while. Another seven years. (Remember that torture-bliss thing I mentioned above?) He glowered. I cowered, but I held fast. Come to think of it, when I promised him the billiards table scene, his glower relaxed a little.

And so I wrote their story.
(BTW, nobody actually plays billiards in the book.)

Heather’s GOTTA ASK – Katharine’s GOTTA ANSWER
Heather: So, Katharine, we know from your last visit that you are a professor of European history. I see that you've lived in both France and Italy. Can you tell us what you loved, or didn't, about living abroad?

Katharine: I loved walking the paths that people I’ve read about walked hundreds of years ago. I loved the food (plumcakes!), speaking in other languages, and the people. I loved all the new scents and living a different texture of life.

It was tough not having an ample supply of English-language novels. They’re expensive in Rome (where I spent most of my time abroad) and I was a (very) poor graduate student. When I discovered a little English bookshop that sold Penguin Classics for $1.99, I was in alt. I read every Jane Austen novel first.

GOT A QUESTION YOU’D LIKE TO ASK YOUR FANS?
Katharine: What do you neglect/ignore/forget/accidentally-misplace-in-your-sock-drawer when you’re lost in a great story?

WILL YOU HAVE A DRAWING FROM THOSE LEAVING COMMENTS?
Katharine: I'll be happy to give away a set of Romance Trading Cards and a gorgeous "Fight Like a Girl" ocean-glass and silver pendant made for September's Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, related to Avon's KISS and Teal campaign (of which I'm a spokesperson).

Thanks so much for being with us today, Katharine! Where can your fans learn more about you?
Website Facebook Twitter

Want to know even more about Katharine? Take a look at her first GET LOST appearance.
Get Lost Interview

**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.

DON’T FORGET to check back daily to GET LOST in your favorite stories! FOLLOW us on Twitter (#GetLostStories) or LIKE us on Facebook to keep up with all our guest authors and their prizes. Join us this week as we host Lisa Kessler, Karin Harlow, Sandra Orchard & Best Selling Author Susan Wiggs.

Deborah Cooke

ABOUT DEBORAH

Deborah Cooke has always been fascinated with dragons, although she has never understood why they have to be the bad guys. She has an honors degree in history, with a focus on medieval studies. She is an avid reader of medieval vernacular literature, fairy tales and fantasy novels, and has written over forty romance novels and novellas. She has also been published under the names Claire Cross and Claire Delacroix.

ABOUT FLYING BLIND

"Zoe is a wonderful heroine--smart, strong and sympathetic.

Bring on book two!" Kelley Armstrong, #1 NYT Bestselling Author of The Awakening

Zoë is the Wyvern of the Pyr – the one female dragon shape shifter with special powers. But Zoë is at the bottom of the class when it comes to being Pyr, and her powers are AWOL. Worse, there’s no reference book to consult, and the last Wyvern is dead….

Everything changes when Zoë’s best friend is bullied and Zoë reacts. Before she can blink twice, her inner dragon is loose, and she’s suspended from school and headed to a shape shifter boot camp with guys she’s known all her life. But soon she’s doubting her powers – and even some of her friendships.

Zoë quickly realizes she has to master her powers yesterday – there’s danger ahead and boot camp is a trap. A secretive group, the Mages, want to eliminate all shifters and the Pyr are next in line – unless Zoë and her friends can solve the riddle and work together to save their own kind…

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Sure to become a classic!" ~ Fresh Fiction

“I dare any reader to start this book and not get caught up in the story immediately. The first of the new series about the next generation of dragons, FLYING BLIND is a story of coming of age, of finding one’s true worth, and of trusting in one’s self. For a thoroughly enjoyable and completely entertaining fantasy and a great start to a new series, don’t miss FLYING BLIND.” ~ Romance Reviews Today

Excerpty goodness at http://www.thedragondiaries.com/flyingblind_excerpt.html
Covers at http://www.thedragondiaries.com/

LET'S GET TO KNOW DEBORAH COOKE

MAUREEN: Where do you most like to read and how often?
DEBORAH: I love to sit on the porch in the summer and read. There’s a great breeze there and the chairs are squishy-good.

MAUREEN: Sounds heavenly! Do you believe in ghosts?
DEBORAH: Yes. I live with two (as well as some living peeps). They’re pretty low-maintenance now that we’re all used to each other.

MAUREEN: Okay, maybe your place isn't so heavenly. ;) Where in the world would you most like to visit?
DEBORAH: Asia. I haven’t been there and I’d love to go. I sent Thorolf to Bangkok and I’m crazy-jealous – and yes, it is twisted to be jealous of fictional characters when you are the one who made them up and decided what they would get to do. Maybe Thorolf is living my Bangkok fantasy.

MAUREEN: What’s next for you as an author?

DEBORAH: Next up is the second book in my YA trilogy, The Dragon Diaries. Zoë learns more in WINGING IT, coming December 2011, then still more in BLAZING THE TRAIL, coming next June 2012. My adult paranormal romance series featuring dragon shape shifters (Dragonfire) continues with book #7 in that series, FLASHFIRE, in January 2012 and #8 in October 2012. I think FLASHFIRE has The Best Dragonfire Cover Ever. Just sayin’. I love the book too!

MAUREEN: Do shapeshifters exist?
DEBORAH: They must. We’ve been telling stories about them for a long, long time.

MAUREEN: What’s your favorite hobby?
DEBORAH: Knitting! Of course. My blog is called Alive & Knitting, which is a big clue. I’m a teensy bit compulsive about sticks and string.

MAUREEN: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
DEBORAH: Beauty and the Beast. No question.

MAUREEN: What’s the best vacation you’ve ever been on?
DEBORAH: We went on a camping trip to Morocco for three weeks. It was awesome – and it wasn’t all bad that we spent five days in a pishy poshy London hotel suite afterwards. Great trip.

MAUREEN: I love Morocco, but didn't camp there. I'm jealous. Cats or dogs?
DEBORAH: Dogs.

MAUREEN: Hiking boots or high heels?
DEBORAH: Depends where I’m going.

MAUREEN: Fair enough. :) What’s your favorite cartoon character?
DEBORAH: Bugs Bunny.

MAUREEN: What hidden talents do you have?
DEBORAH: I try to keep them all right out in the open.

MAUREEN: What sound or noise do you love?
DEBORAH: Summer rain, especially when I wake up to it.

MAUREEN: What book would you want with you if you were stranded on a desert island?
DEBORAH: The Lord of the Rings.

MAUREEN: Do you write while listening to music? If so what kind?

DEBORAH: Yes. I listen to music, very loud music, while I write. It tends to be me and Freddie Mercury when words need to get typed – I have a stack of Queen CD’s that rotate their way through the CD deck. I like the energy of their music, the diversity within any given album, (no greatest hits compilations when I’m writing) and I love love LOVE Fred’s voice.

MAUREEN: I'm a big Queen fan, too. Freddy Mercury was one of my first crushes. Boy, was I barking up the wrong tree. ;) On to a deeper question: What’s your favorite kind of cheese?
DEBORAH: Something with lots of butterfat, preferably unpasteurized. Bring along any Raclette cheese, or Morbier, or even Oka and I’ll help you work through it. (You brought wine and a fresh baguette to go with it, right?)

MAUREEN: Of course! Yum! What was the first story you remember writing?
DEBORAH: I rewrote The Lord of the Rings as a fantasy romance. Wow, could I get sued for that, if the manuscript still existed! It was fun, though, and I learned a lot about story and structure in doing it. Took me two summers of commuting to work on the bus.

MAUREEN: If you couldn’t be a writer anymore, what profession would you take up?
DEBORAH: I might be a pastry chef. Or a sculptress (but not the kind that Minette Walters wrote about.)

MAUREEN: Is Elvis really dead?
DEBORAH: We’d have to go to Kalamazoo to find out for sure.

MAUREEN: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?
DEBORAH: Get a haircut. Good thing I deliver every four months or I’d be a very shaggy individual. After the haircut, I clean my office – even after four months, it gets pretty scary in there.

MAUREEN: If you were given a chance to travel to the past where would you go and why?
DEBORAH: 12th century Paris. Absolutely no question. When do we leave?

MAUREEN: Strawberry daiquiri or a beer?

DEBORAH: Neither. Red red wine, please.

MAUREEN: Coming right up. :) Do you believe in alien abductions?
DEBORAH: No, but then, I don’t live in New Mexico and have never been there.

MAUREEN: Did you belong to a clique in high school? Which one of the standard high school stereotypes did you best fit in to?
DEBORAH: I was an Artsy Fartsy. Zoë and I have that going on – except I was better at Math than she is.

MAUREEN: Salsa or guacamole?
DEBORAH: Salsa. If you have salsa verde and fajitas on the grill, I’m your girl. (What time is dinner?)

MAUREEN: Come on over. :) Tea or Coffee? And how do you take it?
DEBORAH: Tea - just naked, please, and preferably Earl Grey.

MAUREEN'S GOTTA ASK -- DEB'S GOTTA ANSWER

MAUREEN: Would you want to be a dragon? Why or why not?

DEBORAH: Well, of course! Why else write about dragon shape shifters? I suspect every one (especially every kid) has a fantasy of being some other kind of creature. Although I think fairies are pretty, they could probably get squished too easily. I’ve no desire to be a werewolf – maybe that’s a case of TMI. I’ve always had dogs. Never lived with a dragon, though. I love the idea of being able to fly. I love Zoë’s Incinerate Now list – if I’d thought of it, I’d have had one when I was 16, too. I love that dragons are loyal and beautiful and good at solving riddles. Come on and admit it - don’t you want to be a dragon, too?


MAUREEN: I would like to fly... And that Incinerate Now list... That is appealing. :)

DEBORAH ASKS:

If you were a dragon, what colour would your scales be?
OR, if you were a dragon, what would be your favorite power? (I’m torn between flying and breathing fire. Just so you know where I stand.)

BOOK GIVEAWAY!

Deborah's publisher will send a copy of FLYING BLIND to one lucky commenter! US addresses only. Sorry. :)

Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to USA addresses only. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants.

KEEP IN TOUCH WITH DEBORAH COOKE:

http://www.thedragondiaries.com/

http://www.deborahcooke.com/

http://www.facebook.com/AuthorDeborahCookeFanPage

http://www.delacroix.net/blog/

BLOG SWAP

And for extra fun, Deb has interviewed me over on her blog today! Check it out.

Brenda Novak

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Brenda Novak has written forty novels, three of which will be coming out this year—INSIDE, IN SECONDS & IN CLOSE. She also runs an annual on-line auction for diabetes research every May at www.brendanovak.com. To date, she’s raised over $1.4 million. Brenda considers herself lucky to be a mother of five and married to the love of her life.

Find Brenda at:

Website

Facebook

INSIDE

Virgil Skinner served fourteen years for a murder he didn't commit. He's finally been exonerated, but he can't escape the gang he joined in order to survive. They'll do anything to keep him from telling what he knows. And if they can't get to Virgil they'll go after his sister and her kids.

The California Department of Corrections needs someone to infiltrate another gang, one that's taking control of the state's most notorious supermax. Virgil agrees to do it under an alias—in exchange for his sister's protection.

Chief Deputy Warden Peyton Adams is opposed to having Virgil in her prison. How will she protect him if things go bad? Besides, she's far too attracted to him; she might even be falling in love with him. That makes her all the more desperate to keep him safe—and it gives him someone else to lose.

I'm very excited to have Brenda Novak join us today. As a huge fan for years, I was delighted to interview her for Get Lost In A Story. I hope you enjoy getting to know Brenda as much as I did.

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

BRENDA: I’m always lost in a story—usually several at once. There’s the one I’m writing, the one I’m critiquing for my mentoree, the one I’m reading out of genre and the genre reads. That’s before I get to any books I might be reading for an endorsement or contest I might be judging. I LOVE BOOKS!

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

BRENDA: Ooooo, have to be honest here. My favorites are period pieces.

CAT: What turns you off like nothing else?

BRENDA: Shallow stories. I want something with some layers and complexity, something that dares to be different.

CAT: What was the first story you remember writing?

BRENDA: My first story was the historical I started when I first decided to write. I rewrote it several times, but I was lucky enough to sell it to HarperCollins. It came out in November 1999 and I just got my rights back. I’m going to be offering it as a free e-book to anyone who buys INSIDE, my new release, before July 5^th.

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

BRENDA: LAST OF THE MOHICANS. My kids groan every time I suggest we watch it (because I can watch it over and over again). One time fellow author Sharon Sala and I were sitting in a writing workshop together. The instructor asked what movie we watch when we run into a brick wall with our writing, what inspires us to punch through that wall. We both looked at each other and said the same thing. LOL

CAT: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?

BRENDA: Being a rather shy person (although no one ever believes that when I say it) I would much rather hide behind my typewriter and have the chance to perfect my words before sending them out so…I’m a much better writer.

CAT: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?

BRENDA: Buy my new book. Does that count? LOL

CAT: Do you write while listening to music? If so what kind?

BRENDA: I can have a dozen kids tramping through my house and talking to me while I’m writing but I can’t have music on. Weird, I know.

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

BRENDA: Start the next one.

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

BRENDA: Margaret Mitchell.

CAT: If you were given a chance to travel to the past where would you go and specifically why?

BRENDA: Medieval England. I’m fascinated by that location and time period.

CAT: What do you do to unwind and relax?

BRENDA: Unwind? Relax? What are those things? LOL

CAT: Which of your characters would you most/least to invite to dinner, and why?

BRENDA: Virgil Skinner. He’s the hero of INSIDE, which will be out June 28^th, and he was incarcerated for a murder he didn’t commit for fourteen years. He’s a very interesting fellow—and has a lot of stories to tell.

CAT: What dreams have been realized as a result of your writing?

BRENDA: I’ve always dreamed of hitting The Times. The day I got that call from my agent was one I’ll never forget.

CAT'S GOTTA ASK -- BRENDA'S GOTTA ANSWER:

If you were a t-shirt, what color would you be and why?

Black. I love black. I think people look very classy in black. LOL

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

Why do you think wounded heroes are so much more appealing than less complex men?

Brenda would like to give away an autographed copy of INSIDE and a limited edition Brenda Novak silk scarf designed by Hayden-Harnett ($128 value).**

**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.

Shea Berkley

THE MARKED SON
Keepers of Life, #1
Entangled Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 1937044017

Seventeen-year-old Dylan Kennedy always knew something was different about him, but until his mother abandoned him in the middle of Oregon with grandparents he's never met, he had no idea what.

When Dylan sees a girl in white in the woods behind his grandparents' farm, he knows he's seen her before in his dreams. He's felt her fear. Heard her insistence that only he can save her world from an evil lord who uses magic and fear to feed his greed for power.
Unable to shake the unearthly pull to Kera, Dylan takes her hand. Either he's completely insane or he's about to have the adventure of his life, because where they're going is full of creatures he's only read about in horror stories. Worse, the human blood in his veins has Dylan marked for death.
~ ~ ~
Nothing feels better than touching Kera. I hold her close, feeling her heart beat behind her ribs. The heat of her hands on my chest is impossible to ignore as I kiss her, teasing her lips, and ultimately torturing myself until my control is almost gone. I pull away, putting my forehead to hers, and silently count to ten. Counting to a hundred wouldn’t help. Holding her intensifies my feelings of recklessness.

I can’t let go.

I pick her up. You’d think her dress, with its yards of material would be a problem, but it isn’t. Not for her. She wraps her legs around my waist and rakes her hands through my hair. I place my head on her chest and close my eyes. The rapid beat of her heart matches my own. The scent that engulfs her is as heady as the feel of her in my arms.

“You smell like summer and—” I search for the word that describes the scent pulsing under her skin. It teases me with every breath and touch. Naming it is driving me insane. It’s one I haven’t smelled on her before, yet it’s a scent that’s all too familiar to me, like summer and… “—sadness.”
She captures my lips with hers and slowly slides down my body until her feet touch the floor. Our kiss deepens, her embrace turns desperate. Her kiss fills with misery. The room turns hot, too claustrophobic. I can’t think. I try pushing her away, but she clings to me. Her breathing quickens, and she shivers within my arms. I sense real fear in her. Though she protests, I finally manage to step free. One, two, three steps back, separate but still connected. I can’t stop staring at her, wanting her. She’s like…

A drug.
~ ~ ~
Shea Berkley started out writing nonfiction (not so fun!) and quickly moved into fiction (totally fun!), and knew she’d found her calling. (Her family were thrilled she’d found friends to play with, even if they weren’t technically “real”). She’s still pleasantly surprised that people are willing to pay to read her stories. 

Besides writing, her many diversions include kickboxing, reading awesome books, and hanging out with her loud and rambunctious family. With five kids (all girls), her biggest job is making sure that the little darlings don’t harass the neighbors, and playing dumb when the cops come knocking on her door.

QUESTIONS
ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?
SHEA: Every time I pick up a new book, I’m excited and want to get lost in the story. Sadly, it doesn’t happen every time, but more times than not it does. I’d say at least 60% of the time I hit gold. I fairly fickle and I usually love the book I’m reading.

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading?
SHEA: Umm, dyslexic, here. I fought reading for a long, long time. The first book I wanted to read was Shanna by Kathleen Woodiwiss. My mom threw it at me as a disciplinary measure (it’s a thick ole book) but I dodged it and then showed her. I read it.

ANGI: What’s your favorite “love” word?
SHEA: What is this love of which you speak? My husband is not romantic. Wait, vacuum. My husband got me a vacuum for my birthday once. I’m pretty sure vacuum = love in his language.

ANGI: Can you tell us about a real-life hero you’ve met?
SHEA: I met Spider man outside his roller coaster in Orlando Florida. He’s real. I saw him. I kid you not.

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
SHEA: Sleeping Beauty. Phillip is awesome, and Maleficent is just plain evil and so unapologetic about it. Who wouldn’t want to sing like Aurora and have wild creatures dance with you? Phillip fights a dragon—serious man stuff going on there, and Aurora who’s been raised without shoes finds herself a princess and dances with the man she loves in a dress that can’t decide whether it’s blue or pink. It’s awesome times a million!!

ANGI: What’s your favorite cartoon character?
SHEA: Pinky and the Brain. I know it’s two characters, but they work as a team. If you make me chose just one, then it’s Freakazoid. Yep, he’s cooler than cool. You gotta love a superhero who claims an aversion to “poo gas”. I’m not fond of poo gas either, so I’m thinking I might be a superhero. I could be. Really.

ANGI: What turns you off like nothing else?
SHEA: Liars and manipulators. Grrr. They make me sooo mad I want to kick them and push them into a big dirty mud puddle. Not very Christian of me, but there it is.

ANGI: Is there a playlist you’d recommend for reading your latest release?
SHEA: I know some people create playlists as they write, but honestly, that sounds like a lot of work, and seeing as how I’m lazy, that doesn’t really fit in with the slacker image I’m going for, so nope. Got nothing for ya.

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?
SHEA: I read in bed. On the toilet. In my kitchen. In the car on long trips. Outside on the hammock. I’m an equal opportunity reader. If I’ve got a place to sit for more than two minutes, I’ll read… or play Angry Birds.

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?
SHEA: Laughter. Who doesn’t?

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?
SHEA: Seriously? You’re gonna make me choose? That is cruel! Actually, there is such a thing as Fairy Tale Action Adventures. Tangled. Sleeping Beauty. Aladdin. Yep. It’s been done, and they all rock.

ANGI: What was the first story you remember writing?
SHEA: Something about a frog (I liked frogs when I was younger). The story’s a little sketchy and not worth repeating, but I thought it was pure literary gold.

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
SHEA: Is this torture Shea day? Why are you making me chose? I need my blankie! (rub cheek with blankie…sigh)

Okay, I have a lot of favorite movies, and each are for a different reason. My favorite war movie is TEARS OF THE SUN. My favorite historical movie is THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS. My favorite Sci-fi is STAR TREK (Chris Pine version). My favorite remix movie is SHERLOCK HOLMS (love Robert Downey Jr.). My favorite oh-my-gosh-this-is-an-awesome movie is GLADIATOR. My favorite Dragon movie is REIGN OF FIRE. My favorite comedy is BEST FRIENDS. My favorite odd movie is A KNIGHT’S TALE. My favorite musical is SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS. My favorite musical that is just plain weird but I love it is MOULIN ROUGE. See? I’m not even halfway through my list yet and it’s already ten movies deep… and I haven’t even hit on the animated movies that I love.

ANGI: Who’s your favorite villain?
SHEA: Fanny Dashwood, the sister-in-law to Elinor and Marianne Dashwood in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. The subtlety of her villainy is impressive. “People always live forever when there is an annuity to be paid them.” (giggle, snort) I absolutely love it.

ANGI: Be honest, when reading...do you put yourself in the heroine’s role?
SHEA: No, sorry. I would typically make different decisions than most heroines, but I still love to read about how they get themselves into and out of trouble.

ANGI: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?
SHEA: Storytelling. Being dyslexic, writing has always been a struggle, but I still enjoy it. I’m just not very fast at it. (wipe away a tear)

ANGI: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?
SHEA: Being a new author, it’s difficult to get my books in the bookstores, so word of mouth is going to be the main way people know that THE MARKED SON is available. If you like the book, tell people. Go to your local bookstore and tell them about the book and ask them to carry it. I appreciate any help you all are willing to do.

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: What is your favorite scene in THE MARKED SON, and can you give us some hints about the next two books in the series?
SHEA’S GOTTA ANSWER: Seriously, you all have issues! I’m curled into a fetal position now. I want my mommy. (rock back and forth, back and forth) I love all my scenes. Really.

The one that made me laugh the most when I wrote it was the scene where Grandma and Grandpa are trying to guess who Dylan’s dad is. That I find that scene funny is kinda sick, huh? They’re not trying to be cruel, they’re just being human, and getting caught red-handed playing the guessing game. It’s something I would do, and that Dylan takes it in stride makes me like him even more. He knows he’s got a sucky life, and he’s dealing the best that he can and trying his best to rise above the situation.

I don’t like talking about the books I’m writing, but I can say this, The Lost Prince is about Dylan and his fight to free Teag from those who are trying to take control after Navar’s death. The Bastard King is about Dylan trying to save those who he least cares about, and fighting against those he thought he could trust.

TODAY’S QUESTION: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE LOVE WORD?
LEAVE A COMMENT for a chance to win an electronic copy of Shea’s MARKED SON. (remember to keep your answers PG13 please)

Note: Offer void where prohibited. 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.

KEEP UP WITH SHEA:
Contact: shea@sheaberkley.com
Website Facebook Goodreads

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 us tomorrow when Cat hosts Brenda Novak and on Friday Maureen will be here with Claire Delacroix. Remember to check back daily to GET LOST in your favorite stories! ~Angi

Jeanne Adams

In addition to writing spine-tingling suspense , multi-award winning author Jeanne Adams enjoys teaching, attending conferences and book signings. What's more she's always ready for a good laugh. So much so she invites you to join her at the very popular Romance Bandits blog.

But today, she's all ours--all ours--at Get Lost in a Story, and she's here to promote her September 11th release, DEADLY LITTLE LIES.

Billionaire industrialist Dav Gianikopolis believes in working hard and enjoying the fruits of your labors. He believes in legacies, but given the dark and dangerous legacy his own father passed on, he’s not sure he really wants to take the chance on love and marriage. Nearly getting killed – and having his best friend nearly die in his arms – changes his mind, and Dav decides its time to settle down. He decides he’s going to marry Carrie McCray, the woman he’s been drawn to for years, but never been able to reach. When she finally agrees to a date, everything goes horribly wrong and Dav and Carrie are kidnapped, whisked away to an unknown location, with the threat of death hanging over every move, every word. Locked away underground in an impenetrable cell, how can Dav and Carrie survive, much less, escape? When their captors are murdered before their eyes, with no warning, they must work together to escape, or perish. Having finally found a woman he can trust, and maybe even love, Dav isn’t giving up, and neither are his friends and colleagues Gates Bromley and Ana Burton-Bromley. In another fast-paced, brilliantly written suspense, author Jeanne Adams has given readers a roller-coaster ride of thrills, chills, suspense and hot, passionate romance.


Praise for Deadly Little Lies:
“Jeanne Adams delivers taut suspense with a blend of gripping action and rich characters for an edge-of-your-seat read.” – NYT bestseller Dianna Love


“Deadly Little Lies is a jewel of a story. From the beginning to the very end, you’re caught up in a story of passion and intrigue. With sizzle on every page, you won’t be disappointed.”
-NYT Bestselling Suspense Author, Sharon Sala, author of Blood Stains

~~~

Here's what the critics said last year. . .

Deadly Little Secrets a RED HOT READ - Cosmopolitan Magazine!!
Deadly Little Secrets - nominated for BEST SUSPENSE of 2010!! - RT Magazine

IT'S MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME JEANNE ADAMS!

~~~

DONNELL: If you could live anywhere on earth where would it be?

JEANNE: Hmmmm, that is one of those “it depends” questions. As far as the weather is concerned, I hate being hot, so I’d probably choose to spend my summers in Maine or British Columbia or Alaska. My winters would be somewhere cold, but not impassibly snowy, like my home state of North Carolina. Ha! I’d love to live in Scotland for a while too. But home is where the heart is, so I’ll actually be wherever my DH and my boyz are.

DONNELL: What’s the favorite room of your house?

JEANNE: The kitchen. We remodeled it several years ago and it’s warm and cozy and functions so well for the simplest meals to the biggest parties. I love that room!

DONNELL: If you could ask any of your characters to dinner, who would it be?

JEANNE: Oooh, great question! Hmmmm. Probably the four characters from Deadly Little Secrets (Sept. 2010) and Deadly Little Lies (Sept. 2011) – Ana, Gates, Davros and Carrie. Each of them have a fascinating past, a riveting present and a hopeful future and the conversation around the table would be unforgettable.

DONNELL: Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?

JEANNE: I do read reviews sometimes but, as I used to do with contest entries, I read them for common threads rather than specific pet peeves. If you read a LOT of reviews of a book (whether that’s a Great Book or the newest debut author), sometimes you can get a sense of what that author does well or what might have made the book better. For instance, if there are 10 reviews and every one says the pacing was terrific, or it kept them riveted, you know you’ve gotten that bit right. If most of the reviewers say they didn’t see the ending coming and they loved it, you know you sprang the surprise juuuuuust right.

That’s the kind of thing I like to read reviews for.

That said, I don’t let them influence my writing. I can’t, because everyone has likes and dislikes and sometimes people delight in being mean. Focusing on someone’s jealous or mean rant – and letting myself question my skill based on an anonymous review - doesn’t help me write a better book, and it can be very DIS-motivating. Writing’s hard enough, so I work diligently to keep it positive.

As I said, everyone’s taste is different. One of my best friends can’t believe I didn’t care for a certain NYT Bestseller. “How can you NOT LOVE that book?!?!” she constantly asks. I just don’t, although obviously millions DO. Both of us are right in our opinions. Of course, I don’t feel the need to write a review of it, either. Ha! Some people feel they MUST write one if they don’t like it. I’d rather read what people DID like about a book – anyone’s book, not just mine.

DONNELL: What’s in your refrigerator right now?

JEANNE: Snork! Funny question. Eggs – in the carton, hard-boiled and egg salad. Left-over chicken and mashed potatoes. Leftover pizza, and spaghetti. Steaks for tomorrow night, yogurt, two or three gallons of milk, some OJ, six or seven kinds of cheese, and a heck of a lot of condiments. We go through milk, cheese, eggs and OJ in this house like we owned a dairy farm and an orange orchard. Grins.

DONNELL: What does it mean to love someone?

JEANNE: Now THERE’s a loaded question. Grins. I believe it means that you accept them for who they are, in this moment, without ever expecting them to be different, and you love them to pieces for just that, right there. Love is respect, and laughter and that powerful connection that makes you agree to hang tough if the going gets tough, and rejoice when you’re in the smoother water. So I guess it means that you do that when you love someone – respect them, laugh with them (and sometimes AT them and at yourself), and you have that feeling of connection that makes you willing to be there in good times and bad. I’m really blessed, because I have this in my life when I never expected to. I’m very rich in that respect. :>

DONNELL: You’re painting a picture, who or what would you paint?

JEANNE: Hmmmm….so many choices…. If it were a thing, it would be trees on a rock-strewn, but green mountainside. I love the play of light and shadow in the green, and the rocks thrusting through the ground cover and the blue sky… yeah. Gorgeous. If it were a person or persons, it would probably be my children. If it were an animal, it would probably be my favorite Dalmatian. I’d have to do that one from memory because she’s crossed the Rainbow Bridge, but I could do it, right this minute. :>

DONNELL: What dreams have been realized as a result of your writing?

JEANNE: Oh, goodness, so many! Meeting Nora Roberts, signing at her bookstore in Boonsboro, Maryland . (And let me insert a fan-girl-squeeee here because I get to do that again on Sept. 17^th with Deadly Little Lies!!). Meeting Charlaine Harris and Sharon Sala. Meeting Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love; taking classes from amazing authors like Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Donna MacMeans, and so many others. Sitting at the RWA Literacy Signing and having people actually buy my books and come to see me and say they LIKED my books. Ha! Blogging with astounding authors like Laura Ann Gilman, Hank Phillipi Ryan, and so many more.

And I have to say that one dream I always had was being part of a group of writers who worked together, had fun together, talked writing, books, etc. – endless fun in my opinion. I got to realize that dream in 2007 when I became part of the blog group, The Romance Bandits. That’s one fine group of fabulous writers and that’s really a realized dream, to be a part of that group.

DONNELL: What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

JEANNE: Another fun question! I seem to always pick one word to overuse in each book/manuscript, and it’s different for every story. In Dark and Dangerous, everyone stepped. They stepped up, stepped back, went up the steps, stepped aside, stepped over, around…you name it, there was stepping involved. Grins.

In Dark and Deadly, the word was against – people were against the heroine doing her work. Things leaned against the wall, the doors, or the car. The hero was constantly leaning against tables, or doorjambs.

In Deadly Little Secrets it was other. Every other kind of thing was other – in other words, the other woman, the other day…if a phrase COULD have “other” in it, I put it in.

In Deadly Little Lies it was drip. The water dripped. The blood dripped, the walls dripped with peeling wallpaper. Drip, drip, drip. Ugh.

Thankfully, I know this quirk now and catch on pretty quickly as to what word’s going to be my “beast” for a given book. Then at the end, I do a Find and replace 9/10ths of whatever word it is. Grins.

Oh, another quirk I have is that the more people I kill off in the book, the more gleeful I am about how the day’s writing went. (This kinda freaks my husband out….don’t know why….)

DONNELL: What was one of the most surprising things you learned while writing/researching a book?

JEANNE: That you cannot blow up a car by shooting the gas tank, a la Hollywood. You have to hit the battery, which is in a different place in virtually every car made. To blow up the car, you have to know where the battery is on that make and model and shoot THAT. Hit it? BLAMMO! Miss? Ping….chink…nuthin.

DONNELL: If you’re not writing, where will we find you?

JEANNE: Walking the dogs, curled up reading either by myself or with my youngest boy, or watching my eldest play baseball (at which he excels) or yakkin’ on the Romance Bandit blog.

~~~

JEANNE ADAMS: Okay, readers, turn-about is fair play. I LOVE the questions posed here, so now I have one for you! In Deadly Little Lies, the hero, Davros, and his lady, Carrie, are kidnapped and dumped in a cell in Central America. While the situation is terribly dangerous, they do make the most of it….

If you could pick anyone – real or imaginary – with whom to be stranded, who would it be? (Now, pick someone OTHER than your spouse or boyfriend, ladies (or gents), because that’s more fun!)

If you had to be stranded with that hottie, hero or historic figure, WHERE would you choose to be stranded?

READY TO HAVE SOME FUN? Answer Jeanne's question and be entered for a chance to win Deadly Little Lies.

Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless otherwise indicated by guest author. If an electronic Copy is available, the author may utilize that option. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. It is the responsibility of the winning commenter to contact GLIAS with their email address or those participating may leave their email addresses in their public post.

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 us later in the week when Shea Berkley, Brenda Novak, and Deborah Cooke join GLIAS. Remember to check back daily to GET LOST in your favorite stories!