Photos from the AMBA Luncheon— London 2008

by Jennie Lucas

Every year, the Association of Mills and Boon Authors held their annual luncheon in London. Last year I heard so many stories of all the fun that I vowed that I had to go in 2008--and by some miracle, I actually was able to do it!

Here I am near Trafalgar Square on my way to Browns, a posh tavern near Covent Garden. (I was walking with fellow authors Abby Green, India Grey and Natalie Rivers, who were all staying at the same hotel.)

To the left: the outside of Browns.

To the right: a view from the sweeping stairs of the pre-luncheon drinks and chatting.

I unfortunately had lost my voice from French-kissing my laryngitic husband farewell before I got on the plane for London. So although I'd hoped to meet many of my fellow Harlequin Mills & Boon authors, I wandered around the party as speechless as Ariel the Mermaid, trying to communicate with pen and paper. ACK! Now that's a confidence-builder when you try to network with strangers. But at least I was able to take lots of pictures...

To the left: Harlequin Presents/M&B Modern authors Trish Morey and Kate Hardy (in purple).

To the right: the luncheon room--elegant as a wedding reception, complete with assigned seating! The lunch was scrumptious, a starter of goat's cheese and mixed salad with fig relish, then chicken breast served with mixed roasted pepper and chocolate truffle with raspberry coulis for dessert.

The view across my table. From left, Presents/Modern author India Grey, Harlequin Historicals author (and fab luncheon organizer!) Michelle Styles and Presents/Modern author (and 2008 RITA finalist) Natasha Oakley.

To the right: beaming Harlequin Historicals author (and 2008 RITA finalist!) Nicola Cornick after receiving her milestone award for 25 books! Other authors also received milestone awards, and I wish I could list them all here too...if anyone else can remember their names, please help me!

To the left: me, the head of the HMB office Karin Stoecker, and Presents/Modern Heat author (and 2008 RITA finalist) Heidi Rice.

After the Champagne Toast to the Authors from Mills and Boon later that afternoon, a bunch of us headed out into the night....


Here we toast London with fab strawberry bellinis! From left to right: Presents/Modern authors Abby Green, Jennie Lucas and India Grey! (Thanks to Natalie Rivers for taking this photo!)

Thanks London, AMBA and Harlequin Mills & Boon for a heck of a party! Hope to see you all again soon--when I have a voice and not just a camera. :)


A ruthless billionaire prince forces an impoverished single mother into a life of passion and luxury in Italian Prince, Wedlocked Wife, out this week in the U.K.! Read the excerpt, enter contests and more at www.jennielucas.com.

Harlequin Party Report

By Jennie Lucas

Since I joined RWA in 1999, I've heard tales of the fantastic Harlequin party held every conference on Friday night in a glamorous ballroom. This year the Harlequin party was held at the San Francisco Four Seasons Hotel. To the left is a picture of Sharon Kendrick (in pink) and me (in green).

As a new Harlequin author finally able to attend the party, I'm obviously biased, so I'll try and act in my usual restrained, stoic manner...I think this was possibly the best party in the history of all recorded time!!

The ballroom was huge, decorated with San Francisco landmarks like palm trees and an enormous Golden Gate bridge over the bar. (The image to the left is what the ballroom looked like before the Harlequin invasion!) Speaking of the bar...I had no idea this party would have free drinks. Free booze?! Are they crazy?? Don't they know we're writers?!?


To the right: Olivia Gates, new Silhouette Desire author, glamorous in her floor-length orange gown from Cairo--one of the best dresses of the night IMO!

The dancing was fast and furious, and the floor was absolutely packed. A jolly but dangerous place with elbows and feet flying. The DJ was incredible. I spent four hours on the dance floor and I literally had trouble walking the next day. (Now that's when you really know you've had a good time!)

Here, Harlequin authors are honored for achieving the career milestone of 25 or 50 books published! (I recognize Holly Jacobs to the left. Can't wait to read more from these great authors!)

And then there was the legendary Sandra Marton, in a class all by herself! She received a silver Tiffany keychain to honor the occasion of her 75th published book. Wow!

To the right is a picture of Sandra accepting her Tiffany box from Craig Swinwood (EVP Retail Marketing & Sales) and Loriana Sacilotto (EVP Global Publishing & Strategy).

Handsome guys are always in demand on the dance floor, where the demographics are generally 95% female. (And 100% talented!) Here's Randall Toye, who helped us dance the night away.

And (continuing our tour) to the right are some gorgeous dancers--didn't get their names, sadly--cha-chaing their way across the ballroom to get to the dance floor. The song might have been "Dancing Queen", or possibly my current fave, "American Boy". (Did I mention how great the DJ was? He did a great mix of classic crowd-pleasers along with more modern stuff!)


To the left: CONGA!

To the right: fab Harlequin American author Trish Milburn, just gotsta have her conga!


And then one of the ten-foot-tall palm trees fell over. I was too much in the dance zone to really pay much attention, but hopefully no one was too knocked over by the avalanche of paper mache. Here's a photo of the defective tree being carried out by some hunky guys, courtesy of Harlequin Historicals author Michelle Willingham.


To the right, senior editor Linda Fildew looking radiant. Editors Suzy Clarke (in black) and Sally Williamson (in green) from the Richmond office are dancing behind her.

Um, no, all those drinks on the table couldn't possibly belong to us... (from left) Carole Mortimer, Jennie Lucas, Jessica Hart (standing--she also got her 50-book award that night!), Susan Stephens, and Trish Morey. Also, that girl in white in the upper left corner is Silhouette Desire author Laura Wright. (Thanks to the wonderful Jacqueline Baird for taking the photo!)

To the left: 2008 RITA finalist Jane Porter!

To the right: Presents authors Kate Walker, Abby Green and 2008 RITA finalist Heidi Rice (in blue).

So, did you find yourself in any of the photos? (Would you admit it if you did?) Thanks for an amazing party, Harlequin authors (and Harlequin!). See you next year!!


Jennie Lucas's third Presents novel, Caretti's Forced Bride, is on sale now in the U.S.

Contests, Contests, Contests!

by Anna Campbell

There's so many chances for you all to win prizes this month!

Firstly, I'm running a Harlequin Presents contest through my website. I cleaned out the prize cupboard and came across some great signed HPs that I'd love to give away. So many, in fact, that I'm giving away two prizes of four books each. The books are:

THE GREEK TYCOON'S UNEXPECTED WIFE by Annie West
THE BOSS'S CHRISTMAS BABY by Trish Morey
THE SPANIARD'S DEFIANT VIRGIN by Jennie Lucas
ONE-NIGHT LOVE CHILD by Anne McAllister (signed bookmark)

All you need to do is pop by my website and answer a simple question. Good luck!

Sophia Nash is giving away a signed copy of UNTOUCHED, my second book, in her May contest. You just need to call by her website and answer a question. And while you're there, check out the great excerpt from her latest release THE KISS.

Jennie Lucas is offering two signed copies of CLAIMING THE COURTESAN, my first book which she called "her absolute favorite romance she's read all year". Just visit her website and, you've got it, answer a simple question.

Finally in this cornucopia of giveaways, the Romance Bandits blog, my regular gig, is a year old this month and our readers get to celebrate. We're giving away a whole stack of prizes including books, book vouchers, Romance Bandits goodies, chocolates and critiques. Details here.

Have you ever won anything amazing in a contest? I won a box of Beatles LPs once in a contest through our local newspaper by finishing the song title A Hard Day's... Which is a bit of a no-brainer!

Christmas Presents with Anna Campbell

Sometimes a Harlequin Presents is all that will fit the bill when it comes to what I want to read!

I was hoping for a reading binge over the Christmas break. Didn't quite happen, sadly. Real life got in the way. But I did manage a few days ago to snatch a day and a half where I read nothing but Harlequin Presents! Ah, what bliss! Those crazy titles! Those high stakes plots! All that operatic emotion! Just what I felt like.

I started with an author whose work I hadn't read before. Sarah Morgan's The Brazilian Boss's Innocent Mistress (see what I mean about those crazy titles? Sheesh!). Really great story about a woman unjustly accused of embezzlement and the growling alpha male who decides to make her pay for her 'crimes'. Grooviest element? Probably the hero's glass mansion in the middle of the Brazilian rainforest. Seriously cool! Almost James Bondish. Will definitely read Sarah Morgan again. This was great.

Then a great Lynne Graham. I've long been a fan of this writer - her Prisoner of Passion is one of my all-time favorites. This one was called The Petrakos Bride. It had all those elements I look for in a Lynne Graham - an overbearing hero who finds himself flummoxed when he falls in love, a match of opposites who somehow find common ground, great sexual tension. A lovely Cinderella story just right for a post-Christmas romance binge.

Then a feast of two wonderful Jane Porters. I love Jane's work - she manages to pack more emotion into a 50,000 word book than most writers manage over a 10-volume series. These two were no exception. There was The Latin Lover's Secret Child and Hollywood Husband, Contract Wife. Both cut right to the heart and were beautifully written with such passion (and I don't just mean the passion in the bedroom, although there's certainly plenty of that!).

My binge ended with a debut book by Jennie Lucas called The Greek Billionaire's Baby Revenge. Another classic presents although with some unusual elements that added a piquant edge to my feast. Russian gangsters and Las Vegas entrepreneurs, how fantastic! And again lots of passion.

So thank you, Presents authors. You gave me just what I wanted in spades.

Do you ever find yourself in need of a fix of Harlequin Presents? Are there any authors you turn to at such times? What appeals to you about Harlequin Presents?