Golden Globes and Redeemed Heroes... by Natalie Anderson

So did you watch the Golden Globes?! I must admit I'm a sucker for award shows - I love to see all the frocks and suits, the hair, the shoes, the bling... I'm sappy enough to get a tear in my eye over acceptance speeches (especially when they're from the winners I wanted). It's fun to celebrate things - and creative achievement is worthy of celebration I think.
Of course, there's a problem in that I don't actually have a telly that's plugged into a network - we only use ours to watch DVDs - but we do have a number of computers. So, social media addict that I am, I watched the Twitter feed on and off (it was HILARIOUS - some people are very, very funny on Twitter) - and then I hopped onto YouTube and watched the particular bits that sounded good. And I looked at the stills of the fab frocks on the newspaper websites... so, personal highlights for me?
Actually involved three guys - Colin Firth (Mr Gorgeous, love his accent and the beautiful way he talks), Michael Douglas (nice line when he got the standing ovation) and of course, the wonderful redeemed reprobate, total bad boy himself, Robert Downey Junior.

I thought RDJ was fantastic - suave, charming, a little risque and also got his point across re Ricky's intro. There's an admirable strength about someone who's gone through hell and hauled himself out the other side. You want someone like that to succeed - not to be cast back all the time. And I loved him in Iron Man...

While the hero in my latest Presents Extra, Lorenzo Hall, has gone through a very different kind of trouble to RDJ, he has certain similarities in that he'd also gorgeous and has that slightly wicked, untamed humour and smouldering sensual confidence. Lorenzo is also working very hard to keep himself in the position in which he's fought hard to get to - safe. Of course, the pleasure for me then was to throw a heroine into his path who challenges that status. Emotional risk is the one kind of risk Lorenzo just can't handle... can he find the strength to be the hero my Sophy needs???

Well, you might have to look for REBEL WITH A CAUSE out next month in the US as a Presents Extra... meanwhile, which frock did you like the best at the awards? Maybe I'm having an Anglophile moment with my crushing on Colin still, but really, I just adore the individuality of Helena Bonham Carter -  with her odd coloured shoes? Just wonderful!!! What did you think???

Stories are Alive - Melanie Milburne

I have been on a journey in the world of writing. Many of you know I have just completed a Hollywood romantic comedy screenplay with Hollywood writer Paul Margolis. As I write this he is sending out our screenplay to six of the High End Producers in L.A. Very exciting but also nerve-wracking!

But how I came to writing the screenplay was because I wanted to understand more about the process of writing. Eighteen months ago I had got to the 3o book mark and I wanted to dig a little deeper so that the next 30 books would be stronger and even more memorable. A tough task but I was sure there must be a secret or a magic bullet somewhere!

Well, there is and there isn't. What I found was that writing is a journey within oneself. Christopher Vogler in The Writer's Journey says:

Stories are alive and conscious and respond to human emotions. I love that quote! He also says " stories have healing power in that they help us deal with difficult emotional situations perhaps similar in some way to the struggles we are going through at some stage of life, and which might inspire us to try a different strategy for living."

It's so true as so many times a book has personally resonated with me and helped me. But also, I have found that writing has been amazingly cathartic at times when I am dealing with a difficult situation personally. I just use those emotions and put them in a novel. It gives greater authenticity to your work when you can do that.

I am excited to think that the stories I write help others. I get emails from fans that confirm it but up until now I hadn't truly realised how important the writer's role is. I think I had fallen in the trap of thinking it's just category romance, not so important, just entertainment. Well, I was wrong. It's not just about entertainment and fantasy. These are real people with real issues and real and at times very raw emotions even though I have created them in my head.

My Presents trilogy is all about dealing with difficult emotional situations. I loved writing each brother's situation and the way they and their heroine faced it. They are all quite different and how they deal with life is different but isn't that true for all of us? We do it our way.

I have just finished my 41st book and using the theory and anatomy of story I have learned, I believe it is going to be an exciting journey ahead. I am going to learn more about my characters but also more about myself.

What book helped you? Have there been several or just one? I would love to hear your comments.

Happy reading!

Melanie

Lisa Dale: Contest! Plus What to do in the Winter

Hi all,

Winter is in full force here in NJ--and my fiance and I have managed a few days off together for the first time since last summer. But what does one do when it's freezing cold and there's snow everywhere?

We went on a fun little day trip yesterday, and I think the pictures are worth sharing! First, we went to a New Jersey diner that we hadn't ever been to before (we're slowly but surely visiting new diners one by one).

It was adorable! Here's a little picture:

Then, with our bellies full and warm, we headed further south, all the way down to New Hope, Pennsylvania. We drove past beautiful scenes of snow-covered farm houses, frozen tractors, and fields turned perfect white under a gray sky.

Then, we hopped an antique train (how cute is this?). It was like stepping into a different time!

Inside the car felt like something out of a movie! The train ride wasn't to anywhere. In fact, it went forward for about half an hour, then it went back.

We were treated to many beautiful scenes like this one (incidentally, this trestle's claim to fame is that this is where a famous train scene was shot in the 1918 movie The Perils of Pauline.

All this atmosphere...it's enough to make a writer's imagination go wild! Nothing inspires me to write more than a quiet, contemplative day spent with a loved one!

But these days, I have to admit, I'm not doing too too much actual writing. You see, my new book, Slow Dancing on Price Pier, comes out in three short months! Eek!

Two wonderful authors, Karen White and Jane Porter, were kind enough to give me absolutely glowing blurbs for this book! And I'm so pleased with the cover art. Here it is!

So here's the deal: Leave me a comment about what you think of my cover art or my trip, and I'll stop back tomorrow and pick one person to win a "surprise" gift from me! The winner will be announced in the comments section.

Thanks for reading!

Wishing you many happy and safe travels here in the deepest days of winter!

Lisa Dale

Sticking with Resolutions by Michelle Styles

Because January is a time of resolution and guilt or at least it is for me. I always start with good intentions. In fact you could say as my great grandmother did if the road to hell is paved with good intentions, I am the contractor in chief. But two weeks into 2011 and I can already see things starting to slide. It is easier to fall back into old habits. The shiny new resolutions go on the backburner because life throws up distractions.


Change is hard. There is no doubt about it. It takes dedication, desire, determination, discipline and a lot of persistence to change. I know this to be true because for many years, I kept saying – I am going to write a book. Somehow, something else would always get in the way.

At the end of 2002, I decided to do something about it. It took until 2005 and seven full length manuscripts until I sold to Harlequin Mills & Boon. It is why when unpublished authors speak to me about their dreams, I listen and know that the dreams can become reality if people are serious about working at it. Yes some of it is luck but you do make your own luck and sometimes dreams change or alter.

It took getting seriously ill to make me focus and decide to follow my dream, even though it had long been a resolution of mine. And there are times when it remains a struggle to focus. You would think habits like being disciplined and writing the pages first would become ingrained in the psyche but they don’t. I always struggle and have to work at it. But it is worth at the end when I do hold another of my dreams in my hands or when I hear from a reader that they enjoyed a story of mine. Remembering the joy helps when it gets tough.

So whatever your resolutions or whatever change you wanted to make in your life, know that if it is truly worth it, it will take longer than 2 weeks to achieve. And even if you do fall back, you can always try again. Each day is a chance to start anew and to make things happen. Sometimes it is helpful to look and see how far you have come. Or as Thomas Edison once put it, he had to find 10,000 ways how not to make a light bulb before he found the one way that he could.

So to all of those who are struggling with their resolutions, I am struggling as well. But this year, I am determined to do better. Discipline, determination,dedication, desire and perservance are the key but  oh how I wish it was easier. Does anyone else struggle?

Michelle Styles writes historical romance for Harlequin Historical and her current US release is Impoverished Miss Convenient Wife. You can learn more about her books on her website. http://www.michellestyles.co.uk/

Unexpected Pleasures : : Anne McAllister

A few years ago I met a man on the internet.

It isn't as sinister as it sounds. I was doing genealogical research and had posted a query about my husband's family in Australia. A year or so later, out of the blue, I had an email from a man in England who was writing to see if the family I was looking for was also the family he was looking for.

Turned out they had the same not-very-common last name but were not, in fact, related.

We exchanged an interesting set of emails, determined that we were not connected, and I expected that that would be the end of it.

It wasn't. He was retired, at something of a loose end, had, as a result, just removed a several hundred year old hedge from his property with his Volvo and a winch, and was looking for something else to occupy his time.

Did I have any loose ends I wanted tied up, he wondered. Any families in the UK I couldn't track down. He'd be happy to take a look for them. Otherwise, I got the feeling, the rest of the hedges had better watch out.

Well, I did have some loose ends, as you do if you've done genealogy for any length of time. There are ALWAYS brick walls.

So I gave him the name of a cottage in a little village in Cornwall and said I was trying to find out where it was. I wasn't having much success. Did he want to try?

Did he?! Oh, yes.

Within days he emailed me with an approximate location -- and a list of three local people I should contact who could tell me more about the cottages and the area. "Call them," he said. "That's what I did."

So I did. And I've since done more than that. I've visited the area myself. I have spent a few days with the people he found for me -- and one of them introduced me to a cousin who was born in the cottage I was seeking.

Unexpected pleasures, all of them.

So the next time I went to England, I emailed him and said, Could I take you out to lunch?

He said no.

No?

No. I was a visitor in his country. He'd take me.

The day we went out was an absolute pleasure -- an exquisite luncheon and an afternoon spent in the gardens of Gravetye Manor.

Built in 1598, it is a stunning Elizabethan manor house set amid some 35 acres of amazing gardens surrounded by hundreds of acres of forest.

As we drove in, two deer leapt across the road right in front of us. I realized then it was going to be an amazing day.

The manor's gardens, its greatest claim to fame, are a memorial to William Robinson, one of England's greatest gardeners and a proponent of the "natural" garden. He bought Gravetye Manor in 1884 and developed and maintained them until his death in 1935. After years of neglect, the house and gardens were purchased by a hotelier, Peter Herbert, who set about restoring them.

He did a magnificent job. I could have wandered in those gardens for days. I could have sat in the beautifully appointed -- but equally warm and welcoming -- public rooms for even longer. Every time now that I am in need of an English manor house -- or an Irish manor house for that matter -- Gravetye Manor pops into my head.

There are doubtless bigger, more lavish, exquisite places in England. But it is the standard against which I measure them all. And because I had such a wonderful day there - because it was so unexpected and so delightful, as well as proof of the way serendipity can bring people together -- Gravetye Manor remains my favorite.

I'm looking at unexpected events now, trying to work out the starting point of a new book. Gravetye manor seems like a good place to begin.

Tell me about your most unexpected pleasures. I'll get my unexpectedly useful golden retrievers, Mitch and Micah, to pick a winner from those who comment, and I'll send the winner a copy of my upcoming book, Hired By Her Husband. The husband in question is George Savas, my single-minded physicist, who turned out to be an unexpectedly sexy hero.

You never know, do you?

Have you Downloaded? Donna Alward

Have you downloaded your free books?

Did you know that Harlequin has a site where you can download a book from each of its series for free? http://www.tryharlequin.com/ has been around for a few years now, and this month they're mixing up the lineup of books offered for free. And there's a reason why I'm bringing it to your attention. Not just because it's the chance to get SIXTEEN books for a grand total of $0 - though that *is* just awesome, isn't it? I'm really excited because the new selection for the Romance line is my debut Romance - HIRED BY THE COWBOY.

It'll be available from TryHarlequin and other sellers for the WHOLE YEAR.

Right now last year's books are still available, and the others are coming soon! So what are you waiting for? Get clicking!


You can catch up with what else I'm up to on my site, blog and twitter.

Roses, Roses, Roses! - Anna Campbell

by Anna Campbell

Hey, guys, as promised pictures of my cruise to New Zealand.

Hold on, I hear you say, these are ROSES!!!!

Exactly!

One of the nicest days I had while I was away was at the Botanical Gardens in Wellington and part of those gardens are the magnificent Lady Norwood Rose Gardens which have over 1,200 varieties of rose. And I think every single bush was flowering its heart out when I was there. Absolute paradise and I wish this blog had smell-o-vision for you and you could share the scent of all these roses upon the warm summer air. Gorgeous!

By the way, if you'd like to see photos of things OTHER than roses in New Zealand, please check out the following links:

My Favorite Things on my website.

My post about the cruise last week on the Romance Bandits.

If ever you visit Wellington, New Zealand's capital, at the bottom of the North Island, make sure you go to the Botanical Gardens on the hill high up behind the central business district.

Even getting there is fun - you catch a cable car up the VERY steep slope. Then you wander your way through the gardens on your way back down. A lovely way to fill a couple of hours!

You start by going through a heavily wooded area that is like a small rainforest. The picture on the left is of the famous silver fern which is one of the symbols of New Zealand. You can see it really is silver! Pictures of this graceful plant adorns everything from tea towels to pottery here.

It was a really warm day when we were in Wellington (check out the blue, blue sky in the panorama picture of the rose gardens!). So spending a couple of hours in the cool greenery of the forest was just lovely. There were lots of trickling streams running down the hill which added to the impression of a verdant sanctuary from modern life.

You can see how much the path down is like a rainforest in this photo on the right! That's a silver fern tree catching the sunlight in the center.

Leaving the rainforest, you walk through interesting gardens displaying herbs and Maori medicinal plants.

And then you get to the roses!

Wow, what a beautiful garden!

The plantings are very formal with massed bushes in a single color. Around the edges, climbing roses tumble over timber trellises.

As you know from previous posts here, I have a few rose bushes. Sadly where I live on the Sunshine Coast in Australia, it's too humid for them to do really well. Clearly roses LOVE New Zealand!

The colors were so amazing, they almost burnt my eyes. In the strong light, your senses are drenched with all the beauty.

So are you a rose fan? Do you have a favorite rose garden anywhere in the world? Do you have a favorite flower? I must say roses would be close to mine although I adore peonies which are like roses on speed!

A love affair with snow - Kathleen O'Brien

I am in Pennsylvania right now. Officially I'm attending my grad school residency, but really I'm having a short, intense love affair with snow.

I do appreciate that winter has a no-joke, dangerous side. I'm watching with deep concern as the blizzard pummels the Southeast. I'm sending good thoughts for safe passage to all the stranded travelers.

But for this one fairy tale week, I feel as if I've stepped into an enchanted land. The wind blows clear and crisp, with temperatures in the teens. The hills roll soft and white, and every roof is frosted. The trees are black lace against pearly gray, pink and blue skies. And as we drive up to our hotel at night, the parking lot sparkles under the streetlights, as if the sky rained diamond chips all day.

In fact, I feel as if I've landed in one of my own books. A few years ago, when I was writing the "Four Seasons in Firefly Glen" series, I created a winter so idyllic I yearned to live there. For this week, at least, that dream has come true.

My grad school buddy from Chicago does the driving here, because she is the one least likely to smash us into one of those beautiful snowy trees. She thinks I'm ridiculous. In fact, tonight she compared me to an idiotic character in the movie "Australia," who gushes over the novelty of a kangaroo until she gets knocked down by one.

I can't help it, though. I'm absolutely thrilled, right to the tips of my numb, half-frozen toes. I was born in Tampa and have lived in Florida my entire life. I've seen snow before, but not nearly often enough to grow blase about it.

Do any of you feel the same way about snow? Or--like so many people who indulge in flings--am I just succumbing to the easy allure of the unknown?

Tired of Winter? - Joan Kilby

Cold and snow getting you down? Feel like a little Australian sunshine to get you through the dark days of January? Take a trip to the seaside with HER GREAT EXPECTATIONS, the first book in my Summerside Stories trilogy from Harlequin Superromance.

Okay, a travel agent I'm not. But who can resist a beach shot in the middle of winter? Especially when the hero, Jack, could pass as George Clooney's younger brother. Jack is in denial about deep and tragic things but he's having a pretty great laidback Aussie life, anyway, ignoring his pain. Sienna, the well-meaning new GP in town, tries to fix him, which only shows up the cracks in her façade of perfection.

Excerpt:

The doorbell rang just as Jack was sprinkling a generous handful of fresh coriander over the bubbling curry. He carried the brimming wok to the table where fat brown candles glowed either side of a bowl of floating gardenias.

He strode down the hall and swung open the door. "Hi--“ he began. Then was lost for words.

The woman from the grocery store stood on his doorstep.

Only it wasn't her.

Her gloriously wild hair was tamed into a tightly pinned knot at her nape. She wore a black cocktail dress, high heels and pearls. God forbid he of all people should judge by appearances but this woman was not the same one he'd invited to dinner in the grocery store.

"My plans fell through...." She trailed off. The nervous smile on her carefully made-up face froze. Unease radiating from her in waves, she presented him with a bottle of red wine. "This isn't very suitable for curry. I didn't stop to get another bottle since it's already after nine and you said--"

"It's okay. I mean, thanks. Come in," he said finally, recovering his manners just this side of rudeness. "It's great you could make it." He stepped back to let her inside. "Er, I never did catch your name."


HER GREAT EXPECTATIONS stands alone, as do the other books in the trilogy featuring Jack's sisters, IN HIS GOOD HANDS and TWO AGAINST THE ODDS. A running subplot through the three books depicts the ups and downs of Jack's parents' marriage. If you worry because his mother and father end on a down note in the first book, read on.

You can find out more about HER GREAT EXPECTATIONS and my other books at http://www.joankilby.com/

Okay, back to beaches. My idea holiday is to snorkel on a coral reef all day and then eat seafood and drink champagne while watching the sunset over the ocean.

Where in the world would you go for a beach holiday if you could hop a plane tomorrow?

Please leave a comment for a chance to win a signed copy of my January release, Her Great Expectations!



***Joan picked Kaelee as her winner!***

Find Some Sunshine! - Christina Hollis

I hope it’s not too late to wish you a happy, healthy and productive New Year! Going back to work after a break is always difficult, especially after the long midwinter holiday season. Here in the UK, dark cold mornings make it feel so much worse. It will be a week or two yet before the days get noticeably longer, although the birds are already looking forward to St Valentine’s day. Tradition says that’s when they choose their mates, but an optimistic dunnock is already staking his claim to a bramble patch in our garden. He tunes up each morning, which starts off the local robin, too. This has already been a hard winter - we were snowed in for the best part of three weeks, and the weathermen say there is more cold weather to come. That’s why I was so glad that January sees the US release of my latest Harlequin Presents Extra, The Master of Bella Terra. I love Italy, and this book brings back a lot of happy memories. The setting is loosely based in an old villa where I spent a wonderful holiday. The perfume of citrus flowers was intoxicating, the sky was absolutely cloudless and it was the clear, intense blue of plumbago flowers. All the experts say ‘write about what you know’ and the olive groves and sweet chestnut woods of that ancient estate were just made for romance.

Kira, the heroine of The Master of Bella Terra, loves the magical Italian valley she has made her home. Then billionaire Stefano buys the beautiful villa which overlooks her little cottage and they’re set on a collision course...

“The landscape was poised, waiting for something to happen. Then Kira felt a vibration.Faint at first, it rose from the ground at her feet like an earthquake. She started forward as a roe deer bounced through the trees behind her.With one bound it crossed the track and was gone. Still the shuddering increased, rising up through Kira’s ribcage until she looked around for somewhere to run. Instinctively, she headed out into the summer-rich pasture.The trees surrounding it had been still in the oppressive heat. Now they swayed and bucked like a wild green sea. It wasn’t an earthquake, but something even more alarming. A helicopter was sweeping in from above, and tearing Kira’s valley apart.”

Copyright, Harlequin Mills and Boon Ltd. 2011

Stefano has come to inspect a grand estate that is for sale. He likes what he sees - including Kira - but she isn’t going to make life easy for him. Stefano is threatening her whole way of life, but she isn’t the only one who is going to have to make some changes!

I loved writing The Master of Bella Terra, and hope you’ll enjoy its sun drenched countryside and torrid romance. What’s your idea of the perfect romantic location?

Christina Hollis write Modern Romance for Harlequin Mills and Boon, which appear as Harlequin Presents Extra in the US.You can catch up with her at  http://www.christinahollis.com, on Twitter, http://www.twitter.com/@christinabooks and on http://www.christinahollis.blogspot.com

Gadgets, glorious gadgets--Kandy Shepherd

Anyone else share my addiction to kitchen gadgets? At this time of year, I find it hard to resist trawling the sales in search of some exciting new gizmo that I didn’t know I needed until I saw it marked down to “20% off the already reduced price”. Some people shop the sales for shoes, clothes and bed linen (okay, I do that too!) but each post-Christmas sale I promise myself just one new gadget.

This year, I am delighted with my brand new quiche pan—not only does it have a detachable bottom but that bottom is perforated with small holes for even heating and crispier pastry, (just like my pizza heating tray that was my three-years-ago purchase). I’m pleased to tell you that the cheese and caramelized onion quiche I baked in my new pan for Christmas visitors turned out perfect with no soggy bottom.Other favorite gadgets include: an apple peeler/slicer/corer that really works but I have to admit is a tad time consuming; a salad dressing maker that I liked so much I bought two (it isn’t quite like the photo here but you can get the idea); an amazing French vegetable peeler; and a garlic crusher with outsize holes (bought on a long-ago trip to Paris, France). Favorite of all is a set of measuring cups I bought at Disneyland while at the Romance Writers of America national convention in Orlando last year. Why have the regular kind when you can have Mickey measures?

I use most of my gadgets (except for the avocado slicer.) But I have to confess to a shelf full of beautifully colored silicon bakeware that I am just too chicken to use in a hot oven even though I’ve been told over and over it is guaranteed not to melt…

Like me, the characters in my books are interested in cooking (Maddy in LOVE IS A FOUR-LEGGED WORD is a chef-turned-magazine food editor; Serena the heroine of HOME IS WHERE THE BARK is a hopeless cook who tries very hard). At the moment, I am writing a character I want to be a gadget collector like me, but she is a trained chef and keeps telling me to please just give her quality, perfectly sharpened knives. Sigh… guess the gadget-collecting-character might have to find a home in a different story…

Do you have any thoughts on kitchen gadgets—maybe on one you could not be without or one that’s a waste of kitchen space? Please leave a comment for a chance to win a signed copy of HOME IS WHERE THE BARK IS. Include your email address if you want to be in the draw.

http://www.kandyshepherd.com

Out with the old, In with the new - Nicola Marsh

Mention the start of a new year and the first word that springs to mind is ‘resolutions’.

Making goals.
Something to strive for.
Staying focussed.

I’ve never been a resolutions kind of gal.

I prefer taking each day as it comes with vague dreams of what the future brings (which probably explains why I’m still carrying my baby weight 3 years later and haven’t cleaned out my wardrobes yet.)

But being a dreamer has its upsides.

Dreamers have plots dancing in their heads, characters demanding stories to be written and a constant buzz of excitement in the pit of our bellies for what we may wake up to tomorrow.

Now, I could grow a conscience and rush off to my wardrobe right now and start tossing out the old in the hope of filling with new (fabulous shoes preferably.)

Instead, considering I live and breathe them, I’d rather chat books!

In the UK this month, Mills and Boon have launched the new RIVA series, ‘sparky, sassy stories of love’.

RIVA consists of 4 books a month, 2 taken from what used to be the old M&B Romance series and 2 from what was the Modern Heat series (still published as Presents Extra in the US.)

The stories are fun, flirty and fabulous, and the covers contemporary and eye-catching.

I’m thrilled to be one of the launch authors for this series with DESERTED ISLAND, DREAMY EX.

If you like social networking (Twitter & blogging), glittering Sydney and hot Aussie sporting heroes (I love my tennis pro hero Jared!), you’ll enjoy this book. (Besides, any hero inspired by Nathan Fillion has to be lovable, right?)

While I’ve ignored my wardrobe I have cleaned out my bookshelves & passed on some old books to make way for the new RIVA titles.

What about you? What new titles are on your must-have list this year?

##

Like Kristi & Jared in DESERTED ISLAND, DREAMY EX, Nicola is addicted to social networking. She blogs daily at http://nicolamarsh.blogspot.com and tweets all day @NicolaMarsh

You can also find her rambling on Facebook.

For writing tips, information and ‘Under the Covers’ action on all her books visit her website http://www.nicolamarsh.com/

Lost and Found - Sheiks? with Linda Conrad

When I was young, I was absorbed with the stories that might have come straight out of the Arabian Nights. I watched all the Sinbad and Ali Baba movies and loved the adventure stories where a warrior hero rode in on a white horse to rescue the heroine from an evil sultan. I also watched I Dream of Jennie on television and loved their blending of modern with the old fantasy. Wasn’t that series fun?

2011 marks the release dates for the rest of my Desert Sons series for the Silhouette Romantic Suspense line (soon to be known as Harlequin Romantic Suspense) The January book (out now!) called THE SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS is the second book in the series. This series is a little unconventional as far as sheik stories go. I think of these stories more as international romantic thrillers. Desert Sons revolves around a modern family of Bedouins who have found themselves embroiled in a bitter war of revenge with an ancient enemy. And in THE SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS, the ancient enemy is about to become a threat to the entire world community.

THE SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS takes place in the imaginary desert country of the family’s ancient enemy. So it does have that old fashioned Arabian Nights feel. And the hero does ride in (on a helicopter instead of a white horse) to save the heroine. But she’s not quite ready to be rescued, thank you. She is on a mission of her own and means to complete a different kind of rescue before she leaves.

The SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS is a story of lost love and misunderstanding. Shakir is the middle brother in the Kadir family. He’s the biggest, tallest and had the darkest childhood. I couldn’t wait to find a way to put him back together with his lost love, stir up all their old memories and then see what happens. When his ex-fiancé’s name turns up on a list of women kidnapped and for sale by the Kadir family’s oldest enemies, Shakir is compelled to rush to her rescue. But a lot of time has passed since they’ve last seen each other, and in that time so much has happened. It’s not entirely clear that the two are still suited for each other. The secrets each of them continues to hold may make this rescue much more than either of them bargained for.

Here’s an excerpt to tempt you:

Shakir silently pointed the older woman into a corner, jammed the barrel of his weapon to the base of the young Taj soldier’s skull and ordered the kid to be silent. The soldier kept squirming and moaning on the floor. Pressing his advantage with a knee to the kid’s kidney, Shakir tried to quiet the tango. He growled orders in both the Taj Zabbar language and in the few words of Kasht that he could remember.

“You are making a mistake,” the old woman said in French.

He glared at her, flipped the tango to his back and began a rough pat-down. Sweeping his hands across the kid’s shoulders and down his sides and legs, Shakir checked for more weapons. The sight of that ancient dagger had put him on alert. This young Taj soldier could be as deadly to the mission as a scorpion’s sting.

Temporarily stashing his compact MTAR21 in the pack on his back, Shakir used both hands to search. With his right, he checked between the kid’s legs. While with his left hand, he rolled down under the soldier’s arm pits and around the rib cage.

“Bloody hell.” Shocked, Shakir stepped back and stared down into surprised hazel eyes. “Blast it, who the devil are you?”

“I…I…” The female under his hands was at a loss for words. So was he.

Then it hit him—a few minutes too late. “Nicole?” He reached out to take her by the arm and pulled her to her feet.

“Shakir? Shakir Kadir? Oh my God, what are you doing here? You scared me to death.”

He took a step back and studied the form of the young man standing in front of him. Only now that he knew the truth, the form no longer even vaguely resembled a young man. He should’ve known.

But Nicole’s honey blonde hair had been tucked up entirely under a purple-checked kuffiyah. Her skin beneath the Taj soldier’s garments looked the color of splotchy brown dates. Her tiny feet—the feet should’ve been a dead giveaway, were encased in the smooth leather sandals prevalent in these desert regions.

“What is that ridiculous looking thing you’ve stuck to your lip?”

She reached up, smoothing her finger along what looked like a line of dirt. “Just a bit of Lalla’s hair. Doesn’t it look like a moustache?”

“Not even a little.”

She grimaced, but immediately recovered her composure. “I don’t understand. This is crazy. Like a bad dream. What are you doing here, Shakir?”

His initial flood of relief at finding her alive gave way to irritation and he, too, grimaced. “We’ve come to bring you home.” She didn’t look injured, but what had they done to her mind?

Where was her gratitude? Where were the tears of joy he had expected to see?

Antsy and ready to move out, Shakir fought his annoyance and reached for her arm. “Let’s go.”

Nicole jerked back. “Where?” She fisted her hands on her hips and glared at him. “How did you find me? Why are you really here?”

Stunned, Shakir saw the mistrust in her eyes and it wounded his pride. Never in their entire relationship had he given her reason not to trust him.

And he didn’t have time to deal with it here. “We’ll hash this out later. The choppers won’t wait.”

She stood her ground. Something odd was going on behind those eyes. Something very odd indeed.

I just love reunion stories, don’t you? I especially love ones like this one where so much has happened—where both the hero and the heroine have changed drastically over the lost years. THE SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS received a 4 ½ star TOP PICK from RTBookreviews magazine, so I guess other people like the way it turned out too.

I have a question for you: Do you love reunion stories as much as I do? Or are you tired of reading about finding lost love? And how about sheik stories? Tired of them yet?

Leave me a comment and I’ll pick a winner from all the comments on Friday morning to win an autographed copy of THE SHEIK’S LOST PRINCESS or HER SHEIK PROTECTOR (the first book in the Desert Sons series)

And don't forget to drop by Linda's website to find out more about the series, sign up for her newsletter and enter her contest! http://www.LindaConrad.com

Anne Gracie's Scottish Affair

I've had a love affair with Scotland all my life. I grew up with a father who, like his father and grandfather before him, quoted Rabbie Burns at the drop of a hat, and we recited the Selkirk grace at dinnertime. That was even before we went to live in Scotland for a year when I was eight. My siblings and I came back to Australia speaking broad Scottish - as a kid, you learn to fit in pretty quickly.

Yet I've never set a story in Scotland. Partly this was because my first editor was English and she saw nothing whatsoever romantic about Scotsmen or Scotland.

And just in case my first editor happens to be reading this, here's one reasons why Scottish romances are fabulous:

So when Trisha Telep asked me to contribute a story to the Mammoth Book of Scottish Romance, I jumped at the chance. I had such fun with the story, too.

My hero, Cameron, is laird in name only — his inheritance is in the hands of his uncle until Cameron turns thirty, or marries. His uncle is spending money like water and nothing Cameron says will stop him. Cameron storms out, swearing to marry the first eligible woman he meets...

So Cameron sets off, followed by his two cousins, who've bet on the outcome of the vow — and taken a wee dram or three of the Good Stuff along the way...

Of course, the first woman Cameron meets is entirely unsuitable.... on the surface. Not that he can see much of her surface -- he's run her and her sheep into a bog, and she's covered in mud.

But there's more to Jeannie Macleay than meets the eye... and she's no pushover. Cameron is in for a learning experience...

Here's an excerpt — but to get you in the mood first, here's another reason why you should read Scottish romances!


The girl followed her sheep, putting as much distance between herself and the men as she could, running swiftly despite the clumsy, man-sized boots. Cameron watched her thoughtfully.

When he'd made his rash statement he had no thought of wedding anyone except a lady born. This bog sprite shepherdess was totally unsuitable.

But he'd never broken his word before. Rashness gave way to serious thought; there might be wives to be had in Inverness — ladies — but how long would it take to get one to wed him? And how much would his uncle squander in the meantime?

Jimmy grabbed him by the shoulder. "Well, Cammie, will ye wed her or no? There's a bet on."

Cameron swore softly under his breath. The girl was young, unmarried and born outside the estate. What difference would it make anyway who he wed? Women were for running the house and birthing babes and any female could do that. Getting control of his inheritance was what counted. Besides, the little he knew of ladies born was that they were a lot of trouble. They expected a man to dance attendance on them, whereas a lass like this, country bred and down-to-earth...

She floundered in the mud. Very down-to-earth.

"Aye, I'll wed her," he declared.

"Aha—" Jimmy began, then let out a yell. "She's getting away. Don't worry, Cam, I'll get her back for ye." And without warning he jumped on his horse and galloped after the girl.

"Och, the mad fool," Donald began. "Whatever will she think—"

Cameron leapt on his horse and set off after Jimmy.

The girl, seeing Jimmy bearing down on her, screamed defiance at him and ran faster. Jimmy let out a whoop, as if he was running down a hind.

"Leave her be, Jimmy," Cameron roared.

But Jimmy was almost on the girl and oblivious. With a blood-curdling yell he scooped her up and tossed her over his saddle. She fought and struggled but Jimmy just laughed and smacked her on the backside as he wheeled his horse around and cantered back to Cameron with a triumphant grin.

"I fetched her for ye—yeeeowww!" He broke off with a yell of pain. He stared down at the girl in shock. "She bit me! The wee vixen bit me!"

The wee vixen moved to bite his leg again and Jimmy hastily shoved her off his horse. She dropped lightly to the ground and glanced warily around, preparing to run again.

* * * * *

Mine is just one of twenty-one stories in the collection. It's a fabulous read.

The Mammoth Book of Scottish Romance - edited by Trisha Telep

Released January 4th 2011 in the USA, Jan. 27 in the UK

And just in case you need reminding, here's a third reason why Scottish romances are fabulous:

So what about you -- do you think Scotland is romantic, or do you agree with my first editor?

Anne Gracie
http://www.annegracie.com/