Valentine Countdown Blitz Day Five: The Lilac Plague by Kristin J. Dawson

Kristin J. Dawson is a non-recovering chocolate and romantic English movie addict who loves to read science fiction and fantasy. You can find her most often indulging her favorite things at 2 am -- night owls unite! 

Kristin writes high fantasy with political intrigue, a bit of romance, and of course, magic. When she's not writing, toting her kids around to sports practices, or cleaning out the chicken coop, she's probably trying to talk her friends into more shenanigans.

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An oath betrayed. A centuries-long curse. 

A kingdom teetering on the edge of destruction.

In a world of magic, Nicoleta is unremarkable, except for her cursed, stuttering tongue. No special powers, no renowned apprenticeship, just the terrible, stammering aftereffects of the Lilac Plague.

Until she opens the ghostly blue vision from her mother.

Instead of words of endearment, the vision reveals that Nicoleta’s mother was a Guardian entrusted with a magical key — a key so powerful that those who rule will do anything to find it.

The burden of protecting the key now falls to Nicoleta. In a race against the crown, she must find the treasure and the true heir, the only one who can stop the curse from being fulfilled. Impossible? Almost certainly. One false step spells disaster. But Nicoleta is no fool. Where those before her died trying, Nicoleta forges a new path, relying on her wits and some unlikely allies.

Do you dare face the Lilac Plague? This coming of age, young adult fantasy adventure with mysterious magic, evil emperors, and a thread of romance will leave you amazed and clamoring for the next book."

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Q&A With the Author:

1.Why do you choose to write romance? Do you write any other genres?
I write fantasy romance, with an emphasis on fantasy. The romance is a subplot in my book. I love writing fantastical worlds, magic systems, and creating nuanced characters. I also write science fiction, but usually in short story form.

2.How long does it take you to write a book, typically?  It takes me about 18 months from start to finish to write a book. The writing of the story doesn't take very long. For me, it's the editing process - that's the lion's share of the book creation time.

3.Since a lot of romance books show both male and female perspectives, share with us the most difficult thing about writing the perspective of the opposite gender? In my critique group, I've had several male counterparts. The one thing that still sticks with me, that makes me laugh, is how emphatic they were that a male character would NOT notice a woman's eye color. They were in 100% agreement on this. To this day, I still think a man should notice a woman's eye color! haha!

4.What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? I often write with a bag of peanut butter m&m's next to my desk when I'm editing. Doing edits on a massive, epic novel series is hard work. So I tell myself... I'm earning this! ;)

5.Tell us a bit about a future project you are working on? Do you have any little sneak peeks you can share? I'm working on the third book in The Unchosen Trilogy right now. Afterward, I have three other projects in the pipeline. I am trying not to focus on any of them until I have this current series wrapped up. The story has taken me many years to put together, so it deserves all my focus until the end. All I can say is that all three of them have fairies in them. One of them is a middle-grade series (with no romance), but the other two are young adult with romantic subplots!

6.What is the most romantic date you have ever been on? Or, what is your idea of the perfect Valentine Date? The most romantic date I've ever been on was actually one of the most clever I've ever been on. My date took me on a little hike, and at the end was a candlelight dinner and Chinese food set out. I was like, "Oh my gosh, someone is having a date here. We are totally in their space. We should go!" He grinned, and it dawned on me that it was for us. I'm very low-key, so expensive gifts, or grand gestures aren't for me. He had just the perfect mix of chill-fun-attitude and thoughtfulness!

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Valentine Countdown Blitz Day Four: Kendrick by Zina Abbott

My name is Robyn Echols. Zina Abbott is the pen name I use for my American historical romance novels. I’m a member of Women Writing the West, Western Writers of America, and American Night Writers Association. I currently live with my husband in California’s central valley near the “Gateway to Yosemite.” 

I love to read, quilt, work with digital images on my photo editing program, and work on my own family history. 

I am a blogger. In addition to my own blog, I blog for several group blogs including the Sweet Americana Sweethearts blog, which I started and administer.

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Kendrick Denham left his family farm back east, fought in the war with Mexico, then answered gold’s call after it was discovered in California. In late 1852, when he reached Columbia, known as “The Gem of the Southern Mines,” he realized the easy-to-find placer gold was no longer that easy to find.  He decided he would do better providing fresh meat to the townspeople. With extremely few women in the region, and most of the respectable ones already married, Kendrick entertains no ambitions for a wife and family. Then the county sheriff rides over from Sonora. With a cryptic expression, he hands Kendrick a six-month-old baby girl. “The mother named you as the father.”

Now her late husband’s stepson, whom she finished raising, is of age to inherit the farm left to him by his birth father, Lydia Meyer and her two young sons have been forced out of her home of over ten years. She leaves Pennsylvania headed for the wild gold fields of Columbia, California. She dreads living off the charity of her older sister who is just as disagreeable and overbearing as their late mother had been. Warned that most of the miners in California, many of whom left families back east to seek their fortunes, tend to be unsettled, uncouth, and prone to drinking and gambling, she worries it may be impossible to find a good father for her children. Even if she weds again, will it be another loveless marriage like her first?

Then there is baby Madeline, who is cast adrift in the world, all alone, with no one to love her. What will become of her?

KENDRICK is a stand-alone sweet American historical romance that is part of the multi-author series, Bachelors & Babies. Under the sub-title, “Too Old for Babies,” it is also part of the author’s own series, Too Old in Columbia."

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Q&A With the Author:

1.  Why do you choose to write romance? Do you write any other genres?

I write romance because I like writing about what makes people tick, relationships, and I like happily ever after endings. I also like reading and writing women’s fiction with romance elements, but it does not sell as well as romance. Romance sells. I only write sweet American historical romance under this pen name. Under my real name, I have written some contemporary women’s fiction and some new adult time travel. 

2.  How long does it take you to write a book, typically?

How long it takes depends on how much research is involved and the length of the book. My first book at 86K words took a year, but two months of that was research. I now usually need between five weeks to three months to write a 30K to 50K word book, especially if it is part of series, and I can use the same research and setting for more than one novel. Longer books that need more original research take me, well, longer. 

3.  Since a lot of romance books show both male and female perspectives, share with us the most difficult thing about writing the perspective of the opposite gender?

I do not find writing from the perspective of the opposite gender difficult. I rather enjoy it. I reflect on some of my husband’s reactions to certain situations I’ve witnessed and draw from that as opposed to writing how I would react. Perhaps the most difficult thing is, I do not know exactly how men think or feel. I take a stab at describing a male character’s feelings toward someone or something based on words or actions. I hope I am close, if not one hundred percent correct.

4.  What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? 

I do most of my writing on a laptop while seated on my living room couch. When deadlines are looming and things get down to the wire, I take my laptop to the loveseat in my bedroom and write there. For some reason, the change of location speeds up the writing process.

5.  Tell us a bit about a future project you are working on? Do you have any little sneak peeks you can share?

The book I featured for the Christmas Countdown is part of my “Train Wreck in Jubilee Springs” trilogy within the multi-author “Sweethearts of Jubilee Springs” series. I’ve written two of the three books, and plan to write the third before the Christmas romance season in 2020….. The book I am featuring this month is a Bachelors & Babies book, but it is also subtitled Too Old for Babies as part of my own “Too Old in Columbia” series. I plan to write more books for that series….. I also have signed up to write two short novellas for a multi-author mail order brides series….. I will also publish another short novel in the multi-author “Lockets & Lace” series. 

For my long-term project, I wrote a 65K book about three years ago which is part of a duet (two book series). My proofreader for the first book thinks I’m crazy because I have not published it yet. Due to its weak HEA ending, I want to finish the second book first so I can publish them close together. My goal is to finish writing the second book and to publish the first book before the end of the year….. Other than that, I have nothing going. 

6.  What is the most romantic date you have ever been on? Or, what is your idea of the perfect Valentine Date?

My idea of a perfect Valentine Date is to be able to get into a nice restaurant without waiting in line for hours with a hoard of other people to get a table and then, after eating, go to a movie. Short of that, I like being able to drive in the mountains (Visiting Yosemite National Park any time of the year is a favorite with me.) with my honey and sharing a pound of See’s Candies Nuts and Chews.

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Valentine Countdown Blitz Day Three: The Last Goodbye - The Beginning by Bernadette Marie

Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for building families readers want to be part of. Her series The Keller Family has graced bestseller charts since its release in 2011. Since then she has authored and published over thirty-five books. The married mother of five sons promises romances with a Happily Ever After always…and says she can write it because she lives it.

When not immersed in the writing/publishing world, Bernadette Marie and her husband are shuffling their five hockey playing boys around town to practices and games as well as running their family business. She is a lover of a good stout craft beer and might be slightly addicted to chocolate.

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Everyone deserves one last goodbye.

As far back as Grace Carter could remember, she'd been able to communicate with the deceased. Of course, working in her family's mortuary put her in constant contact with those who had crossed over, if she didn't take steps to block them out, which she preferred to do. However, some spirits are stronger than others…

Nora Campbell had nearly been ready to die, but she still had some unfinished business. From the other side, she found the woman she wanted her grandson to fall in love with, and she put her matchmaking plan in motion. Nora was insistent that Grace get a message to her grandson, TV reporter Matthew Campbell, and together they could pass on the last goodbyes of those who had passed.

Only now Grace must convince Matthew she is in touch with his grandmother and not some crazy woman who spends all her time with the deceased.

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Q&A With the Author:

1.Why do you choose to write romance? Do you write any other genres?  I love the possibilities of happily ever after. Everyone has a story, and what’s better than the story of two people meeting and falling in love? I also write paranormal and suspense (but with a lot of Romantic elements.)

2.How long does it take you to write a book, typically? I usually write a book every two months.

3.Since a lot of romance books show both male and female perspectives, share with us the most difficult thing about writing the perspective of the opposite gender? I tend to write men to be more sensitive, and I think that displays my emotions more than a man’s. Though I do live with 6 men, and they are more on the sweet side, probably because I chose one and raised 5 of them, so it was something I probably added to their upbringing.

4.What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? I am often asked how I raised 5 kids and ran multiple businesses while writing 40 books, I suppose my quirk is that I can tune out ANYTHING and write. So there are not many times I can’t write, or any places that hinder me. (I also make a lot of faces, but I think all authors do that when they write.)

5.Tell us a bit about a future project you are working on? Do you have any little sneak peeks you can share? I will publish my 40th book in February, and the last book of my Walker Family Series will come out in the spring with the yet to be titled story of Lydia and Phillip. For those familiar with them, here’s a little peek. (Below question 6)

6.What is the most romantic date you have ever been on? Or, what is your idea of the perfect Valentine Date? One snowy night in college, I chose not to go home where I was supposed to meet up with my ex-boyfriend from high school. Instead, I opted to stay at school and spend time with a new friend I had made. We collectively pooled our money, which was none, and bought a hamburger at the local Carl’s Jr. near the school. It was snowing, and we sat and watched it snow as we sat next to each other in the booth sharing that burger. I know now that my decision not to go home that weekend was fate, because that was the night I fell in love with my husband and we’ve been sharing hamburgers and watching snow fall now for thirty years.


Lydia and Phillip: Walker Family Series Sneak Peek
The therapy she’d gone through had taught her how to approach their past, and to accept that he was a daily part of her life.
She supposed if she wanted to spend time with him, and truly see if her therapy had worked, she would need to lead the conversation.
Opening her car door, Lydia stepped out and stood in front of her car. “Hey, Smythe,” she yelled to be heard over the construction noise.
He turned to look at her, and then walked toward her.
“You’re not on duty, huh?”
Phillip shook his head. “No. I took a few personal days. I have something going on this evening.”
“Well then you have some time.”
“Time for what?”
“Why don’t you have lunch with me? I’d love some company, and I want to try that new Greek place on the edge of town.”
Phillip thoughtfully bit down on his lip. “I could go for that. I can just meet you over there.”
She’d have offered to drive, but maybe meeting him would be best. What if she found being in his presence for more than a few minutes at a time made her hate him again. What if seeing her broken had pushed him away for good?
“I’ll meet you there,” she agreed and watched as he walked to his truck. 
She knew he’d never drive away until she had, so she pulled out of the parking lot and started driving toward the restaurant. Phillip followed her in his truck, and when she’d look back in her mirror her stomach tightened.
It had been a long year of healing.  She couldn’t go back on her fifteen years of anger and just expect that he’d accept she wanted to be friends. There were also secrets she still kept and things would certainly change between them if he found out about them.
Lydia gripped her steering wheel tighter. This was lunch. Lunch with a man she’d pushed away for years. She had learned she had to take things one moment at a time. This was just one moment in the rest of her life. 
Lunch.
She could handle lunch.

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Valentine Countdown Blitz Day Two: Mercy (Third Novel of Rhynan) by Rachel Rossano

Rachel Rossano is a happily married mother of three children. She spends her days teaching, mothering, and keeping the chaos at bay. After the children are in bed, she immerses herself in the fantasy worlds of her books. 

Tales of romance, adventure, and virtue set in a medieval fantasy world are her preference, but she also writes speculative fantasy and a bit of science fiction.

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The royal wedding approaches and the country is alive with anticipation. 

 Among the craftsmen traveling to the capital is Constance Rendare and her family. An artist, a widow of an unhappy marriage, and the mother of a young son, she dreams of escaping the cruel servitude of her father’s household. 

 Wilard Naron serves the Earl of Dentin. He returns to the capital, his childhood home, to collect his earnings and finally free himself from his father’s reputation. 

 Kidnappings, bandits, and a plot against the king complicate the journey. The conflicts throw Constance and Wilard together as their circumstances grow steadily worse. The more the pair uncovers, the direr the future looks for the country and for them.

Come join the Tour for this book HERE to see Reviews and more chances to win prizes!

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Top Ten List:

1.Why do you choose to write romance? Do you write any other genres?
I have always been a romantic, not the loose flowy dresses and head in the clouds kind, though. I am more of the optimistic/realistic, happy ending seeking, seeing how two people could be great together kind of person. 
Yes, I write other genres. I have a two books of a speculative fantasy trilogy published, and I am working on a science fiction saga that is a prequel to a short story available on Amazon.

2.How long does it take you to write a book, typically?
It depends. Typically, I would say it takes me about a year, but my shortest period took eight months. My longest project demanded more than a decade, so it depends. I definitely aim for finishing in a year.

3.Since a lot of romance books show both male and female perspectives, share with us the most difficult thing about writing the perspective of the opposite gender?
Men see the world differently than women. They tend to be more action focused and less feelings focused, but they definitely feel as well. Writing from a man’s perspective can be especially difficult if the character is unwilling to admit they are emotionally involved. However, there are ways around it. Thankfully, my husband is very good at pointing out when my male characters aren’t acting logically enough.

4.What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Hmm… According to my readers, I am good at writing interesting male characters. A recent reviewer commented on how much she liked my characters’ banter. I also tend to write secondary and tertiary characters who then end up with their own stories or, as in the case of the Earl of Dentin, take over the whole series.

5.Tell us a bit about a future project you are working on? Do you have any little sneak peeks you can share?
Currently, my project is a nine book series loosely inspired by fairy tales. The Beauty and the Beast novel is written and partially edited. I am wrapping up a mashup between Rapunzel and East of the Sun West of the Moon. Next, I am debating writing one inspired by the Month Brothers or a completely new idea called Constant Companion.
Next on my writing list, though, is the Fourth Novel of Rhynan. It doesn’t have a title yet, but it involves a mysterious character from Mercy and a yoeman’s daughter as they work to protect the infant prince. Dentin is also involved, of course.
A sneak peek from Grace by Contract, my Beauty and the Beast novel from the Duke of Brackenhurst’s point of view:
As I shoved open the heavy door to my workroom, I was surprised to find the room dark, a curtain pulled across the window blocking out the pre-dawn glow and the fire burning low in the grate letting off a meager heat.
Muttering against whoever had blocked the room’s chief source of natural light, I thumped my way across the dim space without a thought to the fact I couldn’t see the obstacles in the dimness. Upon reaching the window, I tugged at the curtain. 
It billowed and landed at my feet in a pool of green linen. Only then did I recognize it as one of the linen tablecloths that my father had spread on his worktables when the room had been his. Whoever had hung it hadn’t even secured it. 
I leaned over to pluck it from the floor before I recalled my injury. Pain laced through my knee, sending me scrambling with my handless left arm for a chair to prevent a total loss of dignity. One was within reach. I fell into it.
It was then I spotted her.
Three tables away Grace sat in my customary chair, head resting on her crossed arms as they lay on the open log book before her. With her face turned away from the window, I could only see the waves of unbound hair cascading over my book, desk, and blotter. Something in my gut twisted in a strange mixture of desire and irritation. Why was she here and not in her bed? Who had hung the makeshift curtain? She wouldn’t have been able to even with the increased height of standing on a chair.
As I sat there, temporarily enraptured with watching the rise and the fall of her shoulders beneath the luxurious waves of hair, I wondered what to do. Part of me wanted to let her sleep and regretted that I had risked disturbing her rest by removing the curtain. 
Another part of me wished to wake her and demand to know what she had been doing with my record books. They were definitely not within the scope of her position as my scribe. She was supposed to be writing and reading letters for me, not messing with accounts. Those were under Faramond’s and Rambler’s purview. 
Then there was the issue of working around her if she didn’t wake.
~~~~~
6.What is the most romantic date you have ever been on? Or, what is your idea of the perfect Valentine Date?
My husband, knowing how much I love Jane Austen movies, arranged to surprise me with a birthday viewing of Pride and Prejudice (the Kiera Knightley version) in a second run theater after I had given up hope of seeing it in theaters. Then he watched it with me and discussed it during dinner after the movie.

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Valentine Countdown Blitz Day One: The Wayward Miss Wainwright by Fiona Ingram (Arabella Sheraton)

Arabella Sheraton grew up on a diet of Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, and many other writers of that period. From Jane Austen to Georgette Heyer, Arabella has found both enjoyment and inspiration in sparkling, witty Regency novels. She also loves history and generally finds the past more fascinating than the future. Arabella wrote her first Regency romance to entertain her aged mom who loved the genre. Arabella is honoured to share the adventures of her heroes and heroines with readers.

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A witty traditional Regency romance that will captivate fans of the genre. 

When Helena Wainwright accompanies her two young nieces and her nephew to stay at Rotherham Park with their new guardian who is their uncle, the Duke of Rotherham, she agrees to remain for six months to help the children adjust to their new life. She finds the handsome, charming Duke of Rotherham to be the most insufferable, self-opinionated, domineering and arrogant man she has ever met. Unhappily, the duke also holds an unflattering opinion of Helena. “Wayward was the only word to describe such a determined, contrary, and obstinate young woman who defied him at every turn regarding the upbringing of his wards. He would be very glad to see her go.” 

The Duke of Rotherham is contemplating making Miss Emily Fanshawe, a beautiful, and (everyone thinks) well-bred young woman an offer of marriage. However, Emily has terrible secrets to hide, besides having a clandestine lover. Helena discovers Emily's secrets and does not know which way to turn. If she reveals the truth to protect the duke's social standing, she will betray Emily, with dire consequences. Besides, the duke seems determined to marry Emily, simply to prove a point, even though his godmother, Lady Mildred Ormsby has suspicions the Fanshawes are not who they say they are! Emily’s mother is hell-bent on marrying her daughter off to a rich, preferably titled, man. She will let nothing stand in her way, even stooping to abduction and possibly murder. 

Can Helena win in the face of heavy odds and the machinations of a wicked schemer? And will she want the Duke of Rotherham for herself when hidden elements of his romantic past come to light?

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Q&A with the Author:

1.Why do you choose to write romance? Do you write any other genres?
a)I wrote my first Regency romance novel to entertain my mom who was an invalid. I do write in other genres but prefer to be known for my romances.

2.How long does it take you to write a book, typically?
a)It depends on the depth of the plot but generally a year from start to final editing and completion.

3.Since a lot of romance books show both male and female perspectives, share with us the most difficult thing about writing the perspective of the opposite gender?
a)I don’t have any problems writing from the male perspective. Possibly because I have four brothers?

4.What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
a)I start every romance novel with a catchy title. Nothing else. Then I wait for the story to emerge in my imagination. I’m not sure why I do it this way, but it works for me.

5.Tell us a bit about a future project you are working on? Do you have any little sneak peeks you can share?
a)I’m working on a time travel/murder mystery Regency romance which is absolutely intriguing. I love reading murder mysteries and have always wanted to write one.

6.What is the most romantic date you have ever been on? Or, what is your idea of the perfect Valentine Date?
a)When I first met my husband, we went on a date to a restaurant and were so involved with talking and getting to know  each other that we never ordered dinner. The waiter put us in a corner and forgot about us but since we had forgotten about everything else, it was fine.

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