Pretty Woman was the first movie I considered a “keeper”. Richard Gere and Julia Roberts made that story pop, and I’ve watched it many times. When Hannah, the heroine of A SINGLE KISS is feeling low and lonely, she recalls that movie, and how it had often lifted her spirits at the end of a rough day. I’ve read romance novels in quantity for more than forty years—sometimes one a day—and I expect I’ll read them until death do us part, too. I’ve read them through the miseries of high school, the loneliness and confusion of college, the ups and downs of relationships, and the exhausting, bewildering years of early unwed motherhood. Romance was there when I needed a break from studying the law school texts, and handy when I had to wait for the prodigy’s soccer practice to end. When I started focusing professionally on child welfare law, my consumption of romance went up again. Historical romance is my first love, but I’m a diehard JR Ward fan, Carolyn Jewel’s paranormals are on my auto-buy list, and Julie James is another author whose books will always find room on my shelves. I’m not reading for the steam—contrary to my…

Deepest thanks to Fresh Fiction for having me. I never get tired of talking about books which happens to be my favorite subject…next to cowboys of course. You have to expect that from a Texan. I’m so excited about my newest TEXAS MAIL ORDER BRIDE that came out yesterday. I’m excited because I love stories about people finding love and acceptance when it appears so unlikely. For years, the number one question readers have asked me is: How do I get the ideas for my stories? I always say that they are sent from somewhere outside of myself. It’s a mystery to me. But each time one pops into my head, I’m filled with excitement. I feel like, that out of all the authors in the world, I’ve been “chosen” to write that particular story. The inspiration for Texas Mail Order Bride came when I read an article about Battle Creek, Texas. It was never a town; there’s only a granite memorial there in remembrance of a group of government surveyors who were massacred by the Kickapoo Indians in 1838. Battle Creek’s name appealed to me and it seemed the perfect place to set a story of conflict. I placed…

My favorite show is back! Not The Walking Dead (though I do love that one, too), Downton Abbey. They make us wait so long between seasons, and then there’s the inevitable struggle to avoid spoilers because it airs so much earlier in the UK. But here we are at last, a new season of Downton Abbey upon us, and coinciding with the release of my latest Edwardian romance, AN AFFAIR DOWNSTAIRS—as if I needed more reasons to throw a party. In case you’re planning your own Downton Abbey Viewing Party, allow me to share some proper Edwardian party tips. -A good Edwardian hostess sends invitations three to six weeks prior to the event. If you’re planning a party with a few close friends in your own area, though, I think you can manage with less advance notice. -Ask your friends to come early so that you can serve snacks and have everyone gathered and settled in time for the start of the show. No one appreciates a late arrival interrupting the action. -Perhaps you can encourage someone to play butler and announce each guest on arrival, or do the honors yourself and take care to introduce everyone. -For snacks, consider…

I’d like to confess something. I have a thing about old houses. An obsession to see what’s inside them, know who lived there, maybe even learn who died there. When I was a kid, my grandparents lived on a farm way out in the sticks. Their pre-Civil War farmhouse was fascinating, with its many interior doors, woodwork, and wainscoting covered in original faux wood-grain paint, and lots of little rooms and two front doors. Not two front doors next to each other, but two separate front doors opening into two different rooms. Fascinating, and still unexplained. But even more interesting to me was the abandoned Victorian down the dirt road. Strangely ornate, it seemed out of place in the deep country setting. Because of its dilapidated condition and the fear it would collapse, I was never allowed to go inside—physically. Mentally, I explored all I wanted and made up some darn fine stories, now lost to time, about what the interior looked like and the ghosts who inhabited it. Finally, that house did fall down, and last time I went by it was a pile of wood, covered over with brush and vines, quickly being overtaken by the land. It…

Here’s the thing…it’s my job to freak you out.  Truly.  And barring that, it’s my job to make you cry.  Barring that, I should at least be able to make you laugh. And if I can’t make you do any of that…well then clearly you are dead inside. The truth is, I loooove writing scary stories that are balanced with either a whole lotta funny, or, something emotionally powerful that makes the reader well up a little.  Sometimes I’m lucky, and my stories are both scary and riddled with punch lines.  Other times, the focus is a bit more serious, and funny may not always be appropriate.  Each book is a little different with its own unique combo of, “Eeek!” + “Haha!” + “Sniffle!” Mostly, though, I want your heart to pound, your funny bone to itch, and your eyes to leak.  And it delights me if all of that would happen to you someplace public – the subway, the lunch counter, the library.  Can you tell that I’m a bit of a sadist? Still, I will give fair warning for my M. J. Holliday fans that my latest release, NO GHOULS ALLOWED, is super-duper scary.  As in…even I had…

I’m so glad to be here on Fresh Fiction to chat about my new historical romance, SECRETS OF A SCANDALOUS HEIRESS. As you’d expect from the title, it’s the story of an heiress who uses a trip to Bath to hide her scandalous identity and forge a new one. But our heroine, Augusta Meredith, didn’t count on meeting someone she knew: blunt, witty Joss Everett, an Anglo-Indian with secrets of his own. Since it’s a new year and we’re all full of advice and resolutions, I’d like to present… Miss Augusta Meredith’s Guide to Keeping a Secret (Please note: these tips are intended for trained professionals on a closed course.) 1. When constructing a new and false identity for the pursuit of pleasure, avoid the company of people you know. 2. If the company of acquaintances cannot be avoided, make sure at least to avoid handsome men with uncomfortably perceptive wit. 3. If such a man cannot be avoided, and such a man uncovers one’s new and false identity, distract him with an indecent proposition. He is unlikely to accept if he is a gentleman, but he will not be expecting it and will grow fuddled. Take every advantage, ladies!…

I fly a lot for my job, and if there is one thing that is universally true, weather can bring out the worst in people.  The absolute worst.  A couple of years ago I was flying back from Ireland through Chicago O’Hare.  My flight got in just before massive thunderstorms rolled through.  All flights were cancelled.  I was stuck in that airport for more than eight hours, in a terminal with limited seating and amenities.  When I said that travel brought out the worst in people, I may or may not have been referring to myself.  I’m not very patient.  But at least I didn’t take up more than one seat, or more than one outlet, or stand in the enormous food court line and wait until I got to the counter to debate the menu items with my spouse.  But there were those who did. That horrible, terrible, no-good very bad day was the day I got the idea to write a short tale about two people flying from New York to Seattle who have to get there on time when a huge blizzard shut down westbound flights.  The Bridesmaid was published last year and was the Planes, Trains…

Hello everyone!  My name is Jessica Peterson, and book two of my debut Regency-set trilogy, THE MILLIONAIRE ROGUE, hits shelves TODAY!  I describe it as The Thomas Crown Affair meets a sassy Jane Austen: a famous fifty carat diamond is stolen in the midst of a crowded ballroom, and all sorts of deliciousness ensues! MILLIONAIRE was so fun to write.  I wouldn’t say it was easy – writing is never, ever, ever easy, at least not for me – but I fell in love with my characters pretty quickly, which always makes the daydreaming necessary for plotting a bit easier. I absolutely ADORE Thomas and Sophia, my witty hero and heroine, and hope you will, too.  I think one of the main reasons I had fun writing their story was how much kissing these two do.  They kiss and they kiss and I was all too happy to explore their wonderfully excessive kissing mojo. One of my favorite scenes in MILLIONAIRE is when Sophia asks Thomas to kiss her – for the second time that night: Sophia let out a breath.  If Hope wasn’t holding her up with his weight, her knees would have definitely buckled.  Good God, never did a…

First, let me explain that wild title above.  My series for Penguin/Obsidian Books are all cozy mysteries, and each one has a comfort food theme. You might ask, “Hey, Chris, what is comfort food? “  Well, dear reader, I think of it as food or sweets that grandma used to make, or mom used to make, or dad always made, or Joe at the diner makes.  It’s your favorite go-to food when you are feeling low and need some comfort.  It’s the way mom makes that sweet potato casserole.  It’s that meatloaf you grew up on.  It’s grandma’s apple pie and that you now make every Thanksgiving for your kids.  And, hopefully, one of your kids will make it for their kids. You might also ask, “Hey, Chris, what’s the setting for your comfort food series?”  Well, dear reader, I picked the perfect setting for my series: a diner!  My character Trixie Matkowski’s Silver Bullet Diner, located in small town Sandy Harbor, New York, is on the shore of Lake Ontario. Trixie Matkowski has the same first name as my favorite childhood sleuth, Trixie Belden.  When I was a kid, you could always find me lying on my bed, reading…

We’re in the season of winter and I live in Minnesota, the Land of 10,000 Frozen Lakes. Christmas 2014 is now part of our memory banks, but I know there are people of all ages who were given a snow globe as a gift and are this very minute picking them up, giving them a shaking, and watching the snow settle over a wide variety of scenes. From little on, I have been drawn to the seeming magic of snow globes. I loved giving them as gifts for my children because they always appreciated them. Even now, when I see one on display in a store, I can’t resist flipping it over then back again to see how the scene looks in a snow fall. When the opportunity arose to write a series set in a shop that specializes in snow globes, it was a natural fit. The catch is that Camryn Brooks, the one running Curio Finds, never planned to do anything like that in her lifetime. She had a successful career as a senator’s legislative affairs director in Washington D.C., and thought she’d be working there forever. But a scandal changed her career path and she returned to…