I’m originally from New Zealand. Head toward Australia then head left. If you hit Antarctica, you’ve gone too far. Back up and listen for sheep. There are sixty-six million of them to four million people. Kiwi’s are intrepid travelers. We check out our own county, head to Australia, then bounce around the world. I’ve bounced to the United Kingdom, and Australia. I am now fortunate to call America home. I love it here. OMG. Southern California rocks. Beautiful weather, beaches, super friendly people who can’t understand a word I say. A case in point. Our super cute street has wine and cheese night on the last Friday of every month in summer. We rock up to someone’s yard with said wine and cheese and get to know our neighbors. I thought I was chatting to a lovely elderly man, who gently put his hand on my arm. Lovely Elderly man: “I have no idea what you’re saying.” Me – going red. “Oh, that we live in a beautiful part of the world.” He gently shook her head and ambled away. I proceeded to eat my bodyweight in cheese. That’s a lot of cheese just quietly. In TEN DAYS WITH THE…

I’m Cindy Kirk and I write Contemporary Small-Town Romance. The latest release in my popular Good Hope series is FOREVER IN GOOD HOPE. I’m a Leo, so my strengths are that I’m creative, passionate, generous, warm-hearted, cheerful and humorous. Since we don’t have much time, we’ll skip the weaknesses. I love to read (hard to meet a writer who doesn’t love books) and I adore animals. Traveling is another passion. In short, put me in the passenger seat with a book in my hands and a dog or cat on my lap and I’m happy. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: You read the end of a book first because you want to make sure it ends happily You feel stressed when the romance hits rough waters. Your first question when a friend recommends a book is “does it have a happy ending?” Television takes second place to a good book. You bookmark your favorite parts so you can go back and re-read them You’ve read your favorite books numerous times What to expect if we’re compatible: We’ll discuss favorite scenes that tug at our heartstrings. We’ll speculate on why a secondary character (like Steve) wasted so…

Millennium Park’s Hidden Garden is a hidden gem. Separated from the city bustle by a 15-foot-high hedge of conifers and trees, the Lurie Garden is the perfect spot for sneaking in a few chapters of your favorite book or meeting your summertime fling. The best cupcakes are from Sweet Mandy B’s. This is a fact. (And in 1930, the Twinkie was invented in Chicago. This is also a fact.) The Chicago River flows backwards. In the late 19th century, the river was reversed to empty into the Mississippi River instead of Lake Michigan, so all the garbage wouldn’t contaminate the lake—source of the city’s drinking water. Chicago banned paying public toilets in 1973. So all public restrooms are free – now good luck finding one! theWit has a Rooftop bar and it’s amazing. You can check it out in winter (curl up by the fireplace) or summer (look at those views!). Hanging out here one night with author Abby Green, I was struck by an idea: two people have a sexy dalliance on adjoining hotel balconies in the dark. No names, no faces, no touching—each other. And so IN SKATES TROUBLE, the Chicago Rebels prequel novella was born. IRRESISTIBLE YOU…