After 40 + books as a published author I can tell you that I have researched a many and varied range of topics. Most of them interesting, gritty, hard hitting things. Just off the top of my head I can list a bunch of them – how to separate conjoined twins joined at the head, heritage listings, shipwrecks, horrifying disfiguring diseases, autopsy procedures, prosthetics, football stuff (shudder), box jellyfish stings, earthquakes, eye conditions, the sex life of goldfish, loft conversions and canal boats. And that’s without me even going through my back list and checking. I tell you, if my computer ever gets confiscated and they look at my Google history…. They’re going to take me away and medicate me. And whilst the research I do is often very fascinating, I still consider it a necessary evil. I’m not in love with it like a lot of other authors are. And then along came NO MORE MR. NICE GUY and lo and behold, with Josie putting a page from the Kama Sutra down as #1 on her drunken sex list, I found myself having to research illustrated sex guides. No, it’s okay, don’t feel bad for me. I put on my…

How lucky the parents of the Regency period were! Weddings back then were not the productions they are today, and as a parent who has gone through three weddings for her three children, I’m jealous. Now that my Brides of Wishmore series—THE BRIDE SAYS NO, THE BRIDE SAYS MAYBE, and the just released THE GROOM SAYS YES—are on the shelves, I confess I didn’t even focus on fancy marriage ceremonies because the Regency wedding was so low key. Since in so many other respects the Regency was a brilliant, over the top age, this seems a bit odd to me. The wedding ceremony was strictly for family members. Or even just the couple and witnesses. Brides would wear their best but the wedding dress, as we know it, is a Victorian creation. Sometimes, the bride and groom would walk right out the door and take up the reins of their life with little fanfare. What is the same? A ring to seal one’s vows has been around since ancient times although usually it was a gift from the groom to his bride. The vows themselves, taken from the Book of Common Prayer, are almost identical to the formal vows couples…

Once in a while in my career of forty books, there comes a story I know I have to write. It waits like an impatient child in the back of my mind for its time to shine. A PLACE CALLED HARMONY was one of those stories. As I moved through the Harmony series, getting to know the people of Harmony, Texas, better with each book I knew that someday I’d tell the beginning of their town. From the day I started writing, the characters came through clear. I had to find men strong enough to influence the generations of Mathesons, Trumans and McAllens. Many times during the writing of this story I felt all three men standing behind me telling me their lives. All three men were prepared for the challenge of building a town but unprepared for the depth of love they found as they build their families. I loved writing these men and I hope the readers will follow me into this historical romance. I felt close to all of them, because my great-grandparents settled this same country over a hundred years ago. My grandmother was even born in a covered wagon. Patrick McAllen, young and full of…

Hi, readers!! Wonderful reviews have come in for the 3rd in the Cookbook Nook Mysteries: STIRRING THE PLOT. But what matters to me is what you think! Read the First Chapter by clicking HERE. I’m nothing like my amateur sleuth, Jenna Hart, but we have a few things in common. We both love California, we love to read mysteries, and we love to eat! Two years after her husband disappears in a boating accident, Jenna, a former ad executive and marketing whiz in San Francisco, realizes it’s time to change her course. She returns home to Crystal Cove, California, a beautiful seaside community, to help her aunt open a culinary bookshop and café…and to find her smile. Although Jenna is an avid reader and a foodie, her aunt didn’t bring Jenna into the business because of her vast knowledge of cookbooks. In fact, Jenna can’t cook. She never had to learn. Her mother did it all. But she’s determined to learn. And over the course of the series, she does. In STIRRING THE PLOT, the third installment of the Cookbook Nook mysteries, trouble is brewing with a dash of murder. Halloween in Crystal Cove is a big deal, involving a…

Hey there, Fresh Fiction readers! I’m thrilled to be here today to celebrate the release of my new Entangled Indulgence, REFORMING THE ROCK STAR. I’m running a little giveaway too, so stick around to comment for a chance to feed your book addiction! When I was writing this particular book, it got me thinking about hot rock stars, the nature of people, and the crazy things we do to impress each other. ESPECIALLY members of the opposite sex. In REFORMING THE ROCK STAR, my hero Laz mistakes the heroine, Syd, for a stripper. And you can’t really blame him. She’s at a bachelor party, all buttoned up with her hair in a bun and her glasses on, and he thinks it’s all part of her Sexy Librarian schtick when, in reality, she’s actually the socially awkward and genuinely nerdy caterer. Syd goes through sort of a reverse-My Fair Lady makeover to try to show Laz how sexy she can really be, when in truth, Laz thought she was sexy the whole time. That got me thinking about the time that I “pulled a Syd” in my own life. Despite the fact that this does not *necessarily* reflect well upon me…

I think most people have some moment in their life, especially during childhood, where they felt everything was just right. Maybe they didn’t realize it at the time. Maybe the realization came later in life. When things got rough, they looked back and said, “Man, I miss those days.” Enter me between the ages of 5 and 8. These years were my golden years, where I lived with my family in the Dallas suburbs and spent countless hours outside in the back yard clubhouse, or at a neighbor’s house, or riding my bike all around the neighborhood without my parents hovering. Which seems odd, considering I remember this man calling from his door, “Hey, little girl, would you like some candy?” FREAKY. Also, not the point. These years were magical, full of dress up and pig-tails and smiles and fluffy kitties and big Christmases and family meals and laughter. When we moved out of that big house to a smaller rental still in the suburbs, happiness followed. I got to WALK to school. I was a latchkey kid. My neighbors had a trampoline, and we bounced on that bad boy every day for HOURS. My brother and I would dance…

Have you ever gone to a fancy restaurant and ordered dessert first? About a year ago, my husband took me to Commander’s Palace for dinner. Known for its flowers, splendid food, and wine, the restaurant is a landmark in the Garden District of New Orleans. We’d been before, and each visit is a treat. But this time was extra special. We were celebrating our wedding anniversary. Plus, we got to sit in the Garden Room, with its floor-to-ceiling windows showcasing huge oak trees. I’ll always remember this time — and not just because it was romantic — but because I ordered dessert first! Commander’s Palace has such great desserts, like so many other places in New Orleans — pralines (“praw-leens”), beignets (“ben-yeahs”), bananas foster, bread pudding, doberge (“dough-bash”). Oh my! I didn’t want to wait two hours for dessert. So when the waiter came by, I ordered a praline parfait, which is hand-crafted ice cream with candied pecans and praline syrup. The waiter looked at me like I had three heads, but no amount of judgment was going to stop me. It was going to be my first course. While devouring the divine dessert, I remember having an idea for…

I’ve lived around lakes my entire life. As a child, a big treat was going to one of the parks, splashing in the water and playing in the sand. I love the water, the sparkles of the sun reflecting off the surface, the holiday atmosphere of the shore. But I’d never been to the ocean. I was an adult before I ever made it to the coast of the Atlantic. And I was transformed. That may sound melodramatic, but that’s the way I felt. I was filled with a sense of awe, a primal pull that I hadn’t expected and didn’t understand. Tears filled my eyes and I never wanted to leave. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stay. My home is still inland, near the lakes but not the ocean. I was able to buy a house with a lake view, but that’s the closest I’ve come. I visit the ocean as often as I can, most often to the Outer Banks in North Carolina or the ocean-side of Florida. And I put the ocean in some of my stories, so I can experience it through my characters too. In THE COTTAGE NEXT DOOR, Hunter and Sylvie have both suffered losses and…

In RUPTURED, Alana must face more than demon platoons marching upon her home. She confronts what she wants for her life versus what the Council deems her role should be for the continuation of the human race. The close interactions with her squad and the man chosen to be her mate created intense interactions. Our passions are what drive us along with our ability to choose our destiny. What would we do if that freedom was taken from us? How would that shape our world view? Alana faces these issues as her world crumbles around her. Enjoy this excerpt from RUPTURED “Breeder.” That word. The one thing I had attempted to escape my whole life. The dull gray walls of the Densare Council rang with impunity. I glanced around at the thirteen members, each sitting rigidly upon a stone chair that looked more like a small throne with intricately carved Celtic symbols paying tribute to a bygone era. They always reminded me of Celtic tombs. The Densare Council ruled our world with an iron fist of justice created in the fiery destruction of the Mutari. When the Mutari hit Earth eighty-three years ago, mankind had been caught with their pants down…

Have you ever been on a blind date? Or better yet, have you ever signed up on one of those online dating sites? It’s nerve-wracking wondering who is going to show up to meet you. What if he’s a complete nasally voiced nerd? Or scary? Or drop-dead gorgeous? Would you feel like you’ve hit the jackpot? Or would you think, this guy is way out of my element, beyond my comfort zone? That is exactly what has happened to Jaclyn. She knows the moment she sees Derek, he is more than she can handle. On a good day! And boy was she right. But, he’s not about to let her get away that easily. Not that Jaclyn is all that much of a prize, but he’s made a bet. And Derek does not like to lose. How can we stand this guy, right? He’s arrogant and obnoxious, who cares if he sets your blood sizzling. Add to that a lunatic sister and meddling mother and we have a recipe for disaster. Jaclyn is ready to run far and fast from this guy. But he tempts her in a way only the Devil can, with what her heart wants most—money for…