I’m having so much fun writing what will eventually be the 4-book Outlaw Mail Order Brides series. The only hope these outlaws have in making a town where once was their hideout was in getting wives and starting families. This series spilled over from my Men of Legend series when Luke Legend started his own private bride service for men and woman living in the shadows who can’t go the normal route. Luke hand carries letters back and forth between the couples and arranges transportation when they decide to marry. Here are five reasons you should read a mail order bride book:   The Great Unexpected Plots really set these books apart. Each one seems a little different somehow and there’s always the big question of whether they work as a couple that draws you in. Sometimes the groom dies before the bride arrives and she’s forced to change directions. Sometimes someone is playing a joke on the poor groom so it’s a surprise when his bride arrives. Then there are the many, many reasons a woman would choose to marry a man she’s never seen. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of variations to these stories. The Romance is a…

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” That’s my favorite Mae West quote. But while Ms. West’s independent spirit is an inspiration to all of us, she doesn’t tell us how to live right, nor does she tell us what to do if we feel like we’re living all wrong. For me, as for a lot of women, the answer was to run away from home and build a new and better life in the West. Packing only what matters most, we find our way to Montana, Wyoming, or maybe Texas, leaving our troubles and our timid old selves behind. I call us Red Boot Women because nothing hollers independence like a pair of red cowboy boots. We buy them first with our scraped-up savings because they help us find our swagger and stomp up some confidence. In Cowboy Trouble, Libby Brown doesn’t have time to buy those boots. She’s too busy ditching her cheating fiancé, quitting her job, and moving 1500 miles from home with only what fits in the bed of a cherry-red pickup. Acting on a long-held dream, she buys a tumbledown ranch with a big red barn, takes a job…

A question I get asked from time to time is where (or when) would I live, if I could choose a place and time from one of my books. That’s a very hard question. After 36 years of writing and 69 published books, I have a really wide range of places and time periods to choose from. However, I write mostly the “Old West” and mid to late 1800’s. Since that is my favorite genre/location/time period, I would have to say that if I could pick one place, it would be Colorado – any place in the foothills of the Rockies. I love the American West and its history with a passion that shows in my books, and a great many of my westerns are set in Colorado and Wyoming. You can’t beat the breath-taking landscapes. You also can’t beat the excitement of the gold rushes, so I would likely pick the 1850’s – 1860’s, the time period most gold rushes occurred. Imagine whole towns of 1,000 or more people springing up (literally) overnight, and the wild excitement that entailed – people from all walks of life, all forms of businesses, criminals and honest people, wild saloons but churches at the end…

So many wonderful books to read and not nearly enough time! My TBR pile continues to grow exponentially. Amazing books are releasing every week. Some by long-time favorite authors and some by new-to-me authors I’ve been dying to check out. But every now and then, when I get an opportunity to grab a book to read, I veer away from the TBR and head toward my collection of old favorites. Consisting mostly of Old School Romance from the 90s, my favorites are currently residing in large Tupperware bins in my basement. My Johanna Lindsey’s fill one bin all on their own. There is just something about going back over and over to reread these stories that initiated my love of Romance and Historical Romance specifically. Over the years, these books have inspired me, thrilled me, comforted me, and even surprised me when on occasion, a reread will unexpectedly provide a whole new perspective on a story I thought I knew so well. Today, I’m going to share some of my all-time favorite rereads. Maybe some are your favorites, too! Since I already mentioned Johanna Lindsey, I’ll start there. Like so many other Historical Romance readers, I adore the Malory family…

I’m so excited to launch the first book of Outlaw Mail Order Brides, THE OUTLAW’S MAIL ORDER BRIDE. I’ve wanted to tell these stories ever since I wrote Tally Shannon and her band of fugitive women into To Love a Texas Ranger (Men of Legend, Book #1).  Tally Shannon’s stepmother put her into an asylum to get rid of her following the death of her father. A year later she escapes along with other women in the same situation and they take refuge in Deliverance Canyon. Each wears a tattoo on her cheek, put there by the warden for identifying purposes which makes going into town impossible. In addition, Tally has a price on her head. The warden is desperate to get her back. After a year of living in hiding, Tally yearns for a better life for her and her women. Luke Legend and his wife Josie have started a private bride service for people like her who are living in the shadows and she starts corresponding with outlaw Clay Colby. Only another fugitive will know what it’s like to be hunted. Clay is also desperate for change and has decided to make a town out of the hideout where he’s been…