Happy Tuesday, hoppers! Today's question is, "Do you remember the first romance book you read? Tell us about it. Or, tell us about the book that made you want to write romance."
Wow. Yes. I do, in fact, remember my first romance--and the books that made me think, I need to read more books like this, but I can't find any. Guess I'd better start writing!
When I was eleven, we had a house fire that destroyed the second story of our house where my grandmother's bedroom, and the room I shared with my sister, were located. We lost everything. I remember neighbors dropping off boxes of household goods--including the most hideous clothes imaginable. Sorry, but as a pre-teen girl who'd just been shopping the week before and now no longer had her first grown-up suit that she'd been planning to wear on Easter Sunday, it was devastating. HOWEVER, proving that there's light at the end of every tunnel, someone also dropped off a box of romance novels (mostly historical) that no one else in the family had any use for. Including a shit-ton of Georgette Heyer. I. Was. Hooked. I remember reading Venetia, Frederica, The Grand Sophy, and quite a few others, but my first and probably my favorite was These Old Shades. With its unquenchable heroine, and powerful but bad tempered hero (I feel like my vampire overlord Conrad Quintano has a lot in common with the Duc of Avalon) not to mention fencing, horseback riding, trips to London and Paris, and storytelling used as a lethal weapon, I feel it altered the course of my life. And its influence continues to be seen in my writing today.
As for the book that probably got me started writing...actually, there were a few. I read (in quick succession) Jayne Ann Krentz' Absolutely Positively, Deep Waters, and Eclipse Bay, along with Jennifer Cruisie's Tell Me Lies, Crazy for You and Welcome to Temptation. I think that explains a lot about how my first series, set in Oberon, California, came to be.
Btw, even though the Oberon series is not currently available--it'll be back next year--you can get the prequel to the series, Such Fleeting Pleasures, right here, right now for FREE! (but only through the end of July): https://books.bookfunnel.com/goodfellow01/ug35uj72ik
Now, continue on to Leslie Hachtel's page to read about her first romance! And be sure to check out her book, The Dream Dancer.
The Dream Dancer
Lady Bryce has a gift.
She can enter dreams and persuade her will onto others.
It has served her well, especially in eliminating unsatisfactory suitors of her father's choosing.
But when she encounters Lord Rowland she wants him more than anything and decides to visit him in his sleep and make him desire her above all others.
As a virgin, she has discovered a diary from a leman who describes seduction in detail.
When she has driven Rowland to the edge of longing, she extracts a promise that he will marry her.
As time passes, Bryce and Rowland fall in love.
But will their love be able to conquer all once Bryce’s secret is revealed? Rowland must decide if he truly loves her or has been bewitched.
Get it here: https://amzn.to/3OHB0dw
Last Week! .99 cent Romance!
This promo is going away very soon. So, check it out now, while there's still time!
Today's my anniversary! So it's probably not surprising that I'm in a wedding-y mood. Which means you get to read all about my most wedding-y book ever. There's even a link to an excerpt, although it's from an earlier version of the book, before the venue was changed.
You can find the excerpt here: https://rhymeswithforeplay.blogspot.com/2017/07/going-to-chapel-excerpt.html AND if you're interested in learning the reason for the change and how everyone ended up in Oberon, you can read about that here: https://oberoncalifornia.blogspot.com/2019/06/wedding-bells-in-oberon.html
Going To The Chapel
An Oberon/LA Love Lessons Crossover Book 1.0
In Waiting For The Big One, Gabby and Derek went from being friends to being lovers. Now, they're waiting for their "big day". But will it be the wedding of their dreams? Or a bride's worst nightmare?
A quick trip to Gabby's hometown turns into the wedding from hell when Gabby and Derek are plagued by hailstorms, lost reservations, voracious goats, angry bees and enough family drama to fill a barn.
Guess it's true what they say, "The course of true love never did run smooth." But can the happy couple hold it all together, or will their Big Day turn into a Big Mess?
***A slightly different version of this book was previously released as part of the Sapphire Falls Kindle World program.***
Available now, only at Amazon:
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