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Interview with Elizabeth Cole – Author of the Secrets of the Zodiac Series

20 Tuesday Dec 2016

Posted by WWMB in Featuring....

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author feature, book feature, Elizabeth Cole, espionage, excerpt, historical, interview, Napoleonic Wars, romantic suspense, series

Today, Whiskey With My Book welcomes Elizabeth Cole, author of the Secrets of the Zodiac series.  The latest, A Mad & Mindless Night, releases on December 20th.

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Riley: Elizabeth, thank you for taking the the time to answer my general, personal and possibly impertinent questions! Will you tell us something about yourself that is not in your author bio?

Elizabeth: Hmm…I’ve got an interest in arctic exploration. Not actually doing it, of course (too cold!), but reading about the historical expeditions and the scientific and technical advances that allowed explorers to go farther and survive such harsh conditions. I love reading about that…particularly when I’m in a very warm place with a fluffy blanket. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of this history appeared in my future writing.

Riley: According to your bio, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a source of inspiration. Are you more inspired by Angel or by Spike?

Elizabeth: Giles, actually! He’s British, a librarian, knows magic, and doesn’t need a supply of O positive to get through the day. I’d totally sign up to be a Watcher if there’s a position open. (Note to readers: If you’re on the Watcher Council, shoot me an email.) I love the writing on that show, and I constantly find myself seeking out the same tone for a lot of my own characters. That balance of deadly serious situations and cool banter is really appealing to me.

Riley: What is your favorite thing about writing?

Elizabeth: I love the process of hashing out and refining an idea, working to make it a polished book. Many, many times, the final product looks very different from my early conceptions, but that’s part of the deal. Also, I have zero commute and my cat is my office partner. I’m motivated to keep writing and keep trying out new stories because I have so many ideas and I want to get them out of my head and onto the page. This really is the best job in the world…except maybe being a Watcher.

Riley: I have truly enjoyed the Zodiac books. What was your inspiration for the series?

Elizabeth: Would you believe that I don’t quite remember? I got the idea for the series several years before I sat down to actually write the first book with the intention to publish it. Even back then, I conceived of it as a series—I came up with the name of the Zodiac and the concept of twelve agents who use the signs as their code names. I also have some secret pasts for characters that I’m taking my time to tell. But as for the exact Aha! moment…I’m not sure. I just love reading romances set in the Regency period, and I love mysteries, so I guess putting them together made sense. That’s why there’s a mystery element to each story. The spies are all working to uncover plots or conspiracies, which is how they keep running into my fabulously intelligent and stunning heroines!

Riley: In the Zodiac series, I like the historical/mystery setting, but it is the characters that keep me reading.  What kind of characters do you most enjoy writing?

Elizabeth: I like writing realistic personalities. The setting and the plots can get over the top (“Only one more smooch, my love! We have to save the world from evil again!”), but I try to keep my characters relatable.  They deal with universal feelings like loneliness, anxiety, and fear. They have problems. The women are
often working to achieve or maintain independence in a world that doesn’t often support them. The men deal with the disconnect between public expectations and what they actually want in life. Nobody in my stories is a perfect person. Who wants to read about perfect people? I throw those books against the wall.  I want to read about imperfect people who don’t give up despite the odds against them. And because it’s romance, I try to figure out how the heroine and hero will complement each other. Everyone is broken, but sometimes you find another person who’s broken in exactly the way that fits with your own brokenness. That’s what love is.

Riley: You also write medieval historical romance (Swordcross Knights series). Are there other time periods that interest you that may end up in a book someday?

Elizabeth: I’m very into Viking-era history, and I’m planning a short series in that time period. Seriously, I’m watching Vikings and The Last Kingdom for work. These are the sacrifices I make as an author!  In addition to that, I may write some romances set in America around the Revolutionary War. Since I live in Philadelphia, I want to take advantage of all this history just lying around. Wouldn’t want it to go to waste!

Riley: What projects do you have in the works?

Elizabeth: There are two more books in the Swordcross Knights series, and of course the Secrets of the Zodiac is ongoing. Readers of both of those series will get more books in 2017.  However, (now for something completely different), I’m also planning a series of contemporary paranormal romances. Imagine Buffy meets Supernatural meets The Librarians, but with more sexy times and a happily ever after. You’re excited about these books, face it. They will give me a chance to work out some ideas that haven’t fit into what I’ve written previously, and they’re also great for readers who maybe aren’t into historical romance (you silly people!). This series will be action-packed, yet nerdy and funny, too.

Riley: What nerdy books, TV or movies are you reading or watching these days?

Elizabeth: Aside from the ones I’ve already mentioned, I’m finishing up Luke Cage now. I love what Netflix and Marvel are doing with all the Defenders characters. Westworld was impressive, and I may need to rewatch the season to catch all the little things I missed. I’m also just a wee bit excited for Rogue One. And of course, I’ve got a boatload of books to read. I’m in a science fiction phase, so at the moment I’m starting The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, and finishing Proxy by Alex London.  Oh, I also participate in #MurderSheDrank: A monthly Twitter get-together where we queue up episodes of Murder, She Wrote—you know, the old 80s TV show—and snark all night. All night. (There are also bingo cards.)

Riley: Elizabeth, this is where you are invited to add anything else you would like us to know…..

Elizabeth: You, reader, are a person deserving of respect and love. Seriously. It can be easy to forget this amid all the news in the world, and in the stress of the end of the year rush. Romance is sometimes criticized as escapist reading, but I believe it’s a way to remind ourselves of a universal truth: We all deserve the chance to be loved and happy. Schmaltzy? Maybe. Could be the eggnog talking… Oh, Happy Christmas!

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About A Mad & Mindless Night

A rogue in search of a new life, a brilliant woman betrayed, and one path through a prison of lies…

Ashley Allander has been a rake, rogue, scandalmaker, and heartbreaker. Now, with one last chance to redeem his name, he becomes a spy. The Zodiac’s newest recruit leaves London behind to find an elusive inventor, but his target proves far stranger. Ash discovers an aloof host, bright lights in the sky, and a woman who is either an innocent prisoner…or completely mad.

Elanora Morrison is desperate. Her life’s work has been stolen from her. She’s been declared insane and kept far from anyone who might help. She gambles everything on a mysterious newcomer, risking her reputation, her life, and her heart to regain her freedom.

Together, Ash and Nora hold the key to a conspiracy between two warring nations. In the midst of danger, they find an improbable love, and the chance for a new future…if they live long enough to reach it.

The sixth novel in the Secrets of the Zodiac, a series of full-length historical romances: Featuring sexy storylines, complex characters, and international intrigue, set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars.

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Excerpt from A Mad & Mindless Night

A Mad and Mindless Night

NORA MEASURED THE MOON’S PROGRESS across the sky. When she judged the time to be around one in the morning, she slid out of the bed, intent on her task.

She moved through the halls until she reached the bedroom where the stranger called Mr Allen was staying. She eased the door open, then closed it silently. Her eyes were adjusted to the darkness, but she spent a long moment surveying the room.

The panels of the canopy bed were open, and the man was sleeping, the covers pulled up over him so that his body was little more than a vague shape. He didn’t even twitch when a gust of air from the open window stirred the curtains of the bed.

Assured he was asleep, Nora took a few steps toward the clothes press, where the man’s belongings would be stored. She opened the heavy wooden door of the press, dismayed when it squeaked slightly. She glanced back to the bed, but saw no movement.

The darkness meant that she had to use touch more than sight to discover the contents. She quickly found a plain shirt and pants, which she might use to disguise herself. Putting them aside on a shelf, she continued her search, hoping for some clue of the man’s purpose, or something useful for her escape.

She discovered a packet of papers. She glanced over at the sleeping form again, but the shadows of the canopy obscured him. Unfolding the papers, she scanned the writing, searching for clues. Thoughts swirled in her brain, but she’d sort through them later, once she was safely back in her room.

Beneath the letters, she found something more—a stack of folded bank notes. A large stack, far too much for an ordinary person to carry about him on a trip. What was this man doing here? Nora bit her lip, considering her options.

Temptation struck her hard. That much money could get her very far indeed, with no questions asked. No. It was one thing to filch a few old pieces of clothing. It was quite another to willfully steal money. Nora shoved the stack of banknotes back where she’d found it.

“Have you come to haunt me?”

Nora whirled around and froze. Her heart dropped.

The man was awake, his upper body propped up on both elbows. He gazed at Nora calmly, as if it was perfectly normal for him to find strange women in his bedroom at night.

She had no idea what to say. She simply stared at him, wondering if he was going to rise from the bed and seize her, with the intent of raising an alarm. Or worse.

“Well?” he prompted. “Is this your usual practice, to hover over guests and decide whether or not to haunt them?”

As he spoke, he slipped out from under the bedclothes and took a few steps toward her. By the time Nora realized the danger, it was too late—an arm flashed out and a strong hand took  her by the wrist, not allowing her to run away.

Not that it mattered. Nora was still too dumbfounded to move. The reason for her distraction was simple enough. He wasn’t dressed. At all.

Nora had limited experience, but she could say with complete confidence that this man was the most attractive one she’d ever seen or expected to see. Nora instinctively wanted to touch him, to add to her knowledge…and also for the pure pleasure of touching something so gorgeous. She blamed the night, which must also be responsible for her thinking that his eyes glowed a bit, with a warmth that she was surely just imagining.

“Do I meet your approval?” he asked, almost lazily.

“What?” Nora asked. She had no idea how long she’d been staring at him. “Oh! I…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean… That’s not what I… I need to leave.”

“Not quite yet,” he said, in that same calm tone. “You just arrived.”

“No, I…”

“My name is Ash,” he said, looking her over curiously.

“And yours?”

“Nora,” she whispered.

“That wasn’t too difficult, was it?” Ash reached out, grabbing a long dressing robe hanging from a nearby chair. Nora expected him to put it on, hiding his naked form. Instead, he draped it over her shoulders. “You really ought to acquire a better wardrobe, Miss Nora. That dress looks inadequate.”

“What about you?”

“Don’t criticize my sleeping habits,” he said, still sounding as if such a topic was not at all absurd to be having with a stranger in the dead of night. “I’ll get dressed…if you promise not to run away while I’m occupied.”

Nora turned her head to follow his movement. She told herself it was to make sure he didn’t notice any subtle changes in the order of the contents of the press. The result was that she got a scandalously good view of him from the rear. She turned her head quickly, lest he catch her peeking.

After a moment, he walked back to her, now dressed.

“There. We’re both quite respectable…well, slightly respectable.  Now, tell me why you’re here in my room. You’re a most unusual ghost.”

“I’m not a ghost.”

He put a hand on her waist, then slid it around to her lower back, and gently pulled her close to him. “No, you don’t feel like a ghost,” he murmured.

Nora caught her breath. “As I told you.”

“I like to verify. Can’t just take your word for it.” He bent his head, and now his words came closer, his breath warm against her cheek.

“Mr Allen,” she began.

“Call me Ash, please.”

“Ash.”

“Sounds sweet when you say it,” he noted, his mouth hovering over her own.

Then he kissed her, his lips grazing hers till she sighed against him, a need long forgotten now rekindling with this unexpected touch.

For all the audacity of his actions, he didn’t do a thing more than kiss her. Nora sensed no urgency in him, just a profound pleasure in the moment. It was as if time ceased to matter.

But time moved anyway. A few moments later, he drew away, slowly ending the kiss. He didn’t release his hold on her, though. He surveyed her for a long moment.

“Well,” he murmured. “Not a ghost. You must be a dream.  Though you’re lovelier by far than any others I can recall lately.”

Nora took a deep breath. “I assure you I’m a real person.  You’re holding me, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

“Do you mind?”

“Being held?” Nora paused. “I…I don’t mind.”

“Good,” he said. “Now, darling, tell me what brought you to me.”

*******************************

Book Links

Add A Mad & Mindless Night to your Goodreads shelf”

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Purchase A Mad & Mindless Night

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2i3gHfw
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-mad-and-mindless-night-elizabeth-cole/1125356143?ean=2940157432751
Apple: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/a-mad-and-mindless-night/id1142464232?mt=11&at=1001lbaN
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Elizabeth_Cole_A_Mad_and_Mindless_Night?id=Zga6DQAAQBAJ
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/689976

 

 

Elizabeth ColeAuthor Bio

Elizabeth Cole is a romance writer with a penchant for history. Her stories draw upon her deep affection for the British Isles, action movies, medieval fantasies, and even science fiction. She now lives in a small house in a big city with a cat, a snake, and a rather charming gentleman. When not writing, she is usually curled in a corner reading…or watching costume dramas or things that explode. And yes, she believes in love at first sight.

 

Social Media & Links

Amazon: http://amazon.com/author/elizabethcole
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/author/elizabeth-cole/id581785868?mt=11
Facebook: http://facebook.com/elizabethcolewrites
Twitter: http://twitter.com/coleheartedgirl
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/elizabethcolewr/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/coleheartedgirl
Website: http://elizabethcole.co
Newsletter: http://elizabethcole.co/newsletter

Pets In Space Authors’ Interview

04 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by WWMB in Featuring....

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Tags

Alexis Glynn Latner, author feature, book feature, Cara Bristol, Carysa Locke, cats, dogs, Hero Dogs, interview, Laurie A. Green, Lea Kirk, Pauline Baird Jones, pets, S.E. Smith, scifi romance, service dogs, Susan Grant, Veronica Scott

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Ozzie

When an animal has a feature role in a book, I am immediately drawn to that book. My life is enhanced by cats (many cats), two of which are pictured here. I have also had the joy of several dogs/walking buddies in the past. So this Pets in Space anthology is something I can’t help but be enthusiastic about. Plus, Pets in Space is promoting a very good charity.  Needless to say, Pets in Space is on my TBR list!  (If you agree, you will find pre-order links at the end of this article.)

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Maddie

So, I am thinking…..the authors of the Pets in Space anthology must have similar feelings about the animals in their life and in fiction. I could be wrong. But I don’t think so. Just to make sure though – I could not pass up the opportunity to find out. So here it is. Pets in Space authors subject themselves to my general, personal and possibly impertinent questions.

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Interview With SciFi Romance Authors: Pauline Baird Jones, Veronica Scott, Susan Grant, Laurie A. Green and Lea Kirk

1) What was your first reaction to a pets in space anthology?

Pauline: It all started because a bunch of us authors were talking about our pets in a Facebook group and I (jokingly) said, we should do an anthology called Pets in Space. I didn’t think anything more about it until Veronica Scott contacted me privately and said, “We really should do this anthology. It would be so fun.”

I couldn’t argue with that, so we started knocking around dates and such. One thing we both agreed on: a portion of the anthology’s proceeds had to go toward a pet related charity. We were both thrilled to discover HeroDogs. Just seemed such a perfect pairing for an anthology of stories where some of the pets are heroes and of course, many of the humans are, too. (I say “many” because there are some dastardly characters in the stories, but ALL the pets are great.)

We’re so excited Pets in Space is a reality and no longer a “fun” idea. And who knew that this summer Carrie Fisher would agree that we “need more pets in space?” #awesome #score

Veronica: Well since Pauline Baird Jones and I are the originators of the concept, I LOVED it! She and I e mailed back and forth about it, getting more and more excited about the fun challenge and then we decided to proceed this year and invite other authors to ‘play’.

Susan: I thought: No way! Am I really going to be able to write about two of the subjects I love the most? I’m going to enjoy reading the other stories as much as I did writing mine.

Laurie: My very first reaction when Pauline Baird Jones and Veronica Scott mentioned the idea was eyebrow-raised excitement. Pets are such a huge part of my life that an anthology combining two of my very favorite things—science fiction romance with pets—is something that I not only wanted to be a part of but was equally eager to read!

I think Pets in Space is a timely idea. (Just ask Carrie Fisher. ) Romance is a big part of the human experience and it will be a factor as we begin to explore our solar system and the stars beyond. But pets are a huge part of many peoples’ lives too, and I can’t help but believe we’ll find a way to bring them along with us when our time comes to seek out new worlds and the deeper reaches of our cosmos.

Lea: When this anthology was first mentioned to me I thought, ‘Perfect! My two favorite things, pets and space. I am so in.’ My second thought—which every one of a certain age is thinking, so don’t deny it—The Muppets Pigs in Space segment. You can hear the announcer saying it in your head now, can’t you?

2) Tell me about your first pet that you remember.

Pauline: The first pet I remember gave birth to kittens in our closet. You have probably guessed she was a cat, pure white and pretty tough. I once watched her chase a dog five times her size out of our yard. But my favorite cat was Smokey, a beautiful gray cat that liked to sleep with me. He’d lay his head on the pillow next to mine and sometimes he’d put a paw on my cheek. He was a bed hog and he liked to be let out between four and five in the morning, but I still loved him.

Veronica: I have one crystal clear memory of a pair of white rabbits, named Meadow and Thumper, from when I was three. (That makes my adult movie actress name Meadow Northcliffe, by the way, if I acted in such flicks, since we lived on Northcliffe Road at the time.) The first pet I really cared for and considered my own was Cinderella, a gray tabby, when I was seven.

Susan: Alice was a stray cat, but I was allowed to feed her on the back porch. She was with me for about a year when I was a first or second grader. When I walked home from school, she was always there to greet me. My grandmother would pour some milk in a small bowl to give to her. Unfortunately, my mom didn’t like Alice hanging around and gave her away after. So sad! When my own children were growing up, our house was always filled with pets, from fish to cats and dogs, even a couple of snakes. I made up for not having any cats or dogs when I was a child many times over.

Laurie: My very first pet was named Ginger, and he was an unlikely cross of beagle and collie. He was slightly larger than a beagle and had a beautiful, short golden-ginger coat with four bright white paws and faint collie markings on his face.

My brother and sisters were all much older than me, so by the time I was ten they had all moved out of the house and I became an only/lonely kid. I adopted Ginger while my parents were away on an extended trip, and by the time they returned we were all but inseparable. To say they weren’t very keen on adding a dog to our household is a huge understatement, but Ginger managed to charm them enough that they relented and I had my first-ever “very own” dog. Ginger and I had some great adventures. We went on long hikes in the forest behind our house and I taught him to do an obstacle course—climb ladders, jump over low fences and walk “tightropes” (actually elevated boards)—long before I learned some dogs did these things in actual competitions.

I lived in a sparsely populated area of northern Michigan and most of my friends were many miles away, so Ginger was often my sole companion and “bestie.” I wish I had a picture to share, but they’ve been lost to time. I still miss my little buddy and think of him often.

Lea: My silly, little, Hula dancing doggie, Mai-Tai. I was four-years-old and living in Hawaii went we got her. She and her litter-mates were advertised as Cocker Spaniels, but when we got there my parents realized there had to be a black Labrador in the ‘woodpile’ because that’s what she looked like, a small black lab. Her siblings all looked like Cockers and had names like Brandy and Sherry, therefore, my parents dubbed our puppy Mai-Tai. And, yes, she’d roll over on the grass and wiggle back and forth. Her version of the Hula.

3) Is your pet also your muse? Or is he/she a distraction?

pisa-pbj-felixPauline: Sadly, our longtime family pet, Felix, passed away a couple of years ago. I say “family pet,” but he was our son’s cat from the tip of his ears to his sleekly pointed tail. Despite Felix’s belief that I was *his* pet, he was a good cat. When I would be working at my computer, he liked to settle into a nearby (empty) file folder box. But my dearest memory of Felix was how he tried to comfort our son while he was getting chemotherapy treatments. He always knew when something wasn’t right and was there for our son.

pisa-vs-chair-battleVeronica: Are we asking me or the cat??? Jake would of course say he’s the Muse and that he should be written into every book and thanked profusely. (Hint: he’s an irresistible distraction.) Keanu the other cat is more laid back and just likes to sleep on the chair next to my writing desk. He does require about five minutes of concentrated petting at the start of every writing session.

susan-grant-petSusan: Skye, my 2 1/2 year old border collie, has one emotion: joy. This constant joy and all the interaction she loves can definitely be a distraction. But as she has gotten older, she has learned to nap while “mama” is writing, often for many hours. I can safely say she has gone from being a distraction to a muse. I used many of her qualities when I wrote Bang-Bang, the dog in my novella Stray.

Pets in Space InspirationLaurie: They fall totally in the “muse” category. Right now, we have two house dogs—both miniature longhaired dachshunds (who inspired my StarDog character, in part)—Katrina and Luna. Katrina has been with us for seven years and is my writing-buddy-muse extraordinaire. She came with her name, that just happens to be the same as the heroine in an upcoming novel and the name of the StarDog vermin-huntress in my story, which fit perfectly with one scene of the story.

Katrina has been the perfect little writing companion who knows what “let’s go write!” means, and happily romps to my office to curl up in a bed beneath my desk during the hours I’m tapping away at the keyboard. When Luna came to live with us this past June (they are both from the same breeder and are, in human terms, aunt and niece), Katrina quickly taught her the writing-buddy ropes. There are now two little beds beneath my desk, though sometimes the two like to snuggle up together and share. (Peeks under desk and whispers, “Like right now.”)

pisa-lk-ranger-loves-the-grassLea: For most of the Pets in Space writing experience we have not had a pet. But we were looking, and our next pet found us and came home a couple of weeks ago. A seven-year-old Doberman who has blown my preconceived notions of the breed out of the water. He’s a love! My hubby decided his name should be Ranger (yes, after the dog in my Pets in Space contribution, Space Ranger). Ranger is more of a distraction at the moment because the newness of his presence still hasn’t worn off. He needs at least two walks a day, which is good because before he came I wasn’t getting out at all. (cone of shame)

4) Who do you feed first – your pet(s) or your family?

Pauline: No one ate in our house until Felix was happy. lol

Veronica: Currently my cats and I reside alone and the first activity I do each day is feed them. When my kids were little, I still fed the cats first because they and I got up way earlier than anyone else in the house.

Susan: The dog!

Laurie : Well, that’s an easy one because our dogs and cats all have automatic feeders, so I suppose you could say they get fed first because breakfast (as well as brunch, elevensies, lunch, afternoon snack and dinner) is always waiting for them.

Lea: Ranger gets fed first. No question. Everyone else in the house is old enough to fend for themselves, and they also have opposable thumbs.

5) Time for a poll: Are you a cat or dog person? Or both? Or other?

Pauline: Cat person, for sure. I tried to be a dog person (I made eye contact with an adorable poodle, but it didn’t work out and he gratefully moved on to an actual dog family.)

Veronica: Cat!

Susan: Love them both.

Laurie: Hmmm, that’s a tough one. For most of my life, I’ve definitely aligned with the “dog person” ranks. Then my spouse, who was deployed away from home with the military for five years, retired and brought his two calico feline companions back to live with us—Serenity (she came with that name, but being a huge Firefly fan, I love it!) and Sugar.

It took some time but the two eventually adopted me into their pride, and I’ve since grown to be quite a cat admirer, too. Sometimes Serenity will even join the writing buddy troops and curl up in a chair in my office next to a stuffed rhinoceros that she’s fond of.

So, to (finally) answer the question, I guess I’d have to say that I’m now both a dog and a cat person. Each species has their charms and pluses, and DNA from both went into the making of the StarDog in my story.

Lea: I like cats, and even had two of them as a youngster. I would have more if my youngest wasn’t allergic. But, I must confess, I am a dog person at heart. Especially big dogs. Someday I’d love to have a Scottish Deerhound.

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Getting to know these authors and their special pets has been a delight!  Thank you Pauline, Veronica, Susan, Laurie and Lea for sharing about the four-legged friends in your lives.

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Author Information

Pauline Baird Jones

Pauline never liked reality, so she writes books. She likes to wander among the genres, rampaging like Godzilla, because she does love peril mixed in her romance. You can find out more about her books (and get a free story for subscribing to her newsletter) at: http://paulinebjones.com

Website: http://www.paulinebjones.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorPaulineBairdJones
Twitter: https://twitter.com/paulinebjones
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Pauline-Baird-Jones/e/B000APFS0M/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/pauline-baird-jones

Veronica Scott

Best Selling Science Fiction & Paranormal Romance author and “SciFi Encounters” columnist for the USA Today Happily Ever After blog, Veronica Scott grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories.

Three time winner of the SFR Galaxy Award, as well as a National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, Veronica is also the proud recipient of a NASA Exceptional Service Medal relating to her former day job, not her romances! She recently was honored to read the part of Star Trek Crew Member in the audiobook production of Harlan Ellison’s “City On the Edge of Forever.”

Blog: https://veronicascott.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vscotttheauthor
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Veronica-Scott/177217415659637?ref=hl
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Veronica-Scott/e/B006CUCJ92/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Susan Grant

Air Force veteran Susan Grant is a NY Times/USA Today bestselling, RITA Award winning author of science fiction romance. Her “day job” as a jumbo-jet pilot takes her all around the world, and makes it easy to imagine faraway worlds and alien cultures. Susan loves writing smart, character-driven, action-packed stories featuring strong women and honorable men.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Author.Susan.Grant/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/flyerdreamer
Website: http://www.susangrant.com

Laurie A. Green

Laurie A. Green is a three-time RWA Golden Heart® finalist, an award-winning author, and a science fiction romance enthusiast who founded the SFR Brigade community of writers, which is now over 900 members strong.

She confesses to being an Andromeda Galaxy groupie and would someday love to own a vacation home on Mars or Titan. She’s enthused to be a part of this wonderful anthology mash-up of two of her favorite things–pets and space.

Her family includes her husband, David, four dogs, three cats and several horses, all who reside on a ranch in beautiful New Mexico. A former military budget director and reserve state trooper, she now spends her time writing, networking, researching, enjoying the Southwestern lifestyle and, naturally, stargazing and daydreaming about other worlds.

Website: http://www.laurieagreen.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Laurie-A-Green-139849829386292/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SFRLaurie
Twitter Handle: @SFRLaurie

Lea Kirk

Lea Kirk loves to transport her readers to other worlds with her science fiction romances. Her first book, Prophecy, was a finalist in the Molly Award, Pages from the Heart, and the LERA Rebecca contests. It’s the first book in her sci-fi romance series of the same name.

Her fascination with science fiction began at six years old when her dad introduced her to the original Star Trek TV series. She fell in love with the show, and was even known to run through her parents’ house wearing the tunic top of her red knit pantsuit and her white go-go boots pretending to be Lieutenant Uhura.

She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her wonderful hubby of twenty-six years and their five kids (aka, the nerd herd).

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LeaKirkAuthor
WEBSITE: http://www.leakirk.com/
TWITTER: @LeaKirkWrites

Even an alien needs a pet…

Join the adventure as nine pet loving sci-fi romance authors take you out of this world and pull you into their action-packed stories filled with suspense, laughter, and romance. The alien pets have an agenda that will capture the hearts of those they touch. Follow along as they work side by side to help stop a genetically-engineered creature from destroying the Earth to finding a lost dragon; life is never the same after their pets decide to get involved. Can the animals win the day or will the stars shine just a little less brightly?

New York Times, USA TODAY, Award Winning, and Bestselling authors have nine original, never-released stories that will capture your imagination and help a worthy charity. Come join us as we take you on nine amazing adventures that will change the way you look at your pet!

10% of profits from the first month go to Hero-Dogs.org. Hero Dogs raises and trains service dogs and places them free of charge with US Veterans to improve quality of life and restore independence.

 

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Links

Add Pets in Space to Goodreads

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Amazon link coming next week.  For other retailers, you can pre-order Pets in Space today:

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Jody Wallace, Author of Prodigal – Interview

13 Tuesday Sep 2016

Posted by WWMB in Featuring....

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

AI ship, aliens on earth, artificial intelligence, author feature, book feature, interview, Jody Wallace, series

Prodigal, the third book in the Maelstrom Chronicles series by Jody Wallace, was just release on September 5.  Today Jody is my special guest!

My introduction to this author’s books was Traitor, book 2 in the series.  I love the sense of humor combined with the human and alien drama.  That book won the SFR Galaxy award for Best Interfering Sentient Ship.  If you have read Traitor, you know the award was well deserved.

After reading Traitor, I had to go back to book 1, Angeli.  And now, Prodigal is on my TBR list.  This is a series I recommend to anyone who likes a) sci fi, b) romance and c) snark.  It is a great combination!

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Interview with Jody Wallace

I am delighted to have Jody as a guest today.  She has agreed to subject herself to my general, personal and possibly impertinent questions.  Welcome Jody!

Riley:  In Traitor, Ship is annoying in a very humorous way. One of the things I appreciate most about your writing is your sense of humor. In Prodigal, will humor have its place again? And can readers expect to get more of Ship?

Jody:  One of the biggest revisions I made to PRODIGAL was to add more Ship. After two years of being in orbit around Terra, Ship has obviously begun to develop relationships with people on the ground instead of just the Shipborn, including many Terrans in Camp Chanute where most of the story takes place. Our hero, Adam Alsing, shows up with amnesia at the beginning of the book and relies on Ship, in part, to get him caught up with everything he can’t remember. There isn’t as much Ship as there was in TRAITOR, but it’s safe to say our favorite mother hen AI plays a pivotal role in the plot.

As for humor, I don’t think I could write something without snark in it…just like I’m beginning to accept I can’t write a romance that’s shorter than a long novella. Must be encoded in my DNA.

Riley:  The ‘aliens on Earth’ trope is one of my favorites. Being the optimist, I like the friendly aliens that are there to help Earth. What was the inspiration behind putting Earth into a situation that caused aliens to come to Earth’s aid.

Jody:  Because I like to make stuff up?

Besides that, perhaps I fantasize that, if Earth were to get itself in an untenable situation, there would be some advanced society willing to step in and help us out. I promise it’s okay if you guys violate the Prime Directive and solve climate change, alien friends! Besides, have you TRIED chocolate? Do you really want to lose the only source for it in the galaxy (pretty sure, anyway)?

Aliens interacting with humans also makes for a great story, since humans often regard new things with great suspicion. I have no idea if this is ingrained in humanity or just part of being a sentient being, but imagining what our people would really do if we met aliens is endlessly fascinating.

Riley:  Have you ever met any aliens? And if so, where did you meet? Or maybe I should ask, are you an alien?

Jody:  Cats are probably aliens. The way they can see things none of the rest of us can see? The way they control us without us even knowing it? Gotta be alien, and I currently live with six cats.

jody-wallace-sambelly jody-wallace-1207merri jody-wallace-907suitcasecat

Riley:  What are your writing plans after Maelstrom Chronicles is complete?

Jody:  Right now I’m doing some freelance editing, but I have plans to keep my fingers in the fiction world as well. Nothing specific, though. I guess you could say I’m between projects.

Riley:  What are you reading these days?

Jody:  I just finished some very, very good books. Michelle Diener’s science fiction romance novels which also involves AI ships as characters are a new favorite – The Class 5 series. They also have a great twist on the “kidnapped Earth women” trope. For a science fiction romance crossed with the movie Outbreak, you can try Veronica Scott’s Star Cruise: Outbreak. It’s tightly plotted, a quick, fun read.

What else…I finished UPROOTED by Naomi Novik the other night, and it was just fantastic. After reading a little more like a standard YA fantasy in the beginning, it grew more mystical and unique in a way that was satisfying. NK Jemisin’s THE FIFTH SEASON was a little harder to get into but also ended up being fantastic—I can see why it’s been winning awards right and left.

Next on my list is Nina Croft’s UNTHINKABLE, which is releasing from Entangled at the same time as PRODIGAL. Nina and I corresponded last month about joining our promotional efforts, and she seduced me with her three-legged pig, Piggles! I’ve got to read that woman’s books, heheh. Plus it’s contemporary science fiction romance, which is right up my alley anyway.

prodigal

About Prodigal

 Adam Alsing has no idea who he is or why he’s huddled naked in the snow next to a mysterious silver pod. When a gorgeous, no-nonsense sheriff by the name of Claire Lawson rescues him, she explains the planet’s under attack—and he’s been missing for over two years. The problem is, what he doesn’t remember can kill them.

He nearly destroyed the world, but with her help, he can save it.

Keeping the peace in her post-apocalyptic town is all the trouble Sheriff Claire Lawson can handle. Until the MIA Chosen One—the guy who could have prevented the apocalypse—interrupts her supply run. The Shipborn aliens want to study him, and what’s left of the Terran government wants to lock him up. But his charming demeanor and his desire to help, along with his sexy smile, has Claire fighting her better judgment to keep Adam around. For now.

Adam Alsing—at least that’s what they tell him his name is—just knows he wants to stay with Claire. She’s the one thing that makes him feel grounded. Grounded and kind of turned on, but these are serious times. The monsters have stepped up their attacks and nobody knows why. He’ll help her protect her town, her Shipborn friends, and every human on Earth who hates him for being the man he can’t remember being. He’s afraid he’s still that man, the one who failed the planet. Or is he something entirely new and even more dangerous?

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Links

Add Prodigal to your Goodreads shelf:

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Purchase the series at Amazon:

prodigalTraitorangeli

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About Jody Wallace

Jody Wallace writes sf/f romance, paranormal romance, and contemporary romance. Her Maelstrom series with Entangled Publishing (ANGELI, TRAITOR, PRODIGAL) is post-apocalyptic science fiction romance about finding love during an alien invasion. After growing up in the South in a very rural area, she went to school a long time and ended up with a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing. Her resume includes college English instructor, technical documents editor, market analyst, web designer, and general, all around pain in the butt. She resides in Tennessee with one husband, one Grandma, two children, six cats, and a lot of junk.

Find Jody at:

Website: http://www.jodywallace.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodywallace
FB Author: https://www.facebook.com/JodyWallaceAuthor
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/realmeankitty/
GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/jodywallace

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