Jenna Bayley-Burke Book Winner!

So sorry I’m late with this…have been dealing with a killer headache for the past two days…anyway, on to the winner….

The little Diva helped me choose a winner and the winner of Jenna’s post is…..

Diane!!

Congrats Diane!

If you would email me at mad @ romancereaderatheart.com (without the spaces) and let me know what format you want Jenna’s book, I’d appreciate it! 🙂

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Jenna Bayley-Burke Guest Blogging

 

HER CINDERELLA COMPLEX

 

Don’t you just love the title? I’m a sucker for a great title…especially one with Cinderella or Beauty or anything fairytale like, really. Those stories never get old, especially since so many writers update them all the time!

 

When Fatin emailed to invite me to blog, I wasn’t sure what I’d say. This year I have two small press books out, so I decided to pick the one I thought she would like best – Her Cinderella Complex from Samhain. It’s a classic romance, spiced up a bit. I worked in all my favorite story elements – the enigmatic boss, the spunky secretary, a private island, a glamorous wedding, and a deep dark secret the hero has to uncover for himself. In other words, all the things I read a romance for!

 

The characters came easily, especially the earnest heroine, whose heart of gold makes me smile each time I read it. I think it is important to create heroines I’d want to have over for coffee, and heroes I’d set my friends up with.

 

I am sure everyone writes for a different reason, but for me it’s always been about creating a book I would want to read, something I’d stash on my keeper shelf and go back to year after year. Hopefully, Her Cinderella Complex can be that for more people than just me!

 

Comment and let me know what your favorite things to read in a romance novel are. Fatin will put the names in the proverbial hat, and someone will win a copy of Her Cinderella Complex! To keep up on what I am doing, check out my website or blog. Thanks!

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Ann Aguirre Book Winner

We have a winner! The little Diva just pulled out a name.

The winner of Ann’s book is…..

Pearl!! 

Congrats Pearl! Email me your snail mail addy at

mad @ romancereaderatheart.com (without the spaces). Enjoy!

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Ann Aguirre Guest Blogging

Dear Fatin,

I hope you’ll forgive me doing this in the form of a letter, but I have a conundrum that I hope your readers will be able to resolve. You see, I currently find myself involved in a rather delicate domestic situation. The problem is as follows:

For over a year, I’ve enjoyed a wonderful relationship with someone I’ll call Don. He meets all my needs in every regard–or he used to. He used to be tender, affectionate, sweet, loving. He never tired of cuddling, or spending long hours in bed. It was absolutely perfect. I had never been happier.

Now, unfortunately, that’s no longer the case. He ignores me, only comes looking for me when he wants something, and has taken to spending his nights god knows where. I’m angry and hurt, but my words seem to fall on deaf ears. I really value his company, but I can’t seem to make him understand what his behavior is doing to me. We used to belong to each other, no question, but now I fear we’re growing apart.

Lately, however, I’ve been spending my time with someone new. I’ll call him Neo. He’s filling in for Don more and more,  yes, even in bed. I’d known him before, but never realized he could be so warm and loving. He’d alway kept his distance from me before. I think he may have been put off by my relationship with Don, which is quite understandable. But now, everything has changed. He’s no longer disinterested in my affection, and while he’s a different type physically than Don — Neo is much bigger — he certainly has his appeal. It’s very nice to curl up with him too; I believe he’s interested in staking a claim.

Here’s the real problem — these two are brothers. What in the world should I do? I hope romance readers will have some good advice for me. Whoever presents the best solution will win a copy of Grimspace!

Sincerely,

Ann Aguirre

PS –  I’m talking about my two cats.

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Schedule of the Week

Make sure you join us this week at Novel Thoughts. I’ve got Ann Aguirre/Annie Dean popping in and giving out prizes.

February 25: Ann Aguirre/Annie Dean Guest Blogging

February 27: Jenna Bayley-Burke Guest Blogging

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Friendship Prayer

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Melanie Wells Book Winner

The winner of Melanie Wells’ post is….

 

Ruth!!

 

Congrats Ruth!

 

Please email me your snail mail addy at mad @ romancereaderatheart.com (without the spaces). Enjoy!

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Melanie Wells Guest Blogging

Keep the Man Who Digs the Hat

 

 

I had a little vote going on my website (www.melaniewells.com) during the writing of my last novel.  The issue was whether or not Dylan Foster (the lead character in my stories) should get to keep her boyfriend. A simple question, I thought. 

 

Here’s Dylan’s description of said boyfriend, (from My Soul to Keep – released February of ‘08).

 

David Shykovsky is quite possibly the most perfect male I’ve ever met. He says “thank you, ma’am” and “please” and rises from his chair when a woman enters the room. He has the shoulders of a linebacker and the waist of a dancer, knows his downward dog from his warrior pose, and can quote every word of every Lyle Lovett song ever written. He makes a mean chocolate pie with cooked pudding, not instant. He can rebuild a transmission or choose the right wine to go with the fish he just grilled. Take him to a party, and he can hold an animated, engaging conversation with a sack of shelled corn.

            And he never leaves crumbs in the butter.

            His one flaw, other than the fact that he owns a funeral home in Hillsboro, is that he put up with me for almost a year and a half. I eventually lost respect for him for it.

 

See, the problem here is a tricky one.  David’s a dream.  But Dylan is bad luck and high-maintenance. In the series of three books, her house becomes infested with flies (along with some other vermin) and begins to smell like deviled eggs; a college student commits suicide (for which Dylan – a psychology professor – gets blamed); she’s arrested for a crime someone else committed; the murderer of another young college student leaves his weapon of choice on her doorstep; and a little 5-year old boy is kidnapped in her presence.  I could go on. Suffice it to say, her life is a disaster zone. Get anywhere near her and you’re liable to get sucked into the vortex.

 

After her wistful description of David, she goes on to admit:

 

I was the worst version of myself during our time together—catastrophically anxious, chronically forgetful, and relentlessly self-involved. I was even more cranky, compulsive, and impulsive than usual. And obsessive, of course. That goes without saying. The smell of Pine Sol alone would have been enough to run off the average boyfriend candidate. David, however, remained sweet, thoughtful, and thoroughly magnanimous throughout.

Then, to his credit, he broke up with me.

 

Now, my vow to my readers, which I kept, was that they could choose Dylan’s fate. Would she remain doomed to inhabit the boyfriend-free zone she’d constructed for herself?  A fate which she richly deserved, might I add.  Or would he come back to her? It was up to the readers to decide.

 

Their answers blew my hair back. I couldn’t believe how passionate my readers were about what to me (it is fiction, after all – I made these people up!) seemed a trivial matter.  I got emails from EVERYWHERE.  Japan.  South Africa.  Prague.  London.  Vancouver.  And from all over the U.S.  Adamant arguments on both sides, from both men and women. 

 

I’m quoting here: “Dylan doesn’t deserve him.”  “The man’s a prince.  He deserves a girlfriend who treats him right.”  “David should get a spine and stand up to her.  Then maybe he’d be datable.”  “They both deserve better.  He’s a wimp and she’s a pain in the ass.”  “She can’t live without him!”  “He’s the one stabilizing influence in her life.”  And my personal fave, “Please, please, Melanie, don’t take away the ONLY person who ever really, really loved her!!”

 

Which led me to ponder the place of romance in our stories and in our lives.  As a modern, liberated woman, I determined long ago (well, pretty long ago) that I’d never again depend on a man for my well-being.  My livelihood, my ability to change a tire, my sense of peace and happiness in the world… these were all my responsibility.  Hang your hat on some man’s hook and he’s liable to steal it, stomp on it, or ask you to wear it with those teeny, invisible lace panties he gave you (HA!) for Mother’s Day.  Or if he’s really bad news, he might urinate in it, shoot a hole through it, and then hand it back to you with a smile on his face.  But rarely will he take it off the hook, gently place your (unsullied) hat back on your head where it belongs, place his own on his head, and walk side by side with you into the future. 

 

The thing is, though, this is what we’re all looking for.  This is the juice.  What women want, (listen up, fellas!) is a man who, though not a perfect man, is the perfect man for you.  A man who’ll give you a run for your money.  Who dislikes all the same people you do.  Who looks at you like you’re the smartest person he’s ever met while you’re telling a story at a dinner party.  A man who throws back his head and laughs at your jokes, but will call you out if you fail him.  A man who thinks you look pretty damn terrific in that hat.

 

So if you’re still looking for your David Shykovsky, here’s a suggestion.  Leave your umbrella at home and wear a hat next time it rains.  Take note of the man who looks your way with an admiring, respectful gaze.  That man just might be worth a cup of coffee and a conversation. And boys – a word for you – tip your hat, say “thank you, ma’am” and “please.”  And rise from your chair when a woman enters the room.  And if you’re lucky, she might just be willing to sit down to a cup of coffee with you. 

 

In the meantime, let’s all just keep reading.

 

Melanie Wells, who lives and writes in Dallas, is the author of When the Day of Evil Comes, The Soul Hunter, and My Soul to Keep.  She never uses an umbrella in the rain.  When not in use, her cowboy hat hangs on a hook in her study, where she can keep an eye on it. 

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Jean Johnson Book Winner!

We have a winner! I have an extra copy of Jean Johnson’s THE SONG so I decided to give it away to one of the readers who left a comment on her post.

 

The winner of post is….

 

TeresaW!!

 

Congrats Teresa!

 

Please email me your snail mail addy at mad @ romancereaderatheart.com (without the spaces). Enjoy!

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Cathy Maxwell Book Winner!

We have a winner!

 

The winner of Cathy Maxwell’s post is….

 

WendyK!!

 

Congrats Wendy!

 

Please email me your snail mail addy at mad @ romancereaderatheart.com (without the spaces). Enjoy!

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