ARE THEY FIT TO BE TIED?
Ever since Dylan Stone beat Veronica Chasen out of a prime position at the Cleveland Herald, they’ve been bitter rivals, engaging in a very public war of words in their competing newspaper columns. They routinely challenge each other to go bungee jumping, white water rafting, or into tattoo parlors to see who will wimp out first. But Veronica’s latest taunt may be Dylan’s toughest assignment yet: She dares him to learn to knit.
OR WILL DESIRE UNRAVEL THEM BOTH?
Dylan is not going to let something his grandmother can do scare him off. He’s man enough to make a scarf—and attend Veronica’s weekly knitting circle. But when the infuriatingly handsome Dylan shows up at the craft shop and charms all the ladies, Veronica begins to get all knotted up in something that feels a lot like love… But will the two ever stop needling each other?
Hello, everyone! And thank you so much, Fatin, for inviting me to Novel Thoughts to chat about TANGLED UP IN LOVE. This is the first book in my “Chicks with Sticks” knitting trilogy, it’s being released tomorrow!!!!!, & I’m so excited, I’m practically vibrating right out of my chair!
I have so much I want to share about Dylan & Ronnie’s story that I’m not sure where to begin, but let me start by saying that this story is super-sexy, super-funny, & definitely like nothing you’ve ever read before where knitting is concerned. As my editor & I are fond of saying, “This is not your grandmother’s knitting romance”—although I would certainly love to hear that grandmothers are, indeed, reading & loving TANGLED UP IN LOVE. 🙂
What else? Well, you can read an excerpt at my website …and today at my WIPs and Chains blog I actually have a super-duper exclusive second excerpt posted, if you’d like to check it out. 😉
You can also visit Must Love Yarn, the very special blog I’ve set up to both chat about the “Chicks with Sticks” books & discuss the exceptional art of knitting.
Now to get down to business. I recently had the…um, okay, let’s say pleasure…of interviewing the hero and heroine of TANGLED UP IN LOVE, Dylan Stone and Ronnie Chasen. It was…interesting, to say the least.
For those of you who may be on the “Blog Tour 2009” bus with me *g*, you may have already seen Part 1 of this interview over at Jennifer’s Random Musings last Wednesday. There was so much good stuff
So consider this “Interview with Dylan and Ronnie—Part 2”:
Heidi Betts: So, Dylan, I hear Ronnie is giving you knitting lessons. I find that rather peculiar, considering she’s the one who challenged you to learn in the first place and is probably hoping you fail miserable. But, anyway, how’s it going?
Dylan Stone: Great. I think I’m really getting the hang of this yarn and needles thing.
Veronica Chasen: [snort] Yeah, right.
Dylan: What, you don’t think I’m catching on?
Veronica: Oh, no, you’re doing great. [eyes rolling] Nothing an untrained monkey couldn’t figure out, but, hey.
Dylan: If I’m doing so badly, maybe the fault lies with the teacher and not the student. Ever think of that?
Veronica: [crossing arms over chest] Hey, don’t blame me. No matter how hard you try, you can’t fix stupid.
Heidi: [wincing] Ouch. That seems rather harsh.
Dylan: [grinning] Don’t mind her. She’s just feeling pissy because she knows I’m going to beat the pants off her…and she’s afraid she’ll like it.
Veronica: Oh, get over yourself, Stone!
Dylan: Come on, Ronnie, admit it–you want me.
Veronica: [batting lashes & leaning toward him] Oh, I do, I really do. [straightening away] About as much as I want a flesh-eating bacteria on my…bikini area.
Dylan: [eyes darting down to Veronica’s…bikini area] Speaking of which, how’d that visit to the waxer turn out.
Veronica: [flinching slightly, but quickly recovering] Wouldn’t you like to know?
Dylan: [grinning widely] Why, yes, I would. Care to show me?
Veronica: Not in this lifetime. And stop staring, Stone, or I’ll castrate you with one of your own knitting needles.
Heidi: [clearing throat] All righty, then. How about moving on to a new topic before someone gets hurt.
[Dylan grunts. Veronica shrugs.]
Heidi: So this whole back-and-forth challenge thing you’ve got going… You’ve made each other go bungee jumping, sky diving, get a tattoo, get your legs waxed… I have to ask—who’s winning?
Dylan and Veronica [at the same time]: I am.
Veronica: [glowering at Dylan] Just because you haven’t wimped out yet, Stone, doesn’t mean you won’t. If you lose this knitting challenge, you’re toast. I’ll win, which means I get to keep your beloved Harrison Award.
Dylan: [scowling right back] Then I guess I better not lose.
Heidi: [shifting uncomfortably in her seat at awkward silence and a noise that sounds suspiciously like molars being ground to dust] Gosh, it has been just great chatting with you today.
Hmm, I don’t know. Do you think these two will ever be able to put their differences behind them? Do you think they’ll even be able to get through the entire book without killing each other? (I hope so, otherwise we’re in for a rather odd Happily Ever After.) I have it on pretty good authority, though, that when these two get together, it’s not only verbal volleys that fly through the air, but some rather hot sparks, as well. 😉
As I said earlier, tomorrow is the day! TANGLED UP IN LOVE will very soon be hitting the shelves, and I can’t wait to hear what you think of the first book in my sexy, funny knitting romance trilogy.
I don’t have copies of TANGLED UP IN LOVE yet, but three is one of my favorite numbers, there are three books in the “Chicks with Sticks” trilogy, and tomorrow—release day! in case I haven’t mentioned it a time or twelve before *vbg*—so I would love to draw three winners from today’s comments and let them each pick an autographed title from my backlist. This includes the HOTTER THAN HELL anthology, by the way, even though it’s a bit higher on the page.)
Thank you again for having me as your guest today, and for giving Dylan and Ronnie a chance to…say hello? Chat? Vent? Ah, well, I’m sure they’ll work out their differences eventually. Maybe. 😉
Love and stitches!
Heidi Betts
www.HeidiBetts.com/WIPsandChains
Honorary Mention of Book Sluts 'R' Us Blogger Awards by 
RR@H Novel Thoughts & Book Talk 