New model?

Every cover for the last several years seemed like it had Nathan Kamp all over it. Now it looks like there’s a new guy in town. Is it just me or do all these covers have the same guy on them?

SHOOT TO THRILL by Nina Bruhns

A disillusioned black-ops hero is kidnapped by his ruthless former employers and forced to go on a suicide mission back to the scene of his worst betrayal—-but an innocent woman is caught in the trap and sent with him, forcing him to choose: her life, or his vengeance.

KYLE “KICK” JACKSON is a bona fide bad-ass. The product of a rough childhood and a youth spent proving how tough he was, Kick was the perfect CIA black-ops operative. Right up until the fateful mission that left his best friend dead and Kick in the hospital for months. They were betrayed…from the inside. Now his former bosses will stop at nothing, including kidnapping, to get him back to complete his mission.

Unfortunately, there is a complication. A big one.

LORRAINE “RAINIE” MARTIN is a fiercely dedicated ER nurse—-a vocation decided upon when her parents were killed in a brutal carjacking. But the impenetrable fortress of safety she has erected around herself and her heart do no good when she finds herself stranded in the unforgiving desert, dependent on a dangerous man without mercy for her very survival…and the only way home is to confront her worst fears.

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THE DARKEST HOUR by Maya Banks

Available in September 2010 from
Berkley Sensation

The Kelly Group International (KGI): A super elite, top secret, family-run business.

Qualifications: High intelligence, rock hard body, military background.

Mission: Hostage/kidnap victim recovery. Intelligence gathering. Handling jobs the US government can’t…

It’s been one year since ex-Navy SEAL Ethan Kelly last saw his wife Rachel alive.  Overwhelmed by grief and guilt over his failures as a husband, Ethan shuts himself off from everything and everyone.

His brothers have tried to bring Ethan into the KGI fold, tried to break through the barriers he’s built around himself, but Ethan refuses to respond …until he receives an anonymous phone call claiming Rachel is alive.

To save her, Ethan will have to dodge bullets, cross a jungle, and risk falling captive to a deadly drug cartel that threatens his own demise. And even if he succeeds, he’ll have to force Rachel to recover memories she can’t and doesn’t want to relive—the minute by minute terror of her darkest hour—for their love, and their lives, may depend on it.

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A KISS TO KILL by Nina Bruhns

Comes out April 6, 2010

Eight months ago, Dr. Gina Cappozi and CIA black ops commando Captain Gregg van Halen were lovers…until Gregg committed the ultimate betrayal. Left in the hands of terrorists, Gina vowed to kill the man she once loved.

She knows that he lives in the shadow world of violence and darkness. She knows that he’s watching her every move. What she doesn’t know is that Gregg isn’t the only one following her–or that he still cherishes her.

When her need for revenge leads Gina back into Gregg’s bed, she rediscovers another irresistible need. Now, with the threat of enemies at every turn, Gina and Gregg realize that the power of betrayal and revenge is nothing compared to the power of love.

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Now that I look at all three covers, I think it’s the same guy on Nina’s covers but for Maya’s, I think it’s a different model?

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Loucinda McGary shares a few FAQs

He’s a charming Irish rogue who never met a lock he couldn’t pick…

Keirnan Fitzgerald is desperate to locate the missing Jewels of the Madonna. With danger at every corner and time running out, he must use whatever means possible to uncover the stolen jewels in time to save his sister’s life…

She’s simply in Venice to relax and heal her broken heart…

Samantha Lewis is shocked when a dashing stranger approaches her in a Venetian café pretending to know her. She’s ready for something new and exciting in her life, so she throws caution to the wind and accompanies the Irish charmer into his dangerous world intrigue, theft, and betrayal…

As the centuries-old story behind the Jewel’s disappearance is revealed, Samantha must decide whether the man she’s so compellingly drawn to is her soul mate from a previous life, or if they are merely pawns in a relentless quest for a priceless treasure…

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Thank you so much for having me on the blog today! I’m excited to share a little bit about myself and my current romantic suspense release, The Treasures of Venice, with everyone today!

Throughout the course of my current guest blogging tour, a lot of wonderful blog readers have left some questions in the comments, as well as friends and fellow writers who want to know anything and everything about writing romance novels. A few have been repeated a couple of times, so I thought I’d share them and my answers with you today!

You’ve said that a piece of classical music inspired The Treasures of Venice.  What other music inspires you? Do you play music while you’re writing?

Yes, my original inspiration for The Treasures of Venice started when I heard the incidental music to the opera Jewels of the Madonna by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. I can’t say that any other book was especially tied to a piece of music.

Classical music is my favorite, though I enjoy a wide variety of musical genres. Beethoven is my particular favorite, with Mozart and F.J. Haydn close behind. I also have a special fondness for traditional Celtic music, be it Scottish, Irish, or Welsh. Something about pipes, harps, and fiddles really stirs my Celtic soul.

I know lots of writers listen to music when they write and some even have ‘play lists’ for particular books while they are writing them. Unfortunately, I am too easily distracted, especially by lyrics, so I don’t listen to anything when I am writing first drafts of my books. Revisions are a whole ‘nother story. But I know that I am using a completely different part of my brain when I’m dealing with words already on the paper (or screen) than when I’m facing a blank page.

If music has inspired you, has artwork every triggered a suggestion for a plot or character?

As a matter of fact, a Renaissance portrait of a young woman named Gianna Tournabouri inspired me to create the character Serafina Lombardo in The Treasures of Venice.

I’m a very visual person, and I do like to have photos for inspiration when I’m writing. I’ve used my own photos from trips to Venice and Ireland, as well as guide and picture books from there. I also like to find photos, usually of celebrities, who look the way I picture my main characters. So when you are reading The Treasures of Venice if a certain Scottish actor whose initials are GB springs into your mind, it is not a coincidence!

Why do you include a paranormal element in your suspense novels?

The obvious answer here is because it is fun! I do like paranormal, but there are already dozens of authors who do a fantastic job of writing about vampires, demons, shape-shifters and all those paranormal characters. I like to make my paranormal elements feel like something that could actually happen to a ‘normal’ person in everyday life.

I’ve always like that little bit of ‘woo woo’ in the stories I read so it was only natural to include them in the stories I write. Paranormal is a very popular sub-genre of fiction right now, so obviously many other readers like ‘woo woo’ too! I hope that little extra twist in my stories will keep readers interested in the story as they read, and make them eager to read more of my stories.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Writing and travel are my two biggest passions, but I suppose you already figured that out. When I do have spare time (like on a plane or a cruise ship) I like to read, knit and crochet. My mother taught me to knit when I was fourteen and it is one of the few things I can successfully do right-handed. She never could teach me to crochet, I learned in an adult education class at a local community college in my mid-twenties. The instructor taught herself to crochet left-handed so she could separately teach all her lefty students! My favorite things to make are things with an easy pattern and not too many pieces to sew together. So a lot of friends and family receive scarves and small afghans (especially baby afghans) from me.

Thank you again for allowing me to guest blog! I hope you enjoyed a little insight in to one writer’s process. If you have any other questions about me, my books, or crochet projects, I’d love to answer them.

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Thank you so much for visiting, Ms McGary!

Sourcebooks is giving away a set of Ms McGary’s two novels, The Wild Sight and The Treasures of Venice, to a lucky commenter (limited to US and Canada residents). Visit Ms McGary’s website to learn more about her work.

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