Sharon Cullen Guest Blog and Giveaway

In Sharon Cullen’s sizzling novel of scandal and seduction, a headstrong beauty is pursued across Europe by London’s most notorious rake.

Having vowed never to wed again, widowed viscountess Claire Hartford is about to do the unthinkable: travel unaccompanied across the continent in search of a lover. Her adventure begins sooner than expected, when she meets a magnificent cloaked stranger on her ship’s gangplank. He is Lord Blythe, a man whispered about in London’s ballrooms and drawing rooms, a scandalous rogue hell-bent on seduction.

Nathan Ferguson curses the day he agreed to look out for his best friend’s wayward sister. The charismatic earl is traveling to Paris to uncover the truth behind his father’s death, but his desire for Claire threatens to be his undoing. From France to Italy, on a journey of passionate discovery and danger, Nathan is honor-bound to protect her—from himself most of all. What can he offer Claire? Only love, as he sets out to prove to the woman of his dreams that she belongs to him—body, heart, and soul. 

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St. Bernard Dogs by Sharon Cullen

While writing LOVING THE EARL I had to do much research about the Swiss Alps because my hero and heroine have to cross the Alps to get to Italy.

I discovered so many neat, interesting things about the Alps but the most interesting for me were the St. Bernard dogs. I’m a dog lover so that shouldn’t be too surprising.

But, oh man, after learning about these dogs I WANT ONE! Or two. Or three.

I mean, who wouldn’t want something as cute and cuddly as this?

But there is so much more to these dogs.

It is believed that the St. Bernard dog was brought to the Alps by the Romans. They’re named after the St. Bernard monks who live in the Great St. Bernard Pass. The St. Bernard dogs of today look different from the St. Bernard’s of that time, however. During an increased number of avalanches from 1816-1818 the dogs were almost wiped out. The remaining dogs were cross-bred with Newfoundlands and that is how we get the modern looking St. Bernard.

St. Bernards are not taught to search and rescue from humans but rather from the older dogs. How cool is that? Just proves that dogs really are smart.

There is some question as to whether the dogs actually carried barrels of wine around their neck. Some people say its fiction while others say there is much evidence to suggest they did.

The most well known St. Bernard was named Berry and he rescued anywhere from 40-100 people in his lifetime.

To me that is just amazing that these dogs are trained by their canine elders and they saved so many lives.

Plus they’re cute and cuddly looking. Even if they are as large as small horses. Okay, not really, but close.

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Sharon Cullen’s BIO:

Sharon Cullen is the author of the historical romance, THE NOTORIOUS LADY ANNE, LOVING THE EARL, and PLEASING THE PIRATE (available February 2014). She’s also published in romantic suspense, paranormal romance and contemporary romance.

Her other job descriptions include chauffer, laundress, cook and mediator to her three very busy kids, her husband and two dogs. She lives in southwest Ohio with her brood although her dream is to someday retire to St. Maarten and live on the beach.

If you’d like to find out more about Sharon and her books, you can visit her website. She’s addicted to social networking so you can find her on Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter. Friend her! Like her! Follow her! She’d love to hang out with you and talk about her passion—books.

Links for LOVING THE EARL:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Loving-Earl-Loveswept-Historical-Romance-ebook/dp/B00CQZ65N8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383861206&sr=8-1&keywords=loving+the+earl

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/loving-the-earl-sharon-cullen/1115688094?ean=9780345540065

Random House: http://www.randomhouse.com/book/221562/loving-the-earl-by-sharon-cullen

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For a chance to win a signed copy of Her Dark Knight, a title from Sharon Cullen’s backlist, just leave a comment below. Good luck! 😀 (U.S. only)