I am delighted to be sharing this author and novel with you today, it has been on my schedule and I have been eagerly awaiting it! Big thanks to Goddess Fish for allowing me a spot, I am delighted to be working with them as well! Please check out the entire tour schedule
HERE.
Genie will be giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour and a $10 gift card to Powells bookstore to one commenter at every stop.
About the Author:
For years I've been fascinated by the puzzle of why some people collapse under life's traumas and others emerge triumphantly stronger. In a job surrounded by social workers and in my personal life, I saw the effects of abuse, incest, and violence. Yet amid the stark realities of addictions, anger, abandonment, denial and betrayal shone the bright light of strength, hope and forgiveness. These triumphs of the human spirit over the ugliest of adversities became the basis for my stories. My passion for writing romance stories became an outlet for the powerful messages that people can overcome great difficulties, and that true love can turn life’s heartaches into happily ever after.
Blog for The Legacy Series (PICTURE PERFECT LEGACY is the first book of the series):
http://oshealegacyseries.blogspot.com/
About the Book:
Social worker Marly O'Shea is determined to find the birth mother of a stolen baby, which leads to Halo, Oregon, and an "accidental" marriage to Deputy Dawson Browning. Haunted by memories of an abusive childhood, Dawson vows to protect this child from a similar fate. Marly and Dawson's conflict over the best home for the baby changes to teamwork when crimes linked to the child hit small-town Halo. As they track an elusive villain, they must also decide if their partnership can be personal as well as professional.
Book Excerpts:
Excerpt #1
The tires of the Jeep hit gravel, then slushy mud. Frantically down-shifting, Marly eased to a stop and sat frozen. Nothing dared intrude on the deafening silence of the night but the roar of a creek echoing in a canyon far below.
A sharp rap on her door sent her grabbing for the purse that had slid onto the floor. Reaching inside, her fingers wrapped around the taser her overprotective brothers presented to her as a moving-away-from-home gift.
“Are you hurt?” The man's voice flowed like melted honey, its comforting tones at odds with his unkempt appearance.
Many times her brothers scolded her for being too trusting. Narrow hips and long legs snugly encased in worn blue jeans could belong to a serial killer as easily as a white knight.
“Step out while I check your vehicle for damage.” A jagged scar over the man’s right eyebrow gleamed as he reached for her door handle.
Every murder mystery she read as a teenager gave the bad guy a scar. She wasn’t taking any chances. Adrenaline pumped through Marly’s body once again as she leveled the taser at the man’s chest. “Step away from the vehicle.”
Marly juggled the taser in one hand while using the other to crank the key in the ignition. The man quick-stepped backward as she shoved the vehicle into gear and stomped on the gas, leaving her mystery rescuer--or would-be attacker--standing with the snow falling on the dark velvet of his tousled hair.
Excerpt #2
Dawson watched the exchange between Marly and her brothers with interest. He didn’t grow up with a bunch of brothers involved in each other's day-to-day lives.
“There’s an old Irish custom that might be of help in this situation.” Patrick stood, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. “When a man expresses an interest in an Irish lass--you are interested in Marly, aren’t you, Mr. Browning?”
“Very much so.” Dawson wondered what trick this seemingly easygoing priest would pull out of his vestments.
“Irish custom states when a man declares his intent to court a lass, he must meet certain requirements from the lass’ immediate family.”
“You’re all adopted and we’re not Irish,” Marly stated.
“Ah, lass, you wound me.” Patrick placed a hand over his heart. “We are family in action and Irish in all ways that matter.”
“Spare me the theatrics.” Marly rolled her eyes.
“The right of refusal belongs not to the lass, but to the prospective groom.” Patrick turned to Dawson. “Arise, my son.”
Slowly, Dawson stood, feeling like a small child caught stealing from the church plate.
“For the honor of courting this fair lassie, you will be required to meet a challenge from each of her seven brothers--“
“No.” Marly placed herself between Dawson and her brothers. “I will make the decision of who I marry.”
“I can beat these wimps at their own games,” Dawson declared.
Marly groaned as her brothers' eyes lit with anticipation of the game begun.
Excerpt #3
Who am I? The cold from the moss-covered boulder on which Marly sat seeped into her bones. Into her soul.
For twenty-eight years, Marly thought the blood of Bernie and Tallie O’Shea flowed through her veins. She thought Tallie treated her differently because she was a girl and, she thought smugly, their only biological child.
But she wasn’t.
Which raised many other questions. All her brothers were adopted. Why would it matter that she was too? Why would Tallie keep the secret of Marly’s birth all these years? Did they think she couldn’t handle the reality of being adopted without falling apart?
Yet she was falling apart. Or at least tumbling into an abyss of uncertainty as the foundation of her entire life crumbled beneath her feet. If she wasn’t Marlena Catherine Alexandria O’Shea, who was she?
“Marly, get down!”
She twisted toward the shouted warning. Dawson ran toward her, his face lined with grim determination, his gun pointed at--
Marly turned to look behind her.
A shadow, tall and jagged, loomed among the spiky masts of the fir trees. As adrenaline spurted through her body, Marly rolled off the boulder and landed in a crouch behind it...
Author Interview:
First, I'd like to say many thanks to Everyday is an Adventure for having me as a guest. Love the title of this blog, as every day is indeed an adventure!
What book is on your nightstand now?
Well, this is embarrassing...I can't exactly find my nightstand. I mean, I think it was there when I was reading LETTERS FROM HOME by Kristina McMorris, but when I started DRAGONS AMONG US by C.L. Kraemer, it had kinda disappeared. I prefer to think it's in some dragon's lair and not actually buried behind the four-plus boxes of print books yet to be read and the lists of e-books I want to download...
What was your favorite book when you were a child?
Those were the days when there wasn't much money in my family for more than basics. But there were always books passed around among relatives or friends, and my parents carved out money to subscribe to the Readers Digest. So I read that magazine a lot and also their condensed books. My mom also took my siblings and me to our small-town library pretty much every week. My hometown isn't as small as fictional Halo in my LEGACY series, and the library was a room only about thirty feet square, but we read as many of those books as we could. Being surrounded by books was a gift my parents gave me that I didn't fully appreciate until I was an adult. I thought everyone had that privilege.
Who are your top five authors?
It's tough to choose favorites because I enjoy the books of so many authors. And I have a tendency to read an entire backlist of one author, then go on to someone else. I also love reading books by authors I know or have met. So when I meet a new author, I am introduced to a whole new world of books.
What books have you faked reading?
None. If I don't like a book, I pass it along in hopes someone else will enjoy it. And if I truly haven't read it and it sounds interesting, I'll ask someone about it.
What books are you an evangelist for?
It's a self-help book by Louise Hay called HEAL YOUR BODY. She lists physical ailments and the probable emotional cause of those ailments. It's fascinating to me that emotions can show up as physical symptoms. For instance, if you can't "handle" something, it can show up as hand problems. I went through the list of physical ailments I've experienced over my lifetime and was amazed at how accurate the emotional causes were. Sorry--evangelizing here. :)
What books have you bought for the cover?
Sheila Rabe's A PRINCE OF A GUY. It has a cute frog wearing a crown and carrying flowers. It's adorable!
What books have changed your life?
Um, the one I closed with a thump and the statement, "I can write better than this." That was many years ago, and I quickly learned writing a book wasn't so easy. However, I kept learning and am now grateful to the nameless author of that nameless book who started my journey to being a writer.
What is your favorite line from a book?
Again, it's tough for me to choose favorites because I'm interested in so many things. At the risk of sounding egotistical, I'm going to choose some favorite lines from my current release, PICTURE PERFECT LEGACY.
--Narrow hips and long legs snugly encased in worn blue jeans could belong to a serial killer as easily as a white knight. [Marly's thought on meeting Dawson on a dark road during a snow storm.]
--What did a priest do in a strip club, anyway? Dawson thought. Drink club soda and quietly convince the girls to find another line of work, it seemed…
--As the gray fingers of dawn were creeping over the cityscape, Marly awakened to the sound of her lock being picked. Again.
--Before long, she fell asleep, burrowed against his body and, he feared, into his heart. If she decided she didn’t want their marriage, Dawson was facing one helluva heartbreak.
--Marly felt like an amnesia victim, but with her memory still intact.
Since I have such a hard time choosing favorites, perhaps readers could share some of their favorites with me--book, author, cover? I'll check them out and maybe make some new discoveries!
If you're not a member of a book club, you are missing something GREAT! I am a huge proponent of not only reading, but sharing that passion for reading with others and there is hardly a better way than to engage with good friends about the good books you are reading. My book club began last summer as a way for a group of teachers to get together, get some much needed relaxation all while reading and talking about some great new novels!
