Snowbound & Loving It

LOVE ME SWEET

A Bell Harbor romance

Montlake

Delaney Masterson isn’t looking for fame.

Yes, she has famous parents and a reality TV show, but she’s not the wild-child celebrity the paparazzi have painted her to be. Until…The Scandal. When an old boyfriend releases a private video, Delaney’s name becomes every comedian’s favorite punch line. To escape the media, she sneaks away to Bell Harbor, Michigan—during the worst winter in fifty years.

Adventure show cameraman Grant Connelly has stayed away from Bell Harbor—mostly by choice—but when a family obligation converges with a spontaneous career decision, it’s time to return home.

When bad weather, missing money, honky-tonk musicians, and Elvis impersonators throw Grant and Delaney together on an unexpected road trip, emotions get all shook up. They know only fools fall in love, but they can’t help falling. Still, Delaney has a secret that could tear them apart forever.

Can they weather the storm? Or will this romantic ride end at the Heartbreak Hotel?

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Bestselling author TRACY BROGAN writes fun, funny contemporary romance about ordinary people finding extraordinary love. She also writes lush historical romance full of damsels causing distress – and the occasional man in a kilt. A two-time Golden Heart nominee, and two-time winner of the Golden Quill award, Brogan was also nominated by Romance Writers of America® (RWA) for a prestigious RITA award for Best First Book in 2013, and has received the coveted Amazon Publishing Diamond Award for selling over one million copies. She lives in Michigan, the state shaped like a mitten, and is therefore prone to pointing the palm of her hand to show people where she’s from.

THE Q&A

ANGI: How are you staying warm this winter?

TRACY: My home office has a fireplace and I have it on most of the time! But when I get really cold, all I have to do is sit on the couch and dogs show up and lay all over me. Their breath smells like tennis balls, but they do provide some heat!

ANGI: Can you tell us about a real-life hero you’ve met?

TRACY: I have a 95 year old friend named Virgil who trained to be a pilot during World War 2. But just before he got his wings, the Army realized his father was Japanese and they demoted him to the 442^nd, an all Japanese regiment. It went on to become a highly decorated group and who saw a lot of action and ultimately helped liberate Dachau. After the war, Virgil went on to become an engineer and has 25 patents to his name. But the best part is that he learned to tap dance – when he was 72! He has more energy than I do! I love his spirit.

ANGI: What’s your favorite part of LOVE ME SWEET?

TRACY: There are some characters in the story based (very loosely!) on a couple of honky-tonk musicians I met during a research trip to Memphis. They were sexy, and sassy, and sang totally inappropriate lyrics, but they were fun and inspired a few great scenes.

ANGI: What’s your favorite Benedict Cumberbatch character?

TRACY: It would have to be Kahn because I’m one of the few people on the planet who have never seen Sherlock! And in spite of thinking he’s adorable (and has the best name ever), I have no idea what else he’s been in. I’m more of a Hiddleston girl.

ANGI: What do you like about the hero of your book?

TRACY: I love his arc. He starts out being kind of a dude, not really thinking about anyone but himself, but he realizes pretty early in the story that he’s got to make some changes. He’s compelled to become a better man because of what he goes through with the heroine.

ANGI: Would you rather be in a Romantic Comedy or Action Adventure?

TRACY: Hands down, a romantic comedy. Laughing is the best way to pass the time for me. And I’d be pretty useless in an action-adventure anything. I’m clumsy and spineless.

ANGI: What's your most favorite thing to do in your state?

TRACY: Weather around here can be unpredictable, which is great when I’m trying to come up with a plot element and need my characters to huddle together under a blanked to keep warm. However, it also means that sunny days are not to be taken for granted. Gorgeous summer days mean lounging at the lake and Michigan has some of the best beaches. In LOVE ME SWEET, the heroine reads about them in Conde Nast and it’s what prompts her to head to Bell Harbor.

ANGI: Western boots or high heels?

TRACY: Ironically I’m breaking in my first (and probably last) set of cowboy boots right this minute. I bought them in San Antonio during the last RWA conference. And not too long ago my thirteen year old tried them on, clicked her heels together three times and said, “There’s no place like home on the range.”

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: I noticed on Facebook that you were breaking in a new pair of western boots from San Antonio. What was your favorite thing about visiting?

TRACY’S GOTTA ANSWER:  I loved San Antonio and Texas in general. I expected it to be more… deserty and cactusy. But it was beautiful. I flew in to Dallas and the fabulous Elizabeth Essex drove me across the state for a little hush-hush research trip. We stopped at a Butterfly Garden right in the middle of virtually nowhere. Well, to me it seemed like the middle of nowhere. By Texas geographical standards, it was probably someplace! Then we moseyed on to San Antonio. After buying a ceramic armadillo.

FIND TRACY

Contact     Website     Facebook    

Twitter @TracyBrogan     Goodreads   Firebirds    Previous GLIAS interview

UP NEXT for TRACY

Right now I’m working on a Christmas novella called JINGLE BELL HARBOR which will come out next fall, then I’m completely switching gears and finishing up a World War Two love story. This is one I’ve carried around in my head for a long time and I’m so excited to finish it and share it!

PREVIOUS RELEASES by TRACY

THE BEST MEDICINE

A Bell Harbor Novel

READ a little, BUY the book

CRAZY LITTLE THING

A Bell Harbor romance

READ a little, BUY the book

TRACY is giving away a tote bag of Brogan swag including autographed copies of CRAZY LITTLE THING and THE BEST MEDICINE.

International giveaway.

Note: COMMENTERS are encouraged to leave a contact email address to speed the prize notification process. Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless specifically mentioned in the post. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Winners of drawings are responsible for checking this site in a timely manner. If prizes are not claimed in a timely manner, the author may not have a prize available. Get Lost In A Story cannot be responsible for an author's failure to mail the listed prize. GLIAS does not automatically pass email addresses to guest authors unless the commenter publicly posts their email address.

ANGI'S back next Wednesday with

Best-selling author JULIA LONDON

UP NEXT ON GLIAS:  Jan Evans

~Angi Morgan

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or @GetLostInAStory  #GetLostStories

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TRACY WANTS TO KNOW: Grant and Delaney get snowbound during the worst Michigan winter in fifty years. So my question for you is, if you had to be (or got to be!) snowed in with one other person, real or fictional, living or not, who would you choose and why?

TRACY BROGAN

THE BEST MEDICINE

A Bell Harbor Novel

Montlake Romance

Everyone in Bell Harbor thinks career-minded plastic surgeon Evelyn Rhoades needs a husband. Everyone, that is, except for Evelyn…sort of. Even if she did want a husband (which she doesn’t…most of the time), she’d never let something as intangible as fate determine who she marries. No, if she’s going to find someone to spend her life with, she’ll do it scientifically: with a carefully crafted list of criteria and an Internet dating site.

But when intoxicated, law-breaking Tyler Connelly crashes into her life by way of a stolen Jet Ski, unruly emotions defy common sense. Sure, he’s sexy, charming, and determined to win Evelyn’s affection, but all evidence points to him being the worst possible choice. He’s too young for her. Too irresponsible. Too underemployed. And, oh yeah, he’s her patient.

But Tyler knows firsthand how the best-laid plans can crumble under the weight of destiny. Now all he needs to do is to teach Evelyn that, in matters of the heart, love often supersedes logic.

READ a little, BUY the book

Past or present, TRACY BROGAN loves romance. She writes funny contemporary stories about ordinary people finding extraordinary love, and stirring historical romance full of political intrigue, damsels causing distress, and the occasional man in a kilt.

Tracy is a best-selling author, a 2013 RWA® RITA Best First Book Finalist for CRAZY LITTLE THING, and a two-time Golden Heart Finalist in both contemporary and historical romance.

Tracy lives in Michigan with her husband, her children and their overly-indulged dogs.

THE EVERYDAY Q&A

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading? 

TRACY: My very first was I AM A BUNNY by Richard Scarry, but my first romance novel was ISLAND FLAME by Karen Robards. I was 16 and fell madly in love with the pirate hero. I still have that book. It’s held together with surgical tape, but a few years ago I took it to the RWA national conference, met Karen, and she autographed for me. That was a thrill and I think she was tickled that I’d kept it.

ANGI: What do you like about the hero of your book?

TRACY: I love that he’s a ‘real’ kind of guy. He’s not a super-alpha, quasi-superhero. He’s a sexy guy who works hard and likes to take care of people. My tagline is “ordinary people finding extraordinary love,” so most of my heroes are men you might actually meet. They’re not perfect men, they’re just perfect for the heroine.

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?

TRACY: I have a vintage 1960’s rocking chair in my office, and a foot massager! So I like to read there, but I’ll actually read anywhere. If I have a good book in front of me, I could read in the middle of a tornado. As far as how often, I can only say not nearly often enough. I would read all day if the kids would only feed themselves.

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?

TRACY: I love the sound of wind rustling leaves on trees. When we built a house ten years ago, there were no mature trees, just lots of neighbor sounds – lawn mowers, kids on bikes, dogs barking. That can be pleasant too, but as an introvert, I like to feel as if I’m completely alone. We’ve recently moved and our new place is surrounded by big, old trees and I love it.

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

TRACY: I love A Knight’s Tale with the wonderful Heath Ledger. Loved the style and idea of it, the humor, the romance, the jousting.  I also loved Crazy Stupid Love. That is a fantastic example of a smart, engaging, authentic romantic comedy. And Ryan Gosling abs. There was that, too. 

ANGI: What is your biggest vice?

TRACY: How long is this article supposed to be? My vices are varied and ever-present but lack of self-discipline is huge. Huge. My daughter challenged me to give up Facebook for one day, and then caught me sneaking online after she’d gone to bed. This is supposed to be the other way around, isn’t it?

ANGI: How is it working with hot guys and sexy women all day?

TRACY: Tough. Oh, so tough! But someone has to do it, right? Like many writers, I ‘mentally cast’ my books with beautiful people, and I have a tendency to fixate on one actor at a time. I spend my days talking to him and get very invested, but then if someone starts posting pictures on Facebook of some other actor that I plan to use in the future, I get very distracted! And the funny thing is, once I’ve used an actor for a particular book, I’m done with him! Apparently I’m quite fickle about my men, but I use the same actresses over and over again.

ANGI: Who’s your favorite villain?

TRACY: So easy. I am Team Loki. Kristan Higgins sent me a picture that says, “Hiddleston in the streets, Loki in the sheets.” To date, it’s had 147 shares and almost 300 likes so clearly I’m not the only one.

  

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: What's your favorite scene in THE BEST MEDICINE? And can you tell us a little about it?

TRACY'S GOTTA ANSWER:   Would it be self-serving to say I love them all? ; )

Okay, in that case my favorite scene is when my heroine (Evie) isn’t feeling well and the hero (Tyler) takes care of her. Because she grew up with parents who were not very nurturing, and because, as a physician, she’s accustomed to being the one in charge, this is a tender but also funny moment in the story where she has to give in to physical weakness and let him rescue her. And he’s so sweet and capable, it really helps her see him in a new light. It’s an emotional turning point in her journey.

FIND TRACY

Contact     Website     Facebook     

Twitter @TracyBrogan    Goodreads    Firebirds

UP NEXT for TRACY:  

My next book, LOVE ME SWEET, is all about Tyler’s brother Grant, an action-adventure show cameraman who reluctantly joins forces with beautiful but duplicitous reality TV star as they take a road trip to romance. Release date February 2015.

PREVIOUS RELEASES by TRACY: 

HOLD ON MY HEART

Watch the Trailer

READ a little, BUY the book

HIGHLAND SURRENDER

READ a little, BUY the book

CRAZY LITTLE THING

A Bell Harbor romance

READ a little, BUY the book

 

TRACY'S is giving away a bag full o’Brogan swag, including signed copies of CRAZY LITTLE THING and THE BEST MEDICINE.

 International giveaway ends Sunday May 18th

Note: COMMENTERS are encouraged to leave a contact email address to speed the prize notification process. Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless specifically mentioned in the post. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Winners of drawings are responsible for checking this site in a timely manner. If prizes are not claimed in a timely manner, the author may not have a prize available. Get Lost In A Story cannot be responsible for an author's failure to mail the listed prize. GLIAS does not automatically pass email addresses to guest authors unless the commenter publicly posts their email address.

  

ANGI'S back next week with the release party for

THE RENEGADE RANCHER

UP NEXT ON GLIAS:  KEN CASPER

~Angi Morgan

Get Lost on Goodreads, Facebook

or @GetLostInAStory  #GetLostStories

TRACY WANTS TO KNOW: Wonderful readers, I’m at the Romantic Times convention today, so I’ll be popping in as often as possible but please forgive me if I’m not around much! Still, when I check in, I’d love to know, what’s the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for you? I’ll be choosing a winner from the commenters.

Celebrating Best First Books

The Get Lost in a Story crew sends our CONGRATULATIONS to the

THE ANATOMIST'S WIFE
Anna Lee Huber
Scotland, 1830. Following the death of her husband, Lady Darby has taken refuge at her sister's estate, finding solace in her passion for painting. But when her hosts throw a house party for the cream of London society, Kiera is unable to hide from the ire of those who believe her to be as unnatural as her husband, an anatomist who used her artistic talents to suit his own macabre purposes.

Penguin Group USA, Berkley Publishing Group 
Michelle Vega, editor

Kiera wants to put her past aside, but when one of the house guests is murdered, her brother-in-law asks her to utilize her knowledge of human anatomy to aid the insufferable Sebastian Gage-a fellow guest with some experience as an inquiry agent. While Gage is clearly more competent than she first assumed, Kiera isn't about to let her guard down as accusations and rumors swirl.

When Kiera and Gage's search leads them to even more gruesome discoveries, a series of disturbing notes urges Lady Darby to give up the inquiry. But Kiera is determined to both protect her family and prove her innocence, even as she risks becoming the next victim...

Anna is also a finalist in the Novel with Strong Romantic Elements category.

MULTIPLE CHANCES through Rafflecopter to win an autographed copy of Anna Lee Huber's THE ANATOMIST'S WIFE. Start by leaving a comment.
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CRAZY LITTLE THING
Tracy Brogan

If Sadie Turner is good at anything, it’s putting stuff in order. So when she finds her “perfect” life in disarray, she hopes a summer vacation at her aunt’s lake house will help her piece it back together. She wants to relax, reboot, and heal the wounds left by her cheating ex-husband. And that requires time away from men. All men.

Or so she thinks.

Amazon Publishing, Montlake Romance 

Kelli Martin, editor

With two slobbering dogs and two cousins living there—one a flamboyant decorator intent on making over Sadie—it’s hard to get a moment’s peace at eccentric Aunt Dody’s house, especially with everyone so determined to set her up with Desmond, the sexy new neighbor.

Desmond is Sadie’s worst nightmare. Tall, tanned, muscular…and to top it off, he’s great with her kids. But he must have a flaw—he’s a man—so Sadie vows to keep her distance.

As summer blazes on, the life Sadie is trying so hard to simplify only becomes more complicated—a new career presents itself, her evil ex haunts her, and Aunt Dody reveals a tragic secret—but maybe a little chaos is just what Sadie needs to get her life back in order.

MULTIPLE CHANCES through Rafflecopter to win autographed copies of Tracy Brogan's CRAZY LITTLE THING, HIGHLAND SURRENDER, & HOLD ON MY HEART. (north America) Start by leaving a comment.

*Please note, the delivery of Tracy's giveaway will take a couple of weeks. Thanks.

Website

FIRELIGHT
Kristen Callihan
London, 1881
Once the flames are ignited . . . 
Miranda Ellis is a woman tormented. Plagued since birth by a strange and powerful gift, she has spent her entire life struggling to control her exceptional abilities. Yet one innocent but irreversible mistake has left her family's fortune decimated and forced her to wed London's most nefarious nobleman.

Grand Central Publishing, Forever
Alex Logan, editor

They will burn for eternity . . . 
Lord Benjamin Archer is no ordinary man. Doomed to hide his disfigured face behind masks, Archer knows it's selfish to take Miranda as his bride. Yet he can't help being drawn to the flame-haired beauty whose touch sparks a passion he hasn't felt in a lifetime. When Archer is accused of a series of gruesome murders, he gives in to the beastly nature he has fought so hard to hide from the world. But the curse that haunts him cannot be denied. Now, to save his soul, Miranda will enter a world of dark magic and darker intrigue. For only she can see the man hiding behind the mask.

Kristen is also a finalist in the Paranormal category.
Previously on GLIAS
Website

FORGED IN FIRE
Trish McCallan
Beth Brown doesn't believe in premonitions. But her recent dream feels too real to ignore: a commercial airliner is hijacked, and a handsome passenger is shot dead. Beth hasn't met the mystery man in her dream; she would never forget a gorgeous face like his. But she can’t deny the bizarre connection she feels. Now awake, and unable to allow for the violence she’s convinced is impending, she races to the airport…and comes face to face with the man of her dreams.

Amazon Publishing, Montlake Romance
Lindsay Guzzardo, editor

Zane Winters lives for his job, using his uncanny psychic powers to carry out missions for elite SEAL Team 7. Yet the constant adrenaline highs can’t drown out the numbness seeping into his life as he yearns to find a woman he can trust. All that changes when he meets a beautiful stranger who sets his soul on fire—and somehow knows he’s about to die.

To thwart the global crisis the hijacking will unleash, Beth and Zane join forces. But even amid the danger, they can’t deny the powerful force drawing them together. Is it merely attraction…or destiny?

Trish is also a finalist in the Romantic Suspense category.

Website


GHOST PLANET
Sharon Lynn Fisher
A world in peril. A bond deeper than love.

Psychologist Elizabeth Cole prepared for the worst when she accepted a job on a newly discovered world - a world where every colonist is tethered to an alien who manifests in the form of a dead loved one. But she never expected she'd struggle with the requirement to shun these “ghosts.” She never expected to be so attracted to the charming Irishman assigned as her supervisor. And she certainly never expected to discover she died in a transport crash en route to the planet.

Tom Doherty Associates, Tor Books
Whitney Ross, editor

Reincarnated as a ghost, Elizabeth is symbiotically linked to her supervisor, Murphy - creator of the Ghost Protocol, which forbids him to acknowledge or interact with her. Confused and alone - oppressed by her ghost status and tormented by forbidden love - Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence.

But her quest for answers lands her in a tug-of-war between powerful interests, and she soon finds herself a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet…a struggle that could separate her forever from the man she loves.


Previously on GLIAS
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THE HAUNTING OF MADDY CLARE
Simone St. James

Sarah Piper’s lonely, threadbare existence changes when her temporary agency sends her to assist a ghost hunter. Alistair Gellis – rich, handsome, scarred by World War I, and obsessed with ghosts – has been summoned to investigate the spirit of nineteen-year-old Maddy Clare, who is haunting the barn where she committed suicide. Since Maddy hated men in life, it is Sarah’s task to confront her in death.

Penguin Group USA, New American Library
Ellen Edwards, editor

Soon Sarah is caught up in a desperate struggle. For Maddy’s ghost is real, she’s angry, and she has powers that defy all reason. Can Sarah and Alistair’s assistant, the rough, unsettling Matthew Ryder, discover who Maddy was, where she came from, and what is driving her desire for vengeance – before she destroys them all?

Simone is also a finalist in the Novel with Strong Romantic Elements category.

Previously on GLIAS
Website








MY LIFE NEXT DOOR
Huntley Fitzpatrick

“One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts.  All the time.”

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them…until one summer evening Jase Garrett climbs her trellis and changes everything. 

Penguin Group USA, Dial Books for Young Readers
Jessica Garrison, editor

As the two fall fiercely in love and stumble through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first romance, Jase’s family makes Samantha one of their own—even as she keeps him a secret from her disapproving mother and critical best friend. Then the unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha’s world. She’s suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

Website

PUSHING THE LIMITS 

Katie McGarry

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.

Harlequin, Harlequin Teen

Margo Lipschultz, editor

But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible. 

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

Katie is also a finalist in the Young Adult category.

Previously on GLIAS

Website

Congratulations to all the nominees for the RITA® in the

BEST FIRST BOOK category!

~ ~ ~

JOIN US tomorrow as RITA® week 
continues with the WINNERS of each category. 

Don’t forget to FOLLOW us on Twitter #GetLostStories or LIKE us on Facebook.

MULTIPLE CHANCES through Rafflecopter to win
*autographed copy of Anna Lee Huber's THE ANATOMIST'S WIFE
*autographed copies of Tracy Brogan's CRAZY LITTLE THING, HIGHLAND SURRENDER, & HOLD ON MY HEART

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