Please join me in welcoming one our wonderful contributors, Marianne LaCroix, as she celebrates the release of Pirate's Mistress, which includes two full-length novels: Crossed Swords and Sea Hawk's Mistress. The print edition will be available as of March 17, while each ebook is available through Ellora's Cave.
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CROSSED SWORDS
You started out writing paranormal and dark fantasy, but lately you have been writing historical. Why the change?
Historical romance has always been my first love. I used to read the Sunfire line (sweet teen historical romances) when I was a teenager. I read them all. I loved them. Then my mom gave me a copy of Johanna Lindsey's Captive Bride. Whoa, momma. I was hooked. When I began writing, I wrote historical paranormal. I think my first book was a ghost/time travel. That book will never see the light of day, at least not in the condition it is now, hidden away. Next I wrote a vampire historical. That is out at Cerridwen Press as To Tempt an Angel.
Most of my books have some sort of historical element, even my vampires from the early days. If you read the histories of the vampires, they are very steeped in history.
I've grown tired of vampires and have turned to writing straight historical or time travel. I prefer historical, the hotter the better. My most favorite book I've written to date is Crossed Swords. I am actually proud of that book. I love all my stories, but that one is incredibly special to me. It is what I truly love--adventure and romance with hot love scenes.
Will you continue writing historical?
Yes, I do plan on continuing to write historical romance. It is my first love and where I feel most comfortable. Yes, I like the research. I tease one of my writing buds, Sloan McBride, about research. She LOVES research and sometimes gets a wee bit excited about it. I like reading about life in a certain time period, checking out the clothes, manners, what was considered scandalous, etc. It is a lot of fun.
I do like contemporary and paranormal as well, so I am not leaving them behind. I have hopes of writing contemporary for Harlequin. My favorite line is the Presents. I read them ALL.
How do you balance writing and raising a family?
I've been married for 14 years and we have twin daughters (who turn 6 this week!). It isn't easy, and the girls can tend to drive me crazy at times. But usually they know to calm down or go outside when mommy is writing. A lot of times I write when they are at school or after they go to bed. My husband is a huge source of support and encourages me to reach for that NY contract. He helps cook dinner while I bathe the kids, etc. We work as a partnership, and it works.
My house will always tend to have a need of vacuuming or straightening when I am in the middle of a book. Who cares about dust bunnies under the couch when the hero is in the middle of a sword fight?
What are you working on now?
I'm writing By His Command, the sequel to Crossed Swords. It is not exactly a pirate story, although pirates are a huge part of the plotline. This time the hero is a British naval officer, Commander Malcolm Thorndike, the brother of Fredrick, the hero in Crossed Swords. I am having a great time revisiting 1718 in London and the Caribbean where pirates are making a stand against the iron fist of Governor Woodes Rogers, the man responsible for ending the Golden Age of Piracy.
Any future projects in the works?
I have ideas for two further books after By His Command in the "series." I don't want to let these characters go quite yet.
I have in progress two contemporary novels targeted for Harlequin's Presents line as well as plans for a Historical Regency with paranormal elements. I also have a short pirate historical story started for Total E Bound's Brits in Time anthology. My story is entitled Under the Black Flag. Yep, pirate.
Any final notes?
Meet me at the Southern Lights Writers Conference in Jacksonville, Florida at the Jacksonville Marriott on March 29, 2008. Authors signing also include Suzanne Brockmann, Alyssa Day, Gail Ranstrom, Caridad Ferrer, Michelle Monkou, Merrillee Whren and many more. For details, click here.
Visit my website or and "friend" me on MySpace.
Reviews for Crossed Swords:
4 1/2 Stars, RT Top Pick! -
4 Stars -
Thanks so much for stopping by today! Leave a comment or question for Marianne and you'll have the chance to win a copy of Pirate's Mistress. That's two fantastic pirate adventures! Check back next Sunday to see who won. Good luck!
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CROSSED SWORDS Caribbean Sea, 1718SEA HAWK'S MISTRESS
Arabella Prescott's dreams of marriage were shattered when her fiancé was murdered by pirates. When she is kidnapped by the roguishly handsome Captain Fredrick Thorne, Arabella is determined to fight him with every inch of her being. She will not become the pirate's lover--no matter her body's unexpected desires.
Fredrick quickly discovers Arabella's weakness--him. Her feisty spirit amuses and her sweet innocence inflames, and when she resists his seductive touch, he forces her to surrender to his desires, awakening her sleeping passions. But with her sensual defeat comes a price neither are prepared to pay.
At the news of her kidnapping, Arabella's father, Governor Prescott, begins the hunt for Thorne's ship, Neptune's Sword, to save Arabella--and finally capture the most dangerous pirate upon the Caribbean. He will stop at nothing to see Thorne pay for his crimes at the end of the hangman's rope.
On summer vacation from grad school, Shelley Hanover takes part in a modern-day treasure hunt on a newly discovered Spanish galleon off the Florida Keys. During the dive, Shelley finds a silver bangle, and when the clasp opens, she is swept into a sudden water vortex--and into the arms of a sexy-as-sin pirate.***
Captain Jason Flint finds a woman floating in the wreckage of his latest victory, strangely dressed and wearing a sex-slave band. He decides to keep her as his private pleasure captive, and they enjoy each other's hot flesh as they sail the cool Caribbean waters. But when a rival captain kidnaps Shelley, Jason realizes he's lost something greater than any pirate treasure.
You started out writing paranormal and dark fantasy, but lately you have been writing historical. Why the change?
Historical romance has always been my first love. I used to read the Sunfire line (sweet teen historical romances) when I was a teenager. I read them all. I loved them. Then my mom gave me a copy of Johanna Lindsey's Captive Bride. Whoa, momma. I was hooked. When I began writing, I wrote historical paranormal. I think my first book was a ghost/time travel. That book will never see the light of day, at least not in the condition it is now, hidden away. Next I wrote a vampire historical. That is out at Cerridwen Press as To Tempt an Angel.
Most of my books have some sort of historical element, even my vampires from the early days. If you read the histories of the vampires, they are very steeped in history.
I've grown tired of vampires and have turned to writing straight historical or time travel. I prefer historical, the hotter the better. My most favorite book I've written to date is Crossed Swords. I am actually proud of that book. I love all my stories, but that one is incredibly special to me. It is what I truly love--adventure and romance with hot love scenes.
Will you continue writing historical?
Yes, I do plan on continuing to write historical romance. It is my first love and where I feel most comfortable. Yes, I like the research. I tease one of my writing buds, Sloan McBride, about research. She LOVES research and sometimes gets a wee bit excited about it. I like reading about life in a certain time period, checking out the clothes, manners, what was considered scandalous, etc. It is a lot of fun.I do like contemporary and paranormal as well, so I am not leaving them behind. I have hopes of writing contemporary for Harlequin. My favorite line is the Presents. I read them ALL.
How do you balance writing and raising a family?
I've been married for 14 years and we have twin daughters (who turn 6 this week!). It isn't easy, and the girls can tend to drive me crazy at times. But usually they know to calm down or go outside when mommy is writing. A lot of times I write when they are at school or after they go to bed. My husband is a huge source of support and encourages me to reach for that NY contract. He helps cook dinner while I bathe the kids, etc. We work as a partnership, and it works.
My house will always tend to have a need of vacuuming or straightening when I am in the middle of a book. Who cares about dust bunnies under the couch when the hero is in the middle of a sword fight?
What are you working on now?
I'm writing By His Command, the sequel to Crossed Swords. It is not exactly a pirate story, although pirates are a huge part of the plotline. This time the hero is a British naval officer, Commander Malcolm Thorndike, the brother of Fredrick, the hero in Crossed Swords. I am having a great time revisiting 1718 in London and the Caribbean where pirates are making a stand against the iron fist of Governor Woodes Rogers, the man responsible for ending the Golden Age of Piracy.
Any future projects in the works?
I have ideas for two further books after By His Command in the "series." I don't want to let these characters go quite yet.
I have in progress two contemporary novels targeted for Harlequin's Presents line as well as plans for a Historical Regency with paranormal elements. I also have a short pirate historical story started for Total E Bound's Brits in Time anthology. My story is entitled Under the Black Flag. Yep, pirate.
Any final notes?
Meet me at the Southern Lights Writers Conference in Jacksonville, Florida at the Jacksonville Marriott on March 29, 2008. Authors signing also include Suzanne Brockmann, Alyssa Day, Gail Ranstrom, Caridad Ferrer, Michelle Monkou, Merrillee Whren and many more. For details, click here.Visit my website or and "friend" me on MySpace.
Reviews for Crossed Swords:
4 1/2 Stars, RT Top Pick! -
LaCroix has outdone herself. This swashbuckling tale will have you offering to swab the decks, if it will put you in good graces with the wickedly handsome pirate captain! There's plenty of action in and out of the captain's quarters to keep you flying through the pages of this sizzling story. ~ Romantic Times BOOKClub5 Stars -
...Wonderfully written story about the powerful sea captain and his prisoner falling in love. If you are looking for steamy sex, that will leave you seeking your own release, look no further...It’s perfect! ~ JERRReviews for Sea Hawk's Mistress:
4 Stars -
...A fun blast-from-the-past... This was a terrific, sexy little romance... The romance is sweet and tender; the sex scenes are vanilla with a touch of dominance and bondage. Sea Hawk's Mistress was good to the last drop... ~ JERR4 Blue Ribbons –
LaCroix's storyline is fun and enchanting! Her description of Jason's reaction to a beautifully groomed woman of the 20th century is humorous as well as arousing. LaCroix's time travel stories always fulfill the daydreams I have, asking the question...'what would it be like if?' Whether it's a woman claiming a gladiator in ancient Rome or a woman captured by a sexy pirate, LaCroix always most satisfyingly provides the answer! ~ Romance Junkies***
Thanks so much for stopping by today! Leave a comment or question for Marianne and you'll have the chance to win a copy of Pirate's Mistress. That's two fantastic pirate adventures! Check back next Sunday to see who won. Good luck!
