Guest Author: Elizabeth Lane

This week on Unusual Historicals, we're helping contributor Elizabeth Lane launch her special holiday time-travel treat, CHRISTMAS MOON. Stick around to see how you can win a free copy. Here's the blurb:

Pregnant, unwed and down on her luck, history teacher Emma Carlyle is facing the worst Christmas of her life. Needing some research for her master's thesis on legendary Wyoming lawman J.D. McNulty, she makes a Christmas Eve drive to South Pass City, where J.D. was buried. Heading home, she loses her way in a storm. After her car vanishes, she ends up in 1871, half-frozen, on the doorstep of a remote mountain cabin.

When J.D. himself opens the door with a pistol in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other...well, let's just say that sparks start flying. These two lost souls are clearly meant for each other. But there's one problem. Emma has studied everything about J.D.--and she knows he has only a few weeks to live.

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"Five Spurs! This is a marvelous story filled with the spirit of Christmas miracles... The romance between J.D. and Emma evolves from suspicion to amazement to a sizzling, unbridled love. Resolving a time travel romance is always tricky but Elizabeth Lane does a terrific job of making it all work--including that little detail of J.D.'s imminent death. An engaging, intriguing and thoroughly enjoyable story of timeless love." ~ Love Western Romance

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Tell us about yourself.

I'm a westerner by birth and upbringing. My grandparents lived like pioneers and my great-grandparents were pioneers. I grew up in a small town, in a family of people who loved the outdoors. Maybe that’s why writing Western romance comes so naturally to me. But I can and do write other things. My earliest books were big historical sagas. Then the market changed and I found a new home at Harlequin Historicals. Counting a couple of ghost writing projects, I'm coming up on 35 books. Twenty-eight of those books have been for Harlequin--3 of them contemporaries, the rest historicals. CHRISTMAS MOON is a step in a new direction, my first e-book and my first time travel.

CHRISTMAS MOON is something new for you. How did you come to write it and publish it as an e-book?

I'd written about 30 books for Harlequin and wanted to try something different. I've always loved time travel, and the old West seemed a natural setting for me. My agent encouraged me to add the Christmas element. I loved every page of this book, but we couldn't sell it, not even to Harlequin, because it didn't fit their format. No major publisher wanted a Christmas/western/time travel. My agent has his own e-book publishing venture, E-Reads. We decided to publish it there. The timing couldn't have been better. With the recent boom in e-publishing and plenty of promotion on my part, CHRISTMAS MOON has received a lot of attention. I couldn't be happier. This is a special book, and I wanted to have it read and enjoyed.

What can your readers expect next?

I'd planned to end my "Bride" series with THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE. Then a stunning, strong-willed woman strode into the last chapter of the book, and I knew I wasn't finished. Those of you who've read, or will read THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, will be happy to know that Ruby gets her story. Look for THE WIDOWED BRIDE in March.

After that, I'll be leaving Dutchman's Creek, Colorado for the northern California coast and a haunting post-gold rush story, final title and release date TBD. More news, I've just signed to do two more full length historical westerns and a novella for Harlequin. That should keep me busy for a while.

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Tis the season, readers, for some Christmas magic. Would you like to like to win a free copy of CHRISTMAS MOON? Leave a comment or question for Elizabeth for your chance. I'll draw a winner at random next Sunday. Void where prohibited. Best of luck, and the best of the season to you!

THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE Winner!

We have a winner for Elizabeth Lane's THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE guest blog. A free copy goes to:

BARBARA E.!

Contact Carrie to provide your mailing address. The book must be claimed by next Sunday or another winner will be drawn. Please stop back later to let us know what you thought! Congratulations!

Weekly Announcements - 20 Mar 2010

Zoe Archer has the second cover from her "Blades of the Rose" quadrilogy, SCOUNDREL, which is due to be released from Kensington in October. Here's the blurb:

The Blades of the Rose are sworn to protect the sources of magic in the world. But the work is dangerous--and they can't always protect their own...

READY FOR ACTION...

London Harcourt's father is bent on subjugating the world's magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn't bothered to tell her so. He's said only that he's leading a voyage to the Greek isles. No matter, after a smothering marriage and three years of straitlaced widowhood, London jumps at the opportunity--unfortunately, right into the arms of Bennett Day.

RISKING IT ALL...

Bennett is a ladies' man, when he's not dodging lethal attacks to protect the powers of the ancients from men like London's father. Sometimes, he's a ladies' man even when he is dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again--but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart...

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Congratulations to Lindsay Townsend, whose Egyptian-set romance BLUE GOLD was chosen as one of eight historical romance finalists in the DABWAHA tournament. That's so cool!

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Congratulations to Lisa Marie Wilkinson, whose latest romance, STOLEN PROMISE, received a 5 Blue Ribbon Rating from Romance Junkies. It also received 4.5/5 stars from SingleTitles.com and 5/5 Coffee Cups from Coffee Time Romance.

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Join us Sunday when Unusual Historicals contributor Lorelie Brown will be here to chat about her debut romance from Samhain, JAZZ BABY, set in 1920s New York. She'll also be giving away a copy. Don't miss it!

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We'll also draw the winner of THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE from Elizabeth Lane's guest appearance last Sunday. You still have time to leave a comment or question for your chance to win.

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Stay with us through the coming weeks when we'll be featuring the best unusual historical authors! Deborah Schneider, Jennifer Blake, P.L. Parker, and Cat Lindler will be our guests. We hope you'll join us!

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Have a good weekend! Remember, you don't have to be an Unusual Historicals contributor to submit good news to the weekend announcements. If it has to do with unusual historicals, we'd love to shout it out to the world! Send announcements to Carrie. See you next week...

Guest Author: Elizabeth Lane

This week we're welcoming Harlequin Historicals author and Unusual Historicals contributor, Elizabeth Lane, as she celebrates her latest release, THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, set in 1919 Colorado!

A magnificent man on a splendid stallion. Fiery Clara Seavers is determined to have them both. At nineteen, Clara is accustomed to getting her own way. But there's more to the handsome stranger than meets the eye. Jace Denby is a man of deep and troubling secrets--a man who can never promise her his love.

Clara is a rich man's daughter. Jace knows she's trouble, but he can't seem to keep his hands off her, especially when Clara seems so willing. It would be all too easy to fall in love with her. But Jace is a man on the run--a man who has to keep moving or die at the end of a rope.

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Four Blue Ribbons! "Clara is a strong heroine who instantly feels like a friend, and Jace comes to a life as the perfect protective and loving hero. He puts Clara's safety before anything else. Every character is important in THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, a great ensemble piece. If you enjoy Westerns, you won't want to miss this one." ~ Romance Junkies

Five Spurs!!!!! "Elizabeth Lane has written an emotion packed story about the consequences of lies, the necessity of trust, and the strength of love. Not only did the reader get to catch up with characters from previous books, but the story takes place twenty years later in the series, when the Wild West was supposedly tamer. Ms. Lane's story demonstrates that human nature doesn't vary much, regardless of the century." ~ Love Western Romance

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Tell us about yourself.

I'm a westerner by birth and upbringing. My grandparents lived like pioneers and my great-grandparents were pioneers. I grew up in a small town, in a family of people who loved the outdoors. Maybe that's why writing Western romance comes so naturally to me. But I can and do write other things. My earliest books were big historical sagas. Then the market changed and I found a new home at Harlequin Historicals. Counting a couple of ghost writing projects, I'm coming up on 35 books. Twenty-eight of those books have been for Harlequin--three of them contemporaries, the rest historicals.

Tell us about your new book, THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE.

My new historical, THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, is an April 2009 release from Harlequin Historicals. Although the story can stand on its own for new readers, those of you who've met the Seavers and Gustavson families in THE BORROWED BRIDE and HIS SUBSTITUTE BRIDE will be happy to know that Clara, now 19, finally gets her own story.

Why did you set this story in 1919, instead of the traditional Old West?

My first reason was practical. Clara, my heroine, was a newborn in THE BORROWED BRIDE (set in 1899) and a young child in HIS SUBSTITUTE BRIDE (set in 1906). She deserved her own story. But first she needed time to grow up. There are other reasons as well. I find the early 1900s fascinating. The world was changing so fast, with the old ways and new ways existing side by side. If you've seen the movie Legends of the Fall you'll understand why I love this time period for a Western setting. I also feel strongly connected to this time because I've known people who were alive then. Jace and Clara could have been the ages of my grandparents.

What can your readers expect next?

I'd planned to end this series with THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE. Then a stunning, strong-willed woman strode into the last chapter of the book, and I knew I wasn't finished. Those of you who've read, or will read THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, will be happy to know that Ruby gets her story. Look for my next "Bride" title in late 2010 or early 2011.

After that, I'll be leaving Dutchman's Creek, Colorado for the northern California coast and a haunting post-gold rush story that I can't wait to write.

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Thanks for stopping by, Elizabeth! She will be here all week to answer questions about her latest historical romance novel. In particular, what do you think of the 1919 setting? Does it evoke feelings of Legends of the Fall (featuring one very young and steamy Brad Pitt) or is it too "modern" for a western historical? I'll draw the random winner next Sunday. Void where prohibited. Best of luck!

From THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE by Elizabeth Lane; Copyright ©2010.
® and TM are trademarks of the publisher. The edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

Excerpt Thursday: Elizabeth Lane

This week on Excerpt Thursday, we're featuring the prologue of Elizabeth Lane's latest release, THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, set in 1919 Colorado! Join us Sunday when Elizabeth will be here to talk about this new western romance and give away a copy. Hope you can join us!

A magnificent man on a splendid stallion. Fiery Clara Seavers is determined to have them both. At nineteen, Clara is accustomed to getting her own way. But there's more to the handsome stranger than meets the eye. Jace Denby is a man of deep and troubling secrets--a man who can never promise her his love.

Clara is a rich man's daughter. Jace knows she's trouble, but he can't seem to keep his hands off her, especially when Clara seems so willing. It would be all too easy to fall in love with her. But Jace is a man on the run--a man who has to keep moving or die at the end of a rope.

***

Springfield, Missouri
March 11, 1919

Run!

The word ripped through Jace Denby's mind as he bridled the fastest horse in the Rumford stable. Minutes from now, his sister Ruby would be telephoning the police. They would arrive to find Hollis Rumford's body sprawled in a bloody pool on the bedroom floor. When they discovered Jace's abandoned Packard in the drive and his muddy boot prints on the carpet, they'd be after him like a pack of bloodhounds.

The roads would be blocked. His best chance of a clean getaway depended on catching the midnight train. If he could scramble aboard unseen, leaving the horse to find its way home, he'd be well into Kansas by morning.

The Smith and Wesson .38 revolver lay cold and heavy beneath his vest. Hollis had died with three bullet holes through his chest. Jace could only wish the shots had hit lower. For what the bastard had done to Ruby, he deserved to hurt a spell before he expired.

Springing into the saddle, Jace dug his heels into the horse's flanks. They rocketed out of the stable on a beeline across the wooded fields. By now the westbound freight would be pulling out of town. When it slowed down for the Wilson's Creek Bridge, he'd have one chance to leap aboard--but only if he could get there in time. Otherwise, he'd be headed for Kansas on a prize thoroughbred stud. Not that it mattered. If the law caught up with him, he'd most likely be hanged for murder, not horse thievery.

The midnight wind was bitter, the moon a pale scimitar veiled by tattered clouds. Behind him, Rumford's grand plantation-style house rose out of the flatland, growing smaller with distance. Jace thought of his comfortable apartment in town--gone like everything else he owned. If he went back for so much as a toothbrush the police would close in, and he would finish his life at the end of a rope. He had no choice but to run and keep running.

The train whistle, still faint, echoed across the sleeping countryside. How would it feel, riding the rails like a common hobo? Jace wondered. With degrees in geology and engineering, he'd earned good money as a drilling expert. A few weeks ago he'd taken the train to St. Louis to consult with an oil firm. Traveling first class, he'd enjoyed prime rib, braised potatoes and good California wine in the dining car. Now, with less than fifty dollars in his pocket, he'd be learning a whole new set of survival skills.

But at least Ruby and her three little girls would be all right. Hollis Rumford had been considered a fine catch when she'd married him ten years ago. Heir to a farm equipment company, he'd been as charming as he was handsome. But his infidelity, drunkenness and abuse had made Ruby's life a living hell. Jace had seen the ugly bruises. He had dried his sister's tears. Lord help him, he wasn't the least bit sorry Hollis was dead.

Now Ruby would be a respectable widow with a fine house and plenty of money. After a proper mourning period, she'd be free to find a new husband--a decent man, God willing, who'd treat her well and be a good father to her girls.

That had to be worth something, didn't it?

The train whistle screamed through the darkness. Jace pressed forward in the saddle, cursing as he lashed the horse with the reins. On the far side of the field, the headlamp glowed like a great yellow eye as the engine raced toward the bridge. A ghostly plume of steam trailed from the stack.

He wasn't going to make it.

Even with Hollis's prize thoroughbred galloping beneath him, Jace knew there was no way he could beat the train to the crossing. But something drove him on. Maybe it was the madness of what had happened tonight--what he'd seen and done and all it implied. Or maybe he was just in shock. The rhythm of hoof beats pounded through his body. The moon blurred. The wind moaned in his ears.

By the time he neared the bridge, the engine had reached the far side of the creek and picked up speed. Boxcars and flatcars rattled along behind it, going fast, too fast. Could he still do it? Could he fling himself out of the saddle and make the leap? Catch something and hold on?

Would it matter if he died trying?

The whistle shrilled a deafening blast. With a snort of terror, the horse bolted away. Jace clung to the saddle, grinding back on the reins as they see-sawed across the open ground.

It took him mere seconds to bring the animal under control. By then the train was gone.

The whistle faded into the night. The moon shone down on a field of brittle grass, silvering each blade.

Exhausted, Jace eased out of the saddle and dropped to the ground. Gathering up the reins, he led the spent horse onto the wagon road that forded the creek. He could only hope to get clear of open country before the dogs were brought out to follow his trail.

Yesterday he'd had his life planned out--a lucrative career, money in the bank, marriage to the governor's niece and after that, maybe a try at politics. With the right backing, he might've risen all the way to the Missouri statehouse, or even to the U.S. Congress.

Ruby's frantic telephone call had changed those plans forever. Now only two things mattered--staying alive and staying free.

The rest was best forgotten.

***

From THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE by Elizabeth Lane; Copyright ©2010.
® and TM are trademarks of the publisher. The edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

Weekly Announcements - 16 Jan 10

Michelle Styles was featured in the latest issue of Living North magazine! You can read the full PDF here. Congratulations, Michelle!

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Carrie Lofty has been busy on the internet promoting SCOUNDREL'S KISS, including this video interview that is currently featured on the Romantic Times homepage. You can also view part two and part three.


SCOUNDREL'S KISS has also garnered a few more excellent reviews. Elizabeth of Scandalous Women said, "It's been a long time since I was sad to see a historical romance end, but I wasn't quite ready to leave the world of SCOUNDREL'S KISS." Book Junkie wrote, "With both of the characters learning how to live again with the love for each other...you can't help but be mesmerized by the beautiful poetry that Carrie has created," while Wendy the Super Librarian declared, "Historical romance needs more risk-takers like Lofty."

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Elizabeth Lane has received the cover of her upcoming March release, THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE, which is set in 1919.

A magnificent man on a splendid stallion. Fiery Clara Seavers is determined to have them both. At nineteen, Clara is accustomed to getting her own way. But there's more to the handsome stranger than meets the eye. Jace Denby is a man of deep and troubling secrets--a man who can never promise her his love.

Clara is a rich man's daughter. Jace knows she's trouble, but he can't seem to keep his hands off her, especially when Clara seems so willing. It would be all too easy to fall in love with her. But Jace is a man on the run--a man who has to keep moving or die at the end of a rope.

We'll be featuring Elizabeth's book during a March promo, so keep an eye out!

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Join us Sunday when Unusual Historicals will chat with contributor Zoe Archer. She'll be discussing her latest release, the novella "The Undying Heart" in HALF PAST DEAD, a daring historical paranormal set during the Crimean War and in 1850s Yorkshire! She'll also be giving away a copy. Don't miss it!

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We'll also draw the winner of Carrie Lofty's SCOUNDREL'S KISS. You still have time to leave a comment or question for your chance to win.

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And stay with us through the coming weeks when we'll be featuring the best unusual historical authors! Michelle Styles, Carla Capshaw, Jennifer Linforth, and Amanda McCabe will be our guests. We hope you'll join us!

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Have a good weekend! Remember, you don't have to be an Unusual Historicals contributor to submit good news to the weekend announcements. If it has to do with unusual historicals, we'd love to shout it out to the world! Send announcements to Carrie. See you next week...

Humor: Will Rogers

By Elizabeth Lane

Will Rogers died before I was born. I never saw any of his movies or heard his voice on the radio. But I feel as if I knew him because he was my dad's favorite movie star. Dad talked about him a lot, especially on long car trips.

Most movie cowboys were city boys with pretty faces. Born in 1879 on the Dog Iron Ranch in Oklahoma's Indian Territory, Will was the real thing. Both his parents were part Cherokee (Will once quipped that his ancestors didn't come over on the Mayflower, but they met the boat). The youngest of eight children, Will quit school after the 10th grade. He was more interested in being a cowboy than in reading, writing and arithmetic.

A freed slave taught him how to use a lasso to work Texas Longhorn cattle on the family ranch. As he grew older, Will's roping skills were so remarkable that he was listed in the Guinness Book of Records for throwing three lassos at the same time: One rope caught the running horse's neck, the other would hoop around the rider and the third swooped up under the horse to loop all four legs. After some early adventures abroad, will returned to America and went into show business as "The Cherokee Kid." His skills won him jobs trick roping in wild west shows and on the vaudeville stages where, soon, he started telling small jokes.

Quickly, his wisecracks and folksy observations became more prized by audiences than his expert roping. He became known as an informed philosopher, telling the truth in simple words so that everyone could understand. Here are some examples:

"A fool and his money are soon elected."

"Advertising is the art of convincing people to spend money they don't have for something they don't need."

"Buy land. They ain't making any more of the stuff."

"Even if you're on the right track you'll get run over if you just sit there."

"If stupidity got us into this mess, then why can't it get us out?"

"Never let yesterday use up too much of today."

"We are all here for a spell. Get all the good laughs you can."

Will starred on Broadway and in 71 movies and was also a radio broadcaster. He wrote more than 4,000 newspaper columns and six books. Presidents, senators and kings sought his opinions. Inside himself, Will Rogers remained a simple Oklahoma cowboy. "I never met a man I didn't like," was his credo of genuine love and respect for humanity and all people everywhere. He gave his own money to disaster victims and raised thousands for the Red Cross and Salvation Army.

Will was also a devoted husband and father of four. He married Betty Blake in 1908 after an 8 year courtship. He would say, "When I roped her, that was the star performance of my life."

In 1935, at the age of 55, Will took off on a flight around the world with a legendary pilot named Wiley Post. The plane crashed in Alaska. Both men lost their lives. The outpouring of national grief over Will Rogers's passing is generally regarded to be the greatest such show of national mourning since the death of Lincoln some seventy years earlier. Will has been honored with postage stamps and monuments, including a statue in the U.S. Capitol building. And his wise, simple words are still with us.

My upcoming book is set at a time when Will Rogers was popular. THE HORSEMAN'S BRIDE is the third book of the series that began with THE BORROWED BRIDE and continued with HIS SUBSTITUTE BRIDE. Watch for it in March 2010.