Love You Forever
Yesterday, while picking up a few things for our daughter’s garden wedding next month, I happened to come across the Robert Munsch book Love You Forever. I stopped in my tracks in the Wal-Mart stationery section, scrambling to hang onto my tub of Miracle-Gro, fresh bottle of Advil, Miracle Revitalist face cream and Hello Kitty pajama pants.
There it was, the book that made me cry when I read it to our babies, staring at me the month before our first baby’s wedding. Yup, that’s me, bawling in Wal-Mart.
If you have children and a heart in your chest, read this book. You could read it to your dog, too. But bring tissues. (And buy the hard copy. This is not an e-reader kind of book.)
Resisting the Rancher review
I try not to read my reviews, but what can I say, I have no self-control. And with reviews like this, you’ll understand why: From Angela on Goodreads:
***
4 1/2 stars! This was the one in the series I was most looking forward to because when we met Cee Cee Gamble for the first time in His Reluctant Rancher she was the spunky but difficult “little sister.” Now in Resisting the Rancher we get to see Celia Gamble as an adult, still spunky but having had to mature through some tough circumstances.
My favourite aspect of the whole Three River Ranch series is the way Roxanne Snopek characterizes the animals. Mistral and Chewy seem like old friends by now; Cyclops and JD are the newest additions. And the horses are always present because of their place on the ranch(es) but also because of the relationships the human characters have with them.
Although I don’t usually read romance, I always read Roxanne Snopek’s fiction because it includes everything I want in a story: well developed characters, a memorable setting, excellent dialogue, a heart-rate raising plot line and true-to-life resolutions of conflict. I only approve of “happy endings” if they are truly believable and I won’t spoil it for those of you who haven’t read this latest novel yet. But trust me: Snopek knows what she’s doing!
Full disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of Resisting the Rancher for an honest review. I would have loved the story to be a bit longer, set over a longer period of time–but it’s not really a weakness to leave your readers wanting more.
***
Many thanks to Angela!
Romance For Every World Interview
In that instant between turning the steering wheel and hearing the blast of horn from the guy in your blind spot. Well. Only once. Actually, there are random moments throughout the day and night. I wish I knew, really.
It depends. If my publisher wants a “friends-to-lovers” book, then I craft a rough – very, very rough – plan first. Then, I figure out what kind of people might get into the situation I’ve created and – most importantly – WHY they might get into it. I use astrology sometimes too, to figure out the inner workings of my characters. If it’s a book I’m starting from scratch, it’s almost completely characters. I’ll get a glimpse of a quirk, say a woman who draws concentric circles on her hand while she’s on the phone. Something very small. And I go from there.
Books by two authors who are also have new releases this month: Robin Bielman (Wild About Her Wingman) and Jennifer Shirk (Fiance By Fate). I just finished First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones and have a paperback of Fast Women by Jennifer Crusie.
I always thought it would be the epitome of coolness and success to be an author. I’d always written in the usual varied forms, but at one point, I simply had to try to write a Whole Book. Start to finish. It was incredibly uncool and a complete non-success (see how I did that?) but I considered it a huge accomplishment and determined to do it again and again until I arrived at the successful coolness I crave. Looks like I’ll be writing for a long time to come!
A family saga that has yet to see the light of day. It might be best that way, but that’s the book that made me really feel like an author, all full of angst, suffering, ancient history, themes, hope, etc. Yeah, probably best it stays under the bed.
You know, I think it’s Sabrina Becker from Fake Fiance, Real Revenge. She’s a nurse-midwife and there was a period of time when I considered that career path. But I had three babies instead, all totally natural births. I was my own midwife, you could say!
A novella that’s part of a fantastic series beginning in fall. I’m so excited about these characters! That’s all I can say for now but watch my website for more information.