Thank you, Cynthia, for stopping by and talking books with us--it's always my favorite subject.
Hello, everyone, and I’d like to thank you, Judith, for allowing me to guest on your blog. I’m really excited about Deceptive Hearts. It’s a story that’s very special to me, and I hope readers will love Shane and Lydia as much as I do!
Well, let's get right to it--I know you are a busy lady. What is the favorite book you remember as a child?
My favorite book from childhood, and the one I remember to this day, is Peter Pan, by James Barrie. I loved the idea of fairies, the idea of Neverland, where no one need ever grow up, and where childhood reigned. To this day, I still love leafing through that book and escaping, if only for a few moments, into that world of make-believe.
Years later, when I began to study Irish mythology, I read the wonderful Irish legend of Tir na Nog, the Land of Eternal Youth, where the Tuatha de Danaan, the fairy folk, lived. In Tir na Nog, like Neverland, no one ever grows old, gets sick, or dies.
Tell us about your current book in 10 words.
Romantic, suspenseful, passionate, joyful, historical, deceptive, poignant, inspiring, redemptive, Irish.
The Irish part gets me every time... What are you reading right now?
The Year of the French, by Thomas Flanagan, about the Irish rebellion of 1798, for both research and pleasure.
Do you have any bad book habits?
My books are always overdue!
Well, that's one way of supporting your library! E-Reader or print? and why?
Print. I love the smell of a print book, the feel of it in my hands. I still remember the utter joy of visiting the library every few days, and the weight of a week’s worth of books in my bag. Nothing could compare to that!
One book at a time or multiples?
Multiples, always! One novel—usually historical romance—and at least one or two research books, depending on where I am in my current WIP.
Dog-ear or bookmark? (don't worry—Librarian Judith won't hold it against you—much)
Bookmarks. Always bookmarks. I collect them. I still have a few bookmarks that I had made to celebrate the release of my first book, In Sunshine or in Shadow (Highland Press, 2006). I have bookmarks I’ve bought while traveling, several ribbon bookmarks that a friend of mine made, and so many I can’t count them all!
That makes up for keeping the books out too long, then. Favorite genre?
Historical romance. Whether I’m reading or writing, historicals always take me out of myself. It’s like traveling back in time, and to a place I know I’ll never see. Ah, but when a book is well-written, with characters who are both believable and likeable, it’s as if I’m in that time, that place, that mind-set of so long ago.
Again, thank you, Cynthia for stopping by and chatting with us in The Library today.
He survived war, and returned to devastation
A hero of the Irish Brigade, Shane MacDermott returned home to New York to find his family decimated and his world shattered.
She risks her life to save the people she loves
Lydia Daniels will risk anything to protect the women she shelters beneath the roof of her elegant Gramercy Park mansion—even if she has to trust the one man who can destroy her.
Shane and Lydia both hide secrets that could destroy them – and put their lives in jeopardy. Can their love overcome their carefully guarded deceptive hearts?
Something wasn’t right.
Shane strode through the dark, damp autumn night, memories of the woman he’d seen near Nan Daly’s room still niggling at him. Her story about bringing food to one of the neighbors didn’t ring true.
Hugh had once told him, “If something feels wrong, lad, sure there must be a reason for it. Listen to your instincts.”
Shane’s instincts screamed out that something wasn’t right.
A picture of the woman floated before him. She was the loveliest thing he’d ever seen, with her honey-blonde hair piled carefully atop her head, her mysterious gray eyes shrouded by that little wisp of a veil on the pretty hat she wore. Had he caught a whiff of roses emanating from her delicate peaches-and-cream skin? Her hands, long-fingered, elegant hands, a lady’s hands, had been encased in white lace gloves that would feed a family hereabouts for a month. And her gown… Shane knew nothing about fashion, but that silk and lace confection must have cost someone a pretty penny.
And the figure that gown concealed was enough to send a man’s wits astray.
But an angel of mercy? Shane doubted it. She’d seemed too jumpy, too eager to get away from him. Why? True, he’d been wearing his uniform, but a woman like that had to be wealthy and well-connected. Sure, she’d have nothing to fear from the law.
He shook his head, dismissing the woman from his mind, and turned to race up the steps to his flat.
My passion for reading made me long to write books like the ones I enjoyed, and I tried penning sequels to my favorite Nancy Drew mysteries. Later, fancying myself a female version of Andrew Lloyd Weber, I drafted a musical set in Paris during WWII.
A former journalist and lifelong Celtophile, I enjoyed a previous career as a reporter/editor for a small chain of community newspapers before returning to my first love, romantic fiction. My stories usually include an Irish setting, hero or heroine, and sometimes all three. My novels, In Sunshine or in Shadow and Coming Home, set in post-Famine Ireland, are available from Highland Press. Playing For Keeps, the third book in the Claddagh series, is now available from Highland Press.
I am a member of the Romance Writers of America, Hearts Through History Romance Writers, and Celtic Hearts Romance Writers. A lifelong resident of Montreal, Canada, I still live there with my own Celtic hero and our two school-aged children.
Website: http://authorcynthiaowens.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCynthiaOwens
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Cynwrites1
BUY THE BOOK AT Amazon and Barnes and Noble
Hi Judith, thanks so much for having me as your guest today! I'm really looking forward to meeting some of your readers here!
ReplyDeleteLovely interview. I tweeted.
ReplyDeleteHi Ella, glad you enjoyed the interview. Thanks for the support over the course of this tour, and thanks again for the tweet! :)
DeleteI hate to admit it, but I'm a definite dog earer!
ReplyDeleteandralynn7 AT gmail DOT com
Andra, I could never dog-ear a page. I think I'm just a little obsessive about that!
DeleteI love the premise of the story and can't wait to read it.
ReplyDeleteKit3247(at)aol(dot)com
Thank you, Ingeborg, hope you enjoy it! Thanks for visiting me here! :)
ReplyDeleteHi Librarian Judith. My daughter is a librarian, too. She makes sure that I bookmark rather than dog ear the Library books. I never read Peter Pan as a child though and I never read it to my kids.
ReplyDeletecathyapicella28412 (@) gmail (.) com
Cynthia....How wonderful that you had positive Library experiences when you were a child. I also have fond memories of going to the Library with my dad and listening to records.
ReplyDeletecatherinelee100 at gmail dot com
Daisy, even as an adult I love to read Peter Pan. It's just such a wonderful premise, never growing up and keeping that wonderful childhood innocence.
ReplyDeleteCatherine, I loved the library as a child, and still do today. In fact, I've done book signings at my local library for every one of my novels.
Thanks for stopping by, ladies! :)
Judith, once again, thank you for having me as your guest today. I enjoyed sharing my thoughts with you and your readers.
ReplyDeleteI've chosen the winners of my giveaways! Reader's choice of any book in the Claddagh Series and a handmade ribbon bookmark goes to Andra Lyn!
ReplyDeleteThe beautiful wooden trinket box with the Trinity Knot applique on the lid pictured here and a handmade ribbon bookmark goes to Shelley S.
Ladies, please e-mail me at authorcynthiaowens@gmail.com with your snail mail addresses, and I'll sen off your prize.
Congratulations to you both, and thank you to everyone who visited me during this awesome tour!