Bandita Favorite: NYT Bestseller Lorraine Heath Returns

Interview with Suz

One of the great parts of being a Romance Bandit is the fun of introducing our friends and readers to new authors, or in this case, a new series by a very much loved author. NYT Bestselling author, Lorraine Heath has been a good friend and great guest to the Bandits since our very first year on the blog. We've traveled into the world of Dickens' grown up street children in her Scoundrels of St. James series with her. Now she's turned her wonderful story telling to a trio of brothers known as London's Greatest Lovers series. And lucky us, the first two books are coming out in November and December!

Suz: Welcome back to the Lair, Lorraine. It's always a pleasure to have you with us. Can you explain the premise behind this new series?

Lorraine: I love writing stories about brothers, but one of the challenges in writing English-set stories is that we usually have only one brother who inherits the title, so I thought it would be fun to have a family where two of the brothers would inherit titles and that the youngest would actually hold the most prestigious title. To tie them all together is their scandalous mother.

Suz: In the PASSIONS Of A WICKED EARL, we meet Morgan, the Earl of Westcliff. Despite already being married, he's cutting a wide path through London's ladies. Why?

Lorraine: On his wedding night, he was betrayed by his new wife and younger brother-the untitled Stephen. Stephen has always resented that he won't inherit a title. Westcliffe has always felt abandoned by their mother because it was obvious she loved Stephen more. So there is a little sibling rivalry going on there. Westcliffe's experience with love, however, has made it difficult for him to accept or give love. He holds himself apart to spare himself pain. Therefore, Claire doesn't really know him-other than his reputation in the bedchamber-and she's rather terrified of him. She and Stephen have always been friends so she turns to Stephen for comfort and that creates a mess for them all.

Suz: Claire is Westcliff's wife. She made a mistake years ago and now needs to find a way to deal with her errant husband. Why?

Lorraine: She's matured. She's no longer a naïve, foolish girl, and she wants to step up and be a true wife to her husband. But he has decided he no longer wants her. Rather than face the scandal of being set aside, she decides to put her efforts into making him desire her. In doing so, she comes to know the man he hides from everyone and falls deeply in love with him.

Suz: One of my favorite parts of reading a Lorraine Heath novel is the depth in which you take the reader into the pathos behind the heroes/heroines lives. How are you able to make Westcliffe a man worthy of finding love and Claire a woman able to teach him about love?

Lorraine: Magic...? You know, I love delving into characters' personalities and motivations. Must come from all those hours of psych courses I took in college. I felt like a man who guarded his heart as closely as Westcliffe does would have a wellspring of love to give if he ever trusted someone not to hurt him. Claire knows what it is to love, longs for love. With her initial betrayal of Westcliffe, she comes to understand the power of her actions so she knows she must demonstrate her love, reveal her heart in order to lure him into revealing his heart.

Suz: In the second book coming out in December (November 30 is the exact release date), PLEASURES Of A NOTORIOUS GENTLEMAN we meet the rakish, badboy second brother, Stephen. (Boy do I love a good badboy!) He is heading off to war in the Crimea. Why is he headed to such a dangerous place with few women for him to pursue and how does the war affect him?

Lorraine: When the Crimean War began, people expected it to be over quickly and for Britain to be victorious. For Stephen, it was simply another ad2venture. One sure to involve Russian women. While readers might expect the war to have a significant impact on Stephen, he is wounded and loses two years of memories-so he doesn't remember fighting, being in a war, being a hero. Therefore, he doubts himself. Was he really a coward? Why else would he not remember what happened?

Suz: Stephen's tomcatting ways come back to haunt him after his return to England, doesn't it?

Lorraine: It certainly does. Mercy shows up on his doorstep with a babe in arms-a babe she claims is his. Stephen, doubting there is any goodness in him at all, seeks to prove himself by marrying her. Mercy was one of Miss Nightingale's nurses. Here is a bit of dichotomy: Stephen desperately wants to remember what happened when he was in the Crimea and Mercy desperately wants to forget what she witnessed there.

Suz: I was rather impressed with the details you gave of the nurses and their roles and duties during the Crimea War. As my friend Anna S. would say, you were "spot-on". What research, other than channeling Florence Nightingale, did you do to get this right?

Lorraine: I read Mark Bostrich's biography on Florence Nightingale. It included information on many of the nurses who traveled with F.N. I also read Thin Red Line which had personal accounts from soldiers and what it was like from their end, waiting for medical help. Then, of course, I have a friend who is a nurse and she's always helpful when I have specific questions. (Wink.)

5,000 British soldiers are buried near the hospital where F.N. worked. It was a horrendous situation. I don't know that I did it justice and it's always a challenge when writing a romance novel not to totally depress the reader with the gruesome realities.

Suz: So the third brother is actually the higher on the nobility food-chain, a duke. When is his story coming out and what is it titled? How do you plan to bring him his HEA?

Lorraine: WAKING UP WITH A DUKE will be out in July 2011. Yes, Ainsley is higher up on the nobility ladder. He has always taken his responsibilities so seriously. He's always acted as though he were the oldest brother, although he's not. But one night, he is terribly irresponsible and it ruins the lives of his long-time friend and his friend's wife. His story involves his efforts to make amends. His devotion to duty and responsibility will motivate his actions-and unfortunately plunge them all deeper into hell. ? Getting them all out is proving quite challenging.

Suz: So, there is a recurring love story going on through these books involving the men's mother and her artist lover, Leo, who I personally think is yummy. Do you have plans for them?

Lorraine:Yes, actually. I had always planned to resolve her story in the third book. Quite honestly, not to ruin anything, I had expected Tessa, the duchess, to end up with the lover of her youth-but like you, Suz, I find Leo so yummy that I'm not quite sure she's going to be able to toss him aside as easily as I'd originally envisioned.

Which brings me to a question for the bandits and your followers: do you prefer a love story where it's clear from the beginning who is destined for a HEA or do you prefer to be left guessing which characters come together until the end?


Drawing prize: $20 giftcard to Borders, B&N, or amazon - winner's choice.

**For those of you who are new to Lorraine, her earlier works, wonderful historicals set in Texas, will be released soon as ebooks. Check out the covers at http://lorraineheath.com/ **

Vicki Lewis Thompson Brings Some Magical Fun To The Lair!

interview with Suzanne

I am both excited and pleased to have NYT bestselling author, Vicki Lewis Thompson in the Bandit Lair today! Welcome, Vicki, pull up a lounge chair and we'll have one of our cabana boys pour you a drink.

Suz: When you spoke at DARA (Dallas Area Romance Authors) holiday meeting a few Decembers ago, you told the story of how exposure on National TV helped your career. Some of our readers may not have heard that story. Would you care to share it with them?

Vicki: I’ll tell that story at the drop of a hat, LOL! But first, thanks for inviting me to the Bandit Lair! Cute cabana boys! Ahem. Back to the subject at hand -- Kelly Ripa used to have a book club on LIVE with Regis and Kelly. NERD IN SHINING ARMOR was my first single title, and the print run was very low. I was afraid it would sink like a stone, so I hired publicist Theresa Meyers to help me get on Reading with Ripa. With lots of lobbying and a dose of luck, we did it! I appeared on the show. The print run went from 20K to 350K and I landed on the NYT. What a rush!

Suz: I love that story and it is so inspiring to know it can happen out of the blue to an author. How did it change your writing career?
Vicki: It opened doors that would not have been open before. I’ve now worked with three mainstream publishers and have an agent who only takes on NYT authors. Most of all, though, it taught me that anything is possible. You just have to go for it. You may fall on your face, but you may shoot to the stars! I’m much more willing to take risks these days.

Suz: Recently you’ve switched gears and gone paranormal with your HEX series. What made you choose witches over say, vampires or werewolves?

Vicki: With all due respect to the vampire writers and readers out there, I’m squeamish about blood, so that lets out vampires. As for werewolves, funny you should ask! I’m working on a top-secret project right now for 2011, and it just might involve werewolves. But they’re not bloody. I’m not good with bloody. I write comedy.

Suz: Ooo can't wait to hear about those werewolves! Please tell us about the HEX series.

Vicki: The series came alive for me when I decided that instead of setting it in Sedona, Arizona, a hotbed of New Age thinking, I should set it in a conservative little town in Indiana, where NOBODY believes in witches, wizards, magic, or . . . heaven forbid . . . dragons! Big Knob, Indiana, is imaginary, but I’ve had readers ask if it’s based on a real town because they want to go there! So do I, but it doesn’t exist. I made it up totally. The series features a matchmaking witch and wizard who are sent there to rehabilitate the delinquent dragon living in the nearby woods. In between dragon-sitting, they do some matchmaking on the side, which is where the romance comes in.



Suz: Is BLONDE WITH A WAND the first in a new series for you? Can you tell us a little bit about the series?

Vicki: The Babes on Brooms series is – at present – two books long. If readers like it, maybe it’ll get longer! It’s a spin-off from the Hex series in that the matchmaking witch and wizard from that series make an appearance in both BLONDE WITH A WAND and CHICK WITH A CHARM. These two spin-off books are set in Chicago, which is less than a day’s drive from Big Knob, so it works out.

Suz: In BLONDE WITH A WAND, the heroine, Anica Revere, breaks a major witch rule and is stripped of her powers. How does she adjust to that?

Vicki: Not well! She’s always been the “good” sister and now she has to depend on Lily, who’s the rebel sister, to help her fix the magical mess she’s created.

Suz: The hero of BLONDE WITH A WAND, Jasper Danes, is the victim of Anica’s mistake. Does he exact a little revenge or does he easily find himself under her spell?

Vicki: I think it’s okay to reveal that Anica turned him into a cat, because that’s in the blurb. While revenge is definitely on his mind, he’s dependent on Anica and Lily to change him back into a man, so he has to be VERY careful not to tick them off.





Suz: Can you tell us a little about the next book in the series—CHICK WITH A CHARM?

Vicki: I would love to! It’s Lily’s story, and she’s a little jealous of Anica’s love affair with Jasper. Lily’s a bartender who has a crush on a customer. Against Anica’s advice, she gives him a devotion potion in his cocktail and discovers that it doesn’t produce quite the results she’d hoped for.








Suz: What else can our readers look forward to from you this year?

Vicki: I hope you’re ready for this. I’ve been typing like crazy and I could sure use a massage from Sven if you’re willing to loan him out. I have *seven* releases this year. Besides BLONDE WITH A WAND in February, I’ll also have RACING HEARTS, a NASCAR anthology with Dorien Kelly and Nancy Warren. This June will kick off my “Sons of Chance” series with Harlequin Blaze. WANTED! comes out in June, AMBUSHED! in July, and CLAIMED! in August. They’re cowboy stories set in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and the series will continue with three more books in the summer of 2011 and three more in the summer of 2012. Also in July I’ll have CUPID CATS, an anthology with Katie MacAlister and Connie Brockway. The stories are linked by an animal shelter that specializes in magical cats who become matchmakers for those who adopt them.

Suz: OMG...we'll have Sven work on those fingers ASAP!! You're going to be one busy lady this year!! Is there a question you’d like to ask our readers?

Vicki: How about this? If you could wave a wand and turn someone (a person you know or a public figure) into an animal, who would it be and what animal would you choose?

Suz: Thanks for being in the Lair with us Vicki. Vicki will be giving away a signed copy of Blonde With A Wand to one commenter today. And don't forget, you can order books by clicking on any covers.

Lorraine Heath, guest blogger

Interviewed by Suzanne Welsh

RITA Winner and NYT best-selling author, Lorraine Heath joins the Romance Bandits in the Banditas Lair today. Lorraine’s newest historical romance, Just Wicked Enough, recently received a 4-1/2 star review from Romantic Times Magazine and will be on the shelves at your local book stores tomorrow. Today, she’s here to give us a sneak peek at Just Wicked Enough and talk about writing both historicals and Young Adult (YA). Congratulations, Lorraine on the great review and welcome to our lair.

Your stories always bring your readers wonderful alpha males in need of the right heroine to love. Can you tell us about the hero and heroine in Just Wicked Enough?
Michael Tremayne, the Marquess of Falconridge, stole my heart the moment I met him. He’s extremely proud (what male isn’t, right?) and in dire financial straits. In A Duke of Her Own, he watched his best friend court a wealthy American heiress only to end up with the penniless chaperone. Michael hasn’t the time to waste courting a woman when the outcome is questionable, so he decides to hold a private auction with all the American fathers. He’ll marry the daughter of the man willing to arrange the best settlement.

Kate Rose has a secret in her past that makes her more than willing to agree to marry Falconridge if for no other reason it’ll get her out of her overbearing mother’s house. But Kate also believes strongly in love and courtship so before she’ll consummate the marriage, she insists that Falconridge earn her love. And since her father has given control over the money to her, my poor hero—who had hoped to avoid courtship—finds himself dancing to her tune.

Kate seems to be one of those headstrong Americans you love to incorporate in your books. How does she feel about her father essentially buying her a husband with a title?
When she finds out, she’s furious . . . but since it was a private auction and neither man wants to confess what he’s done, it’s a while before she learns that Falconridge didn’t approach her parents and ask for her hand in marriage.

You originally wrote Western historical romances, which garnered you your RITA award. Was it hard to change from Western settings to books set primarily in England?
It was difficult in that I had to do a lot of research because life was so very different in London than in Texas. Clothing, food, to a degree etiquette, all different. But I’d always wanted to write a story set in England, so part of the reason that I brought the second sons of English lords to Texas in my Rogues in Texas series was so that I could begin researching England and getting comfortable with the differences when a story wasn’t completely dependent upon a vast knowledge of English ways. So the Rogues in Texas became exactly what I’d hoped they would—a stepping stone to writing stories set in England.

If you had the chance is there another time or place you’d like to take your readers to with your historicals?
Actually, I wrote three medievals before I was ever published and I’ll admit that lately I’ve been considering dusting them off and seeing if they have any potential. Although I suspect in truth I’ll find that they’re simply awful.

You’ve ventured into contemporary romances with Hard Lovin’ Man and Smooth Talkin’ Stranger. Are there plans for more of those stories in your future?
I would like to write more contemporaries, have worked on a couple of stories actually, but I’m just not entirely comfortable with my contemporary voice and I’m not sure I’ve managed to figure out how to create that “big book” feel that you really need to be successful with contemporaries.

Our blog readers may not know this, but you also write YA stories under the name Rachel Hawthorne. Want to tell us about your latest YA release, The Boyfriend League?
The Boyfriend League was a lot of fun to write. DH and I had gone to watch the McKinney Marshals play. They’re a collegiate team—college players move to the city during the summer, stay with host families, and play baseball. It was family appreciation night and they recognized the families who had provided homes to the players—and I immediately envisioned a teenage girl desperate for a boyfriend who talks her parents into hosting a player so she can get up close and personal with the players. Came home from the game, sat down at my computer, wrote the synopsis, pitched—so to speak—the story to my editor, and she loved it. I had my fictitious Ragland Raiders play actual teams in the North Texas Collegiate League. Although I’ve heard that the league may disband after this year.

If you read the excerpt for this book posted at my website, you'll discover that Michael believes he has only to guess Kate's favorite color in order to prove that he knows her well enough to be invited into her bed. His misguided belief provides some of the lighter moments in the story. What one thing does a man need to know about you to prove that he truly knows the real you?

One lucky commenter will receive an autographed copy of JUST WICKED ENOUGH along with a JUST WICKED ENOUGH mug!