Heroes on Horseback: My Lifelong Love Affair

I'm very happy to host the fabulous Kathleen Eagle today. She's talking about the wonderful world of horses, cowboys and the American West. Take it away, Kathleen.

Hello, Bandits!

I have a new book for you. And if you bear with me for a bit of book talk, maybe bare your soul a bit in a comment, we’ll enter you in a drawing for a chance to win one of the earlier books in my current series.

ONE BRAVE COWBOY (on sale 9/20 from Harlequin Silhouette) introduces another competitor for Mustang Sally’s Wild Horse Training Competition, a thread I’ve carried through four of the six books connected with my fictitious Double D Wild Horse Sanctuary in South Dakota.

His name is Cougar, and he served in the Army with Mary Tutan (ONCE A FATHER). He’s a wounded warrior, but his worst scars are not visible. Newly released from a VA hospital, this Indian cowboy desperately needs to come to terms with his losses at home and on the battlefield. He came home from his first tour in the Middle East to find his girlfriend—the woman he’d planned to marry—with another man. During his second tour he was involved in an incident in which his best friend and several civilians were killed, and he blames himself. His hope for saving his sanity--the horses his brother was keeping for him--were sold during his absence. His entry into Mustang Sally’s Wild Horse Training Competition is the means he’s using to find his way among the living after pulling himself back from the brink of suicide.

Then he meets Celia Banyon and her young son, who was injured in an accident and whose worst scars are also not visible.

I’ve written lots of stories featuring Indian cowboys. To begin with, I’m married to one. We met during the summer I took off from working in the college library and headed west in search of adventure. I was a summer volunteer on a Dakota (North and South) reservation. I’d always been interested in American Indian culture, always loved Western movies, and always always loved horses. I’m not a natural athlete by any means, but I used part of my summer earnings to pay for riding lessons when I was in college. Horses are majestic and magical, sensitive and strong. From the moment I met the man who was to become my husband—a man whose world was quite different from mine—we had two key things in common. We loved books and horses. And I just love the smell of horse on a man.

My husband has a way with horses, and he’s tamed his share of them over the years. He speaks their language. Because horses are prey animals, they are extremely sensitive. They seem to connect with people who are wounded or hurting. I’ve known many people—particularly women—who find solace in the act of grooming a horse. Horse therapy has come into its own in recent years. Prisoners, troubled teens, abused women, special needs children—so many people turn to horses for renewal and healing. This is a theme that arises time after time in my Double D Wild Horse Sanctuary series. It’s a theme that complements the love story beautifully.

Let’s talk books, writing, or whatever else comes to mind. Have you ever had a moment when you connected in some mystical way with an animal, some kind of communication that surpasses human expectations?

One commenter will win her/his choice of one of these four books from Kathleen's backlist.

Kathleen Eagle visits the Lair, and brings some cowboys!

Hosted by Trish Milburn

I read a lot, but honestly I don't keep a ton of books once I've read them. I'd need a house just for my books! There are a few authors whose work does make it to my keeper shelf, however, because their stories and characters are so wonderful. Kathleen Eagle is one of those authors. So I jumped at the chance to host Kathleen in the Lair today.

Your new release, Cowboy, Take Me Away (and now I have the Dixie Chicks song in my head), out April 19 from Harlequin Special Edition, is part of your Wild Horse Sanctuary series. Can you tell us more about this series -- how many books so far, what it's about, and what we can expect in the future?

Cowboy, Take Me Away is the 5th book in the Wild Horse Sanctuary series, starting with One Cowboy, One Christmas and hero Zach Beaudry, who was mentioned in In Care of Sam Beaudry. I didn’t start out to write a series, but Sally Drexler from One Cowboy needed a book, and the series grew from there. One Brave Cowboy is scheduled for October. After that there’s at least one more.

Whose story is Cowboy, Take Me Away?

I think it’s Skyler Quinn’s story. She’s ripe for getting swept off her feet. She’s a widow—married an older man who started out as a father figure and ended up leaving her with a pile of debt and a stepson who refuses to grow up. When she runs into Trace Wolf Track—a younger man this time—she thinks she’s in for her very first weekend fling. You can read the first chapter at www.kathleeneagle.com.

I have long been a fan of yours and of stories with cowboys and Native Americans, tales of the west, both past and present. What draws you to write books about these types of characters and settings?

I’m an Eastern dude gone West, but I’ve always loved Westerns, and I’ve always been interested in American Indians. I graduated from college with a generation that truly wanted to save the world, and went straight to an Indian reservation to teach high school English. I had a lot to learn, but I’ve always been an eager student.

Are you also a fan of movie westerns? If so, which ones are your favorites?

I loved the new True Grit with Jeff Bridges. We still watch Lonesome Dove with Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones periodically. Both movies are true to the books, and both books are terrific. Another favorite is The Outlaw Josey Wales with Clint Eastwood. Oh, and Two Mules For Sister Sarah. Oh, and....
I see on your website that you teach at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis . Can you tell us more about these classes and how you came to teach there?

The Loft has a wonderful reputation nationally, and for a long time the emphasis was on lit’rary. My friend Mary Bracho (aka Ana Seymour) and I were the first to be invited to teach a course in writing the Romance. We’ve been teaching there for more than 10 years, and we love it. Our “Book In a Month” class fills every time.

With a name like Romance Bandits, you know we love tales of romance here. Tell us how you met your husband, Clyde.

Ah, my favorite romance. I spent the summer between my junior and senior years in college in a volunteer program on a South Dakota Indian reservation. (Remember, I was out to save the world.) I was introduced to Clyde the day after I arrived. He was wearing a red Western shirt, cowboy hat, boots, and man, did he look good in those jeans. He was breaking a horse. I’m here to tell you, there’s no cowboy like an Indian cowboy.

You’ll find a picture of me and my cowboy the summer we met when you visit me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/kathleen.eagle1

We all have those keeper books that we've loved so much that we will never part with them. Your Sunrise Song is such a book for me. What are some of the books on your keeper shelf?

Well, first of all, thank you, Trish. I’m especially proud of Sunrise Song. I have tons of keepers. A few off the top of my head: Tales of Burning Love and almost everything else Louise Erdrich had written; Flowers From the Storm (Laura Kinsale); Silent In the Grave (Deanna Raybourn); Lightning That Lingers (Tom and Sharon Curtis)...oh, so many more!

Thanks for being here today, Kathleen. Kathleen will be giving away a copy of one of the earlier Wild Horse Sanctuary books (winner's choice!) to one lucky commenter today. So fire away with your questions for Kathleen.

Tracy Garret: Spurs, Boots and Good Men

by Suzanne Welsh
Tracy Garrett loves a good man, especially one wearing boots and spurs. In fact, she loves those strong heroes so much, she writes about them in her historical western romances. So naturally while sitting on her balcony overlooking the autumn changes around The Lake of the Ozarks, our conversation turns to her newest book, TOUCHED BY LOVE.


Tracy, TOUCHED BY LOVE is your second Historical Western romance. Can you tell us a little bit about it?

I'll let the back cover blurb do the talking:

A TEXAS PROMISE?


Jaret Walker is a loner, a gun for hire with a heart of ice. He's never had anyone to call his own, and he likes it that way. But when a promise made to a friend leads him on a ride through the desert and to remote Two Roses Ranch where he meets Isabel Bennett, the woman he's supposed to protect, all he can think of is making her his. She's the kind of woman a rough-riding cowboy like him can never have. But her hot gaze tempts him like no other woman has before...

A SCORCHING DESIRE?
The moment Isabel Bennett lays eyes on Jaret Walker, she remembers the dreams she's denied for so long. She's sworn never to marry. It's the only way to protect her ranch. But when Walker rides into her life, she decides to let herself taste what she's giving up-a passion that burns through her with each kiss-and a desire that won't be denied...

Touched by Love, coming November 4, 2008, from Zebra Historical Romance.

In the beginning of TOUCHED BY LOVE there's an interesting opening scene centered around a Mexican prison. Was this a real place?

Perote Prison was a real place. Originally a castle, it was built by the Viceroy of Mexico in the late 1700s 7000 feet up the mountains overlooking the port of Vera Cruz. It was intended as an ammunition storage facility and a military training school, and as a second line of defense for Vera Cruz. The Mexican Army used the huge fortress to keep both military and political prisoners. Texans captured during three disastrous expeditions against Mexico were incarcerated and died within its walls. The shell of the building still remains, but photos are allowed only by special permit. [Photo by J. J. McGrath & Walace Hawkins, "Perote Fort- Where Texans Were Imprisoned", Volume 48, Number 3, Southwestern Historical Quarterly Online]

When I needed a place for Isabel's brother to be taken, I began searching for prisons in Mexico and found this place. The location was ideal-and it has two macabre stone figures guarding the bridge.


Jaret Walker (big sigh!) is my idea of a cowboy hero. In fact I envisioned the early John Wayne character while reading this. Was there anyone you had in mind as you wrote it?

I never have a specific actor in mind when I write, but Jaret has a lot of the stubborn honor that John Wayne's characters always showed, with a liberal dose of Clint Eastwood tough-guy thrown in. Mmmm...Clint....


The women who helped settle the American West were made of strong stuff and in TOUCHED BY LOVE, Isabel is the backbone of her ranch. What made her so determined to hold on to it?

Isabel takes the legacy of the ranch very seriously. The land has been passed from mother to daughter through several generations, and she believes it is her responsibility to maintain it for the next generation. Besides, she loves the rough, harsh land-it's a part of her soul.

Without the uber-strong women who came west on foot, horseback and wagon seat, I believe the U.S. would be a very different place. Isabel is one of those women. She takes the legacy of the ranch very seriously. The land has been passed from mother to daughter through several generations, and she believes it is her responsibility to maintain it for the next generation. Besides, she loves the rough, harsh land-it's a part of her soul.

More wine?

Even though western historical romances have been quiet for a few years, they're starting to make a comeback in the market place. What about the western do you think appeals to romance readers?

There is something about a loner-a man who lives and works alone for weeks or months at a time-that seems to tug at our protective instincts. A cowboy, lawman, gunslinger-it doesn't seem to matter what they do, we love the dark, handsome heroes. The resurgence of westerns at the movies and on TV is evidence. Deadwood, 3:10 to Yuma, Seraphim Falls, Tombstone, Missing. I've seen the trailers for Appaloosa and it's on my must-see-soon list! Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen in boots and spurs? Be still my heart.

Do you think these heroes translate in to contemporary characters? How?

Absolutely, whether the setting is "western" or not. I think the qualities of honor, duty and good-guys-win are timeless. The romance hero always has a strong sense of right & wrong, does what is necessary despite personal insult or injury, and looks darn good in a cowboy hat. lol


Before we head out on the boat to tour the Lake, I have one more question. Is there another western in your future?

I certainly hope so! I'm in the middle of writing Wolf's story [he was the tracker in Touch of Texas who was searching for his kidnapped children]. And I have several other characters standing around in my office waiting for a turn to tell their stories.


I'd like to ask the Bandit readres a question now. Who is your favorite movie or TV cowboy and why? You choose the winner and let me know who it is, please?

Tracy is offering an autographed copy of TOUCHED BY LOVE to a lucky commentor. And don't forget, if you want to order YOUR copy of TOUCHED BY LOVE, just click on the cover picture.