Dear Readers…I’d originally written this post for my home page, but since it’s been displaced by my gorgeous new cover (which is also here…I can’t stop showing it off…I’m over the moon…) and news of my upcoming release, When A Lady Deceives, the first novel in the Her Majesty’s Most Secret Service series, I’m posting it in its new home, with a few tiny tweaks. I hope you’ll agree with me that reading romance is one of the most enjoyable escapes from the bad news that bombards us on a day-to-day basis. Welcome to my blog!

Oh, you write…romance…

The slight narrowing of the eyes. The perfectly-plucked-brow arch.  The pursing of the lips, or its counterpoint, the wide-eyed jaw drop. How can someone so sensible, so practical, so independent write romance?

Actually, I can’t imagine writing anything else. I’m sensible. I’m practical. I’m independent. And I’m an avowed romantic. I love happy endings, the oft-ridiculed happily ever after. Oh, I have nothing against a good drama. I treasure a story that makes me think, that brings important issues to the forefront and opens avenues to rich discussion. But why-oh-why is a happy ending often regarded as a bad thing?

Not in my book! A good love story brings joy to my soul, the sense that I’ve gone along for the ride with characters who’ve managed to meet and fall in love despite whatever obstacles the author tossed into their path. And a good author will make the road to true love a minefield. Just like those relationships that survive and thrive in real life, the hero and heroine in a romance face road blocks along the way, whether those trials involve villains out for their blood, the challenges of balancing two careers while forging a life together, or their own inner demons.

I love a hero who’s not afraid to show his chivalrous side (yes, I do believe chivalry still exists) and a heroine who can hold her own with the hero and any antagonists who come her way. My favorite romances have an adventurous bent, a touch of the paranormal, or depict the battle-of-the-sexes with a hefty dollop of humor thrown in for good measure. Raiders of the Lost Ark contains one of my all-time-favorite love stories – the interactions between Indiana Jones and Marion are priceless!

I write the kind of books I love to read. Love stories laced with romantic intrigue and adventures of the heart.  And, it goes without saying, a well-deserved happily ever after.