Welcome!
It’s lovely to have you here for the hop! I got some hot hot hot prizes!
I’m in love by everything that I read by Em Petrova, that’s no secret, and she kindly offered 3 prizes for my readers today! Thank you Em for the generosity!
Today we have hunky hero Xander from OUTLAWS OF LOVE, Book 1 of The Hollis Boys, now available from Loose Id. Welcome, you big, hot cowboy! Settle down here. Put those boots up. Why, yes, please take off your hat as well as any other garments…
Let’s dig in!
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What do you do for work?
I pride myself on assisting my family in raising the best horses this side of the Mississippi… when I’m not running from the law, that is. There’s a little trouble between me and the Southern Gorge Railroad, you see.
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Where are you from?
Southern Texas, but during my career with the military during the War Between the States, I traveled all over.
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What is the one thing about yourself that you would like me to know?
I’m known for my gentle but thorough care of all warm-blooded creatures—men, women, and horses alike.
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When was your last relationship and how long did it last?
During the war, the first sparks occurred between me and my long-time best friend, James. After he got shot and we were parted for a time, I came to realize how much I needed him in my life. Then along came Annabelle, and whoooeeee, we were in for a ride!
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Do you want to marry or have you ever been married?
Marriage is an honorable institution and no Hollis boy would ever carouse without proposing marriage. *grins*
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What do you do for fun?
Besides stealing land that rightfully belongs to the good people of Texas from that son-of-a-bitchin’ railroad that stole it? Well, I’ve been known to hole up in a cave during a long rainstorm, if you know what I mean.
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What are you most proud of?
Coming home from war alive so my ma didn’t suffer.
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Do you believe in love at first sight?
In my case, love at first sight was love at first kiss. But you’ll have to keep reading to see the opening pages of our story.
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What is your most treasured possession and why?
My horse Pete, but that’s a long, sad story.
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Where do you see yourself in five years time?
At the head of the dinner table, with Annabelle on my right and James on my left, grinning at all the little Hollis mouths open for their ma’s delicious cookin’!
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Do you believe a cup is half empty or half full?
Half full. Even after James took that bullet, I never believed we’d fail in our endeavor to win against the railroad.
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You have got six months to live, what will you do first?
Slow, deep kisses come to mind.
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Is sexual compatibility important to you?
With two lovers, you can only imagine.
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If you have friends coming over, what would you cook?
I might roast some wild game over the fire. Add some biscuits from the saddlebag, and you’ve got a fine meal.
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Are you a morning person or a night person?
Morning, noon, night… I am ready all the time.
Thank you, Xander. We’ve loved drinking in that leather and musk smell—I mean your answers! Next time we hope to interview your delectable but dark cousin Graham, whose story, TRAIL OF LUST, releases June 19!
Two lucky commenters will win a copy of OUTLAWS OF LOVE, and one commenter will win a signed print copy of THE TEMPEST (print to US residents only please)—plus I’ll throw in a special surprise with the print book!
Read on for an excerpt of TRAIL OF LUST…
“Thank the Lord above that you’re here, Hollis. I need a strong pair of arms for this job.” Silas Allen’s voice sounded from the darkened depths of the cow barn.
Graham Hollis squinted into the dimness, pausing in the entrance to let his eyes adjust. The reek of hay and animal filled his senses. A shaft of light broke through the high window, and dust motes swirled hectically in the beam. He stepped into the barn, and his eyes seemed to immediately adjust.
“I’m glad to help.” He extended a hand to his neighbor, and they shook. Silas was an hour’s hard ride from Graham’s family ranch—the Hollis Ranch. A work hand had arrived at the house early that morning, asking for help with pulling a calf.
“How long has she been having difficulty?” Graham asked Silas. He crossed the barn to the stall, from which the sounds of heavy breathing emanated. He zeroed in on the heifer, taking stock of her condition instantly. She was looking drained—not a good sign. The Hollises were known for raising horseflesh, but they raised their share of other livestock to live on. They’d even supplied the Confederacy during the war.
Jerking away from that thought, Graham knelt down in the hay before the reclining cow. Her belly hitched and rolled, her thick brown hide quivering. A long, guttural noise burst from her muzzle.
“She needs attention and quick.”
“Yessir, that calf’s been trying to set eyes on the world for many hours now. As soon as I realized Clarabell wasn’t going to birth it on her own, I sent for you,” Silas said.
Graham cast a sidelong look at the slip of a woman hiding in the shadows. “Why don’t you fetch me that rope on the far wall?” His command was followed by a stunned silence.
“Come on out here, Kathleen, and do the man’s bidding,” Silas said to his daughter.
As a lithe young woman scurried across the hay, her thick auburn hair a tangled braid on her spine, Graham hid his grin. The Allen girl was known as “Nibby” to her neighbors because as a little girl, she was always skulking around where she wasn’t allowed, listening to important adult conversations. She’d earned the name because her face was usually pressed to the window, her nose mashed into a nib.
Her light footsteps tripped back to him. She thrust a rope over his shoulder. He sat back on his heels and started rolling up his shirtsleeves in preparation for the dirty business of calf pulling.
“Just hold on to it, Nibby,” he said. She grunted, and he smiled outright at her obvious discomposure at being called Nibby. Did she think he wouldn’t remember after all these years? The war had stolen a lot of memories from him and replaced them with bad ones, but he recalled the days before he and his cousin Xander rode off to join up with the Second Cavalry. They’d swung by the Allen place and spent some time putting up hay for them. Nibby had followed him all over the ranch.
She shifted closer at the same moment Graham drew a deep breath. The perfume of lavender and pure female walloped him. Not just female. Aroused female.
Unable to stop himself, he cast a glance over his shoulder, finding her inches away. If he turned fully, he’d be directly in front of her sex. Visions ripped through him of pushing her skirts up, the fabric draping over his wrists as he leaned in and inhaled that delicious perfumed spot between her thighs—
Fuck. You’re in need of a trip to town. No whorehouse could fulfill the need in him for a tender woman, though. The cats that strutted in those houses were far from naive.
Nibby should be at least eighteen by now, shouldn’t she? He passed a hand over his face, hoping to scramble the lust on his features before her father called him out.
He accepted the rope from her. “Thank you kindly.”
“You’re welcome,” came her soft reply.
The hairs on his nape lifted to the whispery sound, every inch of his cock on fire now. Damn, he was going to have to pull this calf and hightail it out of here before Silas caught sight of his erection.
Hoping she’d move away, he wrapped the rope around the small cloven hooves of the calf that were visibly protruding from its mother. As he looped the rope, he had to reach inside the cow’s slimy womb. Another long moan sounded.
“Oh, poor Clarabell.” Nibby scooted around him and dropped to her knees at the cow’s head.
“You be careful there, miss. She’s a might unhappy.” Graham tugged on the rope, checking to see if it was secure. “Silas, do you happen to have a lantern? I could use a spot of light.”
“Sure do.” Footsteps crunched behind them as Kathleen’s father went off in search of a lantern. Hopefully he wouldn’t go too damn far. After gulping breath after breath of the woman’s scent, Graham couldn’t be responsible for his actions. His cock was about to burst the confines of his pants.
He cast a sidelong look at her and found her staring at him openly. Without meaning to, he let his gaze roam downward to the lush globes of her breasts pressing against the white linen of her blouse.
Oh Lord.
In recent years, he hadn’t been a praying man, but at this minute, he needed all the help he could get. It might take divine intervention to keep him from closing his hand over one of those round breasts and clamping the other on her waspish waist.
“How old are you?” he asked with too much force.
Her eyes widened, flashing a darker hue. What color were they exactly? Now Graham wanted the lantern light so he could discern their color. Her pouty pink lips opened and then shut abruptly in shock at his ungentlemanly question.
Finally, she seemed to gain her wits as the crunch of hay preceded her father to the stall. “You remember that horrid nickname, Mr. Hollis. I’m surprised you don’t recall my age.”
He tore his gaze from her mouth before he lunged forward and kissed the hell out of her. He gave the rope another tug to distract himself, and the cow released another low. “I was a grown man the last time I saw you, remember. And you were barely knee-high.”
Even through the dim light, he saw her face mottle dark red. Pitching her voice low, she infused it with the wrath he’d ignited.
“I was not knee-high, Mr. Hollis. In fact, I was ten years old!”
“Which makes you…?”
“Eighteen.”
“Here you are, Hollis.” Silas moved into the wooden stall with them, the glowing lantern held aloft. Tension crackled in the very air. Nibby tore her gaze from Graham’s but not before he got a good look at her eyes.
Fuck, cornflower blue. I’m a dead man.
Without ceremony, he wrapped the coarse rope around both hands. He locked his muscles and tugged. The calf moved within its warm, wet home, the bony ankles appearing. The cow’s belly undulated. He yanked again, digging in his boot heels to gain some traction. The calf continued to come inch by precious inch.
At Clarabell’s head, Nibby crooned, using quiet, nonsensical words. A barn cat slinked up to her and began to rub itself on her hip.
“Christ,” he said before he could bite off the curse.
Nibby shot him a glance that went straight to his groin. If he didn’t get out of here soon, he’d be unmanned in a dank barn and be forced to ride home in a state of sticky wetness.
He put his back into pulling the calf. He used as much exertion on the rope as he could. The little body gave a few inches at once, and he nearly toppled backward. Nibby loosed a gasp that only served to ignite him further. Lurid thoughts revolved through his mind. Could he make her issue that sound in bed?
With a primal roar, he pulled the body of the calf from its mother. It slid into the hay nose first—a wet and sloppy and solid little form.
Nibby cried out and jumped to her feet. Graham released the rope and clenched his hands into fists to keep from grabbing the woman, tossing her over his shoulder, and making off with her.
A Hollis never dallies, he reminded himself. The men in his family didn’t trifle with women. They married them or they kept their peckers in their pants.
As Graham recovered from his panting desire, Silas pushed past him and quickly unbound the calf’s front legs. The heifer lurched upward to nudge its baby. It began licking it with long, slow laps of its tongue.
Nibby drifted a step backward until she stood at Graham’s side. Heat ebbed off her tight little body and scorched him.
“I thank you mightily for that, Hollis,” Silas was saying. The older gentleman stood and brushed the loose bits of hay from his pants. “There’s a spring out back where you can clean up.” He swung his bright gaze to his daughter, who was blushing furiously.
What was going on in her pretty little head? Graham didn’t even want to know.
“Kathleen will show you the way.”
Graham wanted nothing more than to turn on his heel and run back to his horse. He needed to get the hell away from Kathleen, not to be left alone with her, copious amounts of water, and a white, lace-trimmed linen shirt that would so easily reveal the color of her skin beneath when wet.
He thwacked a hand against his thigh. Through a tense jaw, he spoke. “Thank you kindly.”
Was that a puff of air leaving her lips? His cock hardened more, if such a thing were possible.
“Uh… Just this way, Mr. Hollis.” She slipped past him without even a brushing of their sleeves. His balls drew up tightly to his body as the air stirred around her, the currents bringing her scent fully into his head once more.
Stiffly, he followed a few paces behind her. Try as he might, he couldn’t keep his gaze from scouring her curves. Her waist was tinier than he’d first thought, her hips swelling out in womanly splendor. She kept her back ramrod straight, but she moved with the loping grace of a woman well accustomed to country living.
He flicked his gaze down to her feet. Her bare heels flashed beneath her churning skirts. How many petticoats did she have on? Surely she was outfitted like a proper lady, being eighteen.
Eighteen and fair game.
He stifled a groan. Sweat had broken out all over his body, and it had very little to do with pulling that calf. Need blazed within him, a wildfire that would not be easily doused.
The ground was rocky and uneven between the barn and the spring. A few hundred yards off, the house stood, a weather-beaten but sturdy structure quite like the owner, Silas. The rest of the farm looked to be in need of some work, though. The barn had some loose boards and there simply wasn’t enough ventilation for the cattle, let alone light. How had Silas managed to raise animals in such a shelter? The Hollis family believed in giving their animals plenty of sunlight.
Ahead of Graham, Kathleen sashayed through the high grasses. As they neared the spring, she slowed, picking her way more slowly in her bare feet.
He caught up to her. “Thank you for your assistance in the barn.”
She sniffed and lifted her chin a notch, bringing his attention to the slender column of her throat. Her skin was as pale as new milk, marred only by a faint spattering of freckles across her nose and forehead.
He looked away. Damn, those freckles were as enticing as the rest of her. She had to have a fault besides being nosy, but it wasn’t her appearance.
When she continued to ignore him, he attempted to get a closer look at her. The brim of his hat hung low, and he pushed it back.
She stopped walking and looked at him long and hard, her fingers twitching in the fabric of her skirt. All at once, he realized she was angry.
“Listen, I’m very sorry about calling you that nickname. It came to my mouth before my brain could snag it back.”
She narrowed her eyes, but the corner of her full lips twitched.
He doffed his hat, holding it theatrically over his heart. “Please accept my apology, miss.”
She went completely still. Her eyes grew rounder, accentuating the dark fringe of lashes surrounding the very blue depths. She was like stone, unmoving. Worry jumped into his chest. Was she going to faint from the heat? Had she been stung by a bee? He’d known a man in the war who had died from bee stings before the Yanks could get him. Maybe she was affected similarly. She wasn’t wearing shoes.
He reached out for her automatically. Putting his hands on her was the only way to find out if she was truly all right.
His fingers brushed the underside of her arm and wrapped around her wrist. He stared down at them, wondering how that had happened while reveling in the delicateness of her bones. His fingers were very dark against the ivory of her blouse.
“Nib—I mean, miss? Are you all right?”
Her breath was coming fast, her breasts rising and falling, making the cloth of her shirt strain over them.
“M—” His words were cut off as she bridged the gap between them, stepping right into his arms.
One last thought flitted through his head. A dead man.
Find Em:
***
Outlaws of Love
by Em PetrovaUpon traveling west to marry, Annabelle Stephens longed to leave her nickname of “Sweetheart Annie” and the strict rules of Boston society behind. The taboo freedom she faces isn’t exactly what she had in mind. A sexy outlaw storms into her rented room and kidnaps her, and then she’s embroiled in a dangerous game with not one man, but two.
Until now Xander Hollis wanted one thing–or maybe two–to stop the Southern Gorge Railroad from stealing the homesteaders’ land, and to act on his desires with his partner in crime James. Like Robin Hoods of the old west, he and James embark on a mission to rob from the rich and give to the poor. When he refuses to let go of the woman who could identify him, he finds he’s in true danger. Danger of losing his heart to the heiress of the very railroad corporation he struggles to bring down.
Publisher’s Note: This book contains explicit sexual situations, graphic language, and material that some readers may find objectionable: anal play/intercourse, male/male sexual practices, menage (m/m/f).
***
The Tempest (Witches of Westaddy, #1)
by Em Petrova
A bewitching woman named Adira de la Fay haunts the grounds of Adsbury Manor, a psychiatric care center where Doctor Jase Maddox has taken a longed-for position. Her delicate beauty and soulful eyes unsettle him while her strange ability to nurse dead plants into beautiful blooms, her fervor for playing the cello, and her obsession with all things Shakespeare make Jase suspect her mind is more intact than her previous doctors have believed. Between this puzzle and the desires she raises in his body, he can’t stay away from her.
Adira de la Fay has spent a lifetime locked behind the walls, and amongst the patients, of Adsbury Manor. As her new doctor helps her unknowingly reach her potential by lessening her medication, her powers begin coming back in force. Desperate to escape her circumstances and find a way to right the past, she asks the intriguing man for help. Though he satisfies her lusts, she fears she cannot be truly happy until she claims her rightful place and balances the magical world.
As Dr. Jase unlocks Adira’s passions, she reveals that her gifts run deeper than anyone imagined and that he has untapped powers of his own. Though uncertain as to whether he believes in this strange new world, he must free her from the Bedlam that has swallowed her life. With his career jeopardized, he removes her from Adsbury Manor though the move could land him in prison and her back into the world that has nearly destroyed all she is.
***
• What you can win here at Reading Romances:
2 copies of Outlaws of Love (book 1 of The Hollis Boys)
1 signed print copy of THE TEMPEST
• Number of winners:
3
• Giveaway open to:
Ebook Giveaway is INTERNATIONAL and Print Giveaway US only!
• Deadline to enter the giveaway:
11:59pm on Friday, June 22th
• How to enter:
Use the rafflecopter widget. If it doesn’t load, click here.
GOOD LUCK!
***
Hey, don’t forget to sign up for my next giveaway events too!
27 comments
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Buffy Kennedy
June 15, 2012 at 9:30 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
What’s your favorite type of hero (vamp, shifter, alpha male, geek, cowboy, suit, warrior, etc)?
Outlaws of Love looks sexy, would love to win it
BK
buffykennedy[at]gmail[dot]com
Monica
June 15, 2012 at 10:36 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hi Em,
I haven’t read any of your work yet. How may books do you have published?
mcv111 at hotmail dot com
erinf1
June 15, 2012 at 12:40 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
thanks for a great post and giveaway!
Em… what inspires you to write?
efender1(at)gmail(dot)com
Tamsyn
June 15, 2012 at 1:15 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Your books have some really hot covers. Do you get to choose them?
tamsyn5(at)yahoo(dot)com
Shannon
June 15, 2012 at 4:20 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Where do you usually write? Are you in an office or outside or just anywhere when the mood strikes?
bas1chsemail at gmail dot com
Joanne B
June 15, 2012 at 4:41 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Do you have a favorite story that you have written?
Thanks for the great post and giveaway.
e.balinski(at)att(dot)net
Diana Stanhope
June 15, 2012 at 6:20 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hello Em, Do you write with a story outline in mind or do you just let the characters take you where they may want to?
MaryC
June 15, 2012 at 7:51 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
How many Hollis Boys are there?
Xander, thanks for stopping by!
Becky WArd
June 16, 2012 at 5:41 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Em, What do you like to do in your free moments from writing?
Trix
June 16, 2012 at 12:26 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
How do you approach writing a menage? What do you have to keep in mind that you wouldn’t necessarily need for m/f or m/m?
Em Petrova
June 16, 2012 at 1:50 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Buffy, as long as the male is strong and passionate about the woman he chooses, I’m on board! It doesn’t matter if it’s vamp, shifter, cowboy, or alien! Love them all!
Monica, I have 21 published works at this point in time. At the end of the month, that will be 23! And I have a book releasing every month from here until December. I hope you’ll check out my RELEASES page at http://www.empetrova.com!
Erinf1–my inspiration comes from a single word! A lot of times inspiration strikes when I’m performing a mindless task like cleaning.
Tamsyn–I send the publisher a cover art requisition form, with my characters’ descriptions and the tone of the book. I always get input, and the cover gods have blessed me!
Shannon-My office is shared with my husband, which means I have deer heads, caribou heads, and red stags hanging all around me, staring! I like to think it adds a certain grittiness to my writing!
JoanneB-I can’t say I have a favorite story, but I do have characters that are closer to me than others. I absolutely am in love with the hero of my upcoming release TRAIL OF LUST. He’s a proper tortured her–an ex-soldier in the Civil War, with a very painful past and resistance to love. Another of my very favorite characters is Levi in BLOWN DOWN. You’ll have to check him out!
Diana–Yes, I write with a loose outline. A few lines about each character including their conflicts and goals sets me on a path. The characters sometimes direct me, though!
MaryC–there are 12 cousins! It’s a lot of hunky man-candy, believe me! Whoo!
Becky Ward–I have four kids, so they keep me busy running with activities. Right now they’re home for the summer and it’s VERY busy! Thanks for asking!
Trix–when writing a menage, I keep in mind that all three must play an important role in the relationship. They must fulfill needs in each other for it to work. Otherwise, it’s just choreography–a body part here, a body part there. Great questions! Thanks, all!
XXXXX
Emily W.
June 16, 2012 at 3:41 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Have you ever written with another author?
Amanda Wimer
June 16, 2012 at 4:12 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hi Em, How long does it generally take you to write a novel? Or is it different for each one?
Yvette
June 16, 2012 at 4:36 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Em, I love your work! Do you need complete peace and quiet to write or is a little distraction okay? What keeps the inspiration going?
Yvette
yratpatrol@aol.com
April Alvey
June 17, 2012 at 1:15 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
My Question Is Have You Made A Male Lead In Your Books About Any One In Your Personal Life. April Alvey
butterfli262002@yahoo.com
Renee Bennett
June 17, 2012 at 3:41 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hi Em. I haven’t read any of your books yet, but the ones posted here look good so I’ll be adding them to my wish list. Do you have any books out now about aliens, or dragon shifters?
Thanks for being part of the hop and for the chance to win!
reneebennett35(at)yahoo(dot)com
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:30 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
At the moment, I don’t have any dragon shifters or aliens. The closest I come to dragons is in one of the books I’m giving away, THE TEMPEST. A rock formation in front of a home awakens into a dragon sentry when a warrior comes near. I wish you luck winning it! Thanks for stopping by!
bn100
June 17, 2012 at 4:53 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
The books sound good. I like your characters’ names. How do you come up with the names?
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:21 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Emily W–I’ve written a book on the writing craft with my BFF Suzanne Rock. It’s called Writing Sex Scenes When You Don’t Feel Sexy. We plan to have another craft book out late this fall!
Thanks for asking!
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:32 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
bn100–With four kids, I have a lot of baby name books. Many of the character names come from this. When it comes to last names, phone books are the best!
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:22 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Amanda Wimer–*waves* It takes me about 4-6 weeks to write a novel. Most of my work is around 45-55k words. I write a pretty clean first draft, so I read through it once and send it off to my editor! I’m a mega-fast writer, though. Please don’t hate me for it! LOL
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:25 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Yvette-I have four kids, so peace and quiet is unheard of. Right now they’re out of school for the summer, and I’m struggling to string two sentences together without someone interrupting me. I tell them to give me an hour of solitude in morning and an hour in the afternoon to work.
For the most part, they adhere to this rule, but days like today are hard! I was interrupted 2x during this post!
Em Petrova
June 17, 2012 at 6:28 PM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
April Alvey–what a great question! no, I’ve never known anyone like the heroes I write. I take little bits of people I see or know of and give my characters those traits. One of my heroes has many characteristics to someone I know, but I’d never confess who. The upcoming book will be released with Ellora’s Cave and is called UNTOUCHED–another logger series book. I expect to see it release this fall.
Andie Wardlow
June 21, 2012 at 10:51 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Who is your favorite character you have ever written and why?
andieleah78@gmail.com
Em Petrova
June 21, 2012 at 11:09 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hi Andie,
My favorite character… it’s such a tough choice. So many have my heart and soul poured into them. Strangely enough, I often identify with the heroes before I crack the heroine’s minds. One of my very favorite heroes is Levi from Blown Down. He’s rugged and tortured and deep down, very sweet. My latest hero from TRAIL OF LUST, Graham, is similar. He’s in pain, but through a long journey, allows his heart to grow again.
One of my favorite heroines is in my upcoming story, UNTOUCHED, coming soon from Ellora’s Cave. I identify with her on so many levels!
Great question!
Lisa G
June 21, 2012 at 11:07 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Who are some of your favorite authors?
Lisa G
Wolphcall(at)bellsouth(dot)net
Em Petrova
June 21, 2012 at 11:11 AM (UTC -3) Link to this comment
Hi Lisa,
Some of my biggest influences have come from classic authors such as Dickens, Jane Austen, and Louisa May Alcott. But I absolutely worship Anne Rice. In erotic romance, I’m a huge Lorelei James fan, as well as Mari Carr.