Dec 11, 2014 | Coffee With, December 2014
First, if we were meeting at a coffee shop I’d be drinking a Latte. What would you order? Half-caf skinny vanilla latte. I keep trying other drinks, but this is my go-to.
Thanks so much for taking the time to answer a few questions.
How many books in your Cross Springs Series can we expect to see? As for the Cross Springs series, the jury is out. I am working on the fourth novel and second novella now and just taking the stories as they unfold. The fourth novel features Connie’s sister-in-law, Lacey Burns, who just sort of showed up and demanded her own book. That’s how all my books happen. The characters just show up and make demands! As long as the residents of Cross Springs keep insisting I write their books, I will do so. I do have plans for a series set in the mountains of east Tennessee, though. Those people are starting to demand some attention, too.
What was it like to put out a Boxed Set with every Author from Red Door Reads? I can only imagine the planning session for that one 😉 As for the Red Door Reads box set, it was surprisingly easy to get everyone on board. Which is astonishing, considering there are 20 of us! The actual work of coordinating all of that wasn’t my responsibility, but I got secondhand accounts of how much work it was. My hat is off to the Red Doorians who made it happen. They are true heroines!
8 Tantalizing Tidbit
- A Must read book and why? Scarlett Bailey’s “Married By Christmas.” It is not strictly romance, but more of a chick lit book. It’s a Christmas book, which is why I picked it up initially, but it speaks in a very candid way about the profound importance women put on getting married, even when they know they are likely making a mistake. This book was also as much about the friendship between the heroine and her bestie as it was about the old love she left and the new one she found. It is smart, funny and heart-wrenching, with a very satisfying ending. I was very impressed with how Bailey pulled the story off and how profoundly good it was. Highly recommended!
- What is one place that I should see if I visit your hometown? Well, my hometown is Nashville, TN, and there are tons of must-see places there. That one would be a gimme. But I now live in Raleigh, NC, which is much less attractive from a tourist’s perspective. I think our shining stars, though, are our museums. We have some really splendid state museums housed in Raleigh and the NC Museum of Art is not to be missed. They have a surprisingly varied and impressive collection of art. They have wonderful docents, too, who will tell you anything and everything you could want to know about each work there. They also have fantastic special exhibits, like the Rodin statues they had a few years ago and the Porsche exhibit two years past. Amazing! They have one right now that is 66 works by Vermeer, Rembrandt, Hals and their Contemporaries. I really want to go. Wonder if I can con my husband into that one or if I need to wait for one of my daughters to get home for the holidays?
- Castles or Beaches? Castles! Especially if they are along the Rhine and I can see them while cruising down the river. Dream vacation.
- When you are traveling do you prefer to road trip it or fly it? Road trip, if possible. I love to drive. Like, really love it. I also love to listen to music really loud, sing along and keep time with the tiny maracas I keep in the car. For some reason, driving makes me insanely happy. I think a road trip across the country with my mother or one of my sisters or daughters would be the most fun ever. Any sights seen along the way are gravy!
- What is your guilty pleasure?My guilty pleasure is binge-watching, whether it’s back-to-back episodes of a TV show, all the movies in a series or simply a collection of movies that appeal to me. I recently binged on Wes Anderson movies. What a treat! Sadly, my husband doesn’t really “get” Wes Anderson movies. I needed one of my kids around to enjoy it with me!
- Binge watcher or weekly viewer? Um…I think I gave myself away in the guilty pleasure question. I have binge-watched every TV show I’ve seen in the past decade. I watch nothing when it airs, but wait for whole seasons to be available. I watched all of ‘Battlestar Galactica’ (the remake, of course) in about a week. All the shows and all the seasons!
- What’s your favorite TV show and why? ‘Sherlock.’ It’s funny, intelligent, fast and all about friends. Plus, I miss so many things I can watch each episode at least 4 times before picking up every nuance and enjoying every joke. That is the sign of a great show!
- What is your guilty pleasure?My guilty pleasure is binge-watching, whether it’s back-to-back episodes of a TV show, all the movies in a series or simply a collection of movies that appeal to me. I recently binged on Wes Anderson movies. What a treat! Sadly, my husband doesn’t really “get” Wes Anderson movies. I needed one of my kids around to enjoy it with me!
Thank you for taking the time to chat!
BIO:
Caren Crane grew up in Nashville, TN, and as a result does not care for country music. However, she cares a great deal about family, friends and men in boots. She blames her love of reading on a childhood devoid of TV and heavy on amusing oneself. Reading books was a lot more fun than playing with Barbies and playing “library” was far superior to playing “school.”
Caren now lives in North Carolina with her tall, handsome husband and a semi-feral and very demanding rescue cat. She fills all her books with family, friends and happy-ever-after endings. Which all books should feature, in her opinion. Connect with Caren on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CarenCraneAuthor or get the latest book news at https://www.CarenCrane.com.
Dec 9, 2014 | Blog, Coffee With, December 2014
If we were meeting at a coffee shop I’d be drinking a Latte. What would you order? Hazelnut coffee, black
Thanks so much for taking the time to answer a few questions. I LOVE your Millworth Manor books and was wondering how many books you anticipate in this series? I have no idea at this point. 🙂 I originally had tentative plots for seven books but the Millworth Manor world keeps evolving and new, interesting characters keep popping up, demanding their own stories. Plus, the next Millworth book – The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress – brings back the Effington family and I honestly don’t know where that will lead. I’ll probably keep doing Millworth books as long as I’m still having fun with them.
8 Tantalizing Tidbits
1. A MUST read book and why? My must read book is allegedly for kids. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis is the most wonderful book I’ve ever read. You read it one way as a kid but see so much more in it when you reread it as an adult. It’s truly a book that can be read over and over again- no matter how old you are. 🙂
2. What is one place that I should see if I visit your hometown? My neighborhood- Dundee 🙂 Fabulous little restaurants and great old houses.
3. Castles or Beaches? Easy- a castle overlooking a beach.
4. If you had an all expenses paid tri anywhere in the world for research, where would you go? Petra
5. Hard Rock or Classical? Favorite Band? Classic Rock. 🙂 No one favorite but I love Bob Seger and Manheim Steamroller.
6. What is your guilty pleasure? Made for TV Christmas movies.
7. Binge watcher or weekly reviewer? Definitely binge but only if it’s something I’ve just discovered. Binge watched the first seasons of Downton Abbey. Other than that – I watch (or record) all my favorites every week.
8. What’s your favorite TV show and why? I love TV so it’s hard to pick just one. Right now my favorites are Sleepy Hollow, Forever, Scandal and Grimm. And of course Downton Abbey. : )
9. What’s your favorite movie of all time and why? Probably The Red Violin for any number of reasons including that it’s really a lot of different stories in one. The movie follows a violin from it’s creation through to today. It’s a fascinating movie, moving, touching and completely engrossing.
10. If you could invite FIVE people to dinner (not friends and family – that’s too easy) who would you invite? It could be anyone past or present. Stephen King, Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Candice Bergen and Hillary Clinton, I think the conversation would be amazing. And hysterical.
Thank you so much for your time and the extra TWO questions!
BIO:
New York Times bestselling author Victoria Alexander was an award winning television reporter until she discovered fiction was much more fun than real life. She turned to writing full time and is still shocked it worked out.
Since the publication of her first book in 1995, she has written thirty-two full length novels and six novellas. The Perfect Wife—originally published in 1996 and reissued in March 2008—hit #1 on the New York Times list. The best selling, award winning author has books translated into more than a dozen different languages and readers around the world. Victoria credits much of her writing success to her experiences as a reporter.
Her years as a broadcast journalist were spent in two radically different areas of the country: Nebraska and West Virginia. In West Virginia, she covered both natural and manmade disasters. She was on the scene when a power plant construction accident in a small town left 52 men dead. She once spent the night on a mountain waiting to learn of the fate of coal miners trapped in a mine collapse. Victoria was producing a newscast when her husband (who worked at the same television station) and several other journalists were held hostage by a disturbed Vietnam veteran. In Nebraska, she reported on the farm crisis and watched people lose land that had been in their families for generations. She covered the story that was the basis of the movie BOYS DON’T CRY and once acted as the link between police and a gunman who had barricaded himself in his home. Her investigative work exposed the trucking of New York City garbage to a small town dump in rural Nebraska.
During her journalism career, Victoria covered every president from Ford to Clinton. She knows firsthand what it feels like to be surrounded by rising floodwaters and inside a burning building. She’s interviewed movie stars including Kevin Costner, ridden an elephant and flown in a governor’s helicopter. She’s covered a national political convention and Pope John Paul II’s historic visit to Denver as well as small town festivals celebrating everything from walnuts to Glen Miller. Her work was honored by numerous organizations including the Associated Press who called a feature about a firefighter’s school “story telling genius”. It was the encouragement she needed to turn from news to fiction. She’s never looked back.
Victoria claims her love of romance and journalism is to due to the influence of her favorite comic book character: Lois Lane, a terrific reporter and a great heroine who pursued Superman with an unwavering determination. And why not? He was extremely well drawn.
Victoria grew up traveling the world as an Air Force brat. Today, she lives in Omaha, Nebraska with her husband and two bearded collies—Louie and Reggie. They all live happily ever after in a house under constant renovation and the accompanying parade of men in tool belts. And never ending chaos. Victoria laughs a great deal—she has to.
Dec 8, 2014 | Blog, December 2014
The Shocking Secret of a Guest at the Wedding (A Milworth Manor Book) by Victoria Alexander is a charming and magical love story. Even more intriguing is when the wedding planner has a few secrets of her own! There are so many twists and turns that you will be asking questions right up until the very end.
Jackson “Jack” Quincy Graham Channing is a banker from New York City and suddenly discovers that his biological father is alive. Even more shocking is that his parents are still married and that his mother never bothered to tell anyone. Everyone is surprised by the turn of these events and that’s where the book takes off, with twists and turns and excitement galore! Will this new found discovery change everything? Will Jack be able to trust his mother? Will he be receptive to his newly discovered “father?”
As fate would have it, Jack is now the Channing Heir, and in England that is everything! The only request his father asks of Jack is to travel with him to England for a few weeks to meet the family. Rather the family he just discovered he had. Poor Jack has so many questions for his mother, himself and the man he thought was lost to him forever. Will a few weeks be enough time to sort out this new revelation?
Committed and with an open mind, Jack is amiable to traveling and meeting his new family. Consequently, Jack leaves everything behind including one unanswered question. Is he ready for marriage? Once in London, he meets an attractive woman Lady Theodosia “Teddy” Winslow, a wedding planner and friend of the Channing family in England. It seems Jack isn’t the only one who’s facing family issues and decisions. For Teddy, marriage can’t be for love, in her mind it’s all about survival.
Unfortunately for Teddy, she must build a new life out of need rather than fulfill her childhood dreams. Exhausted from her Mother’s constant nagging to marry, Teddy dodges it anytime it’s brought up for discussion. As a wedding planner she’s content and for now, it provides enough money to support them both.
Perhaps it’s all about timing and taking a chance on the unknown. What Teddy and Jack need is an adventure together. Is it possible that they can finally discover themselves and who they were meant to be? Suddenly, things aren’t quite as they’d thought. It all comes down to just one kiss. This one kiss will push these two heartwarming characters on a different path than they’d envisioned and will surprise everyone, including themselves!
I received this ARC for an honest review and hope that you will purchase your copy now. Once again, Victoria Alexander delivers a fantastic story with adventure, family, friendships, self discovery and a wedding! A perfect book to get wrapped up in this holiday season!
BIO:
New York Times bestselling author Victoria Alexander was an award winning television reporter until she discovered fiction was much more fun than real life. She turned to writing full time and is still shocked it worked out.
Since the publication of her first book in 1995, she has written thirty-two full length novels and six novellas. The Perfect Wife—originally published in 1996 and reissued in March 2008—hit #1 on the New York Times list. The best selling, award winning author has books translated into more than a dozen different languages and readers around the world. Victoria credits much of her writing success to her experiences as a reporter.
Her years as a broadcast journalist were spent in two radically different areas of the country: Nebraska and West Virginia. In West Virginia, she covered both natural and manmade disasters. She was on the scene when a power plant construction accident in a small town left 52 men dead. She once spent the night on a mountain waiting to learn of the fate of coal miners trapped in a mine collapse. Victoria was producing a newscast when her husband (who worked at the same television station) and several other journalists were held hostage by a disturbed Vietnam veteran. In Nebraska, she reported on the farm crisis and watched people lose land that had been in their families for generations. She covered the story that was the basis of the movie BOYS DON’T CRY and once acted as the link between police and a gunman who had barricaded himself in his home. Her investigative work exposed the trucking of New York City garbage to a small town dump in rural Nebraska.
During her journalism career, Victoria covered every president from Ford to Clinton. She knows firsthand what it feels like to be surrounded by rising floodwaters and inside a burning building. She’s interviewed movie stars including Kevin Costner, ridden an elephant and flown in a governor’s helicopter. She’s covered a national political convention and Pope John Paul II’s historic visit to Denver as well as small town festivals celebrating everything from walnuts to Glen Miller. Her work was honored by numerous organizations including the Associated Press who called a feature about a firefighter’s school “story telling genius”. It was the encouragement she needed to turn from news to fiction. She’s never looked back.
Victoria claims her love of romance and journalism is to due to the influence of her favorite comic book character: Lois Lane, a terrific reporter and a great heroine who pursued Superman with an unwavering determination. And why not? He was extremely well drawn.
Victoria grew up traveling the world as an Air Force brat. Today, she lives in Omaha, Nebraska with her husband and two bearded collies—Louie and Reggie. They all live happily ever after in a house under constant renovation and the accompanying parade of men in tool belts. And never ending chaos. Victoria laughs a great deal—she has to.
Dec 7, 2014 | Blog, December 2014
Are you still wondering what to get your friend, loved one or special someone? Where should we shop? As I mentioned yesterday we all know that books are a must on everyone’s shopping list this holiday season.
For those non-book gifts, we’d love to know…what’s your favorite on-line or brick and mortar place to shop? If you prefer the homemade gifts – tell us that too!
Since the holidays are only a few weeks away there is still plenty of time to find that almost last minute gift. Leave a comment below and let us know.
Dec 6, 2014 | Blog, December 2014
All day long on Twitter I’ve been reading your tweets about the various traditions that you’re all doing to get ready. Everything from going to the Nutcracker, trimming trees and putting up lights, or debating about what family recipe to use. There are so many traditions for Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa.
For me December is a time where family and friends can hopefully come together to learn and embrace what makes us so unique. I love the baking, crafting, cooking and quality time we get with the family after a busy week. Once the weather cools enough that coats are a must, it means that the fireplace will soon be filled with logs and the fire roaring. The coffee and hot cocoa will be poured and sweet treats will be baked or brought home from those cookie exchanges to enjoy.
I’m looking forward to sitting down with a cup of coffee later tonight and diving into a holiday book or two from some amazing authors! I may even try a few tasty cookie recipes from the Romance Bandits’ cookie blogs and members only recipe book! I hope you will take a few minutes to browse your favorite e-book site, or go to a great brick and mortar bookstore and support your favorite authors! They’ve whipped up a few fabulous stories that will help satiate that holiday reading craving and a new book goes great with a few cookie recipes.
So, if you’re looking for some fantastic ideas, books and even recipes, check out these sites as well as my resource section for some fantastic links to some AMAZING Authors!
https://romancebandits.com/decembers-coming-attractions/
https://jauntyquills.com/
https://reddoorreads.com
https://JewelsOfHistoricalRomance.com
So….how are you getting ready for the Holiday Season? We would LOVE to know!
