Mother's Day Giveaway

The wonderful  Liz Fielding -  who has won both the RWA's RITA and the Romantic Novelists' Association  Romance Prize - has  a special  feature on her blog -  First Page Friday  - where she features  - obviously! - the first page of a new  - or a favourite - romance novel.

Today I'm delighted that she has chosen my novel The Proud Wife    as her  First Page feature this time. 

Thank you Liz!

I always find it really special when an author I admire (and if you haven't read Liz's books, you've been missing out!) enjoys my own work and tells people about it.  Liz and I both write romance  but in such different styles, which is what I love about the genre we both write in. We can both take the same themes, ideas, plot elements, even character types, as are so common in romance fiction - but make those elements our own and turn them into something special - something with that elusive thing called 'voice' - that make  reading books by individual authors a unique experience.  And Liz's books certainly fit into that category for me.  I've read everything she's written and I'm so looking forward to her upcoming  novel in the new  Harlequin KISS line - Anything But Vanilla  coming in April . (Ice cream + a new Liz Fielding book - sounds like the perfect combination to me!)

Liz and I  - together with Anne McAllister  - usually run the Here Come the Grooms contest jointly around this  time  but unfortunately this year cinrcumstances conspired against it and we didn't have new books with new 'grooms' in  this time.  But for me a new Liz Fielding novel is always something to celebrate - and here in the UK  this weekend we have cause to celebrate because Sunday 10th  March is UK's mother's day.

Sadly,  I don't have  my mother to celebrate with any more and two years ago we also lost my MIL - which is  extra poignant as March is also the birthday  month for both these very special ladies - but  I do want to celebrate  right now - so I'll celebrate Mother's Day/March birthdays   with you all instead.

So  I have five copies ot The Proud Wife to give away for someone who has a birthday this month - or whose mother has a birthday - or whose mother would love a copy of The Proud Wife.

So take a look at Liz's site -  read the first page of The Proud Wife and if you don't already have a copy  then either leave  a comment on Liz's  blog  to say  hello to her (tell her I sent you!)  - or post a comment here telling me about your Mum, or  your birthday - or hers  . . . or someone you'd like to give a copy of The Proud Wife to . . . .

And on Sunday - Mother's Day - I'll get Charlie and Flora on the job of picking out the winners who'll get to celebrate this time too.

Oh and while you're over on Liz's site - take a look at the details of some of her wonderful books and if you haven't tried any of them yet - well, why not treat yourself?

Winners and blogging elsewhere

We have winners for the Here Come The Grooms Contest -
My winner is  - Natalija Shkomare
Anne McAllister's winner is  Colleen Conklin
Liz Fielding's winner is - Carol Woodruff

Each of these winners will receive a copy of all three books -
The Devil and Miss Jones by Kate Walker
Savas's Wildcat - By Anne McAllister
Flirting with Italian - By  Liz Fielding

Congratulations ladies!

Today is the first Friday of the month so I'm blogging at one of my regular spots - today it's over on The Pink Heart Society blog.  I'm talking about why this Sunday is special for me - and  about one of the ways I learned about writing at a very early age. 

See you there?

Happy Saint David's Day!

The Here Come the Grooms Contest has closed now -  Charlie has picked my winner, but I need to wait until Liz Fielding and Anne McAllister have  selected their winners too. Just as soon as they give me the details, I'll announce them here and the books will be on their way to the lucky winners of these three books:

The Devil and Miss Jones by Kate Walker
Flirting With Italian by Liz Fielding
Savas's Wildcat by Anne McAllister

It's March 1st - St David's Day - and of course St David is the patron saint of Wales.  So what  better way to celebrate his day with the details that I promised of my return to Wales and the wonderful Caerleon Writers' Holiday in July.

There was a  bit of a mix up with the arrangements this year - and the courses have been changing as so often happens, as speakers find they can't  be at the event etc.  But after talking to Anne and Gerry at Fishguard, we've planned for me to teach at this years' Writers' Holiday - and link this course again to the Advanced Romance Writing in Fishguard next year.  So for everyone who's asked about it - here are the details . . .

Caerleon Writers' Holiday -

I will be taking course 2...replacing  what is currently listed  as Mitzi Sereto's erotica. 

Title: A COMPLETE INTRODUCTION TO WRITING ROMANCE

As with all courses at Caerleon this will be a 5 session course working through the basics of writing romance  and giving students a grounding in all the skills needed to  create characters, build plots, create pace . . .

My course will only be one of 14 courses on offer - you can choose to do Writing Romance  and one other in the week. And of course there wil be lots of special guest, main speakers, after tea sessions. Oh, and the trip out on the  Wednesday afternoon when you can visit Cardiff,  the 'book town' of Hay on Wye, or even go down a Welsh coal mine. And then of course the whole event is rounded off  by a wonderful evening of music with the Cwmbach Male Choir. 

Fishguard Writers' and Artists' Weekend

And of course this will prepare anyone who's interested for the  the advanced followup at Fishguard next year.  I don't have the dates for the Writers and Artists' Weekend  confirmed - though I expect it will be 15th/16th/17th February 2013. The venue will, as usual, be at the  Fishguard Bay Hotel, Fishguard, Wales  Pembrokeshire

If you book online for either of these events you will save £10 off the cost.

Maybe I'll see you there.  Or at one of the other courses that I'll be posting details  soon.

Dashing in . . .

 . . .while I still have electricity and a chance to blog to remind you that the Here Come The Grooms Contest is still open untiol Sadie Hawkins Day - ie tomorrow Leap Year Day 29th February.   When February ends I will be getting  Charlie on to the job of picking my winner and Anne McAllister and Liz Fielding will be choosing their winners too. Then three of you will win copies of
The Devil and Miss Jones  by Kate Walker

Savas's Wildcat by Anne McAllister

Flirting With Italian by Liz Fielding

All details are on this blog  - or over on the Contest page of my web site

Talking of The Devil and Miss Jones, I'm thrilled to see that over on the Mills & Boon web site there is a banner  that says that my newbook is ' Top rated this month' -  with five rating roses too!  The reviews on the site are great. It's at #3 in the top ten bestsellers too!

I spotted this one, but missed the really great news that in a previous list of Top Rated for 2011, my previous title The Return of The Stranger  was also listed on there. My thanks to Fiona who spotted this when I missed it and let me know.

The official publication date for The Devil and Miss Jones is March 2nd but I was in town yesterday and spotted that copies were already available in the shops so it's out there now.  And the ebook version is already available for sale  over on the eHarlequin site.

Coming up - I've been discussing and planning more workshops/talks and so I'll be posting the details of those soon. The good news is that I will be teaching Writing Romance at Caerleon Writers' Holiday  again this summer - more details to follow - and of all the other courses coming up, including that very special one at The Watermill in Italy.   There are some details on my Events page if you can't wait for the blogs.

Where was I?

Or perhaps that should be where am I?  All I know is that I'm trying to catch up - again!
I had a great time at the workshop in Brigg - many thanks to everyone who came  there. It was a fun afternoon.

Then I had a long journey to Wales - made even longer by a 2 hour delay as a result of some road works that meant we crawled through the later stage of our journey at Monmouth.   But it was worth it when we finally reached Fishguard, and had some time to enjoy being by the sea  - and in the sunshine!  - as we settled in.  The sunshine didn't last but the enjoyment did - as it always does  - with great friends Anne and Gerry at the Fishguard Bay hotel.

We were also joined by  the other tutosr  - Alison Chisolm (Poetry) Della Galton (short stories) and Elizabtehr Hawksley (novels)

I had a wonderful time in the workshop sessions for my course.  I've always enjoyed the intense and focussed way that the Writing Weekend runs and this time  there was a really great group who all gelled together so well that we shared  a lot of learning, had a lot of fun, drank a little wine . . . and I hope everyone learned a lot too. I know   I found that some of the discussions  and topics revitalised my own thinking,   made me look at things afresh and sparked off new ideas - so it was great for me too!

Thank you to Rachael, Marie, Jo , Jenny, Judy, Susan, Karen, Ann  for making it all so much fun.

Oh  - and for those of you who have asked about my treaching in Wales in the summer - , I also had a talk with Gerry about the upcoming Caerleon  in July - the programme on the web site hasn't included Writing Romance  as yet, but  we've discussed it and  by popular demand I will be running a  course in July.

Details to follow.

And I'll be back in Fishguard in February 2013

Since we got home, life has been - well, chaotic -  I think I mentioned that we've been having some  building work done  on the house - improvements - well, they will be improvements when they're finished. Right now, they're a mess.  

We came back to no heating,  no water at one point . . .muddle, confusion, dirt . . . It's been hard to get to my computer because of a. the obstacle course to reach it, b. the lack of electricity at times, c. the mess . ..

Well, they say  a picture is better than a thousand words - so  try these. . . .

Charlie has been  busy inspecting everything and making sure it all works to his satisfaction .  

Hopefully I'll manage to get back and chat with you  at some point next week!

But don't forget the Here Come The Grooms contest is still running - you have until February 29th to get your entries in and be in with a chance of winning 3 great books.  So don't forget to send in your answers.

Here Come the Grooms

It's that time of year again -  time for the 5th annual  Here Come the Grooms  Contest.

I love sharing this special contest with my greast friends - and great writers Anne McAllister and Liz Fielding. And I know that regular blog readers enjoy it too. You get to meet 3 great heroes from three great books - and get a chance to win a set of those three books for yourself.

Stop by any or all of our websites to get the contest information, but basically, if you were around last year or the year before or . . . you know the drill.

Each of our heroes asks one question. You can find the answers on our blog or in the excerpt to each hero’s particular book (on our websites). Send all three answers to each of us for THREE chances to win a copy of each other our books.

That means  that there will be three winners, each of whom will get three books.

So while I'm running workshops and travelling to Wales -  I'll introduce you to this year's Grooms.    I hope that when I  get a moment to ask him, Carlos - or  Diablo as he's  known - will come along and blog as well but - well, he's busy planning his wedding and changing  his Miss Jones' name to Mrs Ortega.

So - Carlos Diablo  is the Groom in my March release (April in Presents Extra and M&B Sexy in Australia)

THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES

Carlos Diablo Ortega -  who, ask he tells Martha - made his  fortune in 'horses and wine' -  he's a championship polo player and owns a hugely successful vineyard. He's also just discovered that he's not actually the son of the man he thought was his father - or the grandson of Javier Ortega.  And that has turned his life upside down.

Martha's rather different -  but her life has just been turned upside down too.

Martha Jones has never taken a risk in her whole life. Until the day she runs out on her wedding and succumbs to the magnetism of a man she has only just met! A man she knows only as Diablo.

Lone wolf Carlos Ortega won't promise Miss Jones more than one searing-hot night. Yet Carlos is shocked by Martha's sweet innocence. This runaway bride is a virgin, and it seems the repercussions of their sizzling encounter could last forever . . .


So what is  Carlos' question?
What is Martha wearing – and holding when he first sees her?

You'll find the answer in the extract on my web site.








FLIRTING WITH ITALIAN

That's the title of Liz's book  – which has just been short-listed for the Romance Novelists’ Association’s RoNA award this year!

Her Groom is Conte Matteo di Serrone, the owner of a great vineyard, a plant breeder who is working with the UN’s Food and Agriculture Office.

The lady in Matteo’s life is Sarah Gratton, a history teacher, who is picking up her life after her fiance falls for someone new and she finds herself working in an international school in Rome.

The blurb for Liz’s book says:

Bag: packed. Flight: booked. Soon I’ll be in Rome and experiencing life in a foreign language! Watch this space…
Newly single Sarah Gratton is about to jump start her life and a just-for-fun romance with dark-eyed Matteo di Serrone could be just what the doctor ordered! This Italian count is ideal flirting material—if Sarah’s brave enough to make a move!

Well, she might not be—but luckily Matteo is! Matteo decides to keep this mysterious woman close—no hardship at all, given their spine-tingling awareness of each other and for a while it’s like something out of a fairy tale—until Sarah realizes she’s made the most rookie mistake of all: falling in love with her holiday fling….

Matteo’s question is:

 I asked Sarah if she’d found someone. Who was it?

Finally there is Anne McAllister's brand new novel - out at the same time as  The Devil and MIss Jones - that's March (UK) and April (USA  - Presents Extra)

SAVAS’S WILDCAT

Anne's Groom is Yiannis, the youngest of the Savas brothers and his heroine, Catriona MacLean. Yiannis and Cat have a bit of a history – or a lot of history, depending on which of them you ask.

According to the back cover:

Yiannis Savas, the irresistible playboy of the Savas dynasty, was every girl’s dream. But he quickly turned into Cat’s nightmare when his idea of a relationship was no more than a fiery affair.

Now Cat MacLean has grown up and out of her girlish fantasies. Determined not to fall prey to smooth talk and fast charm again, she’d engaged to someone sensible.

Then she’s forced to spend a week with the one man she’s never been able to forget . . .

Yiannis's question is quite simple -  he wants to know

 Who’s Harry?

Yiannis, Carlos and Matteo would like you to check out their books. You can access them by clicking on the books tab at the top of each of our web pages and then find the individual book pages.

If you’d like to enter this year’s Here Come the Grooms! contest, read the blurbs/ the extracts  and/or our blogs and find the answers to the questions the grooms have asked  and send them to each of us . You send all 3 answers to each of us to complete your entry - that way you have three chnaces of be on of the three winners  of  three great books. (Let's hope your lucky number is  3!)

You can contact us via our blogs  or - for me -  using the email address at the borttom of the page. Put Here Come The Grooms in the subject line of your email so it will go into the right folder.

Don't forget that you need to collect up the answers to ALL 3 questions in order to enter

The contest is now open and it closes on Sadie Hawkins Day - or Leap Year Day - February 29th.

Good Luck!

Pink Tuesday

To celebrate Valentine's Day,  the Mills and Boon web site is launching Pink Tuesday  with discounts and special deals - so why not check out the site from midnight tonight?And  while you're there you can see my newly released title The Devil and Miss Jones which, I'm thrilled to see, already has two five star (well - five roses!) reviews  -

One simply says "I couldn't put this book down, loved it"

And here's the other - 

A scintillating page-turner with the adorable Carlos one of the most appealing heroes in a long time complemented by an appealing modern day heroine in Martha and a cracking good plot and dialogue.

This is a little gem - everything a Modern M&B should be which had me wanting to cheer at the end!

Can't ask for more than that!  Thank you to those two kind readers.

Oh - and tomorrow being Valentine's Day that means that
a. The workshop in Brigg Lincolnshire is on in the afternoon - 1.30 - 4.30 at The Angel Suite - and, yes,  to those who have asked,  you can still turn up at the door if you haven't yet booked tickets. I think we'll have space for you

and
b. The annual Here Come the Grooms contest launches once more with Liz Fielding and Anne McAllister - so call back here for details of how to enter tomorrow.

Here Come the Grooms - and Sadie Hawkins Day

It’s Leap Year, in case you hadn’t noticed.. 

And that  also means that Sadie Hawkins day is coming around again.

Sadie Hawkins Day? Are you familiar with it? Every self-respecting romance reader should be. Though I have to admit that I wasn't aware it had that name until Anne McAllister told me all about it - I just knew it as a Leap Year Day.  But  apparently . . .

Well,  I'll let Anne Explain it as she does it so much better than me:
"
 It’s the day that the women get to take things into their own hands and grab the man of their choice – if they can catch him.

It all began – well, it probably all began in the dark reaches of history – but for our intents and purposes, it began on November 15, 1937 when American cartoonist Al Capp began to write a story arc in his comic strip, Lil Abner, about Sadie Hawkins, the daughter of Hekzabiah Hawkins, Dogpatch resident.

Sadie, reputedly “the homeliest gal in all them hills,” was growing increasingly panicky about her chances of matrimony as the years went on. And finally, when Sadie reached 35 with nary a suitor in sight, her father (also frantic at the thought of being stuck with her for the rest of his – or her – days) took matters into his own hands.

He declared it Sadie Hawkins Day, and decreed that there would be a foot race: the holler’s bachelors would run and Sadie would take off after them. And whoever she caught would find himself at the altar with Sadie as his bride.

He took out his gun and said, “"When ah fires, all o' yo' kin start a-runnin! When ah fires agin—after givin' yo' a fair start—Sadie starts a runnin'. Th' one she ketches'll be her husband."

Well, it worked a treat.

And you’d better believe that all the other unattached women in the vicinity took note. They thought it was a fine idea and declared that there would be a “Sadie Hawkins Day” every year.

Because he got so much fan mail in favor of the idea, Capp did a variation on his Sadie Hawkins Day story every November for the next 40 or so years.

Sadie Hawkins Day got translated into once every four years when it became associated with old folk customs which claimed that on leap years women were allowed to take the initiative and propose. Combining the two seemed perfectly reasonable.

And celebrating it seems like something romance readers and writers ought to do."

In honor of Sadie – and to celebrate our 5th (I think it’s 5th! Has it really been five years?) annual Here Come The Grooms! Contest,  Anne McAllister, Liz Fielding and I -- and our respective heroes (who are currently on the run with some determined heroines after them) -- are opening this year’s contest on Valentine’s Day this year and ending it on February 29th – Sadie’s day.

So please drop by each of our websites during those two weeks and answer all three of our heroes’ questions, then send us those answers. You get three chances to win three  great books. 

It might not get you the man of your choice, but Sadie still thinks that’s a pretty good deal.

Here Come the Grooms - the winners

So the cats (Sid) dogs (Mitch and Micah McAllister  and - er  - I think - husband?  (Mr Liz Fielding)  were roped in to choose the winners of the Here Come The Grooms contest and the results were:

My winner  Mik  from Michigan
Anne's winner is Desere from South Africa
and Liz's winner is  Kelly from Canada
Our readers certainly cover the world!

Congratulations to the winners who all receive  a copy of
The Proud Wife by Kate Walker
Hired by Her Husband by Anne McAllister
Chosen as the Sheikh's Wife by Liz Fielding

I have to admit it's a great prize and if I hadn't read the books - and written one - already then I'd love to win myself.   I was thrilled to discover that The Proud Wife is currently #1 bestseller on the Mills & Boon web site for the second week running.   And it's not even officially out yet!

I have to finish preparing and head out for Fishguard for my  Advance Writing Romance Course so if I don't blog for a few days that's where I'll be.  But I do have a blog for A Date With Kate over on the Pink Heart Society site on Friday.  So I'll see you there.

PS if you're on my newsletter list then there are still a few days left to enter the special  Grooms contest  for the Newsletter prize - I'll run the draw for that when I get  home on Monday. If you'd like to be on my newsletter list - just see the link in the sidebar or at the bottom of the pages of my web site.

RNA Pure Passion Awards - and those darn extracts!

The RNA Pure Passion Awards celebrate the very best in romantic fiction. Over 200 titles were submitted for this year’s four categories, from the long-standing and hotly-contested Romantic Novel of the Year, to more recent additions which recognise the breadth of romantic fiction – the Historical Novel Prize, Romantic Comedy Award, and Love Story of the Year.

‘This year's short list represents the whole gamut of romantic fiction,’ said Katie Fforde, RNA Chair. ‘We have royalty, love letters, history and humour, from both newcomers and established authors. A truly impressive list.’

The shortlists

Over 200 books were submitted for the greatly-prized Romantic Novel of the Year. The shortlist of six titles have been selected by a panel of 85 readers from the general public. The winner will be selected by three independent judges – Amanda Craig, author and book reviewer, Foyle’s War actor and contributor to the blog Vulpes Libris, Jay Benedict, and fiction buyer for Waterstone’s, Janine Cook. The shortlist, in alphabetical order by author name, is:

To Defy a King Elizabeth Chadwick Sphere

The Golden Prince Rebecca Dean HarperCollins

Kissing Mr Wrong Sarah Duncan Headline Review

The Jewel of St. Petersburg Kate Furnivall Sphere

Amazir Tom Gamble Beautiful Books

The Last Letter From Your Lover JoJo Moyes Hodder & Stoughton



The Romantic Comedy Prize is organised and administered in the same way as the Romantic Novel of the Year. To reach the shortlist, the books must be laugh-out-loud funny. The winner is chosen by a panel of judges - Jane Wenham-Jones, author and columnist in magazine Booktime, Glenda Wood, Head of Libraries, Culture and Learning for Hertfordshire County Council, and Sara Craven, author of over 80 books for Mills & Boon. The shortlist is:


The Way to a Woman’s Heart Christina Jones Piatkus

I Heart Paris Lindsey Kelk HarperCollins

Mini Shopaholic Sophie Kinsella Bantam Press

Take a Chance on Me Jill Mansell Headline Review

Katy Carter Wants A Hero Ruth Saberton Orion

A Date in your Diary Jules Stanbridge Little Black Dress


Fiction submitted which is set pre-1960 is eligible for the Historical Novel Prize. As with Romantic Novel of the Year and Romantic Comedy Prize, a shortlist of six is selected by a panel of readers, and the winner selected by three judges – Richard Lee, founder of the Historical Novel Association, Elizabeth Hawksley, author and creative writing teacher, and Diane Pearson, president of the RNA since 1987. The shortlist is:
To Defy a King Elizabeth Chadwick Sphere

Trade Winds Christina Courtenay Choc Lit

The Golden Prince Rebecca Dean HarperCollins

The Wayward Governess Joanna Fulford Mills & Boon Historical

The Jewel of St. Petersburg Kate Furnivall Sphere

Heart of Stone Jane Jackson Severn House


The Love Story of the Year is for a shorter romance where there is a strong emphasis on the developing central relationship. A shortlist of six is again chosen by the reading public, with the winner selected by three judges. The shortlist is:

The Piratical Miss Ravenhurst Louise Allen Mills & Boon Historical

Mother of the Bride Caroline Anderson Mills & Boon Romance

Bride in a Gilded Cage Abby Green Mills & Boon Modern

Moving On Valerie Holmes Linford Romance

Fortunate Wager Jan Jones Robert Hale

The Captain’s Mysterious Lady Mary Nichols Mills & Boon Historical


Two Lifetime Achievement Awards will be presented to two people who have made outstanding contributions to romantic fiction and the Romantic Novelists' Association.
The winners for each award will be named at the Pure Passion Awards 2011, Monday, 7th March 2011 at a champagne reception at One Whitehall Place, Westminster.

Many Congratulations to all the nominees.

And the good news is - that thanks to the lovely Heather those extracts from my books are finally up on my web site!

So if you're still looking for the answer to my question on the Here Come The Grooms Contest - you should find it there!  Thank you Heather.  I'm still trying - and failing - to get the link into the sidebar so it's great to know  the extract from  The Proud Wife - is now available along  extracts from The Good Greek Wife, Kept for Her Baby, The Konstantos Marriage Demand  and - because of the  reprints in the new collections   - The Greek Tycoon's Unwilling Wife (from Mediterranean Tycoons) and Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife from One Night in Madrid)

Just to remind you of the contest

To celebrate the publication of our new books, once again I’m getting together with the fabulous Anne McAllister and Liz Fielding to run our now traditional February Here Come the Grooms Contest.

The Prize

As before, we have three prizes to give away – each prize will be a set of the three new titles we have coming out soon

These will be:

The Proud Wife by Kate Walker

Hired By Her Husband by Anne McAllister

Chosen As The Sheikh’s Bride by Liz Fielding

(In Becoming the Tycoon’s Bride together with Patricia Thayer)

Each winner will win a set of all three books

What do you have to do?

Answer these three questions – you’ll find the answers on the authors’ web sites or blogs – and send your answers to us with Here Come The Grooms Contest in the subject line of your email.  (Please remember to answer all three!)

You can answer once with each author – so visit Anne’s and Liz’s sites too to send them your answers as well.
The Questions

Answer all three questions to be in with a chance of winning. As always, I’ll get Sid the Cat on to the job of picking a winner.

1.From The Proud Wife - What has Marina received from Pietro at the opening of the story?

2.From Hired by Her Husband - What is George's occupation and where does he live?

3.From Chosen as the Sheikh’s Bride - Who was Violet's great-great-grandmother?

Deadline

The contest starts on February 1st and runs until February 14th. The draw will be held at the last moment of Valentine’s Day and the three lucky winners will have an extra Valentine’s gift to celebrate.

Good luck!

And just to make sure you know where to find an extract of The Proud Wife  (I'm having no luck trying to put one  in the sidebar - sorry!
There's one on the Mills & Boon Site  here
And one on Amazon here.

Ciao  -
Kate has told me to come and introduce myself as  she is busy -preparing for classes in Wales. And busy, it seems with another man.  Someone called Carlos Ortega . . . or he might be called - I forget what!  He uses  two different surnames and I don't know which one is really his! He does not seem to know himself very well, this  Argentinian, but no doubt he will tell his  story to Kate and then she will write it down and we will all find  out just what has happened to him.

Just as you will all find out my story - mine and La bella Marina - in the book  The Proud  Wife.   I am to tell you all about this as I am one of The Grooms in this contest. My name is Pietro -Pietro D'Inzeo.   Prince Pietro D'Inzeo  in fact. Or - if you want the full details and title, as my parents would have insisted upon - Il Principe Pietro Raymundo Marcello D'Inzeo - a mouthful of a title that Marina would throw at me  like a challenge whenever we  confronted one another.

She thinks it matters - that damn title of mine. Yes, I am a prince and yes my family come from a long line of  Sicilian aristocracy. Those things might have mattered once - they certainly still matter (too much) to my Mother! - but  when they come between me and the woman I love then  they are irrelevant and  old-fashioned.

I say that I am one of the Grooms because this contest is calle Here Come the Grooms  - but the truth is that I am more  like poor George  who got Anne McAllister to tell his story, and unlike Fayad who is the Groom who chose Liz Fielding to tell his   and who  it seems  is busy arranging a divorce at the same time as he is arranging  a wedding!  I am not actually a groom - my wedding day to the beatiful but defiant Marina was almost three years ago and now,  as we have been separated for close to two years, I felt - or do I mean feared?- that the time has come to  accept defeat, acknowledge the fact that our marriage is over and make a clean break. That seemed to be what Marina wants.

But Marina should know that I do not give in so easily. After all my family's motto is What is mine, I hold.  So I summoned her to Sicily . . .  and that was when the sparks really started to fly.

If you want to know what happened, then you will need to read the book of course. Kate tells me that  our story - mine and Marina's is  currently at #1  on the Mills & Boon web site.  It will be out in the shops in March - and in America in April.

PS from Kate

Thanks Pietro -  I know you are Marina really had some sparks flying. I had to duck a couple of times when  I was working on your book.  But  then, what can you expect when you bring together a proud Sicilian Prince and a passionate, fiery readhead?

Now about the contest - an apology! I was supposed to have post an extract from The Proud Wife on my web site so that you could find the amswer to my question in there - but I'm afraid that life has kept me too busy to actually get round to it.  So -  if you are looking for an extract - you can find  it either on the Amazon.co.uk page for The Proud Wife  or on the Mills and Boon web site  page.

I'm also posting a 'browse the book' link in the sidebar and  hoping to get the extracts uploaded just as soon as I possibly can.  Sorry about this!

Here Come The Grooms Contest - Year 4

It’s that time of year again!

For the fourth year in a row, Liz Fielding, Anne McAllister and I are celebrating our latest books with  the now- traditional Here Come The Grooms! contest.

It’s a chance to answer three questions, win three great new books, and meet three gorgeous guys in the process.

This year the heroes are  Pietro D’Inzeo, a passionat Sicilian prince in my book,  Liz’s gorgeous sheikh Fayad al Khalifa. and Anne's sexy physicist, George Savas.

How’s that for variety? A hero for every taste. You’ll get to meet each of them in the coming days. But for now here’s glimpse  of each of these exciting heroes - and each picture is  definitely worth more than 1,000 words!

So here's

PIETRO



GEORGE



FAYAD

Here's a little more about  all three books:

The Proud Wife


Her husband wants her back!
Marina thought her dreams had come true when her husband placed a wedding band on her finger. But their marriage was not the fairytale she’d hoped for, and eventually Marina walked away, her heart broken.

Two years o Pietro DInzeo no longer haunts Marinas dreams. She knows the time has come to move on, and even a summons to join him in Sicily won’t deter her. However, with his wife standing before him, about to sign on the dotted line of their divorce papers, Pietro wonders why he ever let her go?



Hired by her Husband
Back in her husband’s bed!

Once Sophy and George Savas were happily married . . . Then Sophy woke up and realized that her blissful marriage was a sham. She’s never looked back — until the day she learns her husband has been critically injured and her world is shaken.
Now though he’s stubborn and proud, George wants Sophy’s help. He knows she won’t come willingly, so he hires her to be his wife for as long as he needs her! But playing happy families is dangerous, and soon George realizes that his need for Sophy runs deep and strong . . .

Chosen as the Sheikh’s Wife
After a beautiful stranger discovers his long-lost heirloom under a floorboard, Sheikh Fayad al Kuwani swoops in to protect innocent Violent Hamilton. Now, with greedy enemiesgathering, the only way he can keep her safe is to put her on his private jet, take her to his desert kingdom and … marry her!

If that isn’t enough to whet your appetite, you can check out excerpts on our websites –   you'll find Liz's here , Anne's is here.  And just as soon as the wonderful Heather completes the details there will be an extract on my site too - but for now, if you want to read one you'll find it on Amazon or on the M&B web site

If you want to enter the contest – you get three chances to win! – go to each of our contest pages, answer the three questions there, follow the rest of the directions on how to enter, and you’ll have three chances to win the books.

Closing date is February 14th - so if you get the answers right you'll get to share Valentine's Day with our three gorgeous heroes!    GOOD LUCK!

PS The Proud Wife is  now available a month in advance of the shops over on the  newly updated Mills & Boon Site

5 Reasons why I love my job . . .

1. Yesterday  a big box was delivered - brand new copies, hardback library editons and the first actual paperback copies  of my new novel - The Proud Wife. Nothing brightens up a grey, cold Monday morning like holding your latest book in you hands for the very first time.  It's a delight that never gets stale, believe me, and these are my first books with the new style cover so I was thrilled to see them. (Waking up with a ginger and white kitten chewing your hair and purring fit to burst  right in your ear is pretty special too - but not exactly work related.)

2. You can help  causes you care about - like

donating  books to the RWA Flooded Communities Book Appeal or the Brenda Novak Auction  and know that not onloy are you helping the cause but you are also  - hopefully - giving pleasure to readers who either are given  books as a result of these appeals or who buy the lots in this auction   and others like it.  Or  - as in this photo - you can send books to libraries where their book stock  needs a boost. This lovely lady is Nas who helped me give some books to her local library in Fiji where they can't get hold of very many M&B titles and  so my small donation has helped to widen their selection. You can read more about this on Nas's blog here.

3. You can share in the joy of bran new authors who have just had their very first title accepted.  Last year at the RNA Conference I met a lovely lady called Susan Wilson who at the time was working on her  Medical Romance that  had  won her the attention of a M&B editor  but which needed revisions -  and then more revisions . . . She's worked really hard on this and last Friday  she  finally received 'the call' to hear that her book has been accepted and will be published in Medical Romance. You can read the story on her blog.  Congratulations Susan - I'm so happy for you. It maye be 26+ years since I got my 'call' - it was a letter back then,  my first editor didn't ring me up - but I still remember the thrill of that moment.

Incidentally, I first 'met'  Susan when she won a copy of Kept For Her Baby in a contest I won . I didn't know at the time that she was  actually a Health Visitor who had worked with many women who had suffered from post natal depression and the darker, rarer form of post natal psychosis which  is the background to the story in this book. I was thrilled whne she took the time to write to me to let me know that the way the subject was handled in the story  "gave credibility to the fear the women have of harming their children, how jumbled their thoughts can be, and how difficult it is to explain their feelings" - Seeing as I had told myself that I woldn't write the book unless I could treat the subject properly that made me really happy.

4. You get to share your books with people from all over the world. Yesterday I learned that I now have had visitors to this blog from a total of 157 countries when my very first visitor  from Albania came by. All the readers and visitors are so welcome - wherever you come from. I hope you enjoy the blog and will keep coming back often.

5. As well as readers all over the world, I have friends who are fellow authors worldwide - and I get to combine the two when I share contests and celebrations with the fabulous award winning authors Anne McAllister and  Liz Fielding in our now traditional   Here Come The Grooms contest - this will be our 5th year of running this joint contest when you can win  one of three prizes each of a signed copy of all three of our books. We're finalising the details right now  - so watch out for the Grooms coming soon!

Oh I'll take the high road . . .

First of all - it's time to announce the winners of the Here Come the Grooms Contest, Sid the Cat, Mitch and Micah McAllister and - well whoever Liz Fielding gets to pick her winners - have all chosen a name and the winners are:

Nikos' winner - Mary Anne D from Michigan

Kal's winner - Alison L from Scotland

Christo's winner - Dena W from Washington

and the winners of course each receive copies of The Konstantos Marriage Demand, Loves Me, Loves Me Not (the RNA anthology) and One-Night Mistress . . .Convenient Wife.

I also ran an extra prize draw alongside the Here Come The Grooms Contest and the winner of that was Laurie B.
Congratulations to all the winners!

Special thanks go to Anne McAllister and Liz Fielding for joining in this special contest with me - we've had a lot of fun since we started the very first Here Come the Grooms Contest four years ago - here's to the next one!

So March 1st was St David's Day. Later in the month we'll have St Patrick's Day. And just to cover almost all parts of the British Isles, towards the end of March I'll be heading for Scotland.

I've never done any workshops/talks in Scotland before so this will be a new experience for me.

There are two events that have been organised by HI~Arts - Highland and Island Arts. And if anyone in Scotland is interested then the details are these:

1. Thursday 25th March 2010

Royal Highland Hotel, Inverness
7.30pm - 9.30pm

2. Saturday 27th March 2010

The MacPhail Centre, Ullapool.

2pm- 4pm

Both events will be seminars - part talk and (probably the most useful part of the seminar) a Q&A session

For further details and to book - please contact:

Peter Urpeth
Writing Development Coordinator HI~Arts

Suites 4 & 5 Fourth Floor Ballantyne House

84 Academy Street

Inverness Scotland IV1 1LU

t: 01463 720 885

f: 01463 720 895
http://www.hi-arts.co.uk/

Today would have been my mother's birthday sadly, she's no longer here to celebrate with personally - so instead I'll celebrate with a special friend who shares Mother's date - and who lives in the city of Dublin where my mum grew up -

Happy Birthday Abby Green!