Regan Black’s Mammoth Winner!

Posted by Caren Crane Jan 28 2013, 12:01 am in Bandita Booty, Caren Crane, Mammoth Book of Futuristic Romance, prize winner, Regan Black

Congratulations to long-time Bandita Buddy PAT COCHRAN!!

Pat, Regan will be mailing you an autographed copy of  The Mammoth Book of Futuristic Romance, featuring her award-winning novella In the Interest Of Security. If you need to update the address on file with us, please contact Caren through her Writing Cave. Congratulations, Pat, and happy reading!

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Regan Black Explores Justice, 2096 Style

Posted by Caren Crane Jan 21 2013, 12:47 am in 2096 series, Caren Crane, Guest, In the Interest Of Security, Mammoth Book of Futuristic Romance, Regan Black

IThose of you who hang around the Romance Bandits Lair often will recall the dazzling and multi-talented Regan Black. Regan and I met back in the mists of our writing careers and have been critique partners, friends and fans of each other’s work ever since. Regan writes in several different genres, but my personal favorites of her books are the futuristic romantic thrillers. I’m excited to have Regan back with us today to talk about a story she has in The Mammoth Book Of Futuristic Romance. Regan, welcome back to the Lair! I had the boys pull these exceptionally comfy chairs over by the fireplace so we could thaw out a bit. The Lair is so drafty in the winter!

Regan: Ooh, I love this chair! The fire is nice, too. It’s been near freezing in South Carolina and I’m not geared up for that these days. I’m excited to be back in the Lair, but…a little sad the cabana boys have taken down the Christmas decorations. It was so festive…

Caren: I know, it’s always hard to adjust to the lack of sparkle once the decorations are down. Paolo does an amazing job with the tinsel every year and when he has to take it down, even he goes into a bit of a funk. Let’s get him to create drinks for us. That’s sure to cheer him up. Oh, Paolo! [Paolo schleps into the room, his brown eyes flat and dull, his blindingly white teeth barely showing behind his sullen lips] Regan and I are going to be chatting for a bit, so do you think you could bring us something to drink? Something warm since it’s so chilly outside? We have no idea what we want, so why don’t you surprise us?

[Paolo practically skips away]

Regan: Wow. I’ve never seen a grown man skip before.

Caren: Well, he’s barely grown. Anyway, I want to hear about your new story in the anthology The Mammoth Book Of Futuristic Romance – which, by the way, has the most beautiful cover I’ve ever seen!

Regan: Thank you. I’m excited about this story. As you know, I have created a futuristic version of Chicago in my 2096 series. Set in the late 21st century, this series paints a rather dark vision of humanity’s future. There are some very malevolent people in positions of power. Today, the drug trade uses “mules” to smuggle goods into and out of the country. In my future world, there is a high price tag on lots of commodities we take for granted today. Things like sugar have a high street value. An important secondary character in my Justice series is Slick Micky, a smuggler with more heart than is necessarily a good idea. The story in TMBOFR is called In the Interest of Security  and it involves two characters who have hovered at the fringes of the 2096 series. Jim, the hero, heads up Slick Micky’s state-of-the-art security systems and Lorine, the heroine, is a single mom who works for Slick Micky in order to hide from her uncle, a doctor who has done terrible things in the name of advancing science.

Caren: I love your evil future science plots! Sounds like the stakes are really high.

Regan: They are high, indeed, especially for Lorine. Give a woman a kid and the stakes are always higher.

Caren: I’m lucky enough to have read the previous 2096 books, but some people won’t have. Do you think this novella requires any prior reading to understand the world in which Jim and Lorine live?

Regan: I intentionally kept the story tightly focused on Jim and Lorine’s immediate adventure, so readers don’t have to read all of the previous books to understand what’s going on. The editor for the anthology did a great job of helping me target the world building in this novella so readers wouldn’t feel lost. I was beyond thrilled when In the Interest of Security won the Best Novella of 2012 in the Paranormal Romance Guild’s Reviewer’s Choice awards!

Caren: Congratulations! That calls for a toast of some sort. Here’s Paolo with our drinks! [takes two fizzing glasses off a silver tray and hands one to Regan.] Salut!

Regan: [grimaces] Well, that was…unexpected, Paolo. Um…thank you?

Caren: Paolo,  I detect fennel and licorice in this fizzy concotion. You didn’t break into the forbidden stash of absinthe. Did you? No. Do NOT blink at me like you don’t understand English. Absinthe. It’s vile green and locked in a safe behind the bar. You broke into the safe, didn’t you?

Regan: Don’t be upset, Caren. I’m sure he was just trying to do something special for us, right Paolo?

Caren: When Sven finds out, you’re gonna be in a world of hurt, that’s all I know. Regan, if you start hallucinating, I apologize. Paolo has no idea how handle absinthe. We’ll just have to do our best. So…how many of these 2096 books do have planned, anyway?

Regan: Well, way back at the beginning I only envisioned three books in the Shadows of Justice series: Justice Incarnate, Invasion of Justice, and Veil of Justice. My husband said from the start there should be seven books. So far it looks like he might be right. There are five novels now that Tracking Shadows and Shadows to Light are available, as well as numerous short stories that feature characters from the series.

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January’s Coming Attractions!

Posted by Suzanne Ferrell Jan 1 2013, 12:33 am in Alison Atlee, Carla Neggars, coming attractions, Grace Burrows, Jennifer St. George, Liliana Hart, monthly prize package, Regan Black, Suzanne Ferrell

Welcome to the Lair!! It’s a blustery cold day outside. The weatherman has been predicting colder than usual temperatures and possible flurries this month, so Sven and Paolo have been busy stocking in warm drink supplies, (cocoa for hot chocolate, rum for hot buttered rum, whiskey for hot toddies, dark red wines for mulled wine), while the gladiators have been cutting down trees in the forest outside the Lair so we have plenty of firewood!

As always we have a steady stream of zany, provocative and fun posts from all the Banditas. (17 different personalities pop up monthly!)

Starting tomorrow with an art gallery tour of my house! Intrigued? Wait till you see it!

And to help keep you warmly entertained, here are our guests for this month:

On Monday, 7^th January, Anna Campbell will host sparkling Aussie author Jennifer St. George in the Lair. Jenn will be talking about her debut romance The Convenient Bride.

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Holiday Anthology For Everyone Winners!

Posted by Caren Crane Dec 5 2012, 11:36 pm in A Season For Romance, Jay Keelan, Kimberly Hope, prizes, Regan Black, The Heiress and Her Fake Fiance, VR Marks

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to celebrate the release of the fabulous, multi-genre romance anthology A Season For Romance. We are pleased to announce the following winners from our commenters on Sunday!

BARB has won the download of Kimberly Hope’s The Heiress and Her Fake Fiancé!!

DIANE SALLANS has won the download of V.R. Marks’ The  Thief !!

And last, but certainly not least…

EC Spurlock has won the download of the fabulous anthology by Regan Black, Kimberly Hope, Jay Keelan and V.R. Marks, A Season For Romance!!

Well, it certainly is a season for romance and prizes in the Lair! Ladies, to claim your prizes, please send an e-mail to Regan Black at black DOT regan AT gmail DOT com and let Regan know what format of download you prefer!

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A Holiday Anthology For Everyone!

Posted by Caren Crane Dec 2 2012, 12:20 am in 12 Bandita Days of Christmas, A Season For Romance, anthology, Caren Crane, guest blogger, holiday anthology, holiday book, holiday stories, Jay Keelan, Kimberly Hope, Pixie Chicks, prizes, Regan Black, The Heiress and Her Fake Fiance, The Thief, VR Marks

I’m excited to host some old Romance Bandits friends here in the Lair. Some of you may recall a previous visit from the gorgeous Regan Black. Well, Regan is back with a great anthology she’s put together with three other fabulous writers! Joining Regan is my long-time friend Kimberly Hope, plus new friends V.R. Marks and Jay Keelan.

Guys, we adore anthologies here in the Lair and we also adore holiday stories. So a collection of holiday novellas is sure to delight Banditas and Buddies alike. What can you tell us about this promising collection?

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Thanks, Caren, for having us here today.  Our holiday anthology, A Season for Romance, started as a bright idea over the phone one day when we were steadfastly avoiding work and a thousand miles separated us all. “Oooh. We should write a holiday anthology of short stories. We have plenty of time!” Things went downhill from there, kind of like this:

Kimberly Hope: I’m writing a Christmas story.

Jay Keelan: I’m writing a Christmas story, too.

Regan Black: {blushing} My story’s YA.

VR Marks: Mine’s a Thanksgiving story. Don’t give me any grief. You know we men are all about the food.

Kimberly: I’m writing a contemporary reunion story.

Jay: I’m writing a contemporary reunion story, too.

Regan: Mine’s a contemporary story. With a paranormal angle.

VR: No reunion. Sorry. But it is contemporary.

Are you sensing a pattern here? This is what happens when you throw four independent authors into one mix. Contemporary. Paranormal. Suspense. Multiple holidays. Yeah, our cover artist loves us. But there’s something in A Season for Romance for everyone.

All of the stories are set in small town North or South Carolina. Except Snow Covered Resolutions by Regan Black. That’s set in the Midwest.

So as release time closed in, we searched for any common ground beyond ‘contemporary’ and started shooting random interview questions back and forth via email. Here are the highlights:

Which Disney character would you be?

Kimberly: Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty (unless someone knows where to find the Hunstman from Once Upon a Time… then I’ll be whoever he wants me to be). 

Jay: Rapunzel, because I have a frying pan and I’m not afraid to use it.

Regan:  Mulan because she can kick butt like my daring, adventurous heroines.

VR: The Genie from Aladdin. (short answer wins!)

What kind of pets “help” you write?

Kimberly: My Doberman keeps me at the keyboard, sometimes she even lets me type.

Jay: Like Kimberly, my dog keeps my toes warm after she steals my slippers.

Regan: Our two greyhounds usually let me write while they’re napping.

VR: Two cats. {crickets chirp in the silence} But they’re manly, Maine Coon cats.

“Common ground” might be a pipe dream in this anthology. Clearly, we’re all a little whacked. But the one thing that ties all our short stories together is that they’re all about discovering what matters most about heart and home.

So, it’s the holiday season. While you’re playing ’12 Days of Christmas’ on your iPod, we’re playing Sesame Street’s ‘Which One of These Things Is Not Like the Others?’ As illustrated here:

Kimberly: In my first sassy contemporary romance, The Heiress and Her Fake Fiancé, Jessica’s Grandma Violet is the town matchmaker. In my Meddling with Mistletoe in the anthology, we see Violet’s first matchmaking attempt, involving Jessica’s parents and a wine cellar.

 Jay: In Finding the Focus, when Ethan Myers, an award-winning photographer who is short on inspiration, leaves his studio for the road, he never predicted he’d run into the one woman he had never forgotten.

VR: We meet Sheriff Cochran in my romantic suspense novel, The Thief, but we don’t learn exactly how he feels about Ruth Williams, the owner of the local diner, until her annual Thanksgiving feast in The Sheriff’s Proposal in the anthology.

Regan: In Snow-Covered Resolutions, it’s New Year’s Eve and all the Pixie Chicks from my previous YA novels have someone special to kiss at midnight – except Austin. In this season of resolutions will she stick to hers, or will the snow-covered magic of Hobbitville sweep her up in a whole new adventure?

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In addition to the short stories, Kimberly Hope and VR Marks have both added the first chapters of the first books in these series to the anthology. And in the spirit of the season, we’re giving away one copy of the anthology and one of each full-length novel: A Season for Romance, Kimberly Hope’s The Heiress and Her Fake Fiancé, and VR Marks’s The Thief.

To enter, all you have to do is post a comment telling us which Disney character you’d be and why! Okay, Banditas and Buddies, which one will it be? I’m off to do some animated movie watching…I mean, research…

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