Interview with Maya Banks

Maya Banks is one of my favorite authors. She writes in many different romance genres and I haven't found one that I don't love yet. When I was given the opportunity to read her newest, Keep Me Safe, along with interview her, I jumped. Keep Me Safe marks the 20th Maya Banks book that I have read and I have no intentions of stopping soon. I currently have 3 of her books checked out from the library, plus 2 on hold. I was very excited to meet her at RT14 in New Orleans this year. I got Colter's Woman, Be with Me, and Never Seduce a Scot autographed. 

If you haven't ever read any Maya Banks' books then you are missing out. If you like suspense, she has her KGI series. Historical? Try the Montgomery & Armstrong trilogy (Never Seduce a Scot!) or the McCabe Trilogy (Seduction of a Highland Lass!). Menage? She has plenty to try, but I would go with Colter's Woman or the novella Stay with Me.

Her newest, Keep Me Safe, centers around a young woman, Ramie, who has a gift that allows her to find missing women by connecting with them. It is more of a curse, then a gift. Though she is able to find dozens of kidnapped and tortured women, Remie is drawn into their hell. Remie feels their pain and lives through the ordeal with them every time she connects to a woman. Over and over again. She goes off the grid to recuperate and hide from a stalker when Caleb Devereaux tracks her down. Giving her no choice, Caleb forces Remie to connect with his kidnapped sister. He would do anything to find her...even force Remie to live through his sister's hell. Now he owes Remie. She turns to him, months later, to rescue her from her crazed stalker. Will Caleb be able to help Remie?

In the past I have done author reviews and I try to keep them lighthearted and fun. I have always been fascinated with Ms. Banks writing so most of my questions center around her writing style and thought process. I hope you enjoy the interview. 

1.     You are an author that has a versatility to write in many different genres of romance. From historical, contemporary, ménage, and so many more. Do you have a particular favorite to write?

Quite honestly, no. That may sound odd, but what I love or rather my “favorite” is the ABILITY to be able to move from genre to genre with each book I write. It keeps things fresh and interesting for me. If I had to ONLY write books in one genre for one series and that’s all I ever wrote, I’d be bored silly. This way I look forward to each and every book because I know it will hold something new and different than what I just wrote.

2.     Did you always know that you would be a writer? If not, how did you end up writing?

There is a huge difference between always WRITING and always “knowing” you would BECOME a published author. I’ve written all my life. I’ve written ROMANCE my entire life. In junior high, I would write full length novels in 5 subject notebooks and fill the pages front AND back with as many words as I could. But it never occurred to me that I could ever BECOME an “author”

For me that was an unobtainable pipe dream. I never even considered it! It wasn’t until after my third child was born and I was obviously well into my adulthood that I thought why not give it a TRY? What have I got to lose? I had a few years before my two youngest “babies” would enter school at which time I’d planned to go back to work and so I decided to use that time to try to realize my dream. Fortunately for me, it only took four years and a LOT of ups and downs and “almosts” before I signed contracts with two different publishers and began my journey as a “profession author.”

3.     Is there one of your books that you have found that fans gush about more than any other?

Actually yes! A universal reader favorite seems to be Sweet Persuasion and the hero, Damon Roche, in particular.

4.     When you aren’t writing, what do you enjoy reading? Is there a particular book you recently read that you want to rave about?

I have very eclectic reading tastes. I’m pretty simple to please. All I require is a YUMMY romance and an HEA and I’m happy. So I read widely across many genres and have favorites in all types. Unfortunately my reading time has been nonexistent this year because I’ve been writing furiously to meet my deadlines after health issues sidelined me for a bit earlier in the year.

5.     Is there one genre that you have wanted to explore with your writing?

Honestly, no! I’ve been fortunate enough to have been able to write widely across genres my entire career. I established myself very early on as a multi-genre author and have consistently written in separate genres since the start. So there isn’t much left! Any genre I’ve ever had the thought of “Hmm, I’d love to write one of THOSE stories” well, I pretty much have already!

6.     How does your new series, the Slow Burn, differ from other series you have written?

In some ways it’s quite different but it’s definitely vintage Maya Banks and my voice is very recognizable even in a different series. It’s definitely contemporary romantic suspense and not paranormal romance at all. Not even remotely paranormal! It’s set in the real world and merely poses the question “what if someone out there today had psychic abilities?”

So while readers can expect something “new” from me, the voice, the writing style, the trademark angst and emotion prevalent in so many of my books will be times TWO in this series! :)

7.     Are you a fast and furious writer or do you take you time to brainstorm out the plot and characters?

No, I don’t plan out my books or have it all completely “figured out” because if I did then I wouldn’t be able to write it because it would be no “fun” for me! I write much like I read. I don’t know what happens next until I turn the page. It’s so much fun when the story or characters take you in a direction you hadn’t considered and then I write as fast as I can to see where the twist takes me and how it impacts the overall story. So if I knew everything before I wrote it, I’d no longer want to write it and it would bore me to tears!

8.     How long do you spend writing each book?

It varies WIDELY and is completely dependent on each individual story. There are some that have literally almost written themselves and it’s all I can do to keep up with the typing while others I labor over each and every word, striving to make it as perfect as I can. There’s definitely no “one answer” for this question. At least not for me!

9.     How do you deal with writer’s block?

I don’t believe in writer’s block. If I’m not writing, it’s for one of two reasons. Either I’m being lazy and or unmotivated and simply not writing. OR, something is wrong with the story and I veered off the tracks at some point hence me struggling in the present.  The solution to the first is obvious. The solution to the second reason is simply to go back and reread over everything I’ve already written, figure out where I went wrong and fix it.

10.  Are you left or right handed?

Right.

Author Info

Maya Banks is a #1 USA Today and New York Times bestselling author whose chart toppers have included erotic romance, romantic suspense, contemporary romance, Scottish historical romances. She is the author of the Breathless Trilogy, the KGI novels, the Sweet series, and the Colters Legacy novels.

She lives in the South with her husband and three children and other assorted babies, such as her two Bengal kitties and a Calico who’s been with her as long as her youngest child. She’s an avid reader of romance and loves to dish books with her fans and anyone else who’ll listen! She very much enjoys interacting with her readers on Facebook and Twitter as well as in her Yahoo! Group.

@TessaDare Interview & Giveaway

My love of romance novels is no secret and I have written about my trip to RWA Librarian Day 2013 several times. One of the highlights was that I met Tessa Dare. In preparation for the Librarian Day I tried to read some of the works of authors that I knew were attending. A friend had given Tessa Dare's Any Duchess will Do high stars on Goodreads, so I thought that would be a good place to start. This book is filled with a great cast of characters that are not only dreamy, but real. They are flawed and that is what makes them wonderful. And let me tell you about the desk scene in Any Duchess will Do. I think I said "oh, my" aloud probably a good 6 or 7 times. Talk about sizzle. Since then I have been hooked! 

Ms. Dare was gracious enough to submit to one of my zany interviews. I hope you enjoy her answers and if you haven't read any of her work, go now! Her novels are full of witty and lovable characters.  I would start with Any Duchess will Do. Even though it is a later Spindle Cove book, her books are stand alone. This is hands down my favorite of hers. If you are a night reader, be prepared to stay up all night. They are just impossible to put down. Her works have easily claimed some of my favorite romance novels spots. She is definitely an author to look out for! I also have another treat for you. I'm giving away not one, but THREE Tessa Dare books (including my favorite, Any Duchess will Do) to one lucky winner (US residents only). Good luck and enjoy! 

Tessa Dare Interview

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@CoraCarmack Interview & Giveaway Hop

I have a special treat for you today! I'm very excited about this post because I met Cora Carmack in July at the Romance Writers of America (RWA) Librarian Day in Atlanta. She was on a panel that explained the rise of the new genre, New Adult. You can read more about that experience here.

Since then I have been following Cora as she has released several more books. Let me tell you, this girls rocks at social media. From the cover reveals to the contests, she is working tirelessly to promote her work and this fabulous genre. She did a wonderful contests where she autographed hundreds, if not thousands of copies of her book Finding It, but only a few had special inscriptions. If you found one of those inscriptions and messaged her about it, then she would feature your name as a character in a book. How neat! This prompted me to go to 4 Targets! Sadly, I didn't find one, but it was a wonderful experience. See? It is going that extra mile with your fans that will create life long fans. She graciously agreed to one of my silly interviews, where the questions are light-hearted and ridiculous. I also have a copy of Losing It to giveaway to one lucky winner. Enjoy and Good Luck!

Silly Author Interview Questions for Cora Carmack

(Because these are way more fun than regular questions)

1          What song always gets stuck in your head?

Oh man, there are so many. I usually find myself singing anything and everything by the Lumineers or Ed Sheeran. Or some completely off the wall older song like I Will Survive or I Heard It Through the Grapevine

Left Handed or Right Handed? Right handed

What is the inspiration behind Bliss’ name? (This isn’t silly, but I am very intrigued by the thought process behind how authors name their characters) I wish I knew! I get this question all the time. I remember searching baby name websites for Garrick’s name, but Bliss was just Bliss from the moment I knew her.

If I were to give you a cookie, what kind of cookie would it be?

Chocolate Chip. I like the classics. J

Which book have you read over and over again?

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix holds the record for my most re-reads of all time. But I’m a BIG re-reader, so I’ve re-read most of my favorites at least a handful of times.

Guiltiest pleasure TV show?

 At the moment… Bitten. It’s based on a book by Kelley Armstrong and is about werewolves. It’s in its first season, and while there are some definite cringe worthy moments, I’m still enjoying it. Also… Reign. They’ve pretty much abandoned all sense of historical accuracy, but my addiction doesn’t seem to care.

What is the worst job you have ever had?

 You know… I’ve never had an absolutely unbearable job, but in college I worked the fitting room at Target, and boy do I have some retail horror stories.

Favorite alcoholic beverage?

 Margarita with LOTS of salt. J

What three things do you never leave home without?

 My phone, headphones, and my wallet. I *try* to never leave home without chapstick, but I frequently forget and HATE that.

What song would you sing to at karaoke?

Oh, that’s easy. My go-to karaoke song is Ice, Ice Baby. I memorized all the words when I was in middle school, and still know them to this day. 

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Jennifer Hayward Interview

     A few months ago I requested a ARC of  The Divorce Party by Jennifer Hayward from NetGalley. Most of you know my love of Harlequin Presents, but if you don't know, let me tell you how much I love them! Though they are short (usually 180 or so pages) I find myself absolutely addicted to them. They are my brain candy and guilty pleasure all rolled into. Anyway, let me get back on track. I was approved for The Divorce Party and I tore through it. Usually I can read a HP and move right on, but I was struck with the magnitude of emotions that were in The Divorce Party. I knew right off the bat that The Divorce Party was definitely above the grade.


     I did some research on Jennifer Hayward and found that not only was this her debut novel, but she was the winner of So You Think You Can Write, an online Harlequin writing contest. How cool is that? Here is a little more about Jennifer (kindly provided by the author herself!):  Jennifer penned her first romance at nineteen. When it was rejected, she bristled at her mother’s suggestion that she needed more life experience. She went on to complete a journalism degree and intern as a sports broadcaster before settling into a career in public relations. Years of working alongside powerful, charismatic CEOs and traveling the world provided perfect fodder for the arrogant alpha males she loves to write, and free research on the some of the world’s most glamorous locales.

       A suitable amount of life experience under her belt, she sat down and conjured up the sexiest, most delicious Italian wine magnate she could imagine, had him make his biggest mistake and gave him a wife on the run. That story, The Divorce Party, won her Harlequin’s 2012 So You Think You Can Write contest and a book contract. Turns out, Mother knew best. The second book of Jennifer's De Campo trilogy, An Exquisite Challenge, will be published with Harlequin Presents in Feb 2014 and the third instalment in May 2014 with The Truth about De Campo.
 
   I read The Divorce Party back in July and even after all this time the story is still with me. I own very very very few HP (it is less than 5) because I have only loved a few of them. I definitely own The Divorce Party. I decided to ask Jennifer is she would subject herself to one of my zany author interviews. She immediately responded! I am still awestruck with how the powers of social media can connect us with our favorite authors! Without further ado, her is my interview with Jennifer Hayward!

Silly Author Interview Questions for Jennifer Hayward

(Because these are way more fun than regular questions)

1. What song always gets stuck in your head?

 It’s always different depending on what I’ve been listening to… I always go on a power walk after I finish writing for the day… tonight it’s Rihanna’s ‘Stay’. Such a beautiful song.

2. Left Handed or Right Handed?

Right J Although I know a lot of Rhodes Scholars are left handed…

3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

 The winter in Barbados because I just love the beach and the island that much and the winter in Canada is ugh. Sunset on the beach with a cocktail in your hand, dreaming up juicy stories, who can beat that? Summer at home in Canada cause it’s an amazing country I’m proud to be from.

4. Which book have you read over and over again?

Pride and Prejudice – why wouldn’t you?

5. What is the worst job you have ever had?

Working at a hotel reception desk. They thought I was far too friendly rather than efficient. Go figure!

6. What was the last movie you went to see?

Superman Man of Steel with my two boys. LOVED it. The opening is so magical and dramatic.

7. Favorite alcoholic beverage? I’m a huge wine fan, but someone served me the most delicious gin and tonic the other night with just a hint of lime. Yumm.

8. If I gave you a kitten, what would you name it?

Ooh. I’m really a dog person. But kittens are pretty cute. Jake if it was a boy and something fun like Esmerelda if it was a female…

9. One food you refuse to eat? 

Liver. Ugh.

10. Did The Divorce Party have an alternate title?

 Funny enough it never did. I popped it in there on a rough draft, used it when I entered the book into Harlequin’s So You Think You Can Write Contest and when I won the contest with it, Harlequin kept it. Cue happy face J I can’t imagine it called anything else.

A BIG THANK YOU TO JENNIFER HAYWARD

Emily M. Danforth Interview & Giveaway

In 2012, I wrote an epic review on the awesome The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth. The book was recommended to me by a friend and fellow librarian. After I read it, I book talked it to anyone I could find. Cameron's story will break your heart over and over again, but it is a story that needs to be told. Fast forward a year and a half and CAM POST is still with me. I recommend it to patrons and from time to time I think back on Cameron's resilient story.

Author Emily M. Danforth was gracious enough to submit to one of my silly author interviews. This is something new I have been working on and I hope that everyone enjoys it. I find myself always wondering how people would answer the silliest of questions. Yes, I'm interested in their writing style or questions regarding their books. But I'm a silly person and I want to ask silly questions.

Silly Author Interview Questions for Emily Danforth

(Because these are way more fun than regular questions)

What song always gets stuck in your head? 

When my wife isn’t traveling for work, it’s whatever song she’s using that week on her i-phone alarm to wake her up. (This morning, for instance, Lady Gaga’s “Applause.” Particularly the chorus, that ear-wormy bit of repetition —live for the applause-plause/live for the applause-plause.)

Left Handed or Right Handed?

Right

If I were to give you a cookie, what kind of cookie would it be?

Well that would be entirely up to you, wouldn’t it? I mean, when someone’s giving me a cookie I don’t typically become demanding and put stipulations on the make or model of said cookie. However, I do love a good, soft sugar cookie with thick frosting and sprinkles. I also really love those powder-sugar-rolled pecan balls often found on cookie assortment trays during the holidays. My mom makes those best.

Which book have you read over and over again?

So many, and so random a grouping: The Grapes of Wrath; In Cold Blood; Matilda; To Kill a Mockingbird; Lolita; The Great Gatsby; The Price of Salt; Catcher in the Rye.

Guiltiest pleasure TV show?

Hmmmm. Maybe True Blood. Oh, or (and this is truly embarrassing), this ridiculous, “reality” series on Showtime. There are several on that channel and I’ll just let you pick the one you think it might be. They’re all equally guilty as guilty pleasures.

If you could get rid of one U.S. state, which would it be? Why?

 Nope. Not gonna do it. Not gonna pick one. We need them all. Even those that I personally would never choose to live in, I sometimes might like to visit, you know, to take in their gigantic balls of twine and their cheese festivals or Hay Days. Plus, it takes all of them together to make up the often upsetting but eternally fascinating country that is the US of A. Each state has its charms (though some certainly have more than others), and each state has given us artists and writers and thinkers and doers. In particular, I get defensive about those “square states” in the middle of the country—the “flyover states.” I’ve lived in a couple of them and I bristle when people dismiss them out of hand.

What is the worst job you have ever had? During one very cold, very long winter break, while I was home in Montana from my sophomore year of college, I worked as a caretaker in several group homes for adults with severe physical and mental  disabilities. Interacting with most of these residents was the best part of the job, but often I had the overnight shift, when the residents would be sleeping and I would be cleaning or prepping food or just trying to last the hours, awake, from, 11PM to 7AM. I remember my mother coming into my room at 10:30PM or so, to wake me from an evening nap, one I’d take in prep for one of these long nights, and just being filled with dread, there in the dark, still in my warm bed, thinking about the hours to come, and then having to bundle up and ready myself for a frozen car ride over to this endless night. I remember the houses always being far too quiet and far too warm, the thermostats cranked to some unreasonably tropic temperature. I used to open the door at 2 or 3 in the morning and stand on the little front stoops of these ranch houses and for a few minutes soak in the blizzard inevitably swirling around the dark, let myself get good and chilly, before going back to my bucket of Pine Sol and the kitchen floor. I was always so glad when the additional morning help arrived at six to help me wake the residents and start their days.

One food you refuse to eat?

I don’t eat red meat, pork, or poultry and I haven’t for almost fifteen years.

Favorite alcoholic beverage?

Cocktail: a Tanqueray and tonic with extra lime. Beer: something wheaty w/lemon. (Apparently I’m most interested in the citrus paired with my alcohol. You know, scurvy-prevention and all.)

What song would you sing to at karaoke?

Like there’s only one choice. C’mon. For solos I’m a fan of “Sandra Dee” from Grease, but only if the mood is right in the room. Sometimes it’s just not time for “Sandra Dee,” you know? “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” seems often a crowd pleaser. And I’ll happily duet a Captain and Tennille number, or “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” you know—something snappy and sappy. I guess that’s my karaoke wheelhouse, really: snappy and a little (or a lot) sappy.

A BIG THANK YOU TO EMILY M. DANFORTH FOR ANSWERING THIS RIDICULOUS QUESTIONS!

Now onto the giveaway hop!

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A Silly Interview with Lauren Willig

     So I have been keeping a secret! I hatched a crazy idea to start doing silly interviews with my favorite authors. In today's social media age we have access to them through Twitter, Facebook, etc. All I had to do was ask. I love author interviews but I always want to know how they will respond to zany questions. That is because I am a silly goose (according to BF).  I don't know how regularly I will post the interviews, but I am very excited because Lauren Willig will be the first author!

    

   Lauren Willig is the New York Times bestselling author of the aaaahhhmazing Pink Carnation series, which are Napoleanic-set romantic mysteries. If you haven't read these books, you are definitely missing out! Like I mentioned before, all I had to do was ask. I wrote to her through the e-mail address provided on her website. I thanked her for writing the Pink Carnation books because I am constantly recommending them to my patrons. Spies? Romance? Suspense? Historical? Hunky Englishmen? Yeah, this book has it all!  I absolutely love when I recommend a book to a patron and they come back wanting me to put the next 3 in the series on hold for me, which always happens when I book talk The Secret History of the Pink Carnation. In my e-mail, I asked if she would be up for a few zany interview questions. Imagine my absolute delight when she responded back only a few hours later! I let out a fangirl scream that sent BF running into the room. Total fangirl moment. I'm not ashamed. Ok, let me tell you a little more about the series. 

     The Secret History of the Pink Carnation (Pink Carnation #1) by Lauren Willig was recommend to me by a friend and fellow librarian. She tore through the series and I found myself enthralled in them as well. Here is a little snippet about the first book in the series: 

    Deciding that true romantic heroes are a thing of the past, Eloise Kelly, an intelligent American who always manages to wear her Jimmy Choo suede boots on the day it rains, leaves Harvard's Widener Library bound for England to finish her dissertation on the dashing pair of spies the Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian. What she discovers is something the finest historians have missed: a secret history that begins with a letter dated 1803. Eloise has found the secret history of the Pink Carnation the most elusive spy of all time, the spy who single-handedly saved England from Napoleon's invasion.

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, a wildly imaginative and highly adventurous debut, opens with the story of a modern-day heroine but soon becomes a book within a book. Eloise Kelly settles in to read the secret history hoping to unmask the Pink Carnation's identity, but before she can make this discovery, she uncovers a passionate romance within the pages of the secret history that almost threw off the course of world events. How did the Pink Carnation save England? What became of the Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian? And will Eloise Kelly find a hero of her own?

The story alternates between the past and the present and both storylines are intriguing and well written. I know you will love this book as much as I did!

When it came to the interview questions, I wanted to make her laugh out loud. I'm sure after 10 books she has been asked all the traditional questions. I tried to think of some off the wall questions that would delight her and you as well! So without further ado, here is my author interview with Lauren Willig.

Silly Author Interview Questions for Lauren Willig

(Because these are way more fun than regular questions)

(Note from LW: Yes, yes, they are!)

      1. If you had to perform at a karaoke bar, what song would you sing?

These occasions generally involve a great deal of alcohol, so it’s hard to remember precisely what gets sung, but I do have vague memories of belting out “Proud Mary” at the karaoke machine during New Associates Weekend for my law firm.  It’s kind of amazing that they didn’t rescind my job offer then and there.

But, really, I don’t need karaoke to sing.  I do it all the time—bits of Gilbert & Sullivan, show tunes, 80s music, the Judy Collins songs my mother used to play me in my youth—and when I forget the words, I have a tendency to make up replacement lyrics.  Sometimes those lyrics make sense, and sometimes they don’t.  (Except to me.)

2. Left Handed or Right Handed?

Right-handed.

3.  Have you ever watched Duck Dynasty?

Is that related to Duck Tales?  (Now I have the theme song from Duck Tales stuck in my head….)

4.  Your best Halloween costume?

My Halloween costumes tend to be a bit esoteric.  I went as Catherine Morland from Northanger Abbey my first year of grad school and spent a great deal of time fielding “Northanger what?” and “Catherine who?”  Sadly, the following year’s appearance as Fanny Burney’s Evelina wasn’t any more successful.  (“Evelina who?”)

5.  Urban Dictionary defines as fangirl as ‘A rabid breed of human female who is obsessed with either a fictional character or an actor”. Who would cause you to act like a fangirl?

I would have said Georgette Heyer, but I had the great good fortune, when I was living in London, to take tea with the wife of Georgette Heyer’s former publisher (I know, I know, it sounds like a French exercise: “have you seen the pen of the publisher of my author?”).  Once I had been fortified with strong tea, she confided that Heyer had actually been rather dull at dinner parties, wanting only to talk about (a) bridge and (b) her husband’s work.  This made me rather sad.  (Which necessitated the consumption of several chocolate biscuits and more strong tea, which made me no less sad, but a great deal more jittery.)

My other big author crush?  Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Michaels.  Everything I know about comic timing, I learned from reading her.

6. Which book have you read over and over again?

There are so many!  Do I have to pick just one?  Gone With the Wind is a strong contender, but I’ll go with L.M. Montgomery’s The Blue Castle.  It never gets old.

       7. What was the last movie you went to see?

I have to confess, I don’t get out much, movie-wise.  I tend to see things a few years late, once they’ve come to tv (or now, Netflix).  But I did actually make it to the theatre for the latest Star Trek movie. I love the tongue in cheek silliness of these re-imaginings of the Star Trek universe.  And how could I miss out on Benedict Cumberbatch as space age villain?

8.  Favorite alcoholic beverage?

I’ll knock back anything that comes in a champagne flute or a martini glass, preferably tinted an odd color from various concoctions (kir royale, I’m looking at you)—but my fallback is a Gin & Tonic.

9. If I were to give you a pint of ice cream, what brand and flavor would it be?

Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food.  So much goodness in such a small container!

10.  What book do you remember the most from the library when you were a child?

Anne-Marie Selinko’s Desiree, the “diary” of Napoleon’s first love, whom he jilted for Josephine.  I was ten years old, in the midst of a Napoleon and Josephine obsession, following the airing of one of those Napoleon and Josephine mini-series on television.  I nagged the school librarian for anything to do with them—and, like a magician, she produced Desiree, with its dark blue binding and yellowed pages, told in diary format, history from the point of view of a girl of sixteen.  I fell in love with that book and borrowed it again and again.

After that, I’d have to say Mary Stewart’s Nine Coaches Waiting.  Our school library had a flimsy paperback copy with seventies artwork on the cover: a woman in very high boots and a very short skirt on a dark path with the sinister chateau looming behind her.  I have my own copy now, a much sturdier copy, but I still miss that old library copy (which probably spent more time in my house than it did in the library).

Thanks so much for having me here on your blog!  Now I’m craving some ice cream and a re-read of Nine Coaches Waiting….