Exciting news! RT Book Reviews magazine officially announced today that I am one of six remaining finalists in Kensington Brava/RT’s Writing with the Stars contest.

That means I managed to garner enough online votes to make it through the first two rounds of competition. Thanks to all of you who voted. I could not have made it this far without your support.

Voting is now open for Round Three. For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Anyone who has tried it, knows blurbs can be a real challenge. Agent Kristen Nelson is the “celebrity” judge for this round. She gives a detailed, indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting and instructive. Check it out!

I hope you will consider voting for me. It’s super fast and easy. Just CLICK HERE, scroll down to the bottom and vote. It takes less than a minute. Let me know what you think. I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks for your support!  

There are many things to like about Julia London’s latest offering, The Year of Living Scandalously, starting with its cover.

There seem to be lots of purple covers lately and I, for one, am liking them. Of course, taking a look at the cover, there’s lots more to feast one’s eyes on besides the color!

Declan O’Connor, Earl of Donnelly, arrives at Hadley Green to find that the new countess of Ashwood is actually an impostor – a woman he knows quite well from back in the day in Ireland.

Snappy repartee keeps this fun story zipping right along from start to finish. The heroine is winningly charming and the hero is easy to fall in love with.

The back story centers on the mystery surrounding the execution of a man for the theft of the Countess of Ashwood’s historic jewels.London uses it to set up an intriguing twist at the end of  The Year of Living Scandalously that made me want to run out and buy the next book in the series.

That’s where the bad news comes in.

According to London (per her website), the sequel – The Secrets of Hadley Green – will not be out until February of 2012. That’s more than a year from now.  London says the long wait was unforeseen when she wrote the ending to The Year of Living Scandalously.

Disappointing yes, but I still plan to be among the first to read The Secrets of Hadley Green.  (I just hope I can remember the story!)

And now for the shameless plug…

Voting is now open in the Kensington Brava/RT Writing With the Stars contest.

Online polling runs until November 28.

I am one of eight remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner will be published. But I can’t get there without your support!

Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.

I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, scroll down to the bottom, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

My mentor for the Writing with the Stars contest is the extraordinary Mary Wine.

During Round One (Best First Paragraph and Last Line) – in her gentle but tenacious way – Mary urged me tighten up my writing and axed the passive verbs which took some of the oomph out of the entry. Her insight about certain descriptions and word choices editors don’t want to see in a romance novel proved invaluable.  

Mary has also been wonderfully forthcoming in sharing her hands-on knowledge of how the publishing industry works. She generously answers all of the many questions I pepper her with. Not only is her unique insight  fascinating to hear, but it will no doubt help me on my road to publication.

As soon as I found out Mary was my mentor, I ran out and brought her book, To Conquer a Highlander, which takes place in 1437 Scotland. I loved it!

The story involves Laird Torin McLeren, who hopes to prevent war by kidnapping his enemy’s daughter, Shannon. Of course, they fall in love and the historical tidbits sprinkled throughout make this a compelling read.

I’m anxious to read the next book in the series, Highland Hellcat, which focuses on Laird Connor Lindsey. Seeking a strong political alliance, Connor arranges to marry Diedre but when he discovers that she isn’t pure, he steals her sister, Brina, even though she is promised to the church.

Here’s another teachable moment from Mary. I did not know third daughters in late 1430s Scotland were always promised to the church. These daughters knew their fate since childhood and were treated with extra care because of it. That makes the set up to Highland Hellcat all the more intriguing!

You can check out Mary’s mentoring skills by reading the first paragraph and last line of  my historical Regency romance, Seducing Charlotte, by clicking HERE.

If you’d like to read more, I hope you’ll consider VOTING for my entry in the Writing with the Stars contest. I promise it’s very quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute.

If you enjoy the first paragraph, here’s the FIRST CHAPTER.