Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

Living Another Life

Have you ever wanted to live another life? .

I admit to having a creative and, well, people-obsessed mind. I drive down the road, wondering about the people in the vehicles around me. Who are they? Where are they going? What kind of lives do they lead? I people-watch everywhere I go.

HIS ORDINARY LIFE Available in Print July 29!

“His Ordinary Life is a superbly written, emotionally charged and complicated story. . .The reader is sucked right in and carried along for the full experience of this roller coaster ride of guilt, redemption, love, growth and the test of a family’s strength under pressure . . . a story that stays with you long after you’ve closed the book.” – Karen H., The Romance Studio

As a reader, I love a great reunion story. As a writer, I wasn’t, however, prepared for how difficult they can be to write. The couple must have a compelling, believable reason for parting. The characters must remain sympathetic, and the hero and heroine must have a compelling, believable reason for coming together again. I worked and reworked His Ordinary Life before submitting it to Samhain in 2006, then when it was accepted, I reworked it yet again under the awesome tutelage of my talented editor, Anne Scott. She, like I did, loved Del Calvert, and unfolding the story of this ordinary man who still loves the family he’s lost is one of my absolute favorites. I hope if you pick up a copy Tuesday, July 29, when it goes on sale in print, that you enjoy reading Del’s story as much as I loved writing it.

Blurb and excerpt after the jump.

Taking a Risk: MEMORIES OF US by Linda Winfree Releases Today!

This may be the book that gets me fired*.

I Need Florida

A few weeks ago, when I was standing in the guidance counselor’s office, in the middle of my panicked rant about how my juniors were not going to be ready for their upcoming high-stakes graduation testing because we were almost to spring break and I wasn’t at the same point as last year in the curriculum and they weren’t taking anything seriously and… (you get the picture), our graduation coach glanced over at the guidance counselor and said, “Linda needs spring break.”

A Risky Affair: ANYTHING BUT MINE by Linda Winfree Releases Today

What are you willing to risk for what’s right? What risk frightens you most?

In writing Anything But Mine, I found myself addressing both of those questions with the main characters. My heroine for this book, public defender Autry Holton, has always been the good girl, the second daughter living a life designed to make her daddy proud. She’s not afraid of the hard stuff, but she also learned early to color within the lines. My hero, Sheriff Stanton Reed, is a tough former Fed who has no qualms about risking life or limb for his duty. His heart? A different story.

My job, in crafting Anything But Mine, was to give them a plot that showed them you have to risk — and lose — everything to find your way.

Stay tuned after the jump for the blurb and an excerpt.

A Poolhouse Conversation: What is SEXY?

“Here’s the topic of the day.” Mimosa in hand, Kathleen Palmer sinks into the cushioned chair and glances around at her fellow heroines. The pool house opens onto a gorgeous aquamarine bay, filmy white curtains flapping in the breeze. “What you find sexy in a man, and not the obvious answers.”

“Sexy and not obvious?” Autry Holton nibbles her lower lip, chestnut hair curving along her jaw. “That’s hard.”

New Release: HOLD ON TO ME by Linda Winfree

So what happens when an author lives with a book for nine years?

Wait. Make that, lives with, breathes, sleeps with, takes apart and puts back together for nine years?

The answer is Tick Calvert, a sheriff’s investigator trying to get over the woman who got away.

The answer is Caitlin Falconetti, the kick-ass FBI agent who loves him enough to let him go.

And the secret she’s keeping from him, a secret he’s determined to uncover.

The answer is Hold On to Me.

Yes, I spent nine years working on this book. Having it release today is incredibly satisfying.

Stay tuned after the jump for the blurb and a spicy little excerpt . . .

What If . . .?

As a writer, I like to play the “What if . . .” game.

Many times, the what if’s are only for my entertainment and never make it to the page.

But sometimes, those questions become the basis for a story so powerful it refuses to turn me loose, even after the book is finished. That’s what happened when I began working on What Mattered Most back in October of ’04.

What if a man believed he’d lost the woman he loved?

What if he found himself drawn to another woman, one who made him feel alive like never before? A woman who was about to be the mother of his child?

What if he found himself facing an untenable choice . . . choosing which of the women he cares for most lives . . . and which one dies?

That’s the situation John O’Reilly finds himself facing in my debut novel, What Mattered Most, set to release in print on Tuesday, November 27.

Please enjoy this brief excerpt from What Mattered Most after the jump:

Two Heroes and a Muse-less Basement

“Why am I here?” Sheriff Stanton Reed stands in the middle of the Basement. Scowling, he rests his hands at his hips. Irritation radiates from his stiff posture.

Tick Calvert doesn’t look up from the game of solitaire he has laid out on the poker table. “Minor revisions. Her editor asked for them.”

Stanton doesn’t relax. He’s a little too familiar with Her idea of revisions. It usually involves amping up the character torture. What else could She possibly do to him?

He shudders at the possibilities.

His Ordinary Life by Linda Winfree

In my writing, I’ve always enjoyed exploring the lives of realistic characters and how they react to life-altering events. In His Ordinary Life, I delved into how easily a good marriage can slip away . . . and how a nightmare can give two people the opportunity and strength to try again.

Reunited by their teenage son’s possible involvement in a murder . . . their new needs and old passions are destined to explode.

His Ordinary Life by Linda Winfree
Book Two of the Hearts of the South series.

Del Calvert has spent his life in quiet desperation, trying to meet everyone’s expectations and feeling like he never quite measured up. From his teens, Barb was everything he wanted and needed, but knowing he wasn’t enough for her drove him out of the marriage.

Barbara Calvert is afraid to need anyone—especially the soon-to-be-ex husband she still loves. She’s reluctant to fall under his seductive spell of love and security once more.

But when their son’s secrets threaten his life, everything changes. Del must help his son as unseen and threatening forces move ever closer, putting the entire family at risk. And along the way, he hopes to convince Barbara to give him one more chance to win back the wonderful, ordinary life he didn’t appreciate until it was gone.