Tag: romance

In Convo with Finola Austin + IRISH EYES Book Giveaway!

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Before we all scattered for the Thanksgiving holiday, I chatted with historical fiction author Finola Austin AKA The Secret Victorianist about my inspo for Irish Eyes, what I’m working on now (hint: it’s the sequel!), and killing my darlings, namely, two prologues, neither of which made it into the final book.

Pop on over to The Secret Victorianist to read the interview, then sign up for Finola’s monthly newsletter to win a copy of Irish Eyes *and* a copy of Finola’s brilliant historical novel, Bronte’s Mistress. One lucky winner will receive both books. Giveaway closes December 7th — the Irish Eyes Release Day!

Reading Tomorrow’s Destiny at Lady Jane’s Salon

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Victorian Christmas Goodness!

This month, I read my Victorian Christmas novella, Tomorrow’s Destiny at Lady Jane’s Salon, the Manhattan, NYC reading series I co-founded back in ((gulp)) 2009. Like the Dickens’ classic from which it draws inspo, Tomorrow’s Destiny is a paranormal Christmas story. Only instead of ghosts, I have guardian angels. Guardian angels masquerading as the Spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Future. One in particular, Fern, needs to score a h-u-g-e HEA for her human ASAP — or wait another hundred years for a shot at winning her wings. And in lieu of a mean-spirited, bent-back miser hoarding gold, I have my Scrooge-like heroine hoarding the best thing ever — books!

Yes, you read that right. My heroine, bookshop proprietress Fiona MacPherson, IS the Scrooge character. ‘Tis almost 2021, after all.

Watch my reading here on Youtube along with those of Salon guests Rose Lerner, Stacey Agdern, Harper Miller, Cara Bastone and Piper Huguley.

My intro and reading start at 38:10 minutes into the video.

You can get the Tomorrow’s Destiny novella as an ebook and audiobook, the latter voiced by my uber talented Salon co-founder, author Leanna Renee Hieber.

Scribd ebook
Scribd audiobook

This December’s Lady Jane’s Holiday Salon program is both deeply special and bittersweet. After twelve magical years as NYC’s first and only regular reading series devoted to romance fiction, we’re drawing the curtain on our beloved naughty red room at Madame X.

All our virtual Salon programs will continue to live online on Youtube and on the Lady Jane’s website. Please remember our wonderful house charity, Win (Women in Need, Inc.) in your end-of-year charitable giving.

Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy and safe holiday season.

XO Hope

Join me at Lady Jane’s Salon®

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Hope signing Twelve Nights & Vanquished at Lady Jane's Salon. I’m so, so, so excited!!!

This Tuesday, July 21st 7-9:30pm at Madame X, we at Lady Jane’s Salon® will welcome the 35th annual Romance Writers of America® national conference back to New York City. I say “back” because we’ve helped kick off the conference before, in 2011. Then we drew more than 125 attendees, including surprise guest, Eloisa James, and Emmy Award winning documentary filmmaker, Laurie Kahn. Laurie and her crew from Blueberry Hill Productions filmed the Salon for her “Love Between the Covers” feature-length documentary film on the romance community. Check out the (less than four minute) footage from that crazy-fun night here.

Floor_Red_2But there’s more…

Along with co-hosting the event, I’ll be reading a never before released sneak peek from  Irish Eyes, my very first foray into Women’s Historical Fiction. Set in Gilded Age through Jazz Age New York City, the manuscript has been a true Labor of Love. I can’t wait to share the first chapter with everyone!

Or to help roll out our stellar lineup of guests: Sonali Dev, Dahlia Adler, Carrie Lomax, Laura K. Curtis, Nancy Scanlon, and Regina Kyle. The service staff at our ever fab venue, Madame X, stands at the ready to serve with $5-$6 drink specials (including super yummy “mocktails”). We also have terrific raffle prizes donated by some of the romance industry’s brightest established and rising stars.

Best of all, your $5 admission supports our annual donation to our house charity, Win, helping real-life NYC families find their own Happily Ever After. It doesn’t get any better than that. If you’re in town for #RWA15 or simply in town, please plan to be our guest!

 

 

OPERATION CINDERELLA featured in THE NEW YORK POST!

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NY Post iPhone pic

Sometimes Christmas–or in this case, Valentine’s–comes early! Check out the article featuring me in today’s New York Post and find out how data science, a divorce–and a seriously awesome 1860’s “fainting couch”–led me to NYC where I wrote OPERATION CINDERELLA and found my very own Happily Ever After!

(Author photo by Anne Wermiel for the NY POST).

Operation_Cinderella_cvr_RV_July 2013Operation Cinderella_cvr_500

 

Congratulations Contest Winner!

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Congratulations to Linda Henderson, the latest and last ((sniff, sniff)) of my Sizzlin’ Summer Contest winners.

Sad as I am to see summer go, I’m also super excited for fall and yes, my new contest.

To ramp up for the release of Twelve Nights, this time ’round we’ll have double the winners and double the prize. Two winners will each receive a signed copy of Bound to Please (in which we briefly meet the hero and heroine of Twelve Nights) and a signed copy of my New Year’s theme release, Strokes of Midnight. Visit my contest page and enter to win. Hope 

March Contest Winner & Lady Jane Salon Update

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I’m back from my European rambles and pleased to do one of my very favorite things: announce my latest contest winner. Congratulations to Rachael G of Cairo, MO. Rachael’s prize: a signed copy of my single-title historical, Vanquished, and my contemporary category romance, Strokes of Midnight, is en route to her “as we speak.”

Didn’t win this time? No worries. The new contest is up and running, so please check it out. And remember, winners who may have read one or both of the prize books can always donate their copy to Share the Love and brighten the day of a woman working to rebuild her life.

Hope

PS I’m “deadlining” as we say in the biz, but I’m hopeful of posting the highlights of my vacation in the not too distant future, so please stay tuned.

PPS The next Lady Jane’s Salon is scheduled for Monday, April 6th, at Madame X.

PPPS! The New York Post recently gave Lady Jane more than a little love by covering our wintry yet well-attended March 3rd salon.

Congratulations, Contest Winners!

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Christmas and Hanukkah may be over, but you’d never know it around here. Many thanks to all of you who stopped by my guest blog and contest at FreshFiction. The topic was The One Who Got Away, the book was Every Breath You Take… and the conversation was lively to say the least.

Congratulations to my three contest winners: Crystal B of Williamsburg, KY; Cindy M of San Diego, CA; and Jennifer M of Oklahoma City, OK. Your signed copies of my New Year’s themed Harlequin Blaze Strokes of Midnight are on their way to you along with cover flat keepsakes for Untamed, the finale to my “Men of Roxbury House” trilogy.

And of course I always have my regular contest running here at the site, so if you haven’t already, please take a moment to click on over and enter to win.

Hope

Ps Tomorrow, the 15th, I’ll be blogging at The Pink Heart Society, so please don’t be a stranger!

Blogging Today at Fresh Fiction

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I’m blogging today at FreshFiction. The topic is one that seems to resonate with a lot of us: The One Who Got Away, so if you have two ticks, please stop on over and say hi. I’ll be giving away three signed copies of Strokes of Midnight to three winners who post.

Hope

Happy New Year

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2008 has been an amazing year for me. Highlights include a move to Manhattan, my first but definitely not last trip to Ireland and yes, the release of two more novels, Bound to Please and now Every Breath You Take...

Many thanks to all of you who stopped by Book Talk with J&J yesterday to chat with me about Every Breath You Take… Among those who visited to cheer me on were bestselling writer buddies, Jacquie D’Alessandro and Tony and Lori Karayianni w/a Tori Carrington. Never doubt that the romance writing community harbours some of the kindest and most generous souls on the planet. And congratulations to my three prize winners: Elaine (Lainey), Sara H, and Sarah T. I hope you enjoy my New Year’s themed Blaze, Strokes of Midnight.

In the spirit of ringing in the new, I’ll be blogging at FreshFiction.com on Monday, January 12th, and yes, there will be at least one of my back list books offered as a give-away prize. Please check my web site’s Media + Events page for event listings throughout the year.

Finally, thanks to all of you who’ve taken up my Holiday Goodness Challenge to benefit the ASPCA. Donation receipts are rolling in, but we’re not to our goal of $100 quite yet, and I have copies of Vanquished still to give away. In these tough times, your generous $10 gift means more than ever before.

Wherever you are tonight and however you choose to celebrate…

May 2009 be a year of fairy tale dreams come-true.

Hope

Romance B(u)y the Book Wrap-Up

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Despite Mercury apparently refusing to come out of Retrograde, yesterday’s Harlequin Blaze Historicals blog bash at Romance B(u)y the Book was a huge success as well as bunches o’fun. What a party we had! Bestselling Blaze Historicals authors Jacquie D’Alessandro, Jade Lee, Betina Krahn and our latest addition to the series line-up, Patricia Potter joined blog host Michelle Buonfiglio, Harlequin Senior Editor, Brenda Chin and Moi in steaming up the Blogosphere.

As promised, we all got a little bit naughty, a lotta bit bad. I got the proverbial ball rolling talking about size and how sometimes it sorta kinda matters. Jade Lee dissed on tantric sex, virgin monks, and how in her latest Blaze Historical, the two come together (so to speak). Thanks to Jade, I now know there’s even more to want–as in 9.5 hours more. Thanks a lot, Jade!

And we all agreed that while you can’t keep a good man down, with the right slip knot you can surely keep him horizontal. 😉

The blogging went on hot and heavy until almost 9 PM ET, with more than 140 of you stopping by! My heartfelt thanks to Michelle Buonfiglio and her Bellas for making us all feel so welcome we didn’t want to leave–literally. If it wasn’t for Richard Armitage of “North and South” waiting for me in my DVD player, I might still be over there.

And while even the good things in life must come to an end, in this case we’re not done yet. You can still catch the blog transcript with yes, my interview and juicy excerpt from Bound to Please at Romance B(u)y the Book.

Happy Weekend,

Hope