Reality Strikes Again

This picture is causing me a problem. Let’s start from the beginning so I can say why.

Those of you who are reading my current series will know, when I set the book in Hawaii I decided to make full use of the beautiful scenery. It would be a crime not to. For a romance novel this means many things, including… apply your morning sunscreen everywhere.

I admit, thinking over all the beautiful spots in Hawaii wasn’t hard. Talk about spoiled for choice. Having a ridiculous amount of options meant that it also wasn’t hard to think up realistic places where a newly in love couple might sneak away for “privacy” and “alone time”.

But in Hawaiian Homecoming (first draft has passed the halfway mark by the way, woohoo!) we’re back in New Zealand. What is it, when it comes to writing about your own country, that you have to fight yourself to see it through rosy glasses? To see all the gorgeous tourist traps, rather than “ugh, Auckland, your traffic is just the worst“.

But I’ve had a think and remembered my many beautiful holidays around New Zealand, and of course I’ve already talked about Waiheke being one of those. Vineyards! Beaches! Fewer people, giving us options for “privacy”!

And really, why wouldn’t you get a bit carried away in a vineyard. They’re so pretty.

But now we go back a square. I spent a weekend in Martinborough, where there is also many vineyards,  and you can have a lot of fun cycling from one to the other for wine tastings. And this picture shows the moment where I realised there was a small problem with my plan. Can you spot it?

Those vines do not give much cover! There’s a difference between a little exhibitionism, and risking arrest for public indecency.

I do like the idea of love among the vines, though, so I’m sure I can come up with a fix. And if you have a solution, do tell me!

Well, Damn. Muscular Men Make Bad Boyfriends?

This just in, apparently muscular men make bad boyfriends. Hot off the press from the University of Westminster, the study’s found the more muscular the man, the more likely he is to be sexist and even hostile to women.

Maybe if we just don’t talk? I could live with that arrangement.

The reasoning for it (researcher’s words here, not mine, don’t shoot the messenger) is apparently men who are sexist also work on being muscly, because it fits their idea of what a “real man” looks like.

Now, they only surveyed 327 British men, so I’m hopeful it’s all a big misunderstanding. And I, for one, am not going to stop daydreaming about muscular men.

Besides, this is what we have book boyfriends for. So they can be the perfect man, reality be damned 😉

Anyone else come across this problem with muscular but sexist men? I’ve never noticed, but maybe I was too busy staring…

 

 

Finally!

It’s here! It’s finally here! I know, I’m sorry, the cliffhanger was mean, but now you can have your answers. Hawaiian Healing has just gone live on Amazon, and you can check it out here  http://www.amazon.com/Hawaiian-Healing-Heartbreak-Book-ebook/dp/B017QBKHS0/

There’s already some lovely reviews on Goodreads, so thank you to my advance readers who took the time to share their thoughts. There’s even a review that’s already been posted to Amazon – super quick!

If you’re an advance reader and for some reason haven’t got your copy yet, please tell me. I don’t want to leave anyone out in the cold, and every now and then the mailing list develops a few kinks. Not the fun kind 😉

For now… I’ve had my break, and it’s on to writing the third and final book. 8,000 words down, several thousand more to go.

 

Kayla came to Hawaii to heal her broken heart. Not to get it smashed all over again. 

Jay took over her mind and body, consumed her, and then he was gone. 

All she has left are the questions she can’t run from any longer. Can she survive without him? What’s more important, love, or the life she’s built at home? And why does it suddenly seem like Jay’s hiding something? 

The second book of three in the Hawaiian Heartbreak trilogy. This book is recommended for readers over the age of 18 due to explicit sexual content.

Beware Mixing Writing And Marriage

Writing is a wonderful career choice in many ways, but in other ways it can hurt the ones you love.

Not because you have to choose to be solitary for long stretches. I love taking a break for coffee dates or a movie, and the rest of the time they’re probably relieved I’m out of their hair.

Not because you compare your husband to your book boyfriend, because hey, who do you think helps with inspiration.

It’s because you constantly rabbit on to them about details from the book, such as, I don’t know, the time you spent in Hawaii. You might ask your husband what he remembers the air feeling like, what the people were like, what you did, what you ate.

And then one day your husband wakes up, rolls over, and says sadly: “I think… I think I was just dreaming. And now I have this keen awareness that I’m not in Hawaii.”

Me too, babe. Me too.

Cozy Spots

Last night was a bit of a celebration – I’ve finally finished writing Hawaiian Healing! It’s always such a good feeling to send off the completed file, close the computer, and know you’re done. The baby will soon go out into the world on it’s own. (You can pre-order a copy here, if you want.)

The real excitement? I can finally read some books myself! I like to take a week off after finishing a project, chill out, and remember why I love books in the first place.

I have a favourite spot I like to read, now that New Zealand is heading for summer, anyway. Our house is teeny tiny, but there’s a little balcony off the bedroom, and it’s a perfect little sun trap. A couple of cushions, my Kindle, and some snacks, and you’re not going to hear a peep from me for hours.

What’s your favourite spot for reading? And now I have some free time, any book recommendations? Clearly I love romance, but I’ll consider most genres except horror.

Review: Hollywood Dirt

This book was so good, and not at all what I was expecting after some of Alessandra’s previous work. Much lighter, much sweeter, but she really made the change work. So: four stars!

I admit, some of the high rating comes from the old enemies-to-lovers trope. I’m a sucker for it, and this one was done well! I really believed every fight, and you could feel the crackling tension under each one, just waiting to be released. When they finally gave into the attraction, talk about sparks flying.

It only just misses the five stars, for me. When the big reveal came about what Summer had done in the past to make the town hate her, it felt like no big deal. Which maybe was the point, showing how stuck up the town was? I not only wanted more from the people in the town to justify that, but from Cole’s ex-wife. It feels like those external problems were just brushed away.

BUT. There’s a reason it gets four stars, and that’s because those criticisms are very minor points. This book is seriously good!