PLUMERIA Tote Winner
The winner of The Passion of the Purple Plumeria tote bag is… Tessa! (Of Comment #8.) Congrats, Tessa! If you let me know where to send it, the tote will soon be sent on forthwith through the pony post (or the U.S. Postal Service). Thanks so much to everyone for the wonderful Ask Miss Gwen…
Read MoreTeaser Tuesday: PURPLE PLUMERIA Reader Guide
First of all, huge thanks to everyone who helped me out with questions for Parts I and II of The Passion of the Purple Plumeria Readers’ Guide! I couldn’t have written it without you. Part II of the Readers’ Guide is a relatively straightforward Q&A. (I say “relatively” because it’s Miss Gwen asking the questions.)…
Read MoreAn Ask Miss Gwen Addendum
Since I get to interrogate Miss Gwen, Miss Gwen has insisted that it’s only fair that she be afforded the opportunity to ask a few questions of me– such as how on earth I presumed to be so forward as to write her story without her permission. If Miss Gwen could get hold of her…
Read MoreIf You Like
With the New Year, I’ve been thinking a lot about fresh starts and new beginnings. There’s a mind-boggling array of books devoted to this theme: — In some cases, the fresh start is internally driven, like L.M. Montgomery’s The Blue Castle or Colleen McCullough’s The Ladies of Missalonghi, in which the downtrodden spinster heroines decide…
Read MoreThursday Give Away Winner
The winner of Molly O’Keefe’s Can’t Buy Me Love is… Rhonda! (Of Comment #3.) Congrats, Rhonda! If you send me your details, I’ll pop the book in the mail to you. Coming up soon on Thursday Give Away: Donna Thorland’s The Turncoat, Sarah MacLean’s One Good Earl Deserves a Lover, Bee Ridgway’s The River of…
Read MoreWeekly Reading Round-Up
Here’s what I’ve been reading this week: — Barbara Michaels, Smoke and Mirrors. This is one of my less frequent Michaels re-reads. The inside look at a political campaign is fascinating (and reminds me of one of my old teen favorites, The President’s Daughter, by Ellen Emerson White), but this one has never captured my…
Read MoreAsk Miss Gwen
It’s time for me to be preparing the extra bits that go into the back of The Passion of the Purple Plumeria. I suspect that you’re probably all just as bored with Q&A’s with me as I am. So, instead of asking you for questions for me, I’ve decided it’s time to interview Miss Gwen.…
Read MoreThursday Give Away
Today’s Thursday give away is an advance copy of Molly O’Keefe’s contemporary romance, Can’t Buy Me Love. Here’s the official blurb: In Molly O’Keefe’s captivating new contemporary romance, a woman with a past and a man without a future struggle to find a place where they belong. A girl from the wrong side of the…
Read MoreTeaser Tuesday: Ashford 1919
Since this is Downton homage week, this seemed like a good time to give you a little snippet of the postwar portion of The Ashford Affair. It’s the social Season of 1919, crepe paper instead of flowers in the ballrooms and a marked lack of able-bodied escorts. The world has changed… but not everyone has…
Read MoreDownton Spoofs
In honor of the launch of Season Three of Downton Abbey, here’s a compendium of my favorite Downton spoofs so far (or at least those that were linkable): — The musical tribute, The Fresh Prince of Downton Abbey. — The Red Nose Day spoof, Uptown Downstairs Abbey, Parts I and II (seriously, you don’t want…
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