RANSOME'S QUEST - Kaye Dacus - Free Book

Welcome back, Kaye. It's always great to chat with you. Why did you become an author?

Because I couldn’t make the voices in my head shut up.

I guess I’ve always made up stories—but I wasn’t one of those people who started writing them down as soon as I could write. Being a visually oriented person, I played them out either outside playing make-believe with friends or by myself with my Barbie dolls. It wasn’t until I was twelve or thirteen years old that I started taking notes on what I was doing with my dolls (so I could remember the next day)—and then one day, I just went straight to the notes and kept writing instead of picking up the dolls again.

I didn’t feel the call to pursue publication until I was thirty years old, though. Up until then, writing was something I did privately and kept to myself, especially after a really bad experience with having my writing workshopped in a creative writing class when I was twenty. It took God a decade to pry my hands off the gift He gave me which was meant to be shared, not sequestered.

If you weren’t an author, what would be your dream job?

English professor at a small four-year liberal arts college. (And this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s read my latest contemporary novel, The Art of Romance!)

I have a master’s degree, so, who knows, it could still happen one of these days!

If you could have lived at another time in history, what would it be and why?

Even though I minored in history, love doing research, and love writing historical romances, I’m pretty happy with the air conditioning, cell phones, cars, and cable TV of the here-and-now. If I were absolutely forced to pick, I’d probably choose the Edwardian era, simply because I love the clothes so much.

What place in the United States have you not visited that you would like to?

Hmmm . . . that’s a great question, because I’ve lived and visited so many places already. But I’d love to visit New England in the fall. Autumn is my favorite season, and I always drool over photos of New Hampshire and Vermont during that time. Plus, there are all of those quaint little historical towns and villages up there that look like they’d be fun to explore.

How about a foreign country you hope to visit?

I spent the month of June posting my virtual European vacation on my blog on Fridays, but if I had to pick only one, I’d have to pick Great Britain first and foremost. Not only is that where much of my ancestral heritage from (Scotland and England specifically), but it’s the place in which I have the most interest as far as history and research goes.

What lesson has the Lord taught you recently?

As someone who’s lived alone, happily independent, for more than fifteen years, one thing I’ve come to rely on, and take pride in, is my self-sufficiency. Okay, my control-freakishness, if you really want to get specific. My life was on a certain path, and I had control of it. . .until I broke my ankle last November. I was already two weeks past deadline on my previous book (The Art of Romance) and had been at the library trying to get the last half of the book mapped out. Leaving the library, I lost my footing and fell, dislocating my right foot and breaking both major bones in the ankle (tibia and fibula)—and mildly spraining the left ankle. And I didn’t have my cell phone with me!!! I had to rely on someone else to call 9-1-1 for me. I did have my laptop with me so I was able to access my family phone list and call my cousins who live in town—and rely on them not only to contact my parents but also to come pick me up from the emergency room and then, the next day, to go get my car and bring it back to my house.

Since I was facing surgery and months of recovery, I couldn’t stay by myself—not with a house accessible only by the few steps from the yard to the porch, no paved sidewalk/driveway, and doorways too narrow for a wheelchair, and an incapacitated right foot, meaning I couldn’t drive, either. So much for independence and self-sufficiency! I spent the next day packing and the day after that, my parents came and took me to Arkansas to stay with them until I was once again able to drive and walk. It was like reverting to childhood, relying on my parents to feed me, drive me places, and take care of me.

And it was a great reminder—no matter how independent and self-sufficient I think I am, I need to let go. I need to let others help me. And, most of all, I need to rely on God to provide, not to believe I can do it all on my own.

Tell us about the featured book.

Ransome’s Quest is the conclusion of the action-adventure romance series, The Ransome Trilogy, following Ransome’s Honor and Ransome’s Crossing.

The pirate El Salvador de los Esclavos has haunted the waters of the Caribbean for almost ten years. When he snatched Charlotte Ransome, it was a case of mistaken identity. Now Charlotte’s brother, Commodore William Ransome, whose reputation in battle is the stuff of legend, is searching for him with a dogged determination. But another rumor has reached Salvador’s ears: Julia Witherington Ransome has been kidnapped by the man feared by all other pirates—the pirate known only as Shaw. The violent and bloodthirsty savage from whom Salvador was trying to protect her.

When word reaches William of his wife’s disappearance, his heart is torn—he cannot abandon the search for Charlotte, yet he must also rescue Julia. Captain Ned Cochrane offers a solution: Ned will continue the search for Charlotte while William goes after Julia. William’s quest will lead him to a greater understanding of faith and love as he must accept help from sworn enemy and have faith that Julia’s life is in God's hands.

And if you haven’t had a chance to get started with this series, now’s a great time—because the first book of the trilogy, Ransome’s Honor, is available as a free e-book until August 15. You can find the links to find it for different e-readers/formats here: http://kayedacus.com/2011/08/01/ransomes-honor-is-free/

Please give us the first page of the book.

Prologue

No moon. Wispy clouds hid most of the stars. He could not have asked for a more perfect night. Before him, the house glowed like a lantern atop the hill. Behind him, his men waited for his command.

Julia Witherington was back in Jamaica. Finally. The pirate paused a moment, trying to count the years—the ages, the epochs—he had been on the quest to strike back at Admiral Sir Edward Witherington.

Julia was married—and had brought her husband here with her. The inimitable Commodore William Ransome. The admiral’s favorite; the man he’d taken publicly in hand as son long before Ransome married the admiral’s daughter. The one man in the world the pirate hated almost as much as the admiral.

He smiled. The commodore would ensure word reached Sir Edward of his daughter’s abduction.

Movement caught his attention and honed his focus on the house. He turned, maintaining his crouched position. “Remember, men, no killing—especially the navy officer. The woman is mine. No one is to harm her. Is that understood?”

“Aye, Cap’n,” his men whispered back.

The pirate turned to face the house again. It seemed he had awaited this moment his entire life. The rules of engagement were about to change.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

My website: http://kayedacus.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kayedacus

Twitter: http://twitter.com/kayedacus

Thanks for another wonderful interview, Kaye.



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