If you teach or speak, what’s coming up on your calendar?
On November 17th, I will be at the Just Read Rendezvous in St. Louis, Missouri.
It’s an excellent opportunity for readers and authors to meet and talk about
our favorite subject—books! Details can be found here: https://rendezvous.justreadtours.com/2023-event/.
I’d love to see you there.
If you had to completely start over in another place,
where would you move, and why? I’d move to the outer banks of North
Carolina. New England is beautiful and full of history, but the winters are long
and brutal. Since I was five, until there were too many great-grandchildren to accommodate,
my grandparents and relatives on my dad’s side rented a beach house in Wrightsville
Beach, North Carolina. We’d stay for a week, where all the cousins would sleep in
a big bunk room, and the adults would alternate making dinners. Vacationing
together kept us tight as a family, and I have some of my best memories from
that area—walking on the beach, jumping waves, swimming in the ocean until my
skin shriveled, catching sand fiddlers, and eating lunch at the Dockside.
If you could only tell aspiring novelists one thing, what
would it be? Always be learning. There is so much to the craft of writing
and so many great resources out there. I have bookshelves full of craft books from
plotting to editing and everything in between. Some of my favorites are Writing
with Emotion, Tension, and Conflict by Cheryl St. John, Rivet Your
Readers with Deep Point of View by Jill Elizabeth Nelson, The Story
Equation by Susan May Warren, The 90-Day Novel by Alan Watt, and Super
Structure by James Scott Bell. I also listen to podcasts on the rides to
pick up my kids: Your Best Writing Life by Linda Goldfarb, Novel
Marketing by Thomas Umstattd Jr., Helping Writers Become Authors by
K.M. Weiland, and Fiction Writing Made Easy by Savannah Gilbo. And I’m
always looking for more.
You’ve been asked to be in charge of a celebrity cruise.
Who would you ask to take part, and why? (AS in what program, singers, etc. [it
doesn’t have to be writing related]) I don’t think I have the patience for Hollywood
celebrities. (God is still working on me in that area.) I’d love to run a
cruise with inspirational women of God like Christine Caine, Lisa Bevere, Joyce
Meyers, and Charlotte Gambill. Can you imagine what amazing conversations you’d
have sunning on the top deck in beach chairs with those ladies or dining for
full sit-down dinners? For entertainment, I’d have Kari Jobe, Rebecca St.
James, Mandisa, Lauren Daigle, and Taya Smith bring the house down with some incredible
worship.
Nicholas Emerson’s time as a spy for the War Office has left
physical and mental battle wounds. He can never be the charming, carefree man
he once was—the man his wife deserves—but when a threat to Abby’s life returns
him to their small Midland village, keeping her safe proves challenging. If
only Abby would forget him and remarry, then he wouldn’t have to face the
torment of all the tender, buried feelings she evokes. The consequence of his
life as a spy mean he can never have her again…
Please give us the first page of the book.
Laurel House, Worcestershire, England 1807
Abigail Hartington Emerson’s new husband scooped her into
his strong arms. Her petticoats flounced and her feet dangled in the air. Nicholas
faltered a step and she shrieked, digging her nails into the thick wool of his
overcoat. “I love you, Nicholas Emerson, but it’s bad portent to drop your new
wife, especially before you cross the threshold.”
The glint in those mischievous hazel eyes revealed he was
teasing her by pretending to trip. “I’m not going to let you fall. In fact, now
that I’ve made you mine, my plan is to never let you out of my arms.”
She clung to his shoulders, buried her face in his neck, and
breathed in his woodsy scent of newly cut cedar. The vibrations of Nick’s husky
laughter tickled her nose. She lifted her head but didn’t relax her grip.
“Welcome to Laurel House, Mrs. Abigail Emerson.” Nicholas raised
his gaze to the rustic two-story stone home that stretched along the bulrushes.
Ivy climbed the exterior as if wrapping the house in a leafy embrace, and the primrose
in full bloom burst with cheery color from each window box.
“Do you hear that?” He tilted his ear up.
Abby stilled but only heard a distant woodlark song.
“It’s the sound of our future children playing.”
“Truly?”
“I hear them as clearly as the clock tower.”
“I do hope you’re being prophetic and that I didn’t marry a
man who’s as mad as a hatter.”
A crooked smile graced his lips.
His breath mingled with hers, tickling her mouth and cheeks.
“Either way, I don’t care. As long as you’re mine.” Public
affection was considered improper, but on impulse she pressed her lips to his,
savoring their velvety feel and his strong arms.
His mouth moved on hers with a slow, tantalizing kiss —just
a taste of what the next forty or more years would hold.
The front door swung open.
Abby tore away with a gasp.
Mrs. Smith, the housekeeper, stepped aside and held the door
to allow the newlyweds passage.
Heat spread through Abby’s cheeks quicker than a house fire.
When was she going to learn to control her whims? She avoided the woman’s gaze
as Nicholas swept her across the entranceway into the open foyer.
The setting sun spilled its golden rays through the
mullioned window, illuminating the large bouquet of red roses, most likely
freshly cut from his mother’s rose garden, that graced the pedestal table.
Her new home. Her grip on the lapel of his coat tightened.
The reality of this momentous day sank in. She was Laurel Manor’s new mistress.
Where can we find you on the Internet?
Thank you for sharing Reclaiming the Spy with my
blog readers and me.
Readers,
here’s a link to the book.
Leave
a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these
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9 comments:
I would love to read and review. Enter me. Jane Squires
That's awesome, Jane. So glad to hear it.
LOVE this cover and I’ve been looking forward to reading this series!😍
Elly -Indiana-
This novel sounds captivating and memorable. Anne in NM.
This looks really good!
Abigail in VA
Sounds like a great book! I will have to go searching for book one in this series as well. Thank you for sharing!
Holly in Kentucky
I've enjoyed Lorri's books in the past. Thanks for sharing this book!
Connie from Kentucky
cps1950ATgmailDOTcom
Enter me in your awesome giveaway!!
Nichols SC.
Brenda from MS. I would love to read this book
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