FOR TIME AND ETERNITY - Rosanne Croft - One Free Book

Welcome back, Rosanne. God has really been moving in your writing life. What do you see on the horizon?

I have many ideas for books and I hope I have time to write them. Writing’s not easy for me, but it’s my passion. I’ve prayed about what to write first, and my next project is a romantic adventure set in Africa.

But I won’t forget the Believe in Love characters who need their stories concluded, and I plan to write at least one more book in that series. My readership for comparative religion is a specific niche, and very loyal, which I thank them for!

Tell us a little about your family.

I live with my husband, Ray, and a small dog in Western Colorado. My mother was from this area, and it feels good to live near “my people” in the Rockies, and where I have distinct memories. Our 25 year-old daughter is in Oregon, as well as our son and his family. We also have a son and his wife and children in Wyoming. We’re able to see the Wyomingites often.

Has your writing changed your reading habits? If so, how?

I have little time to read when I’m in the final process of writing a book. But I’m on a break now, and finally finished Eric Metaxas’ Dietrich Bonhoeffer biography. I’m also drawn to reading Russian masters again after a 40 year break . . . because I want to see what my mind thinks about them now. I just started Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov. And I love that wonderful Alyosha all over again.

What are you working on right now?

I enjoy writing romance, and I’m working on a novel about medical missionaries in Tanzania, West Africa. It will be fun to develop this book. I received constructive critiques from my group, so I’m correcting, rewriting, honing, and thinking about the new characters. It’s a process that will take a while.

What outside interests do you have?

I like to tool around the neighborhood on my old-fashioned yellow bicycle. I also enjoy a hike or walk where I can get close to nature. I can and freeze food, and experiment with recipes. (I seem to have a collection of them that grows all the time.) And I like to meet weekly with church friends and share our lives. It’s such an encouragement.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

The Utah/Italy setting for the Believe in Love series chose itself because of the comparative religions/culture theme. Italy became a counterpoint for Utah culture. The West African setting in my current novel was chosen because I always wanted to go there from reading Isak Dinesen’s Out of Africa. My way of getting there is through my imagination and research.

I love that book. If you could spend an evening with one historical person, who would it be and why?

I’d have to say C. S. Lewis. I have a deep gratitude for the themes and emotions in his Narnia books that revealed the reality of Jesus to me, with his love, his mystery, his great authority. An evening with C. S. Lewis would be worth pure gold to me. And someday soon, in heaven, I really will get to talk to him.

What is the one thing you wish you had known before you started writing novels?

What hard work it is . . . how long it takes to get the right words written . . . and how rewarding it is, not for money, but because I am able to share my innermost thoughts with many people who might be encouraged or entertained by my story.

What new lessons is the Lord teaching you right now?

Right now, he’s teaching me about prayer and spiritual warfare. When I set out to write books about religion, I didn’t realize how much I’d “stir the pot” in the spiritual realm. I read and apply Ephesians 6:10-18 as often as I can. My Lord Jesus is gracious to show me to pray longer, harder, and with more faith than ever before. Prayer DOES change things.

That is so true. What are the three best things you can tell other authors to do to be successful?

• Keep working hard. It takes years to hone the craft. Often, I walk away for a week, and come back to a specific problem in the manuscript and am able to solve it with God’s help. Writing takes thinking, and thinking takes time.
• Soften your ego to be able to take constructive criticism from a regularly meeting (or online) critique group.
• Trust God as you write and pray before you begin. Praise Him when things are going well, and never give up when they’re not. Just put it aside for a time. Maybe you can resurrect it. Write to glorify the Lord, and don’t obsess about sales. 

Tell us about the featured book.

Because this series is simple and easily read, it’s classified Young Adult, but I’ve had good comments from 12-year-old girls and 83-year-old men. I recommend reading the whole series in order. The featured book is number three in the Believe in Love series, entitled For Time and Eternity. The story is about a born-again Christian, Alex Campanaro, who moves to Utah and falls in love with a beautiful Latter-day Saint, Jennalee. Alex is an Italian-American and has family in Italy, so the setting in the second and part of the third book is Italy.

Here’s the back cover blurb:

The rich world of silk ties and luxury cars crumbles when Alex Campanaro finds himself in jail as a kidnapping victim of the Italian mafia. He determines to escape and take his cellmate with him. When a deadly earthquake strikes and frees them, a wounded Alex is able to get his friend to town for help. But there are aftershocks. At the end of his own strength, Alex must put his trust in an all-powerful God to survive.

Will he ever see Jennalee again?

Jennalee Young learns to rely on the biblical Jesus she’s grown to love when she breaks free from her LDS mission in Rome. Risking the disapproval of her parents and Church authorities, she resolves to find Alex, the Christ-follower she’s chosen to spend the rest of her life with. When she sees his bloody face in a televised report from the epicenter of an earthquake a hundred miles away, Jennalee and her brother embark on a treacherous ride to the epicenter to find him.

Will they be too late?

Please give us the first page of the book.

Forever Marked

Massimo’s hollow breathing terrified Alex. Pneumonia ravished his cellmate’s lung. He needed antibiotics! The only answer was to escape their prison. In desperation, he whittled at the jail door’s frame with a brittle knife blade he’d found in the gravel.

Their Camorra mafia captors delivered food and water via a boy named Fuglio. Glancing at the nearly empty bucket, Alex hoped the boy would show up with more water. And food. His pants were loose around his waist. They’d taken his belt and given him a piece of string to hold them up.

With the last cup of water, he bathed Massimo’s feverish head, using the blindfold he’d worn during his capture. How long ago was it? Ten days, the last two with Massimo.

He shuddered, remembering the road block and how he’d scrambled out of the Maserati before the crash flattened it. Such a beautiful car. If only he hadn’t agreed to meet the Putifaros in Abruzzo that day, the gorgeous car would now be safely parked at his uncle’s winery near Rome.

Alex remembered guns pointed at him, how they’d ordered him to drop his wallet on the ground. The mafia men came up behind him, poked guns into his back, and tied a blindfold tight around his eyes. Hours later, after a ride in the back of a van, they pushed him into a dank jail cell where he landed face-down on the gravel, tearing the knees of his thin suit pants.

The mafia probably wanted a ransom, but despite his fancy car, Uncle Lucio owed more money than he had. Already a week in solitary, Alex was sure his uncle hadn’t come up with the money. That’s why he’d talked his captors into allowing him to care for Massimo. They’d escape together.

In his old cell, he explored a dark tunnel, and discovered a cache of forgotten wine. With one taste, he concluded it came from the vineyards around the village of Taurasi, in Campania. Knowing this, he pinpointed their position to a cell in one of the ancient Lombard castles that towered above the valleys of the region. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to recall the map of Campania, so he’d know which direction to carry Massimo once they got out.

Possessing top sommelier skills was one thing, but now he wished he had the breakout ingenuity of Houdini. Massimo’s cell door just wasn’t easy to spring open. So, Alex continued to chisel off splinters of wood near the hinges of the half-rotted door. He vowed to use his waning strength to break free and find help.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

If you’re curious about my books, I’m at https://www.rosannecroft.com. I have an Author page on Amazon, and my books are sold there in both Kindle and Paperback. I will gladly send you a signed copy if you email me at rosannecroft@gmail.com to get on my mailing list. Thank you, Lena, for featuring me on your blog!

Rosanne, it’s my great pleasure to host you.

Readers, here are links to the book.

For Time And Eternity (Believe In Love) - Paperbck
For Time And Eternity (Believe In Love Book 3) - Kindle

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Goodreads, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link:

Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com

A SAINT IN THE ETERNAL CITY - Rosanne Croft - One Free Book

Welcome back, Rosanne. Why do you write the kind of books you do?

If I didn’t write, I’d burst from lack of creativity and living a real life. Jesus freed me from legalistic religion, and I want others to know they can be free, too.

Besides when you came to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?

It really would have to be my wedding day. We had a fast romance, and between being scared and happy and grateful and disheveled all at once, I’d say that day was the happiest of my life. Falling in love is life-changing.

James and I met each other 3 months and 3 days before we married, and we will celebrate 52 years in November. How has being published changed your life?

It boosted my confidence tremendously. I owe a great debt to my first publisher because I think I’d have given up if I’d had to wait much longer.

It took 8 years to get my first book published, and it was 10 years between book 1 and book 2, but look what’s happened since. What are you reading right now?

I read a variety. I started “25 Books Every Christian Should Read,” and though I’ve read a few of them, these are scholarly books, so I’m grateful for the “Cliff’s Notes” contained in the book. Also, I have an autobiography by Vladimir Putin called First Person; An Astonishingly Frank Self-Portrait on my nightstand. I love Russian history and I’m curious about Putin. I just picked up a children’s copy of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight retold by Michael Morpurgo at the library. Because children’s versions are more attractive that adult ones, I love them. They’re more understandable, too.

What is your current work in progress?

It excites me to say that I’m finishing the Believe in Love Series with Book 3, For Time and Eternity. I also resurrected an old manuscript of a children’s fantasy (now called speculative fiction) and I’m having fun re-writing it. The working title is Here There Be Dragons.

What would be your dream vacation?

I’d love to go back to Italy, which happens to be where A Saint in the Eternal City takes place. I would drive around the island of Sicily where I spent time when I was young. If I could combine that with a visit to J. R. R. Tolkien’s and C. S. Lewis’ haunts in Oxford, England, it would be my dream vacation.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

I’m familiar with my settings, Utah and Italy. I lived in both for a time. I wanted to juxtapose the two cultures, one in the New World, the other far more ancient. Contrasting the cultures helped my book.

If you could spend an evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?

I’d spend the evening with Peter Jackson, talking about how he was able to write a screenplay like The Lord of the Rings so well; how he chose elements to include in the plot and how he achieved such good acting from his actors.

What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?

Film watching, gardening, cooking, and sewing. If I don’t sew for a few months, I’m itching to make something. I like to do quilted landscapes. I’m a homebody, very domestic, much like a hobbit.

What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?

Disciplining my time. I used to think I needed long blocks of time to write, and that’s still what I prefer. But now I take what segments of time I can, between grandchildren, cooking, and running the household. Prayer helps calm my heart to write, and the drive to get it done returns. Also, once I start, hours go by ... so starting is key.

What advice would you give to a beginning author?

Learn to self-edit; it helps your writing in a way that nothing else can. Be teachable; learn from others and be humble about it. Believe in yourself, and in the Lord who gave you the gift. Never give up.

Tell us about the featured book.

A Saint in the Eternal City continues the love story in A Gentile in Deseret; a romance between a born-again Christ follower and a Latter-day Saint. The conflict is obvious—their worldviews are different, their cultures are at odds. But they love each other and pursue the relationship even though they have so much against them. God intervenes and their story becomes one of a spiritual journey for truth.

Please give us the first page of the book.

Chapter One

Missing Utah

Alex Campanaro sank deep into his garden chair, brooding over a cup of dark roast coffee. Outside Rome, his family’s villa reflected the sienna color of the sky this August morning, but the beauty of the ancient house and courtyard had little effect on his mood. Turmoil swept through him like splashing water in the nearby fountain, scattering chaotic drops in every direction. A sudden breeze ruffled the violet flowers climbing the pergola, as well as his wild curly hair. Pumping with energy, he jumped up to pace the cobblestones.

His heart was back in Utah with the girl he loved. How he missed his blue-eyed blonde, Jennalee Young. Their goodbyes at high school graduation resounded in his mind whenever he glanced at her senior picture on his new cellphone. The loss of her pervaded his mind.

She’d told him, “I guess we set ourselves up for hurt like this when we started going out. It’s all so impossible.” I’ll say impossible. Jennalee was right; dating a Mormon girl when he was a sold-out born-again Christian meant obstacles, lots of them. After she’d said it, he’d made a vain effort to quiet her crying.

“Don’t look at it like that. One year, remember? We’ll be back together in a year. I’ll email you, I promise.”  A promise he couldn’t keep since all their plans to communicate were a tangled mess. The pact to meet in a year fractured. Would he ever see her again? Had she totally forgotten what they’d studied in the Bible and gone back to her LDS roots? Maybe she didn’t want him to find her.

On impulse before leaving for Italy, he’d sold his expensive smart phone to buy a plane ticket, unaware he couldn’t relay his new number to her, since her number had also changed. Her parents succeeded in taking over her Facebook account, which she hadn’t seen in three months as far as he could tell. All emails had gone unanswered. The Young family circled the wagons around their daughter, blocking him out.

He had to find her, talk to her, but how could he leave his demanding new job in Italy to go back to Utah? Just then his younger brother Gabe popped outside in his bathrobe, interrupting his worries.

“Hey bro, have you seen my camera?” he asked, squinting in the rich light. “I have to pack it for the trip back to Utah tomorrow.”

How can readers find you on the Internet?

I’m on Facebook, Twitter, and on my website, RosanneCroft.com, which I’m currently building. Recently, I joined LinkedIn. Thanks, Lena, for the opportunity to share with your readers.

I enjoyed the opportunity to feature your new book. I know my readers are interested in reading it.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.

A Saint in the Eternal City (Believe in Love) (Volume 2) - paperback
A Saint in the Eternal City (Believe in Love Book 2) - Kindle

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Goodreads, Google+, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link:
Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com

ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS - Rosanne Croft, Sharon Smith, Linda Reinhardt - One Free Book

Welcome, Rosanne. How did this book come about?

We wrote stories for 3 books and our editor/publisher creatively put all the stories in a

sparkling new edition with Shiloh Run Press, an imprint of Barbour Publishing. How exciting for us to have this book of Christmas stories available at Walmart stores as well as online.

What was your contribution to the collection?

I wrote eight stories for the book. Some are based on real life memories and others are sheer imagination. 

What other books have you written?

Our first book together was Like A Bird Wanders, a historical novel. We had such fun doing it together, with each of us starring as a sister in the book. After the Christmas stories, we moved on to individual projects and cheer for each other’s new endeavors. I think your readers may remember I was featured on your blog this past year for A Gentile in Deseret a Utah romance based on a relationship between a lovely LDS girl and a born again Christian guy. What conflict already! It’s the first in a series and the second, A Saint in the Eternal City will be forthcoming on Amazon soon.

Tell us about your favorite Christmas memory.

I’ll let you read the long version in my story, “Starlight and Snow.” The essence was a Nativity scene that we traditionally went to see at night. There was a padded kneeler in front where you could study the figures, and while there it almost came alive to me. Peace settled on me, unbelievable peace.

Tell us something about your family.

I’m married to a good man and it’s been 35 years! We have a special trip planned to

celebrate. We have a 21 year old daughter in and out of our home, although independent for the most part. Two married sons have given us five grandchildren.

Today we went to Grandparents’ Day with five-year-old Grayson and made turkeys!

Please give us the first page of one of the stories you contributed to the collection.

From “The Longest Silence” by Rosanne Croft

It was a good day. I had two letters at mail call one from my mom and one from a guy

who’d shipped out of Vietnam two months ago. I walked to my bunk and tore open the one from Charlie. Peace on Earth1968, his card said.  But the picture had nothing to do with Christmas; it was a photo of an M48 tank. We’d given Charlie a celebration barbeque at Quonset hut, our hooch. But his attitude had been so  cynical and mean; I didn’t see why we’d gone to any trouble for a selfish guy like him. Now he

sends me a demoralizing Christmas photo card.

Merry Christmas to you, too, pal , I thought gloomily.

Charlie’s sarcastic greeting threw me into a cranky mood of self pity. He was home, far

from the rocket attacks on our evacuation hospital. He’d never have to carry another gurney off a helicopter in the middle of the night, I thought bitterly. Charlie was spending the holiday at home with his family, complete with stockings on the fireplace and a decked-out Christmas tree. Oh sure, here the cooks at the mess would roast a big turkey dinner for us, I knew. But the turkey, and especially the potatoes and gravy, never tasted like home. Must have been all the insects buzzing around, ending up in the food. Extra protein, some guys said.

We medics were friends for life, most of us, locked together in mortal combat against wounds received by our fighting men in the rice patties and jungles of the Central Highlands of Vietnam. At the 71st Evacuation Hospital, our job was to save as many lives as we could, and we did it twelve hours every night shift and twelve hours every day shift. We stabilized them and sent them on.

But this December of 1968, when US casualties peaked at over 16,000 killed in one year,

I felt the same hopelessness depicted on that card. There would never be peace on earth. I tucked the card into my pants pocket with dismay and walked out of the hooch.

I almost rammed straight into Phil, the chaplain’s assistant, as he hurried back from the

direction of the sergeant major’s office. Poor Phil; he’d lost every hair on his twenty-year-old head from taking quinine to fight against malaria. We all took it, but some men had the bad luck to have side effects. Young guys look strange when they’re that bald. Talk about nerdy. That’d be Phil.

“Hey, Sergeant,” he said, “I have a surprise.”

Why did you want to write a book like this?

The stories were a wonderfully creative way to commemorate some of my best Christmas

memories. Important family stories will now be in written form, only fictionalized a bit to make them more interesting.

What do you want the reader to take away from your stories in the collection?

I hope readers who like to curl up with a book of stories will be touched emotionally and feel peace in their situations. Sometimes I read to escape and I know there are those kinds of stories here, too. Throughout human history, there have been hard times but Christmas is the time to be reminded of Jesus’ living presence. I pray readers see the reality of Jesus’ coming at Christmas and feel his love for them.

Where can my readers find you on the Internet?

I would love to be friends with readers on Facebook under Rosanne Croft. My blog is alas, not updated, but it’s at rosannecroft.wordpress.com. Thanks for the interview, Lena!

Now we'll meet the second author in the collection.

Welcome, Sharon. How did this book come about?

I had so many  story ideas in my head and knew for sure I'd never be able to write novels from them all, so when the short story concept clicked, I was on a roll.

What was your contribution to the collection?

Twenty-seven of the stories are mine.

What other books have you written?

My first book was a historical novel written with Linda and Rosanne, titled Like a Bird Wanders. The sequel, Old Sins Long Shadows was my own endeavor. My next book, The Train Baby's Mother, is a Holocaust survivor's story and won first place in the 2013 Oregon Christian Writer's contest. The three Christmas books contained in this anthology followed. The Short Life of Moths, a book of hope and healing after domestic violence came out in 2013 and spawned a ministry to prevent violence against women through education. Last year, Barbour books published a compilation containing The Train Baby's Mother and two titles by Bruce Judisch.

Tell us about your favorite Christmas memory.

 I love Christmas and have many wonderful memories, but my first Christmas with my first child stands out as one of awesome wonder.

Tell us something about your family.

I'm married and have two grown sons. They each have two incredible daughters who fill my life with joy and laughter. Right now, we're looking forward to a new grandson after the first of the year. I also have a huge extended family who loves to celebrate everything. 

Please give us the first page of one of the stories you contributed to the collection.

 “The Train Baby”

Somewhere in Germany/1943

“Listen!”

“I hear nothing, Ellie. Your imagination once again is getting the best of you.”

“I tell you, I heard something, Fritz. What if it's a wounded animal caught in a hunter's trap?”

“They hunt only for food. How many times must I tell you this?”

“Tell me a thousand times, and I will think it cruel.”

Another sound rises from the direction of the rail tracks running through the back of their grandparent's property.

“Fritz!” Ellie's head jerked in the direction of the wail.

“I heard it. Maybe the train hit an animal.”

They moved as fast as the knee-deep snow would allow, straining against the heavy restriction. Cousins brought together by misfortune, living in the country for safekeeping while their fathers fought for the homeland, they found comfort in the camaraderie that kept fears about war at a distance.

Fritz, whose long legs gave him an advantage over the younger Ellie, arrived first. “I see nothing Ellie. Winter plays a trick on us.”

Ellie, her braids now loosed from a red stocking hat, grabbed her heaving sides. Misting breath crystallized in the fierce December cold. “Oh, Fritz, you are always so wise, far and above any boy in all the land.” She waved her arm, bowing in mockery.

Suddenly, the stillness collapsed with a cry, plaintive and intense. 

I read the collection written by you and Bruce. Your story lingered in my thoughts for many days. Why did you want to write a book like this?

The birth of Jesus is the most loving gift from Heaven. My intention was to draw people back to the real meaning of Christmas. 

What do you want the reader to take away from your stories in the collection?

Jesus is real. I want my readers to realize the love that God has for them.

Where can my readers find you on the Internet?

All my books are at the usual sites. And please look for me on Facebook.

 And now we'll meet the third author, Linda Reinhardt.

How did this book come about?
Sharon put together the original book, Once Upon A Christmas.  It needed some more stories so she invited Roseanne and me. The publisher liked it so much she asked us to put together another one the next year and then the next. And now they are compiled together in this edition.

What other books have you written?
I co-wrote Like A Bird Wanders with Sharon and Roseanne, along with Starry Starry Night, Once Upon A Christmas, and Always Home for Christmas.
I also wrote the Sister Blue Thread Series, Hidden Song, Silenced Song, and soon to be released Lost Song.

Tell us about your favorite Christmas memory.
My favorite Christmas memory - that is hard to answer, there are so many, my first with my husband, my daughters first, times with family and friends, but one memory creeps into my mind every year...When I was young, I always sat next to my Dad at church. He loves hymns and Christmas music. I loved to sit next to him on Christmas Eve and sing Christmas hymns. He has a beautiful voice. Although we don't go to church together right now, I can still hear him singing every Christmas Eve. The memory will literally bring tears to my eyes remembering him singing the songs.

Tell us something about your family.
I am married to a wonderful, Christian man. We have a beautiful, miracle daughter who is now in middle school. I also am blessed to have most of my extended family living nearby.

Why did you want to write a book like this?  
I had some Christmas stories I had written tucked away in files. I had no idea what I was going to do with them. Except one, “Only One Gift For Me,”  which I had also written a screen play for, and it was performed at a church I attended a few years ago, and also at retirement  homes for a couple of years. So ... when Sharon invited me to join her I was more than excited to join the project. 

What do you want the reader to take away from your stories in the collection?
It hit me one Christmas that not everyone I loved believed or were following Jesus, so I wrote a story and passed it around hoping it would lead them to Jesus. I still hope that just maybe, when a person nestles in to read these stories in the middle of the Christmas rush, they might have a few moments of reflecting on the goodness that Jesus brings. And that’s really what this holiday is all about, Jesus, and Him coming to earth as a baby....

Where can my readers find you on the Internet?
I would love to connect with readers on facebook! Or they can find me on my blog, lindajreinhardt.blogspot.com.

Thank you, Rosanne, Sharon, and Linda, for sharing this wonderful book with us. I've read a few of the stories so far and loved them. I know my readers are eager to read the book, as well.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.

Once Upon a Christmas - Christianbook.com
Once Upon a Christmas: 55 Heartwarming Short Stories Bring Meaning to the Season - Amazon
Once Upon a Christmas: 55 Heartwarming Short Stories Bring Meaning to the Season - Kindle

You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Goodreads, Google+, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link:
Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com

A GENTILE IN DESERET - Rosanne Croft - One Free Book

Dear Readers, I read this novel soon after my copy arrived. I loved the depth of the characters and the story line. I’m eager for book two in the series to come out. I think you will be, too.

Welcome, Rosanne. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

In A Gentile in Deseret, my main character is a young man named Alex. His feelings are mine but are universally felt, those of not belonging; a gentile outside an unfamiliar religious culture, in this case, Mormonism. To get a male perspective on subjects like polygamy, I asked my husband for his input; I sensed I couldn’t think male enough. Jennalee, whom Alex falls for, is part of me, too, with her impossible quandary: will she please her parents and live up to family tradition or break out of a religious mold to follow her heart? There’s a smattering of me in Jennalee’s brother Brent, who developed into one of my favorite characters, but mainly, he’s based on extensive research about Mormon missionaries. Although I didn’t grow up Latter Day Saint, I do know what it’s like to be raised in a strict religious environment.

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

Being quirky is my life. I’m a fashion disaster with clothes and hair and quote random dead people to my grandchildren, but the quirkiest thing I’ve ever done was during an evening church teaching from a beloved pastor. The small church filled as I sat next to my husband halfway up the center aisle at the sound booth. Pastor spoke about how we can’t bring anything to heaven with us, and how truthfully, nothing is ours on this earth. A thought popped into my brain, and I must’ve looked perplexed. Pastor spotted me from the pulpit. “What are you thinking about, Rosanne?” he asked. Uh-oh. I couldn’t tell the whole church what I was really thinking, but I wasn’t fast enough to make up anything else, so honest to the point of being a nerd, I blurted the truth. “Well, isn’t your underwear really yours?”

When did you first discover that you were a writer?

The desire to be a writer was born when I was nine through encouragement from my fourth grade teacher. From then on, I loved to pen flowery adjectives in my paragraphs. Thankfully, readers will find my style morphed into a spare one with more conversation than elaborate description. Although A Gentile in Deseret is my fourth book, I felt more inspired, more in the zone, and more compelled to write for God’s purposes than ever before.

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.

I’m varied in my reading true to my education, and I like Economics and History (especially World War II) along with cozy mysteries. The way Jane Austen juxtaposed men and women in clever conversation feeds my brain. I love Dickens (oh, his plots!), Thomas Hardy (oh, his characters!), Leo Tolstoy (master of the short story), and Charlotte Bronte (the suffering involved in love). Young Adult fantasy novels like The Hunger Games, City of Ember, and the Percy Jackson series fascinate and inspire me. (My own story is a YA Contemporary Romance.)

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

Funny you should ask. Yesterday I bought Rescue Remedy, a homeopathic lozenge for stress. It helps, but to keep sane I have to start every day with the Word of God and prayer. It sets my foundation; nothing goes well if I miss it. After that, stress can be interrupted by savoring moments of joy when God gives me an apple blossom to smell or a songbird is near. Living in the moment helps me hear the whisper from Matthew 6, “Take no thought for your life ... I know what you need ... trust in me.”

How do you choose your characters’ names?

The names get changed once or twice in their development ... it’s like naming a child only when you finally see them and look into their eyes. Each area of the country has a definitive culture, and since my book is set in Utah, known as Deseret to Mormon pioneers, I researched Utah-born names. I also pluck random names from classmates, neighbors, phonebooks, cemeteries, and my family.

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?

What I’m most proud of is that along with my husband, we forever changed the life of a two-year old Bulgarian orphan who became our daughter. She’s now a young adult, and an incredible blessing to us.

If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?

An elephant. They’re intelligent, gracious and melancholy ... you can see it in their eyes. Years ago in a small town we lived in, I walked out of the library and saw a small circus parked nearby in the shade. The elephant keeper washed his charge right there in the street, and I spent a delightful half hour watching, feeling akin to that elephant.

Plus, I’d have a better memory. Then there’s the fact elephants mourn the dead, not only their own kind, but humans, too. They’re majestically made and best of all, wouldn’t it be fun to have a trunk?

What is your favorite food?

I like Thai red curry. Now I know what kicking it up a notch means.

What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?

 Definitely fear, which worked stagnation into my writing. I had good ideas, but was terrified of what others would think, of their criticism, and that I would fail even my own expectations. Strangely, I feared success as well, because with it comes greater responsibility and little privacy. I was desperate to get out of my brackish pool of negativity.

My Master, who alone knows my deepest self, shook my world in such a way that forced me to grow. I’ve moved into a place of security in Him alone. I can be a failure or a success in my work, but ultimately all that matters is God. My work is not ME; it’s only my tiny creation. God loves me whether I achieve anything for Him or not. However, I know He has called me to write and I take the call seriously enough to push myself through sleepless nights, tight schedules, little social life, and the sacrifices of my family. Christian writing is my utmost for His highest.

I’ve had several shakings that forced me to grow. One was when my publisher went national in partnership with Barbour Books. I was compelled to write to my full potential, work harder, and learn what I could to achieve the best outcome. For me, rewriting was the key. Like the motorcycle racer in the movie The World’s Fastest Indian, sometimes you have to “burn a leg” to break out of stagnation.

Tell us about the featured book.

The story is about a born-again Christian named Alex, a new high school senior in Utah, who moves there unaware that his life could change forever when he falls for a Mormon girl, Jennalee. Her world, too, is extremely challenged by this stranger, this gentile, but God is in the details.

The ideas for the story in A Gentile in Deseret floated around in my mind while we were living in Utah. I questioned: What would happen if a born-again Christ-follower fell in love with a Mormon? I met some of these couples in Utah, got to know their stories and was hooked on exploring the topic.

Like my character, Alex, I was a stranger in a foreign religious culture. Only when I returned to the Pacific Northwest was I able to articulate those feelings and use my observations and years of research to write the book. I was compelled to bridge a gap between the two groups, as well as lovingly write God’s truth for my LDS friends, who are some of the most solid and best people I’ve ever known.

The theme throughout the Believe in Love series is that in the end, our lives are about knowing and having a relationship with God rather than following any man-created religion. I’ve been a Christ-follower for a long time but was stretched spiritually throughout the writing of this book.

Please give us the first page of the book for my readers.

Chapter One

Utah Girls

Alex leaned hard on his jammed locker door and shut it with a screech. Senior year with a loser locker was just his luck. He kicked it for the embarrassment it caused in a new high school in a new state. Heads turned and eyes lasered through his back. No way did Utah feel like home. Outside the window, he could see the promise of a powder ski season when he gazed at the mountains that girded the valley. He still felt betrayed by his mother for moving here from Oregon. One more class and I’m out of here, he thought.

He had to admit most of the girls were drop-dead gorgeous, their hair and makeup perfect as models. A group of boys in starched white shirts and ties passed him, like geeks from the 60’s. Who wears white shirts to school? One of them scrutinized him, scowling. Alex wore what he’d worn in Oregon: a Nike t-shirt and faded jeans. Was it his two day stubble and wild dark curly hair that led to such open disapproval? Kids here were preppy and clean-cut.

Alex brightened at the thought of going to his favorite class, AP Chemistry. His confidence back, he decided it may be an advantage to have no social life. He could study hard and graduate with honors. A free four-year ride in college would put him on the way to his ultimate goal: Medical School.

Preoccupied with his hopes, he turned the corner leading to the stairway so fast that he bumped a thick book from the hands of a girl coming down the stairs.

“Sorry,” Alex said, bending down to pick up the leather bound book, “here’s your Bible.”

“It’s not a Bible, it’s my Book of Mormon,” she answered in a sharp voice. The way she pronounced Bible carried a lot of scorn.

“Oh, okay. Sorry.” He glanced at the book; it looked exactly like a Bible.

The girl stepped back and took a long look at him, swooping her blonde hair away from her face with one hand. “It’s a Quad and I need it for Seminary,” she said.

“Is that a Religion class? In public school?” He hadn’t seen it in the curriculum.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s not in the school. It’s over in the building across from the parking lot.” Her voice was unemotional. “And I’m late.”

His mouth went dry when he noticed how blue her eyes were. “Oh, so you got excused from school, huh?” Even as he said it, he thought it sounded stupid but he’d never heard of anything like this.

The girl sighed. “It’s an elective, and it’s always been this way. You picked electives, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. I picked what I had back in Oregon.”

“Did the Registrar ask you about Seminary?”

He shrugged. “Nope. Hey . . . uh, I gotta catch my AP Chem class. It’s up these stairs.” His mouth was so dry he could barely get the words out. He didn’t want to leave without knowing her name. Trying to look cool despite his confusion, he blurted, “So . . what’s your. .”

At that moment, a cluster of girls carrying the same thick books squeezed past them. One of them whispered into the cute girl’s ear. As she bent her head, Alex sneaked a closer look through her long blonde hair. Her right ear was creamy pink, and she wore a tiny gold and blue earring. Long eyelashes swept her cheek, resting on it like soft feathers. Even without makeup, he thought she’d be the prettiest girl he’d ever seen.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

Thanks for the interview, Lena. Readers can find me at my blog: www.rosannecroft.wordpress.com and may email me directly at rosannecroft@gmail.com. My publisher is OakTara.com. Books are available through OakTara, Amazon, and other internet outlets. See my author’s page at Amazon.com.

Thank you, Rosanne, for sharing this new book with us.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
A Gentile in Deseret (Believe in Love) - paperback
A Gentile in Deseret (Believe in Love Book 1) - Kindle

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