First Draft of FIRE Complete!

I'm excited to announce that this morning, I completed the first draft of FIRE, the fourth and final book in The Elemental Series!  I'll now be buried deep in edits for a while, and hope tentatively to have this book out next fall.

Ethan has been quite a challenge.  I enjoyed "watching" him work out his troubles, and Gypsy is the perfect foil for his broodiness.  Sometimes my characters surprise me, and I was pleased to find that under Ethan's hard shell - way under it - was a soft heart.  I look forward to sharing this book with you.  Until then, check out the other books in The Elemental Series and catch up on the foster siblings of Hope Creek!

Happy Father's Day (and Happy Summer)!

Today is Father's Day, and also the first day of summer! Celebrate the fathers and father figures who make your life special today, whether it's taking them out to dinner or spending some quality time at home (and what better way to kick off summer than to grill something for them, for a change? LOL).

Whatever you do, enjoy your day. Cheers!

Guest Author: Diana Rubino!

Hi all! I'm excited to introduce author Diana Rubino, whose book BOOTLEG BROADWAY went on sale today. Isn't this cover just amazing? Let's get right to the interview.

1) How did you get started writing?

I wrote short stories as a kid, and realized I loved creating characters and putting them in situations--or messes--and wondering how they'd get out them. But somehow they always did! I wrote my first novel at age 24, which, like nearly every first novel, was very autobiographical, and I'm so glad it never got published!

2) What interests or excites you most about your genre(s)?

I've always had a passion for history and the paranormal. The spirit world fascinates me, mostly because it's so mysterious and beyond our reach. I feel a strong connection to the past when I visit historical sites, and have to go around touching everything to get an even stronger connection. We're all part of history, and writing about long-ago people and places transports me to another time and world.

3) Who or what is your favorite inspiration when writing?

My inspiration for each book is the hero or heroine of that story. That person, sometimes a historical figure who actually lived, invites me into his or her world, and I bring that world alive as best as I can.

4) Tell me about your latest book or work in progress.

In my "New York Saga" I began with FROM HERE TO 14TH STREET, where my heroine, Italian immigrant Vita and Irish cop Tom McGlory fall in love despite all odds. Book 2 in the series is my latest release, BOOTLEG BROADWAY. Tom, Vita and their three children are struggling to make ends meet. It's 1932. Prohibition rages, the Depression ravages, and Billy McGlory comes of age whether he wants to or not. Musical and adventurous, Billy dreams of having his own ritzy supper club and big band. On the eve of his marriage to the pregnant Prudence, the shifty "businessman" Rosario Ingovito offers him all that and more. Fame, fortune, his own Broadway musical…it's all his for the taking, despite Pru's opposition to Rosie's ventures. Meanwhile, Pru's artistic career gains momentum and their child is born. Can anything go wrong for Billy? Only when he gets in way over his head does he stop to wonder how his business partner really makes his millions, but by then it's far too late… Billy escapes with his life, but in a surprise twist at the end, he pulls off the ultimate revenge against the gangsters responsible for his beloved wife Pru's heroin overdose.

5) Please share with us the first few paragraphs of your latest work.

New York City, May, 1935


Billy moseyed out of The Stork Club whistling “I’m In The Mood For Love” because he was. The rain-slicked pavement glistened under the streetlamps. A cold drizzle tickled his face as he plopped his hat on. Fishing his keys out of his pocket, he stepped off the curb and headed for his new Packard.

An engine’s roar came at him and ended his whistling. “Hey!” He leapt out of the way, but not in time. He got hit so hard he went flying, landing on his side. He lay crumpled in the street, choking on the exhaust. The wheels screeched away.

Bodies hovered over him, but it was all a blur. He shut his eyes against the unbearable pain and, mercifully, he slipped away into pain-free oblivion.

Thank you so much for visiting us today, Diana! BOOTLEG BROADWAY looks amazing, and it's set during one of my favorite eras in American history. I can't wait to read it!

For more information on Diana and her books, check out the following links!

E-mail Diana: diana@dianarubino.com

Visit Diana's website: http://www.dianarubino.com

Buy BOOTLEG BROADWAY: Amazon

Book Signing July 25th!

For a writer, there's nothing so exciting as receiving a box of your books in print. Every time I get them, I'm giddy. Today's treat was the arrival of copies of AIR and HEAVY NETTING from my publisher, for next month's book signing at the Lewis County Fair. It'll be my first trip to this event, and I'm super excited to be there with my writing pal, Regina Edwards Drumm. I'm sure I'll have loads of pictures to share with you once I've been to this fair, but for now, I'll give you a peek at my latest endeavors in print.

Aren't they gorgeous? I love them. If you can make the fair, I'd love to meet you! Click here for directions. If not, keep checking my event list on my website for other book signings - or order a copy of one of my books from your favorite bookstore! Happy reading!

TV Series Review: Turn

Over the weekend, I finished watching Season One of TURN: Washington's Spies.  The series is adapted from a book by Alexander Rose and stars Jamie Bell.  I didn't want to review until I'd seen the entire season, because I was concerned that my initial impression wouldn't hold up.

I needn't have worried.  This show does take some historical - ahem - liberties, but does so in the name of great storytelling.  The heart of the show is its relationship between childhood friends Abraham Woodhull, a reluctant-to-fight cabbage farmer, and several patriots including Ben Talmadge, an officer in the rebel army.  No matter what he does, poor Abraham is caught between his friendships and his family, who are actively Loyalist.  Watching him navigate the push-and-pull was a train wreck in the best sense, and half the reason I binge watched half a season over the weekend.  While the story does have slow moments, I wouldn't call any part of it dull.

Complicating matters is Anna Strong, a woman once engaged to Abraham but now married to another man.  When Anna's husband is arrested and sent to a prison ship, Anna is left high and dry.  Who's there to pick up the pieces?  You guessed it: Abraham and his still-raw feelings for her.  Abraham, himself married and with a child, can't resist coming to her aid, driven not only by his latent attachment to her but by the same sense of moral outrage that eventually leads him to support the rebel cause.

What I enjoyed about this show, as opposed to other Revolution-era pieces like The Patriot, is that there is no cut-and-dry division between right and wrong.  There are sympathetic British, and there are devious Americans.  You are left to decide who's right for yourself, based on the events of the show, rather than be told who not to like.  (Granted, you're going to hate Simcoe on sight, but who doesn't love that character you love to hate?)

Overall, I look forward to Season Two, and I urge you to give Season One a try if you enjoy historical drama.  It's available now on Netflix.  In the meantime, I'll be picking up the book.

RATING: Four of five stars

In Praise of Iced Coffee

Nobody loves sweating to death, least of all, me.  I love my coffee, as most of my readers well know - but when the weather warms up, I can't stand the thought of hot coffee.  So, I'd like to thank whichever enterprising soul decided it was a good idea to throw this caffeinated nectar of the gods over ice.  Yay, you.

We recently bought a new coffee maker, and I've been refrigerating the rest of what's in the pot after hubby's cuppa as my iced coffee.  Then I heard there's a better way, so I went looking on the Internet (yay, Internet) for a cold-brewed iced coffee recipe for myself.  Pretty simple.  Toss it in a container, refrigerate and wait, then strain into a new container.  You can pour yourself a cup and add whatever you like to flavor it.  Even I can do this!  If you love iced coffee, but not the way your coffee shop bill adds up over a week, give this a try.

All I can say is, yum.