Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Today's Special - - Beth Andrews

It's a pleasure to welcome RITA© award winning author Beth Andrews back to The Romance Dish!  Many of you know Beth not only as the talented, award-winning author of Harlequin Superromances but also as a member of the popular multi-author Romance Bandits blog.  Beth joins us today to chat about her new new trilogy (read PJ's review of the first book, Unraveling the Past, here), The Truth about the Sullivans.  


To connect with Beth, visit her website, like her at Facebook and check out her blogs at the Superromance Authors Blog and at Romance Bandits (on the 20th of each month).  


Take it away, Beth!






Sister Act

Ah, sisters. Those of us who have sisters know they can be the bane of our existence and the heart and soul of who we are. They can be our best friend or our worst enemy—sometimes both at the same time!

In my new trilogy for Harlequin Superromance, The Truth about the Sullivans, the Sullivan sisters must face some hard truths about the past, come to terms with the present and learn to live with the consequences of discovering everything they’d ever known about their past was a lie. I love connected stories and while heroes seem to be quite popular as the basis for those stories, I knew I wanted to write about these three women, these three sisters who share a bond so strong, nothing could tear them apart.

Layne, Tori and Nora are as different as three women could possibly be and that’s what fascinated me about them. While they share certain traits, had the same parents and were raised in the same household, in the end, they are unique and complicated individuals.

Layne, the eldest and assistant police chief, is honest, controlled and responsible. Tori, a single mother, is independent, clever and charming (or, as Layne would say, manipulative *g*) While youngest sister Nora is smart, says exactly what’s on her mind and leaps into situations without considering the consequences.

Layne is bossy. Tori is rebellious. Nora is stubborn. They argue and disagree and annoy each other to no end.

They also adore, inspire and admire each other. And when the going gets tough, as it does in my trilogy *g*, they have each other’s backs.

I had such a great time writing about these women, these sisters, that it got me thinking about some of my favorite sisters, in movies, TV, books and real life. Here’s a quick list of my faves:

Sally and Gillian Owens from Practical Magic (movie version)

The March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, from Little Women (book and movie versions) I have to include this one since my older sister and I were named after characters in this book!

The Reed sisters, Alex, Teddy, Frankie and Georgie from Sisters (TV show) Does anyone else remember this show? I was so hooked on it for the first few seasons!

My daughters J They are the best of friends and truly love each other and being together.

Sisters of the heart – Blanche, Rose, Dorothy and Sophia from The Golden Girls

Sisters of the heart – Rachel, Monica and Phoebe from Friends

Sisters of the heart – Mia, Nell and Ripley from Nora Roberts’ Three Sisters Island trilogy

And lastly, sisters of MY heart – Tawny Weber, Kathleen Long and Anna Sugden, three women who are always there for me!

So today, let’s talk about sisterhood, whether those bonds were formed by blood or chance. Do you have sisters? Sisters of the heart? Who are some of your favorite sisters in film, TV or books?


One randomly selected person leaving a comment on today's blog will receive a copy of Unraveling the Past.  Thanks, Beth!



43 comments:

  1. I'm one of six sisters, seven children in all. I have 4 older sisters & one younger. The older sisters paved the way. This made my life easier. My Mother was less likely to be shocked. We are all close, though some closer than others.

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    1. Wow, that's a whole lot of sister, Marybelle! How lovely that you are all close.

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    2. Hi, Marybelle! That is so wonderful that you and your sisters are so close! My husband is one of seven children also and has five sisters - it's so interesting to see them interact with each other :-)

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  2. My 5 daughters. They are so very close and just seeing them together when time and travel allows you see the love they share.I also loved Sally and Gillion Owens from Practical Magic.The Sullivan sisters sound like a great read.
    Carol L
    Lucky4750 (at) aol (dot) com

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    1. Sally and Gillian are favorites of mine too.

      Five daughters! I'm imagining all kinds of fun. I love my brothers but I so wanted a sister!

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    2. Hey, Carol! My poor husband feels outnumbered with just our two daughters, not sure how he'd do with five *g* I do love that my girls are close. After our local high school's graduation, my younger daughter (15) said she was going to be so sad during her sister's graduation next year because it means she'll be losing her best friend. Luckily, we still have a year until that happens!

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  3. I love the sound of this, I have no sisters or brothers for that matter so all of my siblings are of the heart.
    Three Sisters Island Trilogy was the first Nora Roberts I ever read, it has a special place on my bookshelves and in my heart.
    I loved Little Women and have the dvd and book. I still cry every time I read it, watch it.

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    1. I have no sisters or brothers for that matter so all of my siblings are of the heart.

      Siblings of the heart are very special, Dianna. They are, after all, the ones we choose!

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    2. Dianna, Three Sisters Island trilogy is one of my favorite Nora Roberts' series! You picked a good one to start with *g* Siblings of the heart are truly special - I've been very blessed in that area :-)

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  4. Welcome, Beth! As you can see from my review yesterday, I'm enjoying getting to know the Sullivan sisters. Looking forward to Nora's and Tori's stories!

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    1. Thanks so much for the review, PJ, and for letting me hang out with you all today!

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  5. Congratulations on the new release. I have a sister that is very close in age with me, so we were always close.

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    1. Thanks, Kim. How great that you and your sister were always close! I didn't really get close to my younger sister until we were older *g*

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  6. Hi, Beth! Welcome back to the Dish. Congrats on the new release! I have to tell you what a thrill it was to see you win the RITA in Orlando! :)

    I have two sisters. Because they are much younger than me (there is a 15 and 16 year age difference), we've always gotten along well. Though, I am closer to my youngest sister (who is 21) as we share a lot in common...including our love of romance. :)

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    1. Thanks so much, Andrea! Winning the RITA was such a huge honor - and Tawny made my statue little Mickey Mouse ears so every time I glance RITA's way, I smile *g*

      How great you and your youngest sister have a shared love of romance! My younger sister is always asking for book recommendations but while I love all sub-genres of romance, she prefers only contemporary and romantic suspense *g*

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  7. Awwwww, thank you, Sister of my Heart :-) And right back atchya!

    I do love sister stories. You named quite a few of my favorites (including you, Kath and Anna *g*). Friends is my all time forever fave show and its the relationship between the woman that makes it so special to me. Well, that and the fact that I love Chandler LOL. The Three Sisters trilogy is another that is at the top of my list of all-time Nora faves, as is her Key Trilogy.

    And I love the Sullivan sisters. I'm going to make everyone jealous and admit that I've already read and fallen in love with all three fabulous books! They are awesome, and the power of these sisters' bond is the core. I'm so excited to see their release, because readers are going to love them, too.

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    1. LOL. Thanks, Tawny! Though you might be a tad bit biased when it comes to these stories *g*

      I'm so excited we both have releases out this month!

      Tawny's "Wild Thing" is out now in a Blazing Bedtime Story (along with Rhonda Nelson). You all should definitely check it out :-)

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  8. Thanks for a great post! I love reading about sisters b/c I don't have any :) I always wanted one though :)

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    1. Hi, Erin! I had great fun writing the Sullivan sisters - I loved how different they were and yet they were still so close *g*

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  9. Hi, Beth! *waving madly* It's always wonderful to see you. :-)

    I have two older sisters, as well as a few sisters of the heart. All are priceless. :-)

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    1. Gannon! *waving back* So good to see you, too *g*

      I agree, sisters - no matter if they're biological or not - are priceless and precious!

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  10. I have a younger sister and I have 2 younger stepsisters. I've also had 3 older stepsisters and have one special sister who would take a whole book to explain her relationship to me. But I love them all no matter their actual relation to me!

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    1. Sounds as if you've been blessed with the 'sisters' in your life, RhiRowland! Thanks for stopping by :-)

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  11. Very nice post. I like the ones from Friends.

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

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    1. I loved the dynamics between the sisters-of-the-heart of Friends, bn100! They were always there for each other *g*

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  12. Beth, I gravitate toward sisters of the heart. I love the dynamic between Rowan and her fellow smokejumper Janis in Chasing Fire. Rizzoli & Isles are another example.

    I'm so looking forward to this book.

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    1. Thanks, Nancy. I hope you enjoy Layne's story. I've been meaning to watch Rizzoli and Isles and haven't gotten around to it yet. But this summer one of my goals is to catch up on my movies and TV series!

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  13. Thanks to all for commenting today! And thanks again to PJ and Andrea for having me on The Dish :-)

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    1. It was our pleasure, Beth! I hope your book flies off the shelves!

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  14. I only have a brother (and I thank God for him every day). My sisters of the heart are his ex-wife and present wife, and two of my childhood friends, Nancy and Elaine.

    I also liked the sisterhood in Friends: Monica, Jenn, and Phoebe.

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    1. Brothers are great, too, Cathy! I know my daughters adore their older brother *g*

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  15. I am the oldest of 3 sisters, 6 siblings all together. While there are barely 3 years between myself and the next sister, there are almost 9 years between me and the youngest. You are so right about being enemies and friends. The closest sister and I fought constantly until adulthood. The youngest always got along with us both. It really wasn't until we were into or 30's that we started getting along. We are now all good friends.
    I have two daughters 15 months apart. They were friends and enemies when they were younger, but now have a strong friendship. It is nice to see.
    THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SULLIVANS sounds like my kind of trilogy. I look forward to reading them.

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    1. Isn't it wonderful when our daughters are close, librarypat? It really warms my heart to see my girls hang out together as friends *g*

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  16. i'm youngest of 3, and we're all girls. but we're never close. i'm closer to my sisters at hearts, my fellow book lovers girls. we share good news, and unload to each other when we're down.

    my fave sisters from books came from Nora Roberts's Bride Quartet series. i really like their interaction :)

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    1. Hey, sienny! I loved the women in Nora's Bride Quartet series. Sounds as if you have some wonderful sisters of the heart :-)

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  17. Hi Beth,

    I hope you got my email :)

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    1. Eli! Hi! LOL. Actually, I was doing email before I popped on here and sent you a response. Hope you enjoy the book!

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  18. Ah, Beth! I do have one sister and adore her, and am blessed to have a handful of sisters of the heart :) I love stories about sisters, starting from way back when in the Little House on the Prairie stories.

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    1. Fedora, how could I have forgotten the Little House books? Loved them and loved how close the sisters were *g*

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  19. I have only one sister but we are close and do fun things together. We both love to drink lots of tea and read romance so there's always much to talk about.

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    1. Hey, Jo'sDaughter! How fun you and your sister have so much in common! My younger sister and I both love to read and often discuss our favorite stories :-)

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  20. Thanks to everyone who stopped by!

    Beth, a very special thank you to you for being here. Wishing you all the best with this new trilogy. I've already marked my calendar for the next two books!

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  21. I like the sound of these. Am adding them to my wish list. :)

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