Today's Special - - Trick or Treat at Caynham Castle Guest Post & Giveaway

Halloween is only three days away; perfect timing to welcome today's guests. Last month, Nancy Northcott and Jeanne Adams stopped by to tell us how Caynham Castle came to be and share photos of their real-life inspirations (click here if you missed that post). Today, they, and fellow Caynham Castle authors Morgan Brice and Caren Crane are here to tell us about each of their story contributions to this year's anthology: Trick or Treat at Caynham Castle. I've read the anthology and the stories are brimming with action, mystery, danger, romance, and all kind of delicious spooky goodness. Welcome to The Romance Dish, ladies!

A Spooky Halloween at Caynham Castle 

Jeanne Adams, Morgan Brice, Caren Crane, and Nancy Northcott

 

Hi, everyone! PJ, thanks for having us!

The four of us are part of the Caynham Castle gang (with Seressia Glass, Donna MacMeans, and Anna Sugden), writing romance novellas set in an imaginary castle on the Welsh marches. We all celebrated Christmas last year, and four of us are enjoying Halloween this year with Trick or Treat at Caynham Castle. Here’s a bit from each of us about the inspiration for our Halloween stories and the series they tie into.

From Jeanne:

Hi PJ! Thanks for having us on The Romance Dish! My story in Trick or Treat at Caynham Castle is "Trouble Under the Tower." This story stands alone, but if you--or your readers-- read Christmas at Caynham Castle, you'll recognize some of the returning characters. The secret passages I created and used in Christmas at Caynham Castle were the inspiration for this spooky story. I figured that if they found these spooky passages, the Earl of Caynham and his fiancée, and staff, would be keen to have them authenticated and explored by an archaeologist. Enter Dr. Sebelle Turturro, who's assembled a team of grad students to explore, catalogue and preserve the spooky tunnel and rooms. With the help of an archaeological photographer, Dr. Alden MacDonald, a witch who hails from Haven Harbor, Massachusetts, they'll get it all done in record time...unless there's trouble. And of course, there's LOTS of trouble under the tower! 

This story is an extension of my Haven Harbor Witches series that began with 2016's The Witches Walk. As you know, PJ, this series has several books and six novellas and counting!

Haven Harbor was founded in 1692 when most of the real witches left Salem ahead of the witch trials. Now, in modern day, Haven Harbor is a thriving Massachusetts town with the descendants of those witches making magic, mischief, and finding love.

From Caren:

My story, "Murky Waters," was one inspired by my desire to send my hero out into nature. I made him a landscape architect, which was what the hero of my Christmas novella studied in college. So, I made the hero of "Murky Waters" an old college friend of his and tied the two novellas together. The heroine in "Murky Waters" was a secondary character in the Christmas novella. I love her because she is quite saucy!

The heroine of the Christmas novella was from my fictional town of Cross Springs, North Carolina, which tied the novella to my Cross Springs novels. But the Caynham Castle novellas seem to be developing more independently these days. There may be more ties to Cross Springs in the future, though.

 

From Gail:

As I was thinking about what to do for my story, the Knights Templar came up in another context. That caught my attention, and I started to do some research about their history, associated legends, locations, etc. I came upon a real cave that appeared to have been adapted and used as a Templar secret place, and built out the idea of a missing treasure and a last survivor. It also made sense because Erik’s background is art authentication, so he would be drawn toward historical items and relics, which would get the mystery rolling. 

Erik Mitchell and Ben Nolan star in their own series, Treasure Trail, set in Cape May, NJ. Erik left a high-profile role stopping art fraud after he was shot, and came to Cape May to start over by buying a high-end antique shop that also helps get rid of dangerous magical objects. Ben Nolan was a burned-out Newark cop who came to Cape May to take over his aunt’s vacation real estate company. Ben and Erik connect, and end up dealing with cursed hotels, Mafia ghosts and dangerous old scandals. All of my urban fantasy books as Gail Z. Martin and as Morgan Brice cross over with each other.

 

From Nancy:

My story, "Mr. Never Again," arose out of my enjoyment of reading about people who can’t quite make it work the first time but circle around to each other in the end. When my heroine, Dana Gresham, was a teenager, her mom abandoned the family. She stepped into the mom role. Years later, when she and Blaine Harris dated, her closeness to her siblings bothered him. It ultimately drove them apart. Too late, he came to regret his jealousy. Hoping for another chance, he asked for her to be assigned as his partner on this mission, protecting a weapons designer whose loyalty is in question. Throw in my passion for spies and action-adventure, and I had all the ingredients for this story.

"Mr. Never Again" is part of my Arachnid Files romantic suspense series. Arachnid is a multinational covert intelligence organization created to go around the rules that bind others. The first novella in the series. Danger’s Edge, is available as a standalone. The others are only in anthologies, the two Caynham Castle ones and Who’s Your Daddy, which Caren, Jeanne, and I did together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PJ, thanks again for having us!

We’ll give one commenter a copy of Trick or Treat at Caynham Castle, so tell us about your favorite romance trope or your favorite legend.

Thanks for stopping by, everyone!

*Must be 18 or older

*Giveaway ends 11:00 PM, October 29, 2020

Today's Special - - Spotlight & Giveaway: Christmas at Caynham Castle

I'm excited to welcome the authors of the upcoming holiday anthology, Christmas at Caynham Castle, to the blog today. Please give them all a warm welcome!

Christmas at Caynham Castle

Hi, everyone!  I’m Nancy Northcott, and my friends and I are excited to share our forthcoming holiday anthology, Christmas at Caynham Castle, with you. I have a weakness for Christmas collections. At busy times, I like having something I can read that’s shorter than a novel, and I love stories set during the holiday season. I wasn’t surprised to discover my co-authors felt the same way. So the seven of us got together and devised various Christmas celebrations at an imaginary castle.

Jeanne Adams and I created Caynham Castle, which is inspired by Ludlow Castle in Shropshire (England).  Unlike Ludlow, which is a well-preserved ruin, Caynham Castle is a hotel, bustling with life and brimming with holiday spirit. Once we had the castle layout and basics, the entire group then added details of the castle and the nearby town, Caynham-on-Ledwyche.

I had a great time reading what everyone came up with for Christmas at Caynham Castle. We hope you’ll enjoy that too!

Here’s a bit about the stories:

Her Heart in His Pocket ~ Donna MacMeans ~ https://www.donnamacmeans.com

About a year ago, I asked my readers what secondary character they’d like to see featured in a Christmas novella and they chose Ben from Redeeming the Rogue.  I love the resulting novella and I hope you do as well. A surprise reunion of a pickpocket turned lady’s maid and a mysterious unexpected footman occurs just in time for the Christmas Frost Ball at Caynham Castle. The past of each could jeopardize the future of the other, and the future of Caynham Castle itself.

A Perfect Grey Christmas ~ Anna Sugden ~ https://www.annasugden.com

Readers often ask me about Ryan Grey, a former NJ Ice Cat who runs Grey’s Steakhouse, and who appears in several of my books. Christmas at Caynham Castle gave me the opportunity to explore Ryan’s story. Since concussion issues forced Ryan to give up hockey, and his dream of winning the Stanley Cup, it seemed important to give him his chance at glory – hence having him compete for the ultimate prize in cooking. Only one woman would do for Ryan’s heroine – Lydia, his former business partner and the woman he once loved, who left him to marry an English lord. Things are about to get hot in the kitchen!

The Ghost of Christmas Past ~Jeanne Adams ~ https://www.jeanneadams.com 

In The Ghost of Christmas Past, Dr. Denby “Bee” Alden, is a bee expert and one of the witches from my Witches of Haven Harbor series. She’s come to Caynham Castle at Christmas to research ancient beekeeping techniques…and to escape. The ex-boyfriend who dumped her is getting married and she wants to be far away when that happens. While there, she meets the Earl of Caynham. A castle ghost helps them both find something to celebrate! I hope you enjoy Bee and Ward’s story!

Christmas Crossroads ~ Caren Crane ~ https://www.carencrane.com

My story is about a young woman from my fictional town of Cross Springs, NC, who was orphaned young and has not found a place to call “home” until she lands in Caynham-on-Ledwyche and meets a local man who is reconnecting with his hometown.

Still ~ Seressia Glass ~ http://seressiaglass.com

Still is set in my Shadowchasers universe. Morgan Lafayette is a Light Witch who got injured while astral traveling. She teams up with fellow traveler Arthur Davies and Shadowchaser Kira Solomon to defeat the creature that hurt her and finds love and a new friend in the process.

Crewel Fate ~ Gail Z. Martin ~https://ascendantkingdoms.com 

Crewel Fate was inspired by the many embroidery samples I’ve seen when touring historic homes. When Teag Logan and his fiancé Anthony Benton travel to England to celebrate their engagement, Teag’s magic and supernatural experience hone in on restless ghosts, an old scandal and century-old secrets that could turn deadly. Can Teag and Anthony solve the mystery and settle the ghosts before the Ball, or will more people join the ranks of the castle ghosts? Crewel Fate is part of my Deadly Curiosities urban fantasy series, and falls immediately after the newest novel, Inheritance. 

The Last Favor ~ Nancy Northcott ~ https://www.nancynorthcott.com

The Last Favor, part of my Arachnid Files spy series, was inspired by my experiences and those of friends in dealing with loss at the holidays. Grayson (Gray) Kane, the hero, comes to Caynham Castle to pick up an award for his late father. Dealing with his loss amid the families celebrating the holiday makes him question his solitary life as an covert agent. His partner, Laurel Whitney, joins him to protect Gray from an assassin. As the long-suppressed attraction between them flares anew and a killer closes in, she must decide whether she has the courage to seize what she has always wanted.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Many thanks to all of the authors for visiting with us today and sharing a bit about their contributions to Christmas at Caynham Castle. This anthology is definitely going on my holiday reading list!

Christmas at Caynham Castle will be available November 20 through most ebook vendors. Jeanne Adams and Nancy Northcott return on December 4 to share the process of creating the castle.

Readers, do you have questions for the authors?

What's your favorite story with a castle in it? 

One person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM (EST), October 27, will receive a Kindle copy of Christmas at Caynham Castle (gifted to winner on November 20). 

Today's Special - - Who's Your Daddy by Caren Crane, Jeanne Adams, & Nancy Northcott

DNA, Danger and Daddy Issues…

In 2006, a group of twenty RWA Golden Heart finalists formed a blog group known as The Romance Bandits. They blogged together for a decade, supervised by the arrogant Golden Rooster and supported by gladiators, the Goddess Sangria, hockey players, and a dragon. Although they no longer blog as a group, they always welcome an opportunity to do something together.

Today, Banditas Caren Crane, Jeanne Adams, and Nancy Northcott join us to talk about their new, three-novella anthology, Who’s Your Daddy. The anthology was Caren’s idea, and she coordinated it. She’ll tell us what inspired it and how she put it together.

Caren: Hi, Dishy folks! I’m fascinated by advances in DNA testing and how it has been used to solve decades old murders, as well as help people find family members they never knew about. One night at dinner with author friends, we talked about how fun it would be to write an anthology of novellas around the theme of DNA testing. This is a deep, rich vein for stories!

 

Presenting three tales of secrets revealed and histories uncovered by DNA testing.

A carpenter discovers his father isn’t actually his father. Coming to terms with the truth reaffirms his place in his family, but it also leads him to love with an old friend’s sister and helps him find a path for his life.

A lawyer learns his grandmother had a secret marriage before his father was born. With the help of a talented genealogist, he tracks down his ancestry. Will he find the truth about his grandmother’s secret before whoever’s trying to kill him succeeds?

A burned-out spy goes home for a holiday and re-encounters the woman he never dated but never forgot. As he and she grow closer, she realizes her niece, his ex-girlfriend’s child, bears an uncanny resemblance to him. When the truth comes out, it will alter three lives.

Caren, tell us about your story.

Caren: In my Cross Springs series, I created a very large family for the husband in “Baby Steps,” Tim Burns. Tim is the oldest of six kids and his dad died when they were all very young. For some reason, I had given all the siblings blond or light brown hair and blue or gray eyes except for one. When I started thinking about writing my novella, Eric Burns was begging me to center the story around him and the mystery of where his dark hair and dark eyes came from.

Jeanne, yours is the next story in the anthology. What inspired it?

Jeanne: Hi Everyone! My story is inspired by a couple of things. First is, I’m a genealogist. I’ve been researching my family tree for decades and loved using some of that knowledge to write my story in the anthology, Lost in Time. It was also fun to incorporate the “lost heir” trope too. That allowed me to add a little suspense, and a little drama to a fun, short love story. Derek and Alexis were deliciously interesting characters to write too, so I hope Dish fans fall in love with Who’s Your Daddy.

Nancy, your story rounds out the collection. Where did you get the idea for it? 

Nancy: Hey, everybody! As some of you know, I love action, so of course I had to incorporate that, which led me to create an agent who works for my Arachnid spy group. This agent, Jim “Dix” Dixon, has seen too much ugliness. He’s burned out. When your job is haunting you, where better to go than home? I grew up in a small town, and this story seemed ideal for such a setting. Sending Dix home also let me set up one of my favorite tropes, the “second chance at love” story.

**

You can find Caren, Jeanne, and Nancy via their websites and social media.

www.carencrane.com

www.jeanneadams.com

www.nancynorthcott.com

To buy Who’s Your Daddy, click on one of the links below.

Amazon - https://tinyurl.com/y27xls3s

All other retailers - https://books2read.com/u/4je68v

Readers, have any of you taken a DNA test?

Were you surprised by the results?

One randomly chosen person who comments before 11:00 PM, July 14, will receive a Kindle copy of Who's Your Daddy. 

Caren Crane Winner

The winner of an e-copy of Tiara Wars by Caren Crane is

Connie

Congratulations, Connie!  Please send your email address to us at

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Today's Special - - Caren Crane

We're happy to welcome back Caren Crane today! Caren is celebrating the release this month of the third book in her Cross Springs series, Tiara Wars. Don't you love that title?  I can't wait to find out what the residents of Cross Springs are up to this time. Check out the rest of the Cross Springs books at Caren's website, connect with her online at Facebook and read her regular blogs at Romance Bandits.     

Take it away, Caren!

Best Laid Plans

Most of us have experienced some version of the following. You make a plan—a great plan. Well-considered, detailed and taking into consideration every possible pitfall. Except for the one you never dreamed might happen, which is inevitably the one that happens. It's happened to me any number of times. Cars break down. The air conditioning unit for the house needs replacement. The plumbing backs up. A beloved pet dies. A loved one falls ill and needs help. Anything at all can suddenly blast out of the blue and hit you like a ton of bricks.

That's what has happened to the heroine of my third Cross Springs novel, Tiara Wars. Although no one escapes bad times entirely, Katie Warren has lived a somewhat charmed life. In her small town of Cross Springs, NC, she has always enjoyed popularity and the sort of ease that only the beautiful among us know. But a year ago, her husband of twenty years died. And just before he died, she found out something that rocked her world and made her question everything she believed about herself, her marriage and the bedrock on which her life was built.

Katie has gone into full retreat from the world and everyone in her community has noticed. Her best friend Connie Burns, for one, is fed up with her self-indulgent isolation and plans to jar her out of her grief-stricken stupor. But even Connie doesn't know what's really behind Katie's withdrawal. No one does. It takes a chance encounter with a very rude acquaintance, plus a healthy dose of nagging from Connie to launch Katie back out into the world. Once she decides to take action and reclaim her life, Katie rediscovers her dormant drive to get things done. What she finds out about her husband's secrets forces her life in an entirely new direction. One no one expects—especially not Katie!

You can read an excerpt of Tiara Wars and the other Cross Springs stories at: http://www.carencrane.com/category/books/.

Have your best laid plans gone astray? I know mine have! I would love to hear about something from your life that turned out entirely different from your expectations, whether good or bad. One commenter will win an e-book version of Katie's story, Tiara Wars. 

Caren Crane "Kick Start" Winners

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to welcome debut author Caren Crane to The Romance Dish last week.  The two randomly chosen winners of a digital copy of Caren's book, KICK START are:

Marcy Shuler

Kathleen O

Congratulations, ladies!  To claim your book, please send an email to

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Today's Special - - Caren Crane

I am so happy to welcome debut author Caren Crane to The Romance Dish today!  Caren is no stranger to the Dishes.  I have had the pleasure of reading Caren's regular posts at the Romance Bandits blog for the past several years as well as experiencing her sassy wit and humor in person at various romance conferences.  I've been waiting a long time to read a romance written by Caren and am so excited that her book, KICK START,  is finally out there for everyone to enjoy.  I read it last weekend and had such a good time in Caren's fictional town of Cross Springs that I'm ready to return for another visit. Fortunately, Caren plans to take us back there in her second book, CROSS TALK.  

You can learn more about Caren by visiting her website and can connect with her at Facebook and Twitter.  

Welcome, Caren!

My Love Affair with Do-Overs

I don't know when I first heard the term "do-over," but I know that I grasped the concept with both hands. The chance to try again, to fix mistakes, to possibly change your luck, your path, your very future? I was all in!

The trouble is, Life doesn't often give you chances for do-overs. Words cannot be unspoken, actions cannot be undone (or done if they were neglected), no matter how much we might want them to be. We're all sort of stuck with the messes we make. I have children who are 18, 20 and 27. As you can imagine, I have had countless opportunities for "teaching moments" about handling the consequences of one's words and actions. In the interest of full disclosure, I had lots of practice with this myself long before I was a mother. J So I know how rare the do-over really is.

About 12 years ago, I began writing fiction. It was the most exciting thing I had ever done. I quickly realized I knew nothing at all, but then set out to fix that minor problem. After I got the basics under my belt, I figured out the secret of fiction—there are NO RULES. There are tropes and reader expectations but there are no hard and fast rules about what the writer can or cannot make happen. You can't imagine how very exciting this was to me! I—the mostly rule-following good girl—found this freedom a little scary. Okay, kind of terrifying, really. But my characters didn't have to be as scared of this as I was. They could do anything!

When I hit on the concept for my debut novel, Kick Start, I was worried. Not for me, but for Linda, my

heroine. I gave this woman a lot of problems: a bitter divorce, three kids at challenging stages of life, a huge mortgage, no higher education and very little job experience. I also stuck her with a small town full of nosy neighbors, an inferiority complex and a serious need to fit in at all costs. To counter all that, I gave her a great sense of humor, a kick-ass best friend and a bit of a rebellious past. Then I gave her a Secret Weapon.

Linda got a do-over.

Honestly, I was worried for her. Her do-over sort of scared us both. It took her kick-ass best friend to force both of us into action. Her best friend issues a challenge that Linda's long-buried rebellious streak can't resist. She decides to go back to college (something that makes my brain hurt to consider) and, in short order, begins to consider dating a younger man. Her inner approval-seeker is strong, plus she has impressionable children at home. She feels certain no one will approve...but... But. There's that do-over I forced on her. Her younger man, Jack, is exactly her type of man. The kind she dated early and often before she met the man she married. Her ex was not really her type, but an unexpected pregnancy forced Linda to accept him as "the one" for the baby's sake.

Nineteen years later, she has a chance to start again. To consider a new life with a new man. If she can give herself permission. The objections of her community are not all in her head, after all. She gets plenty of unsolicited advice and knows, without a doubt, that giving Jack a chance means life has no chance of ever going back to any semblance of what it was. Life will never be the same. I was terrified for her!

It was hard for me, as a mother and a wife, to think about all the implications such a move would have. If I had to start over, I think I might experience a little of what Linda goes through. I'm not a huge approval seeker, but I want people to think well of me. I think most of us do. To defy the expectations of people you know and love is scary, so seizing the chance for a do-over at love was a Huge Dilemma for my heroine! I really do have a love affair with do-overs, though, and cannot resist giving them to all my (poor, beleaguered) heroines. Watching how each one responds to the challenges the do-over presents is the most exciting part of writing for me.

What about you? Would you seize the chance for a do-over? If so, what would you do again or do differently? I would probably go to medical school, but I have a feeling I would still want to write.  Let me know about your do-over dreams!

PJ here.  I'm giving away two digital copies (Kindle or Nook) of Caren's debut book, KICK START today so let's hear about those do-over dreams!