Heather Snow Winner

The winner of a copy of Sweet Enemy is:

June M

Please send your full name and address, with "Heather Snow Winner" in the subject line, to

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to visit with Heather!

Review - - Sweet Enemy

Sweet Enemy: A Veiled Seduction Novel
By Heather Snow
Publisher:  Signet
Release Date:  February 7, 2012




It usually takes reading a few books by a given author before they end up on my auto-buy list but, occasionally, an author hits it out of the park on the first try.  So was the case with debut historical romance author Heather Snow.  Her first book, Sweet Enemy, kept me happily reading late into the night and has me now counting the days until the August 7th release of Sweet Deception, the second book in Snow's Veiled Deception series.


Home from the war, Geoffrey Wentworth, Earl of Stratford is settling into the responsibilities of the earldom he never expected to inherit and focusing all his energy on pushing a bill through Parliament that will help his fellow soldiers; those men who have neither title nor wealth nor homes waiting for them when they return to England.  Geoffrey's mother has other ideas.  Summoned home on the pretext of an emergency, he discovers guests already arriving with invitations in hand for a house party; invitations supposedly issued by Geoffrey for the express purpose of finding a bride.  Needless to say, he is not amused but his clever (and very manipulative) mother has included the daughters of powerful men whose backing Geoffrey needs to see his soldier bill pass.  Unfortunately for Geoffrey's mother, one of the guests has brought along her niece, a most unsuitable candidate for the type of wife he needs but perfect for type of wife he wants.

In her simple satin dancing dress  trimmed with shiny gold piping around the sheer sleeves, hemline and bust, she stood out in stark contrast to the wasted opulence that surrounded her.  He remembered how ill at ease she'd seemed this afternoon surrounded by some of the more frivolous members of society.  Nothing in her mannerisms gave her away tonight, but he got the distinct feeling that she, like him would be more comfortable with soldiers and commoners than with this lot. 

She laughed at something Aveline said, and the husky timbre of her voice vibrated through Geoffrey, his body hardening in reaction.  Just being in her presence affected him, had from the moment he'd broken her fall in the library.  It was as if his very skin hummed with energy, every nerve on edge.  The closest feeling he could compare it to was the invigorating moments just before battle, when he felt more alert and alive than at any other time in his life, ready to take on the world.  

Brilliant chemist and healer, Liliana Claremont has no intention of marrying, much to her aunt's distress.  Liliana has more important life goals and primary at the moment is discovering who lured her father to the meeting that ended with his murder.  Her investigation thus far has led her to the late Earl of Stratford so when her aunt receives an invitation to a house party at the current Earl's home, Liliana jumps at the opportunity to go, not to capture the Earl's attention as a prospective bride but, rather, with the intention of finding out just what part the late Earl may have played in her father's death and what Geoffrey Wentworth, the current Earl knows about it, if anything.  She never expects to be attracted to the handsome Earl and, even worse, like him,

He hadn't taken her to task for stealing his horse.  He hadn't berated her for embarrassing him in public.  He hadn't judged her for her unconventionalities and was now, in fact, conspiring to enable her.  "You are very kind," she said, and realized she spoke the truth.   


How awful.  She didn't want to think of him as kind.  She didn't want to think of him at all, except as a suspect or a relation thereof.  Yet increasingly she was viewing him as something more than an adversary, which only complicated matters.  

Nor does she expect to find a man unimpressed with his position in life who is more concerned about the fate of those far below him in class. And she especially does not expect to find a man impressed with her intelligence, who treats her with respect, understanding and support of her chosen career; a man whose plans to help those less fortunate could go down in flames if he chooses Liliana.

Knowing how much it will hurt Geoffrey if what she suspects is true, will Liliana abandon her search for her father's killer?  How will Geoffrey react when he discovers that the woman he's come to know, trust and love has been lying to him the entire time about her reasons for being in his home?   And will they ever discover just who the murderer is?

Passionate, witty and refreshingly original, with a hero and heroine I fell in love with and a mystery that kept me guessing throughout most of the book, Sweet Enemy is a treat not to be missed.  If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend picking up a copy today!

~PJ


Has a debut book knocked your socks off lately?  Tell us about it!  

Heather Snow Winner

The winner of a signed copy of SWEET ENEMY from Heather Snow is

fsbuchler

Congratulations!  Please send your full name and mailing address to us at theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com with "Heather Snow Winner" in the subject line.

Today's Special - - Heather Snow

We love hosting debut authors here at TRD and it's especially fun when said author's debut book has blown me away.  That's exactly what happened with Heather Snow's SWEET ENEMY.  It's fresh, emotional and fast paced, with engaging characters and an underlying mystery that kept me guessing through most of the book.  When I turned the last page, my first thought was, "How long do I have to wait for the next book from this wonderful new author?"


Please give Heather a warm welcome!

I am thrilled to be here at The Romance Dish today!  Thank you, ladies, for having me.  It’s hard to believe SWEET ENEMY came out two weeks ago, today.  It’s a bit strange knowing that my words are out there in the world, and it’s been wonderfully surreal, hearing from readers who have loved Liliana and Geoffrey’s story.

But unlike many authors, I haven’t been waiting my whole life for this moment.  I didn’t set out to be a writer at all.  In fact, my degree is in Chemistry.  So today I thought it might be fun to talk about how, a left-brained chemistry major like me went about creating a formula for love on the page…

First, inspiration struck.  I went to an exhibit at a science and technology museum (I know…it doesn’t sound romantic, but truly, it is what inspired me to write romance!).  The exhibit introduced me to a scientific event that happened in the Regency period that I’d never heard of before, and while perusing the fascinating display, a “What if?” mystery formed in my mind involving a scientist from that day and age.  I couldn’t get it out of my head over the next few weeks.  But while I love a good mystery, I love a good romance even more.  I knew if I were going to write a story, it would have to be a romance…so I decided to tackle a novel that had both.

I knew nothing about writing, though.  So what would any good scientist do?  I went about it methodically—that’s my natural way of approaching anything first.  I pulled my six favorite books of all time and evaluated them from all angles.  I wrote my own synopsis of the stories, boiled them down chapter by chapter, character by character as I would if I were trying to analyze an unknown substance in the lab.

Oh, you can laugh.  I laugh at myself now, too, though I do think that process helped me get my head around what I was trying to do.  I thought a lot about how I could make my book stand out…how could I twist things to make it fresh and yet still deliver a great story?  That’s when I decided to make my heroine the scientist.  In most books I’d read, if anyone got to be a scientist-type, it was always the hero.  And blast it all, why should the men always get to be the interesting ones? ;)

So Liliana, my Regency-era lady chemist was born.  As I settled on the idea, I liked it more and more—as a woman with a chemistry degree myself, I felt I could lend a unique perspective to her character.  I got to create a woman who went against the mold, and even better?  I got to design the perfect hero for her—a man who was strong and self-assured enough to let her be who she would.

And then, I experimented.  A lot.  I learned that writing romance and chemistry were more alike than I’d imagined!  There are rules to follow, and some you can break when you want to experiment.  Historical romance, like science, requires careful research.  Most chemical reactions require a catalyst to drive them, just like characters require motivation to drive the story forward.  And finally, both chemistry and writing, if done well, involve a precise mixture of elements and careful manipulation to achieve that perfect reaction that makes you want to sigh with satisfaction.

I hope you find Liliana and Geoffrey’s story quite sigh-worthy. 

I’d love to know what elements of a great romance make YOU sigh with satisfaction?  One commenter will receive a signed copy of SWEET ENEMY. 

Sweet Enemy...
A Veiled Seduction Novel ~ Book One

"Historical intrigue and heart-pounding passion make Sweet Enemy a great read.  Romance fans will love it." ~#1NYT Bestselling Author JULIE GARWOOD

Geoffrey Wentworth, a war hero and rising political star, never wanted to be the Earl, but when his brother dies, he knows his duty—take up the responsibility for his family’s estates.  His mother’s definition of duty differs from his, however, and can be summed up in one word—heirs.  When Geoffrey rushes home to answer her urgent summons, he finds himself host to a house full of women, all vying to become the next Countess of Stratford.  But his love is Parliament, where he wields his influence and reputation to better the lives of ex-soldiers, until a tempting houseguest and a secret from his past threaten his freedom…and his heart. 

Liliana Claremont, a brilliant chemist, doesn’t want to be any man’s wife, much less a countess.  If she had tuppence for every time she’d been told her place was filling the nursery, not experimenting in the laboratory, she could buy the Tower Bridge.  However, when she receives a coveted invitation to the Earl’s house party, she trades in her beakers for ball gowns and gladly takes on the guise of husband hunter—for the chance to uncover what the Earl had to do with the murder of her father.

Liliana believes the best way to get the answers she needs is to keep her enemy close, though romance is not part of her formula.  But it only takes one kiss to start a reaction she can't control...

If you’d like to read the Prologue and first Chapter of Sweet Enemy, you can find it here.

~

Heather Snow is a historical romance author with a degree in Chemistry who discovered she much preferred creating chemistry on the page, rather than in the lab.  She is forever trying to wrangle her left and right brain to work together (some days with more success than others!), but if her two sides had to duke it out, left would win every time—which can be a creative challenge.  Luckily, she loves challenges…she just goes about solving them analytically. 

Heather lives in the Midwest with her husband, two rambunctious boys and one very put upon cat.  She sincerely hopes you find her stories have just the right chemistry…

Please visit her at www.HeatherSnowBooks.com, on Facebook www.facebook.com/authorheathersnow or on Twitter www.twitter.com/HeatherSnowRW

Sweet Enemy is available wherever books are sold and at these fine retailers.

 Rainy Day Books (Heather’s local Indie)

Amazon (Kindle Edition)

Amazon (Paperback Edition)

Books-A-Million
     Barnes and Noble
Indiebound
I-Book