Today's Special - - Janna MacGregor

I'm delighted to welcome one of my favorite new authors today to celebrate the release of her second book, The Bride Who Got Lucky. Janna MacGregor was born and raised in the bootheel of Missouri. She credits her darling mom for introducing her to the happily-ever-after world of romance novels. Janna writes stories where compelling and powerful heroines meet and fall in love with their equally matched heroes. She is the mother of triplets and lives in Kansas City with her very own dashing rogue, and two smug, but not surprisingly, perfect pugs.  

Welcome, Janna! It’s a pleasure to have you join us to celebrate today’s release of The Bride Who Got Lucky. I adored it!

Hi PJ! I’m so delighted that you invited me here today! Yay!! Emma and Somerton’s story was a pure joy to write. I’m glad you enjoyed it!  

What should readers expect from this second book in your The Cavensham Heiresses series?

Chronologically, The Bride Who Got Lucky starts immediately after The Bad Luck Bride.  The heroine Lady Emma Cavensham is a bibliophile and a strong believer that women should be valued as much as men in society. While other women are crazy about dresses and social calls from gentlemen, Emma wants nothing more in life than a good book. Years later, after losing her best friend, Lady Lena Aulton, under suspicious circumstances, Emma is determined to find answers. Nothing will keep the strong-willed Emma from making the suspect, Lord Aulton, answer for his crime.

However, a family friend, Nicholas St. Mauer, the reclusive Earl of Somerton, accepts the responsibility of keeping Emma out of trouble. Basically, he thwarts her every move and enjoys every single minute of it. Emma is like a breath of fresh air to Somerton who spends his days in trade with the goal of someday surpassing his estranged father’s wealth.  Emma and Somerton clash like titans while fighting their growing attraction to one another. It’s no wonder that their story possesses plenty of swoon-worthy romance as the spirited Lady melts this sexy Scrooge’s heart.

Emma has a special place she goes when she feels the need to, as she says, “seek my own counsel.” Where do you go when you need to be alone with your thoughts?

Max

Oh PJ, what a great question! I have twenty-six miles of wooded walking trails behind my house. Nestled in the heart of Kansas City, these trails are like an oasis. Deer, wild turkey, raccoons, foxes, and owls inhabit the area. When I get stuck in a story or if a character isn’t being cooperative, I find myself walking the trails trying to work out what the issues are in my stories. 

Pollie

Truthfully, whether I ‘m stuck or not, I find a daily walk with my pug, Mad Max, helps prepare me for my writing day while my other pug, Pollie, waits for me in my writing room.














Nick and Emma are both fiercely independent people who, for their own individual reasons, have been resistant to the idea of marriage. What convinced you that these two were meant for one another?

These two first appeared in The Bad Luck Bride. Both were the best friends of the couple in that story.  It was the christening scene in the epilogue of The Bad Luck Bride that really told me that these two would make a fantastic couple. By then, Somerton had already kept Emma from acquiring a rare book. When the baby Somerton was holding threw a fit during the christening, Emma had to save him-with aplomb and grace! LOL! It was the perfect set up for their story.

I love a redeemed bad boy and I’ve seen tendrils of possibility for a certain secondary character from these books. Do you have any plans for a happy ending for Lord Paul?  

Hmmm, I’m actually writing his story now. He’s a hero who has a great heart but has made some bad decisions in his life. Now, he’s determined to clean up all the messes he’s made over the years. When he comes across an estranged friend’s sister, Lady Daphne Hallworth, in need of help, he sees this as an opportunity to make amends with his friend. However, his good intentions with Daphne turn into an attraction that he can’t fight no matter the costs.

Do you have plans for any of the other secondary characters from these books? There are several I find quite intriguing.

Lord William Cavensham’s story is next. He’ll meet a duke’s daughter, Lady Theodora Ainsley, who’s in hiding from her father. I haven’t decided the next one after that. You and I discussed the series in Dallas where we attended the 2017 Buns and Roses. You gave me some great ideas, but if your readers would like to voice their opinion, I’m all for it!

Rapid Fire Q&A:

Homebody or World traveler?

World traveler first, but if I’m writing, I’m a homebody-almost a recluse like Somerton.

Apple Cinnamon or Pumpkin Spice?

Apple Cinnamon-that’s why Emma loves apples, and apple tarts are Somerton’s favorite.

Heels or Sneakers?

Heels-80% of the time; Sneakers-10% of the time; Barefoot-10% of the time.

Favorite new TV show?

I just discovered Versailles. I need to watch the first season to really be caught up.

Book you’re currently reading?

I just finished the Duke of Pleasure by Elizabeth Hoyt. I’m sad as it’s the last full-length novel in this series—one of my favorite series of all time. I believe there’s a final novella though. Thank heavens; Eloisa James has a new series starting with Wilde in Love! I can’t wait to start reading my copy.  

Where can readers find you online?

www.jannamacgregor.com

Facebook: Janna MacGregor

Twitter: @jannamacgregor

Instagram: jannamacgregor

What’s next?

The next book in the Cavensham Heiresses series is The Luck of the Bride. This story features March Lawson who is introduced in The Bride Who Got Lucky and Michael Cavensham, the Marquess of McCalpin. I’m currently working on book four in the series—it features Lord Paul Barstow, the Duke of Southart and Lady Daphne Hallworth.

Would you like to add anything else?

I’m so delighted to be here today! Thank you, PJ, for asking me to stop by The Romance Dish! You always make it so much fun. If anyone is attending the Barbara Vey Readers Weekend in April, I’ll be there. Can’t wait to meet you!

Thanks for visiting with us today, Janna! Do you want to ask our readers a question?

If you were a woman living in Regency times and boldly wanted to work outside the home, what profession would you pursue?


I have a signed copy of The Bad Luck Bride for one randomly chosen person who leaves a comment on today's post before 11:00 PM (Eastern Time), November 1, 2017. (U.S. only)

Review - - The Bad Luck Bride

The Bad Luck Bride
By Janna MacGregor
Publisher: St. Martin's
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Reviewed by PJ
    

No one is left breathless at the imperious pronouncement of her engagement to Lord Pembrooke more than Claire. She hardly knows the dangerously outrageous man! But after three engagements gone awry and a fourth going up in glorious flames, she isn’t in a position to refuse...

Alexander requires the hand of his enemy’s fiancée in marriage in order to complete his plans for revenge. It’s his good fortune that the “cursed” woman is desperate. However, what begins as a sham turns into something scandalously deeper...

Orphaned at a young age, Claire has been raised by her beloved aunt and uncle, along with cousins she views more as siblings but she feels the loss of her parents keenly and her deepest wish has always been to create a family of her own. She was deeply in love with her first fiancé but he died before they could marry. By the time she becomes engaged to Lord Paul, the ton's whispers that Lady Claire must be cursed have turned to shouts and Claire has long since given up on love. After a history like that, when Alex steps in to rescue her from broken engagement #4, I could fully understand her reticence and when her heart becomes engaged, her fear. I found Claire to be a fascinating and complex woman; a blend of admirable strength and heart-wrenching vulnerability, impacted by the horrific events surrounding her parents' deaths in ways she's unable to share or move beyond.

Alex is a typical man of the times: arrogant, single-minded, and certain that his way is the right way. His heart is in the right place when he sets out to avenge his sister but he goes about it in the wrong way and realizes almost immediately that he's put an innocent person in the middle of the fray. Unfortunately, that innate arrogance keeps him from fixing things until the damage is done. While there were several instances when I wanted to toss him off a cliff or whop him upside the head with a frying pan and yell "What have you done?," I found myself unwilling to give up on him. MacGregor gives him a worthy black moment and deliciously good groveling (he deserves it) before his happiness can be achieved. 

This is Janna MacGregor's debut and the author shows great promise. As the first book of a new series, this story has many characters and the beginnings of what will likely be future storylines. At times it felt a bit cluttered but that is often the case with a first book. Alex and Claire are complex characters with immediate chemistry and plenty of sizzle in the bedroom, but both have some growing to do before enough trust is built between them to forge a lasting relationship. The secondary characters add flavor to the journey and I'm looking forward to what MacGregor has in store for some of them. I'm especially intrigued by Lord Paul, the villain of this book. He reminds me a bit of Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent in Lisa Kleypas' Devil in Winter in that his actions are inexcusable but glimpses of inner pain - and goodness - make me believe he might be redeemable. Time will tell. 

If you're looking for a light, frolicking romance, this may not be the right book for you but if you want to sink your teeth into a meaty story, with twists and turns, great depth of emotion, and a happy ending that is worth the heartache it takes our hero and heroine to achieve then I encourage you to give The Bad Luck Bride a try. I've already marked my calendar for book #2, The Bride Who Got Lucky, scheduled to be released October 31st. 

I just discovered a print copy of The Bad Luck Bride in the the giveaways I brought home from the Barbara Vey Reader Appreciation event last weekend. It's going to one randomly chosen person who leaves  comment before 11:00 PM (EST), May 3, 2017. (U.S./Canada only)