HAVE A BEAR-Y LITTLE CHRISTMAS by Roxie Ray is a beautiful paranormal romance story featuring a grizzly bear shifter widowed father of two young girls and a single human mom of a young son who has entered remission from cancer. The holiday season theme is prevalent as the time of the first meeting and then renewed over the two-year span of the story. This is a standalone Christmas holiday romance with all the adult relationship emotional ups and downs and three young characters who are all enchanting.
Jeannie Wolfe is a single mom with a young son in cancer remission. Their financial situation is difficult, but Jeannie is determined to give Max as normal as possible Christmas now that he is home.
Remington LeBeau has been widowed for eighteen months and even though he and his two young daughters had been waiting for their mother’s death from a genetic disease, it has taken time to adjust to their new normal. He has tried to make the transition as easy on his girls as possible and only focused on them.
Jeannie and Remington both decide to take their children to a free community skate. When one of Remington’s girls is injured, Max comes to the rescue. The three children instantly form a bond which leads to Remington and Jeannie spending more time together. Jeannie is reluctant, with her past overshadowing her present and Remington is not sure if he is ready for another romance, besides his bear-y secret, but the children are determined to become one happy family.
I really loved this paranormal romance. It did not follow the usual path but really dug into complex feelings that both Jeannie and Remington are dealing with and the children had issues of their own which were integrated beautifully into the story. The shifter revelation in the story was a new and pleasant take on the discovery for me. This book is not an easy holiday romance, but it really pulls you into hard, realistic relationship issues in an empathetic way. The love of family is the guiding light of this story with fully developed characters that shine.
I highly recommend this holiday paranormal shifter romance!
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About the Authors
Roxie Ray is a collective of romance authors known for steamy, imaginative Paranormal & Alien Romance, specializing in shifter, vampire, and alien love stories with found family, strong alphas, and fantasy worlds. They’ve penned numerous popular series like Black Claw Dragons, Bears of Forest Heights, and Lunarian Warriors, offering readers a blend of magic, action, and heartwarming romance.
Key Aspects of Roxie Ray’s Work:
Genre Focus: Paranormal Romance, Alien Romance, Sci-Fi Romance, Fantasy Romance, often featuring shifter and vampire themes.
Common Tropes: Soft/kind alphas, curvy heroines, found family, slow-burn romance, and magical elements in everyday settings.
Writing Style: A group effort, aiming for steamy, captivating stories with intricate plots and emotional depth.
Zane Duvall has one goal this Christmas: attend all Twelve Parties of Clementine and win the grand prize—a small ranch he’s always dreamed of owning. But his plan hits a snag when his well-meaning family decides he needs a holiday romance to go with his holiday cheer. Lily Smith has come to town to confront a man claiming to be her father—and ends up facing a lot of questions she’s not ready to answer. When Zane proposes a fake relationship to keep nosy citizens and matchmakers at bay, Lily agrees. After all, it’s just pretend…right? But when family secrets and old wounds come to light, will their budding romance survive the season?
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Elise’s Thoughts
The Christmas Cowboy by Melinda Curtis is a delightful holiday read. There are some heavier subjects that are heartfelt and emotionally riveting. But the humor is a welcome relief, coming mostly from a five-year-old boy.
Lily Smith has come to Clementine to act as a nanny for her newborn niece and five-year-old nephew, Ford. But there is another reason she is there. She has spent her whole life wondering why her father ignored her and did not treat her like he did her brother, and intends to find out.
She intends to be by herself until she meets Zane Duvall in a bar. He asks her to be in a pretend relationship with him to get both of his biological and foster mothers off his back and stop their matchmaking ideas. She decides to help him be his date at all the Christmas parties so he can avoid every single woman chasing him all over town.
Because Zane knew Lily was a cowboy that has worked on many ranches, he asks her to chase down this wild white Stallion, Solomon that has never been caught. They grow closer and realize there is a chemistry between them. But first, she must find out who is her real father after getting a letter from a local man claiming to be her “real” father as opposed to the man who raised her.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: What are you planning for Christmas?
Melinda Curits: I’m recovering from a severely broken ankle. The holidays have been great because, for the first time in what feels like forever, I’m not cooking! I plan to nap a lot.
EC: What does it mean in your writings?
MC: I use a lot of my family’s decorations and holiday traditions in my writing. It feels like I’m connecting to the past when I include a special side dish, ornament, or game in my stories.
EC: What is the role of Christmas in this story?
MC: It has Christmas Cards, 12 parties of Christmas, Santaplooza Parade, and Rowdy is like Scrooge. This is a fake dating story, so I needed many events. Christmas offers a lot of events. I created the 12 Parties of Christmas, so the hero and heroine had places to date.
EC: Idea for the story?
MC: I love fake dating stories. Hallmark has a lot of them during the holidays. They get me in the mood to write, especially the funnier ones.
EC: How would you describe Lily?
MC: She is self-assured, has a sense of humor, tomboy, guarded, and runs when it gets overwhelming. Up until her parents died, Lily had decided she wasn’t “that girl,” the one who men wanted to date. But then her parents die and she learns the man she thought was her dad wasn’t and from there on nothing is the same.
EC: How would you describe Zane?
MC: Not a planner, honest, witty. Zane is definitely a seat of the pants type of guy. He’s been letting life happen to him. But now, what’s happening isn’t what he wants.
EC: What are the roles of Zane’s two mothers. Biological and foster?
MC: Nurturing and family are important. They are like a burr under a saddle – annoying in their desire to see him settled down. He can’t ignore them because he loves them. But their matchmaking is very heavy-handed. What do you do when women are put in your path at every turn?
EC: What about Ford, Lily’s five-year-old nephew?
MC: He is rooting for Zane, a comic relief, enthusiastic, the inner thoughts of the male and female lead. Ford keeps things light when some of the backstory might be a bit heavy. I love character growth and I love comedy when the two work together. It’s kind of the way I approach life.
EC: Why Solomon the horse?
MC: As a kid, we’d take road trips through the west and count white horses. They became special to me, a touchstone to family. Also, where we lived, there were a lot of local myths and legends about wooded areas. It seemed right to combine the two as a bridge between Zane and Rowdy.
EC: Describe the relationship?
MC: Friends first. She shields him from all the women sent after him by his mothers. He is a teaser. This is a buddy story. Neither expect love to bloom. They each have their own agenda for the holidays. But somewhere along the line, they realize they are each other’s person.
EC: Next book(s)?
MC: I have five western romances releasing in 2026 – 3 with harlequin (including a new Blackwell series book) and 2 with tule (only tule has a page up https://tulepublishing.com/books/the-cowboys-accidental-bride/). I’ll also be working on two romantic comedies – 1 Grandma Dotty/Summer Kisses book (It Happened at Sea), 1 Mermaid Bay.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Nestled amongst the comforting shelves of her beloved Bay Books, Lily Appleton finds the peace and quiet she needs. But with Christmas just around the corner, Lily has to find an extra pair of hands to help her share the bookish magic.
After selling his business, Lars Jóhannsson is feeling lost. A job at Bay Books would give him the space he needs to contemplate his next move, but returning would mean confronting a painful past he’s been avoiding. He’s also fairly sure he’s the one person Lily would never want to see again.
Lily is torn. Lars could be the perfect fit for Bay Books, but he once rejected her friendship and the hurt still lingers. But working together, Lily discovers a vulnerability that Lars has kept hidden away, along with a few surprising secrets. And as the Christmas season sprinkles its magic, Lily discovers the warmth of renewed friendship and the joy of heartwarming traditions from Lars’s Icelandic roots.
WINTER NIGHTS AT THE BAY BOOKSHOP by Jessica Redland is a wonderful Christmas holiday cozy romance which I highly recommend especially for all the booklovers out there. While this is a part of the author’s Whitsborough Bay series, it is easily read as a standalone book.
Lily Appleton loves books and runs the family bookshop, Bay Books, with her father. who is finally scheduled for knee replacement surgery. With the holiday fast approaching, Lily must find the perfect short-term replacement for the upcoming busy season.
Lars Johannsson feels lost. He sold his successful on-line education business. His grandmother decides to move in with her friends at the new retirement home while also selling her home which she shares with Lars. While out to lunch with a friend, they notice the sign for help wanted at the bookshop, and Lars’ friend encourages him to apply. But Lars and Lily have an unpleasant past and even though he would love the job, he is afraid Lily will reject him out of hand.
Lily knows Lars is perfect for the job and is willing to give him a try. As they work together, both discover hidden emotional hurts and vulnerabilities in the other. With their shared love of books and the magic of the season, can these two find the love they have been waiting for?
I loved Lily and Lars so much! The story perfectly paces the discovery of past misunderstandings and emotional heartaches from immediate family or past relationships and intertwines the difficult emotions with uplifting quotes from favorite books. I felt the difficulties and emotions both the H/h dealt with are believable and well written. Lily’s family and friends are great support for both. I found the Icelandic traditions for Book Flood on Christmas Eve and all the mythical characters introduced the twelve days before fascinating. This is a cozy romance so everything other than kissing is behind closed doors. I needed tissues for the last two chapters, but they were happy tears from a satisfied romantic heart.
I highly recommend this heartwarming and enchanting cozy holiday romance. You will want to curl up on a comfortable couch with a blanket and your favorite hot beverage as you disappear into this bookish holiday romance.
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About the Author
I live in Scarborough on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast in the UK. My home inspired the creation of the fictional seaside town of Whitsborough Bay where I set many of my books. The Hedgehog Hollow series and Bumblebee Barn Collection take readers to a gorgeous countryside setting on the Yorkshire Wolds. In July 2023, I added the lakes and mountains to my settings with the start of my ‘Escape to the Lakes’ series. I absolutely love this part of the country and am loving writing a series in my happy place.
I live with my husband, our teenage daughter and sprocker spaniel, Ella. I’m a stationery addict with a notepad obsession who loves chocolate (although it doesn’t love me), hedgehogs, 80s music, collectible teddy bears and lighthouses.
My career has mainly been in HR as a trainer and recruiter. I had a brief detour into retail to set up and manage my own specialist teddy bear shop and started writing my debut novel on quiet days in the shop.
In June 2020, I became a full-time author. I’m so very grateful to anyone who has bought or borrowed my books in whatever format, helping me fulfil a long-held dream of writing full-time. I still can’t believe I get to spend every day chatting to my fictional friends and making stuff up.
Evelyn Schwartz has the perfect Hanukkah planned: eight jam-packed days producing the live-action televised musical of A Christmas Carol. Who needs family when you’ve got long hours, impossible deadlines, and your dream job? That is, until an accident on set lands her in the medical bay with one of her chronic migraines, and she’s shocked to find her ex-husband, David Adler, filling in for the usual studio doctor.
It’s been two years since David walked away from Evelyn and their life in Manhattan, and his ex-wife is still the same workaholic who puts her career before everything else—especially her health. But when Evelyn begins hallucinating “ghosts” tied to her past heartbreaks, and every single one leads to David, he finds himself spending much more time with her than he anticipated. And denying the still-smoldering chemistry between them becomes impossible.
As Evelyn revisits her ghosts of Hanukkah past, she and David both begin to wonder if they can have a Hanukkah future. But with a high-stakes production ramping up the pressure on Evelyn, and troublesome spirits forcing them both to confront their most difficult shared memories, it might just take a Hanukkah miracle for these two exes to light the flame on their second-chance at love.
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Elise’s Thoughts
The Eight Heartbreaks of Hanukkah by Jean Meltzer is a great holiday read. Hanukkah is known as the “Festival of Lights” and this novel shows how the characters were brought out of their darkness and illuminated with light as they take their journey to reconnect.
In the style of best-selling author Kristin Hannah, this novel is a heartfelt, sad, and heartbreaking story dealing with loss and trauma. But readers also will laugh with the characters as they learn about life lessons and reignite the light of their relationship that was once filled with hope, love, and togetherness. The story is about a second-chance romance during Hanukkah and there is a happily ever after.
It’s been two years since David walked away from Evelyn and their life in Manhattan, during the first night of Hanukkah. Eveyln fell back on her “go to” by leaning into work. Now, a successful television producer, she was chosen to produce the live action musical version of A Christmas Carol for network television.
While having one of her debilitating chronic migraines, she had an accident on the set. The show’s medic is called but unfortunately, he is Evelyn’s ex-husband David, who is substituting for the permanent medic. These migraines can cause Evelyn to blackout, but now something else is going on where she has visions, and hallucinations.
The author spins A Christmas Carol with Jewish twists as Evelyn’s “Ghosts of Hanukkah Past” visit her every night and make her flash back to certain difficult times in her life. Her past, present, and future are displayed to her, offering her to feel love, growth, change, and forgiveness. She is shown how instead of being married to David, she is married to her job with little time for anything but work.
Readers will laugh with Evelyn as she tries to deal with the comical Hanukkah ghosts but also cry with her as she remembers how David always tried to help her deal with parental neglect, chronic illness, infertility, pregnancy loss, and grief.
This is a great book because people will be able to connect with the characters and understand their journey through the lens of Judaism, although they do not have to be Jewish to enjoy the story. Readers will laugh at the humor, cry as they mourn the character’s loss, and cheer as they demonstrate strength and rekindle love, getting their happily ever after.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How does Hanukkah come up in your writings?
Jean Meltzer: My husband is an Army military veteran, having done two tours of duty during the Iraq war. The world, as my husband has seen, can appear so dark. By being bright ourselves, we can brighten other people and make the world a much lighter and better place. I try to write from the lens of Jewish authenticity of my Jewish experience. It is my mission and passion to tell Jewish stories. My first one, The Matzah Ball, was also a Hanukkah book. I like the idea of spreading light among Jewish stories.
EC: Does Dickens have an influence in this story?
JM: I thought of different ideas and loved the Hanukkah retelling of A Christmas Carol. My mother who is a psychologist often used A Christmas Carol in her therapy, marriage and family counseling. We talked and she commented that the people think the story is about looking at your past and changing. She said what the story is really about is seeing your experiences through another person’s lens. At that moment I thought this is what I want The Eight Heartbreaks of Hanukkah to be about where the main female character, Evelyn, sees her heartbreaks through another person’s lens, David. I find it a privilege to tell other stories through a Jewish lens. Hopefully, lots of Jewish retellings in my future.
EC: Why the chronic illness?
JM: I have been sick with a chronic disability since I was 18/19 years old, chronic fatigue syndrome. Because I have lived with disease for so long, I have come to a process in my life as someone who has a chronic disability. From my first book, I have always written characters a little bit like me, either sick or anxious or struggling, but still get their happy ending. I can write all these stories with real life events, but in the end the characters deserve to have a happy ending.
EC: Does Evelyn’s chronic migraines define who she is?
JM: As someone with a chronic disability, I feel you cannot separate it from experiences. It is a part of my daily life. Does it define me totally? No, but it is a part of who I am. For Evelyn, that is the same sort of experience. She knows how to maneuver and deal with it. It is a part of the decisions she makes in her life. I also have experienced chronic migraines but not as disabling because medication has worked.
EC: Do you agree Evelyn does not appear to be very religious?
JM: Because Evelyn is more of a secular and cultural Jew, she does not spend much time with the lingo then someone who is super educated in Jewish culture and tradition. David’s family is a little more engaged in the Hanukkah traditions than Eveyln. I have lived in both experiences. I have the characters decide for themselves. The main message is there, that miracles can still happen and that God is involved in our affairs. I try to write from the lens of Jewish authenticity of my Jewish experience.
EC: How would you describe Evelyn?
JM: Stubborn, independent, gutsy, smart, funny, tough, workaholic, and used work to avoid relationships with friends, family, and David. She is deeply sensitive and fears her own vulnerability. I think she tries to thrive and survive. As she grows and changes throughout the story, Evelyn becomes likeable. I think she is misunderstood unlike Scrooge from A Christmas Carol.
EC: How would you describe David?
JM: He became more confident because Evelyn was a part of his life. She helped him stop being bullied and supported him financially while he went through medical school. He is also caring, introverted, sensitive, but withdrawn.
EC: How would you describe the relationship?
JM: She and he were complete partners. She was his anchor. She is the one if the dinner order was wrong, she would send it back, while he would not say anything. She is more assertive. They make each other better. They were childhood friends. They were equals and there for each other, until they started to splinter. Because of this huge traumatic loss in which she could not deal with, they fell apart. He still missed her, while Evelyn has displaced anger toward him. And feels betrayed by him. As a child of divorce, she was bitter to him for committing that unforgivable sin, leaving her in Eveyln’s worst moment, plus he did it on the first night of Hanukkah. One of the reasons she has blown off Hanukkah is she also has displaced anger towards God.
EC: Next book?
JM: I am taking a year off from writing because I am planning a big conference titled Jewish Joy Con, https://www.thejewishjoycon.com . It is a groundbreaking three-day event celebrating the best in pop-culture, storytelling, and creativity, scheduled for March 13-15th at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, FL. There will be Jewish creators from every industry and is open to Jews and non-Jews alike. This is taking every second of my life right now. Readers should look for a book in 2027.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Bah humbug. Bounty hunter Jake Hale hates Christmas. He doesn’t do twinkling lights, festive packages, and you definitely won’t ever catch him singing Christmas carols. What he will do? Track down the worst of the scum out there. The former special ops soldier makes merry by tossing the naughty into prison cells and getting a grand pay day. Ho, ho, ho.
Then a ghost from Christmas past walks through his door.
True Blakely is always at the top of the nice list. Beautiful, sweet, with an innocence that—yep, he might have been tempted to destroy once or twice—she’s there to hire him. There have been a string of dangerous accidents in her life, and True fears that someone is trying to kill her. Not at all the sort of case that Jake would usually take—he hunts down the criminals after they jump bail, not before they’ve even been arrested. But one look into True’s bedroom eyes, and he can’t refuse. Maybe he still is a bit too tempted by the girl who got away…and surely one nice act won’t kill him? For her, he can play the hero.
He’ll close the case and be home in time for Christmas dinner.
Except, on the first morning of his investigation, he finds a dead body. One waiting underneath True’s glittering Christmas tree. The attacks are real, and it’s clear that someone is gunning for True. But Jake is on the job now, and no one is going to hurt her. His protective instincts are in overdrive…and so is the desperate desire that he’s always felt for True. This time, he’s done fighting that desire. He’ll finally show True just how fantastic it can be when you aren’t nice. Welcome to his naughty list.
HOLDING OUT FOR A HOLIDAY HERO by Cynthia Eden is a hot and steamy holiday romantic suspense that kept me laughing out loud, turning the pages to figure out the villain in the suspense plot, and cheering for Jake as he turns from Scrooge into the hero True needs. This is a fast-paced standalone holiday romantic suspense with a great H/h duo and interesting secondary characters.
True Blakeley was the sweet, good girl in high school. Jake Hale was the bad boy who secretly wanted her. Now the former special ops soldier is a bounty hunter who hates Christmas, and beautiful True, the object of all his dreams, comes to him for help. Jake is determined to protect her as well as bed her. What he doesn’t realize is True has no problem with any of that.
Believable characters, fun dialogue, a well-paced suspense plot, and smokin’ hot sex scenes make this the perfect for me holiday read.
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About the Author
Cynthia Eden is a New York Times, USA Today, Digital Book World, and IndieReader best-seller.
Never miss a release from Cynthia Eden! Sign up for her newsletter at cynthiaeden.com/newsletter. You can also visit her Facebook page for her latest updates: facebook.com/cynthiaedenfanpage.
Cynthia writes sexy tales of contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and paranormal romance. Since she began writing full-time in 2005, Cynthia has written over one hundred novels and novellas.
Cynthia lives along the Alabama Gulf Coast. She loves romance novels, horror movies, and chocolate.
A small-town Oklahoma Christmas would be charming if single dad Chandler Cochran wasn’t being called into the principal’s office to deal with his son’s antics. The instigator behind young Sam’s misbehavior? Little Della-Mae, Izzy Adams’s daughter. The same Izzy who has just taken a job decorating Chandler’s family ranch for the holidays! And even though she and Chandler are pulled together to deal with their children’s misadventures, the bubbly mom and her sweet daughter are adding light and warmth to the stoic cowboy’s world.
Will trouble turn into an unexpected gift this Christmas?
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Elise’s Thoughts
Cowboy Santa by Melinda Curtis, set in an Oklahoma small town around Christmas, is a good holiday read. The male lead is single dad Chandler Cochran who is basically raising his second-grade son, Sam on his own. It seems Sam is prodded to do certain things by the female lead, Izzy’s daughter, Little Della-Mae. Izzy and Chandler are pulled together to deal with their children’s misadventures. Chandler Cochran is a no-nonsense single father who is the manager at the Done Roamin’ Ranch, and his little boy Sam is a precocious and mischievous. When Chandler meets single mom, Izzy Adams, in the principal’s office at the school, he isn’t surprised that her daughter Mae is in trouble, too, and Chandler blames Mae, because after all, Sam wouldn’t get into trouble without encouragement. Chandler wants everything to stay just as it always has while Izzy wants him to be willing to try new things.
As with all the author’s cowboy books readers will enjoy the journey of Izzy and Chandler on how they realize there is a definite attraction. Of course, they are pushed along by their two children who decide to play cupid. People will enjoy the interactions between the children as well as the input of strong-hearted and loving Mary, Chandler’s mom who is recovering from cancer.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: The idea for the story?
Melinda Curtis: I wanted to do an enemy to lovers’ book. Then it evolved that the children were in league with each other.
EC: How would you describe the female character, Izzy?
MC: Bubbly, a rule follower, resilient, reliable, courageous, and in somewhat of a shell. This was her coming of age book where she came into her own.
EC: How would you describe Chandler?
MC: Grounded, pragmatic, obstinate, stoic, someone who likes predictability and the word ‘always.’ The past seems to be holding him back and at times he is vulnerable. He was the older brother type to his foster brother cowboys. I enjoyed going into his character in more depth.
EC: What about Chandler’s son Sam?
MC: He is a charmer, a talker, spunky, and can be sassy.
EC: What about Izzy’s daughter Mae?
MC: Delicate, she can be the mastermind in her and Sam’s endeavors. Together they work in cahoots. Both she and Sam come from divorce parents. They get into mischievous at times. Together, they are a force to be reckoned with and are smarter than the average 2nd grader.
EC: What was the role of divorce in the story?
MC: One the divorcees wanted to put their career over raising a child, while the other tried to buy his child’s love and had all his priorities wrong. The original marriages were not the right person for Chandler and Izzy. Neither was helpful in the raising of the children.
EC: What about the relationship between Izzy and Chandler?
MC: They both try to ignore their feelings. They change the conversation when they do not like where it is going. They appear confused and in a funk. She takes him outside his comfort zone. They thought they were fine without romance until they realized that finding the right person is special.
EC: What about getting a dog?
MC: I wanted to have something a little bit playful. As a parent and grandma, I know there are times that the children trap someone into getting them things. I wanted this to be a sweet piece that is true to life. Every child should have a dog.
EC: Mary, the beloved foster mom, has cancer. Please explain
MC: It has been an ongoing thread. Even though I was asked not to write any dreaded diseases, but it is realistic. I understand how grief can get in the way of romance, but it does happen in life and does affect someone’s everyday life. Everyone tends to rally around the person and remember how important life is, something we tend to forget when our noses are in our phones all the time. I wanted to write a healthy powerful way that the characters must deal with the experience.
EC: Next books?
MC: There are six more cowboy books in this series. In spring The Cowboy Wedding Proposal will be published. And another one out in the summer.
There will be another round in the Kentucky Blackwell series.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
