Hello! On my Familiarise Friday slot I'm extending a hearty welcome to Alexa Bourne.
Alexa has some things in common with me: her profession as a teacher; as a writer; and Scotland. Though my days of school teaching are in my past, and I also did the 'school holiday writing thing', Alexa is still a practising one and finds time to squeeze in her writing at the end of what I know will be an already long day.
I love many things about my home country of Scotland, and squeeze something about Scotland into my writing when I can - Alexa chooses to writes Scottish Romance from her base in the US, as well as penning other Romantic Suspense.
Alexa's here today to tell us about her novel - Broken Road - so over to Alexa...
The hero of my latest contemporary Scottish
romance, BROKEN ROAD, is the type of character I'd love to be friends with.
Yes, Ian MacKenzie is tall, dark and speaks with a Scottish brogue, but that is
all superficial. His personality also makes him the almost perfect type of
confidante.
Ian is a bodyguard for professional,
successful, and sometimes famous people. He is confident and competent. He
knows how to take care of himself and the person he’s protecting. He also knows
how to behave in public. By that I mean he knows how to speak to the press (or
when not to), he has enough dancing skills to dance with the queen of England, and
he’s not likely to get into a bar fight anywhere. He is diplomatic and honest
(which sometimes gets him in trouble). He may not have a lot of good friends,
but those he calls special to him always know how much they mean to him.
For Catriona, the heroine of BROKEN ROAD,
Ian is just the type of man she needs. Yes, she’s happy living in her small Highland village, but deep inside she’s always wondered
if she could survive in a city. She’s scared of taking chances and having no
one to count on. But through BROKEN ROAD Ian aids her. He challenges her to
spread her wings and search out the life she really wants no matter where it is.
When she was young, Cat had a crush on Ian,
but nothing compares to the excitement and passion she feels when he returns.
The man is gorgeous and at first Cat is sure he’s the type that knows it. You
know the kind…thinks he can do and say anything and that women will always be
falling at his feet. But Ian is nothing like that. He acts as though he doesn’t
even recognize how hot he is. He’s a genuine friend. He listens to Cat and
gives advice when she needs it, whether she asks for it or not. He looks after
her, makes sure she’s comfortable in whatever they do (in and out of bed). He
promises to be there as much as he can. Now with his schedule, heading across
the world at a moment’s notice, she knows he shouldn’t make promises like that,
but he’s the type she could definitely see asking another one of his friends to
come to her aid while he’s gone.
Ian started out as a secondary character in
2 of my earlier books (HER HIGHLAND CHAMPION & FRACTURED PARADISE), where
he was only a voice on the phone. But he made such an impression on me I knew I
would eventually write his story. Yep, I fell victim to that MacKenzie charm.
And you know what? I’m totally okay with that. And if you read BROKEN ROAD, I
hope you’ll truly understand why.
I know the feeling about taking on a secondary character and giving him his own tale, Alexa, since that's exactly what I've done in Bks 2 & 3 of my Celtic Fervour Series of Historical Romantic Adventures.
Alexa Bourne is a teacher by day and a romance writer by nights,
weekends, and all school holidays. She also teaches online classes for writers
throughout the year. She writes romantic suspense and contemporary romance and
is thrilled to have the chance to share her stories with readers everywhere.
When she’s not concocting sinister plots and steamy love scenes or
traveling and exploring new cultures, Alexa spends her time reading, watching
brainless TV, and thinking about exercising. Okay, she also spends way too much
time interacting with readers and writers on social media sites. But don’t tell
her editors! Find out more about her and her books on her website, www.alexabourne.com.
Blurb for Broken Road:
Catriona MacGregor
leads a quiet life, working in the local school
of Glenhalish, Scotland and
spending time with close friends. She’s content to sit back and be an observer
of the life around her. But all that changes when a recently deceased family
friend leaves her a flat in Edinburgh
and challenges her to spread her wings.
With his work as an international bodyguard, Ian MacKenzie has no time for a serious, committed relationship. Yet when he comes home to Glenhalish for a visit and to clear his mind, he is drawn to down-to-earth Cat. The more time they spend together, the more he wants her.
With his work as an international bodyguard, Ian MacKenzie has no time for a serious, committed relationship. Yet when he comes home to Glenhalish for a visit and to clear his mind, he is drawn to down-to-earth Cat. The more time they spend together, the more he wants her.
Though they agreed to
a friends-with-benefits arrangement, Cat soon discovers exactly what she wants
for herself and it involves all of Ian—body, mind and soul. Their connection
ambushes Ian. He’s not ready for the intensity they share.
Can this Highland lassie steer her lad back onto the right path to a love that will last a lifetime?
Excerpt:
Cat sat at one of the foldaway tables and sipped her
wine. A pleasant breeze rolled off the loch and made the candlelight shimmer.
So much laughter and chatter whooshed round her, and again her heart hung
heavy. Could she give up all she had here for a new life in Edinburgh? Did she have the courage to try?
What if Fiona had been wrong in her will and given Cat more credit than she
truly deserved?
Ian marched
toward her, pulled her glass from her hand, and set it on the table. “Come.”
With a firm but gentle grip, he tugged her out of the chair.
“Where?”
“I need you to save me.” He whirled her round and pulled
her close to his hard-muscled body. She pressed her palms to his chest. The
heat under her fingers shot straight into her center. He wrapped his arms round
her waist and eased them onto the dance floor in time to the slow rhythm of the
music.
Cat laughed. “You, a big, braw lad, need me, a wee lass,
to rescue you? I find that hard to believe.” But, she was ever so grateful for
whatever sent him to her. They’d always been friendly with each other, sort of
like her relationship with Ewan, except…not.
He spun her round so she could see the other side of the
dance floor. “See those lasses flirting with the MacDougall brothers?”
Women with tight clothes and high-pitched laughs dangled
over the makeshift bar. “What about them?”
“Two of them
are trying to lay claim to me.”
“And?”
“I don’t do romantic relationships.”
“What?” Handsome, smart, strong. He had it all.
Social
Media:
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/AlexaBourne
Website:
www.alexabourne.com
Email:
alexa@alexabourne.com
Buy
Links:
Barnes
& Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/broken-road-alexa-bourne/1118284110?ean=2940148282945
Decadent
Publishing: http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?products_id=898&osCsid=d32bk1l557bg13b6u8r51jeas2
All
Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-brokenroad-1405683-149.html
Thank you for visiting today, Alexa, and the best of wishes for Broken Road and the rest of your writing.
Slainthe!
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