Well, I've been gone all spring and summer, holed up in a cabin on the edge of the sea in British Columbia, Canada. I've been working on the third book in The Ravenna Evans Series when in fact I should be searching for gainful employment. But since the chances of securing a job seem slim, I find myself on the brink of publishing my fourth book, The Wager.
The first book in this series, The Last Killiney, is a time-travel romance featuring a hero based on/inspired by a mish-mash of Bono and Thomas Carter. It takes place mostly aboard Captain Vancouver's voyage to the Pacific Northwest in the 1790s -- a setting I thought was just a fun idea when I first began writing this story in 1992 (or whenever it was, so long ago now I can hardly recall). However, I've recently learned that one of the main participants in Vancouver's voyage was actually Mary Carter's neighbor's nephew, so the setting it seems is also a reflection of my past life. Funny how these things crop up (because the subconscious always seems to know about our past lives even if we don't).
The second book in The Ravenna Evans Series is called The Bayman's Bride, and it's a straight historical romance with no time travel or reincarnation theme. This story takes place in Belize during the 1790s, and it's about a Spanish sea captain who falls in love with his employer's wife. Lots of sex, lots of funny bits. I know I'm biased, but I think it's a really good book.
Now the third book, The Wager, is finished. There are some references to my past life in this one, too, what with Thomas Carter's interest in Irish independence from British rule, as well as his drinking, social life, and eventual death. But that's not really what the book is about; instead, it's a story inspired by Johnny Depp.
Famous for playing a listing, kohl-eyed pirate, Depp is someone whose name incites lust in females everywhere...but how many women really know much about him? Or even care what kind of person he is? If they were trapped on a desert island with him, how long would it take for the lust factor to wear off, and how many would become bored with him? The Wager is a story about just such a man: too beautiful to be seen as anything but a piece of meat, and thus never finding real and lasting love. Of course Ravenna, the heroine of all three books (in The Bayman's Bride, too, though in disguise) learns to appreciate Bill Wyckham for his personality, deeds and good heart, not just for his looks. However, she finds a few obstacles in the way of this new love -- her dead husband, for instance. Because when one possesses a time-travel potion, the possibilities are endless.
Stay tuned for a release date for The Wager (hint: it should be within days).
Thanks for reading!
