Rekindled Dreams by Linda Carroll-Bradd
Blurb:
When museum curator Vena Fenton returns to her small Montana hometown,
she’s forced to live under the same roof as Finnian Quaid, the star of more
than one teenage fantasy. Finnian is now an environmental lobbyist, making a
bid for senate, and is as dreamy as ever.
Finnian needs a more settled image if he wants to get ahead in the
polls. In order to do that, he needs a wife. With Vena living under his roof,
his problem seems solved. As the romantic sparks fly, there's more at risk than
Finnian's political aspirations. Can they keep their eye on the prize, or will
their growing love derail them both?
You can add Rekindled to your to-read list on Goodreads:
You can find more about Rekindled Dreams on the Entranced site, you can
also find the buy links here as soon as Rekindled Dreams is available:
Rekindled Dreams
by Linda Carroll-Bradd
As a writer, I plan for more scenes than ever end up in the
finished book. Why? Because I like being over-prepared. I pack six different
outfits for a weekend trip because I never know what I’ll want to wear or if
the weather will change. So I usually have a couple of ways planned on how I
want to convey a major plot point. Something I’ve learned over the years of
writing is that scenes are never the length you think they’ll be. Ones you
think will be short become nuanced and textured, which is wonderful but also
eat up the word count. Ones you planned to be long stay that way and something
has to give.
So today you’re being treated to the basic elements of a
scene that never fit:
A running theme through the story is that Finn is renovating
The Shamrocks so the kitchen isn’t available for cooking meals. One condition
of Vena staying at the inn is that she agreed to be on her own for meals. She’s
not worried because there is a back-up plan (Chapter Two). But after he agrees
to help her with a difficult task (Chapter Thirteen), she plans to prepare food
for him. Adopting the meal preparation plan introduced by Cher in Mermaids*, Vena intended to offer finger
foods and hors d’oeuvres, some held together with a toothpick. She envisions
them feeding each other the tidbits in between sips of mellow wine. But, alas,
those plans are forgotten when she hears “news at six.”
*a wonderful coming-of-age
movie released in 1990 with Winona Ryder (Golden Globe-nominated
performance), Christina Ricci (her first movie role), Bob Hoskins, and Michael
Schoeffling.
Sorry to seem like I’m playing cat and mouse but I hope I’ve
intrigued you about the plot of my new release, Rekindled Dreams, from Entranced Publishing.
Blurb
When museum curator Vena Fenton returns to
her small Montana hometown, she’s forced to live under the same roof as Finnian
Quaid, the star of more than one teenage fantasy. Finnian is now an
environmental lobbyist, making a bid for senate, and is as dreamy as ever.
Finnian needs a more settled image if he wants to get ahead in the polls. In order to do that, he needs a wife. With Vena living under his roof, his problem seems solved. As the romantic sparks fly, there's more at risk than Finnian's political aspirations. Can they keep their eye on the prize, or will their growing love derail them both?
Finnian needs a more settled image if he wants to get ahead in the polls. In order to do that, he needs a wife. With Vena living under his roof, his problem seems solved. As the romantic sparks fly, there's more at risk than Finnian's political aspirations. Can they keep their eye on the prize, or will their growing love derail them both?
Bio
As a young girl, Linda was often found lying on her bed
reading about fascinating characters having exciting adventures in places far
away and in other time periods. In later years, she read and then started
writing romances and achieved her first publication--a confession story.
Married with 4 adult children and 2 granddaughters, Linda now writes
heartwarming contemporary and historical stories with a touch of humor from her
home in the southern California mountains.
Links
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1806413.Linda_Carroll_Braddhttps://www.amazon.com/author/lindacarroll-bradd
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/linda-carroll-bradd
Information about the book:
Title: Rekindled Dreams
Author: Linda Carroll-Bradd
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: 7 October 2013
Review
Vena Fenton should be the savoring each moment, she's engaged. So why is she fleeing back home for a much needed vacation without her fiancee? Finnian Quaid, childhood crush and one of the only men who can still get her to blush welcomes her with open arms, but he has an agenda and he needs Vena's help. A fake engagement, a few well placed kisses, and a ton of rampant emotions lead to a hilarious romantic story.
Loved Vena and Finn, they have a history and quickly fall back into a friendly banter with one another. I liked that Vena was unpredictable, she add a lot of entertainment to this fun read.
Excerpt :
Finn
stood at the entrance of the gazebo, grinning. “Should have figured you’d be
here.”
“Hi.”
Her jumbled thoughts prevented a clever response. “You look tired.”
“Today’s
been hard—full of facts and figures.” He stepped forward and held out his arms.
“Just seeing you makes me feel better. I need a hug, Elfie.”
Without
hesitation, she walked into his embrace, melting against his firm body. His
arms grasped her shoulders, and then crossed slowly over her back and molded
her body to his.
Finn
groaned. “You don’t know how much I’ve wanted this since this morning.” He
turned his face into her hair and inhaled. “This is what’s important. Not
what’s going on in some corporate boardroom.”
Vena
stroked her fingers along the corded muscles of his neck and played with the
ends of his hair. Their children would all have heads covered with masses of
curls. Whoa. She was letting herself
get carried away. What mattered was he was holding her, telling her with his
body that he needed her. She could give him a calm place to come home to, could
be his anchor in life’s storm.
His
head dipped lower, and his lips nuzzled kisses along her neck to her shoulder.
The brush of his stubble on tender skin made her shiver.
“Don’t
you have anything warmer than this?” His voice was gruff, but his eyes were
caring as he arranged the crocheted shawl over her exposed shoulders. Using his
grip on the cloth, he pulled her close, and his mouth covered hers in a
possessive kiss. “How was the rest of your day? I’ve been—”
Lips
still tingling, Vena came to a decision. She didn’t want to talk. The hours
since he’d left her in this exact spot had dragged, especially when every single
thought came back to Finn.
From
under the shawl, she twined her arms around his waist, hands locking behind his
back. Pressing against the heat at the tops of her legs, she gave herself up to
the rush of wanting. She tasted his mouth from one angle and then another, the
pull of desire tugging deep in her belly. So often, she had thought of this,
and vowed to make this night unforgettable.
No
matter what came tomorrow.
Review
Vena Fenton should be the savoring each moment, she's engaged. So why is she fleeing back home for a much needed vacation without her fiancee? Finnian Quaid, childhood crush and one of the only men who can still get her to blush welcomes her with open arms, but he has an agenda and he needs Vena's help. A fake engagement, a few well placed kisses, and a ton of rampant emotions lead to a hilarious romantic story.
Loved Vena and Finn, they have a history and quickly fall back into a friendly banter with one another. I liked that Vena was unpredictable, she add a lot of entertainment to this fun read.
About the Author:
As a young girl, Linda was often found lying on her bed reading about
fascinating characters having exciting adventures in places far away and in
other time periods. In later years, she read and then started writing romances
and achieved her first publication--a confession story. Married with 4 adult
children and 2 granddaughters, Linda now writes heartwarming contemporary and
historical stories with a touch of humor from her home in the southern
California mountains.
You can find Linda here:
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Rekindled Dreams. One
winner will win a 10$ gift card from Amazon and 2 other winners will each win 1
e-copy of Rekindled Dreams by Linda Carroll-Bradd.
Thanks from the Entranced
team for being part of the Rekindled Dreams blog tour!
Very nice review. Congrats, Linda, on your new book. :) Tara
ReplyDeleteHi Linda,
ReplyDeleteLoved the title. It is so evocative. Excellent excerpt too. Good luck with your book.