Killer Summer

Okay this is my dirty secret: Summer time is the best time for crafting villains. I get so cranky in the heat, and then there is the yearly home renovation project that doesn’t exactly make me a pleasant person to be around. We live in a nearly two hundred year old farmhouse. Even the simplest project turns into a major nightmare, and that turns me into a two-headed monster.

So I hit the keyboard and create jealous sisters and self-serving soap stars with secrets. I put them in situations where they can’t help but do wrong. Then I place a clueless citizen in their path, and because I’m hot and cranky and have paint all over my shoes I make the villains do awful things. They hire people to push their wives off bridges. They throw protagonists in their trunk, or drug her and transport her across the country. I ask myself “What else could go wrong?” and then I write that too.

I place my heroine in mortal peril so deep I’m not even sure how I’ll get her out of it. And I leave her there, because after all I’m still cranky. And the murderer? It looks like the villain is going to get away scot-free. After all, villains can be clever and why should our protagonist have all the fun?

After putting the screws to my favorite character I feel much better. I wash the sticky sweat off me (no air conditioning here) and go to bed in my right mind. And when I wake up hot and sweaty, already three quarters of the way to cranky I know I’ll be okay – because tonight I’m planning murder in the local hair salon!

Kate George lives and writes in rural Vermont where she is surrounded by dogs, kids and beautiful scenery. None of which she can fully enjoy because she’s a writer for heaven’s sake.

www.kategeorge.com & www.kategeorgewrites.blogspot.com

Happy Friday!! Yes, Friday! The weekend is nearly here!

Today, I want to share a new DEADLY FEAR excerpt with you.  It will help you get to know my hero and heroine a bit more.  Hope you enjoy it!

“So…are we gonna talk about it?”

Monica froze at the deep voice. Her notes were spread in front of her, the shade on her window firmly closed—because she really hated to fly—and with only about ten minutes left on the private flight, it looked like Dante had decided to get chatty.

Great.

“I mean…we’re gonna be working together, and we can’t pretend the past didn’t happen…”

Sure they could.  She spent most of her days shoving the memories of her past away.

Carefully, Monica sat down her pen. Then she lifted her gaze.  Dante sat across from her, his long legs spread out, taking up too much room.  He’d changed before they left, thankfully gotten rid of the blood, and now he wore loose khakis and a button-down shirt.

Over the years, she’d tried not to think about Dante. Tried to pretend the fling with him hadn’t happened.

Tried and failed really, really well.

“Like what you see?”  The words came out of his mouth sounding like some kind of sensual purr.

Asshole.

And, dammit, yes.  Luke Dante was sex, he was power, and he was temptation.

A temptation she hadn’t been able to resist when she was twenty-two. But one she would ignore now.

Tall, muscled, with bright emerald eyes and sun-streaked blond hair, Dante was a southern boy with charm and a dimple in his chin.

A long, thin scar marred his right cheek.  She’d been there the day he got that scar.  The mark didn’t detract from Dante’s looks. No, the scar just made him look all the more dangerous.

She stared at him, trying to be detached. A strong jaw, wide lips, slightly twisted nose—he shouldn’t have been handsome.

But he was.

No, not handsome. Sexy.

Dammit.

Monica cleared her throat. “The past is over, Dante.” They’d been over this before, when he’d made the mistake of tracking her down.  Serious mistake.  “We’re professionals, we can—”

“Pretend we never had sex?  Pretend we didn’t nearly tear each other apart because we were so fucking hungry those nights?”

Her heart thumped hard enough to shake her chest.

He smiled at her, flashing his white teeth. “Don’t know if I’m that good at pretending, Ice.”

***

In case you’re curious, Ice is a nickname that Monica was given in her FBI Academy days, and it’s a name she hates.

Want to win an autographed copy of DEADLY FEAR? Then tell me a nickname that you’ve been tagged with in your life. Does it fit? Love it? Hate it?

Update: The AMC Theatres gift certificate winner is Shelly Estes! Congrats, Shelly!

So yesterday I asked folks to tell me their favorite romantic suspense novels (and thank you for the fabulous responses!). Today, I’m wondering…what’s your favorite romantic suspense movie?  (One commenter will win a $25 AMC Theaters gift card–you can go out and see another great romantic suspense!)

Body Heat with Kathleen Turner has always been one of my favorites, though it’s not, ahem, technically a romance (and if you’ve seen it, you know why!).

Another one that really appealed to me–though I’d  call it more of a thriller romance–was The Saint.

I”m all about a dangerous man being reformed by the power of love.

Come on–spill! Tell me your favorite romantic suspense movies!

Update: The winner of the Amazon.com gift certificate is…Joye! Congrats, Joye!

Oh, this is hard. Recently, I was asked to name my favorite romantic suspense novel.  Tough question. Because, you see, I have a few favorites…

One that always springs immediately to mind for me is Linda Howard’s DREAM MAN. Loved this one, but it’s not straight romantic suspense. The heroine is psychic, and she literally gets into the mind of the killer.  (Since I am such a paranormal fan, I–of course–adored this plot element.)

Another book that was dark and gritty (and at the time the hero really reminded me of Spike from Buffy) is Anne Stuart‘s INTO THE FIRE.  Anne Stuart is always great at delivering sexy, suspenseful tales.

And, I am a HUGE fan of Shannon McKenna. I devour her stories.  One of my favorite McKenna books (because I love them all) is STANDING IN THE SHADOWS.  Hot hero, danger, great chemistry–what more could I want?

These are just three of my favorite romantic suspense re-reads.  There are so many, many more.

But what is your favorite romantic suspense?  Share with me! I’ll pick one commenter to win a $10 Amazon.com gift certificate–that way, maybe you go buy another romantic suspense!!

Hi, everyone! I hope you have been enjoying my Deadly Days of Summer. I’ve had fun checking out all the posts and reading the comments. 🙂  I want to thank all of the guest bloggers who have come and shared their stories (and those who will be coming over the next two weeks). And I’d like to offer a big THANK YOU to everyone who has visited my blog for my summer event.

Today, I thought I’d do a brief interruption of the Deadly Days so I could tell you about the events that would be coming up. Yes, there will be more guest bloggers. More prizes–books, ARCs, gift certificates.  But, from July 27-July 31, I will be attending the Romance Writers of America National Conference in Orlando, Florida. So, for those days, I thought I would do some “Live from RWA” posts (and some videos, equipment permitting).

So, if you were curious about the what the romance editors are hoping to purchase or if you want to know what the big scoop is at RWA, just head back over here from July 27-July 31.  And, when I can, I will also try to interview attendees and post those videos on my blog.  I thought that might be a fun way to end my Deadly Days.

And the end is coming! How did time pass so quickly? In just two weeks–TWO WEEKS–my first romantic suspense novel will be out! DEADLY FEAR releases on 7/27/10.  Wow. That’s just…soon.

Thanks, again for checking out my Deadly Days. I hope you are having a fabulous summer.