Giveaway & Interview with New York Times Bestselling Author of "The Homecoming" JoAnn Ross

Series: Shelter Bay, Book 1

Genre: Contemporary Romance/ Fiction

Release Date: July 6, 2010

Publisher: NAL Signet

ISBN-10: 0451230671

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Your first love never really fades away.

Former Navy SEAL Sax Douchett has returned home to the small coastal town of Shelter Bay, Oregon, determined to put war behind him and get on with his life—which is easier said than done when everyone is hailing the former bad boy as a local hero. Adjusting to a new beginning becomes even more difficult when he unearths a long-buried secret that, in turn, reunites him with a cherished part of his past that he’s never forgotten.

Drawn back into his life is Sheriff Kara Conway, his best friend’s girl for a long as he can remember---a girl who always held a special place in Sax’s heart. But as he cautiously reconnects with Kara and bonds with her young son, another long-held secret in Shelter Bay threatens their second chance at a forever-after love.

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Get to know the Author of the Day.

Over the Edge Book Reviews

Questions with

New York Times Bestselling

Author

JoAnn Ross

1. What is the best part of being a writer? What is the worst?

The best part of being a writer is being able to share my stories with readers I’ll probably never meet in person. Second best part is that people actually are willing to pay me to tell them a story, which allows me to live my dream life. How cool is that?


I haven’t found a worst part yet. But I’ve only been published twenty-eight years. Can I get back to you on that?



2.  Name one eye-opening thing you learned from your book research.


That’s difficult, since I love research. Having changed majors in college five times, beginning each new book is like changing majors yet again. I will say the most important to me was discovering Soldiers Angels while researching my High Risk stories.


Soldiers’ Angels is a military support organization, that among other activities, also allows people to “adopt” an individual military men or women during their deployment. We’ve adopted soldiers (currently a female soldier in Iraq), a sailor, and an airman. Having two nephews who’ve served multiple tours in Iraq and one who’s currently a medevac in Afghanistan, I know how important cards, letters, and packages from home are. Also, while researching Shattered, High Risk #3, I discovered the Marine Graduation Foundation, which helps families who couldn’t otherwise afford their new Marine’s graduation. Their motto is So No New Marine Stands alone.

3.  Do you have a favorite motto?

Actually, I do. “If little children don’t die of it, it can’t be that important.” Although it’s admittedly at times difficult to embrace because I’m never without my control freak empress tiara, it’s kept me fairly sane while working in a business that can, at times, be a rollercoaster.

4.  Do you have a favorite fictional hero? Favorite fictional heroine?

Quite honestly, my favorite fictional hero and heroine is usually the one I’m currently writing because I’m getting to know them, and that’s always an exciting stage. But I was reading The Homecoming to my husband on our ten hour drive to and from a booksigning in Ohio this weekend (he’d read the earlier version in manuscript form, but not the final book) and was reminded how much I really, really love Sax Douchett and Kara Conway. And I’m not just saying this because I want everyone in the world to read their story. :)

They’re both survivors, who’ve managed to overcome very difficult circumstances and move on with their lives. Sax proves himself to be the strong, caring person he actually was back in high school, but most people, including Kara’s mother, only saw his bad boy persona. And Kara’s particularly special to me because I was also a single working mom of an eight-year-old boy, so I layered many of my own feelings and experiences from those days into their story.

5.  Which fictional character would you hang out with?

That’s easy. Definitely Sax. Because, having always had rescued dogs (we currently have three), I’m a sucker for any guy who loves dogs. Plus, he not only cooks, he cooks Cajun food. What’s not to love about that?

6.  What is one of your favorite book covers, your own or someone else’s?

There are some great covers out there, and although I may admittedly be prejudiced, I have to say that the romance genre has some of the most talented artists and designers in publishing. I’ve been blessed with some really great covers, but I’d have to say that my current favorite is the one for The Homecoming, again, for personal reasons. Not only is it lovely and evocative of my beloved Oregon coast, where my husband proposed, but I was super jazzed when the NAL art department used a photo I took of the Heceta Head lighthouse keeper’s house as the inspiration for the book’s cover. Readers can watch a scrapbook video I made of photos taken where Sax and Kara’s story is set on my homepage.

7.  What would readers be surprised to learn about you?

Great question! Coincidentally, I’ve listed ten things people probably don’t know about me on my website. I guess I’ll go with the fact that I’ve jumped out of an airplane – solo, not tandem -- over the Arizona desert.


Oh, and the second thing, and the one probably most related to my writing, is that I remarried my former husband. Which makes us a real life HEA reunion romance story. :)

8.  What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever learned by Googling your name?

I have to agree with my editor, who once said that no good ever comes from Googling your name. Plus, since you asked, I just checked, and came up with 979,000 results in 0.18 seconds. Who has the time to even begin to read all that stuff?

9. If you could go backward or forward in time which would you chose? Why?


Neither. I’ve never been one to look back, but I’ve also spent too many years early in my career constantly looking forward, which often kept me from enjoying the good things that have happened to me in this business. (Such as THE HOMECOMING – yay! -- hitting the printed New York Times bestseller list its first week in stores.)


So, taking a cue from my grandkidlet, I’ve been focusing on living in the present
and have discovered that even the most ordinary appearing moments can be very special.

10.  JoAnn, please tell us more about your recent release, “THE HOMECOMING.”

A spin-off of my New York Times best-selling High Risk series, THE HOMECOMING is the first book in my new Shelter Bay series, which will bring many of my sexy military heroes back home in stories of community, family, love, and the universal choice between what is. . . and what could be.


From the back cover: Your first love never really fades away.


Former Navy SEAL Sax Douchett has returned home to the small coastal town of Shelter Bay, Oregon, determined to put war behind him and get on with his life – which is easier said than done when everyone is hailing the former bad boy as a local hero. Adjusting to a new beginning becomes even more difficult when he unearths a long-buried secret that, in turn, reunites him with a cherished part of his past he’s never forgotten.


Drawn back into his life is Sheriff Kara Conway – a girl who’s always held a special place in Sax’s heart. But as he cautiously reconnects with Kara and bonds with her young son, another long-held secret in Shelter Bay threatens their second chance at a forever-after-love.


Of course, romance readers know that Sax, Kara, and her son, Trey, will receive their well deserved happily-ever-after. There’s also a secondary romance between Kara’s mother and Shelter Bay’s chief deputy that I really had a lot of fun writing!


11.  Which do you find is most important to you as a writer, voice or story? Why?

For me, the most important thing, and always the first that comes into my mind, are actually the characters. Because a writer can have the most unique, exciting plot in the history of publishing and a compelling voice, but as a reader, if I’m not engaged with the characters, I’m just not going to care enough to keep reading.


As for voice, my grandda McLaughlin was a seanachie – an Irish storyteller – and my earliest memories are listening to the music of his lyrical brogue spinning grand stories of kings and castles, battles and banishments, magic and miracles. So, having grown up with a family tradition of oral storytelling, I try to tell my stories the same way, and in the same voice, I would if I could wander from town to town sharing them in person. Which, admittedly, is a tad impractical!

12.  JoAnn, please tell us where we can find you out in cyber world. For desperate readers like me, we just have to know…:)

My website is at http://joannross.com/ I have a “shout box” on the homepage where I respond to readers’ messages. I try to blog on Tuesdays and Fridays, with Friday being fun video day. Readers can reach that from the link on my homepage, or http://blog.joannross.com/


I’m also on twitter at http://twitter.com/joannross and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=774687802



13.  I know this is a difficult question with there being so many amazing authors out there to choose from but who are some of the GOT-TO-HAVE authors in your TBR pile?

You’re right, there are so many wonderful writers, and I read many different genres, not just romance, I hate to have to choose! I will say that James Lee Burke is a must buy for me – I never even bother to read the back cover copy because I know he’s going to give me amazing writing and characters I care about. Also Pat Conroy. I’d read the man’s grocery list. Which, actually, I have because I bought his cookbook.


Romance, especially is difficult to choose because there are so many good writers, many of whom are friends, but to keep the list from going on forever, I’ll just say that I’m a huge Virginia Kantra fan. (She just can’t write those Children of the Sea books fast enough for me, so I’m forced to go back and reread them again and again, which isn’t any hardship!) I was recently fortunate to get to read the ARC for her upcoming IMMORTAL SEA, the fourth in the series, and it’s fantastic! If readers haven’t discovered her, I’d recommend they begin now, with SEA WITCH, so they’ll be ready when Morgan’s book comes out in September.

14. What’s next in the works for you? When can readers expect to see it out on shelves in their local bookstores?

ONE SUMMER, the second in my Shelter Bay series, out next July, will feature Marine war photojournalist Gabriel St. James, who’s briefly described at Sax’s brother’s wedding in THE HOMECOMING.


Having become a drifter after leaving the military, he’s on his way out of town when, unable to resist his inner hero, he stops to rescue an abused Shih Tzu, who just happens to be modeled after one of our own rescued dogs. This brings Charity Tiernan, who’s a veterinarian determined to find a forever home for every stray in Shelter Bay, into his life.

Sparks fly. Emotions run high, and yes, some tears will be shed. But I promise, everyone, including the dog, will live happily-ever-after.


They’ll be two Shelter Bay books in 2012. One, tentatively scheduled for April, will feature Navy SEAL medic Lucas Chaffee. And readers of my Irish trilogy may be glad to hear that Mary, the teenager aspiring actress from A WOMAN’S HEART, will be arriving in Shelter Bay for the town’s first film festival in a book tentatively scheduled for October.

I’d like to JoAnn Ross for stopping by and spending time with us, it’s been a blast getting to know more about you and your books. I wish you all the best and much success in everything you do. :)

Thanks so much for inviting me, Christine. It’s always lovely to have a chance to connect with readers!

*Giveaway*

Two randomly selected commenters will win a copy of "The Homecoming", book one in New York Times Bestselling author JoAnn Ross's new Shelter Bay series by NAL Signet . To enter here are a few simple rules.

* +2 Leave a comment for JoAnn Ross including email.
* +2 Spread the Word! ( this means go out into cyber world and post it on any network sites that your are a member of, or on your blog or website. +2 Then come back and leave a link so I can verify the post.)
* Become a follower of Over The Edge! (+3 Already a follower--You ROCK! +2 Become a follower.)

The giveaway is open to all and will be running until July 25, 2010. I'll be picking and contacting the winner directly on July 26, 2010. Please make sure to include your email with your comment. Happy Reading!