Allie Pleiter on Tough Heroes with Soft Centers

One of my favorite types of romance heroes is the tough guy who struggles with “a soft center.”  I love a man of strength and honor who can never quite figure out how to shoulder the depth of his caring.  And I love the woman who brings that affection out from under his crusty exterior.

My hero for The Rancher’s Texas Twins has just that dynamic.  Lone Star Cowboy League President Gabe Everett is a serious man of duty.  The two mischievous little girls who end up staying on his ranch, however, don’t see “Mr. Boots” that way.  Their non-stop onslaught of “tiny pinkness”  opens this cowboy’s heart in a way that is sure to melt yours. Children have such a gift for tearing down the walls we build around ourselves, don’t you think?

It was great fun to wrap up the popular Lone Star Cowboy League: Boys Ranch series with this book. Gabe, and the lovely young mother Avery who holds the key to saving the boys ranch, are a perfect match—even if it takes a pair of adorable twins to convince them.

What about you?  What heroes are your favorites?  If you’ve enjoyed the Lone Star Cowboy League: Boys Ranch series, which books have the heroes who have won your heart?

A Regency Romance Writer Goes to Texas

Regina Scott here. Many of you know me from my dozen or so Regency romances over the years. But that’s not the only period of history that fascinates me. I love a story about knights in shining armor, pioneers heading west on the Oregon Trail, and cowboys riding across the plains. That’s why I was thrilled to be asked to write the third book in the Lone Star Cowboy League: The Founding Years series, A Rancher of Convenience, out this week.

So, how did a Regency author fit in Texas? The Texas Hill Country in 1895 is a far cry from the English drawing rooms of the early nineteenth century. For one thing, there are no butlers, maids, or other servants hanging about ready to dress and clean and cook for my hero and heroine, just a couple of cowboys tending the herd. But that just means Hank and Nancy have to be more resilient. If they want something done, they have to find a way to do it themselves. And those cowboys were so sweet to Nancy when she lost her first husband.

And the language! It was a lot of fun to use a more common dialogue than the elegant sentences my Regency lords and ladies are used to uttering. But that doesn’t mean those cowboys and the ladies they love aren’t witty. Take this exchange between Hank and Nancy.

“For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health,” he murmured, releasing her.

She’d said those vows twice now, but never had she felt them more surely. “That’s right. I mean to honor those commitments.”

His smile inched into view. “Even the obey part?”

“Don’t be absurd.”

Then there’s the food. Those ladies in Little Horn sure know how to cook! In fact, Renee Ryan (Stand-In Rancher Daddy), Louise M. Gouge (A Family for the Rancher), and I had a grand time coming up with recipes for our heroines to cook. Here’s one of my husband's favorites:

You can find eight more recipes, along with extended excerpts from our books, in the Lone Star Cowboy League: The Founding Years Sampler, free on Amazon. 

Because even a Regency author can get carried away in Texas.

How about you? Do you have a favorite time period or setting?

Allie Pleiter welcomes you to Blue Thorn Ranch

There’s nothing like the launch of a new series!

Now that I have a son going to school in Texas (hook ‘em, Longhorns!), it was time to set some books there.  Texas, cowboys, cattle ranches, right? 

Well, not completely.  Texas and cowboys, but you know me—I have to do things just a bit differently.  I went for a bison ranch.  And no, it wasn’t just because you can make spectacular yarn from bison hair—although that was a large part of it.  One has to do one’s extensive research yes?

When the friendly folks at Lucky B Bison Ranch welcomed me with open arms, I knew I had a great setting from which to launch the fictitious Blue Thorn Ranch that would host my next five books.  Here’s another glimpse at one of my favorite videos:  me getting up close and personal with the bison.

Starting with February’s The Texas Rancher’s Return, you’ll get to meet matriarch Adele Buckton and her five strong willed grandchildren as each of them returns to the family ranch.  First up is Gunner, Jr, who is determined to live down his black sheep reputation and save the family land by creating a thriving bison ranch.  Beautiful single mom Brooke Calder needs the cooperation of the Buckton family to save her job, but she’ll lose her heart to Gunner before the adventure is over.  Throw in Brooke’s adorable daughter, one bull-headed mama bison, and a thorny misunderstanding, and you have what’s become one of my favorite books I’ve ever written.

I hope you’ll enjoy all the books in the Blue Thorn Ranch series as they arrive.

Crazy Days!

Allie Pleiter here.  This past week was a crazy/happy/busy one for me!

Last Friday I had the honor to accept the RT Reviewer’s Choice Award for Best Love Inspired Novel at the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention in Dallas TX.  My book A Heart to Heal earned the distinction.  

I love a celebration, so I made the most of it, getting all dressed up and having a splendid evening with my friend and fellow nominee Lenora Worth.  Often our lives as writers are quiet and solitary, so the chance to get out and celebrate with friends is a welcome event for this raging extrovert!  It’s always nice to have our work recognized, isn’t it?  Congrats also go to other LI author recipients Janet Lee Barton and Jodie Bailey.

From one extreme to the other—I spent the next night visiting my new friends (four-legged and otherwise) at the Lucky B Bison Ranch in Bryan, TX.  The owners and I have become friends since I started researching my upcoming Blue Thorn Ranch series which will debut next year.  From evening gown galas to bison ranch pastures—I have the best job ever, don’t I?

Then I shifted again, this time to Austin TX to help my son move out of his University of Texas freshman year dorm and come home for the summer.  A large, tedious job made better by outstanding meals upon our return to Dallas for the flight home: barbecue, fried chicken, and pie.  You know how I love pie.  Pie makes everything better (and yes, yes it did).

Now life has calmed down.  I’m back in Illinois working away on the Lone Star Cowboy League continuity series that comes out this fall and a second Blue Thorn Ranch book for next year.  My diet had better calm down, too, although turkey breast and rye crackers can’t compare to all the Texan goodies I enjoyed!

Murder at Granite Falls

I've been adding to my Big Sky Secrets series for Love Inspired Suspense this year...with Murder at Granite Falls coming out the beginning of April (in just a few weeks!) followed by the the fifth in the series, Duty to Protect, in December.  Though my books have been set in many different parts of the USA, I keep coming back to the West--Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Texas.  I love the grandeur of the Rockies and the wide open spaces of cattle country!

But even as I write these words, my thoughts and prayers keep winging back to the people of Japan.  I can't even begin to imagine the destruction and the horrific loss of life there, even though the TV, newspaper and Internet provide constant updates.
We were in Hawaii when the earthquake and tsunami hit Japan.  All through the night, loudspeakers blared throughout our beachfront hotel, warning but also reassuring the guests....and in the middle of the night, the first three floors of the resort were evacuated to shelters at the local high schools.  As I was moving our rental car to higher ground, I saw a steady stream of families with fearful children trudging out to shuttle buses, clutching pillows.  The tsunami didn't affect the coastline where we were, so we were fortunate.   But Japan has faced such a tragedy, I can hardly comprehend it.

What part of the country are you in?  We see tornadoes and blizzards in the upper Midwest.  Have you been through terrible weather situations?  How did you cope?

Roxanne
www.roxannerustand.com
http://roxannerustand.blogspot.com