Author Spotlight - Excerpt from "It's Complicated"

Thank you so much for supporting Angela during her spotlight week. Leave a comment today, Saturday, and Sunday with your email contact info and I'll pick a winner on Monday to receive a PDF copy of Angela's story, "It's Complicated." Enjoy this excerpt!
Moderator Steph

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THE SET UP:
Ash has met Emily at his uncle's New Year's Day party and is more than interested. As she leaves he watches from the window to size up the situation between her and Peter, a man who may or may not be a rival.


Ash escaped his uncle's boring friends under the pretense of bringing in more drinks. He grabbed a couple of wine bottles from the cupboard under the stairs and slipped into the empty dining room.

Easing the curtain back, he watched.

The couple walked towards a small red car parked by the gate. The man's arm wasn't slipped proprietarily around the woman and they weren't holding hands. There was no repeat of the earlier display of fake affection. The charming Miss Emily Worthing didn't realize she was dealing with a professional poker player. Body language was his specialty, and Peter Collins' had shouted tense and awkward when he was being kissed. She'd done it for a reason and Ash was pretty certain he was part of the equation.

Being forced to lie low in god-forsaken Cornwall, hundreds of miles from London was pretty grim. A little amusement in the form of the tempting Emily might help alleviate the boredom. The twin sister was more obviously stunning with her tight red dress, ankle-breaking stilettos and glossy blond curls but wouldn't be a challenge. She'd made it obvious he could've had her for the asking tonight. Normally he wouldn't hesitate, but then he caught Emily's eye and a rush of something deeper than desire surged through him. Her surprise as he checked her out made him think she wasn't used to a lot of male attention. Up close, the simple black dress and lack of make-up hinted at a woman uneasy with her beauty, and she was a beauty. Ash ached to touch her creamy smooth skin and lose himself in those deep blue eyes. Her mass of ash blond hair was caught loosely back in a ponytail making him itch to untie it and play with the silky strands.

Ash liked to live outside the box and Emily would make an interesting change from his usual type. He stood and watched some more. Knowing your competition was crucial to success in poker and in life.

Find Angela at:

'Opposites Attract' available now from www.desertbreezepublishing.com
www.angelabritnellromance.com
www.twitter.com/angelabritnell
www.facebook.com/angelabritnell

Author Spotlight Join Angela Britnell in St. Minton today.

Cornwall is full of small villages, we only have one official city, so when I wanted a setting for IT'S COMPLICATED it wasn't hard to create St. Minton. Bodmin Moor is one the last unspoiled areas in the south west of England and is dominated by dramatic granite tors which tower over the open moorland. In St. Minton most of the houses are plain moorland cottages, mostly built of locally mined granite.

We'll walk through the main street, really the only one, and see what we find. There's the small village shop on the right which bewilders Ash with its strange mixture of goods on sale -- from curry powder to Marmite. My characters all live close together meaning there are very few secrets, the same as most old-fashioned English villages and perfect for story setting. Emily's house, the one she grew up in is across the road from Dr. Wilson's. Ash's uncle has been the village doctor over forty years and holds his surgery (the expression we use for where he practices medicine) in a small office about a five minute walk from his house. A couple of doors away from Emily is her friend Peter's house. Claire, Emily's twin sister, lives in the Old Rectory a little further along the road, although she spends her working week in Plymouth where she owns a modern apartment. Now we're outside the door of the 'Smugglers Inn'. This has been the village pub for about the last 150 years and hasn't changed much in all that time. If you want somewhere with noisy music and video games this isn't your place but if you're after good local ale and well-cooked food then go on in and stay a while. You can even try Emily's favorite meal, the chicken curry, she's been ordering the same thing since she's been old enough to go inside. Next to the pub is the fifteenth century church, as it is in most villages.

Built of local stone it's watched over and been a part of village life for centuries. Unfortunately these days it's locked most of the time to deter vandals, and used most by people who want a picturesque setting for their weddings and christenings. We're at the end of the street now with only the local garage to pass before we're once more heading out of St. Minton and off to see more of nearby Bodmin Moor. Maybe we'll go and climb up Rough Tor, follow in Emily and Ash's footsteps by going to Altarnun or hope to catch a sight of the shaggy moorland ponies.

I hope you've enjoyed having a look around St. Minton today and will come back again.

Author Spotlight - Character Interview with Dr. Wilson from "It's Complicated"

Angela: Good morning, Doctor Wilson. I'd love to talk to you about Emily and Ash if you've got time before your next patient.

Dr.W: I'm not about to tell you anything they wouldn't tell you themselves.
Angela: Of course not, I'm just interested in finding out more about them both. Why don't you start with Ash, I believe he's your nephew?

Dr.W: Yes, he's my late sister Laura's youngest boy. His proper name's Charles but I'm about the only one who calls him that these days.

Angela. Why do you smile when you talk about him?

Dr.W: The darn boy always makes me do that, against my better judgment. From a little boy he was always the troublesome one. Too much energy and hopeless at obeying rules, that's Charles.

Angela: Is he an only child?

Dr.W: No, he's got an older brother, John, who's quite different being very responsible and law abiding.

Angela: You're fond of Ash though, aren't you?

Dr.W: I didn't ought to be. His family used to send him to me when he'd been a nuisance and I'd try to get him to behave. He wouldn't come when he got older and I hadn't seen him for a long while until the other day when he turned up on my doorstep. I'm pretty sure he's up to no good again.

Angela: What's the problem?

DrW: He hasn't told me the full story yet but it's something to do with his poker playing. No sort of life for a decent man in my opinion, but I'm just an old country doctor so what do I know?

Angela: What do you think about his...interest in Emily Worthing?

Dr.W: I'm not happy about it. She's a good girl, I've watched her grow up and she hasn't had an easy life recently.

Angela: In what way?

Dr.W: None of your business, young lady. Let's just say that the last thing she needs is to get mixed up with my flighty nephew.

Angela: Maybe she'd be the making of him. The proverbial love of a good woman might sort him out.

Dr.W: Poppycock. It'd take more than that to straighten the boy up.

Angela: So you don't see there being anything lasting between them?

Dr.W: Not in a million years. He'll run off back to his wild lifestyle as soon as it's safe to do so, and if she's not careful young Emily will be left with a broken heart.

Angela: Right, well, I understand. Thanks for sharing your insights with me and I'll be interested to see if you're proved right. I hope for their sake you're wrong.

Find Angela at:

'Opposites Attract' available now from www.desertbreezepublishing.com
www.angelabritnellromance.com
www.twitter.com/angelabritnell
www.facebook.com/angelabritnell

Author Spotlight - Angela Britnell gushes about Cornwall, England

Today I'm indulging us all by talking about my favorite place on earth so make a pot of tea, put up your feet, and enjoy. IT'S COMPLICATED is set mainly in Cornwall where I was born and grew up. For those who don't know Cornwall is in the far south west of England. In other words if you head down from London eventually you'll reach Land's End and could potentially fall off into the sea!

It's one of the Celtic nations with its own flag, language and culture, now in a period of revival. With its 300 plus miles of rugged coastline, unique culture and mild climate it's a tourist's dream plus a writer's one. It's hard not to be inspired and most of my stories have their roots in Cornwall. It is remote from the rest of the country, barely joined on to England at the Tamar River so I often use it as an escape valve for my characters. Maybe they need to get away from something or someone or make a fresh start - it's perfect for any of these plot twists.

Of course I'm far from the first - and certainly not the most famous - to use Cornwall in this way. Rosamunde Pilcher, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mary Wesley and Winston Graham (check out his great Poldark series, set in the tin mining area of Cornwall) are a few authors who've written about Cornwall. The latest big name to fall under the spell is the one and only J.K. Rowling, who set part of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows there. But for me the writer who forever captured the essence of Cornwall is Daphne du Maurier. In her famous book Rebecca she used her Cornish house at Menabilly as the basis for Manderley. Jamaica Inn was set on Bodmin moor, where I've set the fictional village of St.Minton in IT'S COMPLICATED. Her short story The Birds, made into the cult Hitchcock thriller, is another Cornish story. Apart from a lot of writers, Cornwall has stimulated many artists' imagination especially painters, lured by its unique light.

If this doesn't tempt you to beat a path to Cornwall there's always the food! Local seafood caught that day, scones and Cornish cream, saffron buns and locally brewed beer are all worth a taste. But the highlight - and the reason my hips will never be slender - are the Cornish pasties. These hand held pies were especially popular with nineteenth century tin miners as a portable lunch to take with them to work. Every good Cornishwoman, and many men, has their own recipe. Traditionally they're a flaky pie crust filled with beef, potato, onion and turnip (rutabaga to all the Americans reading this). Just writing this is making me hungry so I'll have to go now, make some pasties and eat one straight from the oven, maybe even two . The craving never goes away exactly the same as my craving for Cornwall, the land and its people.

Find Angela at:

'Opposites Attract' available now from www.desertbreezepublishing.com
www.angelabritnellromance.com
www.twitter.com/angelabritnell
www.facebook.com/angelabritnell

Author Spotlight - Q&A with Angela Britnell

STEPH: I don't know much about "It's Complicated." What's it about?

ANGELA: Charles ‘Black Ash’ Ashton temporarily abandons his jet-setting lifestyle to avoid being blamed for a multi-million pound poker scam and meets quiet, elegant math teacher Emily Worthing but the odds aren’t in their favor. After a disastrous affair cost Emily her heart and prestigious job she prizes honesty above all things. Ash makes his living at the poker table, where a little deviousness and the occasional white lie never hurt. Ash must leave behind his irresponsible past and Emily searches for the strength to forge a new future. Ash puts all his cards on the table one last time and he and Emily prove they’ve an ace in the hand called love.

STEPH: How long did it take you to write?

ANGELA: Probably about four months off and on in between other projects.

STEPH: How much research did you have to do?

ANGELA: I did some research on the setting for the Ashton family home which I'd based on Trerice Manor in Cornwall. I'd been there years ago and used the wonderful internet to fill in details. I also knew nothing about poker so did a little on that. It proved to be more for insight into Ash's character as it ended up not featuring as much as I expected in the story.

STEPH: How does the cover reflect the story within?

ANGELA: The cover features a picture of Trerice Manor in Cornwall, not far from where I grew up. This is the inspiration for the imaginary Folkham Manor, my hero Ash's family home. It's been in the Ashton family for over 400 years and the family are struggling to keep it going. This becomes an important part of the story for the way it brings Ash to a reality of where his life is going, and facing some hard truths about his previous behavior.

STEPH: Emily is the heroine. What are her strengths? Weakness?

ANGELA: Emily is very intelligent, kind and loyal to her friends and family but a life-long feeling of inferiority compared to her more obviously beautiful, flamboyant twin has left her with rocky self-esteem. A disastrous affair shook her to the core, losing her a prestigious job and her faith in her judgment where men are concerned.

STEPH: What does Ash find appealing about her?

ANGELA: His initial attraction is based on curiosity and a touch of boredom. He doesn't want to be stuck in Cornwall and is looking for something or someone to liven things up. He meets Emily's twin sister Claire first but she's too much like the glamorous women he encounters in his regular life. Emily is different with her quieter beauty and soft voice. He recognizes her attraction to him but also her determination not to give in to it and Ash loves nothing better than a challenge.


STEPH: What is the theme of the novel?

ANGELA: Finding your true self. Both Emily and Ash have lost that somewhere along the way. The past shapes us all for good and bad but it doesn't have to determine the future and that's what they both need to realize in order to move forward.


STEPH: As a writer, where do you draw inspiration from?

ANGELA: Inspiration often strikes at odd moments, I know the basic plot for my last book 'Opposites Attract' came during church when I should've been listening to the sermon! It's sometimes come from an article in the newspaper, a place I visit or just from that strange place in a writer's brain no one really understands.

STEPH: Do you have an ebook reader? If so, which one?

ANGELA: I've got a Kindle which I love although I'm still a huge fan of paper books. My Kindle is perfect for my frequent trips to England saving my back from carrying too many books in my carry-on bag.

STEPH: Fun question: What is your favorite football team?

ANGELA: I'm not a huge sports fan so I'll have to split loyalties here. As homage to my husband I'll have to say Auburn but for my youngest son it has to be Tennessee. But if we're talking about real football (what you call soccer) I'll have to pick the favorite team of all my sons and that's Arsenal, the English Premier League team they all support.

Find Angela at:

'Opposites Attract' available now from www.desertbreezepublishing.com
www.angelabritnellromance.com
www.twitter.com/angelabritnell
www.facebook.com/angelabritnell

Author Spotlight - Excerpt from "Opposites Attract"

Thanks so much for supporting Angela during her spotlight week featuring "Opposites Attract." Leave a comment on the excerpt post today, Saturday, and Sunday, and on Monday I'll pick a winner out of a hat to receive a PDF copy of Angela's story, "Opposites Attract."

Enjoy the excerpt!
Smiles
Moderator Steph

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THE SET UP: Holly and Brett are in Paris for the weekend courtesy of the 'Opposites Attract' agency. They've just spent the evening touring the city with their parents and are about to return to their hotel.


Brett's hand grasped her arm and pulled her back in the shadows as their parents walked towards the waiting taxi. "You're not tired, are you? I thought we might walk back to the hotel. Maybe grab a coffee on the way."

She couldn't make the excuse of having on unsuitable shoes and didn't think she could convincingly claim the awareness zinging through her was fatigue. Before she could deny him. Brett shouted over to his father.

"We'll catch you later. Don't wait for us. We're going to walk a while and see some more sights."

There was no protest from her mother. What a surprise. Good old Mum might as well have handed her to Brett on a plate.

The black car drove away, leaving them alone on the street. Brett grabbed Holly's hand and strode off, dragging her along at his fast pace.

What was with the man?

After several minutes he slowed down, stared around and headed off again in front of the Trocadero fountains. Out of the blue, he stopped at one of the pavement cafés.

"Sit."

Holly resented being dragged around like a mongrel, and she hated taking orders. She opened her mouth to complain, but something in his no-nonsense tone made her obey. She stayed quiet as he ordered two coffees in perfect French. Well, at least she couldn't tell the difference between his accent and the waiter's.

She sipped her drink while he stared down at the table and didn't speak. Finally, Holly couldn't stand it any more. "So what's your problem now? You dragged me here and now you're glaring at the coffee cup as if it contains arsenic. If you can't be better company, I'll get a taxi and leave you to your sulk."

Brett flung his head up. "You're dense, aren't you?"

She didn't answer because he plainly didn't mean her to.

"Come on. I'll walk you home." He growled the words, making her wonder if there was some kind of latent madness in him she should worry about.

He jerked her to her feet, spilling his untouched cup. Holly watched the liquid spread over the glass table and drip off the edge to the pavement beneath.

"Why? You wanted to walk and see some more of the city..."

"No, I didn't." He fixed her with an angry stare.

"Well, that's what you said. What do you really want?"

Brett gave an exasperated sigh. "You must be the most obtuse woman on the planet. This is what I want."

He seized her face with his strong hands and pulled her close. Brett's fingers pressed into her skin and his mouth covered her lips.

At first, his kisses were hard and demanding. Just when she would have pulled away, he changed tactics and nipped gently at her lips with his teeth. The wild sensations about drove Holly out of her mind and she moaned with pleasure. His tongue teased her lips until she gave way and allowed him in. She tasted whisky and passion, and she couldn't get enough. Her skin tingled everywhere Brett touched as one large hand moved down her spine.

PUBLISHER'S BUY LINK:http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-248/Opposites-Attract-Angela-Britnell/Detail.bok

Author Spotlight - Angela Britnell talks about using theme in Opposites Attract

I was thinking about why I write a certain kind of stories and it struck me that the title of my new book sums it up perfectly. At their core my novels all involve some kind of attraction of opposites from geographical to personality or lifestyle.

In 'Opposites Attract' Holly is a very correct, neatly dressed Englishwoman with an organized life. To make things interesting she had to be unwillingly matched with Brett, her complete antithesis. He's Southern to the core, relaxed in his appearance and laid-back way of life. It's fun to play around with the culture differences and I don't need to look any further for research than my own marriage! Brett's dislike of English hamburgers and Holly's revulsion of okra are easy outward signs of the much deeper differences they need to overcome. The main characters in my next book, 'It's Complicated', are both English but are still about as opposite as possible. Emily is a quietly spoken math professor with a limited social life and content to stay that way. And then there's Ash - a tattooed professional poker player with a playboy lifestyle. When they meet it's another huge clash.

But underneath that surface oppositeness deep down my characters have to have the same desires and values. They all want to love and be loved in return, to live a good productive life and raise a family together.

The getting there can't be too easy for them because after all who wants to read about two perfectly compatible people with no obstacles to their Happy Ever After.

PUBLISHER'S BUY LINK: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-248/Opposites-Attract-Angela-Britnell/Detail.bok

Author Spotlight -Character Interview with Brett & Holly from Opposites Attract

Sally Fowke, owner of the 'Opposites Attract' dating agency, is interviewing Holly and Brett in London after their return from a weekend in Paris.

So Holly, did you enjoy Paris with the man we chose specially for you?

HOLLY. Paris was lovely and it was a pleasure to spend time with my mother.

Brett, I think the lady's being coy. How would you say the weekend went?

BRETT. Being a gentleman I'm not about to do a kiss and tell. Let's just say we had us a pretty good time didn't we sweetheart?

HOLLY. That's one way of phrasing it but how many times have I asked you to use my proper name? You wouldn't want me to revert to calling you a ..."

You two certainly have a little spark going. Are you both glad you signed up for my wonderful agency?

BRETT. It's sure been an experience. Y'all certainly know what you're doin.'

HOLLY. Oh for goodness sake -- when are you going to stop laying on the syrupy charm?

BRETT. When it stops workin' honey.

HOLLY. I've had enough I'm off.

But I haven't finished. I need a photo of you together for the newspaper.

HOLLY. I hope you're joking.

BRETT. What is it you Brits say? Don't be a spoilsport? Come here and snuggle into me.

HOLLY. Not in this lifetime.

I think we'll leave it for now. You're probably both tired.

BRETT. I sure am. She about wore me out.

HOLLY. That's it I've had quite enough. Miss. Fowke I'd appreciate you taking me off the agency's books. One weekend was more than enough.

Some women don't know when they're lucky, do they Mister Adair?

BRETT. They sure don't. But she will soon. I can promise you that.

PUBLISHER'S BUY LINK: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-248/Opposites-Attract-Angela-Britnell/Detail.bok

Author Spotlight - Q&A with Angela Britnell

STEPH: I don't know much about "Opposites Attract." What's it about?

ANGELA: The 'Opposites Attract' dating agency has the theory if normal matchmaking hasn't worked for you then try it their way. They turn things around and purposely mismatch people. Holly and Brett are content with their single lives but their parents aren't and give them subscriptions to the agency. Holly, an uptight British policewoman and Brett, a laid-back Southern writer couldn't be more opposite. They're thrown together on a weekend in Paris. It turns magical but secrets, lies and sheer stubbornness threaten the romance before it hardly gets off the ground. Holly and Brett will fight love all the way and it’s a question of who’ll give in first.

STEPH: Where did you find the inspiration for the story?

ANGELA: So many people these days find love in what would’ve been considered unconventional ways. I kept reading about on-line dating sites and agencies and they all stress how carefully they try to match people. It got me thinking about what would happen if they purposely did the opposite. Also I’ve been married for nearly 30 years to a wonderful man and we're opposite in many ways. I’m pretty sure no dating agency would ever have matched us.

STEPH: How long did it take to write?

ANGELA: I think about four months – it was one of those stories which flowed pretty quickly.

STEPH: Did you have to do a lot of research for the story?



ANGELA: Not too much. The three settings for the story are all places I’ve been. Plymouth in England was very familiar as it’s not that far from where I grew up and I lived near there while in the Royal Navy many years ago. I’ve been to Paris several times so just needed to do some online research to refresh my memory about certain places. As for the Smokey Mountains I’ve visited there multiple times. On one visit there I photographed a log cabin which a year later was the inspiration for Brett’s favorite home.

STEPH: Holly is the heroine. What are her strengths? Weaknesses?

ANGELA: Her strengths are that she’s very smart, determined and completely focused on her job. She’s also very loyal to the mother who’s essentially brought her up alone. The problem is that the same determination and focus are also her weaknesses at times. She doesn’t believe it’s possible to have a private life and do her job well. Holly’s seen a lot of police marriages fail because of those conflicts. Also she is wary of loving a man ‘too much’ because she saw how hard it was for her own mother to keep going after her father’s tragic death.

STEPH: What does Brett find appealing about Holly?

ANGELA: Physically he’s very attracted to her and enjoys the fact she’s intelligent and he can talk to her both in and out of the bedroom. He appreciates her witty sense of humor when she relaxes enough to show him that side of her.

STEPH: Hollywood is calling. Cast the main characters.

ANGELA: I’d try to persuade Dierks Bentley the country singer to take the part of Brett – he just looks so much like the Brett of my imagination. Emily Blunt could do Holly well – she’d just need a little time in the tanning salon to mimic Holly’s Mediterranean coloring better!

STEPH: Do you have a eBook reader? If so, which one? What do you like about it?

ANGELA: I got a Kindle about three years ago and love it although I still read plenty of print books as well. I travel back to England frequently and it saves me carrying five or six books in my carry on bag. Another bonus is the fact I can watch TV and read at the same time without my hated bi-focal glasses by adjusting the Kindle’s font size.

STEPH: What's your writing space like?

When my oldest son moved out several years ago I commandeered his bedroom and turned it into my office. I painted it peach and put up lace curtains to guarantee he wouldn’t want it back! I’ve got a lovely oak desk which belonged to my father-law, a sofa, bookcase and most important of all a tea table. Without regular doses of hot tea this writing brain doesn’t function!

STEPH: Fun question: Do you make new year's resolutions? Did you make one this year?

ANGELA: I have done in the past but not this year – it’s one less thing to fail at!