Forbidden Son: An Interview with Author Loretta C. Rogers

From romances to westerns, Loretta C. Rogers writes something for everyone. Please welcome her today as we chat about her book, Forbidden Son. Welcome Loretta!

If you had to sum up FORBIDDEN SON in 30 or less words, what would you say?

Allow me to use a cliché to sum up FORBIDDEN SON, which is that “when life gives you lemons—make lemonade.” This is what the heroine does with her life.

What inspired the idea for your book?

I read a newspaper article about a soldier who had lost both legs while in Afghanistan; his wife couldn’t cope, so she divorced him. In another news article there was a story about a girl who ran away from an abusive home. A story formulated and FORBIDDEN SON was born, except with a happy ending.

What kind of research was involved for FORBIDDEN SON?

This story is a series of flashbacks and flash forwards. There is a segment that takes place in Rwanda, Africa when missionaries were murdered during the 1950’s, and then I needed a battle scene in the late 1960’s for a scene that takes place in Vietnam. Finding the correct information took time.

Do you have a favorite character in FORBIDDEN SON? Who and why?

Mary Alice Hartwell, the hero’s mother, is my favorite character. She is a true southern belle with a quirky personality. Sadly, she suffers from Alzheimer’s and eventually dies.

Without giving it all away, please tell us a little something about how Honey is going to get through her biggest challenge.

Forced to quit school at the age of sixteen, Honey Belle Garrett, is considered poor white trash. She certainly isn’t the perfect match for Tripp Hartwell III, the son of South Carolina’s governor. When the governor threatens to hurt Honey Belle’s family if she doesn’t get out of town, she must choose between her love for Tripp or the well-fare of her mother and father.

What has been your greatest pleasure in writing this book?

While writing the book, I enjoyed researching Africa and Vietnam. However, my greatest pleasure has actually come after the book was published. I have received numerous emails from readers telling me how much the book reminded them of certain parts of their own lives. Some said they wept; all said they couldn’t stop turning the pages. These are sweet words to my ears.

What is your favorite non-writing time?

I enjoy traveling. My husband and I belong to a travel group. When I’m not writing, I enjoy either a day trip on the motorcycle or a multi-day trip with the group. And I always take a book to read.

What do you have in store next for your readers?

COWGIRL COURAGE, published by Avalon Books, is due to release mid-December. This is a western about an eleven year old girl who breaks her father out of jail to keep him from hanging. Ten years later she disguises herself as a man and returns to Rio Hondo, Texas, to find out who framed her father and why. She soon discovers that pretending to be a man isn’t easy; especially when she meets up with a friend who is no longer a gangly lad, but a handsome rancher.

How do you unwind after a long writing session?

After a long day at the computer, I enjoy sitting in my recliner and watching my favorite television shows—Dancing with the Stars; American Idol; Dallas; Criminal Minds (to name a few).

Laptop, desktop or notebook and pen for writing?

I can’t imagine writing with a pen and yellow notepad. My office would look like something out of a cartoon with wadded yellow balls piled to the ceiling. Although I have a laptop, it bothers my carpal tunnel, so I use a desktop.

Do you have plans for a new book? Is this book part of a series?

I have just completed a historical western romance with paranormal elements. It needs a bit of rewriting before I submit it. Currently, I’m working on a historical romance that takes place during the Sapoy Wars in India.

You’re spending one year living on a desert island—which three authors do you want with you?

I couldn’t pass up this question. It’s just too fun. Nora Roberts, John Grisham, and Margaret Mitchel. I can conjure up what kind of novels the four of us would write while finding creative ways to survive on the island until we’re rescued.

The Book

High school dropout Honey Belle Garret never thought of herself as poor white trash—just poor. In the summer of 1964, her world changes forever when sinfully sexy and very rich, Tripp Hartwell III offers her a ride in his convertible. When Tripp proposes marriage, it is the happiest day of Honey Belle’s life. Then, unbeknownst to Tripp, dire threats from his father force Honey Belle and her family out of town and into silence. Hidden in another state, Honey Belle determines, successfully, to make something of herself. She keeps a scrapbook of news clippings about the young man she had to leave behind. Seventeen years later Tripp is not only a lawyer like his father but a Vietnam War hero and a United States senator. Before anyone can question the strong resemblance between him and a new congressional page, Honey Belle has to tell Tripp the truth. And he must come to terms with the knowledge that he has a son by the woman who stole his heart and then mysteriously disappeared.

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Available in both print and ebook

Rating: Spicy

Buy Link to Forbidden Son from – The Wild Rose Press  http://bit.ly/zShp1l

Buy Link to Forbidden Son from – Amazon.com http://amzn.to/z55cqh

An Excerpt

He towered over her, his stare drilling into her. His eyes seemed to capture her from hair to high-heeled shoes. Clearing her throat, she tried to appear businesslike.

“Have I changed so much that you don’t recognize me, Tripp?” This wasn’t at all the way she had rehearsed the scene in her head. She didn’t blink an eye—afraid any reaction might betray her uncertainty.

“Look, miss, I don’t have time for twenty questions. I meet a lot of people, if—”

She wanted him to remember, to remember her, to remember—what? That seventeen years ago she had walked away from him? That she hadn’t had the courage to stand up to his father and fight for her position in the life of the man she loved. That for sixteen years she had raised the son he never knew existed. She should never have left Tripp. So much guilt, for so many mistakes. She had no one to blame but herself.

She lifted her eyes to his. “Seventeen years ago, in Charleston, South Carolina, I asked you to take me for a ride in your shiny white BMW.”

The silence of the office closed in around her.

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