Please join me in welcoming Katie O'Boyle, author of the Lakeside Porches series, warm-hearted romances about healing, hope, and love.
Gwen Forrester, Ph.D., is a beautiful
widow and a therapist specializing in addiction and abuse issues. You’d
think her search for a good man would turn up more than eye candy, but
she’s stuck in the past, attracted only to men who look like her late
husband, the Ivy League lawyer.
When her very pregnant niece Haley
breaks into Gwen’s lakeside home, Gwen rethinks her choices.
Investigating the break-in is Officer Peter Shaughnessy, a macho cop
who’s new in town and recently divorced. Maybe it’s hormones radiating
from Haley, but Gwen’s convinced she wants a baby with this Adonis in
uniform.
Format(s): Kindle
Print Length: 356 pages
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing (February 2, 2015)
Get your copy at Amazon!
What type of hero do you like best?
I see a lot of book covers with
nearly-naked alpha males, and I have to say they’re not my type. Don’t shoot
me! I like a man with integrity, intelligence, and a sense of humor. Sure, he
has to be sexy and good-looking, but I like a hero who wants a partnership with
a woman and who admires her thinking and talent and compassion for others. And,
of, course, to get the story started, my favorite hero needs to be thrown for a
loop by the heroine and ultimately willing to change his life to make a future
with her.
What is your favorite scene in your
latest release, Finding the Way Back To Love?
Writing the scene in which Peter and
Gwen crash Gwen’s canoe allowed me to draw on my own love of canoeing and on
some harrowing experiences boating on the lakes. Gwen and Peter share a love of
canoeing, and both of them are physically strong and very fit. They set off
from Gwen’s house on Chestnut Lake (in the Finger Lakes of Upstate New York) to
paddle the 20-mile eastern shore for one last look at the brilliant fall
foliage. Characteristically, Gwen hasn’t checked the weather report. Although
Peter knows there is a storm coming, being new to the area, he doesn’t understand
how destructive a storm can be on a lake, so he hasn’t mentioned it. When the
storm strikes, they are on the stretch of shore with no landing place and no
shelter. Peter and Gwen’s push for survival taps every reserve of their
strength and sets the stage for an explosive argument that nearly destroys
their love for each other. As a writer, I drew on my experiences canoeing with
a partner in all kinds of weather. I relived the teamwork, the sounds and
sights and smells of the lakes, the feel of the wind and waves, the physical
reality of paddling under adverse conditions, and the terror of the storm. It
was a challenge to write, and I hope it’s a thrill to read.
Give us an insight into your main
character. What does she do that is so special?
On the surface, psychologist Gwen
Forrester has it all. She’s beautiful, fit, well-off, and a respected member of
her community. As a recovering alcoholic, she has devoted her professional and
personal life to helping other alcoholics. Yet she’s in complete denial about
the problems in her marriage to hero Jeb Brewster, her first husband, who was
killed while rescuing young skiers. That mental block will cost her the love of
Peter Shaughnessy, the man she wants to marry and raise a family with. Finding
her way back to love will require a disturbing walk down memory lane with her
oldest friend Lorraine. And, even harder, she’ll have to tell the truth to
Peter.
Which writers inspire you?
What an interesting question! First, I
learn something from every writer, including those in my writing groups and
those who submit to contests that I judge. I’m repeatedly surprised by the
courage of new writers and the compulsion to create that we share as writers.
Second, I’m challenged to keep learning and growing as a writer, by those whose
work I greatly respect and enjoy: mystery writer Louise Penny; romance writer
Mariah Stewart; clever, classic mystery writers Peter Lovesey and Agatha
Christie. Finally, author G. K. Chesterton’s humor and insight are guiding
forces in my writing.
Favorite color?
Green! I’m Irish, and probably my soul
is green.
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Check out the first two books in the Lakeside Porches series!
Book One
Miracles
happen when romance is higher-powered. A
lakeside porch in the Finger Lakes is the perfect spot for a quiet moment or a
heart-to-heart with your special someone. Joel and Manda’s first heart-to-heart
on the breakfast porch at the Manse Inn and Spa is anything but romantic. Joel
the owner of the Manse is furious with his junior accountant for using one of
the spa showers. If Manda didn’t have a desperate story and a spectacular body,
Joel might not be feeding her breakfast and falling in love. Can Manda get
sober, clean up her act, and open her heart to her rich, hunky boss? Fall in
love with Joel and Manda in Stepping Up To Love. Available
at Amazon.
Book Two
Meet & Connect with the Author
Born in the upstate-New York village known as the Birthplace of Women's Rights, I love the Finger Lakes in every season. I enjoy lunch with friends in our beautiful lake towns, and I cherish the lakeside porch as a place for intimate sharing, laughter, and inspiration.
