What, might you ask, does a baby elephant have to do with my work as an author? Well, I’m so glad you asked. As it turns out, elephants figure into some of the research I’m doing for my sequel to LILY OF THE NILE (my forthcoming book from Berkley about Cleopatra’s Daughter, Selene, to be released January 2011).

The guy pictured above is an Indian elephant, which is a smaller breed than the more well-known Ethiopian Elephant (now known as the African Elephant). There used to be a third kind.

The elephants that Hannibal took over the Alps were North African elephants, now extinct, but Cleopatra Selene’s husband Juba wrote extensively about the species and described it as having an uncanny intelligence.

Okay, so that gave me my excuse to post an adorable baby animal picture!

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Shattered

Quinn Rafferty is working as a bounty hunter and bail bondsman in St. Louis when a new neighbor catches his eye. He’s tempted by her beauty—but he knows from experience that anyone desperate enough to live in his building is damaged goods. Besides, he has his own soul to mend before he can worry about anyone else.

Desperate

Sara Davis is on the run, but not for the usual reasons a woman goes on the lam. She’s not an abused wife, and she’s not a criminal. But she does have a plan for her future. And as much as she finds herself attracted to her gruff, tough neighbor, she can’t risk telling him the secrets she’s hiding. There’s just too much at stake.

Driven to desire…

But Quinn must get closer to Sara when she turns out to be the target of his new missing persons case, and he discovers that there is something more complex and dangerous to her than he thought. Now, both Quinn and Sara will have to expose their true feelings—as well as their fragile hearts—if they hope their love will survive…

EXCERPT

He opened the door—

And stopped dead in his tracks as somebody all but fell into his arms. Somebody…a woman. And not Theresa.

He caught her just above her elbows, automatically steadying her.

“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice soft and low.

Then she lifted her face and Quinn found himself gazing into the biggest, brownest eyes he’d ever seen in his life. Feeling a little dazed, he studied her face while she stammered out another apology.

Quinn barely heard it.

He was too busy staring at her mouth. A very pretty mouth, a cupid’s bow mouth slicked with deep, vibrant red. Under his hands, he could feel silken smooth skin and unable to resist, he stroked a thumb along her inner arm.

Her skin was soft, soft and warm. He was also pretty sure she had the creamiest, most flawless skin imaginable. Her shoulder-length hair was a shade caught between blonde and brown, nondescript, but for some reason, he found himself thinking about tangling his fingers in that hair and holding her head still while he kissed that red-slicked mouth.

Well, hello…

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I suspect Supernatural might have something to do with this, but it looks like the new trend is going to be angels. I personally find them more fascinating than vampires, but maybe that’s just because of a certain angel in a trench coat. What interests me most about this is the socio-political implications:

“As we understand it, angel books are appealing to the same people who were reading so-called misery memoirs,” says Michelle Pilley, MD and publisher of Hay House, which publishes angelic bestsellers by Jacky Newcomb and Doreen Virtue.

Tales of tragic childhoods were big sellers in recent years, but since the recession sales of the genre have dropped dramatically. According to supermarkets, where misery memoirs have always sold strongly, the same readers have turned to angels instead.

These angel books particularly appeal to people who do not feel a connection to traditional religion. “I think people find (angels) very approachable,” says Pilley.

“They’re very accessible. People study the different archangels and their different attributes, and they feel they can have a direct personal connection to these angels in a way they may not be able to do with a God. You have personal (guardian) angels, who are (devoted to) you as an individual, and people without strong religious faith may not feel God has such a personal interest.”

I’m putting together a workshop on Bad Girls in Fiction. If you don’t see your favorite bad girl here, suggest one to me and I’ll add her to the list! Also, if you want to explain why you like a particular bad girl, I’d love to hear your comments! Also, I’d like to know what [...]