Welcome author Laura Trentham to the Reading Nook as we chat about their latest book, A Highlander Walks into a Bar.
What inspired you to
write A Highlander Walks into a Bar?
It was actually a
Buick car commercial from a couple of years ago where a grandson picks his
grandmother up from the airport and she says saucily, “I did a lot of shopping
in Italy.” From behind her luggage steps an Italian gentleman. Of course, my
writer brain kept picturing what happened after the three of drove off and
twisted it into an entire story but had to make up a town for them to return
to!
Another big
inspiration is a real-life place: Helen, Georgia, is a town that has
transformed itself into a German village. It’s picturesque and they celebrate
Octoberfest every year. I twisted that concept and made my little town of
Highland, Georgia, into a Scottish village including an annual Highland Games
that the Buchanan ladies put on every summer which is an important aspect of
the book.
Introduce us to your
main characters!
Isabel Buchanan is the
daughter who picks her mother up from the airport only to be surprised by the
appearance of Gareth Blackmoor, who happens to be keeping his title of Earl of
Cairndow a secret from everyone in Highland, Georgia, including Rose Buchanan,
Isabel’s mother.
Alasdair Blackmoor is
Gareth’s nephew and heir to the title and castle in Scotland. He’s been sent to
round up his wandering uncle and to make sure he isn’t being taken advantage of
by some pushy American women. Complications ensue, including love (of course!)
Lots of aspiring
authors out there. Any advice for them?
To become a better
writer, you must write. Sounds simple, but I know so many aspiring authors who
get stuck in their own head. They plot and make inspiration boards and talk
about writing, but when the fingers hit the keyboard, they get mired in doubts.
Just get the words down. They don’t have to be perfect; they don’t even have to
be good, but you can’t fix a blank page!
How is A Highlander
Walks into a Bar different from your other books?
While it’s still a Southern small town romance, it has a definite
rom-com vibe. Expect low angst and lots of laughs! I love to read reviews where
they reader has literally laughed out loud at several points.
I know asking
someone’s all-time favorite book is a loaded question so what’s your current
favorite read?
Two series I have
loved lately are Katherine Arden’s Winternight Trilogy (a fantasy retelling
weaving medieval Russian history and folklore) and Deanna Raybourn’s Veronica
Speedwell’s mysteries (a Victorian butterfly hunter teams up with a taxidermist
to solve mysteries. I mean, seriously, how can you beat that combo?!)
Alright, the ultimate
question: why should we read your book?
If you need a
pick-me-up, good-time, laugh-out-loud book, then read A Highlander Walks into a Bar!
Favorite quote or
scene you wrote in A Highlander Walks
into a Bar?
As
the woman continued to stare at him as if he were the bearer of the bubonic
plague, his smile faltered. He stuck out a hand. “I’m Alasdair
Blackmoor.”
Although
he registered a split-second hesitation on her part, she took his hand. “Isabel
Buchanan.”
Her
handshake was firm and no-nonsense, but her palm was soft and her hand small in
his. On closer inspection, her eyes striated into all different shades of brown
and amber, and freckles dusted her cheeks. He hung on to her hand for too long,
but couldn’t seem to pry himself away.
Breaking
the spell, she wrested her hand from his, pulling it into a fist. Was she
planning on throat-punching him? He rubbed his neck and took a step back, out
of the radius of her magnetic energy, and her reach. On her approach, she’d
seemed birdlike, insignificant even, but up close, he was having a hard time
not staring like a first-class prat.
He
was punch-drunk with exhaustion. It was the only logical explanation.
She
stuck her hands into the back pockets of her jeans, stretching her red V-neck
T-shirt tight. His gaze dipped instinctively and then stuck around to read the
print on the pocket over the soft curve of her left breast: Highland. The Heart
of Scotland in the Blue Ridge.
She
cleared her throat. His gaze shot to hers, and he blinked to try to refocus his
thoughts. “I was admiring . . . I mean, reading your shirt.”
“It’s
not a novel.”
His
face heated. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d blushed this hot and
fierce.
What inspired you to become a writer?
I’ve always been (and still am) a huge reader.
My youngest child started preschool and I wasn’t ready to go back to work in
what I’m trained for (chemical engineering) so I sat down one morning and
started writing a book. I didn’t tell anyone what I was doing until I was
around halfway done and loving every minute! That book became a Golden Heart
finalist, got me an agent, and is published as An Indecent Invitation, a Regency historical.
What is a typical writing day like?
During the school year, I work while the kids
are in school. I love the flexibility of being there to pick my kids up and
drive them to soccer or gymnastics or chaperoning field trips, etc.
Do you have any interesting writing quirks or
habits?
My only habit is a bad one in that I drink *way*
too much coffee while I’m writing! It’s become a ritual, I suppose.
What has been one of the most surprising things
you’ve learned as a published author?
How slow the industry can move, but also how
quickly changes have come because of indie publishing.
Can you tell us about what’s coming up next
after this for you writing wise?
For my contemporary fans, I have my second
women’s fiction releasing early February 2020, An Everyday Hero. The second book in the Highland, Georgia, series,
A Highlander in a Pickup, releases
late February 2020.
For my historical romance fans, look out for A Wicked Wedding in the Once Upon a
Christmas Wedding anthology releasing in October 2019. And two more full length
books in the Spies and Lovers series, A
Sinful Surrender and A Daring Deception,
coming sometimes in mid to late 2020!
How can readers connect with you online?
Or join my reader group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1733284316920632/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LauraTrentham
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lauratrentham/
Follow me on Bookbub for
new release or sale announcements: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/laura-trentham
A Highlander Walks into a Bar by Laura Trentham
Buy-book link: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250315021
Synopsis:
The
timeless romance, soaring passion—and gorgeous men—of Scotland comes to
modern-day America. And the rules of love will never be the same…
Isabel
Buchanan is fiery, funny, and never at a loss for words. But she is struck
speechless when her mother returns from a trip to Scotland with a
six-foot-tall, very handsome souvenir. Izzy’s mother is so infatuated by the
fellow that Izzy has to plan their annual Highland Games all by herself. Well,
not completely by herself. The Highlander’s strapping young nephew has come
looking for his uncle…
Alasdair
Blackmoor has never seen a place as friendly as this small Georgia town—or a
girl as brilliant and beguiling as Izzy. Instead of saving his uncle, who seems
to be having a lovely time, Alasdair decides he’d rather help Izzy with the
Highland Games. Show her how to dance like a Highlander. Drink like a
Highlander. And maybe, just maybe, fall in love with a Highlander. But when the
games are over, where do they go from here?
“I brought home a surprise!” Rose Buchanan threw her arms out wide as if embracing the world. From the stories she told to the way she entered
the room, Rose was exuberant and entertaining and enjoyed being the center of
attention.
Isabel Buchanan, who was perfectly content
on the fringes, pushed her wavy hair off her sticky forehead with hands
that trembled from the nightmare drive through
Atlanta to the airport to pick up her mom. Her mom’s trip to Scotland had doubled as both research and vacation.
The jammed stop-and-go traffic
had left Izzy flustered
and already dreading their exit from the airport.
Rolling her stiff shoulders, Izzy stepped around the bumper of the car, popping
the trunk open on the way. Her mom had a beautiful plaid scarf of greens and browns and blues tossed over her shoulder
and what appeared to be new earrings. Either purchase might inspire
her mother to gush, and she would expect reciprocal gushing from Izzy. Making an educated guess, Izzy asked, “Are those earrings your surprise?”
Without waiting for an
answer, she hauled one of her mom’s giant wheeled suitcases closer and prepared to heave it into the back. The sooner they got out of Atlanta,
the sooner she could
get back to work planning
the Highland festival.
Or she might pour an extra-large glass of wine and escape into a book. A guilty pleasure, considering how much she still had to get in order in three scant weeks.
“Allow me,
please.” A bearded
man who had been rolling cases to the curb stepped forward with a grin and an accent
Izzy couldn’t place.
She checked her
pockets and winced. No cash to tip the man, and no hope her mom had thought
of something so inconsequential.
“Do you like
them? They’re hammered silver.” Her mom flipped her bobbed matching silver hair to the side and displayed one earring
with her fingers. “And as a matter of fact, I did buy
them from a lovely
shop in Edinburgh, but I brought something
bigger home. Something more
exciting.”
“Your scarf? It’s lovely.” Izzy
gave her mom limited attention
while she watched the man load suitcase after suitcase
into her trunk, fitting them together like a puzzle.
More luggage than her mom had left with. She waved to catch the man’s attention. “Hang on. That’s not all my mom’s stuff.”
For the first time, Izzy
really looked at the man. He was close to her mom in age, and
good-looking in a
bear- like way with a gleaming white smile highlighted by a salt-and-pepper beard. His full head of hair was a shade darker,
but graying heavily at the temples.
The expressionsion on the man’s face when he looked in her mom’s direction—a mix of adoration and amusement—cleared the fog of confusion.
Lord have mercy, her mother had brought back a six- foot, two-hundred-pound-plus
souvenir from Scotland.
Author Bio:
Laura Trentham is an award-winning author of contemporary
and historical romance, including Then He Kissed Me and The
Military Wife. She is a member of RWA, and has been a finalist multiple
times in the Golden Heart competition. A chemical engineer by training and a
lover of books by nature, she lives in South Carolina.
No comments:
Post a Comment