I’m catching a flight at 5:30 a.m. this morning to head to a writer’s retreat up in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. I’ve only been to Pennsylvania once before, and I’m really excited about having the chance to return. It will be chilly, but there will be plenty of warm spirit as 7 of us come together to write, brainstorm, and simply get away from it all. We even plan to write by the fire at Hershey Lodge one afternoon before having dinner there. Between that and a tour of Amish country, we are going to have a wonderful time filling our creative wells. Lots of sleeping in, chick flicks, and local adventures will be enjoy by all as well.
So, since I’ll be out of pocket much of the day today, I thought I’d keep this post simple. I’m sharing a short excerpt from my new release, With This Ring? This is a novella collection with Mary Connealy, Regina Jennings, and Melissa Jagears. The Husband Maneuver, my contribution to the collection, features Daniel Barrett (mule trainer and ranch foreman who also just happens to be the inspiration for a dime novel hero – Dead-Eye Dan – due to his past exploits as a bounty hunter) and Marietta Hawkins (ranch-owner’s daughter and avid reader of Dead-Eye Dan novels).
Click cover to order.
Marietta loves the man, not the legend, but Dan worries her reading has built up unrealistic expectations. Besides, he has given his boss his vow never to make advances toward his daughter as long as he is in the man’s employ. When she learns that Dan is planning to leave the ranch, she decides to take manners into her own hands to wrangle a proposal out of the man she loves before he is gone forever. But when a deadly hailstorm hits the ranch, all plans for romance fall by the wayside.
I had a lot of fun playing with the dime novel aspect of this story. In fact, I start each chapter with a scene from a Dead-Eye Dan dime novel. So there is really 2 stories in 1. 🙂
Here’s a short excerpt from where Marietta decides to take matter in her own hands. Hope you enjoy!
Marietta held her breath until the echo of Daniel’s footsteps told her he’d moved on. Slowly, she removed her hand from where it had slapped against her mouth to keep any unwanted sound from escaping, and settled it over her dancing stomach. A hundred acrobatic grasshoppers seemed to be turning flips inside her.
That had been close. Too close.
If Daniel had spotted her, she’d have lost her only advantage. Surprise. If she’d learned nothing else from her dime novel reading, she’d learned the effectiveness of the unexpected. How many times had Dead-Eye Dan overcome impossible odds because he’d taken his quarry unawares?
This is the e-single cover that will be used for my individual novella when it becomes available in May.
If she had any hope of maneuvering her hard-headed, stubborn mule of a man into a proposal before he left, she’d need every weapon at her disposal. And surprise would be the first cannon she’d light. With any luck, the strike would obliterate the shield he always wielded in her company and allow her to get close enough to employ more subtle tactics.
With a flood of resolve gushing through her veins, Marietta grabbed her novel and dashed down the loft ladder. Hesitating only long enough at the barn door to ensure the coast was clear, she glanced both ways then ran to the house.
Father was leaving on the cattle drive in four days. That left her precious little time to plan, but she’d find a way. She’d not allow Daniel Barrett to escape her so easily. She’d placed a bounty on his heart, and she intended to collect.
- I’ll give away a copy of With This Ring to 2 people who leave a comment on today’s blog.
- Tell me about your ideal getaway location. If you were planning a retreat, where would you want to escape to?
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My ideal get away location would be in Colorado, so I could raft down the Tennessee, and do lots horse back riding.
I think I’d escape to Door County or the Lake Superior shore of WI. I find those areas so peaceful.
My ideal getaway would be somewhere quiet, preferably a nice, comfortable cabin somewhere in the woods, off the beaten path. It would be great, at least when it is chilly, to have a fireplace also.
I have a couple of ideal getaways. One would be somewhere secluded on a beach. Where I could hear the waves and walk.
My next would be in a secluded cozy cabin.
My ideal getaway would be somewhere secluded, either mountain woods or lonely beach. The idea of having a dime store novel library with me sounds like a dream! Oh, and a handsome man as well.
My friend has a beautiful cabin on the Coosawattee River where I love to spend time. I can’t think of a more peaceful, enjoyable retreat anywhere else.
Safe travels! You’ll be within a few minutes of me while you’re in Hershey! This time of year, the best stops are the spa, Chocolate World, and for history: The Hershey Story.
Oh,and a getaway! Let’s see . . . I think I’d want to be in the woods in a little cabin with a stream and waterfall nearby.
Where would I want to retreat? Probably to Northern Ireland or out west to the Grand Teton National Park. I’d love to get lost (or surrounded) by nature for a retreat. Only me, nature, and God around.
First, I love the cover for your e-novella. 😊
I would pick somewhere quiet (beach or mountains, maybe a lake), but not too secluded. My husband and I spent one of our anniversaries in a VERY secluded cabin in the woods. I guess I’ve watched too many detective shows or something. I was scared out of my wits and couldn’t sleep! It’s kind of funny now.
I would love to get away along the shores of Lake Michigan. Beautiful beaches and fun places to explore.
I would love to have a little cabin up in the mountains somewhere near a creek, where I could read books and ride my horse!
Oh, With this Ring sounds like a fun read! I’ve never been on a get away retreat, but someplace warm right now sounds beautiful to this Minnesosa girl. 🙂
My ideal getaway is far away in Hawaii. I lived in AZ for most of my life. Back in my day, I worked for a large bank & I was awarded trips to Hawaii. It is so beautiful and there are tons of dream places for a getaway. I know I’ll never get to return to Hawaii, so I also enjoy beautiful places in MO where I now live. The Missouri river is so beautiful!
Realistically the places I’d really like to escape to are too expensive. So I’d go with my husband in our RV to Gulf Shores and spend a week or two. The best place to relax, read and crochet.
By a lake in Michigan, watching the sunsets and enjoying God’s beauty. Can’t wait to read your new book 🙂
I love your books! As far as ideal getaway location, it changes depending on what is going on in my life. Right now my ideal getaway location would be in a cabin in the mountains. I live in central NC and have perfect access to either the mountains or the beach, but I’d love to enjoy the mountains at this time of year. A warm cozy fire with a blanket and cup of hot tea would be relaxing and give me a chance to rejuvenate.
I think my ideal get-away would be somewhere on the beach! Thanks for the chance to win, and have a great weekend!
Becky B
Have fun on your trip and may your creative juices flow! My favorite getaway…..give me mountains, trees, a running stream and a cozy cabin…I will be good to go!
Honestly, my ultimate getaway – dream destination would be England and Ireland, followed closely by New Zealand. Have a great (and successful) time on your writing retreat! 🙂
My getaway would be at the beach – close enough to hear the waves crashing and smell the salt in the air! Enjoy your getaway – I hope the snow doesn’t mess up any plans!
I’d like to escape to a modern cabin in the mountains.. Quiet & peaceful!
Hmmm… well a realistic getaway location would be the Outer Banks in NC. 🙂 If I’m dreaming, then I would say New Zealand. I got to go for a couple weeks last year and fell in love. I miss it dreadfully. 🙂
My ideal getaway would probably be in the mountains in a cabin with lots of books. This sounds like a fun book. Thank you for the chance to win a copy.
.Hi Karen. I’m looking forward to your new book. Three places I would like to retreat. Greece, Galveston Island, TX and Carmel/ north Monterey CA. I also have a great desire to go on a castle tour – on both sides of the pond.
Somewhere warm where I don’t have to clean and cook and can just focus on my TBR pile! Thank you for sharing and here’s hoping.
A mountain cabin with a fireplace and a view of the pine trees and all the snow outside! Enjoy your trip!
Anyplace with a ski slope nearby 🙂 Winter is a favorite season of mine because I love, love, love to snow ski!
My daughter is getting married on March 5 “with this ring” that is quite beautiful. They will escape to Mexico for a few days of honeymooning. After all the wedding planning, I would love to escape with my husband to Steamboat Springs – but there’s no money left! 🙂
For a retreat I would have to choose a coastal house on a deserted beach with a convenient lighthouse in sight. Another lovely spot would be a cabin high up in the mountains with hiking trails and a creek.
Wow, where would I like to go on a retreat? The first thing that pops into my mind is somewhere outside of Asheville, NC. I haven’t been there for fifty years, but I remember loving that area. Since that is really too far away from where I live in Minnesota, I’d be happy getting away anywhere in the Northland.
My dream getaway in the winter would be a cabin in the mountains with a fireplace, to sit and read by the fire. In the summer it would be the white sandy beaches of Alabama/Florida, to sit on the beach or the porch and listen to the peaceful sounds of the waves while reading and relaxing.
I’d say a warm and tropical vacation with just my husband and a good book to read on the beach.
Oh, the Smoky Mountains, definitely. Somewhere in Townsend or on the edge of Gatlinburg where I could walk in the woods and drive down those curving roads with the trees holding hands over my head. I can’t get enough of those mountains. It’s just good to breath there. 🙂
But Pennsylvania is pretty, and Amish country sounds wonderful. Have fun!
P.S. I also love the cover of your e-novella. Actually, I much prefer it to the novella collection cover. 🙂
Right now I am trying very hard not to be bent out of shape! Not only are you “in my back yard” but you are also in my favorite place in the world. We have a B&B reserved for August when We will be looking for a house to buy. No joke. Hershey Lodge is about 90 minutes from us. I hope you try out Shady Maple Smorgasbord while you are there. They have an awesome gift shop there, too. (No, I don’t work there. LOL)
I will not, but I would love to come crash your party! Have a great time in a great place.
Loved the blog and the story with the dime store novel sounds awesome. Also, I live in Pennsylvania and know how pretty Lancaster is. It’s an awesome place for a setting.
My favorite place for vacation is home. I’m a homebody and a bit of an introvert but I work so I’m not home as much as I like to be. If I want to go someplace I read a book and to me that is enough.
I really love both the beach and the mountains. Living in East TN I get the mountains a whole lot so I guess if I was to plan a getaway I think I would plan a beach getaway with just me and my hubby to spend some alone time together. I would want it to be in a secluded place so we could just focus our time on each other and just being still.
I love the cover of this book and the story will be a page Turner and oh so hard to put down once started. For a get away we have a week in a time share condo in Myrtle Beach. We go there once a year and look forward to it.
Forgive my manners. Thanks so much for this most generous giveaway. I of coarse would love to win it.
If I were planning a retreat I would escape to the mountains!! My ideal getaway is snow-capped mountains and waterfalls!
There’s a city park here that’s big and also has some animals in large fenced off area’s you can feed so I would escape there for a little bit.
One of my fave getaways is the (any) ocean – I’d love to have a retreat in the Polynesian Islands!!
Love the storyline and cover of “The Husband Maneuver”, can’t wait to read it, and would love a copy of “With This Ring” – thanks for the giveaway opportunity, Karen!!
P.S. Shared post!!
My ideal location with just about anything is the beach. It’s the place I can always count on for that, “Be still and listen” moments. Where the waves and tide never stop, reminding me that God is always there. A place of beauty and inspiration. If only it wasn’t a nine hour drive, I’d go today. 🙂
I love mountain getaways the best, especially Colorado, although after visiting Glacier National Park this past summer that is pretty high up on my list as well.
to Hawaii for 3 weeks-1 week at a quilting retreat & 2 weeks sight seeing!
Love the dime-novel concept, how fun! My ideal escape has clear waters, whether it’s the Gulf of Mexico or a mountain stream, that soothing water sound is what I crave!
Thanks for the giveaway and enjoy your retreat!!
I’ve been dreaming of Kauai all day today. I’d LOVE to go and escape there for awhile. At least until the end of winter. Thanks for the chance! lilacqueen75(at)gmail(dot)com
I have With This Ring and I love that you had the dime novel in it. It was like reading two great books at one time. You don’t have to enter me!!! Whoever wins you will love this story.
Anywhere that is sunny and has water access! Hilton Head island is a favorite beach that is close enough for a weekend getaway.
My ideal getaway would definitely be someplace warmer than NY! A sunny beach sounds pretty good right about now. Or, I have always wanted to visit Nashville. That is next on my list, so maybe I should getaway there!
My ideal getaway location is SF or anywhere in the bay area i have kids and grandkids there and I used to live there before moving to Iowa. I haven’t seen them in a few years and that would be if we had the extra money so that i could give all of them a hug. My grandkids don’t live together and so i know they miss each other as they are brother and sister and that is hard for them as they are young. Getting out there would be my ideal getaway so we could do a little touring like tourists and also get some long needed hugs in. ptclayton2@aol.com
My ideal getaway would be the Missouri Ozarks with my camera and a stack of books. 🙂
I can’t wait to read Dead Eye Dan’s story! 😃
If I could plan a getaway right now it would probably be to somewhere nice and warm, where I could enjoy the warm sun on my face and a good book under a shady tree.
I can’t wait to read With This Ring. It sounds so good! If I were planning a getaway it would probably be to England or Ireland, maybe to Paris to experience where great authors like F. Scott Fitzgerald and Earnest Hemingway were inspired to write. Thank you for the chance to win a copy of your story. 🙂
looks like a GREAT Book If I ever got to getaway I would Love to go to 2 different type of places A Beach in Hawaii or A Cabin in the woods By myself to Read & Relax without My Kids or Hubby actually LOL
I loved A Worthy Pursuit. The kids were so smart, but at the same time regular kids. That’s hard to pull off. I sincerely liked Marietta. She was/is so imaginative. I look forward to seeing her all grown up and in pursuit of Dead-Eye Dan.
OOPS! I forgot to say about my favorite getaway. For me, it is anywhere with moving water… river, ocean. Maybe a riverside cabin. Seein’ as I already live alone, I might want to take one of my sisters in Christ so we could relax and read and seek the Lord together.
My husband and I have talked about vacationing to a lot of places! I think one of the first things we love to do is go on an Alaskan cruise (inside passage). You see, our son is graduating from high school this year, and we’re planning on doing something next year. I think it would be the perfect getaway for both of us, celebrating our 20yr anniversary and our “empty nest” (lol) 🙂
Thanks for the chance to win a copy of “With this Ring”, it’s one that’s on my want-to-read list! You are in cahoots with some great authors for this book! 🙂
If I had money and time, I would love to go to a secluded beach where it’s sunny and warm. I’d settle for a weekend getaway somewhere away from the hustle and bustle of city living!
So many great get away ideas! I’m with all of you who chose a mountain cabin. That’s my ideal. 😀
So wonderful to read all the comments! I did make it in safely to the house we rented for the retreat. A massive snow storm is headed our way, but as long as we don’t lose power I’d be okay with being snowed in. 😉
I would choose to retreat at Cumberland Falls State Park near Corbin, KY. It has a beautiful lodge, an amazing waterfall and if you are lucky enough to be there during a Full Moon, you will very likely be given a view of the Moonbow. It is an amazing sight and Cumberland Falls is an amazing site!
My great escape would be any place warm. I’m thinking Hawaii or the Caribbean. Just me and my hubby.
My dream getaway would be Alaska. I love snow & watch all those reality shows to see the scenery & the animals; Caribou, moose, bear, etc. I would also love seeing the Native American crafts,i.e. Scrimshaw,& leather goods.
Second dream getaway would be to travel to Europe.
If I were planning a retreat, I think it would be near the water. I read today that water helps the brain work better, which must be why I get my best ideas or remember things I’ve forgotten when I’m in the shower!
When I lived in central Texas, a couple of times I went to women’s retreats at a beautiful retreat center near a small town. I wish I could remember the name of it. I know it was west of Austin but not as far as San Antonio. The country was so lovely there; it was a perfect place for a retreat.
I enjoyed meeting Dan and Marietta in A Worthy Pursuit so I’m really looking forward to reading their story. I know the whole book must be excellent since the stories are written by four of my favorite authors. I love the way you all combine romance, action, and humor. Thanks for the chance to win With This Ring.
You will love Hershey/Lancaster Co. I live in York, PA and go to Lancaster Co. often. I love to drive around the countryside. I guess my ideal getaway is anytime I get to visit my mom and family in Ark. which isn’t nearly as often as I would like! With this Ring sounds like such a fun story to read and the cover posted is adorable and fits the excerpt very well. Thanks for the opportunity to win.
I finished reading The Husband Maneuver last night on my Nook. Loved it. I really enjoyed the way you worked the Dead-Eye Dan story in with Dan and Marietta’s story. I would love to have a bound copy of the book to share with my parents. When I left my parent’s home after Christmas, my Dad was reading A Worthy Pursuit. He likes to read westerns and my Mom likes historical romances so I’ve been sharing your books with them.
As for an ideal retreat, right now I love to spend time with my parents in the Ozarks. I only get to visit a couple times a year and it makes for a relaxing time away from the pressures of work.
Mountains! Anywhere in the mountains! I love the Colorado Rockies but the Smokies are nice too!
Today I find my thoughts about a relaxing getaway are leading me to my father’s farmland in Sweden. To spend time where he grew up, the lake he fished, to see the school and church he attended would be fun, but to soak in my heritage and later write about it- a dream come true! Reality, however, tells me a trip to the Oregon coast with an ocean view room would be great.
Love reading your posts and would love a copy of your book!
I would have my retreat in either Hawaii or in the Smoky Mountains
a bed and breakfast on the coast of Maine… the further North on the coast the better 🙂
I would go someplace secluded, having a waterfall nearby would be lovely. Oh, and my TBR pile as well:).
So excited about your new book!
We love to getaway to French Lick & West Badin Resorts in Indiana, the Smoky Mountains, Wisconsin Dells & Walt Disney World.
I would go to the Smoky Mountains! Almost anywhere there I love, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and the surrounding areas.
Laura Frantz’ cabin! So happy for her ~ how ideal.
Actually, we live on a hilltop at the edge of town and I frequently tell my husband, “I just love it here. Have I told you recently, I just love it here?” Contentment. Kathleen ~ Lane Hill House
My idea getaway would be a log cabin up in the mountains with a giant soft bed and just sleep for a couple of days.
jennydtipton at gmail dot com
I already have a copy of this book, so I’m not entering the contest… 😉
As soon as I saw the four names on the cover, I knew I was going to enjoy this book! And I was not disappointed.
I must say that your contribution was my favorite. I had been wanting so much to read more about Dan! 🙂
My favorite place, Hawaii! I can feel the sun, sand and hear the surf already. 🙂
For my tropical vacation, I’d love visit Bali. For my ultimate vacation Paris, I’d love to visit the palace and the museums.
We have our winners!!!
Congratulations to Carol Kelley and Dana Michael. I’ll be sending you both an email with instructions on how to claim your prize.
Hope everyone is staying warm and curling up with a good book this weekend. At the retreat, we are currently snowed in. There are several feet of snow on the ground around our rented house. A prayer for safe travels home on Monday would be much appreciated.
Blessings!
~Karen
This sounds like a great book!The wedding plans gone awry sounds like a new twist in reading.
Along with you, Karen, II enjoy all of the authors of this collection and I’m thrilled that Melissa Jagears has been added to this fun group. I like that there are some tie-ins to different novel series.
I live in the Pacific Northwest right in between the Pacific Ocean and the Cascade Mountains, so getaways for me are close and abundant. I love to hike and there are beautiful day long hikes available for all levels and abilities just a short drive away. There is no better way to clear the head and enjoy life.
I would love to go where you are going–to Amish country!
I would love to go to Hawaii. Its so pretty there!
I´d love to go to Alaska and spend a few days on a forest!
My ideal getaway location would be a log cabin in the mountains of NC. With a great mountain view!
My dream vacation would be a trip to Norway with my favorite author and friend Lauraine Snelling. It would be a treat to go there with her, maybe help her with a book.
My ideal get away would be somewhere in the CO mountains with a waterfall near by.
Have a fun trip!
My ideal get away would be to a cabin in the Smoky Mountains. To sit on the porch or look out a large picture window at a wooded vista would be wonderfully relaxing.