Cathy Maxwell's Star Power!

The Wenches are delighted to welcome Cathy Maxwell as our guest blogger today! 

Cathy is the author of several historical romances for Avon Books, and her latest is BEDDING THE HEIRESS -- the lush and delightful story of a Scottish duke and blacksmith, and the spirited heiress who mistakes him, at first, for an entirely different man...and kisses him wildly in the dark. How's that for an opening hook! 

To read more about Justin and Francesca, run-do-not-walk to your nearest bookstore, as the book is on the shelves now. Cathy's Regency historicals sparkle with wit, wonderful characters, and unforgettable romance, and if you haven't read her yet, you are in for a treat almost as yummy as chocolate (cuz as much as the Wenches love Cathy, there is nothing yummier than chocolate *g*).

“Maxwell mixes humor with meticulous characterization to create memorable stories.”
         --Publishers Weekly

“BEDDING THE HEIRESS, the fourth book in her series involving the Cameron sisters, beautifully illustrates Ms. Maxwell’s talent for delivering exceptional reads.” --FreshFiction.com

To check out more about Cathy, go to http://www.booktalk.com/cmaxwell/ ....

* * CONTEST!! Win a copy of BEDDING THE HEIRESS!  Details at the end of the blog! * *

And now let's turn the blog over to Cathy Maxwell....

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Star Power!

When I first started writing back in the ‘90’s, little did I envision all the opportunities Romance readers and writers would have today.

For example, back then, the New York Times didn’t review romances.  Wouldn’t touch them.  Now, we are rocking the list.  We are also stepping into the halls of academia as more and more criticism of the romance novel is being studied and written (academic criticism means R-E-S-P-E-C-T . . . but then we’ve had that for ourselves for years!). 

We have not made it to Oprah yet, but we now have www.romancenovel.tv that interviews favorite writers.  It’s also creating a video library of this genre that will be valued for decades to come.

And now—I have a radio program! 

Yep, here in the Richmond, VA area, I am one of the moderators for Books!  We air the first and last Monday of the month at 8 – 9 a.m. EST on WZEZ Richmond 100.5 or you can hear us on the internet at www.wzezradio.com.

Let’s lay it on the line:  a book is the best entertainment value you can find for less than a twenty (been to the movies lately?).  If you hit the libraries, it’s free.  I started this program because I want to remind EVERYONE what great books are out there. 

Moderating the program with me are Mark Niemand, WZEZ’s morning jock (and a writer himself) along with Kelly Justice, manager of one of Richmond independent bookstores Fountain Books in Shockoe Slip.  Kelly’s taste in books is “limited to only what can be fit between two covers.”  She is a wonderful advocate of the industry.

Our topic this past Monday was “Beach Reads.”  Check out our recommendations at www.fountainbookstore.com  Click on the WZEZ box on the right side of the page and keep clicking until you hit our recommendations. 

And if you have a book you’d like to share, speak up!  Let us know what you plan on reading on the beach (or in the mountains, or on a lawn chair, or over the lunch hour at work) . . .

P.S.  The more Romance, the better!!!

~Cathy Maxwell

* * * * * * * * CONTEST !! Cathy has generously offered to give away a signed copy of BEDDING THE HEIRESS to one of the people who comments to her blog, so feel free to jump in and join the discussion! One name will be chosen at random, using our unique point-and-pick selection process perfected by our very own admin, Sherrie.  :)