Trouble When You Walked In by Kieran Kramer

They sat in silence for at least three seconds, but she couldn't bear it. What if he was thinking about her? He probably was. She was the only other person there. What kind of thoughts was he thinking? Sexy ones? Scornful ones? Pitying ones?
"Are you thinking...anything right now? She asked him.

He took a healthy sip of champagne. "Yep."

"Like what? What's on your mind?"

"You dropping your robe and getting in the water while I close my eyes. You telling me when I can open them again."

"Oh." She could do that. She set her glass down. The champagne fizz was going to her head already. She pushed back her robe, felt the icy air on her breasts, tummy and back, and slid down into the welcoming heat of the water. 

"You are thinking about something," he said.

 "Why do you suppose that?"

"When you got into the water"--his voice took on a husky quality---"you forgot to tell me to close my eyes."
 
Five pages in and WOW I knew that I loved this book! Kieran Kramer pairs a shy librarian with a charming football coach in Trouble When You Walked In. Cissie Rogers has not gotten over her fourth grade crush on Boone Braddock. All of the woman in Kettle Knob fantasize about Boone. And why shouldn't they? He's handsome, charming, the high school football coach and the town's mayor. Boone stops by the library to tell Cissie that her library is going to close and merges with another library.

Cissie decides to fight town hall and together with her loyal patrons, friends and her Nana, holds a sit-in! Yes, a sit-in!  Loved these pages as they showcased Cissie's devoted and endearing  library  friends and the honest banter between Cissie and Boone. Cissie and Boone's chemistry sizzles off the pages! Their relationship changes direction when Cissie decides to run for mayor against Boone. Can their romance survive the election? National news interviews? Boone's disapproving parents?  

Ms. Kramer excels at creating a slice -of-life novel with characters that resonate with the reader and an emotional storyline that tugs at your heart. I enjoyed reading Cissie and Boone's love story as it unfolded during the novel. Both characters had to overcome their insecurities and take a leap of faith in the relationship. I loved both characters-- Kieran Kramer has the ability to create southern heroes who effortlessly charm their way into their heroines' and reader's hearts! Fingers  crossed  that the author writes another novel or two set in Kettle Knob!!

If you are looking for a smart, sexy contemporary novel with humorous dialogue and unique characters --pick up Trouble When You Walked In --it's fabulous!

Reviewed by Susan Gorman

ARC provided by author Kieran Kramer.

Video created by Kieran Kramer.

The Rogue You Know by Shana Galen

Review of The Rogue You Know by Shana Galen

Susanna did not need to be told how to behave. She had been raised to be a perfectly proper lady. She was the daughter of an earl. She knew what was expected of her. 

 One: She must marry well. 

Two: She must at all times exhibit good ton. 

Three: She must be accomplished, beautiful, fashionable, and witty. 

 The third expectation was daunting indeed. Susanna had spent two decades playing the perfect earl's daughter. She'd had little choice. If she rebelled, even minutely her mother quickly put her back in her place. At the moment Sussana wished her place was anywhere but here. 

 Could no one see she was dying inside?

Lady Susanna Derring needs some breathing room. She'd love to spend an entire evening alone unchaperoned by her overbearing mother and far away from the watchful eyes of the members of the ton. Susanna suspects that her mother may have been in love with another man prior to marrying her father and that the couple may have trysted at the Vauxhall pleasure gardens. How does an Earl's daughter visit the gardens at night and unchaperoned? 

Gideon Harrow is a handsome, charming thief. He's decided to give up stealing and conning people. Gideon needs to score one more big job and he's home free. Gideon steals a diamond and emerald necklace and is barely able to outrun his fellow criminals. Where does a thief go to ground? At another thief's house? 

Shana Galen's The Rogue You Know is the third book in her Covent Garden Cubs series. The novel captures the spirit of the determined Susanna and her hero Gideon, the charming rogue with a heart of gold. The dialogue is fabulous and so cleverly written. Ms. Galen has Gideon and his friends from the Seven Dials section of London speak in "flash ken". By using this dialect the author is able to present the differences between the hero and heroine in an honest and subtle manner. 

Ms. Galen is well known for writing a well paced action story with fabulous characters. The Rogue You Know takes the reader on an unexpected adventure. There are several surprising developments in the story as Susanna and Gideon travel through the dark, seedy streets of the Seven Dials section of London. The couple's adventures on their way to the pleasure gardens add to the novel's suspense and kept me reading past my bedtime. 

Kudos to Shana Galen for an excellent novel filled with suspense, adventure and fabulous characters!

 Reviewed by Susan Gorman 

 ARC provided by Sourcebooks.

Shana Galen Spotlight Post + Giveaway

Guest Post: Bad Boy Inspiration by Shana Galen


When we think about Regency England, we tend to think of the balls, the carriages, the gowns. We forget that for every duke or marquess, there were hundreds of thieves and pickpockets living in the slums of the city. Covent Garden was an area of London with plenty of rookeries, and the thieves who lived there often banded together because there’s protection in numbers. My fictional gang called the Covent Garden Cubs is made up of the leader Satin, his second-in-command Beezle, and an assortment of pickpockets and house-breakers with names like Gap, Racer, and Stub. The gang also has one girl, Marlowe, and I wrote about her in Earls Just Want to Have Fun. Her best friend in the gang in Gideon, and he’s the hero in The Rogue You Know. Gideon is the ultimate bad boy who can cheat, lie, and steal with the best of them. He was orphaned at a young age and had no choice but to steal to survive. Now Gideon wants a different life for himself, and if he can just complete one last job, he’ll have it…or die trying.

When writing about my bad boy hero, I had plenty of inspiration.

1) Flynn Rider from Tangled
Yes, I know Flynn is animated, but he is the main inspiration for Gideon. Like the Disney bad boy, Gideon is charming, funny, and self-deprecating. Flynn makes no apologies for his lifestyle, and while he may try to hide his sensitive side, his love for Rapunzel brings it out.

2) George Gordon Byron, Baron Byron
Byron was a poet, nobleman, and ultimate bad boy. Described as “mad, bad, and dangerous to know,” Byron titillated the Regency world. He generated enormous debts, had numerous affairs and liaisons, and ultimately died young and tragically abroad. A bad boy with the heart of a romantic is always an inspiration.

3) Danny in Grease
We’ve all seen Grease so many times we forget that Travolta’s character was really a bad boy. He’s dangerous for Sandy’s reputation and just plain dangerous, period. But like any bad boy we love, love wins Danny over and he’s willing to change to be with the woman who means everything.

4) Patrick in 10 Things I Hate About You
I love a bad boy who sets out to corrupt the good girl and then is corrupted by her instead. Heath Ledger is fabulous as the new kid in school who agrees to date the heroine…for a fee. “How do I loathe thee? Let me count the ways.” The banter between Patrick and Kat makes this bad boy movie memorable.

5) Nick Gentry in Worth Any Price by Lisa Kleypas
While Gideon may be on the wrong side of the law and Nick Gentry a Bow Street Runner, Nick definitely serves as an inspiration. He’s a man with a dark past and much to hide, but Charlotte is able to peel away the layers one by one. Her love for him, and his for her, redeems this bad boy and makes us love him all the more.

I enjoyed taking inspiration from each of these bad boys and creating the character of Gideon. He may be a thief and a rogue, but he is also capable of deep love. And that’s what my books are about—characters for whom love changes everything.

Who are your favorite redeemed rogues?

Book Information

Title: The Rogue You Know
Author: Shana Galen
Release Date: September 1, 2015
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Historical Romance

Summary

She's beyond his reach...

Gideon Harrow has spent his life in London's dark underworld-and he wants out. A thief and a con, he plans one last heist to finally win his freedom. But when everything goes wrong, he finds himself at the tender mercies of one of Society's most untouchable women-Lady Susanna Derring.

...and out of her depth.

Susanna has spent her life in London's glittering ton, under the thumb of a domineering mother-and she wants out. When a wickedly charming rogue lands at her feet, she jumps at the chance to experience life before it's too late. But as she descends into London's underworld, she finds that nothing- not even Gideon-is as it seems. As excitement turns to danger, Susanna must decide what price she's willing to pay...for the love of a reformed thief.

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Author Biography

Shana Galen is the bestselling author of passionate Regency romps, including the RT Reviewers' Choice The Making of a Gentleman. Kirkus says of her books, "The road to happily-ever-after is intense, conflicted, suspenseful and fun," and RT Book Reviews calls her books "lighthearted yet poignant, humorous yet touching." She taught English at the middle and high school level off and on for eleven years. Most of those years were spent working in Houston's inner city. Now she writes full time. She's happily married and has a daughter who is most definitely a romance heroine in the making. Shana loves to hear from readers, so send her an email or see what she's up to daily on Facebook and Twitter. Stop by her website at shanagalen.com.

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