Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Avalon Author Nancy J. Parra

It’s Wednesday, the day when we usually interview an Avalon author. This week we planned to feature Nancy J. Parra, whose latest Avalon release, Counterfeit Bride, was released in June. We didn't get that lined up, so I’ll just tell you a little about Nancy and her books.

According to her Amazon profile, love of story and the urge to write started early – in 5th grade with Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books. When she couldn‘t talk her best friend into writing a pioneer book with her, she started writing short stories on her own. The stories kept getting longer and longer and, by the time she was 21, she had completed her first full length novel.

She has an MA in Writing Popular Fiction and, in addition to her novels, writes articles on writing and has given workshops on writing techniques to libraries and writers groups. She writes a weekly blog on the art and craft of writing: http://www.nancyjparra.blogspot.com/

Here’s the blurb for Counterfeit Bride: Lillian Picken discovers the perfect solution for the problem of being a female entrepreneur in the 1870s. She invents a husband, Donovan West, and convinces the townsfolk that he will return as soon as his army commission is up. The ruse works until a man comes to town claiming to be Donovan West. Secret Service agent Patrick Donovan must ferret out a counterfeit ring in the Silverton area. Donovan’s search for the perfect cover ends at the discovery of Lillian’s secret. He takes the place of her pretend husband. But the deep attraction he feels for her begins to complicate things. Not only has Donovan’s mission put Lillian in danger, but he has vowed never to marry again. When the job is over, he plans to return to Washington D.C. for his next assignment. Lillian claims not to care where he goes, but will cracking the case leave them both with a broken heart?

Counterfeit Bride is Nancy J. Parra’s eighth book for Avalon. To learn more, you can visit her website: http://www.nancyjparra.com

6 comments:

Nancy J. Parra said...

Oh- Thanks so much for the wonderful highlight!

I'm happy to add that I just learned Booklist Magazine gave The Counterfeit Bride a starred review~

Feel free to contact me via my website or on facebook and twitter at @nancyjparra and I'm also now on google+

I'm always eager to talk to readers like myself. Cheers~

Sarita Leone said...

This sounds like a lovely book. The idea of an invented husband is fun! Looking forward to reading this.

Carolyn Brown said...

Nancy is as lovely as her books! And this one is dedicated to me! YAY!!

Jayne Ormerod said...

I am very intrigued by this premise! And as a fellow fan of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books (my best friend was an Ingalls...the ones who stayed behind in New York while Laura's adventurous family headed west) this sounds like something I want to read! Thanks for introducing me to Nancy Parra!

Sandy Cody said...

I was a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan too. Still am, actually. I agree that this books sounds like a fun read.

Unknown said...

Wow, Nancy, your book sounds so intriguing. And of course, dedicating it to our very own Carolyn Brown is awesome too.