Reading habits? What would they like to read?

by Nancy Jardine

I'm honored to welcome Nancy Jardine as my first guest author on Coffee Talk. Nancy is also a writer for The Wild Rose Press and has more in the works. 

Today we're featuring her new release, TAKE ME NOW, but we'll learn more about her below. PLUS, Nancy is having a contest. Don't miss out!

Thank you for coming today, Nancy. Feel free to take over-

Reading habits? What would they like to read?

Who are they? They would be my characters; Nairn Malcolm and Aela Cameron from TAKE ME NOW. But, before I tell you what they might be reading, here’s a bit about my own reading habits. I have bookcases all over the house, all cluttered and all filled with a muddle of books.

 

What I like to read really depends on my mood. Sometimes when I’m tired, all I want to do is devour words that lead to a happy ending- hence the reason most of what I read tends towards the romance genre, in all its sub-genres. That’s not all I read, though. Like most writers I often have to research for a novel I’m writing, or sometimes for a blog article I’m composing, therefore research reading takes up a lot of my time. More than it should, since I get sidetracked too easily-especially on the internet!

If I’ve read a surfeit of novels I often gravitate back to the classics as a break from new authors. Again, here, I have no particular favorite. I’ve a large collection of print books I don’t see myself ever getting rid of…but who knows on that one? Time is a major factor in what I might choose from that pile. If my break from romances is going to be fleeting, I wouldn’t be picking up my copies of The Lord of the Rings, or War and Peace. It would more likely be a Jane Austin, D.H. Lawrence, or Steinbeck that I read quite quickly.

Since I’m also writing for older children I dabble in reading what has recently been a winner of a competition, or something that’s gained popularity. That kind of reading is a bit more mercenary, though, since I’m likely to be reading to find out what’s selling in that market! As a complete change I sometimes pick up one of the many poetry books that decorate my bookshelves, or I re-read a play that something has triggered a memory of.

I got to wonder what my characters in TAKE ME NOW might read, and whether they’d be compatible in their choices. And, you know, I believe they would match very well, indeed. There would be plenty of similarities but also sufficient differences, making their relationship work very nicely.

 

Nairn’s a very busy man so leisure reading for him would be very limited. He’d be drawn more to reading non-fiction- travelogues, maybe geographical magazines, economics and business related updates on market trends. But don’t get me wrong! He’s not in any way a boring guy. No! He’s quite the opposite. He’d also be the type of guy who’d be queuing at an airport shop check-out laden with magazines about danger sports in one hand, since his main company is called Adrenalinn Adventures. In his other hand he’d have a couple of novels- thrillers- the more active the story, the better.

What about my adventurous Aela? She’s planning on doing a Masters Degree in Business Administration so she’d also be keeping up with business and economic magazines.  Of course, any magazines to do with airplanes, or boats, she’d have whipped off the shelf first. She’d be swapping them with Nairn, but only after she’d devoured them cover to cover. She’d want to read the copy of ‘Wavelength Magazine’ before Nairn got his hands on it. Nairn would enjoy a good browse through them, doing a straight swap of his danger sports magazines. Aela would love them, too, since she doesn’t hang back about trying new sporting experiences. She’s a feisty lass so in her novel pile she’d be drawn to thrillers as well. They probably like exactly the same authors in this genre. But Aela would also love reading romantic suspense, and there would be a few of those in her pile for the check-out.

Aela might just have to do a bit of persuasion to get Nairn to read her romances, but once started…he’d be hooked!

Blurb: TAKE ME NOW

Nairn Malcolm’s looking for the impossible. He needs a highly skilled, enterprising aide who’ll be at his beck and call 24/7. No ordinary Jane Doe will do. He doesn’t expect the only candidate who drops in at his Scottish castle for an interview to be so competent…or so stunning.
Aela Cameron’s got exactly the right mix of talents to satisfy all Nairn Malcolm’s needs, and more. She loves the jobs he needs done, adores his castle, and finds his frenetic lifestyle energising. But she’s only looking for temporary: not to fall in love with the man.
Can Nairn convince Aela she’s tailor-made for him in every way…and not a passing fancy?    

Excerpt: 

Unadulterated vigor oozed from every last bit of him—overall a dangerous concoction. Something stirred way-down-low inside Aela again. He was a real honey, and the bee in her wanted to be very sticky.

Her mind whirred. The man bore a vague resemblance to the ruggedly handsome thirty-two year old Nairn Malcolm of the internet photograph, but would the blonde limpet in the recent celebrity snapshot want to curl herself around this forbidding wreck of a man? Aela thought not. She wondered, though, if his blank expression was caused by current circumstances, or if this was his normal demeanor, since he hadn’t been smiling in the photograph either.

With the high granite wall as his backdrop she could easily imagine this man lording over the castle, ruthlessly challenging any invaders to his domain. Taking any woman he wanted? Now there was a thought she was happy to entertain. A tiny smile broke free. Tamping down her crazed imagination she re-assessed him.

What had the guy been doing to get himself in such a state?

Who was he?

 **My-TAKE ME NOW-Tour Contest**

To celebrate the launch of Take Me Now I’ll be giving away 2 e copies of Take Me Now, 2 e copies of Monogamy Twist, and 4 goodie bags of Scottish Castle Gift Cards and Tags to some lucky winners. At each tour stop I’ll be asking a different question. To be entered into the draw find the answer to the question set, at each tour stop, and send the answers to me at nan_jar@btinternet.com before Saturday the 11^th August 2012. The more questions you answer, the better your chance will be! (ie send in four answers your name’s in the draw four times) The draw will take place at noon (GMT/ UK time) on Sunday 12^th August. 

Quiz question for Sunday 5^th Aug: What’s the name of the magazine Aela talks about in this post?

For the URL details of the other tour stops (and special giveaways) please check the calendar on Nancy Jardine’s blog: http://nancyjardine.blogspot.com

Bio and links-for Nancy Jardine

 

Nancy Jardine finally gave up teaching 11-12 year olds in the autumn of 2011. During the last few years she’s been enjoying writing in different genres. She’s completed a historical romance, and three contemporary romances- two of which are what she calls her history/mysteries. She’s also written the first of a time-travel series of novels for children aged 9-12years, and a family saga is her current work in progress.

Nancy lives in the picturesque castle country of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, with her husband who, thankfully, feeds her with exciting and tasty food-otherwise she’d probably starve. Ancestry research is one of her hobbies, as is participating in exciting events with her family which drag her away from the keyboard. In her large garden, she tends real flowers and grows spectacular weeds which she’s becoming very fond of!

Nancy can be found at:

Website: http://nancyjardineauthor.weebly.com

Blog: http://nancyjardine.blogspot.com

FaceBook:  http://facebook.com/nancy.jardine.56

Twitter:  http://twitter.com@nansjar

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6166205-nancy

Books by Nancy Jardine:

TAKE ME NOW

The Wild Rose Press:

Print:  http://bit.ly/MrlI8x   E book formats: http://bit.ly/MQJXvw

Amazon: Print: http://amzn.to/LEUb1g

Take Me Now YouTube Trailer link - http://youtu.be/stDC4Yhm2r0

Also available:

MONOGAMY TWIST

Coming Soon:

THE BELTANE CHOICE will be available in ebook formats from Crooked{Cat}Publishing 31^st August 2012. Print will follow.

Take Me Now –key words: romance, contemporary, light-hearted, Scottish castle, island, floatplane, travel, mystery, threat, intrigue, Glasgow, London, Oman, Tallinn, Barcelona, Paris, Caribbean, New York