Travel: Exposure and Experience

 

 

TRAVEL DOES MORE THAN EXPOSE US TO NEW PLACES AND CULTURES

By Dari LaRoche

Traveling is experiencing. Full stop. Seeing new places and revisiting old favorites. It helps us rejuvenate our spirit, relieve our normal life stresses and anxieties, fill our creative well, and expand our cultural acceptance and awareness of others.

I should caveat this by saying that I am a travel junkie. I think it is inherent in my very DNA. My parents did not have as many opportunities to travel as they would have liked. But they loved Hawai’i when they visited the islands, and I have found that I do too. They even strongly considered moving there at one point, getting as far as divesting themselves of many of their possessions. They changed their minds, however, before it all came together. I am sure that the thought of leaving the family behind in the Pacific Northwest factored into their decision. Mom and Dad were voracious readers. Growing up, we owned a set of encyclopedias we used for research for as long as I can remember. Today, we have Google when we want to research other countries, cultures, and life in general before we travel.

But I digress. And that’s okay, because that is what we writers frequently do. Here, I want to talk about one of my recent holidays and about my ultimate bucket list trip.

HAWAI’I ISLAND (The Big Island of Hawai’i)

In the last seven years, the Big Island of Hawai’i has become one of my favorite destinations. I go every chance I get, and this year, that will be a record three times. I never tire of it. My daily walks are regenerative and feed the creative in me, so that when I get back to the condo, I can put in some productive writing time on my current manuscript. I am lucky in that my sister, who most times travels with me, is a writer too, so we are on the same wavelength as far as making time to let the muse overtake us.

Turtles on Punalu'u Black Sand Beach 
Photo by Dari LaRoche

 There is so much natural beauty on Big Island that it is a treasure for anyone who loves the outdoors. You can enjoy hiking, waterfalls, cultural landmarks, chocolate and macadamia nut farms and factories, petroglyphs, and not least of all, the volcano which still spews lava to this day on the southeastern side of the island at Volcano National Park.

The area north of Kona, called Waikoloa, is frequently where I like to stay, at a resort called the Kohala Suites. It is laid back, centrally located in the area, and not as typically touristy as many places that cater to families and island fun. Right next door is Kings’ Land Resort, which is more of a typical family vacation spot in Hawai’i.

Hawai’i Cares about the Environment and Nature

Hawaii is very protective of their sea turtles. It is one of the things I love about the island. Anaeho'omalu Bay in Waikoloa is home to the Lava Lava Beach Club, one of the best places on the island to have dinner on the sand at sunset. This same beach is frequented by green sea turtles. So, while waiting for our table, we walk barefoot in the sand until we find where the turtles are hanging out so we can take pictures.

The Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm in Kona is one of the places I have enjoyed visiting. It is very rare that a wild-caught seahorse will live for long, once captured and sold into the aquarium trade. This company is in the business of raising and breeding seahorses that only eat frozen brine shrimp (mysis), so they do not starve to death due to lack of natural food. Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm raises over thirty species of seahorses and sea dragons. Their operation serves to help protect the wild species and the reefs they inhabit. So, due to their work in farm-raised seahorses, it is not an automatic death sentence to buy and enjoy one of those seahorses in your saltwater fish tank. They have an educational tour that you will find very interesting. 

Pregnant male seahorses at Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm
Kona, Hawaii - Photo by Dari LaRoche

No matter the time of year I go to Big Island, nor how many times I have gone in the past, I always enjoy it and usually find something new to explore. I love the spectacular waterfalls, the lava tubes, and the botanical gardens on the Hilo side of the island. Whale watching trips and sunset sails, as well as snorkeling, diving, and surfing are all fun things to do as well. I do not see how anyone could even consider being bored in Hawai’i.

Rainbow Falls, Hilo, Hawaii
Deposit Photo 10818793

 
The only disadvantage at present is the cost of a rental cars on the island. Perhaps that will even out though as rental companies increase their fleets again after having scaled back during the first two years of COVID.

My Bucket List Trip: Iceland and a Voyage into the Midnight Sun

While I have been lucky to have traveled extensively in my lifetime, I’ve never been to Iceland or any of the Nordic countries. My heritage is Norwegian, and this is the trip that is high on my official “Bucket List.” I happen to love to vacation with Viking Cruises. They suit my taste and travel preferences for a major trip like this with multiple stops. Viking has a special voyage that is called Into the Midnight Sun that I have always wanted to take. If, or should I say when, I manage it, I will spend a few days in Iceland as well. I have to say that I will be saving for this trip for a few years, as it is not inexpensive, but it will be worth it. It is, after all, high on my “Bucket List.”

My Current Work in Progress takes place on St. Eustatius

I love diving and sailing. The Caribbean is one of the easiest places to fulfill that need. Years ago, I made a trip to St. Eustatius, known as Statia. I loved diving there so much that I used it as the setting for one of the first books in my Rescue Series, When the Night Comes. I am in the process of editing this book now and expect to publish it by the end of summer or early fall. 

You can keep up with me and my progress on my website at https://darilaroche.com 

where you will find my social media links and newsletter signup. I am getting very excited as I draw closer to the end of this project and hope you will share it with me.

The prequel to the book I am finishing at present is already available for sale at all your favorite vendors if you would like a fun holiday novella read to find out how and when my characters, Alex and Taylor, first met and started dating. Look for A Sailor’s Perfect Christmas at  https://books2read.com/u/4DxvoO.

Dari LaRoche writes contemporary romance and romantic suspense that will keep you reading long after the witching hour has passed. Her everyday heroes face challenges requiring strength of character, perseverance, and an ever ready dose of laughter to find their way to love and happiness. 

Her Rescue Series takes place in the Pacific Northwest and the Caribbean, settings inspired by LaRoche’s love for travel and passion for safeguarding the natural environment.

Photo Credits:

1. Header pic is Deposit Photos
2. Turtles on Punalu'u Black Sand Beach, Big Island, Hawai'i (Photo by Dari LaRoche)
3.  Pregnant Male Seahorses at Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm, Kona, Hawai'i (Photo by Dari LaRoche)
4.  Rainbow Falls, Hilo, Hawai'i (Deposit Photos 10818793)

TAGS: Hawaii, Big Island, travel, benefits of travel, seahorses, turtles, environment, writing, volcano

Tropical Plotting is Fun by Paty Jager

I'm getting ready to head to Hawaii again. This time with a daughter and her family. She called and asked me if I'd like to go to Maui and help wrangle kids. I mean, who would pass that up! So I'm headed to a different island.

I enjoyed my trip to Kauai this past October with my husband, but I think going with 6 grandkids it will be a bit more exciting. LOL They want to hike and swim. Hubby only wanted to hike and stay away from people. And he's the extrovert in the family.

With the book I set in Kauai releasing the end of March, it will be fun to see how the two islands differ. I had fun looking into the art community in Kauai so I could find a reason to have my character, a Native American potter, go to the island. I discovered an art show that is held every year in October. It worked perfectly to have my character be asked to juror the show.

I visited with an artist who was manning the gallery during the show and learned the process and what days my character would need to be at the event and participate. Then, of course, the friend who invited her to juror ends up a suspect when one of the artists is found dead.

Figuring out who to murder and how it was done is one of my favorite parts about writing murder mystery. But it's the interwoven lives that are used as red herrings that make the story more convoluted and harder for the reader to pick who is the killer. That is also extremely fun! LOL

All the time I'm messing with my character's lives and revealing bits and pieces that either make them sympathetic or unappealing, I'm also using my main characters' thoughts and opinions of sway the reader.

If only life was so easy to manipulate. ;)

Here is the blurb, cover, and pre-order link for Abstract Casualty.

Hawaiian adventure, Deceit, Murder

Shandra Higheagle is asked to juror an art exhibition on the island of Kauai, Hawaii.

After an altercation at the exhibition, the chairwoman of the event, Shandra’s friend, arrives home with torn clothes, scratches, and stating she tried to save an angry artist who fell over a cliff. Shandra and Ryan begin piecing together information to figure out if the friend did try to save the artist or helped him over the edge.

During the investigation, Shandra comes across a person who reminds her of an unhealthy time in her past. Knowing this man and the one from her past, she is determined to find his connection to the dead artist. When her grandmother doesn’t come to her in dreams, Shandra wonders if her past is blinding her from the truth.

https://books2read.com/u/4XXLke

Paty Jager is an award-winning author of 43 novels, 8 novellas, and numerous anthologies of murder mystery and western romance. All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Paty and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. Riding horses and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

blog / website / Facebook / Paty's Posse / Goodreads / Twitter / Pinterest / Bookbub

Adventures in Travel... by Delsora Lowe

I had planned on telling the story of when I was ten, and my father was assigned to work in Taiwan for the Agency for International Development in the early sixties. After flying to San Francisco, we had a few days to explore the city, driving up and down steep hills in a convertible, with my mom in a panic 😊. Then we landed in Hawaii where they put fragrant leis over our shoulders. I don’t remember much, except the perfumed air on the breezes and the incredible fresh fruit.

When we landed in Taipei, and watched as a red carpet was rolled out to meet the plane, we found out we were the first jet to land at the airport. We walked the red carpet to cheering dignitaries from the city and the country.

Unfortunately, this story doesn’t make a great blog, because that is all I remember. Except as an adult, it is my claim to fame to declare I once walked the red carpet. 😊

So instead, my blog will be about my life’s journey in the book I most recently edited, The Inn on Gooseneck Lane. I realized how much of myself I put into the book. Just snippets of my life at various stages, that added detail to various scenes.

My hero, Brad, is an outdoor adventure leader, who has settled down in his small Vermont hometown, to help his mom recover from breast cancer surgery. He’s bought a sporting goods store. And ends up helping the local inn owner with a cross-country ski week for the over-fifty crowd. In this one paragraph description, there are many areas that have touched my life.

Photo taken by Nancy Vosburgh-Zane

My mom, who just turned 94, has had two bouts with breast cancer, but all ended well both times. Both my son and I went to college in Vermont. My niece recently attended college in Vermont. On the return trip home after visiting her, is when I thought up the bare bones of this book, as I drove along a gurgling creek running down a mountain. And when I passed a tiny lane with a bridge going over the roaring creek named Gooseneck Lane, I knew I had a story. In my head I plotted the story all the way home to Maine. 

The gurgling, mountainside creek reminded me of years earlier when I visited Vermont, and stumbled on a sweet, small, artsy town, with inns and bed and breakfasts. A town that made it’s living supporting artisans and outdoor adventure activities.

My work at an environmental college has included working with adventure therapy students. One who helped train a seeing-eye dog, her dog being the first to take part in the new college program. So that dog spent many hours sitting in our office, learning to concentrate on her handler and ignore all that was going on around her—what a sweet pup.

Yaz - my grandson's dog

And lastly, I worked at L.L. Bean as a retail store cashier where I spent many hours in the camping and boating / biking departments.

So many of my life’s “travels” found their way into this book.

·         Wine tasting, paired dinners and weddings, which I organized at an inn in Maine when I was the dining manager.

·         Numerous other events that I planned for schools and non-profits, where I traveled all over the country to host the events.

·         Memories of visiting my grandmother in a small town in New York, including her antique teacart that now sits in my mom’s apartment, her Waldorf salad which was one of my grandmother’s favorite things to make, and her gardens full of rhubarb (and the basement full of rhubarb and dandelion wine.)

·         My own outdoor employee adventures of kayaking (ocean and mountain lakes and river rapids), archery, a shotgun shoot, winter camping and cross-country skiing, to name a few. All the experiences that gave me a better understanding when helping customers in the retail store in Maine and assisting on the grand opening of the first store out of state in Virginia, where I put in a week’s work in three days.

·         Wine-tasting trips in Sonoma County in California, where I also planned an alumni event.

·         The famous Maine ice storm, where I was one of the lucky ones and only lost power for less than a day. But I was alone, fending for myself, knowing a huge oak tree limb had just crashed to the ground inches form my kitchen window. I could have used the help of my hero, for sure.

·         The trauma of loving and losing a high-school sweetheart. And then finding him again.

·         And the painted fiberglass cow art—yes, a true story and a sight to behold in small-town Vermont where I traveled to a friend’s wedding. (See below for fun link to painted cows)

All these adventures and artifacts from my life found their way into The Inn on Gooseneck Lane, a fact I didn’t realize until I revisited and revised this book over a year after I wrote it.


So, my question to you - What shows up in or repeats itself in your life, years after a physical or personal journey? I’d love to hear your stories.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet romances and contemporary westerns from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine.

Social Media Links:
Author website: www.delsoralowe.com
Author FaceBook page: fb.me/delsoraloweauthor
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Delsora-Lowe/e/B01M61OM39/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Books2Read Author page: https://www.books2read.com/ap/8GWm98/Delsora-Lowe
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/delsora-lowe-93c6987f-129d-483d-9f5a-abe603876518
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16045986.Delsora_Lowe

Starlight Grille –

Amazon E-Book   https://www.amazon.com/Starlight-Grille-Serenity-Harbor-Collection-ebook/dp/B07CN8JV2Z/ref=sr_1_1?crid=38XY0LFKTUVR3&keywords=delsora+lowe&qid=1560702926&s=digital-text&sprefix=delsora%2Cdigital-text%2C211&sr=1-1

Amazon Print Book  https://www.amazon.com/Starlight-Grille-Serenity-Novella-Collection/dp/171704851X/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1560702926&sr=1-1

Books2Read  https://books2read.com/b/3yDjWe

The Prince’s Son –

Amazon E-book link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PZD3FNC/ref=sr_1_2?crid=32PO3EI3KDLQI&keywords=delsora+lowe&qid=1553611414&s=digital-text&sprefix=dels%2Cdigital-text%2C196&sr=1-2-catcorr 

Amazon Print Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1091276862?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860

Books2Read link, includes Barnes and Noble and iBooks: books2read.com/u/b6xzr6



CLIP ART LINKS:
Lei: http://www.clker.com/cliparts/M/d/2/N/h/S/hibiscus-lei-th.png

Kayak: https://www.kissclipart.com/kayak-clipart-sea-kayak-canoe-gq5w5g/

State of Vermont: https://pngio.com/PNG/6632-vermont-state-png.html

Red carpet: http://www.transparentpng.com/details/red-carpet-transparent-image-photo_3273.html

Airplane: https://clipartcrossword.com/airplane-clipart-image-6531/

Creek: http://www.clipartpanda.com/clipart_images/lake-clip-art-3614208

Wine, grapes, and cheese: http://www.clker.com/clipart-563994.html

Here’s a fun link to see painted cows: https://www.google.com/search?q=Clip+art+fiberglass+painted+cows&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=Yp9xnzl_NMQfuM%253A%252CItANxgmZcwlUhM%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kQBce7efX5iW0QaND6Y-7EZqxykiw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_qObss4LkAhVqRN8KHf7iDpYQ9QEwAHoECAkQBg#imgrc=Yp9xnzl_NMQfuM:

Oh, the Places I've been by Paty Jager

I love that this month is about travel at Romancing the Genres. This year has and will be one of my most traveled years. In June, I joined other members of The Authors Guild on a trip to Iceland. It was a trip I wouldn't have thought about had it not been for the invite in my email. But I had a great time and came back with an idea for a book!

After 40 years of asking, my hubby and I are finally going to Hawaii. That trip will be in October this year. I've always wanted to see tropical sand, surf, and plants in person. I'm scheduling items into our time there to help me set a book there as well. I'm always thinking about books!

But I will have to say, the trip that opened my eyes and drained me was a trip we took 27 years ago. My husband is 100% Dutch. His parents moved to the U.S. in the 1950's and he was born here shortly afterwards. He'd only been to The Netherlands once as a child, so in 1992 we took all four kids and his mom to The Netherlands.

Our family in the clothing of Volendam

We stayed two weeks. But because the homes are so small, they split us up among family members. My mother-in-law and the two girls stayed with one family, while hubby and I and the two boys stayed with another family in the same town. Each day we would meet up with either the families we stayed with or other family members would pick us up and take us to see the sights.

On one trip, hubby's cousin and her husband rented a van and took hubby, me, and the kids to Belgium. Along the way one of the boys had to go to the bathroom. Over there along the roads there were no rest areas. People just pulled over at wide spots and did what they needed to do. We picked such a spot and the boys took off behind a tree.

The rest of us got out and stretched our legs even though driving from where we were staying in The Netherlands to Belgium was less than two hours.  Hubby's cousin noticed the trees were cherry trees with ripe fruit. We all picked a few and ate them. We called to the boys who were taking a long time and they finally arrived. We noticed their pockets bulging. When they revealed they'd shoved cherries in their pockets, hubby's cousin said, "Stupid boys. You ruin your clothes." We all still laugh about that.

This same couple took hubby and I out on the town one night in Amsterdam. The streets were overflowing with people partying on a Friday night. We were sitting at a sidewalk table sipping a drink and watching the people when a man dress in clothing like a clown, his face painted up, and an inner tube around his middle with a large fake penis sticking out asked me to pet his friend as he shoved the penis at me. I was mortified but everyone else laughed. The cousins told us he was a man about to be married and was out on his bachelor party with friends. The friends dress the soon to be groom up and then take him around to all the bars. There were also women dressed in crazy outfits being herded by other women. These were the brides to be.

Later they took us to the Red Light District. There were women from teenage to in their 80s standing in windows for everyone on the streets to see. And men lined up at some of the buildings ten deep. At that time all we had for a movie camera was a large VHS recorder. It was in my large bag and when hubby wanted something filmed, I would stick the end out and turn it on. I guess one of the bouncers at one of the houses of ill repute saw the red light or something from the camera and started after us. Hubby grabbed the bag with the camera and my hand and we took off running with his cousins laughing and running behind us. We made it out of the Red Light District and  laughed all the way back to their house. When we played the tape, there was very little to see other than the man yelling at us. I didn't have it pointed at the row of windows that hubby had wanted filmed to show his friends back home. But we had a good time running like fugitives! 

 That is a vacation we hope to make again soon before more of his aunts and uncles are gone and his mother is in too bad of shape to make the trip.

Do you have memories that will never fade from a vacation?

Paty Jager is an award-winning author of 40 novels, 8 novellas, and numerous anthologies of murder mystery and western romance. All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Paty and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. Riding horses and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.


blog / website /  Facebook / Paty's Posse / Goodreads / Twitter / Pinterest   / Bookbub

Curiosity ‘Pop Ins’ To Earlier Times

By Linda Lovely

In what time and place would I choose to live if I could time travel? That’s the question our blog poses this month.

I can honestly say I wouldn’t want to spend an entire lifetime in any earlier period. For the most part, women in the United States have more freedom now than at any time in history, and I wouldn’t want to give that up. I also can’t imagine being a man. So no permanent time-space relocation for me.

That’s not to say I wouldn’t enjoy “popping in” for a few choice years to experience select eras and cultures. My top pop-in choices are all within the geography of the current United States. 

Here they are:

For an idyllic childhood, I might pick life with the Iroquois in Upstate New York in the 1600s. Based on what I’ve read, the Iroquois let their children play, and women actually owned the family property. Life in Hawaii in the 1700s (before the Europeans brought disease and ideas about children being seen and not heard) also sounds rather idyllic. In both times and cultures, I’d have had great fun playing outdoors, and I wouldn't have been stuck in ridiculous clothes I couldn't get dirty.

For my twenties, I might want to land in San Francisco just prior to the 1849 Gold Rush and get caught up in the optimism and excitement of the era. However, the 1920s in Chicago are equally appealing. Of course, I’d be a flapper in the Jazz Age, and I wouldn't be a stranger to speakeasies.

As an octogenarian (hey, I’m not there yet), I think 1969 Anywhere USA would be appropriate. It would be amazing to see the first landing on the moon given that I’d grown up riding in a buggy before the first automobile.

Of course, there are also time periods I definitely would want to avoid. The Civil War (okay any war) and the Great Depression come to mind. Writers, however, embrace such times of societal trauma to add drama and depth to our stories.

FINALIST-Daphne Published
Historical Romantic Suspense

I set LIES: SECRETS CAN KILL, my recent romantic suspense, in 1938 because my mother had told me so many intriguing stories about the challenges everyone—but especially women—faced during this time. That made my heroine’s triumph over evil and injustice all the sweeter. 

While it might be fun to pop-in for the “good times” in history and then pop out again when things get rough, that’s likely not what would happen even if it were possible. The truth is it’s the people we love that make us happy. And, if I found love, friends and family in any era, I wouldn't willingly abandon them to jump to a more prosperous, exciting or peaceful era.

So, I guess I’ll stay right here and leave my historical forays to my books and imagination. How about you?

Planes, Trains & Cruise Ships! Wow!

by Marcia King-Gamble

Airplanes for a long time were my home away from home. I ate on them. I slept on them. I even served guests on them. Since I was a flight attendant for a major international airline, travel came with the territory.  Home for a while was Hawaii, Seattle and New York. When I wasn’t home, I traveled to exotic ports. Bangkok, Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong were just some.

Then I transferred to New York and the scenery changed somewhat. India, the Middle East and South America became favorite haunts. Not only was I inspired by the incredible architecture, I got to shop my  heart out.  Flying out of the east coast meant dancing the night away at a London club, shopping at Harrods, and sightseeing when I could. Did you know some of the best consignment shops are in Paris?  India meant jewelry and  more fashionable clothing, and so did Hong Kong and Bangkok. I still have strands and strands of those wonderful Hong Kong pearls.

Travel also meant sampling the cuisines of the countries we flew into. I ate my way through Paris, Rome, and the south of France. Frankfurt has the best Vienna Schnitzel ever. Rome is the pasta capital of the world and holds the record for flirtatious men.  Barcelona’s museums are not to be beat.  And Rio... well once you experience Rio, you never want to go home. Rio has the best Sunday Market ever. Now back to food.  In the mood for Chinese or an authentic curry?  Count on London to provide you with both.

It's lunch time somewhere. Here I am in Venice enjoying some of  that pasta I mentioned.

Come winter, I followed the sun. Mexico City was a favorite place to land. There, culture is paired with a full bodied red. Try the prime cuts and you'll never be  a vegan  again. The Caribbean provided black sand beaches and delicious spicy food.  By now you should know I love to travel.

Trains are another favorite mode of transportation.  Sleeper trains, especially.  My first experience with a sleeper was in Egypt when I needed to get from Cairo to Luxor.  I boarded a high speed German train that whizzed me through some of the most intriguing countryside.  At the end, a farmer offered to take me off my spouse’s hands in exchange for his livelihood - the six camels he owned!

Since then I have ridden more trains than I care to mention, some luxurious, and some not so much.  What this experience has given me is a better appreciation for Europe. Europe makes traveling by rail so much easier.

Trains are also one of the most scenic ways to see Alaska. If you take the Alaskan Railroad, or for a cushier experience, the McKinley Explorer, you might never come home. Want something less exotic? Then hop aboard The Coast Starlight Express running from Los Angeles to Seattle.  I can’t think of a nicer way arrive in The Emerald City.

As for car trips, well they are just not me. I’m taking liberties here and substituting cruising instead. You unpack once and everything is at your fingertips.  There’s gourmet food, above par entertainment, and a service experience to rival none. I know of what I speak because I worked in this industry for years.

Yeah, I love cruising!

Here's a fun pic of me on last year's cruise.

           

If I've convinced you to pack your bags, then what are you waiting for? Let's go exploring. And if you want a taste of Junkanoo in Nassau, Bahamas, then pick up Tempting Andie, my latest novella.

 

Beach Reads—Sunny, Funny and Surfside

By Linda Lovely

When I head to the beach, I want love and laughs, not tears. I’m on vacation. Time to forget the real world, the tragedies in the news, the weeds in my garden, the deadlines that loom.

So how do I select what books to pack? A promise of laughs is my number one criteria. No tear-jerker endings. No torture scenes. No unresolved issues.

If possible, the books are set somewhere waves can lap at my heroine’s feet. All the better to imagine myself in her flip flops with shared sand between our toes.

If you have similar preferences for your vacation reads, I highly recommend two books: The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair, written by Robin Weaver, a fellow Romancing the Genres blogger, and Dying for a Daiquiri, written by humorous romance author Cindy Sample.

I don’t pay a lot of heed to classifications, but I guess The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair falls into the YA (young adult) paranormal category, since one of its main characters is a talking dolphin and the heroine is a sixteen-year-old.

Am I a young adult? Uh, hardly. Am I going to attempt a conversation with a dolphin? No. But I thoroughly enjoyed this seaside romp. It made me recall both the angst and joy of being a teenage girl with a world full of possibilities and potential. Plus, Rocket, Leah’s dolphin companion, is a snarky delight, who mangles the English language in wonderfully perverse ways.

Here’s a synopsis minus any spoiler: Leah’s secret best friend, Rocket—a dolphin— confides that criminal activity threatens his pod. He wants Leah’s help. But she fears she’ll end up a CIA test subject if her secret ability slips. So what can she do? She risks telling Chase, her teen heartthrob, who joins her in battling dangerous thugs. Too bad Chase has the hots for another girl. Worse, if he reveals Leah’s secret, she may end up swimming with the fishes—permanently. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B00I5P3VZ8   

My second book choice, Dying for a Daiquiri, is a romantic laugh-laced who-done-it set in Hawaii, an exotic locale that author Sample fully exploits for atmosphere and hijinks. This is the third book in Sample’s “Dying” series, featuring single soccer mom Lauren McKay.  

The plot? A best friend’s destination wedding lures Lauren, her mom, and more of our heroine’s zany friends

to the Big Island where Lauren’s brother owns a restaurant/club. Soon, however, the death of a dancer makes Lauren’s brother a murder suspect. Naturally, it’s not long before the killer wants to put the skids to Lauren’s snooping.

Dying for a Daiquiri will make you hanker to visit Hawaii, where spectacular sunsets accompany those daiquiris. You’ll also want to order life-size posters of the two hunks vying for Laurel’s kisses. Best of all, you’ll laugh out loud at this single mom’s humor and pluck—even when her life’s hanging by a thread.

Sample serves up a cocktail of vacation adventure, sexy interludes, raucous laughs, and mystery. A perfect vacation from reality in any season. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B00FK5UW4Y 


Of course, I also would love you to check out Dead Line, the first book in my Smart Women, Touch Luck series of romantic thrillers. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon:  amazon.com/dp/B00K6T429U

There's a tropical setting (Jamaica) in this one, too, but more suspense (and heat) than laughs.

True Confessions ... Wish I Lived Here

Aloha! I'm so pleased to be the newest Genre-ista.

I'm just as pleased to be writing my FIRST post from
Kihei, Maui, Hawaii.

'Aue! It's 87 degrees here at the Kihei Beach Condos on Sugar Beach, but with the lovely breeze you'd never know it. The air feels like a kiss, soft and humid. Smells like the sea, warm earth and flowers. Sounds like surf  surging on the beach just off our lanai, bird calls (mostly chickens living in the brush across Kihei Road, lol), the occasional Harley roaring past and happy kids playing on the condo lawn and beach.

This vacation is a gift from my in-laws. (Thanks, folks. Love ya bunches) Otherwise I'd be in the middle of a Montana snowstorm--brrr! Rather be here, typing away in my damp swimsuit while I sip iced tea. Not quite time for mai tais, 'cause we're several hours behind you folks on da mainland.

This morning we snorkeled, got nose to nose with two big sea turtles and a number of tropical fishes. Then it was time to hit the local farm stand for pineapple and other fresh fruit and veggies, and back here for lunch.  Some careful suntanning, 'cause it's easy to fry our pale haole, Caucasian hides here in the first few days. Strenuous schedule, I know, but someone has to do it.

Wish I lived here. I mean, I could seriously do this full time. Never too hot, never cold. Always beautiful. But since that's not really in the forecast for the DH and me, I will just keep doing the next best thing! You guessed it--writing stories set here in paradise so I can relive my vacations here and on da Big Island, and YOU can pretend you live here too.

Ready? Let's drop in on the Ho'omalu ohana, family, in Nawea Bay, south Kona, Big Island. It's a small, private beach enclave that's been in the ohana for as long as there have been Ho'omalus on Hawaii. Ho'omalu means guardian in Hawaiian, so it was the perfect name for my Hawaiian Heroes, a family of powerful warriors tasked by the goddess Pele herself with keeping her island safe while she slumbers, deep beneath her volcano, Kilauea.

Book 1

Book 2

In this contemporary series, brothers David and Daniel and their cousins Bella and Leilani discover they have powers gifted to them from Pele herself. David can bring to life the fiery lava of the volcano. Daniel can call upon the denizens of the deep, from the friendly nai'a, dolphins to the not-so-friendly mano, tiger sharks.

Book 3

Bella discovers that the plants and trees of the forest obey her, while Leilani has rain, wind and lightning in her fingertips. They use their powers to battle vicious drug smugglers and ruthless land developers, both very real problems in Hawaii.

Kind of a Hawaiian mixed plate, yeah? And did I mention they're all dead sexy? Kinda goes without saying if you've ever read one of my stories. If you haven't ... pack your heat proof bikini, wahine!

Visit my website for excerpts, reviews and more @ http://www.cathryncade.com

Although the Ho'omalus are not a real ohana, they've become real to me. I fell in love with David, Daniel, Joel and Jack, heroes every one. I suffered along with Melia, Claire as they struggled to find their place in Hawaii as women in love with heroes, and Bella and Leilani as heroes themselves, wielding powers that terrify and exhilarate them. All of them living in paradise, here on Earth.

So if you could live anywhere, where would it be? The tropics, the mountains, a houseboat, the wild west, or even a desert? I'd love to know.

Leave a comment, and I'll enter you to win a FREE ebook from me. Your choice of one my 3 Hawaiian Heroes available now. Book 4, Burning up the Rain debuts next month, Jack and Leilani's story

Be sure and leave your email so I can contact you!

best,
Cathryn Cade

... red hot romance!

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I just visited Hawaii!

Okay, technically I only read a book, but the descriptions were so vivid and the cultural references so plentiful that I feel like I’ve just spent time in that gorgeous place.

Though I’ve never been to Hawaii, I’ve heard about it my whole life. My parents lived there when they were first married. Dad was in the U.S. Navy and Mom fell in love everything about the islands. Her favorite perfume scent was plumeria and I’ve lost count of the number of stories she told me about the lush beauty of Hawaii.

I always thought I’d visit Hawaii someday. I even thought it would be fun to be able to take Mom back for a visit to the place that has lived in her memory for so long as a kind of nostalgic paradise. Living in the Pacific Northwest, a visit to the islands seems closer than ever but it’s still just a “someday” plan with no definite shape or due date.

Then I read Cathryn Cade’s Walking in Fire, the first in her Hawaiian Heroes series. This book is the perfect summer read. It’s set in a haven-like bay near Kona on the Big Island and features a likeable heroine and a super hot (you’ll find out just how true that is if you read the novel!) hero. Cade doesn’t just write lovingly about the scenic beauty of Hawaii, she seasons the entire story with Hawaiian myth, history, and language. While reading her sexy, suspenseful story, I could hear the waves, feel the warm breezes, and smell the heady plumeria that my mom loved so much. I thoroughly enjoyed the love story between Pacific Northwesterner Melia and sizzling hot Hawaiian David “Malu” Ho’omalu, but I loved the fictional visit to the Big Island and a refreshing dip into the mythology and culture of the islands.

If you can’t afford a plane ticket to a tropical paradise, take a trip to Hawaii through the pages of the perfect summer read: Cathryn Cade’s Walking in Fire.

Unfortunately, one visit wasn’t enough for me, so I am eagerly awaiting Cade’s second Hawaiian Heroes novel, Rolling in the Deep, due out at the end of the month.

When’s the last time you read a novel that so totally transported you that you felt you’d visited the story’s setting?