Hi Readers, The holidays are over and the new year begins. I hope your celebrations were peaceful and joyous. For me, 2015 started with a bang as my first contemporary romance, Flirting With Felicity, launched as a Kindle First selection for January. Don’t worry, I’ll still be writing historical romances, but sometimes things happen that shift the course we thought we were following in a new direction. Flirting with Felicity was a book I was truly inspired to write as it pulled together so many of my favorite things–cooking, Italy, Hawaii, and of course my hometown of Seattle.

A huge thank you to all of you for your support of Flirting with Felicity even before the official release date of February 1. I’ve heard from so many of you saying you are reading the book and enjoying it, and thank you so very much for the reviews. Those reviews really matter so I’m hugely grateful so many of you have taken time to post one at Amazon!

Let me know if you’ve read the story yet. I’m dying to hear what you think! I’ve got a thank you prize for one of you so be the first person to comment and you’ll win a copy of A Laird For Christmas, a Starbucks drink card and other reader treats.

A Laird for Christmas is loosely based on the hit TV series The Bachelorette. Though I must admit that I have never watched an episode of The Bachelor or The Bachelorette, I found the high concept of the show fascinating. I started thinking about women over the ages and how they approached finding that special someone to spend their life with. Women, especially in the time periods in which I write, did not always have the freedom to marry for love. Quite the opposite really, usually women were married to someone else in a business relationship born out of the need or desire for property, financial gain, or political alliance. Or in a less civilized manner, but just as effective at securing a bride was when men raided other villages for wives. Women did not have much say in the matter of marriage, and rarely was love involved in these matches.

But being the hopeless romantic that I am, I always want to find better outcomes for the characters in my stories. Yes, they still have tragedy, misery, and dark secrets in their lives, but the ultimate reward is…love. To me, the notion of true love’s kiss is really important in life and in fiction. Love is often the vulnerability of the bad guys in my books. They can’t love. The good guys win because they are capable of love. They can depend on each other. They trust each other. Love is the reward for the ultimate moral behavior. If love is putting someone else’s needs above your own then that is the ultimate. The ultimate magic that the good guy wields. It is something we are all capable of and it brings out the best in us.

In A Laird for Christmas you are introduced to six heroes who are all worthy of Lady Jane Lennox’s love, but only one of them can win her heart. But never fear, each one of the heroes, Nicholas, Hollister, Jules, Colin, David, and Bryce will find their own true love in the end.

I hope you enjoy the first story in The Highland Bachelors series.

Happy Reading!

Gerri

I’m very excited to share the newest cover for the Daughters of the Forgotten Realms series. The three-book series begins with Passion’s Storm.

Here’s a short blurb of what’s to come: Ianthe of Lyonesse is a sorceress whose magic cannot save her people. Alexander Warenne is a warrior who’s never known defeat yet is now a captive in a would-be king’s  plans to take the crown of England. Caught in a web not of their own making, both Ianthe and Alexander fight for their freedom. As Alexander wages war on England, he discovers Ianthe is the one person who can heal his battle-scarred heart. Yet in order to attain her, he’ll have to risk everything.

Passion’s Storm is scheduled for release Spring 2013. Keep checking back or join the GerriRussell.net newsletter for updates and a sneak peek coming soon!