It’s In His Smile a new #contemporary romance by @ShellyCAlexande #RLFblog

This quick interview includes info about the author, and introduces the story.

About the Author

A 2014 Golden Heart® finalist, Shelly Alexander grew up traveling the world, earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing, and worked in the business world for twenty-five years. With four older brothers, she watched every Star Trek episode ever made, joined the softball team instead of ballet class, and played with G.I. Joes while the Barbie Corvette stayed tucked in the closet. When she had three sons of her own, she decided to escape her male-dominated world by reading romance novels and has been hooked ever since. Now, she spends her days writing steamy contemporary romances while tending to a miniature schnauzer named Omer, a tiny toy poodle named Mozart, and a pet boa named Zeus.

Interview with Shelly Alexander

Why did you write this book?

I wanted to continue the Red River series. The books can be read as standalones, but there were a few secondary characters that made an appearance in the first two books, and I felt their stories needed to be told. So Miranda Cruz, Red River’s favorite waitress, was up next.

Having lived in a small town myself, I think there is an interesting dynamic between the people who choose to stay in a small town and the people who choose to leave. I left, but I keep in touch with many of my friends and family that still live in that small town. It’s always a fascinating dynamic when we get together.

I wanted to explore that in this book. Miranda had reasons for never leaving Red River. The hero, Talmadge, had reasons for leaving. So how to make the two worlds work together became the question in this story.

What is your favorite genre to read?

I love contemporaries, which is why I write them. But I also love historicals, suspense, and on occasion I read a paranormal.

Who is your favorite character from fiction (not including your own)?

I absolutely love Darynda Jones’s character, Reyes Farrow. I mean, who can’t fall in love with the hot as hell son of Satan whose turned against his father for love of a woman?

What are you working on at the moment, and will see from you in coming months?

I’ve got two projects in the works right now. I’ve started a new small town series set on the Oregon/Washington coast. Small town contemporaries are where my heart is, so I’ll probably always have one of those in progress.

BUT…although my small town contemporaries are both sweet and very steamy, they aren’t considered erotic romance.

SO…I’m also working on my very first erotic romance, which I hope will release this fall.

Please tell us about your latest book.

She’s risking it all on a dream career… until his smile convinces her to risk her heart on love.

Miranda Cruz isn’t just the best darned waitress in town anymore; she’s Red River’s newest innkeeper. All she has to do is renovate the inn, find the contractor that has disappeared with her life’s savings, and prove that she is the respectable business owner she’s always dreamed of being. Easy, right? Especially for the intelligent Miss Cruz who never depends on anyone, including a man. Until a gorgeous old flame shows up and reignites a fire that has been simmering for seven long years and could send her dreams up in smoke.

Acclaimed environmental architect, Talmadge Oaks, returns home to Red River to settle family business. He plans to get in and get out as quickly as possible because a professional catastrophe is waiting for him back in the Pacific Northwest. When an unforeseen snag keeps him in Red River longer than expected, he finds himself entangled with the floundering renovations of his late grandmother’s old Victorian inn. Handy with a hammer, Talmadge offers to help the inn’s beautiful new owner, but his motives aren’t completely selfless. Will his secret demolish everything they are building? Or will their undeniable passion and love be enough to hold them together?