CAUGHT: Rachel Brimble for a Quick Interview

I was lucky enough to catch up with the fabulous Rachel Brimble and toss a couple of questions her way regarding her recent success in the world of romance publishing! Whoot! She is one BUSY girl, so I sorta had to jog at her side to keep up.

*AJ grabs a water bottle, dons a forehead sweatband and joins Rachel on the wooded trail.* Hi, Rachel! Great day for a run and an interview, huh? So tell me and all your fans out there, with the amount of success you've had in your writing career, do you stick to one sub-genre of romance or write across genre lines?

I write across the lines except for paranormal - my imagination just doesn't stretch to it, I'm afraid! This year I have had two romantic suspense novels published with Harlequin Superromance (second one coming in Aug.), a Victorian romance with eKensington and a romantic comedy with Omnific Publishing. The variety keeps the work fresh for me and my readers, hopefully. LOL!

I couldn’t agree with you more. Fresh sub-genre equals fresh ideas. *AJ repeatedly plucks the front of her t-shirt in an effort to dry the sweat on her cheeks.* So, wow, you’re a busy girl. What are you working on right now?

I am writing the first draft of what will be the fourth book in my ongoing series with Harlequin Superromance. It is a 2014 Christmas release which I’m super excited about because I've always wanted to write a Christmas-set story and it's finally happening! I'm also working on a new plot idea and outline to send to my Kensington editor. This will be book three for Kensington and they are all linked through secondary characters becoming protagonists in the following book. I am SO enjoying writing the Victorian era right now :)

 

Rachel, you are a mad woman! Honestly, is there anything you can't do? Good for you for seeing your dream become a reality! Whoot! So after finishing a manuscript, do you take some time off or dive right in to the next story?

Dive straight in to the next one - for the most part I am already making notes on the next book as I'm finishing the one before. Just recently, I have come to appreciate the luxury in not having books pre-contracted. It is a dream come true to be signing two-book (Kensington) and three-book (Harlequin) contracts in advance of writing them, but the pressure to deliver is immense. I have had a little taste of the jitters over the last couple of weeks which has literally caused my brain to freeze. I hope I am coming out the other end now because I am jumping right back in and writing instinctively again which is such a relief!

Yep, a prime example of “the grass is always greener”, that’s for sure. The pressure to create has got to be enormous, but you handle it with such finesse! *AJ waves off the running and stops, hands braced on her knees to catch her breath.* Okay, now to find out a little more about you, Rachel, the woman. Which Superhero would you most love to date and why?

Right now, it would have to be Superman. Why? How can any of us not think of Henry Cavill and not want a date. Yummy!!

AGREED! Gimme more Henry any day!! Okay and what would be the five top words your best friends would use to describe you.

1.      Funny

2.      Hardworking

3.      Loyal

4.      Ambitious

5.      Worrier

You and I are a LOT alike...especially the "worrier" part. :-)  THANKS SO MUCH FOR BEING MY GUEST, RACHEL! I’m now going to get an ice coffee. That jog was exhausting! While I'm doing that, here's a sneak peek inside Rachel's 16 Marsden Place!!

 

There isn't a situation that can't be fixed by a coat of chocolate body paint or a liberal smear of Champagne Lick, right? Wrong!

 

Ever since her father was murdered by a gang of youths, Sienna Lloyd has named herself Potterford's protector--her sexy lingerie shop is a place where the town's women can visit and feel safe. But when that shop is in danger of closing, Sienna needs a solution that will keep her in Potterford, where she can always look out for her mother, friends, and clients.

 

The answer? Move the shop to her home at 16 Marsden Place. The problem? Her new neighbor, the delicious but seriously uptight Jack Beaton. Oh, and his four-year-old twin girls.

 

Jack has just moved to the tiny town of Potterford in a bid to start over. To build a new life that keeps his children safe from his alcoholic ex-wife. So when he discovers his neighbor intends to open a sex shop right next door, Jack will do anything to ensure it doesn't happen... including fighting every ounce of his attraction to the shop's owner and his innate need to trust again.

 

~ * ~

 

Sienna hauled her box of inventory from the back of her car and strode up the driveway to her front door. Entering the house, she kicked her leg out to shut the door when it hit something solid. She turned and promptly dropped the box onto the hallway floor, causing “display” vibrators of varying sizes and colors to roll every which way across the floorboards—a multi-colored river of female satisfaction.

“Jack! What do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m coming in to talk to you, that’s what.” He strode over the threshold and slammed the door.

Sienna stepped back even as irritation shot through her. Who the hell did he think he was coming into her house uninvited?

She raised her chin and gestured toward the floor. “Now look what you’ve done.”

“You’re having a party. A party, for crying out loud.”

Ah. “And? Does that give you the right to storm into my house like the Incredible Hulk? What’s next? A bit of shirt-shredding?” Actually, she wouldn’t have minded that…

He opened his mouth and then snapped it shut as he glowered at the glorious obstacles at their feet. “God, it never ends, does it?”

“No, it doesn’t. So why don’t you help me pick these up before you end up slipping on one and taking me to court for breaking your back on top of everything else.”

He sneered with evident distaste. “I don’t think so.”

“Grow up, Jack. You’re being ridiculous.”

Their glares locked. He might have looked as though he should be lying on his back in her bed while she rode him like a bucking bronco, but, God, the guy lacked a sense of humor.

“Well?” she demanded.

“You really don’t care, do you?”

“Insult me if it makes you feel better, but if you can say that, it means you haven’t learned a damn thing about me since we met. Now, are we going to stand here all day or go into the kitchen and have a civilized conversation? I assume you want this straightened out before it’s time for you to pick up the girls from school? Isn’t that why you’re battering your way into my house at eleven o’clock in the morning?”

“Where were you last night?” His gaze searched her face and hair.

Ignoring the flush of heat that tingled over her skin from such a blatant appraisal, Sienna lifted her eyebrows. “Excuse me?”

“I waited for you.”

“You waited—”

“I must have looked out my living room window forty times waiting to see your car in the driveway. Where were you?”

She huffed out a laugh and bent down. “None of your business.” She reached for the nearest vibrator.

“I needed to talk to you.”

She snatched up an electric-blue intermediate dildo and straightened, pointing it in his face and stabbing out each word. “Like. I. Said. None. Of. Your. Business.”

He stepped back, and a smile pulled at her lips. Scared of a dildo. What next? Crying over spilt vaginal lube?

“Help me pick these up and then we’ll talk.” She cocked her head. “Please.”

“You’re unbelievable.”

Her smile expanded. “Thanks.”

Scowling, he raised his hands in surrender and bent down to help her.

~ * ~

 

Find 16 Marsden Place here:  AMAZON / AMAZONUK / BARNES&NOBLE

Rachel lives with her husband and two young daughters in a small town near Bath in the UK.  After having several novels published by small US presses, she secured agent representation in 2011. In 2012, she sold two books to Harlequin Superromance. She also writes Victorian romance for Kensington--her debut was released in April 2013.

 

She has just recently signed a further three-book contract with Harlequin Superromance, continuing her ongoing series set in the fictional UK seaside town of Templeton Cove.

 

Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and Romance Writers of America. When she isn’t writing, you’ll find Rachel with her head in a book or walking the beautiful English countryside with her family and beloved black Lab, Max. Her dream place to live is Bourton-on-the-Water in South West England…although she hopes a dream visit to Canada might just change her mind!

She likes nothing more than connecting and chatting with her readers and fellow romance writers. Rachel would love to hear from you!

Find her on the Web at:  Website / Blog / Twitter / Facebook

THANKS FOR VISITING!

XO AJ XO