THE THORNLESS ROSE by Morgan O'Neill

The Thornless Rose
An Elizabethan Time Travel Novel
Book One
by Morgan O'Neill

Publisher: Entangled/Macmillan Select Historical

Publication Date: December 29, 2014

Genre: Historical/Time Travel Fiction

About the Book:

No one ever knew what really happened to Dr. Jonathan Brandon back in 1945. He simply disappeared from a London pub, leaving behind an unsolved mystery and his fiancée—Anne Howard's grandmother. Seventy years later, Anne herself is haunted by the strange tale, along with inexplicable hallucinations straight out of Elizabethan England. Including a scarred, handsome man whose deep blue eyes seem to touch her very soul....

Anne wonders if there isn't something more to the story. Is it even possible that Jonathan disappeared into England's dark past? And why does Anne keep hearing him whisper her name? Because now she too feels the inexorable pull of the past, not to mention an undeniable attraction for a man she doesn't even know.

It's just a matter of time before Anne will step back into history, and face a destiny―and a love―beyond imagining...

Excerpt:

In this scene, time travelers Anne Howard and Dr. Jonathan Brandon are thrown together for the first time. Prior to this, Anne has only seen Brandon in an old photograph.

The lights suddenly dimmed, the atmosphere in Westminster Abbey hushed, expectant. She halted in her tracks. Flickering candlelight and deep shadows, no tourists.

What the hell is going on?

“Anne! Anne!”

Stunned, she turned. A man in costume ran toward her.

“Go back,” he shouted, “back where it’s safe!”

She stood transfixed. As he came closer, she recognized him—his eyes, the scar.

He halted and pulled her tight against him. “I love you, Anne,” he whispered into her hair, “but you have to go with him. Save yourself.”

“But––”

He stilled her confusion with a tender brush of his lips, and she responded instinctively, their kiss deepening as her body arched against his, her blood ablaze with sudden desire, until the rest of the world seemed very far away.

When he finally drew back, he stared into her eyes, and Anne’s heart seized when she saw his pain, the sheer desperation in his gaze.

The feeling was apparently mutual, because he pulled her close and swore under his breath, “Bloody hell, the bastard will pay for this.”

I don’t understand.

He opened his eyes and stared at something in the distance. “Anne, go now,” his voice cracked, “because I can face anything if I know you’re safe.”

His fingers gently cupped her chin, his touch unleashing more heat. He lifted her face for another kiss, and then—nothing. He was gone. She fought for control, her breathing erratic, her legs threatening to crumble. She touched her lips, still feeling his caress, his soft breath on her skin, but he was gone.

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About the Authors:

A chance meeting at a writers' conference brought Cary Morgan Frates and Deborah O'Neill Cordes together, two award-winning authors who connected because of a mutual love of time travel fiction. Collaboration ensued, the search for a pen name the first step in their working relationship. Their maiden names provided the solution - and "Morgan O'Neill" was born. 

Cary and Deborah's backgrounds are uniquely suited to writing stories steeped in atmosphere and history: Deborah has a Master's Degree in history and is a dedicated genealogist; Cary is a talented linguist in French and is currently a student of Latin. They've traveled to Europe's ancient and medieval sites many times, with Cary living on the Continent for five years. 

The Morgan O'Neill time travel novels have received a number of literary awards, including two finalist wins in the Booksellers' Best Awards, two semifinalist wins in the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, first, second, and third place wins for the Mainstream Novel with Strong Romantic Elements category of the Golden Rose Contest, a top ten finalist award in the Pacific Northwest Writers' Conference Zola Awards Literary Contest, and a top ten finalist win in the Orange Rose Contest.

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Author Interview: Stranger in Paradise by Barbara Bretton

Stranger In Paradise
Home Front
Book Two
Barbara Bretton

Genre: Post -World War 2 Romance
Publisher: Free Spirit Press
Number of pages: 347
Cover Artist: Tammy Seidick

Book Description:

Before they became The Greatest Generation, they were young men and women in love . . .

The year is 1953 and London is throwing the party of the century. Even though the ravages of World War II are still visible throughout the kingdom, the world is gathering on the Mall to celebrate the coronation of England's beautiful young queen.

For almost ten years, journalist Mac Weaver has been far from his New York home. America has changed since the war ended and he wonders if there's still a place for him in the land of backyard barbecues and a new Ford in every driveway.

However a chance encounter with beautiful English reporter Jane Townsend is about to change his life forever. As the new monarch waves from the window of her fairy-tale glass coach, a homesick Yank and a lonely Brit fall in love.

One week later, Mr. and Mrs. Mac Weaver board the Queen Mary for New York and a guaranteed happily ever after future in the land where dreams come true.

But there are dark shadows on the horizon that threaten Mac and Jane's happiness and family scandals that just might tear them apart . . .

"This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny."
--Franklin Delano Roosevelt

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Sneak Peek! 

MRP would like to extend a very warm welcome to Barbara Bretton, author of The Home Front series. Barbara, who or what most influenced you to become a writer? 

That’s a great question but one I’m not sure I can answer, mainly because I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a writer.

If you were to be left alone on an island, what three books would you take with you? 

MOVING ON by Larry McMurtry.  FAMILY HAPPINESS by Laurie Colwin. A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN by Betty Smith. They each speak to me in different ways and they all live deep inside my heart.

What are your most and least favorite movie genres? 

I love movies that make me cry. I hate cartoonish action movies, gross frat-boy comedies, and anything that features cruelty to animals or human underdogs.

If you could choose any man for your next book cover, who would he be? 

A young Liam Neeson. (Although the older Liam Neeson isn’t half bad either.)

When you are on a deadline, what aspect of your ‘regular’ life suffers most? 

The social life is the first to disappear. Home-cooked meals vanish next. Hair and makeup aren’t far behind. It ain’t pretty!

What advice would you give aspiring authors? 

Finish your book. Sit down and write the whole thing from beginning to end before you even begin trying to sell it. You will gain enormous confidence from completing the task and you will prove to editors (who rarely buy on spec from first-time novelists) that you can go the distance. There is no downside to this advice. Finishing a book is a major accomplishment and can only help propel you forward.

What advice would you give seasoned writers? 

I repeat the advice given to me by Vivian Stephens, the legendary romance editor who purchased my first book: “Run your own race.” There will always be authors who are more popular than you are, more prolific, more talented. That’s a given. It’s pointless to measure your progress against their standards. Find what works for you and then aim a little higher with each book.

When reading for pleasure, do you prefer a physical or electronic book? 

No contest. I’m a total ebook fan.

From the first stroke of a pen (or laptop), how long did it take you get published? 

I was first published in comic books as a kid, then in magazines like TEEN and SEVENTEEN. My first novel was both written and purchased in the month of February 1982. I was fortunate enough to get in at the very beginning of Harlequin American Romance with the right thing at the right time. I am eternally grateful for whatever writing gods or goddesses put my manuscript in the hands of Vivian Stephens.

Did you ever feel like calling it quits? 

Only every other day. This is a tough business!

What did you do when you got your first contract?  

My husband and I went to Hawaii! I figured there’s only one first book and it deserved a major celebration. And Hawaii, to me, was as major as it got.

Thanks so much for hosting me again!

Thank you so much for joining us today, Barbara. We really enjoyed the visit. Good luck and great sales with The Home Front series.

About the Author:

A full-fledged Baby Boomer, Barbara Bretton grew up in New York City during the Post-World War II 1950s with the music of the Big Bands as the soundtrack to her childhood. Her father and grandfather served in the navy during the war. Her uncles served in the army. None of them shared their stories.

But her mother, who had enjoyed a brief stint as Rosie the Riveter, brought the era to life with tales of the Home Front that were better than any fairy tale. It wasn’t until much later that Barbara learned the rest of the story about the fiancé who had been lost in the war, sending her mother down a different path that ultimately led to a second chance at love . . . and to the daughter who would one day tell a little part of that story.

There is always one book that’s very special to an author, one book or series that lives deep inside her heart.  SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY and STRANGER IN PARADISE, books 1 and 2 of the Home Front series, are Barbara’s. She hopes they’ll find a place in your heart too.

Author Links:
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Guest Blog: Sentimental Journey by Barbara Bretton

Sentimental Journey
Home Front
Book One
Barbara Bretton

Genre: World War 2 Romance
Publisher: Free Spirit Press
Number of pages: 347
Cover Artist: Tammy Seidick

Book Description:

Before they became The Greatest Generation, they were young men and women in love . . .

It's June 1943. From New York to California, families gather to send their sons and husbands, friends and lovers off to war. The attack on Pearl Harbor seems a long time ago as America begins to understand that their boys won't be home any time soon.

In Forest Hills, New York City, twenty-year-old Catherine Wilson knows all about waiting. She's been in love with boy-next-door Doug Weaver since childhood, and if the war hadn't started when it did, she would be married and maybe starting a family, not sitting at the window of her girlhood bedroom, waiting for her life to begin.

But then a telegram from the War Department arrives, shattering her dreams of a life like the one her mother treasures.

Weeks drift into months as she struggles to find her way. An exchange of letters with Johnny Danza, a young soldier in her father's platoon, starts off as a patriotic gesture, but soon becomes a long-distance friendship that grows more important to her with every day that passes.

The last thing Catherine expects is to open her front door on Christmas Eve to find Johnny lying unconscious on the Wilsons' welcome mat with a heart filled with new dreams that are hers for the taking.

"This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny."
--Franklin Delano Roosevelt

MRP would like to extend a very warm welcome to Barbara Bretton, author of Sentimental Journey.

Before they became The Greatest Generation, they were young men and women in love.

A few weeks after my mother died, my dad dropped a bombshell.  “Did you know that your mother had been engaged before I met her?”

Now I’d had a vague idea that there had been someone before she met my father and obviously I knew it hadn’t worked out, but beyond that the details were lost in the fog that surrounds the lives of our parents. (Especially the parents of Baby Boomers.) I wasn’t sure where my dad was going with us and since we were still very raw after her unexpected death, I nodded and waited for him to continue.

“He was in the Army,” my dad went on. “He died during the War.”

I was in shock. I’d always supposed my beautiful, blond, devil-may-care mother had broken up with the poor guy and fallen in love with my father.  The idea that my mother’s heart had been broken long before I was born, that she had actually loved someone other than my dad, that if life had been kinder to an unknown American soldier in north Africa I wouldn’t be here at all, threw me into a whirlpool of “what if’s” that had my head spinning.

My parents had been one of my primary research sources when I wrote SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY, which was originally part of Harlequin’s Century of American Romance series. My mother, in particular, had provided me with rich detail about life in New York City during World War II. The clothes, the music, how it felt to be Rosie the Riveter by day and then dance at the Stork Club by night.

But now I found myself wondering if she saw herself in the character Cathy Wilson, a young woman who lost her fiancé to the war then found her heart again when a brash young sailor showed up on her doorstep one snowy Christmas Eve.

She never said and now it’s too late to ask. But her help in researching and writing SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY was invaluable. I loved spending the time with her, listening to her stories, sharing as much of her life as she had been willing to share with me. Writing my Home Front series was pure joy and remains one of the best experiences of my life.

I hope you’ll add SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY to your TBR list and let yourself be swept away to the time and place that created the Greatest Generation. And if you’re lucky enough to still have your parents and grandparents around, sit down and listen to their stories. Tape them. Write them down. Don’t let them get away because when you come down to it, family is where all stories start.

Thanks so much for taking time to visit me today, and a big thank-you to More Romance Please for giving me the opportunity.

Thank you so much for joining us today, Barbara! We really enjoyed the visit. Good luck and great sales with you Sentimental Journey.

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Read a Sneak Peek  



About the Author:

A full-fledged Baby Boomer, Barbara Bretton grew up in New York City during the Post-World War II 1950s with the music of the Big Bands as the soundtrack to her childhood. Her father and grandfather served in the navy during the war. Her uncles served in the army. None of them shared their stories.

But her mother, who had enjoyed a brief stint as Rosie the Riveter, brought the era to life with tales of the Home Front that were better than any fairy tale. It wasn’t until much later that Barbara learned the rest of the story about the fiancé who had been lost in the war, sending her mother down a different path that ultimately led to a second chance at love . . . and to the daughter who would one day tell a little part of that story.

There is always one book that’s very special to an author, one book or series that lives deep inside her heart.  SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY and STRANGER IN PARADISE, books 1 and 2 of the Home Front series, are Barbara’s. She hopes they’ll find a place in your heart too.

Author Contacts:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Blog