It’s common knowledge to all how I adore this couple. They are two of the most endearing characters I’ve ever encountered. They are so admirable, so real, and so human. The poignancy of their story made my heart ache in a happy and sad way, as I struggled with them through their self-doubts and fought the battle within to reclaim the faith they had in their love and each other. I held my breath as I watched the doubt and insecurity creep into their minds, tempered by the disappointments which life often brings, praying that they wouldn’t succumb, that their love and faith in each other would prevail.
Of all the stories about Ethan and Brynne, this is the one that touches me the most. It showcases their extraordinary, unshakable bond better than any of the stories before. Their relationship obviously isn’t traditional, but I truly admire them. They’ve only grown closer as the series continues and show maturity not only to their partnership but also within themselves. They are coming into their own, particularly Brynne and I was very impressed with her trying to mend the damage caused by her past and now moving on with her new life as a wonderful wife to Ethan and a doting mother to Peaches. She shows us how much she’s grown into a mature, secure person who now exhibits all of the goodness, positivity and forgiving heart; the qualities she’s always had, but now shine brighter than ever. It’s a real tribute to the idea that letting go of the past and all those excess baggage is the way to secure a happy existence in the future.
“Brynne was my life. The last piece of my puzzle that had finally completed me.”
1. When you are in the process of writing, do you have your storyline mapped out and you do your research of people, places, buildings, scenery, etc. based on that or have you ever written a scene in any of the books based solely on an image or picture you’ve come across and that image/picture spoke to you so profoundly that you incorporated a storyline into a book based on it?
I’ve written whole scenes because of a picture I’ve seen. An example of this is when a fan sent me a picture of a man with angel wings tattooed on his back and his baby sleeping on top. I loved it, so you will see that scene in Rare in Precious Things with Ethan and his _______. I do it all the time. In fact, the whole inspiration for the first book, NAKED, was because I found the image on Shutterstock one night and the idea for the story came into my head. Images are huge in giving me inspiration to write. I make Pinterest boards now for books while I am writing.
2. How long from concept to publishing?
Ten Months. I knew as I was finishing Eyes Wide Open that I really needed to do a fourth book in order to give Ethan and Brynne the complete resolution to their life together.
3. When you first knew of David Gandy and have you ever met him?
I knew of him over three years ago, and no, I have never met him. He did chat me a little and send me a birthday wish last year though. He is my muse for Ethan, and was from the first page I wrote about Mr. Blackstone.
4. Out of all your books, which one has been the most challenging to write?
That would be Rare and Precious Things. It was a challenge because when you are at the end of a story arc, everything must be resolved and tied together. You have to have reasons for the character’s behaviors and actions, their motivations have to make sense. Another difficulty is to give page time to all of the side characters that have been introduced into the story and the tangled web gets very big.
5. Living in the UK myself, made this book easier to read, envisioning the places, characters, Olympics etc, Why choose this place at this time for the books to be set in?
I am a certifiable Anglophile and I always have been. I really liked the idea of having an American heroine and a British hero, so the idea of setting up the story in that way appealed to me. I found out it appealed to many other women readers too!!! LOL Talking dirty in an English accent is pretty smokin’ hot I guess.
6. If you could be a character in any fictional book, who would you want to be and why?
Jane Whitcomb. Because she is loved by Vishous. Read Lover Unbound, by JR Ward if you have no idea what I am talking about.
7. When you started writing the books, did you have the idea for the historicals first or Naked?
I wrote the historicals first and knew the world in which they were set. So when I began writing Naked and Brynne was an art conservationist, I just used my fictional artist I had already created in my historical novel The Muse, which has yet to be published. I had so much fun doing the connections I continued to do it in every book, and will probably do it for every book I write from here on.
NYC is our favorite city (and yes, Emily’s favorite city as well) for dining. But… I digress.
