Friday With Friends #6

I'm so happy my friend Maddie James has come to visit today. Maddie gave me my first 'push' into the publishing world and for that I will be eternally grateful.

Welcome Maddie, and take it away.

Some stories fly from brain to fingers to computer screen. Others take their good ol’ time in coming. This book falls into the latter category.

The storyline for Wind Ridge came to me while living in central Kentucky horse country, back in the 1990s. Nearby, was a small country farm named Wind Ridge. There was another horse farm, complete with Federal style mansion, down the road in the opposite direction. Supposedly, the new owner was a foxhunter, and stories were, that he ran his horses and hounds over neighboring fields and land, much to the irritation of the locals.

The juxtaposition of those two things—the small country tobacco farm, and the more stately southern horse farm—wove their way into my head and a story took wings. Over 100,000 words later, the story was finished, but sad to say, it lay fallow in my computer for many years. Other stories had their day, blessed by the publishing world, but Wind Ridge stayed hidden from public consumption.

I always loved the story; however, it was written at a time when I was still learning how to write. I knew it needed a lot of tender, loving care. About six months ago, I realized I needed to tackle the story again, embrace it, rip it up, even let my editor have her way with it. So, I did. We did. Now, I am so very pleased that Bekah and Collin’s story is finally ready to share with my readers.

Here’s more about the story:

Rebekah McCauley is back home after ten long years of living and working in New York City. She left the Big Apple under circumstances she’d rather not share with her family—not yet, anyway—and all she really wants is time to heal and recover from the mess she’d made of her life. Luckily, her grandparents’ Kentucky bluegrass farm, Wind Ridge, provides the safe haven she craves, and the solitude she needs to heal.

Collin Kramer, the fox hunter next door, seems determined to infiltrate that peace and quiet, and invade her safe haven—not only with his noisy hounds running amok over her land, but with his Alpha male, take-charge attitude running roughshod over her wounded heart.

But as Bekah softens to Collin’s conquest, he realizes his own toughened heart needs mending. And just when he thinks he has that conquered, as well, all hell breaks loose. Poisoned horses, a gutted dog, and a barn fire are only the beginning. When Bekah’s farmhouse burns to the ground too, they know someone means business. But who? And whose past, Bekah’s or Collin’s, has come back to haunt them?

Want to read more? The Prologue is posted on my website at this link: http://www.maddiejames.net/2013/07/wind-ridge.html

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Maddie James writes romance – don’t try to pin her down to one genre. From edgy suspense to flirty contemporary romance to darker erotic titles, she just wants to silence the people in her head. Find out more at www.maddiejames.com.