Yep, its that time of the month again where I haul ass and choose my pick of the month read(s) for the previous month. Once again, I found myself wavering between two great books, both released by Carina Press I might add, that made for fantastic reads! And this time as well, both authors agreed to answer a few questions regarding their book, the heroes and the heroines. So without further ado, my peeps, a huge round of applause for the authors of my picks of the month for August 2011.

Pick 1: Deceiving the Protector by Dee Tenorio

MBR: I have read both books in the series and the one thing that continually amazes me is the world you have created for the series. How did you come up with the idea of creating the Resurrection series?

Dee: I’d have to say it’s a blend of the history I’ve learned from the people I grew up with. I’m a Native American—Chumash—and my mother worked for the Federal American Indian Council when I was a kid, so I was brought up being taught all about our history and what parts of the culture we have left. I’ve known from a very early age what extinction is about and how it can come about. Then, as a teen, she worked for a Jewish temple, where I met some of the most amazing people ever and they spoke very openly about the Holocaust how they survived it. Throw in my affection for animals and then my attraction to shifters and the whole world kind of came together rather organically.  I can’t really explain the Sibile, though. I guess I just have a fascination with women in power, lol.

MBR: Jensen Tate, he is my favorite hero from the series so far. The one thing I can always count on when I read your books is for me to fall in love, hard and fast with your heroes and Tate is no exception to that rule. How do you come up with such alpha heroes who makes us women go aflutter EVERY.SINGLE.TIME?

Dee: Aww, I’m so glad you loved Tate. He’s not an easy man but something about him just tugged at me. Like a tarnished soldier, he’d put the world on his shoulder and carry it if he could. LOL @ “EVERY SINGLE TIME”! Thank you, that’s such an incredible compliment! I guess it’s simply that I love good, strong men. Despite having four sisters, I find I understand guys a lot better. I was a lousy girl growing up, so I hung out with them and I love the more direct way a lot of men think. I mean, sure, you want to smack them with frying pans sometimes, but God love them, they do have a way of seeing the world in terms of “I’m gonna fix that!”

MBR: Lia Crawford is a heroine that continually surprised me at every turn. She is amazing, no two ways about it. Did her character materialize as you wanted her to, or did she surprise you and made her own way through the story?

Dee: Lia surprised me a lot too. Initially, there are parts of her that are my sister. That indomitable, break-for-no-one will comes from her, primarily. And the stubborn, too. I guess I wanted to give her the happy ending I felt my sister deserved. But there are parts of Lia that came to life and insisted she was her own person. I meant for her to have a soft side, but she’d keep shaking her head at me and reminding me having a heart wasn’t the same as being soft. So it’s a little bit of both, I have to say. :)

MBR: Which books are you currently working on in the series?

Dee:Yes, I’m working on Book 3. This one will step back from the Resurrection brothers and take you into the world of the Sibile. We’ve seen flashes of the Order and their rather ruthless tactics, but the Sibile as a whole are a complicated society and you’ll get to see that in this one. Favorites from the first book will make an appearance—in particular Jalla and Sage—but you’ll also see the dynamics of the people beneath the Order. And, if you know anything about the Sibile, you know that all the males are pretty much slaves. But what happens if you pair one who refuses to accept his place with a Scarlet heroine on the verge of discovering a secret that will change absolutely everything?

Hee hee, you’ll find out in Book 3!

MBR: OMG!! I absolutely cannot wait!!

Dee has very generously agreed to giveaway an e-copy of Deceiving the Protector to one lucky commenter on this post. This is one paranormal suspense romantic series that you ought to get your hands on ASAP!

Pick 2: Boomerang Bride by Fiona Lowe

MBR: How did you come up with the idea of writing Boomerang Bride?

Fiona: It came in three parts.. The first was on a ski lift when an image of a bride standing in a wedding dress, holding a cake and staring into a shop window popped into my head and wouldn’t leave but I had no clue why she was there. Two weeks later, I  heard a song by The Waifs called, ‘Bridal Train’ and not long after that I read an article about an heiress being scammed out of a lot of her money. Suddenly, I had Tildy’s story.  

MBR: Matilda landed in my list of favorite heroines after reading Boomerang Bride. Is she based on anyone you know or is her character written down exactly as you imagined she would be?

Fiona: Matilda is her own person, and not based on anyone in particular, but that said, I grew up surrounded by strong women who have dealt with whatever comes their way with grace and determination, so perhaps a bit of that came out in Matilda. There was a risk some people might think her TSTL (too stupid to live) , but you know, grief really does mess with your head so it was important that Matilda took responsibility for her actions early on. She made a mistake – a BIG mistake- and from that moment on, she had to move forward.  As for the confusion about language, that came directly from my own experience living in Wisconsin.

MBR: Marc Olsen is a truly sexy and charming hero underneath all of which lies a man confused with his priorities in life. How did you come up with his character?

Fiona: I look around and see some men getting so focused on their career and making money that they can lose sight of what’s really important. This has happened to Marc, although at the start of the book he has no clue about this and is only aware of a restlessness that has him feeling slightly off center. I also think that men find it easier to walk away from the ties of family so I think Marc is a product of what I see in the world around me.

MBR: Are you planning on writing any more contemporary romances in this setting?

Fiona: I have written another small town contemporary book (Saved By The Bride) filled with brides, family and a small town that won’t take no for an answer.  I hope it will be a three part series, but it isn’t set in Hobin. Right now, I can’t tell you when it will be available except to say it will be one day :) Meanwhile, Career Girl in the Country is out now, my 15th Harlequin Medical romance, and it, along with my other 14 books are  all set in small towns with big hearts. So if you’re wanting another small town fix, I recommend you visit http://www.fionalowe.com for my back-list and where to buy the books.

MBR: Thank you so much for answering the questions which has shed light on many aspects of your fantastic book that I loved so much!

So guys, Fiona has very generously agreed to give away an e-copy of Boomerang Bride, a Boomerang magnet and a signed postcard as well! How cool is that?

So the giveaway rules ladies and gentlemen:

The rules are simple:

1. Open a page of the current book that you are reading. (If you are not reading a book at the moment, open a page of the book that’s nearest to you.) And give me 3 sentences from the page you open up. Please mention the book title and author as well.
2. If you do not mention which giveaway you are entering for, I will be entering you for both Dee and Fiona’s giveaways.
3. Leave a valid email address for a way to contact you if you are the winner!
4. Help spread the word about the giveaway. Tweet about it and gain 5 extra entries AND/OR like the post on Facebook and gain extra 5 more entries. In your tweet, use the tag #MBRpickofAug11giveaway. Let me know in your comment whether you have done either or both so you would get your extra entries into the contest.
5. Giveaway ends on the 5th of September 2011, 00:00 hours Maldivian time!

You can  read my reviews for both books by clicking on the yellow headline before the beginning of the interview for each book.

Good luck and don’t forget to leave a comment behind!