A LITTLE ROMANCE, ANYONE? by Pepper O'Neal
Someone
recently asked me why I wrote romantic thrillers. At the time, I explained that
when I sent my first novel to an agent, she had told me I needed to add romance
or it would never sell. Which was true as far as it went. But as I thought
about it later, it occurred to me that romance itself is probably one of the
most difficult things to get right, both in fiction and in real life. If you do
it right, romance can be beautiful, thrilling, and unforgettable. Of course, if
you’re like me, it’s more often a comedy of errors. Oh, my brushes with romance
have definitely been unforgettable, but not for the reasons you might think.
I’ll
never forget the time I went out with a foreign diplomat. He was from Germany
and he took me to an embassy party. We had a very nice time at the party. I met
a lot of interesting people and heard a lot of interesting stories. The food
was delicious and the alcohol flowed like water. Now I have never been much of
a drinker—that stuff is fattening, after all—but my date had no such
inhibitions. He drank like a fish. When it was time to leave, he was in no
condition to drive.
“But I
have diplomatiisssh immuniteesse,” he proclaimed.
“That’s
great,” I replied. “But diplomatic immunity won’t keep you from smashing into a
tree.”
I
finally convinced him to let me drive, but as I had never been to his apartment
and had no clue where he lived, he had to give me directions. If you have ever
gotten directions from someone who is extremely inebriated, you can sympathize.
If you haven’t, don’t try it. Needless to say, it wasn’t long until I was
pulled over by a cop, who thought I was driving erratically because I had been
drinking. “No,” I assured him. “I’m just getting directions from someone who
has been drinking.” All the while, my date is hollering from the passenger seat
about his diplomatic immunity, which of course, didn’t apply to me at all, and
since I was driving…
Luckily
for me, the cop was understanding. Not only did he not give me a ticket, he
gave me directions I could actually follow. But the time I got my date home, up
to his apartment, and onto his couch, where he promptly passed out, I still had
the problem of getting myself home. And now it was three a.m. As you can
imagine, the next time this guy called and invited me to an embassy party, I
conveniently had other plans.
Then
there was the time a guy invited me to go for a boat ride with him. It was a
beautiful night—a full moon, soft cool breezes. Romantic, right? Well, it could
have been if the boat hadn’t been a rubber Zodiac with too much horsepower in
the outboard motor, or if my date had known how to handle the boat without
capsizing it. Trust me, when you are soaked from head to toe, your clothes are
plastered to your skin, your hair is plastered to your head, and the cool
breezes just make you shiver, it takes all the romance right out of moonlight
boat rides.
So when
I added romance to my latest novel, Black
Ops Chronicles: Dead Men Don’t, I had to rely a lot on my imagination, as I
didn’t think most of my own experiences would suffice. I got some help from my
female friends, but never try asking a man about romance. All you’ll get are
hmmms, ahs, and cleared throats. Do you think their experiences could have been
similar to mine?
Pepper O'Neal Bio:
Award-winning
author, Pepper O’Neal is a researcher, a writer, and an adrenalin junkie. She
has a doctorate in education and spent several years in Mexico and the
Caribbean working as researcher for an educational resource firm based out of
Mexico City. During that time, she met and befriended many adventurers like
herself, including former CIA officers and members of organized crime. Her
fiction is heavily influenced by the stories they shared with her, as well her
own experiences abroad. When she’s not at her computer, O’Neal spends her time
taking long walks in the forests near her home or playing with her three cats.
And of course, planning the next adventure. http://www.pepperoneal.com
Facebook URL: https://www.facebook.com/pepper.oneal
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pepperoneal
ISBN-13: 9781626941533
Black
Opal Books
Trade paper, 304 pgs.
June 2014, $11.99
A strange man has come to save her...but is he friend or foe?
Anderson Merritt’s been kidnapped, but when a stranger comes to rescue her, she
isn’t sure he is who he says he is. He claims to work her father’s boss. But
someone close to Andi set her up, and now she doesn’t know who to trust. Every
man she’s ever known has seen her only as a tool to get to her father or his
money, so why should this one be any different?
As the sparks between them ignite, and the danger escalates,
Andi has to choose—go off on her own, or trust that some men really are what
they seem. He doesn’t want to hurt her…but he may have to if she doesn’t come
willingly. Ex-CIA black ops specialist Levi Komakov doesn’t believe in hurting
women, but when the place is set to blow and Andi won’t cooperate, he has no
choice to but toss her over his shoulder and carry her out of danger,
determined to keep her safe in spite of herself. But the beautiful little
spitfire doesn’t make it easy for him. With her abductors seemingly always one
step ahead of him, Levi suspects there’s a rat in the woodpile, but who? Could
it be someone close to Andi’s father, someone in the FBI, or someone in the
family Levi works for? When a new threat appears, and even the CIA can’t help
him keep Andi safe, Levi puts everything on the line—but will it be enough?
Other Books by Pepper O'Neal
Love Potion No.; 2-14; 2/11/2011; ebook:
9781937329877; print: 9781937329884; large print: 9781626940376; $1.99; $7.99;
$10.99
Blood Fest: Chasing Destiny; 5/3/2011; ebook:
9780983268154; print: 9780983268161; large print: 9781626941564; $2.99; $11.99;
$15.99
Blood Fest: Cursing Fate; 12/1/2011; ebook:
9781937 329235; print: 9781937329242; large print: 9781626940390; audio:
9781626940208; $2.99; $11.99; $28.50; $15.99
Black Ops Chronicles: Dead Run; 8/25/2012; ebook:
9781937329600; print: 9781937329617; $2.99; $11.99
Blood Fest: Running Scared, coming out early in
2015, Black Opal Books (coming in 2015)
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