Samhain Nights: KAREN ERICKSON

We are kicking off our week long event SAMHAIN NIGHTS where we will be featuring authors published by Samhain Publishing everyday of the week.  Hopefully you'll discover some new to you authors that you should take a moment to look into, and if you've already read their books, then get to know them better!  Starting with Karen Erickson...

Hi Karen, you've written in many different genres such as contemporary, historical and erotica romance. Which would you say is your favorite and why?

First, thanks so much for having me here as a guest at the Under The Covers Book Blog! :)

Hmm, a favorite genre. I'm going to have to say contemporary because it's what I'm published in most and what I'm most comfortable writing. I also love reading a good contemporary romance.

Historicals are fun too. So much work and research involved but I enjoy that part of it. In fact, I can get all caught up in the research and forget to work on the book! Shame on me.

I'm not writing much erotic these days. But I can't shake the sexy bits from my books (and I don't want to!). I am not a closed-door-sex-scene author - I enjoy writing the sexy bits just as much as I enjoy reading them.

This July you have WORTH THE RISK coming out. Can you please tell readers about what this is about and why they should consider reading it?

WORTH THE RISK is the second book in my WORTH IT series (WORTH THE SCANDAL is the first), which is about three brothers who run their family's luxury goods business. This one is Hunter's story, the middle brother. He's completely stumped because the heroine, Gracie, acts like she doesn't want him. And he's not used to that. So he goes in very dogged pursuit of her, tries his best to wear down her defenses. And it works. Sometimes...

Poor Hunter. He doesn't understand why Gracie pushes him away. But she has her reasons and of course, they'll get their HEA. It'll just take some time to get there...

The third book is WORTH THE CHALLENGE, which comes out October 16th and that's the youngest brother, Rhett's book. Oh, I can't wait for that one to come out. Rhett is my favorite brother (but don't tell the other two!) and I'm excited for people to read his story. 

There is also a fourth book in the series coming out in early 2013, entitled WORTH EVERYTHING. I can't say too much about it yet. The characters involved are a secret (I'm evil).

You also have A SCANDALOUS AFFAIR set to release with Carina Press. What would you say was the most difficult task with this book and how did you overcome it?

Great question - I had to get my hero in A SCANDALOUS AFFAIR, Hartwell, just right. There's a bit of a role reversal in this story. The heroine, Daphne, is the pursuer and Hartwell is more on the shy side. He has a stuttering problem and doesn't like to be in crowds, afraid people will mock him.

So I had to make sure that Hartwell came across strong enough. He's not a wimp but he's not as alpha as other heroes I've written. I do enjoy a good beta hero though. And Hartwell is alpha strong where it counts (in the bedroom for one, ahem).

For readers who aren't familiar with your work yet, how you would describe your style in a few words?

I write emotional, sexy romances. Sometimes light and flirty, sometimes dark and angsty...

Many authors get their ideas from everyday life. Do you have a story to share where your real-life experience has influenced your writing? 

I tend to have little real life influencers show up in my writing all the time. For instance, in the third novella from my Fated series (SIMPLE TWIST OF FATE), the heroine gets stitches in her head. I had that happen to me years ago (a ceramic snowman fell on my head - I still own that killer snowman and set him out every Christmas). The stitches don't hurt so much - it's the shot in the head before the stitches that hurts like crazy. Eeep...

Also, I have a new book coming out with Entangled Publishing's new Bliss line (JANE'S GIFT), and the hero is a firefighter. My dad is a retired arson investigator. Long, long ago I was once married to a firefighter. So I sorta know what that's all about. *grins*

What is your favorite thing about being a Samhain author?

Their amazing covers. My awesome editor. The publisher support is above and beyond. All of my wonderful fellow Samhain authors - I am in such great company! My career really took off thanks to publishing with Samhain. There are too many things to list.... I heart Samhain. They're the best!

It's a warm summer's night and you are free to do anything you want! What would you do and who would you spend it with? 

Well, I'd ditch my kids (sorry - love you guys!) and go hang out with my husband under a starry night sky. If I could REALLY do anything I wanted, I'd be in Hawaii with my husband under that starry summer night sky. Yeah, that sounds perfect....   ;)

Where you can find me on the web:

Website: http://karenerickson.com

Facebook: http://facebook.com/karenericksonwritesromance

Twitter: http://twitter.com/karenerickson

Ms. Erickson is giving away a digital copy of the first book in her Worth It series, WORTH THE SCANDAL. If the winner has already read it, you get to choose from her Samhain backlist.

"Strictly business? Try telling that to her heart..."

"Worth It, Book 1"

Alexander Worth, President and CEO of Worth Luxury Goods, is a man never to be crossed. His unwavering sense of responsibility to the family business requires him to always be in complete and utter control. Until it comes to Tessa Crawford.

She's quietly professional, shy, voluptuous...and she works for him. Which means she is the one woman he must never touch, no matter how hard his gut twists with need for her.
After rising above her disadvantaged childhood, Tessa knows the last thing she should do is risk throwing it all away by falling into bed with her sexy boss. But on an extended European business trip, all self-imposed barriers burn away in the heat of their sizzling chemistry.

Once back home, though, whispers of corporate espionage turn into full-blown scandal-and Tessa finds out the hard way where Alex's loyalties lie. Determined to soldier on, she picks herself up and carries on with a secret, yet welcomed burden. Never guessing that Alex will make a reappearance in her life, ready to show her once and for all that family does, indeed, come first.

Warning: Contains a sweet-yet-strong woman, and a bossy alpha male brought to his knees by the woman he desperately loves. Involves enough begging and groveling that the reader may be tempted to "accidentally" leave it for her significant other to "find." For instructional purposes only, of course.

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