Books-n-Kisses is please to welcome first time guest Jennifer Ryan….

Jennifer, can you please share with us a little about yourself?

I married my high school sweetheart nearly twenty-four years ago. We have three amazing kids. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. When I’m not writing, I’m spending time with my family and working in the garden. I hate doing laundry and am obsessed with all things chocolate.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

I’ve always been an avid reader. I get that from my mother. Believe it or not, I never thought about being a writer until I became a stay-at-home mom. All those books I read and loved turned into a passion for making up my own happy-ever-afters with some suspense thrown in. I was actually working full-time as a Cable Systems Designer when I sold my first book. I continued to work for more than a year after my first book came out. Five books later, I quit my job and am now living my dream as a full-time writer. I love it!

Can you share with us your typical writing day.  Is there anything you have to have while writing?

Ask my husband and he’ll tell you I am a creature of habit with one superpower, I can block out everything when I write – including my kids talking to me. They’re used to it, and I make it up to them with baked treats. I write 7 days a week. It almost always goes the same way – coffee or tea with cookies or chocolate, a movie from the DVR I’ve seen a hundred times (right now it’s Divergent), me on the couch with my laptop. I write anywhere from a couple of hours to all day some weekends, depending on how well it’s going. No matter what, I try to move the story forward each day.

Most challenging or rewarding part of writing?

Most challenging is naming all the characters. I swear, it’s like naming your child, but there’s a dozen people who show up on the page.

Most rewarding is seeing my books in print and fans contacting me to tell me how much they loved the story. It never gets old and every book that gets published makes me anxious and nervous in the best way.

Can you please tell us about your latest book?

AT WOLF RANCH is the first book in my new Montana Men series. Fans of The Hunted Series got a glimpse of my Montana Men in CAN’T WAIT when Caleb married Summer and Caleb’s brothers attended the wedding.

Gabe Bowden gave up the rodeo to move home and settle down on his own land. When Phillip Wolf offers to sell him Wolf Ranch at a too-good-to-be-true price, he doesn’t ask questions and takes the deal. He’ll finally have the ranch he’s always wanted, and maybe he’ll find a woman who shares his dream of a simple life on the ranch.

Ella Wolf is a New York socialite everyone thinks is nothing more than a party girl. They don’t know her. When her twin sister Lela is murdered by their uncle, Ella will do anything to discover the secrets her sister uncovered about their uncle.

The only clue Ella has leads her to their family ranch in Montana. Stranded on the side of the road in a snowstorm and about to freeze to death, she’s rescued by a handsome cowboy. Gabe vows to help her find the evidence and take down her uncle before he finds and kills her too.

How did you come with the idea for this story?

The idea for the Montana Men series came while I wrote Can’t Wait and Caleb’s brothers arrived for his wedding. Gabe, Blake, and Dane needed their own stories.

For AT WOLF RANCH, I wanted Gabe to fall for a woman who is all wrong for him, but really the right one. He was stood up at the altar by a woman who seemed like the perfect country girl. He loves Ella, but doesn’t think it will work because she’s a city girl. She’ll prove to him she’s a country girl at heart.

Can you share with us your current work in progress?

I am actually working on Book 5 – The Hunted Series. No title yet. Fans of the series have asked for Ben’s story, and I’m happy to give it to them. Ben appears in SAVED BY THE RANCHER. He’s a lawyer with a mission to help abused women escape their terrible circumstances. Right now, he’s trying to save Kate and her son from falling victim to a spoiled, entitled man who thinks his money can get him out of anything – including murder.

Who are some of your favorite authors?

Nora Roberts, Sandra Brown, Julie Garwood, and Tami Hoag are some of my favorite contemporary and suspense writers. Some of my favorite writer friends are Lia Riley, Marina Adair, Hannah Jayne, and Jules Barnard. Believe it or not, I’m a huge historical romance fan. I love Stephanie Laurens, Monica McCarty, Hannah Howell, and Lynsay Sands to name a few.

Do you feel that any of your favorite authors have inspired your writing style?

All of them in some way. Over time though, I’ve developed my own style and voice. I have a way of organizing my stories that works for me, like the opening scene is usually something that will blow you away – or at least I hope it does.

Open your book to a random page and please reads us a few lines.

“I’m staying. Don’t mind me.”

“A little privacy would be nice,” she shot back.

“I’ve already seen you half naked. Believe me, right now, all I’m interested in are your injuries.”

Right now. As in later might be a different story. Maybe that was wishful thinking, because this man did all kinds of weird things to her insides. She wanted him to stay. She wanted him to go. And, oh God, how stupid of her, she wanted him to wrap his arms around her again and tell her everything was going to be okay.

What is in your To Read Pile that you are dying to start or upcoming release you can’t wait for?

Due to my writing schedule, it’s hard to find time to read, but on top of my To Read pile is Elizabeth Lowell’s Running Scared.

I am very excited to see Gabe’s brother’s books come out. If you’re interested in Gabe, you’ll love his brothers Blake and Dane in WHEN IT’S RIGHT and HER LUCKY COWBOY.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I had a great time, Kelly. Thanks for inviting me to Books-n-Kisses today.

*****

At Wolf Ranch

Montana Men #1

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