Books At The Beach #Giveaway & Book Fair! June 19-30

A Romance Reader’s Dream Summer Giveaway

 How many books do you read over the average summer? Could you read 80? Because that’s how many ebooks one lucky winner will walk away with in the Books at the Beach Giveaway, including the latest titles from Nora Roberts, Catherine Bybee, Debbie Macomber, and Gena Showalter, plus dozens more. You could also win one of two runner-up $25 Amazon gift cards.

Books at the Beach Giveaway & Book Fair – June 19-30

(Sponsored by the 54 authors listed below)

Alina K. Field • Allyson Lindt • Amy L Gale • Anna Durand • Astrid Arditi • Barbara Lohe • Beverley Oakley • Bianca D’Arc • C. A. King • C.E. Wilson • Carmen Fox • Casi McLean • Catherine Kean • Chloe Flowers • Christa Paige • Constance Phillips • Cynthia Clement • Danica Favorite • Debbie White • Denise Jaden • Dianne Venetta • Elizabeth Rose • Gayle Parness • Helen Scott • Jacqueline Diamond • Jina Bacarr • Josie Riviera • Judith Keim • Karen • Michelle Nutt • Katherine Lowry Logan • Kris Michaels • Kristina Knight • Kristy Tate • Margaret Locke • Mari Carr • Naomi Bellina • PG Forte • Quinn • Raine English • Regan Walker • Sheila Seabrook • Shelique Lize • Soraya Naomi • Stacy Gold • Stella Marie Alden • Stephanie Julian • Stephanie Queen • Sydney Aaliyah Michelle • Sylvia Hubbard • Tamara Ferguson • Tena Stetler • Traci Douglass • Vicki Crum

Enter the Giveaway Here

http://booksatthebeachfair.blogspot.com

And while you’re at it, shop our awesome summer book fair
with over 50 fantastic romance titles for you to choose from:

http://booksatthebeachfair.blogspot.com/p/find-your-favorite-summer-read-at-our.html

Multiple Margaret Locke #GoodReads #Giveaways!

I’m so excited about The Demon Duke debuting on June 6th *and* about A Man of Character‘s book birthday that I’ve gone giveaway crazy over on GoodReads!

Enter below to win paperbacks of A Man of Character, A Matter of Time, or The Demon Duke! WOOT!
And please spread the word, if you’re so inclined.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Demon Duke by Margaret Locke

The Demon Duke

by Margaret Locke

Giveaway ends June 06, 2017.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Goodreads Book Giveaway

A Matter of Time by Margaret Locke

A Matter of Time

by Margaret Locke

Giveaway ends June 02, 2017.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Goodreads Book Giveaway

A Man of Character by Margaret Locke

A Man of Character

by Margaret Locke

Giveaway ends June 02, 2017.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Photo Journey: The University of Virginia Chapel and Alderman Library (Last in a series)

Ah, that beautiful February day in 2017 when I spend a leisurely afternoon strolling UVa’s Central Grounds. Previous blog posts have detailed the Rotunda – for this final one, I bring you photos from the Chapel and Alderman Library.

The front of UVa’s Chapel. Such a lovely building. Hubby and I married there in July of 1999!
The chapel from the east side.
Interior of the chapel from the back.
The chapel’s impressive and space-efficient organ pipes.
The gorgeous stained glass window at the back of the chapel.
One of the side sides of windows in the chapel.
Another side window.
More side windows.
I love stained glass windows.
Looking to the back of the chapel. Or maybe the front, I should say? This is the rear of the chapel, but near the entrance door…
And now the same rear shot with more light, so you can see the roof.
A view of Alderman Library from afar (it’s the building on the right in the distance). I spent many, many an hour in there.
The front of Alderman Library. Love the columns.
The plaque at the front. I sure would like to know more about the secret Seven Society, but alas, I was never a member.
The interior lobby of Alderman – which looks much different from 20 years ago in some ways, and the same in others. The computers in my day weren’t as fancy as these. 😉
And this cafe didn’t exist at all. This area to the left of the library entrance had study tables and chairs, and it’s the spot in which I watched my future husband walk into the library for the first time when we met for a lunch date in person after meeting online via Elvis.
The reference area in Alderman. How I love that checkerboard floor – and grad school friends and I spent LOTS of time in here.
Another view. It was quite the walk down memory lane to be in here again.
I wandered into the stacks – nothing like that old book smell – and found my carrel. This is it, with a view to the side.

“I want to go find my old study carrel on the fourth floor and see if Elvis is still carved in it. I’ll be down in a few minutes.”

“Sure thing.” Eliza poked her. “I had no idea you were such a vandal.”

“I never said I did it.” Quirking an eyebrow at her friend, Cat added, “But I never said I didn’t.”

As Eliza headed toward the elevator, Cat walked back to the old side of the library. Passing through the metal doors, the familiar smell of timeworn books assailed her. She breathed in deeply. Geez, I’m as bad as my dad.

She moved through the stacks until she reached the spot in which she’d sat many an hour in school, reading Cicero while dreaming of a Romeo. Yeah, those days are long gone. She reached out and ran her finger along the bookshelf in her old carrel. Elvis was still inked across the edge of it.

“I have a sneaking suspicion you know who defaced this lovely university property,” drawled a voice from behind her.

From A Man of Character. Yup, this very spot in the photo above.

Giving a sense of the narrowness of the book aisles – and the spot in which Cat from A Man of Character had a little rendezvous…

And thus ended my tour of UVa. I hope you enjoyed the photos!

 

Why I Write Romance

Don’t tell my mom, but I started reading romance at the age of ten. I’d worked my way through all of the children’s books available in the local bookmobile, so I turned to the adult section, where I spied a book with a woman in a flowing green dress on the cover. The back said something about a pirate. I was hooked from that moment on (and still wish I could remember the name of that fateful book!).

As a teenager addicted to historical romance novels, I often had to defend my reading material of choice, even writing an essay for my tenth grade English class explaining my love for the genre: I read romance, because no matter what happens (and some pretty crazy things happen), you know those two people are going to end up together.

For this anxiety-prone child of divorce, that was the ultimate comfort, the idea that two flawed people could encounter all sorts of obstacles and still stay together, still find everlasting love.

As to why I write it? Because as an adult, I continue to seek that comfort, that security, that promise every day. Also, I’m a bit of a control freak. Plus, I really love witty repartee between characters. So an encouraging, reassuring story (with funny/witty parts, or so I hope) dictated entirely by me? Sign me up!

Romance provides escape, yes, but it also provides hope, and reminders that no matter what obstacles may come, Happy Ever After might be just around the corner. I hope my books entertain, amuse, and give that sense of hope, that sense of promise we all need, that second chances are possible, and that when life seems its bleakest, a new chapter might be waiting to be written. Gosh, that’s super-corny, but it’s true.

Writing, I’ve learned, also allows me to explore my own thoughts and beliefs through watching/learning what my characters do.

In A Man of Character, I examined the ideas of fantasy versus reality, perhaps in part because people have long challenged romance as presenting impossible ideals.

In A Matter of Time, I delved into whether feminism is compatible with wanting to prioritize love and marriage. (For the record, I am an ardent feminist who happens to be madly in love with my husband and who finds my identity in that relationship, and I’m good with that. So my answer to that question is a resounding yes.)

In A Scandalous Matter, I switched up the feminist theme by asking if romantic relationships negate individual independence, through the eyes of a heroine and hero who believe the two ideas are incompatible. (Spoiler alert: I disagree.)

And in my forthcoming The Demon Duke, admittedly a bit of a Beauty and the Beast story (my favorite Disney tale!) I looked at how we judge others and how we judge ourselves, and how we must make peace with who we are before we can be truly happy.

In each of my books, a main theme is finding one’s place in the world. How ironic that in becoming a writer, I’ve finally done just that. I know where I belong now, where my heart feels happiest, and it’s in writing romance.

I’ve come full circle, and I’m incredibly blessed.

Now, to you: What makes YOU read (or write) romance? I’d love to know! 


An earlier version of this blog post appeared on Tina Glasneck’s Celebrate With A Book site. I’m grateful to her for being fine with me posting it here, as well.

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Photo Journey: The University of Virginia’s Rotunda (pt 2 of a series)

Taking a much-needed break from editing The Demon Duke to bring you an image-heavy post about the stunning interior of the University of Virginia’s Rotunda.

This is the second in a series photo-documenting my visit to UVA on a delightful but cold February day, 2017. I hope you enjoy!

Have you been there? Share your experiences in the comments!

The basement entrance (from the south looking north). Perhaps not the most glamorous place to start, but it’s where I’ve always gone in, and it seems fitting to begin at the bottom, as the building only gets more glorious as you go up. Plus that bell is cool.
The basement room on the right (east) houses a display about the Rotunda, giving you information on its uses and adventures over the years.

Continue reading Photo Journey: The University of Virginia’s Rotunda (pt 2 of a series)