Danita Minnis

http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2018/03/nbtm-tour-heart-of-seal-by-dixie-lee.html

Dixie will be awarding $30 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

Author Interview

1. How did you choose your genre? What made you write this book? Thanks for having me on your blog today, Danita. What an interesting question. There was never a moment when I made a conscious decision to write romantic suspense. In some respects, it’s as though the genre chose me instead of the other way around. As a lover of romance, I read many of the sub-genres, including contemporary, paranormal, historical and romantic suspense, but when I started writing, there was no question that the stories I needed to tell were romantic suspense.

My new release, Heart of a SEAL, is the first book in the Hearts of Valor series, but the hero, Navy SEAL Luke Harding, made his debut as a secondary character in Rescued by the Ranger, a standalone novel I wrote about a wounded Army Ranger named Garrett Harding. Luke is Garrett’s younger brother, and it soon became obvious that Luke’s story needed to be told too.

2. Writers write what they know and must observe the world. Are you a first born, middle or last child and how does this shape your view of the world? I am the baby of my family with two siblings, four and eight years older than me. According to statistics, the lastborn is least likely to be disciplined. They learn at an early age how to duck their chores. They are more social and outgoing, love the limelight, and are financially irresponsible, at least compared to children of the other birth orders. It’s often said they just want to have a good time.

This analysis couldn’t be further from the truth in my case, which gives rise to my theory that a child’s formative years have more to do with a person’s characteristics than birth order. I was raised by an alcoholic father who was verbally abusive and a mother who suffered his behavior because circumstances gave her no other choice. I was quiet and severely introverted, preferring to stay out of the limelight and never do anything to call attention to myself. My chores and homework were always done and my grades were exceptional. Perfectionism was important for survival and I found refuge in the worlds created by authors in books such as Gone With the Wind, The Count of Monte Cristo, and Watership Down.  As an adult, I still get lost in the alternate reality of a story. Now, as an author, I get to create some of my own.

3. Where is your favorite place to write? At the beach, in a cozy bungalow overlooking the ocean. If it’s stormy…even better!

4. How do you feel about killing your darlings, and what do you do with the remains? It’s not easy to ruthlessly slice and dice the words, phrases and scenes I’ve sweated blood to bring into the world, but I’ve found it’s gotten easier…marginally! I save the remains, creating a special file entitled “Bits and Pieces” where I save everything just in case I ever need them! So far I haven’t. Lol!

5. You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them? Picking one favorite author would be nearly impossible, but I’d like to have met Margaret Mitchell, and I’d ask her why she never wrote another epic novel like Gone With the Wind. I’m afraid “one” question wouldn’t be enough though.

6. Inquiring minds want to know…tell readers something about you that no one knows. I’m a small-town girl, which isn’t a secret, but what not very many people know is I never drive in big city traffic. It terrifies me. Crazy? Maybe. Limiting? Definitely!

7. You are stranded on a deserted island with only a back pack for company. What three items are in your survival pack? Food, water and my dog…because you’re never alone when you have a dog.

8. If you could have one super power in your existence, what would it be? I’m not much into the whole superhero, super power craze, but I wouldn’t mind being able to manipulate time once in a while—make it stand still so loved ones never age—or stop bad things from happening—or go back in time and do it different the next time. Yeah, I could get into that!

9. Favorite snack? Salted nuts.

10. Indy 500 – Do you know how to get where you’re going or do you drive the speed limit? I definitely know how to get where I’m going (as long as it’s not in a big city 😊) and I NEVER drive the speed limit!

Thanks again for hosting me on your blog, Danita.

Heart of a SEAL

by Dixie Lee Brown

GENRE:  Romantic Suspense

BLURB:

They’re brothers in arms, Navy SEALS risking their lives for their country . . . and the women they love.

This is Luke Harding’s story.

Six months in a desert hellhole taught Navy SEAL Luke Harding things he never wanted to learn about life and death. Only tender memories of the beautiful brunette he met a few weeks before his deployment helped get him through the torturous days and nights. Back in the States after a perilous rescue, physically and emotionally damaged, Luke’s about to plunge into a new kind of war. In a seemingly bucolic Idaho town, Sally Duncan faces real—and unpredictable—danger.

All Sally ever wanted was a safe place to raise her nine-year-old daughter. Her identity hidden behind a façade of secrets and lies, can she trust Luke—a man she barely knows—with the truth? Even as they give in to long-denied passion, a killer with a personal vendetta is setting an ambush that will leave them praying for a miracle and fighting for the future they may not live to see.

 

Excerpt:

Luke stepped from the shower and made quick work of drying off before wrapping the towel around his waist. Sandy-colored clumps of wet hair stuck out every which way as his image stared back at him from the mirror. He raked his fingers through the strands, in serious need of a haircut, and called it good. Grabbing the shaving cream from his kit, he applied it evenly to his whiskered face and dragged the razor down his rough skin, systematically shaving from right to left. He paused for a heartbeat when he heard a knock.

“Be right out.” Luke turned the water on as hot as he could get it and let it run. Jen probably had to use the bathroom. He’d throw on some clothes and finish up in here later. A smile formed beneath what was left of the shaving cream. There wasn’t much he wouldn’t do for that little girl.

An instant later the door opened behind him, and the razor went still in his hand.

He stared at Sally’s reflection in the steamed-over mirror. Her in that damn shirt of his, leaning against the bathroom door, both hands behind her back. A good deal of shapely thigh led his gaze to well-toned calves. He followed them down to pretty pink toenails on bare feet. Did she know what coming in here like that would do to him? He took the last two swipes of shaving cream off with the razor, rinsed his face in the hot, running water and patted it dry. Barely able to swallow and momentarily unable to form an articulate sentence, he turned slowly.

Her blue eyes went wide as her gaze dropped below his waist, immediately answering his unspoken question. Evidently, she could see the hard-on he sported beneath the form-fitting towel that hugged his hips.

He took a step toward her. “Sally?” That was all he managed to force from his mouth. It sounded more like a command than the question with which he’d intended to rule out the possibility something was wrong.

A secretive smile played on her lips as she brought one hand up and raised it in front of her with a dismissive shake of her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking. This can wait till you’re finished.” Her gaze dipped once again to the towel draped around his hips, and she swiveled with a hand on the doorknob.

Oh no. Hell no. He wasn’t letting her escape that easily. He was damn sure she’d stepped out of her comfort zone for a reason and her baby blues were daring him to find out why. He closed the gap and caught the door as she opened it a sliver. Peering through the opening, he saw Jen, still intent on her game. A glance toward the motel room door confirmed that the dead bolt was thrown and locked. They could have a few minutes of privacy.

 

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Dixie Lee Brown lives and writes in Central Oregon, inspired by gorgeous scenery and at least three hundred sunny days a year. Having moved from South Dakota as a child to Washington, Montana and then to Oregon, she feels at home in the west. She resides with two dogs and a cat, who are currently all the responsibility she can handle. Dixie works fulltime as a bookkeeper. When she’s not writing or working, she loves to read, enjoys movies, and if it were possible, she’d spend all of her time at the beach. She is also the author of the Trust No One romantic suspense series, published by Avon Impulse.

 

Please visit her website: www.dixiebrown.com

Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/Dixie-Lee-Brown-311618418919108/

Twitter: @DixieLeeBrown

Or join her street team: https://www.facebook.com/groups/309603219231692/

 

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Amazon – http://amzn.to/2n6Wzt1

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Kobo – http://bit.ly/2DCARY2

 

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