Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Wednesday Guest - Lyn Horner

Howdy, everyone. Thanks, Paty, for inviting me to join you today.

By birth I’m a California girl, but I grew up in Minnesota. Trained in the visual arts, I worked as a fashion illustrator and later as an art instructor for several years. After moving to Chicagoland, I stayed home to raise my children – and soon became desperate for a creative outlet. I’d always enjoyed writing and loved reading historical romances, so I decided to try writing one. This hobby grew into a love of historical research and the crafting of passionate romances based on that research.

Following years of stops and starts, plus a move to Texas, I launched my first Kindle book. And it’s been a wild ride ever since! One day I’m elated over a wonderful review, the next I’m down in the dumps, certain nobody likes my work. Ah, the life of a writer. But that’s enough about me. To paraphrase, the book’s the thing!

Darlin’ Druid is the first volume in my Texas Druids trilogy. This western romance revolves around Jessie Devlin, a daughter of immigrants and a survivor of the Great Chicago Fire. Descended from the "Old Ones," her mother's name for their ancient Druid ancestors, Jessie is gifted, or cursed, with an ability to see into the future. For months she has dreamt of a man who saves her from burning to death. Now a prophetic vision convinces her he is real and sends her west in search of him, but will her quest lead her to love or into a deadly trap?
For Jessie’s had another vision – of a madman with blazing eyes. Does he await her somewhere beyond the horizon?

Excerpt
Darlin’ Druid – Chapter One

The trooper bobbed and weaved, arms raised to fend off blows being rained upon him . . . .

. . . Afraid the young soldier might retaliate, David reached out to grasp the woman’s arms, stopping her in mid-swing. “Ma’am, if you’ll just settle down . . . .”

“Let me go!” she shrilled, attempting to wrench free.

He should have complied with her demand, but some primitive instinct made him slip an arm around her and haul her back against him. A sweet scent of lilacs and woman washed over him, and he instantly grew aware of her feminine curves.
She gasped indignantly. “How dare ye? Bithiúnach! Muclach! Take your filthy hands off me.”

Glad he didn’t understand Irish, David cursed under his breath when she rammed her heel into his shin. It didn’t hurt much thanks to his leather boots; nor did the small fists pounding on his arms. But her frantic twisting sent the wrong signal to his male parts.

“Calm down, you little wildcat!” he growled. Releasing her, he stepped back before he humiliated himself.

Whirling around, the woman drew back her arm as if to slap him, only to freeze when their eyes met. A choked sound escaped her lips and the angry color drained from her cheeks. Seeing her sway, David grasped her shoulders to steady her. Her hands clutched his forearms as he returned her wide-eyed stare.

Her eyes were sapphire blue, so dazzling that he had trouble breaking their hold upon him. When he did, he noticed how young she looked – eighteen or twenty, he guessed – and what a beauty she was.

His gaze wandered over her smooth, creamy cheeks and dainty nose then lingered on her pink parted lips. Forcing himself to look elsewhere, he noted the dark auburn curls framing her brow. Her ugly bonnet hid the rest of her hair, but he bet it would look like silk when she let it down.

Then he noticed how rapidly her breasts rose and fell, and desire surged through him, swift and strong. He felt a loco urge to pull her into his arms and kiss her. Reluctantly dragging his gaze back to her sapphire eyes, he wondered what had come over her. A moment ago, she’d been mad as a hornet. Now she stared at him as if she were seeing a ghost.

Dazed by the sight of him, Jessie wondered vaguely if she was having one of her visions. Her gaze kept returning to his gray-green eyes. Crowned by dark brows with an eerily familiar slant, they matched those she’d so often seen in her dreams. She hadn’t expected her quest to bear fruit so soon. And the longer she studied his sun-bronzed, square-jawed face, arrow-straight nose and unyielding mouth, the more she doubted he was the one.

Those rakish features were hard, not gentle, and his hauntingly familiar eyes did not caress her like the ones in her dreams. Instead, they devoured her . . .

Kindle book: Darlin’ Druid
Nookbook: Darlin’ Druid
http://texasdruids.com/
http://texasdruids.blogspot.com/

22 comments:

Maggie O' said...

Lyn, Love the new cover and the except sounds great!
~Maggie~

Alison E. Bruce said...

@ Maggie, the excerpt sounds good too :-)
(Sorry - the editor speaking)

Great cover, Lyn and Darlin' Druid combines three of the things I love to read about: Celtic mythology, mystery and cowboys.

Alison
(Author of Under A Texas Star)

N. R. Williams said...

Hi Lyn.
Love that last line. 'They devoured her.' Your first chapter really pulled me in. Great job, great post. All the best.
Nancy

Lyn Horner said...

Maggie O'
I'm glad you like it. Thanks for stopping by. Don't you love Paty's site? I do!
Lyn

Lyn Horner said...

Alison, me too. Tales of the Old West are our homegrown mythology. Combining that with Celtic myth is kind of a natural for me. Of course, I don't really regard the gift of second site as myth, having experienced it myself. ;)

The element of mystery is provided by a villain who'd make most any gal shiver in her boots. Creating him was a challenge, but also fun.
Lyn

Lyn Horner said...

N.R.
I like that line too. David is an officer and a gentleman, but he's still all man. And while Jessie's firecracker temper (she's an Irish redhead, after all) sets his teeth on edge, he'd like nothing better than to silence her with a kiss.

Oh my, you've got me thinking of scenes in the book that we mustn't talk about here. Anyone for a cold shower?

A. C. Cockerill said...

What a fun premise! I'll have to check this book out. Cheers, Ashley

Lyn Horner said...

Ashley,
I surely hope you will! If you're interested, you might also like to visit my blog site(s) where I've posted a four part series about Druids.

Thanks for stopping by!
Lyn

Leanore said...

I have started reading this book. The writing is fantastic and the story is wonderful. I love Westerns beyond belief! Lyn Horner is gonna be a star!
This site is fantastic as well. It makes me want to lay down my current WIP and start riding the range, in search of one of these good looking cowboys. LOL

Lyn Horner said...

Leanore,
You know how to make a girl smile! Thanks for your glowing praise. I'm glad you're enjoying Darlin' Druid.

I'm all for you writing westerns, but don't you dare stop what you're working on. Your fans would not be happy!

Kisses,
Lyn

Anonymous said...

Great job Lyn! Loved the excerpt.

Hugs,

Mountainmama

Lyn Horner said...

Thanks, Mountainmama! I'm happy you're happy with it. You can download a larger free sample on Amazon it you like.

Best regards,
Lyn

Suzie Grant said...

Lyn! Love the new cover! You're book is already on my tbr pile which is growing by the day lol. I really need to take some time to read. Great job!
Suzie

Lyn Horner said...

Suzie, I know exactly what you mean. My kindle is so full of good reads, I'll never catch up.

I'm glad you like the cover. I was kind of attached to the old one, but this new one comes much closer to depicting the story.

Sharla Rae said...

I've read Darlin' Druid and what I love most about it is that it's a true Western in every sense of the word with just enough paranormal to treat my other love, Parnormal romance.
Sharla Rae

Lyn Horner said...

Hey Shar,
Nice to hear from you. You hit the nail on the head. Darlin' Druid is first and foremost a western romance, as packed with action as I could make it and peppered with dashes of Druid magic. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Caroline Clemmons said...

Ooooh, I love stories with Irish heroines, and have written two of them. This sounds like a book I'll love.

Diana McCollum said...

Great opening chapter! Who wouldn't love Irish druid thrown in to a western? Sounds so intriquing.

Lyn Horner said...

Caroline,
Terrific, another fan of the Irish! Aren't they fun to write about. I'm working on the sequel about Tye Devlin, Jessie's brother. It's titled Dashing Druid for obvious reasons. Tye's a real charmer, but he has issues he'll need to work out. Look for book two late this fall. Thanks for stopping by!

Abbey MacInnis said...

Lyn,
Love the excerpt. :) It's brimming with fabulous sensual tension. Just my kind of story with a feisty Irish heroine and wonderful premise. :)

Lyn Horner said...

Diana, sorry I'm so slow to reply. A situation came up today that I had to help out with.

I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt from chapter one. If I may, I suggest you download the larger free sample from Amazon. You'd get to read the prologue, which sets up Jessie's reason for going west. It also showcases her Druidic power of second sight.

Lyn Horner said...

Abbey, I love handsome cowboys who are kind of hard-nosed on the outside but with a good heart, and strong women who stand up to their men. Jessie's short fuse sometimes gets her in trouble, but it's part of what makes her interesting. At least I think so, and I'm pleased to know you like her.