I’m so excited to have with me fellow Harlequin author Laurie Batzel whose very first book and first series is in July! How exciting is that! Please welcome Laurie and her delightful Corgi and read on to find out how to enter the awesome giveaway she has for us.
Happy Tuesday everyone! My name is Laurie Batzel and I’m so grateful to Caridad for letting me visit you this morning. I’m an author of sweet romance for Harlequin Heartwarming. My very first book in my very first series with them debuts this July, but first a little about me:
Today is June 4th which, according to nationaltoday.com, is a special day for me for two reasons: first of all, it’s International Corgi Day. I’m not only the mom of four beautiful children, but also the very lucky mom/personal handmaiden/food delivery service to a six-year-old corgi named Stuart. I had wanted a corgi ever since I was young and pet sat for our neighbors’ litter of corgi puppies. The breed captured my whole heart. In addition to being known as the favorite breed of the late Queen Elizabeth II (a fact Stuart has taken very seriously in his demand to be treated like a member of the royal family), they are also smart, silly and amazing family dogs. Our menagerie also includes a two year old rescue lab mix named Midge, a guinea pig named Theodore and two ferrets, Rover and Luna. We can’t get enough of our furbabies and animal sidekicks/hijinks are always a staple in my books!
The other reason today is a special day is that it is National Cheese Day! I’ve told my husband more than once that cheese is my love language. From aged Gouda to a delightfully pungent Manchego to a simple Cheddar, I love it all. I also love to travel and one of my goals is to visit regions known throughout the world for their cheeses, such as Somerset, England (the birthplace of Cheddar), Paris, France, and Tuscany, Italy. My children have more than once accused me of having a “cheesy” sense of humor, which I take as the highest of compliments. Both plenty of mouthwatering food descriptions and lots of humor are two other hallmarks of every book I write, so if you’re a foodie who enjoys a giggle along with your swoony romance, you and I are meant to brie! (I’m sorry).
Just for you guys, here’s a special early hint into Book #2 The Valentine’s Plan: the male main character is the local cheesemaker!
June on the whole is National Dairy Month, which brings us to the main character of The Dairy Queen’s Second Chance, the first book in my Harlequin Heartwarming series set to release July 23, 2024! Here’s a little teaser.
In this contest…
Second time’s the charm?
Dairy farmer BeeBee Long wants to make the world’s best mozzarella, which means adding a water buffalo to her operation. Orlando the Bull costs more than she can afford, so she swaps her muddy boots for high heels…and enters a beauty pageant for the prize money! There’s just one problem—contestants must create a winning recipe and she can’t cook. Traveling chef Bill Danzig offers to train his former teenage crush, and soon they’re baking up a sweet second chance. But will BeeBee’s first love leave her behind again or crown her queen of his heart?
As I mentioned before, my favorite romances are the ones that balance the exhilarating highs and lows of falling in love with a healthy amount of humor. So it makes sense that my favorite movies have always been rom coms. While I’m a HUGE Nora Ephron fan and When Harry Met Sally and You’ve Got Mail are near the top of my Will Drop Everything and Watch When on TV list, there is a special place in my heart for the Sandra Bullock rom coms of the late nineties/early aughts. NO ONE does that special blend of physical comedy with emotional vulnerability like Sandy B. and just like me, she’s originally from Virginia! While You Were Sleeping is quite possibly my favorite romance film, but for comedy I go to Miss Congeniality every single time. So when I was writing The Dairy Queen’s Second Chance, Sandra Bullock’s lovably sarcastic fish-out-of-water beauty queen, Gracie Hart, was absolutely an inspiration for my main character, BeeBee Long (although I’m going to shoot my shot here and say if there was ever going to be a film adaptation of this book, Millie Bobby Brown is who I pictured for BeeBee physically with Niall Horan as her yacht chef first love, Bill Danzig).
Now on to the part everyone likes best…GIVEAWAYS!
Please visit Caridad’s Facebook fan page to enter the contest. I’m going to draw two lucky winners from the comments on that fan page to receive a free copy of The Dairy Queen’s Second Chance. Since I just completely overshared about some of my favorites, I would love to know some of yours! Tell me in the comments about your beloved pets (pictures would make my day!), your favorite dairy product or your favorite rom com film. Your comments might just inspire me as I’m hard at work writing Books #3 and #4 of my Crystal Hill Romance series now!
