What do you get when you mix Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The X-files? Take a guess? Those were the shows I was loving when Diana Reyes started screaming in my brain to write her story. I was actually writing another book that was due but I had to set it aside to write a few chapters of Darkness Calls, the first book in The Calling is Reborn Vampire Novels. I knew that tortured FBI Agent Diana Reyes needed a challenge and what could be more daunting than falling for possible suspect Ryder Latimer who turns out to be a very sexy Southern vampire? If you love vampire romances and also love romantic suspense, check out The Calling is Reborn series. The first three books are free on Kindle Unlimited!
Happy Cruising the Rhine River Gorge
Last week I shared some photos from our time in Frankfurt! We had a lovely time in the city, but we were ready to board the boat for the start of our cruise down the Rhine River. After a lovely introduction to the cruise director, captain, and crew, we had a welcome dinner and then went to the sky deck to watch our departure from Frankfurt. It was lovely to see the city at night. We woke to a bright sunny morning, had breakfast and started our tour of the Rhine Gorge. We passed castle after castle as well as many lovely towns along the river. It was a day spent entirely on the boat which was a little different. To break up the day there was a spirited cornhole contest won by some cruisers from Australia! That night we had a delightful wine tasting on the boat, dinner, and prepared to reach Strasbourg and our first excursions off the boat. I’ll share that adventure next Travel Tuesday!
This or That: Blonde or Dark
I have a thing for dark-haired men with light-colored eyes much like Trey Gonzalez from Lost in Little Havana or Ryder Latimer from Darkness Calls. But I also like to slip in an occasional blonde surfer-dude type like Jonathan Pierce in What Happens in Summer. I once read an article that said that women don’t like blond men in romances but I don’t believe that! What about you? Do you prefer blondes or dark-haired men as the heroes of your romance novels?
Blonde man Photo by Taylor Harding on Unsplash
Brown-haired man Photo by asaf rovny on Unsplash
Hello Autumn!
Summer is my favorite time of year and I’m sad to see it go but I love the changes that autumn brings. Cool nights and breezy days. The splashes of color in the trees and my fall-flowering plants. I’ve set out a few mums here and there along with some pumpkins and I’ve just picked up some fun hanging Halloween decorations. I’ll set them out as soon as it stops raining. The rain is welcome since I just put some new perennials in the garden. How about you? How do you feel about fall having arrived?
Getting to know me!
As I mentioned the other day, I’m part of a Latino Romance Author chain on Instagram to bring awareness to the many Latino authors that are writing romance. Today it’s time to share a little bit more about me!
My Heritage: I was born in Cuba and identify with that culture since it shaped my earliest memories, but my grandparents all came from Galicia in Spain. Galicia is unique in that it’s a Celtic Nation.
What I Write: I currently write contemporary romance and romantic suspense, but for many years I wrote vampire suspense stories! I was also the ghost writer for the Jane the Virgin Novel, Snow Falling, and my sweet contemporary romance South Beach Love was an Original Hallmark Movie in 2021.
Why I Write: I loved to read as a child and often escaped into stories of places I didn’t know and people who had amazing adventures. I want to be able to create those worlds and places for other readers so that I can bring them enjoyment, peace, humor, romance, and hopefully, a greater understanding of my culture.
One Thing About Me: I am basically shy. Yes, I hear a lot of laughter after saying that, but it took a lot of courage to learn how to be more outgoing. I’m glad I did get past my shyness since I’ve met so many fascinating people.
My Books You Should Read Now: I love my new South Beach Security romantic suspense series set in Miami. I’m excited to say that it continues with a K-9 division spinoff in May 2024. There is also The Family She Never Met which is based on my family’s experiences in coming from Cuba. I’m excited to say that it’s nominated for a Latino book award and I hope to be able to share more info on that soon.
The Chain continues tomorrow with:
- Taylor Torres @taylortorreswrites
Andrea Gonzalez @andreagonzalezromance
Happy Visit to Frankfurt
My family and I were blessed to be able to do a vacation to several countries along the Rhine when we did a river cruise last week. Over the next few Travel Tuesdays I’m going to share some stories about our adventures and photos of what we saw. For starters, we landed in Frankfurt in the morning and after dropping off our bags, walked all around to explore the sights. We started off with a visit to the home of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German author, artist, and statesman. Seeing the home gave us an idea of how the well-connected lived in the 1800s and there was a nice museum with artwork attached to the home. After, we wandered through some shopping areas and also through a weekly farmer’s market. The market was filled with amazing produce and quite a few food, wine, and beer stands. It was so crowded, but we didn’t linger for long since we had to get back and get ready for our first ever visit to an Oktoberfest celebration. It was actually the first night of Oktoberfest in Frankfurt and because of that, everyone was dressed in traditional clothing. We tried our best to fit in and think we did an admirably job. What do you think? Oktoberfest was a blast. Lots of good food, namely some fantastic sausages, pretzels, mustard, spaetzle, and dumplings. We also had excellent beer, namely some wheat beer and lagers. Finally, the music and dancing! So much fun. Surprisingly a friend advised that two unexpected songs — Sweet Caroline and Country Roads by John Denver — are staples at German Oktoberfest celebrations. We had a lovely time that night. The next day we did some more exploring around Frankfurt before it was time to board the boat for our cruise up the Rhine. I’ll share more photos from the next leg of the trip next week!
Hispanic Heritage Month and an Anniversary
It’s Hispanic Heritage Month but also a happy anniversary for me! This September it’s been 24 — yes 24 — years since my first novel was released for the Encanto Latino Romance line. That first novel was set in Miami much like my current South Beach Security series. Miami for me was the replacement for the country I couldn’t visit — Cuba. I also was raised in a very non-Latino neighborhood – Levittown, Long Island. For those reasons, I use a Miami location to share my Cuban culture. But you’ll notice that the image I created says something else in Spanish: Latin Heritage, American Heart. Very true for me. Although I value and honor my Cuban (and Spanish) background, my heart is very much American also and I honor the Nation that has given me so much. It’s not a perfect Nation, but I truly believe it is an amazing country that has provided so many opportunities for so many. It’s a nation that’s let me not only keep my culture but also share it with others, the way that I do in so many of my novels. But not all of my novels as some of you might know. Why? I love exploring all aspects of different cultures and people. The key for me is to always do it accurately and respectfully. My two cents on this Monday!
