Kit Donner and THE VENGEFUL BRIDEGROOM

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Join me in welcoming Historical author Kit Donner!   Kit is a break out author with Kensington's Zebra Imprint.  From her website, http://www.kitdonner.com/,

"My childhood was spent on a dairy farm and when I wasn't doing chores (like milking, bailing, cleaning stalls, driving tractor for Dad), I was inevitably found with a book in my hands. I could read in the dark, read in a car, read on the floor, read and watch TV.

During my senior year of college, I had the wonderful opportunity to study abroad in Carmarthen, Wales. My good friend, Lorna, and I would go to the market every Wednesday and Saturday looking for old Mills and Boon books. It was just the continuation of my love affair with everything British. My great-grandparents hailed from England. How could I not become an anglophile?"



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http://www.copyright-free-photos.org.uk/

So let's learn more from the girl who knows about cows, dragons, and zebras!

Kim:  Tell us your favorite books from Nancy Drew and the Dana Girls.

Kit:  Mysteries have always intrigued me, and it began with Nancy and the Dana Girls. The books are puzzles to solve, and I loved the way Carolyn Keene wove the clues of the kidnapper or the blackmailer throughout the story. I also loved the titles PASSWORD TO LARKSPUR LANE and THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE.  Who didn't want to become an amateur sleuth after reading these stories? I eventually graduated to the Mistress of Mystery-Storytelling: Agatha Christie. Due to my penchant for mysteries, I write historical romances with intrigue and colorful suspicious characters.

Kim:  How did you meet the Prince of Wales? Did you learn to speak Welsh? What was your favorite tourist spot (castle, church, or town).

Kit:  When our little group of American students learned the Prince and Princess of Wales would be visiting Carmarthen, we walked downtown (a few miles from school) and waited in the rain and cold for four hours before the royal couple finally started their walkabout. Although I was excited to see Princess Diana, she was on the other side of the road. She had so many people surrounding her, I could only see the top of her tan-feathered cap and the flowers gathered in her arms. On the other hand, Prince Charles strode up my side of the barricades practically unnoticed, except by me. I called him over by yelling, "Prince Charles, I'm an American, I'm an American!" (Well, it's the only think I could think of to catch his attention.) He shook my hand, and we chatted for a few minutes until I became tongue-tied, and my brain drew a blank. Then he politely bid me good day and walked out of my life. A lovely moment. *

I never learned to speak Welsh, although many of my Welsh friends tried to teach me. I loved listening to them speak in either English or Welsh because of the sing-song pattern in their speech.

My favorite place I visited when I studied in Wales was the Caldey Island Priory off the coast of Tenby. For a few pounds, we were able to stay overnight at the monastery. We tramped around the island at night in complete darkness and attended one of the very early morning services. I have fond memories of my time in Carmarthen, Wales. **

http://www.caldey-island.co.uk/

Kim:  Other than Austen, what influenced or inspired you to write your BRIDEGROOM series?

Kit:  I have many influences such as my love of Romantic Literature (Woodsworth, Keats, Mary Shelley) and best-selling romance author, Amanda Quick (Jayne Anne Krentz). Her historical romances appeal to me because of the adventure and, yes, mystery she spins throughout her wonderful stories.

Kim:  What's next for Kit Donner?

Kit:  I've written the third BRIDEGROOM book, THE UNEXPECTED BRIDEGROOM.  I've also begun, THE RELUCTANT BRIDE, influenced by Robert Louis Stevenson's THE SUICIDE CLUB.
Kim, thank you again for my trip down memory lane. You never know what life experiences will influence you and your writing.

And thank you, Kit, for sharing your traveling and writing experience!  To celebrate Kit's recent release, I am giving away a copy of THE VENGEFUL BRIDEGROOM to one randomly selected commenter.

What did you read as a child?  Have you milked a cow?  Where would you study abroad? What woul dyou have said to Prince Charles?

The book giveaway will be open through Monday, September 20.  The book giveaway is only open to US readers.  But I will mail a Regency treat to any international reader who sends his/her address to sos.america@yahoo.com.

If I don't have your email address in my data base, please send it to me at sos.america@yahoo.com so I can contact giveaway winners.  You can also friend SOS America on Facebook.

Join me on Friday, September 17, as we celebrate the Air Force's 63rd Birthday plus 100 years of aviation in the Pacific!

Mahalo,

Kim in Hawaii

*   In May 2008, I unexpectedly met President Bush during a tour of the White House - I was just as tongue tied!  My younger son has met Mrs. Laura Bush (when she read to his class as part of NBC's Today Show reading promotion).  My older son met Mrs. Barbara Bush when his class toured the East Wing.  But my husband has not any member of the Bush family.

** Wales rocks! CADW, "to keep", is the guardian of Welsh heritage. I fell in love with every crumbling castle. To learn more about CADW, log onto http://www.cadw.gov.uk/
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