Monday, November 4, 2013

Aloha to Kelsey Browning, Nancy Naigle, The Granny Series and IN FOR A PENNY

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Kelsey Browning joins us for a chat about The Granny Series. Hold onto your hats because this will be fun!

The Granny Series Hero - Teague Castro

Nancy and I talk about Lillian, Maggie, Sera, and Abby Ruth from The Granny Series all the time because, let’s face it, we love them. But there’s another character in the series who’s a bit of an unsung hero. His name is Teague Castro, and he’s a transplanted Texan who’s now the sheriff in Bartell County, Georgia.

How do we love Teague? Oh, counting the ways could take us all day! But here are just a few…along with a tiny excerpt to prove it!

He thinks of others first:

Both women whipped around at the noise and Teague felt everything kick into slow-motion as he watched Lillian lose her footing on the shingles.

Christ Jesus.

He hauled butt out of the car toward the big old white house and made it just as Lillian tumbled ass over teacup down the side of the veranda.

She plopped into his arms with her feet sticking straight up in the air. She didn’t weigh much more than his favorite shotgun.

He’s got a soft spot: 
He hooked a thumb toward the yellow van in the driveway. “This lady needs a place to park for a couple days. That new manager at the Walmart called her in.”

“Park? What do you mean park?” Lillian blinked with each word.

Maggie’s face drew up like she’d smelled catfish bait. “You think Summer Haven is a campground?”

Okay. So it was a stupid idea.

He’s observant:

The children shouted and begged for the candy Lillian always tossed from the car. As she smiled and flung a handful, her jacket hiked up and something at her midsection winked in the sunlight.

Teague said to Talley, “Did you see that?”

“See what?”

“Nothing. Never mind.” Like he was going to tell the guy he thought Miss Lillian was wearing a belly button ring. Reelection wouldn’t be so easy if folks thought he was losing his mind.

He’s persuasive:

I bet you could talk shop with the folks at the newspaper. Maybe even do some freelancing for them.”

“Sugar—” she lifted an eyebrow and shook her head, “—it’s not like they cover the Texans or Cowboys here.”

“There’s always high school football in the fall.”

At that, her mouth dropped open and her beer clunked to the table. “The hell you say.”

A beep-beep-beep noise screeched in Teague’s head.
He makes sacrifices to help folks:

Abby Ruth checked out the genteel Georgian house as they approached the front door. “Some digs.”

“The Summer family practically built this town.”

“Power-mongers, huh? I knew a few of those back in Houston. Oil men. Good in bed, but they always wanted to be on top.”

Teague’s palms twitched with the need to cover his ears. God, he loved this woman, but he needed earplugs sometimes. 

We can’t wait for you to meet Sheriff Teague Castro and the rest of The Granny Series cast in the first book, In For a Penny, available now from your favorite e-tailers! 


Author Bios:

Kelsey Browning writes sass kickin’ love stories and Southern cozy suspense. Originally from a small Texas town, Kelsey has also lived in the Middle East and Los Angeles, proving she’s either adventurous or downright nuts. These days, she hangs out in northeast Georgia with Tech Guy, Smarty Boy, Bad Dog and Pharaoh, a Canine Companions for Independence puppy. She’s currently at work on the next book in her Texas Nights contemporary romance series and The Granny Series. For info on her upcoming single title releases, drop by KelseyBrowning.com.

Nancy Naigle writes love stories from the crossroad of small town and suspense. Born and raised in Virginia Beach, Nancy now calls a small farm in southern Virginia home. She’s currently at work on the next book in her Adams Grove series and The Granny Series. Stay in touch with Nancy on Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to her newsletter on her website ~ NancyNaigle.com.

The Granny Series story… 

We’re often asked how we decided to co-write The Granny Series. Well, we didn’t so much as decide on it as it decided on us. In early 2012, we were attending the Romantic Times conference in Chicago. Often at events like that, writer roommates invariably stay up late chatting about their latest projects, the industry, and chocolate. Since we’re both Southern gals, we also talked about our home states and our families.

One of Kelsey’s family stories was about a (hypothetical) threat her mom made against a former family member. Of course, it was all a joke, but they decided Kelsey’s mom would have to be the one to make good on the (hypothetical) threat because in prison, she’d get three square meals a day and free health care. Besides, Kelsey looks horrible in orange.

We laughed and laughed about that silly story. But in the morning, Nan woke up and said, “I think we should write that book.” By the end of the weekend, we’d brainstormed a variety of scenarios and laughed until we cried. But the idea stuck, and we began plotting the story that would become In For a Penny.

Of course, In For a Penny is only the start of what we have planned for Lillian, Maggie, Abby Ruth and Sera. Join us and the grannies on the first of their many adventures!

To learn more about Kelsey, Nancy, The Granny Series, and the debut book, IN FOR A PENNY, check out TheGrannySeries.com.
 

Mahalo, Kelsey, for introducing us to the The Granny Series and IN FOR A PENNY.  In honor of Grannies everywhere, I am giving away a Granny Gift Pack.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Leave a comment about your granny.  My maternal granny lived in Devon, England.   She loved tea and all things British. Hence, the gift pack honors Britannia:

- Queen Elizabeth II bookmark
- Pineapple tea spoon 
- Jasmine tea

2.  This giveaway is open to all readers.

3.  Comments are open through Saturday, November 9, 10 pm in Hawaii.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, November 10.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Notice the Tutu (Granny) Hula Dancer on the right ...


24 comments:

  1. My maternal granny died when I was 5 yrs old. I don't remember much about her now except that she was very nice to us. I wish that I have known her more

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    1. Good morning, May. I feel for you...my maternal grandmother died when I was about the same age. My paternal grandmother, however, is 95 and an amazing woman. Maybe those of us who didn't know our grannies will get a chance to be great ones ourselves!

      Kelsey

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  2. My paternal grandmother lived in a small rural area in NYS. She lived to the age of 93 and never had indoor plumbing - used an outhouse (which was always very clean) and pumped her own water.

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    1. Wow, Karen - that's amazing! I bet it was fun to visit her when you were a kid. Thanks for popping by today!

      Kelsey

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  3. My maternal grandma lives in Hong Kong. She's a big tea drinker, too.

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    1. Jane -

      Do you get to see her often? Hong Kong hasn't been on my travel list, but I'd love to get there one day!

      Kelsey

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  4. Both my grandmothers came over from Sicily in their early 20's and both passed at the age of 83 (they weren't born in the same year though). One came straight to Pittsburgh and the other lived in Mississippi for some years.

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    1. Catslady -

      What an interesting heritage you have. Were they both great cooks (I'm just imagining some rich, red sauce!)?

      Thanks for stopping by!
      Kelsey

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  5. I had an English born Grandmother. I don't remember her much, but I do imagine my Mother would be so like her. My Mother is a proper English lady.

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    1. Hi, Mary -

      It does seem like the generation of our grandmothers was more refined than we are today. My husband's grandmother was a German immigrant and she had very specific ideas on etiquette and dress :-).

      Thanks for commenting!
      Kelsey

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  6. Both of my grandmothers were born and raised in Italy and came to America in their late teens. My one grandmother was already married with a child. I remember how they always spoke in broken English.

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    1. Danielle -

      What a great memory! Most of my colorful sayings came from my paternal grandmother. "Six one way, half dozen the other" - I bet she said that once a day.

      Thanks for sharing your memories!
      Kelsey

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  7. We called our grandmother Nana. She did piecework to support her family before she married my grandfather.

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    1. Maureen -

      Piecework as in sewing, right? I have to admit a weakness for grandmothers called "Nana," although I don't have one of my own. Nana just sounds so warm and sweet, like she's the kind of gal who bakes cookies and kisses boo-boos!

      Thanks for stopping by!
      Kelsey

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  8. Kim -

    I just wanted to say thanks so much for having Nancy and me on your blog today. You have a lovely site and I'm in love with the sweet granny in the picture above. I just want to hug her and bring her home with me!

    Thanks again,
    Kelsey

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  9. The things I remember most about my granny was that she loved "doing" things for people. She always cooked the best meals for us (from scratch) when we visited. She did a beautiful garden full of ever kind of bloom. She canned her grown vegetables and made jelly to send home with us out of the cellar. I always got to help get the eggs out of the hen house. And she did the most beautiful crafts for the home. Visiting her was always an adventure.

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    1. Brenda -

      I love hearing all that about your granny! Sounds like she was an amazing woman. Wonder what our grandkids will remember fondly about us one of these days (definitely not the hen house at my house ;-) ).

      Kelsey

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  10. Chiming in to give a big THANK YOU to Kim for having Kelsey and I here today. I have a soft spot for grannies and I hope we all get to live long and strong like the gals in this series!

    Hugs and happy reading~
    Nancy

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  11. My maternal grandma is 74 years old and still sassy. :) I practically lived at her house when I was growing up, and I did move in with her when I was in high school. We're really close!

    Brooke B.
    brookeb811 at gmail.com

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    1. Brooke -

      I DO love a sassy grandma. She sounds like my kinda lady!

      Kels

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    1. I'm also a fan of grannies who like to cook! Mine cooks well except for pancakes - they never seemed to be done in the middle :-).

      Kelsey

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  13. I loved both my grandmothers. The one I remember most is my Paternal Grandmother, as she was in my life the longest. She was always knitting, or baking. I loved the homemade items we received for our birthdays or Christmas. I still knit in her memory. Can't figure out the profile thing. So my name is Trudy M.

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    1. Hi, Trudy -

      Oh, I love that you knit in her honor! I bet you have some gorgeous knitted items and lovely memories.

      Thanks for stopping by!
      Kelsey

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