Our spotlight on author Bernadette Rowley.
Who is Bernadette Rowley?
I’m a fantasy romance
author whose spicy stories feature a healthy dash of magic and are set in my
fantasy world, the kingdom of Thorius. My first book with Destiny Romance, Princess Avenger explored a romance
between a feisty princess and a dark and dangerous shape shifter. My second
book, The Lady’s Choice takes one of
the secondary characters from Princess
Avenger and matches him up with a sexy and desperate lady from a
neighbouring kingdom.
I’m a vet in my day job
so my stories feature animals and, in fact, you might say a gorgeous, dappled
grey stallion is a secondary character in The
Lady’s Choice.
What
inspired you to be a writer?
I was always a reader so was naturally driven to
write stories as a girl. I didn’t write much after leaving school but then when
I had my third son, I realised that I’d love to write a book. Starting with
picture books, I moved through junior fiction to writing for adults and ending
up with fantasy romance. I’ve also dabbled in space opera and have a series
started in that genre.
How did you choose your genre?
I discovered fantasy in
my teenage years and read Tolkien, Feist, Brooks and Jordan. I’ve basically
read nothing else but this genre until I joined Romance Writers of Australia so
it was natural that I would fall back into my fantasy world when I wrote
romance. I’m writing what I know, what I immersed myself in for three decades.
What
made you tell this story and why did you write this book?
While writing Princess Avenger, Squire Ramón Zorba
kept trying to steal more of the story than I could justify so I knew he would
have to have his own book. He’s a gorgeous blond swordsman but quite
inexperienced in love and so it was fun to match him up with Lady Benae
Branasar who had ‘enjoyed’ men before she met Ramón.
How
did you come up with the title?
I brainstormed about a dozen titles and sent them to
the Destiny editors, Carol and Sarah, as they didn’t like the working title.
They selected The Lady’s Choice as it reflects the premise of the story. Benae
has to choose between a marriage of convenience and a love match- each path
having consequences.
What
is your favourite scene?
It’s so hard to choose but I really adore the
bathing chamber scene when Benae - along with the queen and all her
ladies-in-waiting- catches her first glimpse of Ramón naked. He makes quite an
impact, ensuring the castle gossip runs hot for weeks.
The
premise for The Lady’s Choice
When she finds herself irresistibly attracted to her reluctant escort, the handsome Ramon Zorba, her plans begin to unravel. Ramon is dealing with problems of his own, but as he begins to thaw, Benae begins to glimpse the devastating man underneath. The more time they spend together, the harder Benae finds it to focus on her objective. Will she stay true to her people and pursue the prince? Or will love and fate intervene?
Find Bernadette at:
Buy Links
Great post, Bernadette. Your covers are so beautiful!!
ReplyDeleteI really like the covers. I love when characters let the author know they need their own book. It's happened to me and it's so much fun getting to explore them more.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jen and Kelly. I really like the covers too and I loved writing Ramon's story.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a terrific story. Good luck with it! (Dontcha love it when a character insists you tell his story, too?)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Susan!
DeleteBernadette's stories sound great. I enjoyed reading about how she began writing. The covers are lovely!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Denise xx
DeleteHi Bernadette, Thanks for the wonderful post. I loved learning about your journey to becoming a fantasy writer. Your covers are gorgeous! Best wishes:)
ReplyDeleteCheers Allison, thanks for the kind words.xx
DeleteI love fantasy books and a fantasy romance is lots of fun! It was great to hear where Bernadette got her ideas from. All that reading paid off! :) Thanks for sharing. I wish her the best of luck.
ReplyDelete~Jess
Hey Jess, fantasy sure is fun and so glad you enjoyed the blog. xx
DeleteI think it's great that you've written in so many different genres!
ReplyDeleteWhat they all have in common is adventure with love thrown in, even with my junior fiction!
DeleteLove the sound of this story :)
ReplyDeleteHave Fun
Helen
It's a fun premise! Thanks Helen
DeleteOh my goodness! What a tantalizing concept, and I love the covers. Gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteLove the word tantalizing Crystal, thanks for stopping by xx
DeleteI don't read a lot of pure fantasy, but throw romance into it and it's more exciting. :)
ReplyDeleteHope you'll give my stories a try, Medeia xx
DeleteThanks for hosting me on the blog, Nas. It's been fun. xx
ReplyDeleteI read all those book too as a teen :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck to you and your writing.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Love love, Andrew. Bye.
The bathing chamber scene does sound pretty great!
ReplyDelete