Spotlight & Giveaway: The Reluctant Fiancee by Lynne Marshall

Posted May 6th, 2020 by in Blog, Spotlight / 43 comments

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Lynne Marshall to HJ!
Spotlight&Giveaway

Hi Lynne and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, The Reluctant Fiancee!

 
Thanks so much for the spotlight opportunity, and hello everyone, I’m excited to be here today.
 

Please summarize the book a la Twitter style for the readers here:

Uh-oh, I am not now nor have I ever been on Twitter. Will have to wing it.

Why won’t she marry him? Is he being too pushy? She needs time since mother’s death. Wait, now she discovers she’s a triplet? Maybe he should cut her some slack. Not Paul’s style, though. Does he know better than she does? They belong together. But what about those sister’s she’s never known?
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Brynne Taylor sat across from her finance, Paul Capriati, on a late-afternoon Saturday date at the Rusty Nail. The restaurant was located out of town, off the highway, nestled against the copper- colored hills accentuated by the amber hues of early September and the pine green of cedars. The golden-colored knotty pine-paneled walls were decorated with buffalo, mount goat and assorted dear heads, and there wasn’t a single cozy booth to relax in, yet Brynne and Paul continued to go back time and again. It wasn’t the most romantic place in the world, or convenient, but it was where they could depend on a good steak and a decent grilled salmon meal.
author’s note: I laid down a lot of atmosphere, so I’ll make a fifth sentence that get’s to the point:
Paul had something on his mind, and today was the day he planned to propose all over again.

 

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

  • Paul is a man who isn’t afraid of emotions and who wants a lot of kids, which scars the daylights out of Brynne.
  • Brynne was quietly raised by a single mother, without siblings, and gets nervous in big groups.
  • There is a road trip in this book
  • Separated at birth triplets come face to face and have to deal with thirty years of separation in a most innovative way.
  • There may or may not be a Vegas wedding

 

What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

Since this is a book about the continuation of an on again, off again engagement, the “first attraction” happened a long time ago.
Brynne’s first encounter with Paul was in the emergency room when he’d been admitted with food poisoning. Not a pretty sight, but even sick as a dog Paul was such a gentleman that he’d captured her interest right then and there.
from the start, Paul was completely taken by Brynne, even though sick, and he followed up from their hospital encounter by asking her out on a date, which happened to be on her birthday. Of course he had no idea it was, but she was just glad to have a date with someone on her thirtieth birthday. When he found out later, he made a point to take her out for a real birthday dinner and that was when she fell for him.
 

Using just 5 words, how would you describe Hero and Heroine’s love affair?

steady, ready, postponed, resisting, undeniable.
 

The First Kiss…

Again, since this is a love affair that has been going on for a few years, it’s hard to pinpoint their first kiss. So how about their first kiss in this book?

he kissed her with all the passion stirred up by their situation. A desperate and demanding kiss took over, and she seemed instantly all in. Paul didn’t give a damn about their public display of far more than affection. If people wanted a show, he’d give them one. His pulse shot up when her arms clamped around his middle as she leaned into him and deepened the kiss. Maybe he hadn’t lost her today.
Too soon, she pulled away, her cheeks pink and nostrils flaring with each breath. He’d made her breathless. Good. “I’ve got to go.”
He tenderly tucked a curl he’d loosened while they’d kissed behind her ear. Surely she could see the love in his eyes, see how desperate he was to marry her. To prove he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life.
“We’re not done with this conversation.” He spoke quietly before releasing her and walking her to the exit, evidently more than willing to be the guy who, when his back was against the wall, knew how to fight dirty.

 

Without revealing too much, what is your favorite scene in the book?

Paul and Brynne have a huge fight during a storm, a fight that reveals a lot about each of the. Brynne has also been drinking. This is just a snippet, but as the fight rolls out more and more comes to light about what is holding Brynne back from marrying Paul:

…a bolt of lightning lit up the window, drawing their full attention. And a few seconds after that, a loud clap of thunder off in the distance managed to rattle the same window. Soon, loud plops of rain tapped on the roof.
Brynne looked at him incredulously. “Did you text Mother Nature, to keep me here for the night?” By the tipsy absurdity of her comment, she indeed had no business driving home.
“Is that how you feel? That I’m manipulative and I’m making you marry me?”
“I broke off the engagement, and somehow, I still bought a wedding dress tonight.”
“Hold on. I didn’t tell you to buy a wedding dress, I just suggested you buy yourself something to cheer you up.”
“As if that’s all I needed.”

 

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would be absolutely crucial to include?

The caravan trip to Las Vegas

“Next, you’ll be saying, ‘let’s get married while we happen to be in Las Vegas,’ too.”
He shrugged. “It’s an option.”
Paul was being way too low-key, and it freaked her out, until he reached for her and kissed her good-night. After lunch that day, she’d worried she’d never share another with him, and as his lips pressed gently to hers, it felt like a little piece of heaven. Something she never wanted to let go of. He wasn’t being the least bit pushy with the kiss, either, just tender, yet something simmered with the promise of so much more. When her eyes closed, her head started spinning, thanks to the leftover tequila buzz. Feeling woozy, mid–luscious kiss, she popped her eyes open and got a close-up view of his shiner. Black. Purple. Puffy.
“Poor baby,” she whimpered over his mouth.
“You’re making me feel a whole lot better,” he whispered back, his hands massaging her lower back. Then he kissed her deeper, stirring up unexpected passion.
With her guard down, a surge of empathy for her guy with the black eye and everything he’d had to put up with this past week took over. Hell, for the last six months! She went along with the kiss, enjoying every second of connecting with him. Paul was the one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. They had a long drive to hash out the details.

 

Readers should read this book …

Because it finishes the Taylor Sisters’ mystery about being separated at birth.
Cooking up Romance (#1)
Date of a Lifetime (#2) a Harlequin Junkie Recommended Read
The Reluctant Fiancee (#3)
It is a book where a huge amount of story occurs in seven short days.

 

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

My next release is a self-published book. It is book #3 in the Mercy, Inc. trilogy titled: Temporary Dad.
Book One: Her Knight Wore Scrubs
Book Two: His Special Angel
Book three: Temporary Dad
Mercy, Inc. series

Temporary Dad is my favorite book cover of all time, too!

 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

 
 

Giveaway: I’d like to give away two copies of the first book in this Taylor Sisters trilogy – Cooking Up Romance. If the winner is outside of US, I will send a copy of the UK version from The Book Depository.

 

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Triplets are rare. Any of you know triplets? Have triplets in the family? Give birth to triplets?
If you could imagine having triplets, what would you name them?

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 
 

Excerpt from The Reluctant Fiancee:

Even though Brynne has broken off the engagement to Paul earlier that day, after her earth shattering experience of delivering a baby in her book store, he is the one and only person she runs to for comfort. This scene occurs after they’ve made love:

“The woman I delivered could have been me. It was like staring at myself, except being pregnant.” The hair on her arms noticeably stood, and his heart ticked quick beats. Their on-or-off engagement, depending on who said it, had nothing to do with her coming over. Tonight wasn’t about him, it was about Brynne.
“Are we entering the twilight zone?”
She nodded in total agreement. “We were identical, and she told me I looked like her twin, Eva, as if I didn’t look exactly like her already. We didn’t have a chance to talk, since Junior was nearly birthing himself on the storeroom floor, but man.” She rubbed her forearms, where gooseflesh had popped up. “Her husband was speechless when I went to pick him up. He said it was uncanny how I looked like his wife, Lacy. The woman I’d just helped deliver. He said there was a long story, but he felt it was only right to let Lacy and Eva tell me.” She shook her head, obviously still in disbelief.
“What if my mother hid a family from me? Or wasn’t even my real mother? She was always so secretive about her past, and she’d never been married—said she never wanted to be. What if she adopted me? She got sick so quickly, we didn’t have a chance to talk before she slipped into the coma. No chance for bedside confessions. How will I ever know the whole story?”
“Maybe this woman, Lacy, will clear things up.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

She loves him—but does she want to get married?

She’s finally getting married—

Or not?

When Brynne Taylor breaks off her engagement to Paul Capriati, she knows her life is going to change. But when two women who claim to be triplets to her show up in her small Utah town, it’s a lot more change than she ever expected. Now she’s digging up long-buried family secrets and navigating her relationship with her ex-fiancé. Does she actually want to get married? And what’s this introverted only child going to do with two brand-new sisters?

USA TODAY Bestselling Author
Book Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Goodreads |
 
 

Meet the Author:

USA Today Bestselling author, Lynne Marshall has been traditionally published with Harlequin as a category romance author for more than thirteen years with thirty books, and more recently with TULE Publishing, she has also gone hybrid with self-publishing. She is a Southern California native, has been married to a New Englander for a long time, and has two adult children of whom she is super proud. She is also an adoring grandmother of two beautiful little girls and a grandboy, she is a woman of faith, a dog lover, a cat admirer, a meandering walker, a curious traveler, and an optimistic participant in this wild journey called life.
Website | Facebook | Twitter | | Instagram |

 
 
 

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43 Responses to “Spotlight & Giveaway: The Reluctant Fiancee by Lynne Marshall”

  1. Nicole (Nicky) Ortiz

    No!
    Not sure but it would probably be with the same letter
    Thanks for the chance!

  2. erahime

    Any of you know triplets? No.
    Have triplets in the family? No.
    Give birth to triplets? No.
    If you could imagine having triplets, what would you name them? Unisex names.

  3. Diana Tidlund

    My friend Margaret is a triplet !
    If I had triplets I’d sure and be a medical miracle but I’d name them Harley , Hayden and Haven . They are unisex names so doesn’t matter what sex I have

      • Diana Tidlund

        My friends father in the early 70’s name was Hayden and he was a painter. A friends son is also named Harley. His father is a biker .

        • Lynne Marshall

          Ah! And they are good names. I like the sound of them. Especially Hayden. Since the book Harley and Me, I see Harley as a dog name lol. But I still seeing a little girl wearing it well, also. Nice talking to you. 🙂

  4. Mary Preston

    I went to school with triplets. 3 girls; they all looked very different. I thought that was a good thing. I still do.

    • Lynne Marshall

      Most triplets are fraternal, or one egg makes twins and another the third, but extremely rarely one egg splits three ways!!!

  6. Laurie Gommermann

    I’ve known two identical twins sets. I have never encountered triplets.

    Names all girls: Leah, Lissa, Lara

    Names all boys: Luke, Eric, Jason

  8. dbranigan

    I taught a few sets of triplets over the years. They all had names that were different.

  9. janinecatmom

    I don’t know anyone who has triplets. I can’t even think of anyone who has twins. I don’t even want to think about giving birth to triplets. I have no idea what I would name them,

  10. Pamela Conway

    No triplets in my family. Let’s see for names, if boys Ryan, Matthew & Luke. For girls, Sarah is all I have.

  14. isisthe12th

    Don’t know any triplets but my outside cat just had three kittens and I named them Libby, Luna and Lotty. Thank you

  16. Lynne Marshall

    Good morning everyone! I am a little late getting started. First off, please forgive the typos in this spotlight. I was really stressed last week because I lost 7,000 words in my WIP, and I was already feeling down thanks to six weeks of isolation. So I didn’t even think I could do this spotlight, but the lovely HJ, Sara, encouraged me. Now I’m glad I did, but cringed seeing all those typos! Sorry.
    I’m finding it interesting that so many of you said if they had triplets they’d give them unisex names. I guess that’s a trend. I like a lot of the names that would be considered unisex. Some, not so much. Sometimes, super odd names are hard on kids growing up. Maybe not so much these days, though. Which is a good thing!

  19. Kay Garrett

    We have twins in our family and I also miscarried a set of twins. I can only imagine how it would be with triplets! If I had triplets and all girls, they would have been named Glenda, Linda and Brenda.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

  20. Teresa Warner

    I have a friend who is from a family of 10 and he has triplets in his family. Two brothers and a sister!

    • Lynne Marshall

      That makes sense with what I said earlier on someone’s comment – usually with triplets it’s twins (one egg) plus another egg. I’m assuming the girls were identical?

  24. BookLady

    I don’t know any triplets and we don’t have any in the family.

  25. Jana Leah

    No triplets in my family. When I was a kid I used to want to have triplet girls. I had wanted to name them Andrea, Amanda, & Candace so I could call them Andy, Mandy, & Candy.

  26. Glenda M

    No triplets! I’ve never had cause to think of names for twins much less triplets.

  28. Ellen C.

    I went to school with several sets of twins. They all had alliterative names. I would probably give triplets names that sounded good together, and use family names for middle names.

  29. Patricia B.

    I don’t think I have ever known or met triplets. As active as my children were, I can’t imagine 3 at the same time. Our oldest were only 15 months apart and that was enough like having twins once they were out of the baby stage. For boys, I would name them Johnathan, Matthew, and Markham. For girls, Corinne, Rebecca, Sarah. Or any combination thereof.

    • Lynne Marshall

      I love your name choices, and yes, you practically had twins at 15 months apart. 🙂
      My husband is one year and ten days older than his sister!

    • Lynne Marshall

      Me either, or twins! So many diapers and little ones saying mommy, mommy, mommy. It would take a neighborhood to raise them!

  31. Diana Hardt

    I don’t know any triplets and we don’t have any in the family. I couldn’t imagine having them myself.