Fiery Roses is on Kindle Friday, March 12, 2010 News for those of you who enjoy your Kindles: Fiery Roses has finally joined A Band of Roses on Amazon Kindle!
YAY!!! I'm recommending your wonderful books to my colleagues at work. Here's wishing you the very best of luck with Fiery Roses!!!
By Donna Goode, at
March 30, 2010 10:54 PM
Fiery Roses in Living Color Thursday, January 7, 2010The book trailer for Fiery Rosesis ready! Thanks to my talented web designer, Rick Shagoury, a glimpse into this exciting story is available for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!
This is awesome, Pat, just awesome! Mr. Shagoury has a great talent to bring out your vision, doesn't he? The music captured the tone of each scene quite well also. I'm so proud!
Yes, Mr. Shagoury is a talented lad, and most willing to collaborate on a project until it's just right. Thanks for stopping by, Dave!
By Pat McDermott, at
January 11, 2010 4:14 PM
Fiery Roses - The Cover Has Landed! Wednesday, November 4, 2009The cover is out for Fiery Roses, and it's gorgeous! My sincere thanks to talented cover artist Shirley Burnett. Fiery Roses, the sequel to A Band of Roses, is scheduled for release in e-book format December 24th from Red Rose Publishing. Here's what "Fiery" is about:
The discovery of gas off the coast of northwest Ireland ensnares Irish Princess Talty Boru and her devoted champion, Neil Boru, in a web of blackmail and murder. County Mayo's residents object to a pipeline crossing their pristine boglands, but an arsonist tries to change their minds by setting homes and land ablaze. One of his fires sends newlyweds Neil and Talty to an ancient world at the mercy of a waking volcano. While they struggle to outwit a tyrant with a shocking secret, King Brian locks horns with a ruthless tycoon who will stop at nothing to become a high roller in the oil and gas game. The resulting conflict proves fatal for the Boru clan, whose members once again close ranks to thwart the latest threat to the kingdom they are sworn to protect.
BTW, am I guess correctly that your web designer is your son?---clue 'snag a meal and do his laundry'. I had to laugh when i reread that part. Sounds like mine. Julie
By Julie Robinson, at
November 15, 2009 5:39 PM
Thanks for stopping by, Julie. Most folks know that my web designer is indeed my son. He's a talented young man who's taught me lots about maintaining my web page and blog. And I enjoy cooking for him! BTW, he does his own laundry :-)
By Pat McDermott, at
November 15, 2009 5:45 PM
Novelspot Review for "A Band of Roses" Monday, October 12, 2009What a delightful surprise to find this review today! The reviewer is Rob Shelsky, and he posted his review of "A Band of Roses" on Novelspot. Here's an excerpt:
"As with all alternate reality books, one must accept with a willing suspension of disbelief that such a universe can exist, and would be the way it is in the story. At accomplishing this, some authors are better than others, and Ms. McDermott is one of those better authors. She weaves a fast-paced tale in a believable setting, one filled with action, adventure, intrigue, and strange twists . . . A Band of Roses is a well-rounded, action-filled novel, one with a strong element of romance, and a book that will keep the reader on the edge of their seat. I highly recommend A Band of Roses by Pat McDermott. This story thoroughly deserves a 9 out of a possible 10 rating, for it is a nearly perfect read!" Thank you, Mr. Shelsky, for brightening my day!
Hi, Britt! How are you? I'm happy to hear from you. As you can see, reviews for A Band of Roses are still popping up. Red Rose Publishing has given the sequel, Fiery Roses, a release date of December 24. Ho ho ho!
By Pat McDermott, at
October 13, 2009 12:49 PM
Visiting Imaginary Friends Wednesday, April 8, 2009
With all the information available these days, writing about places an author has never seen requires little more than clicking on real estate ads and vacation sites or opening one of the many geographical guides tailored for writers and armchair travelers. The Writer's Guide to Places is a good one. And did you know the CIA keeps a World Factbook online and updates it every two weeks? Country profiles, maps, flags, governments, and a wealth of other information are just waiting to inform and inspire.
With enough research, I can create the places my characters visit, even if I haven't been there myself. It isn't necessary to see the scene in person. Or is it?
During a recent visit to northern California, the Mendocino coast lured me to see if I'd done a good job describing the home temporarily occupied by the star of my alternate Irish history novels: Taillte Rosaleen Boru, the Crown Princess of Ireland. The house Talty shared with buddies Richard and Nick doesn't exist, of course, but the rugged coast of Mendocino certainly does.
Visiting John and Diane, my dynamic uncle and gracious aunt, is always a pleasure for Mike and me. Last week, they again installed us in the guestroom of their lovely Santa Rosa home. We spent a few days basking in their generous hospitality, touring Napa Valley and Bodega Bay before commandeering one of their cars and heading north. Vineyards and vineyards later, we hunkered down for the night in Fort Bragg and dined in Noyo Harbor watching seals frolic in the small sparkling inlet.
The next day, we invaded the town of Mendocino, an enchanting New Englandish array of houses, shops, and water towers situated on a scenic stretch overlooking the blue, blue Pacific. I pictured Talty strolling there, shopping for groceries, browsing in the bookstore. She might return from Ireland one day for a visit, I thought, and decided that seeing the setting for a story in the proverbial flesh is preferable to surfing the web for real estate ads "fer sure." Not long after, I found the site of Talty's house, cliffs, beach and all!
Well, not really. Only in A Band of Roses. I did imagine dropping in on Talty and the guys for tea, which was enough to make my visit to Mendocino more than worthwhile. That and the armies of redwood trees we passed on our way back to Santa Rosa and Diane's Chicken Osso Buco.
Hi Pat, Hopefully Sydney will be as strong and an awesome person like Talty:) Happy blogging!
By Martham0615, at
April 8, 2009 6:36 PM
Hi Pat, I do think you're doing a smashing job with your blog! Lots of interesting information in this post! Totally enjoyed it!! Keep up the good work! Beautiful pics!!
Thank you so much, Andrea. Praise from you is praise indeed. I hope you realize you'll be on my favorite blog list next time it's updated!
By Pat McDermott, at
April 8, 2009 8:48 PM
I'm glad Mendocino was so inspiring! If Talty gets a chance to visit her old stomping grounds, we get to read book #4 by Pat McDermott! Yeah!!!
You may be writing fiction, but maybe focusing so hard on a place eventually brings you there. Perhaps you've taken creative visualization to the next level. I'll be disappointed if you don't end up going on a luxury submarine vacation soon!
By k8, at
April 8, 2009 10:11 PM
Pat! I love your blog! I am so glad you finally started one! And what great references you gave! I am writing them down. I would have loved to stopped and had tea along with you w/Talty and the gang.
I too travel online and through books to get a picture of my setting, but I long to ACTUALLY see some of them, I think it really will help bring the places more to life. I know from some settings I've seen and used they do seem to pop more visibly on paper than others.
No question about it, Eliza. Walking on on a bog in County Mayo is a lot different from reading about it. Same with visiting NYC. You can't imagine all the nuances unless you're there, but we poor writers must do the best we can. Thanks for stopping by!
By Pat McDermott, at
April 9, 2009 8:18 AM
Great blog, Pat. Wouldn't it be great if we, as writers, could visit every setting we plop our novels into? And historical writers have additional challenges to make their readers feel as if they're actually living in the worlds we create. But that's part of the challenge and joy for us to imagine and creatively illuminate our stories so readers can lose themselves and experience those happily ever afters.
By Angela Johnson, at
April 9, 2009 4:12 PM
Hey Pat, I enjoyed the post and links. Thanks for sharing. Now, if only I could fiqure out how to travel to 16th century Scotland!
By Dawn Marie Hamilton, at
April 10, 2009 9:21 AM
Dawn, Your "Garden Gate" series will take many readers to 16th century Scotland. Close enough! Thanks for visiting.
By Pat McDermott, at
April 10, 2009 9:42 AM
