Jillian Chantal

I was invited by Iris Blobel to take part in the Avon Tasty Summer Reads blog hop. See details here. – We’re sharing our summer releases as well as a recipe along with answers to the following questions.

Let’s start with my new release that will be out on the 21st of this month. It’s called Moon Dance. The hero was a fireman who was blinded in an explosion and he’s now a celebrity disc jockey both on the radio and in a dance club. The excerpt is the second contact between the hero and heroine.

Blurb:

Olga Quinn hopes her relocation to London to work on their space shuttle program is the life changing move she needs after the loss of her co-worker in a workplace explosion. She meets Gabriel Swicord, a former fireman turned celebrity radio personality and deejay. He lost his sight while rescuing a family in the line of duty and has immersed himself in music and work since then. For a few days, Olga and Gabe burn hot for each other and then things turn cold.

Someone is murdering women who patronize the club where Gabe spins records. It appears that he’s the connection to the dead women and his name and face are plastered all over the news. Things are not looking good for Olga’s peaceful new life and when the killers turn kidnappers, things really begin to heat up.

Excerpt:

Another voice chimed in, “Am I interrupting?”

Gabe glanced toward the speaker as Mary said, “This guy is a big old meanie-head. Be warned. He’ll play the song you want but he won’t share a cocktail with you.”

“That’s perfectly fine with me.” The second woman addressed Gabe. “Can I make a request?”

Mary huffed and Gabe could discern her spin on her heel and stalk away. “So, did you come over her to tell me what kind of person I am, finally?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

He pointed at her. “You. Last night. Spilled drink. Remember? You said I was acting a like a typical person like me. You never told me exactly what that was.”

“How the hell did you know that I was the same person from last night?”

“Hey, I’m blind, not stupid.” Gabe barked a laugh.

“Still, you have to admit, it’s a little weird. You don’t know what I look like, you’ve only heard my voice once and you pegged me for the woman you talked to for a few minutes one time. It’s very impressive and I want to know how you do it.”

“In one sentence you call me weird and in the next, you call me impressive. Which is it?”

“Weirdly impressive. So, how’d you do it? Really?”

Gabe could hear the smile in her voice. She actually seemed nicer tonight than she had the evening before. “It’s a combination of voice and scent. I’ve learned to master putting the two together. I usually associate people with the way they smell and speak. With you, it’s easier.”

“Why’s that?”

“Let’s start with that Texas drawl.”

“And go where from there? Since American and twang is a dead giveaway.”

Gabe leaned out the window and rested his elbows on the ledge. “From there, we go to the combination of jasmine, sandalwood and grapefruit, which I believe is a mixture of your shampoo and the top-note of your perfume.”

“Well, I’ve made a decision.”

“And what’s that?” Gabe grinned because he could tell from the tone of her voice that she was delighted with his answer.

“Between weird and impressive, my decision is impressive. Hands down.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” Gabe bowed his head. “But you came over her to make a request, didn’t you?”

1)When writing are you a snacker? If so, sweet or salty?

I don’t eat when I’m writing unless I happen to be trying to get some words in while I’m on my lunch break at the day job, so I’d have to say that it would be a meal if I eat.

2) Are you an outliner or someone who flies by the seat of their pants? Are they real pants or jammies?

I definitely fly by the seat of my pants – and they are usually a skirt- I live in hot, sunny Florida and it’s easier to keep cool in a skirt or dress- you know, get the air circulating!

3)When cooking or baking, do you follow the recipe exactly or wing it?

I wing it. I can eyeball measurements pretty well and I may also add a little something else that I think may taste good.

4) What is next for you after this book?

Right now, I’m working on a story set on the Orient Express luxury train. It’s slow going and I may toss it out.

5) Last Question…on a level of one being slightly naughty to ten being whoo whoo steamy, where does your book land?

This one is probably about a four. It has a couple of scenes that could be called steamy but not such thick steam that you can’t see through it.

Recipe:

Living in hot Florida, we don’t cook a lot of oven baked foods in the summer. It heats up the house too much, but I do love some barbecue baked beans to go with ribs and hamburgers on the grill. You can either do these in the crock pot or in the oven.

ingredients: two cans of baked beans, barbecue sauce, brown sugar and three slices of bacon.

Pour the beans into an oven-safe pan, add about 5-6 tablespoons of barbecue sauce (see, here’s that no measuring thing- I add until it looks like it’s enough- you want the color to be slightly red, not a deep red and 5-6 tbls should do that for you. Next, add 1 tablespoon of brown sugar and stir- this adds some nice flavor but just a tad. Last, place the three strips of bacon on top. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 mins- or until it smells yummy! If you do this in the crock pot, – about an hour on high works, or two hours on low- BUT don’t add the bacon- it just doesn’t work out well. Trust me on this.