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Author Guest Post - Louisa Edwards (& a Giveaway!)

* Congrats to lucky winner - Virginia *

Readers, please join me welcoming Louisa Edwards, debut author of Can't Stand The Heat (A Recipe for Love) who will be guest blogging here today!

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The first book in the Recipe for Love series, Can't Stand The Heat features a food critic going undercover to write an expose about a hotshot chef. Only she doesn't know how to cook, and the chef is determined to teach her a lesson..about cooking with a dash of delectable passion thrown in!
 

I’ve been reading romance novels since I was about 11 years old. When my grandmother came to visit, I’d sneak them out of her suitcase and secret them away to my room. Then, under cover of darkness, I’d creep out of bed and read them by the light of the bulb in my closet. Yes, I was literally a closeted romance reader.

All through high school and the first few years of college, I kept my romances, with their covers depicting big-chested men and women in steamy clinches, under my bed and in drawers, hidden from view. I went to Bryn Mawr College, one of the Seven Sisters, and I was sure my friends would look down on me for reading a genre widely considered to be lowbrow, trashy, and/or demeaning to women.

Except romance novels are actually none of those things, and I knew it. Oh, sure, the genre runs the gamut and some less-than-stellar examples exist out there, but for the most part? Romance novels are full of strong, resourceful, intelligent, interesting women who are the stars of their own stories. What could be more feminist than that?

So I started owning up to my longstanding addiction—and the world didn’t come to an end! My buddies didn’t laugh at me when I said that one day I hoped to write a romance novel of my own. And at the recent launch party for my debut contemporary, Can’t Stand the Heat, some college friends I hadn’t seen in nearly 10 years showed up to support and congratulate me. Some of them had even read the book—and loved it.

These days, I’m proud to be an out and open romance reader and writer. The genre I love has come so far, embracing the evolving needs and desires of its audience and adapting to changing societal pressures. I’m glad to be part of it, and if my book causes even one woman to open her mind to the world of entertainment romance novels can provide, I’m counting it as a win.

So how did you come to romance? And what keeps you reading?
I found my Mom's romances and started reading them secretly, that's how I got started :) What keeps me reading is how inspiring these books are. Let's face it, HEA (happily-ever-after) is something we could all use, in books if not in real life. They're like...well, let me not get on my high horse. This post will never end then. And I know you're raring to win a copy of this great book of Louisa's, aren't you?! Well, here it is...

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GIVEAWAY

The Prize

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One lucky winner will get :
  • A copy of this book &
  • A Can’t Stand the Heat apron + Recipe for Love spatula (featured above)

To Enter
  • Just leave a comment with your email address in the body of the comment itself telling me : So how did you come to romance? And what keeps you reading?
  • Please list your email address within your comment so that you can be notified should you be chosen as a winner.
For Extra Entries

Please leave a NEW comment for each extra entry you do.

Deadline   Midnight CST of October 30, 2009.

Eligibility  US only.

Please read the Disclaimer. Good luck!

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Comments

  1. I fell in love with romance when I read Gone With the Wind at age 13!

    mj.coward[at]gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I subscribw.

    mj.coward[at]gmail.com

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  3. I fell in love with romance because of my mom. I borrowed here books. Hey this is the last day to enter this contest..so go: http://www.feistyfrugalandfabulous.com/2009/09/fragrance-collection-by-glade.html

    dorcontest at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks for having me here, Rashmi! This is a very cool blog.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I loved Can't Stand The Heat! Fun, fun read!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I started reading romance as a teenager and dreaming of Mr. Right.

    lag110@mchsi.com

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  7. I follow this blog.

    lag110@mchsi.com

    ReplyDelete
  8. I subscribe via email.

    lag110@mchsi.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. I can't really remember what I read. Maybe Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. All I know is the more I read, the more I want to read.

    bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  10. I subscribe via email.

    bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  11. I stopped reading romance for many years but that TIME article on Julia Quinn revived my interest and I'm hooked again!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  12. Email subscriber!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  13. Commented on Kris Radish post!

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  14. Commented on Allyson Roy post!

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  15. Commented on Julie Kenner post!

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  16. Commented on Randall Lang post!

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  17. Commented on Shobhan Bantwal's post!

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  18. Commented on Garden of Sin post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  19. Commented on Between Me and the River post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  20. Commented on City of Refuge post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  21. Please enter me. Thanks for the chance. I remember started to read romance novels as a tween.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Comment #2 on Once in Blue Moon post!

    delilah0180(t)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  23. I think my first crushes were the handsome stars of the TV Westerns my whole family watched together when I was a kid. I still love James Garner! I latched on to Georgette Heyer and progressed to Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. So many fabulous authors and books! Not enough time to read them all. I can't leave out the incredible world of Harlequin--something for everyone!
    email subscriber
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    gcwhiskas at aol dot com

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  24. I've always been in love with romance! Since I was a little girl of 6 watching Beauty and the Beast, first I loved the bad boy Gaston. Then it was the man with the problem that I wanted to fix, the Beast. I've alwasy been so, and always will. It's been embedded in me since I was born and it here it stays. What keeps me reading? These wonderful guys in the books that you can't find out in real life! Point me at a real life hunk with the personality of these men staring in the books, and I'll give up my book obsession, I swear! :)

    kaylajohnson3969@sbcglobal.net

    ReplyDelete
  25. Comment #1 on Mary Patrick Kavanaugh's post! Loved it!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  26. Commented on The Handy Answer Book for Kids post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  27. I come to read romance because i like to feel like i am living threw the characters when i read the book so I would not be interested in books of horror or malitious killings. I like Romance and that keeps me reading (for the hot heroes mainly)
    photoquest(at)bellsouth(dot)net

    ReplyDelete
  28. I am a follower of your blog
    photoquest(at)bellsouth(dot)net

    ReplyDelete
  29. Commented on Dr. David Robinson author guest post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  30. Comment #1 on A Conversation with Lisa Patton post!

    delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  31. My husband got me interested in reading romance years ago. What keeps me coming back for more is I just love all the different kinds of romance stories.

    ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

    ReplyDelete
  32. There were always romance books around the office and would pick one up during breaks and lunch and just got hooked. We all like to get lost in fantasy
    copperllama at yahoo dot com

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  33. Subscribe to A Book Blogger's Diary feed
    copperllama at yahoo dot com

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  34. subscribe via email
    copperllama at yahoo dot com

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  35. fan on facebook
    copperllama at yahoo dot com

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  36. follower
    copperllama at yahoo dot com

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  37. I began reading romance books when I was in college for an escape from the every day grind of school. Now, I read a romance every once in a while to escape from every day life.

    Thanks ~ megalon22{at}yahoo{dot}com

    ReplyDelete
  38. I am awaiting friend confirmation on Facebook
    megalon22{at}yahoo{dot}com (Cheryl Snyder)

    ReplyDelete
  39. I remember reading those teen romance books as a kid. I have been hooked ever since.

    +1 I subscribe through email

    lizzi0915 at aol dot com

    ReplyDelete
  40. I started out by reading my older sister's stash:)

    gevin13{at}gmail{dot}com

    ReplyDelete
  41. I follow your blog

    gevin13{at}gmail{dot}com

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  42. I started to read Romance with my Aunt Betty as she was always sitting in her chair reading a book with a Hot Bod on the front :)

    And~I continue to read the Romance as I love to just get away from everything..

    deb55106(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  43. Subscribe to A Book Blogger's Diary feed

    deb55106(at)gmail(dot)com

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  44. I am a new email subscriber

    deb55106(at)gmail(dot)com

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  45. I am awaiting friend confirmation on Facebook
    Deb S


    deb55106(at)gmail(dot)com

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  46. I Follow you

    deb55106(at)gmail(dot)com

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  47. This giveaway is now closed. The winner has been notified. Thanks for stopping by!

    ReplyDelete

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