Iโve always been a sucker for the lighthearted romantic stories, whether in book
form or on the big screen. When I wrote my debut novel,
Five Days in
Skye, I wanted to create a fun, flirty novel that had just a touch of
seriousness at the end. Naturally, when it came to the second book in the
series,
London Tides, I set out to write the same sort of thing.
Funny thing about writing books, thoughโฆsometimes the characters take over
without your permission.
The hero, Ian MacDonald, had been introduced in
Five Days in Skye, as
somewhat of an antagonistโthe rule-following older brother. But I knew there was
a reason he had gone from the fun-loving athlete of his youth to a
rule-following stick-in-the-mud. Deep down, the poor guy was heartbroken. But
considering how much Ian had to offer to the right woman, how could his true
love ever leave him?
Enter Grace Brennan: a war photographer whose need to expose the injustices of
the world were even more pressing than her love for Ianโฆa conflict that led her
to leave him six months before their wedding. Iโll fully admit sheโs an unlikely
heroine for a romance: troubled, suffering from PTSD, mourning the loss of her
purpose-filled career. When she returns to London seeking forgiveness from Ian,
not only does she have to prove to him that she has changed, but she has to
prove to herself that sheโs capable of change, that she wonโt leave him the next
time she feels the pull of her job too strongly.
Why did I decide to focus on such dark themes when I set out to write cheery and
light? At the time I wrote the story, I was going through a tough period, both
personally and professionally. I was also disturbed by what I was seeing on the
news and on social media. War, oppression, terrorism, bigotryโฆthe light at the
end of the tunnel seemed to be growing ever dimmer. When rhetoric grows more
hateful and loses sight of the individuals behind the statistics, itโs hard to
hold onto hope.
Yet the darker things seem around us, the more we reach for something pure. What
could be more unsullied and optimistic than true love and second chances? As the
world around us gets more threatening, the more we want to draw those we love
close around us and remind ourselves of the wonderful things about life that
make it worth living: family, faith, love, laughter. And so as I wrote Graceโs
path out of her dark places, I found my own as well.
LONDON TIDES, then, is
at its heart a book about hope when the way forward is dark; about love
overcoming all obstacles; about the way every ending has a chance to be a new
beginning. And that, whether in London or Los Angeles, Cairo or Cardiff, is
something that we can all embrace.
Giveaway
Tell us what you "hope" for in a book and one commenter will win a copy of
LONDON TIDES.
Carla Laureano is the RITA Award-winning author of contemporary inspirational
romance and Celtic fantasy (as C.E. Laureano). A graduate of Pepperdine
University, she worked as a sales and marketing executive for nearly a decade
before leaving corporate life behind to write fiction full-time. She currently
lives in Denver with her husband and two sons.
Irish photojournalist Grace Brennan travels the worldโs war zones documenting
the helpless and forgotten. After the death of her friend and colleague, Grace
is shaken.
She returns to London hoping to rekindle the spark with the
only man she ever lovedโScottish businessman Ian MacDonald. But he gave up his
championship rowing career and dreams of Olympic gold years ago for Grace ...
only for her to choose career over him.
Will lifeโs tides bring them back
together ... or tear them apart for good this time?
You had me at London.I like any book that has London as a character.I hope this book goes to some of my favorite places and describes them in detail.
(Catherine Myers 12:15pm March 5, 2016)
I hope it's so engrossing that I can't bear to put it down and go to sleep; cause I do read every night in bed!
(Amber Mancebo 8:05pm March 5, 2016)
I hope for a sweet romance without a lot of the details ( leave some for readers imagination ). I want to be so involved with the story that I don't want to put the book down . I like it to start with a thriller or mystery then always end with the HEA.
(Joan Thrasher 1:33pm March 6, 2016)
What I hope for in the book is to have a revelation about things and a HEA ending. Of course, I don't want a story when hope is an illusion.
(Kai Wong 5:14pm March 6, 2016)
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