Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

If Santa brought you a new e-reader, it might help to know that my Edwardian romance, Thornbrook Park, is on sale for $1.99. Are you missing Downton Abbey? The Thornbrook Park series might be for you. Nook:  http://ow.ly/xDsU307cKRc Kindle:  http://amzn.to/2hXu2lz   In a world poised for epic change... anything can happen Disowned for marrying beneath her, Eve Kendal has returned to England destitute after her husband's death and the mysterious disappearance of their savings. She's looking for survival, not romance. But from London to the Yorkshire countryside to the elegant estate of Thornbrook Park, Eve's path seems destined to cross that of the dashing but violent Captain Marcus Thorne. For Marcus, a return home means facing the demons that drove him to war in the first place. As he and Eve begin a steamy affair, tensions that had been simmering just beneath the surface threaten to explode and shake the very foundations of Thornbrook Park. ...

I hate to say this but I'm a TV addict. Always have been. Maybe it's because I grew up without one. Or maybe it's something to do at night when I stop writing for the day.  I have my favorites--Castle, Hell on Wheels, Shades of Blue among lots of others. But Downton Abbey ranks at the top. I love that show. And I'm absolutely heartbroken that the last episode will air on March 6. I can't even bear to think about it.  What will I do without the Crawleys and their magnificent castle? Sunday's episode saw lots of drama and I felt so badly for Lady Edith. That poor girl is never going to find any happiness. Every time she almost does something happens. Last night her sister did her in. I won't go into it in case someone hasn't watched it. but now I'm quite sure there's little redemption for Lady Mary. And poor Thomas Barrow. I admit he dug his own hole by the way he's treated people, but my heart goes out to him now. I think it...

We all have one. Don't we (shh, don't say you don't)? I'm willing to confess that I've been watching Survivor since Season 1. Not my first reality show. I used to watch The Real World on MTV, way back when MTV first started offering some shows between videos. How times have changed! Like in Season One of Survivor, it felt like a big new experiment. Would they actually eat dog food? Yes, they did! How about a rat? Indeed! They were that hungry. And now, cut to Season 32 (Holy cow, 32?! Really?) and they give them chickens on day one. Provided they can get the chicken on the raft, bring it to their camp, and keep it alive (long enough to eat it later, or fight over the ethics of eating it). Anyone watching Survivor: Kaoh Rong with me? Jeff Probst has really grown into a skilled host. And those dimples! I also enjoy Chopped, House Hunters (and HH International), Hell's Kitchen, Project Runway, and I used to love America's Next Top Model (yes, I adm...

Are you a Downton Abbey fan? With the show in its sixth and final season, we at Sourcebooks are celebrating all the romance and drama with live tweets (and giveaways) every Sunday, 9:00 PM ET. We'd love to tweet with you --- look for #TeamSource . To prepare you, here's a little snark and history a la Downton Abbey style. I first heard about  Downton Abbey  when I was out to dinner with a friend. She asked me, "What's the deal with an entail ?" She knew I wrote historical romance, and her question unleashed my inner history nerd. The tables soon turned. My friend regaled me with lush set descriptions and character sketches. I was hooked. My car somehow found its way to Barnes & Noble where I bought the season one DVD set. I binge-watched it and got all caught up as season two winded down. When season two's DVDs released, my car took me to Barnes & Noble again where I promptly bought the next DVD set. (Like Lay's potato chips, you can...

My first notions of love and romance came from fairy tales, of course. Most notably the Disney versions. Who hasn't imagined being one of the princesses? My personal favorite, Cinderella. I'm old school like that. But after that, before I got into actual romance novels (age 12, plucked right off my mother's bookshelf-- she had no idea), I was falling in love with Rochester and Darcy. It's a wonder I didn't marry a dark and brooding man with a wife in the attic, or someone I really hated until I realized I loved him. But no, I married a good-natured, generally happy guy, who only took a little convincing. Okay, a strong nudge.   My kid sister, thirteen years younger, had a completely different romantic inspiration. Anne of Green Gables by L. M (Lucy Maude)Montgomery. Don't get me wrong, I loved Anne, too. Read the books, enjoyed the character. But Kristin, my sister? She became a total Anne Shirley fan girl. And thus, Gilbert Blythe fan girl. It helped tha...

Happy New Year, everyone! 2015 was great for me and I am ready for an amazing year. I'll have at least 4 releases this year, each in a different series, (Including Scandals With Bite Book 4) so it's also going to be a busy year. On top of that, I've made the daunting decision to get a sewing machine and learn how to use it. Aside from all the work and challenges I and many of you are facing, I'd like to focus on the fun, guilty pleasures to look forward to this year. Many movies, and TV shows are on the horizon. And for a non-TV watcher, I find myself with a surprising amount of shows on my list. 0-o If you're in the US, that will be starting with.... Downton Abbey!!! (PBS) It's on tomorrow!!! It's also supposed to be the final season, so I hope there's a decent resolution for my beloved characters. In February (On President's Day) 11-22-63. (Hulu) It's based on the excellent novel by Stephen King, about a man who goes back ...

And Thornbrook Park, too! But first, let's talk about Downton Abbey. Have you seen the premiere of Season Five (no spoilers)? At least, Edith always gets the best clothes. Edith is my favorite. We're both the middle daughter of three. Season Five is off to a good start, but I am really ready to dig in to some scandals, preferably not involving Edith this time. I'm looking at you Lady Mary, or maybe Cora could use some intrigue. We can always count on the Dowager Countess to offer her witty quips. Downton Abbey started in 1912 and inspired me to write the Thornbrook Park series, set in Edwardian England. Downton Abbey has spanned 12 years in five seasons, and no one has aged except for the small children. They've really grown since Season Four, which started in 1922. Season Five picks up in 1924. Things move a little more slowly at Thornbrook Park, and there's plenty of intrigue to go around. An Affair Downstairs takes place in Yorkshire at the end of 190...

As the publishing business continues to change, authors are ever-more reliant on social media. Great for me. I love interacting with my friends and readers here, on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr , at my website ... I could go on and on. But it's not as easy as it looks. We don't want to just shout at you "Buy my book" all day. Or "Buy my friend's book!" We do want to share stories, pictures, funny things, cat pictures (I do dog pictures, allergic to cats), and learn more about you in the comments. That's why we love comments. It's not all about us when you comment. It's actually very hard to be that into ourselves. We prefer the interaction over the promo. Thank you all for commenting! Thanks for being my friend. Writing is such a lonely profession. I'm having a contest now. If you go on out to my Facebook and click "like," you will become part of my community, from which I will choose one random winner to receive Downton ...

I always tell the writers who pop by my Red Pencil Thursday that the beginning of anything is a delicate time. In the case of a series, a writer has to introduce a large enough cast in an interesting enough world with enough unresolved situations to make readers ready to come back for Book 2, but not so many that they don't feel Book 1 didn't address enough of them to be satisfying on its own. As I said, delicate. So far however, the reviewers seems to think I've managed it with A Rake By Any Other Name . Here's what some of them say: "Marlowe shines with a delightful and delicious comedy of errors for the first book in her new series, Somerfield Park . There's an heiress, a reluctant groom, a superfluous fiancee, secrets and scandals galore. Fast-paced, well-plotted and populated with authentic and lively characters. Regency fans will love this page-turner!" ~ RTBOOKReviews "If future installments are anything like this little gem, ...

You might think that Casablanca Authors write all day, every day to give readers more top notch books to read, and because we love it. And we do! But sometimes, we need some down time to refill the well, so to speak. To find new inspiration. What do we do then? We read, and we watch movies or shows. I just went to see Gone Girl and was delighted to find the movie as good as the book (well, pretty darn close, anyway). Yes, I loved Gone Girl. Two twisted leads, not knowing quite who to cheer on. I admire the way Gillian Flynn made me want to keep reading even when I didn't like any of the characters all that much. Well played, Flynn. And how can we keep writing great books if we don't take the time to read great books? There's nothing quite as inspiring as reading a well-written book. Reading, my favorite way to spend an afternoon. Or an evening. Or a week. Or... yes, I love reading. We listen to music. Every book I write seems to start with an inspiring soundtrack. My ...

Thornbrook Park marks my return to historical romance, and I'm so excited to be back!  Fans of  Downton Abbey  will adore this brand-new Edwardian-period romance series set at the grand estate of Thornbrook Park, seat of the Earl of Averford. Widowed. Impoverished. Alone.  Life hasn't gone as expected for Eve Kendal, but she has time to regroup when her childhood friend, now Countess of Averford, brings Eve to her elegant Yorkshire estate. Can She Find a Refuge at Thornbrook Park? For Captain Marcus Thorne, a return home means facing the demons that drove him to war in the first place. He's a powder keg waiting for a stray spark... until his eyes meet Eve's and the world goes quiet. Set against the backdrop of aristocratic tradition unraveling in a fast-changing world, Thornbrook Park delivers all the intrigue, mystery, and grand romance fans of Downton Abbey crave. Praise for Sherri Browning: " Written beautifully... I thoroughly enjoyed...