Interview and Contest: Patricia Rice with The lure of song and magic

Today I have Patricia Rice over for an interview and at the end you can win her new book The Lure of Song and Magic. The contest is open to both US and International readers.

1. Could you tell me a little about yourself?

PR: I’m half Irish. Storytelling is in my blood. Which means anything I tell you is suspect.  I’ve been reading and writing pretty much since I was able to put two letters together. But the only possible career I could see using those abilities was journalism. (I am sooooo not patient enough to be a teacher!) And as an introvert, I sucked at journalism. But I’d been using my math skills since I was a kid in various jobs, so I majored in accounting, figuring I didn’t need to talk to people in that profession. And lo and behold, I got my first accounting job the same week I sold my first book! As soon as my books started selling, I said bye-bye math and shifted full time to my true love and haven’t looked back. Oh well, maybe I still do my own taxes.

2. Your newest book is called The Lure of Song and Magic? What it is about?

PR: Short version? TV producer Dylan Ives (Oz) Oswin believes former singing sensation Pippa Syrene Malcolm holds the clue to finding his kidnapped son. Abandoned as a child, Syrene cares about the missing boy despite obnoxious Oz’s refusal to take no for an answer. But she refuses to unleash her dangerous siren's voice, even for a man who is impossible to deny... She’s already driven a man to his death with her voice once, she can’t bear to do so again. The story tells how Oz lures Pippa from her hermit life into the real world again, teaching her that passion isn’t always bad, and her strange gift can help as well as hurt.

3. Where did the inspiration for The Lure of Song and Magic come from?

PR: Several places, actually. My original idea developed from the desire to see what happens to the descendants of my Magic series. In those books, the Ives were logical, scientific men and the Malcolms were fey psychic witches. (Sourcebooks is reissuing this series. Merely Magic already available and Must Be Magic will be out this spring) What kind of kid comes from a combination like these? But contractually, I wasn’t allowed to write another historical about these characters.

And then I heard the Anonymous Four and their haunting siren voices and I wondered what would happen to a heroine whose voice was so passionate that she could lure men to their death, and voila, the brew was begun.

4. Poor Dylan (Oz) and Philippa (Pippa) have not had it easy in some aspects.  Is this the common ground they can build something from?

PR: Interesting question. I think their common ground lies in their strength and determination and passion, all of which probably did develop from their circumstances. Of course, those characteristics meant they hit head on at first, but once they had a common goal... It was just a matter of battling over how to reach it! By the end of the book, once they understand each other, it’s easy to see how they can blend their passions into one terrific whole that will protect their loved ones against the tragedies they’d experienced.

5. What makes Oz a great hero to fall for?

PR: Doesn’t everyone want a rich, handsome man who lives in Santa Monica and has a stable full of cool cars? But if I tell you Oz’s real strength, I’ll give away a plot point. So let’s just say this man pays attention. We can all appreciate that!

6. Why do you think small town settings works so wonderfully in romance novels?

PR: There are probably hundreds of reasons but one of the most important is that it’s so much easier to develop close relationships with the people around the characters—the grocer, the baker, the next door neighbor. For adults, friends are as important as families, and in romance, it’s good to know that the characters are capable of strong relationships. As a reader, we walk away knowing this couple can make it and they have a wonderful support system in place to guide them.

7. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers out there?

PR: I know no one wants to hear this again, but my strongest recommendation is perseverance. Writing is not a career you choose, it chooses you. Writers have to write. But they don’t have to sell. That part takes iron guts and a hard head and a never-give-up attitude.

Thanks for visiting with us today! :)

PR: Thank you so much for having me! I can see your readers enjoy the paranormal in their romance. May I ask why? Is it the lure of power or something more cosmic? And I’d love to have readers read the excerpts at my website http://patriciarice.com or stop by and check out my booklist on my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/PatriciaRiceBooks or join me on Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/Patricia_Rice 

CONTEST

2 copies of The Lure of Song and Magic

1 copy to a US/Canada winner / 1 copy to an international winner

1. Open to everyone in the world

2. Ends Jan 12

3. Just enter :)

Or if you want to please be free to answer Patrica's question, or ask her something 

THE LURE OF SONG AND MAGIC BY PATRICIA RICE – IN STORES JANUARY 2012

Her voice was a curse… 

When Dylan “Oz” Oswin’s son is kidnapped, the high-powered producer will do anything to get him back. Desperately following an anonymous tip, he seeks help from a former child singing sensation called Syrene, only to find she’s vowed never to sing again. Immune to her voice but not her charm, Oz is convinced she holds the key to his son’s disappearance—and he’ll stop at nothing to make her break her vow. 

Only he can make her sing… 

She knows the devastation her talent can bring. There’s more than a child’s life at stake, but Syrene cannot unleash her dangerous siren’s voice upon the world, even for a man who is impossible to deny… 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

With five million books in print and New York Times and USA Today’s bestseller lists under her belt, Patricia Rice’s emotionally-charged contemporary and historical romances have won RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice and Career Achievement Awards and have been honored as Romance Writers of America RITA finalists in the historical, regency and contemporary categories. A former CPA, Patricia Rice currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, please visit http://www.patriciarice.com/ or follow her on Twitter, @Patricia_Rice.