Friday, May 28, 2010

Tormented Hearts by Loreen Augeri

As you all know, I like to spotlight other authors on my blog. Today is release day for one of my New England RWA chaptermates. Please welcome Loreen Augeri!

And here's the cover blurb for her Tormented Hearts:

The world of Brett Armstrong, the Earl of Tremont, collapses when his wife and unborn child die. Determined to punish himself for the part he played in their demise, he turns his back on society and retreats to the country. Hard, physical labor during the day and mind-numbing gin at night help to keep at bay the demons that threaten to devour him. Until Catherine Hammond creeps into his world. Not wishing to resurrect his dormant emotions and the resulting pain, Brett struggles against the sensuality she exudes and battles to defeat his rising desire.

Abused by her aristocratic husband, commoner Catherine Hammond flees from his cruelty. Her hope is to hide and create a new life. She vows to never again associate with the upper classes that have heaped unbearable pain upon her family. Escaping without funds, Catherine is forced to work as a servant in the Earl of Tremont's household. His tantalizing, amorous advances ignite a fire within the cold regions of her heart, but she refuses to fall in love with a man who may destroy her.

Emily: Tell us about TORMENTED HEARTS.

Loreen: First, I want to thank Emily for having me on her blog to talk about my book. Tormented Hearts is a Regency-set historical romance about an earl devastated by his wife’s death and the part he played in it and a commoner fleeing from her abusive, aristocratic husband. Both want to be left alone to deal with life as best they can, but circumstances and the earl’s scheming brother constantly throw them together. While battling a fierce thunderstorm, befriending a wild dog, escaping into the forest, and fighting against the passion that consumes them, they heal each other’s tormented heart.

Emily: What will we love about your hero?

Loreen: Brett Armstrong is a man tortured by the demons of his past. When I read about a suffering hero, I feel his pain and want to reach out to him. I long for the heroine to make him whole again. I hope the reader will experience the same feelings. Also, even though Brett pushes Catherine away, he is always kind to her and helps her in any way he can. And of course because he is the hero, he is handsome and has rippling muscles.

Emily: What inspired you to write this story?

Loreen: I had an image of a woman fleeing through the forest. Most of my ideas come from an image I see in my mind and then I expand from there. I give the hero and heroine a goal, a reason why they want to achieve that goal, and then a conflict that prevents them from getting what they desire.

Emily: What’s next for you?

Loreen: I have a story I have almost finished editing, another that I am in the middle of editing, and an idea for a story that I will start as soon as I have completed the other two.

Emily: Sounds like you'll be a busy girl. Thanks for sharing your story with us!

Here are the buy links for Tormented Hearts from Wild Rose Press:
Print version
Ebook

About the Author:
Loreen Augeri lives in Massachusetts with her husband of twenty-nine years and her two daughters. She is a member of RWA and the New England Chapter. When she is not writing or working in the town library, she enjoys reading, walking, and spending time at the beach. You can visit Loreen at http://www.loreenaugeri.com/.





And of course, STROKE OF GENIUS is hot off the presses too. It's available at B&N, Borders and fine bookstores everywhere! Or Online.

Have you taken the STROKE OF GENIUS QUIZ yet? What kind of Genius are YOU?

Next week is going to be a busy one here. On Monday, Andrew Shaffer, the aspiring writer who was drafted into the Mr. Romance Contest at RT, will be my guest blogger! I'll be featuring some more of my writing friends' great releases on June 1st. There'll be another installment of My Husband Married a Hooker and of course, a new victim--er, volunteer for Red Pencil Thursday.

Have a great weekend and be sure to pick up a new beach read! It's almost that time.

PS. Lorreen is offering an ebook of TORMENTED HEARTS to one lucky commenter, so be sure to let us know you were here!

26 comments:

Penny Watson said...

I really enjoyed this book! It is a wonderful debut novel, and Brett is a great hero.

Happy Memorial Day weekend to all!
Penny

EmilyBryan said...

Thanks, Penny!

If the rest of you haven't checked out Penelope's Romance Reviews you're in for a treat. She's spot on!

Christie Craig said...

You gotta love those wounded heroes.

The book sounds wonderful.

CC

Maria said...

Congratulations on the release Loreen! This book sounds really good. Took the "Stroke of Genius Test" and I'm a Romantic Genius...it was fun

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you Emily for having me on your blog today.

Loreen

Loreen Augeri said...

I'm glad you enjoyed the book, Penelope.

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you Christie and Maria.

mrsshukra said...

Happy Friday Emily and Loreen! I'm always thrilled to meet and learn about new authors and debut historical romances.. especially when there's a tortured hero involved. Thanks for bringing Loreen's Tormented Hearts to my attention! Emily, you know how much I hang out in bookstores so I'll be looking for Loreen's book very soon.

Your genius quiz was really fun, Emily! Had no idea I'm a social genius.

BTW, I always check out Penelope's blog as well.

EmilyBryan said...

Etirv--Glad you enjoyed the STROKE OF GENIUS QUIZ.

I'm a romantic genius myself ...

Kaylea Cross said...

Hi Loreen! Congrats on the new book, and happy release day. My son's name is Brett, so I'm really partial to that name. He's only six, but he's a real gentleman already :)

Loreen Augeri said...

I love writing about tortured heroes, Etirv. My book is published by The Wild Rose Press so you won't find it in bookstores. You can buy it online at their site www.thewildrosepress.com or on Amazon.

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you for the congratulations, Kaylea. I love the name Brett, too.

Loreen Augeri said...

My last name at the top of the blog is misspelled. If you are looking for me in the computer, it is spelled Augeri.

librarypat said...

Sounds like an interesting story. Best of luck with TORMENTED HEARTS and the other books you are working on, Loreen.

I hope both of your books are doing well.

EmilyBryan said...

Oh, dang! Why didn't you tell me sooner, Loreen? I'm so sorry I got your name wrong on the title of the post. I fixed it now.

Hot Ash Romance Novels said...

Congratulations, Loreen!

I'm so happy for you!

Ash

Katie O'Sullivan said...

This sounds like a great read! Looking forward to reading it.

Great interview, Loreen, Good luck with your book!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend to all-
KatieO

Mitzi H. said...

I love this type of romance novel. Congrats on your debut novel!!!

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day Weekend and enjoys a great book!!!

Mitzi

Unknown said...

Oh, I love tortured and tormented heroes. I sighed out loud reading your jacket copy. It sounds wonderful.

Loreen Augeri said...

Sorry I haven't been back here sooner. Enjoyed a short vacation over the holiday.

Loreen Augeri said...

Emily, I didn't notice it was misspelled until later in the day. Thank you for fixing it.

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you for the well wishes, librarypat.

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you for the congratulations, Ashlyn.

Loreen Augeri said...

KatieO, I hope you enjoy reading, Tormented Hearts and that you had a great holiday.

Loreen Augeri said...

Mitzi H., thank you for the congratulations. I hope your Memorial Day was great.

Loreen Augeri said...

Thank you, Saranna. I love tortured heroes, too.