Get Lost in Corinthia

CHRISTMAS BABY FOR THE PRINCESS

Faced with a royal scandal, pregnant princess Arianna fled to New York. But when a pickpocket leaves her penniless, she must turn to handsome restauranteur Max Brown for help…

Max can’t resist rescuing this enchanting stranger, even if her mysterious past makes him wary. But as his newest (and worst!) waitress brings festive sparkle into his solitary life, can he hope Arianna is here for life…not just for Christmas?

Full of Christmas magic and vintage film glamour, it’s the perfect way to kick off your holiday season.

Since winning RWA's prestigious Golden Heart Award in 2007, BARBARA WALLACE  has gone on to sell over 12 titles with Harlequin Romance and Entangled Publishing. Her books have appeared in nearly a half dozen languages and close to a dozen countries around the world. She's a multiple Romantic Times award nominee, a Golden Leaf finalist, and wnner of the New England Bean Pot award. Most recently, her book THE COURAGE TO SAY YES was named Best Traditional Romance at the GDRWA Booksellers Best Awards.

Barbara Wallace is the award-winning, best-selling author of 20 novels, including Weekend Agreement and The Courage to Say Yes.  The proud mother of a 22-year-old National Guard Lieutenant, she lives in New England with her husband and their menagerie of rescue cats.  

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Ho ho ho! 

Welcome to Corinthia, the beautiful Mediterranean island located off the Almalfi Coast.  It’s a country as rich in tradition as it is natural beauty.  From its beautiful southern coast to its mountainous northern tip; it’s a country where Christmas is still a beautiful, simple affair. 

But don’t take my word for it.  Let Princess Arianna tell you about Christmas in Corinthia in her own words:

“…..once you move to the outskirts, things look the same as they have for centuries……there are no outside lights. Instead, the houses decorate their window boxes with boughs of green. Then they place a single candle in the center of each window. The green is supposed to represent life, and the candles the blessings that are to come in the future  ….  “If you drive to the top of Mount Cornier and look out, all you can see are single white lights for miles and miles. ”

Christmas Baby for the Princess

THE ROYAL HOUSE OF CORINTHIA

No one represents Corinthia’s old world spirit better than its royal family: the widower King Carlos and his children, Crown Prince Armando and Princess Arianna.  They embody the commitment to tradition, honor and duty synonymous with being a Corinthian. 

ROYAL SCANDAL! MISSING ROYAL!

Recently, however, the royal family suffered a scandal.  Princess Arianna has run away to New York City.  She needs the time away while she ponders whether she should marry the father of her unborn child as her duty and position dictates, or choose personal happiness, thus bringing potential shame to a country known for being extremely conservative, religious, and old-fashioned.  It’s not an easy choice for someone who’s spent her adult life trying to be the perfect princess.

A NEW YORK KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR

New York restaurateur has a thing for hard-luck cases.  Thus, when an incognito Arianna walks through his door looking for help, of course he says yes.  To him, she’s no different than any of the other “lost puppies” he’s helped over the years. Except for the fact that he’s falling in love with her.   What’s he going to do when he discovers his latest rescue project is really a runaway princess?

~ ~ ~

If she were back home, she’d be curled up in her big comfortable bed right now waiting for a servant to bring her a cup of lavender mint tea.

Instead, her feet hurt, her back hurt and her stomach wouldn’t stop lurching from the constant food smells passing by her nose. All she wanted to do was close her eyes and sleep for the next twenty-four hours straight.

Worse, after three days, she was no closer to deciding what she should do.

As if on cue, a wave of nausea hit her, forcing her to press a fist to her lips. If she didn’t know better, she’d say the child inside her was voicing its opinion. Too bad she did not know what side the bambino was on. Then again, how could an embryo know what to do when she herself didn’t?

If only she had not seen Manolo’s true colors. Then perhaps the idea of spending a lifetime with him would not seem so...daunting. Her father, of course, was thoroughly impressed by the man and had been thrilled when she and the industrialist began dating. A wedding and grandchild would send him over the moon.

But “wasn’t wanting to please Father what had gotten her into this dilemma? Knowing how happy the relationship made her father, she’d ignored the questions whispering in her ear. If Manolo’s kisses failed to make her head spin, or if there were times when she thought he loved being with the king more than with her, it was her imagination. After all, no relationship was perfect one hundred percent of the time. Perhaps if they were intimate her doubts would disappear...

Finding another woman’s underwear in his apartment had shown her how wrong that idea was. Unfortunately, the shutters were pulled from her eyes a little too late.

“You’re doing that wrong,” a voice said from behind her.

Max. A quiver struck low in her stomach. The bambino seemed to have an opinion about him as well. Since that first day, her stomach insisted on wobbling every time she and the owner crossed paths.

He reached over her shoulder to take the setting from her hand. “The ends have to be tucked tightly or else the silverware will slide out. See?”

Arianna could feel his breath on the back of her bare neck. In “Corinthia, it was considered disrespectful to stand so close to a member of the royal family. A deferential distance had to be maintained at all times. Max’s arms were nearly wrapped around her. She could feel the edge of his jacket brushing her spine as he leaned forward, the feathery touch causing goose bumps.

“Now you try.”

She tried to repeat the steps she’d done dozens of times throughout the night, but her fingers had grown clumsy. Instead of stacking the silverware, she fumbled and knocked them over. “It would be easier if you weren’t breathing down my neck,” she told him.

“Sorry.” The space behind her cooled as he took a spot at the bar next to her chair. Better, but not by much. Arianna could still feel his slate-colored eyes watching her every move. Taking a deep breath, she rolled the napkin into the tightest cylinder humanly possible.

“Good,” Max said. “Although next time, you might want to include a spoon.”

Her shoulders sagged. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Darius slide a drink across the bar. Max wrapped his hand around it without looking, and settled back against the bar rail to survey the restaurant. Unable to help herself, Arianna stole a look.

The man had the most effortless grace about him. You could see it in the way the glass dangled from his long fingertips and in the way he moved. Yet for all his smoothness, he wasn’t overly soft. Just like how the scar on the bridge of his nose kept his face from movie-star perfection, there was strength beneath the elegance. A toughness that said he wasn’t a man to be trifled with. In a way he reminded her of the ancestral portraits lining the halls of Corinthia Castle, with their impenetrable gazes that followed her every step.

They always left her feeling very exposed, those paintings.  Max’s stare did as well. ”

UP NEXT for BARBARA 

WINTER WEDDING FOR THE PRINCE

Royal House of Corinthia,  book #2

Read a little, Buy the book

Crown Prince under the mistletoe… 

Crown Prince Armando's belief in love died along with his wife, but duty dictates he must remarry! He enlists royal assistant Rosa Lamberti to help him find a suitable candidate, but a sizzling kiss under the mistletoe with Rosa awakens feelings Armando thought long buried… 

After a difficult divorce, Rosa had sworn off men, so she's shocked to realize she yearns to be Armando's bride! This Christmas, will Rosa get the best gift of all—a second chance at love, with Armando?

PREVIOUS RELEASES by BARBARA 

SAVED BY THE CEO

The Vineyards of Calanetti

Read a little, Buy the book

BEAUTY AND THE BILLIONAIRE BOSS

In Love With The Boss, #2

Read a little, Buy the book

A MILLIONAIRE FOR CINDERELLA

In Love With The Boss, #1

Read a little, Buy the book

ANGI'S back next Monday with

Nancy Naigle 
~Angi Morgan

UP NEXT ON GLIAS:  AVA BLCKSTONE

Get Lost on Goodreads, Facebook

or @GetLostInAStory  #GetLostStories

In the spirit of Christmas, I’m giving away a free set of my Corinthian duet, Christmas Baby for the Princess and Winter Wedding for the Prince. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

BARBARA WANTS TO KNOW: It’s my hope the spirit of Christmas will keep your fall bright and magical. When do you get into the "Christmas" mood?

Barbara Wallace

Barbara Wallace has been a life-long romantic and daydreamer so it’s not surprising she decided to become a writer at age eight. However, it wasn’t until a co-worker handed her a romance novel that she knew where her stories belonged. For years she limited her dreams to nights, weekends and commuter train trips while working as a communications specialist, PR freelancer and full-time mom. At the urging of her family, she finally chucked the day job and pursued writing full time and couldn’t be happier.

Barbara lives in Massachusetts along with her husband, their teenage son, one spoiled cat and one very spoiled dog.

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September has me enjoying two releases! The first is the North American release of The Heart of a Hero. I’m also celebrating being included in the Mills & Boon Special Release “Mills & Boon Loves….” An anthology that’s out in conjunction with the publishers New Voices Competition. I’m in the book along with Maisey Yates, Aimee Carson and New Voices winner Leah Aston.

Can I take a moment to plug the New Voices 2011 competition? If you are interested in writing for Harlequin’s Medical, Presents, Romance, Modern Heat or Historical Lines, the contest is a great way to get feedback and visibility. Visit www.romanceisnotdead.com

Meanwhile, here’s the info for Heart of a Hero:

All advice columnist Zoe wants this summer is some time to heal her post-divorce wounds in peace. That is, until she crosses paths with her neighbor, ex Army captain Jake Meyers. With battle scars both inside and out, Jake just wants to disappear from the world. Zoe knows she should leave the man alone. But she just can’t help herself….

CAT: What’s your favorite kind of story to get lost in?

BARBARA: Romance. A good, angsty emotional romance. One where I really feel the characters belong together and am activity rooting for them. I also love a good mystery, even though I can’t write them. There’s something about having to solve a puzzle that appeals to me.

CAT: What’s the first book you remember reading?

BARBARA: Oh, I’m not sure. I remember reading the Five Little Peppers (and How They Grew) when I was little. I think that might have been my first non picture book.

CAT: What’s your favorite fairy tale?

BARBARA: Cinderella! I love a good rags to riches tale.

CAT: What turns you off like nothing else?

BARBARA: Bodily function jokes. I’m too girly girl to appreciate them. Sadly, I live with all men.

CAT: Where do you read and how often?

BARBARA: Now that I’m always on deadline, I don’t read as much as I want to. My favorite place to read is curled up on my living room sofa. The sun comes in through the picture window making the room warm and bright. On cold days I throw on a blanket and become really cozy.

CAT: What was the first story you remember writing?

BARBARA: Oh, that’s easy. It was The Adventures of Ginger. My best friend Kim was writing a story at the time about her cat, so I decided to write one about my cat too. I was eight years old. It was illustrated, and featured a wedding. Even then I loved romance.

CAT: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

BARBARA: Hand’s down my favorite is All About Eve with Bette Davis and Anne Baxter. It’s the movie where Bette uttered her famous line, “Fasten your seatbelts; it’s going to be a bumpy night.”

CAT: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?

BARBARA: Easier than what? I wish I could say writing was easy. Unfortunately I’m one of those writers who have to scratch and claw her way through every scene. What’s that quote – “To write, just open a vein?” That’s a perfect description of my writing process.

CAT: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?

BARBARA: That I value their support more than they could possibly realize. Seriously. Writers spend so much time alone that it’s easy to start thinking we are the worst storytellers in the world. Every time I get a note saying someone liked my book, my spirit soars for days.

CAT: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?

BARBARA: Go to sleep. I have a bad tendency to stay up into the wee hours in the morning to get the job finished.

CAT: Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?

BARBARA: Yes, and yes. Not every review, but if a critic has valuable, constructive criticism, then I do my best to take the comments to heart and learn something. I am still learning my craft, and constructive advice is a good thing, IMO.

CAT: Tea or Coffee? And how do you take it?

BARBARA: Coffee. Preferably as a Caramel Macchiato. Sadly, I have to limit those to one every couple days or my pants would never fit.

CAT: What does it mean to love someone?

BARBARA: It means being there for them, supporting their dreams, and holding their hand when things aren’t going right for them. It means taking care of the little things in their life. It means standing by their side during those times when they are cranky or distracted and understanding that a real relationship is about more than wine and roses and grand romantic gestures. It’s about being a companion and a friend as well as a lover and knowing that no one – I mean no one – can take that person’s place in your life.

CAT'S GOTTA ASK

If you were a t-shirt, what color would you be and why?

BARBARA'S GOTTA ANSWER

OK, this is a shameless plug for my good friend Debbie Monk who just happened to start selling t-shirts on Labor Day. I would be a pink t-shirt with the phrase “Got to remember I’m Fabulous” on it. Because not only would it support her craft business, but because it’s something I think we all need to remind ourselves from time to time.

GOT A QUESTION YOU’D LIKE TO ASK YOUR FANS?

What is your favorite fairy tale? How do you like to see this fairy tale theme played out in a romance? Is there any kind of romance story you loathe and hope never shows up on your book shelf again?

One lucky winner will win a “Heart of a Hero” gift bag with a book and other goodies!