She
dreams of a time when life was simpler, the land rougher, and the journey more
rewarding. With her heart deeply rooted in the past and her mind always on
adventure, McClintock will always call Montana home.
McClintock
is a member of Romance Writers of America, Montana Romance Writers, Hearts
Through History Romance Writers, and Women Writing the West.
AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR
Why did you choose England as the backdrop for your book?
What was it about that region and the 19th century that captivated you?
I’ve always wanted to visit England, but have only been as
close as their northern neighbor, Scotland. That hasn’t stopped my fascination
with the country, from a historical standpoint. Growing up I wanted to be more
English, like most of my ancestors. I would have proper tea parties, speak as
they do, and even adopted a few of their customs. I’ve since relaxed some of
that behavior, but after years of engraining England into my mind, it seemed
like a good fit to base a book there. Now I’m obsessed with Scotland rather
than England, but that’s another story.
As for the time period—it’s not present-day. Yes, it doesn’t
take much to captivate me with any time period during or before the 19th
century. So much chance occurred at the turn of the century, and if I had been
there I would have wished to go back a hundred years. If you transported me
back in time to the 18th or 19th century, I’d fit in
quite nicely.
Was Tristan Sheffield's vocation of finding people who
don't want to be found based on anyone you've known? Did you have to research
ways in which people could be located long before modern technology?
I don’t know any
spies or special agents, but what a wealth of information they would have been!
There was a bit of research involved, but basically what it came down to was
playing it out. Here’s Tristan and he has a problem to solve—he has to find the
bad guys. How does he do that? To answer that question, I simply had to take
away all possible methods that involve modern technology. After that, you’re
not left with much except for a lot of leg work, letters, and reports. I
imagine they weren’t in great moods when they found people.
Will Tristan and Alaina return in future books?
Absolutely! They
will both appear in the other British agent novels. I originally didn’t plan on
a series, but I enjoyed Charles and Devon so much that I knew they needed their
own stories. It pleases me not to have to say goodbye to Tristan and Alaina.
How would you describe your writing style?
Oddly enough, this
has been a point of discussion with my editor lately.
Diana Gabaldon described it best: “Writing successfully is a
matter of figuring out how your own brain works, and doing that—not trying to
adopt someone else’s methods.”
I, like many new
authors, are works-in-progress—our styles are still developing. I’m certainly
getting closer, but I’m still figuring out my own methods.
What advice would you give to new authors?
This answer ties
into question four and Diana’s advice—it’s also a recent lesson learned. I
have purchased a dozen or so how-to writing books over the years and guess
what—I’ve read only one. The others are in the library donation pile. Reading
books about someone else’s writing style (or how they think you should write)
isn’t going to help an author develop their own unique style. The only way to
do that is to write.
The second piece of
advice I have for new authors—find a good editor. Whether you’re
self-publishing, or preparing a book for submission to a traditional publisher,
you need an editor. Trust me, no matter how much you think you know about
editing, or the English language, you don’t (yes, once upon a time that was me
too). Agents and publishers alike enjoy tossing poorly edited manuscripts in
the “I’m not even going to bother” pile.
ABOUT THE BOOK
How far would you go to avenge your family and
save the one you love?
In nineteenth-century England, Alaina
Claiborne had a loving family, a cherished friend, and devoted servants. She
spent her days riding across the grassy hills of the English countryside,
joyful and at peace.
Then tragedy strikes and her world is forever
changed. Searching for those responsible is her only focus . . . until she
meets Tristan.
Tristan Sheffield, a man of many talents,
searches out those who don’t want to be found. His past is filled with secrets
and deeds he would rather leave deeply buried. However, when his life
unexpectedly entwines with Alaina's, he soon discovers they share more than a
mutual desire to catch a murderer.
On their hunt for a man driven by greed,
Tristan and Alaina find that love is the greatest weapon against evil, and
they'll stop at nothing to survive.
Reviews
for Alaina Claiborne
Readers
of historical fiction and romance will absolutely eat up this first book in the
Alaina Claiborne British Agent novels!
It is beautifully written, intriguing, romantic and heat wrenching. The historical content is worked in well, but
it's the conversational content that makes it a magical and rewarding
read. MK McClintock is one to really be
watching on the historical romance scene!
This
one is a winner.
It
broke my heart several times, the poignant moments she describes are so real.
The
primary protagonists, Alaina and Tristan are gorgeous, strong and brilliant
characters. Each has well-developed
personalities and psychological make ups.
They blend and work together beautifully as they are bent on their
single goal in espionage and revenge.
Their love story is so moving in McClintock's hands...not mushy but ringing
so true and honest it pierces the heart.
I
particularly love the strength of Alaina that MK gives her. No matter what the circumstances she
encounters, she is brave and noble. It's
wonderful to have a heroine of this caliber in historical romance novels. I'm looking forward to reading more about her
and I hope she inspires others to continue to bring such capable women to the
forefront in romance and mystery.
This
is an engaging and fast-moving book to read.
One you'll finish before you know it.
The action is steady and swift, and the characters are beguiling and
beautiful.
I
highly recommend the book and look forward to the series!
5
stars for this historical romance
-Deborah/TheBookishDame
(http://abookishlibraria.blogspot.com/2013/01/giveaway-alaina-claiborne-by-mk.html)
*****
Mystery
isn’t my favorite genre but everyone once in a while I come across one that
sounds intriguing. This one definitely is!
Being
a mystery it did take me a little longer to read. I really wanted to get in
every word, it’s a good book but really because I wanted to see if I could
figure out the culprit! And I must say, just as I thought I had it in the bag,
and then MK McClintock would pull a fast one! But even though I didn’t figure
it out there are small clues so it’s not something that comes completely out of
left field. Really great job!
As
for the characters, they are great. I really got involved with each one. Alaina
is a force to be reckoned with even with her past issues. She doesn’t want to
face the night her parents died but it has haunted her very existence from the
second it happened. Plus the boy that was also murdered just happened to be the
boy she planned and dreamt of marrying. All of that for one child, she just
hid. This is not only a mystery but a finding of one’s self after such a tragic
incident.
Tristan
was, hmmm… as a fictional character, let me just say, he is YUMMY! I love how
Alaina and Tristan meet and how she doesn’t bow down to him and with this being
in the 1800′s when women still had their “place” it just made the story all
that much more interesting! But Tristan really does live up to Alaina’s
fiestyness which makes him such a fun character.
The
other characters are great and although this is a romance, they don’t fall head
of heals in love at first sight. And thank MK McClintock for that!!! I mean
seriously! I love it when an author can make the relationship seem reasonable,
and this one completely is! There’s also some hot scenes in there, so
definitely keep that fire extinguisher nearby!
All
in all, if you’re a mystery fan, especially if you like settings in the 1800′s,
you’ll go gaga for this one! I cannot wait to read more from M.K. McClintock!
-Nova
Reylin/My Seryniti Blog
AN EXCERPT
Across the acres, darkness enveloped
another, her surroundings illuminated by the flickering flame of a lamp. Alaina
moved around in the attic, searching through trunks of the items that had come
from her mother’s cottage in Ireland. It was difficult to see so many memories
that reminded her of her parents, but she also found it calmed her. She had
avoided these things since they had been delivered years ago, but now her fears
became secondary. She hoped that something from her parents’ past would shed
light on what was happening in the present.
Alaina rummaged through a trunk of
some of her mother’s clothes, pulling them out and smelling them, hoping for a
faint whiff of the soft rose scent her mother used to wear. There was something
lingering around the old clothes, and it took Alaina back to a time when she
was a little girl. Nevertheless, the memory ended there. She paused for a
moment, as if the scent reminded her of something else besides her mother. She
subsequently released the memory when she saw the bottom of the trunk was not
as deep as it should have been. She pulled out the remaining dress and ran her
fingers along the bottom and edges. She next looked on the outside of the
trunk. Nearly six inches of extra space remained near the bottom on the inside.
Alaina felt along the inside edges
and became excited when she found a gap. Slowly reaching her fingers into the
hole, she simultaneously pushed down on the other edge for leverage and surprised
herself when the bottom tilted to reveal the extra space beneath. Removing the
thin board, she set it aside and gasped when she turned back to the trunk.
“Oh, Mother. What did you do?”
LEAVE A COMMENT AND WIN A PRIZE!
MK will
be awarding a $10 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the
tour.
Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better
your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
MK
McClintock Website: http://www.mkmcclintock.com
Official
Blog: http://mkmcclintock.blogspot.com
Goodreads
Profile: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5438837.M_K_McClintock
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Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/mkmcclintock
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