Part of Series
A Time of Chang e In the fall of 1888, the tiny hamlet of Ridgeway is gearing up for elections on the local and national level. On the national stage, Grover Cleveland is campaigning for re-election against Benjamin Harrison; locally, two men are vying for the mayor's seat being vacated by the retiring Bernard Ridgeway. A Woman Ahead of Her Time Saloon owner Angel May Lane is an unconventional woman in every sense of the word. When she's not tending the bar at the Crazy Eights Saloon, she's caring for her elderly aunt, or out with her friends agitating for women's suffrage. Her activities make her a thorn in the side of some folks, but she's determined to see the day when women and men have equal rights- even if it's only in her own small town. Arrested by the town's deputy sheriff, she finds herself both outraged and intrigued by the man who's taken her into custody. A Man Anchored in Tradition Deputy Gregory Simmons isn't interested in politics. His main concern is keeping the peace, and that's become an even more complex job since Sheriff Noah Rogers announced his candidacy for mayor. Angel May and her cohorts are causing a ruckus, so he hauls her in. She turns out to be the most enchanting prisoner he's ever had, and before he can stop himself, he's falling for her. She's as troublesome a woman as they come, but he can't deny the way she makes him feel. Love Among the Chao s The issues of race and women's rights are dividing the town, pitting husbands against wives and neighbor against neighbor. In the midst of it all, Angel and Gregory must decide if their budding love is worth opening their hearts and changing their minds, in a way they never imagined before.
Author
I've always loved the written word. For as long as I can remember, I read as much as I could, as often as I could. Cereal boxes, newspapers, product packaging. Ebony, Essence, and Jet Magazine. Billboards. I loved it all. I read the entire Fear Street series, as well as the Sweet Valley Books, from Twins and Friends through Sweet Valley High. Each week I'd bring 15 or 20 books home from the library, and read them all before the due date. Now, my mother owned a pristine, barely touched collection of Harlequin romance novels, and I was not to touch them under any circumstances. Well, as a teenager, you know what that meant. I read some of them, and got my first introduction to romance. When I was sixteen, I picked up my stepmother's copy of Night Song, by Beverly Jenkins. The cover showed an obviously historical image of a black couple, against a beautiful backdrop, locked in a passionate embrace. With my love of history, I had to crack this book. What I read inside literally blew my mind. I was exposed to a wonderful, touching love story involving people who looked like me! What a thrill. To this day Night Song remains my favorite book, and I credit it with planting the seed of desire to write romance. I didn't get serious until many years later, but that's where it all began.
