
Dear St. Nicholas—What we'd really like for Christmas this year is: An Irish Estate A Family Mountains of Sugarplums A Quiet Elopement Someone to close down all the London clubs — (like White's) OR Marriage to a Man who is Honest, Loving, Sexy, Handsome and Titled. But we know there aren't enough of those to go around... are there? Respectfully, Four English Ladies Includes: "I will" by Lisa Kleypas "Puddings, Pastries & Thou" by Lisa Cach "All I Want" by Lynsay Sands "Union" by Claudia Dain
Authors

It was while writing a descriptive essay in seventh grade English (that was the assignment, to write a 'descriptive essay') that Claudia first fell in love. With descriptive essays. Boys being what they are in seventh grade, there was hardly much choice. By her ninth grade year, Claudia was spending hours each week in her bedroom writing descriptive essays that heavily featured older boys (eleventh grade). She also practiced her kissing technique on a pole lamp next to her bed. It was less than satisfactory, but the writing was fun. She attended the University of Southern California as an English major. She'd mastered kissing by this time and writing, strangely enough, was still fun. 'Strangely' because while it had become obvious to her that almost everyone enjoyed kissing, it was equally obvious that very few people enjoyed writing. This was as peculiar to her as, well, not enjoying kissing. Clearly, something had to be done. The idea of combining kissing and writing seemed the obvious course of action. While Claudia does not claim to have invented the romance novel, she certainly has a lot of fun describing kisses and inventing men to bestow them upon. And not a one of her heroes looks remotely like a pole lamp. (And don't act like one either.) Claudia was first published in 2000, is a two-time Rita finalist, and a USA Today Bestselling author. Which just goes to prove that you can make a career out of kissing and writing about it.



Lisa Cach grew up in a farm near Portland, Oregon, a place she loves although she'd always trying to leave it. Wanderlust has led her to sail the Sargasso Sea, teach English in Japan, and trek the leech-infested jungles of Borneo. She has degrees in both English and psychology, two subjects that were fun to learn about but that guaranteed her low-paying jobs. Her father, she admits, may have been right about the MBA. Lisa started to writing romances in her parents' basement during snatched moments from work. Since her writing career began her free time has become less and less as her novels become more and more popular. She's loved romance novels since Junior High School, and at least now she doesn't have to worry about getting caught reading one. Lisa married, and bought with her husband a home in Seattle, Washington. She describes her personal paradise as "...a pile of books, a plate of brownies, and the free time in which to enjoy them".