Sunday, November 10, 2019

BOUND IN FLAME by Katherine Kayne


AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS
Contact: Sarah Miniaci
Sarah.Miniaci@smithpublicity.com

Interview: Author of Fall 2019’s Must-Read Romantic Fantasy Debut on:
FEARLESS HEROINES, HAPPILY-EVER-AFTERS, AND THE 
COMPLEX AND FASCINATING CULTURE & HISTORY OF HAWAII

A former CEO, cancer survivor, avid collector of vintage muumuus, and self-professed bad dancer (and helluva bartender), like most people, Katherine Kayne “adulted for more years than I could count.” But through it all, somewhere deep inside of her, the childhood voice  brimming with love for horses and poetry and magic and happily-ever-afters  remained.

Nowadays, in her “so-called retirement,” Kayne is reclaiming that voice and following the dream of her heart, culminating in the release of her debut novel Bound in Flame: Book One in the Hawaiian Ladies’ Riding Society series [Passionflower Press, October 28, 2019].

With the Hawaiian Ladies Riding Society, Kayne  who counts herself fortunate to live onHawaii Island part of each year, and otherwise resides on another magical island in Puget Sound  is writing the romances she only dreamed of reading as a girl. Her manifesto?

Hawaii makes every woman beautiful. 
Strength is sexy. 
You never outgrow a love for horses. 
Flowers are for wearing. 
Women don’t need to be saved. 
Men should dance more. Especially hula. 
Food is to be enjoyed. 
There just might be magic still in the world. 
The best dresses are long and flowing. 
Our men are lucky to have us
Happily-ever-after is always a possibility. 
A little paper umbrella in your drink makes all things better. 

Set in turn of the century Hawaii, Kayne’s literary debut is centered on the stories of the fearless horsewomen of the islands’ ranches (“Because who doesn’t love a suffragist on horseback? With a bullwhip? Wearing flowers?”) and sees her take great care with cultural sensitivity and bring a sharp eye to historical detail. 

“By the turn of the twentieth century Hawaii was a study in contrasts,” she shares. “Cowboys and kahunas, wild pigs and steamships, hula dancers and rickshaws, land barons and mail-order brides made up the stuff and substance of the islands’ colorful history. The rise of the sugar industry gave great fortunes to a few and bypassed the many. Hawaiians today still fight to right the wrongs of that era. Yet despite it all, those times evoke a great nostalgia.”

“It is during these times that my stories begin, Kayne continues. “Although these tales are pure fiction, I found inspiration in many wonderful pieces of Hawaiian history. Just as the colors are deeper, the smells sharper, and the sun brighter in Hawaii, the stories of the people carry richness beyond imagining.”
To promote the October 2019 release of Bound in Flame, Katherine Kayn who will be attending the Romance Writers of America Conference in New York City from July 24-27  has select availability for interviews, and can speak to a range of profound, inspiring, and incredibly fun topics, including but not limited to:

● Taking the leap in this “third chapter” of her life to follow her childhood dream of becoming an author
● The uniqueness, beauty, and complexity of Hawaii (which is so, so much more than just tiki drinks)
● Writing about Hawaiian culture and history as a white woman, and her experience in working with the Hawaiian community and a group of sensitivity readers, her story trust
● The suffragist movement in the early twentieth century (2020 will mark 100 years since women won the right to vote in the United States)
● The white-washing of history, and the end of the kingdom of Hawaii after it was annexed by the United States in 1898 
● Self-acceptance as the key to power
● True love in all of its messiness and magic
● And much, much more!


Katherine Kayne writes the sort of romantic fantasy she has always wanted to read in her own beach chair. With horses and hula and magic and flowers and happily ever after… with heroines to cheer for and heroes strong enough to follow their heroine’s lead. Pure aloha. She lives in Seattle and counts herself fortunate to live in Hawaii a part of each year.

Find Katherine Kayne on Facebook (@katherinekayneauthor), Twitter (@k2writesbooks), Instagram (@k2writesbooks) and her website https://katherinekayne.com.
Bound in Flame: Book One in the Hawaiian Ladies’ Riding Society Series [Passionflower Press] will be available in paperback and ebook formats as of October 28, 2019.

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The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae by Stephanie Butland

The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae by Stephanie Butland
Description:
For fans of Josie Silver's One Day in December, The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae is a wholly original, charismatic, and uplifting novel that no reader will soon forget.
Ailsa Rae is learning how to live. She’s only a few months past the heart transplant that—just in time—saved her life. Now, finally, she can be a normal twenty-eight-year-old. She can climb a mountain. Dance. Wait in line all day for tickets to Wimbledon.
But first, she has to put one foot in front of the other. So far, things are as bloody complicated as ever. Her relationship with her mother is at a breaking point and she wants to find her father. Then there's Lennox, whom Ailsa loved and lost. Will she ever find love again?
Her new heart is a bold heart. She just needs to learn to listen to it. From the hospital to her childhood home, on social media and IRL, Ailsa will embark on a journey about what it means to be, and feel, alive. How do we learn to be brave, to accept defeat, to dare to dream?
From Stephanie Butland, author of The Lost for Words BookshopThe Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae will warm you from the inside out.

Author Bio:
STEPHANIE BUTLAND lives with her family near the sea in the North East of England. She writes in a studio at the bottom of her garden, and when she's not writing, she trains people to think more creatively. For fun, she reads, knits, sews, bakes, and spins. She is an occasional performance poet and the author of The Lost for Words Bookshop.



Bound in Flame by Katherine Kayne


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sarah Miniaci
Bound in Flame
The Hawaiian Ladies’ Riding Society Series, Book #1
By Katherine Kayne

For lovers of horses and hula and magic and fearless heroines and happy-ever-afters… 
TAKE AN UNFORGETTABLE TRIP TO TURN OF THE CENTURY HAWAII IN THE MUST-READ ROMANTIC FANTASY DEBUT OF FALL 2019

Just as the colors are deeper, the smells sharper, and the sun brighter in Hawaii, the stories of its people carry richness beyond imagination. 
An epic historical adventure meets sweep-you-off-your-feet romantic fantasy set in Hawaii at the turn of the twentieth century, it is with a bolt of inspiration from and deep roots in Hawaii’s wonderfully fascinating history that Bound in Flame [Passionflower Press]  the debut novel from Katherine Kayne, set for release on October 28, 2019  sets off at a galloping pace.
The first book in Kayne’s Hawaiian Ladies’ Riding Society series, Bound in Flame centers on Letty Liliuokalani Lang, a suffragist of the most fearless kind with a bullwhip, big dreams, and ancient powers she doesn’t yet understand.
Banished to a San Francisco boarding school to tame her wild temper, the story begins with Letty returning home to Hawaii, bringing her devotion to animals with her. She’ll be among the first female veterinarians in history  remarkable in 1909 when women still cannot vote.
With one mad leap into the ocean to save a horse, Letty  a descendant of Hawaii’s aristocracy and goddaughter of Princess Kehokulani, the former heir to the throne  sets another destiny in motion. She is a mākāhā, a Gate to the healing fires of the land, her beloved ‘aina. Letty must learn to harness the ancient power that lives within her, fueled by her connection to the islands. 
But the price is steep. Her inner flame burns hot  hot enough that her kisses can kill, a precarious inconvenience since the horse’s owner, Timothy Rowley, lights another kind of fire.
Can Letty learn to command her power in pursuit of her passion, or is the danger of love too great?
“By the turn of the twentieth century, Hawaii was a study in contrasts,” shares Kayne, who counts herself fortunate to live on Hawaii Island for part of each year. “Cowboys and kahunas, wild pigs and steamships, hula dancers and rickshaws, land barons and mail-order brides made up the stuff and substance of the islands’ colorful history.”
“Although Bound in Flame is pure fiction, I created the world of the Hawaiian Ladies Riding Society to tell the stories of the fearless horsewomen of the islands’ ranches,” she continues. “If you come along for the ride, be prepared for almost anything to happen. I can promise you fiery kisses, charming cowboys, women who ride like the rainbow to save the day, and that rarest of beasts: handsome men who like to dance.”
With great care to cultural sensitivity, a sharp handle on historical detail, and a cast of characters readers won’t be able to help but fall in love with, Bound in Flame is a must-read for anyone who loves horses, prefers the feisty heroine, craves hunky heroes with a sense of humor, and wants to believe there may yet be magic in this world.
Among the topics and themes Bound in Flame explores include:
● The uniqueness, beauty, and complexity of Hawaiian history
● The suffragist movement in the early twentieth century (2020 will mark 100 years since women won the right to vote in the United States)
● The white-washing of history, and the end of the kingdom of Hawaii after it was annexed by the United States in 1898 
● Self-acceptance as the key to power
● True love in all of its messiness and magic

About the Author:

Katherine Kayne writes the sort of romantic fantasy she has always wanted to read in her own beach chair. With horses and hula and magic and flowers and happily ever after… with heroines to cheer for and heroes strong enough to follow their heroine’s lead. Pure aloha.She lives in Seattle and counts herself fortunate to live in Hawaii a part of each year.

Find Katherine Kayne on Facebook (@katherinekayneauthor), Twitter (@k2writesbooks), Instagram (@k2writesbooks) and her website https://katherinekayne.com.
Bound in Flame: Book One in the Hawaiian Ladies’ Riding Society Series [Passionflower Press] will be available in paperback and ebook formats as of October 28, 2019.

ADVANCE REVIEW COPIES OF BOUND IN FLAME AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

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