KAREN’S KILLER BOOK BENCH: Welcome to Karen’s Killer Book Bench, where readers can discover talented new authors and take a peek inside their wonderful books. This is not an age-filtered site, so all book peeks are PG-13 or better. Come back and visit often. Happy reading!
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FOREVER YOU
One Love. Two Lifetimes
BY J.D. CHURCH
Blurb
For readers of Diana Gabaldon and Linda Lael Miller
The land didn’t pull her to 1887.
It pulled her to him.
Sarah Wharton is a widow, a mother, and a woman running for her life.
When she crosses a Montana stream in the dark with her two children, she expects to survive the night. She does not expect to arrive in 1887.
The land on the east bank has a name in the old language. A place where souls separated by time are called home to each other. It doesn’t ask. It doesn’t explain. It simply takes you where you belong.
Jason Callahan has been dreaming of her for thirty years. He doesn’t know her name. He only knows her eyes, and the bone-deep certainty that the rest of his life has been waiting for her to arrive.
But the man who put a bullet in her husband wasn’t the only one who wanted her dead. The century Sarah escaped to, has enemies of its own.
Some souls find each other across lifetimes.
Some hearts aren’t meant to forget.
FOREVER YOU
One Love. Two Lifetimes
BY J.D. CHURCH
Interview
Before we get started talking about your writing, tell us a little about yourself, where you’re from, what you do for a living (if you’re not a full-time writer) what hobbies you have, etc. Whatever you’d like to share to introduce yourself.
I’m a proud mom of two grown children, a grandma of a two-year old, and a devoted dog mom to a very well-cared-for pup. I’m also married to what I like to call the most patient man in the world, which is probably a requirement for keeping up with all of my hobbies.
I’m a creative person at heart. My husband says I live in my own little world. When I’m not writing or working at my job at a murder mystery dinner show, my hands are in the dirt tending my garden, at my sewing machine, or in the kitchen cooking, baking, or canning food from my gardens. I’m a small space homesteader and like to bully my friends into growing gardens or eating organic.
You will also find me at Celtic festivals wearing a corset or outfit I’ve designed and sewn myself, or at a hockey game ready to throw down at the rink, just kidding…kind of. Overall, I’m someone who loves to create and connect with people.
1. What appeals to you about the genre that you write?
I write across multiple genres. My non-fiction writing as Renee McCorry I love to share my knowledge of small space homesteading and how to live a more self-sufficient life. Writing as J.D. Church is a little different because it allows me to explore another side of my creativity.
Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve wondered what it would be like to travel back in time. Not to witness history’s big moments, but to experience everyday life and see the world through someone else’s eyes. I’ve always been fascinated by how people lived, what they valued, and how they navigated the challenges of their time.
That’s what draws me to writing time-travel romantic suspense. It gives me the chance to combine my love of history with my imagination. There’s something magical about connecting the past and present and discovering how the choices we make can echo through time.
2. Are you a plotter or a pantser (one who writes “by the seat of your pants”)?
Up until recently I was a total pantser! A wonderful group of writers I met through SCWA taught me the value of outlining, so my next book is partially plotted…and some “oh I didn’t know that was going to happen.”
3. What is your favorite part of writing?
I love creating a new life! Theres something about uncovering family secrets, putting my characters in dangerous situations, and watching them fight for love despite the obstacles in their path. Of course, there is always a happily ever after since real life doesn’t always give us that.
4. If you had to give up writing and do something else, what would you do instead?
That’s a no-brainer. Historical Interpreter. I had a job as one years ago when I lived in New Jersey and I loved it. Dressing up, becoming part of history and sharing it with others is the best feeling.
5. What’s your favorite meal of the day?
DESSERT. Does that count as a meal?
6. Which are your favorite characters to write, the female characters or the male characters? Why?
Female characters are usually easier for me to write because I can relate to them on a personal level. I understand how they think, react, and navigate the world, which makes their voices come naturally.
But I have to admit, I love writing male characters too. There’s something about creating the “perfect” man and then throwing every obstacle imaginable in his path. As an author, it’s fun to see what he’s made of when everything goes wrong.
7. If you had a superpower, what would it be, and how would you use it?
Ha! Time travel! Not a surprise, right? I’d visit the past, observe how people really lived, and probably spend far too much time asking questions. The challenge, of course, would be resisting the urge to meddle with history. Fortunately, years of reading Outlander series have taught me that history has a way of happening no matter what you do. As long as I could make it back home safely, time travel would be the ultimate adventure and the perfect research tool.
8. Many writers dream of having the ideal location to write. If you could live anywhere in the world or live a particular lifestyle, where would you be answering these questions right now?
On a homestead in the mountains with nature all around me. Of course, with a lot of free time to write.
9. Do you have any rejection stories to share? Reviews that meant something special to you?
I have been rejected so many times in the past that I gave up writing for a long time. I thought I wasn’t good enough and my confidence took a big hit. It’s what pushed me to self-publish. I know I have good stories. I just want to share them.
10. Tell us about your next book & when it is being published?
Forever You e-book has just been released. Print version will be released on June 19th. It is book one in the Callahan Chronicles. I will be writing a 5-book series. I am hoping to have the second book out by late autumn. I will also be re-releasing a cozy holiday romance in November, Second Chance Under the Mistletoe.
About Author J.D. Church…
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Links to J.D.’s websites, blogs, books, #ad, etc.:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4a6AUcN
https://www.amazon.com/author/reneemccorry
https://leafandlores.com/j-d-church
https://leafandlores.com/my-blog
https://substack.com/@reneemccorry2
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Special Giveaway: J.D. will gift an ebook copy of FOREVER YOU to one lucky reader who comments on her Karen’s Killer Book Bench blog. Happy Reading!
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Sounds like a really good read looking forward to reading