Welcome to prolific author Katie O'Connor!
WARNING: Two great books and blurbs ahead!
Katie O’Connor lives in Calgary,
Alberta, Canada. She married her high school sweetheart and is living her
happily ever after. She is the mother of two grown daughters and is extremely
proud of her five grandchildren.
Katie’s career path has been long and
twisted, with most of her life devoted to her family. She’s been a waitress,
chambermaid, cashier, store manager, as well as a lab and X-ray Technician. She
is an avid quilter and crafter. She finds inspiration and relaxation in the
wilds of Alberta.
She’s dabbled in writing since high
school because something drives her to create stories. She swears it’s
impossible for her NOT to write. Unsatisfied with one genre, Katie writes
contemporary romance, erotic romance, fantasy/paranormal romance and erotica.
Recently, she’s crafted her first cozy mystery with the intention of publishing
a cozy mystery series.
She believes in all things magical;
including dragons, fairies, UFOs, ghosts, and house pixies. But most of all she
believes in love, romance and hope.
Website:
https://katieohwrites.com
Email: katieoconnorwrites@gmail.com
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/katieohwrites
Bookbub:
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/katie-o-connor
What
is your latest release?
My
latest release is Cupid's Charm. A heartwarming story of a Valentine Scrooge
who falls for a hopeless romantic. Olivia hates everything Valentine's,
including love. Max is all about love and romance. There's no
way in the world they'll ever see eye to eye.
What
are you working on now?
I tend to write two books at once. On in the
editing and one in creation. I'm editing an as yet unnamed story that will be a
novel in my Coyote Creek series. My working title is Coyote Creek Santa, though
I doubt that particular title will stick all the way through edits. I'm also
plotting the third book in my paranormal mystery series, Three Moon Falls.
Earth Magic follows the Hawk family and comes after Fire Magic and Water Magic.
It is the third book in a four book series. Evenings, when I have nothing
better to do, I'm working on a secret, non-fiction project.
Was there a person who encouraged you to write?
Not anyone specifically. I can't recall a time when I wasn't totally
enthralled with books. I was an avid reader as a child, often staying up late,
lost in worlds created by others. I started writing in my teens and was FINALLY
published in my 40s. It was a long haul, but I loved every step of the journey.
What would you say are your strengths as an author?
Wow. You like to toss out touch questions. My strength is probably in
creating heart warming stories with believable characters and intriguing
secondary characters.
How often do you write, and do you write using a
strict routine?
I write seven days a week. Yes, even Christmas Day. Sometimes a few
words, sometimes thousands. I'm a binge writer. My best stories come when I sit
down, focus and write the rough draft from start to finish as quickly as I can.
My record is 46,000 words in eight days, by hand, with a pen and paper.
Blessedly uninterrupted, I was able to keep the flow going which allowed me to
get deeper into the characters hearts.
Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a
writer?
In five years, I'll still be writing and publishing. I hope to be able
to mentor and assist writers as they start their careers. There isn't anything
as good for the soul as helping another person fulfill their dream.
CUPID'S CHARM
The
town of Rapture is Valentine’s Day crazy. It’s beyond anything Olivia Parker
has ever seen or imagined. She’s out of money, has no job, and no place to
live. At twenty-five, she’s way too old to move back home with her eleven
siblings. Desperate, she takes the first job she’s offered, and lands in the
middle of romance central. If it isn’t bad enough to be surrounded by
Valentine’s paraphernalia, her landlord’s charm threatens to steal her heart and
she’s vowed to stay single.
Max
Reed is living a nearly perfect life. He’s got a wonderful family, and a great
job as head of the local RCMP detachment. There’s only one thing missing; the
woman of his dreams. Olivia Parker might just fit the bill nicely. Too bad
she’s the Scrooge of romance.
With
life and Valentine’s events pushing them together, it’s going to take
everything Olivia has to protect herself from Max’s determined efforts to win
her heart.
Excerpt:
Liv glanced at her dashboard clock. It was pushing five
in the afternoon. Unless her timing and mapping skills were off, she should be
nearly at her destination. A broad grin stretched across her face. She could
hardly wait to arrive!
A new town, a new start.
Life was on the upswing again and she was excited to meet
it head on. This was going to be the best year of her life.
There it was. The highway sign. Rapture, 1 km. One
kilometer to her destination. She rounded a gentle sloping curve and skidded
her car to a halt on the highway approach. Belatedly, she glanced up at her
rearview mirror. Thank heavens nobody was behind her; she could have caused an
accident.
She stared at the “Welcome to Rapture” sign in disbelief.
Fashioned from wrought iron, it towered twenty feet high, dwarfing the highway,
her car, and everything in its vicinity. Even the massive spruce trees. That
wasn’t the worst of it. It was decorated in, ugh, of all things, red hearts and
white swirls. It looked like Cupid had vomited up a sign. Gross. She should
have expected this, after all she was moving to Rapture. Who named a town
Rapture? Crazy people, that’s who.
She hadn’t even hit town yet, and she was already
regretting accepting her new position of veterinary assistant without visiting
town first. Still, what choice did she have? It wasn’t like she had the money
to travel around searching out every prospective town or village where she was
offered a job. Not that there were many. After six months of unemployment,
she’d had exactly one, yes, that’s right, one, interview and she’d snatched up
the position almost before the kindly grey-haired veterinarian offered it to
her on a video call.
She hadn’t even taken the time to research Rapture on the
internet. If she had, the job would have been a no-go, even if it meant living
on the street.
She snorted at her own hyperbole. Right, as if she’d have
to live on the street. She’d move back home with her parents and all eleven of
her siblings. At twenty-five, she was the oldest. Six girls, six boys. It was
enough to make your head hurt. She’d left home at eighteen and returned only
for seasonal visits and birthdays. Outside of holidays, she’d never spent a
night there after gaining her freedom. She sure as heck wasn’t going to move back
into the hotel like house she’d once called home. She could have sold her car,
but it was the first big-ticket item she’d ever purchased herself. Luckily,
she’d scrimped and saved, and didn’t have a loan for it. She’d managed to
survive on her severance pay and dwindling savings, until now. She’d even
gotten through Christmas, though the gifts she’d given were small, hand crafted
items, created from supplies in her craft material stash, because money was
running short.
A horn tooted behind her, jarring her from her
reminiscences. She waved and lifted her foot from the brake and rolled forward
into a pretty picnic area beyond the sign. The car passed by and when its tail
lights faded from view, she turned her attention to the picnic area. Towering
pines and spruce shaded the red shale pathways. In the distance, mountains
towered over the trees. Snow capped, red and white picnic tables were circled
with matching benches. Small fire-pits rested a safe distance from the tables
and clear of the trees. Down a well-shoveled path, she noticed a small, tightly
shuttered confectionary which was probably only open during the summer. The
path wandered past the building to an unknown destination. This would be a
great place for a family picnic. Of course, her family would fill the entire
place. The air was fresh and brisk, it smelled of pine and fresh snow with just
a hint of campfire. Gosh, she loved those scents, maybe this place wouldn’t be
all bad.
Slipping her eight month old Ford Explorer SUV into park,
she hopped out and stretched her back. The icy wind cut through her thin
sweater, stealing every degree of warmth her car had generated. Darn, in the
car’s heat, she’d almost forgotten it was the end of January. Well, except for
the snow-covered ditches and icy patches on the highways.
Overall, the two-day trip hadn’t been overly onerous.
Rapture, Alberta was a good thirteen hours from Regina, Saskatchewan, and
winter roads had tripled the time required to travel the distance. She was
done. Baked. Exhausted. Plus, she was starved. The first order of business
would be food and then locating her new apartment.
“Good evening.”
The deep masculine voice came out of nowhere and Liv
whirled round to face the speaker.
“Um. Hi.” She squinted into the fading sunset at the tall
man ambling her way.
“Everything all right?” he asked kindly.
“Yes. I’m fine.” She yanked open her car door and stepped
behind it, ready to leap inside and shut him out. “Just leaving. Thanks.” Why
had she added thanks? What she did was no business of his. His ready smile and
attractive grin made her nervous.
He took three steps forward and stopped, mittened hands
raised slightly, something rope-like hanging from his left hand. “Sorry if I
frightened you. We don’t get many people stopping here this time of year,
especially on New Year’s Day. I was passing by and thought I’d make sure you
were okay.” He shifted left, bringing his face into the dimming daylight. His
smile was soft and easy. An orange and red striped toque fashioned to hang low,
down to his shoulder, ended with an enormous pompom and concealed his hair. The
hat matched his mittens and scarf. He looked almost fashionable. He wore a
bulky black jacket with a logo she couldn’t quite make out on the sleeve.
“Thanks. I’m fine.” She glanced around. There were no
other vehicles in sight. Why was he here wandering around at the edge of town
by the highway?
“I’m out for a walk,” he offered, as if reading her mind.
“My dog ran away.” He waggled the leash he aloft and slowly lowered his hands.
“Oh.” True or not, the words didn’t offer much
reassurance. It was time to get out of here. “Thanks for stopping. I’ll be
going now. Dinner calls.” Great. Why had she gone and told him her plans? She
must be more tired than she realized.
“Check out Penny’s on Seventh Avenue. She makes the best
chicken stew and chili on the planet. You won’t be disappointed. And, if you
see Rex, he’s a scrawny, underfed, Rottweiler, please leave a message for me
with Penny. Enjoy your dinner.”
“Have a nice day. If I see your dog, I’ll let you know.” Shut up Liv. Just because the man was
good looking with dark, enticing eyes, it didn’t mean you had to have a
conversation with him. Hunger and exhaustion were dragging her down, stealing
her common sense. She needed to eat, find her apartment and get some much-needed
sleep or she’d be useless on her first day of work. She slid back into her SUV,
slammed the door, and backed out of the picnic area. She would have preferred
to start later, but the position started tomorrow and she’d agreed to be there,
despite having to travel on New Year’s Eve and end her journey on New Year’s Day.
She’d always believed that you started a new year the way
you wanted to continue it. What better way than preparing to make a great
impression at a new job? New year, new town, new life. She was ready for this.
Buy Links::
Amazon.ca: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08SCRV57G
Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SCRV57G
Currently this book is only available on Amazon.
BONUS!! KEEP READING!!
CHRISTMAS IN SILVER CREEK
Christmas Chaos or Holiday Miracle?
Hailey Masters returns to her hometown to
mend her broken heart and move on with her life. Finding her family’s business
in tatters and her parents’ marriage on shaky ground due to the actions of
their former friend, Hailey embarks on a plan to save the business and ensure
her family’s future happiness.
Jesse Phillips considers himself a community
outcast and is reluctant to interact with people any more than necessary. When
his childhood friend returns to town, he is thrust into Hailey’s life and
forced to relive memories of his embarrassing past. Despite his total disdain
for everything holiday related, Jesse pitches in to help with Hailey’s plans
for a year-round Christmas store. Until his mother threatens to ruin
everything.
Excerpt: CHRISTMAS IN SILVER CREEK
Hailey
clenched her fists, raised her head and shoulders, and two-fist punched the
roof of her broken down SUV. Time to suck it up and admit defeat. She’d trek
the last block to Two Angels Gifts—in a minute.
“Deep
breaths, Hailey.” Time for some calming yoga breathing. In. Out. In. Out. Nope,
not going to cut it, not even close. She needed to go for a run to unwind. A
long, slow, run; after about two miles of sprinting. A mega workout to burn off
some stress as well as the cheesecake she planned on binge eating tonight.
Right after she mustered the guts to climb out of this broken-down wreck of a
vehicle, stretch her aching back and face her family.
Tap.
Tap.
Her
heart jumped into her throat and she lurched sideways in her seat to stare at
the side window.
“What?”
she blurted. A scruffy, blond, bearded man, in a dirty, plaid flannel work
shirt, stood beside the vehicle, a questioning look on his face.
“Miss,
are you okay?” His voice was muffled by the glass and her radio, but still
clear.
She
shut off the radio and rolled the window down half an inch.
“Thanks,
I’m good.” Not that she’d admit otherwise to a stranger.
“Your
engine is overheating. Don’t shut it down before it cools or she’ll boil over.”
“So,
my dad told me. Thanks though.”
His
brows bunched together at her abrupt response. She winced, it wasn’t like her
to be rude, let alone rude to someone she didn’t know.
“Sorry,
bad day. Bad week.” To her disgust, tears dripped from her eyes. She slapped
them away and forced a smile. “Thanks for your concern.”
“Bad
day, bad week, then your car breaks down, adding insult to injury; it has to
suck.” His facial hair twitched around his mouth, like he was smiling.
Boy,
this man was the master of the understatement for the month, maybe the entire
year. He had it right on the money. “I’m fine. Almost home.”
“If
you’re certain…” He frowned. At least she thought he did. It was hard to tell
under the scruff of his beard.
She
nodded. Why didn’t he just go away and leave her to her misery? “I’m fine.
Thanks.”
Great,
she was so bushed she could only muster three words. Twelve hours nonstop in
the car did numb the body and the mind. A wiser person would have taken two
days to make the trip, especially on winter roads, and she’d passed through
more than a couple snow storms, shaking her nerves and rattling her calm. Would
she ever feel calm again?
“Okay
then.” He sounded anything but certain. He gave her another long look and
ambled away.
She
watched him go, strangely reluctant to see him leave. He strolled toward Beth’s
Beans, her high school bestie’s coffee shop. Beth had stayed in Silver Creek
after high school. Hailey had scooted off to university as fast as she could,
only coming home on vacations and to announce her engagement.
Her
would-be Samaritan pulled the shop door open, holding it wide while a harried
mother pushed her stroller outside and urged three preschoolers to hurry out.
She paused to chat with him, patted his arm and rushed away. The man stepped
inside; the door whooshed shut behind his muscular shoulders. Idly, Hailey
thought he must do physical labor to build such a solid frame.
With a
head shake, she checked the temperature gauge. Still too hot to shut down.
Double edged sword. She didn’t feel like sitting here, her body ached too
badly. But neither did she want to face her parents.
She
watched people come and go, some meandering, others racing past. Five minutes
later, he exited the store, a small white bag and two takeout cups in his
hands. He grinned at her. Or was that a grimace? He stepped closer and she
recognized small laugh lines at the corner of his electric blue eyes. A smile
then.
“Here’s
a coffee for you, Hailey.” He offered her a cup. “And an everything bagel with
plain cream cheese.”
Her
mouth dropped open. She snapped it closed and squinted at him. Beneath the
scruff he was vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t place him.
“Cream
and two sugars. Just the way Beth says you like it. She also said she’s annoyed
you didn’t tell her you were coming.” He flashed a smile. “I didn’t mention the
U-Haul.” He winked. “Though she can probably see it through the window.”
A warm
flash rolled through her. Attraction? No. Maybe.
Gratitude.
That
was it. She wasn’t attracted to him; she was grateful for his concern. After
her tedious journey and flight from her ex’s duplicity, this guy’s concern was
heartwarming.
“I’m
sorry. Do I know you?” She asked after a long moment of staring rudely at him.
Exhaustion had stolen her manners somewhere around the Canada-U.S. border.
“Jesse
Phillips.”
After
a moment, recognition arrived. He had his mother’s eyes; except his weren’t
bloodshot from drinking. “Oh, hi,” she responded lamely, unable to hide her
surprise at not recognizing a former friend and neighbor. How could she have
missed seeing his identity?
His
eyes went flat and expressionless. He gestured with the coffee. “Take it, and
the bagel. You look like you need them. Then, I’ll leave you alone.” His tone
was icy.
Buy Links:
Amazon.ca:
https://www.amazon.ca/Christmas-Silver-Creek-Katie-OConnor-ebook/dp/B08LHGCMKK/
Amazon.com:
https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Silver-Creek-Katie-OConnor-ebook/dp/B08LHGCMKK/
Currently this book is only
available on Amazon and free to read in Kindle Unlimited.
