Bella Riley / photo by Paul Belleville
With This Kiss is the second feel-good romance novel in Bella Riley’s Emerald Lake series. The story is about an innkeeper, Rebecca Campbell, who falls for her ex-fiance’s brother. A strong romantic attraction doesn’t equal an easy happy-ever-after, though. There are secrets between the couple that stand in the way of a relationship . . .
It’s always interesting to learn a “behind-the-book” story. Riley has generously shared five fun facts about her latest novel:
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guest post by Bella Riley
1. Emerald Lake, the setting for With This Kiss, is modeled after the lake in the Adirondacks where my husband’s family have lived for generations. I love the history and closeness of the community and have wanted to set a series there for several years. My husband and I now take our kids to a 100-year-old log cabin in Adirondacks every summer. I love the beauty of the mountains and the water; the chance to take long swims from one end of the cove to the other; and the fun of walking down the beach to a friends house just to say hello for a few minutes.
2. The women of Emerald Lake gather every week at Lake Yarns partly to knit . . . but mostly because we all need our girlfriends. Female friendships are so complex, supportive and nurturing. Isn’t that what all those studies show, that women live healthier, longer lives if they have lots of friends?
3. When I was writing the Emerald Lake books, I learned a lot about knitting communities and yarn stores. And everything I learned made me want to knit incessantly! I even took a nine month “Knitting Boot Camp” class, which was so much fun. My daughter’s teddy bear has an awesome purple sweater now.
4. I’d love to spend a day back in the ’20s with Celeste, the grandmother in With This Kiss, just to see what life was like back then. Was it more romantic? More difficult? Simpler? Or just plain exhausting to wear those clothes?
5. Small town heroes are compelling and sexy because they not only care about their family and their neighbors, but they never seem afraid to get a little dirt under their nails. They fix their own plumbing, tune up their own cars. There’s something sexy about a man who takes care of himself and his things, because it’s easy to imagine he’s going to take care of the woman he loves, too!
Thanks, Bella! Readers, what setting do you think would make for a wonderful romantic story? Now that the temps are in the ’80s in Tennessee, the Adirondacks sound just about perfect . . .
