Today, I am so doubly thrilled to welcome Sadie and Sophie Cuffe, authors of
Warrior’s Journey is Book 2 in the Blood Brothers in Christ Series, released by Desert Breeze Publishing!
Thank you both for visiting!
RA: As an author, what makes a book great in your eyes?
Sadie: Characters that worm their way into my heart and my head so they take on a life of their own. I like a good suspense plot, too, but if I love the characters, I’ll read the book to the end regardless of anything else.
Sophie: I like books that tug at my heart strings and make me cry, either tears of joy or sadness. I just finished Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, written from a 15-year-old girl’s POV about her Lithuanian family deported toSiberiaduring WWII. Gripping!
RA: Tell us a little about what you are working on, please?
S&S: We’re working on an inspirational romance set in the Unorganized Territory of Seven Pines (since we live in Unorganized Territory, this isn’t much of a stretch). Tentatively titled Hearts of Seven Pines, it’s full of small-town gossip, and features a garish quilt known as the Hearts of Seven Pines (of course!) that’s being raffled off to support the school. Kate comes to Seven Pines to hide from her problems, unaware that, while you can disappear in a city, you stick out like a sore thumb in a rural community where everybody knows everybody. And, like it or not (and she doesn’t), everybody comes to her rescue and sets her up again and again with the town doctor. It’s not “War and Peace” but it’s a fun read.
RA: What is the hardest scene you had to write in this piece?
S&S: There’s a scene where Kate can’t talk and, according to some of our past editors: dialog, dialog, dialog, is the only way to go for active writing, so we tried to balance other characters’ dialog with the narrative of Kate clacking on the phone receiver with her fingernail. This explanation sounds like a snoozer (very passive); hopefully the actual scene is a bit better.
RA: Let’s talk about the book you’d like to promote today. How did you come up with the title and where can we find it?
S&S: Warrior’s Journey is Book 2 in the Blood Brothers in Christ Series. Book 1 (Arrow That Flies) released August 2011. WJ is the story of bad boy identical twin Rand Adams, who used to be an eco-warrior, instigating sometimes-violent environmental protests around the globe. When he became a Christian, he left that lifestyle behind and he’s on a new journey, but his past catches up with him. The title seemed right because there’s a stalker known as “Warrior” in the book. After it came out, we learned Bruce Lee wrote an autobiography with that title. Who knew? (We are such non-martial art girls!)
RA: What was your first reaction when you got a glimpse of your cover art?
&S: Love at first sight! The waterfall is just as we imagined it. We can’t say enough about Jenifer Ranieri!
RA: Amen to that! Please give us a blurb and excerpt!
blurb WARRIOR’S JOURNEY
Molly Stuart knows there’s danger lurking nearby, waiting to take her son away from her. But her twelve-year-old refuses to talk about the stranger stalking them, and the only one who can help her is a man she doesn’t trust. Rand Adams may not have been directly responsible for her husband’s death, but he acts guilty. He cut out in the middle of the funeral and she hasn’t seen him in the three years since. Now he’s back pretending to care about her and her son, but he’s hiding something. Rand and her son share a deadly secret that will shatter Molly’s world and change their lives forever.
Excerpt, WARRIOR’S JOURNEY
Randdown shifted the truck as they worked their way up Gates Hill, easing off the gas when they crested the top. For a moment they were on the brink, balanced between summer and fall, between the hill country and the mountains, between the past and the future. He mashed the gas pedal under his hiking boot and flew down into the valley.
“I’d forgotten how much I love the view from Gates Hill.” Molly’s soft voice might as well have been a shout, the way it unnerved him.
Don’t say anything stupid. Keep it light, keep it friendly, keep it sane. “All the mountain ranges stacked one upon another, the whole world unfolding at our feet.”
“Except we both know those folds in the mountains can be dark places that swallow people.”
So much for keeping it light.Rand took a deep breath and plunged ahead. “They don’t have to, Moll. You’ll like Stellar’s Ford — small town, good people, its own universe.”
“Shut away from the real world? There you go again, spinning yarns about paradise and conning me into buying those pots of gold at the end of the rainbow. You may still be selling, but I’m not buying this time around. I don’t believe any of it. There’s no safe place anymore, especially when you’re involved.”
… “Look, Moll, let’s throw it all out here right now. Get it out of the way before we hit the mountain.”
RA: Now for the fun stuff. Do you have any guilty pleasures?
Sadie: I like to watch The Good Wife and have a chocolate shake.
Sophie: I like to watch Once Upon a Time and have aRocky Roadshake. Sometimes we watch them back-to-back. We’re wild and crazy girls!
RA: Name one thing readers would be surprised to know about you, please…er. or two 😉
Sadie: I can sing a totally different tune and lyrics when Sophie is singing something else. It drives her nuts!
Sophie: I can sing Alle Vögel in German passably well. Something about birds…
RA: If you didn’t have to worry about counting calories or fat, what’s the first food you’d reach for?
Sadie: Sophie’s homemade brown sugar maple fudge, but I’m not particular — I like lots of different kinds of candy.
Sophie: Sadie’s hot cinnamon/sugar soft pretzels. mmmmm. That’s why we’re BMW’s (Big Maine Women LOL)
RA: Oh, you two are incredible! Since you write romances, fess up. Have you ever read the “Grande Dames” of the genre like Jane Austen, Barbara Cartland, Danielle Steel, Nora Roberts? What do you really think of their books?
S&S: We’ve read something from all of these wonderful ladies. We think, “What do they have that the Cuffe Sisters don’t? …bestsellers, style, class, and royalty checks!” Actually, we appreciate their writing styles (and even tried to imitate one of them once. Can you spell DISASTER?), but we like to think there’s always room for a good romance, even if we’re off-roading in the dust of their wake.
RA: I like that reply. 🙂 If someone hasn’t read any of your work, what book would you recommend they start with and why?
S&S: Warrior’s Journey is as good a place as any to start. Although it’s Book 2 in the series, it’s a stand-alone novel and, to quote our 83-year-old mom, “the hero is a hunk!”
RA: Sadie and Sophie, thanks for spending a bit of time with me at my blog Romance Novels@reginaandrewsblog! Best wishes for your continued success.
NOW VERY IMPORTANT:
Where can readers find you on the Web?
links:
blog: http://cuffesisters.com/off-the-cuffe/
website: www.cuffesisters.com
facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sadie-and-Sophie-Cuffe/184904781607548
pinterest: http://pinterest.com/cuffesisters/
twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/SadieandSophieC
Thank you both again for visiting today! Now, friends, let’s hear your questions!
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