(Inter) View From a Different Perspective!

Hi Guys and Gals, and welcome back to the August Authorpalooza! We have a very special author with us, and she's brought along a good friend, whom she'll be interviewing here today. So help me welcome author Deanna Jewel, who will introduce you to Captain Nathaniel Clairmont, the hero from her book "No Turning Back".  (Check after the interview for your chance to win "No Turning Back" along with a $15 Gift Card!)

Take it away, Deanna!

Hi Everyone!

I'm pretty excited today about having Captain Nathaniel Clairmont here to chat with us for a bit. I've pulled him from the pages and know he can't stay long. He's my handsome hero from No Turning Back, a respected ship captain, friend and breeder of horses, he loves to ride, but loves the ocean just as much. And here’s a secret - he’s also a Duke!

DJ: Nathan, your home in Scarborough, England sounds like a wonderful place, overlooking the ocean. How long has the castle been in your family?

NC: The fortress has been in my family for over one hundred years. A castle's structure is cold and damp so I do what I can to keep it warm and comfortable inside. I've done some reconstruction inside and out due to the age so it won't crumble down around me. I've collected tapestries from around the world and those hang on the walls to help keep the heat inside. I enjoy walking out on the parapets that look out onto the water, to listen to the crashing waves on warm summer evening.

DJ: With all your travels and time at court with the King, I envision all types of women wanting to get to know you better. Tell us what you look for in a woman who might interest you.

NC: *Nathan rubs his chin as he thinks about an answer* I would have to start with height. I like tall women, with a nice smile but doesn't constantly giggle and chatter. Is that a good start? I want to be able to read her eyes, the windows to a woman's soul. I'm a fairly good judge of character. I like a smart woman who is able to hold a conversation; beauty is nice but there is more to a female than good looks.

DJ: Well that gives us a list of attributes to start with. My readers place themselves in the heroine's character you know; they all want to be in my story with YOU! Are you the type of man who doesn't like getting tied down to one relationship, play the field, so to speak?

NC: *he has a deep laugh* I don't have time to play the field, Deanna. The King keeps me pretty busy at court or traveling on his behalf and when I'm not doing that, I'm at my home where I breed beautiful horses. The woman of my dreams will share that love with me. I like to think of myself as a one-woman man and our love will last a lifetime, if I'm lucky enough to find that.

DJ: So, have you found the woman of your dreams, Nathan?

NC: I can't answer that without giving things away, now can I. *he gives me a sexy wink* I've had my share of women in my life but I want to settle down one day, to have children, someone to leave my home to.

DJ: When you're on the ocean...sailing...are you at home there? Do you feel in control of something larger than life?

NC: I was raised aboard ships. My father took me with him when he sailed and I learned how to read the water, to know when I don't have control because the sea takes orders from no one. A captain depends on a good crew to help keep the ship safe and I have that in my crew. I trust them with my life.

DJ: We all have enemies. Care to enlighten us about a few of yours?

NC: Hmmm.....Langley has been a thorn in my side since childhood. We didn't necessarily run in the same circles of London society, but he did attend some of the same entertainment and events such as a local ball or two. He was jealous of the ease at which I could talk with women and there were a few females I guess one could say I turned in my direction. His jealous nature is also part of the reason he can't keep a woman; that and he's bloody greedy.

DJ: Nathan, thank you for taking the time to be here with us. I know our readers have been thrilled to know you a little better. Can you stick around for a few questions?

NC: I can do that. I can't wait to hear what questions they might have for me!

DJ: I can't be responsible for their actions or questions, you know! So be prepared...we look forward to it. Again, thank you!

NC: My pleasure!

DJ: Everyone, thank you for stopping in today. I hope we’ve been able to add one more book to your shelves. Leave your comments and email addy to be in the drawing on Sept 6th! Now, who has a question for Nathan or myself?

Alright everyone! Start a-commentin'! Entries must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. EST on September 5! Enter for your chance to win one of 2 prize packages, (each containing a signed copy of "No Turning Back" and a $15 Amazon or B&N gift card)! Leave as many questions or comments for Deanna and/or Captain Clairmont as you'd like but remember...only one comment per person will be entered in the drawing!

Now here's an excerpt from "No Turning Back"! Enjoy!!!

North Yorkshire, England, 1775

Michael ‘Nathaniel’ Clairmont, the Fourth Duke of North Yorkshire, crumpled the missive he’d received from his fiancée’s parents as he raked his fingers through his shoulder length hair. Fear tightened his chest as he stepped to the door and called to his squire. “Prepare Caesar, now!”

Stepping back into the room, he addressed his longtime friend, Anthony Faulkner. “I’m going to see Lady Stockholm’s parents. Clarissa is missing. Are you with me?”

Faulkner jammed his tricorn hat atop his head. “Bloody right I am!”

Moments later, after meeting with the Stockholm’s, Michael urged his bay Barb to greater speed along side Anthony’s. An unnatural scattering of branches and leaves strewn about the road ahead caught his attention. He reined Caesar and dismounted for a closer look. Footprints of horses and men marred the dirt and led deeper into the woods where the underbrush lay trampled and broken.

After tethering Caesar to a branch, he motioned for Faulkner to follow him along the path. A piece of green silk shimmered atop a briar bush, and Michael grabbed up the soft material. It was the color he’d last seen on Clarissa. The fragrance of jasmine assailed his senses. His eyes widened in recognition of the scent...the same one Clarissa wore!

He gripped the material in his fist. Bile rose in his throat as fear knotted his gut. Though afraid of what he’d find ahead, he pushed forward; low-hanging branches slapped at his face and caught at his shoulder-length hair. He pushed the foliage out of his way and tromped the underbrush in his desperate search.

When he reached out to block another branch, a silk stocking skimmed his face and he grabbed the stocking for inspection. Michael looked at Faulkner’s worried face, swore under his breath and moved on but a foreboding feeling ate at his senses, almost like being watched.

He couldn’t miss a gown strewn atop the bushes. The shock that tore throughout his system stopped Michael dead in his tracks, his muscles recoiling in reaction. Meticulously arranged over the waist-high bushes, as if in preparation for wear, lay a dark green silk gown, a vicious tear low in the neckline. His gaze moved slowly over the material. Tightness gripped his chest, feeling as though someone had reached in and squeezed his heart, the pain so intense it burned. He touched Faulkner’s arm, and gritted his teeth. “It’s the gown Clarissa wore at the ball last night,” he said in a gut-wrenching rasp. His gaze searched the area until the very thing he wanted to avoid seeing lay before him. His body froze.

A bare, delicate ankle peeked from beneath the underbrush.

Lunging forward like a wild beast, ravaging the area, throwing branches and uprooting ferns, he uncovered her body...clad only in her white satin chemise, splattered with her own blood.

His tortured scream echoed throughout the surrounding forest as he fell to his knees beside her battered body. Praying she might hear, he whispered her name. Touching her bruised cheek--he found it still warm. A flicker of hope ignited within his heart as he pressed his fingertips against the slim column of her throat. Moments later, finding no trace of a pulse, that slight flicker of hope extinguished itself. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts at who could be her killer.

While avenging the death of his fiancé years earlier, Michael Nathaniel Clairmont, Duke of North Yorkshire, learns that he CAN love again. Will the woman he wants also learn to love again? He sets out to capture her heart.

Vanessa is heartbroken over recent events in her life; she’s also head strong, flaunts London aristocracy and takes on breeding horses, something unheard of in the society circles of London. She finds herself trying to put the pieces of her life back together, but can she do it alone? With a child on the way, she is forced to do just that - their future depends on her strength. Then a friend offers to help. Dare she trust a man sworn to carry out a vow taken on a death bed? She refuses to accept that his love is true when his honor of sticking to his word is also at stake.

Can Nathan survive another heartache? Join him and Vanessa as they work through the torments of their past and work together to fight for their love and a future together.


Okay...if you love romance, be sure to learn more about "No Turning Back"! And don't forget to drop by Deanna's website and her blog for more info; links to her other works, (including some of her steamier offerings *wink*); contests; and much MORE!!

     Deanna is a multi-genre romance author who loves to stay in touch with her readers! Her eBooks, iBooks or print copies are available direct from her website, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebook Store, iTunes Book Store and many more places!