My Kind of Hero: A Hero For All Time by Mary Gillgannon @WildRosePress #Romance

Up until recently, all my books were set in the past. I just can’t help being drawn to the high stakes intensity of earlier time periods. To me, the extreme life-and-death circumstances people faced in the past make for the most gripping and powerful love stories. As you would expect, my taste in heroes runs to the rather rough-edged, primal types who belong to that world:  The ferocious, dark age warrior. The valiant but deadly knight. The gloriously fierce Viking. The daring, dangerous rake who can handle himself on the mean streets of Regency London.

I have trouble seeing contemporary men in the same light, as that larger-than-life hero. Most of them seem too ordinary and normal to get my pulse pounding. (The exception would be my husband, who manages to combine the primitive physicality of my ideal hero and still fit in and be successful in the modern world.)

Given my preference for seriously alpha heroes, I thought all my stories would be set in the past forever. But then one day, while I was writing a romance set in ninth century Ireland, I suddenly saw my heroine in modern day Denver. I was shocked, and yet… she seemed to belong there. But how did she end up in that world, and what the heck was she going to do for a love interest? And then, all at once I knew. She was going to get her ultra masculine, no-holds-barred hero after all. Because it turns out he fell in love with her in a past life and followed her to our time. That story became Call Down the Moon.

It’s really the perfect combination. I get to have a hero, Connar, who is the real deal. Fit and muscular due to his lifestyle, rather than hours in a gym. With a personality that is straight-forward, genuine and unaffected. At the same time, my heroine, Allison, doesn’t have to deal with all the issues of women in the past. She can be strong and independent without straining credulity. She can have dreams and goals and a career without it seeming unrealistic. And because Connar already fell in love with her in another life, he doesn’t fight the way he feels about her, but embraces it.

But that’s not to say there aren’t conflicts between the two of them. It takes a bit of adapting for a dark-age era man to adjust to a modern woman. And of course it isn’t quite as simple as my hero coming to this time and reclaiming his love. Because free-lance writer Allison doesn’t remember much of her past life, and what she does start to recall is pretty horrifying. So now Irish warrior Connar has to convince her fall to in love with him all over again. While keeping her safe from the dark forces that seem to have followed him from the past. 

Call Down the Moon is the first book in the Soulmate series. It will be released later this year.

Title: Call Down the Moon

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Date Published: Late 2014

Genre: paranormal romance

Word Count:  70,000

In the ninth-century, Irish warrior Connar fell hopelessly in love with Aisling, one of the Nine Sisters, a group of priestesses skilled in healing. When Aisling came to a tragic end, he used magic to travel to the future to reunite with her. But someone has followed Connar from the past, and they are determined to keep Allison and Connar apart. As Allison struggles with terrifying visions of her past life, she must learn to trust in a love that transcends even death.

Excerpt:

He went into the kitchen and pulled a dusty bottle from the wine rack, then dug in the drawer for a corkscrew. His hands shook as he inserted the corkscrew and worked it down. He couldn’t believe this moment had come. Aisling was here. After all these centuries. It was…magic. He took a deep breath. She was the whole center of his world, his reason for existence. He had to make certain everything went perfectly.

Pulling out the cork, he poured each of them a glass of wine and took the glasses into the living room. She was sitting on the couch, looking so beautiful it made his chest hurt. He handed her a glass and sat down beside her. Not too close. He didn't want to distress her. But if he didn't touch her soon, he would lose his wits.

She took a sip of the wine, and the tip of her tongue poked out in an unconscious gesture as she tasted it. Connar sucked in his breath. He couldn’t endure much more. He was overwhelmed with desire. It was torment to be so close to her. To watch the rise and fall of her breasts beneath the tight fabric of her dress. To observe the pulse of life in her slim neck. To feast his eyes on the silken perfection of her skin. Every nuance, every detail of her body aroused him.

"It's good wine," she said. "I mean, I'm hardly a connoisseur, but it's very mellow." She looked at him, a shy flash of blue eyes. His mind went blank as he focused on her lips. Full and ripe, and moist from the wine.

He put down his own glass and cleared his throat, struggling for control. "Yes, it's good wine. I've been saving it."

"Saving it? For me?" Her voice was breathless, soft and light. Her pupils were huge, the black centers consuming the blue irises.

"Yes, for you." He took her glass of wine and carefully set it on the table to his right. Then, he reached out and put his hand on her neck. She didn't move, merely stared at him, lips slightly parted. He leaned forward to kiss her.

Although Call Down the Moon hasn’t been released yet, here are some buy links to some of my previous romances with “heroes for all time”:

Dragon of the Island (my first hero, a passionate dark age king):

Amazon

Storm Maiden  (a fierce but tenderhearted Viking):

Amazon

Smashwords 

Saint Sin (a devilish rake):

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author bio:

I am fascinated by history, as well as Celtic myth and legend. These interests inspire and enrich my books, both romance and fantasy. Raised in the Midwest, I currently live in Wyoming with my husband and four very spoiled cats and a somewhat spoiled dog. I also have two grown children and have worked at the local public library for over twenty years. In my spare time, I enjoy gardening, travel and reading, of course!

Author Links: (Website, Blog, Email, Amazon Author Page, Twitter Facebook, Goodreads, Pinterest, etc.)

http://marygillgannon.com

http://marygillgannon.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/mary.gillgannon