Blurb: (from goodreads) When Innes Buchanan inherits the title of Laird, he is entrusted with the Scottish family estate, the ancestral home, and centuries of noble tradition. Sadly, he also inherits the family bank balance which, after death duty, is crumbling faster than the walls of their ancient castle.
After exhausting even the most unlikely of cash generating alternatives and with bankruptcy on the horizon, Innes stumbles across one last initiative, a research scholarship in Texas to establish a new herd of cattle. With a lifetime of sheep farming and no room for failure, Innes’s luck returns on a chance encounter with Orley MacKenna, a born and raised Texan cowgirl who needs little convincing to leave her past behind. Though a likely couple, the two settle for an unlikely business partnership, and return to Scotland to try and save the Buchanan fortune.
Told with timeless Scottish romanticism and a knowing sense of humour, Bagpipes and Bullshot twists an everyday love story with a whole cast of village eccentrics who integrate seamlessly into a fantastic play on rural life.
Vacationing on the beautiful Caribbean island of Antigua, Janey Sinclair is persuaded by her magazine editor boss to do a quick island hop in order to supervise an impromptu photo-shoot for the front cover. With no flights immediately available, Janey is directed to the harbour.
Captain Travis Mathews hates tourists, although he’s not above making a bit of money off a prissy and sharp tongued young British girl when she’s desperate to get to the neighbouring island of Tortola.
After striking a deal, they set off together in Travis’s weather-beaten old boat. When the vessel comes to a sudden full stop in the sea, the mismatched pair end up as castaways on an uninhabited island.
In this fast moving romantic adventure about a vacation that turns into a tropical nightmare there’s more fun than you’ll find in any travel brochure.
A message from Janice:
I was incredibly fortunate to spend most of last summer in the Caribbean, writing and researching my latest novel Castaway in the Caribbean. The Virgin Islands inspired me with the modern day setting for this romantic adventure novel because, of this chain of around ninety small islands, islets, cays and rocks in the Caribbean Sea, many are uninhabited. For proper research I got to sail around Tortola, the larger of the British Virgin Islands, in a restored schooner that had been used in the filming of the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie. To better write my story and to develop my plot, I explored many other Caribbean islands, tropical jungles, and cave systems.
You may be interested to know that in one of the pivotal scenes my heroine, Janey, has to climb up a tall and rather perilous waterfall. A couple of chapters later, she then has to get down that same waterfall and to do so she has no choice but to throw herself from the top and into the raging flow of water by way of a series of naturally formed ‘flumes’ in the rock. I described the scene – and the sheer terror of my poor heroines’ experience, through her point of view and that description comes from personal experience! When I was on the tropical rainforest Caribbean island of Dominican Republic, where they filmed the Jurassic Park movie, I did indeed climb up and jump from several tall waterfalls – although unlike my heroine I was wearing a life vest and a helmet to protect my head!
Many of my other experiences while researching in the Caribbean are well documented on my website at janicehorton.co.uk and on my blog and Facebook page too, if you are interested in reading the details and seeing the photos!
I eventually settled down to write this romantic adventure story on the Caribbean island of Utila, the smaller of the Bay Islands, just off the coast of Honduras. Likened to the Key West of long ago, Utila is a quaint, unspoiled and laid-back little island. Sitting on the largest barrier reef in the western hemisphere, it is also a paradise for scuba diving, which is exactly what my husband was doing every day while I was busy writing this story.
Research is a valuable tool for a writer, so I do hope all the fun and adventure I had in the Caribbean has found its way into the pages of Castaway in the Caribbean.
Love Janice xx
Janice Horton writes contemporary romantic fiction with a dash of humour and a sense of adventure. Look out for Janice’s new release for 2015 ‘Castaway in the Caribbean’ and her Amazon Kindle bestselling books ‘Bagpipes and Bullshot’ and ‘Reaching for the Stars’ and her fun ‘Voodoo Romance’ series of novellas. Her nonfiction guide to online promotion ‘How To Party Online’ is recommended reading for all authors and writers by publishers. Janice is a regular blogger from her website at janicehorton.co.uk and you’ll also find her on Facebook and Twitter.
Janice Horton – writer of romantic adventure novels
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Robbie Burns Night Celebrations with Janice Horton
I’m so glad you were able to work me into your busy schedule, Janice. You’ve been snap-gapping all over the place of late so I’m thrilled to have you here at Celtic Connexions. You’re looking very “Scottish” today, all decked out in your tartan.
I take it you’re ready for a good old-fashioned ceilidh – Canadian style.
Here, come sit by the fire take the chill off (escorts my esteemed guest to one of the tartan wing-back chairs facing the crackling fire ).
photo from Flickr
I’ll summon my manservant, Donald (the Red) , to bring us some refreshments. Would you care for a wee dram? Perhaps Glengoyne – Scotland’s only un-peated single malt?(rings bell and gives manservant instructions)
I think you’ll like what I have in store for you at the ceilidh tonight. I tried to get the Old Blind Dogs but they weren’t available. That’s okay as I do have a vast collection of Scottish music on CDs – Old Blind Dogs, The Corries, Runrig and the list goes on.
(swish of swinging door as the manservant returns with a tray carrying a decanter of whisky – 18 year old Glenlivet no less, two glasses and water). “Your whisky, my lady,” he says as he places it on the table.
“Thank you.”
As the manservant straightens to leave, I cry out… “Donald, where’s your trousers?” because so unlike him, he’s wearing a kilt!
Overcome by the shock of seeing him dressed in that fashion, it takes me a moment to regain my composure. (fans self with copy of Leopard Magazine).
Well, while we wait for our meal to be ready, Janice, let’s chat about your novel. I’m really interested to find out more about it and your creative process. You spent three months on the Island of Utila researching and writing Castaway in the Caribbean. Can you tell me more?
Yes, I had the most amazing time in 2014 visiting, researching and writing in the Caribbean. While there I spent a lot of time in boats (as one features in my new novel) and even got to sail off Tortola in the British Virgin Islands in a schooner used in the making of the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie! After visiting lots of islands, my husband and I settled down to island life for a stay of three months on Utila, a tiny Caribbean island off mainland Honduras. This is where I wrote the first draft of ‘Castaway in the Caribbean’.
When do you expect to release it?
April 2015. I have promotional online book tours organised for April and May.
What made you choose that title?
I feel the title suits the story line perfectly. The premise of the book is that the two main characters, a surly boat captain who hates tourists and a girl holidaying in the Caribbean who desperately needs to get to a neighbouring island, end up castaway together on a remote island. It’s a fun, fast paced romantic adventure novel that I hope will be the perfect beach read for 2015!
The manservant returns and tells us that dinner is served… so we pick up our drinks and at the first skirl of the pipes, wait for him to enter the room and we get piped in to the formal dining room (I wish I had one of them, too) to the strains of The Bonnie Lass of Fyvie for a traditional Robbie Burns feast.
Once everyone is around the table, we begin with The Selkirk Grace.
Some hae meat and canna eat, And some wad eat that want it;
But we hae meat, and we can eat, Sae let the Lord be thankit.
Our first course is Cock-a-leekie soup.
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Not strictly traditional as I don’t put prunes in it.
You mentioned (or did I pick up on it) something about the names of your characters. Was there a particular reason why you used those names? If so, can you share it?
I wrote the first draft with my husband’s name, Travis, as the romantic hero’s name and the heroine of the story is called Janey (which is kind of like my name, Janice). I fully intended on changing the names in the second draft but for some reason ended up not doing so. The characters of Castaway in the Caribbean are Travis and Janey in their own right – they are not meant to be me and my husband – and the story is definitely a work of fiction!
The soup course is cleared away and the skirl of the pipes begins again. The door opens and the haggis is brought into the room with great pomp and circumstance.
Address to the Haggis
a wee dram for the haggisHaggis, champit tatties and bashed neeps
We’ll have a bit of a musical interlude courtesy of the Red Hot Chilli Pipers before we carry on with the rest of the evening’s festivities.
What’s your next project? Do you have another novel started?
I have a few ideas in mind for new projects. I’m travelling again this year and I’d like to continue the theme of writing romantic adventure novels set in places that inspire me.
Now that we’ve talked about your WIP (work in progress for those not accustomed to author-speak and abbreviations), tell us more about you and how the readers of Celtic Connexions can follow you?
Thank you, Melanie. I really enjoy connecting with people. I’m a keen blogger. I’m always on Facebook and I love to Twitter too. So here’s my links:
Janice Horton writes contemporary romantic fiction with a dash of humour and a sense of adventure. Look out for Janice’s new release for 2015 ‘Castaway in the Caribbean’
and her Amazon Kindle bestselling books ‘Bagpipes and Bullshot‘
and ‘Reaching for the Stars‘
and her fun ‘Voodoo Romance’ series of novellas.
Her nonfiction guide to online promotion ‘How To Party Online‘
is recommended reading for all authors and writers by publishers. Janice is a regular blogger from her website at janicehorton.co.uk and you’ll also find her on Facebook and Twitter. She is also associate editor at the award winning online magazine Loveahappyending Lifestyle Magazine where she produces her monthly ‘The Bookshelf’ feature and her seasonal ‘Snap Gap Travel’ features.
Thank you so much for coming to my “un”conventional Robbie Burns Night. I hope you won’t have a sair heid tomorrow. I see the chairs have been rearranged in the front room so shall we move the party in there and let the ceilidh begin?
In Voodoo Child, ex-celebrity UK fashion model Nola and her handsome Haitian husband Louis are expecting their first baby. But as one precious life begins another is about to end.
Louis’s beloved old Uncle Sid is dying and has declared his last wish is to see Louis and Nola’s new baby baptised on St John’s Eve – the most important event in the voodoo calendar. The voodoo isn’t over yet for Nola or for Louis!
My review:
Voodoo-licious!
In this the final instalment of Janice Horton’s Voodoo trilogy, we meet up with Nola, her Haitian husband Louis, “baby” and the rest of Louis’s voodoo practising family. With the impending death of Louis’s Uncle Sid, Nola, Lewis and their baby leave Scotland bound for New Orleans to fulfil the old man’s dying wish that the infant be baptised on St John’s Eve.
After reading the first two books in the trilogy (How Do You Voodoo? and Voodoo Wedding), I know that nothing is ever straight forward with this family unit and be prepared to expect the unexpected.
This final installment (actually the entire series) is a great Halloween read filled with voodoo spells, mayhem and mystery all skilfully interwoven into the plot that keeps you turning the ‘virtual’ pages.
Thank you Melanie for inviting me across the pond to share my exciting news!
The third book in my series of voodoo romance novellas ‘Voodoo Child’ is out this week.
It’s available exclusively from Amazon for Kindle.
Story synopsis: In ‘Voodoo Child’, ex-celebrity UK fashion model Nola and her handsome Haitian husband Louis are expecting their first baby. But as one precious life begins another is about to end. Louis’s beloved old Uncle Sid is dying and has declared his last wish is to see Louis and Nola’s new baby baptised on St John’s Eve – the most important event in the voodoo calendar. The voodoo isn’t over yet for Nola or for Louis!
Feel free to share, tweet, and tell all your friends!
Did you know that How Do You Voodoo? is an Amazon Kindle bestseller and it has 25 Amazon UK reviews with an average reader score of 4.6 stars! Love Reading Love Books said How Do You Voodoo? was ‘A Five Star Read of 2012’
Voodoo Wedding – Book Two – is also available from Amazon for Kindle alongside Voodoo Child at the fabulous price of just $1.52 or £0.99p so why not treat yourself to a little voodoo romance this Fall?
Have a great Fall everyone and don’t forget that I love to chat on Facebook and Twitter!
Janice Horton – Contemporary fiction with humour and heart
I loved this book! But before I give you my full book review, I’ll share some ‘party’ background first.
“Janice has made it her business to get stuck into the whole self-publishing malarkey. Savvy enough to realise it’s not enough to simply write, she’s studied social media marketing until it could be her specialist subject on Mastermind. She can plan a book launch, maximise publicity, keep the momentum going after the first initial flush, and perhaps most of all, she knows how to make the whole thing fun, which is no mean feat”.DG Life Magazine.
How To PARTY Online:
• Online parties are a fun way to launch your book or introduce your product and engage with your target audience.
• Social media applications are perfect forums for parties – the venue capacity is infinite, the guest list is global, and the fun and games can lead to bestselling success!
• This aim of this book is to show you how you can produce measurable results from your very first online party and while you are still working towards building up your social network.
• The purpose of this book is to walk and talk you through each step of the planning and implementation of four very different online promotional parties.
• Together we will look at how much work and effort is involved in implementing each step and we will experience the party format, explore the outcomes, and quantify all the successes.
• I’ll show you how to make it lots of fun!
Comments about Janice Horton’s online parties from the party peeps themselves:
“I loved the parties because of the amazing fun and laughs we had – even if some of us ended up in twitter jail!”
“I liked the ways in which you involved others during these parties. They were great fun.”
“Absolutely LOVE your blog parties!”
“The idea of having us post photos was brilliant in that it set up a series of interactions between lots of the different people who came – some of whom I’d never ‘met’ before.”
“Love how you come up with such innovative ideas for each one.”
“Great fun!”
“The party was a blast! I loved it.”
“It was great being a part of something that involved so many different blogs. It was very unique and totally engaging!”
“I took part in the online party. What I enjoyed about it was reading all the other blogs that took part – everyone had something different.”
“You have held some really fun and fab parties Janice. All have been great to join in!
“I’ve been to all of them and it would be difficult to pick out a favourite.”
“What I think worked was that they were all different and each had an element of surprise.”
“Asking ‘guests’ to do something specific ensured personal involvement – key to the success of any ‘virtual’ event.”
“I enjoyed all your parties, Janice.”
“The (party) was a lesson in how it should be done.”
“A book of hints and tips is a great idea. Good luck with it!”
My thoughts on HOW TO PARTY ONLINE
This book is a MUST for anyone planning an online launch, especially those who are heading down the online launch trail for the first time. Janice details the lead time required for each type of launch – Facebook, Twitter or blog but keeps everything light so that when the “big” day comes, it’s FUN and hopefully, stress-free.
I’ve attended Janice’s online parties and know the amount of work that went in to each one, but when you arrive at the venue, everything seems seamless and effortless. Trust me, it isn’t.
So my rating? ☆☆☆☆☆
About the Author
Janice Horton escaped a city-chic lifestyle and a career in corporate brand placement to live in a remote cottage on the side of a hillside in Scotland. Previously traditionally published and now writing as an Indie, Janice writes fiction with humour, heart, and a hint of tartan. When not writing novels, Janice writes lifestyle articles and has had work published in national and international magazines. She has also been involved in BBC Scotland’s ‘Write Here Write Now’ incentive. Janice is a regularbloggerand you’ll often find her partying on Facebook and Twitter. She is a contributing editor with her Scottish Country Lifestyle feature and the editor of the twice monthly Bookshelf Reviews at Loveahappyending Lifestyle magazine.
Would you care for a wee dram? Perhaps Glengoyne – Scotland’s only un-peated single malt? (rings bell and gives manservant instructions)
“Janice has made it her business to get stuck into the whole self-publishing malarkey. Savvy enough to realise it’s not enough to simply write, she’s studied social media marketing until it could be her specialist subject on Mastermind. She can plan a book launch, maximise publicity, keep the momentum going after the first initial flush, and perhaps most of all, she knows how to make the whole thing fun, which is no mean feat”. DG Life Magazine.
Janice Horton escaped a city-chic lifestyle and a career in corporate brand placement to live in a remote cottage on the side of a hillside in Scotland. Previously traditionally published and now writing as an Indie, Janice writes fiction with humour, heart, and a hint of tartan. When not writing novels, Janice writes lifestyle articles and has had work published in national and international magazines. She has also been involved in BBC Scotland’s ‘Write Here Write Now’ incentive. Janice is a regular