Interview with Mackenzie Lucas, author of ESSENCE

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A special World of Dreams welcome to Mackenzie Lucas, author of Essence. Here's a little bit about the book:

All Haven Jameson ever wanted was to own a little piece of paradise. Now, she does, having established a successful luxury spa in St. Augustine, Florida. But when the property next door is sold to a mega developer and his pro-golf celebrity brother who design trendy, bustling playgrounds for the rich and famous, she fears her dream could slip away. Confronted by her late husband’s infidelity, Haven learns everything she believed about her marriage was a lie; so she finally sets aside her grief and opens her heart to loving the widowed pro-golfer who is her biggest professional competition. In the end, Haven discovers that living a safe, loveless life is far worse than embracing passion and taking a chance on a man who’s vowed never to love again. And that, sometimes, no matter how high the risk, the best paradise of all can be found inside our own hearts.

Mackenzie, the book sounds good. What's the first book you remember making an indelible impression on you?

I’ve read so much during my lifetime and books have had such a huge impact on me that I can’t single out one. I’d have to say, though, that the books that got me hooked on romance when I was eleven or twelve years old were Harlequin Romances. The first book I tried to write at eleven years old was based on Harlequins I’d been reading. I had a closet full of them. And like today, I never threw them out. I’m sure my parents got rid of them when I went away to college. But I learned at a young age that romance ran in my blood.

If you could only eat one food the rest of your life, what would it be?

I don’t think there’s one food I’d like to eat the rest of my life. I love food. And I like variety. However, if someone told me I couldn’t eat chocolate, I don’t think I’d be able to do it.

If you were a shifter, what animal would you like to be?

A dragon. I’ve written a series based on dragon shifters, so I’m highly partial to them.

What is your favorite season and why?

Fall. I love the beautiful colors when the leaves change and the crisp air.

In your opinion, what is the best movie ever made?

I’d go for a series of movies. The Harry Potter series is our favorite series of movies as a family. We watch them every Christmas. We stay in our PJs and play the movies from the first to the last. It’s amazing. And what a wonderful fantasy series for boys and girls (and adults). ;0) Harry Potter did amazing things to push the fantasy genre to the next level. We have a lot to thank J.K. Rowling for when she created that character and built that world.

Enjoy this excerpt from Essence:

“I will not let some greedy land developer ruin everything I’ve worked so hard to build.” Haven Jameson slapped the palm of her hand flat onto her desk with a loud thwack. “Owww.”

She rubbed her stinging hand.

Failure wasn’t an option. Sure, it was always a present danger as she forged her way to the top, struggling to establish Essence here in St. Augustine. She’d had plenty of sleepless nights while trying to make a success of her upscale boutique spa chain.

A month ago, the St. Augustine location opened to a raging success and received accolades from the highest society clients who’d she’d given complimentary stays during opening week.

“Unfortunately, Haven, I don’t think you’ll have much say over who buys the land,” Sally, Haven’s business partner and best friend, said, sitting across the desk from her. “Imogen Carmichael will have the last word. She usually does. She sold you this plot of land. And for some reason, I sure as heck can’t figure out, she held on to the adjacent tract. She could have sold you the whole parcel at the same time, but she didn’t. I don’t know what goes on in that woman’s mind. She seems a little off-kilter to me.”

“Don’t be mean, Sally. She’s a little eccentric for a woman in her late fifties, but not crazy.”

“Me? Mean? Never. I’m not the one who waits for a successful, luxury, full-service spa to open next door before I announce I’m offering a prime piece of real estate adjoining it for sale. She could ruin us. We’ve sunk so much time and money into this location. What happens if she sells to a developer who wants to put in a boardwalk and a Ferris wheel? Or she decides the offer from Joe’s Wacky Used Car World is right?”

About the Author:

Mackenzie Lucas is a lover of story in any form. She’s an avid reader of genre fiction, she writes contemporary and paranormal romance, and she listens to an eclectic mix of music that spans from pop/rock to country to gospel. She loves a good story whether it’s an erotic short, a full-length romance novel, or the narrative slice-of-life found in country music. In any story, emotional integrity and authenticity are most important to her as well as a big dose of romping hot sexual tension. She enjoys smart-mouthed, sexy heroines, hunky alpha heroes who know how to take care of their women, and plot twists that surprise her, but most of all, she just wants to experience a satisfying emotional arc of a character falling in love and finding what he or she needs most in life.

Mac is a small-town country girl with a world-traveler’s soul. She grew up in the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania and she’s lived in Dublin, Ireland, within spitting distance of New York City in Long Island, and now in the Washington, D.C. area. She obtained her undergraduate degree in English Literature from Dickinson College and received her M.F.A. in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She’s currently an author, writing coach, a mother, and a wife.

With Mackenzie Lucas--whether you’re reading her light paranormal romance, her small-town-based contemporary romance, or her steamin’ hawt erotica--you’ll always get a story about connectedness, community, and emotional authenticity, and, at its core, love. No, and it doesn’t hurt that all her heroes are panty-melting gorgeous alphas and all their sexy, sensually aware heroines know how to stand up to them, give no quarter, and love them just as they are.

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