A Country Kind of Love

Huckleberry Ridge Romance Book 1

by K.T. Raine

Genre: Clean Contemporary Romance

Second chances … and the secrets that sabotage them.

CeCe Bixby’s life is in flux. After being abandoned by her husband six years earlier she’s managed to cope by focusing on her work as a reporter and on being a good mom to her young son. When her name is leaked in connection with a dangerously controversial story, a fresh start in small town Huckleberry Ridge, Idaho feels safe … until she meets her new landlord, a handsome widower who just may wield the key to her tightly sealed heart.

Shane Wickham is shackled with regret. Ever since playing an unintentional role in his wife’s death, he’s denied himself a second chance at happiness. But once he meets his attractive but fearful new tenant, he feels compelled to help her, and his firm resolve to keep his distance begins to crumble.

Despite an undeniable attraction to Shane, CeCe is terrified to lower her guard and expose herself and her son to the risk of more heartbreak. And though Shane secretly longs to put yesterday behind him, his guilt won’t allow him to pursue the possibility of new love.

Can they find a way to forge a future together, or will regret and deception doom the chance to repair two damaged hearts?

A Country Kind of Love is the heartwarming first book in the Huckleberry Ridge Romance series. If you enjoy clean, feel-good stories with relatable heroines and swoon worthy heroes, then you’ll love K.T. Raine’s tender tale.

Buy A Country Kind of Love for your happy ever after today!

**On Sale for only .99 cents 2/13 – 2/17!!**

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Big Love In A Small Town

Huckleberry Ridge Romance Book 2

Why does starting over have to be so hard?

Sweet and gregarious Penny Barron was just sure handsome Gus Amherst was finally “the one.” But after his protective streak evolves to controlling and then abusive, she decides enough is enough. When her childhood friend CeCe gets in an accident and needs some temporary care, Penny figures this is her opportunity. She leaves Gus a goodbye note and flees Boise for small town Huckleberry Ridge, Idaho, to be near CeCe and make a fresh start.

When Gus decides he’s not ready to let Penny go and shows up in Huckleberry Ridge unannounced, CeCe’s neighbor, police officer and confirmed bachelor, Josh Wickham, comes to her rescue. Both are surprised by the spark of attraction that steadily grows between them. But Penny is carrying a secret guaranteed to wreck any new relationship … which is exactly what happens when she finally reveals it to Josh.

Is there still a chance for love to bloom? Or has Penny’s deception ruined her second chance forever?

Book 2 in the Huckleberry Ridge Romance series.

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Author Interview

What are your top 10 favorite books?

Oh! Such a tough question. I’ve loved so many books over the years, but starting from childhood and ending up with the present day, here’s what I came up with:

Charlotte’s Web, E.B. White

Where the Red Fern Grows, Wilson Rawls

The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton

Still Alice, Lisa Genova

Ruthless River, Holly Fitzgerald

Mean Streak, Sandra Brown

Dear John, Nicholas Sparks

One Good Dog, Susan Wilson (most of her other books as well)

Werewolf—The True Story of an Extraordinary Police Dog, David Alton Hedges

The Andy Carpenter Mystery Series, David Rosenfelt (the whole series)

What is something unique/quirky about you?

Well … okay, I’ve never admitted this publically, but here goes. Whenever I unload the dishwasher, I make sure the clean dishes go beneath those currently in the cabinet so they all get an equal opportunity to be used. Yeah, I know … but an innate sense of fairness is a good thing, right? LOL!

What do you do to unwind and relax?

I sit out in my hot tub and read. Years ago my hubby fixed me up with a nifty flood light out on our deck so I can just flip it on and read while I soak to my heart’s content. That’s one reason I still prefer print books to digital ones. Water and iPads just don’t mix. I also enjoy working in my little garden during the summer.

What literary pilgrimages have you gone on?

In 2004 I won a full scholarship to attend the amazing Chautauqua Writer’s Workshop in New York. I was so excited because I’d recently parted ways with my very first agent who was unable to sell my middle-grade novel, A Smidgen of Sky, and I was so discouraged with my writing and my prospects of ever being published. The trip was also a bit terrifying because I’m not the bravest traveler and I’d never flown anywhere alone, much less clear across the country. My youngest child was only six at the time, and ten days felt like a long time to be gone. But my supportive husband encouraged me to go, and I’m so glad I did. While at Chautauqua I learned so many things and met so many amazing authors and it really bolstered my resolve to keep trying. Sometime later I signed on with the Andrea Brown Literary Agency and had two middle-grade novels traditionally published.

What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

A Country Kind of Love is the first of my Huckleberry Ridge Romance series, and it was so much fun to write because the fictional town of Huckleberry Ridge in which the series is set is based on my real-life hometown here in north Idaho. So even though I’ve changed the names of businesses, parks, etc., everyone who reads the books and is familiar with the area recognizes those places immediately and seems to get a kick out of identifying them in the story. Plus, it’s so fulfilling to pen happily-ever-after love stories.

Tell us about one of your all-time favorite characters.

I love all my characters, of course, but I think my very favorite has to be Vince Murano, the handsome hero from my standalone romance novel, Holding Out for Special. He’s a Secret Service agent, strong and intimidating on the outside, but so decent and caring on the inside. Not to mention so incredibly swoon-worthy I can hardly stand it. LOL! Holding Out for Special is the first romance novel I ever penned, and at the time I didn’t fully realize just how popular series are, so I didn’t leave all the openings I’d need to continue the story. That’s a huge regret of mine because there was a lot of series potential there if I’d only organized it a bit differently. I’m still trying to figure out if there’s a way I could continue the tale. Then again, I guess there’s nothing wrong with a great standalone.

Anything specific you’d like to tell your readers?

Yes! I’d like them to know I also write middle-grade novels for ages 8-12 under my real name Dianna Winget. You can check them out at my website http://diannawinget.com. They are all realistic, contemporary novels featuring relatable young characters dealing with some pretty serious situations. Some of the themes are heavy (grief, loss, disabilities, homelessness) but all my stories end on a happy, optimistic note and leave the reader feeling good. All of them feature dogs as well. And no, none of them EVER die ☺ (Some spoilers are okay, right?) I’m honored to have won several awards over the years including the Indie-Bound ABC New Voices Pick for A Smidgen of Sky (Harcourt Press, 2012) and A Million Ways Home (Scholastic Press, 2014) was awarded both the Kansas William Allen White Award and the Missouri Mark Twain Award.

What can we expect next from you?

Well, I’m having such fun writing my Huckleberry Ridge Romance series that I plan to continue. Next up is book 3, Better Late than Never, and it should be available in March. Yay! If you’d like to be notified of new releases and discount specials, please visit http://ktraineromance.com and sign up for my Dog-Gone Short and Sweet Newsletter. It only comes once a month, runs a few paragraphs long, and always features an adorable dog pic guaranteed to make you smile, hence the name. (See my list of pet peeves and you’ll understand why I don’t email more often 😉

Who designed your book covers?

My romance covers, as well as several of my MG covers, have been designed by Dani Guedes at Progeny Ink Studios through 99Designs. She is so talented and easy to work with. I just love her designs.

What are some of your pet peeves?

Procrastinators who can never make a decision.

Being interrupted (especially repeatedly)

People who are glued to their cell phones when you’re trying to converse with them.

Authors who send out weekly newsletters (or even more often…argh!)

People who treat their pets as property instead of the awesome family members that they are. (Please don’t even get me started on how I feel about people who abandon elderly pets at shelters because they’re “getting too hard to take care of.”)

What are you passionate about?

Well, besides reading and writing … and my family of course … I’d have to say I’m passionate about animals, especially dogs. I always say that if people were more like dogs the world would be a much kinder, more forgiving place ☺ I’ve loved many dogs over the years and adopted most of them from shelters. I have no bias against purebreds versus mutts, but I’ve never been able to understand why people shell out hundreds, even thousands of dollars for a so-called designer puppy when the shelters are full of so many wonderful, deserving dogs who can be adopted for a fraction of the cost. That’s why I always include dogs in my stories and try hard to give rescues a special mention. My current rescue is a Daschund, beagle, basset, who knows what cross named Stella. She’s about the cutest thing ever and provides my husband and me with so much friendship and entertainment. (As I type this now, she’s shaking the heck out of her snuffle mat to make sure there are no more hidden treats inside.) LOL!

Okay, so I admit it, I’m a true romantic at heart, and I’ve always been a sucker for a good, clean love story with a happy ending. My favorite stories involve spunky but sweet heroines, strong, swoon-worthy guys who aren’t afraid to take charge … oh, and a dog in the mix never hurt either. So guess what? Those are the type of stories I write! Just in case you’re curious, I live in the beautiful mountains of North Idaho with my hubby of 30 years and our adorable Beagle mix Stella, one of the many rescue pups I’ve adopted over the years.

When I’m not reading or plotting my next novel, I enjoy spending time with my family, gardening, going for hikes, or soaking in my hot tub–hands down the best place to read–print anyway. I do housework when I must and laundry when we run out of clean underwear. So enough about me. If you want to know more visit my website at http://www.ktraineromance.com. Want to be notified of new releases? Sign up for my once-a-month Dog-gone Short and Sweet Newsletter, which is indeed short and sweet and always contains a picture of a dog guaranteed to make you smile. In the meantime, pick up one of my books and get your swoon on!

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