May the Fourth Be With You: Powerful Women and the Men Who Love Them.

Sorry. This blog post is not about Star Wars!

image purchased from i-stock 477399888

Did you know that 4 May 1979 was the day Margaret Thatcher became the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom?

No?

Well, it was. And, love her or loathe her, women like Thatcher are the women I like to write. Strong, complex women – lawyers and doctors and bankers and stockbrokers and entrepreneurs – who are navigating work and life and love in big cities.

So, of course, when I sat down to write this blog, I thought, who better to write about on May the Fourth than four of my favourite fictional women who have the Force (and the men who love them).

Yeah, yeah, sue me. I told you this blog wasn’t about Star Wars! 

Meet Chloe Mills

Chloe Mills is the heroine of Christina Lauren’s first book: Beautiful Bastard.

Chloe has stuck with me a long time… probably since this book started as a fanfic (I still have the original… shhh!). She’s focused on completing an MBA but is also completely consumed by her Bastard - and he's completely consumed by her. She's the one who stands up to him, sticks to her guns and makes him think. She's courageous. And that's kinda hot.

Also, I do love a man who has good taste in lingerie (for his lady, of course!).

Meet Alice Lawrence

Alice Lawrence is my latest favourite heroine, who comes alive in Kylie Scott’s recent release The Rich Boy (hoo boy – have you seen the cover for this one. Hot!)

As Alice is navigating her relationship with the swoon-worthy Beck, she has to deal with a whole host of mess from his VERY WEALTHY family and she does it with style, grace, and wit. There are a couple of scenes where she takes on his Grandmother which are 5-star scenes. Alice is awesome.

Now, if only I could find my very own Beck…

Meet Laurel McBane

Laurel McBane is the baker extraordinaire in Nora Roberts’ Bride Quartet series. Laurel's book is book three in the series.

Now, I partly love Laurel because she bakes… and I love to bake. But she’s also feisty and forges her way through culinary school (with a little assistance from the indomitable Mrs G who's also a fave!) into a successful bakery/events business and a relationship with Delaney Brown - lawyer, brother of one of her BFFs and her long time friend.

Meet Miranda Gray

Last but not least, let's talk Miranda Gray. 

We first meet Miranda when she's been sleeping on a park bench, trying to get a better understanding of what should be included in housing for the homeless, and we pretty quickly learn that Miranda goes ALL IN - whether it's for work or play! 

But Miranda's not a push over. And when her Knight (tee hee hee - Lucas Knight, see what I did there) doesn't give her what she needs - she walks away.

Thankfully, Lucas finally gets his head on straight!

Tell me about your favourite female with the Force (whether factual or fictional) in the comments below.

As a final note, did you know that, on receiving a school prize, aged nine, Thatcher said:

I wasn’t lucky. I deserved it. I just love her moxie… and I do deserve the things I work for, darn it!

Kristine Charles writes sexy tales where coffee (and red wine) is abundant, designer shoes and handbags are cheap, chocolate has no calories and men always put the toilet seat down. Find her at www.wordsbykristinecharles.com or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

I love to love… my healthy and happy family and friends #stayathome

I love to laugh… at the ridiculous Zoom backgrounds everyone’s finding to make online meetings more entertaining!

I love to learn… online! How many great classes can you find online at the moment – ballet, yoga, dance, cooking… try something new this month!

The Breathless List - Our Favourite Reads for 2017

We're back!

Every January we Breathless Bloggers choose our favourite romantic reads from some wonderful Aussie and New Zealand authors to share with you in our Breathless List. 

It's never easy, but here are our top picks for 2017. You are in for a treat!

MIRANDA 

Link to buy

I was delighted to discover Marry In Haste by Anne Gracie, Book 1 of her new 'Marriage of Convenience' series - my favourite romance trope! Returning war hero Major Calbourne Rutherford discovers he's unexpectedly become Lord Ashendon, with duty of care for a neglected estate, two unmanageable half-sisters and a wild niece he didn't know he had. Wrangling the girls is a bit like herding cats, so he tries to engage the services of their previous teacher, Miss Emmaline Westwood - and unexpectedly offers marriage when she refuses 'the job'.

Anne Gracie creates a wonderful family for us to enjoy, one that prickly Cal didn't realise was ever possible, aww... So fabulously heart-warming. A little bit unusual because Cal and Emm don't really fire off together until about halfway through the book - then, wow! Another stunner, Anne. 💞

MARILYN FORSYTH

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Every now and then, as a reader, I’ve been lucky enough to find a book that hits that sweet spot inside. In 2017, that story was Sasha Wasley’s Dear Banjo.

It’s a poignant ‘friends to lovers’ story; the tale of Tom and Willow (nicknamed Banjo), childhood bffs who grew up on neighbouring cattle stations in the Kimberley (a spectacular setting I’m particularly partial to 😉). The pact they made as teenagers, not to let anything destroy their special connection, is broken when Tom attempts to kiss Banjo before she leaves for university. She sees it as a betrayal of their friendship and the letters he sends her, one each month for the next year, go unopened.

Ten years later, Banjo returns home where she must confront the past by finally reading Tom’s letters.

I’m a sucker for epistolary narrative and Tom’s letters are heart-rending (such a gorgeous hero). The book is filled with gentle humour and heartfelt emotion, and I loved every minute spent with Banjo and Tom.

CASSANDRA SAMUELS

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 A Love to Remember by Bronwen Evans is a story full of emotions, guilt and steamy love scenes. Evans pulls the reader into the story from the first page and tugs at the heartstrings the whole way through to the end.

Rose is a widow with a young son, and Phillip is her best friend's brother. When she offers condolences and support at his brother's funeral they become lovers. At the time, the terms of their affair were clear. Neither of them ever wanted to marry again, but years later they have both fallen in love with each other. Rose wants to marry Phillip and have more children but when he refuses to even discuss marriage she ends the affair, breaking both their hearts.

This is when the story takes the reader on an emotional journey through jealousy, guilt and heartache that made me yearn for the 'happy ever after' these destined lovers deserved. Thankfully, Bronwen Evans gives the sigh-worthy ending that only a great book can give. 

SHARON BRYANT

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Nineteen Letters by Jodi Peri is a beautifully constructed, sweet romance novel. It tells the story of Gemma and Braxton, childhood sweethearts who are separated by fate when a car accident causes Gemma to lose all memory of her past life.

Braxton shares his most powerful memories of their time together by writing Gemma a series of letters – nineteen in all. He hopes that she will learn to love him again, and that they may once more live as man and wife.

The sheer emotional tension woven by Peri, together with the well-constructed characters, made me struggle to put this novel down.

ENISA HAINES

Link to buy

After a wild night out, football star Nick Harding meets Anna, a waitress. She’s smart, gorgeous, different to the usual women flocking around celebrities, and Nick is instantly attracted. An attraction that threatens his career. Still, he pursues her. Anna, a refugee haunted by a horrific past, won’t risk hurting her conservative family, but Nick draws her.

Nick’s sister, Lily, a medical student conflicted about completing her degree, crosses paths with Toby, a man grieving his estranged wife’s death. Intense emotions pulling them together, they fall into a passionate affair that soon overwhelms them.

Beautiful Messy Love grabbed my attention from the first sentence and wouldn’t let go, even after I’d reached the last word. Though everyone wishes it, love isn’t always happily-ever-after. It’s complex, at times hilarious and at other times sad, and often messy. Beautiful Messy Love reveals this so captivatingly.

This contemporary tale of four characters intertwined by tragedy, family and duty, hit me hard. Not only for its roller coaster of emotions, but also because Tess Woods shows that love can overcome the social issues of today. Beautiful Messy Love is a 5-star read for me, a book I will always treasure.

Well, there you have it - our favourite reads of 2017. What a fabulous selection from some great Aussie and New Zealand authors! 

Was your top pick among ours? If not, what was your favourite book from last year? Leave a comment and you'll be in the running to receive a copy of A Very Aussie Christmas, our anthology of short stories.