Welcome to Tangerine Street
Tangerine Street is a must-see tourist stop with a colorful mix of one-of-a-kind boutiques, unique restaurants, eclectic museums, quaint bookstores, and exclusive bed-and-breakfasts. The Mariposa Hotel, a new resort, has revitalized Seashell Beach, bringing new life to the sleepy beach town. In the charming gardens of the hotel sits a three-hundred-year-old wishing well transported from Mexico. One toss of the coin, a sincere wish, and lives are changed forever…
Tangerine Street is a must-see tourist stop with a colorful mix of one-of-a-kind boutiques, unique restaurants, eclectic museums, quaint bookstores, and exclusive bed-and-breakfasts. The Mariposa Hotel, a new resort, has revitalized Seashell Beach, bringing new life to the sleepy beach town. In the charming gardens of the hotel sits a three-hundred-year-old wishing well transported from Mexico. One toss of the coin, a sincere wish, and lives are changed forever…
Three bestselling contemporary romance authors: Julie Wright, Melanie Jacobson, and Heather B. Moore come together to write A Tangerine Street Romance series.
Julie Wright started her first book when she was fifteen. She’s written over a dozen books since then, is a Whitney Award winner, and feels she’s finally getting the hang of the writing gig. She enjoys speaking to writing groups, youth groups, and schools. She loves reading, eating, writing, hiking, playing on the beach with her kids, and snuggling with her husband to watch movies. Julie’s favorite thing to do is watch her husband make dinner. She hates mayonnaise but has a healthy respect for ice cream.
Melanie Bennett Jacobson is an avid reader, amateur cook, and champion shopper. She consumes astonishing amounts of chocolate, chick flicks, and romance novels. After meeting her husband online, she is now living happily married in Southern California with her growing family and a series of doomed houseplants. Melanie is a former English teacher and a sometime blogger who loves to laugh and make others laugh. In her downtime (ha!), she writes romantic comedies and pines after beautiful shoes.
Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestselling author of more than a dozen historical novels and thrillers, written under the pen name H.B. Moore. She writes women’s fiction, romance and inspirational nonfiction under Heather B. Moore. This can all be confusing, so her kids just call her Mom. Heather attended Cairo American College in Egypt, the Anglican School of Jerusalem in Israel, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Brigham Young University in Utah.
Interview with Melanie Jacobson via Singing Librarian Books
1. How did you get started as an author? What or whom inspired you?
I've been "writing" since I was a kid, when I stand by my dad's typewriter and dictate poetry to him before I even knew how to read. I loved stories. I grew up among a bunch of Louisiana storytellers, and I was raised by two major bookworms, so I've just always loved stories.
2. What writing project are you currently working on? What can you tell us about these projects?
I'm just finishing up a story for my publisher, Covenant. I haven't done a book set in the LDS world for a while, so that's what I'm doing, and even better, I'm setting it in Louisiana. I hope it gives readers a sense of what the Mormon church experience is like outside of the western U.S.
3. How important are the names in your novels? How do you choose names for your characters? Do you have any name resources you would suggest?
Names are a big deal to me and often change. In the one I'm working on now, the main guy's name has changed twice and the main girl's name has changed four times. My two biggest rules in contemporary stories are that you can't have TOO many weird spellings or unusual names or it's distracting to the reader, and you can't choose "traditional" names that are way too old for the character. For example, you might know a lot of Debbies, but how many of them are twenty? Probably none. So make sure the name matches the character's
4. What authors inspire your writing?
It's a TV show: Gilmore Girls. I love the very fast, dialogue driven feel of that show.
5. What period of history interests you the most? Does this influence your writing?
Everything I write is contemporary, so I'm not too influenced by history. but on a personal note, I love American history, starting with the revolution.
6. What inspired the idea for your story in the Mariposa Hotel novel?
I saw a hilarious article about a woman who checked into a luxury hotel and when the customer service app had a space for requests, as a joke she asked for a picture of Nicolas Cage to be sent up. It turned into a days-long joke between her and the staff, with her trying to stump them and them trying to outdo her. I wanted to do something like that but with Tom Hiddleston, because I love him as an actor. I just had to figure out who would request it and build a story around it.
7. If you could choose someone famous to star in one of your books made to a movie, who would you choose and for which character?
This almost stumped me, but I think Anna Kendrick would be the perfect Pepper Spicer from Not My Type.
8. What other hobbies do you enjoy when you are not writing?
Reading! And I love board games. And watching TV. And shopping. Hm. I'm not exactly an outdoorsy, sports-type, am I?
Interview with Heather B. Moore via Singing Librarian Books
1. How did you get started as an author? What or whom inspired you?
When I was thirty I had an idea for a story. It became a strange process since I never considered writing a novel before. I was an avid reader and held authors in high esteem. When I started writing that first story, it was like the floodgates had opened. One of the most inspirational books I’ve read is Kitchen Privileges by Mary Higgins Clark. I’ve long been a mystery fan and when I read this memoir, I realized that it was possible to be a writer and a mother at the same time. Ms. Clark inspired me when she said she’d write from 5:00-7:00 a.m. every morning so as not to interfere with her job and her kids (she was a widow at the time). I thought, “I can do that.” And I did—it took three novels before I finally got one published, but Clark’s story inspired me not to give up.
2. What writing project are you currently working on? What can you tell us about these projects?
I’m currently editing the next Omar Zagouri thriller that I’m calling SLAVE QUEEN. This book is a mixture of modern-day and historical setting based on the story of the sultan Suleyman and his favorite wife, Roxelane. She was living in the Kingdom of Poland in the early 1500s when she was abducted by the Turks and brought to the sultan’s harem in Constantinople. There she worked her way up through the harem to become a wife of the sultan. I’m also drafting the 3rd book in The Moses Chronicles series.
3. How important are the names in your novels? How do you choose names for your characters? Do you have any name resources you would suggest?
I write a lot of historical fiction, so I try to use as many real names as possible. The other names I choose, I try to use names that aren’t super common, but names that aren’t too strange sounding. I want them unique, but pronounceable. I also try to make sure I don’t have more than one name starting with the same letter or sounding too similar, if at all possible. I just google names such as “female Turkish names” then scan through the list.
4. What authors inspire your writing? Some of my favorite authors include Mary Higgins Clark, Maeve Binchy, Barbara Kingsolver, and Michelle Moran. They have interesting life stories and write in different genres.
5. What period of history interests you the most? Does this influence your writing?
I’m drawn to historical events that change the course of history. For instance, my book LOST KING that comes out in December is about Hatshepsut, a woman who became Pharaoh of Egypt. And the current book I’m working on follows a woman who rises from slavery to become a sultan’s wife.
6. What inspired the idea for your story in the Mariposa Hotel novel?
When Julie, Melanie, and I brainstormed our plots, I wanted my heroine to be employed at the hotel in a management type position so that she was facing a lot of conflict each day. And then of course the hero had to be someone who would help her deal with the conflict. He needed a reason to be at the posh resort, so I made him a talented and wealthy man, but his work had dominated his life so he hadn’t allowed himself to carry on a serious relationship. But as I started writing, it all flip-flopped and the heroine became the woman to the rescue.
7. If you could choose someone famous to star in one of your books made to a movie, who would you choose and for which character? (Possibly share an image of this famous star and a link to where the image came from. Ex. a link from Pinterest)
I have nothing. I’m so behind on movies and TV that I’d probably name someone who is dead. LOL.
8. What other hobbies do you enjoy when you are not writing?
I love to read and traveling is fun when possible. I love nature walks and doing puzzles.
*I received a copy from Singing Librarian Book Tours in exchange for an honest review*
These three authors are on my favorites list and I love to read their stories and how they manage to tie them each together with a common thread. In this case, it's a hotel. The Mariposa Hotel is in a great tourist town in California and is fairly new to town. A wishing well sits in the garden and is the source of many great wishes.
The book begins with the story of Mari, a hotel maid. That would definitely be a hard job to do, but Mari is very good at it and is specifically requested to take care of a certain room. The room is so spotless that it seems a ghost lives there. I love the way the story plays out, showing a great, strong female lead, who is determined to make her own way in life. I really admire Mari and love the romance angle--love doesn't always come in the expected package.
Keeping with the hotel theme, the second story tells about Ridley and Brooke. Ridley used to work as a hotel concierge and steps right in to help while staying there for his job. While "working," he meets Brooke, another guest. In this case, both characters are assumed to be something they're not and there are some laugh-out-loud moments that happen because of this. People can't always be put in a little, tiny box and the journey and discoveries are great! I laughed, I sighed with contentment, and I swooned a little. The Tom Hiddleson references didn't hurt.
What other job could possibly relate to a hotel? Raegan is the hotel's events coordinator and after assuming a few things about a big Hollywood producer, she, too, discovers that things (and people) are always how they seem to be. Kevin is a great guy with an undeserved reputation. Here again, there are swoony moments, misunderstandings, and a great journey of self-discovery.
The Mariposa Hotel is full of sweet, clean romance in a fabulous setting. Really...how can you go wrong with a beach? I loved the characters and the fun stories that left me feeling good and happy. This is one that I finished reading with that happily ever after sigh of contentment.
Content: mild romance (kissing, some vaguely implied events); nothing else of note. Clean!
My Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
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November 16--Singing Librarian Books
November 17--Smiling Book Reviews
November 18--Reading Is My SuperPower
November 19--Katie's Clean Book Collection
November 20--Bookworm Lisa
November 21--Wishful Endings
November 17--Smiling Book Reviews
November 18--Reading Is My SuperPower
November 19--Katie's Clean Book Collection
November 20--Bookworm Lisa
November 21--Wishful Endings
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