Happy new year, everyone! Hope it’s off to a great start. I’m pleased to welcome Pamela Meyers to the blog this week. We have known each other for a long time, so it’s great to have her come and share what inspired the book that’s set to release in two weeks.
Here’s a little bit about Second Chance Love.
Chicago lawyer Sydney Knight and Texas bull rider Jace McGowan have nothing in common but everything to lose when they are thrust together during a weekend rodeo in rural Illinois. Neither one of them would have imagined two years ago that the deep attraction they sensed during a day-long outing would resurface when Sydney’s boss assigns her to Jace’s legal case.
Sydney has been through a world of hurt since losing her dad when she was sixteen, then being dumped the morning of her wedding. She’s sworn off romance and instead devotes her time toward a partnership in her father’s law office.
Jace has found faith in God and wants out of his sponsor contract with a risqué restaurant chain that requires him to pose with scantily-clad women. He’s about to bail on the contract and pay steep penalties something he can ill afford, given that his deceased father left the family with unpaid taxes.
Sydney is determined she’ll get Jace out of his contract and return to Chicago with her heart intact, but Jace is just as determined to help her see they’re meant to be together. Can a city girl with roots deep in Chicago and a bull-riding rancher with roots deep in Texas give themselves a second chance at love?
What inspired you to write the story, Pam?
I’ve loved everything cowboy since I was a child, and dreamed of living where I could have a horse. But, unfortunately, that wasn’t a dream my parents shared, and as I grew into adulthood, I moved on to other interests. I used to think that all rodeos happened in the west, but about a dozen years ago learned I was mistaken. There are a lot of rodeos going on in my home state of Wisconsin and all around the Midwest during the warmer months.
The Pioneer City Rodeo, where Second Chance Love is set, is a real event that happens every Labor Day weekend. A friend and I attend the rodeo every year. Like in my story, there are rodeos on three consecutive evenings, and we attend all three. Located in the tiny village of Palestine, a southern Illinois town nestled along the Wabash River, the rodeo offers a wonderful getaway to cap off the summer. We meet a lot of the locals sitting around us in the stands and on Main Street during the street fair. Although some of the retail establishments in my story are from my imagination, many are real, including the Back Porch Smokehouse and the Wabash Coffee House, located a short distance upriver from Palestine.
When I decided to write a story set at the Pioneer City Rodeo, it was a natural to make my hero, Jace McGowan, a bull rider, since that’s one of my favorite events. My heroine, Sydney Knight, is a born and bred Chicagoan and can no more picture herself living on Jace’s Texas ranch than he can see himself hanging up his bull rope and living in a Chicago apartment building. Little do they know how much they really do have in common, but will it be enough to bring them together? I hope you’ll read my story to find out.
A native of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, author Pamela S. Meyers lives in suburban Chicago with her two rescue cats. Her novels include Thyme for Love and her historical romance, Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Her novella. What Lies Ahead, is part of a novella collection, The Bucket List Dare, which is now available at Amazon in both print and Kindle formats. Second Chance Love from Bling!, an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas, releases in January 2017. When she isn’t at her laptop writing her latest novel, she can often be found nosing around Wisconsin and other Midwestern spots for new story ideas.
Website: www.pammeyerswrites.com
Blog: www.pamelasuemeyers.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pamela.meyers
www.facebook.com/PamelaSMeyersAuthor/
Twitter: pamelameyers
Pam is giving away a copy of her book (available after January 24). To enter, follow the instructions below.
Thans for joining us, Pam! Sounds like a great read!
As a Texas I have been to many a rodeo and enjoying every event
I have never been to a rodeo.
Oh goodness, they’re so exciting! It’s so amazing how those riders can stay on! The clowns are amazing! Sometimes I feel kind of sorry for the animals, but you can’t help but get caught up in all the action!
I’ve never attended a rodeo! My grandfather used to compete in them, though….back when he lived in Nebraska.
Yes, I have attended rodeos. I think I appreciated most the the team roping events. Thanks!