“Coming in June, July, and August of 2018. Three humorous yet very romantic stories about three friends, written by three friends.” – D. Jackson Leigh

I couldn’t think of two writers (and friends) who would be more fun to collaborate with on a trilogy of romance novels set in the Deep South.

My pal and fellow Bold Strokes Books author, D. Jackson Leigh wrote a hilarious (almost true) story about how this trilogy came to life. What her blog post didn’t include was the whiskey bottle she carried lovingly from North Carolina to Northern California that launched the brainstorming session. If you haven’t checked out D. Jackson Leigh’s recap of the night in question you can read it here on the Bold Strokes Books blog.

I’m extremely excited about this series. D. Jackson Leigh beta reads all my novels and I feel that she encourages me to be a better writer. VK Powell is one of my favorite authors and Bold Strokes Books colleagues. I enjoy the wit and heart of her novels.

Here’s a recap of the three novellas in the Pine Cone series:

Take My Hand by Missouri Vaun: Art critics raved about the originality of Clay Cahill’s paintings in her first solo show in NYC. But she was unprepared for the psychological pressure that followed and the betrayal of someone she thought cared about her. Clay retreats to her hometown, Pine Cone, Ga. She takes a job at her grandfather’s garage driving the tow truck and sets her paints aside.

River Hemsworth owns a boutique art gallery in NYC and is busy mounting her next show when she receives a call from a lawyer in Pine Cone. River’s aunt has bequeathed her a local gallery. She arrives in the small town, intent on unloading the property immediately and returning to NYC, but then she wrecks her car and has to be rescued by a broodingly handsome tow truck driver. River is out of place in a town where the local’s idea of fashion is anything with a Carhart label. But slowly her perception begins to shift and so does Clay’s. For the first time in months, Clay’s inspired to paint. River has given rise to desires she never thought she’d feel again. And those desires must be expressed on canvas.

Take a Chance by D. Jackson Leigh: Trip Beaumont likes being a big fish in a small pond. There’s hardly an animal she can’t heal or a woman she can’t charm within fifty miles of Pine Cone, Ga. – except for the irritating and elusive new cop who keeps leaving parking tickets on her truck.

Canine officer Jamie Grant has never liked rule-breakers, but she’s especially incensed when she discovers Trip owns the veterinary truck that is constantly parked illegally around the small town. She’s searched carefully for a quiet, eclectic community to settle down with her gastric-challenged canine partner, Petunia. Instead, she finds herself on collision course with the woman who stole her girlfriend and broke her heart after an ill-conceived threesome in college.

Take Your Time by VK Powell: Grace Booker’s life is good—but not quite everything she wants. Her job as a county deputy has its challenges, but she enjoys helping people. Her most recent good deed, however, ends badly and Grace is left with a raucous African grey parrot, Dirty Harry, who hates her. When Harry becomes louder and more neurotic, Grace takes him to the new vet, Dr. Dani Wingate, and sparks fly when the woman instantly assumes Grace has been abusive to the bird.

Recently laid off from her dream job as a zoo veterinarian in a large northern city, Dr. Dani Wingate accepts a temporary position in tiny Pine Cone until an opportunity opens up back in the city. The only thing she wants more than a lesbian who can do uncomplicated is a one-way ticket out of Pine Cone.