Author Spotlight -- Heather Rainier: Creator of Divine, Texas, and the Wonderful People of the Divine Creek Ranch Series

Heather Rainier is an author I encountered almost by accident while trolling an

ebook publishing website a number of months ago. I was looking for full-length novels that looked really romantic as well as erotic. Divine Grace caught my eye and I bought it and absolutely loved it!! It was one of the few romantic novels I had read recently that wasn't an

adversarial story--you know, where the hero and heroine hate each other for 3/4 of the book and then fall into each other's arms. This story was very different and narrated the experience of a very

nice, quiet, insecure and industrious woman who had allowed a boyfriend of long standing to abuse and misuse her for years. Through a friendship with one of her customers at the local department story, Grace met Jack, Ethan, and Adam, and through the counsel of Jack's mother and the support and strength of these three respectful and caring men, Grace began a journey of growth and discovery about her own gifts and talents.

These past few days I have been posting reviews about several of Heather's books for several reasons. 1) I hope anyone who stops by this blog will take note and get one of these really good books. 2) I have always made it a point on this blog to highlight authors and books that I have enjoyed and which I believe are stories well-told and beautifully written. 3) As a reviewer I feel I have not only a privilege but an obligation to read and review new authors as well as those who are well-established in the genre. Heather certainly fall into that category. I hope the following information and interview with Heather will pique your interest and give you some insight into this very interesting lady.

ABOUT HEATHER

Heather Rainier lives and writes in South Central Texas. Her stories offer up the content of her fantasies, with autobiographical humor, triumph and tragedy mixed in. With great pride, Heather writes erotic romances exclusively for Siren Publishing, under their Menage Everlasting and Everlasting Classic imprints.

Heather's love of romance fiction began as a teenager when her mom gave her copies of Kathleen Woodiwiss's "The Flame and the Flower" and Bertrice Small's "Skye O'Malley". To this day she's pretty sure that was her mom's version of the "birds and the bees" talk.

Heather writes the type of novel she loves to read: More erotic and edgy than the mainstream, with plenty of sweet romance mixed in and a happily ever after guaranteed. Heather's favorite type of hero is the gentle, lovable giant but readers will discover a wide variety of heroes and alphas on the pages of her novels, from nearly perfect to very flawed. Heather hopes that readers relate to her heroines and the challenges and dilemmas they face head on.

Heather believes that life doesn't always present love to us in neat little sanitized packages. Sometimes we have to seize the day, live life with no regrets, forget the past, never give up, learn to trust, and dare to live, even in outrageous circumstances. Those themes are woven throughout her Divine Creek Ranch Collection which debuted in November of 2010.

When not happily typing at her keyboard, Heather is usually busy corralling her kids, volunteering at local schools, or loving on her smokin' hot husband, who thankfully loves to cook.

INTERVIEW

Q: What's your favorite quote?
A: “Those who are easily shocked should be shocked more often.” (Mae West)

Q: Where did you get your pseudonym?
A: My husband. I felt it was fitting, because he was there for me, quietly observing as I wrote my first novel, “Divine Grace”, and witnessed the profound affect writing had on me. It seemed fitting that he name me.

Q: How often do you write? What is your writing day like?
A: I write every weekday and on Saturdays as well. I write in the morning and afternoon, and then stay up late correcting and revising. You know you love what you're doing when you don't mind the missed sleep.

Q: What do you like to read?
A: Paranormal romances, contemporary ménage romances, and contemporary BDSM erotic romance. If it has strong romantic / erotic elements I'll read it.

Q: Who are your favorite authors?

A: Leah Brooke, Tymber Dalton, Jenny Penn and J. R. Ward.

Q: How do you develop your heroes and heroines? Where does inspiration come from?

A: Inspiration comes from daily life. From a song on the radio, or someone I'm observing, or from a story someone tells me about their life, or while in the grocery store. A cowboy was in the checkout line in front of me and struck up a conversation, flirting the whole time. He was dressed all in denim, wearing a cowboy hat and boots. He was the real deal, and I knew I had the foundation for one of my heroes. One character was the product of a Google image search. This stunning image of a cowboy popped up, and within five minutes, I knew what his name was, and who his heroine would be.

Q: In regard to writing, what are your likes and dislikes?

A: I love publishers and editors who are willing to be tough, picky, and challenging when it comes to honing a manuscript…and the staff who support them so brilliantly. I like friends who volunteer to read what I've written, and then actually follow through and do it, giving me solid input and suggestions. I dislike children who stand near my laptop with an open beverage in their hands.

Q: What motivated you to start writing?

A: An epiphany at my 25th high school reunion. I worried prior to the reunion about what to wear, what to do about my hair, my weight…my whatever. Maybe I'm a little slow on the uptake, but the night of the reunion I realized none of those people noticed or cared about me, then or now. The ones who mattered were my husband, family and friends. That night, I confided to my husband that I'd always wanted to write, and he encouraged me to do whatever I had to, to pursue that dream. I stopped worrying what everyone else thought and began to pursue what made me happiest.

Q: What did you do when you got the email from Siren, notifying you they wanted to publish your first book?
A: I screamed. I couldn't get my fingers to work the mouse to open the email. I could barely hold the phone to call my husband and tell him the good news. We celebrated big-time that weekend

Potholes In The Road To Love: Rosemary's Double Delight

Rosemary is a firecracker, the one who completes them. Wes and Evan have loved this fierce little ebony-haired beauty since kindergarten, even when she’s being a spoiled rotten brat. The brothers still adore Rosemary now that she’s a woman, but Evan has issues. Her mouth gets her in trouble, Evan’s temper gets him in trouble, and even tempered Wes is always caught in the middle.

Rosemary won’t tolerate Evan’s controlling ways, especially when he threatens to spank her. Why can’t Rosemary just do as Evan tells her, especially when it’s for her own good? Wes spends his time making peace, when he’d rather make love. They bring out the worst in each other, and hurt Wes in the process. She won’t give up because they’re also magical together, when they manage to get along! Add in a hot spanking, a fit of temper, and something’s gonna have to give.

Of all the stories in this series, I think this was the most adversarial and filled with the angst that long-term relationships often entail. These three characters have grown up together and have weathered the challenges of moving from childhood to adulthood, with varying success. One very important piece to this entire story is that from their earliest years, these three people planned to be "married" and planned to do so long before they knew the full ramifications of what that meant.

Time has not been kind. Rosemary is indeed a woman who has yet to learn that spouting the first thing that comes into her head may not be wise or kind. Wes is his patient self--wanting all three of them to be together but most of all, wanting to find a way that Rosemary can be in his life. Rosemary insisted that being together sexually needed to be the "grand finale" to their courtship--the wedding night. All through high school and college they waited and planned until just as their goal was in sight, Evan's self-interest prevailed and he wandered away, finding another bed-partner, and ultimately marrying her to his great distress. Now divorced and bitter, Evan's pain over his own foolish past is tarnishing his hopes for the future with Rosemary and Wes. Wes lives in quiet disappointment over Evan's bitter resistance to their triad while Rosemary is locked in fear that she will once again be betrayed by Evan's selfishness.

This is not, in my opinion, the most delightful of stories in this series, even though that word is a part of the book's title. But I hand it to Ms Rainier for dealing openly with the stresses that immaturity and fear can engender and the pain those factors cause in people we love. That Wes keeps on working to bring them together is the bright spot in this floundering relationship. But ultimately I think this story is about the lessons Rosemary and Evan must not only learn but make a part of their own personas, the patience and trust each must build in their relationship with the others, and how triads like this must put the hurts of the past behind them. In this book, more than in any of the other novels in this series, there are delightful flashbacks to their childhood which build the reader's understanding of where each of these characters is "coming from." There are also memories of betrayal and disappointment, of pain and hurt that seem to wipe out the joy of hope and the anticipation of dreams realized.

This is a complicated story in many ways, but it is one that is gut-wrenching in its honesty and one which allows the reader to participate on some kind of level as these three work through their difficulties and as they find tentative and fragile foundations upon which to rebuild their dreams for the future. As always, there are some hot and sweet loving and there is a sense of watching three really delightful people come together in a relationship that has the potential to be all they hoped for from the beginning. As in other novels, Wes, Evan and Rosemary are helped greatly by counsel from Grace & Jack Warner, and Grace's other husbands, Ethan and Adam. These four individuals seem to form the foundation for all the succeeding friendships and each of them continues to prove that they are the kind of people we would love to have as neighbors.

Heather Rainier has drawn us all into the lives of these people who are connected with the Divine Creek Ranch, and I don't think it is too excessive to say that all her readers await the next book in this series with bated breath. And as with all the books that have preceeded it, I am curious how these new characters are connected to the Divine Creek cast of characters her readers have come to love. I hope all of you will begin at the beginning of this series--Divine Grace-- and read all the novels that have been released so far. As for this book, I give it a rating of 4 out of 5.

The Ranch Foreman and the City Girl: Spurs & Heels by Heather Rainier

Ash Peterson falls for her the moment he lays eyes on her. She’s a stereotypical city girl, from her manicure to her high heels. Judging by the sparks that fly between them, he knows there’s a fire burning deep inside the blue-eyed beauty. But department store manager Juliana Meyers is thrown by her attraction to Ash. Everything about this quintessential cowboy sets her on edge, from his Stetson and mutton chop sideburns down to his dusty boots and spurs. All he’s gotta do is walk into a room with those damn things jingling and she’s putty in his hands.

When Ash unintentionally injures Juliana, he feels that it’s his responsibility to look after the hoity-toity redheaded workaholic. He pushes her to reexamine her perfectionist lifestyle, but it’s hard for Juliana because she’s used to doing things her way. Can she learn to relax and let him lead?

Unlike the other novels so far in this "Divine Creek Ranch" series, this is not a menage romance but rather about two characters that are as different as night and day. Ash is a man who is Texas cowboy through and through, a long-time friend of the owners of the Divine Creek Ranch, and a character that has shown up in previous novels. He knows ranching from start to finish, is comfortable in his skin, and knows what he wants in a woman he wants in his life. He has no doubt that the citified and overworked Juliana is "his" from the moment he lays his eyes on her. But convincing her of that may take some doing.

Juliana Meyers is determined to be the best retail manager this part of Texas has ever seen. She knows nothing of Texas politics or ranching, but she is determined that she will make her department store function like a well-oiled machine, even if it takes over her life--which it has! She think she is content with her life, but even as she is enjoying an infrequent social occasion at the Divine Creek Ranch Christmas gathering, her "boyfriend" of five years calls to break up with her over the phone and confesses he has been cheating on her for some time. Ash is present when this call comes through and even though he is willing to help her sort of deal with the shock, she wants nothing from him, then or in the future, to hear her tell it. Ash is nowhere willing to accept that from her. He knows that somehow she has to re-order her priorities, if not for any future she might have with him, but simply because her obsession with her work is hurting her physically and mentally. He is just that kind of caring man.

Caring for her after an accidental injury which occurs while packing up Teresa in preparation for her wedding to Angel & Joaquin has thrown Ash and Juliana together. The attraction that began at that fateful Christmas gathering continues to escalate, and they begin their affair. For Ash, it is a "forever" kind of thing. Juliana is hesitant--she is afraid he wants to control her life. How they work out the dynamics of their growing relationship is a major part of the story. Juliana's insecurities and a major miscommunication almost torpedo what could be a wonderful future for these two. How this all works out is fun and a marvelous ending to the novel.

As always, Ms Rainier has succeeded in telling a wonderful story, developed the characters of Ash and Juliana in such a way that the reader feels that they are real people, living just a bit down the road. Their struggles to re-configure their lives--to make some way of reconciling Ash's life as a ranch foreman with Juliana's drive to succeed in a non-ranching occupation, to come to some kind of acceptance that she needs to live unobsessed is the core of the tale that flows beneath all the action and the narrative. As in the other novels in this series, their romance is very erotic and these are two characters who are lively and passionate, who both want to experience a love that can withstand the challenges of any life situation. Set within the context of other characters that have been introduced in previous novels, Ash and Juliana's love story not only stands on its own merits but is a part of this community of people who are connected to the Divine Creek Ranch. And as Heather herself says in one of her interviews, these characters have lives and hearts that are as big as the country they live in. All her characters demonstrate that none of us lives apart from the people who exercise their influence and presence in our lives. And even though this couple are the focus of this book, their love is celebrated as a part of the wider community.

One of the on-going scenes in all Heather's novels is the fact that all these women love to dance. Gathering at the Ethan Grant's club, The Dancing Pony, Grace, Rachel, Rosemary, Teresa, and Juliana all love to get out on the dance floor and let the moves loose. Their men love to watch them, too. It is one of the grace-filled moments in these novels that I enjoy as much as any others. It just seems that Heather has filled this and all her novels with men who truly love and appreciate their women, who protect them and surround them with a kind of love that is empowering and heartwarming. This novel is no exception. I am really looking forward to reading the next novel in this series and am curious about the characters whose story will be highlighted--I am sure we have already met them somewhere. And they will, as do all the heroes and heroines, delight and entertain. Don't miss this really wonderful novel!

He's the Man of Her Dreams: "Heavenly Angel" by Heather Rainier

Angel Martinez has worked patiently for months to draw the fragile beauty out of her shell, wooing her with gentle kindness and falling for her delightful two-year-old in the process. She can barely handle one. Now she has two Martinez brothers after her. Can she forget the past and fall for both her heavenly Angel and his handsome, devilish brother?

This third story in the Divine Creek Ranch series brings together two people who have been greatly injured by life and by people who they initially trusted. Teresa was a single mother who worked in the local department store to support herself and her son. She barely made ends meet, but she was a responsible woman and a hard-working provider, and she managed to keep her head low so that the father of her son didn't find her. While they weren't married at the time of her pregnancy and while he essentially threw her "under the bus" as unworthy of marriage, his family were a danger to her and had already threatened to take her son away, citing their wealth and prominence socially as having greater weight in family court. Thus, when Angel Martinez began to show definite interest in her, Teresa backed away for months, in spite of her attraction to Angel and in spite of her trust that he would never hurt her.
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Angel Martinez was a complicated man who worked hard as the ranch foreman on the Divine Creek Ranch and who was tired of being used and hurt by the women he trusted and brought into his life. His last girlfriend was running around on him constantly during the last six months of their relationship even while she was living with Angel and sleeping in his bed. He finally told her to move along and even moved all her things to a friend's house where she was staying temporarily. In a fit of anger at being dislodged from her domicile-- she was more upset at losing the roof over her head than losing Angel--she came to The Dancing Pony Club where she knew Angel had gone that night, and shot him along with one of the owners of the Club who had shown her the door earlier. It was during his hospital stay that he and Teresa began to become closer friends but she still would not admit to having any romantic feelings toward Angel. Angel, however, wore her down and they became a couple, but their physical involvement was not immediate. Angel determined that he would build their friendship and trust between them before they ever hit the sheets. The development of the menage configuration in their "family" came a bit later in Teresa and Angel's affair. Both Angel and Joaquin were born into a polyamorous family--they had the same mother with multiple fathers. Thus this kind of family configuration did not seem unusual to them. But it was a real stretch for Teresa--very conservative Hispanic Catholic upbringing--and she really struggled at having strong romantic feelings and attraction to two men.


This is not a simple "boy meets girl" novel. Rather, it is the merging of two lives that had been upended by distrust, jeolousy, and disrespect. In some ways it is painful to watch Teresa trying so hard to find a way to be happy. Her fear for herself and her son, for their future together in the face of his father's family and their threats, is worrisome, and as a reader who really got drawn into the emotion in this story, I felt that kind of dread we feel when we are worried that a mother and child will be separated by cruelty or evil obsession. The author has also not backed away from the ethnic issues that affected both Angel and Teresa. In a part of the United States where there has been Hispanic presence almost from the beginning of our country, there is still tremendous prejudice and it is a burden most Anglos can't even imagine having to handle.


My observation about this author's writing and her story development is that she is more apt to bring in challenges from outside a love relationship rather than a lot of conflict between the lovers. In this story there was lots of emotional baggage from past relationships, but once these two main characters admitted and acted on their attraction, their love bloomed and grew into a beautiful connection that gave safety and security to both Teresa and her son. And because Angel was connected to the Divine Creek Ranch, all the people who had been a part of that friendship circle became a sort of family for Teresa and her son. Angel's brother Joaquin entered the relationship almost unexpectedly--a Christmas visit, love at first sight, an almost immediate sense that destiny had brought them together, and now they were three. Teresa's son Michael absolutely adored both his dads and for the first time since Michael's birth, Teresa truly began to believe that she would be surrounded with love, care, and safety.


I liked this book a lot and found the romance to be very erotic and heart-warming. The solid nature of Angel's love for Teresa was the significant factor in grounding Joaquin and moving him from the happy rodeo stud to a man who desired to claim a place in Teresa's life and who wanted to be a source of security and happiness for himself and for her and her son. It also brought these t wo brothers back into the close relationship they had once shared before Joaquin decided to live the transcient life of a rodeo cowboy. There's lots to like here for the lover of erotic romance fiction. And Ms Rainier is really a very good writer and should be congratulated on her ability to craft a series of love stories that really "make the heart glad." I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.

A Forever Kind of Guy: "Her Gentle Giant, I & II, by Heather Rainier

Eli Wolf provides security at The Dancing Pony Nightclub in Divine, Texas. He'd like to provide security and a whole lot more for the beautiful and voluptuous Rachel Lopez. Rachel is attracted to this cross between a huge Viking and Indian warrior brave, but knows her jealous nature will keep them from being happy together. Can she compete with the women who flock to him like moths to a falme at the club? When her apartment burns down, Eli is determined to make her a permanent houseguest. Can she deny the attraction she feels when he has always made it abundantly clear she is the only woman he wants?

Tragedy strikes, and Eli and Rachel are forced to relive painful memories from their pasts. Eli proves he is willing to do what it takes to protect and avenge her, and Rachel discovers the inner woman who longs to live life with no regrets. Part I: No Regrets; Part II: Remember to Dance.

This is a very erotic romance about two people who bring vastly different heretages to their relationship. Written in two parts, their story details the difficulties Rachel had in even allowing herself to get involved with Eli initially and moves on to the tentative bonds they forged to their wedding and honeymoon. This author doesn't seem to write stories that are fraught with upset and adversarial encounters as is true in so many romance novels. Rather, she has simply chronicled the development of their relationship over a period of months.

Rachel has been taught to be an independent woman by parents who are strong and loving. But in her early experiences living on her own she was hurt deeply by a man who took advantage of her innocence and enjoyed hurting her. After that she pulled away from the dating scene and spent her time going to college and working to build up a financial base for her life. And then one night she went to The Dancing Pony with some co-workers and she caught the eye of Eli Wolf, a man who had been around and who was tired of the here again, gone again kind of relationship. When he saw Rachel on the dance floor, it was very nearly love at first sight. But it took him several months of continually asking her out to get her to even share a meal with him. His quiet patience finally won her over, and they began to build a very tentative relationship.

Eli was a strong, Alpha male who was confident in his abilities, whose position as security at the club was really his second job. He was a specialist at climbing the towers that carried electrical cables all over the countryside, and his body mass made him a force to be dealt with. He was comfortable in his skin, and because he was so large, he wasn't looking for a skinny, tiny woman. When he saw Rachel's lush curves and her tall frame, he was captivated, but he was willing to take as long as needed to get her to feel comfortable with him. From the very beginning he treated her with such respect and care that she began to lose her fear of being hurt, of being taken advantage of, of being used for someone else's pleasure alone. Instead, Eli made it plain that her safety and welfare, her comfort level and pleasure were more important to him than anything else.

This novel is a part of a series about the town of Divine, Texas, and some of the characters continue to be a part of this second novel, individuals who first made their appearance in the first book, Divine Grace, Their continuing story forms the backdrop of this novel and some of those characters are an integral part of Rachel's friendship circle. In fact, Eli and Rachel first showed up in Divine Grace and it was there that Eli's interest was first noticed.

This story is just pure romance. It is very erotic but there are some very fun scenes, lots of authentic friendship and caring from Rachel & Eli's families, good friends who are counselors to them individually and together, and which give the reader a sense of community that forms the context of this story. Eli & Rachel's relationship is hot from the very beginning, yet they are not living apart from those who are important to them. There are some struggles and an accident that puts Rachel's life in critical danger. All through the difficult times their love is sustained by Eli's faith in Rachel, their innate goodness, and his confidence that together they can meet any challenge.

This is also a story about the futility of jeolousy, and as Eli helps Rachel work through her fears and insecurities about herself, she slowly finds strength to deal with her jeolousy. She also comes to realize that Eli is a man who can be trusted and whose all-consuming love for her leaves no room for anyone else. This story is classified as "erotic contemporary cowboy romance" and that is exactly what it is. But it is, at its core, a beautiful love story and how that relationship allowed both Eli and Rachel to become better people than even they dreamed of becoming. That's the kind of love we all hope to have at some time in our lives. I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.