**GIVEAWAY** Blog Tour Sarah Morgan- Interview + Review of Sleigh Bells In The Snow

Today I welcome back a personal favorite author from across the pond, author Sarah Morgan whose first full length romance novel Sleigh Bells in The Snow is available today and is getting rave reviews, not that I'm surprised because this lady knows her love stories. So sit back enjoy our interview and my review courtesy RT Magazine on this my stop and the first stop on her blog tour sponsored by her fabulous publisher Harlequin. Then enter for a chance to win this fabulous prize package (US & Canada Only). Details and entry form below!

• ISBN-13: 9780373778553
• Publisher: Harlequin
• Publication date: 10/29/2013
• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Pages: 384

Overview:
USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan heats up the season with the O'Neil brothers in a brand-new holiday series!
Once upon a time, Christmas was Kayla Green's favorite time of year. Now all the workaholic wants for Christmas is for it to be over—as fast as possible! So when duty calls her to snowy Vermont to close a deal with a new client, Kayla is grateful for an excuse to avoid the holidays for another year.
Jackson O'Neil left a thriving business behind to return home and salvage his family's resort—it's in his blood, and he can't let it fail. Now that he's got marketing whiz Kayla Green working with him to put Snow Crystal on the map, success is on the horizon. 

REVIEWS:
Publishers Weekly-Starred Review
 This touching Christmas tale will draw tears of sorrow and joy, remaining a reader favorite for years to come. (Nov.)

"Sarah Morgan puts the magic in Christmas."-Now Magazine

"Morgan's brilliant talent never ceases to amaze."-Romantic Times
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I’m so pleased to welcome back one of my all time favorite authors Sarah Morgan who’s just now dipping her toes into the waters of full-length fiction with her debut Sleigh Bells In The Snow.

Sarah Hi and Welcome!
Hi! And thank you so much for having me here, it’s great to be back!

Tell us all a little about Sleigh Bells in the Snow.

My hero Jackson O’Neil has come home to save the family business, Snow Crystal Resort and Spa in Vermont.  To do this he brings in my heroine Kayla, a PR expert.  Kayla is a workaholic and her least favorite time of year is Christmas. Hoping to avoid the festivities and the emphasis on family that she finds difficult, she agrees to go and spend a week in Vermont experiencing all Snow Crystal has to offer.  But instead of finding herself alone in a forest, she finds herself right in the middle of the O’Neil family. Before she knows it she’s chopping logs with Grandpa, cooking with Grandma and falling in love with sexy Jackson.

I loved watching Kayla slowly melt. I’ve never been so happy to give a heroine her happy ending.

How many titles in this series are there and when will they release?

There are three books in the O’Neil Brothers series. Sleigh Bells in the Snow is November 2013, then surgeon Sean’s story, Suddenly Last Summer will be out July 2014 and bad boy Tyler’s story November 2014. No title for that one yet!

Was there a particular catalyst that led to this series?

I’ve always loved writing snowy, Christmas stories. When I wrote for Medicals those books were enormously popular with readers so when I decided to write a full length contemporary romance it made sense to write what I loved the most. I spoke with my editor and HQN and they were as excited as I was, so together we decided on two winter stories with a summer story in the middle, and so the O’Neil Brothers series was born!

Now that your first full-length novel is under your belt what was the most difficult part about writing it?

If I’m absolutely honest, nothing. Sleigh Bells in the Snow was one of those rare books that flowed easily and it was fun to write from beginning to end, perhaps because I’d been longing to write a full length contemporary for a long time.  I loved the characters, I loved watching their interaction and I enjoyed the relationship between the O’Neil family. I had so much fun writing those scenes where the family is interfering! Writing this book never once felt like work. I enjoyed the process so much I even sneaked off on Christmas Day while my family was recovering from an overindulgence of festive food and wrote a scene while sitting under the Christmas tree. I probably won’t ever find a book that easy again so I’m making the most of it!

Sarah how difficult is it writing a novel about the US while living in the UK?

Very few of the books I’ve written for Harlequin Presents were set in the UK and part of the fun of being an author is discovering and writing about new places. Fortunately the internet makes that not only possible but fun and exciting. Once I’ve decided on a setting for a book, whether it’s New York or the Brazilian rainforest, I spend a lot of time researching.

I’ve travelled in the US, but whether or not I’ve been to a place won’t influence my decision to use it as a setting. I’d love to visit all the towns and countries I write about, but sadly that isn’t always possible. I’ve set around seven books in Sicily and I’ve never been there J.

With the O’Neil Brothers series, I used webcams (a brilliant research tool!), local blogs and tourist websites to gain the information I needed. If I have specific questions I will contact someone local. People are really helpful to authors! I do a lot of research, not just about scenery and climate, but exploring the detail of trees, birds and wildlife.  Although Sleigh Bells is set in a fictitious resort, it’s still important to make the setting believable and as authentic as possible so that the reader isn’t pulled out of the story.  And I always remind myself that this is a romance! It’s about the characters and their emotional journey and the setting does play a part in that, but it’s not what keeps people reading.

Sarah you have also been chosen to be a part of the Cosmo-Harlequin Red Hot Reads Program
Congratulations!!
Tell us a bit about the novella and how you received the news about your participation in the Cosmo Red Hot Reads program.

I’d just finished writing Sleigh Bells when Harlequin invited me to be part of the Cosmo Red Hot Reads programme. It was a rigorous acquisition process because all the stories were read not just by Harlequin but also by the Cosmo team. Fortunately they loved my story as much as I did. I had so much fun writing it. I already had part of a story on my laptop that didn’t fit anything I was doing (sometimes I play with characters and dialogue for my own amusement), and the moment my editor described what they wanted for the Cosmo stories, I knew what I had would be perfect, so I went ahead and finished it. I’m writing two books for them, about two sisters (fun, fearless Cosmo girls!) but each story stands alone.


Ripped is Hayley’s story and she has a mega embarrassing bridesmaid moment and is rescued by the best man. There is serious tension and chemistry, but it’s romantic, funny (I hope!) and very sexy. I’m about to start writing sister Rosie’s story. She is a martial arts expert so expect someone to get kicked in the butt!

Sarah I have the honor of reviewing your Harlequin Presents novels and also this novel.
What are your personal feelings about reviews?

Reviews are important for the reader, to help them navigate the thousands of books out there and find stories that are right for them. Having invested time and money in a book, it’s a way of sharing the experience with others. Reviews are important for the author too. We want people to discover our books! And inevitably reviews will be a mixture of good and bad. It’s important that the author disconnects from that emotionally as far as possible.

As a reader, what is important to me isn’t the grade as much as the detail of the review. Before I stay in a hotel, I check out the reviews. ‘I loved this hotel’ is not much use to me (we might love different things) but if a guest says ‘this hotel was right in the middle of the city and we loved the buzz and the noise’ I might choose not to stay there if I’m looking for peace and quiet. Likewise, the best book reviews in my opinion are the ones that tell me WHY a reviewer did or didn’t enjoy a book because that helps me decide whether it’s something that appeals to me.

Are you a reader?
What genre, favorite authors?

I’m an avid reader. I love romance and read widely across that genre, but I also love reading biographies. They give a fascinating insight into people’s lives and I’ve had lots of ideas for character motivation and background from reading about people’s lives. As for favourite authors, Nora Roberts is right up there on top for me, but I have a long list of others too and I love discovering new authors.

Sarah what’s the strangest/funniest thing that’s ever happened to you at a signing/author event?

A reader once mixed me up with another author and gushed about a book I hadn’t written! I took her to the author she was looking for but we’ve remained in contact ever since and now she reads my books too J  Romance readers are the best!

Sarah thank you so much for taking the time to share a little bit of yourself with us.
Will there be any events scheduled for this release?

I may also have exciting news about a US signing, but I won’t be able to confirm that for a while. I’m blogging in various places around the release date and giving away copies of books. The best place to stay up to date with my news is my website and my Facebook page www.facebook.com/AuthorSarahMorgan  

Thanks for having me and for letting me talk about Sleigh Bells!

Connect with Sarah - Website – Facebook – Twitter - Goodreads

About the Author

 USA Today bestselling author Sarah Morgan writes hot, happy contemporary romance and her trademark humor and sensuality have gained her fans across the globe. Described as ‘a magician with words’ by RT Book Reviews, she has sold over 11 million copies of her books. She has been nominated three years in succession for the prestigious RITA© Award from the Romance Writers of America and won the award twice; in 2012 for her book ‘Doukakis’s Apprentice’ and 2013 for ‘A Night of No Return’. She also won the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award in 2012 and has made numerous appearances in their ‘Top Pick’ slot.

As a child Sarah dreamed of being a writer and although she took a few interesting detours along the

way, she is now living that dream.

Sarah lives near London with her husband and children, and when she isn’t reading or writing she lovesbeing outdoors, preferably on vacation so she can forget the house needs tidying.

My Review of Sleigh Bells In The Snow
Courtesy RT Magazine

4.5 stars

Kayla Green’s loathing of Christmas stems from her dysfunctional indifferent family, so she’s more than ready to work through the holiday saving idyllic Snow Crystal resort. What she’s not ready for is the total O’Neil family at Christmas experience and her feelings for resort owner Jackson.
Jackson O’Neil’s prepared to sacrifice everything to save his family’s resort, he’s brought in marketing guru Kayla to work her magic, but the only magic she’s working is heating up his libido.
Could Christmas magic bring love?

Morgan’s foray into full-length romance is a holiday hit. Her visual narrative epitomizes rustic Vermont in full-winter finery while showcasing her witty humor and inherent understanding of the human condition. Her co-stars are riotously meddling and endearing and watching her relationship-phobic Brit transplant heroine and confident hometown hero ineffectively battle fate the elements and their feelings from the boardroom to the bedroom delights. 

Sarah's Blog tour participants & dates

Date	Blog	Link
29-Oct	The Reading Frenzy	http://thereadingfrenzy.blogspot.ca/
	Just Contemporary Romance	http://www.justcontemporaryromance.com/
	Fatin - Romance Novel Reviews	http://rrahnovelthoughts.com
30-Oct	Dear Author	http://dearauthor.com/
31-Oct	Paulette's Papers	http://paulettespapers.com/
	Author Sound Relations	http://authorsoundrelations.blogspot.co.uk
	A Little Bit Tart a Little Bit Sweet	http://www.tartsweet.com/
1-Nov	Smexy Books	http://smexybooks.com/
3-Nov	Are Café	http://www.arecafe.com/
	Book Vixen	http://www.thebookvixen.com/
2-Nov	Mangomini	http://mangomini.wordpress.com/
4-Nov	Romance Bandits	http://romancebandits.com/
5-Nov	Book Hounds	http://maryinhb.blogspot.ca/
6-Nov	Harlequin Blog	www.harlequinblog.com
7-Nov	Readful Things	http://readfulthingsblog.com/
8-Nov	Romance Junkies	http://www.romancejunkies.com/
9-Nov	Gone with the  Words	http://gonewiththewords.com/
10-Nov	Ebook obsessed	http://ebookobsessed.com/
11-Nov	Harlequin Junkie	http://harlequinjunkie.com/
12-Nov	Books of Love	http://gracebooksoflove.com/
13-Nov	Not Just Another New Blog	http://www.justanothernewblog.com/
14-Nov	A Book and a Latte	http://bookandlatte.com/
15-Nov	The Novel Tease	http://thenoveltease.com/
16-Nov	Martini Times Romance Book Reviews	http://www.martinitimes.com/
17-Nov	Girls with Books	http://girlswithbook.blogspot.com
18-Nov	Imperfect Women	http://imperfectwomen.com/category/book-nook/
19-Nov	Contagious Reads	http://contagiousreads.com/
20-Nov	Poisoned Rationality	http://www.prationality.com/
21-Nov	Fic Fare	http://fictionfare.blogspot.ca/
22-Nov	Tiffany Talks Books	http://tiffanytalksbooks.com/
23-Nov	A Bookish Escape	http://www.abookishescape.com/
24-Nov	The Book Reading Gals	http://thebookreadinggals.com/
25-Nov	Winding Stairs Book Blog	http://windingstairsbookblog.blogspot.ca/
26-Nov	Mrs. Condit Reads Books	http://www.mrsconditreadsbooks.com
27-Nov	Fiction Vixen Book Reviews	http://fictionvixen.com/
28-Nov	Caribbean Accent	http://caribbeanaccentbookreviews.com/
29-Nov	Travelling with T	http://travelingwitht.wordpress.com/

The Prize Package

1)      Snow flake earrings

2)      Copy of Sleigh Bells In the Snow

3)      Package of cute Harlequin holiday gift tags

                  

                                                 

This fabulous prize package is sponsored by Sarah's publisher
Harlequin and is open to US & Canada entrants only
To enter use the Rafflecopter form below
Good Luck!!
Thanks Sarah and Harlequin

a Rafflecopter giveaway