Most of my readers know that, in addition to my historical romances, I write contemporary sports romances with my husband under the pen name of VK Sykes. That’s why I’m thrilled to welcome award-winning film maker turned romance author Pamela Aares to the blog today – she writes baseball romances, and historical romance too! As you’re about to find out, she’s a very interesting person.
Vanessa: Welcome, Pamela! I love the concept behind your new series, Heart of the Game: All-Star alpha males and the strong women they come to love. What inspired you to write about baseball heroes and heiresses?
Pamela: Thanks for having me Vanessa!
I don’t know about you, but sometimes characters show up and start talking. I was in the middle of drafting the sequel to Jane Austen and the Archangel, riding back from LA in the car with my husband and we were discussing the baseball season. Within minutes Alex Tavonesi, the hero of book one in the Heart of the Game series, showed up. I’d been toying with the idea of writing a story of a vintner who fell in love with a feisty woman who was a world-class marine mammal vet, but the hero wasn’t supposed to play baseball in addition to all his work trying to keep his family’s vineyard going. Pretty soon Alex Tavonesi had a team of amazing men surrounding him and I knew they’d each have their own story in the Heart of the Game.
The heroines in the first four books of the series are all heiresses who have chosen to have careers– one’s a vet, one owns a major league baseball team, another inherits an internationally famous olive ranch. They are women who want to make their own way in the world. The feedback from readers has been amazing — they love the fascinating women (and of course the hunky, All-Star heroes). All of the stories take place in the Bay Area of California and the characters from each book reappear throughout the series.
Vanessa: I understand that you have an insider’s view into the game of baseball.
Pamela: My husband played in the major leagues for eleven years and yes, he was an All-Star. I’m lucky that I can ask burning questions over breakfast– and that he has a sense of humor. Living with a writer can be strange. I’ll come into the kitchen and ask about Alex, or Matt, or Ryan and he pauses, takes a sip of coffee and realizes I’m asking about what a character in the series might do in a strategic baseball play or the like. You don’t have to be a sport fan to understand the stories, the details of the game come alive in the characters.
Vanessa: What is it that you most love about writing romance?
Pamela: I love books that entertain, transport and inspire dreams. Romances are captivating and tug at the heart. I like to write books that take readers on a journey with complex characters in both contemporary and historical settings who are thrown in situations that tempt love, adventure and self-discovery.
Here’s a peek at the third book in Pamela’s Heart of the Game series, Fielder’s Choice. Pamela will be giving away a copy of Fielder’s Choice as well as a copy of the first book in the series, Love Bats Last.
All-Star first baseman Matt Darrington has more than a problem. His wife died, and now he’s juggling a too-smart-for-her-britches six-year-old and the grueling pace of professional baseball. Worse, his daughter is mom shopping. When they explore a local ranch, she decides the beautiful, free-spirited tour guide is premium mom material. Matt thinks the sexy guide looks like Grade-A trouble.
Alana Tavonesi loves her cosmopolitan life in Paris. But when she inherits the renowned Tavonesi Olive Ranch, she has to return to California and face obligations she never wanted. Selling the place is her first instinct, but life at the ranch begins to crack her open, exposing the dreams hidden inside her heart.
On a lark she leads a ranch tour, where she meets Matt Darrington. His physical power and a captivating sensual appeal fire her in a way no man ever has, but he has a kid—and being a stepmom is a responsibility Alana will never be ready for. Still…she can’t keep her mind or her hands off him.
When Matt’s daughter goes missing from a kid’s camp at the ranch, Alana organizes the search effort, knowing from experience the areas a bright child would be drawn to explore. As she and Matt work together to search for the little girl, Alana discovers that father and daughter have won her heart. Yet it may be too late for love…
About the Author
Pamela Aares is an award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance novels and also writes about fictional romance in sports with her new baseball romance book series titled Heart of the Game. Her first book a historical romance, Jane Austen and the Archangel, released in 2012.
Before becoming a romance author, Aares wrote and produced award-winning films including Your Water, Your Life, featuring actress Susan Sarandon and NPR series New Voices, The Powers of the Universe and The Earth’s Imagination. She holds a Master’s degree from Harvard and currently resides in the wine country of Northern California with her husband, a former MLB All-Star and two curious cats. If not behind her computer, you can probably find her reading a romance novel, hiking the beach or savoring life with friends. You can visit Pamela on the web at http://www.PamelaAares.com.
