Renegade by Lisa Bingham – Review, Interview & Giveaway

 

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Description:
The rugged and wild Taggart brothers know how to tame a restless beast, but a restless heart is a different matter…

When tragedy struck, Jace Taggart stepped in to run the family business and care for his brothers, sacrificing his own happiness to ensure their well-being. But after the beautiful Bronte Cupacek moves to town, Jace realizes he can’t ignore the hunger inside him much longer.

However, the last thing Bronte needs is another man in her life. After the end of a painful marriage, she just wants to focus on her daughters. They need her now more than ever. Yet no matter how hard Bronte tries to stand on her own two feet, it’s hard to resist the handsome cowboy who keeps coming to her aid.

Soon secrets from the past threaten everything dear to them. Only through embracing their undeniable connection can Jace and Bronte build a future together that no one can tear apart…

 

 

Review:

Renegade by Lisa Bingham is the 2^nd book in her wonderful Taggart Brothers series. I enjoyed the first book in this series, and couldn’t wait for the next book. I am happy to say that Renegade is even better than the first book. I loved everything about Renegade from start to finish.

Renegade belongs to Jace Taggart, one of our hero Taggart Brothers, and newcomer Bronte Cupacek, our heroine. We learn early that Bronte is running away with her two young daughters to stay with her aunt in Bliss, Utah. When she arrives, she discovers her aunt has had an accident and is in the hospital. Jace comes to her rescue, and takes Bronte to see her aunt, and at the same time, makes arrangements to fix up the dilapidated house, so that Bronte can live there.

Jace is not only a hottie, but he was simply great. He found himself attracted to the beautiful Bronte, but could tell she was running away from something. We usually know that cases like this involve an abusive husband, in Bronte’s case, she was already divorced, but her ex-husband was still around to haunt her, so she ran. Bronte, despite her determination not to become involved with another man, immediately feels strong feelings for the hot and caring Jace. However, with two young girls that were resentful for moving so quickly, Bronte tried to curb her desires; which got difficult with each passing day.

What follows is a wonderful sweet story, with a great couple that had us rooting for them from the start. This wasn’t just a romance, but a very good story, as Bronte must resolve her issues, which also affect her daughters. I loved Jace, who was sweet, caring , romantic, with his own issues from the past revolving around his deceased father.

Lisa Bingham does such a wonderful job writing this wonderful story, that had us happy, smiling, worried, and even sad; but with each page we turned we kept on going to see how this would all end. Afterall, we had a vested interest in everyone from Jace, Bronte, Lily, Barry, Kari, P.D.   I am loving this series, loving the characters and loving the writing of Lisa Bingham. If you enjoy a perfect romance and storyline, I suggest you read this series. Start with the first book. I for one, can’t wait for whatever Lisa Bingham will be giving us next.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

 

Hi Lisa. Thank you for taking the time today, to answer some questions for our members at The Reading Café. We are always looking forward to reading about the author behind the book.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Lisa: I’m a proud farmer’s wife and mother of three. Most of the time, I juggle my writing, a “day job” as a full-time English teacher, and the busy lifestyle that comes along with the seasonal demands of the farm. Frankly, I wouldn’t change a thing.

TRC: Did you always have an interest in writing? When and how did you first start writing?

Lisa: I’ve always wanted to be a writer, but in my early teens, I was introduced to the romance genre. After reading that one of the authors had published in her teens, I began to write in earnest. Luckily, I had teachers who were willing to indulge my passion and help steer me into honing my craft. Soon after graduating from college, I published my first historical romance.

TRC: Renegade was released in January, which is the 2^nd book in your Taggart Brothers series. How many books are you planning for the Taggart Brothers series?

Lisa: There are three books in the Taggart Brothers series, but I’m already planning another series based in the same fictional town of Bliss, so I’m sure that the Taggart men and women will be making some cameo appearances in the future.

TRC:  Can you please give us a brief description of Renegade?

Lisa:  When tragedy struck, Jace Taggart stepped in to run the family business and care for his brothers, sacrificing his own happiness to ensure their well-being. But after the beautiful Bronte Cupacek moves to town, Jace realizes he can’t ignore the hunger inside him much longer.
 
However, the last thing Bronte needs is another man in her life. After the end of a painful marriage, she just wants to focus on her daughters. They need her now more than ever. Yet no matter how hard Bronte tries to stand on her own two feet, it’s hard to resist the handsome cowboy who keeps coming to her aid.
 
Soon secrets from the past threaten everything dear to them. Only through embracing their undeniable connection can Jace and Bronte build a future together that no one can tear apart…

TRC: You write Historical and Contemporary Romance. Do you find Historical romances to be more challenging to write? Have you thought about writing in other genres?

Lisa:  I’m a bit of a “history geek” so writing historical romances comes as easily to me as writing contemporary, but I do a lot more preparation for historicals because the tone and vocabulary have to match the time period. Quite often, I’ll binge on films set in the time period to help my brain switch gears if I’m going from contemporary to historical.

I’ve often thought of expanding to other genres. I’ve got a couple of suspense ideas kicking around in my brain and I love women’s fiction.

TRC: Can you please tell us what you working on now, and what you have upcoming in 2016?

Lisa: Right now, I’m developing two new projects, a contemporary trilogy set near the same fictional town of Bliss that was featured in the Taggart Brothers series. I’m also working on a Regency series set in Cornwall England.

I’ll have two releases in 2016 from Berkley, both of them from the Taggart Brothers series. Renegade, Jace’s story, will start off the year in January, and Maverick, Bodey’s book, will be released in November.

TRC: What is your writing process? Do you like to outline your story before you start? Do you have a specific place you like to write? Is there a special time of day that works best for you?

Lisa: I write a rough outline to my story before I start, but I’m not a slave to it. I’ve had some stories that followed my outlines and some that veered off the tracks into something even more wonderful, so I follow my “gut.” If I get bogged down or have a block, I’ve learned that I need to go back and tighten up the conflict. Sometimes, that means deleting favorite scenes. To make myself feel better, I keep a “scrap” file for all the lovely scenes that had to be removed.

My favorite place to write is my office. I love antiques, especially antique clothing, so I have several mannequins that I dress in corsets and vintage lingerie. The room is a tiny space that has been filled with castoff furniture that I’ve painted a crisp white, the walls are a beautiful shade of pink (pink stimulates creativity according to some studies) and I have antique lace and embroidery at the windows and on the furniture. Unfortunately, the craziness of my schedule means that writing in my office is a luxury, so I do a lot of my writing in my car while my kids are at practice, or in a reclining chair in my bedroom when my feet are sore after a full day of teaching.

TRC:  What books, authors or people in your life have influenced your writing? 

Lisa: When I was in my early teens, a neighbor found out that I liked to read and she invited me to her house where she filled a paper sack to the brim with Harlequin romances. I’ve been a romance fan ever since. Thanks, Carolyn! Probably one of the first authors to inspire me was Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. Most authors are Austen fans, but I love the whole “crazy lady in the attic” high drama of Bronte. Then, there’s Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind. I read the whole book in two days—which is probably where I learned to love historical fiction.

TRC: When you are not writing, what other interests or hobbies do you have?

Lisa: Besides my writing and teaching, I’ve also been a professional costume designer for years, so I love to sew historically inspired clothing and christening dresses. I find sewing the “historical” items very relaxing and love to collect bits of old lace and ribbonwork to use on my projects.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Lisa: I would love to hear from my readers. I can be reached at www.lisabinghamauthor.com, www.Facebook.com/lisabinghamauthor, or on Twitter @lbinghamauthor.

 

 

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: Enchiladas

Favorite Dessert:  Chocolate mousse

Favorite TV Show:  Blindspot

Favorite Movie or TV Celebrity: Daniel Craig as Bond, James Bond

Favorite Fictional Character (not your own): Scarlett O’Hara (I love a strong woman in charge of her own destiny.)

Milk or Dark Chocolate: Milk

Dog or Cat:  Cat (although we currently have two dogs)

Thank you Lisa, for taking the time to answer our questions. We wish you the best of luck with Renegade.

 

Lisa’s publisher is offering a paper copy of RENEGADE to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe

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8. Giveaway is open to USA only

9. Giveaway runs from January 20 to January 24, 2015