A mother of two young boys, Naomi Rawlings spends her days picking up, cleaning, playing and, of course, writing. Her husband pastors a small church in Michigan’s rugged Upper Peninsula, where her family shares its ten wooded acres with black bears, wolves, coyotes, deer and bald eagles. Naomi and her family live only three miles from Lake Superior, where the scenery is beautiful and they average 200 inches of snow per winter. Naomi writes bold, dramatic stories containing passionate words and powerful journeys.
Sanctuary For A Lady - Running to freedom, she found love . . .
The injured young woman that Michel Belanger finds in the woods is certainly an aristocrat, and in the midst of France’s bloody revolution, sheltering nobility merits a trip to the guillotine. Yet despite the risk, Michel knows he must bring the wounded girl to his cottage to heal.
Attacked by soldiers and left for dead, Isabelle de La Rouchecauld has lost everything. A duke’s daughter cannot hope for mercy in France, so escaping to England is her best chance of survival. The only thing more dangerous than staying would be falling in love with this gruff yet tender man of the land. Even if she sees, for the first time, how truly noble a heart can be . . .
Welcome to Ink Dots, Naomi. I'm thrilled to have you join us this week. Tell us where you call home and what you love about it? I call Northern Michigan home, in the United States. And when I say northern, do I ever mean north! I live just south of Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world. We average about 200 inches of lake effect snow per year, and our winters are very cold with that constant northern wind blowing off the lake. Where I live may sound frigid and blustery, but there’s nothing like curling up beside the wood stove with a good book while the snow is piling up outside. WOW, Naomi... you live in my dream part of the world. I have some serious White Christmas envy happening right now!
Why did you become an author? Out of boredom, really. I was reading through books entirely too quickly, and there were so many that I didn’t care for, so I decide to try writing my own novel. Wow, did that take a long time! Thats too funny! Careful what you wish for, hey...?
Why did you choose this period of history to set your story? I chose to write about the French Revolution because the time period is so intriguing. It was bloody, yes, but the French people were so idealistic in their quest for liberty from a monarch, aristocracy, and church bent on exploiting them. I like seeing how the average French citizen struggled for “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” and I also enjoy exploring some of the factions that opposed the average citizens’ plight for freedom.
Have you been to Australia? I have not been to Australia, sorry to say. However were I to go, I’d love to travel through the interior of the country and see places similar to those I’ve seen in The Man from Snowy River. I’ve loved Australia ever since I was a little girl because of that movie. Yes, you would be among many enamourned by our country thanks to that movie. :)
What are you reading now? I’m reading a novel entitled Jewel of Medina by Sherry Jones. My literary agent represented the novel--with much fanfare when Random House dropped the contract in the U.S. just months before publication a few years back. My agent then sold European rights, and the novel went on to become a bestseller. It’s not my usual reading experience, but I’m enjoying it nonetheless. The writing is incredibly beautiful and descriptive, and I plan to read more by the author. Sounds like a cinderella story for Sherry Jones.
Where can we find you on the internet? www.naomirawlings.com
And for those of you interested in Sanctuary for a Lady, I’m happy to announce that Love Inspired Historical plans to release two sequels to the novel, continuing to follow the Belanger family through the French Revolution and into the Napoleonic Wars. I’m working on the second novel in the series right now.
You sound like a busy writer, Naomi. Thanks for stopping to visit with us for a while. I look forward to hearing more about the sequels to Sanctuary For A Lady as they hit the shelves. Thanks so much for having me, Dotti! It’s a pleasure to join you folks Down Under!
***
If you'd like to visit the French Revolution through the eyes of Michel Belanger and Isabelle de La Rouchecauld, please leave a comment below. You could be the lucky winner of an e-copy of Naomi's Sanctuary For A Lady. Tell us where you've been where the weather's the coldest you can remember. I wonder if anyone can boast a frostier winter than Naomi!
