Aloha to Roxanne St. Claire and BAREFOOT IN THE SAND

Summer is where the girls go barefoot and their hearts are just as free as their toes. - Unknown.

May's warmer weather brings bare feet!  Roxanne St. Claire kicks off her shoes with her new Barefoot Bay Series. Roxanne "bares" all in her bio from her website (at this link):

First of all, call me Rocki. Everyone does. Evidently, when my mother brought me home from the hospital I seemed too scrawny and small to pull off “Roxanne” (she’d read Cyrano de Bergerac while pregnant or I would have been Judy) so they called me Rocki. 

Aloha, Rocki!

I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, the youngest of five (overachievers, every one), and fell in love with words and stories the summer I read Gone With The Wind. That year, for my twelfth birthday, my parents gave me a typewriter (with italic font – it was the coolest thing) and from that day on, I’ve had my fingers on a keyboard, pounding out love stories for fun.

If you still have that typewriter, it might be valuable as an antique!

I got some fun gigs, and even met Tom Hanks when I did a guest appearance on Bosom Buddies.

I loved that show! 

That second manuscript sold to Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Books and was released in 2003 as Tropical Getaway.

Rocki has come full circle. She wrote 8 books for Silhouette Desire, 8 in the Bullet Catcher Series, 3 in the Guardian Angelinos Series, and several anthologies, including SEAL OF MY DREAMS. Now Rocki's back to another tropical getaway with BAREFOOT IN THE SAND:

When all you hold dear is taken away . . .

When a hurricane roars through Lacey Armstrong's home on the coast of Barefoot Bay, she decides all that remains in the rubble is opportunity. A new hotel is just what Mimosa Key needs, and Lacey and her teenage daughter are due for a fresh start. And nothing, especially not a hot, younger architect, is going to distract Lacey from finally making her dreams a reality.

A second chance is the only thing you have left.

Love has already cost Clay Walker everything. And if he's going to have any chance of picking up the pieces of his life, he needs the job as Lacey Armstrong's architect. What's not in the plans is falling for the headstrong beauty. Her vision of the future is more appealing than anything he could have ever drafted for himself. Will Clay's designs on Lacey's heart be more than she can handle, or will she trust him to build something that will last forever? 

I grew up in Coral Gables - a suburb of Miami. We had "hurricane" awnings that we dropped over the windows during a hurricane warning. I recall one such occasion when I was fourteen. My parents asked me to stay overnight with our elderly neighbor. Because that's what we do in a community.

I could relate to the characters in BAREFOOT IN THE SAND as they rebuilt their lives after the hurricane. The "community" resonated with me - Roxanne captured the charm, the quirks, and the hope.  BAREFOOT IN THE SAND is the must read beach book for this summer!   I look forward to more stories from Mimosa Key. Let's pop the champagne cork, add the orange juice, and celebrate with Roxanne! 

I posted my review on Amazon at this link.  Forever is giving away three copies of BAREFOOT IN THE SAND. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about your favorite thing to do barefoot.

Mine is walking the beach.

2. Forever's giveaway is open to US residents only ... but I will giveaway a "barefoot" gift to one international reader.

3. Comments are open through Saturday, May 5, 10 pm in Hawaii. I'll post the winner on Sunday, May 6.

Mahalo,

Kim in Hawaii

May's month long giveaway is the winner's choice of an Aloha apron - the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet offers every color and pattern!  Add a Pampered Chef Cookbook and you're ready for summer entertaining!   One randomly selected commenter from my blogs on SOS ALOHA, ALOHA ON MY MIND, and THE READING REVIEWER.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, June 3.