Today we are very excited to welcome back to Book Lovers author Lori Foster in celebration of her newest release in the Love Undercover series, Bare it All. Like with every single book written by Lori Foster, Bare it All is a sinfully sexy story with a couple of characters that will manage to stick to your mind long after you’re finished reading their story. Lori stops by today to answer some questions and as always don’t forget to check at the end of the post for our giveaway details 🙂

Q: How did you come up with the idea for your book?

A: No idea. The ideas are just… there. I’m so amazed by authors who can teach this stuff, because it’s impossible for me. I’ll be minding my own business (often working on a different book) and bam! I get hid upside the head with characters who want on the page – or sometimes they just show up on the page without even introducing themselves first – and sometimes that’s not enough for them. They want their own books too!

It’s almost magical to me. I could never dissect the process or explain it.

It just is.

Once the characters are there, THEY tell me what the idea is. They lead me through the plot, sometimes page by page – although sometimes they tell me the whole story right up front.

Q: Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

A: For “Bare It All,” book #2 in the “Love Undercover” series, Reese is the hero. I was writing about Logan and Pepper from book #1 and then suddenly Logan called his buddy Reese, who I found out was also a detective. He said he had some secrets – and I had to keep writing to find out what they were.

Weird, right? I’m always as surprised as the reader! But that’s what keeps it fun, I guess.

Anyhoo… Reese was a secondary character and then, because of how big he was on the page, I knew he’d be book #2. Rowdy and Dash also showed up in book #1, and I knew right away they’d demand their own books as well.

Much of “Bare It All” was worked out in the first book. Reese met Alice, and we all knew right away they’d be perfect for each other. How that would happen, what would propel them into a romance, wasn’t crystal clear, so I had to wait for Alice to tell me some things, and for her to work out some stuff with Reese…

Yes, they talk to me a lot – often when I’m trying to sleep!

Q: How did you come up with the title, Bare It All?

A: The hero’s name is Reese Bareden, and back during his school days he got caught – without his towel – in the locker room by a bunch of cheer leaders. They dubbed him “Bare It All Bareden.” Now, the reason why the cheerleaders were sneaking in the locker room to get a peek… that’s something you’ll have to find out by reading the book!

Q: What are you reading right now?

A: “The Best Man” by Kristin Higgins. It’s delicious. But I’m reading it slowly because I don’t allow myself to read it except for when I’m on the treadmill. See, I’m trying to con myself into getting a little more exercise. So far so good. I spend 20 to 30 minutes a day (minus weekends) on the stupid torturous device. Only the awesomeness of the book is making it possible. This is my first Kristin Higgins book – recommended to me by my Facebook followers – and wow, does she ever weave a wonderful tale! I’m hooked.

Q: Describe the qualities in your “perfect” hero.

A: Well first off, he has to be imperfect. I can’t imagine anything more boring that perfection.

He has to be a man. A man’s man. I’m totally not into the metrosexual guy. If he paints his toenails… yeah, he won’t be in my book. Oh, and if he waxes his chest? Bleh. My guys are too busy kicking butt and saving mankind to groom their chests.

He has to be strong – physically strong is nice, but more important than that is mental and emotional strength. If he’s going to cry, it better be for a really good reason. Not because he lost a sporting event or watched a sad movie.

He has to be respectful to everyone who deserves it – which means unless someone has given him real reason to be disrespectful, he’ll be polite.

He has to be capable. It drives me INSANE when someone writes a hero who can’t change a diaper. I mean, that’s pretty basic. If you can’t do that, how can you possibly master anything complicated like driving a car or shaving?

He should be kind, with a sense of humor.

And he absolutely MUST love animals and feel protective toward children.

Being a stallion in bed doesn’t hurt either.

Q: As a romance writer, what is your idea of the “ideal romantic evening”?

A: My husband and I are not, and never have been, party people – unless it’s an afternoon family party. When we go to the movies, it’s usually a matinee. So with that in mind, I like easy, slow evenings where he cooks me something delicious for dinner (he’s turned into an amazing cook!) and then either the theater (not too late) or a good movie on the television, dressed in our comfortable clothes.  Just us, quiet time, being together.

Q: Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

A: I was home sick, in bed, too miserable even to get up and watch TV, and my sister, Monica, brought me over a paper bag full of romances. Out of curiosity I flipped through a historical, found a scene where the heroine was miscarrying on the side of the road and the hero had to help her. It was powerful. And intriguing. From there I looked for a love scene (so predictable, I know, but I *had* to see those two together) and I got so enthralled that I had to go back to the beginning to figure out how the characters had gotten to that point. I’ve been a reader ever since!

Q: Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

A: Endings! Ohmigosh, finding that right last line, the one that wraps it up, feels final, and sort of says, Ta-da dum. I angst over the last line more than any other part of the book. If only we could say, “They lived happily ever after.” LOL Beginnings are always the easiest for me, the endings always the hardest.

Q: What’s your guilty pleasure?

A: I don’t really feel guilty about it, but I LOVE horror movies and action movies. I go to the theater at least once a week, often twice if there are movies I want to see. A bad horror movie is more entertaining to me that a perfect drama. And there are very few chic flicks I enjoy. Popcorn, cola, violence and blood – right up my alley. And if they throw in a sexy Alpha guy, I’m there.

Q: What project are you working on next?

A: That depends on how long it takes me to finish my current manuscript – which will be book 4 in the “Love Undercover” series. If I finish it early enough, I’ll start a new L. L. book, meaning more urban fantasy and more graphic gore. If it takes longer to finish, then I’ll jump into the next romance single title.

About the Book:

“A cop’s craving to know more about the woman next door could prove fatal in the steamy new novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster”

As the person responsible for taking down a brutal human trafficker, Alice Appleton fears retaliation at every turn. No one knows about her past, which is exactly how she prefers it…until the sexy cop next door comes knocking.

Detective Reese Bareden thinks he knows what makes women tick, but his ever-elusive neighbor keeps him guessing like no other. Is his goal to unmask Alice’s secrets? Or protect her from a dangerous new threat? One thing is certain: their chemistry is a time bomb waiting to explode. And with no one to trust but each other, Reese and Alice are soon drawn into a deadly maze of corruption, intrigue and desire-and into the line of fire…

Purchase Info:
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Book Depository US | Book Depository (UK)

About the Author:

Since first publishing in January 1996, Lori Foster has become a Waldenbooks, Borders, USA Today, Publisher’s Weekly and New York Times bestselling author of over 70 novellas and novels. She currently writes single titles for HQN.

Lori believes it’s important to give back to the community as much as possible, and for that reason she ran special contests in conjunction with a publisher, facilitating many first sales for new authors. She routinely organizes events among authors and readers to gather donations for various organizations.

Where to find Lori:
Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~*~*Giveaway*~*~

Mediamuscle has generously offered one paperback copy of Bare it All to one lucky US/Can commenter and we are giving away another paperback copy open to all!

All you have to do is leave a meaningful comment about the post.
(You can read our full giveaway policy here)

Please be sure to include a valid email address in the comment form (need not be in the actual body of the comment).

Giveaway ends on Saturday, May 18th, 2012; we will announce the winner on Sunday.

Good luck!!!!

About Anna

Anna is a psychologist from Greece.You can almost always find her with a book stuck under her nose,so it's no wonder that all her friends make a joke of her.Apart from reading she dreams of the day she'll be able to travel around the world!Anna also blogs at Books to Brighten your Mood.

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