A Peek Through Author Mariah Lynne's Window

Who: I am optimistic, a trait I share with my heroines no matter how tough the times, strong willed like my heroines to the point of never giving up, and love animals especially dogs. My heroines each have a pet whether a cat or a dog. I was born in New Jersey to two very loving and wonderful parents. My father, an Italian immigrant, taught Latin and Italian at a small local college. He left to start his own business, an independent print shop. My mother loved to help people and volunteered at our church and with charitable groups. She was a talented lace maker and loved to crochet and knit; her father, also from Italy, was a custom furrier and tailor for some of the most affluent residents of our community. Unfortunately I didn’t inherit those wonderful talents since I am barely able to sew on a button.  As for my father’s ability to read, speak, and write foreign languages, that went by the wayside as well. But one trait I did inherit from my father was his love of a good story and he often told me stories about his childhood. I remember one that especially aroused my curiosity. He said that growing up in Naples, his family was divided by their economic status - rich or poor. His immediate family was not rich and those that were wanted nothing to do with them. He went on to tell me that his family was related to the Prince of Naples who became the last King of Italy. I always wanted to trace my family history to see if that was true. I have no reason to doubt him but it would be fun to verify and would make good fodder for a story … maybe a royal romance? 
Interests: I love to travel whether in the U.S. to our amazing national parks or abroad. I walked on The Great Wall of China, visited the pyramids, went to a pachinko parlor in Tokyo, saw the giant statues on Easter Island, and traveled the ring road in Iceland to name a few. Of course Italy has always been included in my travel plans and found my father’s church in Naples. Two years ago, we traced my husband’s heritage visiting Armenia. Having owned a video store on our island for twenty years, I love movies. I watch them at home now and try to find ones I haven’t seen which at times can be a little tough. 
Network:  My husband is my best cheerleader and support to talk over my creative dilemmas as are my friends in my local RWA chapter.
Desk:  Eclectic. I guess you can say it’s like me. My desk is very small and built into the wall in our family room near the lanai door to the pool. It’s usually a mess with notebooks filled with future writing plans, calendar reminders, and books on writing stacked to one side. But I also keep fun stuff like colorful Mardi Gras beads I caught in the parade hanging from my bulletin board, a framed hand carved book mark made from very thin wood with “AUTHOR” inscribed on it along with the caricature of a god that my husband bought for me in Indonesia, a Troll from the movie of the same name, and a photo of my husband and dog Max. On the wall over my desk is a large water color of a manatee swimming beneath the water. It was done by one of our local island artists. 
Outrageous talent: This was a tough one for me since I couldn’t think of one so I had to ask my husband what he thought. It took him mere seconds to respond. He looked straight at me and smiled. “You are a people magnet. We could be standing in a crowd of thirty people and anyone looking for conversation or to get advice about a current life problem always seeks you out.” I thought about that and remembered that when I had my video store (when video and DVD’s were popular) that happened all the time. It happened so much I stopped asking “How are you?” It was hard to take a lot of time away from other customers so I asked what kind of movie they were looking for instead. I do genuinely care about people and my husband says that sincere empathy seeps onto my face whether in the grocery store or after meeting someone for the first time. I have listened to many interesting stories about romance, divorce, moving, and other life dilemmas. Some of the happier ones, I have stored in my mind. After changing the names, locations, and time line of the story teller, I have integrated many as backstories in my novels. 
Window: I consider myself very fortunate to have such a beautiful view. There are many days I’d rather look out my window than watch TV. We live on a Gulf Coast island in Southwest Florida. My window faces a sleepy lagoon that flows off the Back Bay where dolphin frolic and manatees swim. Never mind all the gorgeous birds! I watch anhingas dive for fish while the pelicans dive bomb after them, and the osprey or sea eagles circle and fly down to grab an unsuspecting fish. Ibises, blue herons, white egrets walk across my back yard while in winter we have vacationing Blue Jays and cardinals. There are owls at night, hummingbirds, and majestic eagles. Mangroves fill the other side of the lagoon while the flowering bushes like hibiscus and oleander in our yard add bright colors to my view.

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It’s the Holidays and Jessica Munroe seems destined for misery. Nonetheless she is trying to make the best of it. Her fiancé Jake, an emergency room doctor, dumped her for his nurse and just two weeks prior, she had to put her dog, her best friend, Mazy to sleep.
The pain of losing both the man she loved and her best friend has taken her to a new low. Jessica, determined not to stay down, is now hard at work trying to push through the holiday season by doubling up on Christmas lights and decorations she’s putting up outside her residence.
As Jessica works, a big brown scruffy dog appears in her yard and refuses to leave when she tries to shoo him away. He’s filthy, looks hungry, and seems like he needs help. A dog lover, Jessica takes him to her vet who discovers a metal bone shaped tag buried in his matted fur. The tag reveals his name, Sam, and a phone number to call if he is lost or injured.
Sam’s owner Trey Musgrove is in the hospital the victim of a head-on collision. Now Jessica’s life is about to change forever thanks to Sam, this big brown scruffy lovable dog.
Side effects of reading PAWS FOR CHRISTMAS are a happy heart, an uplifted spirit, new confidence in the future, and a smile on your face!
Excerpt:
 I arrived at Healthwell, picked up my pre-arranged
visitor’s badge, and headed directly to the sixth floor. I was so
curious about him I couldn’t get there fast enough. Starra was
on duty at the nurse’s station. Her face lit up like the shooting
stars that influenced her name when she saw me. She called
out, “Jess, please hurry. I told Trey you were coming. He’s
anxious to meet you. Please follow me.”
Starra walked briskly. I followed her pace into his room.
Since I studied that photo online so many times, I felt like I
already knew him. My heart pounded when I noticed the
curtain surrounding his hospital bed was half closed. Starra
walked us around to where he could see us, and we could see
him before introducing me.
“Trey Musgrove, this is Jessica Munroe. She’s the young
woman who sent you the note about Sam.”
Trey’s gaze was turned away from me as he drank water
from a straw held by another nurse. When he turned to face
me, his blue eyes took mine hostage. My body trembled from
his stare. It was as if we had known each other for a long
time. He looked a bit paler and thinner than in that photo but
still incredibly handsome. There should be a law against being
that handsome. His kind blue eyes looked tired and he
appeared weak like Jake said because he might have
“atrophied muscles.”
I remained quiet to let him speak first. He looked at me,
well, really stared at me. I wondered if my holiday outfit was
over the top. He spoke as I held up my holiday cookie bag.
“Jessica, I appreciate your visit and for taking such good
care of my Sam. I can’t tell you how relieved I felt after
reading your note since I feared the worst after no one found
him near the accident scene. I can tell by looking at you that he’s a very lucky dog.”

Amazon Books & Audiobooks
https://www.amazon.com/Mariah-Lynne/e/B00AYH099G?ref_=dbs_p_ebk_r00_abau_000000
Apple Books & Audiobooks
https://books.apple.com/us/author/mariah-lynne/id543077728
Rakuten-Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=Mariah+Lynne
Mariah Lynne Website
http;//www.MariahLynne.com
Twitter @MariahLynne1
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