Always happy to host an England fan!
Hello and thank you for visiting my author page! I’m a USA Today bestselling author of clean and wholesome books: contemporary romance, romantic comedy, romantic suspense and inspirational romance–plus historical suspense and cozy mystery. I’ve had a passion for books since the second grade when I discovered Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I wrote my first book, a mystery, at age thirteen and have been writing ever since. To try a sample of my writing, you can read the first chapters of all my books on my blog at https://deniseannette.blogspot.com
Visit England and Paris as I did for my anniversary!
Hello! I’m Denise Devine and I’m a USA Today bestselling author of sweet romance. I also write historical suspense and cozy mystery. I’ve had a passion for books since the second grade when I discovered Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I wrote my first book, a mystery, at age thirteen and have been writing ever since.
I’ve written sixteen books, including books in the Beach Brides Series, The Perfect Match Series, and the Hawaiian Holiday Series. Besides the USA Today list, my books have hit the Top 100 Bestseller list on Amazon and I’ve been listed on Amazon’s Top 100 Authors. My favorite season for romance is Christmas. I’m a Hallmark junkie and have already started watching the new Christmas movies for this year.
What’s next for me? I’m working on a small town series. Growing up, I lived in small towns in northern Minnesota (my husband did, too) so I know that environment well. I also want to write three middle-grade horse stories for my granddaughter who is nine years old. I know—I’d better get going before she grows up!
My husband is a travel agent, so I have been all over the world on tours and cruises. I love so many of the places I’ve visited. Steve and I watch British mysteries on PBS and often talk about going back to England and Scotland. As you might expect, however, I haven’t done any traveling in 2020 (sniff, sniff).
So far, I’ve been to England twice. The first time, coincidentally, William and Kate got married the same weekend I arrived. We’d booked our trip long before they announced the wedding. Oddly enough, the same thing happened the second time I went! Harry and Meghan were married on the weekend I arrived. So, both times, the country was absolutely buzzing with the media and visitors. Despite all of the hoopla, we managed to book a couple of really fun tours.
The second trip to England was to celebrate our 40th anniversary and it began with a transatlantic cruise from Miami to Southhampton, England, stopping at Portugal, Spain, and spending a day in Paris. Once we docked in Southhampton, we had a couple of days to explore a few places on our own before we caught a tour to Scotland.
Highclere Castle
I’ve watched every episode of Downton Abbey and I knew that if I ever made it back to England again, I’d see the place where the Crawleys lived. The building was huge, but once inside, it didn’t seem as massive as it looked on television. It was beautiful, though and I’ll never forget walking through the wide hallways, reliving the series in my mind.
Behind the castle, one of the buildings has been turned into a tea house and gift shop. I had tea then shopped for souvenirs.
Stonehenge
I have always been fascinated by this place! I thought it was out in the middle of nowhere, and it was once upon a time, but now there is a huge roadway next to the field where it’s located. The bus took us down a gravel road to the visitor center, and from there we boarded another small bus to get to the monument. This place was awesome! We were given an audio guide and a map and allowed to explore the area on our own. As you can see by the picture, these stones are massive and it was sunny, but a very windy day.
On our way back we stopped in Bath and I went on a tour of the Jane Austen House. Then—of course—I had tea upstairs in the Regency tearoom. A girl can never have too much tea—especially in England! Upon leaving, I got my picture taken with the doorman, an interesting character!
The Louvre
It was my mother’s dream to see the Louvre. She was an artist and loved to paint portraits of famous people. (I have a huge picture of Magnum, PI hanging on my office wall). She loved visiting the Louvre and talked about it a lot before she died, so I was determined to one day visit this place. I was blown away by all of the fabulous artwork! I did get into the Mona Lisa exhibit and a nice woman took a couple of great pictures of me standing to the side of it. (It was roped off so you couldn’t get too close.) However, that picture is on my camera and the camera needs to be charged before I can pull it off, so….here is a picture of me by the Venus de Milo instead. It was as majestic as I expected it to be but much larger than I thought it was. (At least she had her clothes on. The statue of David in Rome is totally naked! Maybe I should have posted that one, eh? Sorry, it’s on that camera that needs a charge. LOL)
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Denise brings with her a fantastic Christmas Anthilogy: Merry & Bright – A Sweet Collection of Christmas Romance Stories released in October in the Holiday fiction, romance collection.
It’s the happiest season of all… With snowflakes dancing in the air, and the ring of carols everywhere, Christmas holds a special place in our hearts, our favorite time of the year. Set in the Midwest, this sweet collection of “Happily Ever After” Christmas stories are sure to brighten your day and lift your spirits. Enjoy them all year!
A Merry Little Christmas – Merry Connor and Anthony Lewis search for treasure and find love along the way.
A Christmas to Remember – Stranded together in a blizzard, Katie and Ryan discover the true meaning of Christmas.
Once Upon a Christmas – When old friends unite, will a new enemy keep them apart?
So This is Christmas – He’s her childhood nemesis; is it possible to become best friends forever?
From “Merry Little Christmas”.
Tony shoved back his chair and jumped to his feet. “Merry, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”
His words echoed through an empty room. She’d already fled the kitchen, her long blonde hair flowing behind her as she left him standing alone. He stared at the doorway she’d disappeared through, mulling over her outburst.
Either she is one talented actress or her anger is real.
His instincts were leaning toward the second point. He didn’t know where Neal had obtained his information, but his brother-in-law had Merry Connor all wrong. For someone who supposedly conspired with her husband, guarding the stolen goods until he got out of prison, she certainly didn’t act like it. Her flushed cheeks, rigid stance, and trembling voice appeared to be genuine. Her story, if true, must have been a nightmare to endure.
How could Aidan Connor do that to her? Why would he deliberately sabotage the future of his own children and his wife?
They’d covered everything he wanted to discuss, including the subject of Merry’s credit. Her business call sounded urgent, so he decided to take his leave. He cast a cursory look around her kitchen once more then headed for the front closet to retrieve his jacket. The sparse furnishings were secondhand. The entire house looked mismatched, as though Merry had decorated with garage sale bargains. The woman didn’t own a single item of value as far as he could tell—not even a decent television. She definitely didn’t live like a woman who had at least a million bucks stashed away.
Cody came bouncing down the stairs, meeting him at the front door. “Who called?”
“Who called?” Lily repeated as she followed behind her brother, crashing into his back on the bottom step. “Are Grandma and Grandpa coming over?”
“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask your mom about that.” Tony smiled to himself. These kids were quite a handful, but at the same time, they made an endearing pair. He wondered, wistfully, if his own son would exude as much energy if he were alive.
“I’m hungry,” Cody said and rubbed his stomach. “I wish we were having pizza for supper.”
Lily pushed past her brother. “Tony, are you eating at our house tonight?”
“No, I’m afraid not.” He pulled his jacket from the closet and slipped it on. The lonely, faraway expression on Cody’s face made him pause. Fate had dealt the boy a raw deal, losing his father the way he did. Every boy needed a man’s influence, someone to teach him values, and guide him through the bumps and bruises of life. “Maybe some other time,” he said slowly, wondering why guilt pressed on his heart from all sides.
He headed back to the kitchen to retrieve his folder, passing Merry in the dining room. She sat at the table, still talking with someone on the phone. He waved at her, politely letting her know he would let himself out.
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Want to know more about Denise?
Website: https://www.deniseannettedevine.com
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/denisedevine
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deniseannettedevine
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author_denise_devine/
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Happily Ever After Stories – Sweet Romance – my sweet romance group!
MacKade ~ V.V. Strange 