Fiona McGier, EroticRomance Author

 How do you develop a character who is different
in personality from all the other characters you have developed, or from yourself?

Wow, this is a tough one!  I consider myself to be somewhat of an alpha female--I'm independent, bossy, and make things go my way whenever possible.  I usually write kick-ass heroines, who take no prisoners, and run their lives their way. 

But in a couple of my books, I've created heroines who aren't like me at all.  Both of these heroines are in books now under contract, so they're not available yet. 

One book has already been through 3 rounds of editing, including the galleys, and it has a publishing date of September 4th.  The second book in my werewolf series is Worth the Wait.  I don't have a cover for it yet.  The first book, When a Wolf Howls, had the story of two romances in it--one was a WW/HM romance, and the other involves two Black men, one of whom is the heroine's best friend since grade school.  The sequel continues both of those romances, as well as adds another two romances.  Both of the new romances involve Black women and White men.  The last romance to be introduced involves a Black woman who is a famous star who writes and performs pop songs that please her multitudes of pre-teen and tween girl fans.  But her deep, dark secret is that since she was a young teenager, she's heard a voice in her head.  Her wealthy parents took her to the very best psychologists, and she was diagnosed as schizophrenic.  She's been taking massive doses of psychotropic drugs for many years, to keep the voice quiet. Her parents signed her first contract with a manager recommended to them as one of the best.  But he's a control freak, so since then, she's never had any say in how to live her life.  Imagine how shocked she's going to be, to discover that the voice she's been ignoring for half of her life, is her wolf--because she's a werewolf! To say she'll have trouble accepting the truth is an understatement! And she'll take charge of her life for the first time!

The other heroine totally unlike me is in a book that will be called The Right Choice. Pamela is a bi-racial woman who has never felt that she got enough attention from her high-powered lawyer Black father, or her social-climbing White mother.  Her older brother thinks everything is fine.  But starting when she was a young child, she'd often run away from home, determined to find her real parents--the ones who would have time to play with her, and make her feel important.  In her senior year of high school, she meets a guy who finds her as attractive, as she finds him.  But he's from a blue-collar family. So even though their relationship gives them both what they need, her parents insist that she stop dating him.  When she goes away to college, she breaks up with him.  But she misses him so much that she sneaks back home often, to get what she needs from the only man who can satisfy her.  Even when she graduates from college with her veterinarian degree, she needs her parents' financial help to open her practice.  When the guy forces her to choose between him and her parents, because he's tired of being her secret love, she makes the wrong choice.  Then her mother becomes a matchmaker, and finds her an up and coming lawyer to date.  Eventually she accepts his proposal.  But on their wedding day, he demonstrates to her that he'll be just like her parents, and ignore her needs for his own.  Will she learn to make the right choice--finally?

I don't think I've ever let anyone boss me around like either of these two characters.  It was difficult for me to live in their heads,  I hope you'll enjoy reading the books, and let me know if I succeeded in making them believable.

To find out what other authors have to say on this subject, check out:
Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Anne Stenhouse  http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com/
Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
Marci Baun  http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/
Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Dr. Bob Rich https://wp.me/p3Xihq-1Y4
Helena Fairfax http://www.helenafairfax.com/blog
Beverley Bateman http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Rhobin L Courtright http://www.rhobincourtright.com

 Still on sale for only $1.50 through July 31st!
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In this third installment of the constantly sexy and full-of-surprises Minnesota Romance Series, Ms. McGier takes us into the world of international intrigue with retired spy Stella Taylor. Stella is on the run from mysterious assailants when she gets a call from her estranged daughter, famous actress Kelly Ann Sheridan. Kelly invites her to spend a few weeks at a resort outside Grand Marais - a place that might just be remote enough for Stella to relax for a minute while giving her a chance to reconnect with Kelly. Little does Stella know, the resort also happens to be owned by a sexy Russian bear of a man named Ivan who will change her life forever...

As with Ms. McGier's other Minnesota books, I was drawn in immediately by the story, which begins with a bang from page one, but I fell in love with this book for the characters. It's hard to describe how much I love Stella and Ivan, both individually and as a couple. Their romance is deliberate, deep, and sexy, with a twist from their past that brought tears to my eyes the first time I read it. As usual, Ms. McGier takes the time she needs to develop the characters and their feelings for one another, which makes for a deep, rewarding story - and sex scenes as meaningful as they are explosive!

In addition to the romance, Ms. McGier delivers an equally heartfelt story of Stella mending her relationship with Kelly. It's rewarding to see them reconnect, especially as more backstory comes through, but it's also just sheer joy to hang out with the two of them since their banter is so funny and they are both so damn charming and likeable.

This book is an erotic romance and a spy thriller, with characters you want to laugh and cry and hang out with. It's suspenseful, funny, charming, heartfelt, thoughtful, and sexy as hell. Read it! This series is awesome.
Alec Owen reviewed on July 7, 2020
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HER LAST RESORT is the third book in the MINNESOTA ROMANCE series and I'm glad there will be more books. The story held my interest from the first page to the last. I like that there are a few characters we've met before and the wonderful backdrop of the resort and Lake Superior all set in Minnesota. Stella's actress daughter, Kelly, invites her mom to Ivan's resort to spend two weeks vacationing together. They haven't had a relationship due to Stella's career choice, her travels and her divorce from Kelly's dad and his remarriage. Kelly's brother, David, wants nothing to do with his mom which was heartbreaking.
Ivan and Stella have a connection from their pasts without realizing it. They are both in their 50's and he's ex-KGB and she's ex-CIA. They both have a depth to them and I liked getting to know them a little at a time. There were so many layers to each of them. The resort and the cabins were front and center and I loved how Stella and Ivan's attraction was portrayed. When they acted on it it was tastefully done with a lot of loving as if they had to make up for lost time. Stella's past is haunting her and while Ivan wants to protect her and shield her she feels she has to settle things on her own especially since somebody's targeting her and wants her dead.
Kelly isn't always on board with her mother's choices but realizes she can't interfere. I liked how their relationship was being built and how they showed their love for each other. There are twists and turns to the story and a happily ever after in the offing. There was nice closure with some loose ends to hopefully bring us to the next book in the series, NO MORE SECRETS. I liked the addition of Ivan's family and dogs in the story as well as people that Kelly knows from Los Angeles. Ms. McGier is a fairly new to me author whose books I am enjoying. I look forward to reading more of her books.
JoAnne on Smashwords and Goodreads
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It's not often that a romance novel starts off with the female lead killing somebody. It's just another day at the office for CIA spy Stella Taylor ... except it shouldn't be, because Stella is retired after thirty years, and there's no reason for her to be targeted by a series of frankly amateur assassins. She flees yet again, this time ending up at a Lake Superior-area Minnesota resort with her movie star daughter and the resort's owner, a hunky Russian who's moved permanently from one cold place to another.
Could the Russian guy also be a spy ...? Nah--what are the chances?
In Her Last Resort, by Fiona McGier, Stella has more than one reason to escape to the lake region: not only to avoid assassins, but to try to make up for the time she spent separated from her daughter--because of being an assassin. It's only after she arrives that sparks fly with the resort owner, Ivan. But boy, are those sparks sparky: Her Last Resort is definitely an adults only read.
Kudos to McGier for putting her lovers well into their fifties, although they're way more fit than I am! She obviously loves this area of Minnesota and knows her setting, and we get to know Stella and the surrounding characters well as Stella sets about wooing the willing Ivan, making things right with her daughter, and--oh, yeah--finding out who's sending killers after her. Although I knew this was the third in a series, I'd forgotten by the time I actually started reading, and didn't notice any holes--so this can be read as a standalone, or as part of the series.

If you like your romances with a heaping spoonful of action, both in and out of the sack, this one's for you. (Come to think of it, a lot of the sex is out of the sack, too.)
Author Mark Hunter on Smashwords
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Old Spies Never Die…Of Natural Causes!
The work of a senior spy working for the CIA can wear at both the body and the soul. And then, just when you’d done your service to God and Country and think you can retire, you find somebody from your old spy days Is out to kill you. When Stella, a senior CIA spy who has fulfilled her long contract to her country’s top spy agency, realizes that somebody is hiring a bunch of killers to come after her with knives, guns and poison, she has to rely on her training and ingenuity to respond with deadly force. And, being very good at her profession, her enemies find her to be, as they say ‘a most difficult snuff’.
 
Author Fiona McGier’s new spy-and-sex novel HER LAST RESORT is filled with unexpected deadly threats and unexpected hot sex from – of all things – a retired KGB agent! There are plenty of unexpected twists and turns as McGier’s tough-as-nails-but-with-a-heart-of-gold heroine has to fight her way to the CIA Headquarters in DC, only to come face-to-face with an unexpected enemy. And readers will experience plenty of exciting moments under the sheets with agent Stella and her Russian ally and lover.
Five stars for this combination James Bond and hot romance spy thriller!
Author John Klawitter on Smashwords

 Still on sale for only $1.50 through July 31st!
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I almost don't even know what to say about this book, other than you should read it right now if you're a fan of erotica or erotic romance. It is quite simply electric, and maybe the most fun you will have reading a book this year. This is the second book in Ms. McGier's Minnesota Romances series - it uses the setting of the first book as a jumping off point, but things diverge quickly from there. Raul and Veronica's story in the first book was beautiful, heartfelt, and relatively straightforward - Alex and Dmitri's story is heartfelt, but it is anything but straightforward. Alex is a sex maniac, hard-drinking biker queen who also happens to be a high-powered executive, and Dmitri is a supremely confident, mysterious Russian stranger who initially seeks her out to 'teach her a lesson' as a favor to a friend. The sparks fly from their explosive first encounter, and things just keep ramping up from there as they get more and more hooked on one another. She doesn't believe one man can ever satisfy her, and he knows he can be everything she needs. Dmitri never tries to change her to get his way, he simply demonstrates to her what he knows to be true in some of the hottest sex scenes I've read, and with such confidence that I had to laugh out loud more than once at his sheer balls. Their relationship is a loud, chaotic, incredibly sexy thrill ride that will keep you turning 'just one more page' way into the night. And as if that was not enough, the pace of the second half is dialed up even more as someone starts coming after Alex's gang, leading to some surprisingly tense and emotional scenes that draw you even further into the story. Ms. McGier's Minnesota Romance series continues to be just amazing with this incredibly spicy second chapter. I can't wait to see what's next!
Alec Owen reviewed on July 19, 2020
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ONLY ONE MAN WILL DO was a quick and fast paced read. It held my interest from the beginning even though I'm not usually a fan of such steamy books since they take me out of my comfort zone. This book drew me in since there was a story being told and the sex enhanced the storytelling. The main characters had a depth to them and it was interesting to get to know them a little at a time. There were multiple story lines especially since Alexandra is both a business woman, she heads the family company, and a biker queen who has her own gang. The gang is definitely a kinky group that look to her as their leader and there are a couple of sweethearts thrown in.

When a Russian goes to her office to give her a message neither one is ready for the heat they generate. From there things get even hotter since they are both alpha types. Due to her upbringing she only needs a man to fill her needs - or so she thinks. He wants to be the last man she'll ever need. How will that work between them since they both have such strong personalities? There's a little bit of a mystery thrown in that was fairly easy to solve. There's definitely romance, lots of drinking, swearing, food, bike rides and more, crimes committed, injuries and death along with loving and ultimately love. There's a happily ever after and nice closure. I look forward to reading the next book in the series, HER LAST RESORT.

Ms. McGier takes me out of my comfort zone but when the story draws me in, I'm all in. I look forward to reading more of her books.

JoAnne's review on Goodreads
Jul 10, 2020
4 stars--really liked it

Today's topic: Character Names in Books that I Can’t Pronounce.  I usually come up with my own pronunciation when I read books with character names that are unfamiliar to me.  But in books that I write, I try to give the reader a sense of how it should be pronounced.

 The heroine of my werewolf saga, Saoirse McColl, has a hard-to-pronounce name indeed.  When I first read the name in a movie review, I was intrigued.  The reviewer said it was pronounced SIR-shah.  Of course that's not how it looks, but then I have a bestie who named her daughter Siobhan, and it's pronounced She-VAWN.  The first time I subbed for a student who had the same name, she was quite surprised that I knew how to say her name correctly.  I  said, "We Gaelic folks have to stick together."  Remember Sinead, the bald Irish singer?  Her name was pronounced She-NADE. 
So since my heroine is first-generation American of Irish descent, I thought it was a good choice for her name.  Since her middle name is Ann, some of her friends call her SAM.  It's hard to make a nickname out of her real name!

 The primary heroine of my vampire saga, Keesha, has a name that's not too difficult to pronounce.  But the secondary heroine is Chinese, and her name is Niu Ying.  Here is the note I supply for readers:
Readers please note: In this part of the story, a female is introduced as Niu Ying.  In the Chinese tradition, her family name is Niu, which is pronounced "Ne-ow."  Her given name is Ying, pronounced "Yeeng."

But there are very old vampires in the story, and their names may be daunting.  Apolinar and Casimiro have been lovers for centuries.  Their names are pretty straightforward.  But the Mayan names for their gods are problematic, since no one has spoken Mayan for many years.  Xaman-Ek is the name of the ancient Mayan vampire who resembles a mummy due to his age.  Ixtab is the name of a Mayan goddess. I guess any reader's idea of how to pronounce their names would be as good as mine.

To read what other authors have to say on this interesting subject, head to the sign up page and check them out: /www.longandshortreviews.com/miscellaneous-musings/wednesday-weekly-blogging-challenge-for-july-22-2020/

Still on sale for only $1.50      through July 31st!
************************************  This is the first book that I ever read by Fiona McGier - I bought it from the original publisher when it came out a few years ago, and it has held a special place in my library since. I loved it so much that I had to buy it again now that Ms. McGier is re-publishing her Minnesota romances herself. This is still hands down my favorite erotic romance novel that I have read. It combines all of the emotion of a very well-written romantic comedy with some truly intense and rewarding sex scenes, all the while telling the story of Raul's redemption as he finds not only love for the first time, but a home. And what a home! Ms. McGier's love for the setting of this book, Grand Marais, Minnesota, is palpable in every description, to the extent that the setting itself becomes a character, helping Raul along his journey to self-discovery and love. And all this is to say nothing of how much I love Veronica. It takes a truly special person to make a drugged-up booze hound Hollywood sex freak want to be a one-woman man, and she does it simply by being herself, a strong, independent, sexy, pie-making Nordic princess. Do yourself a favor, and read this book! You will laugh, you will cry, you will get super turned on. Once you're hooked, high five yourself because this is a series! Enjoy.
Alec Owen reviewed on June 28, 2020
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FOR THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE shows us the dark side of actors with drugs, alcohol and sex, but also how the love of a good woman - especially one not in the movie industry - can help turn that sordid life around and make it meaningful once again - or not.

McGier's FOR THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE has no holds barred in the telling of this story.  I didn't think I would like it at first in the way that Raul was introduced to us.  But slowly he grew on me as I saw him trying to find his real self and turn his life around to be better than he ever has been or thought he could be.  Veronica/Ronnie/Nica was almost too good to be true and Raul was the bad boy that she needed to tame.  The chemistry between him and Veronica was explosive but also sweet at times. Seeing Veronica's family interactions amongst the many different relatives and generations just showed Raul more of what he was missing.  He liked that he was accepted by the people of the town and felt a feeling of belonging. There is evil and good, real characters with ups and downs to their lives, setbacks and moving forward, family, friends and those that aren't but think they are, careers, an idyllic resort on a lake in Minnesota, Los Angeles with its good and bad side, happiness, sorrow, laughter, tears, evil, drugs, hot and steamy sex but also some that's crude, and ultimately romance and love.  There were many layers to each of the characters that were slowly revealed to us - both the good and the bad.  There is closure but a few more chapters would have been the ice cream or whipped cream on the pie since there is an anticipated happily ever after.  The epilogue was a nice touch and whet my appetite for more.

McGier is a new to me author and I look forward to reading the sequel to this book which is ONLY ONE MAN WILL DO and meeting up with the characters I met in book one. I will also be adding her other contemporary romance novels to my ever growing TBR pile!  On the author's website there are many pie recipes, some of which I will definitely be giving a try!
Romance Junkies Reviewer: Jo

****Grand Marais is the Charming Lake Superior Town of Your Dreams
Grand Marais is a charming little North Shore town with Lake Superior at its feet and the Superior National Forest at its back. Visit this snug harbor village for a fun few days of scenic hiking or mountain biking, tempting gallery browsing and even the chance for some hands-on crafts.

Outdoor Adventures

Mountain bikers can stop at the Superior National Forest ranger station at the edge of town or at the local bike shop for maps and directions to trails. There are numerous hiking trails, as well. In town, take the half-mile trek along rocky shoreline to Artists Point. Northeast of Grand Marais, a rugged, ascending trail (there's even a long staircase) in Judge C.R. Magney State Park leads to a series of waterfalls, and an easygoing, wheelchair-accessible path at Grand Portage State Park leads to spectacular views of the highest falls in Minnesota.
There are also several hiking trails, wilderness lakes for fishing and canoeing, campgrounds, and resorts along the Gunflint Trail, which heads into the Superior National Forest from Grand Marais. For a small town, Grand Marais serves up an array of good dining options, interesting shopping, and lots of places to stay in town or nearby, from lakeside cottages to upscale condos, familiar motels to cozy B&Bs.
For many visitors, Grand Marais also serves as an idyllic bookend for treks into Minnesota's legendary Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
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One way to find out more? Websites like these:
/northshorevisitor.com/locations/grand-marais-visitor-center/

/www.visitcookcounty.com/community/grand-marais/

 https://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g60837-Grand_Marais_Minnesota-Vacations.html
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Or you can read my 4 books set up in northern Minnesota, and feel like you're there, hanging out with interesting people,  falling in love along with the heroines and heroes of my stories! All 4 books on sale for 50% off($1.50 each) through the end of July! Buy them on the Smashwords site to get the sale price. Stock up on summer reading now!

For the Love of His Life--Click on the title to go to the page that gives an excerpt, some reviews, and buy links. 
Jeer at Raul Roderick, famous action movie star who doesn't suffer from his addictions to fame, cocaine, and loose women--he enjoys them! 
Suffer along with Veronica and her family, as they fulfill their promise to a cousin, Jared, to babysit his spoiled brat of a movie star until he can get up to Grand Marais with the film crew, to direct his most ambitious movie project.
Sigh along with Raul, as he starts to actually experience real feelings, being sober for the first time in his life. And feel his shock along with him, when he, who has had wild sex with groupies for years, realizes that he's never been in love before, because what he feels for Veronica is unlike anything he's ever felt before.
But can she ever trust someone who, as an actor, lies tor a living?

And if you enjoy baking  homemade pies, I have a page that gives my never-fail pie crust, along with the recipes for Veronica's pies, that Raul enjoys eating so much. http://www.fionamcgier.com/pies.html