The McQuaid family saga continues as FALLING FOR THE COWGIRL releases on audio!

cowboy4-WPFeature-300x224Colorado Territory.  June 1869.  A young woman disguised as a man.  A bounty hunter hiding his identity.  A dangerous war criminal pretending to be one of South Park’s own.  A love that will no longer be denied.  This ain’t no ordinary rodeo, folks – this is Colorado Cowboys, Book Four.  So excited to celebrate the audiobook release of Falling For The Cowgirl written by Jody Hedlund and published by Tantor Audio!

This fourth installment in the McQuaid family saga was so much fun to narrate!  I have adored the character of Ivy McQuaid since we first met her in book one,  and Falling For The Cowgirl centers squarely on the romance between Ivy McQuaid and Jericho Bliss, a romance that has been steadily gaining speed until it can no longer be contained.

Ivy McQuaid is no ordinary heroine … she’s a tomboy through and through, peppered with a whole lot of sass, and known as foolish, and impulsive and wild.  Paired with handsome, no-nonsense Jericho Bliss, a cowhand turned bounty hunter, sparks fly whenever these two get around each other.

Book four opens with Ivy, now almost nineteen, disguised as a man, in the middle of a cowhand competition – or what would be known today, as a rodeo. The problem is, it’s 1869 and women are not allowed to participate in this type of competition.  Never one to let a little detail like this stop her, Ivy disguises herself as a young school teacher, under the alias of Buster Bliss.  So far so good. This plan is working great.  That is … it was – until she spots her childhood infatuation, Jericho Bliss, at the competition.  Holy Saint Peter.  Ivy hasn’t seen Jericho for almost two years, not since he left town and took her heart with him … again.

Meanwhile, Jericho is also pretending to be someone he’s not.  Currently undercover as a bounty hunter, he’s tracking a dangerous war criminal, whom he suspects is hiding in South Park.  Things heat up a might when Jericho and Ivy’s eyes meet after she almost plunges to her death in a Roman-style riding competition!  Realizing he’s recognized her, and unable to take the risk of Jericho blowing her cover, Ivy quickly exits stage left, grabs her horse and hightails it out of there, hoping to escape a meeting with Jericho.  There is never any escaping, where Jericho is concerned, however … probably why he’s such a great bounty hunter!  He’s fuming at what almost happened to Ivy and chases after her with the intent of giving her a piece of his mind for putting herself in such danger.  But that’s the funny thing about the mind … it can quickly be overtaken by the heart.  And this love – a love that has been vehemently denied by both parties for years – well … it might finally, and ultimately, have its way …

Falling For The Cowgirl is now available on audio at Audible and Amazon.

Brody is back! Book Three – Colorado Cowboys: To Tame A Cowboy – Releases on Audio

cowboy3-WPFeature-300x224Front Range, Colorado Territory.  May 1867.  A run-away bride. A soldier returning from war.  A woman who dreams of being a veterinarian.  A man who kept his life, but lost his soul.  One brother’s plea, another brother lost.  Fists wanting to fly.  Bullets begging to bite.  Memories wrapped in darkness.  Love beckoning in the light.  Wild horses straining to be free.  Giddyap. This is book three … and Brody is back.

Happy release day to Book Three – Colorado Cowboys: To Tame A Cowboy, written by Jody Hedlund, and available now from Tantor Audio!  In a rich world full of heart, grit and soul, the opportunity to voice this incredibly special cast of characters, in this beautiful book, was not only so much fun, but truly such an honor.

So let’s recap, shall we?  When we first met Brody McQuaid, it was briefly – at the end of Book One: A Cowboy For Keeps.  The year was 1862 and Brody had just turned eighteen and had been itching to join the Union army, so that he could help in the war efforts.  Despite the animosity between Wyatt and Flynn,  Flynn reluctantly decides that if moving west would save Brody, and prevent him from enlisting, then no matter what his estrangement with Wyatt was, he’d do it.  Unfortunately the move west comes a little too late, and at the top of Book Two: The Heart Of A Cowboy, we learn that even the best laid plans … can sometimes go awry.  The night before the McQuaid family is set to head west,  Brody sneaks off in the middle of the night to enlist.  We don’t see him again until eighteen months later, at the end of Book Two.  The chapter opens in a federal hospital in Philadelphia.  Brody has been wounded and is unrecognizable, having become a mere shell of the man he once was. Emaciated.  A heap of skin and bones.  His humanity, all but gone.  If it weren’t for the tiny hand of his infant niece, Flora, reaching out to him and holding on to him tight, he would have just allowed himself to slip further into the abyss that wouldn’t stop calling to him.  The next time we see Brody, in Book Three: To Tame A Cowboy, we learn that while he has healed physically, he might never heal emotionally.  Brody has tried to take his life, he is full of haunted memories and remorse.  Guilt and anger fuel his days – and now he lets his fists do all his talking.  Only two things keep him going – his love for his niece, and the love and companionship that he feels for the untamed wild horses that are currently being hunted on the land.  He longs to set them free, just as much as he longs to be free himself …

To Tame A Cowboy  sets the stage for this gripping historical romance, by opening on the night before Savannah Marshall’s fancy wedding.  Where, instead of pre-wedding bliss, the bride-to-be is feeling more and more like a corralled mustang by the minute.  Savannah has wanted her whole life to be a veterinarian, and to one day have her own practice.  If she agrees to this marriage of convenience that her father is pushing for, she knows that her days as a veterinarian are as good as numbered.  She just needs time to think . . . but the clock is ticking.   If she is going to flee – it needs to be now!  In the darkness of predawn, Savannah makes a life altering decision.  Pushing down her guilt, and hiding her traveling clothes and pack, she saddles up and rides out into the high country, while everyone on the plantation sleeps.  While she might not have all of this figured out quite yet, one thing she’s sure of, is that she can’t give up on the only thing she has ever wanted to do – heal and care for animals.  As she leads her horse out into the chill of the morning, she has no idea that a whole new life is about to open up to her.  One that not only includes the animals, she so desperately wants to help, but also perhaps, an untamed cowboy … who could surely use a whole lot of love and care, as well.

To Tame A Cowboy is now available at Audible or Amazon.

Jody Hedlund’s A COWBOY FOR KEEPS Releases in Print & on Audio!

Colorado Territory. August 1862. Horses. Romance. A Stagecoach Robbery. A Mail-Order Bride. A Handsome Cowboy. Whoa.

I couldn’t be more excited to celebrate the print and audiobook release of Jody Hedlund’s new book – A Cowboy For Keeps: Colorado Cowboys, Book 1.

Already a fan of Hedlund’s wonderful writing, it was such an incredible joy and honor to narrate A Cowboy For Keeps, published by the amazing team at Tantor Audio

A Cowboy For Keeps begins with a bang . . .  pun intended! We dive in from the get-go with a stagecoach robbery in progress, where we are introduced to the beautiful and strong-willed heroine, Greta Nilsson, who is traveling to Colorado as a mail-order bride.  Greta did not become a mail-order bride on a whim. This wasn’t a romantic notion. She has thought long and hard about this, has saved and planned. Greta’s eight year old sister, Astrid, suffers from consumption, and it was thought, during this time in history, that wide open spaces in the country could offer relief, and possibly extend the lives, of those who were struck with this illness. The only way Greta can think of, to help Astrid, is to offer herself as a mail-order bride to a wealthy man, who could provide for her and Astrid. However, things do not go as planned. At the hands of bandits, Greta loses every penny of her savings, only to then discover, that the man she’s come west to marry . . . is dead.  Jobless, penniless, with an ill sister, and knowing no one, Greta has to make a decision and quickly.

Enter Wyatt McQuaid. A handsome cowboy.  Wyatt wants to start a cattle ranch but he doesn’t have the money needed to get the ranch up and running.  The mayor, who has promised to help Greta, offers Wyatt the most unlikely of bargains. He will invest in the cattle Wyatt needs for his ranch. . . on one condition – that Wyatt help the town become more respectable, by getting married. And the mayor just happens to have the perfect bride in mind . . .

A Cowboy for Keeps is now available at Audible or on Amazon.

Searching For You – Releases Today!

SearchingForYou_book3

Excited to celebrate the release of Searching For You, Orphan Train Book 3 written by Jody Hedlund and published by Tantor Media.

Narrating this beautiful, poignant series has been such a joy, highlight and honor!

Hedlund is a wonderful writer who creates a world filled with much heart, soul and a wide-array of rich, multi-faceted characters that I had so much fun bringing to life.

Also, check out With You Always (Book 1), Together Forever (Book 2) and the prequel novella, An Awakened Heart (published by Two Words Publishing) for more!

Searching For You and the complete Orphan Train Series is now available on Audible and at Amazon.com.

New Play – THREE ELIZABETHS – on stage in early 2019!

So it begins. Great first rehearsal today of new play THREE ELIZABETHS written & directed by Tony nominated director and choreographer, Tony Tanner.

I couldn’t be more excited to be playing Queen Elizabeth I, alongside an incredible cast! The premise of this piece is so unique – Elizabeth the First, in three different stages of her life. Three different actresses on stage at the same time – Elizabeth the Younger, Elizabeth the Queen, Elizabeth the Dowager. Figures from their past re-emerge and interact with them.

We did a staged reading of this play a little while ago, receiving a wonderful response, that has now prompted a full production.

Stay tuned for performance details coming in early 2019!

Prairie Winds Trilogy – Now Available on Audio!

PrairieWinds-3-1000x391Excited to share that the PRAIRIE WINDS Trilogy is now available on audio!  Written by Stephanie Grace Whitson and published by the wonderful team at Tantor Media, this historical romance series was an absolute joy and honor to narrate.  Whitson is an exceptional writer who creates a world full of heart, grit and soul along with a wide array of rich, complex characters that I had the immense pleasure of bringing to life.  I especially treasured learning about the language, customs and beautiful ways of the Lakota Sioux.

Walks the Fire (Book 1), Soaring Eagle (Book 2) and Red Bird (Book 3) are now available on Audible and Amazon.com.