Kacey Hammell's Sweetest Salvation

Today I'm here with Kacey Hammell to talk about her Contemporary Erotic Romance, Sweetest Salvation. And hold on to your panties, girls, this one's got Light Bondage.

Thanks so much for chatting with me today, Kacey! So, can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

I’m a Mom of three, wife, cattle farmer, school council volunteer, jane-of-all-trades kind of gal. I love to watch tv…my pvr never stops running, I read at least ten books a month and collect many things.

Do you have a day job as well?

No, I have been a stay-at-home Mom for eleven years now. I volunteer a lot at my kids’ schools, take care of things here on the farm while the men are out at their EDJs(Evil Day Jobs) *rolls eyes*, and watch over the new babies that are born often.

How did you choose the genre you write in?

I’ve been a huge fan of contemporary romances, romantic suspense stories for a long time. I feel most comfortable writing in these genres but have branched out a bit with a Ghost Paranormal, and added some light bondage to my stories when the characters lead me that way.

What sparked the idea for your novel?

Sweetest Salvation is based loosely on a true story. While I led Andy down a more sexually aggressive path, the real Andy was already nearly there before she was able to let go of some of her grief and despair.

What was the hardest part to write in the book?

Sweetest Salvation is by far the hardest book I’ve ever written…simply for the fact that it is very personal to me and the story itself is so heartbreaking. I used many tissues and spent many hours agonizing over this story.

If you could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Marilyn Monroe—she just fascinates me. I’d have loved the chance to sit and just talk to her. Hear her thoughts about things and how she stayed as strong as she could in difficult situations.

What was your life like before becoming an author?

I reviewed for many online companies, did freelance editing and such. Now solely concentrating on writing, I find ideas come faster (tho I wish I could type that fast!!) and my mind isn’t full of other people’s works.

What is your writing routine?

Depends on the day of the week. I write mainly during the weekdays since my kids are at school, and on the days when my husband is working a day shift. I used to love a lot of noise when I write but find that I can’t handle that any longer. I don’t know if it’s the Muse just wants more dominance or what but that has changed. But when I’m deeply hooked into a story, I’ll block everything out that I can and just type.

Do you ever experience writer’s block?

Yes, sometimes. When I’m in the middle of a book and things just stop flowing then I can’t get beyond the block. Most times I’ll just move onto another story and begin something new but at times, I just need to take about a week off and I can get back to it.

Do you work with an outline, or just write?

Depends on the complexity of the story that floats through my mind. If there are many intricate details –as in my romantic suspense titles with villains and a lot of characters – I find it best to get the minute details down before they are forgotten.

What are you working on now?

I have 3 WIPs on the go. Each contemporary, all different levels of heat and at the halfway point in each.

What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?

The last chapter. The summation of the journey is always one of the best parts for me. I love to finish a book smiling and knowing that the characters have found their way, and are happy.

How did you come up with the title?

Oh it was difficult with this book. I originally wanted “Learning to Live Again” but it didn’t really click. I played with three or four other titles, but nothing really hit me hard. Til I was talking with another author and we were brainstorming…I wanted Salvation, Hunter is that for Andy – they are to one another – and Sweetest just seemed to fit.  But there were about five other titles I’d considered. That part was just as hard as writing the story! *g*

Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?

A bit of both. My In the Arm of the Law series, there are nearly a dozen recurring characters, some I’ve bonded with a lot. They’ve been with me the longest. I keep working on each story of theirs with this scene or that, and wait for each of them to decide who is next.  Characters are what lead a story IMO and are usually what leads the idea into fruition.

Do you have any advice to give to aspiring writers?

Just keep writing. Never give up. You never know when that one story will catch an editor’s eye and pull you into the publishing world. And let your story lead you, don’t force a story or then it won’t be completely honest or pure.

Is there anything that you would like to say to your readers and fans?

Thank you for all your support, feedback and loving to read as much as I do. Without readers, this job just wouldn’t be all that fun! J

Where do you find the most inspiration to write?

Music. Lyrics from songs, various artists sometimes become a small picture playing in my head when I hear them.

Alrighty... On to some fun questions: Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point?

I NEVER make my bed. *blush* But there is little point. My husband works split shifts of nights and days so it seems there is always someone in it. And it still drives my Mom nuts to this day that I don’t make it. Really, what is the point? I’ll only end up back under the rumpled covers within twelve hours or so anyway! LOL

Be honest, how often do you wash your hair?

Every other day—on the advice of my hairdresser. I have very thick hair, it’s very dry as well, and washing too much just makes it feel horrible.

Do you get road rage? What pisses you off the most about other drivers?

I have a lot of road rage. I’ve had to pull off to the side of the road more than once just to breathe deep. I detest people that do not use their signal lights, pull out in front of me when I’m about ten feet away from their intersection, and hate to see people texting or talking on their phone while driving.

Do you go out of your way to kill bugs? Are there any that make you screech and hide?

I don’t go out of my way to kill any, no. But if I see a snake, I’ll be gone faster than anyone can blink. I’m not much of a runner but I’ll be damned if I stick around a snake!

Book Details:

Sweetest Salvation

Contemporary Erotic Romance/Light Bondage

Content Warning: Contains Voyeurism, Spanking, Multiple Partners

ISBN: 978-1-77130-330-9

Available at Evernight Publishing / Amazon.com (and more links below)

*An Evernight Publishing Editor’s Pick*

Book Blurb and Excerpt:

After the deaths of her husband and child, tragedies that she blames herself for, Andrea “Andy” Sheaver has shut herself off from the world. The only place she finds any relief from her shattered heart is Club Splendor, where she and her husband often frequented together.  There, Andy submits to pleasure and pain in situations so her grief is forgotten for a little while.

But Hunter Sullivan won’t stand idly by and watch Andy self-destruct. A friend of her husband, and the owner of Club Splendor, Hunter has kept his love for Andy hidden for years. He refuses to think of her at the club, cold and detached as she’s become, looking for an easy fix to take away the pain in her heart.  Hunter wants her to vibrant in life again and sets out to prove he is exactly who she needs.

Excerpt © Kacey Hammell, 2013

Hunter sighed, which caught Andy’s attention. Her eyes met his briefly before lowering to her hands, which were clenched tight in her lap.

“Look, Andy,” he began.

“What do you want, Hunter?” Her forest-green-eyed gaze met his. Anger swirled in their depths.

“I’m tired of this. Dammit.” He snarled, rising, and crossed to the fireplace. He ran his fingers through his hair and leaned one arm on the mantel. He looked over at her, stomach churning with indigestion and pain. He’d loved Patrick and Peter too. Could she not understand that she wasn’t the only one suffering?

“Tired of what? I never asked you here.”

“This!” Hunter spread his arms wide. “You. I’m so tired of seeing you locked away in this house, never leaving and pictures gone.”

“Go to hell,” Andy spat and leapt to her feet. She moved behind the loveseat, obvious fury making her hands shake as she laid them on the back of it. “You don’t have any say in how I live. I never asked for your opinion. If you don’t like it, get the hell out of my house. And my life!”

Hunter breathed deep, nostrils flaring. He could no more walk away from her than he could from the Sheavers. She was as much a part of his life, and his heart, as they were.

But his love for her went far beyond sisterly.

He pushed that thought away, buried it deep within himself as he’d done for years. She was Patrick’s girl, his wife. He always honored that.

“Dammit, I don’t want to argue with you, Andy. But you really need to move on. Live life again and leave this house.”

“I leave the house. You don’t know what I do every day.”

“Oh yes, you go out. Like the other night? Why did you go to the club? I thought we agreed you were no longer a member,” Hunter demanded, curious about her answer.

“No. You decided I was no longer a member. Not me. I never said I wanted that. Who are you to make decisions for me?” Andy retorted, cheeks flushed, hands on her hips.

Hunter had to admit he was finally seeing a glimpse of the fiery, strong woman she’d been until this last year. He liked her eyes ablaze, jaw clenched and fury radiating off her body. He just needed to provoke her enough and challenge her to move beyond these walls and back to the things she loved to do.

“I don’t want to make decisions for you.” He took a calming breath. “Listen, the club is not the place for you any longer. Without Patrick… There’s no need for you to be there anymore.”

“Why do you think that?”

“He was the one who wanted to show it to you. He never really thought you’d come to enjoy it as much as you did. Neither of you interacted with others. What can you find there now without him?”

Andy smiled, cold and detached. He hated that smirk.

“Oh, come now. You know what happens in your club. Surely, I don’t have to spell it out for you.”

Goddamn her.

Yes, he knew what she’d done inside the room she’d once used with Patrick. Though he normally didn’t interfere in his members’ activities unless there was a problem, he did ask Paige and Nolan if Andy had simply watched. He’d been shocked, then livid, to learn a few details of what happened between the three of them.

Andy had always been a devoted wife to Patrick, faithful to the core. To know she’d been an active participant at the club for the first time had suddenly left him empty and alone.

But he couldn’t allow his feelings on the matter to distract him from pushing her back into life.

He shrugged. “No. You don’t have to spell it out for me. But is that what you truly want and need in your life?  Sex with strangers? Do you need to find comfort in people who don’t care about you?”

Andy glared at him. “That is none of your business.” Her voice rose as she continued. “What I do in my life is for me to decide. I never asked to have you in my life. Don’t expect me to want you there now.”

His heart clenched. Her words were like a punch to the gut.

Yes, he’d sort of come as a package deal when she’d married Patrick. But the Sheavers were the only family he had. And when Peter was born, oh, he’d played the dutiful uncle to the little boy. Though she’d never voiced her frustration at his being in attendance at nearly all family gatherings or taking up some of Patrick’s time once a week for a guys’ night out, he’d understood the stone-faced woman who left the words unsaid.

“I always promised Patrick I’d look after you if he couldn’t.”

“Fuck off, Hunter. Don’t give me that.” Her hands fisted at her sides. “Look, please just go. I don’t need you here. I have things to do.”

He wouldn’t be so easily dismissed.

“Things to do? Like what, plan your next adventure at the club? I don’t think so. Why? Explain to me why you felt the need to go there?”

Arms wide, she yelled, “I wanted to fuck somebody. Is that what you want to hear? That I wanted to have a cock inside me for the first time in almost two years? I wanted to have a man inside, pounding me—brutal and painful. What better place to do that than at the club where I know I’m safe?”

Hunter’s heartbeat accelerated. To know she needed someone that close to her was agonizing. It was a barren and desperate act of someone who had nothing to live for. Or didn’t think she was worth much.

“Why pain? You couldn’t have found satisfaction in that. No pleasure, Andy? You, of all people, found pleasure in that kind of sex? I don’t believe for a moment that you’re now into rough sex,” Hunter said, gruff. His mouth was dry, and confusion made his head hurt. Would he never understand this woman?

Andy crossed her arms over her chest. She looked out the window behind him. Her gaze was unfocused, filled with pain.

“Yes, pain. It’s what I deserve, isn’t it?” Her gaze captured his. Hunter felt his heart crack at her desolate look. 

Buy Links:

Evernight Publishing / Amazon.com / Amazon.ca  / Amazon UK /

aRe / Bookstrand /

~~~

Canadian author, Kacey Hammell is a multi-published erotic romance author who writes mainly in the Contemporary Erotic/Romantic Suspense genres.  She is a true romantic at heart.

Where to find Kacey…

Website / Facebook / Facebook Author Page / Twitter / Amazon / Goodreads / Pinterest

Giveaway: For a chance to win a backlist Ecopy of mine, please leave a comment & your email address below and you’re entered! Winner will be chosen April 13^th.

Thanks for joining me today, Kacey. I can't wait to check out your book. And by the way, hot, hot, hot cover!!