Tender Misdemeanors by Alana Lorens

     Caryn Orlane has law enforcement in her blood; her father was a cop, and his father, too. She's a federal agent in northwest Montana, protecting the old forests and keeping the peace.

     Levi Bradshaw also believes in protecting the forests, but has a very different MO. He's the leader of a group of eco-warriors, determined to save the trees of the Bitterroot by legal—and illegal—means.

     When they meet in the woods at gunpoint, their encounter ignites a spark of interest, despite operating on opposite sides of the law. When their worlds turn on them, they only grow closer. If they don’t work together, can either survive?

Wild Women Authors welcomes Alana Lorens who is celebrating the recent release of Tender Misdemeanors, a mainstream thriller out of the Wild Rose Press. She's here with hero Levi Bradshaw who, as usual, will go first.

Where are you from? Grew up in northwest Montana, where I still live, in my parents’ big old house. My mom always wanted to make it a bed and breakfast, for the winter skiing crowd, but my dad got sick, and it just never happened.

Tell us a bit about Tender Misdemeanors. I would, if I could ever catch my breath! I start out as an environmental consultant, who has a small hobby of ecotage—spiking trees—on the side, trying to save the old forests. Somehow my little rebel group gets mixed up with the white supremacist communities in Montana, and everything kinda goes to hell from there. Well, everything except Caryn. Caryn Orlane, she’s with the Bureau of Land Management. First she wants to shoot me, then she just wants to arrest me, and then she wants to make love to me. I’d be happy to, if we were ever safe for more than ten minutes at a time. The world is a dangerous place.

What did you think the first time you saw Caryn? Ha! She had her gun trained right on me, and I thought I was a dead man. If it wasn’t for my dog, Rosenkrantz, jumping on her, she might have pulled the trigger.

Works for us. And your second thought? That she was a smart, beautiful woman.

Was it love at first sight? It was definitely heavy like, for sure.

What do you like most about her? That she can be strong as a steel girder, but also vulnerable.

How would you describe her? Blonde, beautiful—and those green eyes. Wow. She wants respect from the people she works with, and they don’t always give it to her. It’s a hard job, and I suppose lawbreakers like me don’t make it any easier.

How would she describe you? She’d probably say I was a troublemaker and a dreamer, doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. I hope she’d say I was devastatingly handsome. Oh, and stubborn. I’m definitely that.

What made you choose environmental studies and protection as a career? Growing up here in the Bitterroot Mountains, I learned a deep respect for nature and I breathe in its beauty every day. Especially in today’s greedy-corporation climate, we have to protect our natural resources before they’re gone.

What is your biggest fear? Now? Being without Caryn, or having something happen to her. These people who’ve joined my group, they don’t mess around, and they’ve killed already.

How do you relax? I like to light up a fire in the den and read, with the dogs there as company. Or taking them on a walk—Rhodesian Ridgebacks need a lot of space to run, and my pointer, Ophelia, tags along more slowly. I rescued her and nursed her back to health after she was hit by a car. We’ve spent many companionable evenings in front of that fireplace.

Who is your favorite fictional character? Probably Jack Ryan from the Tom Clancy books. He’s a hero in every sense of the word, and I guess I like to think I’ve got some of his ingenuity in what I do.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received? The county sheriff told me when I was a kid resenting my arrogant big brother Zane, that he was too big for his britches, and I should stand on my own. I didn’t need his approval.

Levi, thanks for spending time with us. We'd like to chat with Alana now.

What movies or books have had an impact on your career as a writer? Stephen King’s fiction and non-fiction—On Writing was great. Also Techniques of the Selling Writer, by Dwight Swain, was a tough dry read but had solid advice.

What event in your private life were you able to bring to this story and how do you feel it impacted the novel? Caryn’s trip to the top of the Rocky Mountains was a trip I made as well in 2010. It’s amazing territory. I also got to write some of my dear friends in as characters, which really made the story “homey” to me.

Tell us about your publisher, how you came to learn about them; what made you decide to submit; why have you stayed? I had written several manuscripts, and someone in my critique group said another member of our group, Kathy Otten, had enjoyed success with the Wild Rose Press. So I sent a book along, and we’ve had a nice collaboration. Tender Misdemeanors will be my fifth book with them.

What book[s] currently rest on your TBR pile? The Game of Throne books. I finished the first one, and I’ve started A Clash of Kings.

Lastly, what's up next and when can we expect to see it on the shelves? Adversaries, the third book in my YA post apocalyptic trilogy, (writing as Lyndi Alexander) should be out this summer. I’m currently working on another book in my Horizon Crossover world which will be a science fiction romance/ménage, with a gender-shifting alien.

For more information about Alana Lorens and her work, go to:

http://Alana-lorens.com and

https://www.facebook.com/AlanaLorens/

To purchase Tender Misdemeanors, go to:

www.WildRosePress.com

and www.Amazon.com

Alana brought along an excerpt from this fascinating thriller:

     He peeked around the corner into the kitchen and found Caryn hunkered down on the floor, playing with the dogs. She wore yesterday’s jeans and one of his long-sleeved shirts, the cuffs rolled up to fit. Her hair was loosely tied back, framing her face in softness. Several pans steamed on the stove. He got a little heated just looking at her, remembering their earlier encounter, but she was fully engaged in her current activities. Too bad. I could have done with a repeat. Once my arms quit burning. 
     “You can come in now instead of spying on me,” she said, without looking up. “You walk as lightly as a grizzly bear.”
     Embarrassed, he stumped in. His eyes felt like they had sand in them. He frowned at the eye drops, but knew they’d help. He took another round of pain medication, too. “Thought you’d left.”
     “I hope you don’t mind that I made myself at home. I wanted to make sure you had breakfast, at least.”
     “I don’t mind at all. Wish you’d stay longer.”
     Her wistful smile tugged at his heart strings. “Wish  I could. But I’ve got pet responsibilities of my own.”
     “Oh? I thought you said…” Confused and still a little woozy, he replayed what she’d said about her dogs. No, they had been her father’s dogs. “Not dogs, then.”
     “No. Not dogs.” She grinned and scratched behind Rosie’s ears. “I don’t live in a…house, exactly.”
     “Your apartment doesn’t allow animals?”
     “It’s not exactly an apartment, either.”
     He hesitated, cocking his head curiously. What wasn’t a house or an apartment? 

     “I live out at the Hungry Horse campground in a motor home.” 

     Well, that was a new one. “Really? Year round?” 

     “Suits my lifestyle.” She shrugged and looked away. 

     “So what kind of pet do you have then? A cat? A hamster?”
     “An iguana. She’s about four months old.” She left the dogs and rinsed her hands, then tended to whatever was cooking.
     Iguana? Northern Montana was hardly tropical— weren’t lizards tropical? 

     Levi shuffled to the coffeepot and poured himself a  cup. She already had one near the stove, so he didn’t offer. “You know, lady, nothing about you ever turns out like I’d expect.”