Today, Wild Women Authors feature Chance’s Return, a contemporary western romance, written by Lucy Naylor Kubash for the Sweetheart Rose line for the Wild Rose Press. Up first is trained librarian, current ranch cook, Casey Girard,
Good morning, Casey. Thank
you for taking time away from the North Star Ranch to speak with us. Let’s
begin with where you are from. I was born and raised on a farm in western Michigan.
Tell
us a bit about Chance’s Return. As a single mom, I hoped time in
Wyoming would help me recover from the loss of my husband. Working as a cook at
the North Star Ranch for the summer offered an opportunity to start life over beneath
the shadows of the beautiful Grand Teton Mountains. My young son, Jamie, and I
both needed a change of scene.
I never expected to meet ex-rodeo champ
and prodigal son of the North Star, Chance McCord, who returned to face a
family still divided by their own painful past. He came home to find a way to
face his own haunting memories. He didn’t expect to meet me.
But when we met, the attraction was
undeniable and bloomed like the blue lupine in the valley. Learning to put our
pasts to rest and trust one another was a challenge. Love did find a way.
What did you think the first time you saw Chance? I thought he was just another cowboy, who traveled around working different ranches and never setting down roots.
And your second thought? That he was pretty darn handsome, if a little rough
around the edges.
Was it
love at first sight? Not really,
although there was a definite strong attraction neither of us could deny. To be
honest, he took me a little off-guard. I never thought I’d be attracted to
someone like Chance. He was a bit overwhelming.
What
do you like most about him? Chance is
honest and what you see is what you get. He tells the truth and doesn’t pretty
things up. But he sure knows how to kiss and has a certain charming way about
him that’s hard to deny.
How
would you describe him? He’s tall and
rugged; his hair is a little too long, and he always has a four o’clock shadow
on his face. And he has the most incredible blue eyes, like the sky above the
mountains right before a storm.
How
would Chance describe you? I’m a little shy but I learned to stand up to
him. He said my gray eyes are what first attracted him to me, that and my hair
he described as the color of a mountain lion’s fur.
What
made you choose library science for a career? I love books and history and have always been an avid reader. I also
love kids, so working with them in a library setting is great fun. I like to
share my love of books. My love of history also led me to help Chance’s father with
writing his book, North Star Legacy.
What
is your biggest fear? Like most of
us, my biggest fear is losing a loved one. I lost my first husband tragically,
and that was hard to overcome. Chance also lost his first wife, so together, we
navigated that journey and learned to fall in love again.
How
do you relax? I like to curl up in
front of the fire with a good book and a cup of my favorite tea.
Who
is your favorite fictional character?
I would say Abbie from A Lantern in Her Hand, about pioneers
homesteading in Nebraska. Abbie traveled to a harsh land and lived through many
hardships, but she endured. I read that book in high school, and now I can
relate somewhat, having traveled myself to Wyoming, a place very different from
where I grew up.
What
is the best piece of advice you ever received? Chance’s motto is, don’t worry so much! I’ve tried to
adopt that advice, but I’m just a natural-born worrier.
We
thank you for this, Casey. Now we’d like to chat with Lucy.
What
movies or books have had an impact on your career as a writer? Too many to list! But as for writing, Stephen King’s
book, On Writing, was helpful, as well as a book that is now out of
print, Fiction is Folks. I believe that author was Richard Peck. The
Robert Redford movie, Electric Horseman, is a favorite of mine and
influenced me to write Chance’s Return, because it’s also about a rodeo
cowboy who wants out of the circuit. And the song from that movie, My Heroes
Have Always Been Cowboys, describes me.
Is
there an event in your private life that you were able to bring to this story
and how do you feel it impacted the novel? As a very young child, I watched TV westerns with my dad. I think
that’s where I got my love of the genre. That was a long time ago, and he
passed away when I was five, so the memories are vague, but I know we sat in
his big easy chair and watched those movies. I’ve also always loved horses, so
writing western romances with horses is fun. My husband and I have enjoyed many
trips out west both for research and just because we love the scenery.
Tell
us a bit about your publisher. I’ve
been with the Wild Rose Press since 2009, when they first published Chance’s
Return. This new, revised, and very different version of the book, is also
with TWRP. I appreciate that they let me revise that book, that I’ve been able
to write the kind of books I like, and that they are publishing my future North
Star Legacy books.
What
book[s] currently rest on your TBR pile? Once again, too many to list! But I do have books by Kathleen Eagle I
haven’t read yet, ghost stories by Karen White, and low country books by Mary
Alice Monroe. My author friend, Anne Stone, has a trilogy of contemporary
romance books out, the Lucky series. The final book, Lucky Strike, is up
for reading next.
Last, what's up next and
when can we expect to see it on the shelves? Tetons by Morning, North Star Legacy book two will release on
January 19, 2026. The story follows Chance and Casey through their first year
of marriage with all the trials and tribulations they face. Fire in the
Heart, North Star Legacy book three, is still in edits but I’m
hoping to have a release date sometime later next year.
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