Face-to-face with author Karra Issac!

SO excited to visit with Kara Issac today! I Love her books! here is a little about her:

Kara Isaac writes contemporary romance in beautiful Wellington, New Zealand. She is the RITA award-winning author of Then there Was You, as well as the author of Close to You, a RITA Award Double Finalist, and Can't Help Falling, an RT Review Top Pick. When she's not chasing three small people, she spends her time writing horribly bad first drafts and wishing you could get Double Stuf Oreos in New Zealand. She loves to connect with readers on her website www.karaisaac.com, on Facebook at Kara Isaac - Author, Instagram @kara.isaac.author and Twitter @KaraIsaac

Welcome! We're so glad you could visit us today. You won me over with your first book Close to You and that romantic romp through ‘Middle Earth”, and I have enjoyed every book I’ve read of yours since. Including your latest release, All Made Up.

Where did the inspiration for your latest book come from?

Kat McLeod has appeared in all of my previous books in different ways. In Close To You she was Allie’s best friend, then she made a cameo appearance in Can’t Help Falling, and then she was Paige’s cousin in Then There Was You. I’ve loved her since I first put her on the page but never originally thought I would write a book about her. But readers loved her too and I started getting emails about whether she would get her own story and after I finished Then There Was You I knew her story had to be the next one that I wrote.

I had also been wanting to write a reunion romance for awhile and while I was writing Then There Was You there’s this scene with Kat and Paige where Kat kind of just blurts out that she can’t stop thinking about this guy that she dated almost a decade earlier. As soon as she said it I knew that this was my chance. :)

 All Made Up features a reality show called “Falling for the Farmer”. Are you a fan of reality TV? Do you have any favorites? 

I am a fan of reality TV, though I’m quite picky about what I get attached to because of time constraints. I will always make time for the Bachelor or Bachelorette (US version) even though I have to admit I am in despair as to next season’s pick. My two eldest kids also enjoy cooking shows like Masterchef so I’ll follow those with them as well. Currently in New Zealand we also have a show called Married at First Sight which ordinarily I wouldn’t watch but I have a connection to someone on this season so I’m checking in on him every now and then.

That is very cool, and will make the show so much more interesting! 

How does your faith and spirituality work in with your writing? 

For me the most important thing is that the faith thread that I’m telling in my stories is authentic to who my characters are and what their individual faith journeys are. My books have covered a range of characters from committed Christians, to those who are believers but have lost their way, and then others who don’t have a particular faith at all. My next two books have main characters who are quite antagonistic toward Christianity and religion in general.

I tend to get criticized from both sides – readers who think my books aren’t Christian enough and those who think that they are too Christian. I’m a big believer that as a novelist my job is too tell the best and most authentic story that I can and trust God that He will use it. Whether there is a very explicit faith thread or one that is more intricate those parts of the stories are always the ones that I wrestle with the most and pray over the hardest. 

You do a great job, in my opinion. 

What is one of your favorite scenes in All Made Up?

 

Ooooo this is a tough one. I’m going to cheat and name a couple. The first is the opening chapter when Kat and Caleb see each other again for the first time in almost a decade. I was so excited about writing a second-chance romance and that moment when she walks up the path to him and they realize who each other are is one of my favourites. The second is a scene toward the end of the book where they both reveal some of the big secrets they’ve been hiding from each other. It is a really raw scene and I cried writing it because there is so much pain that is put on the table without any resolution but it’s critical because it’s the baggage that they have to work thorugh to have a hope of a future together.

Love!

If time and money were not a concern, what one skill would you like to learn?

Something handy like carpentary!!

What is your favorite thing about where you live?

 Well I live in New Zealand so it’s beautiful! But in Wellington specifically I love the accessibility of everything – you’re never more than about 20 minutes away from wherever you want to go!

What are you working on next? 

I’ve just received the advance copies of my next book that releases in February, One Thing I Know, so am heading into pre-release season for that. I’m also about to start writing my next book that is due to my publisher early next year. It’s going to be the fastest that I’ve ever written a book so I’m feeling very apprehensive about how it is all going to come together in a pretty short time frame! 

Well, good luck with the writing! I'm excited for the next release!

Everyone thinks Katriona McLeod is living the dream. Her professional career as a make up artist sees her traveling the world working with the stars and she's got no shortage of men wanting her affection. Only problem is she's never gotten over Caleb Murphy, the one guy she's ever loved. When she accepts a job on the latest looking-for-love reality TV show, Falling for the Farmer, she discovers to her horror that Caleb is the leading man and she's cast as one of his harem. But she hides a secret that means that even if she wanted a second chance with the guy who broke her heart she could never have it. Caleb Murphy couldn't care less about C-Class celebrity fame or reality TV and he certainly doesn't believe it could lead him to love. The one thing he does care about is fulfilling his mother's last wish. Kat's presence on the show seems to offer up a solution that will make both the network and his mother happy. It might have been almost ten years since they split but he knows he can trust her with his plan. Just as long as he doesn't fall in love all over again with the woman who will never stay

Review of Close to You by Kara Isaac

Angela here and let me just say, I LOVE this story! With writing deadlines and three kids to keep up with, I find there are not a lot of books that I literally can't put down. Alright, I did have to set this book down a few times, but I really didn't want to...so it followed me to the playground, the kitchen, bed, and other places we will not mention. 
Here is a little about Close to You:

A disgraced scholar running from her past and an entrepreneur chasing his future find themselves

thrown together—and fall in love—on a Tolkien tour of New Zealand.

Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic who is done with love. Her belief in “happily ever after” ended the day she discovered her husband was still married to a wife she knew nothing about. She finally finds a use for her English degree by guiding tours through the famous sites featured in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies. By living life on the road and traveling New Zealand as a luxury tour guide, Allison manages to outrun the pain of her past she can’t face.

Jackson Gregory was on the cusp of making it big. Then suddenly his girlfriend left him—for his biggest business competitor—and took his most guarded commercial secrets with her. To make matters worse, the Iowa farm that has been in his family for generations is facing foreclosure. Determined to save his parents from financial ruin, he’ll do whatever it takes to convince his wealthy great-uncle to invest in his next scheme, which means accompanying him to the bottom of the world to spend three weeks pretending to be a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan, even though he knows nothing about the stories. The one thing that stands between him and his goal is a know-it-all tour guide who can’t stand him and pegged him as a fake the moment he walked off the plane.

When Allison leads the group through the famous sites of the Tolkien movies, she and Jackson start to see each other differently, and as they keep getting thrown together on the tour, they find themselves drawn to each other. Neither expected to fall in love again, but can they find a way beyond their regrets to take a chance on the one thing they’re not looking for?

I must admit the whole Lord of the Rings idea really grabbed my interest, but after I opened Close to You, Kara Isaac had no trouble holding my attention with a wonderful array of wit and humor, romance off to a rocky start, deep dark pasts to overcome, twists to keep you on your toes...not to mention piles of little known Lord of the Ring and Hobbit facts that will keep any fans smiling. 

I highly recommend Close to You, not only to Tolkien fans, but anyone who enjoys a good clean contemporary romance. I'm definitely looking forward to more from Kara Isaac!