Meet fellow Clean Indie Reads author Michelle Bolanger – with a New Release

Today I’d like to introduce Michelle Bolanger, my fellow CIR author.

Michelle lives in Dayton Ohio with her husband and two dogs. When she isn’t writing, she is watching the Columbus Blue Jackets, floating on a cruise ship somewhere warm, or searching for new coffee houses.

Well, Michelle, I can recommend a cruise to Australia then, because Melbourne is known for its great coffee! And what a cruise that would be!

So, we’re going to learn all about Michelle’s new release in a moment, but first three quick questions. Where are your books set? And have you been there, or spent significant time there?

The Cotiere Chronicles is set in different places. Book one, The Kiss, is set mainly in Scottsdale, Arizona, but the college scenes are in Oxford, Ohio not far from where I live. Book two, The Touch, is set in Southern California and Scottsdale, Arizona, two of my favorite places to visit. Book three, The Light, is set in Indiana, but unlike the others, it is based on a completely fictional town called Canberry Ridge.

Well, you got me with California, my home state (although I’m originally from San Francisco Bay Area, I also like Southern California). Next question, what was the inspiration for your latest book?

My latest release is the third book in my Cotiere Chronicles series. “The Light” tells the story of the ‘bad guy’ from book one. He became a bit of a prodigal and his journey is one of redemption and realizing that who you were is not who you have to continue to be. He is also a single dad who has to fight for custody of his son. I knew from the beginning Stewart’s stay was going to be a difficult one, and that he was going to be a single dad. He’s truly a good guy who got caught up in something he didn’t know how to deal with, and made some dumb choices. He’s not a tough, alpha, over controlling kind of lead. Most guys aren’t, and I wanted to write about a man who is just trying to do the best he can for his son, and the woman he…well, the woman he’s meant to be with. Love might not be so easy for them. At least, not yet.

Sounds like you really needed to write this last book–so that your hero could find redemption! Awesome. Now, lastly, who are your favorite authors, and why?

I have three authors I would call favorites. The first is Cassandra Clare. I am in awe of the way she is able to build relationships between her characters. Her Infernal Devices Series has one of the strongest friendships I have ever read in a book series.

Next is an author I recently fell in love with, Sarah J Maas. The world building in her books is what drew me in. The way she created a world that is both familiar and yet so different from reality is amazing. She’s also incredible as foreshadowing and twisty plot lines. Just when you think you know where the story is going, she blindsides you!

The third is an Indie author I admire and aspire to be. Quinn Loftis is the author who truly inspired me to take the leap and publish my first book. It sounds critical, but what impressed me most about her is the way her writing has improved from the first book to her current writing. That journey of always improving and not being afraid to put your story out there inspires me constantly.

Yes, it’s an incredible journey being an indie author, and it is inspiring to see the progress. Now, speaking of progress, you’ve completed the third book in your series, The Light. Tell us a bit about it, and where we can  find it.

 

Synopsis:

The Nachhaltig are adjusting to their new found freedom, but an old enemy is still forcing them apart and lives are being lost in the process. ​

Stewart’s choices drove him away and left him as one of the Cotiere’s outcast males. After losing his wife in a tragic accident, he is trying to hold life together as a single dad.

But when his intended, Megan, falls victim to the same scheme that nearly destroyed his life, he is drawn into a race against time to save her.

The Cotiere Chronicles are clean, Urban Fantasy stories with a strong romantic theme. It is a series, and would be best read in order, but the first two books can be read as stand alones. The third and fourth – you’ll have to read them to find out.

You can find my books on Amazon, or iTunes or on Barnes & Noble.