Lancaster House & The Middle Aisle by Taylor Dean

On tour with Prism Book Tours...

Lancaster House
by Taylor Dean
Paperback, 304 pages
Published June 7th 2012 by Createspace

Premise: 

Zoe Grayson needs a change. So, she moves to another state, purchases an old, dilapidated 1920s Victorian Mansion, and sets out to restore it to its former glory. As she begins the restoration, she finds herself falling in love with the old house . . . not to mention its illustrious builder, Mr. Lancaster. Zoe becomes obsessed with the house as she discovers its secrets; hidden rooms, secret passageways . . . and a mysterious man who seems to think the house is his. Who is he? More importantly, how does he live in her home unseen and unheard?

The unexpected answers leave her reeling—and questioning everything she’s ever known. To her dismay, Zoe’s actions land her in the local psychiatric hospital, scheming for ways to return to Lancaster House . . . and the love of her life.

The Middle Aisle
by Taylor Dean
Paperback, 356 pages
Published November 26th 2012 by Create Space


Premise:

Zoe Grayson is back in Lancaster House, ordered to bed rest for the duration of her unexpected pregnancy. Doctor Wade Channing, her overzealous psychiatrist, is living in Lancaster House, taking care of her, waiting on her, and tending to her every need. It seems to be the perfect arrangement.

There’s just one catch.

She has to tell him her story—everything that has happened in her life since the moment she escaped from Serenity Hills. It’s been quite an adventure to include renovating another home and a walk down the middle aisle.

But, that’s all over now. Nothing is real. It never was.

How did she end up in this miserable situation?

The American Idol performance that inspired Lancaster House

* If you missed yesterday’s post about what inspired me to write a paranormal novel, just slip back to the entryway at Unputdownable Books . . . but don’t get lost!

Now to get to the tidbit you’ve all been waiting for! How the heck did an American Idol performance inspire Lancaster House? Good question. I’m not really sure myself, but somehow the visual kicked my imagination into overdrive. Season 8 of American Idol blew me away. I thought Adam Lambert was amazing in every single performance. During the finale, Adam once again sang his haunting rendition of ‘Mad World.’ Even my husband was impressed by this performance, and that’s saying a lot because he isn’t usually impressed by singing performances. (Ever) Adam performed while wearing vampire-like garb on a fog-shrouded stage.

This link is a very poor video of the performance. I couldn't find another one and I'm surprised that there are not more links to it. I own a perfect copy of it that I purchased through iTunes. I watched it umpteen times as I wrote Lancaster House.

It’s a haunting performance—like Twilight, the Musical or something! I remember saying to my daughter, “Now that’s how I pictured Edward.”  My daughter, a book-a-holic, immediately corrected me. “That’s not how Edward is described at all, Mom.” She was right and I knew it, but I have this nasty habit of picturing the hero of the story the way I want to picture him, no matter how the author describes him. Adam wasn’t Edward. Not by a long shot. But, he was how I pictured Edward. There was only one thing to do.

Write my own story.

The visual of Adam rising up out the stage amidst fog and then pausing before he began to sing, the way his movements were slow and dreamlike—all of it left me intrigued. It screamed paranormal story. What if a man appeared in my home looking like that? (sans the microphone) What if he was a ghost? I would be scared and fascinated all at the same time. It was at that moment that Lancaster House was born.

It wasn’t quite that easy, of course. My hubby and I spent an entire car drive to Idaho (driving our daughter to college) hashing out all of the details of the story. By the time we arrived home, I had my story in my mind, beginning to finish.

And it was all due to one amazing performance sparking my imagination.

*There are a couple other little secrets concerning Adam Lambert that I placed into the story.  If you’d like to know what they are . . . follow me through this hidden passageway to tomorrow’s post over at Fundinmental . . .

(Pictures can be sourced through http://pinterest.com/burgandyice/secret-passageways/)

About the Author:

©iStockphoto.com/tinabelle

Taylor Dean lives in Texas and is the mother of four grown children. Upon finding herself with an empty nest, she began to write the stories that were always wandering around in her head, quickly finding that she had a passion for writing, specifically romance. Whether it's paranormal, contemporary, or suspense-you'll find all sub-genres of romance in her line-up.

Find & Follow:

Website/Blog

Facebook
Twitter

Goodreads

Lancaster House & The Middle Aisle, available in print or eCopy from Smashwords or Amazon:

Tour-Wide Giveaway:

5 WINNERS will receive....

Open only to those who can legally enter. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and announced on Rafflecopter and Grand Finale posts as well as emailed and the winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Burgandy Ice @ Colorimetry and Prism Book Tours and sponsored by Taylor Dean. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Tour:

Fundimental Review of Lancaster House & The Middle Aisle

2/11 – Unputdownable Books – Guest Post

2/12 – I Am A Reader, Not a Writer – Guest Post 

2/13 - Fundinmental Guest Post 

-          Letters to the Cosmos – Review

2/14 – Oh, The Books You’ll Read – Review

-          Proud Book Nerd – Guest Post

2/15 – LDS & Lovin’ It – Review

2/17 - Phantasmic Reads - Review

-          Lavender & Camomile Press Guest Post

2/18 – The Reading Diaries – Guest Post

2/19 -  Living a Goddess Life – Review

-          Beck Valley Books – Guest Post

2/20 – Living the Goddess Life –  Recipe

-          Colorimetry 

2/21 – Passion and Life – Guest Post

-          Books Mystify – Goodreads Review

2/22 – Christy’s Cozy Corner – Review

2/24 – Christy’s Cozy Corner – Review

2/25 – Living a Goddess Life – Review

-          Icultgen – Guest Post

2/26 – Who’s Thanny?  (Byzinha) – Review

-          Letters to the Cosmos – Review

2/27 – Living a Goddess Life – Recipe
   -          Tressa – Goodreads Reviewer

2/28 – A Buckeye Girl Reads – Review

3/1 – Grand Finale TBA...