Author Interview (and a Giveaway!): Janine Rosche & Aspen Crossroads

I am delighted today to host the fabulous Janine Rosche to chat about her new contemporary romance, Aspen Crossroads!

Prone to wander, Janine Rosche finds as much comfort on the open road as she does at home. This longing to chase adventure, behold splendor, and experience redemption is woven into her Madison River Romance and Whisper Canyon series. When she isn’t writing or traveling, she teaches family life education courses to college students, takes too many pictures of her sleeping dogs, and embarrasses her four children and husband with boy band serenades. Learn more online at janinerosche.com, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

ASPEN CROSSROADS
SERIES: Whisper Canyon Romance #1
GENRE: Inspirational Contemporary Romance
PUBLISHER: Berkley
RELEASE DATE: August 24, 2021
PAGES: 348

To protect those most vulnerable, Haven Haviland must trust her heart–and her regrets–to a mysterious newcomer in this moving contemporary romance.

Few in the community of Whisper Canyon have actually met Jace Daring, a handsome recluse who lives at Aspen Crossroads, the farm at the edge of town. But that doesn’t stop the rumors about the multiple women who live with him. He must protect the truth–that his farm-to-table restaurant will provide new livelihoods for women rescued from human trafficking–or he risks the safety and futures of those relying on him. But he can’t do it alone.

Haven Haviland has always been everyone’s safe place to fall until one mistake closes her counseling practice and leaves her open to the town’s gossip. Trusting men has gotten her in trouble before. However, accepting Jace’s job offer to mentor the rescued women seems like the perfect way to right her wrongs.

When the mayor’s campaign to clean up Whisper Canyon targets Aspen Crossroads, the restaurant comes under fire, dangers from the women’s pasts are awakened, and Haven’s sins are exposed for all to see. Jace would sacrifice himself to save Haven and the women under his care, but his efforts might not be enough. And in the end, it might not be the women most in need of saving after all.

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Hi dear Janine! Welcome back to the blog! I promise this is a flosser-free zone 😉

Janine: Autumn is the only good season. If I could, I’d live in pumpkin-spiced, apple-cider drenched scarves, boots, and college football jerseys while taking a hayride to a campfire while Halloween music plays every day of the year.

Carrie: yes please! I adore autumn 🙂

Janine: I like the grittier romantic dramas so I’ve got to go with Netflix.

Carrie: I’ve tried to like Netflix but I just can’t get into it for some reason. I don’t know why!

Janine: MOUNTAINS!!!!!! Mountain activities are much more exciting than suntanning on a beach. Also, I love the crisp, clean air far more than the humid, fishy air.

Carrie: I agree 1000%

Janine: Puzzles, but I’m not allowed to have them in my house. I get obsessive with them, and I can’t eat, sleep, or move until they are finished.

Carrie: hahaha i love puzzles too 🙂

Q: Around here I like to say that reading is my superpower. If YOU had a superpower, what would it be?

Janine: I’m a rare breed since I love movies as much as I love books. I’m pretty much a walking IMdB and can tell you what actors starred in which movies, in such and such year, and who I watched it with. But if I could choose a superpower, I’d want to be able to recreate a person’s fondest memories for them to relive.

Carrie: lol i love your movie superpower – and the fondest memories superpower wish is so sweet!

Q: Who is your favorite book character from childhood?

Janine: Karana from Island of the Blue Dolphins. Left behind by her people at a young age, she was able to survive a lifetime on her small island. She was brave, independent, caring, and tough. I still aspire to be like her. Fun fact: I named my dog after her!

Carrie: ooo that’s one no one else has mentioned before, to my recollection – great choice!

Q: Characters often find themselves in situations they aren’t sure they can get themselves out of. When was the last time you found yourself in a situation that was hard to get out of and what did you do?

Janine: So, I was making a quick trip down to North Carolina in May and decided to take a detour off the highway. I’m working on a social media video series called “Get Lost in a Love Story” where I visit a cool location and share a real life love story related to that place. I’d just finished Catherine Marshall’s Christy and I wanted to tell the story of Catherine’s mother, Leonora Whitaker, that inspired the book. The internet said I could go see the real “Christy Mission” which served as the church and schoolhouse. So fun! Except I ended up driving a Civic up and down mountains on rough one-lane, gravel roads, without any GPS or cellphone service, and following tiny wooden signs. It only got worse when the sun fell behind the mountains, and I thought my tire popped. I was able to retrace my way back to the highway, but for two hours, I took the “get lost in a love story” bit too far.

Carrie: oh no! lol! I’m glad you made it out, but yes maybe don’t take the word ‘lost’ so literally next time 😉

Q: If I asked your characters to describe YOU as an author, what would they say?

Janine: Oh, they’d have a lot of opinions! In Aspen Crossroads, Haven would probably fall into the counselor role and invite me in for an appointment because clearly, I have problems I need to talk out. Jace, with his trust issues, would NOT be happy that I brought him to the one place he’d promised his mother he’d never step foot in. Sonny would keep me from ever letting my chin drop in defeat. Rarity and I would get along way too well. She’d probably give me advice on how to make my stories more interesting!

Carrie: I love this answer!

Q: What surprised you about your book or your characters as you wrote Aspen Crossroads?

Janine: Well, I’ll never think of caverns the same way again, I’ll tell you that much (wink, wink).

Carrie: LOL!!!! <scurries to search for ‘cavern’ in my Kindle copy>

Q: Were there any songs that inspired you as you wrote Aspen Crossroads?

Janine: Every character in this book has been wronged by people in the past so trust is difficult for them. Haven and Jace are forced to rely on each other despite their fears, So Joe Cocker’s “Have a Little Faith in Me” was the first song on my writing playlist. With lyrics like “when the road gets dark, and you can no longer see, let my love throw a spark; have a little faith in me.” Oh my heart! I can just see them doing that forehead-to-forehead touch while this song plays!

Carrie: ahhhhhh!!! I’m swooning already!

Q: What do you most want readers to take away from Aspen Crossroads?

Janine: Honestly? I want people to know that there is enough love for ALL in God’s kingdom. We’re bombarded with stories about corruption, bigotry, exclusion—you name it—in churches around the world. It’s easy to see why people are leaving the church are record rates. I want everyone who has been hurt by God’s people to know that His love, His grace, and His mercy are immeasurably stronger than most churches and churchgoers give Him credit for.

Carrie: amen!!

Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me! 🙂 Before we say goodbye for today, tell us what‘s coming up next for you.

Janine: After writing such heavy stories, I finally got to write a cute Christmas story! My novella, Dreams in Toyland, will be the final story in Christmas in Mistletoe Square, releasing October 1^st. My hero and heroine are rivals in the toy industry, but they must spend sunset to sunrise on Christmas Eve delivering surprises to people around a Kedgewick Creek, North Carolina. I had so much fun writing it, especially because I got to brainstorm with the other authors in the collection: Cara Putman, Pepper Basham, and Teresa Tysinger. I hope readers will enjoy it!

Carrie: yay!! I am SO EXCITED for this collection!

Janine Rosche is offering one of my readers a Hello Mello The Weekender Travel Wrap Scarf, Society 6 To Everything There is a Season/Ecclesiastes 3:1 Tote Bag, and a set of 3 Floral Journals! (US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics. Must be 18 years or older to enter.) This giveaway is subject to Reading Is My SuperPower’s giveaway policies which can be found here. Enter via the Rafflecopter form below.

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Bonus Giveaway!

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What about you? What makes you want to read Aspen Crossroads by Janine Rosche?