Excerpt

May, 2005

Till Next We Meet was the first book I wrote after The Highland Lords.  I really wanted to tell Catherine Dunnan's story. 

Here's the book's blurb:

Catherine Dunnan is devastated when her beloved goes off to war -- and only his promise to write often can sustain her in her loneliness. And what letters they are, filled with heartfelt emotions that move her to respond in kind. But then the unthinkable occurs. He is cruelly lost to her, and his beautiful words of passion and devotion cease forever.

When Moncrief agreed to write warm and loving missives in a fellow officer's name, he never expected he'd become so enamored of the incomparable lady who answered them, a woman he has never met. Returning to England to assume the unexpected title of duke, Moncrief is irresistibly drawn to the beauty who has unwittingly won his heart. More than anything, he yearns to ease Catherine's sadness with his tender kisses. But once she learns his secret, will his love be spurned?

Two things about the book:

1.  I never once thought of Cyrano de Bergerac when I was writing the book.  Not once.  In fact, it startled me to read the first reviews that mentioned it. 

2.  Some readers have complained that I should have showed Catherine recovering from a morphine addiction.  Why on earth would I feature a heroine vomiting, shaking, and having deliriums for weeks?  Not exactly the stuff of dreams. Sometimes, a good imagination is all one needs.   

Another odd thing about the book is the hero's name.  Originally, he had a first name, but as a Colonel and then a Duke, he was more often referred to by his surname.  In fact, members of the peerage were often addressed in that fashion.  Moncrief was so completely himself, and his name so adequately mirrored him that I never once mentioned his first name. I deleted the only mention of his first name in the copy edits.  By the way, it's Adam. 

REVIEWS

USA Today Bestseller

Romantic Times

4-1/2 Stars

Top Pick

Best Books of 2005 - The Oakland Press

Till Next We Meet - is a touching and poignant love story that revolves around two lonely souls.  The love story between Moncrief and Catherine is one of the most caring and special I have read about in a long time.  The dialogue, the scenic Scottish setting, and the cast of colorful characters all combine together in a very romantic and lovely story.  Romance Junkies, 4/05

Till Next We Meet - Ms Ranney gives us a powerful, emotional, and touching story of a woman struggling to come to terms with the death of her husband.  Readers are taken on a journey filled with raw emotions from Catherine as she grows from a pitiful woman to a woman who's a tower of strength and capable of accepting reality instead of illusion.  Freshfiction.com, 5/05

Till Next We Meet  - For readers looking for emotionally charged and intelligent writing, unexcelled depth to and emotional connections between a romance's characters, and sensual prose that will literally take your breath away, none can compare with Karen Ranney.  Romancereaderatheart.com, 5/05

Till Next We Meet - This is an intense, emotional read, and I highly recommend it.  Rakehell.com, 5/05

Till Next We Meet - With her special talent for creating beautiful, intelligent love stories overflowing with tenderness and poignancy, Ranney takes this classic plot and breathes new life into the tragic tale by adding a gothic twist. Romantic Times, 5/05