Please help us welcome Sadira Stone to the blog today. Sadira is here to share her books Through the Red Door and Runaway Love Story with us today. They are from Sadira Book Nirvana series. Welcome, Sadira! We are all excited to hear more about both of these books. 
Q&A with Sadira Stone:
Thanks so much, Madison, for hosting me today! I’m thrilled to meet your readers and to tell you about my Book Nirvana series. A steamy contemporary romance set in Eugene, Oregon, this series centers around an indie bookshop and the women who work there—plus Lulu, the shop cat.
Where is your favorite place to write?
I’m lucky to have a sweet little home office I don’t have to share, painted celery green, with a stand/sit desk and a comfy reading chair, plus overstuffed bookshelves, of course. Alas, the view’s not much—just the neighbors’ wall—but I love my writing lair.
What inspires you as an author?
My stories share a common theme: extraordinary women who refused to be confined by others’ expectations of what a “good girl” should be. I’m inspired by the extraordinary women I’ve met and worked with, those who continue to develop their passions and talents, rather than just settle for an ordinary, boring life.
Why do you write romance and why your genre of romance?
I think romance author Damon Suede says it best: “Romance is the literature of hope.” In these very troubled times, with family members and neighbors are at each other’s throats, romance offers a reminder of what’s most important in life—real human connection. Falling in love and being loved in return, despite our flaws and our beloved’s, that’s redemption. Love is a victory and an act of resistance against the forces that would tear us apart.
What are you working on next and when can we expect to see it?
Book three in the Book Nirvana series (still untitled) features Margot, Clara’s young shop assistant, and Elmer, a cocky, bearded ceramics artist introduced in Runaway Love Story. I’ll finish the first draft this summer, so it should come out around the new year.
What would you do if you couldn’t write?
That’s too horrible to contemplate! Everyone needs a creative outlet, so I’d have to delve deeper into dance, music, maybe painting?
Do you listen to music when you write? What is your go-to playlist and why?
I’m a librarian at heart: I like to live surrounded by books, I’m always recommending books to friends, family, and random strangers in the grocery store line, and I need SILENCE to write. One exception: when writing a steamy love scene, I’ll sometimes put on sexy, smoky Brazilian jazz. I can’t have lyrics in a language I understand, or they’ll interfere with the words in my head.
About Through the Red Door:
Through the Red Door, Book One in the series, features Clara Martelli, the shop’s widowed owner, who’s struggling to keep her shop afloat. Her best chance: the shop’s extensive collection of historical erotica, kept behind a locked red door. Her late husband curated that section, and she’s not yet ready to face the painful memories behind that door. But when her dastardly landlord raises the rent, she finds the help she needs in two men: a visiting professor who reignites passion she thought she’d never feel again, and a sweet local guy who makes her feel safe and comforted. Choosing between them is wrenching. Just when she makes her choice, she uncovers a scandal that shatters her trust. Meanwhile, her shop’s about to go under…
Get your copy of Through the Red Door here:
Excerpt Through the Red Door:
The amber flecks in his eyes danced in the candlelight. Their glow drew the truth out of her like a magnet tugging metal. Deep breath. Just ask. He won’t bite.
“Nick, how did you know when it was time?”
“Time?”
“To move on. To let someone in.”
He shifted away, but the saggy sofa cushion slid him back against her thigh. “Can’t fight gravity.” He chuckled and draped his arm across her shoulders. “Honestly, my body was ready before my heart was. Even if the heart is withered, nearly dead, the body goes on—eating, breathing, feeling, wanting.” He fingered a strand of her hair, his gaze far away. “A friend saw how closed off I’d become, and she…helped me.”
“How?”
“By seducing me. There was wine involved, and music. She wouldn’t take no for an answer.” He cupped her shoulder. “And I’m so glad she didn’t.”
Avoiding his penetrating gaze, Clara focused on the flickering candles. “Did you love her?”
“Not really. And yet—yes, very much.”
“Huh?”
“You see, I’ll never love anyone the way I loved Diana. She was unique in all the world. But she wouldn’t want me to spend the rest of my life pining for her, miserable, alone. My friend helped me see it’s okay to enjoy my life. She helped me realize that one day I might even love again. She told me it’s not something you can rush, but it will come in time if you relax and open your heart.”
About Runaway Love Story:
Book Two in the series, Runaway Love Story, features Laurel Jepsen, a tall, lanky runner and aspiring gallery owner who loves art but believes she has no talent. Her biggest fault: when the going gets tough, she runs away. On her way to San Francisco, she detours to Eugene to help her great aunt Maxie move into assisted living. 90 years old with flaming red hair (what’s left of it), wacky outfits, and a wicked sense of humor, Maxie is the only member of Laurel’s family who supports her artistic dreams.
Doug Garvey, a high school history teacher, is the quintessential beta hero: also tall and lanky, with a shaved head and golden scruff, he’s resourceful, supportive, and his smile turns his bony face into something dazzling. On a run along the Willamette River, he rescues Laurel from a gang of teens harassing her. Their connection sizzles, but she’s just passing through, convinced a sparkly, big-city career is what she needs to be happy. And he’s tethered to Eugene, where he cares for his elderly parents.
Sparks fly. So do clothes. But the clock’s ticking down to good-bye—until unexpected success, a viral Twitter story, and a long-overdue confrontation with her parents shake Laurel’s assumptions about success and happiness.
Get your copy of Runaway Love Story here:
From August 16 through September 6, Runaway Love Story will be on sale for just 99 cents
Excerpt Runaway Love Story:
He stepped closer, close enough to feel the heat rolling off his body.
A flush painted his cheekbones and his long, straight nose. Exercise, sunburn, or something more interesting?
The air between them vibrated with tingly energy. She focused on the floor, because looking into his face felt too dangerous.
He moved still closer, his toes nearly touching hers. “We’re good now?”
Her gaze slid up from his long, muscular calves, covered with blond fuzz, to his powerful thighs, to the impressive bulge between them, then up his slim torso, his muscular chest, his broad shoulders, until her gaze rested on his face.
His lids lowered, and his lips parted. As if magnetized, her fingertips skimmed up his arm.
Stop. She dropped her hand. “We’re good. I’m sorry, Doug. I saw something between you two, and I jumped to the wrong conclusion.”
His smile blossomed slowly. “I’m glad that’s all cleared up.”
Not all, but it’s a start. Another thought, a crazy one. I could just kiss him, right here, right now. Get it over with, see what happens next.
Once that seed was planted, it was as if a giant electromagnet switched on, tugging them together. Its power hummed in her bones. Invisible sparks crackled between them. She slid a few inches closer.
Author Bio:
Ever since her first kiss, Sadira’s been spinning steamy tales in her head. After leaving her teaching career in Germany, she finally tried her hand at writing one. Now she’s a happy citizen of Romancelandia, penning contemporary romance and cozy mysteries from her home in Washington State. When not writing, which is seldom, she explores the Pacific Northwest with her charming husband, enjoys the local music scene, belly dances, plays guitar badly, and gobbles all the books.
I’d love to hear from readers! You can find me here.
I’m like you, I need to write in silence. Good luck with your books!
Nice interview! I’ve never thought of creating my own writing office until reading this post. Good luck on your books!
Great post! Thanks for sharing.