In August 2024, I’m excited to combine two of the loves of my life: cruising and LGBTQ+ fiction and romance. I hope you’ll consider joining me on the first Rainbow Readers Cruise! Until then, I’d love to introduce you to one of the attending authors, J.S. Harker.
About J.S. Harker
JS Harker loves stories. She was one of those kids who constantly had a book in her hands and spent countless hours adventuring with her siblings. These days she wanders into her imaginary worlds and conjures up tales of magic, passion, and happily-ever-afters. She currently lives in the part of the Midwest that makes Tatooine look interesting by comparison (not that she’s ever obsessively thought about becoming a Jedi or anything).
Interview
If drinks by the pool are already a given, what are you most looking forward to about the Rainbow Readers Cruise?
Getting to meet readers! I’m a fan of conventions and have been to plenty as an attendee. My favorite part has always been meeting others with my same interests. The internet is so vast, but getting to talk with fellow readers — because authors are readers at heart too — is a great way to learn about other books/movies/audiobooks/comic books/media in general that I might not hear about otherwise.
Which of your books would you recommend as the best way for readers to get to know you before meeting you on the cruise?
Oooooof, this is a toughie! If you’ve only got time for one and only one book from each author, I’ve got to say Keep Me Safe. It’s a standalone and shows my love for eldritch creepiness and was deeply inspired by a love of Torchwood (over a decade and I’m still upset about Ianto. IYKYK). It’s got a sassy sidekick, two men who are a bit hopeless, and psychic fun. Otherwise, I’d recommend Wrong Hunt. Vampires are near and dear to my heart, and I’ve poured a lot of my soul into the Fang and Dagger series.
Which of your characters (from any story) would you most like to go on a cruise with?
Roger from the Fang and Dagger series. He’s a three-hundred-year-old vampire who was a pirate back in the 1600s and called the Caribbean home both before and right after he became a vampire. He misses traveling on the sea. And he’d also love that we’re getting together to talk about queer books!
Even if you don’t use this trip as fodder for a future project, most stories require a bit of research. Can you tell us the coolest thing you’ve learned while researching for your work, regardless of whether it made it into the text?
I did a trip to St. Louis for Keep Me Safe and took a trip to the Missouri History Museum. I learned a lot in general, but one of the coolest things was that St. Louis is one of the older city sites in the United States. In what’s often called the pre-history era, there was a settlement called Cahokia, which was on both sides of the Mississippi (you can visit part of the site on the Illinois side). Eventually, Europeans moved into the area. On the day of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, St. Louis started the day flying the French flag, had to change it out for the Spanish, before finally flying the U.S. flag.
Hey, this is supposed to be a review blog! Recommend your favorite book that I should read and review by another author joining us on this high-seas adventure.
Out of the other authors announced at the moment, I’m most familiar with Jordan Hawk’s work. I have a hard time picking a favorite, but right now I’d have to go with Blind Tiger because Jordan just announced that book two of that series is off to a beta reader. I’m a huge fan of his world-building and the steampunk/gaslight punk atmospheres he constructs.
| Note from J.L.: Read my review of Blind Tiger! |
Finally, what other projects are you working on currently?
Oof. So many. Right now, book three of Fang and Dagger is priority one. I’m working the kinks out of the novel so it’s ready for an April release. My plot bunnies like to multiply constantly, but I’ve got an idea for a story featuring a bodyguard mage and a vampire porn star. I also want to get into shifters, and for Christmas this year, I’m hoping to release my first F/F story that would kick off a new holiday series that would be similar to my Tit for Tat series.
Thanks for reading! I hope that even if you don’t join us for the cruise, you’re discovering lots of new authors to read! A TBR should always be too big 😉
Connect With J.S. Harker
Website | Sign Up For J.S.’s Mailing List
Reader Group
Amazon Author Page | Goodreads | BookBub
About the Rainbow Readers Cruise
The Rainbow Readers Cruise celebrates the readers and creators of LGBTQ+ fiction and romance. The cruise departs from the Port of Fort Lauderdale on August 19, 2024, and returns August 23, 2024, with stops at Key West and Coco Cay (Celebrity’s private island). Along the way, meet and mingle with some of your favorite LGBTQ+ fiction and romance authors and creators, as well as attend panels, meet and greets, small group social activities, and the Signing at Sea. Plus, the cruise itself, with fabulous destinations, food and drinks, entertainment, and more. You can find all the details about the Rainbow Readers Cruise on our website: https://rainbowreaderscruise.com.
