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, Nora Phoenix.
About Nora Phoenix
Nora Phoenix is a USA Today bestselling author of MM/gay romance. She writes in various subgenres of gay romance and is known for writing engrossing stories that offer an escape from reality with unique characters, plenty of heat, a captivating story, and all the feels. A dash of kink is optional.
She’s a lifelong and incurable book addict, a proud single mom, an eternal optimist, and an unapologetic feminist. She loves traveling, spending time near the ocean, gardening, and hiking. But she loves books more. Her reading preferences are eclectic, ranging from all kinds of romance to thrillers, historical fiction, psychology, self help, history, and more.
Interview
If drinks by the pool are already a given, what are you most looking forward to about the Rainbow Readers Cruise?
Hanging out with readers and fellow authors! I love meeting readers, and it’s so exciting to have more than a few minutes to chat. Plus, I’ve never been to Key West, so yeah, looking forward to that as well.
Which of your books would you recommend as the best way for readers to get to know you before meeting you on the cruise?
Captain Silver Fox, for sure. Not only is it set on a cruise ship (!), but it’s also a fun, high-heat story about two guys who share an amazing one-night stand only to discover they’re on the same ship as captain and employee. Oops! With fun banter, an age gap, and a bit of hurt/comfort, this is a wonderful story to read from me.
Which of your characters (from any story) would you most like to go on a cruise with?
I’d love to take President Del Shafer from my White House Men on a cruise and ask him all about life in the White House. I bet he’d have so many interesting stories to tell about his role as a president, how he’s liking retirement, and more.
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 lot of research for my White House Men series, including on the Secret Service and the FBI. Most of it didn’t make it into the story, but it was so cool to learn. I read memoirs from former agents and those were so interesting; for example, their stories about their training or strange things they encountered at work (like President Clinton going for ice cream in the middle of the night…)
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.
It’s an older series, but I absolutely love Annabeth Albert’s Out of Uniform series, featuring Navy SEALs. It’s the perfect combination of a story with depth, three-dimensional characters, heat, and some cool tidbits about the SEALs and the military in general. I love learning things like that from romances! If you like kink, I recommend Cara Dee. Her book Power Play is a favorite of mine, but I also love her The Game series.
| Note from J.L.: I haven’t read that series by Annabeth Albert yet, but frequent blog visitors already know we adore Cara Dee around here! Find my reviews here: Power Play | The Game series |
Finally, what other projects are you working on currently?
I’m working on the cowrite with E.M. Lindsey, called Creek, which will be a lovely story about a wounded, grumpy veteran finding his way to love with a sunshiney, happy-go-lucky guy he meets at physical therapy.
Also on my list is Protecting the Nerd, which will be the next book in my Forestville Silver Foxes series, and a novella I’m writing for the next Dirty Daddies anthology, which will release in June.
Connect With Nora Phoenix
Website | Sign Up For Nora’s Mailing List
Facebook | Reader Group | Instagram | Twitter/X
Amazon Author Page | Goodreads | BookBub
Subscription Platform: Nora After Dark | Books Available Direct
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.
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