Book 1 of The Wandering Hearts Series
Travel Romance
Date Published: 01-23-2023
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Travel writer Dayna Benning tours Europe to write a feature story for a travel magazine. Along the way, she helps her bestie scatter her husband’s ashes. When Dayna accidentally sprinkles Alex Mendes with dried rose petals intended for the deceased, she senses a chemistry with the silver fox airline pilot. Just one catch—he wears a wedding band. Embittered by her divorce, Dayna refuses to be a homewrecker, like the woman who ruined her marriage. Alex and Dayna go their separate ways, but she’s mystified when serendipitous signs point her toward him at every turn. Determined to find out why, she learns Alex is a widower. Dayna hopes for a second chance at love…but her resentful heart stops her. Can she forgive those that broke her heart the first time? And for that matter, can she forgive herself for her failed marriage? Unless she finds a way to piece together her fragmented heart, Alex will forever remain a fantasy.
Interview with LoLo Paige
How many books have you written and which is your favorite?
I have 5 titles currently in the market that are my books, and 2 more to be released this spring. I write in two romance subgenres, action adventure romances, and romantic comedies. I also have 5 anthology titles containing short romantic comedies currently on Amazon. These have limited availability.
If you’re planning a sequel, can you share a tiny bit about your plans for it?
Hello Spain, Goodbye Heart is the first of my travel romances for my Wandering Hearts series, published by The Wild Rose Press. It was inspired by a group tour I took of Portugal, France, and Spain, and all the funny and serious things that occurred along the way. My next book in the series is Irish Thunder, which is a travel romance with a celebrity trope: A male singing group takes a break from their Vegas strip show as the featured entertainment on a cruise ship. The lead singer meets a reluctant technical writer. This one has tons of funny situations!
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
Each of the books in my Wandering Hearts travel romance series are standalones. What connects them is the Wanderlust Travel Inc. tour company where people interact and meet each other.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
When I landed in Barcelona for my real life tour that I base the novel on, I stepped out of the terminal, spread my arms, and said, “Hello Spain!” My travel peeps said make that the title of your next book. So I did…then added Goodbye Heart after I finished writing it, after it occurred to me that is exactly what happened as the romance progressed.
How long did it take you to write this book?
It’s hard to put a time frame on it as I worked on it off and on. I started writing it on the plane returning from Barcelona to the U.S. A few months later, I submitted it to my publisher, and they offered me a contract.
What does the title mean?
It’s symbolic, embracing a world for the first time out of your comfort zone and all that goes with it. In this case, embracing meeting new people that teach us to expand our horizons. Just as we do with new relationships. Like Rick Steves, the famous travel guru says, the ultimate souvenir of traveling is a broader perspective. I don’t want to spoil what happens, but Goodbye Heart reveals itself at the end.
What did you learn when writing the book?
I learned about Spanish, Portuguese, and French cultures, especially after traveling to those places. I loved meeting the people and exchanging thoughts, commentary, and ideas about things. I believe this helped me shape my two main characters and their perspectives as they toured these beautiful countries. I also learned that loss is not something that we “get over.” It is something universal, that we all experience in our lives. What matters is how we deal with it and how we move on from it.
What surprised you the most?
How hard it was to write about loss.
Have you ever killed off a character your readers loved?
Not yet. I don’t like to do that in the romances I write. I’ve killed minor characters in my wildland fire romantic suspense books, but never a main character. I’ll leave all that to George Martin III.
What do you do to get inside your character’s heads?
I visualize myself in their place, and when I create the situations they encounter, I write how they would respond—not how I would necessarily respond. All of us are a product of our past experiences and perspectives, so I love when I can broaden my perspective when writing the points of view from my male and female characters. I had so much fun writing Dayna and Alex, I hope readers have as much fun reading about them!
About the Author
LoLo Paige is an award-winning author who writes romantic suspense, thrillers, and romantic comedies. Her romantic comedy, Hello Spain, Goodbye Heart won an RWA chapter award for best romance in 2020, and her romantic suspense romances about wildland firefighting have garnered several independent publishing awards in for best romance. She's also a former wildland firefighter and books from her Blazing Hearts Wildfire Series have been featured and reviewed in Publishers Weekly Booklife Magazine. Her true story about escaping a runaway wildfire won a 2016 Alaska Press Club award. Her books have ranked No. 1 on Amazon Bestseller Lists in global markets, including the U.S., Canada, and Australia. Lolo has decades of theatre experience acting in stage comedies, and comedy is her first love.
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TIKTOK: @lolopaigeauthor
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