“Widowed businesswoman Angela Delaney has an accidental collision in a hotel corridor with the world’s biggest superstar, Darryl Bridges. Darryl calls later that day to make sure that she is all right – and the fireworks begin!”
Get to know Raynetta:
1. WHAT THIS BOOK IS ABOUT?
All For Love by Raynetta Manees
“Widowed, single-parent businesswoman Angela Delaney is mowed down in a hotel hallway by a human dynamo. To her shock, the repentant culprit is none other than the world’s biggest superstar, singer and musician Darryl Bridges.
Darryl has never met a woman like Angela. She’s easy to talk to, fun to be with and, although she likes his music, she’s not in awe of him. After months of letters and phone calls, he convinces her to spend a weekend in his home in L.A.-no strings attached-and ends up being swept off his feet by Angela’s beauty and warmth.
Angela has fallen in love with Darryl, but she’s not prepared for the fishbowl life Darryl leads. Constant security, no privacy, obnoxious reporters, jealous fans and death threats take their toll on the relationship. Angela wonders if their love is strong enough to withstand the ravages of Darryl’s superstardom.” (Excerpt from book review by Romantic Times.com)
2. WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE THIS BOOK?
All For Love came about due to a crush that I had on a well-known entertainer. In fantasizing about a romance with this star, I realized all the roadblocks his fame would bring to any possible relationship. That caused me to think about the down side of fame—the drawbacks that being famous brings to one’s life. We hear so much about the perks of fame, but very little about its hardships. As Darryl puts it, “There’s a lot of headache—and heartache—in this crazy life I lead.” I actually did not intend for this story to be novel. I originally conceived it as a short story. But once I started writing it seemed to assume a life of its own and before I knew it I had written 93,000 words.
3. TELL US WHY YOUR WRITING IS UNIQUE?
My writing is unique in that that I enjoy doing things with my books that have never or seldom been done. With All For Love I decided to write the book in the first person; that is, telling the book from the viewpoint of just one person, that person being the heroine, Angela. This is rarely done in novels and quite frankly is very difficult to do successfully.
I’m very pleased that the response from both critics and the reading public has been overwhelmingly positive. This book was released as a paperback novel in 1996. At that time it was a finalist for the best contemporary ethnic romance of 1996. The 2013 edition of All For Love is the digital e-book edition. I have updated the book to bring Angela and Darryl into the twenty-first century, however the characters and storyline of the book remain unchanged. As I write this the 2013 digital release of the book is entering its fourth week on two Amazon.com romance Top 100 Best Seller lists. The book is rated five stars by both Amazon and Barnes and Noble customers.
All For Love was my first book, but doing the unusual and unexpected continues to be a hallmark of my work. In my second book, WISHING ON A STAR the heroine is a romance author. The book is a love triangle with essentially two leading men, quite unusual for a romance novel. My third book, FOLLOW YOUR HEART, is a Christian romance novel. The heroine is a Grammy winning singer, and the hero is a minister. Some folks told me not to do it, that I could never make a Christian romance “good.” The critics (calling it a “flawless literary diamond”) and readers disagreed. It also won an award. I threw in a twist about two-thirds into the book that really shook some folks up.
In my fourth book, ALL THE WAY HOME, the heroine is a size 18 grandmother. I had never seen a romance novel in which the heroine was grandmother. I was a new grandmother myself when I wrote the book, and I wanted to show two sexy mature folks in a love scene. My fifth book, FANTASY, takes place on a cruise ship. In fact, I had a book signing on a cruise ship the month the book was released. I didn’t plan it that way, it just worked out. I love cruising and will be going on my ninth cruise in September. And also the heroine of FANTASY is size 16. I felt the queen sized ladies still hadn’t gotten quite enough attention.
An additional reason my writing style is unique is that I throw humor in unexpected places. I’ve had readers write me that they have burst out laughing out loud on a crowded bus while reading one of my books.
4. WHAT CAN WE LOOK FORWARD FROM YOU?
I am working on three projects at the moment. One project is editing my paperback book FANTASY for re-release as a digital e-book this fall. Secondly, I am working on my next new novel for print release. I’m still debating with myself over the title. Thirdly, I am working on my first nonfiction novel, which will center around a tragic medical condition that is unfortunately very prevalent in my family.
Also, although I have not yet actually started work on it, I plan in the very near future to write a screenplay from one or more of my books and to submit it to a couple of moviemakers I have in mind. I know that my books would make interesting and profitable movies, and I intend to put all my efforts into bringing that about.
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