Today I have the pleasure of bringing you a Guest Post of #HIFortnight from Author D.R. Graham
Hi! My name is Danielle. I write as D.R. Graham. When I was about four years old, I followed my older sister and cousins for a walk across our grandparents' acreage in Regina, Saskatchewan. We reached the south fence as the sun started to set. I was convinced that we, or at least I, wasn't going to be able to make it back to the ranch house before it got dark. That's when my Papa rode up on his white horse. He extended his hand down to me and swooped me up to sit on his lap. Then he said, "Shall we gallop?" and we rode, literally, off into the sunset. This type of chivalry is why I dedicated RANK to my Papa and every other cowboy with heart and try.
Although romantic and set against the backdrop of the rodeo, RANK is also a serious family drama. As a counsellor by profession, I wanted to write a story about how mental illness impacts siblings, and that psychological angle is where the story for RANK began. I made the characters cowboys because I grew up spending summers in the country, and who doesn't love a cowboy?
Rodeo is all Billy Ryan and his brother Cole have ever known — until one deadly wreck changes everything. With their mom requiring full-time care and Cole dealing with his own demons, Billy needs to step up to take care of his family. So he walks away from his future as a champion bull rider. Convincing himself he didn’t quit because he lost his nerve…
Barrel racer Shae-Lynn, the sweet good-girl-next-door, grew up with the boys on the rodeo circuit. She’s the only person who knows Billy better than he knows himself. She could help him get back in the ring, but there’s a limit to how many times she’ll watch him make the same mistakes. Especially when it comes to her heart.
When Cole’s gambling debts get out of control and the bills at home pile up, Billy has no choice but to enter a winner takes all bull riding event. He needs Shae-Lynn by his side, but that isn’t going to happen unless he figures out a way to cowboy up and prove he’s good enough for a woman like her.
Intense, emotional and complex, RANK is Friday Night Lights meets Nicholas Sparks’ The Longest Ride… with edge!
RANK Links:
(GOOGLE PLAY) http://hyperurl.co/tu2xe2
AUTHOR BIO:
D.R. Graham is the author of Young Adult and New Adult novels for HarperCollins and Entangled Publishing. She worked as a social worker with at-risk youth for seven years before becoming a therapist in private practice. The clients she works with are children and teenagers and the novels she writes deal with issues relevant to young and new adults in love, transition, or crisis. She is also an award winning columnist for the Richmond News. She currently lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband.
D.R. Graham's novels are edgy and reflect the emotional rawness of the young adult psyche. The novels contain coarse language and mature subject matter. They are intended for mature young and new adult readers.
www.drgrahambooks.com
I loved this book! It's gripping, fast paced and full of action, but I especially loved the way the 'issues' aren't treated like issues. These characters felt like real life people just getting on and dealing with the hand that was dealt them. I hope we see a book coming for Cole soon...
ReplyDeleteYour Pappa sounds like a real hero, DR! And a cowboy to boot! Oh hey, is that a pun?! :)))
ReplyDelete