Welcome to another Enchanted Orb with Anna Hackett who shares with us the inspiration behind her latest release, At Star's End and her love of action, adventure and romance.
During a dreary vacation in Scotland, a man named Robert Louis Stevenson painted a map to help pass the time. Looking at his creation, he suddenly had an image of a band of pirates. Stevenson recalled, “They passed to and fro, fighting and hunting treasure, on these few square inches of a flat projection.” He set down the paintbrush and started to write…the result, Treasure Island.
Well, the inspiration for my latest book, At Star's End, wasn’t a map but it does involve treasure and treasure hunters. In space.
When I sat down to write the first book in my new series, THE PHOENIX ADVENTURES, I had a burning desire to write a non-stop, action-packed romp across the galaxy after fantastic treasure.
Here are all the inspiration ingredients that went into At Star's End.
Action: everyday life is often missing action, or at least action of the thrilling, inspiring variety. Shopping, cooking, changing nappies, wiping grimy hands, heading to work…that’s not the kind of action that leaves the heart pounding. I want chases, explosions, spaceships…things that leave me breathless.
Adventure: I love ancient history (I’ve visited Egypt twice). I love to read about adventurers and explorers of centuries past discovering the treasures we now marvel at in museums. It just isn’t possible to have adventures like that anymore and that inspired my galactic treasure hunter and astro-archaeologist who race to find the last remaining fragment of the Mona Lisa.
Romance: yes, I love action and adventure but isn’t the biggest adventure of all falling in love? I love to see the boy win the girl (and of course have to earn it). All my stories have to have romance. What I love most about action-filled romance is that the action puts the characters in crazy, terrible, trying circumstances. It strips them back to who they really are, shows us what they are really made of, and isn’t that the best time to see them take the leap into love?
Treasure: I loved the idea of exploring what it would be like far into the future, with archaeologists looking back at the remnants of our world. I knew straight away what fabulous treasure my hero and heroine would be chasing—the world’s most famous painting (or what’s left of it in the distant future), the Mona Lisa.
So there you go. Add a cup of action, a large dash of adventure, sprinkle liberally with romance and add a spoonful of treasure and you have At Star's End!
BLURB:
Dr. Eos Rai has spent a lifetime dedicated to her mother’s dream of finding the long lost Mona Lisa. When Eos uncovers tantalizing evidence of Star’s End—the last known location of the masterpiece—she’s shocked when her employer, the Galactic Institute of Historic Preservation, turn its back on her. Left with no choice, Eos must trust the most notorious treasure hunter in the galaxy; a man she finds infuriating, annoying and far too tempting.
Dathan Phoenix can sniff out relics at a stellar mile. With his brothers by his side, he takes the adventures that suit him and refuses to become a lazy, bitter failure like his father. When the gorgeous Eos Rai comes looking to hire him, he knows she’s trouble, but he’s lured into a hunt that turns into a wild and dangerous adventure. As Eos and Dathan are pushed to their limits, they discover treasure isn’t the only thing they’re drawn to…but how will their desire survive when Dathan demands the Mona Lisa as his payment?
During a dreary vacation in Scotland, a man named Robert Louis Stevenson painted a map to help pass the time. Looking at his creation, he suddenly had an image of a band of pirates. Stevenson recalled, “They passed to and fro, fighting and hunting treasure, on these few square inches of a flat projection.” He set down the paintbrush and started to write…the result, Treasure Island.
Well, the inspiration for my latest book, At Star's End, wasn’t a map but it does involve treasure and treasure hunters. In space.
When I sat down to write the first book in my new series, THE PHOENIX ADVENTURES, I had a burning desire to write a non-stop, action-packed romp across the galaxy after fantastic treasure.
Here are all the inspiration ingredients that went into At Star's End.
Action: everyday life is often missing action, or at least action of the thrilling, inspiring variety. Shopping, cooking, changing nappies, wiping grimy hands, heading to work…that’s not the kind of action that leaves the heart pounding. I want chases, explosions, spaceships…things that leave me breathless.
Adventure: I love ancient history (I’ve visited Egypt twice). I love to read about adventurers and explorers of centuries past discovering the treasures we now marvel at in museums. It just isn’t possible to have adventures like that anymore and that inspired my galactic treasure hunter and astro-archaeologist who race to find the last remaining fragment of the Mona Lisa.
Romance: yes, I love action and adventure but isn’t the biggest adventure of all falling in love? I love to see the boy win the girl (and of course have to earn it). All my stories have to have romance. What I love most about action-filled romance is that the action puts the characters in crazy, terrible, trying circumstances. It strips them back to who they really are, shows us what they are really made of, and isn’t that the best time to see them take the leap into love?
Treasure: I loved the idea of exploring what it would be like far into the future, with archaeologists looking back at the remnants of our world. I knew straight away what fabulous treasure my hero and heroine would be chasing—the world’s most famous painting (or what’s left of it in the distant future), the Mona Lisa.
So there you go. Add a cup of action, a large dash of adventure, sprinkle liberally with romance and add a spoonful of treasure and you have At Star's End!
BLURB:
Dr. Eos Rai has spent a lifetime dedicated to her mother’s dream of finding the long lost Mona Lisa. When Eos uncovers tantalizing evidence of Star’s End—the last known location of the masterpiece—she’s shocked when her employer, the Galactic Institute of Historic Preservation, turn its back on her. Left with no choice, Eos must trust the most notorious treasure hunter in the galaxy; a man she finds infuriating, annoying and far too tempting.
Dathan Phoenix can sniff out relics at a stellar mile. With his brothers by his side, he takes the adventures that suit him and refuses to become a lazy, bitter failure like his father. When the gorgeous Eos Rai comes looking to hire him, he knows she’s trouble, but he’s lured into a hunt that turns into a wild and dangerous adventure. As Eos and Dathan are pushed to their limits, they discover treasure isn’t the only thing they’re drawn to…but how will their desire survive when Dathan demands the Mona Lisa as his payment?
I'm Anna Hackett and I write action romance stories to thrill you, excite you and leave you inspired. I write about people overcoming unbeatable odds and achieving seemingly impossible goals to inspire you with the truth that the possibility exists for all of us to do the same. I love hearing from fellow action romance lovers! www.annahackettbooks.com
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