Book Blog: "Poaching Daisies" by Carole Thayne Warburton

My friend, Carole Thayne Warburton, has published another book! Carole is a talented writer, and I'm happy to be part of her blog tour. I've always enjoyed Carole's books in the past. I've been too busy to read lately, so I haven't been able to open this yet, but I'm looking forward to it. To celebrate the release, she's having a contest--see below for details. Carole is also a talented potter and does lovely work. You can enter for a chance to win something from her shop. Here's the cover blurb:

Who is Trying to Silence Penny?

Penny Thorton's dreams of being a park ranger start to unravel her first
week on the job when she finds a dead bear in Yellowstone's backcountry.
Shots are fired as she runs away, but once she tells the authorities, all
evidence evaporates. Penny's aunt Iris, who is bent on eradicating an
invasive species of daisy from the park, puts that mission on hold when
more bears are killed and she becomes entangled in the mystery. After
several attempts on Penny's life, she and Iris learn to trust no one not
even their friends.

---

Author Interview

Carole was kind enough to answer some questions about herself and her writing.

Q: How many novels have you published? Poaching Daisies is my fifth novel.

A: How is this book similar and how is it different than your others? This book is similar in that it has elements of mystery, suspense, and romance. Like my others, it is set in a small town. It has strong female characters that have strong opinions. (I wonder why this keeps happening.) This one has a young woman in her 20’s and a woman in her 50’s. The book is different though in that this is my first novel that doesn’t have any LDS elements. Since this book takes place outside of Utah, it was easy to not bring religion into the story. My other books took place in Grouse Creek and in Paradise, Utah. Mormonism was a natural fit for part of the storyline. 

Q: What was your inspiration for this book? We’ve been going to Yellowstone and the area of Montana that the book is set in since I was only three years old. The landscape is always in the back of my mind. One year when we were there, they had a town meeting about eradicating the oxeye daisy since it could take over. I was intrigued by the passion of the woman giving the presentation and thought she might make an interesting character. Then I heard about the poaching of bears for their parts that are lucrative on the black market. What a great combination for a story. It took some research to get going and I re-wrote it several times trying to get the details right.

A: Iris MacAfee your fictional character is passionate about the environment. What are you passionate about besides writing? I admire Iris for her confidence and her courage to fight her fight in spite of opposition. In the realm of politics, I find myself defeated before I even get started, so my passions are distractions from the struggles I feel. I love to hike, ride bikes, ski, walk, read, and eat lunch with friends. I’m crazy about my husband and feel so lucky to have him in my life. I’m insanely thrilled with my children, daughter-in-law and grandkids. Life has been good to me. Besides writing, I love to make pottery. I sell my work at local art festivals, markets, and galleries. It’s such a wonderful balance to play with the written word and then get my hands in clay and make three-dimensional pieces.

Q: Who are some of your favorite authors and books? I could get in trouble with this question since I have so many writer friends. My writing friends are awesome for sure, but other than those I love Barbara Kingsolver, Anne Tyler, and Tony Hillerman. I’ve never been disappointed by any of their books. Besides these authors, some of my favorite books are The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Growing up, I absolutely loved all the Oz books and Frances Hodgsen Burnett’s books. I read constantly as a child.

A. What are some rewards you’ve gotten from writing that you didn’t expect? The number one reward has been a whole slew of new friends, some whom I’ve gotten very close to. I’ve been very lucky to have friends who have rooted for me and support me (like by doing interviews and blogs) among lots of other ways. Another reward is to have learned the process of publishing. I’ve loved hearing from some how they’ve enjoyed my books or people who have invited me to speak to their book clubs. I’ve also loved the feeling of accomplishment. I’m also thrilled to give my mother something to brag to her friends about.

Thanks, Carole!

Contest information:

To celebrate the release of Poaching Daisies, the talented Carole Thayne Warburton is giving away a $50 gift certificate to her ETSY shop--Paradise Pottery. Her pottery is beautiful, so this is a giveaway you don't want to miss. Want to win?  Follow the easy instructions below.

How to Enter

1. Leave a comment telling us what you liked about the review and why you are excited to read Poaching Daisies. For each review you comment on, you'll receive a separate entry. Don't forget to include your email address. 

March 24: Janet Jensen
March 25: Julie Coulter Bellon
March 26: Liz Adair
March 27: Braden Bell
March 28: Shirley Balhmann
March 29: Stephanie Worlton

2.  Tweeting about the review, or posting to your blog or Facebook will earn you additional entries. Just leave us a link in the comments section to your post.

Contest ends April 3, 2013.