Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Kat Caulberg

Fellow Soul Mate Publishing author Kat Caulberg stopped by to talk about her new book which just happens to be set in my state, North Carolina! Take it away, Kat!

Hi, Nancy! I'm so excited. Thanks for hosting me. My book, Three Star Island, is a time travel romance novel set on the coast of Colonial North Carolina in 1721. It debuted on April 10, 2019, from Soul Mate Publishing. It’s a tale of love and redemption with a strong heroine, a hero worth adoring, and plenty of sassy banter.

Book Blurb:

Stepping through a time portal into 1716, historian Penny Saunders didn’t expect to get stranded in the past. Five years later, now a pariah to the townsfolk of Three Star Island, she endures solitude and ridicule until a hurricane tosses a dangerous castaway onto her shores. 

William Payne’s history precedes him. Pirate, outlaw, and ruthless captain, he’s a monster among men. . . or so it seems. Desperately seeking redemption for his blood-soaked past, he upends Penny’s world by showing her a passion she’s never experienced. 

But time is closing in on them; the governor of the Carolinas has rescinded his pirates’ pardon, the locals are growing suspicious of Penny’s new houseguest, and she can’t keep her secrets from William forever. When everything falls apart, she must use both wits and weapons against lawmen and pirates alike to save the one man who would tear down the world for her.  

Excerpt:

Penny stooped to dip her fingers into a mountain of sea foam. Lacework-white and delicate, it dissolved at her touch. A flicker of movement caught her eye. Slanting toward the beach on a downdraft, a laughing gull shrieked its peculiar, broken cry and swooped over a figure lying in the surf.

Her stomach dropped. The waves had disgorged a body.

Straightening, she fidgeted with her apron strings. The tide was rising. Soon, the ocean would reclaim the life it had taken, leaving no trace of the drowned man behind. Here, he was alone and unknown. Somewhere else, however, he would be an empty seat at a hearth, a bed half-filled, a promise unkept. Like her, he could never go home again. 

Penelope sighed. Unable to bury him, she could at least bear  witness to his return to the sea. Keeping close to the water, she  trudged toward him.  She stopped when his arm moved. It was a tiny motion she could’ve mistaken for a trick of the wind, his sleeve toyed by the breeze, yet when his fist clenched the sand, she was certain.

He was alive.

“Son of a . . .”

The ocean licked his feet, greedy for the life it had been refused. She picked up her skirts and ran. Speeding to him, she whispered a prayer to the waves, the tide, the elements, anything but the god she no longer believed in. Crashing to her knees beside him, she snatched off her broad-brimmed straw hat and shielded his face with it.

His skin was crimson, scorched past its tan by the sun. Sand caked the blood on his waistcoat and salted his hair, turning his  red locks blonde. Cracked lips attempted words. He managed a groan. 

Penny put a hand to his chest. “Don’t worry, I’m here. You’re going to be all right.”

Blue eyes slitted open, working hard to focus.

“Don’t move.” She plucked a strand of seaweed from his close-cropped beard.

“I’m going to go bring my cart closer to get  you in it, so you’re going to have to hang tight here for a bit.”

“I’m alive.” 

“Yes, and I need you to stay that way. Can you do that for me?”

Buy link: AMAZON

More about the Author

For as long as she can remember, Kat Caulberg has been obsessed with history and the paranormal. Somewhat to the dismay of her parents, her interests led her into both museums and graveyards as a child, a trend which has continued into her adulthood. This has influenced her reading tastes and her writing, whether it be a good ghost story, thrilling tales of time-travel, or devouring endless volumes of ancient warfare.

She signed a contract with Soul Mate Publishing in 2018 for her first novel, Three Star Island, a time-travel story set in 1721. She enjoys writing strong, quirky heroines, and has a weakness for cheeky heroes who have as much compassion as they have flaws. Kat currently lives in North Carolina with her Englishman and a few cats. Connect with her here:

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