Returning to the San Juan Islands

My first two books were set in Washington State's San Juan Islands. The next two, including my new football series, were both set in the Seattle area. With Book 2 of the Seattle Lumberjacks Series, I'm returning to the San Juans, as Tyler, the cocky quarterback in Fourth and Goal, inherits a rundown mansion in the San Juans with one caveat. He must stay in the mansion for ninety days before he can legally own the valuable waterfront property.

This year I also returned to the San Juan Islands in another way. It's been years since I've boated to the San Juans, but my husband and I were lucky enough to spend 10 days in the islands on a boat this August. To see pictures of the trip, friend me on Facebook. Here's a teaser:

An Orca whale in the Straits of Juan de Fuca

Sunset at Roche Harbor

Our hostess for the trip, the Cabaret

More Pictures from Friday Harbor and San Juan Island



Roche Harbor Store



American Camp

English Camp on Garrison Bay

Mount Baker

Christmas at Friday Harbor

This year my hubby and I decided to spend Christmas in Friday Harbor at our favorite place, Ferry Landing Suites. We try to stay there at least once a year. It was booked for Thanksgiving, so I booked it for Christmas weekend.


The San Juan Islands from the Ferry

The ferry crossing yesterday was the roughest one I've ever experienced. Still not bad, but rough enough that cars were bouncing up and down, and the ferry was being thrown about. My 2nd book in my Seattle Lumberjacks Series is set in the San Juans at Friday Harbor, so I'm doing some book research while I'm here.

As you know, my first two books were set on Orcas Island in the San Juans. I'm excited to be returning to the San Juan setting with Forward Passes, set on San Juan Island.

Here's the view from our room, both this morning and last night. Stay tuned for more pictures.

The ferry landing in Friday Harbor with two ferries in the distance

Friday Harbor at night

New San Juan Romance by Lisa Kleypas

As you probably know, two of my three current novels are set in the San Juan Islands, specifically on Orcas Island, though the characters do venture to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. My fourth book, titled Fourth and Goal, is set in Seattle, but the sequel to Fourth and Goal happens to be set in Friday Harbor.

I was pleased to see that Lisa Kleypas, one of my favorite historical authors, has a new short contemporary novel set in Friday Harbor, called Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor. I purchased it for a Thanksgiving weekend read, but I couldn't hold off that long. I read it yesterday. I loved Lisa's descriptions of San Juan Island and Friday Harbor. I loved her characters in this book also. My only complaint is the book was too short. I hope the remaining books in this series are full-length novels. I wanted more of Mark and Maggie's story!

Lisa is doing a Friday Harbor series on three brothers. I can't wait to read them all.

Coincidentally, my hubbie and I are spending Christmas at Friday Harbor this year. We usually go there for Thanksgiving, but we have other plans so it'll be Christmas.

Rainy Weather? Who Cares?

My hubby and I are currently on a San Juan Islands vacation. It's pretty much rained the entire time with the exception of a few sun breaks.

We don't really care. In fact, while sun would've been a nice plus, we really didn't expect it.

One of our favorite places to stay, Rosario Resort, re-opened recently, and we jumped at the chance to stay there again. Not to mention, the reasonably rates attracted us, too.

So here we are on our last full day here, unless we decide to spend one more day tomorrow. We're playing that by ear. I'd like to share a few pictures with you of our trip.

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This picture is of the rowing pond at Rosario. Robert Moran built it for his guests to enjoy about eight-plus years ago.

 We witnessed this sunset on our ferry trip over. I wish the colors would have come out better. They were much more vivid than this.

This is a view looking out at Cascade Bay from the Rosario Marina.

I'll post more pictures on my Facebook. If you aren't a friend, you can friend me at:

http://www.facebook.com/jamidavenport

We're Back!!!

My husband and I made a last-minute trip to the San Juans this weekend. We have a four-day weekend and what better way to spend it. Since Rosario is closed, we decided to try a new place. I found a great deal on a third-floor suite at Ferry Landing Suites in Friday Harbor. We caught the early ferry, and here we are. It's sunny, about 60, and windy, but really pretty pleasant considering the mainland is having rain, rain, and more rain.

So hubby is watching football, and I'm working on my book. We did a little Christmas shopping and will do more before we leave on Tuesday. Here are some pictures taken from our balcony. You can see why it's called Ferry Landing Suites.

Our room is on the top floor of ths buildng. You can see my husband standing on the balcony.

Rosario Update

I promised a Rosario update as soon as I found out anything. If you've read my books, you know I have an affinity for the San Juan Islands and Rosario Resort. This spring my husband and I visited the resort three times.

I checked out the San Juan Islander (the local newspaper in the San Juans) and found an article on their website.

Rosario was sold at auction for only 5.4 million to a local man who hopes to develop the property into a premier resort. The good news is that the resort will be open again. For the immediate future, it'll close on October 20. There's been no word when the new owner will open it.

To read more, click here:

Rosario

We're looking forward to another trip there this fall or winter, so I hope it reopens in a few months.

Rosario to be Auctioned

Those of you who've read my books know that they're set in the San Juan Island, specificially Orcas Island. You'll also recognize that I have scenes at Rosario Resort. I've posted several times in this blog about Rosario.

On September 30, Rosario will be auctioned to the highest bidder. There has been talk that the mansion may end up as a private residence. Those of us lucky enough to visit the mansion and attend the organ/history concert by Christopher Peacock in the music room may never get to repeat that experience.

Then there are Rosario's 200 plus employees. As you can imagine, on an island like that, employment for 200 people isn't easy to come by. I hope the new buyer will continue to run it as a resort and make needed improvements to the property.

I'll be anxiously waiting to find out the purchaser. I'll give everyone an update as soon as I do.

Two More New Reviews--5 Flags and an Outstanding Read

I'm happy to announce two more excellent reviews for The Dance. Plus The Dance is Book of The Week at Whipped Cream Reviews and Outstanding Read at Simply Romance Reviews


Euro-Reviews--5 Flags

The Dance by Jami Davenport is the story of a man and a woman who have been deeply wounded by loss and betrayal. They've each handled their pain very differently but still end up in the same place - hiding behind thick walls to keep out anyone who could hurt them again.

Mariah has been alone for as long as she can remember. She clings to material things because they don't run away. But still she keeps the hope alive that one day she'll find real love and have the whole fantasy. But in the meantime she'd rather by like Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind, and not think about it until tomorrow.

Rico has his own skeletons in his past and in his present his freeloading family is milking him dry. A has-been rock star who was addicted to drugs, Rico has thrown himself into his import business to keep everything else out of his life. But still his family is making him nuts so he goes into "hiding" in the San Juan Islands off the coast of Washington State. When he sees Mariah on her horse she puts the first chink in his wall in years, but is he ready to let her in, and will she want to cross that threshold?

The two can't resist each other and eventually give in to their feelings and their walls come tumbling down. But all too soon it is time for Rico to head back to his "real" life and that coupled with the truths that Mariah learns brings their happiness crashing against the rocks.


The Dance is a great book! It pulls on your heartstrings and caused me to tear up a time or two. I really felt for Mariah and all the hurts she had to work through. Her growth throughout the story was inspiring. Rico, of course, had my heart from the beginning. And when the two are together it is beyond scorching! Through all of this The Dance is still more than just a love story, there are some ups and downs which keep you guessing and causes plenty of hand wringing as we wait to see if they will get their happily ever after. I definitely recommend this book, its a great read filled to the brim with real emotions and plenty of heat.

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Simply Romance Reviews--"A" Rating and Outstanding Read

Mariah Baker doesn’t want to nurse her wounds – not the kind on the outside but the inside ones, that are deep and painful. She’d rather put it off like Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind, but in The Dance she’ll learn that isn’t the best way to heal.

Rico is hiding from a family which is milking him dry. A music star that was betrayed and then shunned, he went into the import business and still supports his freeloading family. But he’s bored in his “hideout” until the day he sees a vision on a horse and can’t stay away.
Mariah and Rico are instantly attracted to each other and work hard to keep it controlled – at least for a while. Mariah knows Rico will leave at the end of the month and she doesn’t even know his true identity, he pushes all of her buttons and she can’t resist.

But nothing is as it seems and when Mariah finds out the truth and Rico goes back to his “real” life it is almost too much for her to bare. Coupled with the underhanded plotting by her unscrupulous ex, Mariah doesn’t have much of a chance though she puts up a good fight.

I really enjoyed Jami Davenport’s The Dance. It is a beautiful love story and so much more. There is a lot of plot weaving and twists here that you wouldn’t expect in this kind of story but it all works, especially the love scenes – can you say “smokin’?” If you’re looking for a read which will bring tears to your eyes and joy to your heart then pick up The Dance you won’t be disappointed.

Orca Whales and The Dance

I was asked by a fellow author if I'd ever been whale watching. To be honest, I did go on a commercial whale watching boat once, but I have seen them several times on my own boat.

Over the years, my ex and I had been VERY fortunate to spot Orca Whales in the San Juans many times. Unfortunately, the best pictures were taken on a 35mm camera. This is my best one taken on an old digital. Anyway, on this one occasion, we were crossing the Straits of Juan De Fuca, heading for the San Juans. In the distance we saw a huge gathering of boats, which means one of two things, good fishing or whales.

We kept our course, out in the middle by ourselves. Neither of us wanted to participate in that frenzy that often follows the whales because we didn't believe in harassing these magnificent creatures. More often than not, the whales found us. We didn't need to pursue them. This time was no exception.

I'd put on Jimmy Buffet because the joke was the the Orcas loved jazz and Jimmy Buffet and would come to the boat if you did that. Next thing we knew, we were surrounded by a pod of 16 plus Orcas with a few babies thrown in. We shut down the boat and floated, while they frolicked and played around us for about 30 minutes, giving us a private show. It was INCREDIBLE, a moment that would bring tears to your eyes. One of them went under the boat and surfaced no more than 5 feet from it then leaped into the air for us.

In The Dance, I have a scene where a cynical Rico loses his cynicism when he encounters these whales. They play a small, though important part in the book that is somewhat mystical. You'll have to read it and see what you think.

Contest for The Dance--Win this Gift Bag

Check out this link or read below for how you can win a San Juan Islands gift bag. All entries must be received by Friday, June 11, at 7 am Pacific time. I'll announce the winners at 9 am tomorrow.

http://home.att.net/~jamidavenport/WhatsNew.htm
Stayed tuned throughout the day, as I'll give members of the Siren readers loop extra chances to win.
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Using the listed links, answer these five questions. Send your answers to jamidavenport@att.net before 7 am Pacific time on Friday morning.

Each correct entry will receive their name in the hat for the drawing to win this gift bag, which includes: An Orca Whale cloth tote bag, three types of soaps, Starbucks Coffee, Pike Place MarketSpice tea (for the tea lovers), Rosario mug and shot glass, chocolate spoon for stirring your coffee, a glass ornament, Orcas Island keychain, and a wooden Orca Whale bookmark.

The winner will be drawn and announced on Friday morning at 9 am Pacific time.

Questions:

The hero has two names, what are they?
What is Mariah’s horse’s name and what does it mean?
What does Rico want to do to his neighbor?
What is the name of the Island that is the setting for the book?
What are the San Juan Islands known for?

Where to find the answers:

http://www.sirenpublishing.com/jamidavenport/td.asp
http://home.att.net/~jamidavenport/TheDance.htm

The Dance--Released Tomorrow!!!!

Join me tomorrow at Siren Readers Yahoo Loop for the release of The Dance. I'm giving away one more San Juan Islands gift bag. Check out my website or blog tomorrow for details on how you can win.

Hope to see you there.

An Island Fairy Tale--"Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?"

Welcome to my release day!!!

Since I'm on Pacific time and may not be up by the time some of you have to scoot off to work, I'm actually posting this the night before.

Having my first book published is somewhat of a fairy tale for me, so I think that theme is probably appropriate for today.

I originally wrote "Who's" in 2003-04 under the title of "The Storm." Because I was using this Goldilocks theme, I changed the title to "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" after doing a web search and not finding another book by that title. At least, there wasn't one at that time. I found an old movie, but that was it.

This book is loosely based on a real incident that happened to a friend of mine. You can read about it on my book page at Siren publishing. While you're there, you might want to pick up a copy of "Who's" for your very own. ;)

I made a feeble attempt to sell this book to a big publisher, finaled in a contest, and had some agent interest, then my life was interrupted by those kinds of messy personal things that are part of life. I put writing on a back burner for about 3 years. Last fall, I dusted off Who's and submitted to a few epublishers. Siren Publishing offered to publish it within 48 hours of receiving the manuscript.

So that brings us to today. Release day!!! Please join my release party at Siren-Bookstrand's Yahoo Loop. Also if you leave a comment in my blog


Today, starting with this post, or sign up for my newsletter list, you'll be automatically entered in the drawing for the San Juan Island gift bag pictured in the previous post.

The 2nd theme of the day is islands. "Who's" and my next release, "The Dance," are both set in Washington State's San Juan Islands, my all-time favorite place in the world. This sunset scene is how I picture the view from Rosehill Farm in my book.

The first question of the day is: if you had to be stranded on an island with a fairy tale character, who would you choose and why?

Anniversary Vacation

My hubby and I are off for a one-night trip to the San Juans for our anniversary. We missed the organ/piano concert at Rosario last time so we're going back for that. We're taking some friends with us. Unfortunately, we can only stay Saturday night. We'd love to stay longer.

I'm going to be picking some items for the giveaways I have planned for the month between my two releases. Since both books are set in the San Juans, I'll be doing a San Juan prize package once a week from the release date of my first book (June 12) to the release date of my second.

I'll be posting more details once I have them ironed out.

Please have a wonderful and pleasant weekend

San Juan Islands--Day 4 & 5

Sorry I didn't post the last day, but we left early on Wed. to catch the ferry.

Both "The Dance" and "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed" are set on a fictitious farm on Orcas Island that is in danger of being developed into a world-class resort. On Tuesday, Dennis and I drove to Deer Harbor on the other side of the island. I've always pictured Rosehill Farm to be somewhere in this area with a view similar to this:




Wednesday we left the beautiful San Juans behind us and passed another ferry on our way. The Washington State ferry system is one of the largest in the world and operated by the state of Washington, rather than a private company. There are many inhabitants of Washington who live on islands and depend on the ferry service, not just in the San Juans, but throughout Puget Sound.

I hope you've enjoyed a little look at the islands.

Rosario--Day 3

In 1904 at 47 years old, Robert Moran was told by his doctors that he had only a year to live. The stress of running his successful shipbuilding business and being the mayor of Seattle had taken their toll. Moran left his ship-building empire and retired to Cascade Bay on Orcas Island. He called his estate Rosario. He built a damn on Cascade Lake to produce hydroelectric power for his estate. Then he built a large mansion overlooking the water using his shipbuilding expertise, the Moran Mansion is built like a ship with a nautical theme throughout. The rich wood inside is teak and Honduras mahogany.

Over the years he donated several thousand acres comprising Mt. Constitution and Cascade Lake and donated them to Washington State Parks. On the grounds of Rosario, he had extensive gardens including this figure-eight pond in which family and guests could float in small boats.

In my book, “The Dance,” I talk quite a bit about the magic of Orcas Island. Robert Moran lived to be 86 on Orcas Island, 40 more years than his Seattle doctors gave him.

His estate is now Rosario Resort. The mansion contains dining facilities and a museum, in which you can see many of the original rooms decorated with period furniture and historical information.

By the way, I mentioned that we moved to another room. Here is our new view. You can see why we moved.

San Juan Islands--Day 2

Monday Morning


Even though the weather report said rain all day, it barely rained at all. There were even periods of sunshine.

We spent a lazy day, having lunch and dinner in the lounge and walking about the grounds. We also moved to another room. This was a much nicer room with a beautiful view of the San Jauns, but I was unable to get onto the Internet wireless anymore once we moved. So I’m sending this from the Moran Mansion lobby.

This is the Moran Lounge:

As we were returning from dinner, the sun came out and the skies were blue. I knew my window of opportunity had just arrived. I grabbed Dennis, much to his annoyance as he’d settled in for nap, and insisted that we drive to the top of Mt. Constitution. Mt. Constitution is the tallest point in the islands. You can see a 360-degree panorama of the surrounding islands and mainland. I’d never been up there, but I’d heard it was not to be missed. It was well worth the trip, as you can see below. Unfortunately it was a little hazy so none of the pictures came out very well, but you can see enough to know how beautiful it was.

Here are some views from Mt. Constitution of the islands.

I wanted to stay up there for the sunset, but it was blowing like crazy and about 34 degrees. No joke. Brrrrrr...

I hope you’re enjoying my journal of our trip.

Day One--San Juan Trip

Dennis and I caught the 1:15 ferry to the San Juans yesterday. It was a beautiful ride over, pretty warm for this time of year, and sunny. The ferry trip was about an hour as we stopped at Lopez and Shaw Islands before we could depart at Orcas.

Here's my husband on the ferry trip over.



Once we arrived on Orcas, we had a pleasant, scenic drive along a winding two-lane road to Rosario Resort. Rosario was built by Robert Moran in aprox. 1904. He was a former mayor of Seattle and a shipbuilder. The Moran Mansion is spectacular and now a museim. One of the highlights of the museum is the music room with its 1900-pipe organ. The woodwork in this mansion is Honduras mahogany and teak.

Our room was a surprise. All their bayview rooms were occupied so we were given a garden view room. It actually did have a water view of the marina and Cascade bay.

We had dinner in the bar, which was Robert Moran's library at one time. I'll post pictures of the bar later this week. In my book, "The Dance," Mariah and Rico fall in love in this bar while dancing. Once you see pictures of this romantic bar, you'll see why.


Then we took a walk around the grounds, and Dennis happened upon some very friendly deer.

Today, we're going to move our room to one of the rooms that are perched on the cliff and hang out over the water. I'll update you about everything tomorrow.

Have a great Easter.

The Last-MInute Adventure

Recently, my husband and I talked about a little trip for our anniversary, which is next month. Of course, I wanted to go to my favorite place and the setting for two of my books, Washington's San Juan Islands. Thursday, I started checking reservation information and realized if we went to the San Juans before April 1, we could get great deals on rooms. So at the last minute, we booked a room at Rosario Resort on Orcas Island.

So it's off we go this morning, for a 3-hour drive on I-5 and a pleasant 1-hour ride on the ferry.

If I can get Internet access, I'll post some pictures and some stories of our last-minute getaway.

I'm going to bring back some great "island" items for my promo contests when my first San Juan book comes out, "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed" followed by "The Dance," both set on Orcas Island.

I hope you'll join me--

because everyone deserves a little island time.