FOR THE RECORD

by Regina Jennings

  Genre: Historical Romance / Christian

Publisher: Bethany House

Date of Publication: December 6, 2015

Number of Pages: 336

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Rather Than Wait for a Hero,  She Decided to Create One

Betsy Huckabee has big-city dreams, but nobody outside of tiny Pine Gap, Missouri, seems interested in the articles she writes for her uncle’s newspaper. Her hopes for independence may be crushed, until the best idea she’s ever had comes riding into town.

Deputy Joel Puckett didn’t want to leave Texas, but unfair circumstances have made moving to Pine Gap his only shot at keeping a badge. Worse, this small town has big problems, and masked marauders have become too comfortable taking justice into their own hands. He needs to make clear that he’s the law in this town–and that job is made more difficult with a nosy reporter who seems to follow him everywhere he goes.

The hero Betsy creates to be the star in a serial for the ladies’ pages is based on the dashing deputy, but he’s definitely fictional. And since the pieces run only in newspapers far away, no one will ever know. But the more time she spends with Deputy Puckett, the more she appreciates the real hero–and the more she realizes what her ambition could cost him.

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PRAISE FOR FOR THE RECORD

“Jennings creates a perfect blend of love, mystery, and wit in this 19th-century romance.” —Publishers Weekly starred review

“Jennings’ latest is a delightfully entertaining historical romance featuring charismatic humor, unpredictable thrills, and vigilante justice. The plot is tense and exciting, and the novel sparkles with the wit and charm of its spirited heroine. It is more romantic and less stuffy than your average inspirational, and Jennings uses classic western touches like six-shooters, spurs, and white Stetsons to land readers squarely in the Ozark Mountains of 1885.” —Booklist

“This is such a delightful read with an adorable romance and a fun and entertaining story line. . . The interactions and dialogue between the main characters are sheer perfection. The mystery and drama with the hero’s backstory and the masked marauders keep the momentum of the story going at a nice pace and allows for no dull moments. There is so much to love here in this little gem, it is easily one of Jennings’ best.” —RT Book Reviews

What projects are you working on at the present?

My next series is set in Indian Territory just a few miles from my home in Oklahoma. The series is going to kick-off with a story about a dance hall singer who gets mistaken as a governess by the commander of Fort Reno. There’s going to be a lot of dashing cavalrymen, cowboys, Indians, and outlaws. Look for the first book, “Holding the Fort” in December of 2017.

Do you have any strange writing habits you’d like to share with your readers?

I’m not much on tradition or ritual. I pretty much have to write when I can, which usually means toting the laptop to basketball or football practice. That’s me, the anti-social one sitting in the car while the rest of the moms are visiting in the stands.

What question do you wish that someone would ask about your book, but nobody has?

You write about Betsy making the perfect hero…and then she realizes that the perfect man isn’t perfect. What are the key ingredients for a perfect hero?

For me, the first thing a hero must have is character. If he’s dishonest, unfaithful or unkind, he can’t be a good match for the heroine, no matter how handsome, talented or rich. And I think the perfect hero is also able to laugh at himself. Laughing at yourself shows confidence, and nothing is more attractive than confidence.

If you had a superpower, what would it be?

I have this conversation with my kids about once a week. While it would be noble to request the gift of healing, I have to say having instant teleportation would be a lot more fun. (And since this is make-believe, let’s have fun!) Can you imagine how cool that would be? I want to see the Eiffel Tower this afternoon…boom! I’m there. I want to take tea at Piccadilly Circus? Cheers! I’d probably even use it daily to run errands with the kids. How handy would that be?

My second choice would be time travel, but you still need teleportation to make it feasible. It’d be hard to time travel if you always end up in the exact place you left.

Where is one place you want to visit that you haven’t been before?

My problem is that there are very few places I’ve traveled to that I don’t want to visit again. In fact, visiting somewhere usually makes me want to go back even more. If I’m visiting again, I’d say England and Scotland. If I’m limited to a country I haven’t been to, let’s try Australia. It looks so beautiful in the pictures and I hear that the people are very friendly.

If you could speak with any accent from anywhere in the world, what would you choose? What? You mean besides my Oklahoma accent? What’s wrong with that? OK, British I suppose. Probably north England, or Scottish. Nothing too posh.

What’s something fun or funny that most people don’t know about you?

Well, you see I’m Baptist and my parents were pretty strict, so I never got to take any dance classes or even gymnastics when I was growing up. Judging from an 8mm film of me dancing at four years old, I think that if I would’ve just had a few lessons I might have won the first Nobel Prize for a dancer. It would’ve changed the world. At least that’s what I thought until I actually tried it.

After I was married with kids my cousin and I enrolled in a dance class at the local community college, but not just any dance class… a belly dancing class. We had a great time, but I realized that my parents did not deprive the world of the next prima ballerina. They just saved them from some really awkward recitals.

What’s your funniest flaw?

I’m a morning person. I don’t know if that’s funny to some people, especially those who go to church camp or mission trips with me, but I find it amusing how the world caters to those who stay up late and punishes those of us who are evening-challenged.

Instead of high school football games that last until 10:00 or 11:00 pm, why not have them at 4:00 a.m. instead? Then we could celebrate the win and go off to work for the day. Same with firework celebrations. Why wait around on those long summer nights for it to get dark? I’m so sleepy! Let’s shoot off the fireworks at 5:00 a.m. before the sun is up. That sounds like a great way to start the day!

Regina Jennings is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University with a degree in English and a history minor. She is the author of Sixty Acres and a Bride, Caught in the Middle, and At Love’s Bidding and contributed a novella to A Match Made in Texas. Regina has worked at the Mustang News and First Baptist Church of Mustang, along with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and various livestock shows. She now lives outside Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with her husband and four children.

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