Castell, Dianne 1967(?)-

views updated

Castell, Dianne 1967(?)-

PERSONAL:

Born c. 1967, in Cincinnati, OH; married; children: four. Education: University of Cincinnati, M.S. Hobbies and other interests: Movies, music, gardening, "how to stuff more in closets so I don't have to clean, ways to keep deer from eating my plants!"

ADDRESSES:

Home—Milford, OH. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer.

WRITINGS:

ROMANCE FICTION

High-Tide Bride, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

The Wedding Rescue, Harlequin Books (New York, NY), 2004.

A Cowboy and a Kiss, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2004.

A Fabulous Husband, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

'Til There Was U, Brava/Kensington (New York, NY), 2005.

A Fabulous Wedding, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

A Fabulous Wife, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

The Way U Look Tonight, Brava/Kensington (New York, NY), 2006.

(With Rosemary Laurey and Karen Kelley) Texas Bad Boys (novellas), Brava/Kensington (New York, NY), 2006.

I'll Be Seeing U, Brava/Kensington (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Dianne Castell is the author of numerous romance novels. Romance in general is Castell's passion, be it in the movies she views or the books she reads, so writing about romance seemed a natural next step. Castell credits her personal interests with helping her develop ideas for her books. In her The Way U Look Tonight, the second volume of a series featuring the O'Fallon family of Tennessee, she pairs a tabloid journalist with an actor from a soap opera, an idea she gleaned from years of watching soap operas herself on and off. In an interview for We Write Romance, Castell explained her thought process: "I chose a soap star because it fit into the story … that he'd had a relationship with someone from the press, it ended badly and she ruined his career and then the only acting he could get was on a soap. Then … ta-da … he falls for another gal from the press. Conflict stuff." In a review for Booklist, Shelley Mosley remarked that romance lovers "will delight in this tale's many humorous, quirky moments." I'll Be Seeing U, another installment in the series, finds bankrupt divorcée Cynthia Landoffs returning to O'Fallon's Landing, where she was raised, in an attempt to put her life back together. Meanwhile, younger man Quaid O'Fallon returns home from the Coast Guard and sets about putting Cynthia's broken heart back together. Again reviewing for Booklist, Mosley praised the book for "the buzz and level of sensuality."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 1, 2006, Shelley Mosley, review of The Way U Look Tonight, p. 26; October 1, 2006, Shelley Mosley, review of I'll Be Seeing U, p. 43.