CHILD, Maureen 1951-

(Ann Carberry, Sarah Hart, Kathleen Kane)

PERSONAL: Born 1951; married; children: two.

ADDRESSES: Home—Southern CA. Agent—c/o Author Mail, St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Romance writer. Formerly a bank teller, painter, singing telegram performer, and working clown.

WRITINGS:

novels

The Bandit's Lady, HarperTorch (New York, NY), 1995.

Have Bride, Need Groom, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1997.

The Surprise Christmas Bride, Harlequin Books (New York, NY), 1997.

The Littlest Marine, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1998.

The Non-commissioned Baby, Harlequin Books (New York, NY), 1998.

The Oldest Living Married Virgin, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1998.

Maternity Bride, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1998.

Colonel Daddy, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1999.

Marine under the Mistletoe, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1999.

Mom in Waiting, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1999.

The Daddy Salute, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2000.

The Last Santini Virgin, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2000.

The Next Santini Bride, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Marooned with a Marine, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Did You Say Twins?, Harlequin Books (New York, NY), 2001.

His Baby!, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2001.

The Last Virgin in California, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Prince Charming in Dress Blues, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2001.

The Marine and the Debutante, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2002.

The Royal Treatment, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2002.

The Seal's Surrender, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2002.

Beauty and the Blue Angel, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2003.

Finding You; Knowing You, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2003.

Kiss Me, Cowboy!, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2003.

Loving You, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2003.

Sleeping with the Boss, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2003.

And Then Came You: Sam's Story, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2004.

Forever—Again, Silhouette (New York, NY), 2004.

Man beneath the Uniform, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2004.

Some Kind of Wonderful, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2004.

Lost in Sensation, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2004.

(With Peggy Webb) Summer Surrender, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 2004.

A Crazy Kind of Love, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2005.

novels; as kathleen kane

Mountain Dawn, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1992.

Small Treasures, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1993.

Coming Home, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Keeping Faith, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Charms, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1995.

Wishes, Jove (New York, NY), 1995.

A Pocketful of Paradise, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1997.

Still Close to Heaven, volume 1, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1997.

Dreamweaver, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1998.

This Time for Keeps, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1998.

Simply Magic, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1999.

The Soul Collector, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 1999.

Catch a Fallen Angel, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 2000.

Wish upon a Cowboy, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 2000.

Just West of Heaven, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 2001.

When the Halo Falls, St. Martin's Paperbacks (New York, NY), 2002.

novels; as ann carberry

Maggie and the Gambler, Avon Books (New York, NY), 1995.

Alice and the Gunfighter, Avon Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Frannie and the Charmer, Avon Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Author has also written under the name Sarah Hart. Works also appear in numerous collections with other romance writers.

ADAPTATIONS: A Pocketful of Paradise was adapted as a CBS television movie, The Soul Collector, 1999.

SIDELIGHTS: First published in 1990, Maureen Child tried her hand at romance writing while looking for a job compatible with being a stay-at-home mom. Some seventy-five titles later, she has published under several pseudonyms and writes both contemporary romances as well as historical/paranormal romances. One of her novels, published under the pen name Kathleen Kane, A Pocketful of Paradise, was made into a 1999 television movie starring Melissa Gilbert and Bruce Greenwood and titled The Soul Collector. Novels written under her true name include an ongoing series called "The Bachelor Battalion" about U.S. Marines. Other novels include those written under pseudonyms Ann Carberry and Sarah Hart; all Child's fiction readers focus on strong families and happy endings.

Among Child's more widely reviewed novels is Some Kind of Wonderful, the story of a solitary woman who settles in Christmas, California after having grown up in foster care. Carol Baker's new-found comfort is soon shaken, however, by her discovery of an abandoned baby. She takes the infant into her home and is then introduced to the town's temporary sheriff, Jack Reilly, a tough ex-LAPD cop who struggles with his own dark past. Carol is attracted to Jack despite his gruff exterior. Booklist's Lynne Welch commented that in Some Kind of Wonderful the author explores "the full range of human emotion" in a "thoroughly satisfying" romance. Writing for the Best Reviews Web site, Lory Martin admired the novel's "great characters and … intriguing plot."

In the trilogy Finding You, Knowing You and Loving You, Child crafts a series of stories about the Candellano family. The first novel centers on Carla Candellano, who becomes emotionally attached to young Reese Wyatt and then falls in love with his father Jackson. This "fresh, yet comfortably familiar tale" appealed to Best Reviews online critic Martin, who also recommended Finding You. The second novel relates how twins Paul and Nick Candellano compete for the affections of their longtime friend Stevie Ryan. While Stevie has pined after Nick for years, she only attracts his attention after she begins a steamy relationship with Paul. These two novels were published as a single volume.

In Loving You readers are reintroduced to Nick after his professional football career is ended by injury. Now a fledgling sports reporter, he is surprised when a pre-teen boy named Jonas files a paternity suit against him. The situation is further complicated by his discovery that the boy's mother is dead. When Nick meets Tasha, the woman who has been caring for Jonas since his mother's death, he is strongly attracted to her despite her hostility. A Publishers Weekly critic judged that a "lack of true romantic conflict … makes for a mild, predictable read." Conversely, Harriet Klausner wrote for the Best Reviews Web site that the "entertaining" novel provides more welcome reading about the Candellano clan.

The Candellano family adventures are set in Chandler, California, which also serves as the location for a trilogy started with And Then Came You: Sam's Story. In this novel, eighteen-year-old Samantha Marconi marries Jeff Hendricks, but the union quickly fails and Sam is left alone to discover that she is pregnant. Nine years later, Jeff needs to have their divorce finalized so that he can remarry. When the two meet, Sam discovers that Jeff has raised Emma, the child she gave up for adoption. The reunion makes for a volatile mix, with the child seeking to reunite her parents. Sam and Jeff feel old passions stirring but fear the bitter past that has separated them. In a review for AllReaders.com, Klausner found that "the interplay between everyone makes for a fine tale." According to Lory Martin in the Best Reviews Web site, this was a "fresh, well-crafted, and humorous" addition to the series. Booklist's Lynne Welch remarked that the author's "trademark tenderness toward children" and other thematic threads from previous books serve as important elements in a story anchored by "a familiar, warm, and comforting hometown atmosphere."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

periodicals

Booklist, December 1, 2003, Lynne Welch, review of Some Kind of Wonderful, p. 653; July, 2004, Lynne Welch, review of And Then Came You: Sam's Story, p. 1826.

Publishers Weekly, May 19, 2003, review of Loving You, p. 58.

online

AllReaders.com, http://www.allreaders.com/ (November 3, 2004), Harriet Klausner, review of And Then Came You.

Best Reviews Web site, http://www.thebestreviews.com/ (April 9, 2003), Lory Martin, reviews of Finding You and Knowing You; (May 24, 2003), Harriet Klausner, review of Loving You; (December 26, 2003), Lory Martin, review of Some Kind of Wonderful; (June 4, 2004), Lory Martin, review of And Then Came You.

Maureen Child Home Page, http://www.maureenchild.com (November 3, 2004).*