Porter, Jane 1964-

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Porter, Jane 1964-

PERSONAL:

Born 1964, in Visalia, CA; children: two sons. Education: University of California, Los Angeles, B.A.; University of San Francisco, M.A.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Seattle, WA.

CAREER:

Writer, novelist, and educator. Worked in sales and marketing, as a director of a nonprofit organization, and as a junior and senior high school English teacher.

WRITINGS:

ROMANCE NOVELS

The Italian Groom, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2001.

Christo's Promise, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2001.

The Secret, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

The Sheikh's Wife, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2002.

Lazaro's Revenge, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

In Dante's Debt, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

The Latin Lover's Secret Child, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

The Spaniard's Passion, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2003.

Marco's Pride, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2004.

The Italian's Virgin Princess, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2004.

The Sultan's Bought Bride, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2004.

The Greek's Royal Mistress, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2004.

The Frog Prince, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2005.

Taken by the Highest Bidder, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

The Secretary's Seduction, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

The Sheikh's Virgin, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2005.

The Sicilian's Defiant Mistress, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2006.

Flirting with Forty, 5 Spot (New York, NY), 2006.

One Christmas Night, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2006.

Hollywood Husband, Contract Wife, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2006.

The Shiekh's Disobedient Bride, Harlequin (New York, NY), 2006.

Contributor to anthologies, including Her Latin Lover, Harlequin (London, England), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS:

Romance writer Jane Porter is the author of more than twenty novels that have appeared in the United States and in the United Kingdom. On her home page, Porter reveals that she was a bookish youngster, and her imaginative life was transformed when her parents moved to Europe for a year when she was thirteen. After spending many of her high school and college days in programs abroad, she graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, and worked in various positions, including as a sales and marketing professional, a director of a nonprofit organization, and as a high-school English teacher. A resident of Seattle, Washington, Porter now makes the best of the rainy climate of the Pacific Northwest. "I never mind a rainy day, either," she wrote on her home page, "because that's when I sit at my desk and write stories about far-away places, fascinating people, and most importantly of all, love."

The Frog Prince finds twenty-five-year-old Holly Bishop depressed and withdrawn from the unpleasant events of her life. Her short marriage has recently dissolved, and she's still in pain over the demise of her relationship. Hoping for a chance to start over, she moves to San Francisco and takes a job as an event planner. Soon, her lively and model-gorgeous boss, Olivia, becomes concerned and decides to help the emotionally wounded Holly rejoin society. With Olivia's urging, Holly begins dating again, persevering through some disasters but slowly rebuilding her confidence. In the meantime, she works hard on arranging a large and important event that will solidify her career as well as her self-confidence. Inexplicably, however, no one attends the event that Holly had so carefully planned. She realizes she's been sabotaged, but doesn't know who dealt her this serious blow. In the aftermath, all the progress she'd made socially and psychologically threatens to collapse, sending Holly reeling back into the depths of depression and helplessness. "Porter's tale is entertaining and witty as she tugs the heartstrings in a big way," commented Maria Hatton in Booklist.

In Flirting with Forty, Jackie Laurens is quickly approaching her fortieth birthday. Her business as an interior designer catering to the wealthy is thriving, but her life seems to be going nowhere, especially when it comes to romance. Divorced, with two kids, the prospect of turning forty depresses her immensely. At the urging of her friend Anne, Jackie agrees to go to Hawaii to celebrate and unwind. When Anne has to cancel at the last minute, Jackie gathers up her courage and decides to travel on to the islands by herself. There, the prospects for romance seem even more bleak, centered among arrogant, overweight, middle-aged men. Then, unexpectedly, she meets Kai, a gorgeous and sexy surf instructor many years her junior. A sultry relationship immediately ignites between the two, and Jackie thinks she may have found the man she's been looking for. When Jackie returns to the mainland, she and Kai endure the rigors of a long-distance relationship that scandalizes her friends, family, and ex-husband. Though the demands of job and motherhood keep her grounded, she returns to Hawaii for a reunion and copious sex with free-spirited, responsibility-free Kai whenever possible. Soon, the stresses of the extended relationship begin to wear on Jackie, and she's forced to reconsider the wisdom, as well as the practicality, of remaining involved with Kai. When one of her children falls ill and is hospitalized while she's away on a Hawaiian tryst, Jackie realizes where her responsibilities must lie. Readers facing Jackie's age milestone "will find much to empathize with in this amusing, poignant, and compelling story," commented Hatton in Booklist.