Power, Jo-Ann
Power, Jo-Ann
(Ann Crowleigh, a joint pseudonym)
PERSONAL: Born in Baltimore, MD; married; children: three. Education: Attended University of Maryland.
ADDRESSES: Home— TX. E-mail— [email protected].
CAREER: Writer. Power Promotions (public relations and marketing firm), TX, founder, president, and chief executive officer, 1998—. Media director, Virgin Books. Former executive and lobbyist in Washington, DC; former teacher of English, and of Chinese and Japanese history.
AWARDS, HONORS: Eight KISS awards for romantic heroes, Romantic Times magazine; Best Debut Novel and Best Contemporary Novel Awards, Romantic Times magazine, 1992, for Prime Time.
WRITINGS
NOVELS
The Mark of the Chadwicks, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1993.
The Last Duchess of Wolff’s Lair, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1993.
You and No Other, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1994.
Angel of Midnight, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1995.
Remembrance, Pinnacle (New York, NY), 1995.
Treasures, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.
Gifts, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.
The Nightingale’s Song, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1997.
Never Before, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.
Never Again, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.
Allure, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 1999.
Never Say Never, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 1999.
Missing Member, Thomas Dunne Books (New York, NY), 2006.
MYSTERIES; WITH BARBARA CUMMINGS
Prime Time, Pinnacle (New York, NY), 1992.
Risks, Pinnacle (New York, NY), 1993.
(Under joint pseudonym Ann Crowleigh) Clively Close, Dead as Dead Can Be, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1993.
(Under joint pseudonym Ann Crowleigh) Clively Close, Wait for the Dark, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1993.
Contributor, with Barbara Cummings under pseudonym Ann Crowleigh, of short story “The Ghost of Christmas Past,” in Murder under the Tree, Zebra Books (New York, NY), 1993. Contributor to periodicals, including Washington Post, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal. Author of weekly syndicated newspaper column, “Power in Marketing!”
SIDELIGHTS: Jo-Ann Power began writing novels after establishing herself as a corporate executive and public-relations expert. Her work in those fields required a great deal of nonfiction writing, “about such dry and uninteresting things, most people think, as insurance, securities, and banking,” as she stated in an interview for All about Romance. When Power’s children were young, she stayed home with them and began reading romance novels in her free time. Feeling that she could certainly write a book of equal quality to those she was reading, Power joined the Washington Romance Writers group. Recalling her early days as a fiction writer, she said in the All about Romance interview: “I would get on the subway and I’d get in the back where I could spread out, and I would write long-hand, fiction, on my way to work. When I got on the subway to come home, I would take out my yellow pad and I’d continue. And on the weekends I’d type it into my computer. And that’s how I wrote maybe five manuscripts.” Power’s landed her first book contract in 1990, and within one year, she had sold several more books. She showed her versatility, selling mainstream novels, contemporary romances, a mystery series, and some gothic novels.
Power’s books Never Before, Never Again, and Never Say Never are set in the Victorian era, and concern nineteenth-century American heiresses who travel to England, in search of husbands from the British aristocracy. Reviewing the first installment in this trilogy, Meredith Moore wrote on the Romance Reader Web site: “Power is deft at handling scenes showing the growing relationship between her hero and heroine. Her elegant use of language, which at times can be exquisitely delicate, is some of the most original I’ve read in years.”
Missing Member is a contemporary mystery by Power, featuring Carly Wagner, a five-term congresswoman from Texas. Carly finds a fellow congressman murdered and mutilated in her office. Although Carly is not actually considered a suspect, she is eager to clear up the scandal. Helping her in this effort is Mr. Jones, a handsome, efficient private investigator who previously worked as a bodyguard. “Humor, politics, and likable characters distinguish this first in a series,” stated Sue O’Brien in Booklist.
Power told the interviewer for All about Romance:“A romance novel is the exploration of how two people who have the potential to love fully, find each other, conquer whatever problems stand between them, and make a decision to continue with each other. By the fact that they have conquered their conflict or solved their conflict, they can then go on hand in hand through the rest of life continuing with that success to conquer the many other problems that are going to come their way.” Power added: “In a society in which women still bear the brunt of broken marriages and children who need nurturing, romance gives hope that there may just be some happy ending.”
BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES
PERIODICALS
Booklist, September 1, 2006, Sue O’Brien, review of Missing Member, p. 64.
Kirkus Reviews, July 15, 2006, review of Missing Member, p. 705.
Publishers Weekly, May 5, 1997, review of The Nightingale’s Song, p. 206; October 5, 1998, review of Never Again, p. 87; April 26, 1999, review of Never Say Never, p. 79; July 24, 2006, review of Missing Member, p. 39.
ONLINE
All about Romance, http://www.likesbooks.com/ (January 8, 1998), interview with Jo-Ann Power.
Jo-Ann Power Home Page, http://www.jo-annpower.com (January 17, 2007).
Mystery Reader, http://www.newmysteryreader.com/ (February 9, 2007), Susan Illis, review of Missing Member.
Power Promotions, http://www.powerontheweb.com (January 17, 2007), company Web site; biographical information about Jo-Ann Power.
Romance Reader, http://www.theromancereader.com/ (January 17, 2007), Meredith Moore, review of Never Before; Bev Hill, review of Never Again; Jean Mason, review of Never Say Never.
Romantic Times, http://www.romantictimes.com/ (January 17, 2007), Kathe Robin, reviews of Allure, Gifts, Never Again, Never Before, Never Say Never, Treasures, You and No Other, and Angel of Midnight.*