Blog Tour Guest Post and Giveaway: Mad Dog and the Archangel - Kat Henry Doranb

Today we have Grace Dunavan, heroine from Mad Dog and the Archangel, chatting with us as part of the Virtual Book Tour for Kat Henry Doran's book Mad Dog and the Archangel. 

What Attracts Good Girls to Bad Boys

Hi everyone, my name is Grace Dunavan; I'm the heroine of “Mad Dog and  the Archangel”, part of the Class of '85 series, a January release by the Wild Rose Press. Kat Doran, who invented me and Rafe Archangeli, asked that I take her place today and talk about what draws good girls to bad boys. Like an ex-nun is an expert in bad boys. But . . . with Kat being the farthest thing from a good girl, I said I'd step up to the plate for her.

Rather than make this a one hit wonder-sided effort and give only my opinion, like I'm an expert in this particular area of personal relations, I invited a couple friends along to offer their thoughts. We're like wolves and travel in packs. It's safer that way and we're less likely to fall under the spell of that creature our mothers all warned us about. The . . . bad boy.

Leading off the discussion is my friend Jannine who went by the religious name Sister Perpetua Paranoia: “Good girls live inside the box. The temptation to step outside and shock everyone is personified in the bad boy. And it doesn't hurt if he's really hot.”

Grace: I have to agree with Jannine. The first time I saw Rafe, I knew right away he was hot; I mean a young Lou Diamond Phillips? Yowza. My second thought was that my mother would have a stroke if I brought him home for dinner. Almost forty years old and still worrying about what your mother will say. How dumb is that.

Next we have Donna, formerly known as Sister Delicatta of the Little Flower: “Bad boys possess the thrill of the unknown. It's sort of like a roller coaster ride. You know it's going to scare the crap out of you, but that feeling in the pit of your stomach when you're on the crest and getting ready to take the plunge down those tracks? There's nothing like it.”

Grace: Yep, taking my Miata down Lake Avenue, with Rafe riding shotgun and going from zero to 80 in sixty seconds was like nothing I'd ever experienced. Cool as ice, his only comment was to ask if we could go any faster. I wondered where he'd been all my life.

My next friend who insists she get some of the action is Eileen Hanratty who Rafe knew as a boy; he called her Sister Spike: “[the bad boy] is the one who's bad because your father said so and he's sooo not like your Dad.  He's the chameleon who changes to get what he's after. He's the one who wears the anti-authority badge on his chest and bows to no one.”

Grace: Since Spike knew Rafe back in the day I was interested in her opinion on the subject. I've been told by reliable sources that Rafe was the one who herded a pair of goats into the principal's office on the first day of the Memorial Day weekend. He's also the one who stood up for Fiona Thorpe after the Pittsford Road Posse stole her nightgown and ran it up the flagpole in front of school just before the Moving Up Day ceremonies. He also befriended Druzilla Horvath when no other kid in school would speak to her because of her Gypsy heritage. Rafe may have pulled a lot of stunts, but one thing he never tolerated was abuse of those who were unable to defend themselves.   

Lastly, we have my friend, Sister Jain who I believe describes the lure of the bad boy better than any of us could:  “He's the one with the smoldering eyes that only see you. If you're the popular girl, he ignores you; if you're the wall flower, he's the one who pays attention. He's the one who sees something in you that the rest of the world either misses or refuses to see. He's the one who takes your breath away. And, he's the one who says he can't love you because he's been hurt before and the wall is too high to tear down. It only leads you to love him more.”

And that is why good girls are attracted to bad boys.

~ Giveaway ~

THE AUTHOR WILL BE GIVING AWAY:  a Funky Bag and a Toiletries Bag from Kats Kustom KarryAlls, filled with author swag to one random commenter on the tour as well as to the host with the most comments (excluding the host's and Kat's). US and Canada only, please.
 
Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/11/virtual-book-tour-mad-dog-and-archangel.html 
 

Blurb

Rafael Archangeli returns home to Summerville to bury an old friend, collect his inheritance, and then return to the only life he knows—conning wealthy women out of their money. In Rafe's world, money not only equals success, it goes a long way to obliterate the stigma of his past.Grace Dunavan, former nun turned community activist, gave up worldly goods a long time ago with no regrets. But she's never known a man with the raw appeal of the Scourge of Summerville: Rafael Archangeli. Their first meeting is like an errant strike of lightning, fierce and stunning in intensity, and takes both by surprise. Has Grace turned Rafe into a changed man? Or is he using his inheritance to pull off the biggest scam of his life?

Excerpt
Safety First.

A personal motto that served Grace Dunavan well for the past thirty-something years. She never picked up strange men. In fact, she rarely dated men, strange or otherwise. And wasn't she the first to preach the wisdom of obtaining a detailed history—family, medical and sexual before contemplating a walk on the wild side? With any man, including the brother of her best friend.

Especially one whose thick mop of jet colored hair, hooded black eyes and razor-sharp cheekbones, all of which held undeniable appeal for a good girl who always did what the nuns and her parents dictated. With a name like Archangeli he should be a protector, not a walking advertisement that proclaimed: I've Been There, Done That; Let Me Tell You All About It.

As he helped her into her coat, Grace heard Gaby murmur something about an attorney who was trying to track down Rafe. None of it made sense. What woman in her right mind could think straight when faced with a man who redefined potency?

It was a night of firsts for Grace: leaving a party with a man she'd never met before; admitting how and where she'd learned to drive; breaking the land speed record for contemplating her first one night stand.
 

About the Author

Over the years I've had the honor to work at a number of occupations: operating room nurse, malpractice insurance investigator, forensic nurse examiner, victim advocate, wife and mother. Five years ago I became Nana for the first time and, believe me, it’s the best job ever!

Even if I sometimes wish they'd remain in the closet, the years I spent in the OR and labor floor, and later advocating for victims of sexual violence, contribute significantly to the voice of my writing. You don’t  spend thirty years playing loyal serving maid and mind reader to egotistical surgeons, then twelve years haunting police stations, Emergency Rooms, and criminal courts without developing an internal alarm system for covert misogyny, rampant apathy, and overwhelming bigotry. 

I retired my stethoscope and speculum a few years ago but continue to advocate quietly for marginalized populations through Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders.
    

I like hearing from readers. You can contact me through my website: www.KatHenry.com, or blog: www.WildWomanAuthor.blogspot.com