Shirley Jump Books In Order

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Born and raised in Indiana, author Shirley Jump started out writing articles from the early age of 11 years old. Admittedly, her first foray into writing came as both a surprise and an accident. Inspired by the experience of a family from Laos, who were being hosted at her family home, a young Shirley penned an article on the real and humorous trials that can occur when families from two vastly different cultures have to share the same space. Finding that she had ‘hit the nail on the head’ her father had the article typed up and he submitted it to their local newspaper. Suffice it to say that that article was published and this signalled the beginning of Shirley’s long fascination with writing and publication. The desire to write, both for others and because she had the need to do so herself, led a young Shirley to eventually submit an application to work as a freelance kid reporter at the local newspaper. Seeing her name in print at 11 was the start of her career in writing, indeed writing is no longer her career, it has become her real and true passion. Despite having tried teaching, and a brief foray into television journalism where she hosted her own cable shows and co-hosted a late-night comedy show, Shirley made the decision that a life in television was not for her. So she quite famously packed up her eyeliner and concealer and traded life on the screen for life before the screen as a writer.

Despite doing an array of freelance work for newspapers, magazines and other publications, she found that she had more to say. So, after her marriage Shirley decided to foray into the world of romance. This is not a quick fix story, which Shirley found out for herself. Although she had that loving feeling, it seems that that loving feeling was not immediately reciprocated and she came to realise that the world of romance novels was a tough market to break into – there were so many genres and so many people, all with their own unique story to tell. Eventually, 8 years after writing her first romance novel, that first book was eventually published and the romance has poured forth since.

Shirley is an author for both Silhouette Romance and Penguin Books.

It’s a toss up, really, as to whether Shirley is best known for her Sweet and Savoury Romance Series or for the Sweetheart Sisters Series.

The first book in the Sweet and Savoury Series was ‘The Bride Wore Chocolate.’ In it, the heroine, Candy Woodrow is faced with the prospect of juggling her extreme gift basket business ‘Gift Baskets to Die For; her ‘Mr Right’ husband to be; and a Johnny come Lately Mr Wonderful who makes her heart skip all those unexpected heart skip a beat moments.

What’s a girl to do? Well, you’d have to read the book to discover how Candy and her support team deal with this incredibly unexpected dilemma. If you find yourself rooting for ‘the wrong guy’ you can always console yourself by whipping up one of the amazing recipes in the book.

There are four books in the Sweet and Savoury Series, each featuring a heroine who finds herself faced with the most difficult questions in life but who ultimately, receives either a sweet, or savoury reward.

What can be better than romance with recipes you ask?

Admittedly it must be difficult to top the Sweet and Savoury Series (especially when one of those recipes is a hangover remedy featuring a banana, rum, milk, ice and Tylenol ) but Shirley’s store of imagination has gone on to produce the hugely successful Sweetheart Sisters Series.

Described as “A fun, heartwarming, small-town romance” by Shirley’s fellow New York Times Bestselling Author, Jill Shalvis, the Sweetheart Series is a three part series that starts with the Sweetheart Bargain. The series starts with Olivia who, to be honest, is a heroine in seriously shifting waters. Olivia is divorced, and has recently inherited a house from the mother she never knew. Spurned on to learn more about this mother who gave her up, Olivia takes up the challenge of her inheritance and leaves her life in Boston for a new beginning, and hopefully some answers in her inherited home at Rescue Bay, Florida. While there, she starts interacting with her next door neighbour Luke, a hunky, broody helicopter pilot is also struggling to come to terms with a loss of his own. And, of course, she also meets her half sister.

Shirley’s talent places each of her heroines in truly contemporary situations, these are women who have lived, loved, lost and are mostly looking to keep their bills in order and life in check. Mr Right is the myth that they bought at some point but now, having seemingly lost their Happily Ever After, life happens, and these women have to ask themselves, should they take this chance again?

Shirley Jump is the voice of the contemporary woman, seeking to find her way again. The stories that she has woven prompted this quote from the famous Jayne Ann Krentz :

“Shirley Jump’s stories sparkle with warmth and wit and glow with strong, heartfelt emotion. This is real romance.”

Of course Shirley is not only known for her female characters, she also has a trilogy from the male perspective – The Brothers McKenna. This series features three sworn bachelors, who happen to be brothers and their eventual succumbing to affairs of the heart.

Shirley has also ventured into the arena of young adult writing under the pen name AJ Whitten for the Graphia imprint. In young adult writing her preferred genre is horror.

With so many perspectives and such different genres, what is her guiding light in the exposition of her characters one may ask?

Shirley has stated that when writing, TS Eliot’s “The Love Song of J Alfred Prufock” comes to mind, namely, she believes that it is only when the real person is exposed, no more masks, no more pretensions, no more hiding, it is only then that you can find true happiness.

A lifelong reader Shirley’s reading taste encompasses classical literature, contemporary horror and, of course, romance.

So does this New York Times Bestselling Author, USA Today Bestselling Author, member of the Romance Writers Association have any words to share with any up and coming authors? Yes, she does. Just follow her lead and write, write, write!