Author Ursula Renee
Ursula Renée writes historical fiction with romantic elements set in the early to mid-20th century, when people started questioning the ideals that society had held firm to for centuries, and advances in technology began opening new worlds and opportunities for people.
She lives in New York with her son and two cats. When she is not writing, Ursula studies photography, drawing, and stone carving. She enjoys travelling, visiting museums, and researching different sites for her novels.
A little bit about Author Ursula Renée…
I wrote my first story in the second grade and contributed works to various school publications throughout high school. In college, I studied English and eventually earned a Master’s Degree in Publishing.
I finally decided to write a book in 2003 when I was cleaning out a folder and found a scene I had written years earlier. After reading the banter between the singer and saxophonist, I decided to delve deeper into the couple’s background and relationship. It took ten years to develop their story in Sweet Jazz.
This is Author Ursula Renée’s writing and publication journey in her own words…
Inspiration to start writing…
I have always had an active imagination. As a child I would create stories based off television series I watched. When I got older, characters and stories developed from conversations or the need to explore a “what if…?” Once the idea pops into my head, the characters will not let me rest until their stories are written.
I write historical fiction with romantic elements because I enjoy exploring the past and how people navigated the changing world.
Ursula’s works…
My first novel, Sweet Jazz, has been called “a sweet romantic story that, like jazz, has propulsive rhythms played out in harmonic freedom” and its sequel, Bitter Blues, is considered “a realistic plot that a lot of people can relate to.”
A Bookie’s Odds, the first book in my Santiano Family Series, introduces readers to Georgia Mae Collins and Nicholas Santiano as they graduate from friends to lovers in the 1950s. Their cousins, Baily Collins and Matteo Santiano, deal with their own challenges in the sequel, A Family’s Code.
More information about these books can be found at www.ursularenee.com or www.thewildrosepress.com
A Family’s Code Blurb
Despite the many illegal ventures involving the Santiano family, they lived by a moral code — Ignore the rules and you were disowned, like Matteo Santiano.
While Bailey Collins was only a cousin of the wife of a Santiano, she was obligated to abide by the family’s laws too. Yet she could not turn her back on Matteo, who had always supported her dreams and offered her encouragement even when his world was falling apart.
When trouble finds its way to Bailey’s door, Matteo is willing to face the wrath of the Santianos to protect the only woman ever to claim his heart. What will the family do in retaliation for his defiance?
One of Ursula’s favourite scenes from A Family’s Code…
The bruise on Matteo’s left cheek would have stirred Bailey’s sympathy had she not first seen the blood covering the knuckles on his right hand. While he was a little worse for wear, she had a feeling the recipient of the beating looked three times worse.
He passed her the Con Edison bill, the magazine Norma had been looking forward to since she finished reading the previous month’s issue, and the small weekly magazine she had been subscribing to since its debut seven years earlier.
“You can move back home whenever you’re ready, Shorty,” Matteo announced.
“Thank you.” His use of her nickname offered Bailey hope that he was in a better mood.
“Now that you’ve had a chance to blow off some steam, you finished pouting?”
“No.”
Bailey sighed. She already had one child to deal with and had little patience for an overgrown one.
“What do you want?” she asked, giving him one last chance to be reasonable before she slammed the door in his face.
“One night.” He stepped forward until barely an inch separated them. “Just you and me.”
*****
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