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Lisa Kleypas (born 5 November 1964 in Temple, Texas) is a best-selling American author of historical and contemporary romance novels. In 1985, she was named Miss Massachusetts 1985 and competed in the Miss America 1986 pageant in Atlantic City.

Biography

Lisa Kleypas was born on 5 November 1964 in Temple, Texas, to Linda and Lloyd Kleypas, an architect. She began writing her own romance novels during her summer breaks from studying political science at Wellesley College. Her parents agreed to support her for a few months after her graduation so that she could finish her latest manuscript. Approximately two months later, at age 21, Kleypas sold her first novel.

The same year she sold her first novel, Kleypas was named Miss Massachusetts. During her competition at the Miss America pageant, Kleypas performed a song she had written, earning her a "talented nonfinalist" award.

Kleypas has been a full-time romance writer since 1985. Her novels have ranked high on major best-seller lists, sold millions of copies around the globe and have been translated into fourteen different languages.

In October 1998, Kleypas's Texas home flooded within a matter of hours after heavy rains inundated their town. She and her family lost everything except the clothes they were wearing and her purse. Within days, her colleagues at Avon sent boxes of clothes and books to help the family recover. For Kleypas though, the defining moment was after the flood, when she and her mother (whose home had also flooded), made a quick trip to the store to purchase toothbrushes, clean clothes, and other necessities. Separately, each of them had also chosen a romance novel, a necessity to them in helping them escape the stress they were currently under. To Kleypas, this realization validated her decision to write romance novels instead of more literary works.

Though primarily known for her historical romance novels, Kleypas made an announcement in early 2006 concerning her momentary departure from historical romances to delve into the contemporary romance genre. Kleypas has since written two additional historical romance series: "The Hathaways" and "The Ravenels", as well as an additional contemporary romance series, the "Travis Series."

Kleypas lives in Washington with her husband, Gregory Ellis, and their two children, Griffin and Lindsay.

Bibliography

Many of Kleypas's works are arranged into series. However, even books in different series often have common elements, such as the Westcliffs, Mrs. Bradshaw, Jenner's, Mathilda, and the Wallflowers.

Berkley-Falkner series

1. Where Passion Leads (1987)
2. Forever My Love (1988)

Only Vallerand series

1. Only in Your Arms (1992) (republished as When Strangers Marry (2002)) annotation
2. Only with Your Love (1992) annotation

Gamblers of Craven's series

1. Then Came You (1993) annotation
2. Dreaming of You (1994) annotation
3. Against the Odds in the Anthology Where's My Hero with Julia Quinn and Kinley MacGregor (2003) annotation

Stokehurst Family series

1. Midnight Angel (1995) annotation
2. Prince of Dreams (1995) annotation

Capitol Theatre series

1. Somewhere I'll Find You (1996) annotation
2. Because You're Mine (1997) annotation
3. I Will in the anthology Wish List with Lisa Cach, Claudia Dain and Lynsay Sands (2001) annotation

Bow-Street Runners series

1. Someone to Watch Over Me (1999) annotation
2. Lady Sophia's Lover (2002) annotation
3. Worth Any Price (2003) annotation

Wallflower series

1. Again the Magic (2004) annotation
2. Secrets of a Summer Night (2005) annotation
3. It Happened One Autumn (2005) annotation
4. Devil in Winter (2006) annotation
5. Scandal in Spring (2006) annotation
6. A Wallflower Christmas (2008) annotation

The Hathaways series

1. Mine Till Midnight (2007) annotation
2. Seduce Me at Sunrise (2008) annotation
3. A Hathaway Wedding (short story) (2009)
4. Tempt Me at Twilight (2009) annotation
5. Married By Morning (2010) annotation
6. Love In The Afternoon (2010) annotation

The Ravenels series

1. Cold-Hearted Rake (2015) annotation
2. Marrying Winterborne (2016) annotation
3. Devil in Spring (2017)
4. Hello Stranger (2018)
5. Devil's Daughter (2019)
6. Chasing Cassandra (2020)
7. Devil in Disguise (2021)

Other historical romance novels

• Love, Come to Me (1988) annotation
• Give Me Tonight (1989)
• Stranger in My Arms (1998) annotation
• Where Dreams Begin (2000) annotation
• Suddenly You (2001) annotation
• Again the Magic (2004) is the story of the sisters of the main character, Earl of Westcliff of It Happened One Autumn. annotation

Novellas and anthologies

• Surrender (1991, novella) in the anthology "Christmas Love Stories" (1991) with Diane Wicker Davis, Shannon Drake, Kay Hooper
• Surrender in the 1994 anthology "A Christmas Present" with Loretta Chase and Judith E French
• Promises (1995, novella) in the anthology "Three Weddings and a Kiss" with Catherine Anderson, Loretta Chase and Kathleen E. Woodiwiss
• I Will (2001, novella) in the anthology Wish List with Lisa Cach, Claudia Dain and Lynsay Sands
• Against the Odds (2003, novella) part of the Craven series, in the anthology "Where's My Hero?" with Kinley MacGregor and Julia Quinn
• Surrender in the 2006 anthology "Gifts of Love" with Kay Hooper
• I Will in the 2008 anthology "A Historical Christmas Present" with Leigh Greenwood and Lynsay Sands
• I Will in the 2017 anthology "A Christmas to Remember" with Vivienne Lorret, Megan Frampton and Lorraine Heath

Travis series (contemporary)

1. Sugar Daddy (2007) annotation
2. Blue Eyed Devil (2008) annotation
3. Smooth Talking Stranger (2009) annotation
4. Brown-Eyed Girl (2015) annotation

Friday Harbor (contemporary)

1. Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor (Oct 26, 2010) annotation
2. Rainshadow Road (Feb 28, 2012) annotation
3. Dream Lake (Aug 2012) annotation
4. Crystal Cove (Feb 2013) annotation

Awards

• 1998 – Waldenbooks Award for greatest sales growth, Someone to Watch Over Me
• 1999 – Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist, Someone to Watch Over Me
• 2002 – Romance Writers of American RITA Award finalist, Suddenly You
• 2002 – Romance Writers of America RITA Award winner for her Christmas anthology novella in Wish List
• 2002 – Romantic Times Magazine Best Sensuous Historical Romance, Lady Sophia's Lover
• 2002 – Publishers Weekly starred reviews for Lady Sophia's Lover and When Strangers Marry
• 2003 – Publishers Weekly starred review, Worth Any Price
• 2003 – Amazon Editor's Top Ten Picks forBest Romance of 2003, Where's My Hero and Worth Any Price
• 2004 – Romance Writers of America RITA Award for best Short Historical, Worth Any Price
• 2004 – Publishers Weekly starred review, Secrets of a Summer Night
• 2006 – Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist, Short Historical Category, It Happened One Autumn
• 2007 – Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist, Short Historical Category, The Devil in Winter and Scandal in Spring

Television

• 2012 – Christmas with Holly, based on the novel Christmas at Friday Harbor annotation

External links

• Official Lisa Kleypas website
• Chapter excerpts and title list (Official publisher web page)
• A Conversation with Lisa Kleypas (Interview with Author)