Holm, Stef Ann

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Holm, Stef Ann

PERSONAL:

Born in CA; children: two daughters.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Boise, ID.

CAREER:

Writer. Author of romance novels.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Coeur du Bois chapter Heart of Romance award for best historical romance, Romance Writers of America, for Portraits; Award of Excellence for best contemporary romance, Reviewer's International Organization; Storyteller of the Year, Romantic Times; three-time winner of the Emerald City Kepper Award.

WRITINGS:

ROMANCE NOVELS

Silver Desires, Leisure Books (New York, NY), 1987.

Firefly, Leisure Books (New York, NY), 1990.

Seasons of Gold, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1992.

Liberty Rose, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1993.

King of the Pirates, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Snowbird, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Weeping Angel, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1995.

Crossings, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Portraits, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Forget Me Not, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1997.

Girls Night, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2002.

The Runaway Heiress, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 2002.

Undressed, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2003.

Pink Moon, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2004.

Leaving Normal, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2005.

Lucy Gets Her Life Back, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2006.

All the Right Angles, HQN Books (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2007.

"BRIDES FOR ALL SEASONS" SERIES

Harmony, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1997.

Hooked, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 1999.

Honey, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Hearts, Sonnet Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Also author of Portraits.Contributor to anthologies, including Upon a Midnight Clear: A Delightful Collection of Heartwarming Holiday Stories, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998. Author's books have been published in England and translated into foreign languages.

SIDELIGHTS:

Stef Ann Holm is a romance novelist whose tales, according to a quote by her editor on the author's Web site, are "slice of life stories about real people." Holm writes both historical and contemporary romances. For example, in Forget Me Not, the author tells the story of Josephine Whittaker, who loses both her money and her social status in New York and then heads west in 1874. She ends up in Wyoming as a ranch cook and falls in love with rancher J.D. McCall. "This is a cheery story …, one endowed with Holm's fine sense of atmosphere," wrote a Publishers Weekly contributor.

The author begins her "Brides for all Seasons" series, which is set at the turn of the twentieth century, with Harmony. The novel features a romance between a schoolmistress and an outdoorsman in Harmony, Montana. In a review of Harmony for the Library Journal, Kristin Ramsdell wrote that it was "nicely rendered with Holm's typical charm and wit." The second book in the series, Hooked, tells the story of Meg, who is trying to become ladylike so she can manage her father's hotel in Harmony. She then meets Vernon Wilberforce, who is actually a muckraking reporter named Matthew Gage. Ultimately, if their love is to succeed, the two must overcome the fact that they each have hidden their real personas. Patty Engelmann, writing in Booklist, called the novel a "funny, sweet romance."

Girls Night is a contemporary romance about Jillene McDermott, who must take over management of her husband's coffee shop following his death. She soon discovers the shop is in financial trouble. Then she meets Vince Tremonti, a true-crime writer. The only problem with the blossoming romance is that, in order to write his books, Vince often puts himself in the minds of dangerous criminals. "Stef Ann Holm has a fresh and lively style of writing that makes even the simplest of tales vastly entertaining," commented Rashmi Srinivas on the Curled Up with a Good Book Web site.

In Leaving Normal, Natalie Goodwin opens a florist shop in Boise, Idaho, after divorcing her husband. Natalie, whose daughter is away at college, soon finds that she is attracted to a handsome firefighter who has posed for a calendar. However, he is nine years younger than her and Natalie is determined that they must remain just friends. Patty Engelmann, writing in Booklist, noted that in addition to the romance the author "celebrates the firefighting profession and the tremendous sacrifices firefighters make."

Holm tells the story of a female chef in Lucy Gets Her Life Back. Lucy and her two sons have moved to an upscale ski community in Idaho where she finds herself a rival of chef Paul, who does not want her to succeed. In the meantime, Lucy begins vying for the attention of former professional baseball player Drew Tolman, a well-known ladies' man. Booklist contributor Patty Engelmann noted the romance novel's "fresh, likable characters."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 15, 1999, Patty Engelmann, review of Hooked, p. 1675; September 15, 2001, Lynne Welch, review of Hearts, p. 211; October 1, 2003, Patty Engelmann, review of Undressed, p. 306; September 15, 2005, Patty Engelmann, review of Leaving Normal, p. 48; October 1, 2006, Patty Engelmann, review of Lucy Gets Her Life Back, p. 43.

Library Journal, November 15, 1997, Kristin Ramsdell, review of Harmony, p. 48.

Publishers Weekly, March 24, 1997, review of Forget Me Not, p. 80; October 27, 1997, review of Harmony, p. 73.