The Summer Cottage (11 page)

A Q & A with Lily Everett

1. The Billionaire Brothers novellas take place on Sanctuary Island, a beautiful island
preserve for wild horses. Is it based on a real place? And if not, what was the inspiration?
There are actually several islands off the east coast of the United States that are
home to bands of wild horses. I grew up in Virginia, just a few hours from Assateague
Island, a breathtakingly beautiful nature preserve. And I thought … what if there
were a friendly little town full of interesting people who live side by side with
the wild horses?

2. This trilogy follows three brothers with very different personalities. If you got
to choose, which brother would
you
end up with? The bad boy, the sexy genius, or the high-powered alpha male?
I like to make fun of my husband for his firm belief that every single one of my characters
(male and female!) is based on him. But this question makes me realize that the man
I chose to spend my life with actually has a bit of all three Harrington brothers
in him: he’s a super intelligent guy who runs his own business … and occasionally
enjoys a walk on the wild side. I’m a lucky woman!

3. If you had to choose, which heroine would you say is most like you? And are there
any ways you wish you were more like Penny, Jessica or Greta?
I identify with each of them in a different way, but what I love about all three of
these women is how gutsy they are. Each of them faces a staggering challenge, the
kind of roadblock to happiness that derails a lot of people—and each of my heroines
rises to meet that challenge, with the help of the man she loves. That’s the kind
of woman I want to be, and it’s the kind of woman I love to write about.

4. Are there any favorite moments you can share with us about writing this series?
Sanctuary Island is most closely based on Assateague, but I visited a second island
to round out my research: Cumberland Island, one of the Golden Isles off the coast
of Georgia. My sister and I took an afternoon boat cruise hosted by a chatty local
historian, and her fascinating stories of how the island came into the possession
of the wealthy Carnegie family in the late 1800’s and then transitioned into a protected
national park gave me lots of ideas! But the best part of the day, by far, was standing
at the railing of that boat with my sister and spotting wild horses grazing on marsh
grass in the distance. It still gives me chills to think about it!

5. Family is such a strong theme in all the stories. Did you draw on any of your real
life relationships when crafting the bond between Dylan, Logan, and Miles?
I’m extremely grateful that my family relationships aren’t quite as troubled as the
ones I write about. I live fifteen minutes from my parents, and I’m so close to my
sister that it’s very hard to imagine being as estranged from a sibling as Dylan,
Logan, and Miles are from each other. But in a way, that closeness is what I drew
on for the emotion in the stories—because I know exactly what those boys were missing
out on by not being in each others’ lives. Heartbreaking! I couldn’t let them go on
like that.

6. Are you currently working on anything else right now? Can you give readers an idea
of what to look forward to next after reading The Billionaire Brothers series?
I wrote the Billionaire Brothers stories to welcome readers to Sanctuary Island! I’m
hoping everyone wants to keep on coming back there, because I can’t get enough of
that place. On July 30
th
, the very first full-length novel in the series will be available in both print and
digital. So be on the lookout for
Sanctuary Island
! It’s about two sisters who come to the island for the first time to reconnect with
their estranged mother … and discover the magic of new possibilities and life-changing
love.

7. If I am a fan the series and want to help, what can I do?
If you’re a fan, thank you for reading and enjoying my books. That’s enough to make
me love you already! But if you really want to get the word out about Sanctuary Island,
you can always leave a review on Amazon, B&N, or Goodreads, to help point readers
like you toward books they might enjoy. You can keep up to date on all my news and
sign up for my newsletter on my website. (
http://www.lilyeverett.com
) And of course I’d love to connect with you on my Facebook page (
http://www.facebook.com/LilyEverettReaderPage
) or chat with you on Twitter! (
http://www.twitter.com/Lily_Everett
)
Happy reading!
Lily Everett

LILY EVERETT is the pseudonym of a bestselling romance novelist. She lives in Austin,
Texas.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed
in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

THE SUMMER COTTAGE

Copyright © 2013 by Lily Everett.

Cover design by Elsie Lyons.

Couple © Darren Baker/
Shutterstock.com

House © BigganVi/
Shutterstock.com

All rights reserved.

For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

eISBN: 9781466832855

St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / July 2013

St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New
York, NY 10010.