Open Book - Into the Sunrise

Today we are opening the book pages of Into the Sunrise by author, Carolyn Haley. Carolyn is sharing the inside scoop on her spicy, vintage (equestrian, new adult) romance where you’ll find horses, show jumping, and trail riding. Into the Sunrise was published in 2015 by The Wild Rose Press.

For the title, Carolyn flipped the old saying, “And they rode off into the sunset...” The original suggests an ending, whereas she wanted to give a sense of beginning. Carolyn also found the inspiration for Into the Sunrise from horseback riding on the beach on Cape Cod when she was a teenager.

The theme for Into the Sunrise is finding true love without giving up your identity and dreams.

Into the Sunrise takes place half on the outer beaches of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and the other half in the Hudson Valley hunt country of New York State. Both areas are beautiful and have equestrian opportunities.

In Into the Sunrise, you’ll meet Linny Eagan, the heroine. Early 20s, slim and fit from riding, eyecatching white-blonde hair; determined to walk her own path in life, which contradicts her education and upbringing and alienates her from her family.

You’ll also meet Con Winston, the hero. Also early 20s, gifted with everything that makes him an eligible bachelor (classic “jock” blond good looks, a famous monied parent, high-end talents) but actually a moody and introverted painter. 

Linny and Con are walking to the beat of their own drummers; in Linny’s case, finding the right equestrian career against the odds, and in Con’s case, breaking away from family expectations to find his career as an equestrian artist.

The cast of secondary characters include: Jona Eagan—Linny’s older sister, Michael Dixon—Linny’s old flame, Tom Adams—manager of Galeson’s trail-riding stable on Cape Cod, Miriam Galeson—Linny’s rival at Galeson’s, Carole Ballard—manager at Shallowkill Farm, a plush hunter/jumper stable in New York State, Allison McKenzie—Linny’s friend at Shallowkill, and former student.

There’s also a cast of four-legged members in the story: Shark, Klatawah, and Midnight.

“There are no villains,” Carolyn said. “Just family and societal expectations that characters break from to fulfill their dreams and goals. There are, however, antagonists. Michael is the man who broke Linny’s heart and interferes with her relationship with Con. Miriam competes with Linny for attention from both Michael and Con, as well as for the horse Linny desires (Shark). Carole Ballard does similar regarding Con and the horse Linny desires (Midnight).

Into the Sunrise is all about following your own star and still finding love with someone doing the same.

You can find more about Carolyn and her book here: https://carolynhaley.wordpress.com/into-the-sunrise/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Into-Sunrise-Carolyn-Haley/dp/1509201424
The Wild Rose Press: https://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/search?controller=search&orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=into+the+sunrise&submit_search=

Let’s get a closer look at Into the Sunrise.

On one day in 1975, Linny Eagan loses her job, her beloved, and her dream of becoming an equestrian champion. So she adjusts her dream to include only horses, since unlike men they can never betray her. While recovering on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, after a fall in a show, she meets Con Winston, trail leader at a stable. Con dreams of being a cowboy artist on a Montana ranch, but must play family head-games with his father until his twenty-fifth birthday, when he will inherit a fortune that will actualize his dream. Though Linny needs love and money, she needs independence more. With neither of them willing to abandon their dreams, they continue in opposite directions despite a perfect match of heart and mind. Only Con's horse connects them, until distance proves that pursuit of a dream needs love to sustain it.