Jessica Bird

Jessica Rowley Pell Bird Blakemore
Born Jessica Rowley Pell Bird
1969 (age 45–46)
Massachusetts, United States
Pen name Jessica Bird;
J. R. Ward
Occupation novelist
Language English
Nationality U.S.American
Period 2002–present
Genre romance, paranormal romance
Spouse John Neville Blakemore III (2001–present)
Website
www.jessicabird.com

Jessica Rowley Pell Bird (born April 1969 in Massachusetts, United States) is an American novelist. Under her maiden name, Jessica Bird, she writes contemporary romance novels, and as J.R. Ward, she writes paranormal romance. She has received the Romance Writers of America RITA Award.

Biography

Born Jessica Rowley Pell Bird in 1969 in Massachusetts, United States, she is the daughter of W. Gillette Bird, Jr. and Maxine F. Bird.[1] She began writing as a child, penning her thoughts in diaries as well as inventing short stories. The summer before she went to college she wrote her first book, a romance novel.[2] After that, she wrote regularly, but for herself.[3] Bird attended Smith College[1] where she double majored in history and art history, concentrating on the medieval period.[3] She then received a law degree from Albany Law School[1] and worked in healthcare administration for many years,[3] including as the Chief of Staff at Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts.[1]

In 2001, Bird married John Neville Blakemore III.[1] Her new husband encouraged her to try to get an agent and market her manuscripts. She found an agent, and in 2002 her first novel, a contemporary romance called Leaping Hearts, was published.[3][4] Several years later, Bird invented a world populated by vampires and began writing single-title paranormal romance novels under the pen name J.R. Ward. These novels are a series, known as the Black Dagger Brotherhood.[4]

Bird likes to write series novels which incorporate characters from her previous books. She likens the process of creating a series to "meeting friends through other friends".[3] Her heroes are most often alpha males, "the tougher, the cockier, the more arrogant, the better", while the heroines are smart and strong.[3]

The Romance Writers of America awarded her the RITA Award for Best Short Contemporary Romance in 2007 for her novel From the First.[5] She has also been nominated six times for Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Awards, winning once for Lover Awakened. She was also number 2 on the New York Times Bestsellers List of 2014. [6]

Bibliography

As Jessica Bird

Single novels

The Moorehouse Legacy Series

  1. Beauty and the Black Sheep 07/01/05 ISBN 0-373-24698-6
  2. His Comfort and Joy 01/01/06 ISBN 0-373-24732-X
  3. From The First 04/01/06 ISBN 0-373-24750-8
  4. A Man in a Million 01/01/07 ISBN 0-373-24803-2

The O'Banyon Brothers Series

  1. The Billionaire Next Door 08/01/07 ISBN 0-373-24844-X

Omnibus

Collections in collaboration

As J. R. Ward

Black Dagger Brotherhood series

  1. Dark Lover 09/06/05 ISBN 0-451-21695-4
  2. Lover Eternal 03/07/06 ISBN 0-451-21804-3
  3. Lover Awakened 09/05/06 ISBN 0-451-21936-8
  4. Lover Revealed 03/06/07 ISBN 0-451-41235-4
  5. Lover Unbound 09/25/07 ISBN 0-451-22235-0
  6. Lover Enshrined 06/03/08 ISBN 0-451-22272-5
  7. Lover Avenged 4/28/09 ISBN 0-451-22585-6
  8. Lover Mine 05/01/10 ISBN 978-0-7499-4178-9
  9. Lover Unleashed 03/29/11 ISBN 978-0-451-23316-5
  10. Lover Reborn 03/27/12 ISBN 978-0-451-23584-8
  11. Lover at Last 03/26/13 ISBN 978-0-451-23935-8
  12. The King 04/01/14 ISBN 978-0-451-41705-3
  13. The Shadows 03/31/15 ISBN 978-0-451-41707-7

Black Dagger Legacy

  1. Blood Kiss 12/01/15 ISBN 978-0-451-47532-9
Novella
Supplement
Omnibus

Fallen Angels Series

  1. Covet 9/29/2009 ISBN 0-451-22821-9
  2. Crave 10/05/2010 ISBN 0-451-22944-4
  3. Envy 09/06/2011 ISBN 0-349-40020-2
  4. Rapture 09/25/2012 ISBN 978-074-995-700-1
  5. Possession 10/01/13 ISBN 978-045-124-019-4
  6. Immortal 10/07/14 ISBN 978-045-124-116-0

Bradford Family

  1. The Bourbon Kings 07/28/15 ISBN 978-0-451-47526-8

Collections in collaboration

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Weddings; Jessica Bird, Neville Blakemore", New York Times, October 7, 2001, retrieved 2007-11-14
  2. ↑ "Jessica Bird's Bio at eHarlequin". Harlequin Enterprises Limited. Retrieved 2010-10-17.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Alice, Kris (September 2004), Jessica Bird, A Romance Review, retrieved 2007-11-14
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Gentle, Dee (January 2006), An Interview with J.R. Ward, PNR Paraphanelia, retrieved 2007-11-14
  5. ↑ RITA Awards: Past Winners, Romance Writers of America, 2007, retrieved 2007-11-14
  6. ↑ "Author Profile: Jessica Bird". Romantic Times. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-12-30. Retrieved 2007-11-14.

External links