Lisa Kleypas Ellis
BornLisa Annette Kleypas[1]
(1964-11-05) November 5, 1964 (age 59)
Temple, Texas, U.S.
OccupationNovelist
Alma materWellesley College
Period1987–present
GenreHistorical romance, Contemporary romance
SpouseGregory Ellis
Website
lisakleypas.com

Lisa Kleypas (born 5 November 1964 in Temple, Texas[2]) 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.[3]

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.[4] 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."[5]

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

Novellas and anthologies

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

Television

References

  1. ^ "Miss America 1986 Candidates". 2018-09-07. Retrieved 2022-09-07.
  2. ^ Lisa Kleypas at VIAF
  3. ^ Lisa Kleypas Official Website Archived 2007-02-05 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ AAR Interview with Lisa Kleypas Archived 2006-07-11 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Historicals | Lisa Kleypas, New York Times Bestselling Author". Retrieved 2021-01-25.

External links

Massachusetts pageant winners
Authority control databases
Categories