Former Playgirl editor-in-chief makes romance writing debut with Harlequin DARE

TORONTO, Oct. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ Ronnie Koenig, New York Times writer and Playgirl magazine'stop editorfor two years, has signed a two-book deal to write her first romance novels with Harlequin DARE, Harlequin's newest and sexiest romance series featuring empowered, independent heroines who aren't shy to take the lead.

Under her pen name, Dylan Rose, Ms. Koenig's first DARE title, TAKE ME ON, is scheduled for release in May 2019. It will be followed by TURN ME ON later in 2019. Patience Bloom, based in New York for Harlequin DARE, is the acquiring editor.

Harlequin's Executive Editor Kathleen Scheibling said: "Harlequin DARE has been looking for new authors including writers like Ms. Koenig who are new to the romance genre that make DARE stand out from contemporary romance and will resonate with readers wanting explicit romance told in a strong voice." Describing Ms. Koenig's style, she said: "Ronnie's characters have an edge they're confident, daring and know what they want. She takes a classic 'instant attraction' story line and tells it in a way that appeals to new and younger romance readers who are telling us 'DARE feels like it was written for me.'"

After reading books from the DARE series, Ms. Koenig knew it was the kind of romance she wanted to write. "I'm a champion of women finding what excites them," she said. "Women should read and look at what they find appealing, without inhibition and I want to bring that experience to women through my stories."

A graduate of Barnard College, Ms. Koenig earned her MFA in Playwriting at Ohio University and worked in the New York theatre scene before answering a job listing for Playgirl, where she was eventually promoted to editor-in-chief. She writes for the New York Times and is a frequent pop culture contributor for NBC's TODAY.com. She has written features and humorous essays for Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Women's Health, Parents, Penthouse, TheAtlantic.com, The Saturday Evening Post and others. She also writes for Mom.me on parenting topics that are sometimes inspired by her seven-year-old twins. She lives in Princeton with her husband and children. Visit www.ronniekoenig.com.

About Harlequin DARE and Harlequin
Harlequin DARE, launched in February 2018, is Harlequin's newest and most explicit romance line to date. Featuring self-determined women, highly alluring heroes and explicit sexual encounters, the series has ventured into more daring terrain in sexy contemporary romance. It has published 36 titles to date from a growing list of authors, including several New York Times bestselling authors. Harlequin DARE titles are published each month as digital-first books in North America, and in print and ebook formats in the UK and Australia. DARE is published globally in France, Germany, Italy and Nordic countries.

Harlequin (Harlequin.com), a division of HarperCollins, is a leading publisher of commercial fiction and narrative nonfiction. Please visitHarlequin.com andFacebook.com/HarlequinBooks and follow Harlequin on Twitter: @HarlequinBooks.

Contact:

Carol Dunsmore
Manager, Author Communications
Harlequin
(416)-391-7047
carol.dunsmore@harpercollins.com

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