The third book in my MURDER BY DESIGNS series, ONCE UPON A GHOST, has a pesky ghost who likes to wake up medium Bailey Burke by singing. Celine Dion off-key by a dead mobster at three in the morning is so not romantic, but it got me thinking about the power of music and love songs. For me, music has always been a huge part of my life and it inspires my writing. Since Bailey’s relationship with Marner heats up in this book here is my list of top romantic songs. I Will Always Love You. I do love the original Dolly Parton version, but the Whitney Houston version from the movie The Bodyguard is just stunning. Can’t Help Falling In Love by Elvis Presley. This song is just so sweet and stands the test of time. I could see Marner secretly listening to some Elvis music. Your Song by Elton John. I always said that the first man to serenade me with this song would be my husband. Sadly, my hubby, who we call Mr. Writer, did not sing it to me at any point, but I did use it to walk down the aisle at our wedding. Love…

As part of our countdown to Readers & ‘ritas 2017, our Meet the Author interview series helps you get to know the authors joining us inTexas on November 10-12. Read on to get acquainted with Cooper McKenzie, and purchase your tickets to meet her in person at Readers &‘ritas! What book made you fall in love with the genre you write? I fell in love with the romance genre in 8th grade after reading THE IVORY KEY by Rita Estrada. I’ve read that book several times over the years and recently found a copy to keep in my own library. If a movie were made of your most recent book, who would you cast in the lead and why? If a movie was made of IRON LUST by my Keely Jakes pen name, I would Try very hard to talk the men who suggested I write a bodybuilder romance, and who are featured on the cover, Christian James and Daniel Treat. What was the first story you wrote? The first story I ever wrote was a teenage angst novel about a girl escaping into her dreams to keep from killing herself. It sucked and was destroyed about a year after…

“A major thrill ride with some fascinating twists…” ~RT Book Reviews 4 Stars I’m super excited to share my latest release, Blind Spot, with you all. It’s the third book in my Chesapeake Valor series, which focuses on the lives of four boyhood friends who’ve all grown up and gone into law enforcement careers. Blind Spot is Federal Agent Declan Grey and crisis-counselor Tanner Shaw’s story as they face down one of the greatest terrorist threats to America since 9/11. Research for Blind Spot involved a wide array of topics—everything from motorcycle skills, to weapon choices, police procedure, bombs, and, most heartbreaking, the epidemic of human trafficking. I spent a lot of hands-on time researching their story and it was extremely helpful that the series is set in my own backyard, including the historic neighborhood where Declan lives. Baltimore’s Little Italy is an amazingly quaint Italian neighborhood in Baltimore City that has thrived for multiple generations. Its original immigrants from Italy emigrated between the mid-1800s through the early 1900s. By 1920, the entire neighborhood was 100% Italian. The neighborhood is comprised of century-old row homes, family-run restaurants, open-air movie nights and bocce courts. Little Italy is home to the Star-Spangled…