One question I get asked the most is, “Why of all the genres did you choose to write a fantasy series?” I have always loved the fantastical. Epic adventures captured my imagination. Impossible magic enthralled me. Dragons, mermaids, fairies, and monsters thrilled every time I met them. One of my earliest book-specific memories is my father reading The Hobbit to me and my younger sister chapter by chapter every night, beginning to end. Twice. My first favorite author—at least the first I discovered for myself—was Tamora Pierce who gave children of the 80s and 90s female knights, demigods, and heroes, and from her, I branched deeper into the science fiction and fantasy section of the library and the bookstore. It was basically a given that when I committed myself to write a book, I wanted to create a fantasy world. It took me about fifteen years between the first attempt and first published fantasy novel. It took me a little longer than that to truly understand all the reasons why writing the book was so hard as well as why I loved fantasy for far more than the layer of magic on its surface. Speculative fiction—which includes fantasy, science fiction,…

Please welcome New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Grace Burrowes! MY ONE AND ONLY DUKE, the first book in her new series, Rogues to Riches, is available now!  1. This is the start of a new series for you, Rogues to Riches. What’s it like starting a new series from scratch? Have any of these characters popped up in previous books/series? Quinn Wentworth, our hero from My One and Only Duke, took Grinch honors in a short story published in Tis the Season, a multi-author holiday anthology, but other than that… He makes his debut in My One and Only Duke. In a long-running series, an author has to strike a balance between allowing each book to serve as a portal to the series, and not boring faithful readers with a rehash of who is married to whom and how they met. A new series has none of those constraints. We’re all meeting the characters for the first time, and that gives the project freshness. I will always enjoy revisiting my foundation families, and eventually, the Wentworths will join their ranks. For now, though, I’m having great time with a very different sort of duke and duchess. 2….

My name is Evangeline Fontenot but everyone calls me Evie except my papá, he calls me ’tit ange. Little angel. I have people in my life who love me, but what I really want is a mother. I’m in the second grade and our class just got a new teacher. Her name is Miz Honeycutt and I decided she’d make a great mom. She’s real pretty, loves kids and she has a big orange cat named Henry. I know because she has a picture of Henry on her desk. I haven’t met Henry yet, but I’m sure he’s real nice too. I’ve been telling Papá about Henry and Miz Honeycutt every night at supper, but he still hasn’t gone to meet her. Bobby, a boy in my class, says he got a bad grade on his spelling test and his mom had to come to talk to Miz Honeycutt. It worked for him so I decided it might work for me. It did, but now I have to make sure Miz Honeycutt doesn’t decide she likes my uncle or anyone else better than my papá. Who knew getting a mom with a cat was this hard! Excerpt from The Sheriff’s…

All year long I search for new and interesting stories.  Each year, they seem more elusive. November 1st, WAIT UNTIL DARK, a digital novella was released.  It’s a prequel, and introduction to my Maximum Security series that starts with THE CONSPIRACY, out January 22nd.   As I worked to come up with a plot, the only thing I knew was that Jonah Wolfe and April Vale would be thrown together in a tale of greed and murder.  I had no idea how the story would play out. Or who, exactly, would wind up being the villain. I knew the setting.  Maximum Security is the Dallas security company where Cassidy Jones, the heroine of Beyond Danger, worked as a private detective.  I wanted to introduce some of the other men and women who worked at The Max, and WAIT UNTIL DARK gave me the perfect opportunity.   I wasn’t sure how I was going to put Jonah and April together, but little by little, a plot began to unfold in my head.  Since the book is a novella, I thought I’d start right off with the action. A bloody murder? Humm…why not? Halfway through, I was still finding my way, trying…

In this excerpt from Burning Ridge, Deputy Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo search for the body of an unknown victim. Prior to this excerpt, veterinarian Cole Walker’s Doberman pinscher, Bruno, had found a charred boot containing partial human remains. Mattie has used the boot as a scent article to see if Robo can find the missing corpse while her colleague, Chief Deputy Ken Brody, provides backup… *** Robo entered the forest with her not far behind. She could still see him as he slipped through the sparse pine, but lost sight of him where the evergreens grew dense. When the footing became less soggy, she pushed herself into a sprint. Sunlight dimmed as the forest closed around her. Mattie pressed forward, searching for Robo as her eyes adjusted to less light. She spotted him about thirty yards ahead following a faint trail, his nose in the air. She raced after him, using the firmer footing to catch up. A Steller’s jay, its blue feathers iridescent in the filtered sunlight, flashed ahead and then landed high in a pine to scold her, its chirrup echoing in the stillness. Too still? When they’d reached the meadow, they’d ridden out of…

We are so happy to feature an interview with USA Today bestselling author, Jasmine Guillory, author of THE PROPOSAL and THE WEDDING DATE!  1. I love how the setting is so important to your books – the neighborhoods, restaurants, cities, and homes all feel real. What made you choose LA as the setting for The Proposal? Are any of the places in the book based on real places?I knew THE PROPOSAL was about Carlos, and I knew Carlos grew up in LA and had a strong connection with the city and that his family was there, so the book had to be set there too! And probably about half of the places in the book are based on real places; I did some scouting trips to LA while I wrote the book, and I have a bunch of friends in LA who helped me a lot! The bookstore, in particular, is a great bookstore in LA: Skylight Books. 2. Family, both biological and found, are important support systems for your main characters, Nik and Carlos. How do their friends and family shape some of the decisions they make throughout the novel? Friends and family are very important to both Nik…

(This article is dedicated to my sister-in-law, who for the past ten years single-handedly prepared the traditional Seven Fishes of Christmas Eve for her husband and his family, cleaned her house top to bottom, worked full-time and did all the Christmas shopping while being a super mom to her twins. This year, she is going out to eat. Buon Natale, Lisa!) Some people are just so organized. Bless their hearts! I found this out while I was trying to decide what to write about for Fresh Fiction. So many authors write about their books or writing—and that’s fine. But, I’m thinking—it’s close to the holidays! Who’s got time to think about books when there are meals to be prepared and houses to clean and most of all, guests coming to your home? Seriously. Even now, your family may be preparing to descend upon you and yours, like D-Day, only with in-laws and cousins.  The most wonderful time of the year? For who? Apparently, it can be that way for you. Do you know, not everyone is up until 2:00 am the night before Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day? (I know! It’s shocking.) There are some things which can be…

As part of our countdown to Readers & ‘ritas 2018, our Meet the Author interviews help you get to know the authors joining us in Texas on November 9-11. Read on to get acquainted with Shannon K. Butcher, and purchase your ticket to meet her in person at Readers & ‘ritas! Pitch us your newest book in one sentence. Be sure to include the book title. BLOOD BOND, book 10 of the Sentinel Wars, is about Justice—a lonely woman with no past—finding her future in the arms of a man who both terrifies and intrigues her. If you could meet one of your characters in real life, who would you choose and what would you do? I’d want to hang out with Winnifred Archer, my socially awkward, nerdy heroine from the anthology THE SECRET SHE KEEPS, because she’s my people. We’d probably hang out at her favorite coffee shop and talk about modern day storytelling and character generation. What gets your creative juices flowing when you’re brainstorming a new story? Usually, music is the thing that starts the ball rolling for me. It’s so emotional, which is the way I like to write. Once I have an idea for how…

We’ve got the new and the “leaving” or your last chance to watch on Hulu. So pull up your calendar and get ready for the streaming! Below is the full list of everything new coming to the streamer in the month of November, and everything going away. New on Hulu in November November 1 10 to Midnight (1983) 28 Days Later (2002) 2001 Maniacs (2005) The Accused (1988) The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) Albert (2016) Alice (1990) Amelie (2001) Bachelor Party (1984) Barbie: Mariposa and Her Butterfly Fairy Friends (2008) Barbie The Pearl Princess (2014) The Big Lebowski (1998) The Birdcage (1997) Benny & Joon (1993) Blue Chips (1994) Boo 2! A Medea Halloween (2017) Candyman 3: Day of the Dead (1999) Carnage Park (2016) De-Lovely (2004) Death Wish (1974) Death Wish 3 (1985) Death Wish IV: The Crackdown (1987) Desperate Hours (1990) Diamonds are Forever (1971) Die Another Day (2002) Dr. No (1962) Dysfunktional Family (2003) Existenz (1999) The Faculty (1998) A Fairly Odd Christmas (2012) A Fistful of Dynamite (1972) For Your Eyes Only (1981) Four Rooms (1995) From Russia with Love (1964) Gloria (2014) Goldeneye (1995) Goldfinger (1964) Guns of the Magnificent Seven…

Are you ready for Amazon Prime‘s November 2018 slate, which is featuring everything from Christmas with the Kranks to Cruel Intentions, where Reese met Ryan (just saying). November 1 21 2001 Maniacs Alice Assault on Precinct 13 Candyman: Day of the Dead Child’s Play Christmas with the Kranks Cruel Intentions De-Lovely Desperate Hours Die Another Day Duck, You Sucker (A Fistful of Dynamite) Excalibur Guns of the Magnificent Seven Hostel Hostel: Part II Jacob’s Ladder Leaving Las Vegas Like Water Little Man Tate Little Odessa Lord of War Made Making Contact (Joey) Michael Clayton Mr. Bean’s Holiday Mulholland Falls My Girl Terms of Endearment The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert The Adventures of Tintin The Birdcage The Living Daylights The Magnificent Seven Ride! The Mexican The Motorcycle Diaries (Diarios de motocicleta) The Red Violin (Le violon rouge) The World Is Not Enough Thursday Night Football: Oakland Raiders vs. San Francisco 49ers Tyler Perry’s Boo 2! A Madea Halloween Weird Science November 2 Homecoming—Season 1 (Prime Original series) WonderNovember 3 Kick-Ass November 8 Thursday Night Football: Carolina Panthers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers November 9 Beat—Season 1 (Prime Original series) Little Big Awesome—Season 1b (Prime Original series) Patriot—Season 2 (Prime Original…