Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present CLARE O’DONOHUE! Writes: Spy novels and mysteries, with my latest, BREAKING THE DANCE, the 2nd in my World of Spies series hitting the shelves May 8th, 2019. About: Mystery writer and avid traveler seeks readers for adventures in Ireland (BEYOND THE PALE) and South America. BREAKING THE DANCE is Nick & Nora meets James Bond when a husband & wife team of accidental spies try to help an art thief stay alive while on the trail of a notorious Argentinian killer. Laughs, thrills and a few tips on how to dance the tango all included. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader: A detective who follows the clues no matter where they go A traveler (real & armchair both welcome!) A lover of smart, strong characters living out real relationships amidst sometimes surreal circumstances An adventurer who doesn’t mind hanging out with art thieves, spies, and killers Someone who enjoys classics like Mrs. Polifax, and Lord Peter Whimsey & Harriet Vane…

Your book has been described as Mad Men meets Devil Wears Prada – a very enticing combination! What sort of research did you do for this novel, and what was the most surprising thing you learned? I was lucky with this book because there were several excellent biographies on Helen Gurley Brown, as well as all the books she wrote herself. Naturally, the place for me to start was HGB’s scandalous bestseller, Sex and the Single Girl. It was published in 1962 and sold two million copies the first month it was out. It was basically a guide on how to find men and what to do with them once you’ve found them. It was truly groundbreaking material because, at that time, no one else was speaking to single women in that way. Sex and the Single Girl gave me a good feel for Helen Gurley Brown’s philosophy and her views on men, dating and of course, sex. The blueprint for her future makeover of Cosmopolitan can be easily found in the pages of her book. I also watched the Sex and the Single Girl movie and lots interviews with HGB—there’s a slew of them on YouTube. (Also I was fortunate to have met…

In my recent release, Of Fire and Lions, I explore the biblical story of Daniel, who was exiled to Babylon. Remember the guy thrown into the lions’ den who escaped unharmed? Because the Hebrew Bible usually records only male descendants and Daniel has no recorded offspring, this novel gives Daniel only daughters. Five, actually; and a significant part of the story involves his fictional wife’s strained relationship with them. Why add a seemingly insignificant conflict when the story already includes Daniel saved from lions, three men’s escape from a fiery execution, a king’s transformation into a beast, and a wealthy nobleman’s rescue of a lovely woman from a degrading priesthood? Because the emotional struggle between a mother or daughter affects about half the women I meet—and I have two daughters of my own. The moment they slipped squalling from my body, they’ve been a conundrum. They’re like yin and yang. Black and white. Completely opposite yet best friends. But it hasn’t always been that way… At first, daughters seem a kaleidoscope of colors—impossible to sort out for a young mom. “Why is she crying? Why won’t she sleep? My daughter won’t share—will she ever have friends? She did WHAT to…