1–What’s the name of your latest release?  A Highlander is Coming to Town 2–What is it about? Set in Highland, Georgia during Christmas, it features a Scottish lass who needs a Christmas miracle and a Southern gentleman who is doing his best to deliver one. 3–What word best describes your heroine? Secretive 4–What makes your hero irresistible? He is a truly nice guy. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help? My hero turns to Anna and Iain (the h/H of A Highlander in a Pickup.) My heroine is caretaker for an elderly widow, Ms. Meadows. They become like family. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book? Highland, Georgia reinvented itself as a Scottish village to survive and holds a Highland festival every summer and now a Burns Night party to celebrate Christmas. It’s a slice of Scotland in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was inspired by Helen, Georgia, a German-themed town that celebrates Octoberfest every year. 7–Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)? A pantster who wishes I could plot. I’ve taken classes… read the how-to books… made…

Have you ever planned something so perfectly, only to have it be a complete flop? On the other hand, have you had something randomly brilliant happen that came at the right time because you were in the right place? TheBook Magic Mysteries, for me, is that bit of random brilliance. The beginning of the Book Magic Mysteries started about three years ago with a neighborhood walk. I was with my good friend and fellow mystery writer, Wendy Lyn Watson. On this walk, she had been musing about a book idea featuring a bibliomancer. Being a book lover, I was immediately hooked by the idea. I insisted that she write this book, but adulting got in the way (in the form of other book contracts and Wendy’s day job as a professor). Fast forward to 2020. Wendy and I were talking from afar (I moved to North Carolina, and Wendy is still in North Texas) and the bibliomancy series came up during our conversation. One thing led to another, and pretty soon we were plotting an epic series that spans two coasts, features cousins Cora Lane and Pippin Lane Hawthorne, and centers around the Lane women’s gift (or curse) of bibliomancy….

Murder in the Bayou Boneyard, the sixth book in my Agatha Award-winning Cajun Country Mystery series, revolves around Halloween in the fictional village of Pelican, Louisiana. All the books in this series (as well as in my Catering Hall Mysteries, which I write under the pen name, Maria DiRico) include recipes. I wanted this particular book to contain a couple of recipes that were Halloween themed but also had a distinctly Louisiana touch. After a long search and much experimentation, I came up with a recipe for Cajun Pecan Cookie “Fingers.” These cookies are similar in texture to pecan sandies.  They’re tasty and not super sweet. I tinkered with this recipe to prepare it for Fresh Fiction and it’s slightly different from the one in the book. I added two more tablespoons of powdered sugar, but another change was the result of a happy accident. I read the measurement for vanilla as four tablespoons instead of teaspoons. Oops! But you know what? It made the recipe even better. If you want to add a real Cajun kick to these cookies, mix a 1/4 to a 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper into the dry ingredients. That’s the secret ingredient in my…

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Mortmain Hall, published by Poisoned Pen Press 2–What is it about? It’s a history-mystery set in 1930, and like Gallows Court, it features Rachel Savernake and the journalist Jacob Flint. They investigate a series of bizarre murder cases apparently involving miscarriages of justice and their enquiries eventually take them to an old country house on the north Yorkshire coast – Mortmain Hall 3–What word best describes your main character(s)? Rachel Savernake is mysterious. Jacob Flint is impetuous. 4–What makes your story relatable? It’s a story set in 1930 and involves bizarre murder mysteries, but above all it’s about human nature, and how people behave at times of stress 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help? Jacob turns to Rachel. Rachel is supported by the Trueman family. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book? Mortmain Hall is set in a coastal area near where I used to go on holidays as a child. It’s a beautiful coast, but can be eerie.   7–Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)? Both; it depends on the story…

Reading has always been my favorite pastime, but since Covid-19, I’ve increased the number of books I read every week. As a result, I’ve discovered several new (to me) authors with stories I can’t get enough of, and I’m on the hunt for more. Share what you look for in a good book and your favorite recent reads! What do I look for in a great story? Excellent world-building with characters who are funny during the good times and even funnier when crap is hitting the fan are two of the top qualities I want. Genre isn’t as important as a unique world and characters who are off-kilter. Give me those and I’ll become a life-long fan. Here are some of my latest finds! The Amaranthine Saga by Forthright. If you love Anime and Japanese mythology this author and series is for you! The first book in the Amaranthine Saga, Tsumiko and the Enslaved Fox, hooked me for life! Every story in the series builds on the rich world Forthright has created with returning characters I can’t wait to see again. 🙂 The Case Files of Henri Davenforth by Honor Raconteur. This is a mystery series set on another world…

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Home for the Holidays 2–What is it about?  Three sisters who have grown apart travel back to Juniper Springs, Colorado to spend Christmas with their beloved Aunt Sassy–who has been estranged from the family for years. Spending time together at the Juniper Springs Inn brings the memories of their childhood back to life, and the sisters reclaim the bond that once held them together. As they navigate the different life transitions they’re facing, including romances, heartbreaks, and dreams for their futures, the sisters end up discovering what it is they really want this Christmas.   3–What word best describes your main character(s)?  Each sister definitely needs her own word! Dahlia: Organized Magnolia: Independent Rose: Creative 4–What makes your story relatable?  It’s definitely the characters who make the story relatable. Dally, Mags, and Rose are all facing different heartaches in their lives and for a long time they’ve carried those burdens alone, trying to be seen as strong, independent women. But, in coming together, they realize how much they need each other and how much stronger they are together.   5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  A…

As we reach the six-month mark of the worldwide pandemic, a lot has been written on the necessity of practicing self-care, being kind to one’s self and each other, and finding new ways to make this situation somewhat tolerable. In my house, we’ve been tackling remote work, remote learning (dear readers, a teacher I am NOT), deciding when and with whom to expand our bubble, and trying to figure out what the heck to have for dinner every night. . . So when I think of how I practice self-care, I do think about my skincare routine and dream of the day when it will be truly safe for me to go get a pedicure, but I also think about BOOKS and READING. Books have always been my ever constant companion–I won’t go anywhere without something to read. Taking some time out of the day to read and enjoy what I’m reading has been integral to making it through this stressful time. COMFORT READS I’ve definitely gravitated toward old favorites–I’m looking at you, Reluctant Royals series by Alyssa Cole, Born In series by Nora Roberts, and volumes 1-9 of Saga by Brian Vaughan and Fiona Staples–but I also have a…

Tell us a little about your latest project, the upcoming YA science fiction novel, DEVASTATION CLASS.  EM: The book is set in the distant future, with seven military cadets and seventy civilian students aboard a starship on a mission of science and learning. When most of the adults are off-ship, the ship is attacked by the Kastazi, a vicious enemy alien race thought vanquished. Our protagonists–best friends and cadets JD and Viv–are forced to make an impossible choice that will change their lives forever: obey their superiors and die, or mutiny to save the ship and the lives of everyone aboard. But that’s just the beginning. What at first looks like an obvious re-invasion by a former enemy turns out to be something much darker and shocking, and a mystery eons in the making will have to be unraveled for them to have any hope of surviving. GZ: Devastation Class is a multi-POV story, so we get to spend time in the heads of more than one character. Viv and JD are trying to succeed under the weight and long shadows of their war hero parents. There’s Nicholas, a cypher whose intentions and motivations are shrouded in mystery, and who…

Starting in about April or May, one of the big questions in writers groups was, “How do we write about the pandemic?” or, “Should we write about the pandemic?” This was mostly posed in the romance writers’ groups, where people were wondering how sexy it would be to portray mask play, and is it too soon? You know somebody has decided it’s not, and hilarious complications will ensue due to ear strap tighteners. From the start of all this, I like many other authors felt the compulsion to address my own feelings about quarantine, social distancing, and the limitations we embrace to protect ourselves and others. For me, these emotions are magnified because as a mental health professional, I’m attempting to help others through them and the grief of losing jobs, regularity, and, most tragically, family members while dealing with my own struggles. I can’t imagine how tough it must be for our frontline medical workers, some of whom I’m lucky to count as friends. In fact, the first Fae Files book is dedicated to them. When I wrote that inscription back in March, I, like many of us, thought that this pandemic situation would be over by now. Surely…

He suspected it was this that his father worried about, that one day he might want this love that had the power to ruin him. Rubbish. What sort of fool would he be to allow an intangible idea to inflict havoc with his life? “Love has a way of creeping upon you when it is least expected,” the old earl said with a probing stare. “You must be on your guard at all times.” “Truly? Based on your ramblings, I believe it can strike with the ferocity of lightning and thunder, and I’ve wondered why you’ve bothered to caution me against something that will come at me without warning,” he rejoined. His father scowled. It was difficult to explain to the man before him that he did not hunger for any particular connection. He wasn’t seeking love. Nor was he running from it. He was just not. . . interested. “I’ve far more important things to occupy my mind than an attachment with a lady…even the one I intend to marry.” Such as your impending death and the dark hole it will leave. And situating my family for a life of happiness and prosperity. His father appeared contemplative for a…