Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Kym Roberts | Cozy Corner Interview: BODY AND SOUL FOOD by Abby Colette
Author Guest / October 25, 2021

There are those people in life who amaze you with how many hats they wear on any given day, and then they put another one on like it’s no big deal. Like an additional hat doesn’t put any pressure on their brain or weigh their head down and make it feel like it’s going to fall off their shoulders. On top of that, they do it with style and grace—ease—that makes you wish you could complete just one of their tasks and make it look that effortless.  Abby L. Vandiver, aka Abby Collette, is one of those people, and of course, she took on this interview while juggling two releases in November! Whew, I don’t know about you, but I find her energy exciting. (And exhausting if I think about it too much!) She’s also generous with her time and her expertise—how can you not fall in love with a talent like that! Kym: Welcome to the Cozy Corner, Abby! Abby: Thank you for inviting me. Happy to be here. I want to congratulate you on your new Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series! What made this series special for you as an author? Thank you! This series was special because it…

Kat Martin | Exclusive Excerpt: THE LAST GOODNIGHT
Author Guest / October 24, 2021

Kade Logan stood on the bank watching the sheriff and his deputies haul the mud-covered vehicle out of the lake.  The crane groaned as the automobile tilted upward, the rear end lifting into the air, the front wheels dragging across the spongy earth.  Brackish lake water poured out through the open windows. For eight long years Kade had been haunted by the mystery of what had happened to the dark green Subaru that belonged to his dead wife.  Her body had been found in a shallow depression in the hills at the base of the mountains outside Denver, but until now, eight years later, her car had never been found. And her killer had never been caught. “You okay?”  Sam Bridger, Kade’s best friend, stood beside him, a tall blond man Kade had known for years. “She’s been dead eight years, Sam.  So yeah, I’m okay.”  But the rage he felt had never lessened.  It should have.  At the time of her death, their marriage was already on the rocks.  The second time Kade had caught Heather cheating, he had filed for divorce. “Maybe they’ll find something in the car that’ll give them a reason to reopen the case,” Sam…

Tina Gabrielle | 20 Questions: ONE NIGHT WITH AN EARL
Author Guest / October 22, 2021

1–What is the title of your latest release? ONE NIGHT WITH AN EARL 2–What is it about? I’ve always wanted to write a diverse historical romance. ONE NIGHT WITH AN EARL features a Middle Eastern heroine and a duty-bound earl. Ana—short for Anahit—is the daughter of an Arabic scholar. Ana’s diverse background is based on my own family. Here’s a blurb: Ana Gardner is determined to lose her virginity before her thirtieth birthday. She’s no stranger to fake identities, having posed as a chaperone since the scandal that destroyed her titled family. So she dons a mask, changes into a low-cut red gown, and attends the city’s most elite brothel, the Silver Chalice. Oliver Bedford, the imposing Earl of Drake, is only at the Silver Chalice to appease his debauched friends—until he spots Lady Scarlet. She’s refreshing…and a complete mystery. Certain she’s a lady in disguise, Oliver is determined to learn her identity, but she eludes him at every turn. The night with Oliver was unforgettable. But when he arrives at her employer’s home, she’s horrified to discover her lover is the Earl of Drake, the son of the man responsible for her father’s death and subsequent family ruin. And…

Jennifer Vido | Jen’s Jewels Interview: ONCE UPON A WARDROBE by Patti Callahan
Author Guest / October 22, 2021

Jennifer Vido : What inspired you to write Once Upon a Wardrobe? Patti Callahan: It’s so hard to answer what inspired me for this novel and yet that very fact is what inspired me to write this book! I often wonder what inspired some of my favorite tales, and when I interview other authors for Friends and Fiction, I ask other authors, “What is the origin story of your story?” And even I am often asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” And the answer changes with time because we might look back and see where a story originated in hindsight. So this novel, Once Upon a Wardrobe, is a story that grew out of many other stories. When I was writing the novel Becoming Mrs. Lewis, I realized that the year that C. S. Lewis and Joy Davidman met through letters was the same year that The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe was released. During research, I would often see small crumbs of Narnia in C. S. Lewis’ young and middle life. Those crumbs stayed with me and I wanted to show them in a story. I wondered — What made Lewis start and then stop and then…

Nina Croft | Author-Reader Match: INSURRECTION
Author Guest / October 21, 2021

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 Nina Croft! Writes: Hi everyone, I’m Nina and I love to write hot, sexy romances. All sorts of romance, from contemporary to paranormal to science-fiction. And often a mixture. My latest release, INSURRECTION, takes place five hundred years in the future when humanity (and a few other things, vampires, werewolves, demons….) have fled a dying Earth in search of a new home. About: I’m a full-time writer who lives on an almond farm in the remote mountains of southern Spain. I love the sun and the sea and the mountains, strong heroines, sexy heroes, and animals of any kind (I share my home with a lot of them!) When I’m not writing, my favorite pastimes are reading, riding my horse, walking my dogs, talking to my pig, and lying under the shade of a fig tree, drinking wine. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: I’m looking for like-minded readers, willing to go anywhere and do (almost) anything in search of the perfect happy ever after. A…

Lauren Dane | Exclusive Excerpt: DIABLO LAKE: AWAKENED
Author Guest / October 21, 2021

As a group, the four witches turned to catch sight of him standing there. That’s when the zing rebounded be­tween him and Ruby Thorne and he had to tighten his hand on the doorjamb to keep his knees from buckling. One corner of her mouth rose and his watered be­cause he knew what she tasted like. And until right then, he’d forgotten just how much he’d missed his lips on hers. And now she was home and they were both six years older and wiser. He sure hoped he was because a woman like the one he currently stared at deserved that. “Well, hey there, Damon Dooley,” Ruby said, the smile taking over her entire face as she approached him. She’d been pretty six years ago, but she was lumi­nous now, her magic around her shoulders like a man­tle. He wanted to roll around in her, coat himself in her. Damon reined it in, assuring the wolf they’d get to that point but it was important to wait for the right time. Rather than a handshake, Damon opened his arms, waiting a beat to be sure she had the chance to stop her trajectory. Thank the lord above, she came…

Rien Gray | 20 Questions: HER WOLF IN THE WILD
Author Guest / October 21, 2021

1—What is the title of your latest release? HER WOLF IN THE WILD. It’s out from Carina Press now! 2—What is it about? Christiana—a young bisexual woman—is on the run from her abusive boyfriend, who also happens to be a member of Arizona law enforcement. She gets picked up off the road by Micah, a butch biker who runs the Hounds of God, a local motorcycle club. Except it turns out the MC is a cover for the local werewolf pack—of which Micah is their alpha—that already has some trouble with the cops going on. The last complication these two need is finding out that they might be fated mates. 3—What do you love about the setting of your book?  It was really nice to go back to Arizona, metaphorically speaking. I lived there when I was twenty, and putting a supernatural edge to the desert was a lot of fun. I also liked exploring the background of LGBTQ+ motorcycle clubs, since that’s not what comes to mind when most people think of an MC. 4—How did Christiana surprise you?  She’s a younger and less experienced protagonist than I usually write, so finding her voice and motivation took a different…

Julia Justiss | History ReFreshed: Finding and Losing: Post-WWI Historical Fiction
Author Guest / October 21, 2021

In the years after World War I, cataclysmic changes in society were shifting traditional roles and expectations, with women demanding more independence and a greater say in determining their own futures.  This month’s selection of titles illuminates the unfolding of these changes through the lives of several determined women, both wholly fictional and fictionalized. In AT SUMMER’S END by Courtney Ellis, after winning a British Royal Legion art contest, painter Alberta Preston is determined to pursue an artistic career, despite her family who tries to push her into a conventional life of marriage and family.  When she receives an invitation from Julian Napier, Earl of Wakeford, to spend the summer painting at the family’s country home, Castle Braemore, she sees this as her chance to prove she can become a successful professional artist despite her gender. But the Great War has wrought serious changes upon the Napier family and their ancestral estate is near bankruptcy.  Disfigured by battle wounds, suffering from traumatic stress, the earl remains in his rooms, seeing no one but his widowed older sister Gwen.  Bertie makes alliances with Julian’s younger brother Roland, who actually runs the estate, his sister Cece, and gradually is able to work…

Claire Wilder | Author-Reader Match: SPEEDING HEARTS + Giveaway!
Author Guest / October 20, 2021

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 you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Claire Wilder! WRITES Emotional, slow-burn but very steamy small-town romance. In my books, the setting is always stunning and plays a big role in the stories (think small town with sparkling lakes, leafy forests, and tranquil rivers). ABOUT THE AUTHOR Fun-loving lover of romance (plus secret lover of thrillers, horrors, women’s fiction, and YA on the side!) who lives on the west coast of Canada with her rambunctious, creative family. Loves delicious food of all stripes, all the coffee and cab sav. Can frequently be forest walking or riding on an ebike! MY IDEAL READER: Is looking for an emotional read with a big payoff. Dreams of escaping the city for a lakeside retreat. Loves those long-running romances on TV (Pam & Jim [The Office]; Ross & Rachel [Friends, in the beginning!]; Carrie and Brody AND THEN Carrie and Quinn [Homeland]) Likes their romance steamy and is okay with a little angst and few bad words! Considers authors like Claire Kingsley and Melanie Harlow their…

Annabel Abbs | Exclusive Excerpt: MISS ELIZA’S ENGLISH KITCHEN
Author Guest / October 20, 2021

In spite of the fish vans that clatter through the town on their way to London and the hop pickers who arrive daily by wagon, Tonbridge does not have the hustle and bustle of Ipswich. This pleases Mother, who crows constantly about Tonbridge’s superior inhabitants and its superior visitors. And it is these that she has her ruthless gimlet eye upon: the well-dressed ladies and gentlemen who come to take the waters of our neighboring spa town, Tunbridge Wells, and are in need of superior rooms. Our rented home is newly built and has its name—Bordyke House—carved into the lintel. As befits a superior boardinghouse, it is spacious, well furnished, and situated well away from the town’s open drains. And yet it feels all wrong, like a poorly cut coat. Perhaps this is because Edgar has set sail to make his fortune in Mauritius, and Catherine and Anna have taken up positions as governesses—all of us fleeing gossip and disgrace—so it is only Mother and I rattling around here. Or perhaps it is because no amount of superiority can disguise our future as the landladies of a boardinghouse. We are in the morning room—yellow walls, armchairs upholstered in a shiny…