Book Title: DEVIL’S DEFENSE Character Name: Diane Myers How would you describe your family or your childhood? Normal, I guess.  Normal.  Mama and Daddy stayed together til death parted them. I have a sister, Denise, who’s three years older than me.  We get along okay, but we’re different.  She keeps a pretty big stick up her butt, always has.  What was your greatest talent? I can tie a cherry stem into a knot with my tongue. Significant other?  I married my true love, David, right out of high school, but he died in his thirties from pancreatic cancer.  Since then, I’ve just been enjoying myself. Biggest challenge in relationships?  Clingy men.  Where do you live?  I live in Ashton, GA, but not in the city limits.  Out north, towards Parksville. Do you have any enemies? (Laughs.)  Of course I do!  But they’re smart enough not to tell me. How do you feel about the place where you are now? Is there something you are particularly attached to, or particularly repelled by, in this place?  I’ve lived in Ashton my whole life.  The thing about a small town?  The town itself is part of your family.  Sometimes it irritates the fool…

Step into a world where ballet slippers are traded for renovation boots, and an old European coin holds the key to unexpected romance. In this week’s Jen’s Jewels, author Lindsay Gibson introduces us to THE CHRISTMAS COIN, a heartwarming tale set in the enchanting town of White Bridge, Connecticut. Through her protagonist Amelia Collins, Gibson weaves together the magic of holiday traditions, the challenge of starting anew, and the serendipitous nature of finding love when you least expect it. From snow-tubing adventures to caroling beneath a historic covered bridge, Gibson draws from her own Connecticut roots to create an authentic New England Christmas experience that will have readers believing in second chances—and perhaps a touch of Irish luck. Jennifer Vido: Amelia Collins’s shift from ballet dancer to home renovator is quite a leap! What inspired her to take this new direction, and what drew her to settle in White Bridge, Connecticut? Lindsay Gibson: Amelia’s grandfather always inspired her with how he’d reconstruct historical homes. She’d spend time as a child listening to him tell her all about the old homes he had been working on and found it interesting the way he’d preserve their structures. When her grandparents passed away,…

1–What is the title of your latest release? PUCK AND PREJUDICE (A Regals Hockey Romance #1) 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? When NHL goalie Tucker Taylor takes an accidental swan dive through time into the Regency era, he meets his match in Lizzy Wooddash, a woman whose life goals include: hanging with her cool friends like Jane Austen and avoiding marriage at all costs, or barring that…becoming a widow. A marriage of convenience with a time traveler seems like the perfect hat trick: she gets her future independent widowhood, he gets a place to crash while figuring out how to get home, and nobody catches feelings. But soon they’re catching feelings, and their perfectly practical plan begins looking about as solid as ice in August. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? Since my Georgette Heyer fangirl phase I’ve loved Regencies, and setting the book in 1812 allowed me to place my characters right when Pride & Prejudice was being written. I love “How Did This Get Made” content, and I thought it would be fun to loosely play around with the concept of what might have inspired Austen as she was…

1–What is the title of your latest release?  PICKLEBALLERS  2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?  PICKLEBALLERS is a sporty, enemies to lovers rom-com. Think, The Hating Game, meets Dodgeball.  When Meg Bloomberg’s brief marriage implodes, her friend Annie drags her onto the pickleball courts to help boost her mood. Six months later, Meg is on the mend; loving her new pickleball community and even steaming up her car in a sexy encounter with a hot environmentalist. And all is well until…she finds out he is the same guy in charge of closing down her community’s pickleball courts to restore the wetlands. Hilarity ensues. And sexual tension, of course.  3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place?  I set a lot of the action on Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride away from Seattle, mainly because that is where pickleball originated in 1965! Also, the Seattle area has been my home for thirty years, and I love the Pacific Northwest; the magnificent mountains, the brooding Puget Sound, and even the rain. All play a part in the story.  4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?  No way. She’s kind of strait-laced and…

Hi there! Misty Simon at your service bringing you the Mysteries on Monday! I’ve guest blogged here before and loved it. So, when they were looking for someone to do a monthly check in with recommendations, I was thrilled to get a chance to talk with you all on a more regular basis! Let me introduce myself a bit. From the beginning of my writing journey in 2000, I have always written sassier sleuths and spunky main characters. As Misty Simon I started with Ivy Morris, who was working hard to not be a door mat in the Ivy Morris Mysteries. Then I moved on to Mel Hargrove, who was making peace with the path her life was on, while corralling a junkyard full of ghosts in Adventures in Ghostsitting. Next came my big break at Kensington with Tallie Graver, who is looking for a second chance while making amends for her past in the Tallie Graver Mysteries. Moving back into paranormal too, I wrote The Magically Suspicious Mysteries, where we ride along with Verla Faeth and her friends at a Ren Faire where no one can do what they thought they were destined to do. Then in walks her…

Book Title: THE LAST AGENT IN PARIS Character Name: Noor Inayat Khan How would you describe your family or your childhood? My father was a famous Sufi teacher from India, and he travelled the world to build up a network of Sufi centers. But the hub of it all was our home in Paris, where I lived with my two brothers and sister and parents. But darling Appa died many years ago, and so it has been just the five of us since then. Ma is American. She’s from California. She had to cut herself off from her family to marry Appa, because they disapproved of her marrying a “wandering Indian fakir”, as they called him. But eventually he made well; he found fame, if not exactly fortune, and he created a wonderful home for us on the outskirts of Paris. We are a very close family, and it broke all our hearts when Appa passed away.  Appa had been strict, in a loving, caring way. We all learned to play musical instruments, and we spoke English, French and Hindi at home.When he died, I was thirteen and I had to be the mother of everyone, because Ma fell into…

Good afternoon to you all on this beautiful 21st of June, 1815. My name is Lady Petra Forsyth, and I am delighted to show you some of London. Oh! Yes, you are indeed correct, I am the daughter of the Earl of Holbrook. You may also have heard that I have announced my intention never to marry since I have a fortune of my own, and that is quite true as well. Nevertheless, whilst my papa prefers to live at Buckfields, which is his seat in County Suffolk, he entrusts me to the care and running of Forsyth House here in London. In Berkeley Square, which is located in Mayfair, within London’s city of Westminster, to be quite specific. But we must make haste on our tour, you understand, as certain parts of the city are already filling with people, and some streets may turn impassible. Why, have you not heard? The entire city is waiting with bated breath to hear if Wellington and his forces have finally defeated Napoleon, and word is expected sometime this evening. And if Wellington has succeeded, the Prince Regent shall declare three days of celebrations throughout the city. Now, I shall first take you…

Each Monday the Smashwords store lists the top ten most highly anticipated indie fiction ebooks based on the previous week’s preorder accumulations. Each title on the list is scheduled to release within the next week. To help the talented authors on this list accumulate even more preorders, click the title of the book. The hyperlink will bring you to a Books2Read page where you can order from your preferred ebook retailer. If the preorder is part of a series, click the hyperlinked series title to learn about the other books in the series. Be sure to check back Friday for a list of the Top 25 Bestselling Indie Ebooks.

In this week’s Jen’s Jewels, I’m delighted to chat with bestselling authors Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White, who joined forces to create THE AUTHOR’S GUIDE TO MURDER, a riveting mystery set in the atmospheric Castle Kinloch. This locked-room whodunit brings readers deep into a shadowy, satirical world where the lines between truth and fiction blur, inspired by their own experiences within the publishing industry. From Brett Saffron Presley, a character who exposes the eccentricities of literary fame, to the nuanced bonds between three unforgettable heroines, each page is packed with intrigue and wit. Join us as they share the real-life inspirations behind this unique novel, their approach to balancing humor with suspense, and what’s next for this powerhouse trio! Jen: Castle Kinloch is a gothic, atmospheric setting that plays a crucial role in the mystery. How did you three collaborate to create the setting, and did any real-life locations inspire it? Team W: All three of us have visited Scotland more than once, and two of us have actually stayed in a fourteenth-century castle near the Culloden battlefield, so that was definitely in our minds when we created Kinloch.  Of course, the castle in the book is a…

Most likely to be underestimated: Lizzy. Because of her quiet nature, people assume she’s a bit of a doormat. In reality, she is taking everything in. Estimating. Turning facts and situations over in her mind. Don’t mess with her – or her family. She’s got claws and she’s not afraid to use them. Most likely to throw their loved ones under the bus: The Mother. Gabriela Holländer. Shocker, I know. Born a snake. Married a snake. Surrounded herself with conniving people to further her station in life. Get in her way and you won’t feel the knife in your back until its sunk in to the hilt. Most likely to tell convincing lies: Kate. I mean… come on. Most likely to play by the rules: Selene. Knowing her own history, she has a need for a life lived with honesty and openness. She knew the effects of her grandmother’s transgressions on her heart. The regrets. She is steady in nature, and never falls off the path. Most likely to blurt out the secret plan: Willa. Having lived a life with a mother who kept many secrets in her life – Willa would be compelled to share all. Most likely to…