Game Day, Book 4, King of the Court Series by Piper Lawson Secrets of Ruin, Book 11, The Shadow Realms Series by Brenda K. Davies Slay by Abbi Glines Nick, Book 6, Shadow Ops Team Series by Makenna Jameison Mine to Covet, Book 9, Veteran K9 Team Series by Kameron Claire Arse Over Irish Teacup by Jude McLean The SEAL, Book 1, Black Hawke Security Series by Juliette N Banks Steel Guardian, Book 1, Rusted Wasteland Series by Cameron Coral The Forever Pact, Book 1, The Bachelors of Paradise Valley Series by Jaimie Casey Logan’s Acadian Wolves, Book 4, Immortals of New Orleans Series by Kym Grosso Purely Paranormal Romance Books Volume One, Purely Paranormal Romance Books Anthologies by C.D. Gorri Enchanted Immortals: Complete Series Box Set by C.J. Pinard Falling for Rome, Book 1, Star Studded Series by Gillian Archer Loved by the Alpha, Book 2, The Alpha King’s Breeder Series by Bella Moondragon Plain Jade by Sam Crescent Get In My Swamp: An Ogre Love Story, Book 1, Get In My Swamp Series by G.M. Fairy Teasing You, Book 2, The Donovans (Sweetbriar Ridge) Series by Samantha Chase Becoming Crone, Book 1, The Crone Wars Series by Lydia…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE HAPPINESS BLUEPRINT 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Klara and Alex are having trouble connecting, but at least their calendars are in sync. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? It had to be Sweden. It’s where I grew up and where my dad runs a construction company. He always complained that none of us kids would be taking over the family business (you wouldn’t trust me or my brother with your bathroom even if we were the last people on earth. Proof: I have just paid for someone to assemble an Ikea table.) This got me thinking about what would happen if someone really unsuitable did take over a family construction business in Sweden. Enter Klara. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely. I’m older and wiser and I’d give her a big hug and tell her she’s doing great. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Determined, kind and funny. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? This book taught me how to write. I was a complete beginner entering the words “how do you write…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE JINN DAUGHTER 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A socially ostracized necromantic storytelling jinn mother has to save her only daughter from the goddess of Death while accepting that death comes to all. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? It was based on my Middle Eastern heritage, and I wanted a setting that didn’t feel like a typical Medieval European setting but wasn’t a stereotypical and trope-ish Middle-Eastern desert setting. I wanted the woods and the natural, yet dark, feel that setting provides to a story. And I wanted Death to be a ream that’s explored. The first fantasy book I read was Sabriel by Garth Nix and so the idea of necromancy and death has always appealed to me as a setting. Pomegranates, which feature in my novel, are a symbol of immortality, so I also wanted nature, which to me is a symbol of immortality as well, to be part of my story setting. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Maybe. She’s very tired and stressed and holds much grief, so I think I would, but she’d…

I love witches. I love that their stories are laced with promises of magic and desire, and once you’re in deep enough, you realize that they’re really about complicated female relationships, feminine solidarity against a backwards society, and the overthrowing of the patriarchy. For the most part, at least. I didn’t set out to write a witch book, but I discovered that when you put some strong women together and let them find love and family within one another, chances are that magic will happen. That’s how THE MONSTROUS MISSES MAI, my historical fantasy novel came together, but after I wrote it, I realized that the themes are delightfully universal. So many of my favorites are books and movies about women coming together to lift each other up. If you enjoy that kind of stuff, here are some recommendations that have similar vibes to my accidental witchy story and would make great pairings with the book.   The Witches of Eastwick (1987) Three single women in a picturesque village have their wishes granted, at a cost, when a mysterious and flamboyant man arrives in their lives. I was introduced to this movie after I’d already written my book, but as…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE LIES AMONG US   2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? It’s about sisterhood, grief, and the corrosive nature of lies, as seen through the eyes of a woman who does not exist.   3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I live in Long Island, and I’m fascinated by how multifaceted it is, with the congestion and crowds the closer you come to NYC and the expanse of beaches, orchards, and vineyards as you head farther east, and then suburbia in the middle, with towns that bleed into other towns, no distinction between them. It felt like the right place for Hannah, a woman who is, for the first time, exploring her place in the world.   4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? It would be exceedingly difficult — no one can see, hear, or touch her.   5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Loving, innocent, nonexistent.   6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? I learned to trust myself more. This book was a new direction for me — it’s filled with themes and emotions that…

1— What is the title of your latest release? PLAY OF SHADOWS   2— What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A swashbuckling fantasy in which a misbegotten troupe of actors stumbles upon a hundred year old secret that spark a revolution in their once-peaceful city.   3— How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I wanted the setting for Play of Shadows to be a city that I’d want to visit myself, to marvel at its baroque architecture while strolling down bustling boulevards and across its beautiful canals, visiting magnificent theatres and operas, and, of course, steering clear of its many dark alleys filled with pickpockets, jackblades, alley-rats and murderers. Jereste is a kind of fantastical Venice in which both the wonders and dangers are magnified tenfold.   4— Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Damelas Chademantaigne is the sort of fellow you can’t help but both admire and want to shake all at the same time. He counts himself a coward, yet often gets himself in trouble sticking up for those worse off than himself. He’s loyal and tenderhearted, but sometimes in need ot a good smack to…

1–What is the title of your latest release? DAUGHTER OF A PROMISE 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? What happens when a relationship written about thousands of years ago is retold in a contemporary setting? Better yet, what happens when that retelling is from the perspective of the once-voiceless female?  The answer is a novel that explores the timeless nature of the human struggle as well as the individual powers possessed by women. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I always envisioned the story of this unorthodox relationship being set on Wall Street.  I saw the King David character as one that translated well to a “Master of the Universe” and the Bathsheba character being his young, beautiful, whip-smart protege. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? The main character in Daughter of a Promise is Betsabe Ruiz. She is young, cool, sassy, and determined. I would definitely hang out with her. The question is whether she would hang out with me!! 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Intelligent, loyal, a dreamer 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? My character possessed everything she needed to…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE SWEET BLUE DISTANCE 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? From the author of the international bestseller Where the Light Enters comes a sweeping Western saga centered around a young midwife who journeys from New York City to New Mexico in 1857. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I had been thinking about the story setting for at least ten years. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Yes. They are generally easy going and interesting people 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? cautious, skilled, courageous 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? The Kiowa, a native nation of the Great Plains, used symbols and drawings to record important events, a kind of calendar. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I’m always editing. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? hazelnuts, gianduja 9–Describe your writing space/office! Small study, piles of books, lots of maps, generally messy. 10–Who is an author you admire? Just one? Really?  Okay, so here you go: Thomas Hardy. 11–Is there a book that changed your life? When I was…

1–What is the title of your latest release? FRIENDS IN NAPA 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? The White Lotus (HBO) meets Friends from College (Netflix). I pitched the book I wanted to read — privileged people behaving badly in wine country. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I’ve been to Napa and the wine regions that surround it more times than I can count. Napa Valley looms large in the popular imagination and while it can be all romantic, rolling hills and resplendent wine tastings and meals, it can also get messy. I wanted to spotlight both sides of Napa, as it pertains to tourists. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? FIN has several protagonists and they’re all problematic. Maybe V. At least she’s a good yoga teacher. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonists? Gutsy, gregarious, delusional. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? If I don’t have a deadline, it doesn’t get done. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I line edit as I draft but more substantive stuff happens afterwards. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?…

You describe your female protagonist in A SPARTAN’S SORROW as “a mother, a queen, a villain”. I’m intrigued. Can you elaborate on that? As an author, what kind of women are you most inspired to write about? Who are some of your favorite female characters in literature? So often, people in general are given a single title. Sometimes this is linked to their professions, a teacher, a nurse, a diplomat. Sometimes we describe them by their appearance, or a single personality trait; the shy one, the redhead, etc. Even when describing friends or close acquaintances, we choose this single word, when in truth there is no person in history who can be defined in such simple terms. Though I used three terms here for Clytemnestra, she was so much more, and all those complex aspects of her are deeply interwoven. I am most inspired to write about the voices who have not been heard enough. Those that are subplots in another story when in truth, they deserve their own. I am drawn to characters who break the molds like the Amazon Queens did. In more modern literature, I love characters who fight on moral ground, like Kathy H in Never…