1–What is the title of your latest release? THE JEWELER OF STOLEN DREAMS 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A captivating tale of two passionate women separated by decades but united by a shared vision. One, the famous jeweler Suzanne Belperron, fighting to protect her company and rescue the man she loves. The other, a young auctioneer whose exceptional gifts reveal a secret that endangers her very life. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? It was dictated by the life of the jeweler who is one of the two main characters and the part of the true story I used. She was in Paris during WW2 and that’s the part of her story I was telling. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Talented, courageous, unique 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? I learned a lot about gemstones and the black market in France during the war. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? Once I’m done. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? Caviar 9–Describe your writing space/office! Small but all the walls…

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 Ellen Byron!   Writes: I write humorous cozy mysteries set in great locations like Cajun Country, New York, and New Orleans. They’re a vacation with murder, wink wink. I love creating fun, quirky characters and plots that keep you guessing. My books also contain around five recipes each, so they’re almost like a combination mystery and cookbook. My Vintage Cookbook Mysteries include special recipes from my own collection of over 100 vintage cookbooks.   WINED AND DIED IN NEW ORLEANS combines my love of New Orleans, especially the majestic historic homes of the Garden District, with my love of wine – lol! – and my personal experience of struggling with whether to evacuate or stick it out when a hurricane approaches.   In this second Vintage Cookbook Mystery, the staff of Bon Vee Culinary House Museum is under threat of an impending hurricane when they find a stash of priceless, centuries-old wine under the mansion. When my protagonist Ricki, who runs Miss Vee’s Vintage…

My novel, Sycamore Circle, begins in a coffee shop called Sacred Grounds. It’s in the middle of a small Ohio town’s square, and the proprietors converted a former church into a coffee destination. It sounded like a perfect place for Joy, the book’s heroine, to be tutoring her adult literacy students. It’s also the place where Bo, my ex-con-hero, first spies Joy, and where several other important scenes in the novel take place. When I write a novel, I try to fill it with characters who I would like to know. I usually also try to make at least one of the settings a place where I would like to hang out. Sacred Grounds is definitely one of those places. Do you have a favorite coffee shop? I don’t currently have one, but I used to when we lived in Littleton, Colorado years ago. I’d meet my friend Susan E. there every morning at 6:45. We’d stand in line, grab our lattes, then take turns driving to the elementary school where we taught. The school was in the foothills of the mountains, and it was fifty-five miles away. Those coffees were lifesavers, especially when the weather was snowy and cold….

1–What is the title of your latest release? LITTLE PAULA 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? The sequel to Eden’s Children in which a father sells the child of his adopted son and daughter. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? The Poconos Mountains for the isolation and scenic beauty 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Yes and no. She’s too young for me, but she is a beautiful and intelligent young woman. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Introspective, caring, and fearful. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? Character is strongly influenced by setting and peers. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? Wait until totally done. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? Pizza. 9–Describe your writing space/office! A separate, isolated but bright part of my house. 10–Who is an author you admire? James Lee Burke 11–Is there a book that changed your life? Huck Finn 12–Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish. I have been writing V.C. Andrews…

1–What is the title of your latest release? A KILLING OF INNOCENTS, Kincaid/James #19 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his wife Detective Gemma James work together to solve the stabbing of a young doctor in London’s historic Bloomsbury. Knife crime is rampant in the city. Was Sasha Johnson a victim of gang violence, or was the motive much more personal? Gemma and Duncan must find the killer before panic spreads through London. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I knew when I moved Duncan to Holborn Police Station in Lamb’s Conduit Street that I wanted to set a book in Bloomsbury. This part of London has so much history and atmosphere. There’s the British Museum to draw on, literary associations from Dickens to Virginia Woolf to Dorothy Sayers, Georgian buildings, leafy squares—it’s a perfect microcosm of London. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely! I’d meet up with Gemma and Duncan at our favorite pub in Portobello Road for a Saturday afternoon glass of wine. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? For Duncan, sharp, reserved, collected. For Gemma,…

    Jessi & The Hyenas, Book 4, The Wolf’s Mate Generations series by R.E. Butler One for the Road and Death by Patti Larsen Mr. Nanny, Book 10, The Nannies series by Sam Crescent Matthew, Book 3, Clan Companions series by Tracy St. John Claiming My Mate, Book 2, Carnal Lust series by Lila Fox Tank’s Promise, Book 6, Ruthless Reapers MC series by Winter Sloane Magic by the Book, Book 4, House of Magic series by Susanna Shore Dangerous Flames: A Good Neighbors Novelette by Stephanie Burgis Bicerin and Bloodshed (Cup of Jo 12) by Kelly Hashway Home Is Where the Murder Is by Rosalie Spielman   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…

1–What is the title of your latest release? COLD LIGHT OF DAY 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? When an unexpected string of criminal activity leaves her with a wounded officer and unexplained murders, Police Chief Autumn Long must rely on an outsider for help as she fights to save her job and the small town of Shadow Gap, Alaska. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I had been considering revisiting Southeast Alaska as a novel setting since my six-book Mountain Cove series set in the region. Then during research for Deadly Target (Rocky Mountain Courage 2), I came across a podcast about people missing in Alaska, and I got chills. Ha! I knew it was time. I emailed my editor to ask if she’d be interested in a series set in Alaska, and she was excited about the prospect. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Chief Autumn Long is a tough character with a dangerous job, but she’s also all about her family, and I think it would be fun to hang out at The Lively Moose—the restaurant owned by her grandparents, Ike and Pearl (Birdy) Lively,…

One of my favorite things to hear from readers is that they wish my fictional towns were real. Creating a place where people want to live or visit (if the murder rate weren’t so high!) is one of my main goals when I set out to create a new cozy mystery series. As a reader, setting and characters are the main draws that keep me going back to a series again and again, and I think that’s the case for many cozy mystery readers. In my mind, a well-crafted setting is almost like another character. The idea for the town of Larch Haven, Vermont, the setting for my True Confections Mysteries, was born when I watched an episode of The Amazing Race several years ago. The racers travel to Giethoorn (a town I’d never heard of) in the Netherlands and had to navigate the canals by boat. I was instantly charmed by the cute homes on the banks of the picturesque canals. I knew right away that I one day wanted to write a cozy mystery series set in a town with canals instead of cars and with quaint, charming cottages. That idea stayed in my head for years, waiting…

1–What is the title of your latest release? MURDER, SHE WROTE DEATH ON THE EMERALD ISLE 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? While out for a bicycle ride in Bushmills, Northern Ireland, Jessica Fletcher discovers the dead body of a man who is the cousin of her neighbor in Cabot Cove. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? Jessica Fletcher visited various parts of the island of Ireland in episodes of the television series but hadn’t done so in any of the books. I decided it was time for her to visit Belfast, Bushmills and other captivating places in Northern Ireland 4–Would you hang out with your sleuth in real life? Absolutely! Hanging out with Jessica has been a dream of mine since Season 1, Episode 1 of Murder, She Wrote aired in 1984 5–What are three words that describe your sleuth? Mature, Honest, Forthright 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? I learned a lot about the Titanic and the tragedy of its maiden voyage. The Titanic was built in Belfast and in Murder, She Wrote Death on the Emerald Isle Jessica attends a reception in the Titanic Museum. 7–Do you…

1–What is the title of your latest release? A MURDEROUS PERSUASION 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? When Professor Phaedra Brighton hosts a Persuasion-themed Jane Austen murder mystery week at her aunt’s B&B, it’s all tea and sunshine…until she finds a guest’s body in the garden. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I grew up in Northern Virginia and lived in Fredericksburg for many years. I visited Charlottesville occasionally and drove up Afton Mountain to Waynesboro to visit my brother. The area is beautiful, with breathtaking mountain overlooks and scenic drives. It’s also home to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s home, and the University of Virginia. It’s an area rich in history and a perfect setting for an English literature professor and Jane Austen scholar. Phaedra becomes a reluctant amateur sleuth when her best friend’s husband is murdered. 4–Would you hang out with your sleuth in real life? Absolutely! Phaedra is a little quirky (like me) and very astute (unlike me). We’d spend the day talking, browsing bookstores, or visiting museums, and finish with a delicious tea consisting of Earl Grey, strawberry scones, and plenty of clotted cream. 5–What are three words that describe…