What is the title of your latest release?THE LOWE JOB What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?THE LOWE JOB follows a family of four sisters and their matriarchal mother, Lydia. When the eldest sister, Lili, gets caught in a sex scandal with a married politician, Lydia, a former talent manager, decides that the only way to protect Lili’s reputation, is to step into the spotlight and take control of the narrative. With brand deals and a reality TV show coming off the back of the scandal, quickly, the whole family is propelled into fame. The four sisters have varying reactions to their new-found celebrity, and things take a turn when someone from Lili’s past decides that they would rather she stay quiet. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?London felt like the natural location for the story. It is home to a multitude of burgeoning (and fully-fledged) celebrities, with enough nooks and crannies to hide an illicit affair. Plus, London loves a scandal! Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?Absolutely! She would get me into lots of trouble, but would also get me out of it – a recipe for an…

What is the title of your latest release?VOYAGERS What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?Two six-year-olds, Alex and Ana, mysteriously vanish for two days in the late 1990s. The incident is interpreted as an alien abduction and makes the two kids a) famous and b) inseparable, until their divergent beliefs about the truth of their experience tear them apart as teenagers. Now adults, they reunite when the world seems to be on the verge of actual, global first contact with aliens. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?The setting really came first – one of the earliest images I had in mind was of a woman running barefoot through the desert around Joshua Tree. The other locations of New York and Los Angeles and Las Vegas all trickled in slowly. But the desert was what inspired the entire project. Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?If I’ve done my job right, who wouldn’t!? Ana is magnetic. I was interested in writing a character who was instantly charming, but we also see the ways in which that charm can be a burden or a barrier to intimacy, both for herself and the…

People invariably judge a book by its cover. And although I loved the original covers for the books in my Stoneslayer series, others did not. Book marketing experts told me that the previous covers did not adequately convey the books’ dark high fantasy genre. And some reviewers agreed. Several times, I have looked through Amazon at the covers for books in the same genre as Stoneslayer. Very in your face. They scream at you graphically and grab you by the throat. Look here! Not there, here! That puts me off. I must have been a cat in some lifetime because if someone orders me to do something, I balk. Not out of spite (necessarily), but because I’m just not that into obedience, blind or otherwise. Kinda like Helen Andros, the first-generation heroine of my series. (She really was a lousy soldier thanks to that tendency to ignore orders.) Stoneslayer’s first book covers invited instead of commanded readers’ attention. They hinted at what’s in the pages rather than blast it out at full volume. They did not screech. They whispered. This is not, however, an era of nuance or subtlety. Even book lovers apparently expect to a book cover to stage…

What is the title of your latest release?DHAMPIRA What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?A seemingly powerless halfling is thrust into a cruel and dangerous vampire court where she meets two wildly different men who claim they can help her even as they’re both interested in her…and each other. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?I based the world on the kinds of big, splashy (and mildly terrifying) worlds in the fantasy movies I watched as a kid. Movies like Labyrinth and The Neverending Story. Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?Definitely. I guarantee I’d trip over a sword and faceplant if someone handed me one, and I think Corinthe would likely have the same experience. What are three words that describe your hero?There are two male love interests in Dhampira, so I’ll answer for both! Vander is charming, strong, and gentle. Lorcan is brooding, mysterious, and exasperating. What’s something you learned while writing this book?My copyeditor corrected me on the scent of cooking human flesh, which is funny and also gross. (Pork, not chicken, for anyone wondering.) Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?I…

The period between the end of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th was a time of vast changes and great events.  The stories we’ll look at this month celebrate this diversity of character and place. We begin at the very beginning of the 1900s with ÉMILIENNE by Pamela Binnings Ewen, an historical novel featuring one of the brightest lights of the Belle Époque, Émilienne D’Alencon.  Born in poverty in Montmartre, then a village outside Paris, Émilienne worked her way up to become one of the celebrated dancers at the Folies Bergère.  Acclaimed as the most beautiful woman in Europe, acquainted with every gentleman in Society, she was mistress to kings, princes and millionaires, feted and admired at a time when elegant courtesans set the standard for beauty and fashion.  We read about these luminaries in her story, including a young Coco Chanel, who chooses a different path out of poverty.  But as Émilienne learns to her sorrow, youth and fame are fleeting.  The expensive jewels and reckless gambling she becomes accustomed to during at the height of her popularity doom her to almost inescapable debt once lucrative roles and rich lovers move on. Ewen gives us…

We turn to books for so many reasons, and sometimes that includes the desire to forget, if only for a while, about reality. That’s been my experience this past month (as I know it’s been for others), and I found mixed success in my title choices. Darn those talented writers who keep us reading/listening through their skillful wordcraft and then break our hearts with their actual stories. I’ll save those jaw-gritting titles for the end of this piece and start with the uplifting titles. Three fabulous, best-selling authors have had new releases this spring, and all have been celebrated by fans who love them. Abby Jimenez was first off the block with THE NIGHT WE MET, a real-to-life story about a young woman struggling with issues familiar to many contemporary readers: working part-time gigs in hopes of earning enough to at least pay rent and occasionally eat, thorny relationships with family, and a life-threatening nut allergy that makes every otherwise normal interaction just a bit risky. Good thing she’s got a handsome and charming boyfriend, whom she met the same night she met one of his friends. Too bad the boyfriend sometimes binge-drinks and usually forgets about Larissa’s allergies, but…

I’m the kind of person who always has music playing (my Spotify wrapped numbers are truly unhinged), so I had many different playlists on rotation while writing THE LAKE CLUB. In fact, I had playlists for each individual character (this helped me get into their mindsets/energy) as well as for the book at large, and I’m excited to share a few songs with you now! “Sunshine” by AtmosphereThis song was in my head from the moment I started THE LAKE CLUB. Atmosphere is a band from Minneapolis, and I have great memories of listening to them growing up on Lake Minnetonka. This song is super narrative in style – and I love how it captures one summer day and all the possibilities and freedom that roll in with the heat, even when you might not expect it. Summers always seem like the most magical months of the year (especially in Minnesota, when the rest of the year is frigid), and I think this song in particular captures the feeling that anything can happen when the sun is burning bright. “10,000 Emerald Pools” by BørnsAs soon as I saw the cover for THE LAKE CLUB (gorgeous, right?!), this song came to…

Growing up in Ohio, my high school was bordered by rows of cornfields. I thought I knew a lot about the crop, but I had never heard of a “Corn Palace” until we reached South Dakota during our 2021 Go West trip across the USA. They were celebrating 100 years when we visited. The Corn Palace, commonly advertised as The World’s Only Corn Palace and the Mitchell Corn Palace, is a multi-purpose arena/facility located in Mitchell, South Dakota. A one-of-a-kind destination, at first glance, it’s a stunning Moorish-revival structure. But look closer and you’ll realize the building is decorated with crop art; the colorful murals and designs covering the building are crafted entirely from corn and other grains. It’s not just a seasonal exhibit; it’s a living tradition. Every year, the facade is stripped and redesigned with new art constructed from twelve naturally occurring shades of corn grown by local farmers. Artists’ drawings are transferred to black tar paper labeled with codes corresponding to colors, providing a “corn-by-numbers” pattern showing where each colored cob should be nailed. Corn cobs are split in two lengthwise and nailed to the exterior of the building, using approximately 1.5 million nails and 325,000 ears…

Welcome to Where Everybody Knows Your… Alibi – where we get to know thefictional towns we’d happily move to… if they didn’t have such a suspicious body count.(but does that really matter?) I’m thrilled to welcome Rosalie Spielman this month. Whether you’ve met her through her delightful Hometown Mysteries series, her contributions to the Aloha Lagoon Mysteries, or one of her many appearances in the cozy mystery community, chances are you’ve already discovered her warmth, wit, and love of storytelling. Rosalie’s path to becoming a multiple (yes, MULTIPLE!) award-winning author has been anything but ordinary. Her experiences as an Army brat, Army officer, and spouse have taken her across the globe, introducing her to people from all walks of life – experiences that have undoubtedly influenced the communities and memorable characters that fill the pages of her books. When she’s not writing, Rosalie is busy connecting with readers and fellow authors. She’s a founding member of Facebook’s Murder, They Write, and the host of You Know the Spiel!, where her enthusiasm for books and the cozy mystery genre shines through. Let’s chat with Rosalie about New Oslo, Idaho, population 852, where the Hometown Mysteries take place. I’m already in love…

Excerpt from THE SHROUDED QUEEN by Ashley Tropea: My rescuer stood in front of me protectively, possessively, and snarled. Bain glared but obediently ambled off, disappearing back into the dark. Leaving me alone with my rescuer. This bear was somehow larger than the first, its shoulders reaching much higher than my head. It turned slowly, yellow eyes locking on my still-shaking form, the fur on its neck blue. Without breaking eye contact, it rose up on its hind legs and shifted. In the next breath, Keir stood in front of me, trousers tattered and bare chest heaving. His tan skin glistened with sweat under the light of the stars, and despite the pain lancing through me, my eyes ate up the sight of him, the immense strength and power that radiated off him. His large biceps flexed as he pushed his long braid over his muscled shoulder, veins cording his forearms like vines, and his massive chest rose and fell with each jagged inhale. My own breath hitched as my gaze lowered. Above the rows of strong abs, huge white scars slashed along his rib cage, and bone peered out through the flesh, stark against his skin. Not a fresh…