For those of you who’ve been yearning to return to my little seaside Oregon town of Hope Harbor—the wait is over! If you haven’t visited, I hope you’ll stop by. Starfish Pier is Book 6, but every story stands alone. So please drop in! In my latest novel you’ll meet Holly Miller, who’s new in town. Moving to Hope Harbor was a big step for her for several reasons, but she’s settling in as a first-grade teacher. Life is good…but a little romance wouldn’t hurt. Enter Steven Roark, who’s left the military behind and now runs fishing charters. He’s in town on a mission—a personal one this time—but his take-charge manner isn’t helping him achieve his goal. And he definitely isn’t looking for romance. Funny how that works, though. Sometimes when you least expect it Ms. Right can show up—even if she’s nothing like the kind of woman you thought you’d fall for! So let’s see where this game takes us. S is for Starfish. Matchmakers don’t always have to be human. 🙂 T is for traumatic. Holly and Steven have both had their share of tough times. A is for antagonistic. Which captures the mood of their first meeting….

1–What’s the name of your latest release?   You’ll never guess–it’s BEARS BEHAVING BADLY! Can you believe it? I’ll bet you had no idea, despite the title being plastered all over the promo materials. You must be so surprised! I’m surprised, and I wrote the thing. (Yeah, buckle in. I’m ridiculous.)  2–What is it about?  It’s about a foster care system for shapeshifting minors, the people who work there, and the vulnerable shifters in their charge. We know t here’s a dark web, a deep web, a super-duper secret web, a fifth column, a shadow government, black market cheese, and underground wrestling, so why not a foster care system set up for vulnerable and/or dangerous minors? And not just any minors: shapeshifters. And not just shapeshifters: traumatized shifters who would be incredibly dangerous to others even without the PTSD.    Like any underground organization, it runs parallel (but unnoticed) beside the foster care system for Stables (Shifter slang for ordinary bipeds like me and thee). And while weres only make up a small percentage of the population, that’s still a lot of orphans to keep track of. And because life isn’t complicated enough, while my characters are going about the business of saving vulnerable…

Throughout the month, we’ll be checking in with Marissa Backlin, co-owner of Love’s Sweet Arrow, a romance-focused independent bookstore in Tinley Park, IL. Be sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, sign up for their newsletter, and check out their Patreon. Their online store is still open! Up first, an interview with LSA co-owner Marissa Backlin and FF’s Editorial Manager, Danielle Dresser.  Danielle: Welcome to the Fresh Fiction blog, Marissa! We are so thrilled to learn more about Love’s Sweet Arrow. Where did the idea come from to open a romance-only bookstore in Chicagoland? Marissa: Roseann and I have always been big romance readers. I’ve been reading romance since I was sneaking it around 12 and Mom read it growing up too. I also ordered a few times from The Ripped Bodice once they opened and two Christmases ago, I got Mom the Lydia Bennett box! So two summers ago, we were just talking about how if we had an unlimited amount of money, opening a romance bookstore would be one of the things we would love to do. After a whole summer of daydreaming together about it, we decided to go for it! What are some of your…

One of the hardest parts of creating a series is writing the last book. In My One True Cowboy, the fourth and final book in my River Ranch series, it was sad to say goodbye to the Ford family, but it was also incredibly satisfying writing Angelina Ford’s story! I certainly feel as if I left the best for last… Angelina is everything I love in a woman. She’s ambitious, she’s made it on her own, she doesn’t need a man and she’s strong. It made writing her so satisfying, because for her to fall for a man, he had to be someone very special. In writing her, I put her in the incredibly difficult position of facing a huge life change, which made her much more vulnerable than the strong, nothing-can-knock-me-down woman in the previous books. But it gave me a lot to work with, because I was able to show her grow and change, and also, fall in love. In the modern world we live in, I find it really inspiring reading about a woman who doesn’t need the money or love of a man to make her whole, because it makes the romance that much more satisfying….

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Perfect Distraction 2–What is it about?  Perfect Distraction is about an oncology pharmacist, Lauren Taylor, and Andrew Bishop, a young law student recently diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma, and their failed attempts to NOT fall in love with one another. 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Compassionate 4–What makes your hero irresistible?  Andrew is confident and purposeful, but also selfless and kind. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Andrew has a twin sister he’s close to, who also happens to occasionally meddle in his love life. Lauren’s two colleagues – Emma and Kiara – are her lifeline when things get tough. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  The setting of Perfect Distraction is near and dear to my heart. I’m an oncology pharmacist myself, and the cancer center where much of the book takes place is modeled after my workplace. The main thing I want people to take away from this setting is that love can bloom anywhere—even places you’d never expect. 7–Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)? I’m definitely a panster….

Welcome back to Fresh Fiction, Kim! Please tell us about yourself and your new book, COWBOY FIREFIGHTER HEAT. Thanks for inviting me back to Fresh Fiction! It’s always a pleasure to be here. COWBOY FIREFIGHTER HEAT is a special book for me, so I’m delighted to talk about what motived me to write it. We all share a love of music, because it uplifts us, motivates us, inspires us, and simply pleasures us. I can’t imagine life without it. We owe a great deal to the many musicians who give their creativity through this medium. I particularly appreciate the musicians in my own family who generously share their talent at family reunions and other events. COWBOY FIREFIGHTER HEAT is my tribute to them and musicians everywhere. Wildcat Bluff County, Texas, is as much a character in the novel as it is the setting. What do you love about setting your books there? Is it inspired by a real location?  I absolutely love setting my books in Wildcat Bluff, because I keep learning more about the landscape, community, towns, and fascinating folks with each novel I write in the series. I started with the town of Wildcat Bluff, but soon Sure-Shot,…

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-ReaderMatch” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Sasha Summers! Writes: Sasha Summers grew up surrounded by books. Her passions have always been storytelling, romance and travel–passions she uses when writing. Now a best-selling and award winning-author, Sasha continues to fall a little in love with each hero she writes. From easy-on-the-eyes cowboy (and JACE is super easy on the eyes!), sexy alpha-male werewolves, to heroes of truly mythic proportions, she believes that everyone should have their happy ending–in fiction and real life. About: Sasha loves reading—all kinds of books. When she’s not reading, she’s watching a movie on the couch with her cat, Gerard the Feline Overlord. Her hobbies include taking long evening walks in a library or bookstore, discussing fictional heroes, cooking (and eating) low-carb treats, and painting. Turn-Offs include: non-readers… Yea, that’s pretty much it… What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: Fans of country music Lovers of hot singing cowboy heroes Strong female heroine—wounds and all Their love scenes on the page but not erotic Family Saga aficionados Prefers life with high…

We thought it would be fun to give our 20 Questions interview to the incomparable writing team of LINDA HOWARD and LINDA JONES and see their separate responses. Enjoy! LINDA JONES: 1–What’s the name of your latest release?  After Sundown 2–What is it about?  When a natural disaster hits, taking down the grid and bringing the world to a standstill, the community of Wears Valley comes together to survive. Sela and Ben are reluctant leaders who do what they can to in order to make it through the aftermath of a catastrophic solar storm. 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Introverted. Maybe cautious is a better word for her. 4–What makes your hero irresistible?  The shallow woman in me says, “His arms.” My more introspective self admires the way he gives in to his instinct to protect, even if he does so reluctantly. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Ben turns to no one, at least in the beginning. Sela has friends and family to turn to, most specifically her Aunt Carol and her fifteen-year-old cousin, Olivia. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  I’ve been in love with Wears…

My upcoming release, PIVOT, began with a novella I wrote sometime back, a Romantic Suspense titled Against the Heart.  Ian Brodie is the owner of the BOSS Inc. security firm, a tall, good-looking man, one of the Brodie cousins. In PIVOT, the adventure continues with novellas by bestselling Romantic Suspense authors, Alexandra Ivy and Rebecca Zanetti.  Alexandra and Rebecca tell the stories of teenage girls who became friends during their tough years in foster care. Now as women, they’re fighting for their lives again. When Meriwether Jones and her young daughter run from trouble, that trouble follows.  Her prayers are answered when ex-cop Ian Brodie hires her to help his aging father.  But Meri is keeping dangerous secrets–and Ian is in danger of losing his heart. Melanie Cassidy finds trouble when she tries to save a young boy from being kidnapped.  Working the case, former love-of-her-life, Detective Gray Hawkins, appears and rescues them both.  But her good-Samaritan efforts pull her and Gray into a world of drug dealers and dirty cops–and forces them to examine the relationship they’d abandoned. Michelle Peach is one of Meri’s closet friends.  Trouble arrives when two rough men in search of Meri break into her…

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Silent Shadows 2–What is it about?  Pecca Gallegos moved to the tiny town of Walton, Georgia, to protect her son and escape the dangerous lifestyle that once defined her. When a series of strange circumstances evolve into threats, Pecca finds herself confiding in an unlikely ally–her stubborn patient. Army veteran Colton Crawford is desperate to recover from the undiagnosed disorder that is ruining his life, and his instincts are on high alert when threats against his nurse and her son force him to take action. But Colton’s involvement only ramps up the danger when he uncovers a family secret revealing that whoever is after Pecca is closer–and more deadly–than they realized. 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Feisty. 4–What makes your hero irresistible?  His vulnerability. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Pecca turns to her friends in Walton, who have become like family: Lane, Sheriff Huggins, Ms. Byrdie. Colton turns to his Uncle Jack and friends, Kekoa Young and Vincent St. James. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  Sometimes smalltown living can feel claustrophobic or like a fishbowl, everyone knowing your business…