Welcome to Fresh Fiction! Can you tell us a little bit about CRASHING THE A-LIST and what inspired it? So…I had this mild heart attack a few years back. (Don’t all books start like this or…?) Anyway, I was lying in the hospital, hooked up to a million machines, and I had this sort of drug-induced fever dream about Benedict Cumberbatch and storage units, and when I woke up I thought it was weird enough to write down on my phone so I wouldn’t forget it. Then I was like, “Could this be a book????” and within an hour I had an entire synopsis and half the outline done. Clara is so awesome – I loved her sarcastic wit! Even though she’s going through a rough time after losing her job, Clara ultimately decides not to sell the info she has on super famous Caspian. How does this decision change the course of her life? For most of the book, that decision doesn’t have a single silver lining for her. Clara is more of a Netflix and jammies gal, not so much a celebrity espionage one. She tried to do the right thing and then gets stomped on from every…

Y’all, I’m a sucker for an accent. Big time. I’m especially fond of the Irish and Scottish ones. The way the men almost purr when they speak. About two years ago, I discovered why I might have an affinity for the Irish voices. My DNA says I’m 67 percent Irish. I had no idea. Maybe that’s why I’m so drawn to that accent, or maybe, it’s just because that accent is sexy. In BET ME TO STAY, I made my new hero Liam Irish. He owns a pub in Boston, and it just felt right. Cassie was looking for a strong man, who wasn’t afraid of an intelligent woman.  And when she hears that deep, velvety, accent of his: she’s a goner. I might have also made him have an appreciation for plus-sized women, and he can cook. Who doesn’t want a man who can cook? That’s the great thing about fiction: we can create worlds that are realistic and, at the same time, take our fantasies for a ride. I fell for Liam as I wrote this. And it’s funny, so many people have commented that he’s their favorite book boyfriend. He’s far from perfect, but I love that…

You can read more about Fresh Fiction Senior Reviewer Miranda Owen and her reviews here! “But sometimes, the things you wanted most were the things that would destroy you.” Cynthia Eden, BOUND IN SIN In general, I’m a cozy mystery kind of a girl. I don’t usually go for movies or books that promise “high suspense.” That’s usually a turn-off for me. If a book has dog tags or a pistol on the cover the odds are that it’s probably not for me. Likewise, a film trailer or poster with some intense music or describing how the hero/heroine has a limited amount of time to defuse a bomb, rescue so-and-so, or recover the lost jewel of blah blah blah does nothing for me. I like scary movies, but usually with the violence that is cheesy and obviously fake rather than what I think of as “torture porn” – gratuitous torture scenes that don’t further the story or have us learn anything new about the baddies and generally just stick in my head like some toxic sludge that resurfaces even years later. There are, of course, exceptions to every rule. I do read some mysteries and some romances with a few…

All right, he’s always been a bit weird. But a serial killer? Actually, several children have faced this question about their fathers. Fred West and his wife killed at least twelve people. His daughter suspected something was up. So did the daughter of Edward Wayne Edwards, who killed five people. Here are six things you should you do, and two things you shouldn’t, if you think your father secretly kills people. Look into his childhood history. Sixty percent of serial killers wet the bed beyond the age of twelve. Many were abused as children. Others were peeping Toms and voyeurs who also had violent fantasies and were fascinated by fires. Jeffrey Dahmer and David Berkowitcz tortured animals. But it’s not like your father’s going to talk about his aberrant history. You should investigate with his siblings or cousins. You may find he didn’t do any of this. That doesn’t mean he’s innocent. Dennis Rader, the BTK killer who murdered ten people, had a perfectly normal childhood.  Analyze his abnormal behavior around you. Maybe he once inexplicably erupted in violence as Dennis Rader did when he lunged at his son and tried to choke him. Or maybe he goes out wandering…

The detective first took me to her Captain’s office.  A long-time veteran of the force, the man was older than my escort, his once dark hair bleached silver by some combination of years and stress. He considered the detective the way a grandfather might look at a particularly studious kid, his eyes betraying admiration with a touch of amusement. She was a hard-working investigator and she was being interviewed by an author. He’d known her as a beat cop. Detective Shonah Maldonado, for her part, regarded her boss with a mix of respect and gratitude. He’d believed in her when few on the force had thought the junior female officers would rise much further than patrol. Her appreciation, however, was about more than his giving her a shot. The man was smart. He’d correctly identified a need for more female detectives to handle the kinds of crimes that were all too frequently crossing his desk: domestic abuse, sexual assaults, and child endangerment. Some female victims—and perpetrators—only opened up to women. And Maldonado, with her empathetic smile and patient demeanor, was just the kind of cop who could get folks talking. That day, though, I was at the station to get…

When I sit down to write, usually it’s the hero I love to dream up. What perfect mix of sexy and maddening will this book need? But with Betraying the Billionaire, as much as I love my tasty hero, it’s my heroine I had a soft spot for. Holly has gone through life as an overlooked younger twin trapped in her shell and it’s a feeling I, and hopefully the readers, can relate to. So like Holly who managed to shake up her life, if you find yourself stuck in a routine while the sun shines here are my best tips to give your summer a little boost. 1) Take a road trip Trips take planning, right? Instead of researching the perfect place to stay, why not throw caution to the wind and see where you end up. All across the country there are great attractions and camping locations. Beg, borrow, or steal a sleeping back and a tent, grab your best friend (or partner), jump in a car, and see what you can discover. Some of the best trips are spontaneous ones! 2) Channel MasterChef and dial that romance up Who doesn’t love a home cooked meal? It’s a…

Summer is a great time to catch up on your reading. Relax on the patio with a cool drink and a book and let your problems drift away. Maybe you’re doing your reading at the beach or at a secluded cabin in the woods. The days are longer and most of us will take some time away from the job to recharge. And even if you decide to stay at home, a good book is the ideal way to unwind and enjoy a few summer hours. It’s also the perfect time to dig into a series. Read the first book and get hooked, and you have time to devour the rest of them. There are so many wonderful series out there to enjoy, but here are a few suggestions to get you started. These are my FIVE picks. All are great romantic suspense series that will leave your heart pumping and you needing a fan to cool down. The KGI series by Maya Banks. The KGI (Kelly Group International) series is centered around the six Kelly brothers, all of who served in different branches of the military. They now have their own elite, top secret business. This is romantic suspense…

Welcome back to Fresh Fiction! Can you tell readers a little bit about THE ME I USED TO BE, and what inspired it? Thank you for having me back! THE ME I USED TO BE is a big family drama with lots of intense suspense, betrayal, and a budding romance between Evangeline and Chris, the cop who arrested her. It’s a lot of what I do in my romance series all wrapped up in a single book, but you get a glimpse of how all the family members perceive what happened, even though what they think happened wasn’t the whole truth. The book was inspired by something I’ve come to realize in my own life – People say beware of strangers, but family are the ones who can hurt you the most. I loved Evangeline Austen – a woman who is recently out of prison for a crime she didn’t commit. She comes home only to find out she’s inherited the failing family ranch, and even though they don’t want to, everyone is relying on her to pick up the pieces. What was the hardest thing for Evangeline to accept as part of her normal life once she got out?…

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 as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present KATY AMES!  What I Write About: Contemporary Romance. Sometimes sassy, sometimes angsty, always with top-notch steam and a swoon-worthy HEA. About Me: Boy mom. Bourbon drinker. Binge-reader since I could hold a book. I love adventure, on and off the page. But I love naps even more. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: Someone who loves getting swept up in a romance. Someone who’ll binge-watch every episode of Jane the Virgin because the love is epic and the #girlgang is strong (and because Jane writes romance, too!). Someone who’ll read their favorite books over and over because the characters are real, damn it, and you have to check in every once in a while to see how they’re doing. What to expect: Heroines learning to be brave. Heroes who fall hard and love forever. Flirty banter, toe-curling steam, and sweet as sin heat. Romances that get a little messy before ending happily ever after. Giveaway: Comment to Win $10…

Since very few people enjoyed the last season and most importantly, the last episode, of Game of Thrones (myself included), I started thinking of all the other shows I have watched that had equally terrible endings. These weren’t as high on the ratings scale as Game of Thrones of course, but they were still good shows with multiple seasons that finished on a sour note. These are my personal top 5 shows with absolutely dreadful endings. THE SOPRANOS This show was six seasons of crazy—death, backstabbing, lies, violence, drama—then along comes the final episode. With the family enjoying one of a few happy together moments, the screen goes black just as a shootout starts—with no resolution on who lived or died. After dutifully following the show for the full six seasons, the ending was a major let down. TRUE BLOOD This show was absolutely brilliant. It was one of the few shows where it didn’t matter what gender, race, or sexual orientation you were or weren’t—it was equal parts vampire campiness for everyone to love. Not to mention lots of Alexander Skarsgård! After all the twists and turns through seven seasons, it wrapped everything up in a pretty little end-credits…