People have asked me, on many occasions, if I could shapeshift into any animal from the Amoveo clans…which one would I choose? That’s a tough question because it’s kind of like asking which one of your kids is your favorite. In fact, the Amoveo have ten animal clans because I simply couldn’t limit them to one animal because there are too many cool creatures out there to limit it to just one. However, if you held a gun to my head and made me pick one… the honest answer is that it would depend on what heroine I’m writing at the moment. When I was writing UNLEASHED, the Wolf clan was my personal favorite, and that’s why Samantha is a member of the Gray Wolf clan. The truth is that the wolves will probably always be my favorite…well…wolves will be in the top three consistently. Wolves have gotten such a bad rap throughout history and were hunted to the brink of extinction, until not that long ago. They were thought of as murderous thieves, who would swoop in and steal your children in the dead of night. I’ve watched several documentaries about wolves over the years and it’s amazing how…

My brother is extremely proud of the fact that I’m a published author.  Yet, whenever I see him, he inevitably asks me the same question: “So, when are you going to write a real book?”  Nowadays, I just smile my beleaguered-little-sister-smile and move on, but the first couple of times, I took the bait.  “What’s a real book?” I asked him.  “You know, he answered.  “Like John Grisham.” Huh.  John Grisham.  Now, I’ve never personally read John Grisham, but I know he’s extremely successful.  He’s also a former attorney who writes legal thrillers, right?  In other words, commercial fiction that’s thrilling.  I, too, am a former attorney who writes thrilling commercial fiction.  So what’s the huge difference? Two words.  Romance and sex.  My debut paranormal romantic suspense series, the Para-Ops series, is about the FBI’s first special ops team comprised of humans and Otherborn, creatures that include a vampire, werebeast, wraith and mage.  In CHOSEN BY BLOOD, the first book, the team parachutes into North Korea via spy plane to find a stolen antidote.  In CHOSEN BY FATE, the second book, the team travels to Los Angeles to investigate sexual assaults within the feline community.  There’s lots of intrigue, twists…

My favorite mysteries have always had elements of romance, going all the way back to the first Agatha Christie novels I read as a teenager. Obviously the solving of the puzzle–who committed the murder and why–should always be at the forefront of a good mystery novel, but that said . . . I love romantic subplots! A BAD DAY’S WORK HOT, SHOT, AND BOTHERED There’s nothing more fun than characters falling in love. For the first book in my Lilly Hawkins mystery series, A BAD DAY’S WORK, I put my main character through the grueling experience of being chased by villains, becoming a fugitive from the police, and solving a murder. The story unfolds in twenty-four hours and Lilly’s life is temporarily ruined. On the positive side, Lilly’s very bad day leads to several realizations about her life, the people in it, and the mistakes she’s been making. It also enables her to lower her guard and fall in love. For the second book in the series, HOT, SHOT, AND BOTHERED, my biggest challenge was making an existing relationship as much fun as characters meeting for the first time. This is no small task. I’m sure any reader of genre…

Are you ready for a little “Black Magic?” Avon Books and Fresh Fiction bring you a special ‘little black magic’ contest. All you need to do is share your best (or scariest) Halloween costume picture, story or comment on why Cat and Bones are so sizzly. The prize, well, it’s full of magic including scary plush cats, some LED fangs to light up your Halloween festivities, bones candy to rattle your teeth, plus assorted hard candies (for safety and allergy sake, we’re all moms here) and to top it off a print copy of ONE GRAVE AT A TIME. Plus a $25 Amazon Gift Certificate to finish off your own black magic shopping! So, now’s the time to dig out the photos of your costumes past, stories of Halloween’s past or let us know what your plans are for THIS year and you’ll be entered to win this fabulous ‘black magic’ contest. Don’t miss the $1.99 ebook of Jeaniene Frost’s HALFWAY TO THE GRAVE (the first in the Cat and Bones Night Huntress series) It’s a limited special release with bonus material you won’t want to miss. Including deleted scenes (how yummy is that?), excerpts and more I can’t tell…

Since the turn of the twentieth century, people have been enthralled with the romance of Africa. From the striking beauty of the land to the wild and beautiful beasts roaming the vast territory, the Dark Continent has held mystery and allure. When a long-legged blonde tomboy popped into my head, she whispered how she longed to be part of a profession typically reserved for men. When I took a closer look at her heart’s desires, I found where she truly belonged–in Africa. Elle Bekker’s goal to become a professional hunter–or P.H.–is one few women have striven for, which is what makes her different. She’s strong-willed and has enough heart to guide hunters on their dream hunts for big game. But she’s also a bit stubborn. To become certified in her field, she must take the elusive Cape buffalo. In Africa, this animal is known as ‘black death’ or ‘the widowmaker.’ Buffaloes claim over 200 lives per year in Africa–one of the top animals that kill. With two thousand pounds of pure volatility behind them, it’s no wonder they take so many lives. I’ve never been to Africa, but through the stories of Robert Ruark and Peter Hathaway Capstick, I caught…

Find a spot under a tree or spread out a blanket and enjoy the cool weather while you read some new romantic suspense. Lots of great stories to choose from this month. BLOOD TRAILS, book 3 in Sharon Sala’s The Searchers series, is the conclusion to the trilogy featuring three sisters looking for the truth about their pasts. Holly Slade has discovered that her biological father was likely a serial killer known as “The Hunter,” and that her mother gave up Holly to save her life. But The Hunter was never caught—and Holly’s mother simply vanished. Holly leaves home to uncover the truth, leaving behind Bud Tate, family friend, ranch foreman, and the man Holly has secretly loved for years. Holly hasn’t been gone long when the danger leads Bud to follow her in order to protect woman he has secretly loved for years. This book was a great conclusion to an exciting series. Since Bud and Holly have known each other for years, the romantic element is fairly light. The strength of the story is the suspense and danger that builds as Holly conducts her investigation. I’ve just started reading Christy Reece’s Last Chance Rescue series (I’m on book…

I often get asked where my ideas come from. For me a story idea doesn’t just come from one place instead it draws on many much smaller ideas, which when left to bubble away at the back of my mind come together–often at very odd times. This was a 2am idea, or at least it was 2am when the ideas came together to form the story of THE GOBLIN KING. It went something like this: I was feeding a restless baby, it was cold and dark and I was tired. I have an overactive imagination at the best of times so I was wondering why the baby was so restless, and then I began thinking about things that could go bump in the night. Ghosts, no, we live in a new house. Brownies, I wish then they could do the housework. Goblins…goblins. Grey twisted creatures that love gold and battle…swords…heroes with swords (grin)…how would goblins work as a romance?  A curse…oh, I know he’s a cursed Celtic King. I only remember this because it was one of those very clear moments where the first scene just unravelled as if it had been waiting for me (this has only happened for…

I had such fun reading the comments to last month’s favorite ice cream and/or quotation blog, that I can’t resist posing another “favorites” question (and/or two). I was tempted to do favorite comfort food, but I got so happily and tantalizingly hungry reading–and, yes, sampling–the ice creams, I’ve decided on a no calorie category this month. “What’s in a name?” Juliet Capulet wanted to know when she was informed that a romance with Romeo Montague was a star-crossed notion indeed. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Young though she was, Juliet (and, okay, Shakespeare) voiced an impressively grown up observation. Ah, Juliet–and William–if only I could follow it! Every time I start a book, I pull out all the baby names books, and pay special attention to every name that pops up before me online, on TV, in books, magazines . . . you get the idea. I’m particularly in search of male names, hero names, names that say to me strong, honorable, noble, kind. I should, as Juliet suggests, be able to take any name and make it heroic (that which we call a hero by any other name would be…

Ideas for books come from the strangest places. Joe Baer and the Baer Brothers sort of sneaked up on me one summer day. My family and I were taking a trip to the western U.S. with tickets in hand for the Cheyenne Frontier Days in Cheyenne Wyoming. We’d never been that far west before, so for us Easterners it was quite the adventure with long stretches of prairie, mighty rivers, and vast cattle ranches. Thousands of cattle dotted the hillsides and we were stunned by how many. Most of us never realize how many of those four-legged critters it takes to feed a nation all those hamburgers! As conversations tend to get a bit weird when we travel, my kids began telling awful cow jokes and my husband started naming cows that were close to the road; “That brown and white one, that’s Mrs. Sirloin, over there is Mr. T-bone and that large black one, well, that would be Mr. Roast.” My thoughts however went to the ranchers and the families that lived there. I wondered who they were, and what their story was. Then I made the mistake of letting my muse actually speak aloud; (a rare thing as…

Every time I tell this story jaws drop. I’ve been accused of making it up but my imagination runs closer to hot guys with swords, life sucking nightmares or fairytales in the modern world. I’m not good with covert perverts. I met him in Whole Foods—I now realize I’d confused organic food with wholesome men. He seemed lovely, though, a little pudgier than I like but with mocha skin and dark curly hair. Newly single and thinking of my safety I– Okay, the truth is since I was newly single and thinking of the television show Criminal Minds we chatted on the phone several times before I felt comfortable enough to meet him for a date. The first half of our outing went swimmingly. Although, I should have known I was in trouble when I told him I write urban fantasy/paranormal romance and he said, “Really? Mm, tell me your fantasies.” “Huh? Oh, no, no. Urban fantasy like Buffy the Vampire Slayer not Emmanuelle.” Um…not everyone is as well versed in literary genres as you or I, right? (If this were an audio post you’d hear me sigh.) The real turning point came at an Italian-style sorbet shop I enjoy….