Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Kate McMurray | Title Challenge: LIKE CATS AND DOGS
Author Guest / May 4, 2021

LIKE CATS AND DOGS is the first book in the Whitman Street series, which is set at a cat café in Brooklyn. This first book is about the café’s manager, Lauren, and the new veterinarian next door, Caleb. Caleb is grumpy and a little jaded; he is kind to his canine and feline patients but has little patience for humas. Lauren loves her job and doesn’t care how silly Caleb thinks it is. They don’t get along and rub each other the wrong way. But for the pesky problem of them being intensely attracted to each other, they might be able to ignore each other. L is for Lauren and Lindsay. Lauren manages the Cat Café, and her friend Lindsay provides snarky commentary about everything going on there. Lauren and her two friends Paige and Lindsay form the core of the series. (Paige falls in love in the second book, and Lindsay tangles with an ex in the third.) I is for Independent. I wanted to shine a light on the independent businesses that make a neighborhood feel special. Brooklyn and New York City are obviously huge, densely populated places where it’s easy to get lost in a crowd. But…

Sloane Steele | Author-Reader Match: IT TAKES A THIEF
Author Guest / April 30, 2021

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 Sloane Steele! Writes: IT TAKES A THIEF: The Counterfeit Capers series are light romantic suspense books: art heists with HEAs. IT TAKES A THIEF sets up the premise of the series and builds the team. Cousins Mia, the mastermind, and Jared, the negotiator, plan to steal art from their fathers’ friends and sell it to pay the victims of their father’s Madoff-type scheme. To pull this off, they hire Audrey (Data), the hacker; Nikki, the thief; and London, the forger. As this group of individuals learns to work together as a team, Audrey and Jared start to fall for each other, which complicates everything. About: Diet Coke swilling, TV watching writer who bakes cookies when stressed by life or plot points. I have a snarky sense of humor and use curse words prolifically. I’m amused by my own teenagers and spend a lot of time laughing at/with them. I believe reading and writing romance should provide escape from the frustrations of life….

Terri Reed | Baked Alaska for ALASKAN RESCUE
Author Guest / April 12, 2021

For the release of my latest book, ALASKAN RESCUE, I decided to make a Baked Alaska in celebration. I’ve never made a Baked Alaska, so I went on a search for a recipe I suited to my inexperience. One of the many aspects of writing that I enjoy is research. Even researching how to make a dessert. I found many recipes and videos showing a variety of ways, shapes, and flavors to make Baked Alaska. And I found the history of Baked Alaska fascinating. The dessert is shrouded in mystery, which seems a fitting way to celebrate the release of the new romantic suspense series, Alaska K-9 Unit: A wedding party goes missing while on a hike and the tour guide is found murdered. Who is the killer? Where is the bride, the maid of honor, the groom, and his best man? It’s up to the elite Alaskan State Troopers and their canines to solve the crime. I read one account that says the name, Baked Alaska, was coined at Antoine’s, a restaurant in New Orleans by chef Antoine Alciatore in 1867 to honor the acquisition of Alaska. Yet, another chef is credited with inventing the dessert. In 1867 Charles…

Jackie Ashenden | Title Challenge: DEEP RIVER PROMISE
Author Guest / March 30, 2021

D  Donuts! The best kind, from April’s diner E   Extremely scenic E   Excessive amounts of sexual tension P  Pilot – who doesn’t love a bush pilot? * R Ridiculously charming hero I  Ice queen heroine V Very protective teenager AKA Astrid’s son Connor E Emotional R Reluctant falling in love * P  Promises Damon has to keep R   Romance! O  Oh no, Astrid tries very hard not to fall for him and fails M  Moms – Astrid is a single mom I   Intense – Damon is not quite as easy going as he seems S  Sexy times in the library E  Escape to Alaska DEEP RIVER PROMISE by Jackie Ashenden Welcome to Deep River, Alaska Damon Fitzgerald’s only desire is to get back to LA and out of the tiny Alaskan town he’s somehow inherited. But first he has to keep a promise he made to his old army buddy and look out for his friend’s son. That would be a whole lot easier if the kid’s mother wasn’t the mayor of Deep River… Astrid James didn’t ask to be mayor of Deep River but since she is, she intends to do right by the town…

Libby Hubscher | Title Challenge: MEET ME IN PARADISE
Author Spotlight / March 23, 2021

Hi all! My Name is Libby Hubscher and I’m excited to share a bit about my debut novel, MEET ME IN PARADISE, with you. The Cole sisters couldn’t be closer, or more different. After their mother died tragically when they were teenagers, they’ve only had each other. Sadie travels the world, while Marin waits at home, worrying and letting the world pass her by. Intent on showing Marin what she’s missing, Sadie tricks her into a solo vacation in paradise. What was supposed to be a sisters’ spa weekend turns into the trip of a lifetime when Marin is forced outside of her comfort zone, exploring the island of Saba with Lucas Tsai, a stranger who ended up in Sadie’s seat on the plane. Suddenly, Marin finds herself feeling more alive than ever, falling in love…and realizing that Sadie has been keeping a devastating secret from her—one that will change everything. M is for Meddling. It takes her zany, wonderful younger sister to hatch a scheme to get anxious homebody Marin Cole out of her comfort zone and onto an island in the middle of the Caribbean. E is for Enigmatic. Lucas Tsai isn’t who Marin expected to be sitting next to…

Debbie Herbert | What if you could SEE when someone is lying?
Author Guest / March 1, 2021

Synesthesia is a rare neurological condition where sensory paths are crossed in the brain. You might see musical notes as colors, taste textures like “triangles” or “squares” while eating food, or have a sequence-space form in which dates and numbers occupy a spatial location in your mind. The condition has always intrigued me, and I’ve long wanted to write a novel in which the main character experiences the world through this lens. In my latest book, NOT ONE OF US, Jori Trahan has a rare form of synesthesia commonly known as “colored hearing.” For Jori, every person’s voice has particular colors and textures as they speak. This ability ultimately gives her a unique edge to solve an old murder. Jori, like most synesthetes, enjoys her condition; for her, this is just the way the world is. But sometimes the condition can be overwhelming if she is enclosed in a noisy room. In one scene at a crowded bar, the background noise “formed a steady drumbeat of colors that swirled and morphed into blackish splatters of ugly blobs.” Her friend Dana’s voice is the color of “fizzing green arrows” and another character’s voice is “a bruising purple-black, the color of storm…

Traci Hall | Ten Famous Kisses
Author Guest / January 15, 2021

Ten Famous Kisses, from fictional to real–how would you put these in order? The Obamas on Kiss Cam–simply adorable when they kissed on-screen at a basketball game in Washington DC. Ghost–very sexy, despite the super-fake spectral mist between Demi and Patrick. Lady and the Tramp–iconic noodle-slurping kiss. So cute. Madonna and Britney Spears–this kiss between pop goddesses was shocking at the time! Princess Diana and Prince Charles–their wedding day was very romantic and sparked an interest in all things royal. Sleeping Beauty–the prince brings Aurora to life! Gotta love the guy for that. Romeo and Juliet–young love. So young. Too young? Titanic–doomed love. Rose should have made room for Jack on the door. V-J Day in Times Square World War II–a kiss of peace and hope and joy. Terrific shot by photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt! Scarlett and Rhett from Gone with the Wind–a primal kiss. I really feel for Rhett. Scarlet needed a little more time to grow up 🙂 Possible number eleven? Grace and Sawyer in JUST ONE KISS–check out the kiss in the Ferris wheel! <3 In JUST ONE KISS, Grace Sheldon is a freelance photographer with a laid-back lifestyle put to the test in order to pay the…

Brooke Burroughs | Author-Reader Match: THE MARRIAGE CODE
Author Guest / January 11, 2021

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 BROOKE BURROUGHS! Writes: I write rom-coms starring women who have a heart for adventure, even if they don’t know it yet! THE MARRIAGE CODE, which takes place in Seattle and Bangalore, India, is my debut novel which comes out on January 1st, 2021. About: THE MARRIAGE CODE is inspired by my experience working in the tech industry, and moving to India, where I met my husband. When I’m not writing, I conduct experiments in vegetarian cooking, perform with a Bollywood dance troupe, travel whenever I can, and am frequently seen at the dog park with my Great Dane which is often mistaken for a horse. I now live in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two dogs, and often miss my mother-in-law’s delicious South Indian cooking. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: You’re always rooting for the romance in any TV show, movie, or book—even if it’s not actually a romance. I mean, Godzilla and Mothra—couldn’t you see…