1–What is the title of your latest release? Victoria Christopher Murray: THE PERSONAL LIBRARIAN which I co-authored with Marie Benedict. Marie Benedict: THE PERSONAL LIBRARIAN, which was co-written with Victoria Christopher Murray. 2–What is it about? VCM: It is the story of Belle da Costa Greene, a woman who walked into JP Morgan’s library in 1906 when she was in her twenties, became his personal librarian, and rose to be one of the most powerful women in the art world. She helped to build Morgan’s art and rare books and manuscript collection. MB: THE PERSONAL LIBRARIAN is the remarkable story of J. P. Morgan’s personal librarian, Belle da Costa Greene, who became one of the most important people in the art world during her lifetime and left a lasting legacy that enriched our nation but could only do so by passing as white and hiding her true Black identity because of the racist, segregated society in which she lived. 3–What do you love about the setting of your book?  VCM: It’s in New York (my favorite place in the world) and so much of it takes place at the Morgan Library which is incredibly beautiful for lots of reasons. MB: The book…

Danielle: Welcome back to Fresh Fiction, Stefanie! Please tell us a bit about yourself and your new book, FOREVER STARTS NOW.  Stefanie: Thanks for having me! I’m Stefanie London, Aussie gal living in Canada. I’m the USA Today bestseller of more than thirty contemporary romances and romantic comedies that meet at the corner of sweet and sexy. Outside writing, I love to read, knit, bake and play video games. My latest release, FOREVER STARTS NOW, is a fake relationship romance between an Aussie hero searching for his father, and a prickly diner owner whose life has stagnated after divorce. At the heart of it, this story is about understanding who you are and being authentically yourself. There are also very strong themes of family and belonging. Both Monroe and Ethan have had their lives shaken up by devastating news, and we meet them in the aftermath of trying to figure out where they’re headed. It’s funny and heartfelt and you might tear up a little. There’s a steamy kiss in a haunted house, a wacky town mascot and a quirky cast of characters to fall in love with. I hope you’ll check it out! Forever Falls, the fictional small town at the heart of your novel, sounds charming,…

1–What is the title of your latest release? PAWS AND PREJUDICE 2–What is it about? It’s an enemies-to-lovers contemporary romance about a romance-writing heroine who loves her dogs and hides behind snark, and what happens when she’s forced to work with a new guy in town who has a fear of dogs and who basically (on the surface) represents everything she loathes. 3–What do you love about the setting of your book?  First, it’s set in Alaska, which is just gorgeous. And second, I love quirky small towns, and my town is torn in half by a century-old feud that makes everything about living there far more complicated than it should be. 4–How did your heroine surprise you?  I always knew she used snark as a way to deflect and keep people at bay, but when I started writing her, it became clear that she also did it because she is overprotective of the people she cares about. She’s always willing to make herself a target to take the heat off of others. 5–Why will readers love your hero?  He’s an ambitious cinnamon roll! He brews beer, bakes, cooks, and he knows how to keep a secret. 6–What was one…

One of the best things about cozy mysteries is the introduction to a hobby the author is either passionate about or just picked up because they always wanted to try it. Throughout the mystery, the reader can either enjoy something they love, or learn a few fascinating tricks of a trade they can appreciate. Cozy readers after all, are intelligent and open to new and exciting new artistic outlets, that’s what makes us unique in the reading world—author can sell us their books and a new hobby. Fair warning dear readers, Allie Pleiter is one of those gifted artist/authors who will allow you to escape into her world, and make you want to empty the aisles at your local craft store of every knitting supply possible! But isn’t that what makes reading a great new cozy mystery all that more special? Kym: Welcome to the Cozy Corner, Allie! Allie: Thank you so much! I’m delighted to be here. Kym: You’ve recently expanded your amazing career as a romance author, non-fiction author, speaker and career coach to a mystery author. What made you broaden your personal writing into a new genre? Allie: The chance to do a knitting-themed mystery was just too good to pass…

Jen: What inspired you to write INSTAMOM? Chantel: Years ago, I fell in love with a single dad. After not really knowing whether I wanted to have children or not, I was thrown into a situation where, if I decided to date this guy, I’d be putting myself on the path to becoming a stepmother. I wanted to explore this idea in a novel, and how my heroine would cope if she was proudly childfree by choice and led a very public life, yet fell in love with a single dad. I’m very interested in the role social media plays in our lives—this idea that strangers know about us, that there’s a version of ourselves that we curate and that we try to make consistent so that people will “like” us—but is that really always the whole picture of the real us? And if it’s not, how does having two personae—an online version and an IRL version—affect the way we live our lives? Let’s talk about Kit Kidding and her love/hate relationship with social media. Please describe the impact it has on her professional and personal life. Kit is well-known for her role as the author of Kid-Free Forever, a…

1–What is the title of your latest release? TO TEMPT A SCANDALOUS LORD 2–What is it about? Niall, the Marquess of Inverray, is standing for Prime Minister when anonymous political tracts circulate that critique his campaign, and he’s determined to find the writer and put a stop to them. Little does he know the writer is Alicia, the dowager Countess Lindsay…his new bride of convenience. 3–What do you love about the setting of your book?  This book delves a bit into the political climate of the time, which is not something I initially intended to include. But since Niall is standing for Prime Minister and Alicia pens political tracts, I wanted to include details about the issues that the country was grappling with in 1834, and I found myself intrigued by how political and social life was changing even while some factions were determined it should remain the same. 4–How did your heroine surprise you?  For all the challenges and heartbreak that Alicia has experienced in her life, she is still motivated by kindness. By a fierce sense of justice and equality. And because she feels so strongly about those things, her wealth of love is endless. 5–Why will readers…

Hi, Bridget! Welcome to Fresh Fiction. Please introduce yourself and tell us about your book, LOVE SCENES.   Hello! I am the author of the aforementioned romance, LOVE SCENES, as well as two YA novels, WHAT YOU LEFT ME and WHEN THE LIGHT WENT OUT. LOVE SCENES follows out-of-work actress Sloane Ford as she gets roped into being a producer on her famous family’s WWII romantic drama, which just so happens to feature her least favorite former costar of all time. He is, of course, a roguishly handsome Irishman hellbent on being a better person this time around, much to Sloane’s great dismay. The glitz! The glamour! The celebrities! Hollywood is a great backdrop for a romance novel! What did set out to explore with your novel set on a movie set? What was your research like?   We meet Sloane at her lowest. She’s recently lost her steady acting gig on a long-running crime show. Her ex-boyfriend just released an album about all the failings of their relationship. She comes from a large family full of creative types who make a habit out of pushing her buttons. And to top it all off, she’s working again with the man…

1–What is the title of your latest release? Thank you so much for letting me drop by today! My newest release is RARE VIGILANCE, and it’s the first of the new WHITETHORN AGENCY trilogy. 2–What is it about? This book is kind of THE BODYGUARD meets vampire mafia. It follows Atlas Kinkaid, an ex-Marine turned security agent, who takes on an odd job protecting Cristian Slava, the son of a rich businessman. Atlas eventually learns Cristian and his family are vampires and gets dragged into their world and all its complexities. Oh, and he totally falls for Cristian even if he shouldn’t. 3–What do you love about the setting of your book?  The book is set in upstate New York, and I loved bringing in rural Gothic elements. The history of the region and the transformation of different areas due to boom-and-bust economies is fascinating and opened up a whole world of possibilities, especially for wealthy, nearly-immortal beings looking to set down roots. 4–How did Atlas surprise you?  Atlas was a surprisingly personal character to write. I drew heavily on my own experiences with migraines and headaches when I wrote about him dealing with the same thing. It’s kind of…

1–What is the title of your latest release?  THE GODMOTHERS 2–What is it about? Pitched as “Elena Ferrante meets Big Little Lies”,  THE GODMOTHERS is about four remarkable women from very different backgrounds who are united by marriage in an elegant, prosperous Italian family, and then must take charge of the family’s business when their husbands are forced to leave them during World War II. 3–What do you love about the setting of your book?  THE GODMOTHERS takes place mainly in New York City and its Westchester suburbs from the 1930s through the 1950s. I worked in the city and I loved discovering its old buildings and the great stories that went with it. That glamorous, dangerous, bygone aura still clings to places like Bergdorf Goodman’s, the Copacabana, the Majestic apartment building, Coney Island, Balducci’s Market, the Plaza Hotel—it’s all still there. 4–How did your main character(s) surprise you? They are so brave! The four Godmothers never fail to rise to the occasion as a team: Filomena overcomes childhood trauma to be a leader and protector of the family; Lucy uses her skills as a nurse to make the right decisions even when she feels betrayed; Amie recovers from an…

1–What is the title of your latest release? MESSAGE IN THE SAND 2–What is it about? MESSAGE IN THE SAND is a love story: the love of small town life, teenage love, rekindled adult love, and what makes up the fabric of family. MITS is about a young war veteran suffering from PTSD, Wendell Combs, who returns to the sleepy small town of Saybrook, CT where he works on the lush and private estate, White Pines, for the Lancaster family. After a heartbreaking loss, all Wendell wants, and feels he deserves, is to be left alone. The Lancaster family, however, has different plans for him. Despite his best intentions, Wendell feels the pull of the family unit, especially fifteen-year-old Julia, their eldest and strong-willed teenage daughter. Julia has her sights set on a summer riding her horse, swimming in the lake of White Pines, and spending time with the boy next door, who she has never really noticed, but now fears she may be falling in love with. One perfect summer night, as Julia’s family hosts their glamorous annual gala, a tragic accident occurs that no one in the close-knit community could have imagined. The accident leaves Wendell and the…