Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Aimee Molloy | 20 Questions: GOODNIGHT BEAUTIFUL
Author Guest / October 12, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release? GOODNIGHT BEAUTIFUL 2–What is it about? A newlywed couple named Sam and Annie move from New York City to Sam’s sleepy home town. Sam, a therapist, opens a home office, unaware that his sessions with patients can be overheard from a room upstairs. Listening ensues, an alluring patient transpires, Sam disappears, and all hell breaks loose. (I would like to add that Sam’s disappearance is very much related to him participating in an eerily similar 20 Questions column for a local newspaper, so I’m suspicious of this already.) 3–What word best describes your main character(s)?  Sam: sensitive hunk Annie: clever 4–What makes your story relatable?  The story is premised on a person discovering a chance to eavesdrop on therapy sessions, forcing you, as the reader to question if, in that position, you would choose to listen. (Which, of course you would.) But what I find more compelling is that underneath the plot is an exploration of the lasting impact of a father’s influence on his son–and in particular, when a father teaches his son a toxic idea of masculinity. I think toxic masculinity is something we all can relate to at this particular…

Jennifer Vido | Jen’s Jewels Interview: MILLICENT GLENN’S LAST WISH by Tori Whitaker
Author Guest / October 9, 2020

Jen: What inspired you to write Millicent Glenn’s Last Wish? Tori: When I was around five years old, I was at a big family reunion and overheard some older, distant cousins allude to the tragedy that I’ve fictionalized here. That mental vision of what happened stayed with me throughout my life. Years after the woman who was involved had already passed, I asked three people close to her if she’d ever spoken about it. They each said they’d had but one conversation in all the time they’d known he–—and they each had a different detail to share with me. I took those few details and built a whole story around them. The novel is set in two time periods. How much research was needed in order for the story to ring true with readers? I began with a sweeping search for information about the late-WWII years and early 1950s. Besides learning about fashion, media, foods and so forth, I discovered things like the need for prefabricated houses for growing families, and I wove that into my story. I read accounts written from women of the period, too–some of whom felt confined in their suburban homes and by a society that…

Cat Schield | 20 Questions: UNTAMED PASSION
Author Guest / October 6, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Untamed Passion 2–What is it about?  After a single night of passion results in an unplanned pregnancy, a woman must decide if she can make a future with a man who can’t embrace love while he’s trapped by his resentment of his father. 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Determined. 4–What makes your hero irresistible?  I love Oliver’s inner strength. He’s a recovered addict who strives every day to stay sober despite the increasing pressure coming to bear on him because of the drama surrounding his father’s criminal activity. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Oliver struggles to reach out to anyone. He has estranged himself from his family and keeps most people at arm’s reach. His assistant is the person who he relies on the most. It’s to her he turns when he needs to find the woman who ran out on him after an incredible night of passion. Sammi has a tricky relationship with her mother who has managed Sammi’s modeling career since she was a baby. Sammi has a best friend, a fellow model who offers some much-needed career and romantic advice. 6–What…

Sarah Morgenthaler | Exclusive Interview: MISTLETOE AND MR. RIGHT
Author Guest / October 6, 2020

Hi, Sarah! Welcome back to Fresh Fiction. Please tell us about yourself and your new book, MISTLETOE AND MR. RIGHT. Thanks for having me back! My name’s Sarah Morgenthaler, and I write romantic comedy and contemporary romance. MISTLETOE AND MR. RIGHT is my Alaskan Christmas romcom set in the fictional town of Moose Springs.     This is the second book in the Moose Springs, Alaska series. What do you love about creating this town and its inhabitants?   I’ve had a blast creating Moose Springs. The residents are so quirky and fun to write. They’re very loyal to each other, and even more loyal to the land and to the wildlife in their community. It’s a close-knit place full of love. (They just don’t love all the tourists coming to town!)       What did you do to get into the holiday spirit while writing this novel, even when it wasn’t the holidays?   One of my good writer friends suggested I buy a Christmas-themed candle. Burning that while writing worked great for setting the scene! I also played lots of Christmas music while writing and looked at pictures of winter scenes.     Lana Montgomery has big plans to improve…

Irene Hannon | 20 Questions: POINT OF DANGER
Author Guest / October 5, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Point of Danger 2–What is it about?  When radio talk show host Eve Reilly finds herself in the sights of someone who wants her voice silenced, Detective Brent Lange must track down the unknown foe before he loses the woman who is willing to take risks for what she believes–and who is also stealing his heart. 3–What word best describes your main character(s)? Tenacious and brave  4–What makes your story relatable?  My heroine finds herself caught up in a very credible, dangerous situation, which ended up being more topical that I could ever have predicted when I started the book two years ago. I think readers will admire her courage and spunk and find much to like in both her and the hero. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  This is book 1 in my Triple Threat series (note: each book can be read as a standalone), which features three sisters. I loved exploring the relationship they have. So Eve, my heroine, relies on her sisters for support and friendship. My hero has a best friend who serves as his confidante. But other than that, he’s…

Belle Callhoune | 20 Questions: ALASKAN CHRISTMAS REDEMPTION
Author Guest / October 2, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release? My latest release is ALASKAN CHRISTMAS REDEMPTION, coming out on September 29th 2–What is it about? The story centers around Piper Miller, who owns the Snowy Owl Diner, in Owl Creek, Alaska. Piper inherited the diner when her father, Jack, passed away. Now, four years later, the establishment is running on fumes and teetering on the brink of closure. Determined to save the diner, Piper enlists the help of her childhood best friend, Braden North, who has recently returned to town. Problem is, Braden is hiding a huge secret from Piper, one that might permanently end their friendship. As the two work together to save Piper’s business, sparks begin to fly between the childhood friends. But, secrets from the past might unravel their budding romance. 3–What word best describes your heroine? Plucky. 4–What makes your hero irresistible? Adorable. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help? Piper turns to her mother, Trudy, and her best friend, Rachel. Braden comes from a large family so he turns to his siblings, Connor and Sage, as well as his parents and grandparents. 6–What do you love about the setting of your…

Ausma Zehanat Khan | 20 Questions: THE BLADEBONE
Author Guest / October 1, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  The Bladebone.   2–What is it about?  The Bladebone is the final installment in my Khorasan Archives fantasy series (which began with The Bloodprint, followed by The Black Khan and The Blue Eye). Two women warriors named Arian and Sinnia are in a race against time to save their world from being destroyed by the One-Eyed Preacher’s holy war. Only the powers of an ancient magic weapon called the Bladebone can help them to defeat him. But Arian and Sinnia are surrounded by enemies, while Arian is cut off from the man she loves–the Silver Mage, her powerful ally. As their world burns down around them, Arian must find the Bladebone and face off against the Preacher in a cataclysmic battle for the future.   3–What word best describes your main character(s)?  Tenacious. But I could also add courageous, vulnerable, literate–important qualities in Arian’s world.   4–What makes your story relatable?  The characters in this story care deeply not only about each other, but also about the common good. The Bladebone is a story about hope, love and the right to human dignity, and I think those themes are always relatable.   5–Who…

Erica Vetsch | 20 Questions: THE GENTLEMAN SPY
Author Guest / September 30, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  THE GENTLEMAN SPY, book two in the Serendipity & Secrets series released in July, and in just a few more days, I have a novella releasing in the Joy to the World Collection that will also be part of the Serendipity & Secrets ‘universe.’ 2–What is it about?  The Gentleman Spy is about Lady Charlotte and His Grace, Marcus, The Duke of Haverly. Marcus needs a wife to maintain his cover as a spy for the Crown, and Charlotte is looking for a way out of her dysfunctional family’s home.  They enter into a not-so-convenient marriage, while Marcus tries to keep his clandestine work a secret, and Charlotte tries to understand the complex man she’s married. He’s chasing assassins, and she’s chasing him! 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Crusader. Charlotte has a strong sense of justices, and she is determined to right the wrongs she encounters. 4–What makes your hero irresistible? He’s a cloak-and-dagger spy while also being a chivalrous, innately kind Regency Duke. He’s naïve about romantic relationships, and yet manages to make Charlotte fall in love with him with little effort. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to…

Vivian Conroy | 20 Questions: FOR LETTER OR WORSE
Author Guest / September 28, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release? For Letter or Worse, the second installment in my Stationery Shop series. Readers need not have read book 1, Last Pen Standing, to dive in! And fun fact: this is my 20th cozy mystery, releasing in 2020! So I’m extra pleased to be here on Fresh Fiction answering these 20 questions. 2–What is it about? For Letter or Worse follows Delta Douglas, co-owner of stationery shop WANTED in Tundish, Montana. Delta is excited to host a 3D cardmaking workshop for the birthday of former model Lena Laroy, but when Lena is threatened during the party and a dead body turns up, Delta must engage her Paper Posse crafting friends and wildlife guide Jonas with his former K9 Spud to weed through the clues and catch the killer. 3–What word best describes your main character(s)? Just one word?! Hmmm. . . Energetic! 4–What makes your story relatable? Delta recently moved to Tundish and has to settle in her new town, learn the ropes of running her own business, make new friends and figure out if her relationship with Jonas is taking a romantic turn. Her struggles and dilemmas, her setbacks and victories as she…

Jennifer Vido | Jen’s Jewel’s Interview: THE SILENT CONSPIRACY by L.C. Shaw
Author Guest / September 25, 2020

Jen: What inspired you to write THE SILENT CONSPIRACY? LC: Jack and Taylor’s story wasn’t finished in THE NETWORK and I wanted to continue it with a new storyline in THE SILENT CONSPIRACY. Themes that I felt drawn to include were those of bias in the media, the health care crisis in this country, and the continuing theme of spiritual warfare. As both characters are investigative journalists, there are so many different stories that could pull them in. I’m also very attached to both characters and was excited to have the opportunity to have their journey continue. For those readers not familiar with THE NETWORK, what is the premise of the story? In THE NETWORK, a shadowy group is manipulating society through the media, entertainment, and legislature. Jack Logan, an investigative reporter, is drawn into the conspiracy when Senator Malcolm Phillips comes to him with a desperate plea to protect his wife, Taylor. Taylor is the one woman Jack truly loved, and when Jack hears the news that the senator has indeed been found dead, he springs into action. Jack and Taylor embark on a harrowing search for the truth as they are pursued by unknown assassins until they uncover…