I love a good villain. Of course, every story needs a hero worth rooting for, someone you’ll want to follow for hundreds of pages. But the stronger, smarter, and savvier the hero, the more important it is to have a villain who can thwart them throughout the book. Because the best stories have that push and pull between the hero and villain, the sense that either one could come out on top and you need to keep reading to see who prevails (or at least to see how the hero could outwit such a worthy opponent). With every story I write, I spend as much time figuring out the villain as I do developing the hero/heroine. Because a worthy villain isn’t pure evil borne out of nothing. A worthy villain has their own backstory, their own motivations, their own belief systems. The villains have good qualities, too, even if the bad outweigh the good. And they all have as much of a desire to prevail as the hero. It’s why they continue to fight, even at points when the hero might seem to have an advantage. It’s why there are points in the story where it seems as though there’s…

What inspired you to write this THE DEADLY SHALLOWS? Since it includes a mass shooting, was that in part inspired by real life events? I didn’t base The Deadly Shallows on a specific tragedy, but the mass shootings our country has endured over the last two decades certainly inspired the horrific event Noah and Brooke face. Watching the emotional aftermath of the tragedy ripple through their lives and the lives of those present was really difficult to write. Researching was heart breaking but seeing how Noah and Brooke not just survive but, in a way, overcome its effects on them was inspiring.   How would you describe CGIS Agent Noah Rowley to readers? Noah is the head special agent of CGIS Wilmington. He takes his leadership role gravely, knowing a mistake on his part can lead to tragedy for his team. Couple that intensity with his devotion for his family, friends, and the woman he falls hard for, and you see the heart of Noah Rowley.   How would you describe the dynamic between Noah and Coast Guard flight medic Brooke Kesler? Do you tell the story using alternating perspectives? I do write alternating perspectives. I find it helps me…

1–What is the title of your latest release? CRITICAL ALLIANCE 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A cybersecurity expert with a criminal past, teams up with a Diplomatic Security Services special agent to secure exposed assets, close security beaches and save lives. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? The easy answer—this was book 3 in a series set in Montana! But in general, I usually start with a nature setting that inspires me. I thought it would be fun to set a tech company in the middle of wild, beautiful Montana. 4–Would you hang out with your heroine in real life? Oh, I don’t know—she might be too smart for me! Ha! 5–What are three words that describe your hero? Dauntless, adventurous, gorgeous. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? More than I wanted to know about the dark side of a hacker’s mind. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? Answer: I usually write a messy rough draft, and then spend the bulk of my allotted time rewriting and editing. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? Answer: Cinnamon rolls! (I know, it’s weird. People usually…

Excerpt from AMONG THE INNOCENT by Mary Alford, taken from Chapter Two   Something caught her attention above. Movement near the cracked window of her old room. Tattered gingham curtains waved. Just the wind? Leah shielded her eyes against the sun’s glare. A figure. Barely visible past the curtains. Someone was in the house. Without thinking of her own safety, Leah raced to the entrance. Ramming her shoulder against the warped door, she forced it open and charged inside. Ten years of dust covered everything, yet time had been encapsulated into this compact space. The sight of her mamm’s knitting next to her favorite rocker sucked the breath from Leah’s body. Pushing aside those heartbreaking memories, Leah drew her weapon and eased toward the stairs while recollections of the many times she and Ruth had slid down the banister crowded in. She stuffed them down deep as she reached the landing. Braced for the confrontation to come. The first door on the right belonged to her parents. As quietly as possible, she opened it and peeked inside, fighting the haunts waiting there. The room was vacant of anything resembling human life. Next, she checked her brother’s room. Nothing. One more…

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 Kathleen Donnelly!   Writes: I write romantic suspense because I love a chilling mystery along with complex characters who ultimately come together to solve crimes and discover love. As a K-9 handler, I enjoy adding in working dogs to help solve the mystery.   CHASING JUSTICE is about Marine veteran Maya Thompson who returns home to her beloved Colorado mountains to heal from losing her military K-9 in Afghanistan. Maya takes on a job as a U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer. She soon finds herself facing her deepest fear—working and bonding with K-9 Juniper—to solve the murder of her best friend and fellow officer. She’s also suspicious of the handsome new deputy in town who keeps offering to help her out with the case. Together with Juniper, Maya must uncover deadly secrets and figure out who to trust.   About: I am looking for a reader that loves dogs, mountains, and tales with suspense and romance. In my free time,…

The two main characters in your book TAKEN seem like opposites. Is that the case? And, if so, do you enjoy writing about characters who are very different from each other more so than ones who are very similar? Well, yes. I do enjoy writing about opposites, as long as they have a similar moral compass. The characters must be steadfast, good partners, good friends, honest and hard working. Those are the basic traits of a good person. But beyond that, in a couple’s partnership, I find it fun when each party brings different things to the table. In my case, my women are often arty, or nerdy. Very focused on aesthetic or intellectual issues. The guys tend to be masters of the physical world. I just like the thought of each being really good in a particular realm and the other partner appreciating it. Because together they form a whole.   The heroes in your books are dark and dangerous. What’s your inspiration?  Well, these are romances, mostly romantic suspense novels. The hero must be dangerous, in many ways. But above all, very dangerous if the woman they love is threatened. A romance novel is heightened emotion, a call…

When an out-of-town captain and a rookie K-9 handler team up to stop a bomber, the results are explosive…   I adore writing romantic suspense with lovable, courageous K-9s in the mix. My K-9 Alaska series has featured a Combat Tracker dog who had to retire early from the military, a therapy rescue dog, a Victim Specialist K-9 with the FBI, and a dual-purpose police K-9. I enjoyed writing those K-9s so much that I’m working on two more stories in that series, featuring a narcotics detection K-9 with the Alaska Bureau of Investigation and a search and rescue K-9 who does work with the FBI. But before those books release (sometime next year), I paused to be part of the K-9s on Patrol multi-author series. While all of my K-9 Alaska series heroes and heroines are big animal lovers, Ava Callan from SNIFFING OUT DANGER has no experience with dogs and never wanted to work with a K-9. She sees being paired with a K-9 instead of a human as a punishment for being the newbie who doesn’t fit in when she moves from Chicago to what feels to her like middle-of-nowhere Jasper, Idaho. But as soon as she…

1–What is the title of your latest release? TO CATCH A KILLER 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A woman on the run from a killer. A US Marshal determined to protect her. Will these former lovers lose their hearts in the process? 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I set the Heartland Heroes books in rural Kentucky because it’s such a beautiful area, full of small towns and good people. And someplace the wilderness is always just a stone’s throw away. 4–Would you hang out with your heroine in real life? Absolutely! I write women-next-door heroines, because I want readers to easily walk in their shoes and experience the adventure right along with her. My heroines are always smart and resourceful, which I also adore. And there’s nothing they won’t do to protect the people they love. I would be any of their best friends in a minute. 5–What are three words that describe your hero? Honorable, courageous, capable 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? My heroine is a budding chef with dreams of opening her own restaurant. More specifically, she wants to honor her family. Her mother is…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE DETECTIVE, which is the seventh book in my action-packed romantic suspense series, Norcross Security. 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? She’s a woman on the run from a stalker and desperate to avoid her hot, nosy detective neighbor. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? My Norcross Security series is set in San Francisco. I knew it would revolve around ex-military heroes now working in private security in a city. I wanted a vibrant city to be the backdrop and San Francisco was perfect. 4–Would you hang out with your heroine in real life? Yes! Although my heroine, Savannah, is an artist and I can barely draw a stick figure. I save my creativity for writing. 5–What are three words that describe your hero? Tough, rugged, protective 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? Like I mentioned, I’m not an artist, so I had to do a bit of research for the art side of things for the heroine in The Detective. I learned a lot about painting with a palette knife to add texture to a painting. I doubt I’ll ever do…

She’s trying to rectify the past. He’s trying to forge a new future… I never expected to write Alaska Mountain Rescue. But when I was halfway through the first book in my K-9 Alaska series, K-9 Defense, a secondary character leapt up and demanded her own book. Alanna Morgan was kidnapped when she was five years old. She spent fourteen years with her kidnappers, who raised her (and her “siblings,” who were also kidnapped) as their own children. At nineteen, Alanna slipped a note to a store owner and changed the rest of her life. Her “parents” were arrested, and she was returned to a family she barely knew anymore. Five years later, when her “mother” Darcy Altier escaped from prison and grabbed another child, Alanna decides to return to Desparre, Alaska, to help police find her. It’s a hard journey back to Desparre. It’s where she spent her childhood, so in some ways, nowhere else feels like home to Alanna. But it’s also tainted by the knowledge that this remote town had been used to hide her from her real family for fourteen years. Returning to Desparre is her chance to redeem herself for not turning in her “parents”…