Interview with the heroine from Lydia’s Hope by Marta Perry:

1.  Lydia Beachy, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

I’m really a very ordinary Amish housewife. My husband, Adam, and I have two sons, and we run an orchard in Pleasant Valley. But recently I learned that my birth parents had two other daughters, younger than I, that I’ve never heard of. It’s hard, learning that people you love have kept secrets from you. But it may be harder still to find my two lost sisters.

2.  What do you do for fun?

I love playing with my two boys, going to work frolics with my friends, putting up preserves and canning with my adoptive mother. Most of all, I love the orchard. Just being in the orchard, tending the trees, harvesting the fruit, makes me feel close to the parents I don’t remember.

3.  What do you put off doing because you dread it?

I hate to disagree with the people I love, and I have trouble telling them things they won’t want to hear, like the fact that I’m determined to find my little sisters, no matter what.

4.  What are you afraid of most in life?

I’m afraid of losing the people I love, maybe because I’ve already lost my parents.

5.  What do you want out of life?

I want my family to be complete.

6.  What is the most important thing to you?

My family and my faith are the most important aspects of my life. I can’t imagine who I’d be without them.

7.  Do you read? If so, what is your favorite type of book to read?

I like to read, especially in the winter when there is not so much outside work to do. I especially like stories of families.

8.  If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? 

I would like to be braver, because then I could search out my sisters for myself.

9.  Do you have a pet?

If so, what is it and why that pet? We have Shep, a dear old dog who is like a friend. He watches the kinder while they play and do their chores, and the minute I step outside, he is at my heels, looking out for me.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

I would like to go back to the time when my family was intact and see, just for a moment, my birth mother and father.

This week I’m hosting  Marta Perry with Lydia’s Hope (US and Canada only, Allie Pleiter with The Fireman’s Homecoming (US only) and Miralee Ferrell with Blowing on Dandelions (US and Canada only). If you want to enter the drawings for the books, please leave a comment on one of the post during the week with your email address. I will not enter you without an email address (my way to contact you if you win). If you don’t want to leave an email address, another way you can enter is to email me at margaretdaley@gmail.com. The drawings end Sunday (June 23rd) evening.

Bio of Marta Perry:

A lifetime spent in rural Pennsylvania, where she still lives, and her own Pennsylvania Dutch roots led Marta Perry to write about the Plain People and their rich heritage in her current fiction series for Berkley Books and HQN Books. Marta recently celebrated the publication of her fifty-first novel, with another eight books scheduled to be released over the next two years. The three-time Rita finalist has over six million copies of her books in print.

Marta is a member of RWA, ACFW, Novelists, Inc. and Pennwriters. When she’s not writing, she and her husband enjoy traveling, gardening, and spending time with their six beautiful grandchildren.

Blurb for Lydia’s Hope by Marta Perry:

Three Amish sisters, separated when very young, know nothing about one another until a long-held secret is revealed.

With no memory of her birth parents or the tragic accident that took their lives, Lydia Beachy has always been grateful for the aunt and uncle who took her in and raised her as their own. Now a married woman with two sons, Lydia finds her life turned upside down when she discovers that she has two younger sister: Susanna, who was adopted by an Amish family in another community, and Chloe, who was raised by their grandmother among the Englisch.

Angry and confused, Lydia first seeks out Susanna but stops short of telling her the truth. To track down Chloe, she enlists the help of a neighbor who has spent some years in the Englisch world. Meanwhile, Lydia’s husband, Adam, is keeping a secret of his own. Lydia years to be united with the sisters she has never known, but will reveling herself to them tear their lives apart…or enrich them beyond all imagining?

Bio for Allie Pleiter:

An avid knitter, coffee junkie, and devoted chocoholic, Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction.  The enthusiastic but slightly untidy mother of two, Allie spends her days writing books, buying yarn, and finding new ways to avoid housework.  Allie hails from Connecticut, moved to the midwest to attend Northwestern University, and currently lives outside Chicago, Illinois.  The “dare from a friend” to begin writing has produced two parenting books, sixteen novels, and various national speaking engagements on faith, women’s issues, and writing.  Visit her website atwww.alliepleiter.com or her knitting blog at www.DestiKNITions.blogspot.com

Bio for Miralee Ferrell:

A BRIDE FOR ALL SEASONS

Hero Interview from A Cowboy at Heart by Lori Copeland and Virginia Smith:

1. Jesse Montgomery, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

Thanks, ma’am. I appreciate the interview.  My character came to life in the first two books of The Amish of Apple Grove, ( The Heart’s Frontier and A Plain and Simple Heart) a Harvest House series that isn’t necessarily Amish but more “Amish meets the Old West”. Ginny Smith and Lori Copeland co-author the series and both have a sense of humor seeded with first hand experiences of life’s mistakes. I found my way into this series as a wrangler, though I’m not your typical Christian hero, far from it but I am full of zest and vinegar water and the trait carried me straight into the arms of a drinking problem that threatened to destroy my life.  I know with certainty that Ginny and Lori had some real reservations about my being the “hero” in A Cowboy at Heart, but by now I’d woven my way into their hearts and they were able to see the man that I could be, the misguided young buck whose heart longed for the Lord to intervene in his life, a life nearly lost until He worked a miracle.

2. What do you do for fun?

Drink. I’ve worked cows most of my life and after a long drive I head for the nearest saloon. I’m not proud of my ways, but somehow that first drink led to another and another and then all of a sudden liquor supplied a whole lot of my needs, made me feel real good.  I liked the punch it gave me; the way problems never seemed as bad when I had ole Jack with me. My trail bosses never cared as long as my drinking didn’t interfere with my work. The only exception was my good friend Luke Carson.  He hated the drinking, but he couldn’t do a thing to stop it.  Luke and I have been good friends since boyhood. His pa had worked cattle all of his life and Luke always felt he needed to live up to his standards. I told him he needed to be his own man but Luke couldn’t see it until he met up with Emma Switzer.  Now’s there’s a pretty little Amish gal– and the beginnings of a strange incident. This Amish family was headed for kin carrying this huge—and I mean monster of a hutch.  Why the thing must have weighed the size of a prime bull.  Anyhow, when the Switzer’s wagon ran afoul of rustlers Luke was the first to offer assistance. That whole thing turned into one big mess with Papa Switzer, Maummi, Emma and her little sister, Rebecca.  I never saw life spiral so out of control because of one simple act of kindness—but you’ll have to read “The Heart’s Frontier” to see what I mean.

3. What do you put off doing because you dread it?

Well I’d have to say that’d be rolling out of the sack mornings. On the trail it’s not so bad; I’ve had a good night’s sleep and I’m raring to go but after a drive and I’m living it up it’s a mite hard to pull myself out of the bed after a long night of drinking and carousing. Luke claims it’s the liquor making me lazy and he could be right.  I confess hang overs aren’t for sissies. I look at the other cowhands and wonder how do they make it through life without a bottle of rotgut? What do they have that I don’t? Sometimes I even prayed asking Ma if she has the answers? She died about a year after I left home. She’d always had solutions when I was a kid but she doesn’t anymore; just the memory of her hands, gently stroking my hair at night as I lay in my bed comes to mind. Pa drank. I found a bottle of Glen Grant  scotch one day hidden in the barn but I didn’t associate my ma’s tears with the liquor until I was older and less likely to see what hard drinking does to a man’s life.

4. What are you afraid of most in life?

That one day I’ll have to stop and take a close look at how I’m living. . But not now. Now I’m in my twenties and got a lot of life ahead of me. Someday, when the time is right I’ll look in the mirror and see exactly who and what kind of a man I am. If changes need to be made I’ll do it then.

For the time being, I’m just sowing my wild seed, enjoying life

5. What do you want out of life?

Never let myself think about it. When Pa took a stray bullet in a local gun fight I was left to look after Ma. That left me scared to death. How did a twelve year old look after his mother? I heard her crying the first night but from then on she never said a word about pa. I wanted to talk about him, to know how she felt about him being a good, hard-working man but come evening he’d start in drinking and there’d be cross words even shouts until ma sent him to bed. I understand how liquor made him feel better, makes the world look a little less troublesome so I don’t judge. But I wonder….

I suppose if I had to say one thing I wanted out of life would be security.  I guess I’d like to just once feel like a twelve year old boy with nothing more worrying my mind than to go fishing on a hot summer day.

6. What is the most important thing to you?

Again, I never think about it. What does it matter? I’m who I am and where I am for a reason, I suppose.  According to Ma’s Bible its God’s job to run our lives and I guess I’m just letting Him do His thing.  Right now, punching cows is the most important thing to me, that and the hours I spend under the stars with my loyal friend, Jack. Jack Daniel.

 7.  Do you read books? If so, what is your favorite type of book?

I can’t read that well. Ma tried to teach me and I was doing okay until pa died. Then she just quit schooling and I never had any real interest to pick it up again. Sometimes I regret that. Every now and then I walk past a mercantile and see something in the window that I’d like to read, but I can’t. For instance, there was a book on firearms there one day. Pa left several pistols behind; an 1836 Patterson Colt, and a right fine looking Double Barrel Derringer.  I have a strange need to know what kind they are and when they were made. If I could read I could know where those guns likely came from.

8.  If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Whew.  This is serious stuff.  One thing?  Well I’ve just told you how much I liked liquor but there are times when I wished I didn’t let a “bottle” control me. That I could have one-two drinks and walk away. (Chuckle).  Don’t reckon I’ve ever admitted that to anyone but here I am talking to you like a close friend. Don’t get me wrong; I probably could have just two drinks but why stop at two when four, five and six makes me feel…nothing.  I like the sensation, and drinking is about my only downfall. I don’t womanize though I like women. Never gave one much thought until Katie came along and now it seems like she’s all I think about.   I don’t cuss except when something really bad  goes wrong. Church? I go on occasion when I’m off the trail. I sure believe there’s a God, but I don’t have much hope that He’s looking over me right now

9. Do you have a pet? If so, what is it and why that pet?

I had a rooster once. Me and Ole Red used to be inseparable until one day he spurred me real good.  I hate to say this but we had Red with dumplings that night. I missed him for a time but then I turned sixteen and hit the trail.  And there’s my horse, Rex. I attached to that animal—he’s been a good friend. Someday I’m going to get a hunting dog, if that helps answer your question.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

Whoa. You ask questions I’ve never given much thought.  I wouldn’t want to go back to the Gladiators. Cavemen would be out of the question.  Don’t have a hankering for violence so that French Revolution thing wouldn’t be for me.

Can’t honestly say that I’d want to live in any other time than the present. I hear folks say that someday we’ll all be driving those fancy “cars” and fly through the air in a machine. Now that would interest me though it’s a stretch of imagination.

Thanks for talking to us, Jesse. I guess we can learn more about you in the three Amish of Apple Grove books? “The Heart’s Frontier”, “A Plain and Simple Heart” and of course your story, “A Cowboy at Heart.

Yes ma’am and I want to thank you again for the time, and the reading fans for their support.  Much obliged.  

Interview with the heroine from Seeds of Evidence by Linda White:

1. Kit, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

I think most people would say it was my job. I’m an FBI agent, which means I carry a gun 24/7, always choose a restaurant seat with a view of the cash register, and tend to look at people with a jaded eye.

But I think I would say the most interesting thing is that, well, I’ve recently learned to see. Not physically, but spiritually. Yes—I once was blind but now I see. That has changed everything.

2. What do you do for fun?

Fun? What’s that? Seriously, I tend to be intense. But I’ve met this guy recently who has been challenging me to lighten up. He’s taken me kayaking by moonlight  and fishing at dawn. He surprised me with a trip to Busch Gardens, where he insisted we ride every single roller coaster—and the carousel—and eat cotton candy. And one night he showed up with an armful of Veggie Tales DVDs. We ate popcorn and watched every single one.

3. What do you put off doing because you dread it?

Going to the dentist. Doesn’t everybody?

4. What are you afraid of most in life?

Hmm. I don’t like to admit I’m afraid of anything. But the truth is, I am terribly afraid of being alone. Alone forever, I mean, not just alone for a night. My mother left when I was a little girl. I remember crying myself to sleep night after night. And I guess that scared little girl is still inside.

5. What do you want out of life?

I want to live a life that honors God, a life of integrity, grace, and faith.

6. What is the most important thing to you?

My faith. Because I lost it for a time. My faith is like the sun: it illuminates everything else—my life, my job, my relationships, my work. And by “my faith” I really mean Jesus Christ, because my own part of this is very small. I am the recipient of a level of grace I don’t deserve.

7. Do you read? If so, what is your favorite type of book to read?

I read mostly Christian non-fiction. There is so much I want to learn! Right now, on my night table, I have books by Ravi Zacharias and John Piper, as well as “Not By Sight” by Jon Bloom and “One Thousand Gifts” by Ann Voskamp.

8. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I wish I could relax a little more. Between my mother leaving and a divorce I didn’t want, I tend to be guarded in relationships. My job tends to exacerbate that tendency, too. David, this new guy, is trying to help me change that. I love that he cares that much about me.

9. Do you have a pet? If so, what is it and why that pet?

You know, I’ve always wanted a dog, but my job just doesn’t lend itself to having a pet. I’m gone too much! But if I did have a pet, it would be a big, friendly golden retriever, the kind of slobbery kisses type of dog that is everything I’m not.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

I would go back to the day when I was eight years old, and I would come home from school early, and beg my mother not to leave, and give her ten thousand reasons why I wanted her to stay. That’s exactly where I’d go…

Interview with the hero, Eli Miller, from June 2013 Love Inspired Suspense, Plain Pursuit by Alison Stone:

1. Eli Miller, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

I grew up in the Amish community of Apple Creek, but left when I was a young adult after my little sister, Mary, went missing. Because of this tragic event, I eventually became an FBI agent. I have never stopped looking for my sister.

2.  What do you do for fun?

I like to go for long drives. I remember the days when transportation was limited to my horse and buggy. I love getting into my car, turning on the radio and driving.

3.  What do you put off doing because you dread it?

I put off visiting my parents. I’m not exactly welcomed since I left the Amish community. The grief I see in my mother’s eyes pains me every time I see her. I’m responsible for that pain in more ways than one.

4.  What are you afraid of most in life?

I’m afraid I’ll never find out what happened to my little sister, Mary.

5.  What do you want out of life?

I want to find peace. My life has been so unsettled since the day my little sister disappeared. I need answers, for myself. For my family. For Mary.

6.  What is the most important thing to you?

My job. As an FBI agent I help people . Nothing brings me greater joy than when I’m able to bring a happy ending to a terrible ordeal. It doesn’t always work out that way, but it brings me a sense of satisfaction to be in a position to help. I know from experience how helpless people can feel in the midst of a crisis.

7.  Do you read books? If so, what is your favorite type of book?

I enjoy reading biographies, from world leaders to business innovators. After growing up in the insular world of the Amish, I’m still fascinated with all the types of people in the world.

8.  If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I’m a work in progress. I’ve always protected my heart, but I’m ready to change. I believe I’ve found someone worth taking a risk on.

9.  Do you have a pet? If so, what is it and why that pet?

Since I work long hours and travel quite a bit, I don’t have a pet.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

If I could travel back in time, I’d go back to the day my sister disappeared. She was with me in the General Store. I would have never left her in the front of the store while I went in the back to get some supplies. I’ve relived that day over and over in my mind a million times. No one seems to know what happened to her. And it’s all my fault. If I could go back, I’d keep her at my side. Save Mary. And save my family from their horrible grief.

This week I’m hosting  Alison Stone with Plain Pursuit (ebook US only), Linda White with Seeds of Evidence (US and Canada only), and Lori Copeland/Virginia Smith with A Cowboy at Heart (US only). If you want to enter the drawings for the books, please leave a comment on one of the post during the week with your email address. I will not enter you without an email address (my way to contact you if you win). If you don’t want to leave an email address, another way you can enter is to email me at margaretdaley@gmail.com. The drawings end Sunday (June 16th) evening.

Bio for Alison Stone:

Alison Stone left snowy Buffalo, New York and headed a thousand miles south to earn an industrial engineering degree at Georgia Tech in Hotlanta. Go Yellow Jackets! She loved the South, but true love brought her back North.

After the birth of her second child, Alison left Corporate America for full-time motherhood. She credits an advertisement for writing children’s books for sparking her interest in writing. She never did complete a children’s book, but she did have success writing articles for local publications before finding her true calling, writing romantic suspense.

Alison lives in Western New York with her husband of twenty years and their four children where the summers are absolutely gorgeous and the winters are perfect for curling up with a good book–or writing one.

Random Acts and Too Close to Home were released by Samhain Publishing in 2012. Plain Pursuit, a Harlequin Love inspired Suspense, is available now.

Besides writing, Alison keeps busy volunteering at her children’s schools, driving her girls to dance, and watching her boys race motocross.

Website: AlisonStone.com
Twitter: @Alison_Stone

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlisonStoneAuthor

Blurb for Plain Pursuit by Alison Stone:

Danger in Amish Country

When her brother is killed in a small Amish town, Anna Quinn discovers she’s an unwelcome outsider. But the FBI agent investigating the case is right at home—because Eli Miller was born and raised in Apple Creek’s Plain community. Eli left his Amish faith behind long ago, but his heart is rooted in a local cold case he can’t forget—a mystery with strange connections to Anna’s loss. Desperate to uncover the truth, Anna and Eli are faced with stony silences and secrets…secrets that someone wants to keep buried in the past.

 Copyright © 2013 by Harlequin Enterprises Limited

Bio for Linda J. White:

Bio of Lori Copeland and Virginia Smith:

Romance Releases: A Bride for All Seasons by Robin Lee Hatcher, Margaret Brownley, Debra Clopton, and Mary Connealy — 1800s mail-order bride catalogs facilitated many happy marriages. Here are the stories of four couples who owe their wedded bliss to creative editing by The Hitching Post publisher. (Historical Romance Novella from Thomas Nelson).

Pieces of the Heart: Quilts of Love Series by Bonnie S. Calhoun — Cordelia Grace watched Bernard Howard, the love of her young life, go off to fight for our country in WWII. And she has spent the last three years creating the Pine Cone quilt that will grace their marriage bed when he comes home. Her image of their “happy-ever-after” grows proportionally as the quilt expands. But is the man that returns from the war, the same man that she remembered? Are the dark shades of color that she had to use for the outside edges of the beloved quilt prophetic of her life to come? (Historical Romance from Abingdon Press).

Stealing the Preacher by Karen Witemeyer — Abducted from a train by a gang of aging outlaws, Crockett Archer must choose between either escaping to follow his own dreams or staying to help the daughter of his captor fulfill hers. (Historical Romance from Bethany House).

Blowing on Dandelions by Miralee Ferrell — In 1880, three years after Katherine Galloway’s husband’s death, she struggles to run an Oregon boardinghouse and raise two girls alone. Things don’t get easier when her critical, domineering mother moves in. And with a daughter entering the teenage years, the pressure on Katherine becomes close to overwhelming. Then she crosses paths with Micah Jacobs, a widower who could reignite her heart. (Historical Romance from David C. Cook).

Trouble in Store by Carol Cox — Fired from her most recent governess position, Melanie Ross must embrace her last resort: the Arizona mercantile she inherited from her cousin. But Caleb Nelson is positive he inherited the mercantile, and he’s not about to let an obstinate woman with newfangled ideas ruin all he’s worked for. But someone else doesn’t want the mercantile to succeed, and threatening words have escalated into destruction and danger. (Historical Romance from Bethany House)

Grace’s Pictures by Cindy Thomson — Grace McCaffery hopes that the bustling streets of New York hold all the promise that the lush hills of Ireland did not. As her efforts to earn enough money to bring her mother to America fail, she wonders if her new Brownie camera could be the answer. But a casual stroll through a beautiful New York City park turns into a hostile run-in with local gangsters, who are convinced her camera holds the first and only photos of their elusive leader. Spread thin between her quest to rescue her mother, do well in a new nanny job, and avoid the gang intent on intimidating her, Grace must put her faith in unlikely sources to learn the true meaning of courage and forgiveness. (Historical Romance from Tyndale House)

Restoring His Heart by Lorraine Beatty — A Love to Build On. After he crashed his sportscar into a gazebo, Adam Holbrook is sentenced to 30 days rebuilding it – definitely not Adam’s usual glamorous lifestyle. But when Laura Durrant, the contractor scheduled to help him, shows up, everything changes. Suddenly, Adam woudn’t mind an extended sentence. And no one’s more surprised in this change in attitude than Adam. As they work amid the dust and sweat, Laura teaches him about more than carpentry. she teaches him everything he’s missed out on – a family, a relationship with God… and maybe even love. (Contemporary Romance from Love Inspired)

Barefoot Summer by Denise Hunter — In the years since her twin brother’s tragic drowning, Madison has struggled with her ability to trust God-or anyone else, for that matter. It was her brother’s dream to win the annual River Sail Regatta in their small harbor town of Chapel Springs, Indiana. And Madison’s determined to honor his legacy by making his dream her own. But learning to sail means learning to swim. And her instructor is Beckett O’Reilly. As much as she’d like to deny it, the chemistry between them is electrifying. As her feelings for him grow, a fledging faith begins to take root in her soul, as well. But Beckett harbors a secret that will test the limits of their love and the depth of Madison’s faith. (Contemporary Romance from Thomas Nelson) Y

esterday’s Stardust by Becky Melby — Journalist Dani Gallagher finds a tattered diary written in the Roaring Twenties-and clues to a lost treasure. Chef Nicky Fiorini helps unravel the clues, and attraction ignites, but Dani is hiding her own secret. Just as she and Nicky are on the verge of solving the mystery, internal fighting breaks out in the gang. Dani is caught the middle, and Nicky is furious. Then the diary leads to a hidden room and a shocking discovery, but have they missed the real treasure? (Contemporary Romance from Barbour Publishing) Romantic

Suspense Releases:

Guarding the Witness by Margaret Daley — Arianna Jackson was used to guarding people, but because she saw something she shouldn’t, she ends up being protected by a U.S. Marshal. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired)

Stolen Identity by Lisa Harris — Danielle Corbit doesn’t understand why someone would want to steal her identity. But after discovering a dead body on the Oregon coastline she’s attacked by a dangerous hacker who will stop at nothing to frame her. Only her former fiance, Jason Ryan, is willing to help. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired).

Plain Pursuit by Alison Stone When her brother is killed in a small Amish town, Anna Quinn discovers she’s an unwelcome outsider. But the FBI agent investigating the case is right at home–because Eli Miller was born and raised in Apple Creek’s Plain community. Eli left his Amish faith behind long ago, but his heart is rooted in a local cold case he can’t forget–a mystery with strange connections to Anna’s loss. Desperate to uncover the truth, Anna and Eli are faced with stony silences and secrets…secrets that someone wants to keep buried in the past. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired).

Suspense/Mystery Releases:

The Good Girl by Christy Barritt — The only time Tara Lancaster missed church was at seventeen because she had pneumonia and her mom made her stay home. But when her life shatters around her and her reputation is left in ruins, Tara decides escape is the only option. She flees halfway across the country to dog-sit, but the quiet anonymity she needs isn’t waiting in her sister’s house. Instead she finds a knife with a threatening message, a fame-hungry friend, a too-hunky neighbor, and evidence of…a ghost? Following all the rules has gotten her nowhere. And nothing she learned in Sunday School can tell her where to go from there. (Thriller/Suspense from Whitefire Publishing).

Dog Tags by Heidi Glick — A former Marine determines to protect the woman he loves at all costs, and yet his own secrets might turn her against him forever. (Thriller/Suspense from Harbourlight Books).

Fear Has a Name by Creston Mapes — Journalist Jack Crittendon fights to protect his family from a stalker’s terrifying schemes, investigates a pastor’s mysterious disappearance, and struggles to keep his faith amidst unthinkable fear. (Contemporary Thriller/Suspense from David C. Cook).

Deadly Devotion by Sandra Orchard — Research scientist Kate Adams and her colleague Daisy are on the brink of a breakthrough for treating depression with herbal medicine when Daisy suddenly dies. Kate knows that if it hadn’t been for Daisy’s mentorship, she wouldn’t have the job she loves or the faith she clings to. So when police rule Daisy’s death a suicide, Kate is determined to unearth the truth. Former FBI agent Tom Parker finds it hard to adjust to life back in his hometown of Port Aster. Tom’s just trying to keep a low profile, so when Kate Adams demands he reopen the investigation of her friend’s death, he knows his job is at stake. In fact, despite his attraction to her, Tom thinks Kate looks a bit suspicious herself. (Mystery from Revell [Baker]).

Historical Releases (not romance):

A Heart Deceived by Michelle Griep — In this Regency historical romance, an opium addict bent on his next fix finds God through John Newton, and to avoid prison for a murder he didn’t commit, runs to the sister of his best friend for help-only her brother is the one he is accused of killing. (General Historical from David C. Cook).

The Well: A Novel by Stephanie Landsem — Mara is a desperate Samaritan girl searching for a miracle to save her dying mother, a journey that brings her unexpected joy and a heartbreaking decision. (General Historical from Howard [Simon and Schuster]).

General Contemporary Releases:

In Plain View (Valley of Choice) by Olivia Newport — Annie Friesen has walked away from a successful career to live among the Amish-which turns out to be harder than she thought. (General Contemporary from Barbour Publishing).

Pretty is as Pretty Does: Class Reunion by Debby Mayne — Priscilla Slater goes to her ten-year high school reunion with equal parts dread and eager anticipation. Even though she’s a successful owner of a chain of hair salons, she still feels like the ugly duckling. But when she arrives at the reunion, Priscilla soon realizes that her old classmates aren’t exactly as she remembers them. With humor and a just a touch of sassiness, Priscilla finds herself facing her own truth-and she may be surprised at what she discovers. (General Contemporary from Abingdon Press).

Interview with the hero of Five Days in Skye by Carla Laureano:

1. James MacDonald, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

If you believe the press, that would be whoever I’m dating at the moment, but I would say the fact that I’m a chef. I’ve currently got six restaurants in Britain, though I’m about to open my seventh as part of the family hotel we’re renovating on the Isle of Skye. Oh, and I’m going into my fourth season of my cooking programme on the BBC.

2. What do you do for fun?

Go home and visit my aunt and sister in Skye. Hike, jog, and cook good, simple food. It makes the pace of London bearable.

3. What do you put off doing because you dread it?

Visiting my mother. She’s never quite approved of my career choices. Or anything else I’ve done, for that matter. She would have been far happier had I decided to become a solicitor like my brother, Ian.

4. What are you afraid of most in life?

Looking back and having regrets. Having wasted the opportunities I was given.

5. What do you want out of life?

You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. I’ve always seen myself with a family, wife, kids, even the dog. But that hasn’t worked out for me so far.

6. What is the most important thing to you?

Family. It may be a cliché, but it’s true.

7. Do you read books? If so, what is your favorite type of book?

To my shame, I haven’t read a book since uni. I haven’t the time. Unless my own cookbooks count.

8. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

That I wouldn’t have made such poor choices in my youth. Some things can’t be undone.

9. Do you have a pet? If so, what is it and why that pet?

No, unfortunately. I’ve always considered myself quite a dog person, but I travel too much to have one now. It wouldn’t be fair to the poor creature. Besides, my flat in London is not exactly what one would call ‘pet friendly.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

Call me boring, but I’m quite happy in the modern era with indoor plumbing and proper appliances. Though I wouldn’t mind travelling back to the first time someone decided an artichoke was edible. Really, what makes one look at that plant and decide it must be tasty?

Interview with the hero from Stalking Willow by Fay Lamb:

1. Quentin McPheron, tell me the most interesting thing about you.

I hate to admit this, but I think everyone around me knows, even if they haven’t teased me about it. My whole life has been spent waiting for one girl to say she loves me, but Willow Thomas, is a hard one. Even before she scurried away when the paparazzi maggots showed up at her door demanding to know what she thought of her Hollywood superstar parents’ abandonment, she’d distanced herself from me. She left the mountain where we both grew up without so much as a good-bye and ran off to New York. I hadn’t heard from her in ten years, but I kept up her granny’s house next door to mine—even hand carved some willow trees into some shutters for the old home Granny Thomas left behind for her.

And Willow came home. She called me by the old nickname she used to pull out just to annoy me. So, I know there’s still hope for us yet.

2.  What do you do for fun?

I’m living out my dream as a high school teacher and coach. My fun is helping young men realize their full potential, whether it’s in leadership, academics, or sports. I love mentoring those boys. I feel that God has placed me where I can use my talents the best.

3.  What do you put off doing because you dread it?

I try not to put off anything. It’s the jock in me, I guess. My dad—my coach in life and on the team—always said “Get the job done, and don’t stop until it’s completed.” I live life that way. Sometimes though, especially where Willow is concerned, that attitude causes us a little friction. I just plunder ahead doing what I think best, and well, one thing Willow hates is being told what to do. Still, I love the times when we go toe-to-toe, matching wits with one another. Except I hate it that Willow can best me just about every time.

4.  What are you afraid of most in life?

Losing the ones I love. That happened to me in high school. I lost Willow, yeah, and I felt that lost greatly, but it wasn’t a permanent loss—not like the night Tabitha Cowart died because I didn’t keep her from doing something stupid. Not like my stupidity that caused the death of one of my players at the hand of his own father. Those are losses that will haunt me forever, but I trust in God, that He has a reasons, and I go on. I don’t want to lose anyone else though—not to tragedies like that. And with this stalker on Willow’s trail, I plan to do everything I can to keep her safe from harm.

5.  What do you want out of life?

(Laughing). I want Willow Thomas to be my bride. (Laughter fades) Seriously, I want Willow Thomas to be my happy bride, at peace in her surroundings, and free of the bitterness she’s carried for so long.

6.  What is the most important thing to you?

Family and friends. Plain and simple, even though the relationships may be complex, the fact that God has put us together should be simple to understand, and we should be willing to help each other in any situation and love each other no matter what has come between us.

7.  Do you read books? If so, what is your favorite type of book?

Heck yeah. Biographies of Vince Lombardo and Coach Woodson—those guys knew how to lead and to promote enthusiasm in a team. They influenced the lives of their players in positive ways. Oh, and the Bible. Jesus was a great leader. He promoted such enthusiasm from his followers that they were willing to die to spread the Gospel, and no one can say He wasn’t the greatest leader of all time, and He has definitely influenced my life in a positive way.

8.  If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I have a tendency to jump into the fray, to help others even when they don’t want my help. Yeah, sometimes that’s a good thing, but my momma used to tell me, “Son, not everyone wants your help. Back off until they ask.” I need to do that a little more. But there’s give and take. I didn’t help Tabitha. I left her to her own devices, and she died. And my quarterback, Denton Goodyear—if I’d only stepped back and let the law handle things, Dent would still be alive.

9.  Do you have a pet? If so, what is it and why that pet?

Not anymore. I used to have an old hound dog. His name was Blue. He lumbered around the mountain and settled down by my bed each night. He was a good and faithful dog. Taught me a lot about being faithful, too. You ever wonder why a dog will still try to make you his friend, even if you yell at them or treat them mean once in a while? They usually just keep their distance for a bit then saddle up beside you.

Yeah, (laughing again), that old hound dog taught me how to deal with Willow. Every time she bites my hand, I just keep saddling up beside her until I win a smile out of those gorgeous lips and a twinkle from those chocolate brown eyes.

10. If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?

I’d go back to eleventh grade, and I’d make sure that Laurel and Tabitha stopped making Willow’s life miserable. I’d include Willow in everything we did, and I wouldn’t allow her to sulk by herself. Maybe then, I could have prevented Tabitha’s death, I could have helped two cousins who needed each other desperately to become friends, and maybe Willow wouldn’t have felt she needed to run away when trouble came to the mountain and Granny had died.