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New Love Stories For Your Reading List | February 2021

Looking for a love story to get lost in? You've come to the right place because we've made a list of exciting new romance book releases we think you'll adore. Check out the latest from bestselling authors Terri Osburn, Riley Edwards, Jenny Hale, Lauren Blakely, Willow Winters, and Adriana Locke. Enjoy your new books!

In Over Her Head

by Terri Osburn

Release Date: February 22, 2021

Chef Lauren Riley has one philosophy—never depend on anyone. A loner and a perfectionist, she’s on Anchor Island to turn Pilar’s into the best restaurant in the Outer Banks, not to make friends. But despite her cold demeanor, the locals refuse to take the hint, and she soon learns the meaning of a found family. Nick Stamatis did his time in fancy kitchens but his laid-back life as head cook of Dempsey's Bar & Grill, the most popular eatery on Anchor island, suits him just fine. Despite his playboy reputation, he’s a family man at heart. But if family history repeats, he isn't likely to live long enough to have one of his own.

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Jonny's Redemption

by Riley Edwards

Release Date: February 23, 2021

The seventh book in the Gemini Group Series by USA Today Bestselling Author Riley Edwards... Lieutenant Jonny Spencer’s life is spiraling out of control. With no end in sight, he withdraws. Giving in to the darkness is his only reprieve. Roberta “Bobby” Layne knows what it means to live in the shadows. Her childhood was spent fading into obscurity—loneliness her only friend. When Jonny’s latest case threatens to snap what’s left of his sanity, Bobby knows this is her last chance to pull him from the hell that awaits.

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The Memory Keeper

by Jenny Hale

Release Date: January 26, 2021

Hannah Townsend’s life is just as she’s always wanted it to be. She has the perfect job at a New York magazine, a small but elegant apartment in the upper west side, and an incredibly successful beau named Miles Monahan. This year, for her thirty-fifth birthday, she’s leaving the icy city sludge for sunshine! She’s got tickets for two to Barbados, and she’s all packed and meeting Miles at the airport for a week of cocktails, sandy beaches, and the music of steel drums. But her life is turned upside down in the span of that one morning.

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My One Week Husband

by Lauren Blakely

Release Date: February 17, 2021

The fourth book in The Extravagant Series by New York Times Bestselling Author Lauren Blakely... He's my business partner, my good friend, and the man I've craved for years. But I've resisted the sexy Brit, and I plan to keep up my walls because I've been there, done that, and I know how much it hurts when you let someone into your heart. Then an opportunity comes along for us to snag the business deal of a lifetime. The catch? We need to pretend we're married to pull off this high-stakes deal.

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Tequila Rose

by Willow Winters

Release Date: February 23, 2021

He tasted like tequila and the fake name I gave him was Rose. Four years ago, I decided to get over one man, by getting under another. A single night and nothing more. I found my handsome stranger with a shot glass and charming but devilish smile at the end of the bar. The desire that hit his eyes the second they landed on me ignited a spark inside me, instant and hot. He was perfect and everything I didn’t know I needed. That one night may have ended, but I left with much more than a memory.

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Like You Love Me

by Adriana Locke

Release Date: February 16, 2021

The first book in the Honey Creek Series by USA Today Bestselling Author Adriana Locke... To save her Tennessee bed-and-breakfast, Sophie Bates needs a fast-cash miracle. Holden McKenzie, her childhood best friend, needs to prove to a prospective employer that he’s a committed man. Their fortunes on the line, Holden proposes…a solution. He’ll take care of Sophie’s bills if she agrees to a temporary marriage of convenience. And why not? They’re comfortable together, they have fun, and they trust each other.

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Interview with Lauren Blakely, author of My One Week Husband

By Lauren Blakely

Confession. I'm a sucker for a fake romance.

I love reading them. I love writing them.

There's something so fun and freeing about the "container" of a pretend romance.

It gives the main characters the opportunity to make-believe, to test out the possibilities of what it might be like to be together.

I've had a blast writing many types of fake romance storylines over the last several years.

But one that has always fascinated me is the fake marriage storyline.

There are many reasons in romance that two main characters might need to be married. There could be an inheritance on the line. They might have to marry in order to gain access to a trust.

Sometimes they might do it for public appearances.

When I knew I wanted to write a fake marriage romance in My One Week Husband, I wanted to find a reason that I hadn't played with before.

And I found it in a simple reason for a pretend romance, but one that's wickedly fun. One that the characters pull off in my new release, My One Week Husband.

The hero and heroine are two business partners who own a hotel chain. They're interested in buying a new boutique line of hotels. But they want to visit them, kick the tires on them, so to speak, before they buy. So they simply pose as a married couple. They pretend they're together on a honeymoon as they visit the inns. That makes them almost like mystery shoppers! In this scenario, they weren't tricking family members, or formally getting married. But they still have a fake marriage and in that container, they became much freer to test out their fantasies, to explore the boundaries of their relationship, and to learn about each other's true hearts.

There might also be some really fun role-playing and wigs!

I hope you get a chance to check out My One Week Husband and that you enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing it.

Lauren Blakely is the author of the new book My One Week Husband

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Interview with Nina Atwood, Author of Free Fall

What can you tell us about your new release, Free Fall?

I’m super excited about it because it’s my first psychological thriller! It was inspired by a woman I personally know really well, who built and sold a great business and made a lot of money. Her story is NOT Hannah Lee’s, but what I fantasized about was this question: what if you sold a business for a lot of money and someone was paying attention, someone who did not have your best interests at heart? What if that someone found a way into your life with your money as his/her prize?

What books are currently on your night stand?

Right now I’m enraptured by Beatriz Williams’ Schuler Sisters series… historical fiction at its best! I’m so impressed by authors who can do the extensive research necessary for this genre. Not being a history buff, I doubt I’ll dabble in it as an author but I love reading it!

What advice would you give your teenage self?

Be more observant, capture your observations, and have the confidence to write in small bits and pieces, even if a coherent story isn’t possible yet. Be bold as a budding author. Most of all, believe in yourself.

If you had an extra hour each day, how would you spend it?

Is this a trick question? Of course, I would spend it writing! I truly love the art and the craft of writing… my biggest challenge is finding time since I still have a significant “day job.”

What makes your world go round? Why does it bring you joy?

My relationships – husband, Mom, amazing colleagues, and a handful of BFFs who understand and accept me, not always an easy task I’m sure! Second, my work, because my clients are all amazing people who work hard to provide jobs for others, often at the expense of their own personal pursuits. So, in nutshell, it’s the wonderful people whom I have the privilege to know, love, work with, and understand at a deep level. The joy is in the connections, the shared stories, the shared life events, the compassion, the love, the shared heartaches, and ultimately, the sense of purpose. It’s why we are here – to connect with others and to make a difference whenever possible.

What scene from Free Fall was your favorite to write?

The climactic scene. All the significant players are in one place at the same time, and all the building drama throughout the story explodes in a way that… no spoilers here, but let’s say that scene answers all the readers’ questions. It was intense writing it, for sure!!

What inspires you as an author?

The messiness of life! I’ve found people endlessly fascinating for my entire life. I remember observing the people around me as early as grade school, noticing what they said, what they did, and the irrationality of how they lived their lives. I realized early in life that if there is one overriding life principle for human beings, it is this: it’s complicated! I began writing fiction because I realized I had this very stuffed full mental file cabinet of people’s complicated stories, and many of them were my own, that I thought could be woven together in interesting plots that readers might enjoy. Ultimately, I am most inspired by the perseverance of heartfelt, courageous people to overcome life’s endless challenges, so I always endeavor to weave in those kinds of elements.

Nina Atwood is the author of the new book Free Fall

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Interview with Ivan Ertlov, Author of Generation 23

What can you tell us about your new release, Generation 23?

“Generation 23” is my first book published in (Australian) English, my first try to reach a more international audience. After 15 novels published in German, I chose carefully which one to translate first. Generation 23 was chosen because it is one of my very few serious works, not driven by humor but by mystery and dystopian storytelling. You could call it a Science Fiction novel, but it is rather a murder mystery set in the vastness of space. Earth is destroyed, humanity survived on giant generation ships traveling to new systems, a journey taking hundreds, if not thousands of years. How does society, how do social and humanitarian principles survive such a long isolation? That was one of the main questions I wanted to answer, wrapped up in a murder/conspiracy investigation.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

When I was 9 years old, my uncle – a public servant in rural Australia – had to liquidate a library. Instead of bringing the books to the recycling depot, he hired a truck and drove them to my home, where my father had a smaller, empty hose next to ours which became our private library. I grew up reading hundreds and thousands of books, many of them not suitable for my age back then. But this excessive reading over many years triggered my desire to write.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

The Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons - simply the best SF ever written.
VALIS by Philip K. Dick - the best way to question reality
Das Kapital by Karl Marx - unlike the manifesto, this one is a deep, critical analysis of the shifts in society and economy back then.
Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe - You can't understand the essence of Australia without reading Pascoe. He is a genius.
The Worldwar tetralogy by Harry Turtledove - a lesson in alternate history if there ever was one

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

H. P. Lovecraft, just to find out if he was really the blatant racist and misanthrope many of my peers believe him to have been.

What's your favorite thing about writing?

My favorite thing is the writing of chapters defining for my characters, the passages in which their true self is revealed. Usually, I have the general plot, an idea what the situation will be like after such a critical chapter, but the journey is the one of my protagonists, I just accompany them and write about it.

What is a typical day like for you?

Usually, I get up around 7 AM, have a coffee, write an hour or two, begin my day job work and end that one around 6 PM. Then I do some sports and meditation before back to writing and editing. On weekends and holidays, the day job work is substituted by motorbike rides, hiking in the Blue Mountains - or more writing and editing.

What scene from Generation 23 was your favorite to write?

That's hard to answer without spoilers. My favorite scene is actually the only erotic encounter in the book, very close to being explicit - not because of the steamy content and dirty fantasies, but because it is essential to solve one of the mysteries.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

"Don't be a dick." - you can boil the message of the New Testament, the Imperative of Kant, the definition of Freedom by Sir Karl Popper down to that single line. "Don't be a dick."

Ivan Ertlov is the author of the new book Generation 23

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Interview with Steve Physioc, Author of Walks With The Wind

What can you tell us about your new release, Walks With The Wind?

Walks with the Wind is a vision quest story about a young man from the Southern Ute Tribe in southwest Colorado. Sam Cloud-Carson has a good life. He's a budding baseball phenom who packs the stands with scouts. He's surrounded by a loving family. And he's well known as the best wildlife tracker anyone has ever seen--anyone including Drake Dixon. Dixon owns a private military company and wants to use Sam's tracking skills for his security team in war-torn Afghanistan. When the worst day in Sam's life becomes the best day of Drake's, their paths become impossibly intertwined in a journey across the globe--a journey with life-altering implications for them both.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

My mom, Bette, inspired me to read. She always had a book with her. I remember as a fourth-grader, sitting at her feet while she read Kenneth Roberts' novel Arundel to me. It amazed me how someone could be so creative with their words to form these images in my mind. How did they do it? I read everything after that, particularly historical fiction, stories about the American Revolution, the birth of our nation, the Lewis and Clark adventure, the War of 1812, the history of slavery, the genocide of our Native American culture, WWI, WWII, etc. I believe my love of storytelling led me to become a baseball broadcaster. The history of the game fascinates me, and the game itself is perfect for one who loves to tell stories. It's basically five minutes of action and three hours of conversation. I've been telling sports stories for 45 years, and in recent years, returned to my first love...books.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

Tough question...so many to choose from. But I'll go with the ones that moved me as I grew up.

a) Arundel by Kenneth Roberts

b) Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

c) Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

d) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (entire series)

e) A Course in Miracles

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

Diana Gabaldon of the Outlander series. We've become friends, and her story about how she became a writer is fascinating. I think Diana is one of the best of our era, a true artist who writes with such passion and heart, who has that rare ability to pull her readers into the story and make them fall in love with her characters. She's brilliant. My question..."What motivated you to write Outlander and how has Doug (her husband) inspired you in your writing?" He's a great guy!

What's your favorite thing about writing?

Writing about characters who want to be better. As humans, we all will face some kind of crisis in our lives. How will we handle it? What will we do? Will we grow from the experience or let it bring us down? I like writing about people, who, if they were real, I'd like to spend time with...maybe have them over for dinner...or at least a glass of wine. I think we'd be good friends.

What is a typical day like for you?

Wake up at 5 a.m. Pray. Meditate. Write. Coffee. Granola. Walk dog two miles. Stationary bike. Yoga. Write, write, write, read, read, read. Nap. Walk dog again. Go to the ballpark. Talk baseball. Come home. Do it again the next day. I'm blessed to share all of this with the woman I want to walk home to God with, my wife, Stace.

What scene from Walks With The Wind was your favorite to write?

So many. Sam's scenes with his sister, Jenny. Pitching in college. Tracking in the wild of Afghanistan.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

"If you knew who walked beside you on a path that you have chosen, fear would be impossible." - A Course in Miracles

Steve Physioc is the author of the new book Walks With The Wind

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Interview with Jenny Hale, Author of The Memory Keeper

What can you tell us about your new release, The Memory Keeper?

The Memory Keeper is a story about finding lost loves, chasing dreams, and the people who show up when they're needed the most. This book is very close to my heart, as it's the first book published by my new romantic fiction imprint Harpeth Road Press, although it's the 16th published novel over my career.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

Other authors inspired me to write my first story. Two notable authors that I was reading when I thought, "I can do this, too," were Jill Mansell and Harriet Evans.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

Oh wow--that's hard! I can't pick just books because there are so many! Anything by the ladies above, Debbie Macomber, Sophie Kinsella, and out of genre, but wonderful is the great Bill Bryson.

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest?

What would you want to ask? I think I'd like to have a panel of guests with my favorite writers: Emily Giffin, Mary Kay Andrews, Nicholas Sparks, Sophie Kinsella, Jennifer Weiner, Richard Paul Evans, Jill Mansell, Harriet Evans, and tons of others. Instead of asking a question, I'd sit us all in a circle and ask them to start throwing out story ideas.

What's your favorite thing about writing?

Editing! The first draft always kills me. It's literally me just throwing down the story so I have something to play with. Editing is when I go back in and add layers to the characters and setting, funny moments, sometimes I'll even write the ending at this stage so that it can be really impactful once I have all the little sparkly things in place.

What is a typical day like for you?

Long. Ha. I get up at 6 a.m. and sit at my desk. I usually work seven days a week and spend all day at my desk, only getting up to do things with the kids or exercise. The rest of the time I'm working, usually with headphones on and coffee shop sounds playing to drown out the rest of the house's noise. When we aren't in the middle of a pandemic, I will often go to coffee shops to work. I get my best writing out of the house.

What scene from The Memory Keeper was your favorite to write?

I loved writing all the scenes with Hannah's best friend Ethan. Hannah was his person--the only other creative he knew. They had a bond that was unbreakable, and their best friend chemistry was so fun to write.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

The time will pass whether you do it or not, so do it.

Jenny Hale is the author of the new book The Memory Keeper

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Interview with Terri Osburn, Author of In Over Her Head

What can you tell us about your new release, In Over Her Head?

In Over Her Head is the story of two people who have both sworn off relationships but for opposite reasons. She believes that if you let people in, they’ll always let you down. He believes that he’s guaranteed to let people down so he won’t let anyone get close enough to really care about him. That makes a friends-with-benefits agreement idea, until one of them changes the rules. Things get bumpy from there. Readers will also get to visit with lots of familiar characters from the previous books in the series, and there’s a fun twist at the end that ties the heroine to the island even more.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I fell in love with books at a very young age, and romance around my middle school years. I’m not sure it was any one person, but I remember wanting to make other feel the way the books made me feel. That feeling of satisfaction and happiness and escape. Those books were my friends and my key to a world I had no other means to experience. We didn’t even take vacations when I was growing up so romances were the way I could leave small town Ohio behind or English ballrooms and the untamed Wild West.

About fourteen years ago, with the support and help of an amazing group of friends (many of whom are bestselling and award winning authors today) I started creating my own worlds and stories and it’s by far been the most rewarding endeavor of my life.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

Narrowing this down to five is so hard! But if I must. First would be Welcome To Temptation by Jennifer Cruise, with her Bet Me a close second. Then I’d have to go with After The Parade by Dorothy Garlock. The book is actually the 2^nd about the same lead couple and it absolutely rips your heart out before tucking it back in. Brutal but beautiful. The fifth would have to be from LaVyrle Spencer, but I’m not sure I can choose between Morning Glory an Years so I’ll just call it a tie.

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

I had to think about this but then I went right back to my last answer. I would love to chat with LaVyrle Spencer. First, she’s my favorite writer ever, but she also navigated her career in such a unique way. While many authors are locked in by genre or time period, she wasn’t. Ms. Spencer wrote everything from contemporaries to historicals, and if she was a brand new writer right now I have no doubt she’d be told over and over again that she couldn’t do many of the things she did. From writing about infidelity, both in the past and on the page, to love and religious vows and the worthiness of those who have been incarcerated. She simply saw no boundaries in the stories she wanted to tell. Add that she walked away from writing at the height of her success and I can only imagine what a fascinating conversation that would be.

What's your favorite thing about writing?

I love the freedom that writing has given me. Both in that I work for myself on my own schedule, and in the opportunities I’ve been granted because of this career. I’ve traveled much farther than I ever dreamed I’d be able to do, and I’ve met more amazing people than I can count. There are the readers who never fail to make me feel like a rock star while I continuously assure them that I am quite plain and boring, and the fellow writers who support and boost and defend each other at every turn. Who wouldn’t love to get paid to write happily ever afters? It’s the greatest job ever.

What is a typical day like for you?

A typical day for me is night time. I know that sounds odd, but I’m a complete night owl and I basically sleep while everyone else is awake, and work while everyone else is asleep. There are times of the year I flipped this back around, but I always fall right back into the same pattern eventually. For instance, I’m typing this out just after eleven at night while wondering what I should have for dinner. The routine isn’t very exciting, at least not in the last year. In the past, I went to concerts and professional hockey games and traveled a lot. Now I start my day be catching up on email and social media, then I write my words before streaming some shows or videos in the early morning hours. I’m looking forward to the day when we can all once again take in a live show and hop on a plane for a fun trip to just about anywhere.

What scene from In Over Her Head was your favorite to write?

I’ve been writing in the Anchor Island series off and on since 2013 and the scenes that include all of my heroines interacting together are the most fun to write. Now that many of them have small children, that’s made those scenes even better. But there is one scene in In Over Her Head that is my favorite for a different reason. To give too many details would mean spoiling something important in the story, but I can say that the scene is near the end and that I cried like a baby while writing it. There were elements that hit very close to home for me, as the mother of a daughter about to graduate college and ventured out on her own, so that made this particular scene a bit more meaningful.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

My main philosophy is all about being positive to the point that a friend actually calls me Pollyanna. I made a choice about fifteen years ago that I was going to find the positive whenever possible, and that one decision changed my life. It’s absolutely true that what you put out to the world is what you get back. If you expect bad things to happen, then bad things happen. This isn’t to say that I’ve never had a difficult time or that staying positive is easy, but it does get easier the more you practice. I know many people who seem to go through life being miserable (some to whom I’m related even) but I just don’t want to live like that. So I choose happiness. I choose positivity. And my life has been all the better for that choice.

Terri Osburn is the author of the new book In Over Her Head

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Interview with Edwin Dasso, One of the Authors of Her Silent Shadow

What can you tell us about your new release, Her Silent Shadow?

The set contains 13 psychological thrillers by WSJ, USA Today and Amazon best-selling authors. The stories run the spectrum for style and topics but all are engaging.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I'd kept a log of strange things that I experienced over my years in medicine, thinking I'd use them for writing a book someday. My kids got tired of hearing me say, "someday I need to write a book with all this stuff" and finally told me "just do it already!" So I did. I'd enjoyed writing when I was younger and found I still did, so ended up writing a number of novels. It's been fun!

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

Some that come to mind are Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy, Hong Kong by Stephen Coonts, Jackdaws by Ken Follett, Memorial Day by Vince Flynn, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. All had great characters.

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

Michele Obama. All kinds of things! Mostly, I want to understand her experiences as a black woman training in law and what it was like during her First Lady days.

What's your favorite thing about writing?

My favorite part is creating the first draft when all I focus on is being creative. People have often asked how I think of things to write and I tell them, when I'm in the groove, it's like watching a movie in my head. I don't consciously "think" about what to write - it just flows. The greatest challenge for me is typing fast enough to capture all the action!

What is a typical day like for you?

I've recently retired so "typical" still isn't established. I've built my own house in the past 18 mos, wrote and published 2 books at the same time (I'd never do that again!). With Covid about, I've limited much travel or socializing but still volunteer for such things as working on fixing up homes for homeless Veterans (working with Operation Renewed Hope Foundation) and have recently come out of retirement to work at a Covid vaccine clinic. Oh yeah...I'm still writing, too!

What scene from Her Silent Shadow was your favorite to write?

My story contribution to the set is, Edge of Reality. My favorite scene is when Amanda Bass, the daughter of the main character, is attacked by 3 drunken thugs when she is leaving her college dorm. She kicks their asses! A theme throughout my books is strong female characters. I love giving them the power to be resilient and self-directed!

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

The Golden Rule. Simple, but powerful and if one keeps it in mind, it can be a guide to making good decisions when interacting with others.

Edwin Dasso is the author of the new book Her Silent Shadow

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Interview with Erik Therme, Author of If She Dies

What can you tell us about your new release, If She Dies?

My greatest fear, as it must be with most parents, I imagine, is the death of a child. How do you live through that moment, let alone the days, months, and years that follow? Tess, the protagonist of If She Dies, has no answer to this question: only pain, grief, and a struggling marriage. Her one solace is following and watching Eve Becker, the 12-year-old daughter of the man who killed her daughter, as a way to cope with her own loss. When Eve goes missing, Tess is the likely suspect and must learn the truth to prove her innocence.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I often joke that I learned to write by reading Stephen King, but it’s the truth. I discovered the novel Misery in junior high and immediately began crafting my own tales of horror. Most were pretty lousy, but the more King I devoured, the more respectable my writing became. Eventually I moved away from the ‘supernatural elements’ and found my own style and voice.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

My favorite novel, hands down, is Gone Girl (Gillian Flynn), which is a captivating story with dysfunctional characters you can’t help but root for. Winter’s Bone (Daniel Woodrell) is a beautiful and horrific tale of redemption, family, and survival, and A Simple Plan (Scott Smith) taught me an important “rule” of writing: tell a simple story with complex characters. I’m also a huge fan of Rachel Caine’s Stillhouse Lake series, which follows a woman who has lived through a horrible tragedy, and in many ways, was the inspiration for If She Dies. Last, but certainly not least, is Stephen King’s The Stand. King’s character development is always excellent, but there’s no question he raises the bar with this one. Even his most flawed characters have redeeming qualities—so much so, that you sometimes find yourself empathizing with the bad guys.

What's your favorite thing about writing?

Getting the words just right. I'm a semi-compulsive organizer, and I can easily spend hours making spreadsheets, lists, or reorganizing the nooks and crannies of our home. Writing, for me, is the ultimate form of organization: You type words and sentences onto a screen, then rearrange them until they’re exactly the way you want. It’s not uncommon for me to spend an hour on a single paragraph, but once it’s finally right, it’s the most fulfilling feeling in the world.

What is a typical day like for you?

A typical writing session for me is as follows: open Word, type a few sentences, check e-mail, check Twitter, type a few more sentences, check Facebook . . . aaaand rinse and repeat. It’s a miracle I get anything written. It’s also probably the reason it takes me forever to finish a book. I do have moments where I get into the zone and write big chunks without distraction, but those are usually few and far between. Needless to say, I’m not a very prolific writer.

Any guilty pleasures?

I’m not a very outdoorsy person (outside of mowing my lawn or retrieving my mail), yet, for some inexplicable reason, I’m obsessed with reality shows like Mountain Men and Alaska: The Last Frontier. I think it’s because I’m so far removed from that life that it’s mind boggling to think people can be that resourceful and adventurous. And I commend them . . . as I sit on my couch, in front of my fireplace, eating Doritos.

What scene from If She Dies was your favorite to write?

There isn’t a particular scene that stands out, but I really enjoyed crafting the scenes between Tess and her husband Josh, as this is the first time (in six published novels) I’ve written a married protagonist. Much to my wife’s chagrin, I often found myself drawing from our real life conversations, and many of Tess and Josh’s quirks and beliefs—good and bad—are based in fact. That said, my wife had preemptive “veto” power over anything that hit too close to home.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

“Worry does nothing but steal your joy and keep you busy doing nothing.” Of course, this is often easier said than done.

Erik Therme is the author of the new book If She Dies

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Interview with SJ Cunningham, Author of All This Was Mission

What can you tell us about your new release, All This Was Mission?

All This was Mission is a story of self-reflection and self-forgiveness, and coming to terms with human existence.

It follows the journey of Madeline, who has made many mistakes—in her marriage and her life—and has paid dearly for them. She finds herself visiting a mysterious tropical resort called Ashrama with a group of strangers, all with their own problems.

Her trinity of hosts appears to have an ulterior motive for their guests’ visit, and Madeline must figure out what they intend for her. Ashrama holds many secrets, and in the end, as in the beginning, this place is not what it seems.

But neither is Madeline.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I’ve always been an avid reader and I’ve always written, whether that was for personal satisfaction or as a part of my job. I have a degree in English Literature and creative writing, and I’ve been lucky to be able to pursue writing as a passion and to write as a part of my profession.

Writing All This Was Mission was a little bit different, in that it was very personal for me. As I hit middle age, I started to think back a lot about my life and things that maybe I could have done differently, and I realized that a lot of other people probably feel the same way.

At the same time, there is a danger in living in the past, just as there is a danger in looking for the next best thing in the future-- because life is right here, in the present moment.

Writing All This Was Mission helped to remind me of the importance of living life right now in the present moment, and I hope that reading All This Was Mission will help my readers or audience to remember that, too.

What's on your top 5 list for the best books you've ever read?

This is a tough one!

Literary Fiction: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte—I love the dark moodiness and the poetic narrative.

Poetry/Philosophy: The Duino Elegies—Ranier Maria Rilke—Hands down the best work of literature that describes the human experience, in my opinion.

Romance: Coast Road by Barbara Delinsky—I still get chills when I read this book. It’s such a raw and honest look at failed marriage, family mistakes, regrets and hope.

Historical Fiction: The Secret Magdalene by Ki Longfellow—A controversial work that gives a feminist take on the Gospel. It offers a completely different perspective on a story that one typically accepts as Truth.

Young Adult: The Princess Bride by William Goldman—In addition to being a really great love story and action and adventure novel with amazing characterization and an extremely tight plot, I admire the use of the frame technique that Goldman uses. Masterful.

Say you're the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

William Buter Yeats. I’m fascinated with his mysticism and interest in the occult. My question to him would be: How did your particular spiritual beliefs contribute to your writing and your creative process?

What's your favorite thing about writing?

I consider myself an organized person. Generally, in my professional life, I am a planner, but when I write, no matter how adamant I am that I am going to stick to an outline, my characters seem to do things that surprise me. So I’ve stopped planning so much in my writing process. While that is sometimes hard for me, because I like control, I love the ways in which the characters take me by surprise. In those situations, it almost feels like the writing is coming through me rather than from me.

What is a typical day like for you?

I’ve been lucky in the past few months to have the opportunity to work for myself. I typically eat breakfast, then either write or work on a project for my Communications consulting business, Four Score Strategies. Around noon, I exercise for an hour, then run any errands or take care of administrative details. After dinner, I try to either write more or I read, but sometimes I binge watch The Office or something on Netflix.

What scene from All This Was Mission was your favorite to write?

Chapter 16, which is the final chapter (before the epilogue). It felt like a total release to write that part of the story, because it was the resolution to all that Madeline has gone through in her journey. She still has work to do, but her path has become clear to her. When I was writing that chapter, the words just seemed to flow from me.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

Yes, and the title of this novel comes from this passage by Ranier Maria Rilke in the Duino Elegies, the first Elegy.

Yes, the springtime needed you. Often a star was waiting for you to notice it. A wave rolled toward you out of the distant past, or as you walked under an open window, a violin yielded itself to your hearing.

All this was mission. But could you accomplish it? Weren’t you always distracted by expectation, as if every event announced a beloved?

To me, this passage is about our ability to live in the present moment and be okay with life as it comes to you. As humans, we have a hard time doing that. We’re always looking for the next best thing, when just to be here, just to exist is a gift.