Guest Post: The Side Stories of My Characters by Katie Eagan Schenck

When I wrote the first draft of A Home for Christmas, I actually wrote several chapters from Lilly’s point of view. I loved delving deeper into her character, and it helped me to understand her so much more than if I hadn’t gotten in her head.

However, a developmental editor I’d hired didn’t think it worked for the book, as she’d never read a romance that wasn’t from a single or dual point of view. So, I went back and rewrote Lilly’s chapters to make them from Brad and/or Shelly’s viewpoint. But I still have Lilly’s chapters in earlier draft form, and I’ve considered turning them into a short story. She had her own romantic interest, after all, and it’d be fun to delve into that a bit more.

I’ve also considered expanding the world of the book to write about the other characters. Whether that would be in the form of more novels or short stories, I haven’t decided yet. But I could see a story for Beatrice and Wallace, giving them their own second chance in a “seasoned” romance. I’d also love to write about Susan and Annabelle, and their journey to being parents. And then there’s Kylie. She could use a love story all her own.

Unfortunately, between the fantasy series and the other two books, I don’t know when I’ll have the time to do these stories justice. But I’ll keep them in mind for the future!

Debut author, Katie Eagan Schenck, writes sweet romance that warms the heart and gives all the feels. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s either working on regulations for the federal government or binging Hallmark movies. She lives in Maryland with her husband, daughter, and their three cats.

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A Home For Christmas

by Katie Eagan Schenck

Genre: Contemporary Holiday Romance

Brad has just one wish this Christmas: to find a real home. Having lost his parents before joining the Marines, he misses that sense of belonging and family. When he meets an introverted flight attendant on his journey to start his civilian life, he wonders if this might be his chance.

After a messy divorce, Shelly has decided the only person allowed within the brittle walls of her broken heart is her daughter, Lilly. At least, until she meets a friendly man who hails from her hometown while working a routine flight. When she learns he needs a place to stay, she offers the apartment over her garage out of the kindness of her heart – and her desperate need for extra cash.

Even as Brad endears himself to Shelly by saving the town’s Christmas pageant, she attempts to keep her distance to protect the fragile stability she’s built since her divorce. But Brad’s willingness to walk the fine line between what Shelly’s heart wants and what her head allows slowly wears down her resolve. And when Brad receives a job offer near the only family he has left, Shelly must decide whether she’s willing to risk her heart again before he leaves her home, and her life, for good.

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Guest Post: Creative Inspiration for Raine of Fire by Susan Stradiotto

Creative Inspiration for Raine of Fire

By Susan Stradiotto, author of Raine of Fire

I find that life and sometimes the tiniest situations offer much in the way of creative energy for me. The world and characters in Raine of Fire are no exception. In truth, the book does have some little gems that crept in from my day-to-day life. I probably have no way to name them all, but I thought I would share a few in this article.

When I wrote this novel, I had recently visited Glasgow, Scotland. Wickney Square, where Raine performs, is greatly inspired by George Square in Glasgow. Many photos of that can be found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Square. I took liberties with what kinds of statues were in place and the shops on the northern length of the square, but WPD (Wickney Police Department) and the courthouse are largely based on the buildings you see in these photos.

I live in a suburb of Minneapolis, and we have a bar downtown called The Local. So, I’m sure you can guess where Wickney’s Local and Local U came from. It’s namely the inspiration for the upstairs portion of the club in Wickney. The lower level could really be attributed to any nightclub you might have visited. There are some fabulous photos of the inside of Minneapolis’s Local on this website: https://www.minneapolis.org/directory/the-local-an-irish-pub/.

When I conceived of this series, my aim was to create characters in the vein of Richard Castle and Kate Beckett from the TV series Castle or Bones and Booth from Bones. I wanted it to be that kind of romantic banter that teases people into “shipping” the characters and craving the next episode to find out if they’ll ever have the first kiss or date. The one I never planned to emulate was Lucifer. In fact, I’d never watched it before I started getting reviews telling me how similar they are. I agree, but I do assure you it’s total coincidence.

Raine’s love for whiskey is greatly based on my son, who doesn’t drink but found his love for Scotch while we visited Scotland. Kennedi’s mother’s name is a family name. And her migraines, well, I suffered from those for many years.

The choice of Wisconsin for placing my fictional city was entirely random, but I once traveled to Minocqua to visit a friend and loved the area. So placing the Minocqua Mental Health Center there was because I found it quite peaceful in northern Wisconsin.

Raine of Fire

A Wickney Mystery Novel

by Susan Stradiotto

Genre: Epic Fantasy Mystery, Paranormal Romance

Sparks fly when an exiled Fae prince and a straight-laced detective team up to solve a murder.

Banished by his mother from Faerie, Raine Abarta wants nothing more than to entertain people on the streets of Wickney, Wisconsin. But when the daughter of a prominent senator stumbles upon his show, he’s drawn into her world and her mother’s murder.

When Raine takes his act down to the police department with intentions of helping solve the puzzle–or, uh, the “case”–he meets the ultra-serious Detective Kennedi Craine. To his dismay, she views him as nothing more than a charlatan, but when has that ever stopped him?

Kennedi’s latest case is open and shut, more of a paperwork and media hassle than a case. Senator La Point, after all, was holding the smoking gun over his wife’s lifeless body. So, when a random guy off the street walks in telling her she’s wrong, she sends him on his merry way. At least she thinks she does. As he keeps popping up, she begins to wonder if he’s on to something. And when he broaches a situation from her past, she just can’t leave him alone.

Raine helps her solve another small case, and she starts to wonder if there might be something more to both mysteries before her.

Fabulous read for fans of the TV shows Castle and Bones.

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Susan Stradiotto is passionate about the written word, whether it is in her own writing or her editing practice. She is a fan of well-told stories. Susan is always searching for unique voices and stories that tell a truth. As Neil Gaiman said in his master class, “Write the truest story you can.” She believes that is what makes a story sing.

Susan is an author of fantasy and romance and has professional editorial experience with genres such as romance, memoir, mystery/thriller, cozy mystery, fantasy, and women’s fiction. She attended Capella University for her BS in Information Technology and the University of Chicago’s Graham School for her professional editing certification. She lives in Eden Prairie with her husband, a hoard of Bernese Mountain Dogs, and one Miniature Dachshund.

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Series Spotlight: The Versipellis Mysteries by Rhen Garland

A Portrait of Death

The Versipellis Mysteries Book 1

by Rhen Garland

Genre: Historical Supernatural Mystery

A Victorian house party, a supernatural mystery, and two very special investigators.

England
1899

Immortal detectives Elliott Caine and Abernathy Thorne have spent centuries searching through time for the reincarnations of their murdered wives. As their quest continues, they use their many lifetimes of knowledge to solve Gothic mysteries that can be unsettling, and sometimes terrifying.

Never before have they been faced with a case like this.

The great and the good are gathered for the social event of the season, but the evening comes to a horrifying halt when the mutilated remains of two men are discovered artistically displayed in the portrait gallery. As Caine and Thorne begin their investigations, they uncover more than the usual murderous web of intrigue, espionage, and treason.

An ancient evil is stalking ever closer, intent on finding that which they seek.

Where does the mysterious agent Versipellis fit into the case? And who is the shadowy figure watching Caine and Thorne with such interest?

Find out who, when, why, what, and how in this very Victorian murder mystery; the first instalment in a new Gaslamp fantasy series that drips with elements of Gothic mystery, historical urban fantasy, and rather a lot of blood as we follow the exploits of immortal Victorian detectives Elliott Caine and Abernathy Thorne in the latter stages of the Victorian world.

“As soon as you start reading, it gets you hooked, and you just can’t put it down.”

“Wonderful twists and turns in the story line kept me wanting to read what happened next.”

“A great debut novel from an author with an amazing imagination.” – Katylou 1966

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Death In the Sound

The Versipellis Mysteries Book 2

Death and diamonds in the green heart of New Zealand.

New Zealand
1900

Responding to a desperate plea from an old friend, Caine, Giselle, and Thorne, accompanied by Veronique the Labrador, travel to New Zealand to investigate a simple case of blackmail that explodes into a far more shocking crime.

A Psychic, a dancer, and illusionists are amongst the honoured guests invited to a weekend party aboard a luxurious paddle steamer moored in the isolated grandeur of Milford Sound, where reclusive millionaire philanthropist Octavius Damant is determined to throw his daughter a twenty-first birthday party to remember.

The celebrations are cancelled, however, when a hideous murder is committed and the engines are sabotaged, trapping everyone on board with a killer willing to stop at nothing to achieve their evil schemes.

As the body count rises, Caine, Giselle, and Thorne must piece together a devilish puzzle involving extortion, desire, the reappearance of the fabulous Larkspur Diamond, and the return of a face from Thorne’s past.

Just when they feel they are beginning to unravel the case, the truth about events centuries earlier threatens to destroy everything they thought they knew about their own past lives.

Find out who, when, why, what, and how in this very Victorian murder mystery; the second instalment in a new Gaslamp fantasy series that drips with elements of Gothic mystery, historical urban fantasy, and rather a lot of blood as we follow the exploits of immortal Victorian detectives Elliott Caine and Abernathy Thorne in the latter stages of the Victorian world.

“Stephen King meets Agatha Christie” – Hammerhead

“An excellent plot with lots of unexpected twists and many multi-layered characters.” – Katylou 1966

“Magical, mysterious and memorable.” – The Northernreader

“Vibrant characters and dark deeds combine to produce a creepy, cleverly plotted murder mystery with exciting originality.” – Jane Hunt

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The Shadow of Death

The Versipellis Mysteries Book 3

An horrific discovery leads to Caine and Thorne’s darkest investigation yet.

England
Christmas
1900

Fifteen years after a series of ritualistic murders drove the families of Cove to send their children away to safety, the survivors are returning to celebrate their first Christmas back on their island home…but the killer has also returned, and they have unpleasant plans for those who fled their reign of terror so many years ago…

When a murder is committed during the Yule archery shoot, Caine, Giselle, Thorne, Aquilleia, and Veronique the Labrador find themselves thrown into a terrifying Gothic mystery that involves sinister cultists, family secrets, hidden passages, and the horrifying reappearance of the abomination Filicidae: a malevolent being who kills for pleasure.

Hope is offered by one of their kind from Astraea, whose gift could be used to defeat the creature once and for all.

But unbeknownst to Caine and his friends, deep in the catacombs of Cove Castle, there dwells a nightmare…

Find out who, when, why, what, and how in this very Victorian murder mystery; the third instalment in a new Gaslamp fantasy series that drips with elements of Gothic mystery, historical urban fantasy, and rather a lot of blood as we follow the exploits of immortal Victorian detectives Elliott Caine and Abernathy Thorne in the latter stages of the Victorian world.

“The third book of the Versipellis mysteries is the darkest of the series so far and the best in my opinion.” – Hammerhead

“Garland is a great storyteller in her genre of the Victorian whodunnit with a supernatural twist” – Katylou 1966

“The emerging details of the “other realm” shows the wonderful imagination of this author. I certainly can’t wait for the next book in the series.”

“Holmes meets Highlander via Hammer House of Horror!

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Rhen Garland is the author of the The Versipellis mysteries – a series of Gaslamp Fantasies set in the late Victorian, early Edwardian era that follow the adventures of immortal detectives Elliott Caine and Abernathy Thorne as they search through time for the reincarnations of their murdered wives…and solve a few murders along the way.

I live in Somerset, England, with my book illustrating, folk-singing husband, approximately 5000 books, an equal number of ancient movies, and a large collection of passive-aggressive Tomtes. My achievements are more from the school of life, rather than that of College or University. My early years choice of reading material was rather suspect for my age. The first Agatha Christie I ever read was “By the Pricking of my Thumbs” when I was nine years old; a child of that age reading and enjoying a murder mystery about a child killer explains a great deal about the type of novel I write today.

When I was diagnosed with CFS at the age of thirty, I realised that I could either go mad staring at four walls all day, or I could try to apply what little parts of my brain still worked and have a bash at writing a murder mystery set in the 1920’s…things didn’t quite turn out the way I’d planned!

I thought when I finally started writing that my books would be genteel “cosy” type murder mysteries set in the Golden Era (I love the 1920’s and 30’s for the style, music, and automobiles), with someone being politely bumped off at the Vicar’s tea party and the corpse then apologising for disrupting proceedings. Instead, the late Victorian era came thundering over the horizon armed with some fantastical and macabre plotlines and a complete refusal to accept the word “no”; it planted itself in my stories, my characters, and my life, and would not budge.

I watch far too many old school murder mystery films, TV series, and 1980s action movies for it to be considered healthy. No one will play movie quizzes with me anymore…further evidence of a misspent youth!

I love the countryside, Prosecco, tea, the cocktail hour (the pinnacle of the civilised world!), and the works of Dame Ngaio Marsh, Dame Gladys Mitchell, John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickson, Dame Agatha Christie, Sir Terry Pratchett, Simon R Green, and David and Leigh Eddings.

My books are Victorian in era, messy in their murders, creepy in their otherness, and will make you double check the windows are all locked before you go to bed. What’s not to like about mysteries with a touch of Grand Guignol?

Find Rhen at the ChillerCon UK – Horror comes to Scarborough! (chillercon-uk.com) this week!

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Guest Post: Thanks Mr. Lizard by Pamela Gibson

Thanks Mr. Lizard

I was introduced to the Regency period of British history when I returned from my first trip to England.  I had carelessly made a promise to my five-year-old who had just watched Godzilla and a few other monsters annihilate London via an old tv movie, and begged to go there. “When you’re nine,” I said, picking a number out of the air. Sure enough, on his ninth birthday, my son pointedly reminded me of the promise.

We went the following summer and I fell in love with its history, its people, its quaint country villages, its grand estates. When I came home I began reading Regency period books by Mary Balogh, Jane Austen, even old Barbara Cartland books. I decided I wanted to write books like theirs and my Regency series was born.

Scandal’s Redemption is the fifth book of the series, but like all of my books, can be read as a stand-alone although it is about a twin. The other twin’s book is Scandal’s Deception which you might enjoy reading first, just to avoid spoilers.

If you love the Regency period, I hope you get to visit London one day (if you haven’t already). And I promise you, Godzilla is long gone.

Author of eight books on California history and eighteen romance novels, Pamela Gibson is a former City Manager who lives in the Nevada desert. Having spent the last few years messing about in boats, a hobby that included a five-thousand-mile trip in a 32-foot Nordic Tug, she now spends most of her time indoors happily reading, writing, cooking and keeping up with the antics of Ralph, the Rescue Cat. She loves dry red wine, all kinds of chocolate, old Jimmy Buffet sailing songs, and curling up with a good book.

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Scandal’s Redemption

The Scandal Series Book 5

by Pamela Gibson

Genre: Historical Regency Romance

Lady Jocelyn Stafford desperately needs a husband to repair her tarnished reputation. Her obvious choice is her neighbor James, a man who once fancied her. If only she hadn’t cruelly rejected his attentions when she found herself wooed by a scandalous rake with a better title.

James Margrave, Earl of Seaton, must have an heir to keep his estate from falling into the hands of his cousin, which means he has to marry. Lady Jocelyn, who still beguiles him, would be perfect if only he could forget old slights. Instead, James asks Jocelyn to help him find a suitable wife, a task she agrees to perform, hoping to redeem herself in his eyes.

When a series of attacks put James’s life in danger, an immediate marriage becomes critical. Jocelyn is willing and available. But can he trust a woman who once broke his heart and is it fair to wed her when she might become the next victim?

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Scandal’s Child

The Scandal Series Book 1

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Scandal’s Bride

The Scandal Series Book 2

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Scandal’s Promise

The Scandal Series Book 3

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Scandal’s Deception

The Scandal Series Book 4

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