Interview with Tessa Arlen, Author of Death of an Unsung Hero + Giveaway (US/Can)

I'd like to welcome Tessa Arlen to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Death of an Unsung Hero, the newest installment of the Lady Montfort Mysteries from Minotaur Books, a MacMillan imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Tessa! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Tessa Arlen, the daughter of a British diplomat, was brought-up and educated in the beautiful Chiltern Hills of England, when she was not visiting her parents oversees in Asia, India and Europe. Her books are set in the pastoral beauty of her native England among its flint-stone villages, softly rolling hills, and airy beech woods.

Greatest influences on Tessa's writing are hands down Kenneth Grahame and Richard Adams for their wonderful descriptions of the beauties of the English countryside, and E.F. Benson and Nancy Mitford whose characters are so quintessentially eccentric and wickedly funny.

Her pleasures in life are simple: cooking and enjoying good food with family and friends, long walks with short-legged dogs and planning her next garden project. She lives in Santa Fe.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which just hit shelves this week:

In 1916, the world is at war and the energetic Lady Montfort has persuaded her husband to offer his family’s dower house to the War Office as an auxiliary hospital for officers recovering from shell-shock with their redoubtable housekeeper Mrs. Jackson contributing to the war effort as the hospital’s quartermaster.

Despite the hospital’s success, the farming community of Haversham, led by the Montfort’s neighbor Sir Winchell Meacham, does not approve of a country-house hospital for men they consider to be cowards. When Captain Sir Evelyn Bray, one of the patients, is found lying face down in the vegetable garden with his head bashed in, both Lady Montfort and Mrs. Jackson have every reason to fear that the War Office will close their hospital. Once again the two women unite their diverse talents to discover who would have reason to murder a war hero suffering from amnesia.

Brimming with intrigue, Tessa Arlen's Death of an Unsung Hero brings more secrets and more charming descriptions of the English countryside to the wonderful Lady Montfort series.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

What inspired you to begin writing mysteries? Was the Lady Montfort Mysteries a series you always wanted to write?

Ever since I read Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes when I was fourteen I wanted to write mysteries. I particularly enjoyed the Golden Age mystery writers: Dorothy L. Sayers Agatha Christie, Josephine Tey, Ngaio Marsh and Margery Allingham often referred to as the Queens of Crime who wrote detective fiction between the wars. And it wasn’t until I started to write mystery that I discovered that they considered their whodunits as a game for both author and reader: the elements of the mystery must be clearly presented but in such a way as to arouse curiosity, to entice the reader to try and guess the outcome and if they were as clever as the author, to guess it before the denouement.

I also wanted to write about the great country houses of England with their enormous and gorgeous gardens in the 1910s, where life for the privileged few was idyllic thanks to their servants, their money and the rigidity of the class system. The "have-nots" of course had a much grimmer time of it. My two amateur sleuths in the Lady Montfort series are from opposite ends of the class system and struggle with issues in context with their time and place in history. Clementine Elizabeth Talbot the Countess of Montfort is from of one of the oldest families in England and her housekeeper, Edith Jackson, was raised in a parish orphanage. Together these two remarkable women step lightly across the great class divide of Edwardian Britain to unite their considerable talents in clandestine inquiries that take them into all walks of life in the new 20th century when even the status quo was on the cusp of great change.

You have wonderful leading ladies in Lady Montfort and her no-nonsense housekeeper, Mrs. Jackson. Are there any supporting characters that came easily to you in the writing process?

I am particularly fond of my villains: I think Teddy Mallory in Death of a Dishonorable Gentleman is a perfect example of an Edwardian rotten apple and I had great fun writing him. I write a short biography for my murderers: their physical appearance, idiosyncrasies, their likes and dislikes. I really enjoy enhancing the more positive aspects of their characters to camouflage their evil side, and then revealing little glimpses of their particular flaws.

But writing Clementine’s children came really easily to me, because I have three of my own –now grown-up, who gave me tons of fodder. In Death of an Unsung Hero, my favorite supporting character is Lady Montfort’s daughter Althea, who has skillfully avoided marriage to a "man of substance and background with a bank account to match" and has managed to engineer all sorts of opportunities for world travel. In the first three books she is a distant figure always off on another jaunt, but now that Britain is at war she is marooned on the family estate and is trying her best to run the local chapter of the Women’s Land Army or the Land Girls as they were called. The WLA was an organization tasked with providing farmers with labor—terribly important to an island cut off by the German U-boat blockade from importing food from America and Canada. Althea has to deal with farmers who don’t like the idea of city girls, or girls at all, working on their land. At the same time she is causing her mother all sorts of headaches as she is particularly independent in spirit and often irritated by the petty convention that young women of that time had to put up with. Althea was great fun to write she is bright, generous and sunny tempered but determined always to have a say in her world, to be effective and to contribute in a meaningful way. Althea could in fact be any one of my three daughters! There are some great scenes between her and her mother on the business of chaperones, and some lively moments with her and her brother when they decide to help their mother and Mrs. Jackson with some sleuthing. I found myself sympathizing with poor Clementine as she tried to deal with her independent daughter and her son, Harry, temporarily invalided out of the war, both of whom would rather be anywhere than on their father’s country estate.

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out the research that went into writing Death of an Unsung Hero, and what time period Tessa looks forward to writing about next. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of the book, so you don't want to miss that either!

Interview with Tom Malmquist, Author of In Every Moment We Are Still Alive + Giveaway (US only)

I'd like to welcome Tom Malmquist to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of In Every Moment We Are Still Alive from Melville House!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Tom! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Tom Malmquist is a poet and sportswriter. He has written two highly acclaimed poetry collections. In Every Moment We Are Still Alive is his first novel. He lives in Sweden.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which hit shelves earlier this month:

When Tom’s heavily pregnant girlfriend Karin is rushed to the hospital, doctors are able to save the baby. But they are helpless to save Karin from what turns out to be acute Leukemia. And in a cruel, fleeting moment Tom gains a daughter but loses his soul mate.

In Every Moment We Are Still Alive is the story of the year that changes everything, as Tom must reconcile the fury and pain of loss with the overwhelming responsibility of raising his daughter, Livia, alone.

By turns tragic and redemptive, meditative and breathless, achingly poignant and darkly funny, this autobiographical novel has been described as "hypnotic," "impossible to resist" and "one of the most powerful books about grief ever written."

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

What was the inspiration for the plot of your book?

The book is completely inspired by my life, or at least my perspective of my life. Everything in the book is true in how I experienced it. But if you asked my mother, her perspective would be different. That’s why I call this fiction.

I wanted to create a piece of art. I wanted to write a book that was good in its own right. The details in it are aesthetic choices I made while writing. Psychologically speaking, the details were important to me at the hospital and when I came home from the hospital; they became like linchpins, the things that kept me together, incorporated them into the book. But all the details were also representations of life and its diversity—they became the opposite of death, death as in complete emptiness.

Was there a section of your book that was particularly difficult to write?  

Every time I broke down when faced with a scene, I knew it was right. In that way the book was easy to write. But to constantly break down was physically taxing. I sweated, even had muscle cramps in my stomach. But while I was writing I was keeping Karin and my father alive. The hardest part was probably to hand over the manuscript to my publisher. It was like losing Karin and my father all over. The parts at the end of the book, where I write to Karin, were tough. It isn’t til then that my feelings and what I am thinking are expressed. It was my private goodbye to Karin.

The book is raw and direct, not describing emotions at all. What do you hope a reader will discover within the narrative that otherwise might have been masked by being obvious about the your internal struggle?

Each part of the book represents one of the five senses. For example, in the first part that takes place at the hospital, I’m carrying comfort blankets between Karin and Livia. At that time they were a thousand or so meters away from each other at the same hospital. Livia in an incubator; Karin hooked up to the life-support machines. The blanket with Livia’s scent was put next to Karin, and vice versa. It was my way of sustaining the contact between mother and daughter. So that they’d be able to breathe each other’s scent.

The important part here, literary-wise, aesthetics-wise, is that the five senses represent the body. In my sorrow Karin’s body was what no longer existed. It was cremated. I could never hug her again or experience her with my five senses at all. I hope a reader can understand the how much of my pain came from being deprived of the sensory experience of her.

How has your life changed since your book was published?

I don’t know. But I have changed. I lost my partner of ten years, became a father for the first time, lost my father, and wrote a book about it. And now I’m talking about it in various stages. Of course it has changed me.

I think the book helped me to see what had happened. It made it easier. I could accept my new life as a widower and father to Livia.

Tell us about your current work in progress.

It’s a book about a murder in my hometown of Huddinge. It’s going to be a true crime novel, but with a poet’s touch. I don’t want to say anything more than that now; I might promise something I can’t keep.

Where can you be found on the web?

Goodreads | Follow the tour!

It was a pleasure to be able to get to know you better today, Tom! Thank you again for dropping by, and best of luck with future endeavors!

Giveaway!

Books à la Mode is giving away one print copy of In Every Moment We Are Still Alive—woohoo! To enter, all you have to do is tell  me in the comments below:

What is an event in your life that another person would see very differently from how you did?

Please make your comment MEANINGFUL. Comments solely consisting of stock responses or irrelevant fluff like "Thanks for the giveaway!" will not be considered for entry. Tom and I really want to hear your thoughts! :)

Don't forget the entry eligibility terms and conditions!

Sponsored wholly by the tour publicist and publisher—a huge thank you to the lovely folks over at TLC Book Tours and Melville House!
Giveaway ends March 11th at 11.59 PM (your time).

Open to US residents only. Sorry, everyone else! Please check my sidebar on the right for a list of currently running giveaways that are open worldwide—there are plenty to choose from!
Void where prohibited.

Winners have 48 hours to claim their prize once they are chosen, or else their winnings will be forfeited.
Although I do randomly select winners, I am in no way responsible for prizes, nor for shipping and handling.
As a reminder, you do not have to follow my blog to enter, though it is always very much appreciated ❤

Good luck!

Interview with Marissa Stapley, Author of Things to Do When It's Raining + Giveaway (US/Can)

I'd like to welcome Marissa Stapley to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Things to Do When It's Raining from Graydon House, a Harlequin imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Marissa! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Marissa Stapley is the author of The Globe and Mail bestselling and critically acclaimed novel Mating for Life—"intriguing and heartbreaking" (Publisher's Weekly); "absorbing and entertaining" (Maclean's magazine)—and most recently, Things to Do When It's Raining, ​which author Lauren Fox calls "a gorgeously written page-turner", author Jennifer Robson calls "one of the best books I have read in a very long time" and author Karma Brown calls "a deeply moving story about family, love and loss".

Things to Do When It's Raining was released by Rowohlt in Germany and by Simon & Schuster in Canada and Graydon House (Harlequin) in the US on February 6, 2018.

Marissa also writes Shelf Love, a monthly commercial fiction review column for The Globe and Mail and reports on books and culture for the Toronto Star. She lives in Toronto with her family.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which hit shelves yesterday:

When secrets tear love apart, can the truth mend it?

Mae Summers has it all: a loving fiancé, Peter, a job at the flourishing company he owns and a beautiful New York City apartment. But Mae’s life shatters when she wakes up one morning to discover Peter gone—leaving only a cryptic note behind him—and the company in shambles, its investments founded on lies.

There’s only one place for Mae to go: home to Alexandria Bay, the small tourist town in upstate New York where she was raised by her grandparents in the inn they own. And not all is right in Alex Bay, either: Mae finds her grandmother struggling with dementia, separated from Mae’s grandfather thanks to a terrible secret she never meant to reveal.

She also finds Gabe, her childhood best friend who became the love of her young life—now a handsome if brooding adult, working through a private trauma that still haunts him.

A lifetime of secrets stands in the way of Mae and her family’s happiness. Home may be where the heart is, but sometimes it takes equal parts love, forgiveness and will to mend that heart.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

What has your journey been like to becoming a published author?

There’s a sign in my office with a Winston Churchill quote: Never,never, never give up. That’s the best summation for my publishing journey I can think of. I had many false starts and a many moments when I felt like packing in my dreams. But becoming an author is something I have wanted since childhood. I’ve never been anything but a writer—so I just kept on working at it, every single day. I’m often asked for advice on becoming published and I think people are surprised by my answers sometimes. It looks easy when you’ve reached your goal. But overnight success is rare. The most successful people I know are the ones who have worked the hardest and are still working hard.

How did you come up with the idea for Things to Do When It's Raining?  

My grandmother died while I was writing Mating for Life and I would say my single most regret in life is that I wasn’t able to be by her side in those final moments. We were extremely close, and I was still grieving when my first novel released and the time came for me to start working on my second book. I couldn’t stop thinking about my regret, and about some of the things that had come to light after she died. So I started to write, and this story about family secrets and regret began to take shape. I saw Chris Cleave speak a few years ago about his wonderful novel Everyone Brave is Forgiven. He said that his grandparents had inspired the story, but that as it began to take shape, the story became about something else entirely. They were just the seeds for the story. This is very much how fiction works. Inspiration is found in our lives or even the people we know or have known—but when we start writing, the characters become real. At least they should become real. For me, it took some time for it to happen. I didn’t want to let go of my grandmother. When I did, the story took shape. And I still felt her with me.

Would you mind sharing, in the spirit of Valentine's Day, a true love story from your own life?

A few years ago, while my family was away at the cottage in the summer, our house was broken into. My husband and I had decided—foolishly!—to leave our wedding rings at home because we didn’t want to lose them while swimming in the lake. The rings were gone, of course, and I was devastated. We had new rings made—I was able to use my grandmother’s diamond in my engagement ring, which gave it emotional significance—and then my husband put them away and asked me to wait. One morning, we got in the car and he wouldn’t tell me where we were going. We drove to my hometown, to a spot I had mentioned a few times as considering especially romantic: the bridge where the proposal scene between Anne and Gilbert was filmed in the original Anne of Green Gables television series. Even though we had been married almost a decade, my husband got down on one knee and proposed again. The bridge was very old and almost falling down so we didn’t linger! But it was very, very unexpected and sweet. And there’s more! After that, we headed back to Toronto, to one more bridge. If you haven’t read Mating for Life, I won’t give too much away, but there’s a bridge scene at the end—and that bridge has significance in our lives as well. I don’t often borrow from my own life, but I did for that scene, and my husband noticed. He had our wedding rings in his pocket, and we exchanged them on that bridge. We headed off to our favorite hotel spa for lunch and massages, and then home where our families were waiting for a special dinner. My stepfather is a minister and my husband had arranged for him to recreate part of the wedding ceremony he had performed years before. When the rings were stolen, I thought there would be no way we would have rings that could be as special. I was wrong.

Swoon! What are you favorite things to do when it’s raining?

There’s nothing I love more on a rainy day then covering myself in blankets and reading for hours. Even better if I can read something that’s purely for pleasure and not for review (I review books for The Globe and Mail) or novel research—although there’s always something delicious about reading a book under a blanket and telling myself it’s for work. Best job in the world!

Where can you be found on the web?

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Follow the tour!

It was a pleasure to be able to get to know you better today, Marissa! Thank you again for dropping by, and best of luck with future endeavors!

Giveaway!

Books à la Mode is giving away one print copy of Things to Do When It's Raining as part of the 2018 Valentine's Day tour for Harlequin—woohoo! To enter, all you have to do is tell  me in the comments below:

What's your favorite thing to do when raining?

Please make your comment MEANINGFUL. Comments solely consisting of stock responses or irrelevant fluff like "Thanks for the giveaway!" will not be considered for entry. Marissa and I really want to hear your thoughts! :)

I put on a fuzzy robe, plushy slippers, and stay burrowed under the covers for as long as I can. There's something so comforting about the cold and wet outside in contrast to the comfort and warmth of your own home.

Don't forget the entry eligibility terms and conditions!

Sponsored wholly by the tour publicist and publisher—a huge thank you to the lovely folks over at TLC Book Tours and Graydon House!
Giveaway ends February 26th at 11.59 PM (your time).

Open to US and Canada residents only. Sorry, everyone else! Please check my sidebar on the right for a list of currently running giveaways that are open worldwide—there are plenty to choose from!
Void where prohibited.

Winners have 48 hours to claim their prize once they are chosen, or else their winnings will be forfeited.
Although I do randomly select winners, I am in no way responsible for prizes, nor for shipping and handling.
As a reminder, you do not have to follow my blog to enter, though it is always very much appreciated ❤

Good luck!

Interview with Rebecca Drake, Author of Just Between Us + Giveaway (US/Can)

I'd like to welcome Rebecca Drake to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Just Between Us from St. Martin's Press, a MacMillan imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Rebecca! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Rebecca Drake is the author of the novels Don't Be Afraid, The Next Killing, The Dead Place, which was an IMBA bestseller, and Only Ever You, as well as the short story "Loaded," which was featured in Pittsburgh Noir. Just Between Us is her latest novel.

A former journalist and native New Yorker, Rebecca currently lives in Pittsburgh, PA, with her husband and two children.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which just hit shelves last month:

Four suburban mothers conspire to cover up a deadly crime in Just Between Us, a heart-stopping novel of suspense by Rebecca Drake.

Alison, Julie, Sarah, Heather. Four friends living the suburban ideal. Their jobs are steady, their kids are healthy. They’re as beautiful as their houses. But each of them has a dirty little secret, and hidden behind the veneer of their perfect lives is a crime and a mystery that will consume them all.

Everything starts to unravel when Alison spots a nasty bruise on Heather’s wrist. She shares her suspicions with Julie and Sarah, compelling all three to investigate what looks like an increasingly violent marriage. As mysterious injuries and erratic behavior mount, Heather can no longer deny the abuse, but she refuses to leave her husband. Desperate to save her, Alison and the others dread the phone call telling them that she’s been killed. But when that call finally comes, it’s not Heather who’s dead. In a moment they’ll come to regret, the women must decide what lengths they’ll go to in order to help a friend.

Just Between Us is a thrilling glimpse into the underbelly of suburbia, where not all neighbors can be trusted, and even the closest friends keep dangerous secrets. You never really know what goes on in another person’s mind, or in their marriage.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

As a huge fan of first lines, I’d love to hear the first line of Just Between Us. Could you give us a brief commentary on it?

I love first lines, too! Here’s the opening line of Just Between Us:

Funerals for murder victims are distinguished from other services by the curiosity seekers.

I’ve always been intrigued by the fact that as a society we’re drawn to immerse ourselves in public tragedies. People seem to feel a need to find a connection, however tenuous, with crimes or other calamitous events, and I’ve always found that somewhat macabre and fascinating.

Tell us about your road to publication, such as how you first queried, unexpected challenges, and things you picked up along the way.

My road to publication was long and varied, but I think that’s true for lots of writers. I knew from an early age that I wanted to be a novelist, but it took me many years to realize that dream. I started writing fiction seriously when my children were small and I had a couple of manuscripts in the drawer before having the good fortune to meet and be mentored by author Nancy Martin. She critiqued my then latest effort—it was a hard critique, but very valuable. It took me six months to rewrite that novel and I got my first agent after that.

Of course, like most writers, I had dreams of instant success, but that novel didn’t sell and it wasn’t until three proposals later that I landed a contract with an editor who liked my writing. I published three novels, and then I had a slow period, where I was living between the United States and Qatar, in the Persian Gulf, and there were numerous health crises with family members and friends. I kept writing, albeit more slowly, and ultimately I finished another book and found a new agent, who sold it to St. Martin’s Press. That book was Only Ever You, a standalone psychological thriller that came out in 2016. Just Between Us is my latest psychological thriller.

I’ve learned that it’s important to be persistent, to be brave, to advocate for yourself, and to learn as much as you can about the business, while staying focused on craft. Ultimately, the only thing writers can control is their craft.

Are the characters from your book based off anyone you know in real life? How much else of your actual life gets written into your fiction?

Yes and no. Writers pull from their lives all the time, but usually not the way that non-writers imagine. When I was writing my very first crime novel (which ended up in a drawer), I based a character on a really mean boss I’d had, killing him off in different ways through multiple revisions until I finally realized that I kept rewriting the scene because it was cathartic, not because it was important for the novel.

Since then, I’ve never based a character on a specific person. However, I’m often inspired by my real life and will incorporate the personality traits of people I know, or their ways of acting or speaking, in my work. For instance, Just Between Us explores friendship and loyalty, and I drew on my own friendships, particularly the way my female friends talk with and about each other, when creating the characters and their bond with one another.

Out of all the fantastic books out there, what makes Just Between Us stand out from the rest?

I don’t like to toot my own horn, but since you’re asking me to, I’ll repeat what early readers and reviewers have said, which is that Just Between Us is a fast-paced story with lots of plot twists and great characters that asks some really compelling questions: How far would you go to help a friend? And, how much can we ever know about another person’s marriage?

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out Rebecca's best personal and professional advice. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of Just Between Us, so you don't want to miss that either!

Interview with Maggie McConnon, Author of Bel, Book, and Scandal + Giveaway (US/Can)

I'd like to welcome Maggie McConnon to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Bel, Book, and Scandal from St. Martin's Press!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Maggie! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Maggie McConnon grew up in New York immersed in Irish culture and tradition. A former Irish stepdancer, she was surrounded by a family of Irish musicians who still play at family gatherings. She credits her Irish grandparents with providing the stories of their homeland and their extended families as the basis for the stories she tells in her Belfast McGrath novels.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which just hit shelves last week:

Maggie McConnon rings in Christmas in Bel, Book, and Scandal, the third adventure for everybody’s favorite Irish-American culinary artist turned amateur sleuth.

Bel McGrath tries her best to keep herself on the straight and narrow but she just has a taste for trouble. This time danger arrives in the form of a newspaper left behind by visitors to Shamrock Manor—and a photograph that jolts Bel out of the present and back into a dark chapter from her past. The person in the photo is Bel’s best friend Amy Mitchell, long gone from Foster’s Landing, at a commune in upstate New York shortly after her disappearance. The picture, and Bel’s burning desire to find out what happened to Amy—and whether she may still be alive—is the catalyst for a story in which old secrets are revealed, little by little…and certain characters are shown to not be as genuine as Bel once thought.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

As a huge fan of first lines, I’d love to hear the first line of Bel, Book, and Scandal. Could you give us a brief commentary on it?

I was wet, cold, and tired, but despite the fact that she was ready to kill me with her bare hands for staying out all night, my mother addressed all three of my immediate needs before saying anything else.

This book starts with a flashback to a time when Bel was a teenager; it is the night her best friend disappeared from Foster’s Landing and was never seen again. The two other books in this series start as flashbacks as well; I wanted the reader to understand Bel’s motives as an adult, what shaped her thoughts and actions in present day. In Bel, Book, and Scandal, we pick up with Bel sitting in the local police department, awaiting word on Amy, not realizing that no one knows where Amy is and that she will be questioned as to her last moments with her best friend.

Tell us about your road to publication, such as how you first queried, unexpected challenges, and things you picked up along the way.

I used various web sites to track down agents, see how a query letter was written, and to research the process in general. I queried about twenty or so agents until I received word that my current agent wanted to represent me. That process took about a year. It was another year or so until we found a publisher. Not being a patient person, I found the process protracted and stressful but now that I have been doing this for a dozen or more years, I understand the timing better. I tell writers to be patient, keep at it, and never give up. The road to publication is long and bumpy—reading rejection letters isn’t for the faint of heart!—but if you keep working at it, you’ll reach your goal.

Are the characters from your book based off anyone you know in real life? How much else of your actual life gets written into your fiction?

There are no true McGraths in my real life. However, having grown up Irish in the New York area, there are definitely aspects of my childhood that come through: the Irish music, the storytelling, the big family dinners. I have always loved weddings so putting Bel back into the family business allows me to imagine the worst “bridezilla,” the most cold-footed groom. And being able to write about food makes my heart sing. If anything comes from real life into the Bel series, it’s the experimentation in the kitchen and the joy of researching a new, complicated recipe.

Out of all the fantastic books out there, what makes Bel, Book, and Scandal stand out from the rest?

I would have to say the characters. I think that the McGrath family (Bel’s brothers, her parents) are what round out the story and give it a bit of heart. I also think that anyone who grew up with siblings will recognize at least one person they know in one of Bel’s brothers, be it the responsible one or the one who continually gets into trouble, even as an adult.

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out Maggie's best personal and professional advice. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of Bel, Book, and Scandal, so you don't want to miss that either!

Interview with Sandra Hill, Author of Cajun Crazy + Giveaway (US/Can)

I'd like to welcome Sandra Hill to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Cajun Crazy from Avon, a HarperCollins imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Sandra! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief introduction with us?

Sandra Hill is a graduate of Penn State and worked for more than 10 years as a features writer and education editor for publications in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Writing about serious issues taught her the merits of seeking the lighter side of even the darkest stories.

She is the wife of a stockbroker and the mother of four sons.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which just hit shelves last month:

Welcome back to New York Times bestseller Sandra Hill’s Cajun country, where love heats up the Louisiana bayou...

Former Chicago cop Simone LeDeux is back home in the bayou, sharing a double wide in the Pearly Gates trailer park to help her mama recover from surgery. Her one rule: no Cajun men. Loved and left by too many double-crossing Cajuns, Simone puts bad experience to good use by opening Legal Belles: an agency that uncovers cheating spouses.

Suddenly she’s confronting a two-timer about to swindle his wife out of millions and antagonizing New Orleans bigwigs over an illegal sex club. Adam Lanier learns of the dangerous game Simone is playing... and the sexy single dad comes to her aid. Known as a rogue in the courtroom and a player in the bedroom, the ragin’ Cajun has Simone triply on guard.

With their crazy chemistry, danger on their trail, and infamous LeDeux relative Tante Lulu working her magical matchmaking, the bayou has never been this steamy.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

As a huge fan of first lines, I’d love to hear the first line of Cajun Crazy. Could you give us a brief commentary on it?

I'm usually a sucker for catchy first lines, too, but in the case of Cajun Crazy I prefer to quote the voicemail that my heroine, Simone LeDeux, gets from her mother in the opening scene:

"Hi, honey. I haven't heard from you since las' week. Did ya kick that no-good Jack Landry out on his cheatin' Cajun be-hind, lak I told you to?"

This excerpt is an important clue to what the book is about. Simone is a cop who decides to open a Cheaters-type detective agency. And she's decided, no more Cajun men in her life.

Tell us about your road to publication, such as how you first queried, unexpected challenges, and things you picked up along the way.

I like to say that I sold my first book by not winning a contest. One of the judges in a writing contest I entered was so appalled at my not winning or placing that she put me in touch with her agent who in turn sold my first book, The Reluctant Viking, as part of a three-book deal. Oddly, I started out writing straight historical romances, but about that time Constance O'Day Flannery wrote one of her first time-travels, and I thought, "I can do this!" Before that, I had no idea I had a voice for humor.

Are the characters from your book based off anyone you know in real life? How much else of your actual life gets written into your fiction?

Suffice it to say, someone asked me at a cocktail party one time (and, yes, people do ask questions like this), "Do you have the kind of sex life you describe in your books?"

My answer, "I wish!" Seriously, I don't know any humans who have that kind of sex life. Maybe some super virile Vikings, or Cajuns.

I do get many of the humor ideas from my husband and four sons who can be incredibly funny. In fact, I can't tell you how many times one of my sons has said or done something and then told me, "That better not end up in one of your books." My heroines are probably the kind of women I wish I could be; I would never dare do half of what they do. Stunt woman. Female Navy SEAL. Lawyer at Angola Prison. Treasure hunter. Enough said!

Out of all the fantastic books out there, what makes Cajun Crazy stand out from the rest?

It's one of the funniest books I've written, in my opinion. A heroine who's been married and divorced three times, who vows to stay clear of any more tempting Cajun men, but then runs into a rogue lawyer, who is the ultimate player in the courtroom as well as the bedroom and happens to be Cajun. Add to that a wacky mother who's discovered her inner Kardashian and a fondness for Spanx. Not to mention the outrageous Tante Lulu.

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out Sandra's best personal and professional advice. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of Cajun Crazy, so you don't want to miss that either!

Interview with McCall Hoyle, Author of The Thing with Feathers + Giveaway (US only)

It is my utmost pleasure to introduce McCall Hoyle to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of her debut novel, The Thing with Feathers from Blink, HarperCollins's YA imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, McCall! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief bio with us?

McCall Hoyle writes honest YA novels about friendship, first love, and girls finding the strength to overcome great challenges. She is a high school English teacher. Her own less-than-perfect teenage experiences and those of the girls she teaches inspire many of the struggles in her books.

When she’s not reading or writing, she’s spending time with her family and their odd assortment of pets—a food-obsessed beagle, a grumpy rescue cat, and a three-and-a-half-legged kitten.

She has an English degree from Columbia College and a master’s degree from Georgia State University. She lives in a cottage in the woods in North Georgia where she reads and writes every day.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which hit shelves in September:

Emilie Day believes in playing it safe: she’s homeschooled, her best friend is her seizure dog, and she’s probably the only girl on the Outer Banks of North Carolina who can’t swim.

Then Emilie’s mom enrolls her in public school, and Emilie goes from studying at home in her pj’s to halls full of strangers. To make matters worse, Emilie is paired with starting point guard Chatham York for a major research project on Emily Dickinson. She should be ecstatic when Chatham shows interest, but she has a problem. She hasn’t told anyone about her epilepsy.

Emilie lives in fear her recently adjusted meds will fail and she’ll seize at school. Eventually, the worst happens, and she must decide whether to withdraw to safety or follow a dead poet’s advice and “dwell in possibility.”

From Golden Heart award-winning author McCall Hoyle comes The Thing with Feathers, a story of overcoming fears, forging new friendships, and finding a first love, perfect for fans of Jennifer Niven, Robyn Schneider, and Sharon M. Draper.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

What inspired you to write The Thing with Feathers?

As a teacher and mom, I observe so many teenage girls hiding their true selves from their peers. So I wanted to write a hopeful story about a girl learning to a accept herself for who she was. I taught a student whose family was greatly impacted by her sister’s epilepsy and learned about the unique challenges of living with a covert disability that isn’t immediately visible to strangers and acquaintances.

I also love dogs. By chance, my family inherited a golden retriever who was bred to do service work. The dog was more human than many humans. I began working with this amazing dog training him for agility and obedience. I became fascinated by golden retrievers and assistant dogs and did a tremendous amount of research and reading about service dogs and the people they love. I was especially intrigued by seizure alert dogs as seizure alerting cannot truly be taught and is greatly affected by the bond between the owner and dog.

I knew I had to write a story about a girl with epilepsy learning to love herself unconditionally the way her golden retriever did.

What's behind the title?

The title is a line from a well-known Emily Dickinson poem. She writes: “'Hope' is the thing with feathers; that perches in the soul." When the title came to me, I knew it was perfect. Everything about this book and about Emilie, the main character, is about learning to find hope even in the most difficult circumstances. And reading poetry and studying Emily Dickinson have a major impact on Emilie’s emotional arc in this story.

Thankfully, my agent, editor, and publisher also agreed the title was perfect. I don’t personally think a title is going to make or break a book, but I love a nice title—especially one that’s somehow connected to the theme of the book and that readers have to uncover the meaning of for themselves. And I think this title does just that.

As a writer, was it difficult to combine romantic elements with the exploration of Emilie’s condition?

This is an excellent question. First, I wanted this to be Emilie’s story. I wanted it to be a story of strength and resilience and hope. I did not want the romance to overshadow Emilie’s emotional growth. But in my experience, relationships are a central part of who we are. We’re constantly starting, developing, and ending relationships. Emilie’s story is about opening up, taking risks, and learning to hope. Taking a risk on friendship and first love were a natural part of her growth as a human being. I feel like it worked. Epilepsy is a big part of Emilie’s life, but it’s not her entire life. She’s a perfectly average teenage girl. Yes, she has epilepsy, but she’s also dealing with all the things teenage girls deal with including boys.

Do you feel like your book depicts a pretty realistic view of what life is like for a teen with an illness or a disability?

I’ve taught middle school and high school for twelve years. I’ve raised a teenage daughter, and I was a teenage girl. On an average day, I spend more time with teenagers than with adults. Also, I experienced some of the greatest trials of my life during my teenage years. It’s actually frighteningly easy for me to put myself in the mindset of teenage girls. So I feel really confident about the teenage girl part.

As far as living with epilepsy is concerned, I interviewed several students who either have epilepsy or love someone with epilepsy. I also did lots and lots of research and had several parents of children with epilepsy read the book. Because there are so many types of epilepsy and types of seizures, almost everyone who has epilepsy has a unique story.

Emilie struggles with managing the challenges of her epilepsy and her seizures, but in my experience, most teenage girls are struggling. When I write, whether it’s about a girl with epilepsy, or a girl struggling with grief, or a girl struggling with body image issues, I try to tap into the emotions I’ve experienced in similar situations and write from those emotions. And above all, I aim for honesty. I want teenage girls to know that no matter how flawed they feel, there is a place for all of us. And there is always room to hope.

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out what research went into the book and McCall's best advice for aspiring writers. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of The Thing with Feathers, so you don't want to miss that either!

Interview with Kaira Rouda, Author of Best Day Ever + Giveaway (US only)

It is my utmost pleasure to introduce Kaira Rouda to the blog today to celebrate the exciting release of Best Day Ever from Graydon House, a Harlequin imprint!

Welcome to Books à la Mode, Kaira! Let's get this interview started.

Will you please share a brief bio with us?

Kaira Rouda is the USA Today bestselling author of novels including Here, Home, Hope, The Goodbye Year, In the Mirror, All the Difference, and most recently, Best Day Ever. Her stories explore what goes on behind closed doors of seemingly perfect lives. She lives in Southern California with her family and she's at work on her next novel.

It's amazing to get to feature you today! Readers, here's a bit about the book, which hit shelves last month:

Paul Strom has the perfect life: a glittering career as an advertising executive, a beautiful wife, two healthy boys and a big house in a wealthy suburb. And he’s the perfect husband: breadwinner, protector, provider. That’s why he’s planned a romantic weekend for his wife, Mia, at their lake house, just the two of them. And he's promised today will be the best day ever.

But as Paul and Mia drive out of the city and toward the countryside, a spike of tension begins to wedge itself between them and doubts start to arise. How much do they trust each other? And how perfect is their marriage, or any marriage, really?

Forcing us to ask ourselves just how well we know those who are closest to us, Best Day Ever crackles with dark energy, spinning ever tighter toward its shocking conclusion. In the bestselling, page-turning vein of The Couple Next Door and The Dinner, Kaira Rouda weaves a gripping, tautly suspenseful tale of deception and betrayal dark enough to destroy a marriage... or a life.

Buy the book from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Books-a-Million | iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | Publisher

As a huge fan of first lines, I’d love to hear the first line of Best Day Ever. Could you give us a brief commentary on it?

I glance at my wife as she climbs into the passenger seat, sunlight bouncing off her shiny blond hair like sparklers lit for the Fourth of July, and I am bursting with confidence.

This is Paul Strom, my narrator, introducing himself to you. His life is perfect. His wife is perfect. They are the all-American couple. He is confident the day will go just as he has planned.

Tell us about your road to publication, such as how you first queried, unexpected challenges, and things you picked up along the way.

It has been a long and winding road to publication, with five different literary agents, five novels, two romance series with small press and self-publishing, and a nonfiction book published by Wiley under my belt.

It was six years ago when I published my first novel, Here, Home, Hope. I have so many stories I could share, so many query letters, so many rejections. Perhaps the most poignant was the first time I tried to go for my dream in 1999. I found my first literary agent at the Antioch Writer’s Conference. She loved my novel In the Mirror and went out on submission. A famous editor with a huge publisher called me and told me she loved it and a contract was on the way. She died the next day suddenly in the back seat of a cab in midtown. It was a traumatic, shocking and extremely sad situation. Of course, I didn’t have a signed contract. My agent dropped me because she said the manuscript was now bad luck. I didn’t submit another fiction work for years.

Are the characters from your book based off anyone you know in real life?

No, they aren’t based on real life people, but a lifetime of experience goes into each one.

Out of all the fantastic books out there, what makes Best Day Ever stand out from the rest?

Two things. The gorgeous red cover. I just love it, and I had nothing to do with it! My fabulous publisher Graydon House has a great cover artist. And second, a male first-person narrator in the domestic suspense arena. I’ve come to find out that is unique.

Blog babes, click "Read more" to find out Kaira's best advice. We're also hosting a giveaway for a finished copy of Best Day Ever, so you don't want to miss that either!