Review - - CORNERED

CORNERED

by Suzanne Ferrell

Neptune's Five - Book 3

Publisher: Suzanne Ferrell Productions

Release Date: May 9, 2023

Reviewed by PJ

August, 1941
America remains neutral in the war in Europe, but signs of the Axis army’s expanding power grab have many in America believing their involvement in the war is only a matter of time. In preparation for that event, they begin gathering information from all areas of conflict.

A Moroccan Mission
A descendant of the Pirate Blackbeard, Warren Smith, aka Chief, has spent his life on the sea, and now he pilots the Folly for the undercover Neptune Five team. As war rages in Europe, danger lurks everywhere, even in remote parts of the world. The Neptune Five embark on a perilous mission to map safe passage up the Sebou river in Morocco to a crucial airstrip, without drawing the attention of the Vichy French navy or the Nazis soldiers stationed there.
Enter Elizabeth "Betty" Devereaux, a missionary nurse with a secret. She knows the Sebou river and needs to deliver life-saving medical supplies to the Bedouins living along the shores. She agrees to guide the Folly's crew up the river. As Betty and Chief navigate the treacherous waters of Morocco, they find themselves drawn to each other despite the dangers threatening to tear them apart.

November 1942

America has entered the war. On the eve of Operation Torch, the invasion of Morocco, Chief and the Neptune Five team has another mission—to find Betty who has gone missing. They fear she’s landed in the hands of the Nazi SS. With the help of the Bedouin resistance fighters the team races across the desert to a kasbah fortress prison to free her before she’s killed.

PJ's Thoughts:

Suzanne Ferrell's Neptune's Five has become one of my favorite romantic suspense series and book three, CORNERED, one of my most anticipated books this spring. After two clandestine, highly suspenseful missions ferreting out spies stateside, the team heads to Morocco for something new. This time, they are the spies, gathering intel in the months leading up to America's entry into WWII. There's plenty of action, suspense, danger, and a bit of romance to keep readers flipping pages right up to the breath-stealing conclusion. 

Ferrell's grasp of time and place in this book is impeccable, bringing to the page the tension, secrecy, and danger of missions such as those assigned to the Neptune's Five team. Her descriptions of the foreign locales allowed me to visualize everything experienced by the characters, from weather to terrain to customs, dangers, and more. I really felt like I was right there with them every step of the way, whether navigating treacherous rivers, outsmarting the enemy, or racing across deserts to rescue one of their own. The secondary characters are well developed, adding another layer of complexity to the story, especially the villains. The author doesn't shy away from atrocities perpetuated by Nazis, which may make some of the scenes difficult to read. Good triumphs over evil - with justice served in a particularly satisfying way - but there is also pain in the journey to get there. Such are the realities of war. 

I love the complexity of this team, the nuances of the individual members, all of whom come from a variety of backgrounds, the range of ages, experience, and skills. It lends a realism and authenticity to these characters, making them more approachable and engaging. By now, I've become invested in all of them and feel like I'm coming to know them better with each book published. 

The romance between Betty and Chief is one that hits quickly then slowly plays out over time in a series of letters. Typically, I prefer face-to-face growth between a couple but in this case the tensions, heightened emotions, and sacrifices of war lend believability to their unconventional "courtship." The letters provide a viable method of getting to know one another while separated, allowing both of them to reveal the depths of their feelings and fears, creating a strong bond between them that deepens into an enduring love. It gave me everything I needed.

While CORNERED can be read and enjoyed as a standalone, it's my opinion that you'll have a much better understanding of the characters if you read the books in the series in order. I highly recommend them all. 

Review - - TRACKED and Birthday Giveaway #13

TRACKED

by Suzanne Ferrell

Neptune's Five - Book 2

Publisher: Suzanne Ferrell Productions, LLC

Release Date: September 14, 2021

Reviewed by PJ

 

November 1941.
America remains politically neutral in the war rocking the rest of the world. In the background, government and military leaders are preparing for the inevitable by shoring up the Army and Navy.

A cryptic message
Army codebreaker Ruth Haynes, daughter of a retired colonel, recognizes the code she and her brothers created as children. One brother, a spy for the British, is warning her of a Nazi plot to sabotage the 2nd Armored Division during secret war maneuvers, the same division where his twin is a gunner on a tank. When her attempts to alert both the Army and the State Department of the imminent danger meet deaf ears, she goes to her friend Sophie and the Neptune’s Five team for help.

His mission
Known by the locals as ghost, Sean “Scout” Hanahan grew up poor in the mountains of Kentucky silently hunting for prey to feed his family. The youngest member of the spy-chaser team, he functions as both their tracker and sniper. When Neptune assigns him to shadow the little lady codebreaker, he saves her from dangerous men on her trail. As the pair team up to search for the saboteurs, her safety is now his first priority.

Danger draws near
As storm clouds of war near the shores of America, can Ruth, Sean and the team uncover the traitor in their own government and stop the spies before lives are lost?

PJ's Thoughts:

Suzanne Ferrell returns with another page-turner in her 1940's, Neptune's Five, romantic suspense series and I couldn't be happier. The months leading up to America's entry into WWII were tumultuous times in both our nation's capitol and all along the country's eastern coastline. Ferrell captures the intensity, fear, and confusion of those times as a secret, military spy-chasing unit works against time to ferret out deadly spies and traitors hiding among us. 

I was on the edge of my seat for most of this book. The author has created a complex mission with many moving parts and seamlessly woven them together to keep me, the reader, on my toes trying to figure out what would happen next. Her descriptions were vivid, and true to the time, putting me right into the heart of the action, from dark DC alleys to the marshy Lowlands of South Carolina. 

I loved the intensity of the suspense, action, and intrigue in this book; Ferrell knows how to keep her readers on the edge and guessing. But I also loved the human face she put on these events, offering up fully developed characters who pulled me into their minds and their lives. The physical descriptions, voices (the accents made their voices so clear in my mind), unique capabilities, individual quirks (loved Sean's dictionary) and peeks into their hopes, fears, and dreams made it easy to become attached to them, feel my heart in my throat when things went sideways, and cheer them on when things went right. 

TRACKED can be read on its own but I think you'll enjoy it even more if you read book one, SHANGHAIED first. Either way, you're in for a breath-stealing tale of espionage, suspense, and sweet romance but be prepared to not be able to put this one down until you reach the end. I finished it around 2:00 AM. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Do you enjoy WWII books? 

Have you read any set in the U.S. prior to their entry into the war?

Birthday Giveaway #13 

One randomly chosen person posting a comment before 11:00 PM, September 14 will receive a print book from my stash.

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

*Void where prohibited

Review - - Close to the Heart

Close to the Heart
by Suzanne Ferrell
Westen Series - Book 5
Publisher: Suzanne Ferrell Productions
Release Date: November 2, 2019
Reviewed by PJ
  

During a state-wide blizzard, Westen sheriff’s deputy Daniel Löwe finds a little girl named Lexie abandoned, freezing and terrified. He takes her—undernourished, dressed in thread-bare clothes—to the only available place in the small town, the Westen House for at-risk teens. Daniel’s protective instincts compel him to check in frequently to assure the girl's safety. A man who gave up all hope of a family, Daniel enjoys spending more and more time at Westen House with Lexie and the four teen boys who live there. But it’s the new housemother, Melissa Davis that drives his heart faster.
After surviving an abusive ex-husband, a wiser, less-trusting Melissa is forging a new life for herself. The moment Lexie arrives bundled in a quilt and asleep in the handsome deputy’s arms, Melissa's fierce maternal impulses rouse and she fears Lexie's drug-addicted mother will find and claim her. As Daniel helps track Lexie's mom and still finds time to teach the little girl how to play baseball, Melissa realizes that Daniel's a good man who keeps his promises, no matter how big or small, and the walls around Melissa’s heart start to crumble.
Their newly forged hope shatters when multiple bodies are discovered in abandoned drug dens and Daniel realizes Lexie's in real danger from her mother's dealer. Fearing for the little girl’s safety, Daniel and Melissa must lean on each other if they want to prevent the monster from stealing Lexie's life.

My thoughts:

I always enjoy returning to Suzanne Ferrell's small town of Westen, Ohio for heartwarming tales of suspense-filled romance. In Close to the Heart, drugs are once again threatening this close-knit community but, this time, it's a six-year old girl in the cross-hairs of a ruthless dealer. 

I adored Lexie. Ferrell captures this neglected little girl at the center of the story, and each of her relationships, perfectly. Daniel's care and patience with her are a window into his heart for the previously abused Melissa, showing her she can trust him with her own. He's such a sweetheart of a guy. I really appreciated his quiet strength and tender approach with both Lexie and Melissa as well as the role of mentor he takes on with the boys. I enjoyed watching Melissa grow in strength and self-confidence as she cares for and protects Lexie. And the relationships between Lexie and the four teen boys already under Melissa's care are spot-on sibling dynamics. 

The heartbreak caused by the the appearance of drugs in town is not sugarcoated in this story. Ferrell lays it out clearly and realistically, adding additional depth and emotion to the story, and drawing me more completely into the lives of the characters involved. 

Fans of the Westen series will enjoy catching up with favorite characters in this fifth book of the series while readers new to the town should be able to fully enjoy Close to the Heart on its own. 

Review - - SHANGHAIED

SHANGHAIED
by Suzanne Ferrell
Book 1 - Neptune's Five
Publisher: Suzanne Ferrell Productions
Release Date: January 20, 2019
Reviewed by PJ
 

It’s 1941. While Europe is emblazoned in a devastating war, America sits blissfully neutral. An ocean separates them from the conflict, but not everyone believes the states are safe from the Nazi threat.

Zach Edgars, code name Neptune, and his team of undercover ONI operatives are in North Carolina hunting German spies working on American soil. Their only clue is a slip of paper in a dead informant’s pocket that reads, Shanghaied in Wilmington.

Sophie Moore, grew up working in her father’s pub, the Shanghaied, situated near the newly built emergency shipyard. She’s used to dodging wayward hands and the occasional drunken brawl, but a newcomer in the dark trench coat and with the swagger of a pirate has her feeling nervous. Despite his involvement with the locals’ less-than legal activity, something about Neptune makes her think there might be more to the man.

When her friend goes missing, Sophie finds herself and her father's bar thrust in the middle of a dangerous game of cloak and dagger. Can she trust this pirate, or will she and her father lose everything—life, love and liberty?


My thoughts:

Set in 1941, along the North Carolina coast, SHANGHAIED begins the story of Zach Edgars and Sophie Moore, characters who would eventually become the grandparents of Ferrell's present-day Edgars Family heroes and heroines. It's a story filled with emotion, intrigue, and ever-increasing suspense, much like the country itself was experiencing in those final days leading up to America's entry into what would become WWII. I was hooked from page one and my attention never wavered. Ferrell does an outstanding job of bringing the reader into this world with era-specific language and descriptions, atmospheric settings, and characters so vividly portrayed I found myself believing they had actually lived rather than being products of the author's imagination.  Ferrell populates the story with a variety of nuanced characters, all brought to life via dialog and description and all contributing to the story, and to my emotions. I really felt as if I was right there with them the entire way.

SHANGHAIED is the first of several books planned for this earlier generation and I am excited to read them all. Not only am I looking forward to more adventures with Sophie and Zach, but I'm hopeful we'll be seeing more of Zach's military undercover team as well. I want to know more about these brave young men and where life - and the war - takes them.

SHANGHAIED is a special treat for fans of Suzanne Ferrell's present-day Edgars Family series but stands well on its own as an introductory prequel for readers who have yet to discover these romantic suspense stories. It has my enthusiastic recommendation. 

Suzanne Ferrell Winner

The three randomly chosen winners of an e-book set of Suzanne Ferrell's novellas,

Close to Christmas and Close to the Mistletoe are:

Nikki

cheryl c

girlygirlhoosier52

Congratulations!

Please send your email address to us at:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Today's Special - - Suzanne Ferrell

It's my pleasure to welcome Suzanne Ferrell back to The Romance Dish. I'm a fan of Ferrell's small town, contemporary Westen series, with its strong cast of characters and intriguing thread of suspense as well as her Edgars family romantic suspense stories with their determined fight for justice, even if they have to sidestep the rules to achieve it.  

Suzanne discovered romance novels in her aunt's hidden stash one summer as a teenager. From that moment on she knew two things: she loved romance stories and someday she'd be writing her own. Her love for romances has only grown over the years. It took her a number of years and a second career as a nurse to finally reach her dream but she now has a full-time career writing heartwarming - and heartstopping - romances I love to read. 

Suzanne joins us today to blog about her three Christmas novellas, set within her fictional Westen, Ohio community, including her newest: Close to Santa's Heart. 

The Sideways Christmas In Westen

One of my favorite things about Christmas is all the Christmas romances that are published in the late fall. I mean, seriously, is there anything more romantic than finding love at Christmas? I’ve always loved reading Christmas romances and wanted to write one of my own. And I love reading novellas this time of year, because they’re quick and I can get my reading fix in and still have time for shopping, baking, decorating…oh yeah, and writing.

Now, I had two series to choose from to write my Christmas story. There was the Edgars Family novels and the Westen Series. The Edgars Family novels are darker and edgier.  The Westen Series books, while each has some element of suspense in them, are more laid back with the stories about a small town and things that occur in it. (Can I help it if dead bodies turn up and fires sometimes break out?) So, when looking at the two series, it made more sense to me to set my first Christmas novella in Westen.

So I did. It was titled Close To Christmas and centered around the wedding of the sheriff and one of his deputies. Problem was, at the end of the book, I sort of leave…okay, I really leave a budding relationship between two secondary characters and a mystery hanging in the wind. But that’s okay, because I planned to give those characters the next big book in the series. First I had to jump back over and write the next Edgars book to keep those readers happy.

Before I could get to that big Westen book, I was asked to be part

of a Christmas book bundle last year. I was thrilled and honored to be included, so the big book was put on hold and back to Westen we went for another Christmas novella. I didn’t want to imply that a year had taken place in the timeline, because I really do have my two characters for the big book with a big problem to solve, so I decided that I’d make the second Westen Christmas novella, Close To The Mistletoe, taking place at the exact same time as Close To Christmas. Which meant I had to read and re-read the first novella so I could include some details from it in the second book. It was fun and I got to envision more of how much Christmas means to the residents of Westen.

And this year I was again asked to be part of a Christmas book bundle, Under The Kissing Bough. Once more I visited the folks in Westen and decided to place this third novella, Close To Santa’s Heart, in the same timeline as the previous two. This time I focused on the romance between another of the town’s deputies, Cleetus Junkins and the little hair dresser, Sylvie Gillis.

Yes, I know Cleetus isn’t a very heroic name. He popped up as a secondary character in Close To Home, the first book in the series, rescuing twin boys and their grandmother who suffers from Alzheimer’s when they were out wandering on a highway near town. (Heroic, huh?) And then he got injured trying to help the sheriff stop a dangerous criminal in Close To The Edge. (More quiet hero stuff.) Then all of a sudden people were writing me emails and messaging me asking when he was going to get a romance. Here’s the blurb for his and Sylvie’s story:

As Westen’s resident Santa, Deputy Cleetus Junkins brings the magic of Christmas to his beloved home town each year.  He oversees lighting the tree in the square and raising the huge mistletoe kissing bough in the gazebo. At the parties he visits with children and the elderly. Amid all this joy even Santa can be lonely. Or he used to be. This year, Cleetus has a helper. 

Sylvie Gillis came to Westen for a fresh start only to have her heart immediately melted by a shy gentle giant of a deputy. Her childhood was short on happiness but playing elf to Cleetus’ Santa makes her want to believe in Christmas miracles.

As Cleetus and Sylvie help bring Christmas joy to the citizens of Westen, the holiday magic weaves its way into their hearts. Will the reason Sylvie left home come between them or can she stay Close To Santa’s Heart?

Again, I had to read through the other two novellas, pick out scenes Sylvie and Cleetus were in for those books and find a way to weave them in among the romance, Christmas celebration and little mystery in the book. Oh yeah…all on a limited word count. Woohoo! Nothing like a challenge!

Then it occurred to me. From a timeline perspective, I’d written the whole thing sideways. I started with the final story on the timeline, wrote the first one second and finished up with the middle story. Confused? Yeah, me too. How’d I do that?

So, if you’ve never read any of the Christmas novellas, the reading order is this:

1. Close To The Mistletoe

2. Close To Santa’s Heart

3. Close To Christmas

If you have been reading them, I’m sorry I wrote them out of order, but hope you’ll love Cleetus and Sylvie’s story in the Under The Kissing Bough book bundle with 15 new Christmas novellas in it. (Oh, and by the way, I’m finally getting to those two characters and their big story!)

Merry Christmas and Happy reading everyone!

Suzanne

Are you reading Suzanne's Westen series?  

Do you read mostly novellas over the busy holidays (I do!) or do you still indulge in full-length books?

Do you enjoy a quiet, thoughtful hero or do you go for the macho, alpha type? 

Suzanne is giving away an e-book set of her first two Westen Christmas novellas: Close to Christmas and Close to the Mistletoe (Thank you, Suzanne!) to three randomly chosen people who leave a comment by 11:00 pm (EST), December 2, 2016.

Find more information about Suzanne and her books at her website.

Connect with her online at:

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Review - - Exposed

Exposed
Edgars Family Novels - Book 5
By Suzanne Ferrell
Publisher: Suzanne Ferrell Productions
Release Date: June 14, 2016

Fashion photographer Sydney Peele is on her way out of town on assignment when her globe-trotting-photographer brother shows up at her home asking to stay for a few days. Reluctantly agreeing, she hopes he doesn't leave it trashed like last time. Ian is not the most considerate of people but with both of their parents gone, he's the only family she has left. Flying home from her assignment, she grabs a cab at the airport and races straight to her friends' wedding, which she has agreed to photograph. The first person she runs into - literally - is a big, gorgeous man who apparently never learned how to smile. And while she's immediately attracted to him, it's clear he wants nothing to do with her...even if his eyes do follow her everywhere during the wedding and reception to follow. 

U.S. Deputy Marshal Frank Castello doesn't want to be attracted to the cute, sassy photographer at his friends' wedding. Frank doesn't like photographers, doesn't respect them, and certainly doesn't trust them, but while he wants to give her the cold shoulder, there's something about Sydney Peele that has him intrigued. He offers to give her a ride home so his friends can get their tired kids tucked into bed...because that's the kind of good guy Frank is. When they arrive, Sydney's street is blocked by fire trucks and her home is in flames. And then it explodes...

Frank is a natural protector and, as a U.S. Marshal overseeing people in witness protection, has the skill set and resources to keep people safe. Everything about the situation at Sydney's home has his "spidey sense" tingling and when Sydney, in an obvious state of shock, whispers "Oh, Ian, what have you done?" Frank goes into action and sweeps her off to his highly secured home to keep her safe until he can figure out what's going on. He has no idea that one tiny, sassy, spitfire and the situation she's about to find herself in the middle of will turn his life upside down, his heart inside out, and put both of them in the crosshairs of an international assassin. 

I always enjoy Suzanne Ferrell's romantic suspense novels. Full of heart, action, and tightly-crafted suspense, they never fail to engage my interest and hold it from beginning to end. Exposed is no exception. Frank and Sydney are terrific together. I love how big, gruff, and tough Frank takes care of Sydney following the fire - tucking her in and cooking her breakfast the next morning - and how she disrupts his borderline OCD life. I admire Sydney's ability to not dwell on what she's lost but dig deep to find the courage and strength to meet a difficult situation head-on. And the Edgars family. What can I say about them? If I ever found myself in trouble, they're certainly the people I'd want on my side. It would be hard for Frank or Sydney to ever find a better family-of-the-heart. 

The rich supporting cast - both good and bad - add an extra dimension that brings the story, with all its twists and turns, to vivid life. Because of their pasts, Sydney and Frank are both independent people. They've learned to stand on their own which makes watching them learn to lean on one another and allow themselves to be vulnerable to each other, so satisfying. Their love story is sexy and heartwarming and amplified by their fight to stay alive while solving the mystery surrounding Sydney and, hopefully, bringing the villains to justice. 

As a fan of the Edgars Family novels, I've been waiting for Frank to meet his match. Sydney - and their journey - are all I could have hoped for. If Exposed is your introduction to this family, don't fret. It works well on its own and you won't feel like you've missed anything by not having read the other books first. However, after seeing other family members in action in this book, there's a good chance you'll be so intrigued by them that you'll immediately buy all the other Edgars Family books to read their stories too!

~PJ
   

Review - - Capitol Danger

Capitol Danger
An anthology by 
J.D. Tyler, Jeanne Adams, Nancy Northcott, and Suzanne Ferrell
Publisher: Golden Gryphon Press
Release Date: July 25, 2015

The United States has sworn in its first woman President and inauguration parties are in full swing across Washington, DC but one party is about to come to an abrupt halt. The Red Mantle, a homegrown terrorist group that believes women have no place in government, has infiltrated the hotel where the party is being held with a plan to kill as many high-ranking, female government officials as they can, including the new President, who they have good reason to believe will be making an unscheduled stop at the party. Will anyone be able to stop these well-organized killers before they reach their target?

Capitol Danger is a unique anthology in that each of the four stories, written by Suzanne Ferrell, Jeanne Adams, Nancy Northcott and J.D. Tyler, occurs during the attack on the inaugural party yet is told from the perspective of that author's characters. Undercover FBI agents, a television reporter, a former Special Forces medic battling PTSD, a rookie agent from one of those no-name black ops agencies and many everyday people with no special training must all put their fears aside and work together when chaos erupts. Events move seamlessly from one story to the next as friendships are forged, relationships are tested, the suspense builds, and lives are put on the line as the characters race against the clock to identify and stop the terrorists before more lives are lost.

There's plenty of action in these well-written, tightly-woven novellas that tell a suspenseful, edge-of-the-seat story that could easily have been ripped from real-life headlines. The four authors skillfully navigate the tunnels, stairways, hallways and ballrooms of the fictional Fierenze Hotel without missing a beat. The collaboration among the authors and attention to detail is evident throughout with the suspense skillfully built from beginning to end. Romance is light but leaves readers with the possibility of happy endings for several of the couples; couples I was delighted to discover that we'll be seeing more of in future books and novellas from all four authors.

In the case of Luke and Abigail from the first novella in the anthology, their full story has already been published and can be read in Suzanne Ferrell's Vanished (27 Feb. 2014).

~PJ

Today's Special - - Capitol Danger

Our guests today are the four authors of a riveting new romantic suspense anthology titled Capitol Danger. Please help me welcome J.D. Tyler, Jeanne Adams, Nancy Northcott, and Suzanne Ferrell! 

For more information about each of today's authors, please see the their bios and website/social media links below.

PJ: Welcome to the Romance Dish and congratulations on the release of your new anthology, Capitol Danger! It’s a riveting collection of stories that grabbed my attention from the beginning and kept me reading way past my normal bedtime.

JD: Thanks so much for having us here! We’re so glad you enjoyed the book!

Suz: Hehehe, I love it when our book has kept people reading past their bedtime!

PJ: Capitol Danger is described as “four stories, one event, and four dangerous missions on the same night.” Please tell our readers a bit about the location and event that sets the stage for the book.

Jeanne: The event is the exciting inaugural “event night” for the swearing in of the nation’s president and in this story, its particularly spectacular because it’s another national “first” — the swearing in the first female president!   The Nation’s Capitol is always a fun destination, but it glitters more than Hollywood on the night of an Inauguration, and never more so than when it’s a major milestone inaugural like this one. 

However, home grown terrorists, The Red Mantle, don’t believe women should be allowed to have any political or personal power.  That a woman’s been elected to the highest seat offends them and they’re going to do something about it.

The location is a high-end, boutique hotel (totally made up, by the way, so no one would be offended by us…damaging it!).  The Fierenze is a new hotel, and as such, it isn’t hosting one of the bigger galas, which are usually booked into the major DC-area hotels.  It’s also not as well guarded, or secured…

PJ: What should readers expect from each of your stories?

Suz: In UNMASKED, I brought a few familiar characters from my Edgars Family series—Luke Edgars, Abigail Whitson and Frank Castello—in to run an undercover operation. It’s supposed to be simple, tag their target so they can monitor him and get out. Only, things don’t go quite as planned. Their mission turns into a protect-and-evacuate their target before anyone knows he’s there. And quite a few surprises pop up along their way.

Jeanne: From my story, DEATH UNDER GLASS, readers should expect surprises.  My hero and heroine aren’t undercover, nor are they cops.  They’re just people attending the ball who step into the breech and become heroes in their own right, because of the circumstances.  I’ve always been fascinated by people who “step-up” when they’re needed, and Retta and Edward do just that.

Nancy: DANGER’S EDGE features a rookie from the Arachnid Agency teaming up with an FBI agent on medical leave while he recovers from a gunshot wound.  Neither of them feels prepared for this situation.  They have no choice, though, other than to step up and handle the bad guys or die trying. There’s action, a little humor, and sexual tension.

JD: LETHAL TARGET is the conclusion to the anthology, and FBI Special Agent Dalton McCoy is undercover trying to bring down Methan, the leader of the group. All doesn’t quite go as planned, and he’s left not only fighting for his own life, but trying to protect Jolie Montfort, a reporter from Dallas whom he’d met before…

PJ: Are your stories in this anthology tied to other books you’ve published? Will we see any of these characters again?

Suz: Why PJ, of course they are. Luke Edgars and Abigail Whitson were the hero and heroine in my 4^th Edgars Family Novel, VANISHED. When the opportunity came for me to write for CAPITOL DANGER, I realized, I wasn’t finished with their story and HEA. Abby is nearly six feet tall and having her undercover as a supermodel let me dress her and Luke in formal wear. I also got to torture Frank Castello, a U.S. Marshall the Edgars have informally adopted into their clan, with a tuxedo. J  We meet Zoe Edgars, the “black sheep” cousin of the Edgars clan. Frank’s story is the next big novel in this series, titled EXPOSED. While, Zoe is one of those characters who hasn’t quite told me her story yet, but I know we’ll be seeing her again as the series progresses!

Jeanne: Oh, yes! As with my delightful co-authors, my characters in this book are going to become even more important in forthcoming books.  Burke Chapman, a sort of sidekick in this novella, is the hero of my forthcoming Dead Reckoning, the second book in the Faithful Defenders series (restarted by Dead Run).  In addition, you’ll see Detective Sara Hardinger and Agent Peter Trent again when I finally get to release Deadly Charms.  Last but not least, Edward and a number of the other characters will rise to the occasion as well, in future books.

Nancy: This is a departure for me.  I love my mage series, but I also have ideas for other kinds of books. We’ll see Kelsey and Greg again in 2016, likely in another novella, and there will be at least 3 novels, each featuring a different Arachnid agent, in the series.

JD: Yes, my story is tied to my romantic suspense/thriller series, Armed & Deadly. This series centers around a group of FBI agents, and the novella is a teaser for Dalton and Jolie’s story, which will actually be book 2. Book 1 is ONE LAST KISS, which will be released soon.

PJ: What was the most difficult challenge to writing this type of anthology? What was the most fun?

Suz: The challenge? Recognizing that all four of us have strong personalities, belief in our stories and our own writing process. One of us sort of had to be, to borrow an old western trail-drive term, the ramrod. Since I have a system set up for my indie books and wanted to work with my people, I took over the ramrod job. Enough said on that! J

The most fun? Seeing this unique project come to fruition, bouncing ideas off the other writers and seeing how four authors with totally different voices come at the same set of events with totally different perspectives and yet make one cohesive story! Love it!!

**Please, please ask JD, Nancy and Jeanne about the hotel’s floor plans!**

Jeanne: The most difficult challenge was being sure we wove the stories together so that we kept up with the timeline – my story couldn’t end without mentioning things that happened in Suzanne’s novella!   One of the most fun things, for me, was designing the hotel.

Nancy: Learning to synchronize with other writers was the biggest challenge.  Seeing the different spins everyone put on the setup was the most fun.

JD: The hardest thing for me was collaborating with other authors because I’m used to working totally alone. I’m sort of an introvert and tend to go completely underground when I’m on deadline, which I’m sure frustrated my fellow authors to no end on this project! The most fun was watching a story this unique take shape, come together, and form into something we could be proud of. These ladies were fun to work with!

PJ: Have any of you ever attended an Inaugural Ball? In a world where anything would be possible, would you rather attend as a guest, as one of your crime-fighting characters or would your preference be to stay home and watch the festivities on TV?

Suz: No, but I might like to go one just to people watch! So, I’d either go as a guest, or even as a caterer/wait staff.

Jeanne: No, but I would so love to go to one!  I’m not one to dress up and go out to that sort of event that much, but oh! An Inaugural?  I’d SO go for that!  I’d elect to be either a guest, happily sipping champagne and people-watching, or a reporter…

Nancy: I attended an inaugural ball of a NC governor a long time ago.  It was a lot of fun.  Going once in a while would be fun, but I didn’t love the crowds.  If I were going, I’d rather be just a guest than someone on the watch for trouble.

JD: I’m wearing a huge smile right now at this question, because I’m not interested in politics or Inaugural festivities in the least! I would rather drag my hero away from the party by his coat, rent a motel room, and make him totally forget why he ever wanted to go in the first place!

PJ: Capitol Danger leaves open the possibility of more bad people doing bad things and I, for one, would love to read about them. Do you plan to write another anthology together?

Suz: It would depend on the scenario and how my characters would fit into it. I think we learned a lot about how to do a project like this and how to make it work seamlessly. Who knows?

Nancy: We haven’t gotten that far.  We’re still doing the happy dance over this anthology being out in the world.

JD: I’d be open to doing another one with a different premise, and of course plenty of heroes getting in on the action. This one was a process and it ended up working well.

PJ: What can we expect from each of you next?

Suz: I’m currently writing on two projects, EXPOSED for the Edgars Family novels will hopefully be out some time later this year and CLOSE TO THE MISTLETOE, which is another Christmas novella set in my small town RS series Westen. It’s part of a Christmas anthology I’ll have more news about later this month.

Jeanne:  As I mentioned earlier, I’ll be releasing the second book in the Faithful Defenders series, Dead Reckoning, probably in September.  After that, the third book, Dead Wrong, as well as the second book in my Slip Traveler Urban Fantasy series in December.

Nancy: I plan to use my Arachnid operatives (named for Arachne, the Greek weaver Athena changed into the first spider for sassing her) in two ways.  I’ll continue the Arachnid Files, and next year will see the launch of another new series centering on one of Kelsey’s colleagues.  Meanwhile, I have Nemesis, the next Light Mage Wars book, coming in September and The Herald of Day, the first of a historical fantasy trilogy, in October.

JD: Next up for me is the release of BRING THE HEAT (Sugarland Blue #5) as Jo Davis in December. And right now I’m writing PHOENIX REBORN (Alpha Pack 7.5), which is Nix and Noah’s story, and will be released on March 15, 2016. I’m really excited about my first m/m story in the Alpha Pack world! Then I’m working on proposals for more Alpha Pack books, a possible new series, and a holiday novella in the Armed & Deadly series that will be out in a boxed set later in November. Lots to write and I’m so excited to bring these stories to my readers!

PJ: Where can readers connect with you online?

Suz:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/suzanneferrell.author

Website: http://suzanneferrell.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuzFerrell

Newsletter page: https://www.facebook.com/suzanneferrell.author/app_100265896690345

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Suzanne-Ferrell/e/B004OYY0RC/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_4

Jeanne: Oh, how fun!  I hope readers WILL connect!! I can be reached at my website, www.JeanneAdams.com, on FB at www.Facebook.com/JeanneAdamsAuthor and Twitter at www.Twitter.com/JeanneAdams

Nancy:

www.nancynorthcott.com

Twitter: @NancyNorthcott

Facebook:  https://facebook.com/nancynorthcottauthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3468806.Nancy_Northcott

JD:

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/JD-Tyler/192403284107373

AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/J.D.-Tyler/e/B004XSWHY2/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

GOODREADS BLOG: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/8835494-chase-the-darkness-is-available-now-read-a-sneak-peek-of-chapter-1

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/jdtylerauthor

NEWSLETTER: http://jdtyler.com/lists/?p=subscribe

WEB PAGE: www.JDTyler.com

PJ: Thanks so much for visiting with us. Is there anything else you’d like share about your books or yourselves?

Suz: I’d like to take a minute to thank three people who really, really made this book possible.

Cover Design: We all use Lyndsey Lewellen of LLewellen Designs to do our individual covers, so she was an easy choice to do the sexy, suspenseful cover. And I must say, cover design by committee for this project was fairly painless!

Editing: Tanya Saari, is who I use to edit all my books and I just love her work, so we scheduled her to do our editing. Poor lady had to put up with us pushing back the editing start date a few times! She did a wonderful job, not only looking for those pesky typos and comma problems, but in keeping the book consistent throughout all four stories.

Formatting: Mitch Rhodes of Libris In Caps had a huge job in front of him. Often times readers pick up anthologies to read just the story by their favorite author. (Hey, I do it all the time!) It was imperative that these stories be read as one long book. Mitch and I talked long and hard about how to lay this out to coax the readers into moving from one story to the next. JD came up with the idea to make it Part 1, 2, 3 and 4. Then Jeanne, Nancy and I sort of left the endings of our books open for JD to wrap it all up.

Nancy: We’ve pretty much covered it.  Thanks for having us on the blog!

JD: Just to keep an eye on my social media pages, particularly Facebook, my Goodreads Blog, and Twitter. If anything new is coming up or I have an announcement to make, I’ll post it there first!

PJ: Would you like to ask our readers a question?

Suz: If you read anthologies, have you ever wanted to read one like CAPITOL DANGER where the stories are so interconnected?

Jeanne:  I’d love to pose the question to the readers that you posed to us…Have you ever been to an inaugural, or would you like to go?  If so, what was it like?  If you’d like to go, agent, guest, spectator, or reporter?  And who – real or imaginary – would you want to take as your date?

Nancy: Do you prefer law enforcement officers (in uniform or undercover) or spies?

JD: Is there a particular type of hero or plot you’d like to see more of in 1) romantic suspense and/or 2) paranormal?

Two randomly chosen people leaving a comment on today's post will receive an e-book copy of Capitol Danger. 

National Bestselling Author J.D. Tyler is best known for her dark, sexy paranormal series Alpha Pack, and the popular Firefighters of Station Five and Sugarland Blue series under her pseudonym Jo Davis. PRIMAL LAW, the first book in her Alpha Pack series, is the winner of the National Reader's Choice Award in Paranormal. She's also been a multiple finalist in the Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence, a finalist for the Bookseller's Best Award, has captured the HOLT Medallion Award of Merit, and has been a two-time nominee for the Australian Romance Readers Award in romantic suspense.

A former marketing executive, Jeanne has also worked in interior design and landscape design as well as the funeral and cemetery business. Now a full-time writer and consultant, Jeanne lives in the D.C. area with her husband, children and dogs. She loves working in the garden, running with her dogs, hanging out with her family and Halloween. She really loves Halloween! Jeanne writes urban fantasy, paranormal romantic suspense and contemporary romantic suspense. 

A former attorney, Nancy Northcott is a three-time Golden Heart finalist who has indulged her passion for history, adventure, fantasy, and science fiction since she was a young child. That sense of adventure comes through loud and clear in her books, along with a firm believe in romance happy endings. Nancy writes contemporary fantasy romance, historical fantasy and romantic suspense. 

A former labor and delivery nurse, Suzanne Ferrell is now a full-time writer. The author of 13 novels and an Amazon best-seller for both her series, the Edgars Family Novels and the Westen series, Suzanne's books have been finalists in numerous writing competitions. She writes romantic suspense, small-town romance, American historicals, and historical erotica. She is currently working on more books for both the Edgars Family and Westen series.