Hello! Can you tell our readers about yourselves in one sentence?

Kimberly: I’m an Edgar Award nominated, USA Today bestselling author of thrillers and suspense novels with over one million copies sold worldwide.

Layne: I’m the Chicago-based bestselling author of The Favorites and other deliciously dramatic, unapologetically feminist books.

Cate: I started off writing about dead people, obituaries, in high school for the local paper and in some ways never stopped, which is why I now am a USA Today bestselling thriller author and screenwriter.

Vanessa: I’m a Cherokee author from rural Oklahoma, now living in the smallest state, writing bestselling thrillers while being closely managed by a pugapoo named Violet.  

Desperate Deadly Widows is the sequel to Young Rich Widows and it’s out now! If you could only describe it in three words, what would they be?

Kimberly: Funny, twisty & action-packed

Layne: Juicy, Glamorous, Empowering

Cate: Twisty, Fun, and Sexy

Vanessa: Campy, propulsive and yacht-y

What can readers expect?

Kimberly: The widows’ friendship is tested this go-around after the mayor’s death has the women scrambling to prove their innocence. Along the way, they’ll meet some charming new characters, but not everyone has their best intentions at heart. Someone is trying to take them down, and the widows will have to band together in order to survive.

Layne: Desperate Deadly Widows takes everything you loved about the first book and turns up the volume, so you can expect bigger, better adventures with our quartet of zany 80s ladies!

Cate: This novel has a lot of fun with the fabulously wealthy behaving badly, think Dynasty, while also looking into some of the real world consequences of the abuse of wealth and connections, particularly as it relates to minorities.

Vanessa: I love the opening hook (Mayor of Providence drops dead in the back of a strip club from poisoned champagne) because while it’s fiction, it’s not not something that could have happened in the 80s in Providence!

Where did the inspiration for Desperate Deadly Widows come from?

Layne: We know these characters so well now, a lot of the plot came from thinking about what would stress them out / force them to grow the most. Also, the whole point of this series is to have fun – and for people to have fun reading the book, first we had to have fun writing it!

Cate: We have really loved some of the books and movies pointing out the dangers of extreme wealth inequality and the rich and famous behaving badly. We were all Succession fans and White Lotus fans. So we wanted to bring that into this book in a very personal and Providence way.

Vanessa: I’ll add that there’s a plot around land rights and the Narragansett Indigenous community in Rhode Island that I really appreciated being about to share. We went to the Tomaquag Museum, which shares the culture and history of the tribes of Southern New England, and interviewed the Executive Director, Loren Spears. We developed a lawyer character to tackle these questions (and maybe as a love interest!), and we also incorporated a real issue in Providence when our downtown mall was built on a Narragansett burial ground. I find real life issues to be the biggest inspiration.

Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?

Kimberly: I loved getting to give my character Camille a love interest in Aiden. He’s exactly the kind of man she wouldn’t choose to fall far–smart but not slick, successful but not rolling in cash–and at first he seems immune to her charms. Their push-pull as the story evolves was a real joy to write.

Layne: My character Meredith is now the owner of the strip club where she was a dancer in book one, and it was really interesting to explore the challenges she faces being taken seriously as a businesswoman (though a bit depressing how little has changed from the 1980s to now…).

Cate: I loved writing the scenes with Justine where she has to learn how her identity is being used and, in many respects, weaponized by others. She has to recognize not just how she sees herself but how others see her, and really learn not to assume money, attractiveness and connections means good character.

Vanessa: I like the idea of what happens when you start getting what you want, mo money, mo problems, if you will. For the widows, especially Krystle who I write, she starts to get money, access to power and prestigious clients. But that comes with slippery morals and big conflict.

With four of you working on the novel, what’s the process like?

Layne: We kept basically the same process from the first book (which Cate explains in detail below), though this time we were able to meet up in person and do some IRL research, rather than googling everything like we did when writing Young Rich Widows in the depths of COVID lockdown. Think yachts, Newport mansions, and more!

Cate: We spend weeks plotting the novel and giving ourselves a roadmap of what challenges the characters will face and how those challenges will change them throughout the course of the story. Then we decide whose POV is best to tell certain stories and convey certain reveals. After that, we outline. Then we write, each taking out POV character. Every week, we go through each other’s chapters for consistency and continuity, as well as tweak the language of our individual POV characters in the chapters to make sure the “owner” of that character feels that their actions and words dovetail with who they are and their motivations. As we write, the characters sometimes take us to different places, so then we go back – usually around the midpoint – and have another intensive re-plotting/redrafting session, and we adjust the prior chapters accordingly.

What’s next for you all?

Kimberly: My solo book, The Expat Affair, publishes June 3rd from Park Row Books, and I’m already busy writing my next. And of course, there’s an exciting new adventure for the widows coming in book 3.

Layne: I’m working on a follow-up to my ice dance drama The Favorites for Random House. Desperate Deadly Widows will be my last Widows adventure, but Kim, Cate, and Vanessa are already hard at work on more totally tubular installments in the series!

Cate: I have my solo book, The Kidnapping of Alice Ingold, coming out on September 23rd from Thomas & Mercer. And we have the third book in the Widows series.

Vanessa: I started a new series focusing on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (the first was Blood Sisters) and the second book is out October 28th, called The Bone Thief, which is set in Rhode Island and delves into the past of the Narragansett tribe we feature in Desperate Deadly Widows.

Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up this year?

Kimberly: I can’t wait to dive into Julie Clark’s The Ghostwriter – and I’ll be hanging with her on June 4th at Poisoned Pen. I’m also really looking forward to Chevy Stevens’ The Hitchhiker, out later this year.

Layne: I recently read an ARC of Sky Daddy by Kate Folk, which shares a release date with the Desperate Deadly Widows paperback, and I’ll never be able to fly again without thinking of Folk’s unhinged heroine Linda. Later in 2025, I’m also looking forward to August Lane by Regina Black, Play Nice by Rachel Harrison, and of course Taylor Jenkins Reid’s next book Atmosphere.

Cate: I am very excited for Vanessa’s second installment of Blood Sisters, The Bone Thief. And I’m looking forward to Taylor Jenkins Reid’s upcoming Atmosphere, which is set in the 80s like our books.

Vanessa: I’ll share something only slightly self-serving I just learned: my next book, The Bone Thief, is being released on October 28th along with two other Cherokee authors’ books, The Devil is a Southpaw, by Brandon Hobson and To the Moon and Back, by debut Eliana Ramage. So we’re calling it Read a Cherokee author day LOL

Will you be picking up Desperate Deadly Widows? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Q&A With The Authors Behind ‘Desperate Deadly Widows’ appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Intrigued? Well read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from Kimberly Belle’s The Paris Widow, which is out June 11th 2024.

When Stella met Adam, she thought she had finally found a nice, normal guy—a welcome change from her previous boyfriend and her precarious jetsetter lifestyle with him. But her secure world comes crashing down when Adam goes missing after an explosion in the city square. Unable to reach him, she panics.

As the French police investigate, it’s revealed that Adam was on their radar as a dealer of rare and stolen antiquities with a long roster of criminal clients. Reeling from this news, Stella is determined not to leave Paris until she has the full story. Was Adam a random victim or the target of the explosion? And why is someone following her through the streets of Paris?

An irresistible, fast-paced read set in some of Europe’s most inviting locales, The Paris Widow explores how sinister secrets of the past stay with us—no matter how far we travel.

Prologue

Nice, France

What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.

—Oscar Wilde

At Nice’s Côte d’Azur Airport, the pretty woman coming down the jetway looked like every other bleary-eyed traveler. Rum­pled T-shirt over jeans with an indeterminate stain on the right thigh, hair shoved into a messy ponytail mussed from the head­rest. A backpack was slung over her right shoulder, weighed down with items that weren’t technically hers but looked like they could be. She’d sorted through them on the seven-hour flight, just long enough to make the contents feel familiar.

“Don’t lose it,” the Turkish man said when he hung it on her arm, and she hadn’t.

The jetway dumped her into the terminal, and she trailed behind a family of five, past gates stretched out like spider legs, along the wall of windows offering a blinding view of the sparkling Mediterranean, a turquoise so bright it burned her eyes. The backpack bounced against her shoulder bone, and her heart gave a quiet, little jingle.

She made it through passport control without issue, thanks to her careful selection of the agent behind the glass. A man, first and foremost. Not too old or too young, not too hand­some. A five to her solid eight—or so she’d been told by more than one man. This one must have agreed because he stamped her passport with an appreciative nod. French men were like that. One smile from a woman out of their league, and they melted like a cream-filled bonbon.

She thanked him and slid her passport into her pocket.

In it were stamps to every country in Europe and the Americas, from her crisscrosses over every continent in­cluding Antarctica, from her detours to bask on the famous beaches of Asia, Australia, the South Seas. More than once, she’d had to renew the booklet long before it expired because she’d run out of empty spots for customs agents to stamp. She was particularly proud of that, and of how she could look any way you wanted her to look, be anyone you needed her to be. Today she was playing the role of American Tourist On A Budget.

At baggage claim, she slid the backpack down an aching shoulder and checked the time on her cell. Just under six hours for this little errand, plenty of time assuming she didn’t hit any unexpected roadblocks. If she didn’t get held up at customs, if the taxi line wasn’t too long, if traffic on the A8 wasn’t too awful, which it would be because getting in and out of Monte Carlo was always a nightmare at this time of year. If if if. If she missed the flight to London, she was screwed.

A buzzer sounded, and the baggage carousel rumbled to a slow spin.

At least she didn’t look any more miserable than the people milling around her, their faces long with jet lag. She caught snippets of conversation in foreign tongues, German, Ital­ian, Arabic, French, and she didn’t need a translator to know they were bitching about the wait. The French were never in a hurry, and they were always striking about something. She wondered what it could be this time.

Thirty-eight eternal minutes later, the carousel spit out her suitcase. She hauled it from the band with a grunt, plopped the heavy backpack on top and followed the stream of tour­ists to the exit.

Walk with purpose. Look the customs agent in the eye. Smile, the fleeting kind with your lips closed, not too big or too cocky. Act breezy like you’ve got nothing to prove or to hide. By now she knew all the tricks.

The customs agent she was paired with was much too young for her liking, his limbs still lanky with the leftovers of pu­berty, which meant he had something to prove to the clus­ter of more senior agents lingering behind him. She ignored their watchful gazes, taking in his shiny forehead, the way it was dotted with pimples, and dammit, he was going to be a problem.

He held up a hand, the universal sign for halt. “Avez-vous quelque chose à déclarer?”

Her fingers curled around the suitcase handle, clamping down. She gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, but I don’t speak French.”

That part was the truth, at least. She didn’t speak it, at least not well and not unless she absolutely had to. And her rudi­mentary French wasn’t necessary just yet.

But she understood him well enough, and she definitely knew that last word. He was asking if she had something to declare.

The agent gestured to her suitcase. “Please, may I take a look in your luggage?” His English was heavy with accent, his lips slick with spit, but at least he was polite about it.

She gave a pointed look at the exit a few feet away. On the other side of the motion-activated doors, a line of people leaned against a glass-and-steel railing, fists full of balloons and colorful bouquets. With her free hand, she wriggled her fingers in a wave, even though she didn’t know a single one of them.

She looked back at the agent with another smile. “Is that really necessary? My flight was delayed, and I’m kind of in a hurry. My friends out there have been waiting for hours.”

Calm. Reasonable. Not breaking the slightest sweat.

The skin of his forehead creased in a frown. “This means you have nothing to declare?”

“Only that a saleslady lied to my face about a dress I bought being wrinkle resistant.”

She laughed, but the agent’s face remained as stony as ever.

He beckoned her toward an area behind him, a short hall­way lined with metal tables. “S’il vous plait. The second table.”

Still, she didn’t move. The doors slid open, and she flung an­other glance at the people lined up outside. So close yet so far.

As if he could read her mind, the agent took a calculated step to his left, standing between her and the exit. He swept an insistent arm through the air, giving her little choice. The cluster of agents were paying more attention now.

She huffed a sigh. Straightened her shoulders and gave her bag a hard tug. “Okay, but fair warning. I’m on the tail end of a three-week vacation here, which means everything in my suitcase is basically a giant pile of dirty laundry.”

Again, the truth. Miami to Atlanta to LA to Tokyo to Dubai to Nice, a blur of endless hours with crummy movies and soggy airplane food, of loud, smelly men who drank vodka for breakfast, of kids marching up and down the aisles while everybody else was trying to sleep. What she was wearing was the cleanest thing she had left, and she was still thousands of miles from home.

She let go of the handle, and the suitcase spun and wobbled, whacking the metal leg of the table with a hard clang. Let him lug the heavy thing onto the inspection table himself.

She stood with crossed arms and watched him spread her suitcase open on the table. She wasn’t lying about the laundry or that stupid dress, which currently looked like a crumpled paper bag. He picked through her dirty jeans and rumpled T-shirts, rifled through blouses and skirts. When he got to the wad of dirty underwear, he clapped the suitcase shut.

“See?” she said. “Just a bunch of dirty clothes.”

“And your other bag?”

The backpack dangling from her shoulder, an ugly Tumi knockoff. Her stomach dropped, but she made sure to hold his gaze.

“Nothing in here, either. No meat, no cheese, no forgot­ten fruit. I promise.”

She’d done that once, let an old apple sink to the bottom of her bag for a hyped-up beagle to sniff out, and she paid for it with a forty-five minute wait at a scorching Chilean airport. It was a mistake she wouldn’t make again.

“Madame, please. Do not make me ask you again.”

The little shit really said it. He really called her madame. This kid who was barely out of high school was making her feel old and decrepit, while in the same breath speaking to her like she was a child. His words were as infuriating as they were alarming. She hooked a thumb under the backpack’s strap, but she didn’t let it go.

And yet what choice did she have? She couldn’t run, not with those senior agents watching. Not with this pubescent kid and his long, grasshopper limbs. He’d catch her in a hot second.

She told herself there was nothing to find. That’s what the Turkish man had promised her with a wink and a smile, that nobody would ever know. He swore she’d cruise right on through customs. And she had, many, many times.

As she slid the backpack from her arm with another dra­matic sigh, she hoped like hell he wasn’t lying. “Please hurry.”

The agent took the bag from her fingers and emptied it out on the table. He took out the paperback and crinkled maga­zines, the half-eaten bag of nuts with the Japanese label, the wallet and the zippered pouch stuffed with well-used cosmet­ics that had never once touched her face. He lined the items up, one after the other, until the contents formed a long, neat row on the shiny metal surface. The backpack hung in his hand, deflated and empty.

She lifted a brow: See?

But then he did something she wasn’t expecting. He turned the backpack upside down, just…upended the thing in the air. Crumbs rained onto the table. A faded receipt fluttered to the ground.

And there it was, a dull but discernible scraping sound, a sudden weight tugging at the muscles in his arm, like some­thing inside the backpack shifted.

But nothing else fell out. There were no internal pockets.

“What was that?”

“What was what?” With a clanging heart, she pointed to the stuff on the table. “Can I put that back now? I really have to go.”

The agent stared at her through a long, weighted silence, like a held breath.

Hers.

He slapped the backpack to the table, and she cringed when he shoved a hand in deep, all the way up to his elbow. He felt around the sides and the bottom, sweeping his fingers around the cheap polyester lining. She saw when he made contact with the source of the noise by the way his face changed.

The muscles in her stomach tightened. “Excuse me, this is ridiculous. Give it back.”

The agent didn’t let go of the backpack. He reached in his other hand, and now there was another terrifying sound—of fabric, being ripped apart at the seams.

“Hey,” she said, lunging for the backpack.

He twisted, blocking her with his body.

A few breathless seconds later he pulled it out, a small, flat object that had been sewn into the backpack lining. Small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. Almost like he’d been looking for it.

“What is this?” he said, holding it in the air between them.

“That’s a book.” It was the only thing she could think of to say, and it wasn’t just any book. It was a gold-illuminated manu­script by a revered fourteenth-century Persian poet, one of the earliest copies from the estate of an Islamic art collector who died in Germany last year. Like most of the items in his collec­tion, this one did not technically belong to him.

“I can see it’s a book. Where did you get it?”

Her face went hot, and she had to steady herself on the metal table—the same one he was settling the book gently on top of. He turned the gold-leafed paper with careful fin­gers, and her mind whirled. Should she plead jet lag? Cry or pretend to faint?

“I’ve never seen it before in my life.”

This, finally, was the truth. Today was the first time she’d seen the book with her own eyes.

The agent looked up from the Arabic symbols on the page, and she didn’t miss the gotcha gleam in his eyes. The way his shiny forehead had gone even shinier now, a million new pin­pricks of satisfied sweat. His gaze flitted over her shoulder, and she understood the gesture perfectly.

He was summoning backup.

She was wondering about French prison conditions.

His smile was like ice water on her skin. “Madame, I must insist you come with me.”

Excerpted from THE PARIS WIDOW by Kimberly Belle. Copyright © 2024 by Kimberly Belle. Published by Park Row Books, an imprint of HarperCollins.

The post Read An Excerpt From ‘The Paris Widow’ by Kimberly Belle appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Approaching the halfway mark of 2024, there’s no slowing down on the incredible new books hitting shelves this month! From new releases from the likes of Kalynn Bayron, Riley Sager, Tomi Adeyemi, Paul Tremblay, and so many more, there’s bound to be at least one book you’ll be adding to your TBR!

Read on to discover just a few of our picks and let us know in the comments below if you’re looking forward to any of them. 

The Stars Too Fondly by Emily Hamilton

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In her breathtaking debut—part space odyssey, part sapphic rom-com—Emily Hamilton tells a tale of galaxy-spanning friendship, improbable love, and found family.

The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle

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A dream vacation turns deadly when secrets from the past catch up to a married couple in Paris in this new edge-of-your-seat thriller from USA Today bestselling author, Kimberly Belle.

Sleep Like Death by Kalynn Bayron

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New York Times bestselling author and TikTok sensation Kalynn Bayron returns to fairytales with a lush, thrilling and original YA Snow White retelling that brings a new and exciting voice to this familiar tale. Perfect for fans of Cinderella Is Dead.

Middle of the Night by Riley Sager

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In the latest jaw-dropping thriller from New York Times bestselling author Riley Sager, a man must contend with the long-ago disappearance of his childhood best friend—and the dark secrets lurking just beyond the safe confines of his picture-perfect neighborhood.

Children of Anguish and Anarchy by Tomi Adeyemi

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Tomi Adeyemi’s #1 New York Times-bestselling Legacy of Orïsha series comes to an earth-shaking conclusion.

The Wren In The Holly Library by K.A. Linde

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Set in an alternate day New York filled with monsters, The Wren in the Holly Library is a dark, spicy romantasy loosely inspired by Beauty and the Beast — perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab and Leigh Bardugo.

Jackpot Summer by Elyssa Friedland

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After the Jacobson siblings win a life-changing fortune in the lottery, they assume their messy lives will transform into sleek, storybook perfection—but they couldn’t be more wrong in the new laugh-out-loud novel from beloved author Elyssa Friedland.

Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay

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A chilling twist on the “cursed film” genre from the bestselling author of The Pallbearers Club and The Cabin at the End of the World.

Two Sides To Every Murder by Danielle Valentine

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From the author of How to Survive Your Murder comes a propulsive thriller about two teens who return to the site of the famous murder case that sealed their fates.

The Art of Catching Feelings by Alicia Thompson

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A professional baseball player and his heckler prove that true love is worth going to bat for in the next swoony romance by USA Today bestselling author Alicia Thompson.

The Stardust Grail by Yume Kitasei

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From the acclaimed author of The Deep Sky comes a thrilling anti-colonial space heist to save an alien civilization.

The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim

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In this sly and dazzling contemporary fantasy, the most notorious nine-tailed fox in Korea pairs up with a trickster god–turned–detective to track down a wrathful demon . . . before it can destroy the mortal world.

Anna Bright Is Hiding Something by Susie Orman Schnall

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The Dropout meets Inventing Anna in this cinematic and page-turning summer read! A ripped-from-the-headlines story set in the glossy offices of Silicon Valley startups and NYC new media, Anna Bright Is Hiding Something explores our fascination with female founders breaking barriers—and sometimes behaving badly in the process.

Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

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A bold, laugh-out-loud funny, and heartwarming story about one young woman’s attempt to navigate adulthood, new motherhood, and her meager bank account in our increasingly online world—from the PEN/Faulkner finalist and critically acclaimed author of The Knockout Queen.

Director’s Cut by Carlyn Greenwald

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Oscar-winning Valeria Sullivan finds herself trapped in a battle of wits with a sexy professor, but can she keep her cool when things heat up in and out of the classroom?

Assassins Anonymous by Rob Hart

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In this clever, surprising, page-turner, the world’s most lethal assassin gives up the violent life only to find himself under siege by mysterious assailants. It’s a kill-or-be-killed situation, but the first option is off the table. What’s a reformed hit man to do?

What June 2024 book releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post 16 New Book Releases To Pick Up In June 2024 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Releasing on December 1, The Last Caretaker is an empowering and harrowing story about a woman in search of a new beginning who is put to the test in ways she never imagined.

I don’t always have a personal connection to the subject matter of my novels: With a background in magazine journalism, I’m not afraid to tackle research-intensive topics I know little about to start. I’ve written fiction about the fraught search for a kidney donor (A Million Reasons Why), the fascinating role of end-of-life doulas (The Next Thing You Know), and even parental kidnapping (Almost Missed You). But when it comes to domestic violence, I found out the hard way that we’re all just one tragedy away from the worst kind of crash course—into warning signs we must have missed.

My favorite novels that draw awareness to this important—and shockingly common—issue don’t merely use an abusive spouse as an antagonist but give meaningful insight into the slow-burn danger of abuse and what it takes to break the cycle. And they do it by being empowering and engaging rather than heavy-handed or depressing.

Two of my own novels feature women on the run, but from entirely different perspectives: Not That I Could Tell, in which a young mom’s neighbors are baffled by her disappearance after a backyard bonfire, and my latest, The Last Caretaker, in which a woman accepts a job as resident caretaker at a nature reserve only to realize her new home doubles as a safehouse for a secret network that helps women in danger escape. Here’s a shortlist of other such page-turners from authors I admire:

Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle

Many readers know Kimberly Belle from her blockbuster The Marriage Lie, but of all her riveting novels, this is my favorite. One woman is finally enacting her carefully laid escape plan, while another has gone missing—and the way their stories twist together is jaw-droppingly clever. The authentic voices of the hunted—and the hunter—will chill you to the bone.

Goodbye Earl by Leesa Cross-Smith

The subtitle, written right on the cover in smashed cherry pie, says it all: This is “A Revenge Novel,” and it’s every bit as irreverent (and dare I say fun) as the “Chicks” song it borrows its title from. Goodbye Earl is a celebration of friendship, tight-knit circles, and how far we’ll go to protect the people we love.

A Light in the Forest by Melissa Payne

Motherhood is at the heart of this story, where a woman flees her abusive husband with little but her baby in her arms—and ends up tracing her own mother’s footsteps back into a past she knows little about. Payne builds a community around her characters while keeping us guessing if they’ll ever feel safe.

Hadley and Grace by Suzanne Redfearn

I adore road trip stories, as well as characters who make unlikely, mismatched pairs. Hadley and Grace has both: Two very different women who find themselves on the run from a common enemy, each with her own reasons—and secrets. There’s a Thelma and Louise quality to this story that I bet you’ll love as much as I do.

The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding

This story begins with an irresistible premise: A homeless woman saves a rich attorney’s wife from throwing herself into the ocean to escape the husband she thinks of as her captor. But if you think you know where this story is going, think again: It’s one of the most twisty books I’ve ever read.

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell

It’s not just a woman who goes missing here, it’s a young couple: But the story immediately raises questions of obsession, control, and the reckless nature of any crime of passion. Lisa Jewell masterfully populates her trail of clues with seemingly unrelated characters who are so authentic, you won’t soon forget them.

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

There’s a reason Colleen Hoover is dominating the bestseller lists: Her novels are compulsively readable, and this one makes a tough topic accessible and sympathetic, without simplifying a complicated issue. There’s romance, there’s danger—and there’s strength and determination readers will relate to.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

If you haven’t read the book or seen the HBO adaptation, you’re missing out on one of the best ensemble cast stories of domestic abuse where we least expect it—and the shame that keeps it behind closed doors.

Dreamland by Sarah Dessen

For the young adult reader in your life, this book is an important and accessible foray into how it all starts. Dessen is wonderful at writing vulnerable teenage characters who find themselves in over their heads, and breaking down perceptions that abusive relationships only happen to “other people.”

Giving the Devil His Due: A Charity Anthology

I confess I’m not an avid short story reader, but I’m including this anthology because of its mission: Proceeds support The Pixel Project global nonprofit to stop gender-based violence. Stories contributed by sixteen award-winning fantasy, science-fiction and horror writers offer different spins on a theme: predators and abusers who “meet their comeuppance in uncanny ways.”

The post Empowering Page Turners About Women Who’ve Had Enough appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Hi, Kimberly! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?

Of course, and thank you for having me! I am a wife, a mother, and author of nine novels and counting. My third book, The Marriage Lie, was a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for Best Mystery & Thriller, and I also co-authored a #1 Audible Original, Young Rich Widows—currently working on the second in the series! My husband is Dutch, which means half of my life (including one of my kids) is in Amsterdam; the rest of the year I spend in Atlanta, where most of my books are set.

Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!

• First book I remember reading (and being obsessed with): Charlotte’s Web
• Book that made me want to become an author: is it weird that I don’t know? I’ve just always loved books and it felt like a natural step to want to write one.
• Book I can’t stop thinking about: the latest – because there are so many – is The Last Housewife by Ashley Winstead. I absolutely LOVED it.

Your latest novel, The Personal Assistant, is out November 29^th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?

When online threats turn real

What can readers expect?

The Personal Assistant is a story about Alex, an Instagram influencer with a huge following—one that is impossible to manage without her sharp-as-a-tack personal assistant, AC.

But all the good-will of her followers turns toxic when one controversial post goes viral in the worst possible way. Alex reaches out to AC for damage control, but her assistant has gone silent. This young woman Alex trusted with all her secrets, who had access to her personal information and front row seats to the pressure points in her marriage and family life, is now missing, and the police are looking to Alex and her husband for answers. As Alex digs into AC’s identity – and a woman is found murdered – she’ll find the greatest threat isn’t online, but in her own living room.

Where did the inspiration for The Personal Assistant come from?

It’s an idea that developed out of my own life as author. One of the job requirements is to put myself out there on social media, which means I’m constantly walking a fine line between sharing snippets of my life and holding back on personal, private moments. Sometimes that line can become a little fuzzy. And you’re not always in control of how posts land, or what people think of the photographs and captions after you hit Share. One wrong word can blow up in ways you don’t always anticipate, which got me thinking… What if the people on the receiving end of these posts don’t have the best of intentions? What if the animosity on Instagram and Facebook turns all too real? These questions and more were the basis for the Personal Assistant.

Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?

I wrote this story in 2021, well into the second year of the pandemic. By then, we’d stopped washing our groceries, but life still felt so much smaller than before. No travel. No parties. No fun. Whereas I pounded out my first pandemic book, My Darling Husband, in four short months, with The Personal Assistant, I had to fight for every word. I know everyone was struggling back then, but I had a tough time focusing on a story about an Instagram influencer while a pandemic raged outside my doors.

But then I realized maybe that was the whole point of the story. When Alex’s world becomes a dumpster fire, it puts things for her into perspective. It forces her to stop and adjust, to reassess her priorities. People. Her family. As Alex learned in her story—as we learned in ours—the rest is just noise and fluff.

Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?

I grew up in a small town in Tennessee, so as much as I love to write about big-city gals like The Personal Assistant’s Alex, the voices that come the easiest to me are always a little bit (okay, a lot) country. In this book that voice belonged to Anna Claire, a young maid who falls for an older, wealthier man who doesn’t have her best interests at heart. While Anna Claire’s story is tragic, her chapters were easiest—and so much fun—to write.

What’s next for you?

I’m currently working on two projects: Desperate Deadly Widows, an Audible original and second book in the Widows series I coauthor with the uber-talented Vanessa Lillie, Layne Fargo and Cate Holahan. My next solo book is The Paris Widow, a thriller about a couple vacationing in Paris when the husband is killed, the victim of what looks to be a freak accident—but when the gendarmerie point to him as the target of the explosion, she begins to wonder what kind of man she married…and worse, if his killers might be after her next. No publication date yet but I suspect it will be in 2024.

Lastly, what have been some of your favourite 2022 reads? Any 2023 releases our readers should look out for?

Hmm, I already mentioned The Last Housewife, but I also loved The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth and Woman on Fire by Lisa Barr. If you’re looking for more recommendations, make sure to tune into my Instagram page on the last Wednesday of every month, where I announce my five favorite new releases from that month. I also talk about tons of books on the Killer Author Club, a bi-weekly interview series I host with fellow authors Kaira Rouda and Heather Gudenkauf. For links to past and future shows as well as our recently launched killer book club, surf to killerauthorclub.com.

The post Q&A: Kimberly Belle, Author of ‘The Personal Assistant’ appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

The Luminaries by Susan Dennard
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From Susan Dennard, the New York Times bestselling author of the Witchlands series, comes a haunting and high-octane contemporary fantasy, about the magic it takes to face your fears in a nightmare-filled forest, and the mettle required to face the secrets hiding in the dark corners of your own family.

White Horse by Erika T. Wurth
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White Horse is a gritty, vibrant debut from Erika T. Wurth about an Indigenous woman who must face her past when she discovers a bracelet haunted by her mother’s spirit.

The Ones We Burn by Rebecca Mix
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Love and duty collide in this richly imagined, atmospheric young adult debut about a witch whose dark powers put her at the center of a brewing war between the only family she’s ever known and the enemy who makes her question everything.

The Personal Assistant by Kimberly Belle
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USA TODAY bestselling author Kimberly Belle returns with a deeply addictive thriller exploring the dark side of the digital world when a mommy-blogger’s assistant goes missing.  

Better Than Fiction by Alexa Martin
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Love isn’t always by the book in this charming romantic comedy about a bookseller discovering how to be the main character in her story.

Wicked Little Things by Justin Arnold
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A campy teen horror novel that follows Dane as he returns to his hometown of Jasper Hollow intent on solving his cousin’s grisly murder with the help of a coven of mean girls intent on making him over.

Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse
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Celeste, a card sharp with a penchant for trouble, takes on the role of advocatus diaboli, to defend her sister Mariel, accused of murdering a Virtue, a member of the ruling class in the mining town of Goetia, in a new world of dark fantasy.

Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun
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The author of the “swoon-worthy debut” (Harper’s Bazaar) The Charm Offensive returns with a festive romantic comedy about a woman who fakes an engagement with her landlord…only to fall for his sister.

When Franny Stands Up by Eden Robins
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The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel meets A League of Their Own in this inspiring story Buzzfeed calls “a warm hug of a novel.”

Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales
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When their now famous ex-boyfriend asks them to participate in a teen reality show, two eighteen year old girls―one bent on revenge, the other open to rekindling romance―get tangled up in an unexpected twist when they fall for each other instead in Never Ever Getting Back Together by nationally and internationally-bestselling and Indie Next Pick author Sophie Gonzales.

Someday, Maybe by Onyi Nwabineli
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Someday, Maybe is a stunning, witty debut novel about a young woman’s emotional journey through unimaginable loss, pulled along by her tight-knit Nigerian family, a posse of friends, and the love and laughter she shared with her husband.

A Matter of Happiness by Tori Whitaker
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A cherished heirloom opens up a century of secrets in a bittersweet novel about family, hard truths, and self-discovery by the author of Millicent Glenn’s Last Wish.

What November releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post November 2022 Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Sundial by Catriona Ward
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Sundial is a new, twisty psychological horror novel from Catriona Ward, internationally bestselling author of The Last House on Needless Street.

My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle
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Bestselling author of Dear Wife and The Marriage Lie, Kimberly Belle returns with her most heart-pounding thriller to date, as a masked home invader reveals the cracks in a marriage.

Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye
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The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
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The much-acclaimed viral sensation from Olivie Blake, The Atlas Six—now newly revised and edited with additional content, is a dark academic debut fantasy with an established cult following that reads like The Secret History meets The Umbrella Academy.

The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen
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The Golden Couple is the next electrifying novel from Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, the #1 New York Times bestselling author duo behind You Are Not Alone, An Anonymous Girl, and The Wife Between Us.

Lakelore by Anna Marie McLemore
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In this young adult novel by award-winning author Anna-Marie McLemore, two non-binary teens are pulled into a magical world under a lake – but can they keep their worlds above water intact?

The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller
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Sara A. Mueller’s The Bone Orchard is a fascinating whodunit set in a lush, gothic world of secrets and magic–where a dying emperor charges his favorite concubine with solving his own murder, and preventing the culprit, which undoubtedly is one of his three terrible sons, from taking control of an empire.

A Novel Obsession by Caitlin Barasch
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A wry and bold debut novel, which is at once an irresistible catastrophe waiting to happen and an unflinching exploration of how we narrate the stories of our lives, as an aspiring novelist finds herself stalking—and writing about—her boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend.

The City of Dusk by Tara Sim
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Set in a gorgeous world of bone and shadow magic, of vengeful gods and defiant chosen ones, The City of Dusk is the first in a dark epic fantasy trilogy that follows the four heirs of four noble houses—each gifted with a divine power—as they form a tenuous alliance to keep their kingdom from descending into a realm-shattering war.

The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James
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A true crime blogger gets more than she bargained for while interviewing the woman acquitted of two cold case slayings in this chilling new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel.

Wingbearer by Marjorie Liu, illustrated by Teny Issakhanian
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From bestselling author Marjorie Liu and debut illustrator Teny Issakhanian comes the first in an epic new middle grade graphic novel series featuring a young girl who must stop a threat to her magical world – perfect for fans of Amulet.

The Lost Dreamer by Lizz Huerta
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A stunning YA fantasy inspired by ancient Mesoamerica, this gripping debut introduces us to a lineage of seers defiantly resisting the shifting patriarchal state that would see them destroyed―perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi and Sabaa Tahir.

What March 2022 book releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post March 2022 Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

There are some exciting debut authors, much-anticipated continuations in a series, domestic suspense, cults, detectives, spies, old secrets, and so much more. Without a doubt, there is something for every mystery/thriller reader coming in the next few months. This is only a sampling of some of our most anticipated!

The Night Village by Zoe Deleuil
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Determined to start a new life in London, despite some unexpected circumstances, Australian expat Simone moves in with her boyfriend Paul. When Paul’s cousin Rachel arrives, however, Simone feels much more unease than relief. Something doesn’t seem right about Rachel’s motives for moving in, as well as just what secrets these cousins share.

Where I Left Her by Amber Garza
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The worst nightmare a mother can imagine comes true in this highly suspenseful tale of Whitney, a mother who drops her teenage daughter off at a sleepover, only to return to pick her up and find that the elderly couple living there have never seen the teenagers and they have no idea what Whitney is talking about. As she begins following what turns out to be a trail of lies, she has to wonder if she ever really knew her daughter at all. 

The Night We Burned by S.F. Kosa
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Dora’s job, and in fact her life itself, depends on her ability to separate fact from fiction as she struggles to outrun the secrets of her past. Old secrets, a cult, a fire, and a murder fit together to make a truly exciting psychological thriller! 

The Receptionist by Kate Myles
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Emily’s tough, ruthless persona in her work life does not match that of her personal life, but a chain of shocking scandals throws Emily’s life into chaos. It becomes a fight for survival in this thriller full of sex, ambition, pregnancy, affairs, and disaster. How far will Emily go to protect what she loves most?

These Toxic Things by Rachel Howzell Hall
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A serial killer that has been dormant begins leaving messages for Mickie who makes “digital scrapbooks” of precious items for clients. But when Mickie began this task for her latest client, an apparent suicide, threats began arriving and Mickie is determined to solve the mysteries about her client even as the answers she finds become more sinister.

Dark Things I Adore by Katie Lattari
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An exciting debut tale of manipulative men and fierce women. Beginning in 1988, there are secrets and there are witnesses, and in 2018 there is a woman who has woven the perfect web to exact revenge. This psychological thriller of dark academia and vengeance has been described as seductive and captivating!

Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian
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Chloe is not just a regular college student – she is also part of a clinical study for psychopaths. Chloe is actually one of seven students at the college who fall into this category, unable to feel (or even understand) emotions like regret, guilt, or fear. When one of the students in the study is murdered, Chloe may need to figure out how to trust, who to trust, and whether or not someone can trust her.

Nice Girls by Catherine Dang
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After an uncomfortably awkward childhood and adolescence in Minnesota, Mary saw an Ivy League school as her ticket into a different life. Three years later she is back, and definitely different, but refusing to explain what happened at Cornell and why she was kicked out as she started her senior year. She soon becomes obsessed with the disappearance of her childhood best friend, though they haven’t spoken in many years. Mary certainly knows about secrets and knows her missing friend is likely not who everyone believes she is…and that her disappearance may have ties to yet another missing girl.

Wolf Point by Ian K. Smith
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The follow-up to last year’s The Unspoken, continues to follow former Chicago Police Department detective Ashe Canyon as he fights corruption on the streets, and in the underbelly, of Chicago, now as a private investigator. Smith’s extensive research into the historical (and current) inner working of the city of Chicago, its politics, and its criminal justice system always give his writing a “ripped from the headlines” feel!

Litani by Jess Lourey
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Inspired by a terrifying true crime story, the author of Unspeakable Things and Bloodline is back with a story set in the rural Midwest. Fourteen year old Frankie can just feel that something is amiss when she has to move to live with her estranged mother in Litani, Minnesota. She is soon bullied by some of the local girls into ignoring her mother’s warnings to stay out of the nearby woods. Secrets, hysteria, and paranoia abound as Frankie begins to fear that those living around her truly are monsters.

These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant
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A father and his young daughter are living in isolation in a cabin in the Appalachian Mountains while the father hides from the secrets of his past. While his daughter has been content living with her books and her imagination, she is beginning to push back against living a life disconnected from the outside world. When the pattern they have lived by all these years is disrupted it sets off a chain of events that exposes the reality of their lives. A shocking disappearance may be the end of the father’s ability to hide in this tension-filled story of survival and sacrifice.

Grave Reservations by Cherie Priest
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Fans of the Aurora Teagarden series by Charlaine Harris will find a lot to enjoy in this tale of a Seattle detective and a psychic travel agent working together to solve a murder. Premonitions, cold cases, secrets, a murdered fiancée, and karaoke…what’s not to love?

Hello, Transcriber by Hannah Morrissey
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Police transcriber and aspiring writer Hazel Greenlee becomes captivated by the investigation (and the lead detective) of a suspicious death linked to a notorious drug dealer. Before she knows it, Hazel is about to go a step too far in the chase for a good story.

True Crime Story by Joseph Knox
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In this uniquely told true crime documentary-style thriller there is a missing girl, a writer drawn into the story years later, and troubling inconsistencies in the official version of what happened to Zoe Nolan. In a unique twist, Joseph Knox puts himself into the story when revelations of a secret life and a stalker begin to show that, while she is missing and presumed dead, this may only be the beginning of Zoe Nolan’s real story.

The Secret Next Door by Rebecca Taylor
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In an exclusive neighbourhood near Denver, rapidly flowing gossip, on-going personality conflicts, and deep divisions boil over when a thirteen year old is found dead beside the neighbourhood lake. The long-held belief in the importance of a beautiful exterior pales in comparison to the secrets being kept in each house.

Everything We Didn’t Say by Nicole Baart
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Past and present collide in this family drama. Juniper had only just graduated from high school when a couple who lived on a nearby farm were brutally murdered. With Juniper’s brother named as the prime suspect, she left town promising never to return. But now she is back, and believes that solving the murders will put everything right. But it is never that easy…

Darkness Falls by Robert Bryndza
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I will readily admit that my favourite time of year is when a Kate Marshall thriller from Robert Bryndza comes out. This time, the heroine from Nine Elms and Shadow Sands investigates a journalist’s disappearance. It’s a cold case and most people have moved on. There are no new leads and no new suspects, but that does not mean Kate and Tristan are stuck at the same dead ends as previous investigators. The journalist may have been looking into something far darker and more disturbing than anyone previously realised.

The Witching Tree by Alice Blanchard
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Detective Natalie Lockhart is back, but the events that occurred in Trace of Evil and The Wicked Hour have taken a terrible toll on her well-being. Living at the centre of two well-known murder cases has just been too much, and she is thinking that the police force may not be where she belongs. But a shocking murder unlike anything she has seen before changes everything and she is back on the case with her boss and childhood friend Detective Luke Pittman.

Safecracker by Ryan Wick
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This much-anticipated debut novel about a professional safecracker (obviously) and the incredibly high stakes involved in his latest job is full of action and has received many glowing early reviews. Michael Maven was hired to steal a rare coin, but that job gets unexpectedly complicated and Michael is soon coerced into much more dangerous work, and the lives of his family hang in the balance. Hopefully, there are plans for this to begin a whole new series!

My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle
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A happily married couple with adorable kids, a beautiful home, and a thriving business have their lives turned upside down when they are confronted one night by a home invader. The husband has been a good father and a loving spouse, but there are secrets he has kept that now put them all in danger and it is all about to become a very public scandal. Early reviewers have repeatedly mentioned the incredible pacing and breakneck speed of this domestic suspense thriller.

There are many other exciting thrillers coming in the next few months, by some of our long-time favourites like Alice Feeney, Kimberly McCreight, Catherine Ryan Howard, and the list goes on! 

What has been your favourite thriller this year so far, and what are you most excited about reading as 2021 winds down? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Closing Out 2021 With More Outstanding Thriller Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

In Kimberly Belle’s recently published thriller, Dear Wife, the relationship between the characters was intense at times and mysterious throughout the whole book. This is a domestic thriller that I actually enjoyed reading, and felt it was far from predictable! The domestic thriller genre has become so popular in the last couple of years, that a lot of the stories out there have a very similar premise, with a very similar outcome to the “mystery”. This makes it hard to enjoy the story when you know what is going to happen, or makes you think “here we go again, another marriage in turmoil”. But, Dear Wife is different – it takes on a different kind of relationship dynamic, and the characters within the book have such great personalities that you truly want to know how it’s going to end for them all.

This is great summer read – by the beach, by the pool, or even just sitting on our couch devouring each page wondering what the heck is going to happen next with this couple.

I was very lucky to read this book for Harper Collins Canada, and also ask the author, Kimberly Belle, some questions!

Who’s your favourite author?

I couldn’t possibly choose! I’ll read anything by Harlan Coben or Karin Slaughter or Lisa Unger, but I also love discovering new authors, especially debuts. There are so many fabulous books out there, so many authors putting out great work. I will read anything and anyone.

Favourite book or genre to read?

My favourite book changes depending on the day/minute/mood, but I do read a lot of suspense/thrillers, and I tend toward the dark and gritty. Occasionally I’ll slow things down with a women’s fiction or romance novel, but then I’ll find myself wondering which character is going to end up dead. It’s like my mind craves a suspense plot.

When was the moment you realized that you loved literature?

I can’t point to one moment when I realized books were essential to my life, because they were always there, even when I was very little. I can’t remember a time when I was ever not in a book, when I didn’t have three or four stories going at the same time. What I do remember, however, is the first time a friend expressed a dislike for reading, and I was so confused, and also a little sad. I’m still that way when people tell me they don’t enjoy reading. Think of all the joys they’re missing out on!

What made you want to be a writer?

I’m not one of those writers who penned her first novel in crayon. Writing was something I always dreamed of doing, but for the longest time it fell by the wayside for a job that paid the bills. That job for me was nonprofit fundraising, and it definitely helped me hone my writing skills. Fundraising letters, website texts, scripts for meetings and events…I learned very quickly how to drill down to a powerful, poignant message that tugs at the heartstrings.

And then in 2008, the economy crashed and so did my job. By that point I was pushing forty, and I still hadn’t written that novel I’d always dreamed of writing. I decided to see my sudden unemployment as a now-or-never moment, so I sat down and my computer and….realized I had no idea what I was doing.

I spent the next couple of years learning how to build a story. I took courses, read everything I could get my hands on, found some critique partners and mentors, and then I wrote a book and then another. I sold both to Mira in a 2-book deal, and the rest, as they say, is history.

What inspired you to write your new novel, Dear Wife?

Dear Wife was a gift from the writing gods. I had just spent months putting a proposal together for another story when the idea for Dear Wife woke me up in the middle of the night. My eyes popped open and the story was right there, fully formed. I knew my characters, the major plot points, how the story began and ended. While the house slept, I stared at the ceiling and watched the story play like a movie in my head. In the morning, I called my editor and pulled the first proposal, then asked for another week or two to throw together a new one for Dear Wife. Thankfully, she loved the story just as much as I did.

But as for where it came from, Dear Wife is my second book that deals with domestic violence, a subject that was inspired by a dear friend whose backstory is similar to my main character’s in Three Days Missing. When that story opens, she is in the midst of a very messy, very public divorce from a husband who beat her in a very public setting—pretty much exactly what happened to my friend. It’s a fictionalized story crafted around a real-life one, and writing it helped me sort through all the emotions I felt, the sadness and helplessness and anger, while watching my friend go through her divorce. I thought I’d worked through all my emotions until the idea for Dear Wife popped into my head, and I realized I had more to say, this time through a woman who is fighting back in the most brave, kick-ass way. Beth is angry and determined and willing to risk it all for her freedom—all the ingredients for the best kind of heroine.

I think it’s really interesting that you chose to write each chapter from the perspective of different characters. What made you choose this? Was it difficult to write? Or did it give you a chance to really dig deep about your characters?

That’s the way the story came into my head, and honestly (and I’m trying hard not to give anything away here) the only way I could figure to tell it. I wanted the reader to get a glimpse of all three characters and make their own assumptions as to what is going on, and how they are connected. And yes, it gave me a chance to dig deep into all three and find out what makes them tick.

I thought it was going to be difficult writing from a male point of view, but Marcus and Jeffrey’s voices came fairly easily. I think it’s because they’re such sarcastic jerks, and I got to have a little fun with them. Thought they’re each carrying their own secrets, their stories were easier to write than Beth, that’s for sure.

Did you identify more with one character than another?

I always identify with my heroines and put pieces of me in every one, as it makes them easier to write. But in every book, I get surprised by how much I love one of the characters in a way I wasn’t expecting. In Dear Wife it was Miss Sally. She was one of the first secondary characters I came up with, and since she’s not a main character, I got to have a little more fun with her, make her different and funny. She was very loud and vocal in my head, and she kind of wrote herself.

Did your writing process change at all when you began writing your third book? Was going from writing your first to your third easier? Harder? Or different altogether based on the story?

Every book is different and demands its own ways of approaching things, but my process is always the same. I spend months thinking a story through before I write the first word. I start with the basics: character, major plot points, a one or two sentence synopsis, and then I take it from there. I brainstorm, add subplots and secondary characters, fill in and expand on the many blank spots. Once I have a fairly detailed outline, I’ll run it by my agent and editor, who are both brilliant at pointing out all the places it could be better. Crafting a story is a group effort, and their feedback and ideas really help me as I’m shaping the plot.

But even with the outline, I always give myself room for things to change and develop as I write. Sometimes that means adding characters (like Evan in The Marriage Lie) or rewriting chapters from another point of view (a couple of Jeffrey chapters ended up Marcus’s in Dear Wife). But I can make those changes because the bones are already there, both on paper and in my head.

That said, I’ve never – not once – changed an ending. I go into a story knowing exactly how it will end, and with I every chapter I write, I am moving steadily closer.

Why do you think so many readers out there are so fascinated by thrillers/crime fiction? What draws you to this genre?

When I first started writing suspense, I didn’t set out for it to be domestic. But I write the kind of books I like to read, about subjects that everyone can relate to: relationships. Parent-child, husband-wife, siblings. I love exploring the emotions that come along with these types of bonds, mostly because they’re so universally recognizable. Toss in the suspense angle—a lying spouse, a child gone missing—and it’s a what-if scenario everyone can imagine themselves in. That’s the appeal of the genre, I think, that people read it and think, that could have been me.

Can we expect any more books from you coming up?

Yes! I’m currently finishing up a story about a newlywed woman who discovers a woman’s body under their lakeside home dock. The police show up, and in her shock and the pressure of the moment, she follows her husband’s lead and lies about ever having seen the woman—which she did the previous day in passing. It’s not a big lie, and she doesn’t really think much of it at the time, but soon that one little lie turns into an avalanche. As the police close in on the woman’s killer, my main character uncovers dangerous truths about her husband and her marriage, as well as dark secrets that have been simmering below the lake’s currents for years. No title yet, but coming sometime in 2020.

This idea was something I’d been stewing on for ages, a book set in a remote mountain lake town where money plays a big role in the town’s dynamics. My main character’s marriage to an older, wealthier man gives her a rags-to-riches backstory, which reveals unexpected truths about her character. People will break their moral compasses for a host of primal reasons: hate, love, envy, passion, survival—and money.

Do you have any advice for young writers out there?

The biggest advice I can give to any writer is to keep writing. Letter for letter, word for word. Don’t wait for an agent, a publisher, a contract, just keep writing and polishing your craft, every single day. Treat your writing like a job. Set your alarm and go to “work” behind your laptop every day, five days a week, because if you wait for inspiration to strike—or for a story idea to come upon you—you’ll never get anything written. Some days you’ll end with a lot of words, other days you’ll stare at your screen and pull out your hair. In the end, it all evens out and eventually, you have a book.

Have you read any books by Kimberly Belle? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Interview: Kimberly Belle, Author of ‘Dear Wife’ appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Read on to discover all of our June picks and tell us in the comments below if you will checking any of them out!

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
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From the New York Times bestselling author of An Enchantment of Ravens comes an imaginative fantasy about an apprentice at a magical library who must battle a powerful sorcerer to save her kingdom.

Magic For Liars by Sarah Gailey
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Sharp, mainstream fantasy meets compelling thrills of investigative noir in Magic for Liars, a fantasy debut by rising star Sarah Gailey.

The First Mistake by Sandie Jones
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From Sandie Jones, the author of the Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick and New York Times bestseller The Other Woman, comes an addictively readable new domestic suspense about a wife, her husband, and the woman who is supposedly her best friend.

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
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From the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love and The Signature of All Things, a delicious novel of glamour, sex, and adventure, about a young woman discovering that you don’t have to be a good girl to be a good person.

The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen
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From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah Dessen comes a big-hearted, sweeping novel about a girl who reconnects with a part of her family she hasn’t seen since she was a little girl—and falls in love, all over the course of a magical summer.

Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle
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From the bestselling author of The Marriage Lie and Three Days Missing comes a riveting new novel of suspense about a woman who, in a fight for survival, must decide just how far she’ll go to escape the person she once loved

The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez
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Ghosts of the Shadow Market by Cassandra Clare
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From New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Cassandra Clare comes an exciting new short story collection that follows Jem Carstairs as he travels through the many Shadow Markets around the world. Ghosts of the Shadow Market is a Shadowhunters novel.

I’ll Never Tell by Catherine McKenzie
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Deeply buried secrets make for a disturbing family reunion in bestselling author Catherine McKenzie’s tantalizing novel of psychological suspense, named one of the Hottest Books of Summer by Goodreads.

Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Lush and visual, chock-full of delicious recipes, Roselle Lim’s magical debut novel is about food, heritage, and finding family in the most unexpected places.

Those People by Louise Candlish
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From the author of the international bestseller Our House, a new novel of twisty domestic suspense asks, “Could you hate your neighbor enough to plot to kill him?”

The Long Flight Home by Alan Hlad
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Inspired by fascinating, true, yet little-known events during World War II, The Long Flight Home is a testament to the power of courage in our darkest hours—a moving, masterfully written story of love and sacrifice.

What June 2019 book release are you most excited for? Tell us in the comments below!

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