Sunday, January 24, 2016

It's All About the Book with Sally & Jean @SmithSteffens #giveaway #amazongc



We are super thrilled to have with us today the DYNAMIC DUO of
Sally J. Smith & Jean Steffens with an Interview
 
It’s All About the Book…

 Please tell us about your current or upcoming release. 

Stealing the Moon & Stars, A Jordan Welsh & Eddie Marino Novel
Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino, Scottsdale private eyes, are hired to find out who’s stealing from the Moon & Stars Children’s Foundation. Foundation employees are suspected, but just as the pieces start falling into place, Jordan discovers a hidden agenda that puts her in the crosshairs of a crime lord. Who can she trust? Everyone has a dangerous secret, and the bodies are piling up. Even her partner, Eddie Marino, has a dark and mysterious past. Does she dare act on their attraction? Will it destroy their partnership? The two have landed in a hornets’ nest. Nothing to do now but stir it up. 


What is this book’s genre?  Mystery.  Is this the genre you usually write in?  Yes.

 Are there any genre’s you haven’t written that you’d like to try?
 
Jean would like to try her hand at writing a western. We she has time.

Sally: There are so many genres I’d like to write, it would take an hour to list them all (sigh).



What inspired you to write this book? Our first book together, Stealing the Moon & Stars—it was Jean’s vision to create a private detective worthy of the Scottsdale lifestyle. Her idea evolved into Jordan Welsh, a trust fund baby rebelling against the restrictions of her high society upbringing. We gave her a partner, Eddie Marino, a graduate from the school of hard knocks and a bit of a mystery himself. We read an article about funds embezzled from a charity. It was intriguing. We wanted to write a story about a team of detectives hired to clear up one matter who found themselves in the middle of something much more complicated than they could ever have imagined. And, of course, we wanted to set it in gorgeous Scottsdale, Arizona, where the Wild West meets Beverly Hills.

How did you pick its title?  Stealing the Moon & Stars came from the name of the charity.   

Did it come first or did you have to write the story first? We wrote to book first, then picked the title.



How did you create your characters?  Did you use any real life people in their making?
At one of the Sisters in Crime meetings the guest speaker was a female private investigator. She was beautiful, smart and funny. She was an ex-actress from Hollywood. From her persona, we developed, Jordan Welsh, a privileged heiress who is trying to break out of the diva mold and make her own way in the world. It’s not easy, especially when her mother, who’s an organizer of charity balls and a woman firmly positioned on the top run of the society register, keeps meddling in her life.



Who is your favorite character of this book and why?
Jean: I love Eddie Marino because he’s a man’s man. He takes care of business and his woman. And Sharon Milliner is a hoot.

Sally: The hero and heroine are both great characters, but I’m partial to the long list of colorful secondary characters like Mary Welsh, Jordan’s good-hearted but opinionated and meddling mother, and Sharon Milliner, a person of interest in the case who seemed to take over every scene she appeared in like an overblown game show host.


What is your favorite part of this book? Can you share an excerpt from that part?

Sally: I particularly like the scenes where Jordan Welsh comes face-to-face with the darker elements of her partner Eddie’s past. One scene that comes to mind:
“If Mr. Tanner told you such a thing, he misspoke. I’ll talk to him about it. Mr. Tanner is my affair. Rest assured he won’t be following you again.” He looked at her, hard and steady. “It’s a good idea to stay out of other people’s business. A healthier option, if you know what I mean.”

“Are you threatening me?” Of course you are.

“No. It’s just good advice. You look like the kind of woman who’d be smart enough to listen to good advice.” He lifted his chin at Eddie. “He knows what I’m talking about. Don’t you, Marino?”

Eddie put his hand on Jordan’s shoulder. “We’re leaving.”

She glanced at Eddie, but he wasn’t looking at her. He was locked in on Shetland, and Shetland was looking back at him.

The blatant hostility on Eddie’s face and the serious intent on Shetland’s shook her.

“It was interesting to finally meet you face to face, Marino. Heard a lot about you.”

Jordan let Eddie lead her past the stage show and out into the night.

She gulped in the cool night air. Her limbs went weak and shaky. She didn’t trust herself to speak. When she did, her voice shivered. “He threatened me. Us. Did he mean it?” She looked into Eddie’s eyes and saw the truth. “He’ll come after us if we don’t back off, won’t he?”

Eddie put his arms around her and pulled her against him. He was solid and comforting, and ever so warm.

A shiver of fear ran through her. Eddie cupped her hand in his and took her car keys. He tossed his own keys to Tank then led her back to her car and guided her into the passenger seat before he got in behind the wheel.

She turned to him, scared to death and not ashamed to admit it. “My God. What have I gotten us into?”


What was the hardest part of this book to write? Can you share an excerpt from that part?

Sally: I found the scenes where Jordan and Eddie are in a romantic scene and the sexual tension is thick difficult to portray her warring feelings of desire and need for Eddie versus her trepidation to enter a romantic relationship with him:
He hadn’t said a word since they got in the car. Jordan hated the silence between them.

When she couldn’t take it anymore, she turned to him. “You mad?”

“No.” It was very matter-of-fact. “Can’t be mad at you.”

“I’m sorry.” She laid her hand on his thigh. “I just—”

“Don’t be sorry, love.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “It is what it is. In the end, it’s all good.”

She leaned her head against the headrest and relaxed, letting the mellow haze of the evening’s liquor woo her. Chet Baker crooned “Someone to Watch Over Me,” his voice low, sexy and as intimate as a Sunday morning snuggle in bed.

A thrilling sensation blossomed until it was all around her, everywhere. Seduction. The romantic lure of the song, Eddie’s virile presence so close beside her, the way his hands slid smoothly over the wheel, his strong profile in the subdued light, his tongue moistening his lower lip and the rhythm of his shallow, even breathing. Something stirred inside her and uncoiled like a slithering serpent.

Stop the car, Eddie. Pull over. Make love to me. Right here. Right now. She was suddenly so filled with desire, she caught her breath.

I need you. I can hardly stand it. She couldn’t bring herself to say it. Why not? What stopped her? It wasn’t as if she were a virgin. Maybe she was expecting too much from sex with Eddie. But what if he let her down? What if she let him down? That’s dumb. It would just be another sexual encounter. Wrong. With Eddie Marino, it would never be just another anything. Maybe she was afraid of going full throttle. Maybe she was afraid of him. Yes? No? Ah, hell.

She fought against the raw feelings.


Did you have any special rhythm or quirks while writing this?
Lots of coffee in the morning, and a big veggie platter mid-day.

 Is this a stand-alone book or is it part of a series?
Stealing the Moon & Stars and Stealing the Golden Dream are books 1 & 2 in the Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino Novels. 

 If so, we want to hear about it and what’s next in the series. 

We also write two other series. Mystic Isle Mysteries, Book 1, Mystic Mayhem was published September 2015. Passion, Poison, & Puppy Dogs, Book 1 of the Danger Cover Pet Sitter Mysteries will be published in April this year.


*   *   *   *   *
Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino Series

Stealing the Moon & Stars ~ Book 1
Stealing the Golden Dream ~ Book 2
Sally J. Smith & Jean Steffens



Stealing the Moon & Stars, A Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino Novel by Sally J. Smith and Jean Steffens
Scottsdale, Arizona, where the Wild West meets Beverly Hills--home of the rich and famous as well as the calculating and criminal. PIs Jordan Welsh, maverick heiress, and Eddie Marino, a graduate from the school of hard knocks, are hired to find out who’s embezzling from the Moon & Stars Children’s Foundation and stop him. But the two have stumbled onto an agenda darker and more complicated than they ever suspected. The bodies are piling up, and there’s no one Jordan can trust, not even her mysterious partner, Eddie, who’s hotter than a chili pepper and may be a killer.


Buy Links:   Amazon    Camel Press    B&N

Excerpt:
He hadn’t said a word since they got in the car. Jordan
hated the silence between them.

When she couldn’t take it anymore, she turned to him. “You
mad?”

“No.” It was very matter-of-fact. “Can’t be mad at you.”

“I’m sorry.” She laid her hand on his thigh. “I just—”

“Don’t be sorry, love.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “It
is what it is. In the end, it’s all good.”

She leaned her head against the headrest and relaxed, letting
the mellow haze of the evening’s liquor woo her. Chet Baker
crooned “Someone to Watch Over Me,” his voice low, sexy, and
as intimate as a Sunday morning snuggle in bed.

A thrilling sensation blossomed until it was all around
her, everywhere. Seduction. The romantic lure of the song,
Eddie’s virile presence so close beside her, the way his hands
slid smoothly over the wheel, his strong profile in the subdued
light, his tongue moistening his lower lip, and the rhythm of
his shallow, even breathing. Something stirred inside her and
uncoiled like a slithering serpent.

Stop the car, Eddie. Pull over. Make love to me. Right here.
Right now. She was suddenly so filled with desire, she caught
her breath.

I need you. I can hardly stand it. She couldn’t bring herself
to say it. Why not? What stopped her? It wasn’t as if she were
a virgin. Maybe she was expecting too much from sex with
Eddie. But what if he let her down? What if she let him down?
That’s dumb. It would just be another sexual encounter. Wrong.

With Eddie Marino, it would never be just another anything.
Maybe she was afraid of going full throttle. Maybe she was
afraid of him. Yes? No? Ah, hell.



*    *    *    *    *
Stealing the Golden Dream is second in the Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino series, which began with Stealing the Moon & Stars.

Scottsdale PIs Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino of Shea Investigations are hired to guard the multi-million dollar Dahlonega Golden Dream Coin Collection. The collection is stolen out from under them. A loved and trusted colleague is murdered. Eddie is being framed to take the fall for both crimes. His freedom’s at stake, their business is on the line, and the lives of their loved ones are in deadly peril.

How far to the dark side is Jordan Welsh, society girl, willing to go to save Eddie from his own criminal past? Will the scheme she concocts with family and colleagues find the golden coins? Restore the reputation of Shea Investigations? And will she be in time to stop the killer from murdering the man she loves?

Buy Links:   Amazon    Camel Press    B&N

Stealing the Golden Dream

Excerpt: Stealing the Golden Dream

The image of Eddie with Sofia Vercelli was imprinted on her brain. But she had it in mind to put it aside until Eddie was in better shape. Piling more stress on top of all he was already dealing with would not only be cruel and insensitive, it would also be stupid. He was much better at a good rousing argument than she. Better to wait until things had settled down to bring up the subject—but it was definitely a matter she intended to learn more about.

Jordan made her way through the house, opened the patio door, and followed Sadie outside. She stood by the pool staring at the half-moon mirrored in the inky water. Jordan shivered in the cool breeze that rippled the reflection. March days in Scottsdale were perfect—warm, in the upper seventies, low eighties. But the evenings cooled down to the low fifties. The desert air was clean, seasoned with the faint scent of mesquite, creosote, and the chlorine in the pool.

She rubbed her bare arms. Eddie moved up behind her, slipped off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.

He put his arms around her. “You know I wasn’t with her that night.”

“Why would she say it if it wasn’t true?”

“I’m pretty sure she figures if she does this I might take her back.”

Jordan looked up, trying to see his face, but it was cloaked in darkness.

“It’s never going to happen. I told her I’m with you now. While I don’t want anything to do with her, if her story gets me off the hook, I’ll run with it. I can’t revenge Muggs if I’m sitting in a jail cell.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Jordan said. “She’s willing to lie for you? To the cops?
 She must want you back real bad.”

Eddie moved his hands to her shoulders and turned her around. “It’s all one-sided. Don’t pretend you don’t know that.” He pulled her close and kissed her hard, long, and smoking hot as Louisiana pepper sauce. It burned all the way to her toes.

Eddie, the man she was born to love. She threw herself into the kiss, and before she really knew what was happening, they’d made their way into the house and were pulling at each other’s clothes.

He took hold of one of her legs behind the knee and lifted it. She wrapped it around him as he reached under the dress and caught the edge of her panties with the curl of a finger.

*    *    *    *    *

Sally J. Smith and Jean Steffens Author Info
Sally J. Smith and Jean Steffens, are partners in crime—crime writing, that is. They live in the Valley of the Sun in Arizona, awesome for eight months out of the year, an inferno the other four. They write bloody murder, flirty romance, and wicked humor all in one package.
Stealing the Moon & Stars Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZIQAn1U00c
Stealing the Golden Dream Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSyyhrrCVXI

*   *   *   *   *
Giveaways:
To celebrate the New Year and the Camel Press promotion of STEALING THE MOON & STARS, 
Jean and Sally's January giveaway is an Arizona gift basket containing Sonoran Desert Honey, 
an adorable flour-sack tea towel with Arizona quail & cactus design, two yummy flavors of tea 
bags to brew in your bright & shiny ceramic Scottsdale mug.
Sign up for drawing before the end of January! Visit smithandsteffens.com and use the form on the 
Giveaway page!

+
$25 Amazon GC
Via rafflecopter



a Rafflecopter giveaway

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