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…
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
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.
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.
*
* * *
*
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?
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.
Website: http://www.smithandsteffens.com
Email: smithandsteffens@cox.net
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.
Giveaway
page!
+
$25
Amazon GC
Via rafflecopter
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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