Spring Flowers by Melanie Atkins

Spring has sprung. At least, it has here in the Deep South. I love it! The fruit trees are flowering, leaves are filling out the hardwoods, and the azaleas are blazing with pink flames. We had whale of a storm a couple of weeks ago, and now the air is filled with pollen. I've had a time with it this year. My white car has a yellow tint – and so does my white cat after rolling around in the layer of the stuff on the back porch. My nose has been dripping, and for a while I couldn't stop sneezing. Thank heavens for antihistamines!

Thanks to the gorgeous weather, I already have Spring Fever – a strange ailment I get every year. I love to hang out on the porch and enjoy the warm, fresh air, so I write and edit out there. It's time for me to start another book… and that means work, work, work. But I’m ready for it. I’ve been editing a lot, and now it’s time to start something new. Can you think of a better way to spend the spring?

Check out my latest Desert Breeze release, UNWILLLING ACCOMPLICE. In this story, Marcy Moretti believes that anyone can be redeemed, until she witnesses a murder at the hands of her ex-husband and is forced to go on the run with her young son in order to survive. The only person who can help her is Joe Riso, her former brother-in-law, a detective staggered by the loss of his wife and daughter. If he's going to protect both Marcy and her boy, he must first find a way to unfreeze his icy heart -- and along the way find his own redemption.

In April, I have yet another title coming out – the first book in my new Keller County Cops Series, MARKED FOR MURDER. In this book, Detective Jonah McKee is forced to juggle caring for his rowdy three year-old son and protecting a beautiful amnesia victim who was targeted by a vicious serial murderer… or was she? Brooke Wilson finally remembers her own name -- and the name of the man trying to kill her -- and the terrifying memory sends her on the run again. Jonah is forced to hide his son and go with her in order to protect her, and along the way they fall in love.

And in June... PERFECT PARTNER, the last book in my New Orleans Detective series, will be released. Wahoo!

Author Spotlight week - Excerpt from Unwilling Accomplice

The steady pounding in Joe Riso's head beat in time with his aching heart. Sharp pangs stabbed his temples. He groaned and rolled onto his back. No way was he opening his eyes. He never slept anymore unless he was exhausted or on a bender, and it might be morning already -- which meant the shock of light would simply hurt too much.

He scrubbed his hands over his face. Why was the pounding getting louder? Usually it ebbed once he woke up. With a bitter curse, he rocked onto his side and cracked his eyelids. The living room was still dark, except for the milky gray light from the TV.

It was the middle of the night, and the infernal pounding continued. His stomach swirled. He put his hand flat on the carpet and tried to focus on the monotone murmur of the World Poker Tour announcer, but it was impossible to hear over the cacophony inside his head.

"Joe?" a woman's voice called from far away.
He lifted his head. Was he hallucinating?
"Joe, please open the door. It's an emergency."

He frowned and groggily sat up. The light hurt his eyes. With a wince, he tried to shake the cobwebs out of his brain. After a few slow shakes, he finally registered the voice's cryptic words. Open the door. Emergency.

So the pounding wasn't inside his head after all, but was caused by a woman standing on his front porch beating the heck out of his front door. He cranked his eyes open again and peered hard at the clock over the TV. Two a.m. Son of a--

"Joe, please!" The woman hesitated. "I know you're in there. Wake up!"

With great effort, he hoisted himself off the floor. The room tilted. He lurched into the side of the recliner and hung onto it for dear life until the floor leveled out.

Another series of knocks pounded dull nails into his temples.

"Cut it out," he snarled, half to himself. "For just one freaking minute."

No luck. The only way to make the noise stop was for him to open the door. He took a deep breath, let go of the recliner, and caught sight of himself in the mirror on the foyer wall. His hair stood on end, his chin was dark with stubble, and his wrinkled white tee shirt rode up his flat stomach. He yanked it down and lumbered across the sea of carpet. His fingers fumbled with the chain, but he finally got it off and unlocked the deadbolt.

He opened the door and reeled backwards. His former sister-in-law, Marcy Moretti, and her little beanpole of a kid stood on the mat.

"Whoa," he said, meeting Marcy's frantic eyes in startled shock. "It's two a.m. What do you guys want?"

"We need to come inside. Right now." She whirled and raked the street with her terrified gaze. Turned back. "Please, Joe. I'll explain once we're in and the door is locked."

Author Spotlight Week - Melanie Atkins shares her passion for Romantic Suspense

Suspense is my genre of choice because I like being on the edge of my seat. I love mysteries, and the intricate puzzles detectives must put together in order to solve their cases. Cops, serial killers, danger… if any of those elements are in a book, a TV show, or a movie, I'm there. My favorite shows are cops shows: Castle, Law & Order SVU, In Plain Sight, Rizzoli & Isles, Memphis Beat, The Glades, and so on. And my favorite authors are Lisa Gardner, John Sanford, Tess Gerritsen, Karen Rose, Linda Castillo, Erica Spindler… do you sense a trend here? Scare me, make the hair stand up on my arms, make me grit my teeth. I like reading books that are gritty and dark, with a heaping helping of emotion.

I love to read and watch suspense, and it's what I write. I try to get my facts correct by talking with law enforcement professionals and doing plenty of research on my own. I used to be married to a cop, and I've attended two civilian police academies and Forensic University. Later this month, I'm scheduled to attend the Writers' Police Academy in North Carolina. I can't wait. So look for more cop stories -- along with a little romance -- from me in the future. Those stories get my blood pumping and keep me putting words on the page. Nothing is more motivating than plotting crime fiction.

Author Spotlight week -Q&A with Melanie Atkins

STEPH: I don't know much about Unwilling Accomplice. What's it about?

MELANIE: Unwilling Accomplice is the fifth book in my New Orleans Detective series. In this book, Marcy Moretti believes that anyone can be redeemed, until she witnesses a murder at the hands of her ex-husband and is forced to go on the run with her young son in order to survive. The only person who can help her is Joe Riso, her former brother-in-law, a detective staggered by the loss of his wife and daughter. If he's going to protect both Marcy and her boy, he must first find a way to unfreeze his icy heart -- and along the way find his own redemption.

STEPH: Where did the inspiration come from?

MELANIE: Joe Riso. I introduced his character in Beloved Captive, the book before this one, and he just took on a life of his own.

STEPH: How long did it take you to write?

MELANIE: About six weeks, give or take a day or two.

STEPH: What's your writing space like?

MELANIE: Much neater and more organized than it used to be! I write in a corner of my room in a recliner with my laptop and a cat on my lap. It’s cozy and used to be quite cluttered with notes and such, but I went on a rampage not long ago and organized them all. I’m much more at ease now.


STEPH: If you could cast the movie, who would play the leads?

MELANIE: Gerard Butler and Jennifer Lopez. In a perfect world.

STEPH: Tell us a little about the place you live in.

MELANIE: I live smack in the middle of the Deep South in Mississippi’s newest city—Byram, a town with a lapsed charter thanks to the Depression. We fought the capitol city of Jackson for years in our quest for sovereignty and finally became a city again on June 30, 2009. Wahoo! Byram is a small but growing city, with small town values. I like that.

STEPH: Do you have an ebook reader? Which one?

MELANIE: I have a Nook, and I love it. It takes almost any format, has adjustable fonts, and the screen isn’t backlit, so it doesn’t hurt my eyes.

STEPH: How long have you been writing?

MELANIE: I’ve been writing all my life, but got serious about it and started my quest for publication in 2001.

STEPH: What's the latest book you read?

MELANIE: Lying Eyes by Amy Atwell, a romantic suspense from Carina Press. It’s a great book! I highly recommend it.

STEPH:Fun question: Which country would you like to visit that you haven't yet?

MELANIE: Italy. My dad was stationed there during WWII, and I’ve always wanted to see the places he told me about. One day, I hope to make that trip as part of a Mediterranean cruise. Why not shoot for the best trip out there?