She Can Run Book Tour
Book Summary: Elizabeth was a young widow with two small children when she met Congressman Richard Baker. Handsome and wealthy, with a sparkling public image, Richard seemed like the perfect man to provide the security that Beth and her kids were craving. But when she uncovers a dangerous secret about her new husband, Beth realizes he will go to any lengths—even murder—to keep it. After barely escaping with her life, she and her children flee. They eventually make their way to a secluded estate in the Pennsylvania countryside, where Beth dares to hope she has found a safe place at last…
Forced into retirement by an unexpected injury, Philadelphia homicide detective Jack O’Malley is mourning the loss of his career when his uncle abruptly dies, leaving Jack to dispose of his crumbling country house. Unbeknownst to him, his uncle engaged a caretaker just before his death, a mysterious woman with two children and a beautiful face that haunts his dreams. Determined to know her, Jack begins an investigation into Beth’s past. When he uncovers the shocking truth, and a local woman is viciously murdered, Jack puts his own life on the line to keep Beth and her children safe.
She Can Run is a sexy, satisfying debut from award-winning author Melinda Leigh, packed with enough suspense and romance to get even the tamest heart racing!
Guest Post by Melinda Leigh
First of all I want to thank Reader Girls for hosting a stop on my blog tour. SHE CAN RUN is my debut novel and the release is extra exciting for me.
SHE CAN RUN is the story of a woman on the run. Beth Baker accidentally learns a dangerous secret about her powerful politician husband—a secret he tried to kill her to keep. A trusted relative sets her up with a job as a caretaker on an estate in rural Pennsylvania. When Beth arrives to take the job, the elderly man who hired her has died, leaving the property to his nephew, former homicide detective Jack O’Malley.
Reader Girls were curious why I picked caretaker as Beth’s job. It all came down to plot and character development.
In her former life, Beth was an accountant, but she is a smart woman. She knows her husband is searching for her. To take a job too similar to her real profession wouldn’t be prudent. So I had to think of something else, something that would allow her live-in help status on the estate. She is trying to hide and wants to remain out of sight. And this is a romance, so Beth and Jack needed to be in close contact as much as possible. Also, thrusting these two untrusting people together would allow me to create nearly constant conflict.
My choices boiled down to housekeeper or caretaker. I decided twenty or thirty chapters of Beth cooking and keeping house wasn’t very sexy or exciting. I do those things in real life (or at least I should *grin*.) Selfishly, I didn’t want to spend 6 hours every day writing about the chores I was neglecting in my own house in order to finish the book. Making her the caretaker also allowed me greater freedom in defining her daily tasks.
Plotting and character development are an essential part of the book planning process. Every decision a writer makes about her character affects the plot. Likewise, plot choices have an impact on the character.
Wanna know more? Check out my website, MelindaLeighAuthor.com. Readers can also connect with me on Facebook & Twitter.
Thanks for reading!
About the author: More than a decade ago, Melinda Leigh left a career in banking to raise her children and never looked back. She started writing when her youngest child entered first grade as a way to preserve her sanity. Her paranormal romance and romantic suspense fiction has won writing awards across the country, including The Gateway to the Best Contest, The Marlene Award, Where the Magic Begins, Put Your Heart in a Book, and The Golden Gateway 1st Round Grand Prize.
Melinda is also an avid martial artist. She holds a 2nd degree belt in Kenpo Karate, studies Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and teaches women’s self-defense. She lives in a messy house in the suburbs with her husband, two teenagers, a couple of dogs and one neurotic cat with an inexplicable fear of ceiling fans. With such a pleasant life, she has no explanation for the sometimes dark and disturbing nature of her imagination.
Author links: Melinda Leigh web site / Facebook / Twitter
Publisher's Weekly Review:
“In her debut romantic suspense, Leigh carefully weaves the subplot of a serial killer with the main plot of an abused wife on the run and successfully ties the threads in a thrilling conclusion… Leigh’s tight, consistent plotting marks her as an author to watch.”
She Can Run: Paperback/Price: $13.95/ISBN: 9781612181516/Pages: 326/Release: November 28, 2011
Purchase links: Amazon / Barnes&Noble.com
eBook: Kindle
Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook
She Can Run blog tour site
We thank Melinda Leigh and Tribute Books.
Forced into retirement by an unexpected injury, Philadelphia homicide detective Jack O’Malley is mourning the loss of his career when his uncle abruptly dies, leaving Jack to dispose of his crumbling country house. Unbeknownst to him, his uncle engaged a caretaker just before his death, a mysterious woman with two children and a beautiful face that haunts his dreams. Determined to know her, Jack begins an investigation into Beth’s past. When he uncovers the shocking truth, and a local woman is viciously murdered, Jack puts his own life on the line to keep Beth and her children safe.
She Can Run is a sexy, satisfying debut from award-winning author Melinda Leigh, packed with enough suspense and romance to get even the tamest heart racing!
Guest Post by Melinda Leigh
First of all I want to thank Reader Girls for hosting a stop on my blog tour. SHE CAN RUN is my debut novel and the release is extra exciting for me.
SHE CAN RUN is the story of a woman on the run. Beth Baker accidentally learns a dangerous secret about her powerful politician husband—a secret he tried to kill her to keep. A trusted relative sets her up with a job as a caretaker on an estate in rural Pennsylvania. When Beth arrives to take the job, the elderly man who hired her has died, leaving the property to his nephew, former homicide detective Jack O’Malley.
Reader Girls were curious why I picked caretaker as Beth’s job. It all came down to plot and character development.
In her former life, Beth was an accountant, but she is a smart woman. She knows her husband is searching for her. To take a job too similar to her real profession wouldn’t be prudent. So I had to think of something else, something that would allow her live-in help status on the estate. She is trying to hide and wants to remain out of sight. And this is a romance, so Beth and Jack needed to be in close contact as much as possible. Also, thrusting these two untrusting people together would allow me to create nearly constant conflict.
My choices boiled down to housekeeper or caretaker. I decided twenty or thirty chapters of Beth cooking and keeping house wasn’t very sexy or exciting. I do those things in real life (or at least I should *grin*.) Selfishly, I didn’t want to spend 6 hours every day writing about the chores I was neglecting in my own house in order to finish the book. Making her the caretaker also allowed me greater freedom in defining her daily tasks.
Plotting and character development are an essential part of the book planning process. Every decision a writer makes about her character affects the plot. Likewise, plot choices have an impact on the character.
Wanna know more? Check out my website, MelindaLeighAuthor.com. Readers can also connect with me on Facebook & Twitter.
Thanks for reading!
Melinda is also an avid martial artist. She holds a 2nd degree belt in Kenpo Karate, studies Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and teaches women’s self-defense. She lives in a messy house in the suburbs with her husband, two teenagers, a couple of dogs and one neurotic cat with an inexplicable fear of ceiling fans. With such a pleasant life, she has no explanation for the sometimes dark and disturbing nature of her imagination.
Author links: Melinda Leigh web site / Facebook / Twitter
Publisher's Weekly Review:
“In her debut romantic suspense, Leigh carefully weaves the subplot of a serial killer with the main plot of an abused wife on the run and successfully ties the threads in a thrilling conclusion… Leigh’s tight, consistent plotting marks her as an author to watch.”
She Can Run: Paperback/Price: $13.95/ISBN: 9781612181516/Pages: 326/Release: November 28, 2011
Purchase links: Amazon / Barnes&Noble.com
eBook: Kindle
Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook
She Can Run blog tour site
We thank Melinda Leigh and Tribute Books.
Oh boy! This one sounds good. I like suspense. Ha! I definitely get the reason for choosing caretaker; I find housekeeping a dead bore too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the posting!
Sophia,
ReplyDeleteWish I were a little better at keeping the dust bunnies under control. They tend to run wild in my house. I'm glad you enjoyed the post. I hope you like She Can Run even more.
A big thank you to Laurie and all of the Reader Girls for hosting Melinda today. We appreciate it!
ReplyDeleteMelinda, you had me chuckling when you said you couldn't write about doing chores because it would bring to mind your own.
Sophia, I hope you check out "She Can Run" - if you like suspense, I think you'll like it.