July 2012, Volume XIV

Hello friends,

Is it hot enough for you? Nashville has been sweltering the past week, and you know it’s only going to get worse. So sit back, relax, and dig into a good book! I have a few to recommend to you this month — Jeff Abbott’s second Sam Capra, THE LAST MINUTE, Alex Kava’s latest Maggie O’Dell, FIREPROOF, and Catherine Coulter’s new Savich and Sherlock FBI thriller, BACKFIRE. That should load up your ereaders and bookbags for a few weeks!

Speaking of Catherine, we were just hanging out last week, talking about how similarly we write, and how much fun it would be to brainstorm on a project. So brainstorm we did. She’s truly wonderful; if you haven't read her yet, get thee to the bookstore! And I’ll let you know what happens...

A couple of housekeeping notes — the newsletter is going to be coming out monthly now, and there is a new monthly contest on my site! Prizes will rotate on the first of the month, and this time, it’s a signed copy of LOVE IS MURDER. You can enter here. June's winner is Debbie Lord - Debbie, your signed copy of A DEEPER DARKNESS is on its way.

EDGE OF BLACK releases December 1

Samantha Owens is back, and boy does she have her hands full now. Here’s a little sneak peek about the book for you:

The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides

 

Dr. Samantha Owens is starting over: new city, new job, new man, new life. She's trying to put some distance between herself and the devastating loss of her husband and children-but old hurts leave scars.

Before she's even unpacked her office at Georgetown University's forensic pathology department, she's called to consult on a case that's rocked the capital and the country. An unknown pathogen released into the Washington Metro has caused nationwide panic. Three people died-just three.

A miracle and a puzzle...

Amid the media frenzy and Homeland Security alarm bells, Sam painstakingly dissects the lives of those three victims and makes an unsettling conclusion. This is no textbook terrorist causing mayhem with broad strokes, but an artist wielding a much finer, more pointed instrument of destruction. An assassin, whose motive is deeply personal and far from understandable.

Xander Whitfield, a former Army Ranger and Sam's new boyfriend, knows about seeing the world in shades of gray. About feeling compelled to do the wrong thing for the right reasons. Only his disturbing kinship with a killer can lead Sam to the truth...and once more into the line of fire.

How does that sound? Intrigued yet? If you are, you can pre-order your copy now at your favorite retailer.

Amazon Barnes & Noble IndieBound
News

Great news to report on a couple of fronts. I’ve just agreed to three more Samantha Owens novels. I know many of you are wondering about Taylor and Baldwin, and I promise I will be getting back to their story eventually. They have more adventures ahead. In the meantime, if you need a Taylor fix, you can read SLICES OF NIGHT, a novella I did with Erica Spindler and Alex Kava that features a Taylor short, Blood Sugar Baby.

And more good news — SLICES OF NIGHT just sold Polish rights, so it’s beginning an international journey. Very fun times for us.

I’ve also got a story in the LOVE IS MURDER Anthology called THE NUMBER OF MAN. It’s an incredible array of authors, another surefire winner.

And I’ve just become a Writerspace author, which means lots of cool stuff. We’re having a beach party on July 15, with a massive group chat, so come by and say hello! I’ll be there around 8:00 central time to chat with you. There are prizes galore from your favorite authors, so be sure to check it out.

Tours

Summer is conference season. I’m sad that I won’t be at Thrillerfest this year, but thrilled to be attending RWA nationals in Anaheim. With WHERE ALL THE DEAD LIE up for a Rita^® in Romantic Suspense, I know it’s going to be an amazing week. And we might even grab a couple of baseball games while we’re there. I’m also teaching at SEAK on Cape Cod in August, and doing all my usual vacation stuff, so it’s going to be insanity. Good insanity.

July’s Recipe

Here’s a winner from one of my faves, La Cucina Italiana, for the perfect fresh and easy summer shrimp.

Shrimp, prosciutto and scallion skewers (spiedini di gamberi)

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup dry white wine


• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder


• 16 large shrimp, peeled and deveined


• 8 scallions


• Fine sea salt


• Freshly ground black pepper


• 8 thin slices prosciutto


• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil plus more for grill

Directions:
Prepare a charcoal grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot charcoal (medium-high heat for gas).

 

In a medium bowl, whisk together wine and curry powder; add shrimp and let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut scallions in half, lengthwise, to make 16 pieces; season with salt and pepper. Cut prosciutto in half, lengthwise, to make 16 pieces; fold prosciutto pieces lengthwise, if necessary, to form a width of 1-inch.

Remove shrimp from marinade; discard marinade. Lightly season shrimp with salt and pepper. Wrap 1 prosciutto slice around the center of each shrimp. Folding scallions accordion-style into thirds, thread shrimp and scallions onto 8 skewers. Drizzle skewers with oil.

Grill skewers on lightly oiled grill rack, turning once halfway through, until shrimp are cooked through, about 5 minutes.

Social Butterfly

Facebook has a new trick up its sleeve—it wants me to pay to have my posts seen in your timeline feeds. So to get around that, if you want to see my updates there, please come to the reader page, hover your mouse over the Liked button, and check the box that says Show in my Newsfeed. Then, as an added bonus, leave a comment on the wall. Those few steps will assure that you see my updates. As always, you can stop by Tao of JT, Twitter (@thrillerchick) or Facebook to say hi.

Thank you so much for all your support! You mean to the world to me. See you on the road! And Happy 4th of July!

xoxo,