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Albert Camus

Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

A single moment... - Gone Daddy Gone (Sloan Monroe Mysteries #7) by Cheryl Bradshaw

"Excellent series!I love this series. It's not one of those always happy type of series, nor is it unrealistic. I don't mind my fiction being fictional mist of the time, but I like this series because it's so real life"- Sparkymom, Goodreads


Description:

From New York Times bestselling author Cheryl Bradshaw: 

A single moment is about to change Sloane Monroe's life forever ...

On an early winter morning, college student Shelby McCoy walks the quiet, snowy path back home. A tree branch snaps in the distance. Then another. A man is there with her, following close behind, whispering her name. She looks back, sees him gaining on her, and runs. Who is this man, and why is he carrying a gun?

Can easily be read as a standalone!

AUTHOR's Q&A

What is something unique/quirky about you? 
My personality, I suppose! I'm an INFJ, which is the rarest of the 16 Myers-Briggs personality types, and classified as The Advocate. Less than 1% of the population is this personality, and while I enjoy being unique, I've always felt like I'm a lot different than most from a young age. As a writer, it seems to work to my benefit though, so I'll take it! 

What are your top 10 favorite books/authors? 
Murder on the Orient Express - Agatha Christie 
Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie 
The Godwulf Manuscript - Robert B. Parker 
Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen 
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte 
The Art of Happiness - Dalai Lama 
Codependent No More - Melody Beattie 
Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry 
The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln - Doris Kearns Goodwin 

What inspired you to write this book? 
My fans waited quite a while for me to write it. It's the seventh in my Sloane Monroe series, and one thing I wanted to do was to bring back several of the secondary characters I've used throughout the series that they've been missing. It worked out really well, and I was thrilled to give my fans what they wanted. 

What can we expect from you in the future? 
More Sloane. Always more Sloane! But I also have other a few other series I write as well, and I'm toying with the idea of starting a witch series once my ghost mystery series is finished. 

Do you have any “side stories” about the characters? 
People who know me assume that Sloane Monroe is me. She is in many respects, but she also isn't. I feel like there's a piece of me in every character I write. As humans we are all multilayered, not single layered, and this aspect rings true for me in many of my characters. 

Who is your hero and why? 
It's honestly hard to choose one, so I'm going to list two here. The first would be Abraham Lincoln. I quote him at the beginning of every story I write. He was an impressive man, with values I admire. The second is the Dalai Lama, who I was fortunate enough to see in person last year. What an amazing man he is. He continually discusses compassion in his speeches, and I've always felt that if we had more compassion for others, the world would be a more peaceful, happy place. 

What book do you think everyone should read? 
The Art of Happiness - Dalai Lama 

What kind of world ruler would you be? 
I'm a blue (The Color Code), and not just a little blue, I'm pretty much a full-blown blue personality! This makes me reliable, creative, and practical (sometimes TOO practical, haha) so I surround myself with yellow personality types who help pull out my often reserved playful side. I'm not a big risk-taker, but as a ruler I would consider all options before making what I believed to be the best decision. 

Tell us about a favorite character from a book. 
If we're talking one of my books, Sloane Monroe was the first character I created and the one my fans connected with first, so she will always be special to me in many ways. I still love writing her too and allowing her to grow and develop through the series. 

Describe your writing style. 
I believe I do a good job of keeping the action moving in my books and writing good cliffhangers to keep my readers turning pages. It's always nice when my fans say they had only planned to read a couple of chapters and ended up staying up all night because they couldn't put the book down. I don't think there's a compliment better than that! 

What makes a good story? 
Good characters and a good plot, characters fans connect to on a personal level. 

What made you want to become an author and do you feel it was the right decision? 
Reading and writing has always flowed through me in a way that made it obvious it was a talent I needed to explore. As a child I read books that were above my school grade. One of my teachers was concerned and approached my mom about it, but my mom understood that I was mature enough to handle reading books meant for a slightly older audience. By the time I reached high school I was writing and publishing short stories and poems. Then for almost two decades I stopped writing for the most part while raising my daughter and picked it back up in my thirties. Now I publish several novels a year. 

Advice they would give new authors? 
If you're just starting out, take time to research the genre you're writing in. I spent a year familiarizing myself with the mystery and thriller genres while I was writing my first book, and it paid off in ways I couldn't imagine. 

How long have you been writing? 
I've been published since 2011. It took a couple years for me to hit the USA Today bestselling books list, and about a year later I hit the New York Times bestsellers list. I've also been a finalist for awards, including a Shamus Award. It's been an amazing journey. 

What is your writing process? For instance do you do an outline first? Do you do the chapters first? 
I attempt an outline, but it's always loose. For me personally I find if I outline too much it takes away from the spontaneity of my characters and the plot. So I generally have an idea of what the next three chapters I'm working on will be, and then I allow my characters to take it in the direction it seems like it needs to go. 

Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Gone Daddy Gone
The book is called GONE DADDY GONE, and the story centers around Cade McCoy's daughter Shelby, whose murdered while walking home from a college class. From there private detective (and Cade's girlfriend) Sloane Monroe takes on the case, seeking out the killer, while uncovering secrets along the way.
A single moment is about to change Sloane Monroe's life forever ... 

On an early winter morning, college student Shelby McCoy walks the quiet, snowy path back home. A tree branch snaps in the distance. Then another. A man is there with her, following close behind, whispering her name. She looks back, sees him gaining on her, and runs. Who is this man, and why is he carrying a gun? 

Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write? 
It's a combination of both. I usually create main characters at the onset of starting a new book and then allow my secondary characters to be created as I'm writing their part in the story. 

What kind of research do you do before you begin writing a book? 
It depends on the book. I spend the most time researching forensics so I can be as accurate as possible with my descriptions, but it's always surprising the interesting things I end up looking up. For example, yesterday I watched videos on how to protect yourself from a frontal attack in a parking lot, and I actually learned a few things that are beneficial for me to know! 

Describe yourself in 5 words or less! 
Driven, passionate, creative, nurturing, full of life 

What did you enjoy most about writing this book? 
It was so much fun bringing old characters back that I've used in previous books in this series. They added a lot of flavor to the plot and weaved in and out of the story well. 

Tell us about your main characters- what makes them tick? 
Sloane Monroe is driven by justice and seeing things through to the end. She's a methodical character, who sees clues in different ways than most, and this ability allows her to solve even the hardest cases, where others fail. She's flawed, of course, and struggles with OCD and anxiety, which sometimes works to her benefit, and other times cripples her. By layering her personality she comes across as a real and authentic, which makes her a lot of fun to write.

About the author:
A New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Bradshaw writes in the genres of mystery, thriller, romantic suspense, and supernatural suspense. To date, she has published almost two dozen novels and novellas, including her New York Times bestselling mystery series based on a sassy, OCD challenged private eye named Sloane Monroe. In 2013, Bradshaw’s fourth novel in the series, Stranger in Town, was a finalist for a Shamus Award, and that same year, book three in the series, I Have a Secret, won best thriller of the year from eFestival of Words. She was raised in California and currently resides in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Author's Giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

19 comments:

Kate Sarsfield said...

Give me suspense any day of the week! I love that feeling of 'just one more chapter'!

Rita Wray said...

The book sounds very intriguing. I love suspense.

catwoman1a said...

I love your books and I love suspense in my novels.

Ally Swanson said...

I think this book sounds like such an exciting, interesting, and intriguing read! Yes, I love suspenseful books! Looking forward to checking out this book!

Kate Sarsfield said...

It's always interesting to see how an author throws in unexpected twists to a plot.

Stephanie LaPlante said...

Sounds like a great book. I love anything that keeps me on the edge of my seat.

Kate Sarsfield said...

The only thing missing from a suspenseful book is the da-da-da-da music in the background!

CindyWindy2003 said...

I definitely love suspense though I have itchy fingers and sometimes take a peak towards the end... def sounds like a thrilling suspenseful edge of your seat type of book!

CindyWindy2003 said...

I read all kinds of book genres but thriller/suspense is on of my favorites.

CindyWindy2003 said...

I think I would really enjoy this book and would love to read it.

CindyWindy2003 said...

I think I will add this book on my to read shelf.

CindyWindy2003 said...

I enjoy all types of books but especially a suspenseful one!

CindyWindy2003 said...

I'm always happy to read a new suspense. I always try to figure it out.

CindyWindy2003 said...

this book sounds like it will make me stay up to read what happens.

CindyWindy2003 said...

I think this would be a great book to be introduced to this author

CindyWindy2003 said...

I think this sounds like a book that would hold my interest.

CindyWindy2003 said...

Every girl has been there, walking and hearing something behind them getting scared, can relate to the book premise.

CindyWindy2003 said...

I get scared easily but I still can't put down a scary, thrilling book.

Deb Hollow said...

I love suspenseful books, especially when you get that tingle that starts to slowly come up your back, and you just can't put the book down.