Where Ideas Are Born
People often ask where I get the ideas for my books. Like most authors, I get flashes of genius from a variety of sources: news stories, dreams, walking down the street, people watching, or just standing in the shower. The idea for the Peach Blossom Romantic Suspense series struck when my sister and I visited the small town of Tahlequah, Oklahoma, which is where the Cherokee Nation is headquartered.
Family lore says we descend from Cherokee ancestors, and that trip to Tahlequah started an effort to find those ancestors, especially after we saw the statue of an ancient Cherokee chief with the same last name as some of our relatives. We found our Cherokee ancestors, but we were disappointed to discover we can’t be members of the Cherokee Nation.
The reason is that in the 1800s, Native Americans who could live as white people, did. That’s what our ancestors did. They aren’t listed on what’s called the Final Dawes Roll, which is a registry of Native Americans who were forcibly removed from their homes in the east and resettled to what is now Oklahoma and parts of the neighboring states. That area was called Indian Country. You may recognize that name from old western movies.
But back to Tahlequah and where I got the idea for the Peach Blossom Romantic Suspense series.
Tahlequah’s prominent sidewalk documents the history of the Cherokee Nation. Walking that sidewalk made me want to write a book set in the area.
My fictional town of Peach Blossom is near Tahlequah. Each novel in the Peach Blossom Romantic Suspense series can be read as a standalone book, but you’ll get more backstory on the town and the characters by reading them in order.
The first book, Into the Fog (available in ebook, paperback, and audiobook), contains references to the Cherokee Nation culture and art. The most recent book, From Chaos, features the victim in book 1, Kelsey White. Her love interest, Gregorio Moreno, is the best friend of the co-protagonist in book 1.
Kelsey fled her ex-husband’s family in Boston with too many dangerous secrets to risk sharing. Gregorio shields his broken heart with an adrenaline-filled lifestyle and one-night stands. For the eight months of their platonic friendship, Gregorio’s reputation has caused Kelsey to keep him at arm’s length. She’ll only see him in groups.
He finally talks her into a solo date without all their friends to chaperone, and, wouldn’t you know it, they witness an execution-style murder. The killers see them, and they’re now on the run. To survive, they must face their fears, flaws, secrets, and the lies they tell themselves.
The idea for From Chaos hit me when I was writing Into the Fog and wanted to tell Kelsey’s full story and not let her remain a victim.
Stay tuned for the third book in the series, Deadly Christmas Secret, which should be released, you guessed it, around Christmas time. The idea for that story happened when I saw a news report about a car crashing into someone’s house.
I just learned Into the Fog made the finals in the Selah 2023 awards under romantic suspense. And the audiobook is now available. https://www.amazon.com/Audible-Into-the-Fog/dp/B0BXML32RJ/r
From Chaos
Book 2 in the Peach Blossom Romantic Suspense Series
After Kelsey White is forced to flee from her ex-husband’s family with soul-crushing secrets she can’t risk revealing, she hides in the small farming community of Peach Blossom, Oklahoma, but she finds herself in a situation more dangerous than ever before. Gregorio Moreno uses extreme sports and shallow relationships to shield his heart from the pain of his wife disappearing with no explanation. His only contact with her in two years are the divorce papers he received shortly after she left. The second Greg meets Kelsey, he knows she’s the blonde of his dreams.
But for eight months of a platonic friendship, the mysterious Kelsey only agrees to see Greg in groups. He finally convinces to join him for a solo dinner date, and their lives are turned upside down by witnessing a murder. The killers are now stalking them, seeming to anticipating Kelsey and Greg’s every move. With no one else to turn to, Kelsey and Greg must outwit their pursuers or risk becoming victims themselves.
Follow the riveting story of two friends with very different backgrounds whose traumas convince them they aren’t good enough for a second chance at love. But will the murderers let them have their happily ever after they crave?
Get From Chaos today to discover if Kelsey and Greg escape their chaos!
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BTK977YS
Karen Randau is an award-winning and chart-topping author of fast-paced, clean mystery and suspense books, all with at least a dash of romance. After a childhood of moving too many times for her to pinpoint where she grew up, she planted roots in the mountains of Arizona, where constant exposure to nature means creative ideas abound.
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Website: https://www.karenrandau.com
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