Category: Romantic Suspense

Guest Blogger ~ Kimila Kay

~ patyjag

HONEYMOON IN PARADISE

When my husband, Randy, and I decided to get married after dating for three years, it was an exciting time. At the age of thirty-one, I was hardly a blushing, young bride but knew I wanted our wedding to be a festive affair with family and friends. And of course, a honeymoon in Hawaii would be perfect.

I might be a tad of a control freak, but managed to let go of my need to oversee the honeymoon and allowed Randy to plan our romantic getaway. Imagine my surprise when he comes home from work a month before the wedding and announces our honeymoon destination.

“I booked our trip today,” Randy said with a broad grin.

“Great!” I kissed him. “I’ve already started packing.”

“Packing? But you don’t know where we’re going.”

“I know what to pack for Hawaii.” I winked at him.

“Hawaii?”

I held up a finger. “Don’t tell me the island, that way I’ll still be a little surprised.”

“We’re going to Mazatlán, Mexico.”

“Mexico?” I faced him, hands on hips. “I am not going to a third world country on my honeymoon!”

When I stepped off the plane onto the hot, sticky tarmac of the Mazatlán airport, I instantly fell in love with … everything.

I knew from that very first visit that someday I would write a novel set in Mazatlán. My latest novel, Malice in Mazatlán begins in the city I love and features real places we’ve enjoyed on our many visits to this fabulous vacation destination.

In Malice in Mazatlán my female protagonist Katelyn Graham flees to city, known as the Pearl of the Pacific, after her failed nuptials and finds herself arrested for the murder of a man she met at Joe’s. Christopher Temple searches the city for an elusive drug queen and a beautiful woman who’s piqued his interest. Sarita Garcia knows to stay alive she’ll have to leave her lavish lifestyle and young lover for a safer existence far away from Mazatlán.

In my books, I strive to capture the culture of Mexico from the food to the citizens to the beautiful beaches. My attempt to be a margarita connoisseur is blended with my characters as they enjoy one of my favorite dishes, marlin tacos. While I’ve never attempted to jog on the beach next to the sparkling blue ocean, I have admired those who do from my favorite lounge chair. And, thankfully, I have not crossed paths with a drug queen, but am aware cartels are woven into the landscape of Mexico as much as the towering palm trees.

My husband has given me love, gifts and lots of fun throughout our marriage, but the best present he ever bestowed on me is our fabulous link to paradise.

Malice in Mazatlán

When her fiancé cheats a week before their wedding, Katelyn Graham flees to Mazatlán, Mexico hoping the sea will soothe her broken heart. After a night of margaritas with a handsome stranger, Katelyn finds herself arrested for his murder.

Special Agent Christopher Temple is juggling his investigation into a drug queen with his search for a beautiful woman who has piqued his interest, and whom he fears he’s put in harm’s way.

Aware the FBI and DEA are working with the policía to capture her, Sarita is torn between leaving her lavish lifestyle and her adoring paramour for a world free of worrying about being imprisoned … or eliminated.

Malice in Mazatlán has a splash of suspense, a touch of mystery, and a dash of romance, all of which should be enjoyed with a perfect margarita.

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/MALICE-MAZATL%C3%81N-KIMILA-KAY-ebook/dp/B0BLHSN6NJ

Kimila Kay lives in Donald, Oregon along with her husband, Randy, her adorable Boston Terrier Maggie, and a feisty black cat named Halle.

Her professional accomplishments include three anthologized essays in the CUP OF COMFORT series. Kimila is currently a member of Windtree Press, Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA), and Willamette Writers.

MALICE IN MAZATLÁN is the second novel in cross-cultural series that now includes Peril in Paradise, Book One, and will soon include Vanished in Vallarta, Chaos in Cabo, Lost in Loreto, and Fiasco in Peñasco.

www.KimilaKay.com

A Party and New Covers by Paty Jager

~ patyjag ~ 7 Comments

I’m excited to reveal the new covers for my Isabella Mumphrey Action Adventure/Romantic Suspense/Thriller trilogy.

However, you won’t see them here. 😉

I’m having a “Where in the world is Isabella Mumphrey?” Facebook party on this coming Saturday, November 14th from 5-7 pm Pacific time. If you go to the page and sign up to join the party, it will tell you what time it will be live in your time zone. Since Oregon had decided to not change time this Fall, yet, I’ve been hearing we are… So hopefully you can catch me during one of the two hours.

https://www.facebook.com/events/471554667120961

I’ll be giving away two large prizes and many small prizes during the two hours, besides revealing my covers, giving you clues to the “Where in the world” game, and visiting about how this trilogy came to be and anything else you want to talk about.

Here are the Blurbs for the books. Secrets of a Mayan Moon won the Reader’s Crown in 2013 for Best Romantic Suspense.

Secrets of a Mayan Moon

Book one of the Isabella Mumphrey Adventure series

Move over Indiana Jones and MacGyver- Isabella Mumphrey has arrived!

Child prodigy and now Doctor of Anthropology, Isabella Mumphrey, is about to lose her job. Unless she can decipher an ancient stone table—and she can. She heads to Guatemala at the request of her mentor, but drug trafficking bad guys and artifact thieves wreak havoc on her scholarly intentions.

Upon seeing Dr. Mumphrey has never been in a jungle or out of the states, undercover DEA agent, Tino Kosta, gets tangled up in helping her discover the truth.

Which could make them casualties of the jungle.

Secrets of an Aztec Temple

Book two of the Isabella Mumphrey Adventure series

Revenge isn’t always sweet… 

Isabella Mumphrey can’t leave a puzzle alone.  Much like Indiana Jones and MacGyver, she has a knack for getting out of sticky situations. This time she attempts to use her anthropology knowledge to uncover who is stealing priceless artifacts from an Aztec Temple in Mexico City.

Tino Konstantine is also in Mexico City. He has infiltrated a drug lord’s organization to find enough evidence to not only prove the man’s illegal activities, but to bring him down for numerous deaths. Namely those of Tino’s family.

But when their operations collide, and Isabella, strolls into the drug lord’s home, Tino is challenged with the choice of saving her or fulfilling his revenge.

Secrets of a Hopi Blue Star

Book three of the Isabella Mumphrey Adventure series

The truth doesn’t always set you free…

Landing in the underground world of human trafficking, anthropologist Isabella Mumphrey, a female Indiana Jones / MacGyver, learns her own past is as sordid as the predicament she’s uncovered.  No one is who she’d believed them to be—not her parents, her cousin, her aunt.

The only constant in her life is her fiancé, Tino Konstantine, and now their enemy is using her knowledge of the Hopi blue star to lure Tino to his death.

If yo can’t wait to see the covers or wish to purchase them, here is the link to their page on my website. https://www.patyjager.net/romantic-suspense/

My post next month should be informing you about my latest release from the Gabriel Hawke series. It was fun to write but a booger to get logistics correct. I had to call in help from my sister-in-law and my younger brother. More on that next month! There you go. I like to keep people in suspense and wondering….

Guest Blogger – Kimila Kay

~ patyjag ~ 2 Comments

The story idea for Peril in Paradise came after a news story featuring a Portland mother whose daughter had gone missing on her way to school. The mother’s anguish, and hope, as she pleaded for her daughter to be found, moved me. Unfortunately, as the story unfolded, the young girl’s body was found a few houses from her home, tucked into some bushes. I found myself wondering how this mother was coping with the death, and rape, of her daughter? What kind of monster had the young girl encountered, in less than a mile from her home, in a neighborhood where she felt safe?

The mother didn’t make another news appearance, heartbroken beyond words I imagined. The man responsible for the girl’s death was apprehended and eventually sent to prison. Closure for the girl’s mother, and the rest of her family. Possibly.

I couldn’t let go of the idea that sending the murderous rapist to prison actually brought closure. Questions such as: What would I have done if it was my child? Would I have been comforted by the man’s conviction? Or would I have wanted a more permanent type justice.

Justice versus revenge? What would bring me comfort? I knew I couldn’t kill someone, which triggered the thought: Maybe I could hire someone? Of course, I watch enough crime shows to know hiring someone to do the deed doesn’t ensure you won’t get caught. The young girl’s rape and murder, coupled with her mother’s helplessness, continued to torment my thoughts.

And then I had a dream . . . I love when my writer’s brain takes a thought and creates a fictional scenario that can be woven into an intriguing story. Hence, Peril in Paradise was born!

In my dream, I could clearly see my villain. I had been trying to come up with a story idea for my Mexico Mayhem series but hadn’t been able to find a plausible storyline that began in the United States and ended in Mexico. Viola ~ Damian Garza provided the crossover opportunity I needed.

I could also visualize my hero. A man tortured by Damian’s previous villainous acts. A man who I could imagine carrying out a murder for hire scenario. Jackson Brady had his own need for justice . . . or revenge.

What I couldn’t see in my dream was my heroine. I knew she existed because I felt her pain and anger over losing her daughter. But I couldn’t see her. But not being able to picture Clara Marsh wasn’t a problem for me. As a mother, I could truly imagine her suffering. Her grief. Her guilt. Her need for justice. Her desire for revenge. I knew Clara Marsh would be a little like me.

Peril in Paradise

Mexico Mayhem Book 1

Imagine—A brutal rape. A vicious murder. Now—what would you seek if it involved your daughter? If the monster is her stepfather. Justice or revenge? In Peril in Paradise, Clara Garza is faced with this dilemma while trying to stay one step ahead of her deranged ex-husband, Damian Garza. As she embarks on her voyage for justice, Clara meets Jackson Brady, a man also seeking his own revenge—a man trying to capture her heart. The two find themselves resolving one issue only to face another sinister challenge. Readers will want to join Clara and Jackson as they navigate a journey of justice, revenge . . . and survival.

Buy Links- https://www.amazon.com/Peril-Paradise-unspeakable-unimaginable-unrelenting-ebook/dp/B07MQSB16Y

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/peril-in-paradise-kimila-kay/1130316947?ean=9781794052451

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43563545-peril-in-paradise?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=XOdzl75dtC&rank=6

Kimila Kay lives in Donald, Oregon with her husband, Randy, adorable Boston Terrier, Maggie, and feisty black cat, Halle.

Her professional accomplishments include three anthologized essays in the CUP OF COMFORT series. In three separate contests, PERIL IN PARADISE, has won two first place awards, and a third-place award in the romantic suspense category. Kimila is currently a member of a writing critique group, Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA), Windtree Press, and Willamette Writers.

PERIL IN PARADISE is the first novel in a planned cross-cultural series, Mexico Mayhem, which will include Malice in Mazatlan (January 2021), Chaos in Cabo, Vanished in Vallarta, and Lost in Loreto.

REDNECK RANCH will be the first novel in a planned mystery series, The Stoneybrook Series, set in a fictional Oregon town. REDNECK RANCH is slated for publication in 2022.

https://www.facebook.com/MexicoMayhemPIP 

https://www.facebook.com/MexicoMayhemMIM

 https://www.facebook.com/OregonNovels