Fear the Shadows, the prequel to my new Danger in Destiny series, is now available FREE exclusively to all newsletter subscribers. I had so much fun writing this book, and I hope you all enjoy it. Let me know what you think!

I'm working on my new series, Danger in Destiny, which means I'm actively writing three different stories. 

Fear the Shadows - A prequel novella for newsletter subscribers only coming soon
Out of the Ashes - The first official book releases March 28th
Frozen in Jeopardy - The second book releases July 25th

While one of my characters, Officer Gabe Harrison, is featured in Frozen in Jeopardy, he actually makes an appearance in the other two books as well. He works for the Destiny Police Department as a member of the K-9 unit. He and his German shepherd partner, Loki, specialize in tracking. 

When I first started this series, I knew very little about how a K-9 unit operates within the police department. I did a lot of online research, but information wasn't easy to find. That's when I decided to reach out to our local police department. 

I spoke with Lt. Moran who not only answered some of my questions, but he suggested I go on a ride-along with one of the K-9 units and put me in touch with Officer Timothy Cox and his dog, Barco. 
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I was fortunate to be able to go on a four hour ride-along with Officer Cox and Barco a couple of weeks ago.

Not only was Officer Cox super helpful when it came to understanding how he and Barco are involved in the every day workings of the police department, but I got to see how their vehicle is set up, including the kennel that Barco rides in.

I also learned a lot about how police dogs are trained and even got to watch Barco perform a drug search. It gave me a great deal of respect not only for what the dog can do, but for all of the hard work that goes into what the handler does to train the dog and read his reactions in order to track effectively. 

Later in the evening, I had the chance to ask some questions directly related to a few scenes I had planned. In several cases, not only did I come away with more details, but I even had to alter the basic situation simply because that's not how it would really work. It's important to me to make the scenes as realistic as possible, so having that clarity was huge.

For example, there's a scene in Out of the Ashes where someone breaks into a house. I originally had Gabe and Loki going in and clearing the home. Instead, I learned that they would wait for backup and then go in with at least one other officer. 

I'm excited to apply everything I've learned to this series, and I look forward to being able to share the books with all of you!

I'm working on a novella now that is a prequel to my new romantic suspense series, Danger in Destiny. This particular novella has been inspired by a mansion that stands not far from where I live and is called the White Mansion. This particular building has been empty for many years now.

While there are a few articles online about the mansion, as well as a YouTube video with a short tour of some of the rooms, the rest is definitely left to the imagination. 

In my novella, Fear the Shadows, Chloe Newcomb lives in the town of Destiny, Texas where she's admired one of the town's landmarks for years - the Mahogany Mansion. In fact, her childhood curiosity about the place is what sparked her interest in eventually becoming an estate liquidator. 

When the owner of the mansion reaches out to her and hires her to take inventory of the mansion's contents, it's a dream come true. 

But once she gets inside, she realizes that the mansion has been keeping a lot of secrets, and some of them are deadly. 

I'm looking forward to being able to share this novella for FREE with all newsletter subscribers!  Meanwhile, it's been a blast letting my imagination run as I write about the fictional Mahogany Mansion. 

​ It's the opportunity of a lifetime.

Estate liquidator Chloe Newcomb has admired the Mahogany Mansion, one of the town's trademarks, for years. When she is contacted to inventory the contents, she can't believe her luck. But from her first step inside, danger surrounds her, forcing her to solve a mystery before things escalate.

Someone's lurking in the mansion.

Closed off to the community, Mahogany Mansion isn't a place anyone visits. When Police Chief Arnold Dolman discovers the driveway gate wide open and his friend, Chloe, injured by someone hiding in the house, he steps in to offer her protection. As Chloe continues her work, it's clear whoever hurt her won't be stopping anytime soon.

Scare tactics turn to danger.

What starts out as menacing pranks turns to something more sinister. Chloe is determined to finish the job she's been hired to do, and Arnold refuses to leave her there alone. Together, they'll have to watch each other's backs while unraveling the secrets hidden within the mansion's dark shadows. 

Interested in reading more about the White House mansion? Check out the links below: