AMONG THE INNOCENT - Mary Alford - One Free Book

BIO: Mary Alford is a USA Today bestselling author. Her titles have been finalists for several awards, including the Daphne du Maurier, the Beverly, the Maggie, and the Selah. She and her husband live in the heart of Texas in the middle of 70 acres with two cats and one dog.

Welcome, Mary. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters. I do put quite a bit of myself into my characters from their views on life and faith to their love of the mountains, and of course, drinking coffee.   

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done? I’m not sure if it's considered quirky or not, but many years ago, my husband and I raised Ostriches and Emus. The Emus were a lot of fun and gathering their eggs was fairly easy, but the ostriches were an entirely different situation. Those birds were big, and they could be dangerous. We ended up having to distract the males who could be quite aggressive. Needless to say, we are no longer Emu and Ostrich ranchers.

When did you first discover that you were a writer? I knew I wanted to be a writer when I was a pre-teen. In fact, I wrote my first book back then. But I really didn’t pursue the craft seriously until many years later when I entered a contest hosted by Love Inspired Suspense and was selected as one of the authors to present to the editor. That was in the summer of 2012, and I later sold my first book to them that year.    

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading. I love Christian romantic suspense and Amish suspense above all else, but I also enjoy other genres such as contemporary romance, Amish romance, mysteries, police procedurals, and cold cases mysteries. In other words, just about anything.    

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world? I feel very blessed to live in a small rural community where everyone knows each other, and we look out for one another. But even in such a peaceful community, I still occasionally find myself overly busy, especially with writing deadlines. During those times, I try to take time away from my writing project and go for a walk or maybe take a drive with my husband. Even just taking a few minutes to focus on a hobby such as playing the piano can be enough of a reprieve to refresh and get ready to start the process again.    

How do you choose your characters’ names? I usually choose their names early on, when I first start putting the story together in my head. It helps to know what to call them as we get to know each other. I have been gathering names for a while. Every time I read or hear a name that sounds interesting, I’ll put it in my file. Then when I begin a new story, I search my list of names for the ones that fit my characters the best. 

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of? My husband and I have been together for 39 years this September. He is the love of my life and my best friend. I hope we can be together for another 39 years. We have so much fun together.

James and I will celebrate our 58^th anniversary in November. If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why? If I could be an animal, it would be a cat. Cats are hilarious. They do their own thing most of the time. They want attention when they want it, and they have a way of looking at you like they're judging everything you do, and they aren’t always pleased with the results.  

What is your favorite food? I’d say it’s a tie between burgers and pizza. I love them both equally.

What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it? Sometimes when I start a story, I have in mind how I want it to go and how it will end, yet when I start writing it sometimes the story will fall apart or stall out midways through. When this happens, I find the best way to overcome the problem is to set the story aside for a few days and not think about it. Usually, after a few days’ break, the story will get back on track. 

Tell us about the featured book? AMONG THE INNOCENT takes place in the Amish community of St. Ignatius, Montana, where Leah Miller lost her entire Amish family to a killer ten years earlier. Now Leah has left the Amish faith and has become a police officer. Leah is called out to search for a missing person which turns out to be the daughter of her former neighbor. The young woman is later found dead in the same barn where Leah lost her entire family with a note from the killer letting Leah know he’s back.
Leah and the new chief of police, Dalton Cooper are on a race against time to find out the identity of the killer before he kills again. And Leah soon learns Dalton has a connection to her family’s case that is a complete surprise, and it makes her question his motives.  

Please give us the first page of the book.
Prologue

He drove by the house again. The second time today. All because of her.

The sight of his car rolling down the dirt road in front of her isolated farm filled Beth Zook with thoughts not proper for an Amish girl. A cloud of dust followed the car, instantly covering the freshly washed sheet she’d hung out to dry minutes earlier. Despite the sweltering July heat, he’d put down the window. Was it because he wanted her to see him as he eased by?

He waved when he saw her looking, and she reacted like a moth drawn to a flame. Beth had never met anyone so unpredictable before. One minute he teased, the next his eyes smoldered with such intensity that it frightened her.

Looking at his handsome face sent the butterflies in her stomach scattering. A flash of a smile revealed white teeth, perfect like everything else about him.

Beth waved back, then glanced over her shoulder. What would Mamm and her sister say if they noticed? She covered her mouth to suppress the giggle. She’d been giggling a lot lately.

Too soon . . .

Her head warned it was too soon for these emotions, yet her heart threatened to explode from her chest each time they were together.

Heat flooded her cheeks as she recalled his kisses from the night before. She’d been so afraid her parents would wake and hear her slipping out of her bedroom window. A sense of fear and adventure had followed her each step of the way as she’d crossed the yard in the pitch-black dark of night to the old Miller barn where he’d waited for her.

At first, she’d been afraid to go there after what had happened all those years ago. Four members of the Miller family had been found dead inside that barn. Leah Miller, the oldest daughter, was the only survivor. Whispers around the community about the unspeakable evil that had transpired that night could still be heard.

When Beth told her suitor about the murders, his eyes gleamed with excitement. While he seemed to enjoy envisioning what had happened back then, the barn gave Beth the creeps. But she kept that to herself because he made her feel special. Beautiful. Important. For the first time in her life, she longed for things not found among the Plain people of St. Ignatius. A life of pretty things. Like he promised.

Last night when they’d met, he’d asked her to run away with him. Her heart had overflowed with eagerness until reality tamped down her happiness, and Beth realized she wasn’t ready to leave her home. Her family. While she remained torn between staying Amish forever and leaving with him, he’d told her he would drive by her house every day until she said yes.

Part of her was thrilled—intrigued at the consuming way he watched her. The other part was scared. Beth did not understand his almost feral wildness.
How can readers find you on the Internet?
Readers can find me on my website, www.MaryAlford.net, and I’m active on Facebook and Twitter, as well as any of the social media sites listed on my website. I always love hearing from readers.

Thank you, Mary, for sharing this book with my blog readers and me. I’m eager to read my copy.

Readers, here’s a link to the book.

https://www.amazon.com/Among-Innocent-Mary-Alford-ebook/dp/B09LWN9DXD/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QIUZNXIBYK8G&keywords=among+the+innocent+by+mary+alford&qid=1655825354&s=books&sprefix=Among+the+Innocent%2Cstripbooks%2C399&sr=1-1

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