TELL HER NO LIES - Kelly Irvin - One Free Book

Welcome back, Kelly. How did you come up with the idea for this story?

It was a combination of life experiences—not only mine but those of my son-in-law. He’s a veteran and married father of three who has the highest security clearance necessary to repair radar on our nation’s naval fleet. But once he was a small boy abandoned by his drug addicted parents with two siblings in a tent city constructed by homeless people in Florida.

Knowing and loving my son-in-law intersected with my life experiences in planting the seeds necessary to write Tell Her No Lies. My experiences include working in a church ministry in which my Sunday School class cooked food and assembled the necessary supplies in our church kitchen before heading to a highway underpass in downtown San Antonio once a month to feed people who were homeless.

My children were in grade school at the time and they often accompanied me. My daughter willingly, my son less graciously. I believe the experience shaped their understanding of how blessed they are and also gave them compassion for others. In some ways, it may have paved the way for my daughter’s relationship with her future husband.

Eventually the city of San Antonio created a consolidated, state-of-the-art campus with every service imaginable to assist people experiencing homelessness. Municipal government then asked (more like ordered) churches and other charitable organizations to stop providing these makeshift meals so they could guide people to all the services they need at Haven for Hope.

Haven for Hope is a focal point in Tell Her No Lies. Heroine Nina Fischer, abandoned as a child by her drug addicted mother in a tent city in Florida, now volunteers at Haven for Hope as an adult. She and her sister were plucked from foster care by an aunt and uncle she’d never met and brought to live in a well-to-do upper middle-class neighborhood.

That story line comes from my son-in-law’s life. A loving aunt and uncle plucked him and his brother and sister from foster care in Florida, brought them to San Antonio, and eventually adopted them. The aunt was a stay-at-home mom with two children already. The uncle was in the military and often deployed. That left the new mom of five children very nearly the same age frequently on her own. Money was always tight. But they persevered and raised five wonderful adults. Of course, from there, the story diverges into fiction and my vivid imagination.

If you were planning a party with Christian authors of contemporary fiction, what six people would you invite and why? Terri Blackstock, Colleen Coble, Lynette Eason, Irene Hannon, James Scott Bell, and Stephen James. Because they write in the suspense/mystery genres and I’d love to pick their brains about the writing craft, the publishing industry, their writing habits, etc. 

Now let’s do that for a party for Christian authors of historical fiction, what six people would you invite and why?

I don’t read a ton of historical fiction, but I do read everything Allison Pittman writes. So I would invite her, Tara Johnson, Elizabeth Byler Younts, and Patty Callahan, plus a few they recommend. I know Allison, Tara, and Elizabeth. They would be a lively bunch with lots of insight to share on the writing process, how to do research, faith, and just life itself. It would be a rich evening of fellowship with Christian writers, regardless of genre.

Many times, people (and other authors) think you have it made with so many books published. What is your most difficult problem with writing at this time in your career?

My greatest challenge is also a great blessing. I’m writing in two genres now—Amish romances and romantic suspense. My publishing house originally signed me to do Amish fiction but agreed recently to offer me contracts for the romantic suspense as well. It was a dream come true. Writing in one keeps me fresh in the other. However, having staggered deadlines has been a huge challenge. Keeping up with marketing as the books release, as well as the various edits that have to be done along the way has left me a little frazzled at times. But I constantly remind myself of all those years I prayed and longed to be published. All the tears I shed over rejections. All the nervous apprehension that went into pitching to editors at conferences. I’m writing fiction full time. I’m truly living my dream today so I try not to whine!

Tell us about the featured book.

Even the most admired families have secrets to hide . . .

Nina Fischer carries a camera wherever she goes—so she can view life through a filter. Safely. After her mother abandoned her to the streets, Nina has kept people at a distance, including her uncle, who adopted Nina and her sister. Wealthy and proud, he is a good man, a fair judge, and someone many in San Antonio admire.

But when he is murdered, and the detective assigned to the case accuses Nina of the crime, she knows she must act. She’s determined to use her journalism background to find the real killer. The two men in her life want to help, but can she trust them?  She’s known Rick since they were children, but now he’s an attorney whose political aspirations seem more important than Nina’s tragic loss. And then there’s Aaron, a news videographer; using their friendship could break the biggest story of his career.

Following the evidence leads Nina on a journey of discovery into her father’s shocking masquerade as a law-abiding, family-loving Christian. Unlocking these secrets could prove fatal, but it’s the only way Nina will ever be able to trust love again.

Combining romance and suspense, bestselling author Kelly Irvin’s Tell Her No Lies is a high-stakes race for the truth.

Please give us the first page of the book.

Someone needed to make a perfume from stop bath and developer. The photo chemicals smelled like come-hither to Nina Fischer. She inhaled their biting scent and studied the image that appeared as she swished the sheet of paper in the deep gray plastic tub. A homeless man with a toothless grin rewarded her efforts. The man smiled as if he’d invited her into a palatial home and not a squatter’s makeshift campsite. His black-and-white surroundings materialized in sharp contrast around him. A graffiti-covered Dumpster dwarfed his skeletal frame. A shopping cart loaded with a tattered coat, mismatched sneakers, and a pile of blankets was parked on the broken cement like a car in a driveway. Despite the alcohol-induced trust in his bloodshot eyes, he stayed close to the cart as if he feared she would steal it away.

The photo told a story. A story that the world needed to see and Nina needed to tell. In many ways, it was her story. The story of a child who’d lived in that world and survived. The words to the poem that would accompany the photo fell into place.

“Nina? You’re doing it again.”

Rick Zavala’s irritated baritone boomed in the small darkroom.

“Sorry.” Nina snatched the phone from the counter, hit the speaker button to turn it off, then tucked the phone between her ear and her shoulder while using her free hand to move the photo to the stop bath. She glanced at the illuminated face of the sports watch on her wrist. Thirty seconds and the photo moved to the fixer.

“You could at least pretend to pay attention when you’re on the phone with me.”

“I am paying attention.” Now she was. Suppressing a snort of laughter, she gripped the tongs and slipped the photo into the next tub. “It’s three o’clock in the morning. I’m not going to a party with you. I only have a week left to get ready for the exhibit.”

How can readers find you on the Internet?

www.kellyirvin.com

www.facebook.com/Kelly.Irvin.Author

@Kelly_S_Irvin

www.pinterest.com/irvin0739/

Thank you, Kelly, for sharing this new suspense novel with my blog readers and me. My copy arrived today, and I’m eager to read it.

Readers, here are links to the book.

Tell Her No Lies - Christianbook.com
Tell Her No Lies - Amazon paperback (on special sale right now)
Tell Her No Lies - Kindle

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