Spotlight + Interview with Emelle Gamble, author of Stranger Than Fiction + Gift Card GIVEAWAY & FREE BOOK!

I am very pleased to welcome Emelle Gamble to One Book Shy of a Full Shelf today as she tours the blogosphere with her new book - Stranger Than Fiction. I had a chance to ask Emelle a few questions and learn more about her and her writing. Welcome Emelle!

TITLE:    Stranger Than Fiction AUTHOR:    Emelle Gamble
INFO:    Fiction, 206 pages
PUBLISHED:   Posh Publishing, 2015
GENRE:    Romantic Suspense

ABOUT:  A Classic Tale of Romantic Suspense...Set in Manhattan and Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island in 1993....
If books could kill...Plagiarism is an ugly word. And Tony Nichols keeps repeating it. Claire Kennedy is forced to consider that her bestselling, reclusive author might have stolen her latest mystery novel from one of Tony's college students. Was Claire's reputation, and the future of her employer, Cauldron Press, in jeopardy? Or is Tony masterminding a hoax?
The mystery takes a terrifying turn when these uneasy allies, who each realize they are more than a little attracted to one another, discover a corpse. Claire realizes that the truth behind The Poison Pen Pal's creation not only threatens her career, but her life.
EXCERPT:  Tony had not shown up to get her at the inn, nor had he called with a message. She had checked the inn not more than a half hour ago. Was his lack of punctuality further proof of his criminal makeup, she wondered?

Her determination not to be manipulated propelled her up the stairway to the second floor. The lighted hallway was empty of any security guards, secretaries or students to direct her. Turning away from the stairs, Claire walked toward a closed office with English Department stenciled on the frosted glass and knocked.

There was no answer. A lectern stood next to the door, and .the black notebook on it listed the instructor’s office hours. Turning hastily to the Ns, Claire found the entry.

Nichols, A.A. (Tony), Assoc Prof, Creative Writing #319.

The space for appointments was crossed through with a large black X.

She ought to just go see Sarah Winesong, Claire thought as she hurried down the hall. If Mr. Harrison and Tillie had not babied the author all these years, Cauldron Press might not have been in this predicament. And she would not be chasing around after Tony Nichols.

Claire took the stairs up to the third floor, pausing out of breath on the landing. A black arrow with the numbers 311-321 led her to the left.

That hall was dark, the only illumination coming from the gray sky visible through a single window at the far end of the corridor. All the offices appeared locked and unoccupied.

There was no lettering on the frosted glass of room 319 other than its number, and the small metal nameplate holder above it was empty. Claire’s stomach churned. She rapped loudly and waited.

Nothing. “Tony? Are you in there? It’s Claire.”

Her inquiry was met with silence. Rubbing one hand with the other, Claire looked around. Though everything was silent, she had the feeling that someone was nearby. Gingerly she put her hand on the brass doorknob and turned it. It opened easily, into almost complete darkness.

“Tony?”

The instant she spoke his name, the shrill cry of the telephone rang out like a startled sentry’s gun. Clutching her chest, Claire gasped and stepped back.

With a sigh of exasperation, she decided to answer it and groped for the light switch. As she did so, she noticed the room was dense with the odor of Tony’s tobacco. Inhaling, she tried to ignore the vivid pictures that rose to mind. She found the switch and flicked it and the room lit up.

The first thing Claire saw was the blood pooled on the dingy carpet just inside the office door.

She froze. Dully she realized the phone had stopped ringing. Then her ears picked up a new sound. In the hallway she had just vacated, she heard the creaking of a door hinge followed by footsteps.

Footsteps that were coming closer.

Frantic, Claire snapped off the light and moved deeper into the small office. Her hands groped in the dark for a weapon. Heavy, leather bound books were everywhere. Gripping the smooth surface of a large, anonymous text, Claire raised it above her head and waited.

A bulky silhouette filled the doorway as the hallway light tumbled into the room. Though Claire had made no sound, it was clear she had been spotted. Without a word, the figure lunged across the small office at her. She brought the book down squarely on the intruder’s face and the corner of it stabbed into his cheek.

She was tackled and thrown against the edge of the desk while her attacker howled a curse at her blow. Claire struck him repeatedly with the book.

As they both crashed to the floor, Claire beat him with every bit of adrenaline pumping into her body. Then, quite suddenly, she knew who it was cursing her in the dark. She recognized the strong hands that hugged her waist, the wavy hair brushing against the tender skin on her arm.

Her body identified her captor even when her terrified mind had not. “Let go of me, Tony. You’re hurting my arms.”

He was straddling her hips. She could now clearly see his eyes in the dim light from the hall.

“Claire, what are you trying to do, kill me?”

INTERVIEW:  
Do you get more enjoyment out of creating heroes or the villains?
My thrill is solid motivation…I want the reader to meet and understand my characters and believe that they are acting logically and not just a paper-cut out cliché moving around on paper.

I love my heroes and heroines, who are always a bit complicated and flawed, but seek to live the golden rule. I also love my villains, who always ‘have their reasons’ for acting as they do.

I know, I know, not a clear answer. Welcome to the mind of a writer, HA!

Where is your favorite place to write?

I have great difficulty writing anywhere but my cozy little office. Cats at my feet, neighborhood out the window at my back, hubby down the hall or outside taking care of the yard. The only other place I am always successful is during a yearly outing with my critique group, The Lifesavers, at a loaned house on the Chesapeake Bay. It’s heaven there, and like opening the ‘writing vein’…probably due to the love and support of the writers, and also not having to cook or clean.

Do you have any specific "rituals" when you're creating/writing?

Does eating candy count as a ritual? I don’t usually eat the stuff, but for some reason when I’m stuck on a plot point, I grab a hard candy and crinkle the paper and pop the calories in my mouth. Oh, and I do laundry. It clears my mind to walk up and down the stairs to the laundry room, usually talking out loud to a balky character.

Tell us about your favorite literary character (can be your own or other, or both!)

My own is the movie star icon, Cary Grant. It was such great fun using him as a secondary character in DATING CARY GRANT He was charming, articulate, funny, sexy, and I felt like I was channeling a ghost when I wrote dialogue for him.

What are three things you can't be without?

Family. Friends. Hope for the future.


What are you currently working on?

STRANGER THAN FICTION was the first romantic suspense novel I ever wrote. I have always been interested most in mystery…I love the way the ending ‘solves’ something and allows justice to prevail. I wrote six other novels of classic romantic suspense for Harlequin Intrigue, and my books always have a lot of suspense in them, no matter if they are mystery or women’s fiction.

I think I am coming full circle and returning to suspense at this time in my career. I have two big books done, and am working on a new one, OVERHEARD, about a killer who taunts his victims with clues he posts on a website. It’s fun and challenging, and I hope to turn it into a series as the two main characters, long-married couple Annie and Jasper, are chattering to me day and night to tell their story.

Thank you so much Emelle for taking the time to give us a little behind the scenes peek!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  Emelle Gamble became a writer at an early age. At six years old, she was bursting with the requisite childhood stories of introspection, and this itch to tell tales evolved into bad teen poetry and tortured short works that, thankfully, never saw the light of day, or an editor’s red pen.

She took her first stab at writing a novel in an adult education class in Mobile, Alabama when her kids were in bed for the night. As ‘M.L. Gamble,’ she published several romantic suspense novels with Harlequin Intrigue. She now publishes novels of Ordinary Women in Extraordinary Situations with SoulMate Publishing and Posh Publishing …works ranging from women’s fiction to thrillers and romantic suspense.

Always intrigued by the words ‘what if’, Gamble’s books feature an ordinary woman confronted with an extraordinary situation. Emelle celebrates the adventurous spirit of readers, and hopes each will enjoy the exciting and surprising journeys her characters take.

Emelle lives in suburban Washington D.C. with her hero of thirty years, Philip, and two orange cats, Lucy and Bella. Like all good villains, the cats claim to have their reasons for misbehaving. Her children are happily launched on their own and are both contributing great things to society, their mother’s fondest wish.

Emelle welcomes any reader interested in emailing her at emellegamble@aol.com and hopes they will visit her website, www.EmelleGamble.com or her Author Emelle Gamble FaceBook page.

The book will be FREE during the Tour!!

Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Emelle is generously gifting one lucky reader a $25 giftcard to either Amazon or Barnes & Noble! All you have to do is enter below. Be sure to check out the other tour stops for more ways to enter and to learn more about Stranger Than Fiction. Good Luck & thank you Emelle!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Stops November 17: Reviews by Crystal
November 24: One Book Shy of a Full Shelf
December 1: Christine Young
December 8: FictionZeal
December 15: Rachel Brimble Romance
December 29: Read Your Writes Book Reviews
January 5: Archaeolibrarian- I dig good books!
January 12: BooksChatter
~~~~~ Disclaimer:  All opinions expressed on this blog are 100% my own.  I do not receive monetary compensation for my reviews but do utilize affiliate links.  I may receive books in  order to facilitate a review, but this does not guarantee a good review - only a completely honest one.  Each review post denotes how I obtained the book.