I Had No Idea… (They Actually Surprised Me!)

Hello dear friends—

     They surprised me!

  And if you know me at all, you know that’s nearly impossible.

   Jim always says I can read his mind (and it’s true). So planning anything behind my back? Nearly impossible.

   But my suddenly very sneaky husband somehow did it. With the help of two of our friends, he did it. For weeks, Jim apparently walked around the house saying “la-la-la” in his head whenever I tried to mind-read him.

   When I entered the room that night and saw everyone, I had to walk right back out. Tears. Overwhelmed. Grateful beyond words.

   Have you ever been truly surprised like that? 

Over the years, we’ve tried to surprise you too.

  Not with parties…. but with our stories.

   Somehow, over three decades, we’ve written in just about every genre imaginable:

✨ Young Adult
✨ Fantasy & Time Travel

✨ Pirates
✨ Cozy Ghost Stories
✨ Scottish Historical Romance
✨ Contemporary Fiction
✨ Thrillers

✨ Warriors
✨ Lawyers

   There’s something here for practically everyone.

   If you haven’t explored our backlist in a while, this might be the time.
   We’ve included a 25% off coupon in this newsletter — and if you’d like to share it with a friend, that would mean the world to us.

   (Word of mouth is always magic.)

On the health front…

I had another stent replacement last week. I try to put up a brave, positive face — but I won’t pretend each surgery isn’t getting harder to recover from. Next week I begin radiation. We’re hopeful it helps with the bone pain.

   As I travel this cancer road, people often ask, “What can we do? How can we help?” Jim and I are deeply moved every time.

   In December, a young author friend of ours, Elizabeth Briggs, died of colon cancer at just 45. Her family shared words that struck straight through us:

   “If you would like to support Elizabeth’s family, please honor her by buying her books… Some part of her will always be alive as long as her stories have readers.”

   Cancer robs us of so much — our energy, our plans, sometimes our identities. It takes from families emotionally and financially. It interrupts the work we love.

   So I’ll say this gently, while I’m still kicking around (slower, but still kicking):

   If you’re an author, maybe one day there’ll be a ‘Nikoo’ character in your book.

   If you’re a reader, maybe you'll recommend one of our stories to a friend or share this newsletter.

   If you're looking for a book for yourself or a friend, you'll use the coupon at our bookstore.

          Here's the 25% off coupon code…    THJVU9Y9I0  

   And you'll keep reading our stories…   

That’s how a writer will always remain alive. 

Thanks!

A Thousand Lives...

Before we ever became writers, Jim and I were readers. We remain devoted readers to this day, enjoying books across every genre. But how do we choose which books to read and authors to try?
 
We rely on recommendations from friends and family who share our taste in books and titles that our book club chooses each month. We also pay attention to a book's reviews and the author's personal story, particularly those who have overcome struggles like illness, loss, or life-changing events. These books, for us, are more about the "heart" behind the story.
 
At the end of each of our novels, we ask our readers to please leave a review and recommend our book to a friend, and we’d encourage you to do the same for any book you enjoy.
 
According to the National Endowment for the Arts, total book reading has declined significantly over the past 20 years. We understand that we all lead busy lives, but we believe that reading is worth the investment of time. Books introduce us to people and places we may not otherwise know, help us communicate better, and create empathy.
 
Reading also supports people like Jim and me, who have dedicated ourselves to storytelling for the love of words and to bring you hours of entertainment.
 
So, friends, we know we’re ‘preaching to the choir’, but we encourage you to continue reading, reading, reading, and to share your love of books with others. As George R.R. Martin said, "A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one."
 
And thank you, sincerely, for supporting us!