Rich
Janet Elizabeth Henderson
(Benson Security, #5)
Publication date: April 23rd 2020
Genres: Adult, Thriller
Rachel Ford-Talbot has nothing to do with her family or their pharmaceutical business. And she likes it that way. As one of four partners who own an internationally renowned security business, Rachel prefers to leave her past, with all its secrets, deeply buried.
But when a series of thefts reveal that the family business is being targeted for industrial espionage, her father begs Rachel to investigate. His illness makes it hard for her to refuse, but Rachel wonders if he truly understands what he’s unleashing on his company. Because she isn’t the same bright-eyed graduate that walked through their doors years earlier. Now, she’s strong, powerful, and somewhat terrifying. A woman who doesn’t suffer fools lightly and who is afraid of nothing.
She also isn’t alone.
This time, she has the might and expertise of Benson Security at her back. And an ex-CIA agent at her side—because Michael “Harvard” Carter has appointed himself her bodyguard for the duration. Even though Rachel doesn’t need, or want, the annoyingly sexy man’s help. But while the world sees a first-class bitch when they look at her, Michael sees only someone who intrigues him. Which makes him the biggest threat of all.
***This is a standalone novel. You don’t have to have read any of my other books to enjoy it.***
Interview with Janet Elizabeth Henderson
For those interested in exploring the subject or theme of your book,
where should they start?
This book is about surviving, and about
being yourself – no matter the cost. It’s also about finding people who love
you for exactly the person you are. It’s about seeing past the superficial and
taking the time to find out the heart of a person. But mostly, this is a book
about hope.
How did you become involved with the subject or theme of your book?
I’ve always been incredibly
interested in the difference between how we see ourselves and how others see
us, and that comes out in this book, I think. Also, I wanted to show my readers
that there’s no “one way” to survive trauma. You choose your way forward and
everyone around you has to respect that. I think, right now, there’s a lot of
judgment out there about the right way to do things. I wanted to question that
a little.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you
feel you achieved them?
I wanted to take an incredibly
strong character and show how she coped with trauma in her life. I also wanted
to write a book about a sensitive subject that didn’t dwell on the
topic, if that makes sense. I wanted the book to be filled with hope and
laughter, even though the plot is quite dark.
On top of all that, I wanted to
give the heroine a hero she couldn’t steamroll over or side step around.
Someone who saw the hidden parts of her nature and who loved all of her – the
good and bad. I have no idea if I achieved any of my goals. I guess that’s up
to the reader!
Anything
you would like to say to your readers and fans?
The main thing I’d like to say is that I
appreciate every single one of them more than they could possibly know. Without
them, I wouldn’t be able to write the stories I’ve always wanted to write. I am
so grateful for them.
What
did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Nothing!!! This book was a nightmare to
write. I felt like every word was a fight to get out. That I was wrestling
characters, themes, plots to make them balance and not overwhelm the story. It
was agony!
Can
you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you have planned for the
future?
As you know, Rich is romantic suspense, so
for my next book I’m going back to writing romantic comedy – just to give
myself a break from the angst of this book.
How
long have you been writing?
All of my adult life really. I wrote my
first book when I was 22. And for a few years before switching to romance, I
wrote crime novels. But, for the past ten years, I’ve been writing romantic
comedy, romantic suspense and futuristic romance. And I LOVE this genre!
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Rich?
The heroine, Rachel Ford-Talbot, is
part of the English aristocracy. Her family own a pharmaceutical company and
for years Rachel assumed she’d work with them when she graduated college.
Because of a traumatic event in her early twenties, she took a different path,
but the story takes her right back into the family fold and makes her confront
that past. Rachel is a difficult person, to say the least. She’s smart,
sarcastic, cutting sometimes, snobbish sometimes, and can be very cold. She
keeps herself at a distance from everyone around her – to the point where she
won’t even admit ownership when she does something nice for someone. She’s a
very hard nut to crack!
Michael “Harvard” Carter, is an
ex-CIA agent. He’s spent his entire career “reading” people and he sees things
in Rachel that no one else notices. He also knows how to get past her defenses
to the woman she keeps hidden. He’s smart, calm, eternally patient and
supportive. He doesn’t need to be front and center on everything, which means
he’s happy to back Rachel up over her decisions. He’s just quietly capable and
confident, and slowly, methodically, walks through every barrier Rachel erects
in his path. I love Harvard!
If
you could spend the day with one of the characters from Rich who would it be?
Please tell us why you chose this particular character, where you would go and
what you would do.
I’d have to choose the hero, Harvard. He’s so
calm and steady all the time that I think he’d be a peaceful person to hang out
with. I think, if I were going to spend a day with Harvard, I’d go somewhere
dangerous. Somewhere I’d love to visit but would be too scared to go on my own,
because he’d make sure I was safe and protected while we were there. Plus, he
can speak several languages, is an expert in hand to hand combat, and is
trained in weapons – what more is there? 😊
Author Bio:
Janet is a Scot who moved to New Zealand fifteen years ago. Among other things, she’s been an artist, a teacher, a security guard at a castle, a magazine editor, and a cleaner in a drop in center for drug addicts (NOT the best job!). She now writes full-time and is working on her 19th book. Her books have won several awards, including the Daphne du Maurier award for excellence in mystery and suspense. When she isn’t living in her head, she raises two kids, one husband, and several random animals. She survives on chocolate and caffeine.
3 comments:
Sounds like a good book and I love the cover - thanks for sharing!
Looks awesome! Thank you for sharing!
Sounds like a good book!
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