Jagger: Steele Shadows Investigations
Amanda McKinney
Publication date: June 18th 2020
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Secrets, lies, deceit… A former Navy SEAL turned homicide detective has met his match in this new *standalone* addition to the number #1 Bestselling Steele Shadows Series…
He found her covered in blood.
She promises she’s innocent.
The question is… Can he trust her?
Feared just as much on the streets as at a crime scene, Homicide Detective Max Jagger has dedicated his life to one thing—speaking for the dead. Everyone and everything else be damned, including his own demons. During one of the most oppressive heat waves to hit the small, southern town of Berry Springs, the former Navy SEAL is called to a scene where a real estate heiress is found standing over a dead body, holding the murder weapon. The local cops immediately dub it a slam-dunk case, but if Jagg has learned anything from his days running special ops, it’s that nothing is as it seems… including this suspect.
Despite her name, Sunny Harper is as beguiling as a fallen angel. Clever, cunning, completely unwilling to cooperate, and, perhaps his least favorite quality—mind-numbingly intoxicating. When evidence from the scene suggests an accomplice, Jagg begins to believe that Sunny is both innocent and in danger, despite the towns’ uproar to lock her up. Torn between his growing feelings for his suspect, he takes Sunny to a secluded lake house where he discovers there’s much more behind those enchanting green eyes… including secrets that could take them both under.
With his career on the line and the clock ticking, Jagg must decide if he can trust Sunny… before they both get burned.
Interview with Amanda McKinney
For
those interested in exploring the subject or theme of your book,
where should they start?
The
Steele Shadows series was an unplanned spin-off from the Berry
Springs Series. I like to think of it as Berry Springs’ steamer,
darker, grittier, bad-boy brother. The series was created when I
finally submitted to the unrelenting voice in my head telling me to
write something more intense, more emotional, and more alpha. With
blind faith, I wrote Cabin 1, which became my first #1 bestseller.
The character in Jagger (Steele Shadows Investigations) is introduced
in Cabin 1 and carried throughout the series. Jagger is a sexy,
small-town murder mystery about two very different strangers—former
Navy SEAL turned homicide detective, and the quiet, mysterious Sunny
Harper—who come together to solve a murder, not realizing they are
about to engage in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a ruthless
killer. It’s
got it all—hot romance, murder, mystery, and even a bit of
small-town folklore and witchery!
How
did you become involved with the subject or theme of your book?
I’m
a sucker for romantic suspense/mystery. I love the delicate mix of
romance, intrigue, and heart-pounding suspense, and of course the
grand finale of it all, the happily ever after ending. And let’s be
honest, a swoon-worthy hero doesn’t hurt either.
What
were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel
you achieved them?
As
a reader and a writer, pacing is very important to me. One of my
favorite things about romantic suspense is that the stories are
fast-paced. Nothing pulls me out of a book more than slow pacing or
that ever-dreaded lagging middle section. When I write a book, I
focus on creating a page-turning experience and making
the reader feel a mix of emotions—fear, anticipation, shock, lust,
you name it. If he, or she, goes to bed thinking about my book, or
stays up all night just to finish it, I’ve done my job.
Anything you
would like to say to your readers and fans?
An
enormous THANK YOU. Writing was a leap of faith for me and I jumped
in with both feet. It is so humbling when a reader tells me that one
of my books inspired them to start reading again. I try to improve
with each book I write and give the reader one hell of a ride, every
single time. There’s nothing like the escape that reading gives us
and I’m so honored to be a part of that.
What did you
enjoy most about writing this book?
I
enjoyed writing the tension between Sunny and Jagger. Despite his
growing feelings for a woman suspected to murder, Jagger doesn’t
know if he can trust Sunny. His emotional torment was fun to write
(haha).
Can you tell us
a little bit about your next books or what you have planned for the
future
2020
is going to be a big year for the McKinney Machine! I’m continuing
Steel Shadows Investigations with Jagger’s brother’s story,
Ryder, coming this fall. I am so excited to continue these
character’s stories! The books will have everything you’d expect
in a McKinney novel—hot romance, alpha males, strong females,
fast-paced suspense and mystery, but will be standalone novels. No
cliffhangers!
How long have
you been writing?
Like
many creatives, I was someone who wandered aimlessly through life
until I found writing. I’d always struggled with what I was meant
to do professionally. After college, I spent a decade in sales and
business management. My world was cheap power suits, grey cubicles,
PowerPoint presentations, quotas, and butt-kissing. I knew this was
not my path. I wanted to be the person who said, “I love what I do
so much that it doesn’t feel like work.” After years of sending
positive energy into the world, hoping I would find my dream-job, the
quest finally ended after I wrote the first paragraph of my first
book (that was so terrible it never saw the light of day). I fell in
love instantly and never looked back.
Can
you tell us a little bit about the characters in Jagger, Steele
Shadows Investigations
Feared
just as much on the streets as at a crime scene, Homicide Detective
Max Jagger has dedicated his life to one thing—speaking for the
dead. Jagger is
everything badass, alpha, I-don’t-need-anyone-or-anything, however,
he’s hit an unexpected crossroads in his life where things have
simply lost their luster. Enter Sunny Harper, a mysterious, clever,
enigma of a woman who completely tosses his world upside down.
There’s a enemies-to-lovers element in this book that was a blast
to write.
If you could
spend the day with one of the characters from Jagger, Steele Shadows
Investigations who would it be? Please tell us why you chose this
particular character, where you would go and what you would do.
Sunny,
hands-down. I’d have her give me target-shooting and Krav Maga
lessons, then we’d settle in on her dock with a bottle of vodka and
gluten free pizza.
Author Bio:
Amanda McKinney is the #1 bestselling and multi-award-winning author of more than ten steamy romantic suspense and mystery novels. She wrote her debut novel, LETHAL LEGACY, in 2017 after walking away from her career to become a writer and stay-at-home mom. Set in small, southern towns, Amanda’s books are page-turning murder mysteries packed with steamy romance.
Her books include the HOT new bestselling series, STEELE SHADOWS SECURITY, the multi-award-winning BERRY SPRINGS series and BLACK ROSE MYSTERIES.
Text AMANDABOOKS to 66866 to receive Amanda’s newsletter and get the latest on new releases, promos, and freebies!
3 comments:
Thanks for hosting today, Nancy!
Sounds like my kind of book, thanks for sharing!
This is so good! Hope the story lives up to how amazing a feeling the blurb gives!
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