HOMECOMING CHAOS
by D.W. Brooks
GENRE: Romantic Suspense/Mystery/African American Fiction
BLURB:
A dead body in the parking lot of her family’s business, a killer on the loose, and a handsome detective asking a lot of questions…
Jamie Scott’s life fell apart four years ago when she broke off her engagement, turned down a dream job, and went overseas to run away from her life. Now she’s back, but the reunion is not without problems. She arrives home just in time to attend the soiree her mother planned, but she’s not prepared for what she finds—a dead employee in the parking lot.
Detective Nick Marshall is assigned to the murder case at the forensics lab owned by Jamie’s family. He meets the headstrong Jamie, but he has a job to do. And his attraction to her… well, he’s a professional.
Jamie knows the stakes are high. She has to face the past and save her parents’ business while dealing with her family drama and an uncertain future. She also has to deal with Nick, who wants her out of the way of his investigation. But fate keeps throwing them in one another’s paths… and into chaos that they both want to avoid, but neither can seem to escape.
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Excerpt:
“Wait, wait. Hold on. Do you have a warrant? Do we need an attorney?” Jamison stood up, too. She was almost as tall as the detective and incredibly pretty up close, which caught him off guard. “Aren’t there proprietary issues at the lab?”
Nick paused and deferred to Ronald. Ronald chimed in. “We’re just trying to get information about this woman’s death. You can call a lawyer if you wish but retaining one may slow things down.”
“Hmmm.” Jamie stared at both detectives. She couldn’t read either of them, but the situation gave her pause. She recognized the importance of finding out what had happened to their employee. However, the family business needed to be shielded as much as possible. Jamie hadn’t been back long, and her brain was still cloudy and jet-lagged, but she recognized the potential perils in just letting the police roam free in the lab. “Dad, Mother, someone should call Richard,” she said, scrutinizing both parents.
Margaret said, “Good idea. I’ll call while I change. He can meet us there.” She gave the detective and the other officers a superior glance. “Richard Bradshaw, he’s a partner at Bradshaw, Taylor, and Kline, and he is our son-in-law.” She turned to walk into the master suite, with Gregory following.
Nick shook his head, and Ronald was less subtle with a steady scowl. Both had heard about Richard’s firm and peripherally knew Richard. This situation just got a lot more difficult. Nick didn’t suspect the family, but involving a lawyer usually complicated their police work. He turned back to Jamie, who was studying his reaction. He adjusted his face so she couldn’t sense his annoyance.
Jamie noted the subtle change and smiled to herself. She could tell she had annoyed him. Even annoyed, he’s pretty cute. “I need to get my coat. If you will excuse me,” she said, heading back to her bedroom.
Upstairs, Jamie changed clothes, retrieving a pair of skinny black jeans from her bag. As she slid into her jeans, her mind wandered to the detective. She typically dated guys that were taller than her—with her ex-fiancé being the lone exception—Eddie had been the same height. A strong jaw, wavy-ish hair, nice lips, and a commanding presence—which Jamie suspected the detective had in spades—didn’t hurt either. Just the type of guy she would typically go for if the circumstances were different. Rifling through the dresser, she found a white Henley shirt she’d left on a previous visit. She had gained almost fifteen pounds since then, and the shirt fit snugly. She now had boobs! Placing the hat back on her head, she was glad she had an appointment at the hair salon later in the day.
Yikes, she thought after catching herself primping in the mirror. Am I trying to impress the detective who’s investigating us? Girl, it has been a long time. Although he is hot. She shook her head exasperatedly.
Interview with D. W. Brooks
Have you read anything that made you think differently about fiction?
I am a big mystery/thriller reader. If given the choice, I would read a book by Agatha Christie or Sir Conan Doyle over anything else. I wasn't open to many other options (except for the book Roots. I read that one willingly!) In high school, the English teachers assigned various classics for us to read. Of course, as a teen, it seemed like just busy work. But once I started reading some of these books, I realized there was more to reading than only mysteries. I also enjoyed some of the work of Richard Wright or Walter Mosley. But one author stands out as having had a profound impact on me.
Somehow, I ended up with Flannery O'Connor as the subject of one of my school reports. I had never heard of her before this assignment. Her stories about the south—a place where I grew up—were very difficult to describe. They dealt with religion, spirituality, the follies of humans, race itself, the South of the 40s, 50s, and 60s, and more. I had read nothing so outrageous until then, and I loved it! I would like to read her works again as an adult to see if I would still enjoy them as much as I did then.
How do you select the names of your characters?
I reflect on the character's history and determine the timeframe for their birth. For instance, for my female lead character, Jamison, I thought about the history of her mother and what type of person her mother was. She seemed like the type of woman who might have given her daughter a more unisex name or used her maiden name for her daughter's first name. She was a very proud woman with strong opinions and likely controlled the naming of the children.
I also utilize the most popular names list for the year that the character was born. I have also fiddled with a name if it doesn't feel right after I started writing the story.
Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?
I don't know if I would call them "secrets" but I think of it as hints of things to come. I had one reader early on text me and ask if a specific character was up to something shady. I was thrilled to get the question because that character was and is and it will be mentioned in the next book. It's not vital to the current book, so it doesn't impact the ability to read the book as a standalone story.
What was your hardest scene to write?
The final scene. I wanted to bring some closure to some of the family issues in the book, but I didn't want to tie everything up in a neat bow. Since I planned for there to be another book after Homecoming Chaos, I didn't want all issues to be completely resolved. I wanted there to be a solid place to rest where everyone recognizes their problems and promises to do better. But we are all human. A promise doesn't mean that the next week, the same issues might not pop up in different circumstances.
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
I do want each book to stand alone, but there are interconnections between books. An example of this would be the Star Wars stories. Side characters that get mentioned in one book may pop up as a larger part of the story in another book. So, you can read one novel by itself or you can read them as a series.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
One big goal was to finish writing a book and have it published! I hadn't ever done that before! I had several intentions. One was to flesh out the relationship between Jamie the FMC and her mother; it is going to be a through line through this series. I wanted it to have some dimensions which I think it does. Another was to write an interesting murder mystery with the element of romance, while the book remained a light read.
What inspired you to write Homecoming Chaos?
Originally, this novel was going to be about a woman who had gone through medical school and residency and decided that she didn't want to practice medicine anymore. The idea came to me while I was working as a freelancer after I stopped practicing Ophthalmology. However, I started actually writing this book when I developed kidney failure due to a hereditary condition a few years later. I also changed the focus of the story; I wanted the character to have the same back story related to career choices, but I wanted the plot to focus on a murder mystery and a romance. I also didn't want to not do something interesting while I was on dialysis; otherwise, I felt like I was just wasting my time. So, I wrote.
Now – post kidney transplant – it is great to work on more novels without the grind of doing dialysis.
Can you tell us a little bit about the next books in the Model MD/Chaos series or what you have planned for the future?
I am working on two novellas and one book for release in 2024. The first novella is next in the series and will look at New Year's Eve. The novel topic keeps changing so I will have to make some decisions soon. And the next novella will be a Holiday one.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Homecoming Chaos?
Jamison Jones Scott, a former model and current physician who is the main character. Jamie has a secret that impacts many of her relationships.
Jon Scott: Jamie’s younger brother who is an architect but has challenging tastes in women.
Jillian Scott: The youngest sibling who is married with 4 kids but has issues with her place in Scott family and with some of her life choices.
Margaret Scott: mother of Jamie, Jon and Jillian who is overinvolved in her children's lives and often hypercritical.
Gregory Scott: The father who offers support to his children but often has to push back against his wife. He has some regrets about his parenting choices when the kids were younger.
Nick Marshall: Detective who is called in to handle the murder case. He is smitten with Jamie at first sight although they are often at odds while he is working on the case and she interferes.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Writing the dialogue. I enjoy writing conversations between my characters. I hope the readers enjoy them as well.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
The author is a doctor and editor who lives in Texas with her husband and children. She enjoys trying to stay in shape, sporadically cooking, reading (still), writing, and working on her blog. She is eternally grateful to the woman who donated a kidney to her over 5 years ago and continues to advocate for organ donation as much as she can.
To learn more about D. W. Brooks and future publications and events, visit https://authordwbrooks.com.
Connect with D.W. Brooks
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7 comments:
Thank you for hosting today!
Sounds like a good book.
Thank you for sharing this! I really enjoyed that interview!
This looks really good. Thanks for hosting this tour.
Enjoyed reading today's post. Sound like a good book
looks like a fun one
This sounds like a good story.
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