Fatal Intent by Ryshia Kennie - Virtual tour and giveaway

Today we're talking to Ryshia Kennie on her tour with Goddess Fish Promotions for the romantic supsense, "Fatal Intent".  

At each stop, Ryshia will award one commenter an ebook copy of From the Dust, a historical romance set in Depression Era Saskatchewan. The grand prize for the tour will be an autographed copy of From the Dust, a book unique bookmark, and a Region 1 DVD of East of Borneo, a 1931 B&W movie, so comment here and follow her tour (click the above banner for a listing of her stops). The more you comment, the better your chance of winning!

Thanks to Ryshia for answering all my prying questions!

Why do you write in your genre? What draws you to it?

As a reader I read across a wide spectrum of genres but I love a story with a good romance best. So when I began writing, it was clear I’d write romance. My first novel was a historic romance which I followed with a paranormal romance. It was on a trip to Asia, where the mysteries of another culture and the history of a country’s troubled past had me imagining what if evil lurked here, now, beneath a tropical sky as seemingly benign as the woman twirling the umbrella she’s using as a sun shade. What if… And it was there that I discovered a love for setting characters in far-off places where danger shadows one shoulder and romance the other. Once I began, I was hooked.

What research is required?

My romantic suspense novels are usually set in a place where I’ve traveled, somewhere far away from the normal everyday of city life on the Canadian prairies. And it’s on that trip that the research begins. The research I did for Fatal Intent began with a trip to Borneo. I did as much research as I could on location. I also researched online and I read a few books on the history of headhunting, the tribes in Borneo and the geography of the area. I’m currently doing edits on a book set in Cambodia. The research for that book was very similar to Fatal Intent, in that I began with a trip to Cambodia and then followed up, verifying facts with online sites and book research, at one of my favourite haunts – the library, once I got home. Name one thing you learned from your hero/heroine.

From Aidan I learned how to have a quiet inner peace and belief in yourself that doesn’t need to be proved to anyone. He is who he is and you can accept him or not and he doesn’t much care one way or another which you choose. I think that’s a lot of his charm.

Do you have any odd or interesting writing quirks, habits or superstitions?

I keep a good luck charm or two on my desk. I have a little bronze Buddha that reminds me to take a breath, remain calm and hang in – everything will work out. And in case the little Buddha isn’t enough I have a rock from Mount Vesuvius that a friend brought back from a trip to Italy. The rock isn’t a big piece of that powerful volcano but it reminds me that while it might be small, the volcanic blast of its origins was mighty – keep writing.

Are you a plotter or pantser?

I began life as a pantser and I suppose I’ll always lean that way as I think that’s more personality than anything. But I’ve learned to plot, at least to the point where I’ll write a synopsis and think things through more before beginning, even outlining the first chapters. That tends to save time in rewrites. Although I have yet to have a synopsis that didn’t have to be changed at the end.

Look to your right – what’s sitting there?

To my right there is a dog bed that I discovered in an Arizona Costco. I’d say to my right is my dog but the bed turned out to be much bigger than it looked in the store and the first thing I see is it. To get it here it was hauled all the way across five states and one province, read “big hassle”. However, it is now one of my Irish Terrier’s favourite places. If I look a little further right, passed the sofa-like arm of the thing, I can see that he’s just stretching out as I type this, into a more comfortable position. I can’t imagine that any position might not be comfortable, besides being over-sized, the thing has memory foam. Whoever hear of a dog bed with memory foam?

Anything new coming up from you? What?

My next book will be published this summer and I’m currently working on final edits. It’s a romantic suspense set in Cambodia. I particularly love this story. Some of the secondary characters can be brutal but unique enough that it was fun getting into their slightly twisted heads. And of course, Simon and Claire, the hero and heroine, I loved writing their love story while reliving the mysterious beauty of Cambodia….

In the shadow of Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, evil lurks. Innocent women have already died and journalist, Claire Linton is now targeted. The story of her career is about to turn deadly. She hopes for answers when she meets Interpol agent, Simon Trent. Instead, he’s frustrating and secretive and turns up so often, it’s clear he’s following her. And as kisses ignite beneath the golden streaks of a Cambodian sunset and passion begins to ramp up, a decades old plot for revenge unfolds. But with trust at a premium and lives at stake – has love been outplayed?

Do you have a question for our readers?

What would you like to see in a romantic suspense that you haven’t seen so far?

In the heart of the jungle lies more than just the hint of death.

Leading a scientific excursion into the Borneo rain forest is a life long dream for entomologist, Garrett Cole. But when her guide turns up dead and headless, her abilities are tested. As the dense foliage pushes her team further from the river, they are lost. Every shimmer of sound is a threat, and when a blonde haired, half-naked giant emerges from nowhere, she wants to run. But there are no options – she needs help.

Raised in the lush cradle of the Borneo jungle, Aidan is as unconventional as the fact that he has no last name. While the city is home, he returns to the jungle for peace and solitude. As a PI, how can he ignore the mystery this group and their dead guide poses? Leading them in a convoluted trek in a bid for answers he soon finds himself in a clash of wills with their alluring leader and answers that slide dangerously close to the tribe he loves.

In the jungle’s torrid heat they find unexpected solace in each others arms. But faced with death and betrayal, in a battle of wits that puts lives on the edge, can anyone be trusted?

She saw him floating headless through a mist of tears.

Even the river’s roar was not enough to mask her scream, as overhead the Borneo midday sun skidded a brilliant reflection across the river’s surface.

Garrett clapped her hand over her mouth and squinted against the bright sun. As if that would shift reality or change the fact that all that stood between Malcolm and anonymity was the San Diego Chargers logo on his torn, water-soaked T-shirt. Instead, tears washed her vision.

Malcolm’s smiling face—his smiling, missing face. She choked and her foot slipped, bringing her dangerously close to the riverbank, and the body.

Brush crackled and something screeched, the sound harsh and loud in a place where there was never silence. It would have sent chills through the uninitiated but it was only an insect, an oversize bug—an insect that might not be classified, identified. There were so many and that was what brought her here. But now her guide was dead, headless. That thought alone was preposterous even when the evidence lay in front of her. She wanted to weep. She wanted to run. But it was up to her to get her team out of here. She needed another focus before panic clouded everything.

Ryshia Kennie is the author of two published romances. From the Dust, is a romance set during the Great Depression. Her second book, Ring of Desire, was set against a backdrop of magic and mystery, in medieval England. An award winning author, her recent novels now focus on suspense and women’s fiction – always with a hint or even a dollop, of romance. The Canadian prairies are home where she lives with her husband and one opinionated Irish Terrier.

Visit her website at http://www.ryshiakennie.com.

Author blog: ryshia.blogspot.com

Author on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ryshia.kennie

Author on Twitter: twitter.com/ryshia

Author at Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/1400598.Ryshia_Kennie