November Author of the Month
Nothing is what it seems…
Rachel Garrett has the ideal life: a job in a small town, surrounded by people she trusts—until a stranger arrives and insists it’s all a lie. Michael Sullivan’s claims that she’s been brainwashed and drugged can’t be right. But why is someone trying to kidnap her? Now Rachel must decide if she believes her closest friends…or the one man who makes her feel truly safe.
From Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense: Courage. Danger. Faith.
ISBN-13: 9781335403193
Interview with author Evelyn M. Hill
1. What was the inspiration for Dangerous Deception?
This story started with Hannah Upp. She was a schoolteacher in Manhattan. One day, she went out jogging and disappeared. Three weeks later, a Staten Island ferry captain spotted her floating face down in the river. When she was hauled out, she woke up. She had no idea of why she was in the water or where she'd been.
Doctors eventually diagnosed her with a type of retrograde amnesia known as a dissociative fugue. This condition is rare, but there have been documented cases of it.
Typically, people with this disorder leave home and set up a new life with a whole new persona. A reverend became a storekeeper. A man who lived in the middle of the country traveled to the coast and became a sailor. In each of these cases the people came back to their original identity with no memory of the missing time. The reverend knocked on his landlord’s door and asked “Where am I?” Hannah Upp fretted during her hospitalization because she had to go set up her schoolroom for the new school year—which had started three weeks before.
Hannah's story started me thinking. What if a woman were given a drug that suppressed her memory, mimicking this condition? That led me to Rachel..
This story started with Hannah Upp. She was a schoolteacher in Manhattan. One day, she went out jogging and disappeared. Three weeks later, a Staten Island ferry captain spotted her floating face down in the river. When she was hauled out, she woke up. She had no idea of why she was in the water or where she'd been.
Doctors eventually diagnosed her with a type of retrograde amnesia known as a dissociative fugue. This condition is rare, but there have been documented cases of it.
Typically, people with this disorder leave home and set up a new life with a whole new persona. A reverend became a storekeeper. A man who lived in the middle of the country traveled to the coast and became a sailor. In each of these cases the people came back to their original identity with no memory of the missing time. The reverend knocked on his landlord’s door and asked “Where am I?” Hannah Upp fretted during her hospitalization because she had to go set up her schoolroom for the new school year—which had started three weeks before.
Hannah's story started me thinking. What if a woman were given a drug that suppressed her memory, mimicking this condition? That led me to Rachel..
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2. How long did it take to write Dangerous Deception? Like many writers, I had planned to participate in Nanowrimo, the National Novel Writing challenge to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. I had a story and was all set to begin. But I got the idea for Dangerous Deception on November 1st, and I was obsessed with writing it instead. I finished the first draft in two weeks. (Sadly, the revisions lasted much longer. Revisions are not my friend.) |
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3. Who were my favorite characters?
I had a lot of fun with the secondary characters in this story. Dangerous Deception is set in an imaginary small town on the Oregon coast, and I loved the opportunity to fill the town with colorful characters. I think my favorites were the two little old ladies who hung out in the cafe where Rachel worked. They wanted to know everything that was going on in town. They meant well, but they certainly were nosy!
I had a lot of fun with the secondary characters in this story. Dangerous Deception is set in an imaginary small town on the Oregon coast, and I loved the opportunity to fill the town with colorful characters. I think my favorites were the two little old ladies who hung out in the cafe where Rachel worked. They wanted to know everything that was going on in town. They meant well, but they certainly were nosy!
4. What do you hope readers will take away from Dangerous Deception?
I hope that readers will learn that fear does not need to rule over you. We're all tired of hearing phrases like "unprecedented times" and "hard challenges ahead" but the worst thing we have to wrestle with right now is fear itself. No one can predict the future, but we can all put our trust in a Higher Power.
I hope that readers will learn that fear does not need to rule over you. We're all tired of hearing phrases like "unprecedented times" and "hard challenges ahead" but the worst thing we have to wrestle with right now is fear itself. No one can predict the future, but we can all put our trust in a Higher Power.
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5. What made you choose the location for Dangerous Deception?
All my books are set in Oregon. I wanted this story to be set in a beautiful small town, so I created an imaginary town, Sleepy Cove, that is roughly situated on the coast near Newport, Oregon. You can see images that inspired the town on my Pinterest page (https://www.pinterest.com/evelynalexie/dangerous-deception/) as well as pictures of what I thought Michael and Rachel might look like. |
6. How did you name your characters?
For the hero, Michael Sullivan, I tried out names until I found one that felt like it suited him. (Characters don't always "like" a name, somehow. I'm not sure why.) The heroine was given the name Rachel Garrett because another character was a science fiction geek and chose to name her after someone in an episode of Star Trek.
For the hero, Michael Sullivan, I tried out names until I found one that felt like it suited him. (Characters don't always "like" a name, somehow. I'm not sure why.) The heroine was given the name Rachel Garrett because another character was a science fiction geek and chose to name her after someone in an episode of Star Trek.
7. Tell us something funny, sad, embarrassing, whatever, that happened involving this book.
Something that I find funny, sad, AND embarrassing was the fact that I needed a copy editor to point out that in a crucial scene Michael's gun appeared, then disappeared, then appeared again all in the space of a few pages. Times like that I wish that I wrote in the Fantasy genre, where a disappearing gun might be a useful plot point instead of a forehead-slapping moment. Most of the time, however, I love writing romance novels. I always enjoy watching two characters grow together and decide to spend a lifetime of love with each other!
Something that I find funny, sad, AND embarrassing was the fact that I needed a copy editor to point out that in a crucial scene Michael's gun appeared, then disappeared, then appeared again all in the space of a few pages. Times like that I wish that I wrote in the Fantasy genre, where a disappearing gun might be a useful plot point instead of a forehead-slapping moment. Most of the time, however, I love writing romance novels. I always enjoy watching two characters grow together and decide to spend a lifetime of love with each other!
Bonus: The verse that I chose for Dangerous Deception is from 2nd Corinthians 12:9
It's Time For A Giveaway!
Evelyn is generously giving away 2 print copies of Dangerous Deception.
(USA and Canada ONLY)
(USA and Canada ONLY)
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