Kim McMahill

I want to thank Kim for hosting me today. A Reckless Heart is the first book in a four book contemporary romance series, and I’m so excited for this series to come to fruition. It’s funny, because as a writer, I’m always asking myself “what if” questions. Sometimes, those questions lead nowhere. Other times, they’ll lead to a character or a scene. If I’m very lucky, they lead me to an entire book. In this case, my “what if” led me to my Scarred Hearts series. I’ve always loved the beauty and the beast theme for romances. Not because I want my heroes beastly, but because that theme gives me fodder to delve deeply into why the hero does what he does or acts how he acts. Basically, I like looking into the psychological reasons. I like finding the vulnerability that turns him into someone we can root for and fall in love with. My Scarred Hearts series started with the idea of four wealthy men who used their money for good. I noodled around for a while with different character traits, p...

I am often asked how I come up with ideas for my books. Inspiration comes from many different places including dreams, travel, childhood experience grossly exaggerated, and current issues. Most of my novels have been stand-alone adventure and romantic suspense novels, but my most recent project has been the Risky Research Series. The idea for this suspense series began to emerge as I started getting to an age when keeping fit and healthy started taking a little more effort and a lot more research . Nearly every woman I know, myself included, educates herself about nutrition, exercise, fitness, diets, etc. in order to live a healthier life, manage a medical issue, or to lose weight. I’ve found there is so much information out there that it is difficult to sort out fact from fiction. The diet and nutrition industries are worth billions, which makes it even more challenging to ascertain who or what to trust. With so much on the line for something that impacts nearly everyone, there is p...

  “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” ―  Aesop

Welcome to Book Hooks for April 21. I’m so excited about the recent release of A Measure of Madness, the fourth installment in the Risky Research Series. I hope you’ve already checked it out, but if not, below I’ve pasted the blurb and a short excerpt. The novel is available from your favorite online retailer. Here’s the Amazon link for the ebook. Thanks for your continued interest. Also, don't forget to download the free prequel micro-read to the series, Midnight in Montana. BLURB: FBI agent Devyn Nash's pursuit of a deadly organization heats up in this fourth installment of the Risky Research series. The FBI locates the mastermind behind Coterie, but attempts to bring him in result in a shootout that sends Coterie’s members scrambling for cover. When Devyn’s partner is left fighting for his life in a Puerto Rican hospital, she becomes more determined than ever to bring them to justice. Devyn’s decision to ignore her orders and pursue the head of Coterie to Brazil put...

I always enjoy shining a spotlight on other adventure and romantic suspense authors. I crossed paths with Bonnie McCune quite a number of years ago and enjoy her work, so I wanted to give her and her latest release, Never Retreat, a shout-out. Here’s more on Bonnie and her work.  Bonnie McCune has been writing since age ten, when she submitted a poem about rain rushing down the gutter to the Saturday Evening Post (it was rejected). Her interest in the written word facilitated her career in nonprofits where she concentrated on public and community relations and marketing. She’s worked for libraries, directed a small arts organization, and managed Denver's beautification program.  Simultaneously, she’s been a free lance writer with articles in local, regional, and specialty publications. Her civic involvement includes grass-roots organizations, political campaigns, writers' and arts' groups, and children's literacy. F or years, she entered recipe contests and was a final...

In 2021 the National Park Service has six entrance fee-free days where all National Park Service sites that charge an entrance fee will offer free admission to everyone. Saturday, April 17 is the second one in 2021, in celebration of the first Day in National Park Week. Be sure to get out and enjoy your favorite National Park for free. The remaining free days are listed below. For more information visit https://www.nps.gov/planyourvisit/fee-free-parks.htm   August 4: One year anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act August 25: National Park Service Birthday September 25: National Public Lands Day November 11: Veterans Day

Happy Hump Day and welcome to this weeks Marketing for Romance Writers' Book Hooks. The latest installment in my Risky Research Series, A Measure of Madness, was released last Friday. Below is a very short excerpt that I hope will whet your appetite. If you are still unsure if you want to try a new series, dip your toe in the water with my free prequel micro-read for the series, A Measure of Madness. The following link will take you to the Amazon page for all my novels where you can download one or both. Thank you! https://www.amazon.com/s?k=%22kim+mcmahill%22&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss Devyn did as ordered as tears streamed down her checks. She felt like a coward running, but knew it was retreat or die. Bullets rained around her as she ran in a zig-zag pattern, trying to avoid being hit. She had almost reached the truck when a bullet grazed her ankle, sending her tumbling to the ground. She scrambled to her feet. Fueled with adrenaline, she ignored the pain as she hob...

I’m pleased to announce the release of the fourth installment in the Risky Research Series, A Measure of Madness. It is available from your favorite online book retailer. Here is the ebook link on Amazon and a bit more about this latest novel in the series: https://www.amazon.com/Measure-Madness-Risky-Research-ebook/dp/B08TX7C1BZ/ . After a Washington, D.C. fundraiser exposes members of Coterie, a deadly organization that has been manipulating the diet and nutrition industries, the pursuit by FBI agent Devyn Nash heats up. The FBI locates the mastermind behind Coterie in Puerto Rico, but despite help from local agents, their attempt to bring him in results in a shootout that sends Coterie’s members scrambling for cover, Devyn’s partner fighting for his life, and Devyn more determined than ever to bring them to justice. Her decision to pursue the head of Coterie to Brazil puts her job and her relationship with Wyoming Sheriff, Gage Harris, in jeopardy, but she is unwilling to allow th...

"To stand at the edge of the sea, to sense the ebb and flow of the tides, to feel the breath of a mist moving over a great salt marsh, to watch the flight of shore birds that have swept up and down the surf lines of the continents for untold thousands of years, to see the running of the old eels and the young shad to the sea, is to have knowledge of things that are as nearly eternal as any earthly life can be." - Rachel Carson -

  Adventures with D. V. Stone . . . To me, life is an adventure. It used to be much more exciting. I’ve been a spelunker, rappelled off the side of a three-story building, and climbed many trees. Adventure always calls, and I’ll still push as far as my breathing allows. First off, I’m anxiously looking forward to a new stage in life. Retirement is in May. I have a countdown on my phone that tells me how many days, hours, minutes, seconds. If I want, I can see how many breaths or heartbeats. It doesn’t mean I’ll be sitting back and not working. The day I leave work, Pete will have 2Hoots, my 5 th Wheel, ready and hitched to head to Tampa for the Ignite Your Imagination Conference hosted by Florida West Coast Writers, Inc. Camping (or glamping), cooking, reading. I love history. We’ve already been happily traveling from Niagara Falls, NY, to Fort Meyers, Florida, and many places in between. There’s so much to see and do. This year on our agenda after Tampa is Wiscons...

When many people think of Easter, they think of hunting for colored eggs, eating chocolate bunnies, and maybe having a family get-together. However, the actual meaning of Easter is the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To Christians, it is one of two of the most special days year. Christmas, the birth of Christ, is very important, but his resurrection offers the hope of everlasting life to everyone. No matter how you celebrate Easter, I hope it is a magical day for all.