Interview and EXPLOSIVE Giveaway with Beth Kery

Happy Sunday! Today, I've interviewed author Beth Kery. If you haven't read Beth's work, let me tell you–it's hot. Intense, emotional, action-packed. And I happen to know that Beth is one great lady.

Hi, Beth! Thanks so much for participating in My Deadly Valentine! And, wow, you sure have got one hot new release! Will you tell us a bit about EXPLOSIVE?

Thanks very much for having me, Cynthia, and best of luck with the upcoming releases. Very exciting!

Explosive is essentially a character-driven, contemporary erotic romance with suspense elements. It's a story about a man who reaches out blindly for a special woman when tragedy strikes his family and he learns an unbearable truth. Because of his trauma and emotional unrest, he has this sort of explosive physical need for this woman that's just the outer manifestation of a deeply emotional bond.

What inspired this story?

As a clinician in the mental health field, I've seen a lot of head traumas in addition to post traumatic stress syndromes. Believe it or not, I wanted to do a story that involved a realistic portrayal of short term amnesia. Amnesias happen a lot more than people think—both from physical and psychological causes—but just not in the 'forget your whole identity and former life' soap-opera kind of way. Thomas, my hero, forgets a very short period of time, but of course that block in memory causes some serious trouble.

Your hero, Thomas, is an ex-Navy explosives specialist–that definitely counts as a deadly job. What type of research do you do when you were creating his character?

I was lucky enough to meet a woman whose husband works for the Navy ORD, which is responsible for disposing of or deactivating all types of ordnance (bombs, explosives, etc.). He was nice enough to advise me on certain things, and even read parts of the book and gave feedback. You just can't beat getting firsthand expert advice like that. I'm really thankful for their feedback.

Is there one scene from EXPLOSIVE that you would describe as particularly deadly?

Well, the scene that's the most deadly for Thomas is a highly personal scene in his father's study, where he discovers some very ugly truths about his past. However, on a more tangible level, there's a warehouse explosion to hide evidence that nearly takes the hero's life. It was nice to have the above-mentioned expert guide me through that. It's surprising how little you actually know about describing a huge bomb explosion until you try to write it.

I've heard that you'll be writing under two pseudonyms now. Can you tell readers what they can expect from Bethany Kane?

I am. Bethany Kane is my new alter identity. She's going to be writing a series at Berkley called One Night of Passion, about a related group of people whose relationships all begin with one night of impulsive, wild sex that later leads to regret. Of course, the couples all end up in happily-ever-afters, but each has a different fun and challenging path to get there.

What's next for Bethany? And for Beth?

Beth has a couple books coming out in March—Velvet Cataclysm, the first book in the Princes of the Underground series from Samhain Publishing, will release in print and wide distribution on March 1, 2011. On March 22, I'm very excited that the first book in the Home to Harbor Town series will be debuting from Harlequin Special Edition. This is an emotional, romantic series about three very different families who are irrevocably tied together after a tragic car crash caused by a drunk driver. The first book is called The Hometown Hero Returns, and it's Marc and Mari's story—a sort of modern day Romeo and Juliet about two star-crossed lovers who get a second chance at love…if they can move past the animosity and grief between their two families inspired by the crash.

Bethany has also been busy. She has a novella in the Three to Tango anthology with Lauren Dane, Emma Holly and Megan Hart releasing in May of 2011, followed by the first book in the One Night of Passion series called Addicted to You. Addicted to You is a really fun, sexy contemporary that hits the shelves in June of 2011.

Thank you so much for having me at your contest, Cynthia!

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And thank you, Beth!  Now would you like to read a copy of the awesome hot EXPLOSIVE?  Then share your idea of a super hot hero.  You can talk about hero characteristics or you can tell me a movie start that is hero hot.