Friday, July 15, 2011

Guest author June Shaw: Romantic Mysteries

June Shaw lives along a lazy bayou in south Louisiana. She became a young widow with five children, completed a college degree, and started teaching junior high students, then her deferred dream of becoming a writer took hold. Her first novel, Relative Danger, was nominated by Deadly Ink for their new David award for Best Mystery of the Year. Harlequin reprinted it, and Books in Motion bought audio rights. Killer Cousins is her second book. June represents Louisiana on the board of the southwest chapter of Mystery Writers of America.



Every year romance seems to be the most popular fiction genre. Mysteries come next. What about combining both in the same books?

That is what I like to read, thus what I like to write. Oh, and be sure to add some humor because I love to laugh. And that’s the type of book I like to read most and write. That’s why the third book in my series of humorous romantic mysteries can be ordered now. Most readers say they’re fun. Women want to be my main character. (So do I; she’s my idol; she’ll say or do anything she pleases. Love that!)

And most women want me to make sure to keep my main character’s hunky lover, Gil Thurman. (Oh, yeah, I want him, too!) He is the man the widowed heroine keeps trying to avoid while she tries to rediscover herself, but he opens Cajun restaurants wherever she travels—and she is so bad at avoiding tempting dishes and men.

In this book she joins high school classmates she hasn’t seen in decades for a class reunion aboard a cruise ship in Alaska. People she thought she knew well in school seem to hide secrets and lies—and some must die. Of course her hunky dude has to show up and cause her more strife and temptation—and there’s humor and laughter. All in all, it’s a fun sexy read placed in a whodunit.

What about you? What do you enjoy reading most? Do you like romance? Mystery? Humor?

You can find them all in my books Relative Danger and Killer Cousins (now available as e-books) and Deadly Reunion. I hope you will and that you’ll let me know how you like them and about other humorous romantic mysteries you enjoy!

10 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

Hi, thanks for guesting over here. We appreciate it. I've decided in my old age that what I really like to read most is "adventure," and I'll take it in whatever genre I can find it.

June Shaw said...

Thanks. I enjoy adventures, too, Charles. My book is filled with an exciting adventure.

Liane Spicer said...

Welcome back to Novel Spaces, June.

Bringing romance and mystery together means double the reading pleasure! Mystery, romance, sci-fi, mainstream, literary - I like them all. A good story is a good story, whatever the genre.

June Shaw said...

Thanks, Liana. I agree. I love a good story--especially one with people I really love.

KeVin K. said...

Welcome aboard, June.

I've been considering writing romance for a number of years. I enjoy the genre (though I'm old fashioned enough to prefer sweet to hot). [Just deleted 400 words about my efforts. Not germane.]

I'm interested in your ability to carry a romance over a series of novels. It's common in the genre for a series detective to have a romantic interest running as a "b" plot that arcs through several of her mysteries, but I thought that by definition a romance novel must end with a HAE -- or a satisfying alternative.
What storytelling techniques do you use to sustain the ongoing sexual/romantic tension through a series of novels?

June Shaw said...

KeVin,

How interesting that you've considered romance. My series is considered cozy mystery; thus the mystery is the main thrust. But my main characters are spunky seniors who enjoy romance. I sustain the romantic tension with the main male wanting her to settle down with him--but he is so sure of himself and what he wants out of life. She is a spunky widow who's on the verge of rediscovering herself and won't settle down with him yet...if ever. It makes for tension and interest and fun! Good luck with your own writing!

Marilyn Levinson said...

June,
I love a touch of romance in mysteries I read. I always have a romance going on in the mysteries I write. It seems natural to me. Romance adds a dimension to whatever's going on.

June Shaw said...

I agree, Marilyn. Romance goes with everything, so why not a touch of it in mysteries, too?

Norma Huss said...

June, I've got to know - did you get to research your book on a trip to Alaska? I hope so. Lots of fun.

June Shaw said...

Absolutely, Norma! And the research was tough: ) Actually, it was terrific!