As seen in the June issue of Uncaged Book Reviews.
Uncaged: Can you tell readers more about your different series you have going?
I Got Your Back, Hailey is a fun series for me to write. When I first started, I wasn’t even sure where I was going. I love a fast-paced suspense with romantic element. Hailey and Parker sure made that happen for me. E-mails came in with readers wanting to know more on all the other characters as well. I’m happy to let them all share the spotlight, but Hailey is still in charge! As soon as #4 was done, I dove into #5.
This series was a great way to bring back my characters from my Hunter’s Find books. Those are strong suspense, MOB, FBI with the added element of Hunt and Mandy falling for each other throughout the chaos. I didn’t know what to do with them when that publisher closed. They blend so nicely with this crew, they are here to stay!
Other than this series, I have a 3 book time travel romance with a twist of sci-fi in book 3, a 2-part romance with a young, rich gal falling for an older, more down to earth plumber, and a few single titles with sassy, potty mouth gals, and the guys who love them. My newest is a college age/new adult romance.
Uncaged: Do you write full-time or part-time?
I have a full time home business so I write part-time, but I can usually get something in every day. I don’t usually have to set a goal. I write when they yell at me and quit when they’re done. 😉
Uncaged: What do you have coming up next that you can tell us about?
I’ve been pretty good about cleaning up “the trunk” over the years. I’ve really been wanting to put all my energy into adding to this series. Other than the next in this series on the fire, I do have a series of two books I wrote around 8 years ago. I love the stories with my entire being, they just keep getting tossed on the back burner. Quentin is my adorable Texas cowboy/trucker who picks up Jessica in a storm in MN. She’s a handful, like all my gals. As usual, I didn’t know there would be a sequel. I love the additions to their family and what their friends brought to the books. Add a bad guy and a hint of secrets to keep you turning the pages! I hope to get book one out in a few months.
Uncaged: You are an attending author at Wild Deadwood Reads this year. What are you looking forward to the most from this convention?
I wish I could spend more time there for all the great events they have planned. I only get an extra night in so I have to do all the mingling I can with who sticks around town. I love talking with other authors. This is my 2nd year there. Deadwood really is a fun place with such great history. It’s no surprise I based Hailey #5 there. Whoops…the secret is out and you heard it 1st.
Uncaged: Do you read your reviews? What do you take away from them?
I don’t usually go down that rabbit hole. Of course it’s great to hear when someone loves your work, but there is always going to be someone who says “it just wasn’t my thing” and that’s completely understandable. I appreciate everyone who takes the time out of their day to leave reviews. (And that’s not just a line! LOL!) It’s so hard to get people to do it. ESPECIALLY friends. And then there’s the chance they get pulled if Amazon thinks you know them…
Which is funny because I had around 30 5-stars for Hailey and a friend left me a 3. I’ll take honesty any day, though. I had one 3 star that raved and read like a 5 so…to each his own. 🙂 If we all liked the same thing, books would be boring! I get most of my real feedback from my amazing street team. I’m an odd duck that says “beat me up!” I’d rather hear it before it’s out “in the wild.”
Uncaged: What is one of the nicest things someone has said to you about your books?
The e-mails thanking me for the cry are the ones that blow me away the most. Only a writer, right? I get a lot of those for Come and Talk to Me. One gal even sent me a poster she made of her 12 favorite books with that one on it. I’m gushing at my company there.
Uncaged: What is your favorite parts about being an author? What have you found to be the least favorite?
I’d have to say, getting to live every day in someone else’s world is pretty amazing. I build them, but as I write, it’s like I’m watching a movie. Sometimes you feel bad for torturing your poor character, but it all works out. I do a lot of signings. I love talking with readers. I honestly don’t think there’s a bad side to this gig.
Uncaged: What do you like to do when you aren’t writing? Where is one of your favorite places on Earth?
Wednesday is my non-writing day. That’s grandbaby day and my favorite day of the week. It’s everything they say it is!
I’m one of those hopeless “kid at heart” people. I’d hate to say Disney is a favorite place, but it’s true. If you saw my bedroom, you’d think it belonged to an 8 year old girl. I love my princess stuff. Of course going home to Maui is up there, too. It’s not the place, it’s the people. My family is still on the island. I love setting books there and letting people get a taste of what I had growing up.
Uncaged: What is the hardest part of a book to write? What is the easiest? From start to finish, how long does it take to finish a complete book?
I’m what you call a “pantser” when it comes to writing. I never outline or storyboard – the story unfolds as my characters see fit. I’ve never had “Writer’s block.” I guess because I’ve never had expectations of what needed to happen & had an issue getting from A-Z. My 1st published novel was Dustin Time. Surpise! It’s a time travel. I didn’t even know that when I started….or that there would be 3 in the series. That book took 3 weeks to write. I couldn’t slow it down if I wanted to. Nothing has been as fast, though. I’m usually a couple months on a first draft and let things stew for a bit before I hit it again…and again. Then again. Shampoo, rinse repeat before I send it off to my street team. I send it one at a time so I can get feedback and make changes if need be, then it has a couple editors. I only get two books out a year. I want lots of eyes and time for it to “think about what it’s done” before I deem it publishable.
Uncaged: What would you like to say to fans, and where can they follow you?
[symple_box color=”black” fade_in=”false” float=”center” text_align=”left” width=””]Can I just give them all hugs? Seriously, there is nothing better than strangers giving you their valuable time and taking a chance on reading your work. I really appreciate sites like this to bring readers and writers together.
Wife, Mother, Writer, Lunatic. Not necessarily in that order. “There is a fine line between genius and crazy… I like to use that line as a jump rope!”
June, who prefers to go by Bug, was born in Philadelphia but moved to Maui, Hawaii when she was four. She met her “Prince Charming” on Kauai and is currently living “Happily Ever After” in a small town in Minnesota.
Her son and daughter are her greatest accomplishments. She takes pride in embarrassing them every chance she gets. Being hopelessly addicted to 80’s music is her super power.[/symple_box]
I Got Your Back, Hailey
June Kramin
Romantic Suspense
FREE for a Limited Time
When Hailey stumbles upon a backpack full of money on her nightly jog, she is forced to flee the security of her secret identity.
Although the sudden appearance of a man that had been flirting with her earlier seems odd, Hailey accepts Parker’s help in getting the heavy bag home. Within moments of arriving, they escape under gunfire. The men it was intended for want it back, and Hailey has now made herself a target.
Safe in a motel room, the two of them discover the truth: although their meeting was an accident, Parker had been involved in the bag’s drop and she had been his assignment all along. Now, getting Hailey away safely is Parker’s new mission. Together they struggle to put together the pieces of Hailey’s past and discover that they have more in common than they thought.
Being on the run, keeping Hailey’s family safe, and searching for clues to put away the man that wants her dead are hard enough. Falling in love in the middle of it all was the last thing either one of them expected.
Excerpt
“Exactly what is the plan here?” I asked after another long sip of beer.
“I’m not exactly sure now. The money is definitely not going to do what it was supposed to, and you have no business being involved in all of this.”
“Pardon me, but that’s your fault.”
“Let’s not do this again, okay? Are you forgetting I chose you over the money?”
My eyes lowered. “No. I’m really not sure of the etiquette on how many times I’m supposed to thank you for that.”
“Let’s drop it. What’s done is done. I need to figure out what to do from here. How to get back on track and get you somewhere safe.”
I walked over to the small refrigerator for another beer. “Parker? Is there a chance I can make a phone call?”
“That depends. You going to try to signal for help?”
“No. I…I think I need to let my mom know I’m okay. She normally calls me on Saturdays for an update. I’m worried she’ll think something is wrong if I don’t call soon.”
“We’ll go get you your makeup or whatever you want, and I’ll get a new throwaway phone. You can call her from that. No giving away anything about our location.”
I was getting tired of all this cloak-and-dagger shit. It was wearing on my last nerve. “Who exactly is following you? What was the money for, Parker? Or Gavin. Whatever your name is! This is no longer funny! You think they’d tap my mother’s phone?” I rushed his chair and landed both hands hard on his chest. He grasped my wrists and held them tight as he stood.
“Whoa! Why would you think someone would want you back so bad as to post someone on your mother?”
I shook my arms, trying to get free. “Let me go.”
“You going to be civil?”
“Yes. Please let me go.”
Too nervous now to return to the chair, I stood and peered out of the crack in the curtain. “I need to know something and I need the truth.” I faced him, needing to look into his eyes. The eyes always give it away.
“Fire away.” He motioned that I should carry on with a wave of his hand.
“I think I tripped on this money by accident, but I need to know if I was set up.”
“You? Set up? Why do you think you were set up? How could I have possibly pulled that off?”
“Things just don’t add up. We flee under gunfire…you save me but don’t take the money…”
“Back up. What do you know that you think someone would pay a million bucks for?”
“More like kill me for it.”
Uncaged Review
I’m not a huge mystery/suspense reader for the most part, but I can honestly say, that if they were all as good as this book, this genre would become a new favorite. The author twists and turns a very intricate and twisted plot so well, that I would be thinking one way, only to have that idea shot down, and then think the same thing again a bit later. I’m not real sure how the author kept it all straight, and I can’t say enough about this cast of characters – even all the secondary. The banter between Parker and Donny was enough to win me over and have me laughing out loud, add in Hailey and her twin brother and even with the seriousness of the situations that they are in, the banter just gets better and better.
Mostly a dialog driven book, I never felt I was missing anything, like I do in a lot of these type of narratives. The romance is spot on and who wouldn’t want a best friend like Donny? Five stars doesn’t seem adequate. Reviewed by Cyrene
5 Stars
