SUSPENSE SISTERS: FEBRUARY GIVEAWAY

Suspense Sisters: February Giveaway

PIVOT--THE LIFE OF AN AUTHOR

 Pivot (verb): to adapt or improve by adjusting or modifying something (such as a product, service, or strategy)

An author never knows when words will flow or when writing the next sentence will be an exercise in pulling dandelions. When you're "in the flow," it's great. Pulling dandelions, not so much. Many times, that's when you have to pivot.

In January, I was 26,000 words into a new manuscript, rolling right along toward my mirror moment at 40,000 words with the book set at a unique place. I’m in my happy zone because everything is falling into place…

Then I check my email and find an email from the unique place denying my request to set the book there. It seems murder and violence do not fit with their mission statement. Gulp. Major setback and problems since my deadline is March 16.

Pivot time. 

Should I create a setting similar to the unique one? Or scrap the idea altogether? And why didn't I send the request before I wrote 26,000 words? And how was I going to meet my deadline? All good questions that I set out to answer. 

First, I did contact the unique place about setting my book there, and their answer was lost in cyberspace. Thankfully, when I asked again about a month ago, and the PR person got back to me, it wasn't lost.

I contacted my editor, and we set up a Zoom meeting for a couple of days later. Immediately, I took time to pray and ask God for guidance before starting to brainstorm. Then I took out a blank sheet of artist paper--hey, it works for artists--and came up with a plausible plot line that my editor loved when we met, but it would take major revision on what I'd written. She extended my deadline to September 7, and I got to work.

That's how this author adapted when an unexpected challenge threw a monkey wrench in my writing path. It seems that making these changes will be harder than I initially thought, so every extra day of my extended deadline will come in handy. I'll also spend a lot of time talking to God...at least I'm really enjoying the story!

How about you? How do you pivot when faced with a challenge? Leave a comment, and I'll enter you in a drawing for a mug to enjoy your favorite beverage in.

WHAT'S NEW IN INSPIRATIONAL SUSPENSE

 
Wondering what's HOT in inspirational suspense and mystery? Carrie Stuart Parks has a brand new mystery, Escaping the Wilderness, recently released from Love Inspired Suspense. Here's what Alaskan Amy had to say about the story:

I love Carrie Stuart Parks and her suspense novels and have missed her not having a book published lately. Escaping the Wilderness has made the wait worthwhile.

Escaping the Wilderness starts right off with suspense of Amanda being chased by unknown men for unknown reasons. Local Montana resident Boone gets involved and tries to help her escape and solve the reason for the danger she is in. The trouble is people are getting hurt while they are on the run and they don't know if they can even trust each other.

The book is one long suspense and keeps the listener's interest. I enjoyed the narrator and the change in voices for characters. This is not an audiobook that you can miss a minute or two of and still comprehend what is happening, solid listening is needed.

You can buy Escaping the Wilderness HERE from Christianbook.com

Have a great week of reading, lovers of inspirational suspense!

Mary Ellis, Suspense Sisters 

THIS WEEK ON THE SUSPENSE SISTERS

We have exciting things planned for you this week on the Suspense Sisters!

On Tuesday, Suspense Sister Mary Ellis will tell us what’s hot in inspirational suspense and mystery.

Wednesday, author Patricia Bradley’s post is titled “Pivot.” She’ll be talking about what to do when writing throws you a curve ball! She’s also giving away a beautiful library mug. And to top it off, Patricia has some exciting news to share about her book, ON THE EDGE OF TRUST.

Sometimes the closer you get to justice, the deadlier it becomes

When decorated FBI undercover agent Scott Sinclair suffers a gunshot wound in his right arm, the injury threatens his future career in the field. He is determined to regain his former job by training himself to use his left hand, and failure is not an option--especially when he's unofficially pulled into an investigation.

Tori Mitchell is a passionate crime reporter and podcaster who has dedicated her life to seeking justice. Her relentless pursuit of the truth has freed a wrongfully convicted man from prison, making Tori an enemy of the true killer. When her nephew is accused of a different murder, nothing can stop her from getting involved and clearing his name.

Soon after Tori and Scott reconnect on the case, shots are fired, leaving them to wonder which of them has been targeted. As the investigation intensifies, so do the threats and the sparks between them, but Tori's doubtful if she can extend grace and trust to Scott. They'll have to combine their skills and rely on their growing relationship to outsmart the killer.

Perfect for fans of Lynette Eason, Lynn H. Blackburn, Elizabeth Goddard, and readers who love faith-based fiction and edge-of-your-seat thrillers, this riveting, clean romantic suspense delivers heart-pounding danger and forced-proximity romance.

ORDER IT HERE 

Friday. Suspense Sisters A.D. Lawrence reviews Dana Mentink’s book, RAGING WATERS. She’s also giving away a copy of this exciting, upcoming release!

As the dam crumbles and water sweeps across the terrain, their battle for justice and survival is just beginning.

When Mackenzie Bardine's brother Aaron was murdered in a drug deal gone wrong, she started a true crime podcast dedicated to exposing "Bullseye," the drug kingpin responsible. But her protective heart has never let go of the blame she places on herself and Aaron's best friend, Gideon Landry. On the run to the wilds of Washington to chase a recent lead, she meets none other than Gideon himself.

While conducting a wilderness survival class in remote Washington, Gideon never expected to cross paths with Mackenzie, and he's certainly not interested in helping her after he's already declined to participate in her vigilante podcasting. He carries a mountain of guilt about Aaron's fatal choices, but not for the reasons Mackenzie suspects.

As killers begin to circle Mackenzie like sharks, it's clear to Gideon she's in over her head, and in light of his troubled past with her brother, he can't bring himself to ignore her perilous situation. Then a flood threatens the town, turning their investigation into a race to escape the raging waters and the wrath of a powerful kingpin who wants to sink them both.

PREORDER IT HERE 

Don’t forget to enter our monthly contest!

THE SUSPENSE SISTERS

WE LOVE BOOKS

The Book I Almost Gave Up On (and a cover reveal)

When I turned in the first full draft of The Escape Game last September, I hated it.

Not in a playful, self-deprecating way. I really, truly hated it.

I had that awful, hollow feeling in my stomach. The one that whispers, This isn’t good enough. You aren’t good enough. Why did you ever think you could pull this off?

Honestly, I believed this book was beyond my abilities.

And it was.

But I forgot I have Someone on my side who can do all things.

Back in 2022, this story idea was supposed to be simple. A shorter novel inside a collection. I had a fun premise, a few intriguing characters, and a basic plot: a second chance romance with the two main characters locked in a deadly mansion.

Easy peasy, right?

Wrong.

I realized the story needed space to breathe, so I wrote something else for the collection, and put this story back on the shelf until the right time.

Fast forward to 2025. The Escape Game was proposed as book 2 of The Game Master series.

I started writing. Characters pushed back. They wouldn’t talk. Inside my head, there was silence.

Some books flow. This one fought.

I wrestled with tone and pacing. I rewrote entire sections only to delete them again. Scenes that sparkled in my head fell flat on the page. I second-guessed everything.

My heroine was supposed to be the faithful Christian girl who wins the bad boy to the Lord.

She wasn’t.

And my hero? He was all wrong.

So, I did something terrifying.

I replaced him.

Completely.

I created an entirely new character—Liam Shepherd.

On the surface, Liam was perfect—kind, protective, devoted to the Lord, close to his family. Every Christian girl’s dream.

But fiction doesn’t work that way. Perfection isn’t compelling.

I asked God to show me Liam’s wound.

When it came, I cried.

No, I bawled like a baby.

Liam wasn’t abused. He didn’t come from a broken home. He had love and stability. Then tragedy struck, and he faced a choice.

He chose wrong.

And it haunted him.

But the troubles were far from over.

This wasn’t just a tricky plot or a stubborn manuscript.

This story touched some deep places in my own heart—places I didn’t expect to have to revisit. Writing it meant digging into tender, uncomfortable emotions, facing truths about fear, grief, and courage that I hadn’t fully confronted. It hit a little too close to home.

Some days it felt less like writing fiction and more like surgery.

And surgery is exhausting.

By the time I reached the end, I wasn’t excited. I was just tired. I turned it in because it was due, not because it felt finished.

Then the editing began.

If drafting this book was wandering through a dark forest, editing was finally being handed a flashlight. Sentences tightened. Motivations clarified. Scenes I thought were essential were cut, and others grew stronger. What felt hopeless started to feel possible.

Slowly—painfully at times—the story started to come into focus.

My editor asked hard questions. I rewrote the entire book. (Not completely, but it felt like it.)

Each round of edits chipped away at the parts I disliked and revealed the story underneath—the one I’d been trying to tell all along.

Somewhere along the way, something unexpected happened.

I stopped hating it.

More than that, I started to like it.

Everything clicked. The story finally had the depth—and the heart—it had been missing.

And now, sitting on the other side of the process, I can honestly say something I never imagined saying last fall:

I’m proud of The Escape Game.

Not because it’s perfect—no book ever is—but because it represents persistence. Growth. The courage to dig into hard places and stay long enough to find the heart of the story.

And that heart is what I hope you feel when you read it.

What started as a small, simple idea grew into something deeper than I expected. Something that required more from me than I thought I had to give.

 And in the end, it became something God and I built together.

This book reminded me of something important:

We’re all first drafts.

God is shaping us, molding us … and we fight back. We look at our lives and wish things were different. We replay our wrong choices. We feel regret, frustration, and fear.

Sometimes, we even hate what we see.

But hating your draft doesn’t mean you’ve failed.

“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Philippians 1:6 (KJV)

It just means God isn’t finished yet.

And sometimes, the stories we struggle with the most end up being the ones we’re proudest to hold in our hands.

Coming May 5, 2026! 

Keep your eyes out for the preorder available soon.

Secrets, Stakes, and Why Every Great Suspense Story Starts with One Question: What’s at Risk?

 

Suspense isn’t just about what happens—it’s about what could be lost.

A life.
A relationship.
A truth someone worked hard to bury.

That’s why fictional danger works so well when it’s personal.

In Tangled Past, the danger is tangled—woven through memory, identity, and trust. Every step forward threatens to pull something apart. In Hunting Truth, the pursuit of justice brings characters face-to-face with the consequences of digging too deep.

As readers, we feel that tension because we understand the stakes. We lean in because the cost of failure feels real.

And maybe that’s why we love suspense so much—it lets us explore fear, courage, and resilience from the safety of our favorite reading spot.

Your turn. For a chance to win an e-book copy of either Tangled Past or Hunting Truth, tell me: 

• What makes a suspense novel unforgettable for you—the plot twists or the characters facing them?

Have you ever read a book where the truth was more dangerous than the lie?


I’ll announce the winner when we next meet.  Be sure to include your email address in your comment!

 Until next time… may your TBR be full and your suspense stories keep you guessing.

 Mary