INTERVIEW WITH DANI PETTREY

Publishers Weekly and #1 Amazon bestselling author, Dani Pettrey has sold nearly 800,000 copies of her novels to readers eagerly awaiting the next release. Dani combines the page-turning adrenaline of a thriller with the chemistry and happy-ever-after of a romance.

Her novels stand out for their "wicked pace, snappy dialogue, and likable characters" (Publishers Weekly), "gripping storyline[s]," (RT Book Reviews), and "sizzling undercurrent of romance" (USA Today).

She researches murder and mayhem from her home in Maryland. To learn more visit www.danipettrey.com

INTERVIEW WITH DANI

1. What inspired you to start writing?

I’m a daydreamer from way back. It often got me in trouble at school for not paying attention. LOL! My mind always drifts into stories. After a while, I started writing the stories down and regularly contributed to my high school’s creative writing magazine. For a public school, we had some amazing artistic programs. Neil Patrick Harris attended my school, and it was so cool getting to see him in school plays and then watching him go on in his acting career. Freddie Prince Jr. also attended my high school, but he came in the year I graduated.

I continued with the love of writing in college by taking English and Journalism classes on top of my Classics major required courses—though my major required a lot of reading, which I found fascinating.

I met my husband during college, we got married and had kids, and other than still scribbling stories in notebooks, I set the dream of writing professionally aside. When my girls were a bit older, I decided to go back to college part-time as I hadn’t finished. One of the first classes I took was an in-depth English creative writing class and I was hooked. That was the last college class I took so I could focus that time on writing while still homeschooling and raising my girls.

I spent a good number of years just learning how to tells stories by reading other authors, studying craft books, and attending conferences—soaking up anything I could learn.

2. What was the first book you wrote? Did it get published?

The first book I wrote was called Artifact and nope, it was not published. I had one of my editors read it and give me some feedback, so I think one day it will be published. It did make it to pub board but ended up getting a ‘no.’ It was difficult getting that close only to have it rejected. I wrote a second book, and it made it to the editorial board, but no further. Submerged was the third book I wrote and was my first published novel. It was 10 years ago this summer. Throughout this time, I was blessed enough to work with an amazing mentor who has become a dear friend. I think if you can work with a strong mentor, it can be a huge help. Mentors can guide, encourage, and challenge you to the next level.

3. Do you have a special place to write? Do you listen to music while you’re writing?

I normally write at my desk. There’s row of floor-to-ceiling windows so I get to look outside, across to the pond and feel the sun shining in as I write. My “special” place to write is on my daughter’s boat. I love sitting at the cabin dining table and feeling the lap of water against the hull, the cool breeze blowing through the windows, and enjoying the view of the water. But my very favorite place to write is the beach. I love heading out as the sun rises, with a cup of coffee and my notebook in hand. It’s so peaceful and inspiring to write by God’s magnificent creation.

I only listen to music when I’m rewriting. I make up a story soundtrack and play that as I’m going through that second or third draft.

4. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I love spending time with my family, traveling, hiking, and searching for the perfect iced mocha.

5. THE DEADLY SHALLOWS is the third book in this series. Can you tell us a little bit about the two previous books?

Sure thing. The COASTAL GUARDIANS series was born out of research. I was looking up who would investigate a crime committed within our coastal waterways, and I landed on the Coast Guard Investigation Service. I was fascinated. The breadth of the CGIS’s jurisdictional area is limited but not nearly as limited as I first imagined. They investigate anything from a Guardsman violating a military code of justice, to broken maritime laws by civilians, to being deployed around the globe in support of Combatant Commanders.

Learning about what Coast Guard investigative agents do inspired me to create a team of agents led by Noah Rowley. Readers actually first meet Noah way back in the second book of my CHESAPEAKE VALOR series, Still Life. He had a small but invaluable role to play. Ever since I introduced Noah, I’ve been wanting to tell his story, but other characters kept getting in the way. LOL!

The first book in my series, The Killing Tide, focuses on Finn Walker and Gabby Rowley.

When one Coast Guard officer is found dead and another goes missing, Coast Guard Investigative Service special agent Finn Walker faces his most dangerous crime yet. His only clues are what little evidence remains aboard the dead officer's boat, and the direction the clues point to will test Finn and the Guard to their limits.

When investigative reporter - and Finn's boss's sister - Gabby Rowley arrives, her unrelenting questions complicate an already volatile situation. Now that she's back, the tug on Finn's heart is strong, but with the risks she's taking for her next big story, he fears she might not live through it.

Thrown together by the heinous crime, Finn and Gabby can't ignore the sparks or judgments flying between them. But will they be able to see past their preconceptions long enough to track down an elusive killer, or will they become his next mark?

The second book, The Crushing Depths, tells Rissi Dawson and Mason Rogers’ story.

When an accident claims the life of an oil rig worker on the first drilling platform off the North Carolina coast, Coast Guard investigators Rissi Dawson and Mason Rogers are sent to take the case. Tensions surrounding the oil rig are high and the death has everyone on edge. Environmental activists are threatening to do whatever it takes to stop the structure from being completed, while rumors are being whispered about ancient curses surrounding this part of the ocean.

Mounting evidence shows the death may not have been an accident at all. Was he killed by one of the activists or, perhaps more frighteningly, a member of his own crew? Rissi and Mason have to sort through not only a plethora of suspects, but also their own past and attraction to each other.

Just as the case seems like it'll break open, worse news arrives. A tropical storm has turned their way and soon they're cut off from any rescue - and right where the killer wants them. It's a race to discover his identity before he eliminates the threat they pose.

6. Now give us a description of THE DEADLY SHALLOWS.

I am so excited to wrap up COASTAL GUARDIANS with Noah who started it all and Coast Guard Medic Brooke Kesler in The Deadly Shallows.

A DEADLY ATTACK.
A STOLEN WEAPON CAPABLE OF IMMENSE DESTRUCTION.
A PAINFUL SECRET THAT THREATENS TO TEAR TWO HEARTS APART.

CGIS Agent Noah Rowley is rocked to the core when several of his valued team members come under fire on his Coast Guard base. He and his remaining team race to the scene and end the attack, but not before innocent lives are lost. Furious and grief-stricken, he vows to do whatever is needed to bring the mastermind behind the attack to justice.

Stunned by the ambush, Coast Guard flight medic Brooke Kesler evacuates in a helicopter carrying the only surviving gunman. The gravely wounded man whispers mysterious information to Brooke that immediately paints a target on her back.

As Brooke and Noah race to uncover answers, emotions between them ignite. Noah struggles to protect Brooke at all costs and to conceal the secret that prevents him from becoming what he longs to be--the right man for her.

Everything is at stake as a horrifying truth emerges… The attack wasn't the end game. It was only the beginning.

7. Where can readers buy your book?

Baker Book House. ChristianBook, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and your local independent bookstore. You can find all the links in one spot on my website. Just click here.

8. What’s next for you?

I’m really excited about my next project. The Shifting Current is a Coastal Guardians novella. It’s the story of two characters I get the most emails about—Emmy Thorton and Logan Perry. It’s already available for pre-order!

An elusive killer. A false identity. A deadly maze of lies.

When Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent LOGAN PERRY’s beloved grandfather is murdered, Logan races to his hometown of Cauldron Creek, New Mexico, to investigate the murder. His teammate and friend, EMMY THORTON, insists on joining him. Not a good idea—not when he loves her, but carries a secret that he knows will tear them apart.

Emmy knows Logan will pursue the investigation no matter the cost, and she won’t let the man she loves plunge into a dangerous situation alone. She needs to be at his side, even if he believes friendship is her only reason for joining him.

What looks like a robbery gone wrong rapidly shifts, drawing Emmy and Logan into a dizzying maze where nothing is as it appears. Every lead slips through their fingers as threats against them grow deadlier at each turn. Having only each other to rely on, their love for one another deepens, but will they live long enough to admit their attraction to each other?

They’re in the killer’s sights. One wrong move puts their future together and their lives on the line.

So interesting! I know your readers are excited to read your new book. Thanks for visiting the Suspense Sisters, Dani!

Thanks so very much for having me! Always love visiting the Suspense Sisters!

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