Hello,
GLIAS readers! It’s my release day, and I
thought you might be interested in how my romantic suspense, BURIED AGENDAS came
to be.
I’ve been
married for 32 years, and in addition to marrying my husband because he was
cute and made me laugh, I married him for his smarts. My DH is a
chemical engineer, and, as such, he spent much of our marriage traveling to
power plants, chemical plants, government laboratories, manufacturing
facilities--wherever his business acumen took him. He worked
hard.
I was also
intrigued, especially when some of the places he visited required him to have
clearance and jump through the proverbial hoops to enter. I also had a germ of
an idea about a story I wanted to write about a chemical company. But the poor
guy was less than enthused, and his standard response was, “When I come home
from work the last thing I want is to talk to my wife about is chemicals or my
job.”
What was I
supposed to do? I was itching to get started.
Fortunately, while my husband wasn’t thrilled about sharing, plenty of his
co-workers and customers were. Several were excited and happy to talk to me
about their jobs and my “what if” scenarios.
To write
this book I talked to plant chemists, plant managers and an underground tank
expert. I contacted Region V’s Environmental
Protection Agency, and upon my asking, a very generous agent sent me volumes of
material which, fascinated, I read. From this point BURIED AGENDAS was born.
Since I write around the theme SUSPENSE TOO CLOSE TO HOME, and was familiar
with El Paso, Texas, I created a fictitious setting called Diamond and set it
close to El Paso and the Mexican border.
Recently
my husband read a final draft. When he closed the pages, he smiled and said, “That’s
about right.” But the story isn’t just about chemicals, trust me. It’s got
suspense, and drama and it’s all about two people who should have ended up
together. And while I take the characters on a conflicted ride, it's well known that I live for the
happily ever after.
Here’s a little about BURIED AGENDAS.
Following
is a blurb about the book and an excerpt.
BURIED AGENDAS by
Donnell Ann Bell
A devastating secret
drove her from her lover’s arms. Will a
secret equally as deadly lead her back to him?
Diana Reid is an investigative reporter skilled at
uncovering other people’s secrets. It’s
her own that she works to keep buried. Eight years earlier, she promised to
leave her fiancé and hometown of Diamond, Texas forever. That pledge vanishes
when she receives a letter stating people are going to die, implicating her
hometown’s largest employer, and making a veiled threat against her mother.
With no other choice, Diana will return to Diamond, albeit in disguise, to
discover the anonymous author.
Brad Jordan moved on with his life after Diana walked out on
him. Needless to say, she’s an unwelcome topic.
Just as he rebuilt his life, as the newly elected mayor of Diamond, he
plans to rebuild his struggling hometown.
Those plans are threatened when an El Paso physician notifies Brad that
she believes his family’s company, Jordan Industries, is conducting illegal
practices and sacrificing the public’s health.
When the doctor suggests bringing in Diana to uncover the
wrongdoing, Brad is opposed to the idea.
Still, when she appears in Diamond in spite of his wishes, he is forced
to accept that a woman he vowed to forget may be his only option to get to the
truth.
Together Diana Reid and Brad Jordan face a dangerous
adversary—one whose only intent is keeping a deadly agenda buried.
EXCERPT:
IN STUNNED
DISBELIEF, Brad watched Diana pull into a space in front of the Drifter’s Inn,
the area’s seediest hotel. Located on the outskirts of Diamond, the name drifter said it all. Prostitution ran
rampant here, high school boys brought their one-night stands here, crimes of
passion were committed here. What the hell was she doing here?
He could
just imagine voter speculation or Susan’s ire if someone saw the city’s new
mayor parked in front of this dive. Unwilling to take the risk, he circled the
hotel and parked the Navigator between a long-abandoned building and a copse of
trees.
He doubled
back, finding the door to room 111 ajar. He pushed it open. Her suitcase lay on
the bed, and she’d taken off the wig. Facing the mirror, she swiped at tears in
between tugging at pins.
Brad’s
throat went dry as she shook her head and her jet-black hair tumbled free. And
for a moment he was bombarded by anger, memories, and a host of conflicted
feelings.
Why
couldn’t she have gained fifty pounds or gone hopelessly gray? Even disheveled,
Diana set hearts on fire. He clenched his jaw. She was also a viper, he
reminded himself, closing the door behind him. “Finish that later.”
She set
down the brush. “I didn’t come to Diamond to hurt you, Brad. In truth, I hoped
I wouldn’t see you.”
So much for brutal honesty.
He removed
his tie, then delaying the inevitable, walked farther inside, taking in the
motel room’s ladder-back chair, a faded nightstand, and a water-ringed dresser.
There wasn’t a TV. People who registered at the Drifter’s Inn preferred more active forms of entertainment. He
circled the room. At least the room had air conditioning. He switched on the
unit next to the bed, then shook his head in dismay. The unit worked, just
barely, doing nothing to rid the place of tobacco smells and cheap perfume.
“I’m
waiting,” he said at last. “Why are you here?”
GLIAS
Readers: I’m running a contest and kick
off party for commenters on my FB page on Monday, November 10th https://www.facebook.com/pages/Donnell-Ann-Bell/285286321485019?ref=hl I hope you’ll stop by. But for readers who
comment today, I’ll be doing a drawing and giving away one copy of Buried
Agendas for people who answer either of my two questions: Does your spouse talk to you about his
work? And do you like reunion stories? I hope you'll like this one ;)
Twitter:
@donnellannbell
