A Q&A WITH S.K. GOLDEN
What inspired the idea for mixing romance, crime and comedy?
I love capers! I fell in love with the genre years ago, probably watching Leverage on television. But I'm also a huge fan of Donald E. Westlake, who wrote comedy crime novels about a thief named Dortmunder where nothing ever goes right. Incorporating romance was simply because I love romance. I'm always the person trying to find a pair to ship in any media I consume and if there isn't one I'm not interested.
This book has everything from fake dating to kidnapping. Which part did you have the most fun researching?
Oh, research and I have a love/hate relationship! I can get stuck in research before I ever write for so long that I forget what I was trying to learn. There were a number of searches for this book that had me a tad worried about my search history, but I've been writing crime novels for so long now that I just assume I'm on a list somewhere. I will say, researching homes for wealthy families in South Florida turned out to be a big conversation starter for me for about a week afterwards.
What do you think Ginny would say is Shepherd’s best quality? And what would Shepherd say about Ginny?
Ginny would say that Shepherd's best quality is his ability to plan for just about any scenario, but she'd be thinking his best quality is how much he loves his daughter. Shepherd would say that Ginny's best quality is her bravery, but he'd be thinking about the way she makes him want to be braver, too.
If you could spend the day with one character from the book, who would it be and why?
Noah, the bartender. I could get a free drink and watch the chaos that is the staff of Shepherd's Pies without actually having to be in any danger. Probably.
Do you have a favourite moment between Shepherd and Ginny?
One favourite? Gosh, that's like picking a favourite child. I like when Shepherd stands up for Ginny in front of her family. Also, kissing.
What do you hope readers love most about this story?
I hope readers feel entertained! I hope that while they're reading my book, they're having enough fun that they forget the real world, at least for a little while. And I hope they love my guy Shepherd, because his planning to ease his anxiety is definitely NOT inspired by me. At all. (It is)