SPECIAL INTERVIEW WITH NANCY HERKNESS
Nancy Herkness is an award-winning romance author. She has been a two-time nominee for the Romance Writers of America’s RITA award. Her heartfelt characters and engaging storytelling have made her a fan favorite.
This year Nancy is starting an exciting new romantic suspense series called The Consultants. I was lucky enough to read her first book in the trilogy, The Money Man. Her amazing blend of passion and mystery made this book pitch perfect!
I simply had to ask the author about her new series and what exciting surprises she has on the horizon!
1) I want to thank you so much for being here! You’ve been such a great supporter of book clubs and we appreciate it. 😊 Can you tell us how you got started writing romance?
Nancy Herkness:
Oh my goodness, I’m thrilled to be a guest here. Book clubs are such wonderful groups of passionate readers. I belong to one myself and it’s been a constant joy for me. Thank YOU for leading yours!
I’ve been a writer all my life although in my younger years I wrote poetry. Yup, poetry! I’ve also been a romance reader all my life, starting with the marvelous Georgette Heyer Regency romances my grandmother used to give me when she finished them.
In my twenties, I commuted into Manhattan for work which gave me a lot of opportunity to read. Honestly, I kind of ran out of romances I enjoyed. So I thought: Maybe other romance readers have this problem. Why don’t I write the kind of book I love to read? That was perhaps a tad bit arrogant on my part. J
I wrote a romance novel, though, and let me tell you, it was pretty bad. I made every newbie mistake in the book. Thank goodness no publisher was insane enough to offer me a contract for it!
My second attempt was much better and became my debut novel, A Bridge to Love.
Fifteen books—and two more on the way!—later, I still love writing about love.
2) You are an inspiration! Can you tell us what your favorite genre is and why?
Nancy Herkness:
Romance is my favorite genre! I read across almost all subgenres within it. If I like an author, I tend to read whatever subgenre she writes in. I was big into vampires when they first hit the market. I still love historicals, probably because of the influence of Georgette Heyer (see Question 1). I enjoy well-written erotic romance and male/male romance; those subgenres offer a whole different dynamic that’s intriguing. So you see, I’m a romance omnivore!
3) Me, too! As your first suspense novel, how did you prepare/come up with ideas for The Money Man?
Nancy Herkness:
Actually, this is my second suspense novel. My first was Music of the Night which was released in 2008 by a very small press. So it has been quite a while since I wrote suspense. It was almost like starting over.
Alas, I am not a plotter so I didn’t really prepare for The Money Man. I winged it! Since my two characters were numbers people, I knew the suspense would involve some kind of financial fraud. My heroine is a free-lance bookkeeper for small businesses in her town. That led me to interview the owner of the hair salon where I get my hair done to find out how her accounting worked. And voila! I figured out what could drive the suspense plot. And that’s all I will say about it so I don’t spoil the mystery. LOL!
4) Well, I’m super glad you are back at it! What did you find most challenging about writing The Money Man? Do you think you might write more ‘mysteries’ after this series?!
Nancy Herkness:
The suspense plot! The intricate build of that is the most challenging for me because I’m not a natural plotter. I’m a lousy chess player because I can’t think four moves ahead which makes developing a suspense novel hard. But I really enjoy the challenge so I will definitely do this again.
5) Look forward to reading more! BTW, I really enjoyed reading each of your character’s unique backgrounds, particularly their childhood. Did you base them on any person in particular?
Nancy Herkness:
I think we all have a little of Alice in us, don’t we? Being insecure about our looks seems to go with the territory of being female. Of course, Alice feels it in spades because her beautiful mother made her feel ugly. I also think that anyone who grew up without financial security never forgets that. Children want their world to be safe and dependable.
Derek’s father was disappointed in his own career so he wants Derek to succeed where he didn’t. That’s another pressure I believe is universal: struggling with our parents’ sometimes burdensome expectations of us. I know my father, as wonderful as he was, kept trying to steer me into a more “practical” career (quite the opposite of Derek’s dad, of course).
6) Your hero, Derek, is super sexy! What makes your heroine, Alice, so special and such a perfect match for him?
Nancy Herkness:
Woohoo! I love that you think Derek is so sexy. I love smart men—and then I added knockout good looks, so va-va-voom! But he’s vulnerable because his looks have actually created a lot of problems for him.
Alice is his soul mate because they both find beauty and security in the objective world of numbers…and she’s just as smart as he is. Their outward appearances brought a lot of parental pressure to bear on them—albeit in opposite ways—so they share that foundational experience. Both find tremendous satisfaction in their jobs but need each other to balance a tendency to workaholism. It turns out they’re both romantics underneath the businesslike exteriors.
7) Do you think you can tell us about the next book in The Consultants series? (please!)
Nancy Herkness:
My publisher just sent me the cover copy for The Hacker so here you go:
Dawn Galioto is an expert in self-defense and the most in-demand personal trainer at her Jersey gym. A perfect position for a woman fighting her way out of a troubled past and the anxieties that come with it. Then, after complaints about unaccountable WiFi glitches at the gym, Dawn calls in disarmingly hot, high-powered computer consultant, Leland Rockwell. If Dawn can trust anyone to fix her on-the-job problems, it’s Leland. As for healing her off-hours fears, time will tell.
The cyber-security genius of KRG, Leland sees a lot to admire in Dawn. She’s strong, quick-witted, and sexy. And something of a puzzle. One that Leland wants very much to solve. If she’d only let him. But there’s another, more dangerous riddle to decipher. Going undercover, Leland’s found a dark workplace secret. With every new reveal it’s bringing him intimately closer to Dawn. Though her past threatens a burgeoning romance, the deepening mystery they’re discovering is threatening their lives.
And I’m hard at work on the third book in the series which does not yet have a title but it is Natalie and Tully’s story.
8) Can’t wait!! I’m curious. If you could have one of your books adapted into a movie which would it be and why?
Nancy Herkness:
Well, I’ve had a movie producer approach me about turning A Down-Home Country Christmas into a movie. It hasn’t happened yet but my fingers are crossed. J
I’ve always thought that The Place I Belong would make a good movie. It’s got an adorable pony, a cute kid, a big black German shepherd, a veterinarian, and a troubled chef in it. There’s a fair amount of outward drama that lends itself to visual representation. Also, gourmet food! Who doesn’t love cooking?!
However, I think it’s hard to turn a romance novel into a movie because so much of the “action” is interior: thoughts, emotions, visceral reactions. And there’s the sex, of course. You have to handle that right. I have to say that I think Passionflix is doing a great job with their romance movies. It’s truly an art.
9) Ohh! Sounds good. Besides the Consultant’s series what other books do you have planned for the horizon?!
Nancy Herkness:
I really want to write Dr. Ben Cavill’s story from the Wager of Hearts series. Many, many readers have asked for it—and I even started it once!—but my contracted deadlines just haven’t allowed me time. So fingers crossed I get to it this year. It will probably be a novella but you just never know.
This has been such an honor. I’m so appreciative of the time you’ve taken to be with us here!
Nancy Herkness:
The honor is mine! There is nothing I like more than answering questions from a real aficionado of the romance genre like you. Thank you for everything you do to support us authors!
Interviewed by Steph from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club
For additional information about this extraordinary author you can check Nancy Herkness out at her website:
https://www.nancyherkness.com/books/
Upcoming and Recent Books by Nancy Herkness:
The Money Man : The Consultants, Book 1 -April 2020
Montlake Romance
She’s small-town business. He’s Manhattan high finance. Together they ignite in a novel about unexpected love and danger.
New Jersey bookkeeper Alice Thurber has a carefully constructed risk-free life. Everything in perfect balance. Until little discrepancies show up in her clients’ accounts. Most would ignore it. Not the impeccably precise Alice. In desperation she reaches out to a high-powered consulting firm for help. New York City’s movie-star handsome financial wizard Derek Killion reaches back. All he has to do is smile and Alice’s fantasies stir. A girl can dream, can’t she?
A cofounder of KRG, Derek’s promise is to advise small-business owners in trouble. He never guessed that assisting the diffident but sexy Alice would be so captivating and make it so hard to keep his desires in check. But just as intriguing is the alarming puzzle behind the computer glitch that’s unsettled his client. As the investigation unfolds, they must also confront an attraction too palpable to ignore. Every new dark twist they follow is only bringing them closer together—in passion and in danger.
The Hacker: The Consultants, Book 2 – August 2020
Dawn Galioto is an expert in self-defense and the most in-demand personal trainer at her Jersey gym. A perfect position for a woman fighting her way out of a troubled past and the anxieties that come with it. Then, after complaints about unaccountable WiFi glitches at the gym, Dawn calls in disarmingly hot, high-powered computer consultant, Leland Rockwell. If Dawn can trust anyone to fix her on-the-job problems, it’s Leland. As for healing her off-hours fears, time will tell.
The cyber-security genius of KRG, Leland sees a lot to admire in Dawn. She’s strong, quick-witted, and sexy. And something of a puzzle. One that Leland wants very much to solve. If she’d only let him. But there’s a another, more dangerous riddle to decipher. Going undercover, Leland’s found a dark workplace secret. With every new reveal it’s bringing him intimately closer to Dawn. Though her past threatens a burgeoning romance, the deepening mystery they’re discovering is threatening their lives.
Second Act – April 2019
Lights. Camera. Romance.
Jessica Quillen, veterinarian for the charitable K-9 Angelz program, didn’t mean to stumble into the middle of a New York movie shoot. She just wanted to rescue the stray dog she’d been chasing. Instead, she’s playing catch-up with her ex-fiancé—and the screen’s hottest action hero, Hugh Baker. The only man she ever loved. The dream that disappeared. The heartthrob who’s now hoping for a “take two.”
Seeing Jessica triggers emotions Hugh has tried to forget. Abandoned by his mother to foster care, he still struggles to feel worthy of love and to open his heart to a woman. His biggest mistake was not trusting Jessica. It was his fault she left. All he wants now is to make up for lost time. But he has to prove that she can trust him.
Though the sparks still smolder, he’s still Hollywood—a world far away from Jessica’s. Now it’s up to her to give their love story a happily ever after.
Second Time Around – July 2018
A former love makes a lasting impression in a warm and sexy romance from Nancy Herkness.
Kyra Dixon, a blue-collar girl from the boondocks, is dedicated to her job at a community center that matches underprivileged kids with rescue dogs. When she runs into Will Chase—Connecticut blue blood, billionaire CEO, and her old college crush—she’s surprised that he asks a favor from her: to be his date for his uptight family’s dreaded annual garden party. If his parents don’t approve, all the better.
Kyra’s not about to say no. It’ll give her a chance to be oh-so-close to her unrequited love. What begins as a little fling turns so mad hot, so fast, that Kyra finds herself falling all over again for a fantasy that won’t come true. How can it? She doesn’t belong in Will’s world. She doesn’t want to. But Will does want to belong in hers.
All he has to do now is prove it. Will is prepared to give up whatever is necessary to get what his heart most desires.
Second to None – Sept 2017
Billionaire chemist Max Varela is selling his company and leaving New York for good when Emily Wade bursts into his office, desperate for his help in funding her program for disadvantaged kids and shelter dogs. Seven years ago, he fell in love with her when she was married to another man. To fight the unbidden attraction, he cut off all contact—but he’s never forgotten her.
Ever since her husband died, Emily has poured her heart and soul into the after-school care center. Seeing Max reawakens the pain of her loss, but it also brings unexpected hope for the future. As emotions thought long gone resurface, the two begin a passionate affair that seems destined for a fairy-tale ending.
That is, until Max reveals that he’s moving to Chicago in a matter of weeks and wants Emily to uproot her daughter and her life to come with him. If a second chance at love is possible, someone’s got to give.