I began writing at the age of eight, and wrote my way through the lean years, more than one marriage, single motherhood,and moving to the Big Apple on a wing and a prayer, with fifteen women's fiction novels to show for it. Every life experience I've weathered has found its way into my novels in one form or another:bad exes, births, deaths,divorces, pregnancy scares,true crime (I was nearly kidnapped, at age 12, by the stranger whose car your parents warned you not get it into). It's all part of the alchemy that makes for fictional gold. BONES AND ROSES, Book One of my Cypress Bay mystery series, marks my entry into the ranks of mystery novelists. I've been a fan of the genre since I fell under the spell of James M. Cain reading his masterpiece, "Mildred Pierce." SWIMSUIT BODY, Book Two of my Cypress Bay mystery series, was just released. Whether you read the first one or this is your introduction to the sunny California seaside town of Cypress Bay where dark twists abound, you'll enjoy Tish Ballard's further adventures in sleuthing. Property manager extraordinaire, she knows where the bodies are buried, literally in the case of celebrity client, Delilah Ward. I'm currently (and happily)wed to WABC-TV correspondent Sandy Kenyon, also known as the "taxi TV" film critic. We met when he was a radio talk show host and he interviewed me on air. How's that for a Hollywood meet-cute? My life's goal was to have a day job that didn't require me to wear pantyhose. Thankfully I've achieved that. Everything else is the icing on the cake. Bones and Roses is the first book in my Cypress Bay Mysteries series. Stop by www.eileengoudge.com to learn more about the book and for more excerpts, recipes and info on my novels.

Elin Hilderbrand lives on Nantucket with her husband and their three young children. She grew up in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, and traveled extensively before settling on Nantucket, which has been the setting for her five previous novels. Hilderbrand is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the graduate fiction workshop at the University of Iowa. Facebook.com/ElinHilderbrand Pinterest.com/ElinHilderbrand

With more than 35 million books in print and 26 NEW YORK TIMES bestsellers, Julie Garwood has earned a position among America's favorite fiction writers. Born and raised in Kansas City, MO, Ms. Garwood attributes much of her success to growing up in a large family of Irish heritage. "The Irish are great storytellers who relish getting all of the details and nuances of every situation. Add in the fact that I was the sixth of seven children. Early in life, I learned that self expression had to be forceful, imaginative, and quick," says Ms. Garwood. She began her writing career when the youngest of her three children entered school. After the publications of two young-adult books, she turned her talents to historical fiction. Her first novel, GENTLE WARRIOR, was published by Pocket Books in 1985. Since then, she has branched into other genres including contemporary romantic suspense. Today, her name appears regularly on the bestseller lists of every major publication in the country, and her books are translated into dozens of languages around the world. Her bestselling novel FOR THE ROSES was adapted for the HALLMARK HALL OF FAME television movie ROSE HILL. Ms. Garwood lives in Leawood, KS and is currently working on her next novel.