What Does Ariel Have Up Her Sleeve Now?

by Ariel Tachna

First, I’d like to say thank you to the Blogger Girls for having me as their featured author this week. I’m honored to have been chosen and to share this week with them and with all their readers.

I debated a bit what to write about. They’ve chosen five very different books to review this week, and that’s always something to talk about. What brought about books as different as A Summer Place and Out of the Fire? And of course I’m always delighted to talk about the Partnership in Blood series. Ten years of my life went into the creation of those eight novels and two short stories.

I’ve talked about all those things in other forums, though, and I wanted to do something new and special here, so instead, I’m going to tell you a bit about my newest project, Places Time Forgot.

Two years ago, as I was driving to North Carolina to visit my mother-in-law, we went through the Atchafalaya swamp and then a little later through southern Alabama where the kudzu is so thick someone could be standing a few feet away and you’d never see them. That image stuck with me. It would be so easy to disappear and never be seen or heard from again, whether by design or by accident. That image deepened this past summer when we went on a tour of the Everglades and the park ranger warned of the dangers of moving off the marked paths. “If you wander off the paths, no one will ever find you.”

Wow. Talk about the perfect setting for a missing persons case!

So then I got to thinking about where else people could just disappear that way. The Appalachian mountains in eastern Kentucky (how many summers did I spend hiking those mountains without ever coming across another soul?), the Columbia River gorge and its old abandoned mining towns, Molokai Island in Hawai’i where even the natives hesitate to go, the wilds of Alaska where bears outnumber humans….

Places Time Forgot is planned as a five-book series of missing persons cases. Each book will have its own case and its own couple, but I’m hoping people will find the investigative team, and especially the lead agent, equally interesting. Rick Weschler (think Jason Momoa in a suit) is the lead agent of a four-person FBI team sent out to deal with suspicious disappearances. The team is a bit unconventional, but they have a track record even the Bureau can’t argue with. Rick’s team knows he’s gay, but he isn’t out at work and sees no reason to be since he’s never met anyone who could handle the stress of his job and the amount of travel he does. One of his teammates, though, thinks she’s finally met the right guy for him. If only Rick would give Jamie a chance….

The first book in the series, Adam’s Choice, is about a third finished. I hope to submit it in January for release by fall of 2015. In the meantime, check out Home for Chirappu¸ my newest release, a holiday-themed story that came out as part of the Celebrate! Advent Calendar package, and keep an eye out for Dance Off, a contemporary romance set on a reality TV dancing show, and Cherish the Land, the next installment of my Lang Downs series, coming in spring and summer 2015 respectively.

About Home for Chirappu

Nikhilesh (Nik) Sharma hasn’t been home to Alappuzha, India, since he came out to his family ten years ago. Now that his relationship with them is less strained, he’s bringing his boyfriend Trent along to celebrate the winter holidays. As excited as he is to see everyone again, he worries the foreign culture, religious differences, and disapproval might shock Trent. At the same time, Trent worries Nik’s big, close-knit family won’t accept an American—much less a man—as Nik’s partner and that his presence will impede the otherwise happy reunion. Whether the trip leads to misunderstandings that will drive them apart or to a new understanding that will draw them closer than ever, it’s sure to be an experience they’ll never forget.

Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon

About Ariel Tachna

Ariel Tachna lives outside of Houston with her husband, her daughter and son, and their two dogs.  Before moving there, she traveled all over the world, having fallen in love with France, where she met her husband, and India, where she hopes to retire some day.  She’s bilingual with snippets of four other languages to her credit and is as in love with languages as she is with writing.

Find out more about Ariel on her Website, Twitter or Facebook.

As part of this Author Week, Ariel has graciously offered up winner’s choice from any of Ariel’s books being reviewed this week to one lucky winner!! The giveaway starts now and ends December 20, 2014 at 11:59 p.m. To enter, just click the link below!

Rafflecopter Giveaway

Please be aware that the only way to enter the giveaway is to click the Rafflecopter link above. Any comments on this post will not count towards entering the giveaway, except to verify your Rafflecopter entry.

Don’t forget to check out Nikyta’s review of Home for Chirappu to see what she thought of it!

Good luck!