Beverly Barton | COLD HEARTED

I’m delighted to be a guest on the Fresh Fiction blog today and appreciate the chance to tell y’all about my latest romantic suspense novel from Zebra. COLD HEARTED, which hits the shelves tomorrow, actually began with a comment my editor made. “Have you ever thought about writing a book with a black widow heroine?” No, I hadn’t; but the idea intrigued me so much that I could think of little else. However, Jordan Price is no ordinary black widow. Her late husband’s brother hires a private detective, Rick Carson, to prove Senator Dan Price did not commit suicide. Rick immediately assumes Jordan is a cold hearted bitch who is capable of murder; but he soon realizes that those who know her best think of her as a saint.

Rick, who works for the Powell Agency, headed by Nic and Griff Powell (THE MURDER GAME), is torn between his physical attraction to the lovely, young widow and his suspicion that she is a clever, ruthless murderer. The deeper he digs into Jordan’s past, the more dead bodies show up – a first husband, a former fiancé, and an old boss, to name a few. Jordan had profited handsomely from each man’s death. But did she kill them or is she, too, an innocent victim?

Among Jordan’s family and friends, many either emotionally or financially dependent upon her, you’ll find enough possible suspects to make your head spin. There’s Jordan’s best friend since childhood, who was the late Senator Dan Price’s assistant, a man who obviously adores Jordan. Are he and Jordan secret lovers? Did they plot the senator’s murder together? But what about Jordan’s stepmother, who would do anything for Jordan --even kill? And then there is the mentally unbalanced stepsister who idolizes Jordan, the worthless stepbrother who has the hots for Jordan, her former fiancé’s mother who is totally devoted to her, and her assistant who both loves and envies Jordan.

Naturally, this story is set in the South, this particular book in Georgia. Those of you who are familiar with my romantic suspense novels know I always use my South, the South that I find utterly fascinating, as the setting for these romantic thrillers. And those of you who have read past books that featured Griffin Powell as either a secondary character or the hero will be glad to know that Griff and Nic show up in this book in minor roles. You can expect to see more of Griff and Nic in upcoming books, including my next Zebra novel set for release in September 2009.

I hope you enjoy getting to know Rick and Jordan and discovering along with Rick if the woman he finds himself falling in love with is truly a black widow.

Beverly Barton

COLD HEARTED, Zebra Romantic Suspense
Release date: August 26, 2008