Former grade school bully and, later, amateur drug dealer Jeff Hudson turns his life around and is pursuing a degree in agriculture. His future, as well as a budding relationship with fellow student Sandy Harris, is threatened when a former dealer threatens to expose Jeff's past to university authorities if he doesn't rejoin the ring.

Realizing that Jeff is no longer an angry, misunderstood boy, Sandy must take a stand against her family and friends who swear he is no good and will only cause her unhappiness. Together, can they escape the past in order to forge a future?

Wild Women Authors is pleased to feature Patricia McAlexander who celebrates the release of Shadows of Doubt, a contemporary romance, released out of the Crimson Rose line for the Wild Rose Press. With Patricia is Sandy Harris who will go first.

Good morning, Sandy. Tell us a bit about yourself, starting with where you’re from. I grew up in Athens, Georgia and graduated from the University of Georgia’s School of Journalism.

Tell us a bit about Shadows of Doubt. The story describes the developing relationship between a new UGA transfer student, Jeff Hudson, and me when we were students there. I was from the first very attracted to him, but others warned me about his past—my childhood friend, one of his old girlfriends, and most troubling of all, my mother, who had been his teacher in grade school and suspected he had come to no good. So in spite of my feelings for him, I began to have doubts and to wonder whether I should break off the relationship.

What did you think the first time you saw Jeff? I must admit, I was impressed by his muscular good looks.

What was your second thought? When he misunderstood my role at his father’s house, where I was babysitting, I was angry.

Did you feel it was love at first sight? No, more the opposite—but there was definitely chemistry.

What do you like most about him? Besides that chemistry between us, his bravery in the face of physical danger.

How would you describe Jeff? Physically? He is very good-looking. I love his hazel-gold eyes, thick dark hair, the cleft in his chin.

How would he describe you? I guess, once he got over his first mistaken impression of me, he would describe me as sort of an All-American girl.

What made you choose photojournalism as a career? I love both photography and writing. I took pictures and wrote stories for the college newspaper and the local town paper. I’ve admired women reporters on television news programs.

What is your greatest fear? Having the direction of my life determined by others.

How do you relax? Reading, writing, taking photos, hiking, swimming, kayaking or canoeing.

Who is your favorite fictional character? Elizabeth Bennett in Pride and Prejudice. Like me, she had doubts about a man she was attracted to and had to work them out.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received? My Aunt Mary, whose first husband was abusive, at first told me to be wary of sudden infatuation, the kind she thought I felt for Jeff. But what I consider her best advice came later, indirectly: she suggested I follow my heart when she admitted, “Love is not always wrong.”

Thanks for taking time out of your day to talk to us. Now, we’d like to chat with Patricia.

What movies or books have had an impact on your career as a writer? Two particular works directly influenced my two Wild Rose Press novels. John and Ward Hawkins’ 1957 thriller Floods of Fear inspired an early an early version of my first novel, Stranger in the Storm. Jane Austen’s 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice plays a role in Shadows of Doubt.

What event in your private life were you able to bring to this story and how do you feel it impacted the novel? My father’s death when my sister was in high school and I was a freshman in college impacted Shadows. We watched my mother, a teacher and in many ways a strong woman, cope with this loss. She turned to us, her daughters, for comfort, company, and support, as Mrs. Harris turned to Sandy after her husband died. Also, occasionally Mom did not approve of our boyfriends, so I understood the kind of tension portrayed in Shadows.

Tell us a bit about your publisher: how did you hear about them and what influenced your decision to submit to them? Someone in a writer’s group I’m a member of mentioned that the Wild Rose Press was her publisher, and I thought, “Ah, maybe that would be a place to submit Stranger in the Storm”—my first novel. I read some books Wild Rose had published and was impressed. Their website gave good directions on how to submit—they asked for the entire manuscript. I took the plunge, sending it to the “Crimson” line, the one for thriller-romances. Editor Kaycee John read and annotated the first several pages and suggested that I revise, recommending that I read Revision and Self-Editing for Publication: Techniques for Transforming Your First Draft into a Novel That Sells by James Scott Bell. I found that book very helpful, especially in suggesting how to work in backstory and ramp up drama. Wild Rose accepted the revision, and Kaycee was a wonderful guide as we went through the complete editing process. She was an equally good guide with Shadows of Doubt.

What book[s] currently rest on your TBR pile? Now sitting on my TBR table is Erik Larsen’s The Splendid and the Vile, about Winston Churchill during World War II, and Betty Jean Craige’s Ruminations on a Parrot Named Cosmo—about her pet parrot whose amazing language skills show emotions and thoughts like a human’s. And after reading a fellow Wild Rose author’s vampire novel (Sydney Winward’s Bloodbond), I’ve downloaded the prototype vampire novel, Bram Stoker’s 1897 Dracula, on my kindle.

Lastly, what's up next and when can we expect to see it on the shelves? I have a draft of another thriller-romance tentatively titled The Student in Classroom 10. But Shadows of Doubt is so fresh off the press that I really haven’t had time to think about finalizing and submitting another for publication, much less seeing it on the shelves. Besides, I need to give my editor a break.

Patricia brought an excerpt for us:

“Sandy—I need to tell you something about him.”

“I don’t want to hear it. You’d better take me home.”

Bill abruptly turned around in a parking lot he was passing and headed back toward her house. His expression was grim, almost angry. “I’d be better for you, Sandy. Your mother thinks so, too.”

Anger replaced her anxiety. “How do you know what my mother thinks? I hope you and she didn’t discuss this!”

“Just a little, last night before you came downstairs. She didn’t say much, but I could tell how she felt.” He pulled up in front of her house. “We both worry about you with Jeff. It’s not just that we think this won’t last…”

“Why else should you worry?”

Bill hesitated. “For one thing, he has a temper. He may physically hurt you. Remember how he was even as a kid.”

Her anger notched up higher. He was sounding just like her mother, expressing unfounded, outdated fears. “It was years ago that he got in those fights. He’s not like that now. I’m sorry, Bill, but I think it would be better if you and I don’t see each other for a while.” She got out of the car and slammed the door.

Bill started to pull away, then stopped, lowered the window, and called out to her. “Just remember, if you ever need me, I’ll be here.”

To learn more about Patricia McAlexander and the stories she creates, go to:

Website: https://patriciamcalexander.weebly.com

Facebook: facebook.com/patriciamcalexanderwriter/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PatMcAlexWriter

Instagram: www.instagram.com/patriciamcalexander/

To purchase Shadows of Doubt, go to:

Amazon kindle:

https://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Doubt-Patricia-McAlexander-ebook/dp/B08XTN863F/ref

Amazon: paperback:

https://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Doubt-Patricia-McAlexander/dp/1509235426/ref

Nook: