Murder Undetected

 . . . Two strong women, one driven by selfish desire, the other by selfless love. . .

             Viane Thibaudet, darling of a hilltop town in Provence, has been getting away with murder. Only Brittany Thornton, newly minted psychologist from Seattle, sees her for what she is, and when Viane attempts to poison her husband, only Britt can stop her.

 Wild Women Authors is delighted to feature author Roxanne Dunn as she celebrates the release of Murder Undetected, her second mystery/thriller with the Wild Rose Press. With Roxanne is psychologist Brittany Thornton who will go first.

 Good morning, Britt. What made you choose psychology for your career path? I decided to become a psychologist when I read To Kill a Mockingbird in the fifth grade. Boo Radley fascinated me. He never went outside and had no friends, but he left little gifts in a knothole in a tree for Scout and Jem. I wanted to understand why he behaved that way, and I wanted to help him be able to talk to the kids.

Knowing what you know now, if you had it to do over again, would you stick with being a psychologist or do something different? I’m fascinated by our brains and how devious they are. So, yes, I love my work, and from now on, I’m going to stick to research and stay away from criminals.

Right now, I’m researching how we hide our thoughts and feelings from others. I believe it begins with hiding the truth from ourselves. I’m an example. I can observe a married couple interacting about some trivial matter and predict whether they will get a divorce or not, but I didn’t know my own marriage was in trouble.

What is your biggest fear? That I won’t recognize true love when it comes to me.

Who is your favorite fictional character and why? Frodo Baggins. When Frodo decided to take the One Ring to Mount Doom and destroy it, he persisted against terrible opposition, and with the help of his friend Sam, accomplished what he set out to do.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received? When we were in Paris, Arielle said, “Trust your instincts. Believe in your own value. And stop worrying about what other people, including Oscar, think.” Oscar was my mentor.

This has been really interesting. Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to speak with us. Now we’d like to chat with Roxanne.

Which writer or character[s], from either books or movies, [or both] have had a major impact on your writing? Nora Ephron and her films. I love her humor and the way she portrays each character. I’ve watched Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail dozens of times, looking at characterization, conflict, and dialogue.

With regard to research, where did you start for this novel? Did that lead you down different paths, thereby changing the original concept? The concept was in my head from the beginning. The Black Widow, a movie starring Debra Winger and Theresa Russell, came out in 1987, and the story stuck in my head. Theresa’s character, the black widow, became wealthy by marrying and killing rich men. Only Alex, Debra’s character, suspected her of murdering her husbands. When no one believed Alex, she tracked the black widow down and proved it.

In Murder Undetected, Britt is an expert in nonverbal communication. So, although no one else suspects Viane, when she poisons her husband, Britt sees the expression on her face and becomes suspicious. The setting comes from my trips to the south of France. I love the hilltop towns in Provence, the markets, the feeling of community, and the sense that people have lived in that same place generation after generation.

Tell us a bit about your publisher. How did you hear about them; what influenced you to submit to them? Both novels were published by The Wild Rose Press, a company owned by two women who believe that publishing is a joint effort between the author, editor, and publisher. In thirteen of the fifteen years they’ve been in business, they’ve won the title of “Best Publisher of the Year” from an independent poll of readers and writers. I met Dianne McCartney, one of their authors, at Killer Nashville. Dianne’s experience convinced me that they were a good company. So, a month later, I pitched Murder Unrehearsed to a Wild Rose Press editor at the Pacific Northwest Writers Conference.

How is the submission process; what is the turn-around time from date of query to date of release? I received an immediate response [from my query], with a promise for a decision on accepting my book within 45 days. Every time they set a date, they’re done early. From date of query to release of Murder Unrehearsed, my debut novel, was about eleven months. For Murder Undetected, it was approximately five months.

What are you reading right now? I’m reading Pity the Reader by Kurt Vonnegut and Suzanne McConnell, The Art of Character by David Corbett, Murder in the First Position by Lori Robbins, La Dernière Rue de Paris by Elaine Sciolino, and Sale Temps Pour les Sorcières by M. C. Beaton.

What's next for you? The working title of my next novel is Murder Richly Deserved. It started out as a heist or caper, but a body turned up, and now I have to deal with that.

To learn more about Roxanne Dunn and the stories she creates go to: www.roxannedunn.com

https://www.facebook.com/roxanne.dunn.127

https://twitter.com/roxanne_dunn

To purchase Murder Undetected, go to:

The Wild Rose Press Bookstore (aer.io)

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=roxanne+dunn&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss 

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/roxanne%20dunn

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=roxanne+dunn