…A babymoon provides parents-to-be—Wes and Minka Avery—the opportunity to unwind from preparing for the new addition and enjoy some pampering In the case of police detective Minka she gets to catch a killer...
Welcome,
Wes. Thanks for taking time to speak with us. Let’s begin with you telling us a
bit about Undercover Babymoon. The book follows my wife, Minka, and her investigation
into the suspicious death of a cruise ship worker. Though he met his demise in
Orlando, where she and my brother are police detectives, they began to believe
he was involved in a shady operation on the ship. Naturally, then, we boarded
the vessel as regular tourists. Minka insisted I keep my cover simple as just
her baby daddy, but I took on whatever alias suited the mission.
What
made you choose teaching for a profession? My brother would tell you all the crime-fighting skills went to him,
which I’ll let readers decide. Jokes aside, I enjoy helping people through
education. Minka and I met when we were kids, and since I observed her
challenges as a deaf child, I was drawn to want to reach out to the deaf
community. I applied to schools for the deaf after I earned my degree. It
fulfills me to be a mentor to my deaf students and show them they're not
alone.
Knowing
what you know now, if you had it to do over again, would you stick with being a
teacher or do something different? I’d
definitely stick with it, but I’m still not ruling out a side hustle with the
FBI if Quantico ever recruits me.
Hah!
What is your biggest fear? Proving my
wife right!
Who
is your favorite fictional character and why? Pistachio Disguisey from “The Master of Disguise” because I admire his
ingenuity and the way he can transform into different characters. Like me, all
of his unconventional schemes are done in the best interests of his family.
What
is the best piece of advice you ever received? Just because you have to grow older doesn’t mean you
have to grow up!
Good morning! Let’s
begin with which writer or character[s], from either books or movies, [or both]
have had a major impact on your writing? I was a big fan of “Castle” when it was on the air. Rick Castle
appealed to me as both a successful author and a mischief-maker at crime
scenes. Wes definitely took some cues from him!
With regard to research,
where did you start for this novel? Did that lead you down different paths,
thereby changing the original concept? When
it came to the cruise concept itself, I had a bit of personal experience to
draw off of, given I had the privilege of going on one as a teenager. Even so,
I researched a good deal about the staff and their different duties, and I looked
up menus to try to make the dinner table scenes authentic. I’d heard ships have
morgues, so I researched that, too, but couldn’t find a believable way to
implement it once I considered the facts. Of course, the brunt of my research
pertained to the killer’s method of operation, but I can’t get into that!
Tell us a bit about your
publisher. I’ve been honored to work
with The Wild Rose Press on three of my last books, including the past two
installments of The Unde(a)feated Detective Series. That history made Undercover Babymoon a natural fit for me
and apparently them, with my fantastic editor accepting it one day after I
submitted my query!
What are you reading right
now? Of Manners and Murder by
Anastasia Hastings.
What's next for you? My current work in progress is a mysterious love
story of sorts. The majority of it takes place in Alaska, so I'm doing a
one-eighty, from the Caribbean to the Artic!
To learn more about Karina Bartow and the stories she creates go to: KarinaBartow.com and:
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Great interview! The story sounds good.
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