An Interview with Kacey Hammell (@kaceyhammell)
Thank you for sharing my newest release, ILLUSIONS! Good morning everyone!
Tell us a bit about yourself. Who is Kacey?
It’s an interesting question since everyone has so many layers. The most important ones to me are wife, mom of three, farmer, dutiful daughter, school volunteer, sports momma and writer. I run a farm with my Mom, moved back on the homestead after my father’s death years ago and into one of the two houses on the property. My husband and I, as well as the kids, enjoy the life of cows, pigs and chickens – plus a dog, cat and hedgehogs. *g* I’m a simple country girl at heart who likes to socialize and dress up once in a while.
What would we find you doing on a quiet Friday night at home (aside from writing)?
Usually a cuddlefest with the hubby and/or movie and game night with the family. We’re homebodies who would rather not fight crowds or traffic and can reconnect after a long work/school week with a lot of laughter, popcorn fights and someone yelling about a bad movie or a cheater who took too many rolls of the dice. LOL
What books/authors have most influenced your life?
I love everything Cherry Adair, Nora Roberts/JD Robb, Suzanne Brockmann, Sandra Brown, Sara Brookes, Lucy Felthouse, SJ Maylee, Cindy Gerard, Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, Cynthia Sax, to name a few. Growing up it was Francine Pascal, Laura Wilder, Shakespeare, Elizabeth Barrett Browning to name a few of my childhood heroes.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I worked for a lawyer all through high school and really loved sitting in on court cases. Being her assistant was an awesome experience. However, I met a guy, had my first child, and found being a mother was more rewarding than anything. I also had an interest in forensic sciences and toyed with the idea of being a cop. But motherhood won in the end. Still does, but I found a great passion for writing that I couldn’t ignore. And now that my kids are getting older and starting to follow their own paths, it gives me more hours to write full time.
Now, about your story, ILLUSIONS. What can you tell us about it?
Illusions is the first of a detective/cop suspense series that I absolutely enjoyed writing. Isabella is a top cop in her precinct, she followed the legacy of her father, doesn’t do commitments, takes now shit from anyone and loves living life on her terms.
Brady is a P.I. who loves the ladies but there is only one woman for him. He and Isabella keep their relationship a secret from their friends and family, both sinking further and further into their need for one another, while also fighting it every step of the way.
There’s murder, kidnapping, a bomb, hurt feelings, complicated relationships, pasts that have a way of altering the future, a Seer whose visions are all too real every time, and a lot of heat between the sheets. Illusions is jam-packed with action, adventure and romance.
What influenced the idea for this story?
Illusions is the first book I ever wrote many years ago, has been revised and this is the third time it’s been released (due to contracts ending or publishing houses closing). The series was inspired by my love of cop shows, wanting to be a detective/lawyer when I was younger – dreams that since changed, and a vast interest in forensic sciences.
What was the most difficult to thing/scene to write in this story?
A lot of the writing was difficult. Isabella was a very difficult heroine to write. I guess she is a lot like me, the pain of the past haunts us both, but overall we’re stronger because of it. Her emotions run deep and it was tough to get beyond that and find what really drove her, peel her back layer by layer to the real woman inside. The heart to heart with her father probably affected me the most.
What makes this couple perfect for one another?
Isabella & Brady balance one another. He’s really laid back and takes things as they come. With his visions he becomes another man and they drive him in a way that nothing else can. Isabella is the opposite – laid back is hardly a part of her vocabulary – and is driven by the need to survive, take down criminals and keep her world safe. Opposites attract!! *g* But they balance one another perfectly.
What do you hope readers take with them after they’ve read this story?
I hope they enjoy the story for the love story, the rough edges of all the characters and the world built. Each character is driven by something heavy and tragic for the most part that needs to be peeled back like an onion. I hope the readers fall in love with the characters as much as I have.
If this book is part of a series…what is the next book? Any details you can share?
Book 2, AWAKENINGS, releases late February 2016. In it, is Alicia Knowles (Isabella’s cousin), who suffers traumatically in ILLUSIONS so we’ll discover more about Alicia and her recovery in her own story. Plus she has a new boss whom she isn’t too keen on working with.
Fun stuff…
Dean or Sam Winchester? Dean preferably, but both if possible! *g*
Wolf or cat shifters? Both.
The Walking Dead or Game of Thrones? GOT! I hate zombies!
Wine or beer? Wine
Coffee or Tea? Tea these days.
What place to travel is on your Bucket List? Ireland is #1 on my list.
Was it love at first sight for you when you met your spouse? Yes. Kind of – see next question. LOL
What did you notice first when you met your spouse? His tush – he was on a ladder. *g* Yes, there’s a story there! *g*
*****
ILLUSIONS
By Kacey Hammell
Book 1: In the Arms of the Law
(also includes bonus short story, TIED DOWN)
Genres: Contemporary, Suspense, Paranormal (Seer), Erotic, Romance
ISBN: 978-0-9877993-3-3
Word Count: 50,000
Release Date: January 20th, 2016
Author’s Note: Illusions was previously released with another publisher. It has received minor revisions for reissue.
Also includes a bonus short story
Protection. Adventure. Love.
It’s all found within The Arms of the Law…
Detective Isabella Knowles, a tough-as-nails cop, lives by the law, and knows what she wants out of life. And it doesn’t include marriage or all that comes with it. Everything Isabella has ever known seems like an illusion when a new relationship makes her feel more alive than ever before. She isn’t happy about it and fights it every step of the way.
Burned by his fiancée years ago, seer and P.I., Brady Jacobs never wants another commitment in his life. But his bachelorhood and heart are threatened when he has one of his visions and see a killer striking too close to the woman he has recently come to love.
Danger lurks close to home and neither Brady nor Isabella like that they can’t control every situation…especially matters of the heart.
Order your copy!
All Amazon Stores ~~ http://authl.it/B01AMVXXDC
Smashwords ~~ https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/607702
Kobo Store ~~ https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/illusions-in-the-arms-of-the-law-book-1
B&N (Nook) ~~ http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/illusions-kacey-hammell/1109677332
iTunes ~~ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/illusions-in-arms-law-book/id1075278656
All Romance eBooks ~~ https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-illusionsinthearmsofthelawbook1-1969737-149.html
*****
Excerpt, Kacey Hammell, © 2016
Replacing the receiver, she sighed, resigned to leave the comfort of her bed. “Got to go to work, Izzy?”
Brady’s voice came from behind her and not for the first time, Isabella wondered if he realized he used so many variants of her name. She had noticed it a lot in the last few weeks but didn’t think he did. Tonight, for some reason, it bothered her more than ever.
When he was driving into her or when they were warm and cozy, sharing a few quiet moments, he called her Bella. She found herself coming to enjoy every time the name rolled off his tongue. It was special to her but she didn’t want to dwell on why at the moment. Instead, she counted off in her head his use of Isabella.
When they were around others, coworkers or just talking in general, he used her full name. At times like this, when interrupted by her job, he used Izzy in a distant, unaffected tone. The tag was starting to grate on her nerves.
She twisted on an angle toward him, unable to keep from caressing his body with her gaze. The sheet only covered his hips and navel, leaving his abs and biceps exposed to her hungry eyes.
What I wouldn’t give for ten more minutes with him tonight.
“Umm, yeah. It was Connor. I have to go. A woman who’s been missing for thirty-six hours was found dead down by the docks.” She headed to her closet as Brady got off the bed.
“Damn. Connor suspects foul play?”
Pulling a denim shirt from her closet and a pair of jeans, Isabella turned to look at him as he grabbed his clothes. Her breath hitched as he covered his tight ass with his Jockeys and jeans. It was a shame to see such perfection hidden.
With a small shake of her head, Isabella pulled herself from her musings and reached into her top dresser drawer for panties and a bra. “Yeah. The woman’s been missing for over a day and from what he said, she’s naked.” Her hands shook as she put on her panties and willed herself to calm down and think it all through.
“Connor didn’t say much else.” Turning her back to Brady, she shook out her jeans, put both legs in and pulled them up. So lost in her thoughts and trying to get a grip on her emotions, she didn’t hear him come up behind her, until he placed his hands on her shoulders.
“Do you want me to go with you, Izzy? I’ll assist in any way I can.”
Touched beyond means by his offer, she turned in his arms. “Thanks, but no.
You know I’ve been through it all before. Don’t make it a bigger deal than it has to be. I’ve seen this kind of thing many times, over and over.”
She sounded like a bitch but couldn’t let the fact they were having sex get in the way of her job. They had an unspoken agreement, no commitments, and let one another do what they had to do, never coddling each other or making bigger issues of anything.
“I know you have, Izzy, but sometimes…. Hell, never mind. It’s cool.” She could tell by the look in his eyes he was frustrated but didn’t want to show it.
Good, let him be pissed, irritated or anything other than caring. She understood he was a man used to taking care of others, but she’d be damned before she leaned on him.
After taking her gun from where it was locked up, she clipped the holster to the waistband of her slacks and adjusted it to where she liked it. Pulling her hair back into a scrunchie, she turned to face her lover, certain she had her emotions in check. “Thanks for coming over tonight. It was, as always, the exact thing I needed.”
For just a moment, she saw an emotion—maybe anger—cross his face, but it was gone so quickly she might have imagined it.
With what looked like a forced smile to her, Brady shrugged. “Always here for you, babe, whenever you have an itch.” His voice held the cold, detachment she was coming to dislike. He grabbed up his leather jacket near the door, but stopped before crossing the threshold. He turned to her, staring at her in a way she had never seen before. “I know you won’t—seriously know you won’t—but if you happen to need me, I’m only a phone call away.”
She couldn’t even ascertain what sensations spread through her body at his words. As she watched him walk out of her bedroom, she could identify only one emotion.
Loss.
Feeling like she was on a tightrope easily broken at any moment, she shook herself of her musings as she heard the front door close. She patted her pockets and sides. Keys, badge, gun. She was ready to face the night ahead. Detective Isabella Knowles, one of Trenton’s finest, was ready to catch the bad guys.
Too bad she couldn’t allow herself to be caught. Love and the badge didn’t mix. For a few short hours she could let her hair down, let her lover drive himself into her body and fill her thoughts.
But she’d never let a man drive himself into her heart. Never.
*****
Avid Reader. Romance Author. Redhead…
Canadian-born author Kacey Hammell is definitely a book-a-holic. A romance reader from a young age, she fell in love with happily ever afters. These days, as a multi- published erotic romance author, she enjoys adding a lot of heat, sass, and emotion to the many genres she writes.
Mom of three, Kacey lives her own happily ever after with her perfect hero in Ontario, Canada.
Connect with Kacey…
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