Today it is my pleasure to welcome author Bill Blodgett and his Romantic Suspense novel, Love, Lies, and Bad Guys.

Author’s description:

When US Marshal Jay Stonewalker sees a possible terrorist comment in a chatroom frequented by anti-government radicals suggesting a nuclear threat to New York City, specifically the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, he can’t get it out of his mind. Against his boss’s orders he heads off to NYC to investigate on his own time. While there he follows a suspicious character into a secluded recess of the New York Subway system and foils what he believes is the terrorist event.  In a shoot-out with his suspect he’s wounded and calls the NYC PD for backup.  When he sees NYPD Detective KC Daviau and other uniformed officers slipping into the darkness from the subway platform he’s relieved, but to his surprise he’s met with resistance and disrespect by Detective Daviau.

Against his objections, KC takes custody of the evidence and leaves the scene. When Jay asks an officer if she is always that way he’s told that, “Since her parents died, she’s been… let’s say… a little cold.”   When they are assigned to work the case together,  KC’s icy exterior soon begins to melt away as they begin to fall for each other, but KC has to hold back. She has a dark secret and knows he can’t ever know her truths because if he did he would hate her just as she hates herself for what she’s about to do.

A Special Guest Post from Author Bill Blodgett:

Love, Lies and Bad Guys involves a terrorist plot so I asked Bill Blodgett if he was apprehensive when he did the research to write about terrorist threats. Here is is fascinating answer:

At first I wasn’t. It seemed like researching any other book. I found out about the Native Americans, who were labeled Downwinders because they were exposed to nuclear fallout that was carried downwind after the tests of the atomic bombs in the 1940’s through the early 1960’s in Nevada. Many Downwinders developed various kinds of cancer due to the exposure. Then I contacted several leaders in the Native American community and asked for their input and they were very willing to share what information they had, especially after I told them my wife was part Native American. It was all very natural and a great learning experience.

Then I researched nuclear power plants near New York City, and it was again very natural. It’s then the research began to get serious. I researched the subway system of NYC looking for easy points of access. Then I looked into dirty bombs and what they were made from and how to make them. After that I researched how Homeland Security and other agencies monitored for possible terrorists. I had to create a world that would be believable to the reader, whether they were techno savvy or not. That led to the dark web and dark web browsers that would hide these would be terrorist’s identity and location. Then, of course, the research demanded that I look into Virtual Private Networks, VPN’s. VPN’s also hide your identity by masking where you are logged in from.

They say that curiosity killed the cat and I was beginning to be concerned that I was on that slippery slope, but I felt I needed to continue.  I guessed the searches I was conduction on Google contained certain words that would be flagged by law enforcement and I was just waiting for Homeland Security to be at my doorstep any day! In a way it was kind of scary, even though I knew I wasn’t doing anything illegal, but I would have to explain and they’d probably seize my computer, freeze my bank accounts and put me on the “No Fly” list until the matter got settled in maybe five to ten years!!

I downloaded TOR, the most popular dark web browser, but didn’t bother to purchase a VPN from any of the popular venders that can be found online these days. The TOR browser is a dark web search engine much like Google, but it hides your identity and location by jumping for one “node” or location to another all around the world. This was all new to me. Interesting, but a little weird.

So after researching the use of TOR I went online and searched for random things and the lists of providers was immense and most were selling something illegal, from drugs to chat rooms about any subject you could ever dream of. At that point I figured that maybe I was in a gray area of legality and consorting with questionable characters from around the world. Yes, I was just lurking in those chatrooms, but I was still there! I knew I had enough knowledge about the Dark Web to write about it so I uninstalled TOR. Then I began to write Love, Lies, and Bad Guys!

Bill Blodgett tells us a little about himself:

I still live in the community where I met and married my lovely wife, Janice. Actually, she lived around the corner from me and we both ignored each other until our teen years when the hormone thing kicked in and we suddenly realized that the cute little girl skipping rope and that goofy boy riding a bike had both grown up.

We are the proud parents of April and Lindsay; both of whom are now married. April married Darren and they have two beautiful boys, Brian and Owen. Lindsay married Tim and they have two beautiful children: Kailyn and Evan.

I enjoy hiking, kayaking, camping with my family, golfing, making candles, and restoring my antique European sports car, a 1972 MGB.

They say to write from what you know, so I do. I write of love, life and relationships. In addition to the romantic plot we all expect from a Romance novel all of my books deal with a real-world issue as a sub-plot  that we all have had to deal in some manner in life, but not in a preachy way.  I find that including this sort of theme helps me identify with my characters on a personal level. My hope is that the reader will also feel that connection with my characters.

I have four other published novels. Dead Or A Lie and Saint’s Sword are vampire Romances. Unrequited is a contemporary novel with romantic elements and received 4 stars from Romantic Times Book Review magazine. The Last Prejudice is a family saga that deals with the issues a family must address when a family member comes out.

I have been a member of the RWA and the Central New York Romance Writers since 2004 and have held various posts in my local group. By day I am a construction inspector for an engineering company.

Find the Bill Blodgett on Facebook, or on Twitter. 

Visit him on his website,or email him at bill@billblodgett.com.

 Buy Love, Lies, and Bad Guys on Amazon.

 Buy Love, Lies, and Bad Guys at Barnes and Noble

Yes, there is a giveaway.

Bill Blodgett will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble gift certificate to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Enter here to win.

This post is part of a tour sponsored by Goddess Fish. Check out all the other tour stops. If you drop by each of these and comment, you will greatly increase your chances of winning.

My Favorite Excerpt:

“I was surprised to see you had body art.”

“It isn’t body art. It is my belief. I guess that’s why I don’t show them.  It’s personal. They are of my Goddess, Mother Earth and the symbol of our tribe, the mighty eagle. The Mother Earth Tree Goddess demonstrates the circle of life. Where all things on land, air and water are connected. They are all one. If one element is removed, the tree will wither and die. We believe that it is the same for people. We must be as one or we will all eventually suffer. The Eagle is our symbol for bravery, something that is essential to take on such a derêp.” He saw her puzzled look and continued before she could speak. “Derêp is our word for job or chore. The Eagle is dedicated to protecting our tribe, which is a very difficult job. I use his image to remind myself each day that my task is difficult and not to falter.  If you were just another chick, maybe I’d say they were body art, but I want to share that part of me with you.”

“So…” she teased. “How many other chicks have admired your body art?”

He laughed lightly with maybe a hint of a gallows laugh, “Not as many as you might guess.”

A Personal Note:

My own novel, One of One, involves a terrorist plot to blow up a plane. Like Author Bill Blodgett, I wanted to have my facts correct and my plot realistic. I went after the information I needed the same way we all do; I searched for it on the internet. Somewhere in the middle of seeking facts about explosives and the sturdiness of aircraft it occurred to me I could be attracting attention. The last thing I wanted was to find myself on a no fly list for the rest of my life. (I do love to travel …)

I was fascinated to learn Bill Blodgett went through much of the same process, and also found himself in places on the web which gave him pause. I thank him for being a good sport and providing such a thorough and interesting answer to my question!