Longer Than A New York Minute follows a former FBI profiler leading a quiet life on a reservation who finds herself entangled in a case involving a mysterious death labeled as a suicide. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

A series necessitates the task of keeping characters the same but evolving, enhanced, so to speak, but always familiar (relatable) to the reader. They, the characters, should be like us, experience the complexities of real-life issues, new challenges (cases, crimes, and life issues for Sam to solve). Work, love, family, kids, friends, your tribe – these are the small engines that run the big engine of Sam’s work, who she is.

Inspirations from dreams or vice versa come from a subconscious place where everything we’ve experienced during life is filed away, just waiting to be set free. This is the third book of a seven-book series, so the story continues with the same core set of characters – but evolving and being touched by transitional characters that come into their lives, whether personal or because of Sam’s job as Tribal Advocate. These characters become familiar, and their journey reflects real life, unfolding real life similarities – depth. This suspicious death is a dear friend, family, in the deepest emotion. The setup of the story is to show how every day we can be with people, have conversations, laugh with them, really know who they are, and at any moment they can be gone; the fragile life we sometimes take for granted. As a former profiler, Sam feels something is not right and must find out the truth to make sure her friend’s legacy is not tarnished. This is her motivation for truth, justice, and letting her friend rest in peace.

The novel blends crime fiction with romance and domestic life in a way that feels seamless. Did you always envision the mystery and the love story as equally important parts of the narrative?

From the moment I experienced the first dream of this series, I knew the crime/mystery/thriller/multicultural/ romance parts of Sam and Will’s Story were conjoined, and the story had to be told that way. It is also written in first and third person. The consequences always had to be high, the cost higher than what other protagonists have, making her cases have an urgency that balances because of her personal life. The crossover of genres empowers each character; there is no ignoring who they are, what they contribute, and what support they offer Sam in her pursuit of justice, but also what Sam gives them in return. I wanted a crime story that had heart, substance, and one in which the reader can’t wait to see what happens next in the characters’ lives.

Sam’s work counseling survivors of abuse gives the novel a strong emotional and social dimension. What motivated you to explore this issue through her character?

Well, here is where those subconscious life experiences pop out, sometimes pulled out by the very characters I write – they reel in and cull motivation from me. There is so much in the news about abuse, there are people in the Native Community experiencing abuse, Will has a fear of being like his abusive father, though he isn’t, and having been a victim myself, Sam became my flashlight to shine through her work with another look at the problem. But life has many layers, and abuse can be one that triggers others: fear, grief, haunting memories, and can affect relationships by what we are willing to reveal or not reveal. Support from family, friends, and tribe is what gives Sam a foundation to confront all types of heinous things that humans do to each other, but she knows she has a powerful weapon to keep her strong – she has people in her life. Sam also has a wonderful sense of self-deprecation with humor to soften it, as it softens the stories of the crimes she solves. No one can be a person in a vacuum; it does take a village – in this case, a tribe.

What can readers expect from Samantha’s journey in Book 4?

A real in-your-face look at fear and several plots intertwining to take your breath away.
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