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High-Octane Action and Romance
In Escape, a couple makes a connection, but they are prevented from exploring a relationship when a missile strike devastates the country and thrusts them both into dangerous circumstances. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
The inspiration for Escape came from a vivid nightmare. I woke up with my heart racing and scrambled to find something to write on. In the dream, my main character, Beth, was being swept away by a fast-flowing river, desperately fighting to keep her head above water. As Beth struggled, she questioned why she was even trying to survive, leading her to make a profound choice. This moment haunted me, and as I scribbled the thought, ‘Why does she want to die?’ on paper, I realized this scene would become the heart of my story. From there, I built my post-apocalyptic romantic thriller around Beth’s journey of survival and inner turmoil.
What draws you to the adventure fiction genre?
My love for adventure fiction began when I discovered the first Mad Max film at a Blockbuster video store. I was young and impressionable, and the intensity of that world pulled me in. From there, I fell in love with franchises like Indiana Jones and Star Wars, which not only deliver high-octane action but also weave in elements of romance. The blend of danger, exploration, and human connection in these stories has always fascinated me, and it’s what continues to draw me to the genre as both a reader and a writer.
Do you have a favorite scene in this story? One that was especially enjoyable to write?
Yes, one of my favorite scenes is when the reader first sees the compound, Reed, the morning after my main characters arrive. Two characters sit across from each other, locked in a battle of wills, while nearby two others play chess. I had written myself into a corner, needing a way to defuse the tension without violence. I loved the parallel between the battle at the table and the chess game, both strategic and intense. Then, out of nowhere, two more characters—Hoss and Donovan—appeared in the scene. At the time, they were just names on paper with no backstory, but their presence felt right. Hoss, the lighthearted one, and Donovan, the serious, controlled counterpart, formed an instant bond. They mirror each other in fascinating ways, and their friendship unexpectedly became the backbone of the series. Creating their dynamic was a turning point, not just for this scene, but for the direction of the entire series.
Can you give us a glimpse into book 2 in the Haven Series? Where will it take readers?
In book two of the Haven Series, the lingering question of ‘Where is Sadie?’ finally gets explored. While others have made it to Haven, Sadie’s journey has taken a different path. Unlike Beth, Sadie is confident and clear about what she wants in life, but that doesn’t mean her path will be easy. Her journey is full of unexpected challenges, and the theme that emerges is that life rarely unfolds the way you plan. While the journey may feel familiar, it’s Sadie’s strength and determination that set her apart, making her story compelling in its own right.
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At the dawn of the apocalypse, a naïve, but resourceful woman must fight her way through nature, humankind and herself to reunite with her family.
Beth has cocooned herself in routine after a devastating family tragedy upended her world years ago, but a chance encounter with a Marine named Ryker sends ripples through her carefully guarded world. He is smitten. She is unsure.
The city is thrown into chaos when a missile strikes near Spokane, testing Beth’s newfound optimism. As strife escalates, Beth must lead her friends on a perilous journey to her uncle’s farm in Idaho–a place she avoids.
Armed with only a vague location, Ryker embarks on a high-stakes quest, risking everything to find Beth in a world teetering on the edge of turmoil and anarchy.
Amidst the relentless pursuit of survival, Beth and Ryker each navigate landscapes fraught with unpredictability. Will their paths converge again? And will doing so bring them to safety…or closer to danger?
Join Beth on a gripping odyssey through adversity and uncertainty. In the end, will her resilience and indomitable spirit prevail against all odds?
This is the first book in the apocalyptic survival thriller series by Tracy Myhre.
Escape
Escape (Haven Series, Book One), by Tracy Myhre, is a post-apocalyptic romantic thriller set in the not-too-distant future, in 2027. The story unfolds across Washington State and Idaho, where Beth, a diner dishwasher in Spokane, meets Ryker Kensington, a recently discharged Marine looking for work. There’s an immediate connection between them, but before they can explore their relationship, a series of coordinated missile strikes devastate the nation, thrusting them into a chaotic new world. As Beth embarks on a perilous journey to reach her uncle’s doomsday prepper compound, Haven, in Idaho, Ryker must navigate the dangerous landscape to find her in a society on the verge of collapse.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The plot was engaging and maintained my interest from beginning to end. The way Myhre starts the story in the midst of Beth’s ordinary life, from working at the diner to spending time with friends, adds a strong foundation before the chaos hits. The transition from everyday normality to the life-threatening aftermath of the missile strikes felt natural and intense, heightening the stakes as Beth and her friends make a desperate escape from Spokane. I appreciated that the narrative didn’t simply drop readers into a post-apocalyptic world; instead, we experience the dramatic shift alongside the characters. The contrast between Beth’s life before and her fight to survive in the violent new reality was well-executed, and it gave depth to her character. Beth’s mix of strength and vulnerability made her relatable, and watching her adapt to this grim situation kept me invested throughout. One of my favorite aspects of the book is how the tension builds. There’s an urgency in the way the world unravels around Beth, yet the pacing allows space for character development. Her journey from Spokane to Haven isn’t just a race for survival but a gradual transformation as she faces increasingly dangerous situations.
Myhre strikes a good balance between the action and Beth’s emotional growth, making the story compelling beyond just its plot twists. The early chapters introduce a large number of characters, and I felt that keeping track of who was who became difficult at times. The complex web of relationships, especially in a fast-paced survival scenario, was occasionally overwhelming. I feel it would have been helpful if the family trees, which provide clarity on the character connections, had been placed at the beginning of the book rather than at the end. I feel might have made understanding the character dynamics smoother from the start.
Escape is a thrilling and emotional ride through a post-apocalyptic world that feels all too real. If you enjoy fast-paced, high-stakes survival stories with a mix of romance and suspense, this book is for you. The combination of relatable characters, a gripping plot, and the looming threat of a shattered society makes this a strong start to the Haven series. I’m already looking forward to diving into Flee (Haven Series, Book Two), which focuses on two of Beth’s friends, Sadie and Liam, as they navigate their own struggles in this fractured world.
Pages: 432 | ASIN : B0CW19QR5H
A War for Resources
The Long Haul follows a woman trying to stop a domineering corporation that is controlling essential resources such as food and water from the population. I think this original idea is intriguing. How did you come up with this idea and develop it into a story?
The worries about resources, including necessities like food and water aren’t new. As the population continues to increase, there will be more pressure to control food and water. Some of the mega-corporations that already exist could become like GreenCorps if the world/country was faced with the collapse of civilization and a war for resources. One of the stories I often read to my fifth-grade class is Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix. The society in that book was changed by famines caused by the climate crisis and a government that took advantage of that fear to restrict people and access to food. At some point, I also read an article about the real-life seed vaults that exist to protect the genetic diversity of plant species…these ideas must have connected in my mind.
Were you able to relate to your characters while writing them?
As I write characters, I get to know them and relate to them more as the story goes on. As I relate to them more, I go backward and add details to hopefully flesh them out as individuals. As I write, the characters speak in my mind and hopefully, I do them justice on the pages.
I felt that there were a lot of great twists and turns throughout the novel. Did you plan this before writing the novel, or did the twists develop organically writing?
I make a bare-bones plan or outline before I write, but I change a lot as the story progresses. For example, I didn’t plan Mason being in love with Caitlyn. Learning that about him changed a lot of the story from the point of its discovery. Much of the plot development comes as I write and the characters become more real to me. While I write forward, I also write backward as inspiration strikes. I am constantly moving in both directions in my manuscript.
Can you tell us where the book goes and where we’ll see the characters in the next book?
The characters have not finished their fight and will return to GreenCorps-controlled lands in the third book in the trilogy, Rebels and Saints: Catching Freedom, which will be published on April 19th, 2025 by Black Rose Writing.
I am also in the planning stages for a potential spin-off story about Tatsuda and Ginger and what the future holds for them in the new world they help to create.
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Elsa has the key to the Doomsday seed bunkers and taking it north to Canada is the only way to ensure its safety.
The rebels send help, but her group is betrayed before their departure. Fleeing in the night, Elsa and her friends disappear into the mountains, only one step ahead of GtreenCorps soldiers.
In Denver, Ginger, the sheltered daughter of the GreenCorps leader, hops a train, escaping her lonely existence imprisoned in her father’s mansion. Encountering hardship and devastating thirst, Ginger experiences the disparity between the starving, oppressed populace, and her life of privilege.
Rescued by Elsa’s group, she vows to help break the corporation’s stranglehold.
As the GreenCorps henchmen close in, the race with the key becomes desperate. If caught, Elsa and her found family face life imprisonment, or worse, execution –their one chance to change their world, lost forever.
Continue the journey from Switching Tracks, a thrilling dystopian train-hopping adventure.
Explore the Gray
The Relic Revolver follows a man whose hometown is attacked by demonic forces and winds up going through an interdimensional door, landing in a realm between heaven and hell. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
I am in my eleventh year working on the world and storyline for this series that will span eight books. The original inspiration for the story came to me years ago. While watching and reading tons of fantastical adventures in big worlds, I realized that there was a lack of those that were hopeless, dark, and scary. There are so many worlds with bright environments, fun times, bubbly characters, and grand adventures, but I wanted to explore the gray. I wanted to create a world where even the ultimate good turned out to be corrupt. My design for Jack followed that idea. The idea that a man who has killed bounties his entire life had been given the responsibility of the future of the mortal realms was intriguing and really got me excited to explore the human condition and the true way of the world. We are all flawed, and nothing is what it seems. There are so many tiny inspirations that helped me create this epic adventure; from the relationships/conversations of The Guardians of the Galaxy (that inspired me to keep wry humor even in intense situations) to the constant action in the Witcher series that pushes Geralt through unthinkable situations. Another that I have to mention is the incredibly descriptive nature of Tolkein’s environments.
I find the world you created in this novel brimming with possibilities. Where did the inspiration for the setting come from and how did it change as you were writing?
The original idea for my settings were post-apocalyptic western towns that were unaware of the destruction and loss of technological advances because of the wars between Heaven and Hell. I designed 148 cities brimming with life that each have different types of government, cultures, and recorded histories. I will definitely never make it close to exploring all of those in my writing, but the world actually exists around where I am writing now. Cities bustle even though readers may never experience them, which gives me even more perspective to explore struggles in the world as well as the internal conflicts of the characters. As I planned, my world grew exponentially spanning across realms and even time. It took a lot of work, but I am excited for every reader to get lost in this place that has been alive to me for so long.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
I felt like creating an array of different personalities that have gone through similar circumstances allowed me to explore loss, love, fear, and courage. Looking at these themes through divergent looking glasses affects readers very differently. A gentler soul may connect instantly with Shadow and experience growth with him, while a more cynical person may be inspired by Jack’s journey. I wanted to tackle those themes through different characters with different struggles that relate to a lot of what we actually go through emotionally in the world around us. Ultimately I wanted to explore the foundational idea that sometimes evil deeds end with good results and vice versa. I feel like there is definitely inspiration for the reader by connecting with my characters. I have spent years on the development and growth and I am so proud of the results so far.
Where does the story go in the next book, and where do you see it going in the future?
The beautiful thing about this question is that I have designed a world with thousands of years of history, that is full of cities, adventure, round characters, and untapped mysteries that are sure to excite. The series is designed to run for eight books, but there is so much more to explore and tell. The second book called, The Cursed Amethyst continues right where The Relic Revolver ends and ramps up the action. I can’t say too much at this point about it, but what I will reveal is that the crew does go to Hell in this one. I am on track to release The Cursed Amethyst this November, and I could not be more excited. The immense size and scope of this universe creates endless possibilities for more adventures that even I cannot wait to explore.
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Heaven’s Throne is a heroic tale of a selfish bounty hunter turning from a cold heartless killer to the savior of the mortal realms. In this epic tale, everything matters, everything connects, and nothing is what it seems.
LITERARY TITAN 