Requiem for Miriam follows a young detective with a hidden psychic gift as finds herself in mortal danger from the man she’s hunting. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?

When I was young, I briefly thought about going into law enforcement (specifically, undercover work as a detective). Growing up, I was intrigued by classic television shows involving strong women in law enforcement, including Charlie’s Angels, Policewoman, and Murder She Wrote as was my character Maria Rodriguez. Rather than make the lead detective a man (with men being the majority of lead detectives in the 1980s) in charge of finding the murderous Sidney Friedlander, I wanted the lead detective in the case to be a woman and someone of color, as it’s essential to include as much diversity in my novels as possible.

Your characters are fascinating and well developed. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?

Writers, from time to time, including myself, are inspired by actual events that occurred. The story of Miriam and Sidney Friedlander was inspired by the Sunny Von Bulow case back in the 1980s. At that time, my husband and I lived in New York, so naturally, the news was filled with the events surrounding the murder of the wealthy heiress and the husband confessing to the killing of his wife. Despite the Von Bulow’s being the typical New York “WASPS” (white Anglo-Saxons), I wanted to represent the Jewish community as New York has a large Jewish community. I worked for a Jewish boss and had many Jewish friends who introduced me to the customs, traditions and life celebrations of the Jewish community. I wanted my main characters (Sidney and Miriam) to be anything but the typical gentile couple. The other characters (Maria Rodriguez & Raphaella ) were inspired by people I met while I lived in New York. One was a strong, very vocal, and opinionated Haitian woman I worked with, and the other was an equally strong, proud, and beautiful Puerto Rican-American woman I befriended while studying at FIT (The Fashion Institute) in Manhattan. The Haitian character Raphaella appeared in my first novel, “The Darkest Gift.” She is one of my favorite characters and interesting enough to be included in two of my books!

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

My novel’s themes included love, devotion, deception, jealousy, rage, revenge, adversity, and justice.

What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?

My next novel is called “Transplant – The evil that dwells within,” which is the story of a young woman (Elizabeth Bennington) who was born and struggled with a congenital heart condition. Her life is further complicated by being bullied in school, leading to depression and attempted suicide. Being institutionalized, including therapy. Meeting the man of her dreams, having a child which strains her health, requiring a heart transplant with the donor being unknown, leading to destructive urges that overcome Elizabeth as if she’s being possessed by the donor who turns out to have been a serial killer. It should be released by January or February of 2023.

Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website