VBT# Waves of Deceit - Marlene Sanchez

Today's VBT# is author Marlene Sanchez and her book "Waves of Deceit".

Synopsis: Waves of Deceit- Marlene Sanchez

The Pascual crime family is getting bigger and stronger and taking over more and more of Miami every day. The FBI has been trying to take them down for years, but they can’t seem to make anything stick. Enter former Marine sniper, Agent Michael Walker.

Until age 17 Michael was best friends with Manny Pascual, the heir and current head of the Pascual family. Now the FBI wants him to infiltrate the family he was once a part of in order to collect enough evidence to bring them down for good.

Although it has been more than ten years since Michael has been back to Miami, Manny is more than happy to have his best friend back where he belongs. Not everyone is as happy to see Michael, but one person is secretly thrilled to see him. Bianca Martinez, the family lawyer, can’t keep him out of her head The FBI is closing in, but Michael is becoming more conflicted between his job, his friendship with Manny and the life he missed in Miami. The hot relationship sparking with Bianca complicates things further when he learns Manny wants to claim her as his own.

Will the years of friendship between these three endure as they find themselves between the tightening vice of rivaling families and the hard fist of the law? Or will they all drown in their Waves of Deceit?

Author Guest Post : Marlene Sanchez

The Birth of “Waves of Deceit”

There’s always that question looming over a reader’s head, how do these authors come up with this stuff?! I’m sure some authors have a very colorful tale to tell about how their characters and novels came about. I’ve read a few interesting back stories myself. Now my tale is not super colorful, but it is a little interesting, at least I hope you all think it is.

Waves of Deceit, WoD for short, has been around for awhile, but is finally seeing the light of day with an awesome cover and the proper advertising. Back in 2004, yes that long ago, Harlequin was about to launch a new line. They were calling it Harlequin Intrigue. They announced a contest in order to find authors to write for them. I thought this was the best thing ever! I had read plenty of Harlequin romances, but my writing passion fell more in the crime/mystery/suspense zones. So, Intrigue was going to be right up my alley. All they wanted was a chapter one for their entry. I thought, “well hot damn”, I can write a chapter. So I got my thinking cap on and incorporated what I loved the most into one story, The Godfather and police dramas. Come one now, what better combination than cops and the mob. Well that was my thinking anyway.

A few weeks went by and I can’t remember if I never heard back or if I got one of those, “thanks but no thanks” letters. Regardless, the chapter just sat collecting dust. I posted it on a writing website I was a member of, just to get an opinion because I couldn’t believe Harlequin didn’t like it LOL. How modest of me, right?! Well, te chapter received pretty good feedback which made me feel pretty good. It turned the “I can’t believe they didn’t like it” into “they’re gonna regret not having snatched this up”. Again, my modesty was shining through LOL. Time kept passing and my youngest sister, Kristina, called me one day. She said the chapter needed to be dusted off and I needed to write the story. It was a good start and could really become something. Just do it! How could I say no to my baby sister (still can’t say not to that brat LOL).

I wrote every chance I got. I sat and outlined it all first though. I wanted to be sure I knew where I wanted to go with the story. Of course as I wrote some things changed, but the general idea followed the outline pretty well. I have always been a “manual” person, so this novel was hand written first and then typed in pieces. Again, some changes were made in the typed version. I would sit out on the front porch an hour early to wait for my son’s school bus and just write till my fingers hurt. It was so peaceful and nice out there. That’s how I got the novel finished within a few months. The story would just flow when I sat out in the fresh air, with the sun shining on me.

To make a long story short, well a little shorter anyway, I finished the novel and the rest is history. Of course, I thanked my sister for pushing me to write the novel in my acknowledgements in the beginning of the book. If it wasn’t for her I never would have taken that leap. Now Waves of Deceit is one of my favorites from all the different things I have written and will write. It’s like my first born, very special and dear to me. The characters, in my opinion, are amazing. Their personalities run the gambit from “love to hate them” to “complex and complicated”. Then the storyline, whew is all I can say. There’s plenty of action and a sprinkle of romance. I just hope the readers enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Also, I’m giving you fair warning, I am working on the sequel. I’m calling it Waves of Vengeance and it is close to being complete.