If You Hear Her by Shiloh Walker

By L. Dean Murphy

The scream Lena Riddle hears in the woods behind her house is enough to curdle blood. She has no doubt that a woman is in real danger. Unfortunately, with no physical evidence, the local law officers in small-town Ash, Kentucky dismiss her claim. But Lena knows what she heard—and it fills her with fear and frustration.

Heartthrob Ezra King is on leave from the state police, but he can’t escape the guilty memories that haunt his dreams. When he sees Lena, he is immediately drawn to her. He aches to touch her, to be touched by her. But is he too burdened by his tragic past to get close? When Ezra hears her story of an unknown woman’s screams, his instincts tell him that Lena’s life is also at risk—and his desire to protect her is as fierce as his need to possess her.

Regarding the high-intensity action, bestselling Shiloh Walker said, “Scenes from the night Lena first heard the screams—from her point of view and those of the victim and the killer—pace the story.”

Publishers Weekly said of Walker’s novels: “Romance audiences will simmer breathlessly along with her steamy leading characters….”

RT Book Reviews opined: “Walker has crafted a taut, scary trilogy opener, deftly weaving multiple storylines together for a real nail biter….”

Errant Dreams Reviews said, “If You Hear Her had me on the edge of my seat.”

Walker has been writing for most of her life, and added, “Before I started writing, I was reading stuff like Laura Ingalls Wilder or Bunnicula. My reading habits haven’t changed much since high school—I’m into all genres of romance, urban fantasy, fantasy and science fiction.”

Though some authors spurred Walker’s interest in writing, she said, “That has always been there for me…I’ve always had stories in my head. But the authors who have had the most impact on my writing would be the ones who just take my breath away, be it through craft, characterization, or sheer story-telling genius—authors like Nora Roberts/JD Robb, SL Viehl/Lynn Viehl, and Mercedes Lackey.”

Walker has advice for aspiring writers. “Don’t expect it to be easy…and don’t give up.” Her outline process is simple. “I have point A and a rough idea of where point Z is. And my plan is not to get lost along the way. I don’t plot out anything that would be considered a normal fashion—the story just kind of evolves as I go, for the most part, although I had vague ideas with this one and I pretty much stuck to the plan.”

Walker generally writes straight through, editing as she goes. “I don’t usually rewrite much. I block scenes out in my head as I get close to writing them and by the time I’m there, I’m ready to get it done.” The author has an interesting observation about what helped her career. “I was at a workshop that Dianne Castell gave. She emphasized, Start where the trouble starts. I can’t tell you how helpful that was.”

One of Walker’s readers had an eerie parallel to a plot. “With Fragile, the heroine had been sexually abused. The reader was also a victim. It took her a long time to start healing and when she read my book, it gave her hope. Hearing something like that touches you deeply.”

Nothing specific spurred creation of Walker’s characters. “My characters tend to ‘talk’ to me, live inside my head, and I just give them their voice and let them loose.” To that end, Walker prefers writing a series, as opposed to standalones. Three near-future titles will thrill readers. “The Departed and If You See Her release in January 2012, and If You Know Her is due out in February.”

As for the mechanics of research, forensics and setting, Walker said, “Forensics-wise, I speak to law enforcement professionals, read and hit the ever-present Google. I’m always traveling, but creating setting wasn’t necessary—I used a fictional spot in area that’s pretty local to me.”

*****

Shiloh Walker has been writing since childhood. She fell in love with vampires with the book Bunnicula and has worked her way up to the more “serious” works of fiction. She loves reading and writing anything paranormal, or fantasy, and nearly every kind of romance. Once upon a time she worked as a nurse, but now writes full time and lives with her family in the Midwest. She writes paranormal and contemporary romance, as well as romantic suspense.

The author of more than sixty titles, Shiloh’s recent works include Locked in Silence, Hunter’s Fall, and A Forever Kind of Love. Walker added, “Should you check out If You Hear Her, I’d love to know what you think about it!”

To learn more about Shiloh, please visit her website.