A Clash of Exes

Gina Robinson returns to the Lair with the debut of her new Agent Ex spy series. She'll also chat with us about what we think marriage to a spy would be like.

Welcome, Gina!

Like most writers, I read voraciously and broadly. I've always loved a good spy thriller, whether it be in novel or movie form. As for spy heroes--James Bond, Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan, Jack Bauer, James Clayton--they have a sexy mystique about them. They're handsome, athletic, intelligent, witty, good with a gun, great with their hands, alpha males. What's not to love?

Hmmmm . . . good question. The more I thought about it, the more I realized spies might make great lovers, but do they make great soul mates, partners, and husbands? There are a lot of potential downsides to marrying a spy. Spies are always gone. Always in danger, which can translate to putting those they love in harm's way, too. They're professional liars and they hang out with beautiful fellow female agents as well as femme fatale enemy spies. You never know where they are. They seldom make it home for dinner and when they do, they're often disheveled. They drive like maniacs. And they're always looking over their shoulder.

Thinking what it would be like being married to a spy like Bond sparked the idea for my new Agent Ex series from St. Martin's Press. But because I love Agent 86 Maxwell Smart as well as Bond, I put a lot of humor and lighthearted fun into the books, and poked a little bit of fun at the spy thriller genre.

And while most spy thrillers are written by men for men, I decided it was high time to gear a spy book toward female readers, which means focusing on the romance and the personal relationships of the spies and their love interests.

The books in the Agent Ex series are all reunion books. The "Ex" refers to spouses who are well on their way to being ex spouses. The first book in the series, The Spy Who Left Me, November 2011, takes place in Hawaii. Here's the back cover blurb:

THEY WERE UNDERCOVER LOVERS

If there’s one thing that can ruin a vacation, it’s running into your ex. Just ask Treflee Miller. If she’d only known that her husband Ty would be here in Hawaii—muscular, sun-bronzed, and infuriatingly gorgeous—she would have brought the divorce papers for him to sign. But life is full of surprises when you’re married to a world-class spy…

NOW THEY’RE STRANGERS IN PARADISE

Ty Miller can understand why his wife is tired of playing Mrs. James Bond. He’s never home, he’s always on a mission, and he’s usually surrounded by exotic informants. He has to admit that the perfect spy makes a pretty lousy husband. But for the sake of Ty’s security and Treflee’s safety, they can’t blow his cover. Not here. Not now. Not when his longing is so strong, her lips so tempting—and his enemies so close…

Excerpt:

There are two things a girl would really rather not experience on her Hawaiian vacation—the monthly curse and a run-in with her soon-to-be ex. For the first time since puberty, Treflee Miller had managed to dodge the first. She was staring at all six-foot-two well-muscled, lying, spying, ran-out-on-her inches of the second as he hefted her cousin Carrie’s bags up the steps of the Big Auau Sugar Plantation’s lanai.

He’d bleached his brown hair to a sun-streaked blond and grown a goatee, but it was him. The corner of his mouth curled into that sexy half grin of his and his eyes danced with flirtation as he stared at Carrie, not seeing Treflee.

Treflee flushed, feeling an unexpected jolt of jealousy. Whether she wanted him or not, he was still her man. Her mouth fell open into what was surely an unflattering gape. What was he doing here on her vacation? Shouldn’t he be playing spy boy, not bellhop, on something other than U.S. soil?

Damn! She didn’t have the divorce papers on her. Technically, he wasn’t legally her ex-husband. Yet. He’d run off on another top-secret mission without signing the final paperwork. If only she had them with her, she’d make short work of her still-married status.

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Here's the trailer:

The Spy Who Left Me from Visual Quill on Vimeo.

For more information on Gina and her books, check out her website.

What about you? What do you think it would really be like being married to a world-class secret agent? What upsides and downsides can you imagine? One winner today will receive either Spy Games or Spy Candy (winner's choice) from Gina's backlist.

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Don't forget we kick off Trick or Treat in the Lair with a BIG announcement on October 14. Be sure to join us on this special red letter day and learn the secret the GR is doing his best to uncover. Trick or Treat culminates on October 31 with a special treat--but you'll miss the beginning unless you're here on the 14th!

posted by Nancy

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and made today such fun. The prize copy of Spy Games goes to . . . Judith!


Judith, please email your contact information to me via the link at the top of the Bandit News sidebar, and I'll forward it to Gina. Please put For Nancy and Gina in the subject line.

Congratulations, Judith, and thanks again to everyone else.

Spy Games

Today we welcome romantic suspense author Gina Robinson back to the Lair. What has been happening with you since you joined us last year?

I’ve been writing away and just generally keeping busy with everyday life. Isn’t life funny? It zips by at a million miles a minute, each day so busy and full you feel like you’ll never get everything done. Then someone asks you what you’ve been up to lately and suddenly you just draw a blank. That’s the way I feel right now. I’ve been busy doing everything and nothing, nothing exciting enough to stand out anyway.

My second novel, Spy Games, was released on December 1st. I’m very happy and excited by that. Now I can say I’m a multi-published author .

Your Spy Camp series sounds like a really cool idea. Please tell us how it's structured.

Sure! Basically each book is a standalone single title story featuring a unique cast of characters. What ties the books together is Fantasy Spy Camps, the fictional extreme vacation company I created. Fantasy Spy Camps (FSC) runs a variety of spy-themed camps worldwide. Spy Games takes place at FSC’s Urban Ops camp in Seattle, Washington. The first book, Spy Candy, took place in Arizona. Since each book is a complete story unto itself, they can be read in any order.

Who are the hero and heroine of Spy Games, and what's their main problem?

My heroine is Reilly Peterson. She’s a former college athlete, former sportswear model, and current sportswear company executive. And she has a crazed ex-boyfriend after her. My youngest daughter is tall and athletic. I gave Reilly those physical characteristics, and a similar love of sports, in an effort to portray tall women as sexy and desirable. Even though most supermodels are 5’10” and over, I think it’s all too easy for the average tall woman to feel somewhat less than feminine.

I’ve seen so many tall young women slump, trying to look shorter and more petite, I guess. Instead they end up looking like they lack confidence. I didn’t want my daughter to feel that way, or to feel like she has to wear flats for the rest of her life. My sister, who’s nearly 5’10”, is a great example for my daughter. My sister’s tall, nearly as tall as her husband, yet she loves heels and wears them all the time. She’s confident and proud of her height. I want my daughter to feel that way, too. Woman of all shapes and sizes should have a good body image. Beauty comes in all shapes.

My hero is Van Keller. He’s a wisecracking math professor who just might be more than he seems.

Their main problem is Reilly’s ex-boyfriend and the dead bodies that turn up at camp. Reilly doesn’t believe a math professor is any match for her athletic ex-boyfriend. As a consequence, she tries to distance herself from Van in order to save him from her ex’s wrath.

Can we have a peek inside?

Sure.

Stalked

“You have any dinner plans?” Van asked.

Suddenly, I was one part pleased and nine parts panic. Flirting with Van under the innocent guise of playing basketball was one thing. But going on a date with him, alone, with Ket out there, was suicide. Or murder, depending on who Ket would kill, Van or me. Or both. I looked around at the group. “I don’t know. Have we made any plans?”

Undaunted by my sudden reserve, Van grabbed my hand and pulled the phone away from my ear. “I was thinking, we could make plans. You and me.” He pointed to me and then him. “Just the two of us. Eating together somewhere nice. I have the feeling you’re a local girl. You could suggest somewhere. I could pay.”

I turned to stare at him, my heart melting to mush. “Are you asking me out? Like for a date?”

“Yeah. Like for a date.”

My phone beeped. I had a text message.

The dude 2 ur right wants u. Tell him ur mine. Im watching U.

Oh, spooky! How are your holidays shaping up, and what's next for you?

I’m having a happy, joyful holiday season. This time of year I’m always reminded of my blessings. Already this season I’ve had lots of fun Christmas parties and activities. Just this past weekend my daughter and I hosted a table at a ladies’ Christmas luncheon whose theme was It’s a Wonderful Life. We used my Christmas dishes and designed an angelic centerpiece. Have you ever tried to find a male angel, let alone one that looks like Clarence? In the end, we used a beautiful clear acrylic female angel figure and lit her from beneath with LED lighting. We felt like Martha Stewart for a day.

As for what’s next for me, I have a short story in an anthology coming out in March in the UK and in May in the US. The book’s called The Mammoth Book of Special Ops Romance. My story is “The Lipstick Spy School.” I’m excited to be part of the anthology. There are a lot of great authors in it.

Gina, I envy you having all that lovely decorating done already. And no, I haven't ever tried to find an angel that looked like Clarence from the movie. I'm not surprised it was hard.

Your anthology story sounds great. I'll have an eye out for it.

Gina is giving away a copy of Spy Games to one commenter. So tell us, do you like your spies funny or serious? Who's your favorite spy? Your favorite book or movie involving spies in love?

A Taste of Spy Candy

by Nancy Northcott

Today we welcome Kensington author Gina Robinson into the lair. Gina's celebrating the release of her first novel, Spy Candy. A two-time Golden Heart finalist and a Pacific Northwest Writers Association finalist, Gina will discuss Spy Candy and the long road that brought her to its publication. Welcome, Gina! Tell us a little about your hero and heroine.

Jenna, the heroine, is kind of a librarian archetype. She’s a cautious, conservative banker who doesn’t see herself as attractive. But on the inside, she longs for adventure and has a real thing for all things James Bond and spying. That’s why her best friend gives her a fantasy vacation to spy camp.

Torq, the hero, is an adventurer. He’s one of the instructors at the spy camp and the farthest thing from cautious and shy.

They don't seem to be natural allies. How do they clash at spy camp?

No, they aren’t. At first, Torq just shakes his head at Jenna’s cautious nature and naïve ineptitude during the spy training exercises. He really pushes her to the limits.

Jenna’s actually a little afraid of Torq and his confidence and sex appeal, while at the same time, longing to be more like him.

What draws them together?

Raw animal magnetism! But seriously, at heart, they’re both adventurers. Jenna just needs to realize it.

Here's an excerpt:

Making sure I had his full attention, I slowly unzipped the jumpsuit. Down to the tops of my fake breasts. Pause.

His pen stilled.

Zip. Over the girls, past the hips, down to the crotch. I gave one shoulder a shimmy shake sending the silicone girls bouncing as I stripped the jumpsuit off one shoulder. Then the next. I’d watched Logan’s strip aerobics DVD a time or two and it was coming in handy now as I worked up to the grand finale.

I gave my bottom a healthy wiggle as I scooched the overalls past my hips and stepped out of them, one elongated leg at a time.

His gaze was glued to my crop top. When I looked down, I realized it was plastered with sweat against my body in much the same way as a wet T-shirt clings. I kicked the coveralls into the corner and stepped directly in front of him, feigning trying to get a glimpse of my chart. In reality, I was just giving him a better look down my blouse.

“Hey, you were a real trooper.” His tongue was thick on his words. He was looking down at me. I was looking up at him, standing way too far into his personal space. “Five times isn’t bad. Great big, brave policemen don’t do any better.”

Our gazes locked.

“Thanks.”

He cleared his throat. “You probably better send the next CT in.”

“You’re probably right.” I reluctantly stepped back and turned to leave. I paused at the door to call to him. “Bet no one else is as good as me.” I winked and raced out, giving him a wave over my back, being careful not to turn and let him see the big, fat grin on my face. Let him figure me out.


Tell us about your road to publication.

I waited twelve years for the call. Nearly exactly. I made my first submission in late August of 1995 and got the call on October 4, 2007. During those twelve years I received hundreds of rejections. Along the way, I made every mistake known to writerdom. I started out writing Western historical romance. Just as I began to submit, the bottom fell out of that market. I beat my head against that door for awhile before I gave up and switched to contemporary, then chicklit and that market died. As you can tell, I had great market timing . Finally I wrote romantic suspense.

Back in 1995, there was no internet, not for the general populace, anyway. But as soon as I made that first submission, I just knew New York would be calling me, or maybe even faxing me. Faxing was big back then. Important things were faxed. So even though money was tight, my wonderfully supportive husband bought me a fax machine. I put it on my writing desk...and waited. It was lovely. Very high tech for the times. I liked staring at it and dreaming of the fax that would be coming any day. I started with anticipation whenever it roared to life or the phone rang. Sadly, the only faxes I ever got were a few junk ones and messages from my family and friends. Eventually that first rejection came in the mail, followed by many, many more.

Fast forward twelve years, much jaded cynicism and many close calls later. The fax machine is now in the garage, awaiting antique status. My agent called me on October 3rd. That conversation went something like this:

She said something to the effect of, “Great news! We have interest in the book.”

Me, “Interest?”

Her, “Yes. We have an editor who wants to buy the book. He just has to take it to the editorial committee.”

Me, *heavy internal sigh* I’m thinking to myself, yeah, we’ve been here too many times before. Call me when something interesting happens. Aloud to her, without much enthusiasm, “That’s great.”

Her, sensing my lack of enthusiasm. “You don’t understand. This time the Editor In Chief wants to buy.”

Me, still skeptical, not wanting to hope. “When do you think we’ll hear for sure?”

Her, “A week or two.”

Me, thinking to myself, “That’s agent-speak for months. We’ll be lucky if we hear by the end of the year.”

Less than twenty-four hours later, my agent called me back with an offer. I was so stunned, I could barely speak. My reaction was so understated, she had to ask me if I was happy. You know how we always wonder about ourselves and how we’d react in certain situations? I used to ask myself the eternal question, “If I was on a game show, would I be one of those bouncy, jump-up-and-downers? A crier, maybe?” Now I knew--I was a deer-in-the-headlights. After I hung up, then I started screaming and punching the air in victory with tears of joy flowing down my cheeks. I’m just sorry my agent didn’t get to see all that. Fortunately, I got a chance to tell her later how happy I really was.

That's a wonderful testament to the value of persistence. What's next for you?

My second book, another humorous romantic suspense, will be a December 2009 release from Kensington. Right now, we’re still searching for the perfect title for it. It’s another spy camp story set at a different camp with a completely new cast of characters.

Gina will be be signing books at the Southcenter Borders in Tukwila, WA on Saturday, November 15th from 1PM to 3PM. For more information about Gina and her work, visit her website, http://www.ginarobinson.com/.

What do you like about spy novels? What's your favorite? Have you ever wanted to try your hand at the spy trade, just for a little while? Gina's giving away a copy of Spy Candy to one commenter chosen at random today.