ABOUT THE BOOK
When Ashley Lambert, a top student athlete, jumps eighteen stories to her death it's a clear-cut suicide, but why pushes her parents to hire the PI team of Griff Cole and Britt Callahan. When the investigation veers toward performance enhancing drugs and blackmail, coaches, students, even her parents come into question. But Britt’s getting sidetracked by their new neighbor. Rhea McKenzie has bruises on her arms and is mourning the disappearance of her one-year-old son. Griff tells Britt to stay out of the neighbors' business and focus on their case. But Britt is sure there's more than one case at hand. And when she sees Rhea in the shadows at the local day care, she’s knows her neighbor has a secret. An off-hand comment links the two cases, a so begins a chain of events that will destroy Ashley’s family and suck Britt into a life-threatening alliance.Book Details
Title: Scar Tissue
Author: Patricia Hale
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Intrigue Publishing (September 1, 2018)
Print length: 194 pages
On tour with: Partners in Crime Book Tours
INTERVIEW WITH PATRICIA HALE
Q: Patricia, what’s the story behind the title of your book?
A: The title, Scar Tissue, comes from Stephen King’s, Mr. Mercedes. In the book, he says, “That’s all history is, scar tissue.” All of my characters are damaged from the experiences they’ve had in their pasts. These “scars” they carry are at the root of their destructive behavior and lay the groundwork for the plot and outcome of the story. It seemed a fitting title.
Q: Tell us about your series. Is this book a standalone, or do readers need to read the series in order?
A: All of the books in the Cole & Callahan series can be read as standalones. They contain the same characters, but each book is a different case. In the first book, The Church of the Holy Child, Cole and Callahan face a serial killer whose focus is the local women’s shelter and a priest who is hearing the killer’s confession, but must choose between his vows and women’s lives. In Durable Goods, Britt goes undercover inside a religious refuge to look for a missing teen. But things aren’t what they seemed and when she loses contact with Griff and is trafficked over the Canadian border, it’s up to her to find the girl and get out.
Q: Where’s home for you?
A: I live in Standish, Maine, though I grew up in Marblehead, Massachusetts.
Q: If you had an extra $100 a week to spend on yourself, what would you buy?
A: I’d go to a Bikram yoga class. I do yoga DVDs at home every morning, but it would be fun to go to a Bikram class. Especially on a cold winter day.
Q: What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
A: Don’t take critiques/reviews personally. They are not about you as a person. They are about your work. Use them as learning tools.
Q: What do you love about where you live?
A: Being close to my children and grandchildren is the best part about where I live. I also have walking trails nearby to hike with my dogs and a lake within a mile for swimming and kayaking. I love New England’s changing seasons although I wouldn’t mind shorter winters.
Q: Have you been in any natural disasters?
A: We had a mini-burst go through our yard once. It’s a small tornado. It began with driving rain that came against the house sideways because the wind was so strong. I could hear the trees outside beginning to crack. It was extremely frightening because I couldn’t see outside at all due to the rain, so I had no way of knowing in what direction the trees were going to fall. I only heard the cracking and then a thunderous sound when they hit the ground. Three, huge pine trees came down in our yard. One across the car, one five feet from our front door and one across the front yard. The whole thing only lasted about 2-3 minutes, but it was very scary.
Q: Sounds like it! What’s one thing that you wish you knew as a teenager that you know now?
A: I wish I had taken school more seriously, but I was more interested in the social scene than academics. I wish I’d understood the importance of an education and a career.
Q: What choices in life would you like to have a redo on?
A: I would have finished college the first time around. I did go back and finish in my forties (MFA degree), but I wish I’d done the full four years right after high school. I would have completed my degree in zoology/wildlife management and been a researcher and writer on a specific species of animal.
Q: What makes you nervous?
A: Doing promotional stuff for my books. I love sitting quietly and writing, but when it comes to public speaking or book signings or conference panels, I get very nervous. I’m an introvert.
Q: What makes you happy?
A: Doing what I love, writing, being in the woods with my dogs and time with family.
Q: What makes you scared?
A: Bears. I do a lot of trail hiking/walking alone with my dogs. I have bells on the dogs and I carry a taser. I’ve only run into a bear once and that was during an early morning (5 a.m.) walk in my neighborhood. The dogs started barking, and he left the trash behind and ran into the woods.
Q: Yikes! What are your most cherished mementoes?
A: I have three items that I cherish most. Each was handmade by one of my children. One is a clay bust that my daughter made in high school. One is a clay replica of my son’s hand and one is a cardboard house made by my other son in elementary school that says, “Pat Hayes Publishing” (my maiden name). These all have prominent places in my office.
Q: Would you rather be a lonely genius, or a sociable idiot?
A: As an introvert, I’d be a lonely genius.
Q: What’s one of your favorite quotes?
A: “Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” -Anton Chekov
Q: If you could live anywhere in the world, where in the world would it be?
A: I’m pretty content in Maine. It has mountains, ocean, lakes, four seasons, and family. I’d love to travel the world, but Maine is home.
Q: What would you like people to say about you after you die?
A: I would like to be remembered as kind, thoughtful and patient. Qualities I strive for, don’t always achieve, but try.
Q: What’s your favorite line from a book?
A: I don’t know about a line. There are far too many to choose just one, but my favorite chapter from a book is the chapter on the Christmas pageant from the book, A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving. I’ve never laughed so hard while reading a book.
Q: Are any of your characters inspired by real people?
A: Not a complete character, but I’ve used quirks from people I know. A dear friend I used to work with smoked Honey Berry cigars and always (unsuccessfully) tried to hide it from her husband. I liked the idea and gave the same vice to Britt.
Q: Are you like any of your characters?
A: I suppose I have some of Britt’s characteristics. I’m impulsive like Britt and tend to act before I think things through. I’m impatient, not so much with others, but with myself. I need to do things fast.
Q: Who are your favorite authors?
A: Stephen King, because of his writing style. I’m not a big sci-fi fan, but I read his other work. He speaks directly to the reader, straightforward, never pretentious. His writing flows so easily, I don’t even feel like I’m reading. Also Greg Iles, rich characters. Lionel Shriver, great intensity, great writing.
Q: What book are you currently reading and in what format?
A: Velocity by Dean Koontz in paperback. I’m also reading MEG: A Novel of Deep Terror. on my Kindle. My husband keeps laughing at me, but I’m obsessed with shark movies and want to read it before I see the movie The Meg. Jaws is still one of my favorite movies.
Q: What’s one pet peeve you have when you read?
A: When a writer isn’t credible. With the internet, research is quick and easy. I also stop reading a book if it’s too unbelievable. I don’t mean, sci-fi or fantasy, that’s the genre, but fiction that has a character acting in a way that isn’t believable in order to forward the plot.
Q: Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?
A: I have to write first thing in the morning. I go right to my computer when I wake up, stopping to brew coffee, of course. I work until early afternoon, by then my brain is slowing down. In good weather I like to sit outside, but most of the time I’m in my office at my desk.
Q: What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received about your writing?
A: A woman once told me that she’d borrowed my book from the library. She liked it so much that she went to the store and bought all three because she wanted to own them.
Q: That is quite a compliment. What’s the worst thing someone has said about your writing?
A: I submitted a manuscript to an agent about fifteen years ago. She said the plot/story was excellent, but my writing wasn’t good enough. At the time, it hurt, and I stuck the manuscript in a box under my desk. But it’s always been in the back of my mind because I liked the story and the characters.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’ve decided it’s time to pull out the manuscript I took out of the box beneath my desk. I have much more experience now so I’m going to do a re-write and bring it back to life. Hopefully, I’ll have better luck this time around.
It’s the story of a tragic accident involving two families. The effects on their friendship, marriages and children are brought to light as they await the impending trial and cover up truths that promise irreparable damage.
OTHER BOOKS BY PATRICIA HALE
The Church of the Holy Child (Book #1 Cole & Callahan Series)Durable Goods (Book #2 Cole & Callahan Series)
In the Shadow of Revenge (2013)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Patricia Hale lives in Standish, Maine with her husband. She is a graduate of the MFA program at Goddard College, a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance, and the NH Writers Project. When the computer is off, you can find Patricia on the sideline of her grandsons’ sporting events or hiking the trails near her home with her German shepherd and one very bossy Beagle.
Connect with Patricia:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
Buy the book:
Amazon | Bookbub
