USA Today bestselling author Jennifer L. Hart

Happy Valentine's Day! Hope you all get to spend some quality time with the ones you love today! Speaking of which...Happy reading! Camaro incident aside, I enjoyed a very typical childhood. My father managed a small hardware store outside of Richmond, which did a brisk business in the days before Home Depot. My mother worked as lunch lady at our school, which gave her summers off and allowed her the freedom to see my brother Marty and I on and of the bus every day. Marty and I were constantly at war, the way in which only truly devoted siblings can be. I saran-wrapped the toilet seats in the boys locker room and pinned the blame on him. He set loose a flock of monarch butterflies, which my fourth grade class had been studying, and pointed the finger at me. I was punished for both offenses because no one believed a lowly second grader could pull off either stunt without being caught. Of course, if anyone else ever messed with my bratty little broth...

Wahoo! I'm hip, I'm with it....ducka ducka ducka... Props to any who recognize the quote. ;-) Kay, so now I have to tell you seven things about me. 1. I'm a total introvert offline. Talking to strangers makes me sick to my stomach. 2. I named my beagle after my Laundry Hag heroine. 3. I was awarded most dramatic in highschool even though I was never in a play. 4. My favorite show of all time is Firefly. 5. My music taste is eclectic, I listen to country, metal, classical and blues. But I'm also picky, unlike my audiofile husband. 6. I've moved ten times in my life, five since I got married in 2001. 7. I once caravaned across the US with my husband and 18 month old son from California to Florida and then up the coast to New York in less than a week. Thanks to Laurie Green and Spacefreighters Lounge for the award! Now, to pay it forward!

Continued from the earlier Maggie story. What would Magnum P.I. do? Two distorted shapes were visible through the tinted windows. I moved off to the side and found a huge stick. Ducking beneath the windows, I held the stick over my head then reached for the door handle. The door was heavy, but the adrenaline pumping through my plump form gave me superhuman strength. As I flung the door back I closed my eyes and shouted, “Get outta here varmint or I’ll string you up by your lily-livered hide!” “What the fuck !” I jumped and dropped my stick as I beheld the naked backside of the car’s owner. My mouth hung open and if I swallowed a few flies, I wouldn’t be surprised. I looked from him to the equally bare front of his partner in crime. Her wide eyes held a mixture of shock and mortification while his face was red from exertion and fury. “Get the hell out of here, you stupid blob!” he roared at me. I knew I should have listened,...

I'm buried up to my armpits in my new mystery. The way I write is somewhat...unusual. I don't adhere to a strict outline, I don't always know what's going to happen next and sometimes I write scenes to nowhere. But just because they don't have much to do with the current story doesn't mean I dislike them. I always wonder what to do with these extra little tidbits. And hey, what do you know, I have a blog! So for all you Maggie fans out there, thought you might like a glimpse of her childhood. I'll be posting some of these snippets over the next few weeks, just so you don't forget about me while I'm busy crafting! Chapter 1:- Ahhh, the good ol days... A long time ago in a commonwealth far far away… I, Maggie Phillips, was engaged to a jackass. For the sake of discretion I will only refer to him as The Jackass, or in more magnanimous moments, that rat bastard. Said jackass was the older brother of my childhood BFF, Justine. She’s th...