Not long ago, I had an interesting
conversation with a male reader about women characters taking the lead in the thriller
genre. He’s been around the block a time or two, and is a voracious thriller
reader who has read tons of both traditionally and indie published thrillers,
and I value his opinion. He’d just been introduced to Leine Basso, the
protagonist in my second series, and mentioned in passing that Leine was what
he deemed a “tough broad” and, although the protagonist’s domain in traditional
thrillers has typically been a men’s-only club, he thoroughly enjoyed reading
about a woman who was as tough and accomplished as any male character.
And
that got me thinking.
Obviously, not me :-D .(Seriously. You do not want to see me try to run in heels. Or maybe you do–it’s pretty hilarious…the things I do for research.)
The Body Market, my third Leine Basso thriller, ticks all those
boxes. Like I said, I want to read about women who can take care of themselves
physically as well as mentally, and I figured a former assassin would be an
intriguing character to explore. In the first book of the series, Serial Date, we’re introduced to Leine
as she’s trying to escape her old life and live a somewhat normal existence. Of
course, I couldn’t let that happen and she’s dragged back in, having to fall
back on her “talents” in order to save her daughter.
The second book in the
series, Bad Traffick, brings her more
in line with finding her true calling when she joins forces with an
anti-trafficking organization, and The
Body Market (#3), takes things even further. In all 3 books, I delve into
how difficult it is for Leine to let go and love someone because of the guilt
she feels for having worked as a hired killer by exploring her relationships, including
her attraction to LAPD homicide detective, Santiago Jensen. Leine has her own
reasons for mistrusting pretty much everybody, and Santiago has a hard time
reconciling the fact that she used to kill people for a living.
Yeah, there’s a little
tension there.
When I put out the request
to my friends for a recommendation on strong female leads who kick butt (call
me twisted, but I LOVE it when a woman defends herself physically in books and
movies, and comes out on the winning end of things) and are as accomplished as
a traditional male thriller character but has some depth, I got several
recommendations. From the ones I’ve researched so far, only a couple of them meet
the criteria. But, I’ve still got a few to look at, so I’m hopeful. My dream is
that soon, that kind of female character won’t be so elusive.
What about you? Do you
have a favorite female lead in a book you’ve read who can stand toe-to-toe with
the Jack Reachers and Joe Pikes of the genre?
The Body Market is available for pre-order and will be released January
8, 2015. Currently on sale for $0.99, after publication the price will increase
to $3.99.
Everything’s for sale…
Former assassin Leine
Basso is hired by a wealthy Beverly Hills power couple to find their missing
daughter, Elise, who was last seen partying with her boyfriend at a club in
Tijuana. At first, police believe the two teenagers are the victims of a
carjacking. But when Leine finds their missing vehicle with the boyfriend’s
mutilated body inside, and the local cartel warns her away, she knows if Elise
isn’t already dead, she will be soon, or worse.
In the lethal world of
organized crime, there’s always a worse.
As Leine races to uncover
the reason behind Elise Bennett’s disappearance, she must also battle the
powerful interests fighting to keep her from the truth.
The man in the passenger seat emerged first. Dressed head to toe
in black, his Fu Manchu mustache and goatee gave him a mildly evil appearance,
although a beer belly the size of the Bronx somewhat ruined the look.
Herrera turned
toward him, hands at his sides where both men could see them. The driver hopped
out of the jacked-up truck and stood near the golden front grill, leaving the
door open. Several inches shorter and just as heavy as the other man, he wore a
Hawaiian shirt, black jeans with spit-shined cowboy boots, a flashy watch, and
a major attitude. Leine deepened her breathing in order to slow the adrenaline
dump into her veins.
“Ignacio,”
Herrera said, acknowledging Fu Manchu. Ignacio inclined his head but didn’t
smile.
“Who’s your
friend?” Ignacio asked, nodding at Leine. The driver leaned against the fender,
silent.
“The parents of
a missing girl hired her to investigate her disappearance.”
Ignacio’s lips
curled into a smile. “An investigator, eh? Maybe she’ll want to investigate
this.” He grabbed his crotch and leered.
Leine cocked
her head but didn’t say anything, gauging the distance between them. The guy
would be easy. Herrera could take out the driver. Plausible scenario, but she wasn’t excited about the fallout.
When Ignacio didn’t get the reaction he was expecting, his mouth curved down
into what could only be described as a pout.
“Our mutual
friend is not happy,” he said, speaking to Herrera but still looking at Leine.
“Just this morning he said to me, ‘Ignacio, you must be sure that this woman is
escorted safely from our city. We wouldn’t want something terrible to happen to
her while she is here.’” Ignacio removed his sunglasses and stared at Leine.
His gaze held the hint of menace.
“Tell
our mutual friend that he has nothing to worry about,” Herrera replied. “As I
said, she is here at the request of the parents of a missing teenager. Nothing
more.”
“Why
doesn’t she speak?” Ignacio asked, irritation apparent in his voice. “Doesn’t
she understand Spanish?”
“I
understand Spanish very well,” Leine answered. “I just didn’t feel the need to
add to what he said.” Or antagonize an
asshole who clearly doesn’t respect women.
“You
are wise, señora.” Ignacio brushed his hand against his hip and briefly lifted his
shirt, flashing the butt of a pistol.
“I
hear the lines are very long at the border,” he said, watching her intently.
“You may want to get there early so that you have no problems returning home.”
He turned to Herrera with a smile and saluted. “Have a good day, my friend.”
Ignacio
returned to the Suburban and climbed inside. His silent sidekick did the same.
The driver revved the engine, turned the SUV around, and slowly drove away.
Leine and Herrera watched them leave.
“Well,
that was enjoyable,” Herrera said.
“I
assume the mutual friend he referred to is Otero?”
Herrera
nodded. “Yep.”
“You
did say he’d have me watched. I’m surprised he sent someone to warn me away.”
“Me
too.” Herrera frowned. “In fact, I’m more than surprised. Otero isn’t usually
so ham-fisted.” He glanced at Leine. “Santa never did give me your background.”
Leine
shrugged. “I worked security for a low-level diplomat for a few years, but that
shouldn’t have raised any flags.” There was no way that Otero could have found
any information about her previous profession. She’d had a friend in her old
agency do a series of high-level background checks on her. Nothing had come up.
At least that was one thing Eric hadn’t lied about. Her old boss had promised
to scrub her past when she left the business. Apparently, he’d kept his
promise.
“Obviously,
Otero feels threatened by my presence. How far do you think I can push things
without turning this into an international incident?”
“His
sending Ignacio and his BFF tells me there’s more to the story. I’d watch your
back from this point on.” Herrera scanned the development. “I think we’ve done
all we can do here.”
Leine
sighed. “I really hate it when someone threatens me.”
Herrera
squinted at her. “Santa told me you had a rebellious streak. I’d be remiss if I
didn’t strongly advise against antagonizing Felix Otero or Ignacio. But, you
gotta do what you gotta do. Just don’t make my job harder, okay?”
“I’ll
do my best.”
Pre-order links for The Body Market:
iBooks: http://bit.ly/thebodymktiBooks
Amazon: http://bit.ly/bodymkt
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/bodymktBN
DV Berkom is a slave to the voices in her head. As the author of two
popular thriller series (Leine Basso and Kate Jones), her love of creating
resilient, kick-*ss female characters stems from a lifelong addiction to
reading spy novels, mysteries, and thrillers, and longing to find the female
equivalent within those pages.
Raised in the Midwest, she received her BA in political science from the University of Minnesota and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Many, many cross-country moves later, she now lives near Seattle, Washington with the love of her life, Mark, a former-chef-turned contractor, and writes every chance she gets.
Raised in the Midwest, she received her BA in political science from the University of Minnesota and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Many, many cross-country moves later, she now lives near Seattle, Washington with the love of her life, Mark, a former-chef-turned contractor, and writes every chance she gets.
Social Media Links:
Website: http://www.dvberkom.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dvberkom
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DvBerkomAuthor
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/dvberkom/
Amazon Author Page:
Smashwords Profile: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/dvberkom
iBooks Author Page: http://bit.ly/DVBiBooks
6 comments:
Thanks for having me on the blog today, Paty! I hope you have a fabulous New Year :-)
I love strong heroines! Your book sounds really good. Interesting blog post.
Thanks for stopping by, Diana :-)
Leine seems like my kind of girl..love it when they are as quick on their feet and strong. You don't get to see too many strong female characters. Thanks for sharing this seems like an interesting story.
Glad you could be here, D.V. Have a wonderful New Year!
You're welcome, Karla! And the same to you, Paty! May 2015 be filled with people you don't want to kill off in your books :-)
Post a Comment