Article and Interview by Elise Cooper
The Catch by Lisa Harris is an intense mystery. In the final book of the series the plot brings to close all the extending arcs.
This story is multilayered. These sub-plots had Madison searching for the person who killed her husband Luke, a search for the murderer of a judge’s wife, and a kidnapped child. The suspense ratches up after the child’s babysitter is found to be in the witness protection program and having an amber alert put out on her and the child put both lives in danger. As these three plots are weaved together readers realize nothing is as it seems.
Book three of the series gave readers a thrilling and captivating ride. All the loose threads tie together in a surprising yet inspiring ending. Readers will get their fill of suspense, action, and twists.
There is also a novella, Point Blank, part of a compilation with three other authors titled, Heroes in the Crossfire. In Point Blank, the last two series Lisa Harris has written The Nikki Boyd Files and US Marshals are combined. It is interesting how she was able to compare the lead characters, Madison James and Nikki Boyd. Both had feelings of “what if” and struggled with out-of-control feelings while attempting to let go of their guilt.
Elise Cooper: Why include Nikki Boyd in Point Blank, the prequel to the Madison series?
Lisa Harris: I was asked to write something for a compilation so I decided this novella would be perfect for it. In the US Marshal series book 1 there is a little bit about the loss of Madison’s husband, and with Nikki Boyd books, they take place over 48 hours. They both want to make a difference in the world. Both had different careers: Nikki was a teacher and ended up in the missing person task force while Madison was a policeperson and ended up as a US Marshal. They lost someone close with neither of them having closure. At the end of the series, they do find the answers they are looking for.
EC: The scene of the silo, wow?
LH: I did a lot of research. There are a lot of accidents that happen in the silos where people can drown in the grain. I knew I had to put this in the novella. It is hard to write action scenes and I am always looking to find something different to write about.
EC: The idea for the story, The Catch?
LH: The first book had a fugitive chase. I wanted each book to highlight a different skill used by the US Marshals. This third book had a combination of witness protection and a task force looking for a child endangered. I weaved together these two elements in the story along with the Washington state setting that has beaches and a rain forest. The arcs between Jonas and Madison’s romance as well as the arc of who killed Madison’s husband gets resolved in this book.
EC: Did you know anyone who had a child who disappeared?
LH: No, I did not, thankfully. The Nikki Boyd series was all about missing children. I learned through my research. I thought about those parents who had the drama in real life versus writing fiction. It would be one of the worst things that ever happened in life, the threat of losing a child. Because there is so much darkness around us, thankfully I could have happy endings in my book, a bit of light.
EC: Do you have a crystal ball because one of the stories has a judge threatened?
LH: Sometimes it is scary how some of the things I have written about have come true. I should get my ideas from the newspaper and not the other way around. This plot includes drug trafficking, extortion, kidnappings, and revenge.
EC: How would you describe Becca?
LH: She got in way over head. She was missing something in her life and lost her heart. She smudged the line between right and wrong. She is vulnerable, troubled, frustrated, and desperate.
EC: How would you describe the relationship between Jonas and Madison?
LH: I like that it was resolved over the course of books. For example, each Nikki Boyd book took place over 48 hours. A romance cannot be resolved over that short period of time. The relationship went from admiration and respect when they first met to trying to keep at arm’s length while US Marshal partners to Madison bowing to her fears that something would happen to Jonas like her husband to a happy ending.
EC: Next books?
LH: A prequel to this series will be out June 1st, an e-book novella, Point Blank. It covers when they first met while training. Jonas was training a group of officers that were not US Marshals yet, which included Madison. Nikki Boyd is also in the novella.
I am also self-publishing. It is a series where the town is off the grid without technology. It is Longmire meets Jericho. It is a modern western, solving crimes without technology, titled the Fallout series. The third book just came out which is titled Frequency. There is also a novella to this series.
EC: THANK YOU!!
