Operation: Endgame
Series: When the Mission Ends
By Christi Snow
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release date: Sept 14, 2012 (ebook, print book is available now)
Pages: 302
$11.99 for print $2.99 for e-book
ISBN: 978-1477483787 or 1477483780
Story Overview:
It’s been six months.
Six months since Jake Madsen let Chris Robertson die.
Six months since the passion between Jake and Cassie, Chris’ sister, stepped over the line.
But now Cassie’s being stalked and it’s time for Jake to swallow his guilt, grief, and lust so he can save her life, even if it’s a life without him. He owes it to his dead friend and he owes it to Cassie. He’s fallen in love with her, but she doesn’t have to know that for him to keep her safe.
Information about the trilogy:
Set in Lubbock, TX, all three of these books feature former active duty Air Force officers and the women they love. All the girls have ties to Texas Tech and the entire series features the sights and scenery of West Texas life.
Book #1, Operation: Endgame, features Cassie Robertson, a military history professor at Texas Tech and Jake Madsen, an active duty Air Force Pararescue Jumper (PJ) home on leave for Christmas.
Book #2 is Operation: Endeavor (releasing January, 2013)
Book #3 is Operation: Endurance (releasing April, 2013)
Excerpt
Cassie had taken a handful of cocktail dresses into the dressing room with her. She came out in one of them now and twirled in front of him. He felt like he’d swallowed his tongue. After she finished twirling, she stood with her back to him, looking at herself in the mirror. She tilted her head to the side and said, “What do you think? Too much?” Too much? Was she insane? There was no dress there. It was black, sparkly, and clung to her every curve. From the front, it seemed rather sedate with long black sleeves and a high neckline. At least, that was the case if you didn’t look down to the miniscule length of the skirt that showed off the miles of her long toned legs. But when she turned around, the back was nonexistent. There was nothing there besides miles of skin from the top of her spine all the way to the top of her ass. Four draped strands of thin rhinestones stretched across the top expanse of the milky skin of her back, but with a simple little flick of the wrist, the entire dress could be dropped in half a second. His fingers itched with the desire to do just that, but he clenched his hand into a fist to keep from reaching towards her. He didn’t realize he was sitting there staring, until Cassie spoke. “Okay, you’re going to have to give me a hint here. Does the mouth hanging open mean you like it? Or does it look so hideous you just don’t know what to say?” Jake snapped his jaw shut and cleared his throat. “No, hideous is not the word I was thinking, but do you honestly think you need to show that much skin?” He scowled at her, thinking about all the guys drooling over her at this party. At that moment another customer walked up who had been surreptitiously observing them while she shopped. “Girl, don’t listen to him. You look gorgeous! Your boyfriend just doesn’t want to deal with any competition.” Jake flushed in embarrassment, but Cassie didn’t even notice. “Oh, he’s not my boyfriend….just a friend, actually more like a brother than anything.” He sure wasn’t having any brotherly thoughts about her right now. |
Interview
1. How did you come up with the title?
The heroine in the book, Cassie, is a military history professor at Texas Tech University. As such, she acted as a consultant on a video war game called Endgame. She has a cameo in the question/answer period of the game and has some fame resulting from that…oh and it also earned her a stalker which is where the suspense part of the story line comes from for this book.
All the books in the trilogy feature guys who have just gotten out of the military so that is where the title comes from- Operation: Endgame.
2. How did you choose your characters' names?
My characters pretty much come to me fully formed with names, characteristics, and their physical bodies. It’s honestly not something that I sit around and think about. It just happens. I have to laugh, there are people in my life who assume the names are based on something or someone I know…that’s so not the case. My characters are their own people before I ever meet them in my head. LOL!
3. What do you do when you encounter a writer's block?
Luckily, I am usually working on several projects at once, so I can walk away and work on another book at any given time. Just by changing story lines in my head, I can usually come back with a fresh perspective and pick back up on what’s causing problems. It also helps to sit down and brainstorm other ways to attack the plot. I love doing that and have ended up with some twists that I didn’t expect in the end.
4. What inspired you to write the "When the Mission Ends" trilogy?
The original germ of the idea came from my son when he was around 10 years old. The prologue in Operation: Endgame is when Jake, Chris, and Cassie all became friends as kids. That scene was a common occurrence with my son and his friends when we lived at Pope AFB, NC. That group of friends was all about playing war games with full camo gear, face paint, and wooden weapons. As a mom, I would watch them and wonder if that would ever affect who they became as adults. Then, my imagination took over…
5. What do you have planned in the future?
Right now, I am editing/re-writing book #2 in the series, Operation: Endeavor (releasing Jan, 2013). That book features Cassie’s older brother, Colton and one of her best friends, Penelope. They are very much an example of opposites attracting and I’ve loved writing their story. This week, I start writing book #3 Operation: Endurance (releasing April, 2013). It’s a highly emotional book and I’m anxious to start writing on it.
Then further into the future, I have a Paranormal Dystopian series that I’ve started writing called Through the Veil.
Then eventually, I also have another trilogy planned that is an off-shoot from When the Mission Ends trilogy. Those books will feature the cowboys from the Martin ranch that you’ll meet in Book #2, Operation: Endeavor.
6. Anything you'd like to ask our readers?
Yes, I actually do have a question. When you read romantic suspense, what part of the story line do you think is more important…the romance or the suspense?
***Thank you so much for having me here Arianne! You had great questions and I had fun answering them all. I hope that everyone enjoys Cassie and Jake’s story!
Author bio:
As an avid reader her entire life, Christi Snow always dreamed of writing books that brought to others the kind of joy she felt when she read. But...she never did anything about it besides jot down a few ideas and sparse scenes.
When she turned 41, she decided it was time to go after her dream and started writing. Within four months, she'd written over 150,000 words and hasn't stopped since.
She's found her calling by writing about sexy, alpha heroes and smart, tough heroines falling in love and finding their passion. She's truly living the dream and loving every minute of it.
Her tagline is... Passion and adventure on the road to Happily Ever After. She's loving this adventure!
Website: www.christi-snow.com
Twitter: @ChristiSnow