Fiction Vixen Book Reviews is pleased to welcome Cynthia Eden to the blog today.  She is kicking off her blog tour for her latest release, Deadly Fear. 

   Into the Minds of Monsters (or How To Research a Psychological Thriller)

Hi, everyone! It is great to be here (thank you, Fiction Vixen!).

Today, I want to talk a bit about monsters. No, I’m not referring to vampires or werewolves (though I do so adore those supernatural guys). Instead, I want to chat about the real-life monsters who are out there—killers, kidnappers, and arsonists. When I began writing my Deadly series for Grand Central’s Forever line, I knew that I wanted to explore the “real-life” monsters who can make the world such a scary place.

In DEADLY FEAR, my heroine and my hero are both FBI agents. They work for a fictional unit called the Serial Services Division (the SSD). Their job is to track and to apprehend serials. In order to do that tracking, well, my heroine Monica Davenport has to get into the minds of the killers. She’s a profiler, so it’s her job to think like a killer.

As I began to write DEADLY FEAR, researching a profiler’s job was the easy part for me. Researching the mind of a killer—that was harder. When you are researching a psychological thriller, you have to delve into the good and the bad parts of the human psyche. And there are some very bad parts out there. Lucky for me, I have a friend who teaches psychology classes at our local university. So, when I wanted some fast and hard advice on the darkness that can dwell behind the handsome face of the man next-door, I turned to her.

I don’t think that any person is wholly good. We all have a bit of darkness inside, don’t we? But can some people be completely bad? I think they can be…especially after talking with my friend and conducting my research. So many killers have walked the streets. Actually, here in the U.S., we have more serial killers than any other country! Not the best statistic for tourism!

Yes, researching a psychological thriller can take you down a dark and twisted path, but that is the path that a killer would take, so it’s the path I explored for my book.

And DEADLY FEAR is a dark book. The characters haven’t led perfect lives, but Monica and her hero, Luke Dante, are trying to do their best to fight on the side of the “good” guys (as close to good as they can be, anyway).

But what do you think? Are people truly 100% good? Are some folks totally evil? What’s your take?

Thanks for checking out my post and heading into the minds of monsters with me!

Cynthia Eden

www.cynthiaeden.com

www.twitter.com/cynthiaeden

 

Thank you Cynthia for the wonderful post and for sharing a little bit about your research for DEADLY FEAR . 

Thanks to Hachette Book Group I have three copies of DEADLY FEAR by Cynthia Eden to give away to three lucky readers.  To enter, simply answer Cynthia’s question from her blog post:

“But what do you think? Are people truly 100% good? Are some folks totally evil? What’s your take?”

Because the prizes are shipped directly from the publisher, contest is open to those with a US or Canadian mailing address, no PO boxes please.  Giveaway is open until August 13, winner announced the next day.  Good luck to all who enter!

Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden Paperback: 416 pages Publisher: Forever Available: July 27, 2010 Genre: Romantic Suspense Book received from: Hachette

TWO BRILLIANT AGENTS

FBI Special Agent Monica Davenport has made a career out of profiling serial killers. But getting inside the twisted minds of the cruel and the sadistic has taken its toll: She’s walled herself off from the world. Yet Monica can’t ignore fellow agent Luke Dante, the only man who ever broke through her defenses.

ONE DREAM TEAM

Luke has the unique ability to put victims at ease . . . professionally, he and Monica made a perfect team. Now they’re reunited to catch a murderer who uses his victims’ deepest, darkest fears for sport – but their investigative skills aren’t enough. Luke and Monica will have to face the secrets from their past, the ones that terrify them the most, if they are to have a future together. But can they catch a killer whose weapon is . . .

Reviewer: Amy

“What scares you?” It’s the one question a killer has to know before he snatches his next victim.  A killer who sets up his victims to face their greatest nightmare while he gets off on their fear and pain. That is the dramatic structure to the first installment of the Deadly Series and get ready to be shakin’ in your boots!  Not only is there a serial killer on the loose to keep the hair on your neck on edge, but there is some scorchin’ hot sexin’ going on between the two FBI agents assigned to the case.

Special Agent Monica Davenport has a secret.  A secret that drives her to profile serial killers.  She’s intelligent, beautiful, resilient and has a knack for being able to think like a killer in order to capture the sick and twisted.  All sex, power and temptation, Southern bred Special Agent Luke Dante hides a secret as well.  A secret that fuels him to protect crime victims.   Both have a past together at Quantico where they trained to be agents.  Now, years later, Davenport and Dante are brought together once again on the Serial Services Division (SSD) to capture the latest killer known as “The Watchman.”  The Watchman has learned how to torture and kill from one of the best serial killers in the South.  He studies his victims for months to find what they fear worse than death. Once captured, he can torture them for days with that fear before killing them.  There are major secrets hidden by all the characters involved which play a pivotal role to the storyline and the killer keeps you guessing his identity up until the end. There is also an undeniable chemistry and sexual connection between Davenport and Dante.  Their connection is immediately reignited upon their reunion in the SSD and let me say it boils off and on throughout the hunt for the killer.

Ms. Eden balances a perfect blend of sexual tension, romance, and suspense in this story. One minute, I was fanning myself from the fierce, raw sex and the next minute I was double checking the locks on my front door!  Wow, just wow! I had high expectations when Larissa Ione/Demonica Series slaps a quote on the front of Deadly Fear’s cover: “I dare you to not love a Cynthia Eden Book!” I don’t know where I’ve been that I have not picked one of Ms. Eden’s books before but “stop the press.”  If her other books are anything like the quality of Deadly Fear, I am running out to by them!  What an action packed, high suspense, hot, read! This is the beginning of a new series for Ms.Eden and I am already biting my lip raw for the next installment!

If you enjoy psychological thrillers like Silence of the Lambs mixed with a badass heroine that is as hot in bed as she is on a killer’s trail, Deadly Fear is one crime you don’t want to miss!

Favorite Quote:

“I want you.”  The words came out, bold, a little fast, from her lips.

And those words – they made him hard.

He gave a nod.  “I’ll have you again.”

She gave a real smile.  Just a flash.  “No Dante, I’ll have you.”

Purchase a copy of Deadly Fear

Other books in the series:

Deadly Heat – 2/2011

Deadly Lies – 3/2011

Deadly Fear on GoodReads

Visit author at: Website | Blog |Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads

Stop by again a later today for a guest blog post by Cynthia Eden and a giveaway!