Where the Truth Hides by Liane Carmen - Book Tour + Giveaway

Where the Truth Hides

by Liane Carmen

Genre: Suspense, Thriller

Buried secrets can be deadly.

Becky Morgan has a life most women would envy until a car accident lands her in the hospital. She insists she’s fine, but it quickly becomes clear she’s changed. She’s forgetful, paranoid, short-tempered. Her husband wants to write off her change in personality to the IVF hormones she's taking in an attempt to get pregnant.

Becky's best friend, Jules Dalton, is a gorgeous, single woman, with a habit of sabotaging relationships. When Jules loses the man who could have been “the one,” she confronts the realization that being adopted at birth is contributing to her trust issues. She’s obsessed with finding out why she was given up and turns to DNA testing in hopes her matches will lead to her birth parents.

As Jules dives into her DNA results, Becky’s life soon becomes one she doesn’t recognize. Those closest to her are accusing her of things she simply can’t explain or remember. She’s terrified of losing everything: her career, her marriage, and her dream of becoming a mother.

Desperate to put the pieces of her shattered life back together, Becky needs her best friend more than ever. What she doesn’t realize is that Jules knows something that could explain everything away.

Becky has a dark past she’s unaware of. A darkness that’s coming for her.

It could also get her killed.

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What inspired you to write this book?

Someone in our family was adopted, and we set out to see if we could use DNA to find their birth family. I became both fascinated and obsessed!

It's estimated that over 26 million people have taken an in-home ancestry test. Some do the test just to learn their ethnicity. For the most part, that's what all the commercials promote. But for those that are adopted like Jules, this science can help to finally answer the question of where they started.

What people are not always prepared for is that this tiny little tube could also be taking them down a path they didn't even know existed. DNA can uncover family secrets and truths people thought would be taken to the grave. Sometimes DNA hits you with a whammy, and those are real, conflicted emotions to feel.

In our search, we uncovered a secret or two. More than one person asked: is DNA ever wrong? After much research, I have found the simple answer. Families keep secrets, and people don't always tell the truth, but DNA doesn't lie. It appears that maybe that little tube should come with a warning label. Spit at your own risk, because the truth is about to be revealed.

This realization led me to the idea for my book and the books that will follow. The stories and secrets surrounding what DNA can uncover are endless.

What can we expect from you in the future?

More mysteries with Becky and Jules. They're so affected by what they learn from DNA that they open up a DNA Detective Agency to help others. Just get ready. Much like real life, sometimes their searching doesn't go quite as they expected.

How did you come up with the concept and characters for the book?

I knew I wanted to write a story about the secrets that can be uncovered by doing a DNA test. We have been touched by adoption in our family, so I wanted one of the main characters to be searching for her birth parents. It was important to me to tell that story. Jules had a great family and upbringing, and yet, she yearned to know why she was given up. It was affecting her ability to find a relationship. For some adoptees, not knowing presents a big void that impacts their lives in ways non-adoptees can't imagine.

The other topic I felt strongly about was infertility. So many women are impacted, but they stay silent as if there's a stigma associated with it. I wanted Becky to shine a light on the struggles and emotions that surround wanting so badly to be a mother. All you warriors, I see you on Twitter and Instagram. I follow your stories. I smile for you when you realize your dream and shed a tear when you don't.

Who do you believe is the audience for your book?

I do believe my book is meant for women. Although men have read it (and said they enjoyed it …), I think the topics and emotions from the main characters will resonate more with women. The story is as much a DNA mystery as it is a story about the friendship of Becky and Jules.

Anyone fascinated by DNA, or anyone who has used it and become obsessed like I have, should be the perfect reader for this book. My hope also is that women impacted by infertility or adoption will see themselves represented by Becky and Jules. And of course, there's my suspense readers. If you love a book where you try to guess the ending but get a huge twist at the end, this book is for you.

Are there personal references in the book?

There are hidden meanings throughout the book that those who know me probably can't help noticing. Sherlock, Becky's cat, just happens to be the name of my own socially-awkward orange tabby. I lost my twelve-year-old golden retriever while I finished this book, so the restaurant where Jules has her blind date became Riley's in his honor. Riley and my newest golden, Tucker, also get a nod with the reference to the golden retriever rescue.

Becky's address is also personal. The town she lives in and the street are all related to where I live in Florida.

Where did you come up with the names in the story?

If you check out the acknowledgments at the end of the book, you'll see some familiar names!

It's funny how character names just appear on the screen. Friends and acquaintances alike may be surprised to find their names. The people I used to babysit for, my junior high best friend, my high school best friend and her husband, a work friend and the names of her three dogs, the mother of a DNA match, my childhood best friend's mother. It's endless.

Lucy, a mystery match of Jules, was also the name of a mystery relative I found in my own DNA search. I thought perhaps I had a family scandal (I can't lie, I was a little excited), but she turned out to be my grandmother's much younger sister I never knew about. My aunt had been looking for Lucy for over twenty years! I love that I was able to connect them, and my fellow genealogists will understand my glee when Lucy sent me a treasure trove of old photos, birth and marriage certificates, obituaries. Family tree heaven.

What was the strangest twist to a character name you used?

Probably the most ironic name in my book is a character named Jonas. One of my favorite authors is a writer named Jonas Saul. If you haven't read his books, look him up because you're missing out! Jonas really connects with his readers. He asks them to vote on covers and book titles. He sends postcards to his readers when he travels for book research. My favorite thing about Jonas is that he writes his readers' names in as characters in his books. Send him your name and you're on the list. So, as I started writing Where the Truth Hides, his book, The Pact, Book 17 in his Sarah Roberts series, was released and there I was: Liane Carmen, police officer. It was so cool that I decided to return the favor and included his name in my book (not that I expected him to be nearly as impressed as I was!).

Fast forward a few years (yes, it took me that long to perfect this book), and Jonas posts a Facebook note that he is offering editing services. Well, I thought I was finished with my book, but how could I resist the chance to work with one of my favorite authors? He's as wonderful in real life as I always imagined and has been an incredible mentor to me. So now he has a place not only as a character in my book but in the acknowledgments as a friend as well.

I've always been an avid reader and a fan of the suspense/thriller genre. Several years ago, we decided to solve a family mystery using DNA and my obsession was born. My love of writing and my new addiction led to my first novel, "Where the Truth Hides", newly released in May of 2020. It will kick off a series of books delving into the mysteries that DNA can reveal.

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