Two sisters, Ryan and Wendy, are at the core of this novel, and even though they
don't always see eye to eye, Ryan is ready to help Wendy when she needs help. How does
their relationship fuel the plot of this suspenseful novel?
Ryan, who is much younger than Wendy, has always been in awe of Wendy. They've
never lived in the same house, because Wendy was on her way to college when Ryan was
born, and afterward she was married and traveling with her new husband. Wendy was the
beautiful, seemingly perfect stranger who was so beyond Ryan in everything she did or could
do, that there was no hope to compete or to truly win her sister's affection. Then, suddenly, as
the book begins, Ryan is given the chance for both.
I really love the title of this book: A FAMILY OF STRANGERS. It's very captivating! What does feeling like a
stranger in one's own family do to the characters in your book?
I originally titled this book The Perfect Daughter, and we all loved it. But suddenly there
were dozens of books scheduled everywhere with "perfect" in the title. So when I started
looking for a new one, I had to think about what set this book apart. I gradually realized that
Ryan had grown up surrounded by secrets. No one doted on her the way she believed they
had doted on Wendy. She was not the star her sister had been. She had a good childhood, but
in some ways she felt like the stranger in her own house and in her family. The title appeared.
This book marks a bit of a genre change for you, from women's fiction to mystery. Did
you find any challenges or differences when writing a different genre?
I've had the pleasure of writing a five book cozy series and I've also done lots of
romantic suspense, so it didn't feel like a leap. In fact, it never occurred to me that readers
would find this book that different from my usual because it's really women's fiction, just with
a stronger element of suspense. That said the challenge was trying to give both elements the
room they needed to grow. Any time we combine two genres, that's the tricky part.
Ryan is a true crime podcaster in A FAMILY OF STRANGERS. These types of podcasts
and documentaries are incredibly popular! Do you recommend any true crime podcasts for
readers who may be interested in listening to them?
There are so many good ones. Serial is fabulous. Breakdown is excellent, too, as is
Accused. That's just a start. I recommend that at first, listeners choose podcasts linked in
some way to a newspaper because good reporting is the key. These teams also understand
how to move a story and how important technical talent is to a podcast.
You've written over 70 novels - what an amazing accomplishment! Where have you
found the inspiration for so many books over the years?
Never underestimate the newspaper as a source of ideas, both hard news and human
interest. The trick, of course, is not to use the story as it's presented, but to take the germ of
whatever is interesting to you, then twist and turn it and find the characters who will make it
come to life.
Summer is finally here - do you have any big travel plans? What are you looking
forward to reading?
My husband and I spend summers at Chautauqua Institution, an educational, cultural
center on Lake Chautauqua in western New York. We visited all four of our children on the
drive here, and settled in last week. Right now three wonderful authors are here with me,
helping each other brainstorm our books. We've been doing this for several years and it's
always a summer highlight. As for reading? I have a reading group on Facebook, Read Along
With Emilie Richards, and we're doing a monthly reading challenge together. This month's
category is a book we've had for a long time and haven't gotten around to reading. So my plan
is to start my summer by reading Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale.
What can readers expect from you next?
I had the germ of the idea of A Family of Strangers for years before I found the time to
explore it. My next book begins with another idea I've had for just as long, and I'll be
brainstorming that one with my friends this week. This book, too, will combine suspense and
women's fiction.
Rapid Fire Random Questions
Favorite animal: I'd love to come up with something suitably exotic
here, but it's dogs.
Coffee or tea: I would feel like I was deserting a good friend to
choose one over the other.
Favorite book to re-read: We of the Never Never by Jeannie Gunn.
Beach or mountains: 51% beach
When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up?:
A mermaid at Weeki Wachee Springs north of my home in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Dream vacation: Tahiti
Aside from reading and writing, what are your hobbies?: I quilt, cook,
and play Mah Jongg with neighborhood friends.
Five people you'd invite to your book club (dead, alive, fictional, etc.!):
Louisa May Alcott, Jeannie Gunn, Michelle Obama, Eleanor Roosevelt, and my mother.
Favorite movie: The Wizard of Oz. As a child, I read and reread the
whole Oz series a dozen times, and the movie never gets old for me.
You have a totally free afternoon - no deadlines, no obligations, no Twitter
notifications! What do you do?: Take a long walk, and then pull out one of my
quilts in progress and get right to work. I always listen to an audiobook while I walk and quilt,
so it's a double pleasure.
Thanks for the great questions. It's been a pleasure to answer them.
Could a lifetime of memoriescbe a lifetime of lies?All her life Ryan Gracey watched her perfect older sister from afar. Knowing she could never
top Wendyfs achievements, she didnft even try. Instead Ryan forged her own path while her
family barely seemed to notice.
Now Wendy shares two little girls with her perfect husband while Ryan mourns the man she
lost after a nearly fatal mistake in judgment. The sistersf choices have taken them in different
directions, which is why Ryan is stunned when Wendy calls, begging for her help. Therefs
been a murder—and Wendy believes shefll be wrongfully accused.
While Wendy lies low, Ryan moves back to their hometown to care for the nieces she hardly
knows. The sleuthing skills shefs refined as a true-crime podcaster quickly rise to the surface
as she digs for answers with the help of an unexpected ally. Yet the trail of clues Wendyfs left
behind lead to nothing but questions. Blood may be thicker than water, but what does Ryan
owe a sister who, with every revelation, becomes more and more a stranger?
Is Wendy, who always seemed so perfect, just a perfect liar—or worse?
Women's Fiction Contemporary [MIRA, On
Sale: June 25, 2019, Trade Size / e-Book, ISBN: 9780778307853 / eISBN:
9781488096570]
Emilie Richards is the USA Today bestselling author of seventy plus novels in several different
genres including romance, mystery and women's fiction. Published in more than twenty-one
countries and sixteen languages, her most recent novel is The Swallow's Nest, a June 2017
trade paperback and hardcover release from Mira Books. She's won the RITA from Romance
Writers of America and multiple awards from RT Book Reviews, including one for career
achievement. Ten of her books have been made into television movies in Germany.
Emilie finds relationships of all kinds intriguing and perplexing, and exploring that great
diversity of possibilities is her passion. Having lived in nine states and briefly in Australia,
she's also determined to discover how the places we live help make us the people we are.
Right now Emilie divides her time between Sarasota, Florida and Chautauqua, New York, when
she and her husband aren't visiting their four children and grandchildren.
***
Fresh Fiction Editorial Manager Danielle Dresser is an avid reader,
lackluster-yet-mighty crafter, and accomplished TV binge-watcher. Once upon a time, she
was a publisher publicist and continues to cultivate her love of books and reading by chatting
with the best authors in the business. She lives in Chicagoland with her very own romance
hero husband, darling daughter, and two tempestuous cats. Follow her on Twitter
and Instagram, @dj_dresser.
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