Fifteen years after Donovan’s daughter is abducted, Monica Russell knocks on his door. She claims she knew his daughter while in captivity and says she made a promise to tell him about their friendship.
The Last Friend to hold His Daughter's Hand
When Monica claims to know where his daughter’s remains are buried, Donovan is immediately committed to doing whatever this last friend needs from him, regardless of the warnings from his family and friends.
The Friend Who Can Help Him Seek Vengeance
And when Monica claims to know where he can find the man who abducted, assaulted, and murdered his princess, Donovan knows he will stop at nothing to get his vengeance.
What Cost Will He Ultimately Pay?
Monica claims she can show Donovan a lot of things about his daughter, but what price will Donovan ultimately pay the young lady who claims to be the last friend to know his daughter?
Author QA
I was inspired to write The Last Friend based on all of those ‘Missing Person’ posters you see. Some go way, way back – missing, since 1984, last seen at the county fair, etc. – and I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen once they ‘come back.’ But that’s been written. And, clearly, those missing people do not come back, but what if a ‘ friend’ in captivity came back? What if I happened to be a prisoner, a missing person, what would I want my best friend in captivity to tell my parents once he or she escaped?
Q Do you write every day?
Yes! Every. Single. Day. Between writing the outline, writing the first draft, and re-writing, I’m always writing. (I’m also a copywriter, which is kinda like cheating because I have to write if I want to get paid, lol).
Q Do you work to a plot or do you prefer to see where the idea takes you?
I always outline my novels. Always. Like brushing my teeth first thing in the morning, it’s THAT important to me. It’s also crucial to understand the flaws of the story before I start investing my writing time. So, once I’m happy with the overall shape of the story, all that’s left to do is put words to paper. Outlining makes the process so much easier, not just for me, but a lot of other novelists as well!
Q How long does it take you to write a book?
Normally, it takes anywhere from two to four weeks to write a novel. With the outline written, it’s just a matter of seeing how quickly I can type.
Q What’s the worst thing about writing a book?
For me, the worst part is worrying there will not be another ‘great idea.’ So, it’s that period when I’m looking for the next idea. For me, that can be the most stressful and worrisome. A close second is handing it over to readers for reviews.
Q What’s the best thing about writing a book?
The most satisfying part of writing a book is when you receive your first 5-star review. All reviews are special, but those 5-star reviews always have a special place in an author’s heart.
Q Why did you choose your particular genre?
Since I was a child, I wanted to be Mary Higgins Clark, but the dude version. As I aged (hopefully, more like a fine wine and moldy cheese) I wanted to write more than just beach-read material. So I accepted that I might never be the Queen of Suspense like Mary Higgins Clark, but I could be Harv. (PS – love yourself first, right?). Not sure how that will turn out for me, but it’s still early in the game.
Q If you had to write in a different genre, which would you choose?
Romance. I think all good stories, whether they are mysteries, horror, sci-fi, anything, involve a love story of some sort. When you finish reading your next 5-star novel, I bet you’ll find a pure love story at the heart of it. All of my 5-star reads are, anyway.
Q Which book character do you wish you had written?
Gatsby.
Q What do you think are the best and the worst about social media?
Social media is a great way to connect with new and existing readers, offering them insights into who you are as a person. But all of that socializing can slow down the creative process. For authors, it’s important to not allow yourself to get sucked in to social media and spend your words telling people about you…they want to read about your characters. But social media is the perfect way to spend those hours waiting for the game to start or for my Netflix connection to fix itself…
A few questions, just for fun:
Q If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?
Avoid household chores. (I’ve come back to this one, and yeah, definitely avoid household chores).
Q If I joined you on your perfect day, what would we be doing?
Walking the streets of Chicago, New York, or Detroit, seeing the sights that my characters have visited, and finding good ice cream parlors.
Q What’s your signature dish?
Take out. My kids it love when their mother won’t be home for dinner. Luckily, we live in a small town and it’s easy to get tired of the same fast-food restaurant, so I’ve self-taught myself how to make grilled cheese (still working on the fine art of Kraft Mac and Cheese).
Q If you could be anyone for the day, who would you be?
Sir Richard Branson. I’d like to know how someone like him experiences fear and uncertainty, since he comes across as fearless and absolutely certain in everything he chooses to do.
Review Quotes
"The short chapters and fast pacing coupled with an intriguing storyline made this a page turner that I could not put down." - novelgossip.com
"There's no way to read this and not feel the gravity of it." 5-star review, an Amazon reader
"You know it's a 5-star book when you can't put it down and stay up way too late reading!" 5-star review by an Amazon reader
"This book was a fast read . . . if you like psychological thrillers, then this will be right up your alley!" Goodreads Reviewer
"The plot hummed along at an incredible rate." 5-star review by an Amazon reader
Buying Links
Amazon UK: bit.ly/AmUKtoTheLastFriendHarveyChurch
Amazon US: bit.ly/AmUStoTheLastFriendHarveyChurch
Author Bio
Harvey Church has a background in finance, which is how he found himself writing about the people and ridiculousness (sometimes the same thing) of that field in his Edwin Burrows light mystery series. Although he considers himself retired from that field (aka not working), he's planning another three Edwin Burrows novels for 2018.His first "serious" novel, The Last Friend, is a Kindle Scout writing competition winner and was published by Kindle Press on January 9, 2018. The BookLife Prize called it "an entertaining read for mystery and thriller fans alike," and said it is "an unexpected and exciting series of events that will grab readers." Harvey plans two sister novels to The Last Friend in 2018, one titled The Last Night (Spring 2018) and the other tentatively titled The Last Survivor.
For fun, Harvey likes to practice street magic and spends hours engineering tricks to wow his audiences. He is also an avid hockey fan (Go Leafs Go). He has a wife and two kids. His favorite color is blue, but he drives a black car because he read somewhere, back in the 90’s, that radar detectors have a tough time seeing them. Interestingly, he never speeds because he's too busy singing like nobody's watching, or maybe it's that everybody is deaf.
He's a supporter of double-chins, double-dates, and double-dipping (though never on double-dates), and obviously enjoys writing about himself in the third person, in the voice of the narrator from The Royal Tenenbaums.
Connect with Harvey Church by searching Harvey Church Mysteries on Facebook, at @hashtag_harv on Instagram, and @harveychurch1 on Twitter. You can also find him wandering the streets of Chicago, Toronto, Montreal or the Lido deck of a Princess Cruise ship. If you ever meet Harv, ask to see a magic trick!
Don't forget to sign up for his email list at AListHarvey.com
Harvey Church Online
Website: harveychurchmysteries.com
Twitter: twitter.com/HarveyChurch1
Instagram: www.instagram.com/hashtag_harv/
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