Wendy, can you tell The Big Thrill readers about the story in Live to Tell? I read the excerpt on your website, and I am hooked!

Sure, and thanks for saying that! I always like to start out with a bang.

The story begins with a chase scene in New York City. We meet an enigmatic man in possession of incriminating evidence against gubernatorial candidate Garvey Quinn, and he has only minutes to stash it someplace in Manhattan where he can easily reclaim it later. Impulsively, he hides it in a child's toy and turns it in at the Grand Central terminal Lost and Found.

Meanwhile, in her suburban broken home, Lauren Walsh is trying to raise three kids in the wake of her husband's affair.  When she asks her apathetic ex to find their daughter's lost stuffed animal at Grand Central, he returns with the wrong one--and the Walsh family is unwittingly and irrevocably tied to a high-stakes political scandal. Soon enough, the deadly secret also encompasses Connecticut mom Elsa Cavalon, whose only son was kidnapped years ago.  Garvey Quinn will kill to protect not just his career, but his picture perfect family. So, however, will Lauren and Elsa.  I'm a mom myself, and I've always been fascinated by the powerful maternal protective instinct. It's a theme I've explored in many of my thrillers.

Tell us a little about the heroine you chose for Live to Tell. How about her antagonist? Is there a love interest?

Well, this is a thriller, as opposed to a romantic suspense novel, so while there is a  hint of romance, it takes a back seat to the suspense plot.

My heroine, Lauren Walsh, is at a crossroads in her life when the story opens. She's had the rug pulled out from under her, thanks to a cheating spouse, and suddenly she feels as though nothing is familiar; as though she's living someone else's life.  This is a woman who not only must learn to take care of herself and her children when her idyllic marriage fails, but who faces an unimaginable crisis--and a masked, sinister threat--with no one to count on in the end but herself. Is she strong enough?

Live to Tell marks a return to my domestic suspense roots, and is a psychological  suburban whodunit in the tradition of my earlier bestsellers The Last to Know and She Loves Me Not.  There are plenty of twists and turns, and though we know who is behind the stalking, we don't know who's working for him, or why, or what he's trying to hide.  The answers, according to early reviewers, are compelling and shocking.

You have written successfully in three different areas. Would you compare and contrast the process of writing Suspense to writing your Chick Lit and YA novels? How about your writing style?

My suspense novels are much more heavily plotted than my chick lit novels (my recent YA novels are suspense so they fall into this category as well). It's all about moving the plot forward--chatty narrative, a chick lit hallmark, takes a back seat to fast-paced action and dialogue.  My style is always present tense, no matter which genre I'm writing, but it's third person with suspense, and tends to be first person with Chick Lit. Naturally, the inherent differences in plot have a tremendous impact on voice. Chick lit is light and fun and straightforward; Suspense is atmospheric and much more complex in terms of plot. I use multiple viewpoints and multi-generational characters in my suspense novels, and tend to let the action in a chick lit or YA novel unfold through the eyes of a single heroine.

As a writer your range and output are awe inspiring. Will you share with us how you got started and some of the ups and downs along the way?

I wanted to become an author from the time I was in third grade, and being an obsessive Scorpio personality, I was hell-bent on reaching that goal from that point on. Everything I did--from editing my high school yearbook to working part time in a bookstore to majoring in English to moving to New York City at 21--was propelled by single-minded ambition. All I wanted was to learn everything I could about books and writing and the publishing and book retail business, to arm myself with as much info as possible when it came time to take the plunge.

I thought my first job, with a major publisher, would launch my glamorous big city career, but I was a clueless small-town girl who didn't figure out until my first day that I'd been hired as a secretary in the textbook division! I eventually became an acquiring editor of women's fiction at a major women's publishing house and wrote and sold my first book, a YA paranormal, when I was 27 years old. That marked the end of my editorial career and the first of dozens of books I've gone on to write in many different genres.

High points over the course of my career have included quitting my day job--and being able to see my husband quit his!--as well as numerous bestsellers and industry awards. Low points: publishers have folded imprints when I was in mid-contract, and entire genres I was writing dried up (like YA paranormal)--only to boom again, I should add. Through it all, my readers have been incredibly loyal. Many of them will read anything and everything I write, under any name in any genre. I know that in this economy, no one wants to squander hard-earned dollars, so I really work hard to deliver to my readers the quality novel they expect and deserve. I'm grateful to them, and I've met countless great friends when I go out on the road--which, given my ongoing 50-State Tour--is frequently!

Overall, my career has been like my life--I take stock and count my blessings at every high and low point--and I never, ever forget how lucky I am to be making a living at something I love.

Who are your favorite authors? What are you reading now?

Many of my favorite authors are suspense novelists who are members of ITW, too numerous to name--I'd hate myself if I left anyone out! I rarely get to read suspense these days, though, because I'm always writing it and I make it a rule never to read a novel in the genre I'm writing, to preserve the freshness of my own work.

I read mostly nonfiction, and am a big fan of biographies and historical true crime. I just packed my bag for a beach trip, and I'm taking a novel: Nancy Horan's Loving Frank, which seems to be a melding of biography, historical true crime, and a romantic character study. Can't wait to bury my toes in the sand and start reading!

What can thriller fans look for next from you?

I've already written the sequel to Live to Tell. It's called Scared to Death, and it goes on sale in December.  The novel picks up where LIVE TO TELL leaves off, following secondary characters Elsa Cavalon and Marin Quinn through a shocking series of events that prove that nothing in their lives is ever as it seems.

My editor and I were so thrilled when Live to Tell received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly that we decided it deserved another sequel.  I felt like two books just didn't do all the characters justice and to be honest, I couldn't bear to leave them all behind just yet. So now I'm writing the final book in the trilogy, Hell to Pay, and I'm hoping to meet a tight deadline and keep it on track for publication in mid 2011!

You can read more about Wendy and Live to Tell at www.wendycorsistaubcommunity.com    or  www.wendycorsistaub.com  

Allyson Roy is actually two people -- Alice and Roy LaPlante, new authors of the Saylor Oz mystery series and originators of a genre they call Madcap Noir. Alice as spent most of her adult life as a professional dancer, choreographer and teacher. The first book in the series won a Daphne Du Maurier Mystery/Suspense award. Book #2, BABYDOLL, will be out August 2009.