In six short days (7 if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere) my second book, For Your Eyes Only, makes its debut. Although my rom-com-mystery makes its introduction without a ball gown or white gloves, when you think about it, grand entrances for novels are sort of like balls and dances (and conventions for romance writers) in as much as they often have something that ties it together, such as a holiday or some other theme. You know what I mean, like the Enchantment Under The Sea dance–the place Marty McFly had to ensure his parents kissed in Back To the Future–where the decorations were glittery and ocean related.

Novels are often thematic. I’ve mentioned how For Your Eyes Only deals with fear, but that is not the only theme at work in the text. There is another item that binds the story together.  Perhaps you think that, because it takes place in Los Alamos, “the Atomic City,” birthplace of the world’s first two nuclear bombs, that there’s some anti-nuke subtext at work. But you’d be wrong. In this case, the thick ribbon that twists through the story is sweet and sticky, like love, yet it is also opaque, spreads itself thick or thin and often appears with a partner. I deal with sets of two in For Your Eyes Only, things that go together: John and Willa (The two leads), Tom and Jared (the supporting players), Peanut Butter and Jelly.

Yes, kids. The theme of For Your Eyes Only–well one of them–is peanut butter.  And it’s everywhere.