Interview with Gina Holder & a Giveaway

I’m excited for you to read my interview with Gina Holder about her new release, The Escape Game! This novel is the second in The Game Masters series. I loved the first book, and I have no doubt this one will be just as good.

For a chance to win a digital copy, be sure to comment below by June 2! (US only)

Welcome back to the blog, Gina! Start by telling everyone what you wanted to be when you were a child.

An author. 😊

That worked out well. LOL. Who was your favorite book character as a child and why?

Anne of Green Gables. I think it was her red hair!

Do you have any hobbies? Have you incorporated any of them into your books?

I enjoy participating in escape rooms and solving at-home mystery boxes, so yes, I have incorporated them into my books! 

We love escape rooms and all things mystery, too! How and when did you start writing?

I started telling stories when I was a little girl. I’ve always had a vivid imagination. When I was twelve, I started writing longer book-length stories. It was around that same time I started telling people I was going to be an author someday. 

It’s great that you knew what you wanted to do so early in life. What genre do you write and what inspired you to write that particular genre? 

I write romantic suspense/mysteries. I didn’t intend to write in this genre, it happened “by accident.” In No Greater Love, my first romantic suspense, the hero is a police officer. I figured he should be trying to solve crimes and the next thing I knew someone was threatening the mayor of their town, and as they say, the rest is history.

I love it. What is the setting of your current novel? Is it a real location or fictional? Tell us about it.

This book takes place on the shore of Lake Superior in a fictional town called Silver Falls, based on the real town of Two Harbors. The setting for the Ives Mansion is based on a blending of The Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, CA, and the James J. Hill House in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Sounds like cool houses on which to base your novel’s mansion! If you could only publish one book in your lifetime, which of your novels would you choose? 

This one. The Escape Game transformed more than any of my other books.

Which character in The Escape Game was easiest for you to write and why?

Maddie. She cracked me up. I just love her. 

Which character presented the biggest challenge?

Liam Shepherd. When he walked onto the page, he was too perfect, and it took a while to coax out his flaw and his wound. Once I did, I sobbed.

That’s when you know your characters have become real people to you. What was the hardest scene to write?

I can’t give you details because that would spoil the ending, but there’s a scene in the end where I wanted to give a specific set of characters a happy ending and could not. Life isn’t a bed of roses, pardon the cliché, and things don’t always work out how we hope they will.  

So true. What is one of your favorite quotes from The Escape Game? 

“If this god of yours were real, he would name himself.”

“He did … I AM THAT I AM. That’s the God I serve.”

These are my favorite lines in the whole book. 

With good reason! What do you enjoy most about being a writer?

Connecting with readers. I love hearing how my books bless their hearts and lives. That’s the reason I write.

Makes it all worth it, right? Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?

Yes, I do. I read every single one. The good ones let me know that my books are making a difference, and thank the Lord, I haven’t really received any bad ones. Yet.

Wonderful! What’s next from you?

The Missing Piece, book #3 in The Game Masters series is coming in May of 2027. After that, who knows?

Thanks so much for sharing about your book on my blog, Gina. I can’t wait to read books two and three! I wish you continued success on your writing journey.

Join the conversation. Have you read book one, The Puzzle Within, in Gina’s series? Did you enjoy it? Does The Escape Game sound like a book you’d like to read? What questions or comments do you have for Gina?

Be sure to comment below by June 2 for a chance to win an eBook of The Escape Game! (US only)

Please share Gina’s interview on social media to help spread the word about her books!

If you missed Carrie Walker’s interview about her new release, Someone to Lean On, FIND IT HERE.