As warm summer days turn to crisp autumn ones and the kids return to school, I always feel a sense of new beginnings. Even more so than the beginning of January, this time of year seems ripe with possibility. Perhaps it’s because I always loved school. Returning to the classroom and friends was my happy place. Wearing a new pair of Hush Puppies and that first day of school outfit, I skipped off to the bus stop, sure this would be the best year yet.
These days my happy place is writing in my quiet office, still learning and growing, despite my five decades here on earth. Two Septembers ago I set a goal to write a new series set in a little beach town. I created a world in which we follow five best guy friends, the Dogs, as they become better men through their friendships, community and the love of a good woman. The books are fine to be read as standalones, but that wasn’t really my vision. They’re meant to be read like one might watch a limited series on television. Each story leads to the next. These men are so integral to one another’s lives that it’s impossible to tell one story without the others.
At first, I imagined only five books in the Cliffside Bay Series. However, after writing and publishing the first five in 2018, I decided we needed five more. In February 2019, the first of the Wolves stories released, which is book 6 in the series. I’m about to release book 8 with the last two planned to release before the end of the year. These are new love stories, but each of the characters in connected to one or more of the Dogs. Thus, we keep in touch with all our old friends.
This autumn I’m also celebrating a milestone. Scarred: Trey and Autumn is my 20th novel and releases September 16th. I can hardly believe I’ve written this many. When I first started out, I just wanted to finish one novel before I turned 40. 10 years later, I have a catalog of 20, with 4 novellas to add to the mix. God has truly blessed me.
For those of you who are new to my Cliffside Bay Series, here they are in order:
The Dogs
Traded: Brody and Kara
Deleted: Jackson and Maggie
Jaded: Zane and Honor
Marred: Kyle and Violet
Tainted: Lance and Mary
The Wolves
Missed: Rafael and Lisa
Healed: Stone and Pepper
Scarred: Trey and Autumn
Jilted: Nico and Sophie
Departed: David and Sara
A little about Scarred…
Calling all Cliffside Bay fans!
Scarred: Trey & Autumn by USA Today bestselling author Tess Thompson arrives September 16th.
For Autumn Hickman, online dating has been an exercise in nothing more than coffee and failure. There simply isn’t a man on the planet who can compare to her best friend, Trey Wattson. And while Trey is everything Autumn has ever wanted in a partner, she knows the man who loves life’s most beautiful things could never cherish anything as scarred and mangled as her.
Trey Wattson is in love with his best friend, but he can’t seem to reach her. She’s guarded, and for good reason, but Trey doesn’t care. He knows Autumn’s soul, and it’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen. Desperate to claim Autumn’s heart for his own, Trey conspires with The Wolves to create a fake profile on the dating site Autumn frequents. But the more Autumn trusts Trey’s online persona, the more it becomes clear that Trey is gambling with the very thing he wants most of all.
Return to Tess Thompson’s beloved Cliffside Bay and discover for yourself why true love is built on honesty and trust, and why best friends often make the very best life partners, in this anonymous online romance set in your favorite charming small town.