Julia Kent features characters from her Billionaire Series.

Q: In Shopping for a Billionaire, Shannon Jacoby is a twenty-three year old, new college grad who is a mystery shopper for a living. She meets billionaire Declan McCormick while shopping one of his stores. What made you decide to write about a mystery shopper as a heroine?

A: I mystery shopped for about 13 years, on and off, and wrote articles and short books about it. It’s the neatest side job, actually: you really do get paid to shop. I’ve had my car’s oil changed, stayed in luxury hotels, eaten $250 dinners (where I HAD to get drinks, appetizers, steaks and dessert…poor me), and done the more boring jobs, like credit unions and fast food. We live in a consumer society and someone has to check in on how clerks treat customers.

I thought it would be a neat story: what if an average, not-glamorous woman met a billionaire while mystery shopping? And I took it from there.

Q: Shannon comes from this warm, loving — but slightly whacky — family. Declan’s family is him, two brothers, and a high-powered, emotionally closed-off father. How on earth do these two relate to each other?

A: Shannon’s drawn to Declan’s composure and he’s drawn to her amazing emotional intelligence. they really do balance each other out. in this new book, Shopping for a Billionaire’s Fiancee, we see a big clash between the two styles, though. In the end, they come to appreciate each other even more (although I think Shannon and Declan could do without the fistfight their fathers get into!).

Q: One of the major topics in this series is deadly bee and wasp allergies. Declan’s mom died from one, his brother is highly allergic, and it turns out Shannon is, too. How does Declan overcome his fear and love Shannon?

A: Because you can’t pick who you fall in love with. Seriously. Declan’s all about being in control and — poof! Fate made him fall for a woman who has the same deadly allergy his mother had. Fate’s a mean little b*&ch.

Q: You wrote Shopping for a Billionaire’s Fiancee entirely from the man’s point of view. Why?

A: Not quite…there’s a surprise at the end. No spoilers, though! But yes — 99% of the book is entirely Declan’s point of view. I felt like the Shopping for a Billionaire book — which was 670 pages — was entirely Shannon’s viewpoint. We needed to get to know the deeply-composed, calm and rational Declan. Turns out he’s a horndog 😉

Q: Are you writing more Declan and Shannon?

A: Oh, yes! Reader response to these books has been amazing. I’m already working on a book about Shannon’s best friend, Amanda, and Declan’s CEO brother, Andrew. Those two have their own fun to figure out as best man and maid of honor in Shannon and Declan’s wedding! That book is coming sometime in late 2015.

Looking to land a billionaire? Read Julia Kent’s previous post on top 5 ways to meet a Billionaire.

 

 

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