‘When Justice Comes’ Author Q&A with Colleen Coble and Rick Acker

COLLEEN COBLE is the USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of more than eighty-five books and is best known for her coastal romantic suspense novels. RICK ACKER writes during breaks from his “real job” as a Supervising Deputy Attorney General in the California Department of Justice. He is the author of a dozen acclaimed suspense novels. He is also a contributing author on two legal treatises published by the American Bar Association.

FF: What inspired the story in your book?
When we were coming up with our first series together, Rick had talked about Possumneck, Mississippi (yes, it’s a REAL place!) and the town’s name had Colleen dreaming of moss-draped live oak trees and sweet tea. We wanted the story to be a legal suspense with a 2nd chance romance of a couple of the verge of divorce. We bounced around ideas, and Rick mentioned the idea of a legal clinic at a university. Everything spun out from there—a trilogy around a long-festering southern feud, secrets from the past erupting with fresh virulence in the present, and a sweet ending featuring justice and reconciliation. For Colleen, the setting comes first and the creative juices start flowing.

FF: What can you tell us about the main characters in your book?
Hez Webster is a 37-year-old former DA who tried to use alcohol to drown the pain of losing their small daughter. He’s clawed his way out of addiction, and he and 35-year-old Savannah Webster (now the president of a decaying southern university) are finding their way back together while navigating the lingering ramifications of a decades old family feud. An unseen enemy is determined to make Savannah’s family pay the ultimate price by destroying the university and any living family members. Hez’s lovable dog Cody and the university’s resident gator Boo Radley are reader favorites!

FF: Which character surprised you the most?
One of the secondary characters (we can’t say which one) becomes a secret ally to Hez and Savannah in a sweet way that adds a touching layer to the final epilogue.

FF: Why do you think storytelling is such a powerful way to share truth?
Nonfiction imparts facts but storytelling leaves readers changed because it comes with emotion. That emotion carries a wallop that can make readers stop and evaluate their own lives.

FF: What can you tell us about your next book?
We’re having such fun writing together! Our next book is She Will End This. The novel explores the question of nature vs nurture. When hijacked by a robotaxi, a young woman discovers her real father (who tried to kidnap her via that robotaxi) is a Mossad-trained assassin. She and the FBI agent who rescues her from the robotaxi must outwit him to save the President’s kidnapped granddaughter who’s being held in exchange for sensitive information that threatens national security.

FF: What kind of research did you do for this book?
The best kind—on site! We traveled to the Gulf Shores area and snapped pictures of the houses we envisioned our characters living in. We ate at Hez and Savannah’s favorite restaurant, Jesse’s, and drove out on Fort Morgan Road to the location of several of the scenes. We visited all the locations and lived the story with our characters.

FF: What do you want readers to take away after reading your book?
When Justice Comes is such a vivid example of how our choices shape our lives. A choice between forgiveness or revenge can change the course of our future. To embrace a new future after being hurt always entails letting go of the past.

FF: What are the biggest challenges for you as an author writing romantic suspense?
We strive to find an imaginative story with a fresh angle that both entertains the reader and lets them come away with a truth that they can examine in their own lives. It’s challenging to keep coming up with something fresh that speaks to readers’ hearts.

FF: What authors or books have inspired you as an author?
We are both big Robert Dugoni fans. Colleen fan girls over Lisa Gardner as well.

FF: How has your faith or world view impacted the way you tell stories?
We start off writing story through the lens that there is a God, and he cares for each of us. He uses circumstances and experiences to lead us into a deeper walk with him, and he tempers justice with mercy. We love to have a redemptive arc for our characters to learn more about how to walk as a Christian.

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