03.02.08: Contest– New Contest added. Enter now.

03.02.08: New Release! – Exciting news. DON'T LET GO will be released on April 15, 2008.

03.02.08: Appearances– Marliss will be attending the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention in Pittsburg, April 17th-20th. Link on the RT Banner below to see more:

03.02.08: What Marliss is working on now! – Marliss has just completed the sixth book in the SEAL series. Sean and Ellie's story, tentatively titled TOO FAR GONE, will be release in November, 2008. Keep visiting to find out more!

10.06.07: Contest– Winner for the December contest has been posted. Click here to see who won!

10.18.07: Appearances – Marliss will sign copies of her books and meet readers and authors at Book ‘Em, located at the Waynesboro High School, a literacy event in Waynesboro , Virginia on Saturday, October 20 th , from 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Cathy Maxwell and Catherine Coulter will also be in attendance. See this link for details. http://www.bookemfoundation.org

10.18.07: Appearances – I will also be attending a scholarship fundraising event called the Fall Fling to raise money for the Mike McGreevy Scholarship. Mike was one of the eight SEALs aboard the Chinook helicopter who died in Operation Redwing while the helo was on route to pick up the four SEALs coming under heavy Taliban fire. His widow has started up a scholarship in his memory. The fall fling will take place at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens in Norfolk , Virginia , on November 10 th . Click here for more information: www.mikemcgreevymemorialfund.org

10.06.07: Just Added – Synopsis for Marliss' April 2008 release DON'T LET GO added here.

09.25.07: Just Added– Casting the characters, Myers-Briggs Personality Types & the orginal title for Next To Die. Click here to visit the Next To Die extras page.

09.22.07: Sneak Peak! Excerpt of Marliss' new book DON'T LET GO is now available here.

09.17.07: Appearances – October 6, 2007 2-4 p.m. -  Marliss Melton will sign copies of her SEAL books at the Newport News Barnes & Noble on Jefferson Avenue in Newport News . Author Sydney Croft will also be in attendance.

08.14.07: Appearances - September 15, 2007 - 1 to 3 p.m. - Marliss and a group of authors including Diane Perkins and Sydney Croft signed books at Barnes and Noble on Duke of Gloucester Street, September 15 th between 1-3 PM. Click here to view photos.

08.14.07: Appearances - August 26 , 2007 - 12 to 2 p.m. - Marliss enjoyed signing copies of her books at BooksAMillion in Williamsburg , Virginia on Richmond Road on Sunday August 26 th , 12 - 2 PM . Click here to view photo. 

08.20.07: Appearances - August 8, 2007 - Marliss was pleased to sign books and socialize with the wonderful booksellers at the Book Shelf in St. Louis, MO. Click here to view photos.

07.12.07: News update! Marliss enjoyed speaking with Babara Vey, a blogger for Publishers weekly. We'll keep you informed when the interview goes up on Barbara's blog!

07.12.07: Marliss will be featured at FRESH FICTION (FreshFiction.com) for the months of July, August, and September where a separate contest with be held just for readers of Fresh Fiction.

07.12.07: On August 6, RomanceDesigns.com will feature A Week of Romance, in which the first seven chapters of NEXT TO DIE are available to members.

07.03.07: New excerpt added for Marliss's exciting new release NEXT TO DIE coming August 2007.

07.03.07: New reader note from Marliss added to homepage.

06.19.07: Appearances - June 14, 2007 - Marliss enjoyed presenting a workshop to the Maryland Romance Writers group near Baltimore.

03.30.07: Appearances - July 12, 2007 - Marliss will present Using the 16 Myer's-Briggs Personality types to create Believable Characters (and the Socionic Relations chart to Pair up Protagonists)" at the Romance Writer's of America's annual convention in Dallas, Thursday morning at 10 AM.

03.28.07: Marliss is thrilled to announce that her editor has read and loves her next book, DON'T LET GO is tentatively scheduled for release in April, '08, so we won't have that long to wait! You'll love this emotional story about the new Senior Chief, Solomon McGuire, aka Mako, whom you get to meet in NEXT TO DIE.

02.17.07: Appearances - Marliss thoroughly enjoyed herself as a panelist at the Writing Show hosted by the James River Writers. Click here to view a photo.

Dear Reader,

The tragedy behind Commander Joe Montgomery's facial disfiguration is finally revealed as the fourth book in my Navy SEAL series, NEXT TO DIE, hits the shelves in August.

Joe's character came to me when I read about the Navy SEAL who survived the disaster in Afghanistan that killed nineteen of his fellow warriors. That Navy SEAL, Marcus Luttrell, has just published his memoirs in a New York Times Bestseller, LONE SURVIVOR. His book, like mine, is dedicated to his buddies, whom he watched die in a deadly confrontation with over a hundred Taliban. Marcus, with the help of God, managed to escape and be rescued.

LONE SURVIVOR is a gripping, factual recounting of heroic feats. I highly recommend it.

My story is fiction. For one thing, my hero, Joe, is a lieutenant commander, with too high a rank to be thrown into the field. But Joe is a golden boy, a super-over-achiever who misses the adrenaline rush of active missions. Thus, when one of the four original platoon members spikes a fever, Joe jumps at the chance to take his place.

In NEXT TO DIE, Joe is evacuated from Afghanistan to recuperate at home. He is overwrought with grief, back pain, and -yes--survivor's guilt. After all, he'd taken the place of a younger, enlisted SEAL. Would circumstances have been different if he hadn't been thinking of himself?

Joe drowns his misery in whisky and women. Only his next door neighbor and physical therapist, Penny Price, suspects the truth behind his sudden fall from God's-gift-to-man to wounded warrior.

Having had a crush on Joe for years, Penny sets out to heal him, body and soul. But the tables soon turn, and it is Penny who needs Joe as her father's killer, faced with the possibility of exposure, threatens to silence her forever.

There's nothing like the threat of murder to make a person realize what's important to him. With her tender touch and unconditional friendship, Penny changes Joe for the better. For the first time ever, he's in love. The opportunity to be her true-life hero could heal him forever. But if Joe's too late, then Penny will be "next to die."

Critics have loved this fast-paced thriller tempered with romping good fun. Hurry to make your purchase and let NEXT TO DIE become your favorite book of the summer!

And click here to read more about how Marcus visited families of others who didn't make it.

Yours Always ,
Marliss Melton