Terri Blackstock lives in her imagination
all day, crafting books to keep readers
up all night—and she loves it.
Truth-Stained Lies (Zondervan) is the latest suspense
title in a string of successes. Book One
in the Moonlighters Series, the novel follows
three sisters: an investigative blogger, a stay-at-home
mom, and a ne’er do-well taxi driver, who
work together as private investigators to solve
crimes related to their family. “During the Casey
Anthony trial, I was following some investigative
blogs by people who were digging up behind-the-scenes information,” Blackstock explains,
“and often that was stuff that wasn’t allowed in
court. I couldn’t help doing my “What-if?” routine.
What if some angry person turned the tables
on the bloggers? What if they showed them
[how it feels] to be speculated about and judged?”
Each Moonlighters book will follow a different
sister. Truth-Stained Lies zeroes in on former
prosecutor and blogger Cathy Cramer, but
Blackstock admits Holly, Cathy’s party-girl-turned-taxi-driving sister is her favorite. “She’s a
mess,” Blackstock says. “It was important to me
to include her in the series, because I want readers
to know that God isn’t finished with her yet.
He loves the messy people in our lives, and He has
a plan for them. I know Holly’s purpose in this
story, and I’m excited about what I’m going to do
with her. God feels the same way about us. I think
we have a problem in the church, accepting our
prodigals home. I want to challenge Christians
to welcome lost people and prodigals with open
arms, rather than avoiding them or whispering
about them.”
This article originally appeared in the April/May 2013 issue of FamilyFiction Edge digital magazine. Subscribe for free today!