About the Book

Book: Induction (Prequel to The Agency Files) Author: Chautona Havig Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense Release Date: November 10, 2023 Someone wants her dead. Not happening on his watch. When Roman Simon goes missing, the small town of Fairbury burns with rumors hotter than the sidewalk in July. They’re certain he’s either left his wife, or she killed him (not that they’d blame her). As the weeks pass and the police fail to find answers, things heat up more when Anna Simon disappears, too. If that’s not strange enough, the chief of police orders his officers to leave Anna out of their investigation. As a new recruit into a secret protection service known only as The Agency to the few who know it exists, Keith Auger doesn’t know what he’s doing, but he’s determined to do his new job well. But when he finds himself guarding a woman before he’s fully trained, he already begins to doubt the wisdom of this career path. Pressure mounts as Keith tries to stay one step ahead of the men out to kill Anna and another step ahead of Anna who is determined to find answers no one will give her. Keith can’t help but wonder: will his first assignment with The Agency be his last? Induction is an introductory novel to The Agency Files.

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About the Author

USA Today Bestselling author Chautona Havig lives in an oxymoron, escapes into imaginary worlds that look startlingly similar to ours, and writes the stories that emerge. An irrepressible optimist, Chautona sees everything through a kaleidoscope of It’s a Wonderful Life sprinkled with fairy tales. Find her at chautona.com and say howdy—if you can remember how to spell her name.

Author Writing Woes: or How This Book Came to Be.

Way back in the dark ages of my writing career (you know, around 2009…ish), I had an idea for a couple. She was a plain woman in many ways—a good student. He was the star quarterback for a college football team. And one day, while goofing around with his teammates, he bumped into her and caused her to drop everything, ruining a library book. She wasn’t happy. Did several chapters follow with him trying to make it up to her? Yep. Did she cave? Eventually. And a couple of years later, the day before their wedding, his mother begged him not to marry someone so dull and uninteresting. But all this came out about a quarter of the way into the book. The first chapter opened with her eating lunch with her husband, who ordered her least favorite dish because it’s good for her. Employees scowled, and the rumors of how awful he was to her flourished. If only they knew. No one loved anyone more than Ramon Simon loved his Anna. Abusive? Never. Not even a hint, but no one in Fairbury would ever believe that. But that was my problem. That’s all I knew. I called it “A Man and a Mouse” while waiting to find out what their story really was. Twelve years later, I finally knew. See, I had this character from one of my favorite series. The Agency Files is a suspense/romantic suspense series focusing on protecting people from “the bad guys” until law enforcement can round up those bad guys and it’s safe to go home. They’ll do anything they have to in order to keep you safe—even kidnap you. The best of the best? Keith Auger. And well… he wasn’t born an agent, was he? I decided to write his “induction” into The Agency, and what better way to do it than to introduce him to Anna Simon? Her husband is missing, and someone’s after her. So, after a crazy ride at his job interview, and a few weeks of training, Anna is his first assignment. Keep her alive until those trying to kill her are caught. But that’s when things get complicated. The series has grown a lot since Justified Means released. From that one book to last month’s exciting conclusion to this “branch” of the series with Take Cover, we’ve seen human trafficking, a drug running biker gang out to kill an ex-member who met Jesus, a crisis of faith combined with bioterrorism, a guy running for his life—he just doesn’t know why, an office manager gone rogue, an unemployed woman hiding out from “goons” in a Michigan castle, a traitor in the agency, and a bad guy who just might be the only one who can help them thwart a hostile takeover. It’s been a bit of a wild ride for The Agency, but with the series “complete” (there will be spin-offs), it seemed like a perfect time to introduce folks to the series prequel, Induction. All of the series books are available in print, on Kindle Unlimited, and as audiobooks (they’re even FREE on Christa DelSorbo’s YouTube channel!). Happy reading! And I apologize in advance for Flynne’s slang. That girl!

Interview with the Author

Do you read books in this genre? If so, who do you like to read?

Yes! I love suspense/romantic suspense and have since I read the O’Malley series by Dee Henderson nearly thirty years ago! EEEP! These days I really enjoy authors like Lisa Phillips, Angela Carlisle, Jessica R. Patch, Nancy Mehl, Sara Davison, Laura Thomas… I better stop here. I could keep going for far too long. I’m a very eclectic reader.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

This is one of the hardest questions to answer—it kind of depends on what the day is and what is going on. Hymns are beautiful ways to remind yourself of Biblical truths in a difficult time. I think one I sing the most is “How Great Thou Art.” It’s a song I often sing when I need God’s comforting presence. When my grandson was being life-flighted to Loma Linda a few years back, I kept getting to the verse that says, “And when I think that God His Son not sparing,” and choking up—being unable to continue. But even then, I could repeat, “Then sings my soul…” and just continue. It’s such a comfort.

What is one thing readers would be surprised to learn about you?

I grew up reading Nancy Drew. That’s not a surprise. Lots of girls did. But I really mean “grew up.” My mom used The Secret of the Old Clock to teach me to read because I had all my Little Golden Books memorized. Did I understand the story as I learned to sound out words? Nope. But that’s what she did! Later I read the books for fun (my favorite is The Mystery at Lilac Inn) and fell in love with Nancy’s wardrobe. I LOVED her dresses. This was the very early eighties and everyone was wearing prairie dresses and preppy clothes. So… I learned how to sew so that I could have her clothes. 😀 It also stirred a love of mysteries for me.

What inspired you to write this book?

Well, ever since I wrote the first Agency Files book, Justified Means, I wanted to tell the story of how Keith entered The Agency, so when I had the opportunity to be a part of one of Two Dogs Publishing’s collections, I knew it was time. And now we’re celebrating the last book in this arm of the series! WOOHOO!

What is one question you would like readers to ask you? What would be your answer?
Readers often ask some of the same questions. “Where do you get your ideas?” or “What is your favorite book/book you’ve written?” or even “What do you do about writer’s block?”. And while they are understandable questions, it’s always cool when someone comes up with something different. This is a brilliant question because I can think of the ones “no one” asks. Um… maybe.

“How long do you think you’ll keep writing?” Answer: Um… I suspect they’ll bury me with my laptop in case I’m not really dead. At least I can keep writing in the coffin! Seriously, I have more book ideas than I could ever live long enough to write, and I get new ones every day. My friends often hear me say, “So I had this idea…” I mean, like every day!