High-Stakes Inheritance Interview

Today we're welcoming Mia Blackburn, the heroine of High-Stakes Inheritance by Susan Sleeman releasing in September.

Wow, you've just had quite an adventure.


1. Tell us a little about yourself and how you came to be in the midst of such suspense.

I never imagined I’d find myself fearing for my life when I came back to Logan Lake. I didn’t even want to come here. I was perfectly happy in Atlanta in my job as a family counselor helping others work through their problems. But then Uncle Wally died and he left the Pinetree Resort to me.

I wasn’t all that surprised that he did this as we were very close. In fact, he was more like a father to me than my real Dad. What I was surprised about was the terms of the inheritance. Wally stated in his will that I had to live at Pinetree for a year in order to inherit the place. A year! Can you imagine? I had to leave my life in Atlanta and move back to my hometown for a whole year. I considered not going. Seriously considered it.

After all, I don’t care about the money I’d get if I sold the place or even owning a resort. But I do care about my Uncle Wally. So if he wanted me here he had a reason. Trouble is, someone else doesn’t think I should inherit the place and started doing all kinds of terrible things to scare me away. Someone has even ended up dead. I’m scared. Really scare, but I’m not going anywhere. I owe it to Wally to see this through.



2. So, during the book you met Ryan Morgan. Tell us a bit about him. What was your first impression? When did you know it was love?
Well, I didn’t meet him for the first time in the book. We have a past. Boy do we have a past. He was the love of my life in high school, but he thought I needed to get away from Logan Lake and experience the real world so he broke up with me. I’ve never really forgotten him, though. Or his fabulous blue eyes. Such a startling color I can’t really describe it.

I really fought loving him. I mean there were so many reasons not to. I didn’t want to live here. My dad and other boyfriends had rejected me and I didn’t want to risk getting hurt again. But you know what? Ryan didn’t give up on me. Each time I pushed him away he came back. Listened to me and understood what I was going through and how I felt. I guess it helped that he was a counselor, too, but even before that, way back in high school, he helped me work through issues with my Dad. So when everything had gone wrong and I couldn’t run away from my problems anymore, I took a long hard look at myself and Ryan, and knew he was the man for me.



3. What strengths/skills do you have? What is your greatest weakness?

Wow, you really want me to write about this, huh? I’m going to start with my weakness, then end on the strong side. I like to control my life. Not just parts of it, but everything. When my Mom died, I was only thirteen. A tough time for a girl to lose her mother. Right then, I started trying to control everything around me so I didn’t get hurt again. God’s working with me on that and I’m getting better.

Now the good parts. I’m an awesome counselor. I love to listen and help people. It’s so rewarding. I also don’t quit easily. Some would say I’m spunky. Maybe a little headstrong, but I like to think of it as being tenacious.


4. What scares you?

Losing Ryan again. Took me ten years to find him. Now I can’t imagine life without him.
5. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I guess I’d have to go back to the control thing. I’d like to be more of a free spirit and not have to plan things. More spontaneous. Ryan is spontaneous and each time we do something at the spur of the moment, I don’t want to do it without thinking about the details, but always end up enjoying it.
6. Where are you in your faith at the start of your story?
Three words. Mad at God. Really mad at Him for taking away everyone I love. For leaving me alone to fend for myself.

7. Where are you in your faith at the end of the story?

Realizing I was never alone to begin with. God was there with me all the time and I had stopped looking for Him.

8. You've got a scripture at the beginning of the story. Tell us why this scripture is significant.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
This scripture sums up what I had to do to see God again. He brought me to the end of myself and put me in a position where I couldn’t count on my own abilities to get out of it. It took so much courage let go of my own agenda, but I did and He saved the day.

9. If you could be a dessert what would you be and why?

Oh, yum, dessert. I would be a big bowl of M&M’s. With all the rejection and loss I had early on in life, I can act tough and that can come across as hard on the outside. I’ve always been a real softie on the inside, though, and now that God is back in my life, I think the hard outer coating is melting.

Thank you for visiting with us today! This sounds like a great read!