How It Began
I’ve always been a writer — one of those people who can untangle thoughts more clearly on paper than out loud. My degree is in journalism, but I eventually realized that reporting facts wasn’t the same as telling the deeper truth. I wanted to explore what happens beneath the surface.
After a painful divorce, I stepped into a new season of life and a long career with an international nonprofit serving families in developing countries. That work became a safe harbor for me — a reminder that even after betrayal, something meaningful can still be built.
Near the end of those 27 years, I confessed something to a coworker that had been circling in my thoughts: “Do you think I’ve finally lost my mind?”
She smiled and said, “I think you have a novel in you that wants to get out.”
She was right.
From Debut to Now
Deadly Deceit became my debut novel in 2016. It wasn’t the first book I’d written — thankfully. That early manuscript taught me the mechanics of storytelling: plot, character arcs, point of view. It helped me find my voice.
But voice evolves.
During Covid, I found myself homeschooling a highly-social grandchild, the opposite of me. Those months stretched me in ways I didn’t expect. They also forced me to slow down and look closely at who I was becoming — not just as a wife, mother, and grandmother, but as a writer.
Four series and twenty books later, I’ve come to understand something about the stories I’m meant to tell. I’m drawn to the emotional aftermath — the reckoning that follows loss, betrayal, or upheaval. The determined rebuilding that no one applauds but that changes everything.
And I realized I wanted that depth reflected in Deadly Deceit.
So I didn’t simply update it.
I rewrote it.
Rita’s story isn’t my story. But her reckoning felt familiar.
After another decade of a different marriage and deep conversations, life has shown me more clearly how trauma follows military service home — and how it touches marriages, families, and every corner of ordinary life.
Rita Warren still faces a mystery. There is still suspense. But at its heart, this story is about a woman who discovers that the life she believed in for 35 years was built on a truth she never fully saw.
Writing Rita’s journey brought back emotions I remember well — the disorientation that follows betrayal, the unsettling realization that the story you thought you were living isn’t the whole story. And the courage it takes to slowly rebuild.
And this time, I had the emotional language to tell it the way it needed to be told.
That’s how Beneath His Lies was born.
How Color Shapes My World
In some of my lowest seasons, I discovered something simple: color helps me breathe again.
From the plants I love in my yard to the colorful food I cook to filling in the pages of adult coloring books, I’ve found that color brings light back into places that once felt dim.
To celebrate the March 3 release of Beneath His Lies, I’d love to share that small joy with you.
If you pre-order the book before release day on March 3, I’ll send you two exclusive printable coloring sheets inspired by the Arizona setting and the symbolic heart of the story.
Here’s how to receive them:
- Pre-order Beneath His Lies on Amazon.
- Fill in and submit this form at: karenrandau.com/color
- We’ll email the printable sheets directly to you.
Pre-orders help more than most readers realize. They give a book momentum and help it reach the readers who need it.
And your support — especially on a story this personal — means more than I can say.
Thank you for growing alongside me.
With gratitude,
Karen
P.S. Whether you’ve been here since my debut or found me more recently, I’m grateful for you.