Today’s featured author is Kaira Rouda, whose latest release is a heart-pumping psychological thriller about a dysfunctional marriage, a dark shared secret, and the deadly pursuit of perfection. Jill Is Not Happy is out today.
In the interview below, Kaira and I talk about her writing career, thriller twists, and why domestic suspense is just so addicting.
Connect with Kaira on Instagram, Facebook, and her website. For bimonthly mystery events, check out her Killer Author Club! Grab your copy of Jill Is Not Happy from your retailer of choice here.
Welcome, Kaira! Jill Is Not Happy is centered around the dysfunctional marriage of Jack and Jill Tingly—which, on the outside, looks picture-perfect, but begins to disintegrate as they embark on a cat-and-mouse style road trip. How did you construct Jack and Jill’s complicated relationship?
Thank you so much for having me! And thank you for reading Jill Is Not Happy! As far as constructing long-term relationships, I happen to be in one so that comes naturally. As far as the dysfunctional aspects of a newly empty nesting married couple, that’s something I tackled, too. Although I’m not a fan of Jill’s approach, mine did involve pickleball, too. I love marriage thrillers and I love to explore the illusion of perfection: what happens when control is confused with love, when surface-level perfection masks something more sinister beneath. I like to examine what it looks like when marriages begin to crumble, peeling back the layers of suburban domesticity, and to show how tightly we cling to appearances, even when they’re killing us.
What do you love about writing domestic suspense? Why do you think thrillers centering on family relationships, especially between spouses, are so intriguing?
That theme, the danger lurking beneath a well-manicured façade, has stayed with me through every domestic suspense book I’ve written. Because the truth is, the perfect marriage is the perfect illusion. And even knowing that, we still want to believe it. We crave the comfort of a tidy narrative, just like Jill does in this story. She is a Ripley in yoga pants—a subtly terrifying unreliable narrator who will do anything to keep Jack, her college sweetheart, by her side. She’s convinced herself he wants to stay with her, the perfect traditional wife. That’s where domestic suspense thrives: the gap between perception and reality. I think we’re drawn to these stories not just for the twists, but for the insights into our own lives, our own stories.
Jill Is Not Happy is your twenty-third book (I hope I counted correctly!). What have you learned about writing fiction over the course of writing so many books? What advice would you give to new authors regarding writing, writing thrillers, and/or navigating the publishing landscape?
I know, I lost count, too! I love this job but it has been a journey. I started out with a nonfiction book for women entrepreneurs, then wrote my first novel, a women’s fiction title. Ever since, my stories have gotten darker and darker. I love thrillers and suspense.
What have I learned? Mostly, that it’s up to you to make your dreams come true and if your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough. Also, resilience is the key. There are a lot of rejections in this business, as with many where creatives try to shine. The best advice for new writers is to keep writing. That’s all we can do. Oh, and keep the joy about writing alive in your heart. That’s important, too.
I was impressed with how quickly I read Jack and Jill’s story—it was addicting! What are your secrets to bingeable thrillers? How do you construct pacing and twists in order to keep a reader hooked?
Thank you! That’s a big compliment! I want readers to zip through my stories, while also, perhaps, laughing a bit along the way. I’m a pantser so the twists and pacing come as the story unfolds. It’s as fun for me to write the first draft as it is—hopefully—for the reader. I don’t know what’s coming, either.
Lastly, what’s next for you? Do you have any current or upcoming projects you’re excited to share?
Yes! I’m excited to share my next novel, We Were Never Friends (Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press) is out February 3, 2026. The tagline is: Sisters. Forever. Friends. Never. Who knew a reunion weekend could be so deadly? It’s available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.
Thanks so much to Kaira for the interview. Detectives, I hope you enjoyed it! If you aren’t already subscribed, please be sure to sign up for the Cluesletter and get author features like this alongside other mystery goodies, delivered to your inbox every other Tuesday.