You Can Tell Me
Oliva Cruz Book 1
Melinda Leigh
Montlake Pub.
May 2026
You Can Tell Me by Melinda Leigh features Olivia Cruz. Fans might remember her from the Morgan Dane series. This story plays off what happens to Olivia in Save Your Breath.
On the three-year anniversary of true crime writer Olivia Cruz’s horrific kidnapping, she’s scheduled to walk her podcaster friend Zoe March through the crime scene, but Zoe fails to show. Olivia knows Zoe would never stand her up, especially not on the day of that horrific event.
Zoe’s husband, who claims she never came home the night before, has reported her missing. But marital conflicts make the police suspect she has left him. Olivia thinks otherwise. The police aren’t looking for Zoe, so Olivia begins her own investigation. Retracing her friend’s last steps, she finds Zoe’s phone and a text with one chilling word: Run.
It soon becomes apparent that Zoe has been keeping secrets, and with her true crime podcast, there’s no telling what she has unearthed. To find her, Olivia must dig into her friend’s past.
While going to a coffee shop with her niece, Olivia is attacked. But with the help of her niece, Nicki, she thwarts the attacker. Now Nicki demands to join the search for Zoe. The two soon decide that the most likely suspects to have plotted an abduction are those close to Jennifer Hamilton or Evan Brown, the two long-dead victims Zoe had been researching as possible subjects for future seasons.
Olivia also get help from her PI boyfriend Sharp Lincoln, who insists on being involved in the case. Since he is the partner of Morgan Dane’s husband, Lance, they are also brought into the story to help find what happened to Zoe.
Readers will enjoy this first in the series and will yearn for the next book that is sure to have another heartbreaking drama, a suspenseful story, and gripping characters. The exploration of secrets and trust along with the pacing heightens the tension.
Elise Cooper: Why this new series?
Melinda Leigh: It is refreshing for me. I have written police procedurals and law books for the last sixteen books, either Morgan Dane or Bree Taggert. I think with this series I went outside the box. My publisher asked me to write something new, and I immediately thought of Olivia from the Morgan Dane books. She is in books 4, 5, and in 6 plays a significant role. Writing a series enables me to challenge my protagonists over a long period of time. They can adapt and grow.
EC: Idea for this story?
ML: I wanted to tie it with her experiences the last time she was on the page. Basing a series on a true crime writer, Olivia, gives me more flexibility.
EC: How would you describe Olivia?
ML: She is spunky, bold, and a little different from my other female characters. She is steady, methodical, competitive as the auntie, confident, very smart, and short in statue.
EC: Zoe was a true crime podcaster?
ML: A lot of true crime podcasts are cold cases. They take years of investigations and boil down into about six episodes. With fiction, people can get involved with the characters whereas true crime focuses on the crime. The way I write is to create the plot around the characters, deciding what the characters will experience to get the emotional hit. Most of my books take place over a short period of time, about four or five days. Zoe, one of the main characters, was a true crime podcaster. She was impulsive, punctual, not tidy, loyal, and someone who compartmentalizes.
EC: Did you speak with people who was traumatized?
ML: I have in the past talked to victims who were traumatized, although I did not do it for this story. I do read a lot of memoirs. They are great resources for what happens to someone and their emotional response to it.
EC: How would you describe Nicki, the niece of Olivia?
ML: She is a lot like Olivia. She is a typical Gen-Z. I drew her character from my youngest son and my nieces, although not all her personality. She is arrogant, can be self-centered, stubborn, improvising, independent, and tech savvy. She is very funny.
EC: How did you come up with the date rape drug scene that had Nicki replaying what Olivia told her?
ML: That really happened. I have read cases where even though women are vigilant about their drinks the bartenders or other people have doctored drinks before it gets to the table. I tell my nieces to order cans so they can open them. Go out with a friend and have them watch each other’s backs. It is sad that we must do this.
EC: Do you think Nicki is a lot like Olivia?
ML: They are both bold, outgoing, and fearless.
EC: How would you describe Sharp Lincoln, the male lead?
ML: He is Olivia’s boyfriend who is a PI. He has zero tolerance for people who commit crimes. He sees things black and white. He is tough, a mother hen, and protective.
ML: Morgan Dane has a cameo appearance?
EC: They are all part of the same world as Olivia. I do not see how I cannot have them show up. Lance is Sharp’s partner. They all work together. Morgan shares an office with Lance and Sharp. They will interact and run into each other. Morgan will be in more of the books but regarding how much will depend on the storyline. Lance will also probably be in more of the books.
EC: Of course, a Melinda Leigh novel must have a dog in the story. Correct?
ML: Yes-this one has Chewy, a border collie. I had that breed as a child, and I believe the border collie ate our basement door. She was a dog my parents found. This breed needs a lot of physical and mental exercise or they become destructive. I named Chewy because Olivia and Sharp are Star War fans, a play on the name.
EC: Next book(s)?
ML: I will be writing more Bree Taggert books. The eleventh in the series will come out next January. The title is Kill for Her. It is about a gruesome double murder that exposes the secrets of the dead. The next Olivia book is titled I Know Your Secret and will release in September in 2027. It will have secrets and probably someone will be dead. Nicki, Sharp, and Chewy will be in it. I will alternate the two books, writing one every eight months.
THANK YOU!!
