Please help me welcome today’s guest, Ruben D. Gonzales…
Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in East LA. After college I was with the Peace Corps teaching school in an African village by day and reading and writing by candlelight at night. Before I retired from full-time work, I was Director of Development for Winston-Salem, NC. Now I write full-time and teach part-time at the local community college. My first novel, The Cottage on the Bay, was published by Moonshine Cove Publishing in 2018, and my second book, Murder on Black Mountain, the first in a mystery series, was published by Fire Star Press in 2020. The second, third, and fourth books in my Black Mountain Mystery series were published by Indigo Sea Press in 2022, 2023, and 2025. I have two recent books, a mystery book, Cabana Bay, the first in a mystery series, and an action/adventure book, Under the Tree of Life, published by The Wild Rose Press in 2025.
Family?
My wife and I have nine grandchildren!
Pets?
Our last wonderful dog passed peacefully this month, and we plan a long trip to Australia before we adopt another one. Dogs are important characters in all my mystery stories.
Where did you get the idea for Under the Tree of Life?
While living in a remote African village in West Africa, I found the simple, friendly villages in sharp contrast with the very volatile political environment of emerging nations.
Why did you choose this genre (is it something you’ve written in before)?
I’ve written several books in the mystery genre, but this is my first attempt at romantic suspense, and I hope to write more in this genre.
Was there anything unusual, any anecdote about this book, the characters, title, process, etc, you’d like to share?
My college major was anthropology, and I studied under a professor who completed his doctoral research in the area where I was stationed with the Peace Corps. Unfortunately, the use of boy and girl soldiers in the area was well known.
What is the most difficult thing about writing a book?
For me I struggle with the grammar.
What was the most difficult thing about this one in particular?
The romantic elements of the genre were new to me, so they proved difficult, although I enjoyed the opportunity to use romance to show different facets of characters.
What do you love that most people don’t like and wouldn’t understand why you do?
I run about every day. It has to be really cold for me not to run. When I was young, I ran in the Boston Marathon.
What’s your favorite book of all time and why?
Moby Dick. So many elements of writing in one book and a historically inspiring trope.
Would you rather have a bad review or no review?
I’ll take a bad review. Usually, people have legitimate complaints, and taking a complaint to heart is an opportunity to do better.
What genre have you never written that you’d like to write?
Fantasy
Your most prized material possession?
My guitar. I purchased it in Spain from a little-known guitar maker over fifty years ago on a backpacking trip through Europe. It turns out it is very valuable now.
Have you written any other books that are not published?
Yes, I have two completed manuscripts that have yet to find a home, but recently signed a contract with Histria Books, for a book of historical fiction with elements of action/adventure and romance. Histria Books are distributed by Simon and Schuster.
What is the toughest criticism given to you as an author?
That my grammar sucks!
What has been the best compliment?
One publisher told me that my historical fiction book about a civil war plantation matriarch’s life was one of the best books they have ever published.
Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?
The physical characteristics are from real people, but their emotional stuff is all made up. MOSTLY.
Favorite all time movie?
Casablanca, but a close second is Moonstruck.
GIVEAWAY!! – I’m giving away a copy of my book, Under the Tree of Life. Please go to my website, www.rubendgonzales.com, and use the contact page form to send me your request to be entered into a drawing for the book. Include your name so we can contact you if you are chosen and include the word “drawing” as well.
She thought she was only a visitor, but when she finds out her roots under the Baobab tree run deeper than she imagined, she must decide to run to safety or to stay and fight with the village she began to love.
Blurb:
After a brutal military coup shuts down a Central African country, Dr. Thema Book is hired to lead a medical mission to aid desperate villagers, sending a team of former special ops veterans along for protection.
Beneath a stand of Baobab trees, which the locals call the Tree of Life, Dr. Book and her crew are drawn into a civil war between villagers and the military. Treating the locals as well as wounded child soldiers puts the mission in jeopardy—while pitting crew members against each other.
Faced with the decision to run or stay, Dr. Book discovers her roots in the village stretch deeper than she thought possible. Thema decides to stay, and with the help of the ops team, they fight for the people she’s come to love
Buy links:
https://www.amazon.com/Under-Tree-Life-Women-Valor-ebook/dp/B0FH2XHJGC
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/under-the-tree-of-life-ruben-gonzales/1147751328?ean=2940184465661
About the Author:
I was born and raised in East LA. After college, I was with the Peace Corps teaching school in an African village by day and reading and writing by candlelight at night. Before I retired from full-time work, I was Director of Development for the city of Winston-Salem, NC. Now I write full-time and teach part-time at the local community college. My first novel of historical fiction was The Cottage on the Bay, published by Moonshine Cove Publishing in 2018, and my second book, Murder on Black Mountain, the first in a mystery series, came out in 2020 from Fire Star Press. The second book in my Black Mountain Mystery series came out in 2022 by Indigo Sea Press; the third book in the series came out in June 2023, and the fourth book in the series was released in August 2025. My two most recent books, Under the Tree of Life and a mystery book, Cabana Bay, the first in a mystery series, were published by The Wild Rose Press in 2025. My website is; www.rubendgonzales.com. My email is: rgonzo1122gm@gmail.com.
Author Alicia Dean 