Most of us know Al Roker as the ebullient 10-time Emmy Award-winning weatherman on NBC's 'Today' show. But underneath that jovial exterior lurks a dark side -- a cold-blooded killer. Well, at least in character.

In 'The Morning Show Murders,' co-written with Dick Lochte, an award-winning novelist, Roker weaves a fast-paced caper about his favorite subjects: morning shows, cooking and mystery writing. The protagonist, Billy Blessing, an on-air personality and celebrity chef, is a prime suspect in the murder of his overbearing producer, who has been poisoned by a dish from the top chef's four-star restaurant.

Now, it's up to Blessing to clear his name and avoid becoming the next victim. Roker amuses and surprises in this succulent thriller. He is a two-time host of the Mystery Writers of America. He also has written two best-selling cookbooks and a best-selling book on fatherhood, 'Don't Make Me Stop This Car! Adventures in Fatherhood.'

Co-author Lochte has written several popular crime novels, including the award-winning 'Sleeping Dog,' which was named one of the 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century' by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. His crime fiction ran for nearly a decade in the Los Angeles Times and earned him the 2003 Ellen Nehr Award for Excellence in Mystery Reviewing. He lives in Southern California.

Roker lives in Manhattan with his wife, ABC News and '20/20' correspondent Deborah Roberts, and has two daughters and a son. He took time recently from his busy schedule to speak with AOL Black Voices about 'The Morning Show Murders:'
Al Roker: I've always wanted to write a murder mystery. I love the genre. I'm a big fan of it. My first chapter book when I was 7 years old was a Hardy Boys mystery. Then I moved on to Sherlock Holmes and then Edgar Allan Poe.

I had this idea for a book in the back of my head, but I didn't know how to write it. I'd done a couple of cookbooks and a book about fatherhood, but for those, the cast is already there: my kids and my wife. With the mystery novel, I knew what I wanted to write about, but I didn't know how to go about it. So I teamed up with Dick Lochte. He came up with the outline and the organization, and then I was off to the races. Like everything in life, it's all about organization.

BV: It's hard to envision you as a murder mystery writer. You're always so happy. Was this a walk on the dark side for you?
AR: Well, look, people always say, "Are you always happy?" The fact is no, you're not. But you see a small slice of my persona or you see one part of me for a given period. Like most people, on any given day, I run the gamut of emotions, whether it's happiness, sadness or being ticked off. But it's like anything else, the more time you spend with somebody the more complete picture you see.

Billy Blessing is a well-known chef. He has to have a public persona. He has a customer base he has to satisfy. He's not me, but he is the idea of the me. I'd like to have a restaurant. I'd like to be a well-known chef. I'd like to solve a crime. I don't think any of those things are ever going to happen, other than determining which of my kids snitched the last cookie. There is not much else there.

BV: But you're Al Roker, the weatherman!
AR: The grass is always greener. Don't get me wrong. I love what I do, and I don't take it for granted at all. But you're always looking at somebody else and saying, "Wow that's pretty cool." You see an award-winning chef with a great restaurant and you think, "Man! I wish I could do that."

BV: How long have you been thinking about writing a mystery novel?
AR: About 20 years. But you're never quite sure you are going to do it. If you told me 10 years ago that I'd have five books to my name, I would have said, "You mean I own five books?"

BV: How did you find time to write?
AR: It took about nine months to write. Last year, I was traveling a lot. I worked constantly in airports and on planes. I was in Beijing for three weeks, and I had a lot of free time. When you don't feel the pull of family because you want to spend time with them, you can get a lot done. It was time I didn't feel guilty about using because I was already away from them and I was utilizing it as best I could.

BV: What's next on the horizon for chef Billy Blessing?
AR: I'm already working on the second novel in this series. He branches out. He still works for the morning show, but there is a murder that takes place in another part of the broadcast day that he sets out to solve.