FEATURED AUTHOR: A.L. BRYANT

ABOUT THE BOOK

On New Year’s Eve 2021 the staff at St. Ann’s Hospital witness a medical miracle when a semi-conscious woman walks into the emergency room. The Jane Doe has been stabbed multiple times and as the staff struggle to keep the woman alive in the end all they can do is stand back and watch as their mysterious patient revives herself.


Glory wakes up in St. Ann’s Hospital gravely injured from an attack she cannot remember. However, her memory loss is no ordinary amnesia and she is no ordinary patient. Much to the shock of the hospital staff Glory heals at three times the rate of an average person. Soon the administration hears of her unique case and waste no time convincing the recovering Glory to be a part of an experiment to discover the origins of her power.


Once outside the comforting walls of the hospital it becomes apparent that healing is just a small portion of Glory’s capabilities. Abilities that to Glory’s distress are becoming increasingly unstable. Deciding that the hospital’s experiments are in vain, Glory embarks on her own Journey to discover the source of her power, unaware that she is a major pawn in a war between two secret organizations. 
The two syndicates continue to clash in their fight for control and their battles result in several casualties. The crimes of their warfare surface and draw the attention of Dennis Wilson, a NYPD Detective known for solving his cases in the first forty-eight hours. Dennis follows the trail of bodies out of curiosity. But when his curiosity causes the deaths of his loved ones Detective Dennis becomes obsessed with the case.


In his overzealous attempts to find the murderer Dennis becomes the syndicates’ next target. Now the Detective must run for his life and the only person capable of saving him is the very person he suspects. 




Book Details:


Title: Blessed: the Prodigal Daughter

Author: A.L. Bryant

Genre: Christian paranormal thriller

Publisher: H.S.W Publications LLC (January 09, 2019)

Print length: 330 pages


On tour with: Pump Up Your Book

INTERVIEW WITH A.L. BRYANT

Q: What’s the story behind the title of your book?
A: There are two parts to the title:
Blessed – This is a trilogy, I am basing the struggles and joys that each main character experiences through the b-attitudes in Matthew. Glory the main character represents: Matthew 5:6

The Prodigal Daughter – Glory is lost, and this is her story of making her way back to her Father’s home.

Q: Tell us about your series. Is this book a standalone, or do readers need to read the series in order?
A: The series is best read in order. Each book will resolve the conflicts introduced in the beginning of the novel however, there is an overarching theme. Blessed: The Prodigal Daughter is the first in the trilogy and essentially provides the background for the other two books allowing me as the author to be a little more streamline with the other two installments.

Q: If you had an extra $100 a week to spend on yourself, what would you buy?
A: Probably more books and food.


Q: What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
A: To always say yes to opportunities. Too many people wring their hands, conjuring up images of all the things that can go wrong until they give up or the opportunity passes them by.

Q: What is the most daring thing you've done?
A: I got on a plane to South Korea to live there for six months with a little bit of money and no place to stay.


Q: Definitely daring! What makes you bored?
A: Nothing. If a task is mundane, I can fall back on the dozens upon dozens of ongoing stories in my head. The story for household chores is particularly scintillating! I even have a story about numbers and their relations with one another that borders on telenovela levels of drama and has no practical use. (It’s not because I needed to learn math it’s simply because at some point in my childhood, I decided that 4 is jealous of 2 because they both love 6 and here’s the shocking part . . . 2 is actually 4’s mother! Dun dun dun!)


Q: What choices in life would you like to have a redo on?
A: All the times I didn’t put my all into things, whether they be classes, jobs, relationships, etc.


Q: What makes you nervous?
A: I’m a sociable person most times, but I always feel a pressure to be fascinating when I meet people for the first time.


Q: What makes you happy?
A: My family.

Q: What makes you scared?
A: My imagination.

Q: What makes you excited?
A: New things (Places, hobbies, etc.)

Q: Who are you?
A: LOL when I figure it all out, I’ll let you know!

Q: How did you meet your spouse? Was it love at first sight?
A: Much to my dismay a mutual friend brought him by my dorm room (we went to the same college). Where, there I was in the messiest room you ever did see covered from neck to ankle in the most unflattering quilted robe watching DBZ on a 19-inch screen. And no . . . based on the description above I don’t think love at first sight was even possible.

Q: LOL. What brings you sheer delight?
A: Sharing things I love with people I love!

Q: Would you rather be a lonely genius, or a sociable idiot?
A: My family is my life! So, I would rather be a sociable idiot.

Q: What’s one of your favorite quotes?
A: “I took the road less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.” – Robert Frost

Q: If you could live anywhere in the world, where in the world would it be?
A: Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, and sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth! – "America" by Claude McKay

Q: Are any of your characters inspired by real people? 
A: Yes. Dr. Stephens, and my fiancé.

Q: One of your characters has just found out you’re about to kill him off. He decides to beat you to the punch. How would he kill you?
A: Jonathon would send his best agent, Aika, to quietly slip into my house while I am sleeping. Using her weapon of choice, a stiletto dagger, she would silently approach my sleeping form and insert the blade between my ribs, piercing my heart.

Q: Who are your favorite authors?
A: Stephen King, John Grisham, and Judith McNaught.


Q: Do you have a routine for writing?
A: No routine, but I do have quirks. For example: if I am on my laptop and nothing is coming to me, I will switch to pen and paper. That usually gets the juices flowing. This method also works in reverse.

Q: Good tip! What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received about your writing?
A: “I couldn’t put it down.”

Q: What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever had to write?

A: When I was in college, I took a lot of unnecessary writing courses that had nothing to do with my major. One time in a poetry class the professor randomly told us to pick a poem we liked. I chose this very short poem, couldn’t have been more than a handful of sentences. After we made our choice, he told us we now had to write a fifty-page essay analyzing it. No amount of fluff skills in the world could’ve made that essay interesting after the first twenty pages.

Q: Where is your favorite library, and what do you love about it?
A: The St. Petersburg Public Library. It’s the library near where I grew up, and just thinking about it evokes such sweet nostalgia. There’s a small lake in the back which you can see through the large windows at the rear of the building and it’s sufficiently big enough where I could find a quiet corner and not see another soul while I read.

Q: It sounds lovely. You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be? 

A: Commander Shepard.

Q: What’s the worst thing someone has said about your writing? How did you deal with it?

A: I was told by a colleague that I need to work on showing rather than telling. So, I worked on it, and I try to remain conscious of it.

Q: What would your dream office look like? 

A: I have thought about this often! I would like it to be surrounded by trees. The walls and ceiling made of windows (something like a sun room.) With comfy furnishing but very little distractions, because I am the biggest procrastinator. And there needs to be a decent amount of space, because I tend to pace when I really get into my writing.

Q: Why did you decide to self-publish?

A: I originally wanted to go with a publisher for sole purpose of avoiding marketing and advertising. I knew marketing would be my weakness, and I wish I could say after the hours/days/weeks/months/years I have put into reading about strategies, watching video after video, trying to understand social media (even though I am an Xennial and it should come natural to me) and speaking to people that marketing gets easier; but for me it is even worse than I imagined. If I had enough money, I would hire a big PR firm and wash my hands of it for the sake of my sanity and blood pressure.
However, now I am glad I self-published. I truly believe there is a market for novels like Blessed: The Prodigal Daughter. Christian readers like all kinds of genres not just romance. Some of us like edgier fiction and that is ok. My goal with Blessed is to have a book that both Christians and non-Christians can enjoy. I don’t shy away from spiritual themes but you can also read the novel and forget for a moment that it’s Christian. However, it is very hard to sell publishers on anything but the tried and true. And if you are a Christian writer pitching to Christian publishers (if you can even find one that doesn’t play it completely safe and sticks to devotionals and romance. Both are worthy genres, but where is the variety people?!) the binds are even tighter. I wanted to write Blessed exactly the way it was written and the only way you get that kind of freedom is through self-publishing!

Q: What steps to publication did you personally do, and what did you hire someone to do? Is there anyone you’d recommend for a particular service? (e.g. formatting, cover art, editing…) 

A: What role others played:
Proofreading: I went with Ingrid Hedbor from Green Ink Proofreading. I was very happy with her services!

Content (Developmental) editing: Karen Conlin from Grammargeddon was my content editor. She is very knowledgeable about her craft.

Cover Design: OK I. LOVE. MY. COVER! I went with Ida Sveningsson for my cover. I can’t rave about her enough. She’s a sweet person, her prices are reasonable, and her work is top notch!

Copy Editing: My first editor, and without a doubt the person who helped me the most OUTSIDE of just editing would be Gillian McGarvey. She is the only one on this list that I have met in person at a writing conference in New York when I was completely green, the first person I ever pitched to. She is also the person who recommended Karen Conlin my developmental editor to me. She is the owner and founder of Wheelhouse Editorial. Check her out if you get a chance!

Advertising and Marketing: Dorothy Thompson, from Pump Up Your Book.
Marketing is still ongoing, but I can say that Dorothy, (Pump Up Your Book), has done far more for my novel in a short period of time than I have been able to do in months, including landing me this fun interview!

What role I played:
I started H.S.W Publications LLC. (A work in progress.)

Purchased my ISBNs because it is important to completely own your work.

I formatted both the epub and the print copy of Blessed: The Prodigal Daughter. I used a program called Adobe Indesign. This is not for everyone and truthfully, I might not format my next book for epub or print. It’s doable but it is a hassle.

Q: What are you working on now?
A: I am currently working on Blessed: The Peacemaker, Michael’s story. Along with re-publishing a charming children’s book by the name of Ray’s Wisdom. The story is a lesson on how to deal with bullies, and it unfortunately did not get the care it deserved by the original publishers. I will be taking over the project and re-publishing it under H.S.W Publications LLC so please look for that in late Spring 2019.




ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A.L. Bryant was born and raised in St. Petersburg FL. She became interested in writing at an early age; an interest that depending on the circumstance brought punishment (detention for passing out the latest installment of her novella during class) and praise (being chosen for a youth writers conference at the Poynter Institute.)  A.L. Bryant gets her inspiration from both her mother and her great grandmother. Her mother recently published an inspirational children’s book under a pseudonym and her great grandmother was an author and playwright.

Until recently writing had simply been a pastime for A.L. Bryant who although she attended several writing courses, graduated with a B.A. in International Business. It was shortly after her second job as a Financial Office Manager at a Goodwill correctional facility that she realized she loved writing more than anything else. It would still be some years before she would convert the short story she wrote in college into a novel.

Besides writing, A.L. Bryant loves traveling the world. God has blessed her with the opportunity to visit a total of seven countries. She has studied abroad in Seoul and has traveled throughout Kenya; two locations she researched for her Blessed series. Her dream is to visit every country in the world.

Connect with the author:
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  

Buy the book:
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FEATURED AUTHOR: D.E. HAGGERTY

ABOUT THE BOOK

A picture tells a story. But is it the truth?

When the police find pictures of Melanie hanging up at her murdered colleague’s house, they’re convinced he was stalking her. Maybe she even killed him. Melanie was not being stalked! And she certainly didn’t kill her supposed stalker – as if. But Mel – always up for a bit of drama – jumps at the chance to go search for the real killer. When Mel’s ex-boyfriend, Owen, discovers her plans, he pulls out all the stops to ensure she’s safe and to win her back. No matter what happens with the murder investigation, he’s not letting her go. With the police setting their sights on Mel, he may need to jeopardize his own career on the police force to protect her.

Will Mel find the real killer before the detectives arrest her for murder? 




Book Details:


Title: Picture Not Perfect

Author: D.E. Haggerty

Genre: Cozy mystery, romantic suspense

Series: Not So Reluctant Detective series, book 2

Published: January 21, 2019

Print length: 229 pages

On tour with: Great Escapes Book Tours

INTERVIEW WITH D.E. HAGGERTY

Q: Dena, what’s the story behind the title of your book?
A: The story of Picture Not Perfect revolves around a pair of detectives finding pictures of the heroine, Melanie, at the home of her murdered colleague. Based on the pictures, the detectives believe Melanie was involved in the murder. But is this the truth? They say every picture tells a story. A picture may tell a story, but that doesn’t mean the story it tells is the truth. I, therefore, took the saying "Picture Perfect" and turned it a bit around to Picture Not Perfect.

Q: Tell us about your series. Is this book a standalone, or do readers need to read the series in order?
A: Picture Not Perfect is the second book in the Not So Reluctant Detective series. All books in the series are standalones. They don’t need to be read in order. The series revolves around three friends, Terri, Melanie, and Pru, who all somehow find themselves in the middle of murder investigations.

Q: Where’s home for you?
A: Home is currently The Hague in the Netherlands.

Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I grew up in Wisconsin, but since I left at the age of seventeen and decades have since passed, Wisconsin no longer feels like home.

Q: What do you love about where you live?
A: I love how international the Hague is. I can literally hear five different languages while shopping at the corner store. This lends itself to some great cultural opportunities as well. Cultural fairs, speakers, exhibitions, etc. 



Q: What is the most daring thing you've done?
A: I snuck off and joined the military. Huh. I’m not sure if that’s the most daring or the most stupid thing I’ve ever done.  


Q: It's amazing how often those two go hand in hand! How did you meet your husband?
A: I met my husband while I was stationed in Heidelberg, Germany with the US Army. He was with the Dutch military, and we were both seconded to NATO. My girlfriend was actually interested in him at first. I arranged an introduction, but she said he was too short for her! I didn’t mind how tall he was. He made me laugh.

Q: If you could only save one thing from your house, what would it be?
A: I have a box of important stuff. It has everything in it from my baptism outfit to pictures to report cards to my discharge papers from the military.

Q: What’s one of your favorite quotes?
A: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 
I took the one less traveled by, 
And that has made all the difference.”
― Robert Frost

Q: What would your main character say about you?
A: I think Melanie and I would get along smashingly. She’d probably say I should read less and go to yoga class with her. Not going to happen.

Q: I hear you! One of your characters has just found out you’re about to kill him off. He decides to beat you to the punch. How would he kill you?
A: I think Alfred Schultz, the murder victim in Picture Perfect, would put a poisonous snake in my bed. He’s an incredibly sneaky man and very tenacious. He’d probably stalk me to find out my greatest fear (snakes) and end me that way. And now, I’m glad I managed to kill him off first because that’s just plain mean!

Q: Those are the best kinds of characters to kill off! What book are you currently reading and in what format?
A: I’m reading A Gentleman in Moscow in paperback. I usually read eBooks, but the paperback was only a dollar more than the eBook. In that case, I prefer to hold the paperback in my hands. I’m loving the story, by the way. I’m addicted to Russian literature, and this book is reminiscent of those great Russian novelists.

Q: What’s one pet peeve you have when you read?
A: I hate inconsistencies. For example, a character claims: “We need to buy a coffee table” and in the next sentence is setting a drink down on the coffee table. What coffee table???


Q: Do you have a routine for writing?
A: Yes! I think it’s important for all writers to have a routine. I write every morning first thing. The dog has to wait for his walk until I’ve finished a chapter in my novel.

Q: Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?
A: I like it when it’s dark and I’m writing in my lonesome while the world sleeps. I have a bedroom in our house I’ve converted into an office, and I do all of my writing there. The idea of writing at a coffee shop is appealing, but I’m too lazy to get out of my pjs and drag my stuff to a shop.

Q: What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received about your writing?A: My mother-in-law told me reading Buried Appearances was like being back in Holland during the war. Since Buried Appearances is a historical novel centered around the Second World War, I couldn’t ask for a better compliment.

Q: What are you working on now?
A: Book 3 of The Not So Reluctant Detective series. This installment of the series will feature a girlfriend of the protagonist of book 2. She’s got a secret. A big secret. I can’t wait to slowly reveal it. It’s not what readers think.


OTHER BOOKS BY D.E. HAGGERTY

Searching for Gertrude

Fat Girl Begone!Molly’s Misadventures

Life Discarded

Buried Appearances / Begraven in het Verleden


The Not So Reluctant Detective series:

Finders, Not Keepers (Book 1)


Death by Cupcake Series:

Never Trust a Skinny Cupcake Baker (Book 1)

Bring Your Own Baker (Book 2)

Self-Serve Murder (Book 3)


Gray-Haired Knitting Detectives Series:

Murder, Mystery & Dating Mayhem (Book 1)

Jack Gets His Man (Book 2)

Love in the Time of Murder (Book 3)



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dena (aka D.E.) grew up reading everything she could get her grubby hands on from her mom's Harlequin romances to Nancy Drew to Little Women. When she wasn't flipping pages in a library book, she was penning horrendous poems, writing songs no one should ever sing, or drafting stories, which she is very thankful have been destroyed. College and a stint in the U.S. Army came along and robbed her of any free time to write or read, although on the odd occasion she did manage to sneak a book into her rucksack between rolled up socks, MRIs, t-shirts, and cold weather gear. After surviving the army experience, she went back to school and got her law degree. She jumped ship and joined the hubby in the Netherlands before the graduation ceremony could even begin. A few years into her legal career, she was exhausted, fed up, and just plain done. She quit her job and sat down to write a manuscript, which she promptly hid in the attic after returning to the law. But being a lawyer really wasn’t her thing, so she quit (again!) and went off to Germany to start a B&B. Turns out being a B&B owner wasn’t her thing either. She polished off that manuscript languishing in the attic before following the husband to Istanbul where she decided to give the whole writer-thing a go. But ten years was too many to stay away from her adopted home. She packed up again and moved back to the Netherlands (The Hague to be exact) where she's currently working on her next book. She hopes she'll always be working on another book.

Connect with Dena:Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  |  Newsletter sign-up 

Buy the book:

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FEATURED CHARACTER: PATY JAGER'S GABRIEL HAWKE

ABOUT THE BOOK

The ancient Indian art of tracking is his greatest strength…

And also his biggest weakness.

Fish and Wildlife State Trooper Gabriel Hawke believes he’s chasing poachers.

However, he comes upon a wildlife biologist standing over a body that is wearing a wolf tracking collar.

He uses master tracker skills taught to him by his Nez Perce grandfather to follow clues on the mountain. Paper trails and the whisper of rumors in the rural community where he works, draws Hawke to a conclusion that he finds bitter.

Arresting his brother-in-law ended his marriage, could solving this murder ruin a friendship?

Book Details

Title: Murder of Ravens

Author: Paty Jager

Genre: Mystery

Series: Gabriel Hawke book 1

Publisher: Windtree Press (January 20, 2019)

Print length: 302 pages

On toru with: Great Escapes Book Tours

CHARACTER POST BY PATY JAGER'S GABRIEL HAWKE

I don’t even like to write up my police reports, so writing up this blog post is going to be a stretch for me. My name is Hawke. Fish and Wildlife State Trooper Gabriel Hawke to be exact. But I prefer to be called Hawke.

I’m proud of my Nez Perce and Cayuse heritage, but just as proud to have lived through my years on the reservation and now help conserve the land and animals of an area that was once my ancestors’ summer and winter homes.

I was married once. I was young and naïve to believe a woman could understand there are times my job comes before anything else. I’m sure there are few officers who have to arrest their brother-in-laws, but when he was caught with drugs, it was my duty to arrest him. The next day my wife was gone and a week later I received divorce papers. That taught me my job means more to me than a woman.

My job in Wallowa County is always interesting. Being a Fish and Wildlife State Trooper in this county means I not only do my Fish and Wildlife duties, checking hunting and fishing tags and violations, I also work as a State Trooper, giving traffic violations, drug busts, marital disputes, breaking up fights, you name it, anything a law enforcement officer does, we do along with the game side of things. And we do all of this in 5200 square miles. Mostly unpaved roads.

Because I’m single, I get to spend the most time up in the Wallowa Whitman Wilderness. Just me, my horse, Jack, my mule, Horse, and my dog, Dog. You’ll discover, I’m not much for names. I also have a young horse named Boy.

I live in a two room apartment over an indoor riding arena. I rent the room and a paddock for my horses from a couple in their sixties. The Trembleys are good people. Darlene gives riding lessons and stables horses while Herb takes care of their hundred acre farm.  The only problem with renting from them is they believe it is their duty to know everything about me and what I’m doing. But they are a great source for rumors in the county, which helps me when I’m solving crimes.

That’s the basics of who I am and where I come from. If you want to learn more, you’ll have to read about the situations my author puts me in to see how I respond. The first book releasing this month is Murder of Ravens. In this book, I discover a man in the mountains who has been strangled with a wolf tracking collar. Book 2, Mouse Trail Ends, releasing February 20th, I have to track a young girl who is running from the man who killed her parents. Book 3, Rattlesnake Brother, releasing March 20th, I believe the District Attorney has murdered a man.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paty Jager is an award-winning author of 35 novels, 8 novellas, and numerous anthologies of murder mystery and western romance. All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Her Shandra Higheagle mystery series has been a runner-up in the RONE Award Mystery category, and a finalist in the Daphne du Maurier.

Connect with Paty:
Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  |  Pinterest  |  Amazon

Buy the book:
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FEATURED AUTHOR: SHELLY FROME

ABOUT THE BOOK 


At the outset, Miranda Davis has nothing much going for her. The tourists are long gone by October in the quaint Carolina town of Black Mountain, her realty business is at a standstill, and her weekend stint managing the local tavern offers little to pull her out of the doldrums. When prominent church lady Cloris Raintree offers a stipend to look into the whereabouts of a missing girl hiker on the Q.T, Miranda, along with her partner Harry (an unemployed features writer) agree.

But then it all backfires. A burly figure shambles down a mountain slope with a semi-conscious girl draped over his shoulder. Miranda’s attempts to uncover Cloris Raintree’s true motives become near impossible as she puts up one smokescreen after another, including a slip of the tongue regarding an incident in Havana. The local police keep stonewalling and Harry is of little help.

Tarot cards left on Cloris’ doorstep and arcane prompts on her e-mail only exacerbate the situation. Growing more desperate over the captive girl’s fate, Miranda comes across a link to a cold case of arson and murder. With the advent of the dark of the moon, she is summoned to “Tower Time” as this twisty tale continues to run its course.

Book Details:


Title: The Secluded Village Murders

Author: Shelly Frome

Genre: Cozy mystery

Publisher: Boutique of Quality Books (September 1, 2018)

Print length: 332 pages

On tour with: Great Escapes Book Tours

INTERVIEW WITH SHELLY FROME


Shelly, what’s the story behind the title of your book?
The pixilated antagonist of this story is fixated on the moon as he sets out to play games with his unsuspecting victim until the time is right according to the Zodiac when “the sins of the past finally come due.”

Where’s home for you?
My adopted home is Black Mountain, North Carolina even though I spent over 35 years as a professor of dramatic arts at the University of Connecticut and grew up in Miami, Florida. 



What do you love about where you live?
Being nestled in the Blue Ridge among colorful, encouraging people far from the mad constant competitive ambiance of New York, in a small town where no one judges you gives you a wondrous sense of refuge and rejuvenation.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
I’ve discovered that everything is relative and anyone trying to place a frame around any aspect of life in one way or another is missing out on wonders and possibilities.

What is the most daring thing you've done?
Taking off for New York in the hopes of becoming an actor with absolutely no idea where I was going to stay, how I was going to going to go about it or what I’d find in the late fifties.

What is the stupidest thing you've ever done?
Bought used cars that looked cool that soon felt apart on me.

What’s one thing that you wish you knew as a teenager that you know now?
The realities of getting involved with the opposite sex and what it takes to create a home and a family.

What’s one thing you wish your younger writer self knew?
The vast difference between writing a viable play and writing a novel in terms of a reader’s expectations and experiences.

What makes you bored?
Routines, small talk and anything that’s safe and predictable. 

What choices in life would you like to have a redo on?
Putting up with relatives and so-called elders who sensed my vulnerability and took advantage of my fear of authority figures.

What do you love about writing?
The element of surprise lurking around the corner. In a sense, discovering things you didn’t know that you knew all along.


What’s the hardest thing about being a writer?
The huge gap between your experience creating and polishing your work and the plethora of responses from readers stating things you had no idea were lurking behind the cover.


What’s the easiest thing about being a writer?
Taking your time, going with your own schedule, following the energy wherever it takes you.


What’s something you never want to run out of?
A compelling creative project.

Words that describe you:
Antic, dreamy, an incurable storyteller, caught somewhere between being and intra and extra-vert.

What’s something you wish you could do?
Take off and cruise the tropics and intriguing parts of Europe

Something you like to do:
Interview fascinating people.



Something you wish you’d never done:
Worked in the produce department of the A&P.

People you consider heroes:
Creative people who have followed their bliss no matter what. Activists who have gone out there no matter what the odds and gathered together to right great wrongs.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Shelly Frome is a member of Mystery Writers of America, a professor of dramatic arts emeritus at the University of Connecticut, a former professional actor, a writer of crime novels and books on theater and film. He is also a features writer for Gannett Media. His fiction includes Sun Dance for Andy Horn, Lilac Moon, Twilight of the Drifter, Tinseltown Riff, and Murder Run.  Among his works of non-fiction are The Actors Studio and texts on the art and craft of screenwriting and writing for the stage. Moon Games and The Secluded Village Murders are his latest foray into the world of crime and the amateur sleuth. He lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina.

Connect with Shelly:
Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Buy the book:
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FEATURED AUTHOR: J.C. EATON

ABOUT THE BOOK

Bowled over . . .

Sophie “Phee” Kimball is getting dragged into the drama again at her mom’s Arizona retirement community. A new board member wants to get rid of two golf courses and replace them with eco-friendly parks, and some of the residents are pretty teed off about it. On top of that, her mother’s book club friend Myrna is being pushed out of the bocce league. These seniors are serious about winning, and Myrna’s dragging them down. She’s so bad at bocce, in fact, that when a community mem.ber’s dead body is discovered while Myrna’s practicing for a tournament, she assumes it was one of her own errant balls that killed the woman.

But before Myrna can be tossed off the bocce court and into criminal court, the police find an arrow in the victim’s neck. It looks like this was no accident—and Phee and her investigator boyfriend Marshall will have to team up to bounce a killer into the slammer . . .

Book Details:


Title: Botched 4 Murder

Author: J.C. Eaton (Ann I. Goldfarb and James E. Clapp)

Genre: Cozy mystery
Series: Sophie Kimball Mystery, book 4

Publisher: Kensington (December 2018)

Print length: 283 pages

On tour with: Great Escapes Book Tours

INTERVIEW WITH J.C. EATON

Things you need in order to write:
Jim: Paper and pen.
Ann: Computer, absolute quiet room, chocolate.
Things that hamper your writing:
Jim: Misplacing my reading glasses.
Ann: Noise, Dog needing to go outside the minute I sit down to write, cats bellowing for food whenever I’m at the computer. 


Things you love about writing:
Jim: The freedom to let my mind wander.
Ann: Setting my own schedule.
Things you hate about writing:
Jim and Ann: Editing.


Easiest thing about being a writer:Jim and Ann: Being our own boss!
Hardest thing about being a writer:
Jim and Ann: Juggling our time.

Things you love about where you live:
Jim: The weather.
Ann: Swimming all year long.
Things that make you want to move:
Jim and Ann: Monsoon season in Arizona.


Things you never want to run out of:Jim: Toilet paper.
Ann: Chocolate.
Things you wish you’d never bought:
Jim: A food dehydrator.
Ann: Wrinkle cream
.

Favorite foods:
Jim: Pizza.
Ann: New York Style Chinese food and calamari.
Things that make you want to throw up: 
Jim: IRS forms and chopped liver.
Ann: Pet messes and asparagus.

Favorite music or song:
Jim: The Band, The Grateful Dead, jazz.
Ann: The Band, The Grateful Dead, showtunes, and Italian Opera.
Music that makes  your ears bleed:
Jim and Ann: Elevator Music, Punk Rock.

Favorite beverage:
Jim: Orange Juice.
Ann: Coke.

Something that gives you a pickle face:
Jim: Garlic bologna.
Ann: Honey.

Favorite smell:
Jim: Spaghetti Sauce.
Ann: Petunias.
Something that makes you hold your nose:
Jim and Ann: The cat litter box.

Something you’re really good at:
Jim: Construction, home repairs, cooking.

Something you’re really bad at:
Ann: Home repairs, cooking
.

Last best thing you ate:
Jim: Deep dish pizza in Chicago.
Ann: New York Style Egg Rolls.

Last thing you regret eating:
Jim: Calamari.
Ann: Peanut Butter.

Things you’d walk a mile for:
Jim: A home-cooked Italian meal.
Ann: Shrimp in lobster sauce
Things that make you want to run screaming from the room:
Jim: Spiders.
Ann: Scorpions.

Favorite places you’ve been:
Jim and Ann: Moscow, Ottawa, Toronto, London, The Caribbean.

Places you never want to go to again:
Jim and Ann: Upstate New York in the dead of winter.

Things that make you happy:
Jim and Ann: Good friends, good books, our pets.

Things that drive you crazy:
Jim and Ann: Grouchy people, last minute deadlines.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done:
Jim and Ann: Hiking back trails in Mexico.
Something you chickened out from doing:
Jim and Ann: Hiking back trails in Mexico again!

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Ann I. Goldfarb
New York native Ann I. Goldfarb spent most of her life in education, first as a classroom teacher and later as a middle school principal and professional staff developer. Writing as J. C. Eaton, along with her husband, James Clapp, they have authored the Sophie Kimball Mysteries (Kensington), The Wine Trail Mysteries (Kensington Lyrical Underground), and The Marcie Rayner Mysteries (Camel). In addition, Ann has nine published YA time travel mysteries under her own name.

James E. Clapp
When James E. Clapp retired as the tasting room manager for a large upstate New York winery, he never imagined he’d be co-authoring cozy mysteries with his wife, Ann I. Goldfarb.  Non-fiction in the form of informational brochures and workshop materials treating the winery industry were his forte along with an extensive background and experience in construction that started with his service in the U.S. Navy and included vocational school classroom teaching. 


Connect with the authors:
Website  |   Facebook  |   Twitter  |  Goodreads  

Buy the book:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |   Poisoned Pen Bookstore

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FEATURED AUTHOR: JOE ALBANESE

ABOUT THE BOOK


These poems leave no doubt in our minds that the poet is a great artist and poet by birth. The poet's mastery of words is remarkable and incomparable. All these poems reveal the concrete and artistic expression of the poet's various moods and emotions.

Book Details:

Title: Cocktails with a Dead Man

Author: Joe Albanese

Genre: Poetry Collection

Publisher: Cyberwit.net (Jan 15, 2019)

Print length: 106 pages






LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT WITH JOE ALBANESE

A few of your favorite things: My family. Awww…nothing?
Things you need to throw out: Not throw out, but last week I donated a bunch of books. I got rid of half, but had to hold on to a lot. I need to donate them too.

Things you need in order to write: Time.
Things that hamper your writing: Unwanted noise.

Things you love about writing: You start with nothing, then create an entire world. There are no rules. Well there are, but most of them can be broken.
Things you hate about writing: Once you hit that spot where you have no idea where to go, the work stops. There’s no progress, not even a little. You hope you can claw out of it, and most of the time you do, but you’re never really sure you will.

Easiest thing about being a writer: I make my own hours, so I can get out of social situations by saying I need to do work. It’s a lie, I never work.
Hardest thing about being a writer: No guarantees, but I guess it’s that way with most jobs. Just different.

Things you love about where you live: I get every season. Sometimes too much of a season, but it’s easier to appreciate the nicer days. I live in a small enough town, with Philadelphia only twenty minutes away. So I get a little of both worlds.
Things that make you want to move: Sometimes it feels like there’s nothing to do around here. There actually always is, but I never want to do any of it, so it’s not like that would change if I moved. I convince myself things would be different.

Things you never want to run out of: Love. Awww… still nothing?
Things you wish you’d never bought: DVDs. That technology got outdated fast. I don’t even think I own a DVD player, but I own a ton of DVDs.

Words that describe you: Well my psychiatrist says I’m—wait, what?
Words that describe you but you wish they didn’t: Needy. Insecure. Paranoid. Obsessive.

Favorite foods: I’m in the middle of a stomach bug and spent the first half of today vomiting, so no food sounds good right now.
Things that make you want to throw up: I’d say my own writing, but I don’t think my publishers would appreciate me insulting the work they invested in.

Favorite music or song: I like like most music, but say ambient music to be different. I’ll say my favorite song, currently, is Njosnavelin by Sigur Ros. That will probably change as soon as I hear a different song.
Music that make your ears bleed: Not all, but most country and rap.

Favorite beverage: Well since my book title references alcohol, my favorite alcoholic beverage is a Tom Collins, though vodka and Red Bull gets me to my destination fastest.
Something that gives you a pickle face: No clue. Side note: don’t Google “pickle face.”

Favorite smell: A bag of fast food.
Something that makes you hold your nose: Oh, many, many foods.

Something you’re really good at: Interviews, am I right?
Something you’re really bad at: Liking myself.

Something you wish you could do: Be better at predicting lottery numbers.
Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Procrastinate.

Something you like to do: Watch sports. Only pro teams. If they’re not getting paid millions of dollars, I don’t care.
Something you wish you’d never done: It would take less time to say the things I’m glad I’ve done.

Last best thing you ate: Sour fruit snacks.
Last thing you regret eating: Whatever made its way through my nasal passages when I vomited earlier.

Things you’d walk a mile for: Exercise.
Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: My reflection.

Things you always put in your books: A crumpled up bookmark in the wrong spot because my nephews insist on taking it out constantly and crushing it.
Things you never put in your books: I don’t dog-ear them anymore.

Things to say to an author: Where I can I buy your book, handsome?
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Have you written anything I would know?

Favorite places you’ve been: Disney is my go-to.
Places you never want to go to again: High school.

Favorite book: I usually say A Clockwork Orange. I feel the least bad about saying that one.
Books you would ban: Books better than mine. So most.

People you’d like to invite to dinner: Tom Hanks. Andrew W.K. They just seem like delightful people.
People you’d cancel dinner on: Insert politician you disagree with.

Favorite things to do: Sleep.
Things you’d run through a fire wearing gasoline pants to get out of doing: Like most writers, writing.

Things that make you happy: Sleep.
Things that drive you crazy: When someone takes something out of the microwave before the timer goes off, so instead of the time, the display says two seconds.

Most embarrassing moment: Nice try.
Proudest moment: Yet to come.

Biggest lie you’ve ever told: I’m fine.
A lie you wish you’d told: I’m fine.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Be nice to people.
Biggest mistake: Be not nice to people.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Looking in the mirror sometimes takes more guts than you’d think.
Something you chickened out from doing: Asking a girl out I like.

The last thing you did for the first time: Gotten a poetry book published!
Something you’ll never do again: Well, I hope I never throw up again.

OTHER BOOKS BY JOE ALBANESE

Caina
Smash and Grab

   

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Joe Albanese is a writer from South Jersey. His short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry can be found in publications across the U.S. and in ten other countries. Joe's novel, Caina, and his novella, Smash and Grab, were published in 2018. His poetry collection, Cocktails with a Dead Man, was published in 2019.


Connect with Joe:
Twitter  |  Goodreads  


Buy the book:

Amazon

FEATURED AUTHOR: STEPHANIE BLACKMOORE

ABOUT THE BOOK

Professional wedding planner Mallory Shepard knows her job is challenging under any circumstances. But when the groom is your ex and someone invites murder, there may never be another tomorrow .  .  .

Mallory’s fine—really—handling the wedding arrangements for her ex, Keith. But his fiancée, Becca, has at the last minute decided to switch from a Japanese-cherry-blossom theme to a Gone with the Wind theme. She wants to honor her ailing grandmother, who owns an impressive collection of GWTW memorabilia—and who is fiercely at odds with the groom’s mother over the nuptial plans.

But among other complications, Becca gets into a fight with an old childhood rival over a replica Scarlett O’Hara wedding gown. She wins the dress—but soon becomes a murder suspect when the other woman is found dead in Becca’s swimming pool. And it’s up to Mallory to solve the mystery behind this unhappy occasion, before a different kind of civil war breaks out .  .  .

Book Details:


Title: Gown With the Wind

Author: Stephanie Blackmoore

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Kensington Books (December 18, 2018)

Print length: 336 pages

On tour with: Great Escapes Book Tours

LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT WITH STEPHANIE BLACKMOORE


A few of your favorite things:
My fluffy purple Sherpa robe, my electric kettle, and my trusty e-reader.
Things you need to throw out:
The voluminous collection of food storage containers threatening to overtake my cabinets. How do socks always manage to disappear, but Tupperware seems to multiply overnight?!


Things you need in order to write:
Coffee, my laptop, coffee, music, coffee, and a long, detailed outline.
Things that hamper your writing:
Trying to write scenes before they’re fully fleshed out in my head, running out of coffee, and working with not enough sleep.


Things you love about writing:
The chance to revisit memories, ponder what my characters want to do next, visit fictional places, and working with words.
Things you hate about writing:
Deadlines and uncertainty.


Things you love about where you live:
I love the cozy, small-town atmosphere of Cape Girardeau, Missouri. I adore seeing the Mississippi River almost daily, the friendly people, and the charming atmosphere.
Things that make you want to move:
Nothing!

Favorite foods:
Razzleberry pie, Mississippi roast, and asparagus.
Things that make you want to throw up:
Eggs. I didn’t realize until my son developed an egg allergy that I probably had one was well growing up.



Last best thing you ate:
A box of Godiva truffles from my aunt. Rich, decadent, and sinfully delicious. Yum!

Last thing you regret eating:
I should have regretted eating the truffles, but I enjoyed every last bite!

Things you always put in your books:
Cats, cookies, and coffee. 

Things you never put in your books:
Never say never. I find myself writing about topics and themes I never imagined I would!

Favorite places you’ve been:
Edinburgh, Scotland; Tallahassee, Florida; Prague, Czech Republic; and where I live now in Missouri. 

Places you never want to go to again:
I’ve pretty much enjoyed most places I’ve visited. I’m not keen, however, to fly as much as I used to. It used to seem glamorous and exiting. But it’s changed so much, and I’d much rather drive, even if it makes for a loooooong trip!

Favorite things to do:
Reading books to my son, cooking, visiting family and friends, and brewing beer (though I haven’t in a while).

Things you’d run through a fire wearing gasoline pants to get out of doing:
Laundry!

Things that make you happy:
Going on walks in the woods with my husband and my son, a new book by a favorite author, trying out new recipes, and figuring out a knotty writing problem.

Things that drive you crazy:
Traffic and wet socks.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


A native Pittsburgher, Stephanie Blackmoore now lives in Missouri, with her husband, son and two spirited cats. She was an attorney in Pittsburgh and a librarian in Florida before becoming a writer. Stephanie is a fan of snow, pierogis, and everything black-and-yellow. She is hard at work on her next Wedding Planner mystery.

Connect with Stephanie:
Website  |  Facebook  |  Goodreads 

Buy the book:

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

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FEATURED AUTHOR: SANDY GRANATO

ABOUT THE BOOK

Storm of the Soul is a thriller about a woman who relocates to the Bronx with her child to hide from her alcoholic abusive husband.


Debbie Cavagnino lives with her mother Rosa in the Bronx, New York City. Life is tough, but they get by. We follow her and various friends growing up through the years at school, college and the work place; their struggles, sorrows and joys, the schoolgirl crushes, and mainly unreliable boyfriends. Rosa early on divorced her violent and abusive husband; she is strong and has come to terms with it, but at a deep level, Debbie remains emotionally damaged, and is vulnerable, having lacked a proper father figure. Debbie meets Frank, seemingly a good man. He is certainly personable and romantic, and they soon marry, set up house and home and have a baby daughter, Stephanie. But Frank has a dark side; he is unfaithful and he has a drug habit. Debbie's dream life is shattered, but she remains loyal and concentrates on bringing up the little girl. Frank is murdered, apparently by a drug pusher, but what emerges is truly shocking . . .

Book Details: 


Title: Storm of the Soul


Author: Sandy Granato


Genre: Thriller


Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers, Ltd. (November 30, 2017)


Print length: 497 pages


LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT INTERVIEW WITH SANDY GRANATO

A few of your favorite things: Watching TV. Listening to music. Reading. Writing.
Things you need to throw out: My old shoes. My broken printer.


Things you need in order to write: A notebook. A cup of tea. A piece of cake. Chocolate.
Things that hamper your writing: Too much noise and not reading enough.


Things you love about writing: Writing gives me a sense of calmness. I sometimes feel like I’m being transported to a more peaceful place.
Things you hate about writing: I can’t think of any.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Working from home.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Jealous people.


Things you love about where you live: Living in the country in Piedmont, Northern Italy is peaceful and it gives me creativity.
Things that make you want to move: Gossiping people.


Things you never want to run out of: Chocolate.
Things you wish you’d never bought: Stupid things in which I could have spent my money on better things.


Words that describe you: Kind. Sensitive.
Words that describe you but you wish they didn’t: Anxious. High Strung. Suspicious.

Favorite foods: Chocolate. Mashed Potatoes. Sweet Potatoes. Carrots. 
Things that make you want to throw up: The smell of vomit.

Favorite music: My God! I have so many. Just to name a few:
                                               1. Sweet Dreams – Eurythmics.
                                               2. Frozen- Madonna
                                               3. Imagine – John Lennon
                                               4. AC/DC – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
                                               5. Beatles – A Day In The Life
                                               6. U2 – One
Music that make your ears bleed: Country music and opera.

Favorite beverage: Coca Cola. Tea with honey and lemon. Hot chocolate
.
Something that gives you a pickle face: Facials.

Favorite smell: Roses and freshly cut grass.

Something that makes you hold your nose: Farts.

Something you’re really good at: Writing.

Something you’re really bad at: Bowling.

Something you like to do: Go on vacations.

Something you wish you’d never done: Being kind to people who hurt me profoundly.


Last best thing you ate: Walnuts.

Last thing you regret eating: Too much bread and too much sugar.

Things you’d walk a mile for: The man of my dreams.
Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Zombies,  witches, and vampires.

Things you always put in your books: Some adverbs. (Despite Stephen King being against them.)

Things you never put in your books: Redundancy and incorrect grammar.

Favorite places you’ve been: New York, Texas, Milan. 

Places you never want to go to again: Philadelphia.

Favorite books:
1. It – Stephen King
2. A Time To Kill – John Grisham
3. 1984 – George Orwell
4. 11th Hour – Jams Patterson
5. The Pillars Of The Earth – Ken Follett
6. Echo Burning – Lee Child
7. The Wizard Of Oz –  L. Frank Baum
8. The Shining – Stephen King
9. The Client – John Grisham

Books you would ban: I don’t know any.

People you’d like to invite to dinner: Stephen King, Jon Bon Jovi, Bono.

People you’d cancel dinner on: Those who hate me.

Favorite things to do: Watch TV. Listening to music. Relaxing.

Things you’d run through a fire wearing gasoline pants to get out of doing: Dusting the house and ironing.

Things that make you happy: Love. My mother. My animals (I have two dogs, two birds, and a turtle.) Writing.

Things that drive you crazy: Tension. Nagging people. Evil people.

Proudest moment: Having my book published.

Most embarrassing moment: Leaving a public restroom with half my behind showing.

Biggest lie you’ve ever told: My age (Which is nobody’s business!)

A lie you wish you’d told: I don’t know.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Moving to Italy from New York. 

Biggest mistake: Not being very happy when it counted the most.



ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Sandy Granato was born in Hoboken, New Jersey. She grew up in the Bronx, where she also attended school. In 1960 her mother migrated from Piedmont, Italy to New York to study fashion design. Sandy's mother worked as a patternmaker at New York City's garment district. Sandy's parents divorced when she was four. It's nine years now that she's been living in Italy. She and her mother relocated there to be closer to the family. Sandy is bilingual. (Italian-English). However, English is her mother language. She started writing Storm of the Soul eight years ago. She's currently working on the final draft of her third book and has already started her fourth one.




Connect with Sandy:
Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  


Buy the book:

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

FEATURED AUTHOR: KAYA QUINSEY

ABOUT THE BOOK

Valentine Wells returns to Venice. After having visited ten years earlier when she was just sixteen years old, it was where she had impulsively met Lorenzo Dipachio. Her first kiss. Her first love.

Now twenty-six, Valentine is a successful wedding photographer in Chicago. Still impulsive, Valentine is recently divorced after being married for about a minute in Las Vegas. And she doesn't miss the irony of being a divorced wedding photographer. Also dealing with her mother's recent diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's, Valentine's father convinces her that she needs a break.

Now that she is back in Venice, Valentine wants to prove to herself that she's no longer the impulsive, daring girl who got married (and quickly divorced) in Vegas to a man she barely knew. Now, she is living by a new set of rules: planned, cautious, and carefully executed.

But her plan is challenged when she falls (literally) into the path of her first love, Lorenzo. And with Valentine's Day around the corner, will Valentine be able to keep herself from making another big mistake?


Book Details:


Title: Valentine in Venice


Author: Kaya Quinsey


Genre: Sweet Romance Novella


Publisher: Books To Go Now (January 04, 2019)



LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT WITH KAYA QUINSEY

Things you need in order to write: My laptop and a power chord.
Things that hamper your writing: Getting distracted by the antics of my cat, Pumpkin.



Easiest thing about being a writer: Coming up with new plot lines and ideas.
Hardest thing about being a writer: Actually putting those ideas onto the page.

Favorite foods: Fresh raspberries and chocolate croissants. And oysters!
Things that make you want to throw up: Nothing comes to mind! I’m really not a picky eater.

Favorite song: Lately, I’ve been listening to ‘Into the Mystic’ by Van Morrison on repeat.
Music that make your ears bleed: Muzak.

Favorite beverage: Grapefruit Perrier, coconut water, coffee, and champagne! All on their own, of course.

Something that gives you a pickle face: If these drinks were blended together.

Favorite smell: Vanilla, the ocean, and campfires.

Something that makes you hold your nose: When the pancakes get burnt.

Something you’re really good at: Daydreaming.

Something you’re really bad at: Keeping a poker face.


Things you always put in your books: Love and positive relationships.

Things you never put in your books: A tragic ending. 



OTHER BOOKS BY KAYA QUINSEY

Paris Mends Broken Hearts 

A Coastal Christmas

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Kaya Quinsey holds her undergraduate and master’s degree in psychology. The author of three books, her work has sold in seven countries. Kaya’s passion for culture, travel, and psychology blend for a reading style that is fun, full of surprises, and easy to read. A romantic at heart, Kaya’s writing offers a contemporary twist to traditional love stories. She hopes to inspire readers through her stories to fiercely chase their dreams.





Connect with Kaya:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  |  Amazon 

Buy the book:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo