Where I share my love of books with reviews, features, giveaways and memes. Family and needlepoint are thrown in from time to time.
Showing posts with label Partners in Crime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Partners in Crime. Show all posts

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Review and Giveaway: In the Shadow of Revenge by Patricia Hale

Title: In the Shadow of Revenge
Author: Patricia Hale
Publisher: Carina Press

About the book: Everybody thought brilliant Cecily would leave dead-end Miller's Falls for something better. But a two-decades-old tragedy locks her in place. Few understand the fierce bond that Cecily and Amelia share with Hilary, who was assaulted one summer as the two other girls watched helplessly. It's a bond of love and guilt… and a desire for vengeance that cuts clear to the bone.

So Assistant DA Cecily Minos waits, eager to see the guy in her courtroom. When Amelia meets a man who has the tattoo the girls remember seeing that day, they think they've finally caught a break. But the police refuse to reopen the case, and it's up to Cecily and Amelia to pursue their suspect.

Their investigation soon uncovers secrets best left buried. But the law is slow, and they've waited long enough for revenge…. 




Purchase Links:
 

My thoughts:  For a first book for Patricia Hale, this one was very good!  I can't wait to see what she will write in the future.  I liked the bond between Cecily, Hillary and Amelia, and given what they have gone through, it is very understandable and believable.  Something like that either tears you apart or brings you together forever.  

The story unfolds with us learning more and more about the girls' childhoods and the women they have become today.  You learn how they each have developed coping mechanisms to get them past the memories that haunt them. Cecily seems to bear the most guilt and it is linked to a Ouiji board that they had played with as children.  She has a link to the board which she is sure comes from her deceased Grandmother.  She feels that the answers that she has been given through the board may have been guidance from her Grandmother all along.  

The more involved Cecily becomes in the investigation concerning the assault from 18 years before, the more danger she finds herself in, and the more muddy the lines between being loyal to friends or being loyal to family become. 

Again, loved this book - and I loved the touch of paranormal that was thrown in!

~I received a complimentary ecopy of this book from Partners in Crime Book Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~

Excerpt from In the Shadow of Revenge: 


My lungs were tight as fists and the voice inside my head said run, but my legs couldn’t be trusted. Standing up wouldn’t have gotten me out of there, it would only have drawn attention to the pee that was warm in my shorts and it might have gotten Hilary killed if he was serious about running that blade across her neck.

All of a sudden the man stood and keeping his back to us, lowered the kerchief and put a cigarette in his mouth. Hilary never moved though I saw her blink. She was looking at something far away like she was somewhere else entirely and I hoped that that was true so she wouldn’t have to know what happened. He pulled his baseball hat low over his face the same way it’d been when we first climbed into the railcar and without ever looking at us he jumped to the ground and walked away.

“Stay here,” I’d told Amelia, though I knew she wasn’t going anywhere. And I ran. I ran faster than I’d ever run not even caring about the pee burning the inside of my legs. I’d taken the woods instead of the path, running in the opposite direction from the way he’d gone. My legs were scraped and bleeding by the time I’d reached the road and the stitch in my side had made it almost impossible to breath, but I just kept thinking of Hilary laying there and I couldn’t stop until I was pulling open my own back door. I ran into the kitchen and through the house until I found my mother kneeling beside her bed, rosary beads draped around her prayerful hands like a spider web. I stood in the doorway and looked at her, imagined wrapping my arms around her neck and her drawing me in, holding me. I imagined feeling safe. She glanced at me standing there then dismissed me with a nod of her head, knee deep in Jesus. I turned and ran for the telephone.




About the author: Patricia Hale is a graduate of the MFA program at Goddard College in Vermont. She is a member of Sister’s in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, NH Writer’s Project and Maine Writer’s and Publisher’s Alliance. Her essays and articles have appeared in New England literary magazines and the anthology, My Heart’s First Steps. When not writing, she enjoys hiking with her dogs and kayaking on the lakes near her home. Patricia lives in New Hampshire with her husband and two German shepherds.

Author Links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook





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Friday, August 30, 2013

The Beast by Faye Kellerman (Review and Giveaway)



The Beast

by Faye Kellerman

on Tour August 2013




Title: The Beast
Author: Faye Kellerman
Publisher: HarperCollins/William Morrow
Mystery, Thriller

About the book: Over his years with the LAPD, Peter Decker has handled a number of tough cases and strange killers. Few of his previous assignments compare to his latest case—the most bizarre of his storied career.

When Hobart Penny is found dead in his apartment, the cops think that his pet cat—an adult female tiger—attacked the reclusive elderly billionaire. But it soon becomes clear that the beast that killed the eccentric inventor is all too human. Digging into the victim’s life, Decker and his colleagues, Detectives Marge Dunn and Scott Oliver, discover that Penny was an exceptionally peculiar man with exotic tastes, including kinky sex with call girls.

Following a trail of clues that leads from a wildlife sanctuary in the San Bernardino Mountains to the wild nightlife of Las Vegas, the LAPD detectives are left juggling too many suspects and too few answers. To break open a case involving the two most primal instincts—sex and murder—Decker wrestles with a difficult choice: turning to a man with expert knowledge of both—Chris Donatti, the dangerous man who also happens to be the father of Decker’s foster son Gabriel Whitman, a boy not without his own problems.
As their work and intimate worlds collide, Decker and his wife, Rina, find themselves facing tough questions. It just might be that family crises and work-related responsibilities prove too much for Decker’s career. A confluence of ordeals can stress even the most intact of families. And when all these shocking truths comes out, exactly how well will Decker and Rina cope as well as survive?




Purchase Links: 
   




My Thoughts:  This is the 21st book that Faye Kellerman has written involving Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus.  The main storyline, the murder of Hobart Penny is very readable and understandable without having read any of the previous books.  I do feel that the sub plots - like with Gabe, their foster son, and his girlfriend Yasmine, lost some of the meaning without knowing the background.  However, I liked this book so much that there is a very good chance that I will go back and read the series!  

I really like the author's writing style.  It was just very laid back and easy to read.  Mr. Penny was so strange that I couldn't wait to see what they would turn up next in their investigation of his murder.  Despite his eccentricities though, the motive for his murder wasn't clear to me until the end - as a good mystery should be. 

I am looking forward to going back into the series and finding out more about Peter and Rina and the detectives Marge and Oliver.  I really want to find out more about Gabe and the big trauma that happened with him and Yasmine.  With just this little peek in their lives I found these characters to be very believable and likeable.  The detectives had an easy camaraderie, and Peter and Rina seem very comfortable in their relationship.  The conflict in the storyline is with the murder and everything that surrounded Hobart Penny.  (Ok, and a little bit with Gabe and Yasmine, but that wasn't central to the story).  



~I received a complimentary eCopy of The Beast from Partners in Crime Blog Tours/Edelweiss in exchange for my unbiased review.~

Read an excerpt:




About the author:  Faye Kellerman lives with her husband, New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Kellerman, in Los Angeles, California, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Catch Up With the Author:





I have one eBook of The Beast to giveaway to a lucky reader!  Enter on the rafflecopter below.




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Thursday, August 29, 2013

Book Showcase: Treasure Among the Shadows by Marie Romero Cash


Treasure Among the Shadows
by Marie Romero Cash
Publisher: Camel Press
Publication Date: June 2013
Mystery

A woman is strangled and shot. She was last seen alive at a casino near Santa Fe. Forensic Psychologist Jemimah Hodge is on the case, as is her new boyfriend, Sheriff Rick Romero. The trail has already grown cold when another woman is murdered under similar circumstances. The first dead woman left behind a disgruntled ex-spouse but no other obvious suspects. Gilda Humphreys, the second victim, is another story. First there is her househusband, then there are all her co-workers … It seems no one is shedding a tear for Gilda.

While going through Gilda's field notes, Jemimah discovers that the woman was experiencing a sexual renaissance. Could one of her lovers have killed her? Then there is Tim McCabe's treasure hunt. A wealthy gallery owner and collector, McCabe has buried a chest filled with valuable coins and jewelry and challenged the public to find it. When Gilda wasn't dressing down her co-workers or dallying with lovers, she was searching for McCabe's treasure.

Was it greed that killed Gilda? A scorned lover or vengeful co-worker? With so many suspects and so few clues, Rick and Jemimah face one of the most challenging cases of their careers.

Treasure Among the Shadows is the third book in Jemimah Hodge Murder Mystery series.


Read an excerpt:

It was a typical February Day. Locals referred to the month as Febrero Loco, crazy February, because the daily weather was as unpredictable as a roulette wheel. It was unseasonably warm and just to be on the safe side, the air conditioning at Buffalo Thunder Casino, north of Santa Fe, was cranked up.
The casino was gearing up for the upcoming Valentine’s Day, pulling out all the stops with promotions geared toward attracting patrons with the cherry red Toyota Camry give-away. Blackjack modules formed a large circle around the Craps and Texas Hold’em tables. The electromagnetic field and the thousand flashing lights could easily illuminate an entire city. Waitresses attired in short frilly skirts and low cut tank-tops stopped at each console to offer cold sodas, water and coffee, and friendly smiles to encourage tips.

She walked through the automatic doors, the strong odor of cigarette smoke assaulting her senses. Vanity precluded her from wearing sorely needed eyeglasses and she squinted her eyes in hopes of seeing a familiar face, preferably male and old enough to buy her a drink. She navigated her world in a blur, peering out of heavily made-up brown eyes and beneath thin, perfectly arched eyebrows. Dark red lipstick and a heart-shaped face framed by recently touched-up auburn hair completed the picture. She was dressed in black pants, a sparkly jacket and stiletto heels. The first was to hide the extra ten pounds she carried and the second was to give her four-eleven height a boost.

She found her favorite slot machine in a corner next to the lounge, where she could sometimes score a few drinks and maybe a place to stay for the night. Of late, she frequented the casinos on Highway 85staying until closing and hitching a ride back to Santa Fe, where she hung out in the laundry rooms of motels on Cerrillos Road. She was not a hooker. She was a forty-year-old woman down on her luck, having burned all the bridges behind her. She was desperate to win a jackpot to get her back on her feet.

She glanced through the corner of her eye at the man playing next to her. He was exactly her type—brown-skinned, tall, sleeveless t-shirt to show off bulging biceps, tattooed arms, long hair and a neatly trimmed goatee. Before the night was over, they were snuggled in a corner of the lounge, sipping rum and Cokes. If she played her cards right, she had a good idea where the evening was going to end up.



About the author: MARIE ROMERO CASH was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to a family that would eventually number seven children, and has lived there most of her life. After graduating from Santa Fe High School, she took a job as a legal secretary, a field that would provide a lifetime of employment. But then, in her mid-thirties, she discovered the traditional arts of northern New Mexico. After twenty years of creating award-winning art, she began to write about it, but decided she needed a higher education to do so. At fifty she enrolled in college and, five years later, graduated with a degree in Southwest Studies. In 1998, she received the prestigious Javits Fellowship to pursue her education. Since then Marie has written several books about the art and culture of the southwest, including a memoir about growing up in Santa Fe. Treasure among the Shadows is the third book in the Jemimah Hodge Mystery Series, which began with Shadows among the Ruins and Deadly Deception.

Author Links: 

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

The Rockin' Chair by Steven Manchester (Book Review)

TheRockinChair_banner1

The Rockin' Chair
by Steven Manchester
on Tour July 1 - August 31

The Rockin' Chair by Steven Manchester
Book Details
Genre: Fiction
Published by: The Story Plant
Publication Date: June 18, 2013
Number of Pages: 242
Purchase Links:

Synopsis: Memories are the ultimate contradiction. They can warm us on our coldest days – or they can freeze a loved one out of our lives forever. The McCarthy family has a trove of warm memories. Of innocent first kisses. Of sumptuous family meals. Of wondrous lessons learned at the foot of a rocking chair. But they also have had their share of icy ones. Of words that can never be unsaid. Of choices that can never be unmade. Of actions that can never be undone.Following the death of his beloved wife, John McCarthy – Grandpa John – calls his family back home. It is time for them to face the memories they have made, both warm and cold. Only then can they move beyond them and into the future.


A rich portrait of a family at a crossroad, The Rockin’ Chair is Steven Manchester’s most heartfelt and emotionally engaging novel to date. If family matters to you, it is a story you must read.

My thoughts:  If you have spent anytime on book blogs this summer, I am sure that you have seen this book crop up.  I am not sure what I can say about it that hasn't already been said.  It was a wonderful read, with Grampa John imparting wisdom - wisdom that should be obvious, but sometimes it takes someone to point it out to us.

The family has scattered across the U.S. - well, really the world - with George being in Afghanistan, but as Alice, John's wife, continues to worsen, he puts out a call to bring the grandchildren home.  Even though his son Hank lives within an arm's reach, he might as well have been across the world with the distance that has separated him and his father John for many years.

I loved the way that the other drew everyone's sorrows out in their own time, without judgment and how Grampa John orchestrated the time they needed to share that sorrow with him.  It is a really good story about family - their struggles, their mistakes, the lines that separate and the bonds that draw us back together.

~I received a complimentary ecopy from Partners in Crime  Book Tours and Providence Book  Promotions in exchange for my unbiased review.~

Read an excerpt:


Elle picked up Evan, Tara and Lila at the airport. As she approached the threesome, she gasped at the sight of her emaciated daughter. For a few moments, Tara’s eyes scanned every inch of her mother’s face before she spread her twig-like arms. Elle hugged her, then pulled away and peered into her sunken eyes. “Are you sick?” she asked.

While Tara shrugged, Elle grabbed Evan for a hug. “I’ll explain it on the way,” he whispered in her ear.

Lila stood there, looking up at her grandmother—curiously.

Elle bent down and smiled at the baby. “Hello, my love,” she whispered, “Grandma’s waited much too long to meet you.” The little girl was a living doll. She had Tara’s strawberry blond curls and the same dark eyes as Alice.

Lila grinned. “Hi, Gramma,” she said, and never flinched when Elle scooped her up and kissed her cheek.

Elle looked back at Tara and could feel her eyes swell with tears.

“Grandma?” Evan asked, grabbing her attention.

Elle shook her head, the tears beginning to cascade down her tired face.

“When?” he asked.

Elle reached for his hand. “Last night…right in Grampa’s lap.”

“In the rockin’ chair?” he asked, his voice cracking.

Elle nodded again.

Evan’s eyes filled. “Where else?” he said.

Elle noticed the confusion in her daughter’s eyes and thought, She’s so out of it.

Before Elle could explain, Evan leaned into Tara’s ear and filled it with the bad news. “We’re one day too late. Grandma passed away last night.”

Though delayed, Tara burst into tears.

As they left the airport terminal, Elle walked alongside Evan. “How did you find her in New York?” she asked in a whisper. “Her cell phone’s been turned off for weeks.” She looked back at her daughter, who was already lagging behind.

“It wasn’t easy,” he said, and shook his head. “Let’s just say…thank God I did.”


Author Bio:

Steven ManchesterSteven Manchester is the author of the #1 bestseller Twelve Months, Goodnight, Brian, and several other books. His work has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, CBS’s The Early
Show, CNN’s American Morning and BET’s Nightly News. Recently, three of Manchester’s short stories were selected “101 Best” for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series.

Catch Up with Steven: rss_512 facebook_512


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Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Showcase: Dateline: Atlantis by Lynn Voedisch



Dateline: Atlantis

by Lynn Voedisch

on Tour July 1 - July 31, 2013





Book Details:

Genre:  Contemporary Fantasy
Published by: Fiction Studio Books
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Number of Pages: 277
ISBN: 978-1-936558-57-5
Purchase Links:



Synopsis:

DATELINE: ATLANTIS is a contemporary fantasy featuring a female Indiana Jones who dives underwater and accidentally discovers what just might be the lost world of Atlantis. After she and her photographer document fabulous pyramids and other structures under the Caribbean sea, they return to their newspaper in the Los Angeles area, only to have all their evidence stolen. The sea rolls back and reclaims the buildings, and the photographer is kidnapped by unknown criminals.

The simple news assignment becomes more complicated with each turn and takes the Amaryllis Lang (pen name: Amy Quigley) to Chicago, Florida, Mexico and the Bahamas.

An ever-skeptical reporter, the Amaryllis Lang finds that her search for humanity's first family (in the possible Atlantis) dovetails with her own search for her own lost roots. Long ago someone murdered her archeologist parents—and they may be the same villains who are working against her own efforts to bring the Caribbean discovery to light.

In the midst of the tension, a testy romantic triangle develops. Plus, the pressure never stops as editor Noel Wright III keeps badgering her for a Pulitzer Prize-winning story. After escaping the villains' traps with her life intact, Amaryllis emerges a more open-minded adventurer, a better journalist, and an adventurer who is never afraid to let a historical find change written history.


Read an excerpt:

She dives underneath the waves. Next to her is the tip of a giant stone structure. It widens as it plunges down to the ocean floor, filling her line of sight. She surfaces and swims toward the top of the rock. Amaryllis fights for breath as the waves roll up toward her chin and away. She dives again. The structure is a pyramid, without a doubt. It can’t be a natural formation. Its lines are too regular. The stones used to fit the pyramid together are huge—twenty-ton boulders at least—yet they are meshed with knife-edge precision. She can’t get her fingernail between them. Another thing occurs to her: this pyramid is not built in steps, but is smooth-sided like the monuments of Egypt.

She bobs up and down, diving and surfacing for a quarter of an hour, finding more impossible things. These walls, unlike those of the Maya structures they found on land, are still smooth. They are weathered and pitted, but not covered over with barna- cles and seaweed. She sees the remnants of writing carved into the rock near the top, but can’t tell what language it is. It has neither the pictorial intricacy of Maya glyphs nor the simplicity of Roman characters. It has a modern aspect, clean and stylized, proportionally balanced, as if it were a font designed by an adver- tising agency. Yet, some of the figures recall the ancient themes of the American Indians: swirling vortices, men with large heads, hunting dogs. The most prominent of all symbols is a cross in- scribed with concentric circles.

Amaryllis’ strength is nearly gone, but she dives once more if only to give the fullest of reports to her cohorts sleeping back onshore. She slips below the surface and feels along the eastern wall, pulling herself down. She is looking for a dark square she glimpsed before, gaping and black. It yawns at once before her, its edges wavy in the ocean swells. A sea turtle darts in front of her, and she constricts her lungs. She streaks to the surface, gulps a huge lungful of air and immediately she’s at the opening again. Seconds disappear as she measures the portal. It’s just big enough to slip through, but will she be able to get back out? A shining gem illuminated by a sun ray catches her eye. She swishes inside.

With lungs screaming, she scans a tiny chamber, carved from top to bottom with ancient writing. Gold glints from porticos on the sides. A painting is still visible on the ceiling. A carved hand, claw-like and strong, rests on a pedestal in the center of the space. The red hand holds a stone so beautiful, she can’t bear to leave it. In the filtered sunlight that passes through the door- way, the gem dazzles like Venus in the night sky. The morning star—the guide that Amaryllis can rely on. She grabs the jewel.
Through the door, up to the surface, sucking in the air—she’s free.


Author Bio:

Lynn Voedisch is a Chicago writer who had a long career as a newspaper reporter and worked for 17 years at the Chicago Sun-Times. She also freelanced for many other publications, both in print and online. She lives with her husband and pet cat three blocks from the Chicago border. Her son, a new attorney, lives in the city. Her hobbies are tennis, tai ch, an promoting the appreciation of literature.

Catch Up With the Author:





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Sunday, July 14, 2013

At times, Birthdays of a Princess by Helga Zeiner was almost too painful to read - but I couldn't put it down! (Book Review, Guest Post and Giveaway)



Birthdays of a Princess
by Helga Zeiner
on Tour June 1st - July 31st 2013



Title: Birthdays of a Princess
Author: Helga Zeiner
Publisher: POW WOW Books
About the book: To be famous and be admired by total strangers can be very dangerous.
Her little girl has always been her princess. In fact, she was so lovely, Melissa entered her toddler into child beauty pageants, making her a star from an early age. But her dreams and hopes are shattered one October morning, when Melissa watches a breaking news story on television. A young girl has been filmed by bystanders, committing a brutal assault in broad daylight in a downtown Vancouver Starbucks…and it looks like the girl is her daughter.

From this moment on, a story unfolds, so shocking, that it will hold you captive and you will find yourself reading faster and faster into the night.


Purchase Links: 
   

My thoughts: I devoured this book - the Prologue (see below) pulled me in and I just had to finish the book. The author did a great job of keeping you right on the edge of your seat.

Tia is Melissa's daughter, and she was raised by Melissa and Gracie after her father was killed in Afghanistan on the day she was born.  This family was dysfunctional from the start.  Melissa retreated into her own world and Gracie raised Melissa like she was her own child for the first couple of years.  I use the phrase "like her own chld" loosely here as I don't know any mother who would put their child through what these two did.  Gracie was the true criminal here while Melissa's crime was just being negligent and keeping her eyes closed to what was going on.

After Tia is arrested, she refuses to talk to anyone. A very caring (and clever) Dr. Eaton or  "psycho-doc" as she calls him, gets her to trust him and convinces her to start keeping a journal.  She documents her life through her birthdays and what happens each year.  She finally reaches a point though, that she  can't remember what happened, or just refuses to remember what happened.  She lets Dr. Eaton read her journal - I think because it is all too painful for her to say out loud - but she wants someone to know.

Between her journal writings and conversations that Melissa has with her also dysfunctional mother Louise, you begin to learn about Tia's life.  At times it is almost too painful to read, but I couldn't put it down.  The tension was just enough to keep me riveted.

I really liked how the author resolved the book and brought some lost souls together in the end.

~I received a complimentary Kindle copy of Birthdays of a Princess from Partners in Crime Book Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~

Excerpt from Birthdays of a Princess:

Prologue

She wakes up earlier than usual. It’s not even eight yet. The apartment feels empty, but that doesn’t surprise her, because it is empty most mornings. To make sure, she gets out of bed, opens the curtains, waddles down the narrow hallway, stops at the second bedroom and listens briefly. Not a sound. Of course not. She would have heard the flat door open, no matter how late. She is a light sleeper.

The kitchen greets her with familiar comfort. Welcome, my lonely friend. Make yourself a cup of tea. Sit down by the window. Look out, check the weather, think about what to wear for work. Stop listening. Nobody is home but you.

Just another day in the big city.

Vancouver is still sleepy. Yawning and slowly stretching like a lazy lion, rubbing its exhausted eyes, waiting for the helpers to brush the filthy remains of last night’s excitement from the concrete floor of its den.

The water kettle switches itself off and she pours the boiling water over the tea bag and waits one minute, standing in front of the kitchen counter. It has to be exactly one minute, no point in doing anything else but stare at the twirling surface inside her cup. Sixty seconds later–the second dial on her kitchen clock is within her periphery—she discards the bag, heaps three generous spoonfuls of sugar into the cup, followed by so much cream that the tea instantly cools to drinking temperature, and sits down at the kitchen table.

Still thinking it’s just another day.

A gentle traffic hum outside, no sound inside her kitchen. Correction: no sound inside her flat, this two bedroom, one bathroom borderline apartment. Borderline because its location touches a good neighborhood and the Eastside. The street she lives on stops the filthy guts of downtown spilling over into suburbia. Her kitchen window points toward the high-rise monuments of downtown Vancouver. Very pretty at night, not so attractive at daytime when the not-so-high and not-so-modern buildings that envelope the skyscrapers become visible. She doesn’t want to look at the decaying grey buildings any longer that provide a battle ground between city planners who want to sell it to developers and Eastsiders who have occupied them.

Just another day. And it is so quiet.

Melissa turns on the TV, not realizing that it is exactly eight o’clock now. The channel is set on CTV and there is a ‘Breaking News’ banner flashing in bright orange below the female morning anchor. She increases the volume. The excited voice of the lady anchor fills her kitchen. She takes a sip of her sweet, sweet tea and leans back a little.

“We have a developing story of a brutal attack on a customer at Starbucks coffee shop on Robson Street. Apparently a young woman has stabbed another woman inside Starbucks. Our reporter Emily Jackson is on location. Emily, what can you tell us…?”

The upper body of a reporter, holding a microphone in one hand and fighting her wind-swept hair with the other, comes into the picture. Melissa hadn’t noticed that it is quite windy outside. Well, it’s October, at least it’s not raining. Behind the reporter a yellow band is restricting access to the crime scene. She sounds overly excited. “From what we have learned, a young woman has suddenly attacked a woman inside the coffee shop you see right behind me. We don’t know yet if the customer was already seated or still standing in line to place her order. We also don’t know the identity of the attacker or of the victim yet or have any information about the motive. Apparently the attacker suddenly produced a knife and threw herself at the woman, yelling obscenities on top of her voice. As you can see behind me, police have cordoned off the area and are processing the scene.”

The anchor interrupts her. “Do we have any information about the condition of the victim? Is she badly hurt? Or…”

An autumn gust blows hair over the reporter’s face. She nearly loses her microphone, trying to control the strands with both hands, but fumbles it back into position when she realizes that the camera is focused on her again. One side of her pretty face is completely covered with hair. It looks ridiculous and Melissa catches herself thinking the reporter would look a lot prettier if she had a different hairstyle.

“The ambulance has transported the victim to the emergency ward of St Paul’s…”

The reporter’s voice travels along Melissa’s attention span and loses its grip. Background noise quality. She likes that. And God, her tea is good.

Another developing story news-flash banner demands her attention again. The anchor sounds triumphant: “We have just received a video-clip from one of our viewers. We would like to warn you that some viewers may find the content of this video-clip offensive in nature…”

The clip starts. The picture is shaky, the filmmaker hassling for a good position between other coffee-shop customers who have jumped up to look what is going on in the middle of the room. The back of shoulders and heads pop in and out, screams of horror and confusion can be heard. Their unedited sound quality provides an unnerving authenticity to the unfolding drama.

 An arm rises up in the air and down again, in kind of a wood chopping motion. Up and down, in one swift move, no hesitation whatsoever. In fact, the chopping goes on. Up and down, up and down—accompanied by ‘Oh my God’s’ and ‘Oh no, oh no’s’. The filmmaker edges closer, seems to get up on a chair, because he is above the scene now, holding his iPhone or whatever device he’s got, high above the center of the customer-circle that inched away from the dangerous situation. The victim of the attack is on the floor now, mercifully blurred by the rapid movements of the inexperienced cameraman, or maybe by CTV’s editing. The attacker, the young woman, wearing a black hoodie, is over her and chops into her with such vengeance that Melissa can feel the force of her hatred, furious and powerful. The victim is trying to protect her face and chest with crossed hands. The mad attacker continues to stab her wherever she can—face, arms, torso, it is impossible to make out exactly in the shaky clip where her knife slices into.

Bodies pop in and out of the picture and mercifully block most of what is going on. Several of them finally muster enough courage to intervene. The picture goes even more shaky and blurry. Then the anchor speaks again.

“We have word from the police that the victim you have just seen being attacked inside Starbucks on Robson about an hour ago is in critical condition. The young woman has been overpowered by three heroic young men…”

and now it happens, it’s not ‘just another day’ any longer

“they were performing a citizen’s arrest and held her captive until the police arrived…”

the anchor’s voice fades, just like the reporter’s before, because all of Melissa’s focus concentrates on what she sees on the screen. Meanwhile the filmmaker has managed to muscle himself closer to the group of guys who have pulled the young women off her victim and have now pinned her to the ground. Her face appears. The filmmaker zooms in. She smiles victoriously straight into his camera, as if she has achieved a very special feat.

Melissa is standing now, holding on to her cup of tea, frowning with the exhausting task of connecting what she sees on the screen with the reality of her life. It can not be. It can not be. But it is.

The tea cup slips from her weak hands, falls to the floor, spills its content on the cheap vinyl kitchen floor before rolling under the table.

It is. It is.

It is…her daughter.





About the author: Born and educated in Germany, Helga left her home country when she was 18 to travel the world and experience the magic of life she was passionately reading about.
She spent the next 15 years in exotic places like India, Thailand, Australia and Hong Kong, where she worked her way up into excellent managerial positions in large international companies. To achieve this she had to further her education and enrolled at night classes at the 'Chinese University of Hong Kong' for her Diploma in Management Studies.
Love eluded her for many years. She was nearly 40 when she finally met her dream man and settled in Canada, where she now lives, neatly tucked away in the wilderness. She has previously written several suspense novels which have been published in Germany.
Her first novel written and published in English is called. ‘Section 132”. A thrilling fact-based page-turner about a young girl forced into a polygamous marriage that has received countless 5-star reviews.
Birthdays of a Princess’ is her second novel and will be published in June 2013.

Catch Up With Ms. Zeiner:



Please enjoy this guest post from Ms. Zeiner:


Memories I cherish from childhood

One of my earliest memories connected to my passion for writing is of the day I came home from school – I must have been about seven years old – with a top mark for my very first essay.
I can’t remember what the essay was about, but my father told the whole family to sit down after dinner and listen to me read the essay to them. Mom, dad, my two sisters, grandmother and a few neighbours, who had been invited by my dad to come on over and listen as well, sat around our large kitchen table.
I was a little shy at first, but quickly got into the moment after seeing my dad busting with pride. He was an avid reader and loved books, so to have one of his girls showing even the slightest talent with words was something very special to him.
Maybe the essay was indeed good, after all, top marks were rarely given at our school, but my dad acted as if it was the best thing he had ever read. For days, he kept telling everybody in his grocery shop about the future writer in his home. His amazingly supportive attitude didn’t change over the years, but that very first essay reading inspired me to go on writing, to love it, to feel safe with it and to be self-confident about it.
Hopefully all parents will react like my dad did when they discover even the smallest inkling of an interest or talent in their children, no matter what it may be.


Helga Zeiner

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Publication Date: May/June 2013
Number of Pages: 290
ISBN: 978-0-9868798-7-6

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Book Tour: The Fallen Angels Book Club (Book Review, Author Interview and Giveaway!)



The Fallen Angels Book Club
by R Franklin James
on Tour June 1st - July 31st 2013



Title: The Fallen Angels Book Club
Author: R. Franklin James
Publisher: Camel Press
About the book:  The Fallen Angels Book Club has only two requirements: the members must love books and have a white-collar criminal record. Hollis Morgan fits the bill. Left holding the bag in an insurance fraud scheme concocted by her now ex-husband, she served her time and is trying to rebuild her life. All she wants is for the court to pardon her conviction so she can return to law school.

After one of her fellow members is murdered in a scenario straight out of a club selection, Hollis is once again the subject of police scrutiny. Refusing to get stuck with another bad rap, she sets out to investigate her fellow club members. Is one of them really blackmailing the others? As a second member dies in yet another book-inspired murder, Hollis realizes that time is running out. Everything rides on her finding the killer--not just her career aspirations. She must identify the killer before she herself becomes the next victim. Everyone is convinced she knows more than she lets on. But what is it, exactly, that is she supposed to know?



Purchase Links: 

My thoughts: Being a book lover, I thought it would be fun to read a book about a book club.  Even though once I started reading the book, I discovered that there wasn't a lot of time spent "with" the book club, it was still a really good book.

I liked Hollis right away.  The fact that she was set up to take a rap by her 'then' husband was horrible.  But I am sure that stuff like that happens far more often that what I would like to believe.  She has served her time and has been working really hard to recreate her life.  The book club was set in motion by her parole officer.  He is the one that put all of them together.  It was a way to try to make them feel like they fit in again.  Being in the book club though, they had all agreed that they would not ask questions about why they had served time or what their personal lives were like now.

That all changed, of course, the minute one of them was killed.  Hollis not only wanted to clear herself, but I think she wanted to make sure that the people she had been discussing books with weren't killers either.  Someone was sure making it look like it was one of them though.  Being a paralegal also helped Hollis to know what to look for and the means to start some surreptitious background checks on her fellow members.  She didn't really want to, but she also didn't want to be left in the dark.

The book moves along at a fast pace and Hollis finds herself wrapped up in a couple of different mysteries.  I started to have my suspicions about people, but hadn't quite wrapped it all up when the author started to spill the beans about how everything fit together.  I was quite surprised by some of the things I found out in the end,  about someone who was close to Hollis.  It was a nice surprise.  

This is the first book in a series featuring Hollis Morgan, and I will be happy to tell you I would definitely read another one!


~I received a complimentary ecopy of The Fallen Angels Book Club from Partners In Crime Book Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~




Read an excerpt:

Tonight it was my turn to come early and set up the space for our book club meeting. Our monthly gatherings were held in a small windowless conference room adjacent to the San Isidro Library’s main reading area. The Fallen Angels Book Club was an exclusive group, not only a love of books was required. You also had to be a white collar ex-felon.

I rubbed my hands together and peeled off gloves. My fingers felt like icicles. Thank goodness someone remembered to turn on the heat. The door opened and a gush of wind blew a cluster of leaves into the room along with Gene Donovan who tossed his hoodie and a small brown leather “man purse” onto one of the folding chairs.

“Hollis, let me help you with that.” His tousled blond hair was more askew than usual. Placing his book on the floor, he came over to where I struggled to roll out the meeting table.

“Appreciate it.” I straightened my back and allowed him to carry the bulk of the table’s weight. Fortunately, when I was with Gene, we didn’t have to speak. I caught a glance at his manicured nails and tucked mine into my palms. I liked Gene. He wasn’t afraid to show his feminine side.

We took special care not to drag the metal chair legs across the glowing veneer of the hardwood floor. Its beauty came from the handiwork of the night cleaning crew who waited for us to leave so they could begin their labor.

We settled into our chairs when Rory Norris strode in, let the door slam and dumped his books on the table. His hazel eyes did a sweep across the room as if expecting an ambush. A few more pounds had crept onto his already thickening frame.

Rory patted his black leather jacket as he laid it over the chair. “Hey, people, did you notice if they lock the gates to the parking lot? My Beemer just got detailed and I don’t want some neighborhood juvenile mistaking it for a marker board.”

“Nice touch, Norris, letting us know you got a new BMW.” Richard Kleh came in pulled off his knitted skull cap, revealing an emerging bald crown. He nodded toward the door. “Go check for yourself. Hey, Hollis, did you finish the read?”

“Of course. You’re the one who never finishes a book.”

“Well, I finished this one. It had me going until the end. The characters were realistic and…and…”

“Memorable?” I could tell from his frown he wasn't kidding.





About the author: R. Franklin James was born and raised in the San Francisco East Bay Area. She graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and completed the masters program in Public Policy at California State University East Bay. She has also received her paralegal certification.

She and her husband live in northern California with their English Springer Spaniel, Bailey.



Catch Up With Ms. James:

1. How do you typically write? Do you plot it all out beforehand or do you just let the story pour out?

I randomly collect ideas and put them in a note book. They will later evolve into scenes. But before I begin writing I start out with an outline which sometimes takes weeks to complete. It gives me a roadmap that I don’t always follow and I rarely have writer’s block. The outline is subject to revision all the way to “The End”.

2. Do you have a favorite place to write or “must haves” while writing?

I work and have an active family, so I write whenever and wherever I can. I used to write by hand because I could pull out a pad of paper anywhere, but now I prefer the computer, even if it means I have to wait until I get home. However, if I get inspired in the dentist office, I always carry a pen and pad of paper to jot the idea down.

3. Do you have much say in the title or covers of you books?

I have great publisher, Coffeetown Press/Camel Press imprint. They always ask for my opinion and so far there hasn’t been an issue.

4. Is there anything that has surprised you about writing, publishing or touring with your books?

I’m a debut author so everything is a surprise. That said, I didn’t realize how much having the support and professional expertise of a publishing house meant to getting a book into the hands of readers.

5. Do you have a favorite author/book or one that you always recommend?

I read quite a bit and I’m always recommending books depending on what the reader has in mind. I like mysteries and thrillers, so I recommend Harlen Coben, Brad Meltzer, Chris Pavone and Cara Black. There’s probably another 20 names I could come up with.

6. Was there anything (or anyone) while growing up which helped you decide you wanted to be a writer?

From my early childhood, I loved to read. I always wanted to find just the right words to form sentences and scenes. I can’t remember not wanting to write.


7. Do you have a job outside of being an author?

I work as manager for a government office.

8. What would you tell a beginning writer?

To never give up. Don’t let rejection define you. Write your story in your voice. Learn the craft of writing and…did I say, never give up?

9. What were your favorite books growing up?

The Secret Garden, Nancy Drew, Grimms Fairy Tales, 1001 Arabian Nights

10. Do you have any books on your nightstand right now?

I have books on the nightstand, next to the nightstand and on the chair across from the nightstand. I just finished Chris Pavone’s debut novel, The Expats. I’m currently reading The Litigators by Grisham and Terminated by Simon Wood. Oh, and one non-fiction book: Feng Shui for the Soul (Linn)

11. If you could meet one person who has died, who would that be?

This is a tough one. I always enjoyed Nora Ephron’s writing. But I would also like to meet Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

12. If you could co-author a book with anyone, who would it be?

Agatha Christie

13. Do you have a favorite quote?

“Books aren't written, they're rewritten. It is one of the hardest things to accept, especially after the seventh rewrite hasn't quite done it.”
- Michael Crichton

14. In one sentence, why should we read your book?

You will want to read The Fallen Angels Book Club to be greatly entertained and story bound to the very last page.

15. What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

I love to do needlepoint.

Good Answer! 

16. What do you come up with first when creating your character- the back story, the plot, the characteristics?

I created Hollis Morgan after coming up with a plot. But because she was a force of her own, the following stories in the series developed based on her personality and traits.

17. What do you do in your spare time?

Read, needlepoint and gardening.

18. What does a day in your life look like?

A weekday is feed the dog, go to work, read during lunch, go home and fix dinner, write, read, sleep. A weekend day is full of house chores and writing, reading and sleeping. I do needlepoint with the TV on and garden when I can.

19. What does a day look like in the life of your main character?

Hollis’ day is a lot like mine. Except she hasn’t let a pet into her life and instead of writing she’s got a mystery to solve.

20. How does your family feel about having a writer in the family? Do they read your books?

They are proud of me and they have read my book at various times, but they are pragmatic people and I’m never sure if they quite understand what it takes to create fiction.

21. Is there anything else that you would like my readers to know?

The Fallen Angels Book Club is the first in a three book series. Hollis grows in character and awareness as she deals with life. It is my hope that readers will want to know how she overcomes her personal demons as she overcomes the external challenges and villains.

I know I am looking forward to learning more about Hollis!

22. What time of day do you like to write?

Any time. It’s easiest for me in the morning.

23. Where/when do you brainstorm best?

My ideas come from anywhere. I could overhear a conversation, or glimpse a word in a newspaper, or see a person standing on the corner. I’m open to it all.

24. How long do you think about a story before starting to write the book?

Not long. When I’m focused on a story I pretty much see it from beginning to end—of course all subject to change.

25. What is the most you have written in one day?

3000 words or about 12 pages

26. What themes do you love to read or write about?

I like to write about: second chances and how truth will win out.

27. What book fairs or events do you attend?

I attend Left Coast Crime and Book Passage Writers Conferences

28. What is your favorite way to promote a book?

Talking to a group of readers

29. If you gave one of your characters an opportunity to speak for themselves, what would they say?

Hollis would quote Carl Bard: Though no one can go back and make a brand-new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending.

30. What book would you like to read again?

Ayn Rand’s – Atlas Shrugged
F Scott Fitzgerald – The Great Gatsby
Brad Meltzer – The Tenth Justice

31. If your book was made into a TV series or movie, what actors would you like to see playing your characters? Feel free to add pics.

I could see Anne Hathaway or Ashley Judd playing Hollis.

32. Favorite childhood memory

Sitting in the attic on the floor with my best girlfriend exchanging stories we had written that afternoon.

Silly questions –
1. If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
I would like to be able to fly.

2. Do you have any hidden talents?
I make very lovely needlepoint pillows.

3. Night owl or early bird?
Early bird

4. Favorite season?
Autumn

5. If someone wrote a book about your life, what would the title be?
A woman for all Seasons

6. Favorite sport?
Tennis

7. Favorite music?
Jazz or Chamber Music

8. Talk or text?
Text

9. Cat or dog?
Dog

10. Guilty pleasure tv show?
Psych

11. Sweet or salty snacks?
Sweet

12. Coffee or tea?
Tea

13. Favorite holiday destination?
Home

14. If you could live in a literary world - what world would that be and why?
New York in the 1920’s – the world of salons

15. Most embarrassing moment? 
When I had a piece of toilet paper stuck to my shoe.

16. Favorite gadget?
 IPad

17. If you could travel forward or backward in time, where would you go and why?
I would go forward because I always want to learn more.

18. Ebooks, paperbacks or hardcovers?
 Doesn’t matter I’ll read any format. I guess I would give print a slight edge.



The Fallen Angels Book Club
Genre: Mystery / Amateur Dective
Publisher/Publication Date: Camel Press, May 1, 2013
ISBN: 1603819177 / 978-1603819176
264 pages


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