Giveaway – The Legacy by C L Tolbert @partnersincr1me @cltolbertwrites

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The Legacy

A Thornton Mystery

by C. L. Tolbert

November 20 – December 15, 2023 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

The Legacy by C. L. Tolbert

A quiet tree-lined street in New Orleans erupts in panic when the body of Sally Wilcox is discovered by her landlord. Sally had been stabbed, and she was clutching a kitchen knife in her hand at the time of her death. Later, police discover evidence at the scene which implicates Sally’s son, Jeremy, in her murder. He was arrested the next day.

Law school professor Emma Thornton is convinced by a friend to take Jeremy’s case. She begins her investigation into Jeremy and his family, and the facts surrounding the night of the murder. Layer after layer of family secrets slowly reveal themselves, as the numbers of murders and kidnappings multiply.

Holding the key to the killer’s trail and the case’s final resolution, Emma’s success depends on whether she can maintain control over her own reckless impulses.

Praise for The Legacy:

“Fearless, relentless, compassionate, and driven by an unyielding sense of justice, law professor Emma Thornton battles mounting evidence in a race to save a mentally ill young man from a presumption of guilt in the gruesome murders of his parents.”
~ Roger Johns, a Georgia Author of the Year and author of the Wallace Hartman Mysteries

“Fearless Law Professor Emma Thompson returns to defend a young man with schizophrenia accused of murdering his mother. Faced with a second murder, an unscrupulous prosecutor, a family with mental health issues, a pusher of pain meds, and a Gitanes-smoking stalker, Emma finds her marriage in jeopardy and her life on the line. Author C. L. Tolbert proves the Big Easy has never been easy, especially for a fighter like Emma whom I would follow anywhere.”
~ Valerie J. Brooks, award-winning author of the Angeline Porter Trilogy

“Unwavering in her conviction, law professor Emma Thornton must navigate a labyrinth of lies and deception to arrive at the truth and vindicate a disturbed young man wrongly accused of murder. Not only a suspenseful story, The Legacy represents the triumph of the human spirit to persevere in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.”
~ Lawrence Kelter, International bestselling author of the Stephanie Chalice Mystery Series

Book Details:

Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Published by: Level Best Books
Publication Date: November 2023
Number of Pages: 260
ISBN: 9781685124267
Series: A Thornton Mystery, #4
Book Links: Amazon | Goodreads

Read an excerpt:

CHAPTER ONE

March 19, 1997

Sally Wilcox wiped her hands on the dish cloth and folded it neatly before placing it on the kitchen counter. It had been a long day at the shop. Two funerals down and they had already started preparing for a weekend wedding. She loved working with flowers, but the job triggered her sciatica. She could hardly stand by the end of the day. She was glad to be home.

She hobbled to the TV room, and sat down on the couch, the pain in her body immediately eased by the down-filled cushions. She bumped into the table next to the couch and knocked over her favorite photograph of her kids, Jeremy and Becky. She placed the frame back on the table and stared at it for several seconds. She missed them so much.

The cat curled into a circle on her lap as she propped her legs up on a fluffy ottoman. Comforted by her surroundings, she dozed off almost immediately.

Three hours later she was awakened by the sound of static from her television. Channel Six had signed off for the night and refrains from the national anthem had just begun. An American flag fluttered across the television screen. It was just past midnight. She moved the cat from her lap, turned off the television and all the downstairs lights, and began making her way up the stairs, toward her bedroom.

She stopped when she heard something that sounded like a restrained step. The cat’s ears twitched in the direction of the noise. Could someone, a stealthy burglar or worse, be creeping around the house? She almost laughed out loud, amused by her own foolishness. She was such a worrier. Of course, it had to be Charlie the parrot ruffling his feathers. She couldn’t remember if she draped the cloth over his seven-foot-tall cage.

Still, she waited, and listened, not moving for several seconds. Then she froze as she heard a thump. She glanced out of a nearby window and could see wind blowing in the trees. Thinking that a branch must have bumped against the roof, she stood on the stairs for a few more seconds. Just to be sure. Hearing nothing, and convinced everything was okay, she continued up the stairs. Six a.m. came early.

In her bedroom, she changed into her favorite nightgown, the silk one that felt like butter on her skin, cleaned her face, and flossed and brushed her teeth. No matter how exhausted she was, she always completed her nightly routine. Her mother had insisted on it when she was young and still at home, pointing to an aunt’s ravaged face as an example of what could happen if she didn’t comply. The practice had become her only indulgence.

The cat had already curled up on top of the coverlet when Sally pulled back the sheets. Then she heard another sound. A muffled bump.

She grabbed a robe and stepped into the upstairs hallway. The staircase and the light switch were only a few feet from her bedroom door. She found the switch and flipped the toggle up, but nothing happened.

“What the…,” she whispered.

The cat rubbed up against Sally’s legs, and she jumped.

Then she heard another sound, and glanced out of the window at the end of the hall. The trees were still blowing fiercely. She tip-toed down the first two steps and peered over the banister, unable to see anything in the dark. She continued down the staircase, stopping every few feet to listen.

When she was at the second step from the bottom she stopped.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” Her voice quavered.

“Youuu Whooo!” Charlie was awake now.

She still couldn’t see anything but didn’t hear any unexpected sounds in the house. She shook her head, embarrassed by her over-reaction. The sounds had to be from Charlie, or maybe it was the wind in the trees. But just to be safe, she fled to the kitchen, feeling her way in the dark, and grabbed a knife from the block on the counter. Then she stopped, making certain all was well, and turned to retrace her steps back to her bedroom.

Seconds later she felt a sharp punch in her stomach. She swung the knife she clutched in her hand, wildly stabbing into space until she felt a resistance. She’d nicked something. She turned, and raised her hand, stabbing blindly, then felt another punch in her stomach, and one in her chest. Then another and another. A warm liquid flowed down her legs. Her hand flew to a spot on her chest where she felt piercing pain and she realized that blood was pouring from her body. Something had happened. Someone was in front of her. She could sense their presence. Hear their breathing. She’d been stabbed.

Her robe was wet, and blood was beginning to drip onto the floor. She felt dizzy. Her legs were on fire, as if a thousand needles had been jabbed into her shins. Then her legs started to shake. She collapsed, falling to the ground on her knees.

Then a swift rush of air. She wasn’t certain what it was until it was too late. She saw

the knife this time. And a dark figure.

Charlie squawked, “Youu whooo!”

The last thing she felt was a crushing pain in her chest. Her heart, already broken, had stopped.

***

Excerpt from THE LEGACY by C.L. Tolbert. Copyright 2023 by C.L. Tolbert. Reproduced with permission from C.L. Tolbert. All rights reserved.

 

 

Author Bio:

C.L. Tolbert

Licensed in Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi, Cynthia Tolbert retired after thirty-five years of practicing law and began writing full time. After winning the Georgia State Bar Fiction Writing Contest, she developed the winning short story into the first novel in the Thornton Mystery Series, OUT FROM SILENCE, published in 2019. Two additional mysteries in the series have also been published, THE REDEMPTION, in 2021, and SANCTUARY, published in 2022. The fourth book in the series, THE LEGACY, will be published in November of 2023.

Cynthia taught at Loyola Law School for several years where she directed a homeless clinic, and worked with third year law students in actual cases. All of these experiences have informed her fiction.

She is an avid reader, a mother of two, and a grandmother to three beautiful girls. She lives in Austin, TX with her husband and schnauzer, Yoda.

Catch Up With C.L. Tolbert:
www.CLTolbert.com
Goodreads
Instagram – @cltolbertwrites
Twitter/X – @cltolbertwrites
Facebook – @cltolbertwriter

 

 

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The Spotlight Is On Murder At The Pontchartrain by Kathleen Kaska @dollycas


Murder at the Pontchartrain by Kathleen Kaska

About Murder at the Pontchartrain

Murder at the Pontchartrain
Cozy Mystery (Humorous)
6th in Series
Setting – New Orleans, Louisiana
Anamcara Press LLC (June 15, 2023)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 280 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1941237940
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1941237946

Synopsis

Private detective Sydney Lockhart and her boyfriend/partner, Ralph Dixon, are headed for New Orleans to tie the knot—again. Having been stalled on their first attempt by some unfinished business dealing with their last case, Sydney and Dixon are now in the Pontchartrain Hotel in the Big Easy. While their marriage license rests at the courthouse for its 24-hour waiting period, they stroll to the French Quarter to visit Rip Thigbee, Sydney’s friend from her previous investigation. Rip owns Finder of Lost Souls, a detective agency dealing with the spirits of murder victims whose cases remain unsolved. 

           When Sydney and Dixon are at Rip’s office, they learn he went missing after investigating the disturbance of local businessman Frank Threadgill’s crypt. Voodoo Queen Frida Mae, whose shop is located next to Thigbee’s, fears that bad juju led to Threadgill’s death and has now infiltrated Rip’s business. Upon returning to their hotel room, to plan their next step, they find Threadgill’s wife, Mildred, waiting for them. Unfortunately, Mildred has been murdered. The police haul the couple down to the station. Their alibi checks out, but they are told to stick around for a few days. Soon a hotel housemaid is murdered, and this time Dixon is arrested, and Sydney is on her own to find the killer.

           Hearing of their predicament, Sydney’s bubble-headed cousin, Ruth, and Sydney’s young charge, twelve-year-old Lydia LeBeau, show up to lend an unwelcome hand. Ruth goes undercover as a chef at the hotel. Lydia, who can talk the Pope into letting her assist in saying Mass, talks her way into the famous Pat O’Brien’s bar, where the locals are eager to share what they know.

           After interviewing Mildred Threadgill’s family, Sydney begins her investigation by delving into Frank Threadgill’s mysterious past and discovers that he isn’t who he claims to be. The business he once owned was a cover involving an organization of WWII war criminals and the local Ku Klux Klan. As Sydney gets closer to the truth, she is attacked and left for dead in a nearby swamp. With the help of a few jaunty Cajuns, Sydney makes it back to the city with enough evidence to get Dixon released. Ruth thinks she knows who the killer is. Lydia has her own theory and is convinced Ruth is wrong. Sydney doesn’t know who to trust, convinced that every witness she’s interviewed has lied. But her most shocking realization is that the biggest liar is her own future husband.         

Excerpt from Murder at the Pontchartrain

  Dixon and I were sitting in the interrogation room in the downtown police station when we got word that the dead woman was Mildred Threadgill. Dixon explained our interest in Mrs. Threadgill, as well as the damage done to her husband’s tomb, and that our friend Rip Thigbee was missing and last seen with Mrs. Threadgill. None of which made a rat’s ass difference to Detective Bergeron who was questioning us. Luckily, our alibi checked out. The people staying in the room next to ours said they heard a commotion and then a scream at the time we were talking to the attendant at the cemetery. Nevertheless, the woman was killed in our room. There was a knife missing from our breakfast tray, possibly the murder weapon. The only person in New Orleans who knew we were staying here was Betsy Radley. We were released, but told to stick around.

            “Are we on a case?” I asked.

            “We’re on a case. What choice do we have? Deal with a murder today. Get married tomorrow.”

            “Does that marriage license have an expiration date?”

            “It’s good for two weeks. Maybe we should have kept the rental car.”

Betsy was a little more forth coming with information when we returned to Rip’s office to tell her that Mildred Threadgill had been murdered.

            “Oh, my,” Betsy said. “Mrs. Threadgill was here after you left, demanding to see Rip. I told her I didn’t know where he was and that the last time I saw him he was with her. She became livid. She said he was supposed to call her a couple of days ago.”

            “And you sent her to us?” Dixon asked.
            “She wouldn’t leave,” Betsy said. “I didn’t know what else to do. You said you’d help, so I told her where you were staying.”

            “Any idea who would kill her?” Dixon asked, adding a hardness to his voice. When he did that, I knew he was losing his patience.
            “I . . . I don’t know,” Betsy stammered.
            “I’ll look through Rip’s notes again,” I said.
            “So the last time you saw Rip he was headed to the cemetery with Mildred Threadgill, and you haven’t seen or heard from him since?”

            “Yes, yes that’s right,” Betsy whispered.

            “You’ve been here all week and you haven’t heard from anyone? No one’s called or come in? Just Mrs. Threadgill after we left?”

            Betsy began blubbering, which turned to sobs, then to hiccups. Finally, she managed a vigorous shake of her head.

            “I want Rip’s home address,” Dixon said.

            “He lives upstairs in the apartment on the left. I don’t have a key, but Frida Mae is the landlady. She has one. Wait here. I’ll get it.”

We walked into Rip’s apartment. You wouldn’t think a single guy, an ex-bouncer to be so immaculately neat. Rip didn’t own a lot of possessions, but what he had was clean and orderly. A stack of dinner plates sat on the kitchen counter next to two coffee cups in perfect alignment. Clean silverware stood in a drinking glass. The toaster, minus crumbs, shone like a beacon. Two spotless sauce pans and a skillet were arranged on top of the icebox. What little space he had in the kitchenette he made good use of. The cabinet held a can of sardines, a can of pinto beans, and a box of Wheaties. On the top shelf inside the icebox, sat a package of bacon, carton of eggs, and a stick of butter. The lower shelf held a case of Falstaff beer cans, also aligned with each label showing out. I looked over to find Dixon staring off into space.

            “What is it?”

            “Betsy’s lying. She knows more than she’s telling.”

            “She’s scared. You should have pushed her harder.”

            “Let her stew for now. Was Rip in the military?”
            “Not that I know of. Why?”

            “I can’t find one wrinkle in his bed sheets. His pillow case smells freshly laundered. There’s no dust on the floor under the bed. His dresser contains the usual undershirts, socks, underwear, and handkerchiefs.”

Dixon opened the closet door. Two dress shirts, a pair of slacks, a sport coat hung neatly, each in their proper category. “Look at this. A pair of scuffed cowboy boots.”
            “Don’t sound surprised. Any self-respecting Texan has scuffed cowboy boots, even me.” I looked down at his wingtips.

            “What?”

            “This entire time I thought you were perfect, but I just realized you’re not.”

            Dixon straightened his tie. “You’re questioning your assessment of me?”

            I held up Rip’s boots.
            “Wait. I’m not ever going to wear cowboy boots. I don’t have to, I’m not a Texan.”
            “You will soon be one by marriage. I suggest black boots, slightly rounded toes, modicum amount of stitchery. I’ll shop around.”

            “No.”
            “At least you can wear them around the house.”
            “No.”
            “Wearing nothing else, just your boots.”
            “Well, maybe.”

About Kathleen Kaska

Kathleen Kaska is the author of the awarding-winning mystery series: the Sydney Lockhart Mystery Series set in the 1950s and the Kate Caraway Animal-Rights Mystery Series. Her first two Lockhart mysteries, Murder at the Arlington and Murder at the Luther, were selected as bonus books for the Pulpwood Queen Book Group, the country’s largest book group. She also writes mystery trivia. The Sherlock Holmes Quiz Book was published by Rowman & Littlefield. Her Holmes short story, “The Adventure at Old Basingstoke,” appears in Sherlock Holmes of Baking Street, a Belanger Books anthology. She is the founder of The Dogs in the Nighttime, the Sherlock Holmes Society of Anacortes, Washington, a scion of The Baker Street Irregulars. Watch for Murder at the Pontchartrain: the 6th Sydney Lockhart Mystery in June 2023.

Author Links

Purchase Links – Anamcara PressAmazon

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Giveaway – What I Wasn’t Looking For by Olivia Hardin @oliviah_writer @PromoBookTours

Cover Reveal (2)

Don’t miss the AWESOME giveaway at the bottom of this post!

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Boy meets girl. It’s the way romances usually begin . . . and while we all love a happy ending, it’s the #MeetCute that wins our hearts.
How did you two meet?
The #MeetCute Books each have a unique answer to that query. Some might make you swoon, others might make you giggle . . . and some may make you blush.
Twelve authors. Twelve stand-alone contemporary romance novels. Twelve stories that will make your heart beat a little faster.
Because it’s all about the #MeetCute.

Ever heard that if you really want something, stop looking, and it will find you?

Austin: For as long as I can remember, my dad has wanted to find his biological father. I’ve been searching for three long years, but now I’ve reached the end of the line. It’s time to call it quits, admit defeat and go home . . . and then I met her.
Mary: Times have been hard at Simoneaux Bayou since the hurricane came in and swallowed things up. But the community’s beginning to rebuild, and I’ve started to think maybe we’ll find a little bit of normal again soon. Tourists are coming back to Louisiana. Things have been so busy, I can barely stop to catch my breath . . . and then I met him.

The spark of our chance encounter ignites a passion that might burn into the kind of love neither of us knew we were looking for…

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Don’t miss the giveaway below!


About the Author

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When Olivia Hardin began having strange movie-like dreams in her teens, she had no choice but to begin putting them to paper. Before long the writing bug had her and she knew she wanted to be a published author. Several rejections plus a little bit of life later, and she was temporarily “cured” of the urge to write. That is until she met a group of talented and fabulous writers who gave her the direction and encouragement she needed to get lost in the words again.
Olivia’s attended three different universities over the years and toyed with majors in Computer Technology, English, History, and Geology. Then one day she heard the term road scholar and she knew that was what she wanted to be. Now she “studies” anything and everything just for the joy of learning. She’s also an insatiable crafter who only completes about 1 out of 5 projects, a jogger who hates to run, and she’s sometimes accused of being artistic.
A native Texas girl, Olivia lives in the beautiful Lone Star state with her husband, Danny and their puppy, Bonnie.
Get a free gift just for signing up for Olivia’s Newsletter!
Follow Olivia:
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And if you love her books, join Team OH!


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Friday 56 #7 – Voodoo on Bayou LaFonte by Susan C Muller

The Friday 56 hosted by Freda’s Voice.

The only rules are to grab a book (any book), turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader and find any sentence, or a few (no spoilers) that grabs you and post it.

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Voodoo on Bayou LaFonte by Susan C Muller

I will be touring with Goddess Fish and Susan C Muller for Voodoo on Bayou LaFonte.

Stop back on March 24, 2014 for my review.

Cover_Voodoo_on_Bayou_Lafonte

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(56% on Kindle)

As he turned to lock the front door, he saw his Stetson on the floor.

What the hell?

That hat was expensive and he was always careful with it. He’d set it on the top of the hall tree, out of the way, for protection.

“Chere, did you try on my hat?”

“I know better than to touch your precious hat.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

My question to you – Do you believe in Voodoo?

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BLURB

A frantic phone call leads Detective Remy Steinberg racing through the night toward the one place he vowed never to return. With the life of his kidnapped daughter at stake, he willingly faces shotgun-wielding drug dealers, corrupt law-enforcement officials, and a raging hurricane.

Scouring the seedy back alleys of New Orleans for information, he goes undercover at a sinister voodoo ceremony, and struggles to understand the forces of black magic that hold his daughter hostage.

With time ticking down, he battles for his life against a high voodoo priest, but can he face the two things he fears most: the swamp that terrorized his childhood, and the ex-wife he’s never stopped loving?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To get your copy of Voodoo on Bayou LaFonte or learn more about Susan C Miller, click on the cover below.

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To see all my Reviews, go HERE.
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animated smilies photo: animated animated.gifLook below or on the right sidebar at Home and let’s talk.

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