I feel compelled to share that by purchasing the book, you have donated 10% of the profits to Ben’s friends. Ben, not Tony’s son but another lost soul with the same name, had many friends and they started a community program after his death. I found this so amazing, I had to share. It is obvious he impacted many lives and will be sorely missed.
Every time I crack open a Claus novel by Tony Bertauski, I know I am going on a magical adventure. Nutcracker is the eleventh novel in this stand alone series and is just as entertaining as the past novels I have read.
After the death of their parents, Marie and her brother, Fritz, are taken in by her Aunt and Uncle. Vern has many personalities, but Rinks has only one, and it’s not a pleasant one. She wants….everything and doesn’t care much what she has to do to get it.
This wonderfully fun fantasy of magic and childish delight is fraught with sadness and it comes through in Tony Bertauski’s writing. I love that he made me try to put myself into Rinks shoes and see why she was so unhappy and vindictive, trying to see her life from her perspective, try to walk a mile in her shoes, to empathize with Marie and Fritz with their loss. Marie tamps down her sadness over the loss of their parents and Fritz no longer speaks.
Marie and Fritz find the gift, after a visit to their Godfather, and their adventure into Candyland begins. Is it a dream? Another one of their Godfather’s inventions? I love the creativity involved in the creatures and action that takes place. It is so hard for me to describe what happens inside Candyland without spoiling it, so I will leave it to you to find out for yourself
I always wonder how an author comes up with such a fantastical story and I can only attribute it to their vivid imagination. Their ability to open their mind and let the magic begin is a gift to us readers. The best thing is that I end the book with a smile on my face.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
The 11th standalone novel in the Claus Universe.
Once upon a time, there was a toy store filled with magical playthings and fantastical stories. But not anymore. That was a long time ago.
When Marie arrived, the place was cobwebs and empty shelves. Little dry pellets covered the floor. Aunt Rinks called them dirt balls. They weren’t dirt balls.
The place didn’t feel like Christmas. Nothing did anymore. What Marie wanted, she couldn’t possibly have. A leaky air mattress and a self-absorbed aunt was all she got. But Christmas wasn’t about what you wanted; it was about what you needed. Godfather told her that. That was when he told her the tale of the nutcracker.
“You must find the princess,” he told Marie. “She’s been waiting for you.”
It was a story, nothing more. Marie didn’t believe in fairy tales or Christmas spirit anymore. Certainly didn’t believe in a wooden soldier and a cursed princess who needed saving. Until she discovered the gift.
Marie and her brother, Fritz, find a small box hidden in the old toy store. When they open it, the real journey begins. Marie discovers the nutcracker is more than just a silly toy. The princess isn’t a metaphor. The nutcracker shows Marie a truth hidden inside her.
They’ll have to hurry to save the princess. When Aunt Rinks finds the gift, she aims to take everything they’ve discovered for herself, to leave Marie and Fritz with nothing and the princess still cursed. The journey, however, isn’t a game. It will reveal Marie’s true nature.
What happens next is not what anyone wanted for Christmas.
Genre: Action and Adventure, Childrens, Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Teen and Young Adult
My grandpa never graduated high school. He retired from a steel mill in the mid-70s. He was uneducated, but he was a voracious reader. I remember going through his bookshelves of paperback sci-fi novels, smelling musty old paper, pulling Piers Anthony and Isaac Asimov off shelf and promising to bring them back. I was fascinated by robots that could think and act like people. What happened when they died?
I’ve written textbooks on landscape design, but that was straightforward, informational writing; the kind of stuff that helps most people get to sleep. I’ve also been writing a gardening column with a humorous slant. That takes a little more finesse, but still informational for the most part.
I’m a cynical reader. I demand the writer sweep me into his/her story and carry me to the end. I’d rather sail a boat than climb a mountain. That’s the sort of stuff I wanted to write, not the assigned reading we used to get in high school. I wanted to create stories that kept you up late.
Fiction, GOOD fiction, is hard to write. Having a story unfold inside your head is an experience different than reading. You connect with characters in a deeper, more meaningful way. You feel them, empathize with them, cheer for them and even mourn. The challenge is to get the reader to experience the same thing, even if it’s only a fraction of what the writer feels. Not so easy.
I will warn you about The Color of Betrayal by Hollie Smurthwaite. There are triggers involve: explicit sex scenes that are smokin’ hot, alcoholism, violence and plenty of profanity. Sounds right up my alley, how about yours? LOL
Jolene is a memory surgeon working for the Agency, a spy. She could read people’s memories, but did her best not to remove them. If she did, they became hers and that is a heavy load to bear. She has no family, losing her best friend when the Agency faked her death. Exercise is her panacea, being still an impossibility. Jogging made her feel free.
Their team consists of five people: Jolene, Stadler, Sara, Ryan and Jorge. Ryan was the older brother, Sara is the rebel sibling, Stadler is the father figure, Jorge is the younger brother, and Jolene is the fucked up child.
She meets Cass in the coffee shop and is immediately smitten. She has no time for a relationship and too many secrets to keep. Their dialogue, as their relationship builds, has me cracking up, but he has his secrets too.
The deeper into the story I go, the more I choose the characters I will root for and those I want to see go down. The danger rises as secrets are exposed and betrayals come to light. I was so surprised at The Agency and never saw that coming, though any group that keeps secrets to work outside the normal boundaries, can be considered armed and dangerous.
Jolene will be put to the test all right. Will she be stronger for it, or will it be the end of her? Who can she count on for support? Can she have a romantic life?
Even though the books in the series can be read as stand alones, I highly recommend starting with the first, because the characters will be making an appearance in future books and knowing their backgrounds adds extra to the stories to come.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Jolene, a recovering alcoholic with the psychic ability to experience people’s memories, helps a secret government agency take down drug syndicates.
No secret is safe . . .
As a memory surgeon, Jolene can slip into other people’s memories. She can see them, experience them, even steal them. To atone for her past, she’s been using her psychic gift to help the Agency, a secret government entity, taking out drug lords across the US. After a screw-up on an assignment, she’s back in Chicago, where her own worst memories live.
The last thing she needs while trying to make up for her mistake is a sexy distraction. Cass is a little sweet and a lot gorgeous. The only problem: she can’t have him and the job. But when he offers his friendship, she can’t resist.
While Jolene and Cass try to pretend there is nothing beneath their friendship, her mission spins out of control. Now, both their lives are on the line. Will her growing powers be enough to save her? Or will secrets send her right back to the darkest depths of her past?
The Color of Betrayal is a steamy paranormal romantic suspense novel with psychics, spies, twists, and dark themes. Great for fans of KF Breene, Jeaniene Frost, and Kim Harrison.
Although this is book two of the series, it can be read as a standalone. The main characters change each novel.
Content warning: Explicit sex scenes, references and depictions of physical violence (NOT between the protagonists), alcoholism, profanity and not just a little.
Hollie Smurthwaite is a paranormal romantic suspense author of The Color of Trauma and The Color of Betrayal. The Color of Trauma was the winner of the 2020 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project in adult fiction. She lives in Chicago with her husband, son, and too few pets. In past lives, she’s been a checkout clerk, massage therapist, office manager, recruiter, magazine staff writer, pepper spray hawker, and belly dancer.
A Parfait Crime (A Five-Ingredient Mystery) by Maya Corrigan
About A Parfait Crime
A Parfait Crime (A Five-Ingredient Mystery) Cozy Mystery 9th in Series Setting – Chesapeake Bay Kensington Cozies (October 24, 2023) Mass Market Paperback : 304 pages ISBN-10 : 1496734599 ISBN-13 : 978-1496734594 Digital ASIN : B0BT8P2FYK
A granddaughter-grandfather sleuthing duo take on a perplexing new case in the latest culinary cozy mystery, sure to appeal to fans of Diane Mott, Joanne Fluke, and Katherine Hall Page.
At the site of a fatal blaze, Val’s boyfriend, a firefighter trainee, is shocked to learn the victim is known to him, a woman named Jane who belonged to the local Agatha Christie book club—and was rehearsing alongside Val’s grandfather for an upcoming Christie play being staged for charity. Just as shocking are the skeletal remains of a man found in the freezer. Who is he and who put him on ice?
After Val is chosen to replace Jane in the play, the cast gathers at their house to get to work—and enjoy Grandad’s five-ingredient parfaits—but all anyone can focus on is the bizarre real-life mystery. When it’s revealed that Jane’s death was due to something other than smoke inhalation, Val and Grandad try to retrace her final days. As they dig into her past life, their inquiry leads them to a fancy new spa in town—where they discover that Jane wasn’t the only one who had a skeleton in the cooler . . .
Includes delicious five-ingredient recipes!
About Maya Corrigan
Maya (Mary Ann) Corrigan writes the Five-Ingredient Mysteries featuring café manager Val and her live-wire grandfather solving murders in a Chesapeake Bay town. Each book has five suspects, five clues, and Granddad’s five-ingredient recipes. In the 9th book of the series, A Parfait Crime, Val and Granddad rehearse an Agatha Christie play with a cast that includes murder suspects. A Virginia resident, Maya has taught college courses in writing, detective fiction, and literature. When not reading and writing, she enjoys theater, travel, trivia, cooking, and crosswords. Visit her website — https://mayacorrigan.com — for book news, easy recipes, and mystery history and trivia.
In the Key of Dead: A Miami Music Mystery by Zaida Alfar
About In the Key of Dead
In the Key of Dead: A Miami Music Mystery Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Setting – Florida Cozy Cat Press (July 17, 2023) Paperback : 206 pages ISBN-10 : 195257966X ISBN-13 : 978-1952579660 Digital ASIN : B0CDHHNMBP
Killer songs and a killer voice land Vy in yet another melodic murder mystery. Interlude Records has signed Vy to a long-anticipated record deal after years of rejections, but she never thought that murder would be part of the deal. Now, Vy finds herself, yet again, at the center of a murder investigation that may change the course of her music career.
It seems that someone doesn’t want Vy to record her album, and is doing everything to sabotage the release date, including murdering a key member of the production team. So Vy and her sister, Alexia, are back at it again—detecting in their own way. This time they’re using their quick-witted banter, and super sleuthing skills to ensure that Vy’s record makes it to the Billboard Top 100 list before the murderer makes it to the Miami Beach Police Department’s most wanted list.
They say the music industry is cutthroat, but Vy has never taken that statement literally. Could this be the strum of Vy’s guitar playing her last note IN THE KEY OF DEAD?
About Zaida Alfaro
The Miami Music Mystery series’ main backdrop, the amazing city of Miami, Florida, is beloved and well-known to me. I was born and raised in Miami, and like the novel’s main character Vy, I am a singer/songwriter, Grammy-considered, independent artist. All things relating to music or literature are my passion.
Many years ago, I became an avid reader of cozy mysteries. The storylines were intriguing, engaging, and funny at the same time. I was so inspired by the authors, that I then decided to take my musical experiences, and put it on paper. I published my first novel, The Last Note, a Miami Music Mystery. Now, I have brought my characters back to life, in the sequel, In the Key of Dead, a Miami Music Mystery. The phobias, the dream sequences, and the quirkiness of the main characters, are all based on facts. I hope that I was able to, once again, show the readers of my novels, the love I have for Miami, the Cuban culture, my family, and music. For more information, visit www.zaidamusic.com
Death By Theft: A Josiah Reynolds Mystery by Abigail Keam
About Death by Theft
Death By Theft: A Josiah Reynolds Mystery Cozy Mystery 19th in Series Setting – Kentucky Worker Bee Press (October 30, 2023) Number of Pages ~200 ASIN : B0BVJSY15M
MY REVIEW
I do enjoy a good cozy mystery now and then and have read some of Abigail Keam’s work. I enjoyed her writing, so when I saw Death By Theft, about a foal being stolen, I wanted to check it out for myself.
I really liked Asa, a complicated character that doesn’t seek out danger, but can be counted on to find out answers, especially when her family and friends have a problem. Josiah is a bit on the nosy side and dead bodies seem to appear whenever she is around.
I’ve mentioned the characters that stood out to me, but there are plenty more that have their place, adding depth to the story. After all, the more, the merrier, right?
Are the theft of the foal and the murder of Juan Gomez connected? Seems logical to me that they would be. But why? As the mystery unfolds, we have enough suspects to muddy the waters and things are not always as they appear to be.
When the Last Chance Mote in Key Largo is mentioned, I do remember a trip I took there, in The Mermaid’s Carol…and I enjoyed it very much. It is a magical place where you can relax and rejuvenate. Asa and her mother need it, after solving the mystery of the theft of the foal and the death of Juan Gomez.
3 Stars
SYNOPSIS
Josiah is happy for her pals Lady Elsmere and Shaneika Mary Todd when broodmare Jean Harlow gives birth to a male foal sired by Comanche. The owners of both horses have high hopes the foal will become a stakes winner—maybe even win the Kentucky Derby. The foal has a broad chest, indicating significant lung capacity—important for winning races, but just like his daddy, the foal is ebony with a bad attitude.
Josiah and Shaneika visit dam Jean Harlow early one morning and are shocked to find the prized foal is missing. They frantically search Lady Elsmere’s and Josiah’s farms without success. It’s urgent they find the foal fast as he is not yet weaned and is too young to be separated from his mother. Who would snatch the feisty foal from his mother’s care? And equally important, why?
Death By A HoneyBee Death By Drowning Death By Bridle Death By Bourbon Death By Lotto Death by Chocolate Death by Haunting Death By Derby Death By Design Death By Malice Death By Drama Death By Stalking Death By Deceit Death By Magic Death By Shock Death By Chance Death By Poison Death By Greed Death By Theft
About Abigail Keam
Abigail Keam is an award-winning and Amazon best-selling author who writes the Josiah Reynolds Mystery Series about a Southern beekeeper turned amateur female sleuth. Besides loving history, Kentucky bourbon, and chocolate, Abigail loves honeybees and for many years made her living by selling honey at a farmers’ market like her protagonist, Josiah Reynolds. She is an award-winning beekeeper who has won many honey awards at the Kentucky State Fair including the Barbara Horn Award, which is given to beekeepers who rate a perfect 100 in a honey competition.
Miss Abigail has taken her knowledge of beekeeping to create a fictional beekeeping protagonist, Josiah Reynolds, who solves mysteries in the Bluegrass. While Miss Abigail’s novels are for enjoyment, she discusses the importance of a local sustainable food economy and land management for honeybees and other creatures.
She currently lives on the Kentucky River in a metal house with her husband and various critters. She still has honeybees.
AWARDS 2010 Gold Medal Award from Readers’ Favorite for Death By A HoneyBee 2011 Gold Medal Award from Readers’ Favorite for Death By Drowning 2011 USA BOOK NEWS-Best Books List of 2011 as a Finalist for Death By Drowning 2011 USA BOOK NEWS-Best Books List of 2011 as a Finalist for Death By A HoneyBee 2017 Finalist from Readers’ Favorite for Death By Design 2019 Honorable Mention from Readers’ Favorite for Death By Stalking 2019 Top 10 Mystery Novels from Kings River Life Magazine for Murder Under A Blue Moon2 2019 Honorable Mention from Readers’ Favorite for Death By Stalking: A Josiah Reynolds Mystery 2019 Top 10 Mystery Novels from Kings River Life Magazine for Murder Under A Blue Moon: A 1930s Mona Moon Mystery 2020 Imadjinn Award for Best Mystery – Death By Stalking: A Josiah Reynolds Mystery 2022 Finalist in Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist for Best Historical Category – Murder Under A Full Moon 2022 Finalist for the Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award for Best Historical Category – Murder Under A New Moon 2022 Death By Chance: A Josiah Reynolds Mystery Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist for Best Cozy Mystery 2022 Top Ten Mystery Novel by Kings River Life Magazine for Murder Under A Bridal Moon: A 1930s Mona Moon Mystery 2022 Top Ten Mystery Novel by Kings River Life Magazine for Murder Under A British Moon: A 1930s Mona Moon Mystery
I love books based on true events and animals, so when I got a chance to get my hands on Finding Fionn by M J Evans, I had to have it. Finding Fionn is a mystery based on the kidnapping of Shergar, an Irish thoroughbred who had an amazing winning record.
Before I even cracked open the book, I was surfing for information on Shergar, the horse the book was based on. My biggest takeaway was how thought provoking the story was. Could there be some truth to the fiction?
M J Evans explains the IRA position in a simple to understand manner for such a complex situation. I have read other books where the IRA made an appearance and it was always hard for me to understand…why the conflict? Also, once their first kidnapping, to finance their war, was successful, why would they quit there? But a horse?
Fionn MacCool was a very successful racer and quickly put to stud. Patrick McCallin was the lucky, young jockey who got him there. It had been Patrick’s dream to be a jockey and when Fionn was taken, he was not going to stand by and watch as they closed the case.
It’s fun when a group of young people come together to solve a mystery. We have danger, betrayal and greed…the things people will do for money, never satisfied with what they have.
Finding Fionn is a wonderful story of a boy’s love for horses and his desire to be a jockey. I love the thought provoking conclusion and I think I will make my own conjecture on what really happened to the horse, Shergar, that the story was based on. I love that we have a happy ever after for Fionn MacCool, not so for Shergar.
4 Stars
A fast-paced story that will have mystery fans and horse lovers thoroughly captivated. – Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Reader’s favorite
Book Description:
The excitement felt in the Winner’s Circle vanishes when the jockey’s beloved horse disappears from his stall in the dark of night. Patrick McCallin is a young Irish lad growing up in the 1980’s when all of Ireland is groaning under the weight of The Troubles. Born to ride, he pays little mind to the political unrest going on around him. He dreams only of becoming a jockey. Patrick’s dream comes true when he is selected to ride an up-and-coming Thoroughbred, named Fionn MacCool, in the biggest races in England and Ireland. Race after race ends with Fionn and Patrick in the Winner’s Circle. The pair captures the heart of all Ireland. But the dream becomes a nightmare when Patrick’s beloved horse is kidnapped and held for ransom. When the horse’s owner refuses to pay and the Irish Garda closes the case, Patrick and his best friends, Ronan and Maddie, have no choice but to find Fionn themselves.
M.J. Evans is the author of more than twenty award-winning books for middle-graders, young adults, adults, and even a few picture books. Most of her titles are about horses or horse fantasy creatures. Ms. Evans is a graduate of Oregon State University and a former teacher of middle school and high school students. She is the mother of five and the grandmother of twelve. She and her husband live in Colorado.
I have read J K Franco’s Eye For An Eye Trilogy and loved it, so it was a no brainer to grab Killing Johnny Miracle. I love books that smack of betrayal and revenge and Killing Johnny Miracle gave me more than I expected.
The first sentence: Mary Miracle would always recall with clarity the moment she decided to kill her husband.
After Mary decided Johnny had to die, she spent the rest of the week working out the best way to do it, the ‘best’ way meaning how to kill him in the manner that was least likely to end with her in prison or – as they lived in Texas – on death row.
With these quotes being on the first page, I anticipate many pages of wicked goodness, 409 to be precise, plus the author supplies us with an interview telling us how he came to write the book.
Johnny Miracle is quite the opposite of his name. He is more like a curse, and it is Mary’s misfortune to be the his target. He has his eyes on the prize, and it’s not his wife. I do love a great villain, and J K Franko supplied us with one in Johnny Miracle.
Mary’s grandmother dies and…well, here is where Mary begins to wake up to the awful possibilites in front on her.
Johnny Miracle is a scumbag, a cheater, but he is not alone when it comes to people who will betray Mary. Secrets, so many secrets and betrayals..
Things are bad for Mary early in the story, but in Chapter 43, J K Franko steps it up a notch.
Rubi Yi…who is she? I learn about her, but it takes me a while to see how she fits into the story….and I love it! Us ladies have to stick together, don’t we? When everything comes together, secrets are shared and messes are cleaned up. I was smiling.
What a fabulous story of betrayal and us women making things right in the end.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, no man, no matter how smart or strong, can compete with a motivated woman.”
As I read the Afterword, J K Frank had me smiling again. I love that all his ideas wouldn’t fit in Killing Johnny Miracle. That means more books for us to read. But, he covered the gist of it.
A story about how a strong young woman finds her moral compass and life path while the universe is throwing buckets of shit at her.
The book had my mind spinning and I love it. A tangled web, for sure, and a snake in the grass that kept me turning the pages.
4 Stars
Synopsis:
Johnny Miracle thinks he’s got it all… and he’s in love, just not with his wife, Mary. He wants a divorce and he’s got leverage. Johnny knows her deepest, darkest secret. He’s going to use that to take everything: her vineyard, her money, and her priceless family heirloom. He’ll do whatever it takes to get it all.
But, as Grandma Nellie used to say, “No man, no matter how smart or strong, can compete with a motivated woman.” Mary is a motivated woman, she’s got her own agenda, and it doesn’t include losing. She’s going to kill Johnny. To get away with it, she needs a plan and an alibi. And she thinks she has both.
Book Details:
Genre: Crime Thriller Published by: Rum House Publishing Publication Date: May 2023 Number of Pages: 350 Book Links:Amazon | Goodreads
Read an excerpt:
Nobody ever said it was going to be anything better
than a round of poker on the raft of Medusa. It’s not who wins the game that counts.
Nobody wins. It’s who gets out least lost. From Memo, by Todd Hearon
PART ONE
MARY’S WORLD FALLS APART
CHAPTER ONE
Mary Miracle would always recall with clarity the moment she decided to kill her husband. It wasn’t a decision she’d come to suddenly. She had loved him at one point, with all her heart. But over the course of their marriage, there’d been an accumulation of things he’d done that—little by little, like a blowtorch burning paint off steel—scorched away chunks of her love.
Usually, once love is gone, only indifference remains. In which case, the logical thing for Mary to do would have been to get a divorce, not kill him. But in Mary’s case, there was one final thing Johnny did to her that obliterated not just the love, but even indifference. And from the charred remains of everything she had once felt for him grew a revulsion so deep that she refused to live in a world where he existed.
After Mary decided that Johnny had to die, she spent the rest of the week working out the best way to do it, the ‘best’ way meaning how to kill him in the manner that was least likely to end with her in prison or—as they lived in Texas—on death row.
As his wife, I’ll be the prime suspect. The fact that we’re in the middle of a divorce makes that even worse. Lord knows, I’ve got plenty of motives.
It needs to look like an accident. Poison? A hit and run? Maybe a burglary gone wrong?
And I’m gonna need an iron-clad alibi.
It took Mary a few days to figure out the accident part. The more difficult piece was the alibi. She came up with lots of ideas. But in the end, she concluded that to pull off a foolproof alibi she needed help: an accomplice. There was only one person in the world she could trust with something like this. Abby Winehouse. They’d grown up together, shared secrets. They knew each other like sisters.
Abby also had the skills to help Mary put the finishing touches on her plan. The only downside was that she’d probably try to talk her out of killing him; Mary was almost sure of that.
She arranged to meet Abby at her place that Friday for some wine and cheese. The house was just west of downtown Austin and had been in Abby’s family since the late 1800s. The two friends sat, as usual, on the wooden back deck in lawn chairs overlooking the small yard. Its perimeter was marked by a hurricane fence. The lawn was thick Saint Augustine grass. There was a small rock garden in one corner, in the center of which sat a broken bird bath; the bath part was dry and dusty. A couple of beat-up cornhole boards leaned against the fence by the gate to the alley. It was just past seven. A cool fall evening.
Abby was sharing some of the highlights of her week. She was on a bit of a rant. “And so, I told him, ‘Don’t be mansplainin’ to me about what a rollin’ stop is. You may have a badge, but I was runnin’ stop signs while you were still on training wheels!’”
Mary nodded and smiled as her friend spoke, but she wasn’t listening. She was rhythmically clinking her fingertip against the stem of her wineglass to disguise the slight tremor in her hands. Nerves. She had rehearsed what she wanted to say. And how to say it. Still, her neck felt tight. Could Abby tell that she was distracted? Abby was never one to pry. She had always been the type to chat, entertain, all while waiting for Mary to open up.
“So fiiiiinally,” Abby dragged out the word, “he agreed to let me off with a warnin’.” She shook her head. “But I had’ta get all pissed off and tell him I’m a lawyer to get ‘im to back down.” She scoffed. “Imagine how they treat regular folk . . . ” She stopped to pour herself some more rosé.
Mary decided to capitalize on the lull. The sound of cars rushing down Mopac highway nearby provided white noise that she felt protected their conversation from prying ears. But she reached out and turned the music on the Bluetooth speaker up a bit, just to be safe. A song by The Dixie Chicks was playing, the one about Earl. It was a song she knew well, but she was so focused on what she wanted to say that the irony was lost on her.
“I need to tell you something, Abby,” she said. “Ask a favor, really . . .”
Abby finished refilling her glass. She turned to look at her friend, and her face fell. “Oh, shit! What’s wrong? No. Don’t you cry, girl,” she reacted instinctively, then backtracked. “Or go on and let it all out if ya need to . . .”
Mary hadn’t realized her eyes were watering. Tears were not on her agenda. She inhaled, seeking to extract confidence from the air around her. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
“What is it, Mare?”
“I’m gonna need your help with something,” Mary said. The tension in her neck eased slightly as she spoke.
Abby cocked an eyebrow, and Mary watched her eyes dart back and forth as if scanning through a spectrum of possibilities. Despite all her rehearsing, Mary couldn’t help beating around the bush just a little. “It’s a big one,” she added, her eyes turning hard and her chin tilting up slightly.
The air around the two women suddenly felt almost electric. Mary saw that her friend felt it too; the hair on Abby’s arms stood on end.
She leaned towards Mary, placing a hand on her knee. “You know you can count on me, hon.” She unconsciously lowered her voice to a whisper. “What can I do?”
“I . . . It’s about . . . him.”
Abby inhaled deeply and sat up straighter. Her lips pursed, then she took a swallow from her wineglass. “Well, what’s he gone and done now?” Abby’s head tilted; her mouth set in a hard line. “It’s high time you divorced that sumbitch. I know it’s been a mess. But of course, you can count on me—”
“Oh, no. It’s not about the divorce.” She sat back, more confident now that she had gotten the topic on the table. “I mean, thank God, I found out because of the divorce. But . . .”
Mary had read somewhere that when the police deliver news of a family member’s death, they use simple, direct language to avoid confusion. In the shock of the moment, brutal clarity works best. Mary had decided to follow that approach. That’s what she had rehearsed.
She took a sip of wine, her gaze locked on Abby’s. She breathed in, then exhaled slowly and, for the first time, said out loud what she’d been thinking, planning, what she knew she had to do.
“I’m going to kill Johnny.”
Her tone made it clear that this was not a figure of speech.
Abby sat for a good while studying her friend. She was searching, hoping for some indication that she was misreading the moment—that Mary wasn’t actually declaring her intent to commit murder.
When it became clear that Mary had nothing further to add, Abby started to speak several times. Mary watched as her mouth would form the tip of a word, before aborting the effort as new scenarios percolated out of her keen mind. Finally, Mary saw that look in her friend’s eyes; her best friend was still there, but the lawyer in her was sharing control. Abby clasped her hands together, resting them softly on her knee, then spoke the best open-ended reply of them all.
“Why?”
***
Excerpt from Killing Johnny Miracle by JK Franko. Copyright 2023 by JK Franko. Reproduced with permission from JK Franko. All rights reserved.
Author Bio:
J.K. Franko was born in Texas and spent his childhood in Corpus Christi where he attended St. Patrick’s Elementary and Incarnate Word Academy. He was educated by Irish nuns who thought his conduct poor and academic effort lacking. Franko admittedly spent too much time at the video arcade, playing hacky sack, and later hanging out with friends drinking beer and listening to eighties music (this was in the eighties) at Swantner Park.
He would not change any of that (if he could).
Franko got his act together in college, during what he calls his Tour of Texas: Del Mar College, Baylor University, University of Dallas, University of the Incarnate Word (BA Philosophy, cum laude), St. Mary’s Law School (Juris Doctor, summa cum laude), and UT Austin’s McCombs School of Business (MBA, Kozmetsky Scholar).
He worked for ten years as a trial lawyer in Texas, then went on to work as an executive in the Fortune 100 in Europe and Asia.
Franko has written a number of non-fiction books and articles. But storytelling has always been his passion.
Publication of Franko’s first three novels—the Eye for Eye trilogy—was complete in 2020, with international publication in translation beginning in 2021.
He will be publishing two books in 2023: Killing Johnny Miracle and The Black Book.
A joyful Christmas festival turns deadly when a corpse ends up as the chilling centerpiece. Can an amateur sleuth unwrap the tinsel-tangled mystery before the merry cheer melts away?
Talented antique enthusiast, Dotty Sayers, is thrilled to be organising a Christmas display at a Yorkshire country house. She enjoys decking the halls, but the season is far from jolly when the chief guide is found dead, her body as cold as ice.
When cops dismiss the death, Dotty turns to her prickly American colleague, only to learn he has his own secrets to solve. But when he disappears, this amateur detective fears the festive charades have become far deadlier.
Can Dotty string together the clues and bring to light the killer?
About Victoria Tait
Victoria Tait was born and raised in Yorkshire, England. After following her military husband around the world, she drew on her life’s experiences, and a love of Agatha Christie, Father Brown, and Murder She Wrote, to write British-based cozy mysteries.
Her determined female sleuths are joined by colourful and quirky teams of helpers, and her settings are vivid and realistic. As you’re compelled to keep turning the pages, you’ll be irresistibly drawn into a world where you’ll experience surprises, humour, and sometimes, a tug on your heartstrings.
Do you like tea, mysteries, and books? Then why not join Victoria’s TeaCozy Club for regular news and updates, and download the free prequel to the Dotty Sayers Antique Mysteries series as a gift by visiting VictoriaTait.com
Who doesn’t like tea, cake, and a slice of murder?
Join us for this spotlight tour from Oct 2to Nov 2, 2023!
Book Details:
Book Title: Murder by the Stroke (A Fiona Quinn Mystery) Author: C.S. McDonald Category: Adult Fiction, 260 pages Genre: Cozy Mystery Publisher: McWriter Books Release date: Nov 2023 Content Rating: G. C.S. McDonald’s books are appropriate for YA readers as well as adults–no bad language or sexual content.
Book Description:
Detective Landry’s old flame is drop-dead gorgeous, and so are her paintings!
Pittsburgh’s most influential cultural enthusiasts are overjoyed when famous artist, Vashti, has scheduled a gala followed by a weeklong exhibit of her latest works. On the other hand, Detective Nathan Landry isn’t so excited about the invitation he has received to the gala. Back in the day, he and the renowned painter were lovers. That is, when her name was Sadie Jensen, or as Nathan’s sister liked to call her, “Psycho Sadie.”
Art experts, and collectors alike, have been intrigued by a tiny brush stroke, known as an invisible stroke. So subtle and out of place is the technique, that Vashti’s elusive stroke has become as famous as a Where’s Waldo search.
Meanwhile, Fiona finds herself captivated by more than Vashti’s flair for the obscure. Rather, she is far more interested in the gorgeous artist and Nathan’s past. Against his wishes, Fiona, her mother, and her mother-in-law attend the exhibit.
Indeed, Vashti’s paintings are killing it in the art world, and in more ways than one.
For twenty-six years C.S. McDonald’s life whirled around a song and a dance. Classically trained at Pittsburgh Ballet Theater School, The Pittsburgh Dance Alloy, and many others, she became a professional dancer and choreographer. During that time, she choreographed many musicals and an opera for the Pittsburgh Savoyards. In 2011 she retired from her dance career to write. Under her real name, Cindy McDonald, she writes murder-suspense and romantic suspense novels. In 2014 she added the pen name, C.S. McDonald, to write children’s books for her grandchildren. In 2016 she added the Fiona Quinn Mysteries to that expansion. She decided to write the cozy mystery series that everyone, including teens and tweens, can read and enjoy. Presently, the Fiona Quinn Mysteries includes nine books with a tenth slated for 2021. The books are also available on audio, narrated by Maren Swenson Waxenberg.
Cindy’s newest venture is The Owl’s Nest Mysteries. Once again, she has set her cozy mystery in Pittsburgh and the female protagonist, Alexa Owl, is much different from Fiona Quinn. The Owl’s Nest Mysteries has a little grit, a little time travel, a little romance, and a whole lot of cozy!
Ms. McDonald resides on her Thoroughbred farm known as Fly by Night Stables near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Bill, and her poorly behaved Cocker Spaniel, Allister.
There was a glitch….so the book won’t be free until tomorrow? But, you can purchase it now for .99 if you can’t wait.
I want to send out a huge welcome to P D Alleva. I love covers and I may even be considered a cover whore. A cover can be the reason a pass over a book, or I pause to check it out further. I love talking to authors about how they create their covers. How much input they have. I love to have them share their designers information so others may acquire such fabulous cover too.
Soooo, let’s get to it.
Cover Creating Process
Here’s the biggest part in the cover creating process: choose a designer that knows what they’re doing. Unless you’re a graphic designer you need a damn good cover artist, that’s for sure. If you’re looking for one, my designer hits it out of the park every time. I highly recommend reaching out to Cherie. Her website is below.
Choosing the right cover artist is the first step, but that’s not where the work stops, it’s only where it begins. I’m confident when I say that every author has a predetermined design floating in the back of their mind at some point during the writing process and you need to communicate those ideas effectively to the cover artist. They’re not mind readers and know nothing about your book so the more information and detail you can provide the better the final result will be.
One of the first processes is reviewing book covers in your genre. Look at the most popular books and study the design. Every genre is different and your cover needs to fall in line with what reader’s are used to. Which also means that if the outstanding and awesome cover design you’ve been thinking about over the last six months doesn’t fall in line with what’s on the market, have the wherewithal to scrap your idea. If you want to actually sell books than you need a design that conforms to what readers want and are accustomed to seeing in the genre. If not you risk the chance a potential reader will keep scrolling past your book.
Now that you’ve got your cover examples, you want to bring in the most vital aspects of your story that will not only connect with a potential reader but is also a glimpse into the story that unfolds within the pages and the title of your book. Is there a tagline you want to include, or a popular review quote? Keep in mind that sometimes we add the quote before official publication so leave room for a quote if you plan on having a few to choose from. This is also a good time to ask yourself a basic question: How can my cover stand out from other covers that are currently on the market? You want to be similar in style but uniquely connected to your story. And don’t create a cover that once someone reads your book they’ll wonder what the cover has to do with the story. In other words, don’t create an awesome cover that doesn’t relate to your story. It rubs readers the wrong way and the next thing you know you’re rushing around to get a new cover done. It’s a shitty situation to be in. Trust me, I’ve been there.
Once you’ve got all your examples and ideas ready, your designer will have you complete a cover questionnaire that will ask for all the information above. You want to be as precise as possible when answering, but it’s also good to lean on the designer here, possibly offering a few different perspectives and ideas. If you choose the right designer they’ll have experience with your genre and should also come with a few of their own ideas and expertise. Their experience is paramount and if they decide to scrap one of your ideas as a result of previous experience it is best to heed the advice. I’ve always said that great projects are a collaboration, so remember, you’re working with your designer not barking orders. Good designers are hard to come by and when you’ve got one its best to create a professional relationship if for no other reason than for the sake of consistency.
People who love your covers will expect the same with every novel you produce and working with the same designer, one who learns your style, taste, likes and dislikes allow future processes to go smoothly and without much fuss or redesigns. Which brings us to the next step in the cover creating process: the waiting.
After you provide your cover examples and submit your questionnaire, it’s time for the designer to take the baton and get to work. Tom Petty definitely said it right that the waiting is the hardest part. It takes time to create a cover design and you also have to remember that you’re not the only writer the artist is working with. If you have a strict deadline you need to communicate the deadline to the designer who may or may not be able to deliver on your deadline. I say this as a side note because you shouldn’t expect the magic to happen in a day and proper planning prevents piss poor performance and if you need something on a rush you haven’t done your due diligence. Cover design should begin sooner rather than later in the publishing process. The earlier the better.
But back to Tom Petty. Sit and wait. Sit and wait. Wait and sit. Shit let me check my email again. Nothing yet, but maybe she’s working on it today. Maybe I’ll have something by the end of the week. Well, put those thoughts out of your head and focus on your next book or editing your current one. At the very least go for a walk and cool your heels because that email just came through and you’re licking your lips in anticipation of being dazzled and enthralled.
Then you open the file and disappointment washes over you like acid rain. Thoughts like, “That’s not what I wanted,” or “Is she smoking crack,” may pop into your brain. But you’ve got to understand, this is a creative process, and just like your book it takes a lot of edits and rewrites to create a masterpiece. Every one of my covers has gone through a metamorphosis, beginning with something truly lame and then evolving into having my mind blown. Keep this in mind when you receive that first email. In fact, you should expect the first cover to be nothing like what you wanted because it’ll help curb the disappointment. In order to help understand this concept a bit better, I’ve included the first and final covers for my novel, Jigglyspot and the Zero Intellect. Kind of an evolution of Jigglyspot.
As you can see, the first draft was god awful, but we were on to something and by working together we were able to figure it out and hit the ball out of the park. With every draft we learn more about what should and should not be included on the cover. Knowing what we don’t want or don’t like leads us to what we love and desire. The same holds true for creating a book cover.
After all is said and done then you need to think about the text you want on the back cover. You can include the book description or a list of reviews or a little bit of both. Again, look at what other books in your genre are doing and keep everything consistent because once that cover is beaming bright on your website, amazon page, and across social media you want something you can be proud of and a cover that reflects a fantastic product. Just like your story.
Stephen King step aside. There is a new clown in town…and his name is Jigglyspot. We have carnivals, cannibals and clowns that are sure to supply a ride you will never forget.
“People love clowns, but that wasn’t the problem, was it? Nope, no at all. Jiggly’s problem was with humanity, a species he despised more than he could fathom. Why? Because they have half a brain.”
Zero intellect.
Jigglyspot’s greatest asset is his ability to blend in, to be underestimated.
SAC John Mills has dealt with death but his biggest mystery is the mop bucket arsons. He knew there was more…twenty years of mop bucket arsons more. And Reilly’s mop bucket begins our descent into Hell.
On page sixty eight (of 560) pages, when Jigglyspot took a drink from the fridge…my stomach lurched. Cringe worthy. Savagery beyond my wildest…nightmares.
Where does P D Alleva come up with these ideas? He takes horror to a whole new level for me. So many trigger moments, but I do love dwelling in the darkness. So wickedly, deliciously evil. Will humans become slaves, mere vessels for THEIR pleasures? Who will stop them? Will anyone BE ABLE to stop them?
The story is told from multiple points of view. I would say the main characters are Jigglyspot and Tyler, but we have other characters that are important to the story. Characters like Kera, Lilly, John Mills, Helmsley, Sharon, Cassandra, Mr West, MysterE,and more.
“It’s the laws of the universe, Tyler. When energy shifts too much to one side, an equal and opposite reaction must occur on the other and the universe will have the proper balance through chaos and destruction.”
There was no way I could sit down and read the book in one day, not even two days, but I did not want to stop. My hands were cramping, my vision blurring, and still, I read on, until I had to stop and sleep. So, I will warn you. Set aside some time, because I don’t think you will want to stop either. You may even want to keep the lights on. Maybe even have someone with you, if you think you can trust them with your life.
There is graphic violence that has many triggers, so Jigglyspot is not for the feint of heart. After going over my review, I took some things out. I did not want to give anything away, yet I want to say more. I was so engrossed in the story I ignored everything around me. I think, if you love horror, you will love Jigglyspot.
5 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Carnivals, Cannibals, and Clowns. Oh My!
Wanna go for a ride?
Meet Jigglyspot, a five-foot tall half human half warlock carnival clown who spends his free time moonlighting as a drug dealing pimp and lackey for demonic entities who prey on the weak and vulnerable, casting their dark shadow across humanity through manipulation, and fear.
Jigglyspot was selected to serve as the event coordinator for 2019’s Summer Solstice Celebration at the prestigious Cannibal Café. A celebration that brings together both demon and human alike. But with less than two weeks before the celebration, Jigglyspot’s got so much to do and little time to do it. And the feds are hot on his tail. Between securing new recruits for demonic possession, choosing fresh bodies to slice and dice for dinner, and the fact that his girlfriend, Kera, is eating up most of his time, Jiggly’s at his wit’s end.
Hopefully, those demons appreciate all his sacrifices. Hopefully, but unlikely. Those demons can be hell to deal with. Jigglyspot knows; he’s been dealing with them for decades.
Will he rise above, or will tragedy and mayhem lead to dire discoveries poisoned with manipulation and betrayal that will ultimately destroy all Jigglyspot holds dear?
Discover Jigglyspot and his cast of clowns, killers, demons, and wretched fiends, in a novel like you’ve never experienced. Horror, mayhem, thrills, chills, fantasy, and spoils are waiting for your reading eyes with an escape into the underworld of mind control and human slavery.
Warning: This book contains scenes with profound psychological suffering, and graphically violent acts, behaviors, thoughts, deeds, and ridicule. No one has been spared, and no label is safe. Although we are proud to report, no animals were harmed during the writing of this novel, so that’s a good thing. Everyone else is fair game. After all, if you were a demon, what would you think of humanity?
Fans of Grady Hendrix, Catriona Ward, Clive Barker, and Stephen King will be captivated by this edge of your seat, eye-popping, wtf horror novel that is certain to be your next addictive read. As they say, you don’t just read Jigglyspot… You DEVOUR Jigglyspot!
Genre: Fiction, Horror
570 pages, ebook
Expected publication October 31, 2023 by Chamber Door Publishing, LLC
ABOUT P D ALLEVA
I write books, that’s what I do. Horror, scifi, thrillers, fantasy, and sometimes a literary gem. Good ones, crazy ones, fun books, entertaining books, terrifying books that are absolutely insane, books with depth and thrills, and stories that rip out the heart of humanity and tosses it on a slab to be feasted on. Yeah, that’s what I do, I write books. Any questions?
My current projects include: the Pulp Fiction, Sci-Fi/Fantasy series, The Dark Veil:The Rose Vol. III; the horror thriller novella series, Girl on a Mission; the supernatural thriller series, The Hypnotist; and a follow up to Jigglyspot and the Zero Intellect, tentatively titled The Sleepy Hollow Incident.
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