Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 224
August 2, 2021
Blog Tour: DEAD AS A DUCK by Colleen J. Shogan
Dead as a Duck
by Colleen J. Shogan
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GENRE: Mystery/cozy mystery
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BLURB:
Congressional staffer Kit Marshall is looking forward to a much-deserved summer vacation in the Outer Banks. When the mayor of the beach town turns up dead, Kit and her friends need to put their fun and relaxation on hold to help solve the crime.
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Excerpt One:
“I don’t know if it was accident or something else, but there’s a dead body down there,” she said.
I felt my face become flush, and it wasn’t because of the jog.
How could this happen again?
“Maybe someone had one too many at the wine bar and fell over the railing,” I said.
Lisa shook her head. “I doubt it. This railing is too high. It was likely built to prevent that from happening. Unless someone was deliberately trying to climb over it, and I don’t know why that would be the case.”
She pulled out her cell phone from the arm band she wore when exercising. “None of these businesses along the water are open yet. I’m going to call 9-1-1.”
Lisa moved away from the railing and stepped to the side of the boardwalk. Curious walkers stared at us as they strolled by, but no one had stopped to ask what the fuss was about.
I moved over to the spot where Lisa and Murphy had discovered the body. I knew I shouldn’t look, but how could I not? Curiosity killed the cat. Wasn’t there another part of that old proverb? Satisfaction brought the cat back. Of course, I wasn’t a cat and I certainly didn’t have nine lives.
When the police arrived, we’d probably be stuck here for a while. No harm in sneaking a peek before the authorities walled off the area. I peered down into the marsh. The body of a man was floating on top of the reeds and vegetation. He was several feet away from the railing and his face was partially obscured. But I did recognize the clothes he was wearing: light brown linen pants and a dark blue blazer. Mayor Ronan Godfrey was a dead duck.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Colleen J. Shogan has been reading mysteries since the age of six. A political scientist by training, Colleen has taught American politics at several universities and previously worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative staffer in the United States Senate and as a senior executive at the Library of Congress. She is currently the Senior Vice President of the White House Historical Association.
Colleen is a member of Sisters in Crime. "Stabbing in the Senate" was awarded the Next Generation Indie prize for Best Mystery in 2016. "Homicide in the House" was a 2017 finalist for the RONE Award for Best Mystery. “Calamity at the Continental Club” was a 2018 finalist in the “best cozy mystery” at Killer Nashville. She splits her time between Arlington, Virginia and Duck, NC in the Outer Banks with her husband Rob and beagle mutt Conan.
https://www.facebook.com/washingtonwh...
https://twitter.com/cshogan276
Purchase Links:
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-as-Duck-Colleen-Shogan-ebook/dp/B08WTPNBD6/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dead-as-a-duck-colleen-j-shogan/1138848865
https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/dead-as-a-duck/9781942078333-item.html
https://books.apple.com/us/author/colleen-j-shogan/id1055777560
https://www.target.com/p/dead-as-a-duck-by-colleen-j-shogan-paperback/-/A-82498234
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Colleen J. Shogan will be awarding a $50 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
July 31, 2021
Review: MYSTERY FOLLOWS HER Anthology
An old case puts our mystery solver on a treasure hunt. A trip to Mexico as part of a 60-year-old woman’s bucket list.
Stories were just quick reads. A few of them were decent enough to make me get the first book in the series, like the one by Ellen Jacobson, whose story only had 5 chapters and was still better than the rest.
Okay reads.
My rating: 3 stars
Review: MURDER AT THE MARINA by Ellen Jacobson
Mollie’s husband was in love with Marjorie Jane, a new sailboat he had gotten for their anniversary. A sailboat? Really? What’s worse was the boat was a hunk of junk.
We meet a cast of quirky odd-ball characters. Story is quite slow to get into it even with its easy and witty narrative. By the end of chapter 4, we finally find a dead body on the boat. Not as compelling, but okay.
My rating: 3 stars
Review: SHE FELL by Wendy Weiss
The girl claims her twin sister fell off the Grand Canyon. She did not kill her, she swears by it. Right away, she rambles incessantly that it quickly tires and bores the reader. Not what I expected.
My rating: 1 star
Review: DYING FOR A DOUBLE by Cindy Sample
The detective has a chance to be an extra on a western movie set. It seems there have been a few “accidents” happening to the lead actress, and Laurel happens to be a dead ringer for her. Eventually the actress goes missing and Laurel is hired for the job, but not to investigate as she’d hoped, but as a stand-in for her double.
Nice, easy read overall, but kind of lags. I expected a more interesting investigation. She spends more time acting than investigating.
My rating: 3 stars
Review: PANIC AT THE PIER by Mel McCoy
Sarah was taking a break from her job and heading back home for a recharge. Story has a slow pace as it depicts the beach town, its scenes, and its kooky residents. Also has a lot of lame chatter. Somewhere in all that a body washes up on the pier. But how could a man afraid of water be found in water? Interesting premise, but the read is dull.
My rating: 2 stars
Review: THE TROUBLE WITH SAN FRANCISCO by Adrianne Ambrose
A woman was a manager for a boring marketing company called Smart Day. She spent 8 hours at a job she hated, but she would keep working it for the money so she could stay in San Francisco. Her boss was a chauvinistic dummy of a jackass. “I always pay men more than women.” What!? After that soiled remark, Samantha just leaves (doesn’t quit) even though she knows she can’t afford to leave that sucky job. She spends days wallowing in cake and liquor before her sister hires her out as a P.I. to track her friend’s cheating husband. What?!
How had she got talked into such a stupid caper?
This was an enjoyable adventure of an amateur sleuth without a clue. I liked Samantha’s candid and often humorous repertoire. Story falls into slow slumps every so often. At times, I wish she would hurry up and get to the point. All she does is follow the guy around and runs into a bunch of weirdoes in the process.
A decent read, but expected more.
My rating: 3 stars
Review: HOOK, LINE, AND STINKER by Maggie West
Lily Thistle was starting her first day as a fifth grade teacher. Her day began by tripping over a dead body at the beach. This would’ve been an interesting cozy mystery had there not been too much talk. It just bored me to death.
My rating: 2 stars
July 30, 2021
Blog Tour: THE RED FENCE by Ed Damiano
Join us for this tour from July 26 to August 20, 2021!Book Details:
Book Title: THE RED FENCE by Ed Damiano
Category: Children's Fiction (Ages 3-7), 38 pages
Genre: Children's Picture Book
Publisher: Mascot Books
Release date: July, 2021
Content Rating: G for everyone.
Book Description:
In the uniform town of Vanderloo,
Everyone, everywhere has the same view.
What happens when Astred, tiny Todd, and Ned
Decide to paint their white fence red?
Children's author and Mom's Choice Award winner Ed Damiano delivers a poignant message about community and creativity in The Red Fence.
Buy the Book:
Mascot Books
Amazon ~ B&N
My review: Remember Dr. Seuss? Well, this book will certainly remind you of it.
Full of wild color, wacky characters, and funny rhymes, this book is a wonderful way to show that different can be good. A highly recommended read!
My rating: 5 stars
Meet the Author:
Born in Newark, New Jersey, Damiano has a passion for creativity, and his stories always contain a positive message. He also wrote The Christmas Blanket, which earned him a Mom’s Choice Award. In The Christmas Blanket, his character EJ realizes the true meaning of Christmas, which is not about getting presents, but about giving back to others.
connect with the author: goodreads Tour Schedule:
July 26 – Cover Lover Book Review – book review / giveaway
July 27 – Gina Rae Mitchell – book review / author interview / giveaway
July 27 - Rockin' Book Reviews – book review /guest post / giveaway
July 28 – Cheryl's Book Nook – book review / giveaway
July 29 – A Mama's Corner of the World – book review
July 29 - Bound 4 Escape – book review / giveaway
July 30 – Splashes of Joy – book review / author interview / giveaway
July 30 - Sandra's Book Club – book review
Aug 2 – Books for Books – book review
Aug 3 – Westveil Publishing – book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 3 - icefairy's Treasure Chest - book review / giveaway
Aug 4 - I Read What You Write – book review / guest post giveaway
Aug 4 – Carpinello's Writing Pages – book spotlight / author interview
Aug 5 –Because I said so -- and other adventures in Parenting – book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 6 – Lisa's Reading – book spotlight / giveaway
Aug 9 – @twilight_reader – book review
Aug 10 – Kam's Place – book review
Aug 11 – The Avid Reader – book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 12 – Reading is My Passion – book review
Aug 13 – Nighttime Reading Center – book review / giveaway
Aug 16 – Literary Flits – book spotlight / giveaway
Aug 16 - Writer with Wanderlust - book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 17 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 18 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review / giveaway
Aug 18 - She Just Loves Books – book review / giveaway
Aug 18 - Pause for Tales - book review / giveaway
Aug 19 – Laura's Interests – book review / guest post / giveaway
Aug 20 – The Phantom Paragrapher – book review
Enter the Giveaway:
THE RED FENCE by Ed Damiano Book Tour Giveaway
Blog Tour: ORANGES FOR MIRANDA by Annette Bower
Oranges for Miranda
by Annette Bower
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GENRE: Romance Contemporary Sweet
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BLURB:
Miranda Porter, a newly retired award-winning businesswoman, leaves home to transition into her new life stage. Always in control, this is her time to have fun without plans and responsibilities. Enter Renato Monteiro, a considerate tour guide with secrets. Miranda isn’t looking for long-term. She wants a purpose in her retirement. Could her purpose in retirement be finding love in this unlikely place? Could her aim be domesticity and caring for and be cared for by a newly found friend? Will a vacation romance end because of miles?
Renato Monteiro has decisions to make. Stay in his birth country where his female relatives want him to marry a woman young enough to give him children. Or does he return to his second home, where he has a purpose and has built a life without children? The day Miranda and he bumped heads changed his life and his pursuit. Now he must decide which is most important the family he was born into or the family he chooses.
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Excerpt One:
The bubbles floating across Miranda Porter’s abdomen and covering her breasts reminded her of the retro photos of women in clawfoot bathtubs. She inhaled the scent of lavender and wiggled her toes against the worn brass taps. Who should I be today in this new place? What name would reflect a woman in this bathroom in this whitewashed stucco home nestled among the other houses sheltered by red-tiled roofs in Albufeira?
Arriving in the southern coastal city in Portugal late in the afternoon after a long and tiring journey from Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, she’d admired the stylish women walking along the cobblestone streets in their stilettos. Women with names like Raquel, Sofia, or Lusia all sounded softer, more romantic. Indeed more European than Miranda. Miranda was in Shakespeare’s play The Tempest, where father and daughter were stranded on an island. But not her story, just her name. She wasn’t stranded. She chose the Portuguese Algarve to be the place of winding down and redefining the woman she was now. Not the Miranda of the Canadian Prairie, award-winning realtor and mother of two adult children.
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My review: Miranda was going from successful business woman to leisurely retiree. She wasn’t looking for a relationship until she meets her tour guide, Renato. Can a vacation romance be something more?
The writing was pretty good with its literary prose and lovely verse. The pace was rather slow, but settles nicely with descriptive scenery. There’s some complexity in some areas, which lagged the story. The characters were interesting and endearing. Readers would be curious to know what touch decisions they’ll make.
Overall, a nice read.
My rating: 3 stars
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Annette believes home is where her stories percolate. And her home is a condo where she watches the urban life below, airplanes arrive and depart at the international airport, and the seasons change on farmland near the horizon. Annette travels extensively but always returns home to Regina, Saskatchewan. Whether at home or away, and even though directions are always a challenge, she wanders the streets, parks, and lanes observing how people live, love, and care for one another. Your way of sitting, holding hands, the way you tilt your head, or a t-shirt you wear may end up in one of her stories.
On her first trip to Olhos de Água, a fishing village in Portugal, she stopped at a café where the proprietors were a mother and daughter. Annette sat at the outdoor blue and white tiled table and ordered an espresso and brandy. While the sun warmed her back, she opened her new notebook. The older woman walked by carrying a basket, tipped her head toward Annette’s blank page, and shrugged. When black-laced heeled shoes struck the tile, and the scent of just-picked clementine oranges interrupted Annette’s writing, the woman plunked three oranges at the edge of her page. Annette cherishes this gift from one woman to another. Recently, Annette travels with an accompanying Orange and shares pictures on Social media as her way of honoring those Portugues women. A version of this event appears in her new novel, Oranges for Miranda.
During another trip, while searching for an address in Malaga, Spain, she asked a well-dressed man carrying a floral paper-wrapped bouquet if he spoke English? Would he direct her to the address? With impeccable English, he suggested she walk with him. They chatted, and she discovered he was a lawyer in his final days of retiring. Finally, she asked to whom he was giving the flowers. He lifted the cover to reveal a large crucifix. This detail has not appeared in a story yet.
In a coffee shop, looking south between glass tower office buildings, she could be anywhere in the world. However, she is home watching people on Eleventh Avenue run for buses, bring tea to a panhandler, and holding mittened hands while bending into the wind.
Annette uses experiences she gathered as a nurse, town administrator, elected official, traveller, and member of a large extended family to inform her stories because writing is her joy.
Annette Bower is a Soul Mate Publishing author of five contemporary romance novels. Her novel Fearless Destiny was first runner-up in the 2017 Sweet Contemporary RONE awards and winner of the Raven Award. Her novel Ponytails and Promises was a finalist in the 2020 RONE Awards and is the 2020 winner of the Raven Award.
Webpage: https://annettebower.com/ (Also a sign up for my monthly newsletter)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnnetteBower...
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Oranges-Mirand...
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BowerAnnette
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Annette Bower will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
