Leopold Borstinski's Blog, page 3

Best launch ever

I’d just like to say thank you to everyone and anyone who has bought a copy of The Mensch, or has reviewed the book. This has been the best launch of one of my novels since I started writing seven years ago. I’ll give you a report on the book’s blog tour in a week or two.

The one thing I would remind you about is that I will be closing down ebook sales on Kobo, B&N and Apple on September 25 and then I will switch on Kindle Unlimited for the story. So if you avoid Amazon, then buy your copy as quick as you can, and if you are committed to Amazon, then from September 26 you can read it as part of your KU package.

Leo

Me, He

I’ve just started writing the start of I Confess, the first book in the Jake Adkins PI series–and I’ll let you know a secret…

At the back of The Mensch is a teaser for the start of I Confess and right now there is a major mistake which I’ll change in a matter of days. It’s simple. When I wrote The Case, where Jake first appears, I used the first person because I remember the great detective tales from Raymond Chandler did the same. Roll on several years and I began I Confess in the third person and put the content into the teaser. Then I published it. Oops.

Well, I have spotted my error and rewritten the start of my first in the private eye series. In a week or so, I’ll update The Mensch with the correct teaser. This means you’ve only got a few days to get a ‘limited edition’ copy of The Mensch before I right the wrongs I’ve weaved.

Not a biggie, but it is still a thing.

Enjoy

Leo

The Mensch is on his way

The ebook format of The Mensch launches on Sunday September 11, 2022 and you can still pre-order now to get it on your eReader as soon as it drops on Amazon, Kobo, Apple and B&N.

Early reviews are coming in and have, so far, been favorable. At the time of writing it was at 4.67 out of 5 on GoodReads and there is a blog tour starting on September 12.

On September 25, the book will be available exclusively on Amazon as I mentioned before, which means that Kindle Unlimited readers will be able to devour the final instalment of the Alex Cohen story set in the 1970s and nobody else…

Alex settles down in Florida surrounded by his wife and family. But his past life in the criminal underworld stalks his every move and when a bullet whizzes past his ear, he must decide whether to run or fight.

In his desire to go straight, Alex inserts himself in the East Coast porn film industry, only to find that the tentacles of the mob are clasped tight around his life. With the Feds using new laws to hunt down mob bosses, and rats in his own organization all too ready to testify against him, Alex must clean house before the authorities throw him in jail or the mob kills him to stop him ratting them out.

Free books alert

This is a classic case where the name says it all. I am participating in the Mystery & Crime Giveaway where a bunch of us writers are… giving away books in the mystery and crime genre. So all you need to do is click on the link and download some freebies. It really is that simple.

Fill your boots.

Leo

PS You can grab a copy of Proof, a novella featuring Jake Adkins PI who is the central character in my next series.

Well-thumbed pages

I am pleased to tell you that The Mensch is now available in paperback at Amazon stores.

Here are some links: US, UK, CA, AU

The electronic version launches on September 11 at all major sites and will be available only on Amazon on September 25. These are the actual dates, although some websites might still show much later publication times.

As that is the last of the Alex Cohen series, I am working on a new series featuring Jake Adkins PI, who first appears in The Case. I’ll be writing the first book, I Confess over the last few months of this year. I’ll keep you up-to-date with all that entails.

Leo

The Mensch is about to drop

I am pleased to announce that the ebook of The Mensch will be available to read from September 11, 2022 and you can still pre-order today.

The paperback will be released on Amazon next week, but the ebook/kindle will be dropping on your laps on September 11 on Amazon, Kobo, Apple and B&N.

Then on September 25, the book will be available exclusively on Amazon, which means that Kindle Unlimited readers will be able to devour the final instalment of the Alex Cohen story set in the 1970s:

Alex settles down in Florida surrounded by his wife and family. But his past life in the criminal underworld stalks his every move and when a bullet whizzes past his ear, he must decide whether to run or fight.

In his desire to go straight, Alex inserts himself in the East Coast porn film industry, only to find that the tentacles of the mob are clasped tight around his life. With the Feds using new laws to hunt down mob bosses, and rats in his own organization all too ready to testify against him, Alex must clean house before the authorities throw him in jail or the mob kills him to stop him ratting them out.

Marilyn Monroe

I saw this article in the UK’s Guardian newspaper and thought I’d share it as there is a new movie coming out about Marilyn Monroe and also some of the comments echo the issues I come across when writing historical fiction involving real people. In case it’s not obvious, I’m thinking about Hollywood Bilker where Marilyn appears, among others.

The film has yet to be released so I can’t possibly comment on its content, but I will admit that there can end up being a tension between the facts I write about and the fiction I construct around them. In particular, I make up dialogue as there are no transcripts of conversations for me to rely on between real people and, say, Alex Cohen.

And there is the timeline. The difficulty I face sometimes is that the structure of the novel doesn’t match the events that happened. Inciting incidents need to happen earlier than their consequences. Sometimes reality gets in the way and there have been rare occasions when I have altered the timing of things that befall minor characters.

I think long and hard before I do so. If I can bend my fiction around the rocks of reality then I do, but sometimes you wished the world had been different. The great thing about fiction is that you can do just that.

For the record, I have no idea about the circumstances of Marilyn Monroe’s death. All I know for sure is that she sang Happy Birthday and she knew Jack and Bobby Kennedy. The rest you can make up yourself.

Leo

Nearly there

I have lived with Alex Cohen for more than three years now, but soon it will all be over. And before you wonder, this is not a passive-aggressive Dear John letter. It’s just that I am on the last legs of editing the final novel in the series, The Mensch.

For the first time with any certainty, I can tell you that the book will launch in September 2022 on all platforms, and after a couple of weeks, it will go into Kindle Unlimited on Amazon. So grab your pre-order while stocks last (it’s an ebook so stocks will last, don’t worry). And if you are a Kobo, Apple, B&N reader then watch this space next month as you might be in for a big surprise.

In case you had forgotten or were plain unaware, Alex Cohen is a Jewish mobster and The Mensch is set in 1970s Florida where Alex finally finds the motivation to go straight. The question is whether he can succeed, stay alive and keep his family safe when the threat of assassination is lurking around every corner.

Enjoy.

Leo

Covid

Just the briefest of notes to say that I have a mild case of Covid, which means anything I’ve said relating to dates recently is now subject to a delay.

My apologies, but I hope normal service will resume very soon.

Leo

Men of Action – books to grab

I hope you are doing fine in these times.

In the hope of increasing global happiness a smidge, let me tell you about a collection of free books, curated under the banner of Men of Action.

All you have to do is pop over to the page and grab as many novels as you can find. The theme? The clue is in the name – these are thrillers involving males who do stuff.

What more could you ask for (rhetorical)?

Fill your boots.

Leo