Mary Matthews's Blog, page 4
June 8, 2018
FREE Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Vol 1 June 9-10
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Enjoy a free download of the boxed set beginning of the Cool Cats Mystery Series June 9-10! Here’s the description from Amazon:
If you’re a cat, you only have nine lives to live. But if you live them right, nine is enough. Cool cat sleuths, Tatania and Zeus, find clues as intoxicating as catnip and help their humans, fun-loving 1920s detectives, Grace and Jack, solve mysteries without missing a nap.
Excerpt from Splendid Summer: A white cat sat against his pillows, grooming a paw.
“Do you sleep with her?”
“No, we’re just good friends,” he replied.
In Emeralds, Diamonds and Amethysts, Tatania and her tomcat companion, Zeus, race bootleggers to find an extraordinary jewel collection. Emeralds, Diamonds, and Ametheysts is about a code known only to women who fight for the rights of all women.
Excerpt:: Grace looked at a ticket. It read: Good for one in a Pierce Arrow for the Suffragette March.
“I thought it was a march.”
‘Bless your heart, Grace. When one can ride in a nice Pierce Arrow, why walk? One can show one’s support from a luxury car just as well. Those with a chauffeur also serve.”
In Cher Ami, two people drop dead within minutes of each other. They appear unrelated. Tatania, and Zeus find the story of Cher Ami, a WWI carrier pigeon with the heart of a lion.
Excerpt: It’s not easy to get seven years of sleep in each year. Cats do their best. Since cats live seven years for each human one, naps are mandatory. Tatania, a fluffy white deaf Persian, and Zeus, a black and white with a little pink nose, were napping when the commotion began in Coronado Tent City. They sprawled across the bed’s middle.
Grace slipped on a sleeveless dress with a scalloped hemline.
“Feels a little chilly,” she said, rubbing her shoulders, “should I put on a sweater?”
“With the heat I generate, you won’t need one. Just stick close to me,” Jack said.
The Cool Cat Mystery Series can be read any order. If you’d like to know the chronological order of the series, here it is for you:
**Splendid Summer
**Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts
**Cher Ami
**Available exclusively in Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Vol 1
Meow Baby
Cupcake Kitty
Meow or Never
Catty Corner
Cat Dance
9 Lives to Live
MEWOW
The Fur Will Fly
Right Meow
You can grab your free ebook by clicking on the image above or the link below:
Magical Cool Cats Mysteries Boxed Set Vol 1 (Books 1, 2 & 3 & A Christmas Feral) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
April 11, 2018
MEWOW Free Book April 12 through April 16
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MEWOW Here’s the description from Amazon:
“He has money. I like money. The whole universe came into balance when we met,” a model said about a designer at a 1920s fashion show. When the designer croaks near the catwalk, fun loving 1920s detectives and their cool cat sleuths pounce on a trail that leads to Hollywood.
You can download your free copy of MEWOW from April 12 through April 16 by clicking on the image above or the link below:
MEWOW (Magical Cool Cats series Book 11) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
March 30, 2018
*Expired* Free Cool Cat Mysteries Vol 3 March 31 – April 3
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Enjoy a free download of Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Volume 3 from March 31 to April 2. Here is the description from Amazon:
Cat Dance
In a speakeasy where any woman who says she’s alone by choice has credibility, magical cool cat sleuths, Tatania and Zeus, and their human detectives, Grace and Jack, begin investigating a 1920s dance marathon that’s turning deadly.
9 Lives to Live
If you’re a cat, you only live nine times. But if you live them right, nine lives is enough. A luxury shoe designers convention at the Hotel del Coronado collides with an orphan train story when the cool cat sleuths and human detectives search for a wealthy man’s missing wife.
MEWOW
“He has money. I like money. The whole universe came into balance when we met,” a model said at a fashion show where the honored designer dies and the cool cat sleuths solve the murder without missing a nap.
The Fur Will Fly
One of 1920s detective Grace’s best friends from Finishing School just got married and one just got buried. When Grace’s newly married best friend arrives on a private train with her husband convulsing, the cool cat sleuths pounce on the case.
You can download your free copy of Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Vol 3 by clicking on the image above or the link below
Magical Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Volume 3 (Magical Cool Cats Mysteries) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Free Cool Cat Mysteries Vol 3 March 31 to April 2
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Enjoy a free download of Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Volume 3 from March 31 to April 2. Here is the description from Amazon:
Cat Dance
In a speakeasy where any woman who says she’s alone by choice has credibility, magical cool cat sleuths, Tatania and Zeus, and their human detectives, Grace and Jack, begin investigating a 1920s dance marathon that’s turning deadly.
9 Lives to Live
If you’re a cat, you only live nine times. But if you live them right, nine lives is enough. A luxury shoe designers convention at the Hotel del Coronado collides with an orphan train story when the cool cat sleuths and human detectives search for a wealthy man’s missing wife.
MEWOW
“He has money. I like money. The whole universe came into balance when we met,” a model said at a fashion show where the honored designer dies and the cool cat sleuths solve the murder without missing a nap.
The Fur Will Fly
One of 1920s detective Grace’s best friends from Finishing School just got married and one just got buried. When Grace’s newly married best friend arrives on a private train with her husband convulsing, the cool cat sleuths pounce on the case.
You can download your free copy of Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Vol 3 by clicking on the image above or the link below
Magical Cool Cat Mysteries Boxed Set Volume 3 (Magical Cool Cats Mysteries) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
February 28, 2018
Best of Blog: L.A.’s 1920s Architecture
This post originally appeared in April 2012.
Sowden House, 1926, Lloyd Wright, HOLLYWOOD TOUR, photo courtesy of Architecture Tours L.A.
Awhile ago, a friend from London and I were meeting in L.A. and we discovered fabulous Architecture Tours L.A. We loved owner/operator Laura Massino’s tours so much we took two! With a Master’s degree in Architectural History, Laura had the innovative idea of offering historic architectural tours in Los Angeles. I was delighted to catch up with Laura again and ask her about two of my favorite topics: 20s and Architecture.
Mary: It seems like Art Deco’s experimentation with geometric style fits 20s ingenuity perfectly. I know the term Art Deco comes from the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes. Were L.A.’s 20s architects inspired by the 1925 Paris Exposition?
Laura: Yes, the architects/designers in Los Angeles were inspired by the exposition in Paris. This was considered an international design style and some of the architects of the day might have traveled to Europe in the 20s and they may also have seen publications, magazines, books, etc. on the subject. Moreover, there was a general fascination with machinery, mechanization, movement, modernity and speed and this was also an influence.
Mary: When we were on your downtown L.A. tour, we saw beautiful Art Deco buildings. I remember Cicada, the restaurant featured in two movies: The Artist and Pretty Woman. Does downtown have the most Art Deco style architecture in L.A.?
Laura: I would say it may be a “toss-up” between the Miracle Mile and Downtown, although I’ve never done an actual count of buildings. There are also other Art Deco style buildings in other places-The Pantages Theater on Hollywood Blvd., just east of Vine Street, The Sunset Tower Hotel (www.sunsettowerhotel.com) on Sunset Blvd. on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood is one of the best in the area and of course, the Bullock’s Wilshire Department Store on Wilshire Blvd. in Koreatown is also in the Top 5 in the area.
Mary: Do you have a favorite amidst the 20s Art Deco theaters built for the emerging motion picture industry in L.A.?
Laura: Yes, the Tower Theater (www.towertheaterla.com) on Broadway from 1927 is my favorite and the first one that could accommodate “talkies”! I especially LOVE the vertical “pre-neon” sign that is made of individual lightbulbs and the recessed panels near the top on the side of the structure that would have had painted-on advertisements.
Mary: Looking at 20s L.A. Architecture, what would be your choice for best illuminating Art Deco Style? And feel free to make more than one choice!
Laura: OK, here’s my Top 5 in no particular order:
-The Oviatt Building on Olive Street
-The Coca-Cola Building on Central Avenue
-The Eastern Columbia Building on Broadway
-The Sunset Tower Building on Broadway
-Bullock’s Wilshire Department Store (now Southwestern Law School) on Wilshire Blvd.
Mary: If you could live in the 20s, where would you live and why?
Laura: If I could live in the 20s I would definitely live in Hollywood. It would have been VERY glamourous with the film industry in full swing, fashionable people living there and lots of open spaces in the Hollywood Hills, in particular.
For someone especially interested in 20s L.A., do you recommend any of your tours in particular?
Laura: Yes, the DOWNTOWN tour and the HANCOCK PARK/MIRACLE MILE tour are the best for seeing excellent examples of architecture from the 1920s.
Mary: I know that you’re also a prodigious author! Among your books, do you recommend one in particular for showcasing 20s L.A. Art Deco style?
Laura: Also, the same books that go with the tours mentioned above,ARCHITECTURE TOURS L.A. GUIDEBOOK – DOWNTOWN, but in particular the ARCHITECTURE TOURS L.A.GUIDEBOOK – HANCOCK PARK/MIRACLE MILE would be best for the Art Deco style.
Click on the image above to see Architecture Tours L.A.’s Miracle Mile book on Amazon.
Thank you Laura! I hope to be enjoying one of your tours again soon:)
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
February 16, 2018
FREE Catty Corner – February 16-19
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Enjoy a FREE download of Ebook: Catty Corner from February 16 through 19. Here’s the description from Amazon:
When an art heist happens during their rooftop cocktail party, 1920s detectives Grace & Jack and their cool cat sleuths, Tatania & Zeus, pounce on clues to solve it without missing a nap.
You can download your free copy by clicking on the image above or the link below:
Catty Corner (Magical Cool Cats series Book 8) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
January 31, 2018
Romance is in the Air
$250 Giveaway
February 1st to 14t...
Romance is in the Air
$250 Giveaway
February 1st to 14th
Enter to win $250 in PayPal cash or a $250 Amazon Gift Code.
Thanks to these awesome authors & bloggers for making this giveaway possible!
Sponsor List
I Am A Reader
La libreria di Beppe
Author Inger Iversen
Becky Monson
Krysten Lindsay Hager
Angelica Kate
Phyllis – Among the Reads
Kimberley Montpetit
Every Free Chance Books
Lori’s Reading Corner
Author Laurie Treacy
Laura Vosika/World of the Blue Bells Chronicles
Magical Cool Cat Mysteries
My Life. One Story at a Time.
Jennifer Faye ~ romance author
Simple Wyrdings
Rockin’ Book Reviews
Laurisa White Reyes, Author
JeanBookNerd
Alina Snow Book Adventures
Our Book Confessions
CBY Book Club
Danielle Thorne
Glistering: B’s Blog
P. Creeden Books
Giveaway Details
$250 in Paypal Cash or a $250 Amazon.com eGift Card
Ends 2/14/18
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use money sent via Paypal or gift codes via Amazon.com. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the authors, bloggers and publishers on the sponsor list. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
January 30, 2018
FREE Ebook copy of Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts through February 2
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Through February 2, enjoy a free copy of Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts. Here’s the description from Amazon:
1920s detectives, Grace & Jack, return with cool cats, Tatania and Zeus, who solve mysteries without missing a nap. In Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts, they race bootleggers to find an extraordinary jewel collection. Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts is about a code known only to women who fight for the rights of all women.
You can download your free copy of Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts by clicking on the image above or the link below:
Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts (Magical Cool Cats Mysteries) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
January 14, 2018
*Expired* FREE 9 Lives to Live January 15-19
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Enjoy a free download of 9 Lives to Live from January 15 – 19. Here’s the description from Amazon:
When you’re a cool cat detective, you only nine times but if you live them right, nine is enough.
Magical Cool Cat Sleuths, Tatania and Zeus, find clues as intoxicating as catnip, and help their humans, 1920s detectives, Grace and Jack, unravel a mystery of switched identities that reveals another one of Tatania’s nine lives.
Excerpt from 9 Lives to Live:
“While Grace slept next to Jack, Tatania relaxed on Jack’s chest and swished a tail in Grace’s face. She liked to remind Grace that she met Jack first. ”
The Magical Cool Cats Mystery Series can be read in any order. If you’d like to know the chronological order of the series, here it is for you:
**Splendid Summer
**Emeralds, Diamonds, and Amethysts
**Cher Ami
**Available exclusively in Grace, Jack, & Magical Cats Boxed Set Vol I.
Meow Baby
Cupcake Kitty
Meow or Never
Catty Corner
Cat Dance
9 Lives to Live
MEWOW
The Fur Will Fly
Right Meow
You can grab your free copy of 9 Lives to Live by clicking on the image above or the link below:
9 Lives to Live (Magical Cool Cats series Book 10) [image error]
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
January 13, 2018
Rodent Terminator of London:Palmerston
Friends, Romans, Countrymice, lend me your dreamies. Wishing all my staff @foreignoffice and twitter friends a very Meowy Christmas! pic.twitter.com/p4ejXgT1RC
— Palmerston (@DiploMog) December 11, 2017
Cats began residing in government offices centuries ago. Instead of rat poison, London’s Foreign Office found the most adorable rodent terminator imaginable: Palmerston. Although Palmerston is named for a prime minister who served twice in the 1800s, he has charisma worthy of Winston Churchill. He’s also left-pawed like Churchill.
. @SMcDonaldFCO loaned me his copy of Stourton’s “British Embassies”- I’m looking for my next holiday destination! pic.twitter.com/DvRoBWAfK9
— Palmerston (@DiploMog) October 20, 2017
Churchill loved and admired his cats but noted that pigs treat men as equals: “Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. But pigs treat us as equals.” Winston Churchill
Palmerston vanquishes several rodents per year and reportedly makes the resident rodent terminator of 10 Downing Street, Larry, look like a slacker. Things get a little hissy when Larry and Palmerston meet so the cats are kept apart.
Going purple for #UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities @foreignoffice. If you look closely you’ll see @DiploMog is loosely sporting a purple tie #Enable pic.twitter.com/nzmeGvrvcW
— Sir Simon McDonald (@SMcDonaldFCO) December 3, 2017
In fairness to Larry, I should point out that Palmerston works in an office where he is adored and Larry works primarily with dog people.
Not everyone appreciates awesome office cats. But when the question is cats or rats? Most choose cats and it’s one of the best choices they’ll ever make. Palmerston rocks.
Thanks to my American friends @USAmbUK @USAinUK for the gift- a symbol of our meow-mentous relationship! pic.twitter.com/GZGqNnlMsl
— Palmerston (@DiploMog) August 30, 2017
Some would say I'm rug-gedly handsome! pic.twitter.com/1dzDtqZUk5
— Palmerston (@DiploMog) July 21, 2017
