Elena Hartwell's Blog, page 35

Devil Within: New Thriller

Devil Within, a thriller by James L’Etoile

Author Guest Post + Excerpt + Book & Author Info + Giveaway!
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Devil Within

The border is a hostile place with searing heat and venomous serpents. Yet the deadliest predator targets the innocent.

A sniper strikes in the Valley of the Sun and Detective Nathan Parker soon finds a connection between the victims—each of them had a role in an organization founded to help undocumented migrants make the dangerous crossing. Parker discovers no one is exactly who they seem. There’s the devil you know and then there’s the devil within—when the two collide, no one is safe.

Devil Within is the sequel to the Anthony and Lefty Award nominated Dead Drop.

 

Book Details:

Genre: Procedural/Thriller

Published by: Level Best Books

Publication Date: July 2023

Number of Pages: 310

Series: The Nathan Parker Detective Series, Book 2

 

To Purchase Devil Within click on any of the following link: Amazon | Goodreads

Read an excerpt from Devil Within:

Chapter One

Nia Saldana didn’t think today would be the day she died. Why would she? She was careful and avoided situations which drew too much attention. She never wanted to be noticed. When you got noticed, it only led to trouble, or worse.

She cursed herself for snooping around her employer’s office as she tidied up. The big man wasn’t who he pretended to be. If others knew what she saw…

Nia fought off anxiety driving home after another twelve-hour day cleaning homes on Camelback Mountain, the upscale enclave in Central Phoenix. Commuter traffic on this section of the 101 loop was a field of brake lights and her hands gripped the wheel, knowing she’d be home after her two girls were asleep. Her sister Sofia never complained when she watched the girls and loved them as if they were her own. Nia regretted every minute away from them, and the envelope of cash on the seat next to her meant she could stop and pick up a little pink box of day-old Mexican pastries for the girls as a sweet surprise.

A job that didn’t require hours away from her girls was a dream. She didn’t dare look for a better-paying job. There was too much at risk for a single, undocumented mother. One wrong move, like getting caught in her employer’s office, and she would join her deported husband in Hermosillo. What would happen to the girls then?

She pushed a worn stuffed animal away from her leg when she caught a sudden blur from the right. A familiar black SUV cut across her path, nearly clipping the front end of her Nissan Sentra. She knew her boss was furious; in a way she’d never seen before. But to chase her on the freeway because of what she’d discovered? Reckless.

A pop caught her attention. Seconds later, the heavy SUV lurched and bumped Nia’s sedan into the left lane, pushing her into the gravel median. A second pop sounded moments before the wheel wrenched from Nia’s hands sending the Sentra into a hard spin to the left until it faced back into the oncoming traffic.

Rubber barked on the asphalt as a semi-truck slammed on its brakes and the trailer jackknifed, a wall of metal rushing toward Nia’s windshield. The Sentra crumpled from the impact of the heavy eighteen-wheeler. The thin metal roof folded in pinning her against the seat. The steering wheel crushed against the driver’s seat, and Nia with it. The pressure against her chest made breathing impossible. If her brother-in-law hadn’t sold the airbag for a few dollars…. Nia glanced at the blood-spattered stuffed animal and pulled it close to her.

Inside her broken passenger side window, Nia watched as the SUV plowed into the metal rails in the center divider without slowing down. The driver slumped over the wheel after his vehicle came to rest. Why? Why did he? The grip on the stuffed animal loosened as she grew cold. The faces of her two young girls were the last images she held while she slipped away.

Chapter Two

Detective Sergeant Nathan Parker weaved his way through the snarl of traffic on the freeway. Phoenix dwellers took it in stride because commute hours meant a sludge across the valley with a daily multi-car pile-up, or a disabled vehicle in the tunnel. None of the usual reasons for traffic meltdowns would justify a Major Crimes detective call out.

Parker’s Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office Ford Explorer was unmarked, but the antenna bristling on the roof and the flashing red and blue lights in the grill gave it away. As he approached, he wasn’t certain what warranted a major crimes investigator. Parker spotted the vehicles spun out in the median, the front end of a compact sedan crumpled under a big rig trailer. No one would survive this one.

Fire engines stopped traffic in the two lanes near the accident. A single lane of cars bled through the remaining gap in the freeway, going slow enough to glimpse the gruesome wreckage.

Deputy Marcus Stone called Parker on his cell phone rather than make the call over the department radio frequency. The call was quick on detail, other than Deputy Stone needed Parker at the scene. Parker’s mind shuffled through the possibilities as he pulled his Explorer to the far left median. He spotted the wrecked SUV on the center divider, twenty yards from the jackknifed semi-truck. A high-profile victim, or an influential Phoenix power player caught in a deadly drunk driving crash? Maybe. Politics was king, even in the desert. The twisted remains of the Nissan underneath the big rig, however, didn’t scream of valley nobility.

Parker spotted deputy Stone near the rear of the Phoenix Metro Fire Department engine. Stone looked gray.

“Marcus.” Stone didn’t take his gaze from the fire crew using an air powered extraction device, sometimes called the Jaws of Life, to peel back the exposed left front quarter panel of the gutted Nissan Sentra . “We’ve got two deceased.” Stone jutted his square jaw at the Nissan. “A young woman. In the SUV against the guardrail, our second victim, a middleaged white male.”

“Looks nasty. Any statements from witnesses about how it happened. Why’d you call me out, anyway? Traffic accidents aren’t usually our thing.” Stone started toward the SUV. “Come with me.” Stone didn’t wait for Parker and made a path around the littered wreckage toward the black SUV. Parker noticed the driver slumped over the wheel after the fire department opened the driver’s door and left him in place. From experience, Parker knew fire crews extracted accident victims from the vehicles and tried to administer lifesaving treatment.

The driver’s razor cut gray hair lay matted in crimson. His skull disappeared in a jagged mess of blood and bone behind his ear.

“He’s been shot. Dammit, this makes three in a month,” Parker said. “That’s why I called you.”

Instinctively, Parker glanced at his surroundings. The freeway sat in the bottom of a wash, with city streets twenty feet above on both sides. An unnatural valley, but a natural killing ground for the Sun Valley Sniper. “Get any ID on this guy?”

Stone held a plastic evidence bag in his hand. Parker hadn’t noticed the deputy gripping the plastic envelope since his arrival.

“Roger Jessup. Local attorney, according to the Arizona Bar card in his wallet.”

“Can’t say I’ve heard of him before. Gives us an angle to look at—you know, the whole disgruntled client thing.”

They both turned at the sound of ripping metal pulled from the Nissan Sentra. Two fire fighters crouched into the passenger compartment, cut the seatbelt, and pulled the driver from the car. They placed her gently on a yellow tarp spread on the gravel shoulder.

“I take it she wasn’t a shooting victim?” Parker said.

“No. The collision with the SUV spun her out and then the big rig finished it. Wrong place, wrong time, poor thing.”

“You call in the Medical Examiner?”

Stone shook his head. “Didn’t know how you would handle it.”

“No problem. While I call the M.E., could you ask the fire crews to set up some tarps to give our victims a bit of respect?”

“On it.” Stone strode off to the closest fire fighter and started pointing at the scene.

Parker approached the Nissan as the fire department crew draped a tarp over the dead woman. Parker saw she was olive skinned, young, perhaps in her early thirties, with dark black hair pulled back in a ponytail. She was attractive, but even in death, she carried signs of stress, lines creasing her forehead, and dark bags under her eyes. Parker dropped to one knee and scanned the passenger compartment. The driver was crushed. If it wasn’t bad enough, Parker spotted a well-loved stuffed animal on the seat.

“Oh man. She’s got kids.”

He reached for her purse and pulled the inexpensive plastic and cardboard handbag from the floorboard. Parker had seen these knockoff items before, carried by women coming over the border. He fished through the purse for a wallet and ID. Nothing. No driver’s license, insurance cards, or credit cards. When he stood, he spotted a blood-stained envelope. When he lifted it from the seat, it held one hundred dollars. No note or message in with the five twenty-dollar bills. The face of the envelope bore a simple inscription: “Nia.”

“Nia, what happened?”

Parker thought deputy Stone might be right. He was about to write it off as another case of a random victim until he found the bullet hole in the Nissan’s front tire. The tire exploded outward on the opposite side of the path of entry. Likely sending the compact sedan into an uncontrolled skid, careening off any vehicles in the next lane.

What were the chances of two cars being shot at in evening commuter traffic?

***

Excerpt from Devil Within by James L’Etoile. Copyright 2023 by James L’Etoile. Reproduced with permission from James L’Etoile. All rights reserved.

 

Guest Post by James L’Etoile — Author of Devil Within

Thanks so much for inviting me back to the Mystery Of Writing. My latest novel, Devil Within, the sequel to Lefty and Anthony Award nominated Dead Drop, released days ago and I’m in that relieved yet anxious stage. Relieved the book is finally out in the world and anxious about how it will be received.

Sequels carry a special weight and, depending on the book, that weight can be the heady armor that the first book was well received, so chances are this one will be as well. Or that weight can be an albatross around the author’s neck. Often, a sequel falls short because the author said all there was to say in the first book and left no room for the characters to play out another story.

How does that happen, you ask?

There are a couple of reasons, and the first is the author never considered the possibility of a second book. Perhaps they wrote it as a standalone novel and the publisher asked if it was part of a series; and the excited author says, “of course it is.” Then the author is left to scramble to figure out a story idea…

Another reason a second book can fall flat has to do with the characters themselves. That first book may have pressed the character arc so far that there is very little left to discover. I’ve seen characters come back from the dead, or flashbacks, flash-forwards, or for the love of everything holy, I’ve seen an author pull a page from the television show Dallas and turn everything into a dream.

With few exceptions, like Jack Reacher, I believe readers want to see characters bumping up against situations that lead to some fundamental change. That change could be anything from a reaction to the event, a spiral into despair, or a struggle to overcome the obstacles erected in their path. Think about the real world for a moment. We change. Our change is caused by the people, situations, conflict, and challenges we face. We change. We are influenced by these things—often for the better, but sometimes we experience a setback. We should expect our fictional characters to experience the same change.

We want to witness a character evolving over the course of the story. If that first novel pushed the character arc as far as it could go, where do you take that character in the sequel? It’s arguably worse if the character never evolved in that first book—a flat character arc. It’s unrealistic because people, real or fictional, are affected by events. When your character doesn’t react to what’s happening to them, critics might label it as unrelentingly bleak, or your character is deemed “too dumb to live.”

I was fortunate with the Nathan Parker detective series, beginning with Dead Drop. I knew going in that I was committed to at least three in the series. So, I could plan. There is a series arc to keep the characters moving in the right direction at the pace that sustains not only that book, but the stories to follow. This is where my organic writing colleagues start to twitch. I spent some time creating the characters before I began to write the story. For me, that means laying out a road map for the characters and the storylines involving major characters, Nathan Parker, Billie Carson, and Miguel. Where they intersect and collide is where the story is found.

Hopefully, the readers will agree with where the story goes in Devil Within, where the border remains a hostile place with searing heat and venomous serpents. Yet the deadliest predator targets the innocent.

A sniper strikes in the Valley of the Sun and Detective Nathan Parker soon finds a connection between the victims—each of them had a role in an organization founded to help undocumented migrants make the dangerous crossing. Parker discovers no one is exactly who they seem.

There’s the devil you know and then there’s the devil within—when the two collide, no one is safe.

Aways a pleasure to host you and your books on my blog!

James L’Etoile, Author of Devil Within

James L’Etoile uses his twenty-nine years behind bars as an influence in his award-winning novel, short stories, and screenplays. He is a former associate warden in a maximum-security prison, a hostage negotiator, and director of California’s state parole system. 

Black Label earned the Silver Falchion for Best Book by an Attending Author at Killer Nashville and he was nominated for The Bill Crider Award for short fiction. His most recent novel is the Anthony and Lefty Award nominated Dead Drop.

Look for Devil Within and Face of Greed, both coming in 2023.

 
Catch Up With James on his Website, Goodreads, BookBub, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

 

Visit all the Stops on the Tour!

07/25 Guest post @ The Book Divas Reads
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07/31 Review @ Colloquium
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Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell

Amazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

  The Foundation of Plot , a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

The post Devil Within: New Thriller appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

Hidden Pieces: New Mystery

Hidden Pieces, a Police Procedural by Mary Keliikoa

Excerpt + Book & Author Info + Giveaway!
Don’t miss any blog tour posts! Click the link here.

Hidden Pieces

Sheriff Jax Turner is staring down the barrel of his broken past. On the brink of ending it all, he feels like a failure following his daughter’s tragic passing and his subsequent divorce. But when a schoolgirl vanishes and her backpack is found in a sex offender’s backseat, the weary lawman drags himself into action and vows to nail one last sociopath.

Shocked to discover the teen’s aunt had lost her life in an abduction years prior, the devastating outcome that he’s taken personally, Jax believes the killer has returned with a vengeance. But as the desperate cop frantically hunts down a mysterious relative in search of a suspect, the girl’s time keeps ticking away… Can the jaded sheriff take down the culprit in time to bring the young girl home alive?  

Book Details:

Genre: Police Procedural + Mystery & Psychological Suspense Published by:Level Best Books Publication Date: October 2022 Number of Pages: 282 ISBN: 9781685121563 (ISBN10: 168512156X) Series: Misty Pines Mystery, #1

To purchase Hidden Pieces, click on any of the following links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads

Read an excerpt from Hidden Pieces:

ZERO MINUS FOUR HOURS

Less than a breath consumes the moment between decision and commitment. But he’d run through the scenario countless times. He wasn’t the factor he worried about with so many variables out of his control. His throat tightened at this unfamiliar place. He coughed to release the tension.

The school bus would soon crest the hill. More farm workers would arrive. Some had already started their daily tasks. Kids would be racing to their stops.

Only one interested him.

The distance closed to where she stood; her flowing brown hair mesmerized him, along with the freckles across her nose. Her small frame swam in her oversized sweatshirt. Wide lips protruded over her braces. A backpack hung off her thin shoulder. Oblivious. He slowed, noting her red-rimmed eyes. She’d been crying. Fragile. Innocent. Weren’t they all?

For a beat, he thought about driving by. But another chance to find her this isolated might be long in coming. If he stopped, there’d be no turning back.

Every muscle clenched as he eased to the edge of the road, punching the down button on the passenger window.

“Allison,” he called. She wiped her eyes quick with her sleeve. But he’d seen her pain. He’d use it. “Everything okay?”

“Fine,” she said with a quiet defiance.

He nodded, kept the conversation light and on point so she wouldn’t fear him. Familiarity created trust. His heart thumped against his ribs and chest; the rush of blood crashed in his ears. He couldn’t remember the words he’d said to get her into his vehicle, but he didn’t need to. Her hand gripped the handle.

She slid in, her backpack between them, her shoulders rounded. Head down. He waited as she pulled the seatbelt across her chest, clicking it into place.

“Ready?” He checked the rearview mirror.

She nodded. Silent.

He passed the driveway to turn around.

“Where are we going?”

He recognized the lilt of the last word. That instance between realization and worry. The moment had come fast—the window slamming shut. He gripped the rag he’d readied earlier and smashed it onto her face.

Her eyes went wide. She gasped and slumped into the seat with a final bounce of her chin on her collarbone.

His hands steadied on the wheel, and he depressed the gas pedal.

No turning back.

CHAPTER 1

Sheriff Jax Turner swerved his patrol car off Highway 101 and took a sharp right onto an unmarked dirt road leading to the beach. Tourists didn’t come to Misty Pines for the summer to swim in the ocean or the lakes. Too much mist; too much murkiness. The few outdoorsmen drawn to the area for fishing off the ragged ocean jetties had long gone for the season.

His Glock 22 rested on the seat next to him, along with a miniature wooden chair. He’d finished carving it during another sleepless night for a dollhouse he’d never complete, for a tea party that would never happen.

Jax followed the smooth road as it transitioned into rock, his upper body swaying and bouncing with the uneven terrain. When it leveled, he floored it, the tires spinning before they found their footing on the sandy flat.

Aimed toward the sea, he parked on a stretch of solid pack a few yards from the surf. The foamy fingers of the ocean reached for his cruiser, coming up short. The weather report called for ninety degrees in the city located eighty miles east, which meant an inversion for everyone on the coastline. His future, or lack of one, floated in the horizon, where gray ocean met gray clouds, both soon to be indiscernible in the impending fog. Damn, he was tired of being tired.

The window down, he sucked in the brackish scent of the seaweed-littered shores. Seagulls swarmed overhead. Their plaintive cries sent a wave of grief through him.

Misty Pines should have been a fresh start, a place to heal the wounds of the past. Instead, the salty air had entrenched itself in the ten years since he’d arrived. The torture would never end on its own. An hour spent unloading his ammunition at the shooting range into a silhouette target hadn’t helped this time.

Except he hadn’t unloaded all of it.

He leaned over the passenger seat to retrieve two sealed envelopes from the glovebox. A dragonfly drawing done with blue-green Crayola and glitter slid out. He fumbled and then caught it before it floated to the floor. His finger trembled as he traced the wings, remembering Lulu’s soft pink cheeks. He laid his daughter’s gift on his lap and propped the envelopes on the dash right before picturing them splattered in his blood. They’d accuse him of many things when they discovered his body. He wouldn’t let heartless be one of them. He placed the items back, securing the latch.

At least when they were found, the people who’d cared about him once would know why. One letter was for his former partner, Detective Jameson. He would understand if no one else did. The other to Abby. Ten years married, and their only child lost to cancer.

Lulu’s brave smile flashed in his mind, making the lump in his throat swell. Abby said she didn’t blame him, but he blamed himself enough for them both. And despite what she said, the light had dimmed in Abby’s eyes the night their little girl passed. Their marriage died that day too. They just hadn’t properly buried it until last year.

He balanced the gun on his lap and held the miniature chair in his hand, letting the gulls’ cries and the roaring surf fill his mind one last time. The rearview mirror reflected his weary eyes and the bags that had taken up residence under them. He ran his broad hand over his graying sandy hair and back around to the stubble on his chin.

Time to get to it.

He lifted the gun, holding the barrel in his mouth. The cold, metallic weight pushed against his bottom teeth. His throat closed, and he forced a swallow. Quit stalling. Eyes squeezed shut, sadness flooded his chest. Regret shoved him. Don’t think. He drew in the cool air through his nostrils one more time. Held it. Waited. Was this what he really wanted?

“Jax,” his radio crackled to life. “Sheriff…please….”

His eyes flew open, and he withdrew the gun from his mouth. Trudy. Had he heard something in her tone? Hard to tell with her voice coming in and out. He wouldn’t miss the shoddy technology in this godforsaken place. No. He was imagining it. He shook his head. Raised the gun.

“Sheriff Turner, we have a Code Ten-Fifty-Four. Urgent. Response needed.”

Lost child or runaway. Could be either. He’d been equally useless in both instances in the past.

“Sheriff Turner. Answer your damn radio.” Trudy’s voice blared that time.

He bristled and lifted the receiver off the hook. “What’re you talking about, Trudy?”

“There you are. It’s Emily Krueger’s kid. She didn’t get on the school bus.”

Allison. The little girl with the gap-toothed smile who used to wave when he walked past the bookstore. Not so little now, right? A teenager?

“Emily check with her friends?”

“No one’s seen her, hon.”

“Have Chapman handle it. I’m a little—”

“Gone this week,” Trudy said. “Alaska fishing trip. Remember?”

Right.

He scrubbed the exhaustion from his eyes. “On my way.”

He dropped the mic into its holder and secured his gun. Hopefully, this wouldn’t take long, and he’d be back in an hour to contemplate finishing the job.


*** Excerpt from Hidden Pieces by Mary Keliikoa. Copyright 2023 by Mary Keliikoa. Reproduced with permission from Mary Keliikoa. All rights reserved.

 

Mary Keliikoa, author of Hidden Pieces

Mary Keliikoa is the author of Hidden Pieces and the upcoming Deadly Tides in the Misty Pines mystery series, the PI Kelly Pruett mystery series which includes the Shamus, Lefty, Agatha and Anthony nominated Derailed for best debut, and the upcoming Don’t Ask, Don’t Follow out Summer of 2024. Her short stories have appeared in Woman’s World and in the anthology Peace, Love and Crime.

A Pacific NW native, she admits to being that person who gets excited when called for jury duty. When not in Washington, you can find Mary with toes in the sand on a Hawaiian beach. But even under the palm trees and blazing sun, she’s plotting her next murder—novel that is.

 

To learn more about Mary, click on any of the following links: Website, Goodreads, BookBub, Instagram, Facebook. 

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Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell

Amazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

    
The Foundation of Plot , a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

The post Hidden Pieces: New Mystery appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

A Sense for Murder: Leslie Karst

A Sense for Murder (A Sally Solari Mystery Book 6) by Leslie Karst

Character Interview + Book & Author Info+Giveaway!
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A Sense for Murder

Chef Sally Solari has – to her own bewilderment – built a reputation as a talented sleuth who keeps tripping over dead bodies. But getting mixed up in the curious case of a cookbook killer threatens to be the final chapter in not just her investigating career . . . but her life.

It’s the height of the tourist season in Santa Cruz, California, and Sally Solari has her hands full, both juggling crowds of hungry diners at her French-Polynesian restaurant Gauguin, as well as appeasing her father, who’s distressed at the number of homeless people camped out in front of Solari’s, the family’s Italian seafood restaurant out on the historic fisherman’s wharf.

Nevertheless, when Sally gets the opportunity to volunteer at a farm-to-table dinner taking place at the hip new restaurant and culinary bookshop Pages and Plums, she seizes the chance. Not only is it a fundraiser for an organization aiding the homeless and seniors, but up for auction at the event is a signed boxset of Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Sally’s hero, the renowned chef Julia Child. But then the Pages and Plums dining room manager turns up dead – the locked cabinet containing the precious books now empty – and the irrepressible Sally once again finds herself up to her neck in a criminal investigation.

She may have a sense for murder, but can Sally outwit a devious killer with a taste for French cooking before the villain makes mincemeat of her, too? A Sense for Murder is a fast-paced, super fun culinary cozy mystery that will have your brain working and your mouth watering. And if you haven’t met sleuthing chef Sally yet, it’s safe to jump right in.

A Sense for Murder (A Sally Solari Mystery)[image error] Cozy Mystery 6th in Series Setting – California Severn House (August 1, 2023) Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 224 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1448309050 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1448309054 Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BXPY61Q1

Goodreads

To purchase A Sense for Murder, click on any of the following links: Amazon – B&N – Bookshop.org

Interview with Sally Solari

Hi Sally, great to have you on my blog today to talk to us about your latest adventure, A Sense for Murder.

Tell us about your restaurant Gauguin:

Gauguin is a French-Polynesian restaurant started by my Aunt Letta in Santa Cruz, California, which I inherited after she was sadly murdered a year and a half ago.

(The story of how I tracked down her killer can be found in Leslie Karst’s telling of the account in Dying for a Taste.)

The menu features seasonal dishes made from locally sourced ingredients such as salmon and squid from our Monterey Bay; artichokes, Brussels sprouts, and strawberries from our local farms; and wines produced from grapes grown in the Santa Cruz Mountains. (Our Spot Prawns with Citrus and Harissa are to die for, if you’ll pardon the pun.)

I grew up in the restaurant business, so taking over Gauguin wasn’t too much of a stretch for me. But it’s been hard on my father, who’s convinced that I’ve now become one of those hipster “foodies” who looks down on our family’s old-school Italian seafood place out on the municipal wharf.

Nothing could be farther from the truth, however, for there’s no dish on earth that beats my dad’s fabulous linguine with clam sauce!

I love farm-to-table dinners. Tell us about the fundraiser and Pages and Plums:

Pages and Plums is an eclectic mix of café, wine bar, and culinary-themed bookshop that’s already garnering big buzz around town after having been open for only a month, so when my pal Allison invited me to try it out for lunch, I was only too happy to oblige. And then when the owner told me about the fundraiser they were hosting—a farm-to-table dinner in support of Teens’ Table—I found myself volunteering to help out at the event.

Just that very morning my dad had been guilting me about not doing anything to give back to the community, and since Teens’ Table is an organization that not only teaches kids cooking skills, but also donates the meals they prepare to local charities and homeless shelters, I guess it was a bit of Kismet my going to eat at Pages and Plums that day.

(Though it’s too bad I didn’t know in advance that there would be a murder committed at that very same fundraiser.)

You have been the driving force of other culinary cozy mysteries, what draws you to investigating murders?

I guess it’s the need to see that justice is done—my previous career as an attorney may have something to do with that.

And the inability to leave something as vitally important as discovering who was responsible for a brutal killing unanswered. (I know, I know: that’s a job for the police. But what can I say; I’ve never been good at letting others do something when I could try to take charge myself.)

As to why I keep running across dead bodies? I have no answer for that. But I can tell you it’s no fun when your friends start calling you an “angel of death” and when your nonna’s fellow parishioners start crossing the street whenever they see you coming….

What do you love about Santa Cruz, and how does that environment impact your sleuthing?

Santa Cruz not only boasts towering redwoods, terrific surfing, and a historic fisherman’s wharf jam-packed with fabulous Italian seafood restaurants, but it’s also home to the only remaining seaside amusement park on the West Coast. But more than that, the place has always seemed magical to me, with its rich history and vibrant visual and performing arts culture, not to mention all the fabulous farmers’ markets, bakeries, charcuteries, cheese makers, breweries, distilleries, and restaurants!

Having been born and raised in Santa Cruz, I have a definite advantage when it comes to getting folks to open up and talk to me—a necessity if you’re trying to solve a mystery in a small town. And it doesn’t hurt that I’m a fourth-generation Italian whose great-grandfather emigrated here back in the 1880s. So everyone knows my family name.

Tell us something your author doesn’t know about you.

I’m deathly afraid of spiders. (You’re not going to use that, are you, Leslie? Promise me you won’t use it!)

What would you like us to know about your author?

That—contrary to what a lot of people think—she’s not me. Okay, so we do share many things in common: our love of food and cooking, dogs, baseball, single-barrel bourbon, and snarky comebacks. And we’re both ex-lawyers who far prefer whipping up a mushroom omelette with Gruyère cheese to drafting a motion to compel discovery.

But we’re different, too. Leslie, for example, if faced with a dead body, would turn and high-tail it the other way as fast as her short little legs would carry her. Nor, I’m guessing, would she want to own a restaurant. Having to work nights, weekends, and holidays and be on your feet for hours on end with an aching back and burns all over your arms and hands?

No way could she possibly handle that.

(And now that I think about it, why the heck do I want to so? I guess it must simply be a part of my family genes.)

What are you up to next?

Hopefully taking a break from stumbling over dead bodies and solving crimes!

It would be marvelous to get to spend some quality time with my friends and family, sipping cocktails as I hang out in the backyard tending a rack of ribs and spatchcocked chicken on the barbecue.

Read an excerpt:

A Sense For Murder

If not for the clatter of my bicycle bouncing down the wooden planks of the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, I felt certain that every tourist I whizzed past would have been startled by the loud rumblings emanating from my empty stomach.

I’d set off on my morning ride with only a cup of coffee for sustenance, and the effects of the initial caffeine buzz had now been replaced by a severe case of low blood sugar. As a result (notwithstanding the million-dollar view of the historic fisherman’s wharf stretching out from the sparkling beach and the iconic roller coaster rising up behind), the only thing on my mind at that moment was the prospect of biting into one of my father’s famous ricotta-and-mascarpone-filled cannoli.

I spotted Dad’s tall, stocky figure standing in front of Solari’s Restaurant as soon as I rounded the bend near the end of the wharf. He was turned toward me, waving, so I waved back, then quickly grabbed hold of my handlebars as I hit a nasty bump in the road. Once closer, however, I realized he wasn’t waving at me.

He hadn’t even noticed my arrival. Rather, he was shouting and gesticulating at a form sprawled on the sidewalk at the corner of the building. ‘Why the hell do you insist on camping out here?’ I heard him yell as I approached. ‘You and your kind are driving away my business!’

Wheeling up to the front entrance, I clipped out of my pedals and leaned my red-and-white road bike against the restaurant’s whitewashed wood siding. Through the neon Budweiser and Amstel Light signs hanging in the window above, I could see a table of early lunchers chowing down on plates of crab salads and linguine.

‘Hey, Dad. What’s going on?’

‘Sally.’ He turned to me with a frown. ‘I didn’t hear you ride up.’

‘Probably because you were making quite a bit of racket yourself.’ The person at his feet – a thin, gray-haired man wrapped in a dark green sleeping bag – pushed himself to an upright position and regarded the two of us with dull eyes. A fat seagull pecked at a discarded French fry not three feet from where he sat.

Dad returned the man’s gaze with an angry stare. ‘I’ve been trying for five full minutes to get this guy to move his sorry ass away from my restaurant, but he pretends like he doesn’t even hear me. Maybe I should just call the cops on you,’ he said to the cocooned man, ‘and let them deal with it.’

‘Maybe if you tried treating him like a human being, your powers of persuasion would be a little more effective,’ I responded. ‘I mean, really: “you and your kind”?’

But my father merely shook his head and turned to walk back inside Solari’s, clearly now annoyed not only with the guy in the sleeping bag but also his only daughter.

*** Excerpt from A Sense For Murder by Leslie Karst. Copyright 2023 by Leslie Karst. Reproduced with permission from Leslie Karst. All rights reserved.

Leslie Karst, author of A Sense for Murder

Leslie Karst is the author of the Lefty Award-nominated Sally Solari mystery series and Justice is Served: A Tale of Scallops, the Law, and Cooking for RBG.

After years waiting tables and singing in a new wave rock band, she decided she was ready for a “real” job and ended up at Stanford Law School. It was during her career as an attorney that Leslie rediscovered her youthful passion for food and cooking and once more returned to school—this time to earn a degree in culinary arts.

Now retired from the law, Leslie spends her time cooking, cycling, gardening, observing cocktail hour promptly at five o’clock, and of course writing. She and her wife split their time between Santa Cruz, California, and Hilo, Hawai‘i.  

To learn more about Leslie, click on any of the follwing links: Website, Facebook, BookBub, Goodreads, Instagram, and Twitter. 

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 TOUR PARTICIPANTS

July 25 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

July 25 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR GUEST POST

July 26 – Novels Alive – REVIEW – SPOTLIGHT

July 26 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT

July 27 – The Mystery of Writing – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

July 27 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

July 28 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT

July 28 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST

July 29 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT

July 29 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT

July 30 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT

July 31 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

August 1 – Cozy Up With Kathy – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

August 1 – Carstairs Considers – REVIEW

August 2 – Cinnamon, Sugar, and a Little Bit of Murder – REVIEW, RECIPE

August 2 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

August 3 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee – SPOTLIGHT

Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell

Amazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

 

The Foundation of Plot , a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

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Retribution: The Deer Killer Series

Retribution, The Deer Killer Series by Wendy Whitman

Author Interview + Book & Author Info + Pet Corner!Don’t miss any author interviews. Click the link here.Retribution 

Revenge can take a lifetime.

After the shattering conclusion of Cary’s quest for justice for the victims of a suspected serial killer in Premonition, Retribution picks up with her cohorts continuing their own investigation to hunt down the person responsible for the heinous murders. The man the media has dubbed the “Deer Killer” continues to haunt bucolic Connecticut—but now, his true agenda has been revealed.

As more innocents fall victim to his prey, Detective Hank Nowak’s father enters the picture, only to become entangled in the murderer’s diabolical plot. The past informs the present as Hank, private detective Vito Loggia, and Sergeant Joseph O’Malley race against the clock to stop the killings.

 

Who will be next? More importantly, who will come out on top in this deadly game of vengeance?

To purchase Retribution, click on any of the following links: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, BooksAMillion.Interview with Wendy Whitman, author of RetributionRetribution is set in “bucolic Connecticut.” I love the juxtaposition of that location and the violent crimes that take place. Tell us about that environment and how that backdrop impacts the events in the book.

 Fairfield County is the real life name of the area of Connecticut where the novel is set. It is basically a suburb of New York City, but relatively rural by comparison. People generally feel safe in this type of environment. But as we all know, awful things can happen where you least expect them to.

The tragic murders in Newtown, Connecticut are an unfortunate example. The contrast between “bucolic Connecticut” and the events in the book show that there is no place where your safety is guaranteed. When people have their guard down it makes it that much easier for a killer to find their victims.

When I began writing Premonition, I automatically set the narrative in my own backyard. Retribution continues the story in the same setting. But the third book may surprise everyone.

Retribution picks up where your first novel, Premonition, ends. Is there anything you’d like readers to know from the first book?

I have been asked in interviews if Retribution can be read as a stand alone book. That is always a difficult question to answer. It can but obviously some things from the first novel might be lost in translation if someone only read the sequel.

Premonition sets up the plot and main characters that Retribution plays off of. It includes back stories on the protagonist and other people in the book. I would highly encourage people who plan on reading Retribution to take a look at Premonition first. Otherwise you’re jumping into the story in the middle and although I explained things from the first book in the second for just that reason, a book series needs to be read in its entirety. 

There are three investigators featured in Retribution, what’s the dynamic between the men? Why did you choose to include all three in the race to catch your villain?

I love the characters I created in this series and feel they all play well off each other.

Vito Loggia, a private detective, is like a father figure to Harriet “Hank” Nowak, who followed in her real father’s footsteps, becoming a detective as well.

Hank’s dad and Vito have been lifelong best friends and therefore, Hank has a deep affection for Vito.

Sergeant Joseph O’Malley enters the picture, overseeing the “Deer Killer” investigation. There is a bit of tension between him and Hank, as they were romantically involved in the past.

Each of these three characters has a distinct relationship with the other two and interesting dynamics occur between them. The three of them work to solve the murders in their own unique ways, setting up some potential conflicts. Vito is very protective of Hank and occasionally this gets in the way of his objectivity regarding the case, as well as creates some tension with O’Malley, who is still in love with Hank.  

How does your background in true crime impact your fiction?

My years at Court TV and on the Nancy Grace show covering high-profile murders, is what led me to start writing crime fiction in the first place.

I had so much knowledge about particular murder cases and the legal system in general and wanted to share what I knew with readers in an entertaining way; writing crime thrillers fit the bill. The tagline on my website is Bringing True Crime Experience to Crime Thrillers. I think those words sum up my journey from true crime producer to author. I incorporated about twenty true cases into the narrative of Premonition, mostly through the protagonist’s thoughts.

I think this is pretty unique and sets my books apart from the average crime thriller. Including bits of true murders throughout both books gave them a touch of realism that other crime novels might lack. I also took the opportunity writing these two books to highlight a couple of cases I became obsessed with and felt didn’t get the attention they deserved from the media. One is the case of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom, the other the Carr brothers murders in Wichita, Kansas.

Even though my novels are fiction, referencing some true crime case in them worked well for me. 

What can we find you doing when you aren’t writing or reading about crime?

I love to travel and was recently in Kauai, and Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. I plan on going to Italy in the fall and Turkey and Jordan next year. I find that nothing adds to your life like traveling.

I also have gotten very involved with several organizations dedicated to stopping the Dog Meat Trade in Asia. I had the honor of going to LAX in April to help with and greet twenty-two lucky dogs who had been rescued from slaughter and flown to America to start their new lives. This cause means the world to me and I plan on devoting as much of my time as possible to it when I’m not writing. 

What are you working on now?

As soon as I finished Retribution I began working on the third book which would make the story into a trilogy. I also have some ideas for non-fiction crime-related books but not sure yet if I would ever go in that direction. 

Author Pet Corner

 

We lost our family dog Norton last September. He was a rescue and such a precious soul. We miss him so very much.

My sister recently adopted a dog saved from Afghanistan, Oktay. I love being a dog “aunt” and spend as much time as I can with her.

She is absolutely the most incredible dog, very special. 

I’m so sorry for your loss! But congratulations on becoming an aunt.

 

Wendy Whitman, author of Retribution

Wendy Whitman has a unique background through her decades-long work as an executive and producer for Court TV and HLN, covering almost every major high-profile murder case in America.

Through her knowledge of the most detailed aspects of the crimes, Ms. Whitman has become an expert on the subject of murder in America.

Before attending Boston University School of Law, Whitman worked for comedians Lily Tomlin and George Carlin. After graduating from law school, the author embarked on what turned out to be a twenty-year career in television covering crime.

She spent fifteen years at Court TV and another several at HLN for the Nancy Grace show, where she appeared on air as a producer/reporter covering high-profile cases. Whitman received three Telly Awards and two GLAAD nominations during her tenure at Court TV.

Since turning her attention to writing, Whitman has published two crime thriller novels: Premonition and the sequel, Retribution, due to be released on July 25, 2023.

 

To learn more about Wendy Whitman, click on any of the following links: Website, Instagram, Facebook.Elena Taylor/Elena HartwellAmazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

The Foundation of Plot, a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

 

Header Image by David Zydd from Pixabay

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I Know What You Did: Debut Thriller

I Know What You Did, the debut thriller by Cayce Osborne

Author Interview + Book and Author Info+ Pet Corner!Don’t miss any debut author interviews! Click the link here.I Know What You Did

When a bestselling novel fictionalizes the death of her childhood best friend—and accuses her of the murder—Petal Woznewski must figure out who wrote it and why. Truth and fiction collide in this captivating debut novel by Cayce Osborne.

Petal Woznewski is content with her quiet, introverted life in New York City: she has her junk food, her movies, and her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Gus. That peace is shattered when her name appears on the dedication page of an anonymously written thriller with a cryptic note: “I know what you did, Petal Woznewski. And now everyone else will, too.”

As she reads, Petal realizes the story is rooted in a secret she buried thirty years earlier, when she was fourteen. A secret involving the tragic death of her friend, Megan. A secret that only one other person knows—their old friend, Jenny. Armed with a copy of the book and her own suspicions, Petal returns to her hometown of Madison, Wisconsin. There, she discovers more questions than answers.

Jenny has disappeared, and Petal’s old high school crush, Ben, doesn’t know anything about the book—at least not anything he’s telling.As sinister clues pile up, and the thriller’s plot detours dangerously from the facts, Petal has no choice but to confront her past and solve the mystery of who wrote it—before her very real life ends as tragically as the novel.

To purchase  I Know What You Did, click on the following link: Penguin Random House. Interview with Cayce Osborne, author of I Know What You Did I Know What You Did starts in NYC and ends in Madison, Wisconsin, the place you call home. Tell us why you chose those two locations and how they function in the novel. 

New York is the place where my main character Petal ran away to—a big city, where she could get lost among millions. Madison, her hometown, is the place that holds all her secrets—the difficult childhood she ran away from.

It represents everything she’d like to forget, and when she’s forced to leave her protected city life and return to the Midwest, she has to face all that. Things get messy.

Tell us about your publishing journey with I Know What You Did :

This is not the first book I’ve written, but it is the first I’ve published.

It took me a while to figure out not only how to write a novel, but also what kind of novel I wanted to write. The big “what kind of writer am I?” question. I went to school for Journalism and I currently work in science communication, so I needed to switch gears to pursue fiction, and eventually fell in love with mystery novels.

On my journey I’ve had two different agents and went on submission with two different books—neither of which sold. For I Know What You Did, I was unagented and got the book deal by myself. I was lucky enough that my now-editor, Sara J. Henry, was checking the slush pile at Crooked Lane Books the day my email came in.  

What should readers know about Petal Woznewski, the main character in I Know What You Did :

Not to talk anyone out of reading my book, but if you like perfect main characters who make all the right decisions without a hair out of place or a wrinkle in their clothes, Petal Woznewski is not for you.

She’s a bit of a disaster, but not without reason. She’s lost everyone she’s ever cared about, and all that death and trauma in her past is difficult to deal with. She self-medicates with pot, junk food, long walks, and action movies. She’s got a great boyfriend, but she can’t let him in.

She’s barely coping and as the book starts, her secrets are being exposed, forcing her out of her comfort zone to confront all the skeletons in her closet.

In addition to your first novel, I Know What You Did , you write short stories. How does your writing process compare between those two categories of fiction? Similar? Different? Describe a writing day for us.

They’re very much the same at the start, jotting down ideas and figuring out where the narrative will start and how it will end.

I get a feel early on whether it’s an idea that requires 5,000 words or 80,000 words. With a short story I dive in immediately and get a draft done so I can figure out how to edit and shape. With a novel I take more time to conceptualize the plot, jotting down any brainstorms that come to me, before I start.

Then comes lots of writing, followed by lots of editing. I’m a mom of two boys and I have a full-time job, so I don’t have a typical writing day. I have to take writing minutes and hours wherever I can grab them. Most often this means writing a bit during my lunch break, while my kids are at evening karate class, and on the weekends.

You love to do arts and crafts. What’s your current project or a recent project you love? Arts and Crafts!

I do love crafts—especially when writing is feeling difficult and my creativity is drained, it’s nice to have a different outlet.

In the past I’ve made stained glass and beaded jewelry and done pencil sketches. Lately, I’ve been painting.

We did a mural in our house over the pandemic, I customized some terra cotta plant pots, and I hand-paint greeting cards when I have time. Next I want to tackle watercolor painting.

What are you working on now?

I just started writing a new book. Another mystery, this one set in a rural Wisconsin town that the residents believe is cursed.

I don’t want to say much more than that now, it’s still in the very early stages. But it has a bigger cast of characters than I’ve written in my other novels, and two main characters, so it’s an exciting challenge.

Words of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers:

It’s so easy to get discouraged, once you start submitting your writing and the rejections come in.

Sometimes it feels like everyone else is hearing yes while you’re hearing no. But I’ve learned there are many reasons why stories and books get rejected, and it’s not always because what you’ve written isn’t good enough.

Editors have specific tastes like everyone else. And if your writing isn’t their taste, it’s going to be a no. If they’ve already said yes to a similar story, it’s going to be a no. But that’s exactly why it’s so important to keep submitting. Because eventually your story will be read by the right person at the right time and you’ll get that coveted yes.

I prefer to think of it as good timing rather than luck.

Great advice!Author Pet Corner

We have a 3-year-old Australian Shepherd named Confetti—we call him Fetti for short.

He’s a bit lazy for an Aussie, and likes to sleep all day while the kids are off at school, but when they come home it’s playtime.

His favorite things are plain hamburgers, destroying fuzzy dog toys, sleeping with his snout smushed between two pillows, and stealing my spot when I get up off the couch during TV time.

 

 

Cayce Osborne, author of I Know What You Did

Cayce Osborne is a writer and graphic designer from Madison, Wis.

When not writing, she can be found traveling, stalking the shelves at her local library, driving her children around, subscribing to the newest streaming service, and attempting arts and crafts of all kinds.  

To learn more about Cayce, click on any of the following links: Website, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.Elena Taylor/Elena HartwellAmazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

The Foundation of Plot, a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

 

 

 

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The Construction of Character: A Guide

The Construction of Character, Book Two in the Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) Series … by me!

Cover Reveal + Book & Author Info + Excerpt!I’m so excited to be launching the second book in my series of short guides on writing!The Construction of Character

All genres, including fiction, memoir, and other narrative nonfiction, engage with individuals who drive the plot. The Construction of Character analyzes what makes a strong, complex character and how to strengthen works in progress or start something new.

It also describes how to create engaging dialogue and avoid common missteps in making a fictional character feel real or a real person’s story feel flat.

Drawing on the author’s decades of storytelling and teaching experience, this short guide provides the framework for writers of fiction, narrative nonfiction, and memoir to construct the most dynamic characters possible. Readers don’t remember every plot point, but they do remember how characters make them feel.

This guide will help any writer reach their publishing goals.

Available August 22 in eBook, paperback & hardback

To pre-order the eBook of The Construction of Character, click any of the following links: Amazon & Barnes and Noble

Praise for The Construction of CharacterI’m grateful to the wonderful writers who took the time to read my new guide. Be sure to click on their names and see what they are writing!

“An essential guide to the business of building real, compelling characters on the page. A treasure trove of principles, ideas and exercises for every writer of fiction. Highly recommended.”

—Jonathan Payne, author of Citizen Orlov, an Apple Books Book of the Month

“A clear, well-organized guide, equally helpful to the new writer aspiring to publication or the veteran wanting to strengthen a work-in-progress. An excellent addition to the ‘Wait! Wait! Don’t Query (Yet)!’ series. A joy to read.”

—Edward J. Leahy, author of Enemies of All and the Kim Brady Mysteries.

“Elena Hartwell’s The Construction of Character is a must-read for fiction writers, coming from an experienced novelist and editor. It breaks down the essential components of well-developed characters, and it demystifies complex concepts such as unlikeable protagonist, relatability, and super-objectives. The exploratory exercises provided at the end of each topic help writers achieve the goal of this masterful guide: creating characters that will stay with the reader long after the details of the plot fade. Focused and insightful, The Construction of Character belongs on every writer’s craft shelf.”

 —Roxana Arama, author of Extreme Vetting: A Thriller

Excerpt from The Construction of CharacterIntroduction

Readers connect to characters. Characters Build Story.

Characters take us on an emotional ride—through how we relate to them, how they relate to each other, and the psychological journey they experience throughout the course of a story. We experience what the characters experience, regardless of genre or form. Memorable characters are key to writing memorable stories—even if a story is true. Memoir and narrative nonfiction are about people who function just as characters do in fiction.

As much as readers care about plots, no one remembers every plot point or event. Readers do, however, remember emotional responses to characters. We remember the characters we want to spend more time with; we wait impatiently for the next book in a series, or we hope a stand-alone book will generate a sequel.

While we won’t remember every event in a book, we will remember how the characters made us feel.

This guide is an opportunity to analyze what makes characters tick and discover why readers connect to characters—even those they wouldn’t want to know in the real world.

Whether a writer works on plot first, fleshing out characters later, or starts with complex characters, finding and refining the plot during rewrites, character and plot will be in Developing Characters A character’s objectives, backstory, and dialogue play integral roles in building the dynamic characters that readers crave.

From action/adventure to romance and from science fiction to crime fiction, readers relate to active characters driven by strong desires and concrete goals. Readers of memoir engage with an author’s actions and beliefs just as much as readers of fiction engage with those of invented characters. The actions and beliefs in both genres need motivation, obstacles, and stakes.

Narrative nonfiction explores the goals and drives of real people, whether an individual, like an extreme athlete, or a group, like survivors of a natural disaster. Characters—even when they exist in the real world—propel the plot of a story through actions, thoughts, and dialogue. Memoirists mine their own histories to create the most engaging version of themselves, with a specific set of goals to focus the material.

Character objectives drive action, which drives the plot, which drives the reader through the story, creating a book—fiction or nonfiction—that’s hard to put down. That’s why character objectives are so important.

Reading about a character without goals is like following someone around as they aimlessly go about their day. No matter how interesting a character (or a real person) might be, following them around for no reason won’t engage a reader for three hundred pages.

Characters can and should surprise readers, but that’s not the same as acting out of character. Complex characters have backstories and history, but that does not mean all that information needs to be on the page. And it definitely doesn’t need to appear all on page one.

Deftly handling exposition and backstory can make the difference between a manuscript destined to languish forever in a desk drawer and a polished, engaging manuscript that attracts agents, editors, and readers. Another important part of developing character is creating effective dialogue.

Strong dialogue balances a sense of authenticity while also eliminating unnecessary filler words. Good dialogue is both natural and polished. All of that and more will be discussed in The Construction of Character, but before we get too far, let’s start with the difference between plot-driven and character-driven manuscripts, terms that are often used in the literary world.

Want to learn more? eBook, paperback & hardback will be available soon!Elena Hartwell (Also Writes as Elena Taylor)It’s so fun to see my own bio in the spot where I host so many writers. I’d love to have you follow me on social media so we can continue to chat about writing! CREDIT MARK PERLSTEIN

Elena Hartwell spent several years working in theater as a playwright, director, designer, and educator before turning her storytelling skills to fiction. Her first series, the Eddie Shoes Mysteries, written under the name Elena Hartwell, introduced a quirky mother/daughter crime fighting duo.

With All We Buried, Elena returns to her dramatic roots and brings readers a much more serious and atmospheric novel. Located in her beloved Washington State, Elena uses her connection to the environment to produce a forbidding story of small town secrets and things that won’t stay buried.

Elena is also a senior editor with Allegory Editing, a developmental editing house, where she works one-on-one with writers to shape and polish manuscripts, short stories, and plays. If you’d like to work with Elena, visit www.allegoryediting.com.

Her favorite place to be is at Paradise, the property she and her hubby own south of Spokane, Washington. They live with their horses, Jasper, Radar, and Diggy,  their dogs Polar and Wyatt, and their cats Coal Train and Cocoa. Elena holds a B.A. from the University of San Diego, a M.Ed. from the University of Washington, Tacoma, and a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.

To learn more about me, click on my name, photo or any of the following links: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; false;clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width: 600px;}<br /> /* Add your own Mailchimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block.<br /> We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */<br />Subscribe* indicates requiredEmail Address */* real people should not fill this in and expect good things – do not remove this or risk form bot signups */

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Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

 

The post The Construction of Character: A Guide appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

Shadow Drive: Debut Thriller

Shadow Drive, the debut novel by Nolan Cubero

Author Interview + Book and Author InfoDon’t miss any debut author interviews! Click the link here.Shadow DriveLandlord Gabriel Angueira is trying to put his life back together. His teenage daughter, Megan, was seriously injured in a car accident caused by her own drunk driving, though Gabe blames himself. Since the accident he has spent every day taking care of her, reflecting on his failures as a father, and trying to rebuild his relationship with his ex-wife, Anya.

So, when a woman wants to rent the house on Shadow Drive, Gabe hands her the keys without a second thought—or doing a background check. Once she moves in, he discovers everything she told him was a lie: her name, her story, her previous address. Gabe knows nothing about this mysterious woman, but she knows a lot about him—and quickly begins destroying the house from the inside out. Gabe soon realizes she’s specifically targeted him and the house on Shadow Drive but has no idea why.

Now Gabe must figure out who this woman is before she unearths his family’s secrets and takes down the house—along with his entire life as he knows it.

DETAILS

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Release Date: 7/11/2023

Genre: Suspense, Crime, Domestic, Fiction, General, Mystery & Detective, Southern, Thrillers

Find it on Goodreads!To purchase Shadow Drive, click any of the following links: Interview with Nolan Cubero, Author of Shadow Drive Shadow Drive focuses on Gabriel Angueira, who is recovering from a personal tragedy. What drew you to creating a character who becomes a caretaker to his daughter?

When I was a kid, a member of my family suffered a brain injury, so I ended up spending a lot of time in hospitals for children with brain injuries.

I always was inspired by everything those parents did for their children. But I also was interested how taking care of a child with serious medical needs affects a marriage.

Shadow Drive also centers on a house on a street by that name. What should we know about the house and the role it plays in the novel:

The house on Shadow Drive is owned by Gabe’s ex-wife, Anya. She bought the house when she divorced Gabe. After their daughter Megan was in a drunk driving accident, they decided to get back together.

Because Gabe was a landlord, they decided to rent the house out. But unfortunately, he ends up renting it out to the wrong person.

As soon as he hands over the keys to his new tenant, she completely cuts off all contact with him, changes the locks on the doors, and covers all the windows in newspaper. And even though he knows nothing about the woman, he realizes she knows a lot about him.

Tell us about your publishing journey with Shadow Drive :

I wrote the book in 2020. I then queried agents and found my agent, Erin Clyburn, that way. She suggested changes, and we did some rewrites. She then sent it out, and it found a home at Blackstone Publishing.

It took about three years from when I finished the book to when it’s finally coming out. I’m excited for people to read it.

In addition to being a dad, a writer, and a filmmaker, you are in law school. How are you juggling all those different passions?

I am barely able to actually. Right now, my son is only 8 months old so I’m trying to prioritize being a dad over everything else. Law school is definitely demanding of time, but I try to make sure I write fiction everyday before I do any school work since writing is more important to me.

Hopefully, I’ll be able to make another film soon, but everything else in my life is taking priority over that at the moment.

After growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, you now live in LA. That’s a big change in environment, what do you love about LA and what do you miss about Kentucky?

I like the friends I’ve made in LA. I like having met other people who also wanted to pursue their dreams in the film industry and so they moved across the country to do it. I find that hunger and drive in other people exciting to be around sometimes.

I think what I miss about Kentucky is being close to my family. Now, that I have a kid, I wish my family could be around him more and get to see all the funny, cute stuff he does every day.

What are you working on now?

About ten different things. I need to do better about focusing my energies. I have been bouncing around between different novels a lot, and haven’t really settled on which one I’m going to finish first.

Words of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers:

I grew up playing punk music, and the idea was always make stuff you like and put it out there. If other people like it, great; if they don’t, who cares. I try to maintain that attitude when I’m writing even though it’s difficult.

I wrote Shadow Drive, and I enjoyed it as I writing it. It was the kind of book I wanted to read, and it captured emotions that mattered to me. And as a reader, I guess I want to read books that the people who wrote them enjoyed writing.

Great advice and best of luck with all your projects!Nolan Cubero, Author of Shadow Drive

Nolan Cubero is a writer and director originally from Louisville, Kentucky.

He studied linguistics at Brooklyn College and is currently a law student at UCLA School of Law.

He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.

Shadow Drive is his first novel.

To learn more about Nolan, click on any of the following links: Instagram & Website Elena Taylor/Elena HartwellAmazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, availabImage by Nick Magwood from Pixabayle now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

The Foundation of Plot, a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

 

 

The post Shadow Drive: Debut Thriller appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

The Murder Wheel: New Mystery

The Murder Wheel: a Joseph Spector Locked Room mystery from Tom Mead

Author Interview + Book & Author Info + Author Pet Corner!Don’t miss any author interviews. Click the link here.The Murder Wheel

Illusionist turned sleuth Joseph Spector investigates a sinister conundrum at a 1930s theatre in this thrilling new mystery novel from Tom Mead, author of Death and the Conjuror, one of Publishers Weekly‘s Mysteries of the Year 2022.

In London, 1938, young and idealistic lawyer Edmund Ibbs is trying to find any shred of evidence that his client Carla Dean wasn’t the one who shot her husband dead at the top of a Ferris Wheel. But the deeper he digs, the more complex the case becomes, and Edmund soon finds himself drawn into a nightmarish web of conspiracy and murder. Before long he himself is implicated in not one but two seemingly impossible crimes.

First, a corpse appears out of thin air during a performance by famed illusionist “Professor Paolini” in front of a packed auditorium at the Pomegranate Theatre. Then a second victim is shot dead in a locked dressing room along one of the theatre’s winding backstage corridors. Edmund is in exactly the wrong place at the wrong time, and attracts the suspicion of Scotland Yard inspector George Flint. Luckily, conjuror-turned-detective Joseph Spector is on the scene.

Only Spector’s uniquely logical perspective can pierce the veil of deceit in a world of illusion and misdirection, where seeing is not always believing.

To Purchase The Murder Wheel, click on any of the following links: The Mysterious BookShop, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.orgInterview with Tom Mead, author of The Murder Wheel

The Murder Wheel is set in 1938 London. What was your research like to bring that era to life?

I’m an avid reader of Golden Age Detective Fiction by authors like Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen and John Dickson Carr. Their novels are a treasure trove of information, crammed with details and dialogue that epitomize their era.

As such, my reading has been invaluable in helping to capture a sense of the period. But in terms of more practical research, I had great fun looking into the history of London theatre (including blueprints and floorplans), the history of the travelling carnival, and delving deeper into the world of stage magic.

All this has complemented my more general research into the everyday life and conventions of that fascinating decade, the ‘30s.

Tell us about Edmund Ibbs and Joseph Spector, characters in The Murder Wheel:

Edmund Ibbs is a young and (some might say) naïve lawyer. Like me, he’s fascinated by the world of stage magic. He’s also working on a thankless case, defending a woman who apparently shot her husband dead at the top of a Ferris wheel.

But the deeper he delves into the problem, the more questions arise. Soon the bodies are piling up, and the unfortunate Edmund is prime suspect.

As for Joseph Spector, he’s my series detective. He is a retired music hall conjuror with a taste for the macabre and esoteric, as well as an encyclopedic knowledge of the world of illusion. This gives him a certain advantage when faced with a seemingly impossible mystery or, in the case of The Murder Wheel, a string of impossible mysteries!

Your books are known for their brilliant puzzles, how do you go about plotting your work? Are you an outliner? Organic writer? Or something in between?

That’s very kind of you to say!

In terms of plotting, it’s really a mixture.

Sometimes, for instance, I come up with a trick, a gimmick or an effect that I know I need to use in something. Then I develop the rest of the story around that. But there are other occasions where I use the opposite process, devising a plot and a set of circumstances first and working out the solution later.

With The Murder Wheel, it was mostly the latter.

What draws you to locked-room mysteries?

It’s the puzzle – I just find the intellectual challenge irresistible. As a reader, it’s so satisfying to dive into a really complex mystery.

It really is like watching a magic show. And as a writer, there’s nothing quite like the thrill of developing your plot and watching the pieces slide neatly into place.

What will we find you doing when you aren’t writing or reading mysteries?

At the moment I’m doing a lot of travelling around the UK to various book-related events to promote Death and the Conjuror and The Murder Wheel.

In my downtime I’m a huge theatre geek, so I’m taking the opportunity to see as many shows as I can fit into my schedule.

What are you working on now?

Right now I’m working on edits for the third book in the Joseph Spector mystery series, Cabaret Macabre.

As the title implies, it’s a spooky one! It comes out in July 2024, and I really hope readers will enjoy it.

Words of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers:

Perseverance is the key, not only professionally but personally.

What I mean by that is that you need to set challenges for yourself, you need to manage your time and you need to keep going. But you also need to remember to cut yourself some slack every now and then.

Author Pet Corner!

Here’s Chloe, my gorgeous black cat.

She’s a perfect companion, and an incorrigible sneak thief.

As you can tell, she doesn’t like it when I’m working and not paying attention to her.

Tom Mead — Author of The Murder Wheel

Tom Mead’s short fiction has appeared in publications ranging from Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine to The Best Mystery Stories of the Year.

His debut locked-room mystery novel Death and the Conjuror (Mysterious Press, 2022; Head of Zeus, 2023) was an international bestseller, and named one of the best mysteries of 2022 by Publishers Weekly.

To stay up to date with Tom Mead, click on any of the following links: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads.Elena Taylor/Elena HartwellAmazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

 

The Foundation of Plot, a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

Header image by Adam Derewecki from Pixabay

The post The Murder Wheel: New Mystery appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

The Carolina Variant: Book Blast!

The Carolina Variant, a thriller by Brooke L. French

Excerpt + Book & Author Info + Giveaway!
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The Carolina Variant

Tess Oliver’s memory is a killer.

When the lead that could save her law practice is destroyed in a suspicious fire, only her recollection of it remains. Tess can relive memories, but her gift comes at a cost. The last time she used it, she nearly died.

This time, she only takes a peek. A single moment spent in her memory of the defendant’s encoded document gives her a brutal migraine and a phone number.

Luke Broussard answers her call from the wreckage of his downed plane. His charter passenger is dead. And a mutated virus seeps from the man’s broken cargo, making Luke an unknowing carrier. When rescuers take Luke to an Atlanta hospital, the virus comes with him.

Tess follows her lead to Luke’s bedside, where she finds an instant connection. As they try to outrun a psychopath who’ll stop at nothing to retrieve the document, the city falls apart around them. The code hidden in Tess’s mind may be the only thing that can keep the outbreak contained, but using her gift to decipher it could kill her. If the virus — or whoever engineered it — doesn’t get to her first.

Book Details:

Genre: Thriller, Medical and Conspiracy

Published by: Black Rose Writing

Publication Date: June 2023

Number of Pages: 347

ISBN: 9781685132187 (ISBN10: 1685132189)

To Purchase The Carolina Variant, click on any of the following links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads

Read an excerpt of The Carolina Variant:

Prologue:

 

September 13, 2018

The girl on the video monitor stared up at the ceiling as blood trickled from her eyes and nose. Her only movement an occasional spasm of coughing. 

Nothing unexpected, given the progression of the disease. 

Dr. Edmund Haley shut off the overhead fluorescent lights and let himself adjust to the dim glow of the screens lining the back wall of the office. Only the girl’s monitor still played a live feed, but it lit the room well enough. 

And, either way, darkness suited him fine. 

He’d spent so much time stuck in this tiny godforsaken place, he could’ve found the desk and computer with his eyes closed. Haley dropped into a chair and adjusted his glasses, trying to ignore the sharp tang of antimicrobial soap that clung to his hands. It smelled like life in the hospital. Like the servitude of medical practice. 

He hated it as much now as he had before he’d lost his license. But at least this time, he’d be well paid for his efforts. And soon, it would be over. He refocused on the girl’s image. The only question was when. 

Light sliced into the room behind him as Margaret bumbled inside. He made no move to acknowledge the nurse, even as she pulled up a chair beside his. As idiotic as she otherwise seemed to be, she’d know by now not to bother him. He shifted his attention from the video monitor to the computer, where he pulled up the patient’s chart. 

Patient: Octavia MILLS, 18 yo, Af-Am, F, #4

Vitals: 5’5”, 110 lb.

updated (9-10) 108.8 lb.

updated (9-11) 106 lb.

updated (9-12) 104.1 lb.

Provider Notes: Click to open

He scrolled to the section for his notes and, after a click of the mouse, entered the details of that day’s exam. “9-13-18; Liver and kidney function both continue to decline. Discrete purpuric patches expanding from face and trunk now merging. BSA involvement approximately 80%. Note third spacing.” 

The third spacing, a condition where the skin separated from the tissue beneath and filled with blood, was something new. Margaret’s report of it had been the primary reason he’d put himself through the nightmare of protective gear and protocol it’d taken to do a physical exam himself. He wasn’t going to let it be said that he hadn’t been thorough. 

Haley glanced back up at the monitor in time to see a bubble of blood form between Octavia’s lips. The thing grew with each shallow breath. When it reached the size of a small orange, it burst, splattering more droplets of blood onto her face and neck. 

Octavia made no move to wipe them away. He’d given her enough morphine. She would be long past caring. And, more importantly, the extra dosage meant she’d finally quit staring out at him with that awful, confused look on her face. 

He didn’t care. Not really. Except that it had been distracting, and he needed to focus. Needed to understand why was she still alive. What had he missed? Perhaps another round of blood work would— 

The blare of an alarm sounded over the video feed and, more faintly, from the hall. Three more followed. 

Octavia’s body spasmed, convulsing again and again as she vomited up a grainy black-red mix of blood and tissue. The progression was as repulsive as it was now familiar. The vomit mixed with the brighter red flowing from her eyes and nose as the virus moved into its final stage. Blood, still unable to clot, flowed until it covered her face and chest. Until the bedsheets were saturated and no longer white. 

Octavia’s muscles tensed, seizing all at once before releasing. Her body too gruesome to look peaceful, even as she finally came to rest. 

Neither he nor Margaret moved from their chairs. 

The alarms echoed unanswered down the empty hall. Haley clicked off the monitor and most of the noise with it. “That’s better.” 

God knew it had taken long enough. He turned back to the computer, closed Octavia’s chart, and opened another document saved to the desktop as “Subject Outcomes.” He scrolled down, missing Octavia’s name the first time, then tapped the cursor back up until he found it. She’d been number four of twenty-five subjects, and hers was the last empty field in the column marked TPOI for Total Period of Infection. From the time she had been exposed, it had taken four days for the disease to take its course. At least a full day longer than any other subject. 

“About fucking time.” He spoke under his breath as he typed the final entry in with one finger. He still didn’t know why the girl had survived so long, but it was no matter. By any measure, his work there had been an overwhelming success. Haley pulled off his glasses and tapped them against Margaret’s shoulder. “Get me a copy of the subject files, including all of the relevant video footage.” 

Margaret flinched away from him. “Yes, doctor.” She pulled a thumb drive from a desk drawer and plugged it into the video system. The system — which had been his idea — had not only allowed them to observe the patients from a safe distance but also recorded the progress of the disease in each subject. 

Having such an accurate, time-stamped record of their experiments would be invaluable to his employer. As he had been. Haley cleaned the lenses of his glasses with the edge of his lab coat. Knowing what was coming, it didn’t hurt to have insurance. Which was why he had contingency plans stashed in safe deposit boxes across the city. It was a point he would be sure to make when he and his employer spoke. 

No matter what, he wouldn’t end up like the others. 

He pointed to Margaret as she collected the files. “Once you’re done, wipe the system clean.” 

She looked at him, her eyes a question. What happens now? 

He didn’t bother responding. Some part of her had to know already. 

Stupid. 

The kind of people who would hire her to do what she’d done weren’t the type to assume money would be enough to keep her quiet. She was a loose end who — unlike him — had no continuing value. Not that what happened to her mattered. And if she hadn’t been smart enough to see that going in… Well, she’d as much as made her bed, hadn’t she? 

He put a layer of steel in his voice. “Do it.” 

Margaret’s gaze flicked away. She pressed a few buttons on the keyboard and waited for the computer to comply, removed the thumb drive, and dropped it into his waiting hand. 

He turned the small device over in his palm. Amazing that so many lives could be held in such a small device. But then, these lives weren’t the kind anyone cared about. Nobodies and throw-aways. The kind of people who would volunteer for a drug trial for pennies and not be missed when they didn’t come back. He’d done the world a service, really. 

Haley slipped the thumb drive into a padded envelope, scrawled the address he had memorized at the outset of the project on the front, checked twice to make sure he’d stuck on enough postage, then slid the envelope into his briefcase. 

“Take care of that, won’t you?” He tilted his head toward the hallway leading to the patient rooms, where the girl’s body lay waiting. 

Margaret didn’t look up from the computer. “Of course, sir. Same as with the others.” 

Haley tucked the briefcase under his arm, whistling as he left the facility for the last time. With his part done, the rest could finally could begin. 

. *** Excerpt from The Carolina Variant by Brooke L. French. Copyright 2023 by Brooke L. French. Reproduced with permission from Brooke L. French. All rights reserved.

Brooke L. French author of The Carolina Variant

Brooke L. French is a recovering lawyer turned author. Her debut novel, Inhuman Acts, came out in 2022, and her second thriller, The Carolina Variant, came out on June, 22 2023.

Brooke lives between Atlanta and Carmel, California with her husband and sons.

Catch Up With Brooke L. French: BrookeLFrench.com Goodreads BookBub – @brookelfrench Instagram – @brookelewisfrench Facebook – @brooke.l.french

 

 

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Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

     The Foundation of Plot , a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

 

 

 

Header image by Nick Magwood from Pixabay

The post The Carolina Variant: Book Blast! appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.

The Killer’s Wife: New Suspense

The Killer’s Wife, a thriller by Susan Furlong

Author Interview + Book & Author Info + Author Pet Corner + Giveaway!Don’t miss any blog tour posts! Click the link here.The Killer’s Wife

A serial killer, a woman on the run, and an obsessive parole officer tangle in a psychological net of death and secrets. . .

When a severed finger was found in her car four years ago, Kerry Grey was arrested as an accomplice to the brutal slayings of three young women. Unbeknownst to Kerry, her husband Lucas was not only missing, but a deranged serial killer. Finally out on parole, she is ready to start anew and reunite with her young son. However, when a vigilante group inflamed by fear and motivated by reward money sparks a fevered hunt for Lucas, the nightmares of her past return.

Only one person can help Kerry evade the hysteria of the media—her parole officer, Adam Nash. But can she trust him? Was his move to the backwoods town of Joy, Montana coincidental or does Nash have his own obsessive hidden agenda involving the Hatchet Killer mystery, her husband and sweet justice?

It is not long before Kerry’s new life turns dark when she discovers that Lucas has been secretly giving their son carvings made of bone. And when a freshly dismembered victim is uncovered in the forest, the law is after her once again. Left with nowhere else to run, Kerry escapes up a mountainous trail to find Lucas and, one way or another, put an end to the real-life nightmare.

In a final twist of lies and betrayal, Kerry finds Lucas and the truth that will change everything.

Book Details:

Genre: Psychological Suspense
Published by: Seventh Street
Publication Date: July 2023
Number of Pages: 334
ISBN: 9781645060574 (ISBN10: 1645060578)

To purchase The Killer’s Wife, click any of the following links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | SimonAndSchuster.comRead an excerpt:

It’s Monday morning and still dark outside when I slip from bed and creep away from my sleeping wife to hide in the attic and watch, for the umpteenth time, my favorite episode of Strange Murders.

Lucas Yates, “the Hatchet Killer.” Three bloody murders, all in one summer. The year was 2014, and back then the story was a blip on my radar, news lost amidst bigger headlines: ISIS, Robin Williams’s suicide, the Ebola outbreak . . . a dreary year in the news, but I paid little attention to any of it. At twenty-two, I lived a self-absorbed life thousands of miles away in Chicago, on break from my college classes, partying, and hanging with Miranda, my then girlfriend, now wife. What did Lucas Yates and the women he murdered in Joy, Montana, have to do with me?

Nothing. Until the story became an episode on Strange Murders.

Author Interview with Susan FurlongThe Killer’s Wife centers on a woman whose husband is a serial killer. What drew you to that topic to delve into?

 I’m a fan of true crime podcasts and am intrigued by crimes where a serial killer has eluded authorities and those around him for years. I always wonder how a killer keeps such horrendous acts a secret, especially from the one person who knows him best—his wife? It leaves so many questions unanswered. Did the wife know? Was she in denial about her husband’s crimes? What is the aftereffect of learning your husband is a serial killer? 

My character, Kerry, is struggling to answer all those questions after her husband has been accused of several brutal killings. Readers will be fascinated by her story as she struggles with the reality of her marriage and the challenges of becoming known as “the serial killer’s wife.” 

What would you like readers to know about her husband Lucas?

Lucas seemed like a normal, hardworking husband and father, until evidence was found linking him to several local murders.

He fled the area before he could be arrested, leaving his wife behind to face an accessory charge and prison time. Lucas has never been found, although he’s been spotted from time to time in the mountains around Joy, Montana. He’s become the subject of a popular true crime television series and the target of several vigilante groups, as well as his wife, Kerry, who claims that Lucas framed her.

The Killer’s Wife is set in Joy, Montana. Tell us about that location and why it was the perfect place to set your novel?

I spent a college summer working in northwest Montana and got to know the area well.

Joy is loosely based on the real-life town of Eureka, Montana, which is just south of the Canadian border, surrounded by mountains and the Kootenai forest. When I began plotting The Killer’s Wife, that area came to mind as the perfect spot for my serial killer to hide. 

You have several mystery/crime/suspense novels out. How has your writing style/process changed over the scope of your career?

This is a great question. I’m not sure if my style has changed so much, but I do tend to write across subgenres, from cozy to dark suspense and everything in between.

All my stories are based on crimes/mysteries, but some are more visceral than others, or perhaps more realistic. I mostly write the stories that come into my mind, and feel fortunate that my readers follow me into different subgenres. 

Tell us about the New York Times bestselling Novel Idea series, and your role in it:

The Novel Idea mysteries were conceived and developed by two authors, Sylvia May and Ellery Adams, writing under the pen name, Lucy Arlington.

They wrote the first three books in the series before other projects took them in different directions. At that point, I was offered a chance to write book four and five under the same pen name.

Learning other writers’ characters and replicating their writing style was a ton of work, but it turned out to be a way for me to get my foot in the door with the publisher. Eventually, I was able to get another series published under my own name.

What are you working on now?         

I’m currently promoting The Killer’s Wife. If you’ve enjoyed my previous work, please consider giving this book a try. It has a fun twist at the end! 

Words of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers:

Read a lot, write a lot, and submit a lot. Getting published is really about perseverance. 

Author Pet CornerIris!

This is Iris.

Her favorite thing to do is cuddle, but she also loves staring out the window at birds and imagining that she’s a ferocious huntress stalking prey in the Serengeti.

Susan Furlong, author of The Killer’s Wife

Susan Furlong is the author of several mysteries including the acclaimed Bone Gap Travellers series, and SHATTERED JUSTICE, a New York Times Best Crime Novel of the Year.

She also contributes, under a penname, to the New York Times bestselling Novel Idea series.

Her latest novel is the THE KILLER’S WIFE. She resides in Illinois with her family.

To learn more about Susan, click on any of the following links: Website, Goodreads, BookBub, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

 

 

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Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell

Amazon #1 bestseller

All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio.

Silver Falchion Award Finalist, Best Investigator

Foreword INDIE Award Finalist, Best Mystery

 

 

The Foundation of Plot, a Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet!) guidebook.

The post The Killer’s Wife: New Suspense appeared first on The Mystery of Writing.