Max Tomlinson's Blog, page 4
June 30, 2021
Publishers Weekly Review of Bad Scene
Hot off the digital presses, PW’s review of “Bad Scene,” the upcoming Colleen Hayes mystery, available August 3, 2021.
Thank you, Publishers Weekly!
“The real-life Nov. 27, 1978, murders of San Francisco mayor George Moscone and supervisor Harvey Milk provide the backdrop for Tomlinson’s enjoyable third mystery featuring PI and ex-con Colleen Hayes (2020’s Tie Die). A few weeks earlier, one of Colleen’s sources, Lucky, overheard members of a neo-Nazi biker gang talk about a plot to assassinate the mayor and tipped her off. After Lucky is beaten almost to death, Colleen goes undercover to infiltrate the biker gang to learn more. Colleen’s local police contacts are skeptical of the information she shares about the plot, leaving her to pursue the case on her own. When Colleen gets word her estranged daughter, Pam, is living in an Ecuadorian compound as a member of a cult with a doomsday plan, she drops her investigations to rescue her daughter. Colleen succeeds in getting Pam back to San Francisco, where resuming the search for the assassin results in endangering her daughter’s life. Though the doomsday scenario may strike some as far-fetched, the fast-paced action, colorful setting, and realistic mother-daughter dynamic help make this entry a winner. Readers will look forward to Colleen’s further exploits. Agent: Evan Marshall, Evan Marshall Agency. (Aug.)“
Vivan los Escritores!
April 15, 2021
Bad Scene – San Francisco, 1978
November 1978 was a dark month for San Francisco.
Peoples Temple, headquartered in the city, suffered the tragedy of Jonestown when 918 members drank Flavor Aid (not Kool Aid as commonly believed) laced with cyanide in Guyana. And a new phrase entered our vocabulary: “to drink the Kool Aid.”
The shooting of Mayor Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk stained the city’s tolerant image. Former Supervisor Dan White received what many thought was a lenient sentence of seven years for two murders after his lawyer pleaded the infamous “Twinkie Defense,” citing junk food for White’s mood swings. White committed suicide shortly after release from prison.
Although Bad Scene is a work of fiction, the reader will see the two events mirrored in the novel.
Of interest: a 1983 FBI file contains statements that the shootings were part of a larger conspiracy. In addition the FBI spoke to one individual who claimed he tried to warn the city about Dan White prior to the shootings. Whatever the truth is, San Francisco was forever changed.
Bad Scene releases August, 2021
March 31, 2021
V2 – the Story of Germany’s Deadly WWII Rocket Attacks
V2 is an excellent historical novel of one of Nazi Germany’s more radical (and desperate) attempts to turn the tide of WWII, a war they were losing. Although not as effective as some of their other offenses, the dread caused by silent rockets that traveled twice the speed of sound weighed heavily upon an apprehensive Britain, making up for the lack of actual casualties in sheer terror.
Robert Harris’ well-researched rendering of the V2 story follows two characters through the latter part of the war, Kay, a British analyst with the UK’s Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, and Graf, a German rocket engineer deployed to Western Europe to assist in launching the attacks that take a mere five minutes to reach London. In a race against time the WAAF, stationed in Belgium close to the rocket launchers, attempt to track the rockets upon launch with sophisticated mathematics in order to alert RAF Spitfires to strike the German attackers before they are able to move their mobile launchers. It’s real cat and mouse stuff and the stakes couldn’t be higher.
As mentioned, the details in V2 are top-notch, from the billeting of British personnel in an unwilling population’s locale where years of war have left the Belgians weary and hungry, to the rocket science that propelled the V2s half a mile per second. There are trysts, betrayals, and suspense to spare in this fascinating story. The Gestapo are seen as they no doubt were, a brutal secret police force that struck fear into their allies and foes alike. I was more than impressed that Robert Harris was able to pen this book in a relatively short time, during the initial Covid-19 lockdown. Kudos for this remarkable effort.
March 18, 2021
Bad Scene – Colleen Hayes #3 – coming this summer!
Coming soon to a bookstore (real and virtual) near you – August 2021.
February 12, 2021
Metadata Meltdown
One day this week I noticed that my Colleen Hayes mysteries (Vanishing in the Haight, Tie Die, and the forthcoming Bad Scene) had erroneous series info on Amazon:
1. Vanishing in the Haight – shows as “Clare Carlson Mystery Book 1”
2. Tie Die – shows as “A Maggie O’Shea Mystery Book 2”-
3. Bad Scene – Shows as “Dermot Sparhawk Series Book 0”
They should be Colleen Hayes mysteries. I’ve notified my publisher, who in turn has contacted the distributor twice and we are waiting on a fix. Not sure what is taking so long but, in the meantime, my apologies!
Rest assured that the three books are 100% Colleen Hayes. Accept no substitutes!
Peace!
November 15, 2020
VANISHING and TIE DIE Amazon Kindle Late Winter Mega Sale
Greetings dear readers and *HAPPY NEW YEAR* –
Both of the Colleen Hayes novels – VANISHING IN THE HAIGHT and TIE DIE – will be $1.99 on Amazon until March 31st.
Enjoy!
(Click covers for more)
VANISHING and TIE DIE Holiday ebook Mega Sale
Greetings dear readers –
Both of the Colleen Hayes novels – VANISHING IN THE HAIGHT and TIE DIE – will be $1.99 across all ebook platforms from Nov. 15th until December 31st.
Enjoy!
(Click covers for more)
September 10, 2020
Tie Die Goodreads Giveaway
Want an autographed Hardcover of Tie Die, the latest Colleen Hayes mystery set in ’70s San Francisco?
Enter the Goodreads Giveaway until September 16, 2020 for a chance to win one of five copies.
Good luck!
Check out Tie Die on Oceanview’s website.
September 8, 2020
Tie Die Print Pub Day!
Greetings dear readers:
I hope this finds you all safe and well.
A couple of announcements:
TIE DIE, the second Colleen Hayes mystery set in ‘70s San Francisco is now available in print.
TIE DIE has been available in ebook since June. Amazon is running a $1.99 Kindle special during the month of September for both Colleen Hayes mysteries as a promotion (Vanishing in the Haight is also $1.99).
Want a copy of TIE DIE in hardcover, signed by the author? (That would be me)
Enter the Goodreads Giveaway, which starts today. Five copies will be given away (US only):
BAD SCENE, Colleen Hayes #3, is being edited as we speak and will release August, 2021. The first draft of Colleen Hayes #4 (tentatively titled “Line of Darkness”) has just been finished.
That’s it for now.
Thanks for following. As always, books are about readers, and I *really* appreciate your support.
Stay safe and stay well!
September 5, 2020
Blacktop Wasteland – On your marks, get set …
Blacktop Wasteland – S. A. Cosby
Beauregard “Bug” Montage is a man with problems. About to lose his auto repair shop, with a family in dire need, and a mother in a nursing home on the verge of being kicked out if bills aren’t paid, he needs cash—now. So he turns to the one skill that can hopefully do that: drive a souped-up car at a high rate of speed like his father used to do but hopefully avoid the pitfalls that ruined his father. After careful planning (hint: irony ahead) Bug joins in on a jewelry store robbery in the classic trope of “one last job.” No surprise, then, that just like that trope, the robbery goes spectacularly wrong with disastrous consequences that burn rubber for the rest of the book. In a whirlwind plot of car chases and shoot outs, the reader is pulled (or is it driven?) through a blacktop wasteland.
The writing is original and the details authentic—for the most part. I’m not so sure about cars flying off overpasses and other stunts that smack of B movie exploits but Bug’s plight is real and the pace keeps the reader turning pages.
The opening scene is excellent: a classic drag race (with a twist) that introduces the reader to Bug’s world. Even so, Blacktop Wasteland isn’t for everyone. There is a lot of car stuff, a lot of salty language and a lot of male attitudes that will most likely turn some readers off (are you listening, ladies?) and eventually one has to wonder about Bug’s moral choices. The violence can be jarring. One might call this book “Male Adventure” (whatever happened to that dusty genre?) rather than mystery/thriller but Bug is a three-dimensional character and the author knows his world.
Blacktop Wasteland is the perfect book for its audience; high octane thrills, plenty of noirish atmosphere, a unique protagonist, and a spin on a familiar story all make it stand out in a crowded field, like an old muscle car sporting a fresh coat of custom paint.
