The amazing Ellis Vidler is one of my featured authors this month. Each Wednesday, I’ll be reviewing one of her fabulous books. There will be giveaways and guest posts, a whole lot of fun!
I’m going to start with Time of Death, her newest release.
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While visiting near Charleston, South Carolina, an artist draws scenes of murder she can’t explain.
Alex. The artist. After a tree falls on her house, she joins her aunt on an unspoiled island, but something wakens her family psychic streak. She draws eerily accurate scenes of violence, but she knows nothing about them.
Connor. The prosecutor. He’s building a case against a drug lord one piece of evidence at a time. For him it’s personal, and he can’t risk a relationship with a witness, especially a psychic who’ll blow his case out of the water.
Rollins. The killer. He’s a cog in a much bigger wheel, and the witness to his acts of violence threatens his operation and his life. He’ll do anything to see that doesn’t happen.
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Ooh, there are some really great characters in Time of Death. I think my favorite is Alex, no, Jax, no, Jelly. Oh, I love them all! Can’t wait for you to meet them.
Alex is clutzy, funny, a bit naive and like a momma bear when someone she cares about is threatened.
After a tree smashes in her roof, Alex comes to stay with her Aunt Isobel on Chicora Island. While up a tree taking photographs she sees something she shouldn’t. Nothing that stands out, just two men talking.
This scenario is very believable. Think about it. We go about our normal life seeing hundreds of things every day. You see two people talking, then it’s out of your mind. When weird things start happening to you and those around you, when someone tries to kidnap or kill you, those two people don’t just pop instantly into your mind. You’d be trying to rehash anything that stands out, not something so ordinary.
That’s why Alex can’t figure out why someone is trying to kill her.
Enter tall drink of water Prosecutor Connor Moran and his faithful companion Jax. He’s been after Rollins for a long time. He just hasn’t been able to pin anything on him. When he realizes that’s who’s after Alex, he does everything in his power to keep her alive. She’s a witness to a murder and doesn’t even realize it.
Rollins is a gangster personified. He kills without remorse, sometimes for the littlest things. If he’s after you, you better start praying. The people he sends don’t always kill you right away. Sometimes they like to play with you, like a cat does with a mouse. If they’re after you, they won’t stop coming until they get you. They’re after Alex and will mow down anyone standing in the way.
A story inside this story that I’d like to read more about is Isobel, Alex’s aunt. She made a big impression with her throwback hippy style. She’s very self-aware and intelligent and I’d like to get to know her better.
There are two characters that kind of stole the show and my heart. Jelly and Jax. Jelly is a giant of a man, with a simple mind. Jax is a three-legged retired military working dog. Both have handicaps and both shine from the pages. They added a special seasoning to the story.
There’s mystery, humor, murder, mayhem and some romance in Time of Death. Something for all of you. If you’re like me, after reading this book you’ll be wanting more. You won’t want to say goodbye.
Five Jax for Time of Death.
Please welcome Ellis!
We’ve had many dogs, some smart, some not so much, some gentle, some wild. But all were loving and wonderful companions. I consider dogs the greatest gift to mankind. Cats are good friends too, but not in the same way. Dogs will lay down their lives for you. And they have a strong sense of a person who’s a threat. (We did have a cat who attacked a peeping Tom once, but we later found it was a man the cat hated anyway.)
When I was writing Time of Death, I felt it lacked something. After weeks of struggling with characters and the plot, I stumbled across Kevin Hanrahan’s blog about military working dogs. The dogs saved many lives and gave so much, often their own lives. That’s where I found the story of Anax and Marc. Read it. Both are heroes.
Anyway, Anax immediately leapt into my story. He added that one missing ingredient that brought it all to life. I fell for Jax, as I named him, and he took on his own personality and injected himself into many scenes. I found a picture of a German shepherd with the perfect expression. He’s photographer Sergey Kamshylin’s Zakhar, but he’s my Jax. Here’s Connor Moran, the prosecutor, explaining to Alex about his dog’s behavior around Merlin, her cat.
“Jax?”
“My dog. He was a military service dog, very well trained, and he won’t bother Merlin. How does the cat feel about dogs?”
“He’s been around them, but he’ll be cautious.” Military? She hoped he was right that the dog was well trained. They’d be in someone else’s house, and she didn’t want to worry about Merlin. “Tell me about Jax. What kind is he?”
“German shepherd.”
Images of lunging, snarling dogs flew through her head. She straightened, wide awake now. “Go on.”
As if reading her mind, he said, “He was trained for explosive detection. He’s not an attack dog.” His eyes held a faraway look.
The other character I found especially interesting to write was Jelly Biggs, a retired heavyweight boxer who’s taken a few too many blows to the head. Here’s the bad guy watching Jelly, his bodyguard:
Movement caught his eye, and Rollins spotted the big man running across the sand. Jelly’s thoughts might tumble like lottery balls in a bin, but the former heavyweight still floats like a butterfly.
Thanks so much for the wonderful guest post Ellis.
GIVEAWAY
I have one print book(US/Canada Only) and one e-book(International) to giveaway.
*To enter please leave your email address and answer this question, “Are you a dog person or a cat person or both?”
Giveaway ends Jan. 20th.
Thank you and Good Luck!
Next Wednesday, Jan. 16th I’ll be reviewing Cold Comfort and hosting another giveaway!
After being dumped by her faithless fiancé, Claire Spencer has abandoned her dreams of a family of her own tucked neatly inside a picket fence. Instead, she’s plotting her solo course and settling for a quiet life as an independent Williamsburg shop owner. So how does she become a killer’s target?
Sometime security consultant Riley, burned out, disillusioned, and haunted by a young girl he couldn’t save, vows never to work with women again. But when a thug tries to kill the friend of a friend, the woman winds up in his arms, and all Riley’s plans go to hell. Knowing she’s in danger, he can’t walk away.
While dodging speeding cars, ducking bullets, and escaping through murky swamp waters, conventional Claire and freewheeling Riley struggle against their powerful chemistry—if she’s picket fences, he’s barbed wire.
Opposites do attract.
And on Wednesday, Jan. 23rd I’ll be reviewing Haunting Refrain and hosting yet another giveaway!
Good intentions go awry and a newly discovered psychic gift becomes life-threatening in Ellis Vidler’s debut, Haunting Refrain. After a psychometric photographer touches a headband and witnesses, in her mind’s eye, a missing coed’s murder, and a reporter hard up for news mentions the mystery vision, the girl’s killer embarks on a new homicidal mission: he’ll do anything to keep Kate McGuire from getting him caught.
Make sure you mark your calendar. You won’t want to miss these!
About the author and where to find her
Ellis Vidler is a writer and editor. She and her guests talk about whatever comes to mind at her blog, http://theunpredictablemuse.blogspot.com Ellis’s new suspense novel, Time of Death, will be released November 18th. Artist Alex Jenrette shares the psychic streak that runs through the McGuire family. Just as it does her cousin Kate (Haunting Refrain), that ability gets her into trouble when she draws a scene she never imagined–murder. The killer she can’t identify wants to eliminate her, but maybe help from unlikely sources will come in time. Cold Comfort, suspense with romantic elements, is set in December during the long nights before the winter solstice. Claire Spencer owns a Christmas shop in the charming town of Williamsburg, VA. Her quiet life is turned upside down when she becomes a killer’s target. Everything she believed is a lie, but the truth is cold comfort. Her first novel was Haunting Refrain, a romantic mystery set in South Carolina, now out on Kindle. It has a touch of paranormal, and reviewers described the characters as “delightful.” Ellis published The Peeper with Jim Christopher, a retired law enforcement officer. The Peeper is a police procedural/suspense novel set in the South Carolina upstate. Tea in the Afternoon is a collection of three short Southern stories, not her usual suspense stories. Ellis is a member of Sisters in Crime. Her home is in the South Carolina piedmont with her husband, two dogs, and a collection of wildlife that shows up for breakfast.
Links
Website. http://www.ellisvidler.com
Blog. http://theunpredictablemuse.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EllisVidler
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4054785.Ellis_Vidler
The original blog about Anax. http://khanrahan.com/2012/01/25/marc-and-anax/
Click on the covers to purchase her books.
About the Author: New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Bella Andre has always been a writer. Songs came first, and then non-fiction books, but as soon as she started writing her first romance novel, she knew she’d found her perfect career. Known for “sensual, empowered stories enveloped in heady romance” (Publishers Weekly) about sizzling alpha heroes and the strong women they’ll love forever, nearly all of her novels have appeared on Top 10 lists at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple and Kobo.