.
When a beat-up suitcase full of bones washes up by the pier, the residents of the quaint resort town of Mermaid Bay are whipped into a hurricane-sized frenzy over the gruesome find in the middle of their Christmas in July festivities. The holly jolly mood retreats like the tide with everyone wondering who was in the suitcase.
Christmas shoppe owner, Jade Hicks, wades into the fracas when voodoo dolls and mysterious notes and posters about impending doom start popping up all over town, threatening to destroy the economy of a community that lives and dies by tourist dollars. Then tensions crest when the prickly bookstore owner is found strangled to death with a string of holiday lights.
Jade and her French bulldog Chloe, have to solve the crime before anyone else gets hurt and her business and the festival are forever tainted.
Sticks and Stones and a Bag of Bones is the first in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries cozy series.
About Heather Weidner
Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.
Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, and Murder by the Glass.
She is a member of Sisters in Crime – Central Virginia, Sisters in Crime – Chessie, Guppies, International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers.
Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.
Wined and Died in New Orleans (A Vintage Cookbook) Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Setting – Louisiana Berkley (February 7, 2023) Mass Market Paperback : 288 pages ISBN-10 : 0593437632 ISBN-13 : 978-0593437636 Digital ASIN : B09TZPW81C
The second in a fantastic new cozy mystery series with a vintage flair from USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award–winning author Ellen Byron.
It’s hurricane season in New Orleans and vintage cookbook fan Ricki James-Diaz is trying to shelve her weather-related fears and focus on her business, Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbook and Kitchenware Shop, housed in the magnificent Bon Vee Culinary House Museum.
Repairs on the property unearth crates of very old, very valuable French wine, buried by the home’s builder, Jean-Louis Charbonnet. Ricki, who’s been struggling to attract more customers to Miss Vee’s, is thrilled when her post about the discovery of this long-buried treasure goes viral. She’s less thrilled when the post brings distant Charbonnet family members out of the woodwork, all clamoring for a cut of the wine’s sale.
When a dead body turns up in Bon Vee’s cheery fall decorations, the NOPD zeroes in on Eugenia Charbonnet Felice as the prime suspect, figuring that as head of the Charbonnet family, she has the most to gain. Ricki is determined to uncover the real culprit, but she can’t help noticing that Eugenia is acting strangely. Ricki wonders what kind of secret her mentor has bottled up, and fears what might happen if she uncorks it.
In the second Vintage Cookbook Mystery, Ricki has to help solve a murder, untangle family secrets, and grow her business, all while living under the threat of a hurricane that could wipe out everything from her home to Bon Vee.
About Ellen Byron
Ellen’s Cajun Country Mysteries have won the Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel and multiple Lefty Awards for Best Humorous Mystery. Bayou Book Thief will be the first book in her new Vintage Cookbook Mysteries. She also writes the Catering Hall Mystery series under the name Maria DiRico.
Ellen is an award-winning playwright, and non-award-winning TV writer of comedies like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly Odd Parents. She has written over two hundred articles for national magazines but considers her most impressive credit working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart. An alum of New Orleans’ Tulane University, she blogs with Chicks on the Case, is a lifetime member of the Writers Guild of America and will be the 2023 Left Coast Crime Toastmaster. Please visit her at https://www.ellenbyron.com/
Welcome to my stop onthe blog tour for Killer Case Files by Jamie Malton. Killer Case Files is a true crime anthology of 20 stories, Killer Case Files delivers gripping accounts of depraved and horrifying murders.
This blog tour is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours and the tour runs from 13 till 26 February. You can see the tour schedule here.
. Shocking and brutal true crimes against innocent victims who deserve to have their stories remembered.
A true crime anthology of 20 stories, Killer Case Files delivers gripping accounts of depraved and horrifying murders. These killers can range from seemingly normal people to psychopaths and serial killers who commit years of murder and mayhem.
Follow law enforcement as they use forensic science and old school detective skills to identify and apprehend these violent criminals, deviant predators, and serial killers.
20 Shocking Stories in Each Volume
Volume 4 includes . . .
.
◆ Death in the Desert: A girl walking to high school in Las Vegas was found dead after being viciously sexually assaulted. The case went cold for thirty two years until a local philanthropist donated $5,000 to a company specializing in DNA genomics – stipulating that it be used on a cold case. Soon, not one, but two murders were solved.
◆ A Nun Killer: In 1981 an elderly nun was murdered in her bedroom. In 1992 a young man was executed for her murder. That much is certain. What is not certain is whether the convicted and executed man was really guilty.
◆ Just a Drifter: When a twenty-two year old woman goes missing while walking her dog it doesn’t take long for solid clues to lead to a senior citizen who is a drifter. But police can’t help wondering whether a drifter in his sixties has finally committed his first murder, or whether he’s previously committed several others.
◆ Washington Axe Murderer: A beautiful area of Seattle, popular with both locals and tourists, had its residents living in fear during the summer of 1990 as an axe murderer stalked the neighborhood and left terrifying messages inside homes.
. . . plus 16 more shocking, true crime murder stories from Jamie Malton’s Best True Crime.
If you enjoy the books from top authors like Jack Rosewood, Robert Keller, and Jason Neal – you’ll love Jamie Malton’s Best True Crime series.
Each volume in this series includes a 21st bonus chapter and additional supporting Case Files from every story – available free at the author’s website, where readers can join the author to dive further into additional photos, news reports and disturbing specifics of each case.
A Word of Warning
The explicit details of these murders come directly from eyewitness accounts, interviews, police reports, court transcripts, crime scenes, and autopsy reports. They contain disturbing facts that may not be for everyone.
.
Amazon best-selling author Jamie Malton is an American non-fiction writer.
She is the author of Killer Case Files: Jamie Malton’s Best True Crime Series which is an anthology of crime stories where the author examines the homicides perpetrated by murderers and serial killers.
Drawn to the how and why of real crime stories and fascinated by the detailed police work, DNA reconstruction, and genetic genealogy, she started writing her books to share the details of these stories with her readers.
For book research, she splits her time between American and European destinations where she often visits some of the places where crimes have occurred.
With criminal apprehension and victim restitution as a personal cause, she donates a portion of her book sales to charities that fund DNA reconstruction to solve cold cases and charities that support the families of murdered victims.
You can reach her at JamieMalton.com where she curates her research into Case Files for her readers who want to dive deeper into any case in her books.
Book Title: The Key to Circus-Mom Highway by Allyson Rice Category: Adult Fiction (18+) , 270 pages Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Women’s Fiction Publisher: The Total Human Press Release date: Jan 3, 2023 Content Rating: PG-13 + M because one of the characters swears a lot, and she drops some f-bombs. Also, there are short flashback scenes that reveal the mom’s history and it includes rape (not graphically depicted in the novel)
..
My Review
.
Okay, I confess. The cover for this book was the first thing that hooked me into wanting to read it. Then I read the description. What a cast of characters. And the locale. The southern states. That’s my stomping ground.
So, I opened the book and started reading. And before I new it I was half way through. It was getting really late and I shrugged. Already up too late, might as well see how it ends. What a hoot this was. I really enjoyed the characters, and their back and forth dialogue was spot on. Felt so real and familiar, like I recognized them. Have you ever read a book and thought you’d seen the movie? That’s how well the author showed me her story. And my funny bone got tickled often.
This book was not only a week long crazy road trip for the characters. It was a TRIP to read!
5 STARS
.
Book Description:
In an attempt to secure an unexpected inheritance—and hopefully find a few answers—two estranged sisters and their newly discovered brother embark on a comically surreal trip through the Deep South to retrace the life of the mother who abandoned them as infants.
On a Tuesday afternoon, sisters Jesse Chasen and Jennifer McMahon receive a phone call notifying them that their birth mother has died, leaving behind a significant inheritance. But in order to obtain it, they must follow a detailed road trip she designed for them to get to know her—and that includes finding a brother they never knew existed.
For the next week, this ill-assorted trio treks across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia to meet their mother’s old friends, from circus performers to a juke joint owner, each of whom delivers a shocking vignette into the life of a young mother traumatized by loss and abuse. Along the way, these three siblings—Jesse, whose fiery exterior disguises a wounded, drifting musician stuck in a rut; Jennifer, whose carefully curated family life is threatened by her husband’s infidelity; and Jack, whose enigmatic Jackie, Oh! persona in the New Orleans drag queen scene helps him escape the nightmares of Afghanistan that haunt him at night—must confront their own demons (and at least one alligator). But in chasing the truth about their real mother, they may all just find their second chance.
This uproarious debut novel is a reminder that sometimes, the family you’d never have chosen may turn out to be exactly what you need.
Heartbreak and Humor: Life is a Layered Experience
Here’s what I hope that readers will take away from my novel The Key to Circus-Mom Highway.” The novel is about family, forgiveness, and the absurdity of the world we live in. Even when serious themes are at play, there are also humorous things all around to keep you laughing if you pay attention (in the book, as in life). That’s an important takeaway because life itself is a layered experience. We might be experiencing great challenges, difficult setbacks, and heartbreaking loss. But… there is also beauty around us at all times; and ridiculous, humorous things; and people who care about us.
A few of the life themes that I explore in the book, layered throughout the ongoing string of humorous events, are 1) how our first impressions of people aren’t always the most accurate, and how those impressions–especially negative ones–can change as we get to know that person better; 2) how, even with people who initially seem very different from us, we can find common ground as human beings; 3) how we put up defensive walls to protect ourselves after we’ve been hurt, and how those walls often keep out the people who love us and who might be trying to help us; 4) how we don’t have to be ruled by our past experiences and the things that have hurt us–we can decide at any moment to start anew and be a phoenix rising from the ashes; 5) how things in our lives can change in a heartbeat–our relationships, our external circumstances, etc.–and we can choose to allow our habitual reactions to change as well; and 6) when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable with others and change our perceptions and take down our defensive walls, we actually feel less alone in the world because we can feel the love and support that surrounds us.
The biggest thing I hope that people take away from the book when they read that final page and put it down is a feeling of happiness, satisfaction, and hopeful about the potential second chances in their own life.
.
.
Meet the Author:
Allyson Rice is a writer, mixed media artist, and a producer with Atomic Focus Entertainment, currently splitting her time between Los Angeles, CA, and Rehoboth Beach, DE. She’s a graduate of Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Science in Communication. After spending many years as an actress on stage and on television, she left acting and spent the next decade running yoga/meditation retreats, women’s retreats, and creativity retreats around the country. After that, she pivoted to focus on her own creative work. In addition to her writing and art, she’s also a photographer.
Some random bits of Allyson trivia:
She’s been skydiving, paragliding, bungee jumping, ziplining through a rainforest, and scuba diving with stingrays;
she has an extensive PEZ dispenser collection;
she played Connor Walsh on As the World Turns for seven years;
she’s been in the Oval Office at the White House after hours;
she’s related to the Hatfields of the infamous Hatfield/McCoy feud; and
Also available from Allyson is her line of women’s coloring books (The Color of Joy, Dancing with Life, and Wonderland), and The Creative Prosperity PlayDeck, an inspirational card deck about unlocking and utilizing your creative energy in the world. They’re available on www.Allyson-Wonderland.com.
She’s currently at work on her second novel and her fourth women’s coloring book.
Also, anyone who signs up for Allyson’s periodic author newsletter on her website will be entered in a drawing to have a character in her next novel named after them, and a free book will be given away in each newsletter to a subscriber!
Welcome to my stop on the virtual book tour for Deadly Betrayal organized by Goddess Fish Promotions.
Author Sheila Kell will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Don’t forget to enter!
And you can click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Deadly Betrayal
by Sheila Kell
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Synopsis
When trusting the wrong person can be deadly.
From Romantic Suspense BEST-SELLING and AWARD-WINNING Author • What happens when a former FBI analyst quits her job to become a PI and ends up partnering with the man who left her fourteen years earlier? In Sheila Kell’s riveting novel of secrets, deceit, and romance, two people rush to find a killer while reckoning with their growing attraction.
Cassie McKay was tired of being passed over as a FBI field agent. She quits her job as a FBI analyst, moved back home with her mother, and takes a job as a PI. Only she hadn’t expected her partner to be the one man who’d left her years before.
Jack “JD” Walker had done a lot wrong in his life, but he hadn’t killed the mother of his child as the police believed, nor had he expected the only women he’d ever loved to come to his rescue. The two work diligently to prove JD’s innocence while someone is determined to make JD pay.
Deadly Betrayal is the first book in the Coastal Investigations series. If you enjoy a thrilling, edge-of-your-seat read, you’ll love this installment of Sheila Kell’s new romantic suspense series.
Enjoy this peek inside:
Before she could turn, a deep, gravelly voice said, “Cassie?”
She spun around, knowing who the voice belonged to, even though she’d last heard it on the man at seventeen years of age. Cassie’s breathless response of only “JD” undoubtedly expressed her surprise along with that flitter in her heart.
His vivid blue eyes turned icy cold. “Who is breaking the restraining order now?”
Confused, her brow scrunched up. “What?”
Without looking away, he shouted, “Gus, what is she here for? I’m not working on a case for her.” The stern voice hit like a slap to the face. What had happened to the JD she grew up with? The man she had one day swore she’d marry. Then Cassie remembered how he had abandoned her when he went off to college, and a fit of familiar anger and hurt surged within her.
“I gotta told you something, yeah. Well, I knowed ya been friends when you were young’uns, so I hired her to work with ya. I hoped it git rid of da prickliness.”
JD snapped his head to Gus. “She works here?”
As she turned back to Gus, she caught the man’s slow grin. “Sure thing, cher.”
She glanced back at JD. As handsome as ever. He sure had filled out nicely as a man. His shoulders were broader, the lines on his face distinguished, and the aura of danger still hung on him.
JD swiveled his head to stare at Gus as if they had concocted this meeting to taunt him or something.
She needed to explain that she wouldn’t be working there after all. “JD, I—”
He pointed at her, anger radiating from him. “I don’t want to hear anything from you.” He turned to Gus, his finger now pointing at the older gentleman. “I can’t believe you, Gus. Here I thought you liked me.” He exhaled loudly. “You can cram this job up your ass.” JD spun and exited, slamming the door behind him.
Cassie stood frozen, shaking. She wasn’t sure what the hell had just happened.
About Author Sheila Kell:
Sheila Kell writes about the romantic men who leave women’s hearts pounding with a happily ever after built on memorable, adrenaline-pumping stories. Or, (since her editor tries to cut down on her long-windedness) simply “Smokin’ Hot Romance & Intrigue.” Her debut novel, His Desire (HIS Series #1), launched as an Amazon #1 romantic suspense bestseller and Top 100 overall, later winning the Readers’ Favorite award for best romantic suspense novel.
As a Southern girl who traveled the world with the United States Air Force, she remembers all the embarrassing moments of her fellow veterans to include in her books and laughs every time she does it. Having left behind her days as a College President, she can usually be found nestled in the Mississippi woods, where she lives with her cats and all the strays that magically find her front door. When she isn’t writing, you can find Sheila with her nose in a good book, dealing with the woodland critters who enjoy her back patio, or wishing she had a genie to do her bidding.
A former rockstar. A perfectionistic yoga teacher. Opposites attract?
Rockstar Austin Michaels never took much seriously—other than his music. But tragedy thrust him out of the spotlight and into the boardroom. Now, he’s helping his brother run a luxury hotel chain and he couldn’t be farther out of his comfort zone. He’s doing his best––until his beautiful new spa manager arrives.
Yoga teacher Kenzie Banks earned her reputation as the best in the spa business by being a hyper-efficient perfectionist. Ready to plant roots after too many years on the road, she’s thrilled to land her dream job working for the Hotel Kings — they’re literally the family she always wished for. Except, her sexy boss Austin Michaels is driving her nuts with his impulsive decisions and smoldering glances.
The sparks between these two opposites burn so hot it’s a wonder they don’t spontaneously combust. But Kenzie knows what they say about fire…and she’s come too far and worked too hard to get burned. Can the pair find a way to work together, or will everything they’re building go up in flames?
One-click this opposites attract, forced proximity standalone romance today!
*Palm Springs King is the fifth book in award-winning and USA Today bestselling author Claire Marti’s new spin off contemporary romance series, California Suits. The series follows the adventures of five best friends who are opening a string of luxury boutique hotels from La Jolla to Monterey to Beverly Hills as each one finds true love…usually where he least expects it. Each book is a standalone.
As a yoga teacher, projecting serene strength was important, which meant mastering her emotions. Since patience wasn’t one of her natural gifts, she worked extra hard to remain even keeled.
Even when she was screaming inside.
Somehow, within mere minutes in Austin Michaels’ presence, he’d triggered the fiery nature she carefully controlled. Her belly had hopped, skipped, and jumped when he sauntered in looking more like the rock star he used to be. Stepping onto center stage, ready to unleash his signature raspy voice that had catapulted his band to the top of the alt-rock charts.
Rock and roll wasn’t her thing but she hadn’t lived on Mars. At the height of Black Velvet Machine’s fame, his chiseled features, naughty grin, and tall, rangy frame had graced many a magazine cover. For a few years, the band was everywhere from Saturday Night Live to a Newsweek cover story on the second wave of alternative rock. What Pearl Jam and Soundgarden had embodied in the 90s, Austin’s band represented in the 2010s. He’d drawn comparisons to the late Chris Cornell, whose posters she’d had plastered on her walls growing up, even if she hadn’t listened to a lot of his music.
Yeah, Austin was her own personal brand of catnip and if she let her guard down, all her meticulously laid plans could implode.
.
.
Author Claire Marti:
Claire Marti is an award winning and USA Today Bestselling author of emotional, funny, and swoonworthy Contemporary Romance novels set in Southern California, including the Pacific Vista Ranch series and the spin-off California Suits series. She lives in San Diego with her husband, silly dog, and three clever cats.
Claire started writing stories as soon as she was old enough to pick up pencil and paper. After graduating from the University of Virginia with a BA in English Literature, Claire was sidetracked by other careers, including practicing law, selling software for legal publishers, and managing a non-profit animal rescue for a Hollywood actress. When Claire’s not writing, she’s teaching yoga.
Claire loves to connect with readers!
Reach out via email or sign up for her monthly newsletter at www.clairemarti.com which is full of exclusive content, fun giveaways, and more!
Genre: Police Procedural, Game Warden Mystery Thriller
.
Greed, misdirection, and murder have Hawke rushing to track his sister in the Montana wilderness before she becomes the next victim. Bear Stalkeris book 10 in the highly acclaimed Gabriel Hawke Game Warden mystery series.
Oregon State Trooper Gabriel Hawke’s sister, Marion, is on a corporate retreat in Montana when she becomes a murder suspect. Running for her life from the real killer, she contacts Hawke for help.
Hawke heads to Montana to find his sister and prove she isn’t a murderer. He hasn’t seen Marion in over twenty years but he knows she wouldn’t kill the man she was about to marry.
As they dig into possible embezzlement, two more murders, and find themselves trying to outsmart a wilderness-wise kidnapper, Hawke realizes his sister needs to return home and immerse herself in their heritage. Grief is a journey that must be traveled and knowing her fiancé had wanted Marion to dance again, Hawke believes their culture would help her heal.
Reviews of Bear Stalker by Amazon Reviewers:
I love reading the Hawke series. Hawke is a very caring person though he comes off as a little distant and wary. This however comes from his years on the reservation, in the military, and as a trooper for the state Fish and Wildlife department. Hawke will do what it takes to protect someone who is hurt or innocent even if it means he bends a few rules and keeps things from her boss. The mystery is great. There are plenty of twists, turns, and red herrings to keep you guessing who is behind everything. I recommend this to mystery fans and fans of police procedurals. Also anyone who enjoys reading mysteries with indigenous characters.
The Gabriel Hawke mystery series is very compelling. I loved this latest book in the series!
It combines hunting a murderer, Native American culture, and the importance of family.
When I decided Bear Stalker,
book 10 in my Gabriel Hawke series would be set in Montana, I knew
exactly where I wanted to go and what I wanted to see. Nearly five
years earlier, my hubby and I had been in Montana to run an errand at
the southern end of the state (long story) and then headed north to
visit my cousin who lives on the north end of Flathead Lake.
While going from one end to the other,
I saw a resort on a small island in a lake. I commented it would be a
nice place to go for a writing retreat. Maybe meet up with some
author friends who lived in the Midwest.
Fast forward to my decision to write a
book in that area. I contacted my sister-in-law who is always up for
an adventure and asked if she wanted to go on a research road trip
with me. She exclaimed, “Yes!” and I began planning.
I found an AirBNB in the general area I
wanted to explore and then I told her the dates I would pick her up
and drop her back home. This road trip took place in June. The
mountains were green and lush. The rivers and streams were running
from the spring thaw. It was beautiful everywhere we went.
We side-tripped to a couple of places
that may or may not have ended up in the book. 😉
At the church in St. Ignatius where we
stopped to take in its beauty, I talked with a woman, asking her if a
road I spotted on the map that went through the area I was interested
in would be navigable with my Jeep Cherokee. She promptly called her
son who lived on the road and crossed the unpaved expanse to visit
his in-laws. He replied yes. I thanked the woman and we set off to
cross through the wilderness that Hawke’s sister uses to evade the
man who killed her fiancé.
This is why I love road trips to see an
area I am writing about. I wouldn’t have experienced the
undergrowth, the trees, the rain, and the smells if I hadn’t
kidnapped my sister-in-law and asked a stranger about a road.
.
** Don’t miss the rest of the series here! **
The ancient art of tracking is his greatest strength…
And his biggest weakness.
Fish and Wildlife State Trooper Gabriel Hawke is a master tracker. His determination to discover what is at the end of the trail in the wilderness, a paper trail, or a murder investigation helps him uncover the truth. His desire to stay true to his ancestors and Indigenous roots keeps him grounded.
Reviews from a blog tour for book #1:
This traditional mystery, book #1 in a new series, has good character depth and features a strong Native American character.~The Power of Words
“The blend of nature tracking, clues, and the animals makes for a fascinating mystery that is hard to put down.”~Books a Plenty Book Reviews
Her (Jager’s) writing is well-crafted, gripping, authentic. The story appeals right from the beginning, mainly because of her unique protagonist, Fish & Wildlife State Trooper Gabriel Hawke. Readers will eagerly follow every step (and miss-step) of his investigation into this complex, multi-faceted murder.
Fish and Wildlife State Trooper Gabriel Hawke encounters a hunter with an illegal tag. The name on the tag belongs to the Wallowa County District Attorney and the man holding the tag isn’t the public defender. When the hunter ends up dead, Hawke believes the DA is the killer.
State Trooper Gabriel Hawke is called to a vehicle on fire. When the steam and smoke clears, a charred body is slumped over the steering wheel. Hawke doesn’t believe it was an accident.
Angered over how the local officials are responding to a missing Umatilla woman, Hawke teams up with a security guard at the Indian casino and an FBI agent. Together they uncover a human trafficking ring.
After finding an abandoned vehicle, Hawke digs for clues and turns up two bodies buried on a farm. Who killed the two and why keeps Hawke circling for answers, forcing the killer to burrow down or attack.
Paty Jager is the award-winning author of the Shandra Higheagle mysteries, Gabriel Hawke Novels, and Spotted Pony Casino Mystery series. All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters.Paty and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. Riding horses and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.
Carmel Conundrum: A Liz Adams Mystery Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Setting – California Wild Hawk Press (December 10, 2022) Paperback : 226 pages ISBN-13 : 979-8985426625 Digital ASIN : B0BPQXHL7Y Stolen identities, a cult, a kidnapping, an attempted murder, and a budding romance . . .
Join Private Investigator Liz Adams, and her lie-detecting Labrador, Duke, in the scenic town of Carmel By-the-Sea, as the pair investigate the mystery of stolen identities. Complications arise when Liz becomes romantically entangled with her hot new client, Brad.
Enter Apollo, a charismatic cult leader, whose mission to save the homeless has a dark twist. Why does he continue to trespass on Liz’s property? She’s compelled to uncover the answer.
Tensions mount, as the stakes become a matter of life and death. Will Liz and Duke solve both mysteries before the damage is irreparable?
Travel with Liz from Charleston, SC to Carmel, CA, and back to discover the astounding truth.
About Stacy Wilder
Stacy Wilder has traveled to six out of seven continents Books have shaped her life and her travels. Her love of mysteries began with Nancy Drew.
Carmel Conundrum is the second book in the riveting Liz Adams Mystery series. In addition to mysteries, Stacy writes children’s stories, short stories, and poetry. She and her husband live in Houston, Texas, with a totally spoiled Labrador retriever, Eve.
Welcome to my stop on the virtual book tour for Metaphysical Detective organized by Goddess Fish Promotions.
Author Kirsten Weiss will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B&N Gift Card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Don’t forget to enter! And you can click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Metaphysical Detective
by Kirsten Weiss
.
Genre: Paranormal Women’s Fiction
Synopsis
Midlife Magic and Murder… and a Dog Named Dog.
When Riga Hayworth finds her new client dead, she smells a setup of metaphysical proportions. Now, to find a killer, Riga must travel from San Francisco to the underworld of Greek mythology… and make it back alive.
Donovan, Vinnie, Pen and Brigitte – the story that started it all. The Metaphysical Detective is the prequel to the Riga Hayworth series. If you like Gen-X, no-nonsense heroines and supernatural with your mystery, you’ll love The Metaphysical Detective.
Buy this quirky paranormal women’s fiction and explore the magical world of Riga Hayworth today!
Enjoy this peek inside:
It was nearly five o’clock, still light out, and Riga figured she had time for a quick drink before dark. She grabbed her suede jacket off the office’s lopsided coat rack and ducked past her neighbor’s martial arts studio.
Thuds and masculine grunts drifted through its frosted glass door. She’d missed old Mr. Chen’s last two classes and knew he’d be coming after her soon, demanding explanations.
Riga trotted down the stairs to the ground level. The first floor had been leased to a billiard parlor – her default social life. It served beer and cheap, airline-grade wine. She’d taken to keeping her own bottles behind the bar in self-defense.
“It’s Riga HAYworth!” the owner, Takako, shouted as Riga swung through the door. Takako bustled past, flipping her glossy black hair over one shoulder and nodding toward the bar. “Good to see you, hon. Your friend’s at the bar.”
Processing that, Riga peered toward past the pool tables. Cones of light illuminated the green felt and clacking balls, but the bar, far to the back, lay in shadow. She didn’t have friends.
Realizing she was blocking the entry, she willed her legs to move. Riga sensed a pair of bikers stopping play, watching covetously as she passed. She ignored them, used to the looks. She was the ultimate cosmic joke. Riga Hayworth was a near twin to Rita, the forties screen goddess, curves and all.
She neared the bar, and the dim figures resolved into three people: a dark-haired man in an expensive business suit and bracketed by two willowy blondes in silver miniskirts. The blondes twined around him, their hands roving across his broad shoulders. An image flashed into Riga’s mind of the blondes as faceless automatons. She shuddered and carefully did not look at them.
About Author Kirsten Weiss:
Kirsten Weiss conjures up action-packed witch mysteries based on contemporary and historical magical practices. Her witchy heroines aren’t perfect (and neither are their familiars), but they’re smart, they struggle, and they succeed.
Kirsten writes in a house high on a hill in the Colorado woods and occasionally ventures out for wine and chocolate. She is best known for her Doyle Witch and Riga Hayworth paranormal mystery books. Are you ready to be enchanted? Just turn the page and… voila!
Publication date: February 9th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Previously published on Kindle Vella as Farmhouse Bliss.
She’s relearning to trust. He’s healing his heartache. Can two shattered souls piece together a happily ever after?
Crystal Whitman is determined to redefine herself. Pulling double shifts to break free from a cheating ex, the single mom worries her life can’t get any more chaotic until her own mother dies. The city gal returns to her painfully rural hometown in the hopes of flipping her vacant ancestral farmhouse fast, so she never expected her hunky hired hand would make her want to slow down and enjoy the view.
Derek Fischer can’t shake his grief. Twelve years after losing his wife, the devoted dad’s broken heart beats only for his daughter, until a sexy school teacher sparks a different kind of love. But with a dying home improvement business to keep afloat, the contractor fears muddling the line between business and pleasure could only end in financial ruin.
When Crystal hires Derek to fix the old farmhouse, so she can sell it and return to her frenzied life, she moves in for the summer to save some money and give him a hand.
Fighting their growing attraction, she wonders if she’s destined to be alone and he wonders if his wife will ever forgive him for moving on.
When a vivacious blonde sinks her claws into Derek, Crystal relives her ex-husbands betrayal, and may sabotage their growing relationship.
Can Crystal and Derek fix the farmhouse and mend their fractured hearts?
Farm Cove Bliss is a small-town sweet romance. If you like small-town settings, relatable characters, and mid-life love, you’ll fall in love with E.D. Hackett’s Farm Cove Bliss.
Crystal picked up her paintbrush to touch up the trim but couldn’t reach the top. She felt Derek’s heat behind her before she realized he had moved. His hand grabbed her wrist, and she turned to face him. He was inches from her lips, and she could feel his minty breath on her. Her heart pounded with desire and electric shocks traveled up her legs, making them tremble.
She tried to break free from his grip but instead found herself moving into him. He closed the final gap between them and his lips met hers. Fireworks exploded behind her eyes. His lips were unexpectedly soft, such a contrast from the feel of his rough beard, and Crystal leaned into him for deeper pressure.
Like a film reel, memories of her past flipped through her mind at high speed, and she could barely make out the images. Her mother gardening, her father drinking coffee, the summer she lost her virginity, and the day she graduated from college sped through her mind. Jeremy proposing on the banks of Niagara Falls and the joy and pure delight she felt in that moment, making love that night, and then standing beside him on their wedding day. She saw herself holding Mason with joy and wonder, then fighting, then lipstick, and then the final fight when she threw Jeremy out of the house. Images of isolation and abandonment, losing her mother to a devastating illness, saying goodbye, and stumbling back to this house. The last image was Derek kissing her. The film reel flipped faster through her mind on a continuous loop.
She pushed him away, fear replacing lust. “I can’t do this.”
He stepped back immediately, his lips pressed together and his eyes pleading.
“I live three hours away, Derek. My life is not here, and I’m leaving to go home.”
.
Author E.D. Hackett:
E.D Hackett is a Speech-language pathologist by day and a writer by night. She has been writing since the first grade and still has her first book, “How I Lost My Tooth.” She has self-published novels that investigate layers of self-expectations, family dynamics, following dreams, and learning how to love and accept yourself. She hopes that her novels create a safe and cozy environment for her readers to fall into and explore.
Her two kids keep her busy, when they aren’t hanging out on video games or with their friends. Her husband has encouraged her to follow her dreams, no matter their size.
She lives in New England but in her heart, she feels that she belongs in Ireland. If she could figure out how to move, live, and work over there she would do it in a heartbeat.
She loves to read, write, knit, and cook.
She hopes that you fall in love with her characters the same way she did!
.
