I’m off to AussieCon4 (aka the 68th World Science Fiction Convention). Regular posting will resume on Tuesday.
Interview with Tina Martin – Author of Secrets on Lake Drive
Tina Martin was born in Ahoskie, North Carolina and developed a love for writing in high school. She pursued creative writing courses in college and in 2007, self-published her first poetry book, Love Like Yours. She now uses her prolific style of writing to pen fiction novels, the latest being, Secrets On Lake Drive (Xpress Yourself Publishing) available now. You can read more about Tina at her website: www.tinamartinbooks.com.
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Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I do have a day job. I am a project administrator for a computer company. I’ve also worked as a financial associate, purchasing assistant and medical biller. None of my positions have influenced my writing style. If anything, they motivate me to write more, so that I can one day work for myself and not other people.
Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer?
No, but I needed a way to express my creativity. It was either painting or writing. I chose the cleaner of the two.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
Secrets On Lake Drive is a story of Monica Smith and Sean Beauvais; two people who are seemingly rivals but they may be just what the other needs to have a happy, meaningful and successful life. It’s a novel based on the secrets each person carries, and in the end, those secrets may hold them together or drive them further apart.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
Well, I finished another novel that will be released after Secrets On Lake Drive, called, Another Man’s Treasure. You can read an excerpt on my website. Also, I’m writing two novellas.
Q: Do you have a favourite character? Why is s/he your favourite?
My favorite character in Secrets On Lake Drive is Sean Beauvais, mostly because I made him so dogone hot!
Q: What type of music, if any, do you listen to while you write? Do you need the noise or the silence?
It depends on what kind of mood I’m in. Since I write romance, I listen to softer songs by artists like Jill Scott, Musiq and Ne-Yo. I remember when I was writing an argument scene between Monica and Sean in Secrets On Lake Drive, I listened to Musiq’s ‘Halfcrazy’ for days. While writing a chapter in Another Man’s Treasure, I listened to Drake’s ‘Brand New’ on repeat. (Drake, I’ll thank you later.)
Q: If you could live in one of your books, which one would you live in?
I would definitely live in Secrets On Lake Drive. The book takes place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Lake Drive (that borders Lake Michigan). I actually lived in Milwaukee for 5 years. The lakefront is so beautiful; the houses on Lake Drive are out of this world.
Q: How do you balance out the writer’s life and the rest of life? Do you get up early? Stay up late? Ignore friends and family for certain periods of time?
I ignore friends and family all the time (just kidding). I do get up early and stay up late, but I have to make it happen.
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
The characters are completely different from me. I have a blast creating them from scratch which is why it freaked me out when I saw a guy sitting at a bar once who fit the description of Sean (well, except for the green eyes). It was too weird.
Q: Who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
I don’t have a favorite author, though I will say I enjoy reading novels by RM Johnson. I’m really into romance, chick lit and mystery.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
They would say (and I imagine some Englishman reading this with that heavy accent), “Tina Martin was a beautiful young woman who made us laugh and cry through her words…and though she’s gone away from us now, her writings will forever live on in our hearts. May her words give you comfort, and the lingering sound of her voice give you hope and inspiration that dreams do come true as evident from the way Tina lived her life.” (Wow, I just made that up!)
Q: Is there any particular book that, when you read it, you thought, “I wish I had written that!”?
Not at all. My ideas are more creative.
Q: In my experience, some things come quite easily (like creating the setting) and other things aren’t so easy (like deciding on a title). What comes easily to you and what do you find more difficult?
Creating the title was easy for me, but it’s difficult sometimes to slow the story down because I’m so anxious to finish. So I have to slap my hand and remember to take my time.
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I am blog-touring with Pump Up Your Book Promotions in August 2010. I have book signings in North Carolina, Virginia and surrounding areas soon. Check my website for the complete tour schedule.
Q: It’s one thing to write a book and another to edit it. How do you feel about the editing process? What was it like to edit your book?
I hate editing. I have my books professionally edited. I’m so close to the actual story, it’s easy to overlook mistakes, so I hire a professional editor to take care the editing.
Now, use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
You can learn more about me at my website, www.tinamartinbooks.com. I think you’ll find “15 Things You Don’t Know About Me” pretty interesting.
Website: www.tinamartinbooks.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/tinamartinbooks
Blog: www.authortinamartin.blogspot.com
Publisher’s Site: www.xpressyourselfpublishing.com
Interview with Kim Baccellia – Author of Crossed Out
Kim Baccellia has always been a sucker for the paranormal. She blames it on her families’ love for such things such as having picnics at cemeteries, visiting psychics, and reading her mother’s copies of the daily horoscope. She even had her own horoscope column in middle school, which was a big hit! Kim’s other works include the poem, “My Father”, which appears in the anthology Mind Mutations, published by The Sun Rising Press. Her essay about the adoption of her son, Finally, Our Turn, appeared in Adoptive Families magazine. Her YA multicultural fantasy, Earrings of Ixtumea, is published by Virtual Tales and available now at Amazon. A member of SCBWI, Kim is currently writing the sequel to Crossed Out, her latest paranormal young adult fiction novel. She’s also putting the finishing touches on an upper MG fantasy No Goddesses Allowed. She lives in Southern California with her husband and son.
You can visit her website at www.kim-baccellia.com.
Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I taught in a public school for fifteen years and then decided to stay home with son and write. When I was a teacher I loved teaching writer’s workshop. My kids did too! So I decided to take my own advice and write. I’m also homeschooling my son. Guess what he loves to do?
Q: What compelled you to write your first book?
Being a bilingual teacher and not finding any true multicultural characters. There were a few but not many. I also was searching for my own Mexican roots.
Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Yes. But I was worried it wouldn’t pay the bills so I ended up graduating in elementary education with a business minor. Only later did I return to the university and try my hand at writing.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
Stephanie Stewart has a little extracurricular activity—she’s a rescuer—someone who helps murdered girls cross to the other side. Then Allison, her first rescue, reappears warning her of danger. Things will never be the same.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
I’m finishing the revision of my YA fantasy/romance NO GODDESSES ALLOWED. I’m also working on the sequel to CROSSED OUT.
Q: Do you have a favourite character? Why is s/he your favourite?
I love the courage and determination of Stephanie. Yes, she has some ‘tude but so did I at that age.
Q: How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands?
Very surreal. I couldn’t believe I’d actually had written and published a book.
Q: What type of music, if any, do you listen to while you write? Do you need the noise or the silence?
I usually like the silence. I work best in the early morning without any distractions.
Q: If you could live in one of your books, which one would you live in? (If you’re promoting your first publication, feel free to talk about an unpublished piece.)
I’d love to visit Ixtumea and have my own hottie warrior to protect me.
Q: How do you balance out the writer’s life and the rest of life? Do you get up early? Stay up late? Ignore friends and family for certain periods of time?
I say ‘no’ a lot. I also get up early.
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
Yes. When I was a teen I often was told I had mega attitude.
Q: Is there an established writer you admire and emulate in your own writing? Do you have a writing mentor?
Right now my writing mentor has been the YA author Joyce Sweeney. She’s given me great feedback and advice. When I first started writing it was my UCI extension professor Lou Nelson who helped me with the whole writing process.
Q: When growing up, did you have a favorite author, book series, or book?
Favorite series had to be Trixie Belden. Also loved Sara Crewe.
Q: What about now: who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
Love Meg Cabot, Diana Gabaldon, Orson Scot Card, Ellen Hopkins, just to name a few.
Q: What is your writing space like? Do you have a designated space? What does it look like? On the couch, laptop, desk? Music? Lighting? Typing? Handwriting?
I have my own writing loft. I fill it with items that reflect the book I’m currently working on. Right now I have Audrey Hepburn movie posters and books. I also have Egyptian items that include books, Hathor things, and incense that my sister sent me from Egypt.
Q: Is there anything you’d go back and do differently now that you have been published, in regards to your writing career?
I’d be more patient and not be in such a hurry to get published.
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I’m part of the Traveling ARC blogging tour. http://travelingarc.bookblather.net/2010/06/crossed-out-by-kim-baccellia/
I also plan to have a contest to give away a signed copy of CROSSED OUT.
In October I plan to tie in the Halloween season with CROSSED OUT and have another fun contest on my Live Journal blog to win a book and other CROSSED OUT swag.
Q: It’s one thing to write a book and another to edit it. How do you feel about the editing process? What was it like to edit your book?
For CROSSED OUT it was very intense. I had a first round of edits. Then copyedits. Another round of edits. And then yet another round before it went off to the press. Though intense, I enjoyed the process.
Now, use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
Kim’s other works include the poem, “My Father”, which appears in the anthology Mind Mutations, published by The Sun Rising Press. Her essay about the adoption of her son, Finally, Our Turn, appeared in Adoptive Families magazine. Her YA multicultural fantasy, EARRINGS OF IXTUMEA, is published by Virtual Tales and available now at Amazon.
A member of SCBWI, Kim is currently writing the sequel to CROSSED OUT. She’s also putting the finishing touches on an YA fantasy NO GODDESSES ALLOWED. She lives in Southern California with her husband and son.
CROSSED OUT is available on my publisher’s site:
http://www.lachesispublishing.com/proddetail.asp?prod=Crossed%5FOut
And on Amazon.
My website is www.kim-baccellia.com
Interview with Kathryn Shay – Author of The Perfect Family
Kathryn Shay has published 25 books with Harlequin Enterprises and 11 with The Berkley Publishing Group. Her first a mainstream novel, THE PERFECT FAMILY, will be released in September 2010 from Bold Strokes Books. She’s won several awards in the field of romantic fiction. Her work has been serialized in COSMOPOLITAN MAGAZINE and quoted in PEOPLE and THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. There are 5 million copies of her books in print.
You can visit Kathryn’s website at www.kathrynshay.com.
Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I had a long and successful career in the New York State school system teaching English. For ten of those years I wrote full time. (I wouldn’t recommend doing both.) But I loved teaching and it did affect my writing: I’ve written several books about teachers and students. Reviewers have said I do teenagers well. I hope that’s true in THE PERFECT FAMILY.
Q: What compelled you to write your first book?
I always wanted to be a writer. When I was fifteen, I wrote my first short story and kept writing all through college, taking many independent courses. My wonderful professor told me I was a good storyteller. I was all set to embark on a writing career when I graduated, but I’d taken education courses because my mother insisted I had to have something to fall back on.
A requirement was practice teaching in my senior year and the minute I stepped into a classroom, I fell in love. So I pursued that career while writing mostly short works, but teaching was my vocation. After several years, I decided if I was ever going to write a book, that was the time. Then one was published and the rest came along. I never regretted teaching because of the thousands of lives I affected, but I’m glad I took the path to being an author, too.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
The book follows the story of the Davidsons: they’re an average American family with a good life and they consider themselves lucky to have each other. Then their seventeen year old son tells them he’s gay and their world shifts.
They have no idea what they will go through after Jamie’s disclosure: Jamie’s father Mike can’t reconcile his religious beliefs with his son’s sexuality. His brother Brian is harassed by his jock buddies and angry at Jamie for complicating all their lives. Maggie, his mother, fears being able to protect her son while struggling to save her crumbling marriage. And Jamie feels guilty for the unhappiness his disclosure has caused. The book is full of both struggle and love, ending on a redeeming note.
Q: How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands?
It was like having a child: I cried when I saw it, I held it reverently, I checked its pages, cover and content carefully (like examining fingers and toes) and I couldn’t believe I created it.
Q: How do you balance out the writer’s life and the rest of life? Do you get up early? Stay up late? Ignore friends and family for certain periods of time?
This was very difficult when I taught and wrote full time. I got up at four a.m. to write before school, did email and business things after correcting papers and getting the kids to bed, stopped watching TV, and was basically focused on writing. Now that I’m not teaching, I have time to sleep, play and spend more time with my family and friends.
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
Yes, I always do this. I find my values and some events of my life creeping into what I write.
THE PERFECT FAMILY touches on some of the issues and events that happened when my own child came out gay, and the main character is definitely based on my son. Because of this, a copy of one of his CD’s with gay themes (he’s a songwriter and performer) is being offered free with purchase of the book at http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com/products.php?product=Perfect-Family%2C-The-%252d-by-Kathryn-Shay. It will be available on my website at www.kathrynshay.com.
Q: What about now: who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
I can tell you my favorite books: Judith Guest’s ORDINARY PEOPLE; John Irving’s THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP; Margaret Atwood’s A HANDMAID’S TALE. In the world of women’s fiction and romance I like Nora Roberts, Linda Howard and Susan Elizabeth Philips.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
That I contributed to making a better society through my books, my teaching career and my volunteer work.
Q: What is your writing space like? Do you have a designated space? What does it look like? On the couch, laptop, desk? Music? Lighting? Typing? Handwriting?
After I’d made some money with Harlequin, we added a bonus room in an existing space. It has two skylights in its pine ceiling, lots of windows so sun is always streaming in, built-in shelves for all my books and a desk area and a sofa bed.
Awards I’ve won and paintings that people have bought for me that relate to my writing are on the walls. The room has a raspberry rug and a leather chair in a big bay window. It’s perfectly lovely and I like that everything was all paid for with my writing money.
I have both a desk top computer which I use for everything but writing. I write my books on a laptop so I can take it when I travel or want to sit on the porch and write.
Q: Have you ever had a character take over a story and move it in a different direction than you had originally intended? How did you handle it?
Yes, many times. I find that a lot more fun than planning everything out.
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I’m doing a Virtual Book Tour and the schedule is up at http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2010/07/12/the-perfect-family-virtual-book-tour-august-september-10/. I’ll also be doing some signings and events in my home town, dates to be determined and posted.
Now, use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
Professionally, I have a long backlist on my website—37 books. Some are out of print, and I’ll be putting my nine single title romances up on Kindle and Smashwords by the time THE PERFECT FAMILY comes out. Those bigger books (longer than my Harlequins) are heavy on external plot and theme with some gritty, real life situations portrayed. I also have some options in the works with publishers but haven’t signed anything yet so I’m waiting to announce them.
Personally, I’m a pretty ordinary person. I married my college sweetheart, live in the suburbs where I raised two kids, taught high school and made a lot of friends who I value very much. I take yoga and walk (with my little dog) as much as I can. I like to travel and have been to Italy, Paris, London, Spain and Greece, so far. We plan to do more.
My children are grown but still live in the area so I spend time with them. I’m very involved in my church and do volunteer work regularly. I feel we need to give to others who aren’t as fortunate as we are. Basically, I’m lucky in that I have a great family and have had two careers that were/are very fulfilling.
Thanks for having me on your site. I’d be glad to check back if people have questions or comments.
Spotlight on Paula Deen’s Savannah Style
About Paula Deen
She is the quintessential American success story, a best-selling author and a television show host, a tastemaker to the stars and to the everyday housewife and family. She is Paula Deen, a down-home, strong willed mom who overcame personal tragedy, long odds, financial and physical challenges to carve one of the most effective and wide ranging entertainment brands that exists today. A brand that is idyllic, inspiring, fun and very much American.
For all her success, the Albany, Georgia native has remained very grounded, in part due to her down home Southern upbringing. She married her high school sweetheart, became a young mom to two sons, and appeared to be living the life she desired, before a series of tragedies, from the death of her parents and the failure of her marriage to a prolonged battle with agoraphobia changed the course of her life forever.
However out of those changes came the success that laid the foundation for the Paula Deen of today, someone who inspires millions through her regular appearances on Oprah, cooks for world leaders, is a best-selling author, and is seen concurrently on three shows running on The Food Network.
The one constant in Deen’s life has always been cooking. It was a staple of her young upbringing, and when times became difficult it was what she knew and could turn back to. In June of 1989, with a $200 budget and the help of sons Jamie and Bobby, she became “The Bag Lady,” creating a home-based meal delivery service in Savannah, Georgia that started the rise. From there, Deen moved to preparing meals at a Savannah Best Western, and followed that five years later by opening her first restaurant, The Lady and Sons, in Savannah.
The popularity of the restaurant led Deen into publishing. Her 1997 cookbook, The Lady and Sons Savannah Country Cookbook, gave her growing fan base the opportunity to try Deen’s recipes at home for the first time, and led to her first appearance on QVC, which took the brand from regional to national and began a stretch of consecutive New York Times best selling cookbooks. The growth continued unabated, and in 1999 USA Today food critic Jerry Shriver named The Lady and Sons International Meal of the year.
Deen’s success in publishing, where she has sold over eight million books, then translated into the magazine world, and Cooking with Paula Deen, her bi-monthly title, launched shortly thereafter, growing to a circulation of over one million.
Not to be outdone with print and restaurant success, the Deen brand then moved to television. “Paula’s Home Cooking” premiered on The Food Network in November of 2002, to huge audience success, and spawned her second show, “Paula’s Party” in 2006. Today Deen has four shows running concurrently on the Food Network, including the latest, “Paula’s Best Dishes“, which launched in 2008.
The next evolution of the brand took place in March of 2008, when Meyer Corp launched the line of Paula Deen signature cookware, bakeware, kitchen tools and accessories both online and at retail, continuing the immersion experience for the brand with consumers.
In 2009, the Deen brand underwent further expansion with an added group of quality strategic partners. Wal-mart launched a new, exclusive line of affordable baked goods, while Smithfield, Kaleen, Nitches, Meyer, Universal, B. Lloyd’s, GOBO, Harrah’s, Quality foods, International Greeting and Cooking.com also began new or expanded partnerships in a host of categories. A compete digital relaunch, the expansion of special edition publications featuring both herself and her brand partners also came into play, making sure the Paula Deen name stayed fresh, relevant, and timely with a growing and more diverse consumer.
Even with the continued expansion, and more planned on a global level in 2010, Paula Deen has remained true to her fans, viewers and readers that look to her name for style, taste and inspiration in the kitchen and the home, all reflective of a climate where quality does not have to be sacrificed due to a challenging economy.
Her latest book is Paula Deen’s Savannah Style.
Visit her website at www.pauladeen.com.
About Paula Deen’s Savannah Style
With its lush gardens, stately town houses, and sprawling plantations, Savannah is the epitome of old Southern style, and who better to give you the grand tour than Paula Deen, the city’s most famous resident and anointed Queen of Southern Cuisine?
In this gorgeous, richly illustrated book, Paula Deen shares a full year of Southern living. Whether it’s time to put out your best china and make a real fuss, or you’re just gathering for some sweet tea on the porch at dusk, Savannah style is about making folks feel welcome in your home. With the help of decorator and stylist Brandon Branch, you’ll learn how to bring a bit of Southern charm into homes from Minnesota to Mississippi. For each season, there are tips on decorating and entertaining. In the spring, you’ll learn how to make the most of your outdoor spaces, spruce up your porch, and make your garden inviting. In the summer, things get more casual with a dock party. Sleeping spaces, including, of course, the sleeping porch, are the focal point of this chapter. In the fall, cooler weather brings a return to more formal entertaining in the dining room, and in the winter, attention returns to the hearth, as Paula and her neighbors put out their best silver and show you how they celebrate the holidays.
Paula loves getting a peek at her neighbors’ parlors, so she’s included photographs of some of Savannah’s grandest homes. From the vast grounds of Lebanon Plantation to the whimsically restored cottages on Tybee Island, you’ll see the unique blend of old-world elegance and laid-back hospitality that charmed Paula the moment she arrived from Albany, Georgia, with nothing but two hundred dollars and a pair of mouths to feed. And she isn’t shy about giving you a window into her own world, either. From her farmhouse kitchen to her luxurious powder room, you’ll see how Paula lives when she’s not in front of the camera.
Packed with advice and nostalgia, Paula Deen’s Savannah Style makes it easy to bring gracious Southern living to homes north and south of the Mason-Dixon Line.
Here’s what Pump Up Reviewers Have to Say!
Packed with advice and nostalgia, Paula Deen’s Savannah Style makes it easy to bring gracious Southern living to homes north and south of the Mason-Dixon Line.
–For the Love of Books
Paula Deen’s Savannah Style is one big, beautiful book filled with out-of-this-world photographs of not only Paula’s own home, but some of the finest homes in Savannah. From the charming front porches and gardens to the elegant dining rooms and libraries, there is a decorating style that will appeal to most anyone’s taste.
– Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews
Savannah Style
is beautifully illustrated from cover to cover, inside and out. It is filled with rich and vibrant photos that depict a full year of Southern living in the beautiful city of Savannah, Georgia. Paula and Brandon Branch, her decorator and stylist, share how to bring Southern charm and specifically Savannah Style into any home. There are tips on decorating and entertaining based on the four seasons and the focus is on making yourself and others feel comfortable and welcome into your home. There are photographs from Paula’s homes as well as other homes throughout Savannah.
– Redlady’s Reading Room
With its lush gardens, stately town houses, and sprawling plantations, Savannah is the epitome of old Southern style, and who better to give you the grand tour than Paula Deen, the city’s most famous resident and anointed Queen of Southern Cuisine?
Interview with Maya Jax – Author of Escapades of Romantically Challenged Me
Loving spy and mystery novels, Maya Jax entertained the idea of being a secret agent and started working at an embassy overseas while doing her master’s in international relations. During this time, she finished her first screenplay, an action/thriller about spies and nuclear weapons. She pitched it to a friend in Hollywood, who told her she had talent, but to never – ever – show anyone the script again.
Realizing her love for writing was stronger than her desire to spy and fight crime, she attempted a second screenplay focusing on what she knew best — trying to make it as a writer. The screenplay turned into a manuscript and the result was chick lit novel Escapades of Romantically Challenged Me.
You can read more about Maya on her website www.mayajax.com.
Twitter: http://twitter.com/MayaJax
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Maya-Jax/137505986269231?ref=sgm
Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I now have a ‘real’ job with an entertainment company, though it feels more like a dream job, but I’ve worked in almost every kind of setting: a school, ice cream parlor, bakery, advertising agency, energy corporation. I even did a stint as a polar bear mascot. Having to pay my dues definitely influenced my writing. Lelaina’s struggle to be a writer was born out of workdays wearing a giant polyethylene bear head.
Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Yes! Even when I was testing other paths, I always loved writing most.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
Escapades of Romantically Challenged Me’s heroine, Lelaina Zane, graduated from law school three years ago and headed straight for LA to try making it as a screenwriter. So far, she only has three years waitressing experience and a ton of rejection letters. She finally thinks she’s on the verge of her big break, when she’s called back to her hometown because her dad has fallen ill. It’s a fast and funny read about balancing life and expectations.
Q: Do you have a favourite character? Why is s/he your favourite?
I love Lelaina because I feel her pain. Many of my friends became doctors and lawyers, and you start to question your sanity as a struggling writer when your friends are buying homes, designer clothes and luxury cars, while you’re still eating peanut butter sandwiches for every meal.
Q: When growing up, did you have a favorite author, book series, or book?
Nancy Drew! I loved Nancy Drew. I think I read over fifty of them in elementary school. I had these hockey binoculars and would spy on our neighbor’s car across the street. Any time they moved it I would make notes, just in case anyone ever needed to know their whereabouts.
Q: What about now: who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
I guess I haven’t changed much. I love John Grisham and Janet Evanovich, or anything in the spy/mystery genre.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
Shakespeare, J.K Rowling, Maya Jax.
Q: What is your writing space like? Do you have a designated space? What does it look like? On the couch, laptop, desk? Music? Lighting? Typing? Handwriting?
My designated writing space is a disaster. I have a desk with a great view, but it’s covered in notes, super hero/Starwars paraphernalia and a militant plastic monkey called Captain Coco, so I usually end up sitting on the couch with my laptop.
Q: Is there any particular book that, when you read it, you thought, “I wish I had written that!”?
Harry Potter. Does every author say that?
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I’m on a virtual tour for August and some of the tour stops include free giveaways like Jax beach bags and signed copies of my book. My website has all the details and locations.
Use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
Escapades is available only at online bookstores, like Amazon and Kobo. And if you’d like to know more about me or to send me an email, you can check out my website www.mayajax.com. I’d love to hear from you!
Interview with Jonathan Williams – Author of Jungle Sunrise
Jonathan Williams served as a missionary with the International Mission Board’s Xtreme Team in the jungles of Peru for two years. It was there, lying under a mosquito net in a hut in the middle of the Amazon Jungle, that Williams began to write his first novel, Jungle Sunrise.
Williams, 30, writes and lives in North Texas with his beautiful wife, Jessica, where he pastors Body Life church and serves as the Campus Pastor for Trinity Christian Academy as he pursues a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. His passion and desire is to inspire readers with creativity and truth.
Living with a previously unreached indigenous tribe, the Amarakaeri, Williams experienced first-hand the beauty and danger of native life as he had the opportunity to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, hunt with bows and arrows, fish with spears, navigate the rivers, and encounter every aspect of the tribe’s culture. This breathtaking scene of the Amazon serves as the backdrop for Jungle Sunrise.
The author’s website is www.JungleSunrise.com.
Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I am the pastor of a new church in Fort Worth, Texas, Body Life Church. I am also the campus pastor of Trinity Christian Academy. Both give me opportunities to write for work and the flexibility to write creatively. Every job I have had has given me relationships and experiences that may one day become a part of one of my character’s lives in a future book or short story.
Q: What compelled you to write your first book?
When I was living in the jungle as a missionary, I experienced the impact such an environment can have on a man. The culture, the people, the beauty, the struggles, all work together to mold your character. I wanted to illustrate this change in a fictional story. Jungle Sunrise shows how this wild way of life, coupled with God’s pursuit of man, can transform a man in need of transformation.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
When award-winning fiction writer Jonah Frost’s drunken depression drives him into the Peruvian Amazon Jungle, he searches for a story worth writing and finds instead a life worth living. In a place where he clearly does not belong, the young New Yorker discovers faith, adventure, love and a second chance.
This untamed and passionate journey unfolds in my first novel, Jungle Sunrise.
Charming, funny and handsome, 30-year-old Jonah feels he has wasted his best years. It’s not just the 1,070-day writer’s block that has him down, but also his dead-end job of teaching creative writing at a community college compounded by his unwanted divorce three years ago. Getting fired sends him over the edge. After a nearly successful suicide attempt, Jonah is cajoled by his brother to join him on a trip to Peru. Jungle Sunrise tells how that get-away excursion turns into a dangerous voyage by seven strangers bound together by a shared desire to locate the nearly extinct Isconahua tribe. In the end, only three of the seven survive.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
I am writing my second novel, a story which also takes place in South America as it follows the main character, a widower, who has invested his life into helping abused and abandoned street kids find a better life.
Q: Do you have a favorite character? Why is s/he your favorite?
I love Memphis Jones, the missionary in Jungle Sunrise, because he knows who he is, his strengths, his passions, his shortcomings, and his mission. My favorite character, however, is Jonah Frost, because I can relate to his journey of discovering a second chance and himself through adventure, grace, danger, truth, and love.
Q: How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands?
That was a joyous day. It’s very rewarding to see the fruit of years of hard work, patience, and prayer.
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
People say, “you write what you know.” I find that to be true, especially in my first novel. Several of the characters are my complete opposite, but the two main characters do reflect my personality, interests, and struggles. I’m a missionary like my character, Memphis, and a writer like my character, Jonah, but our connection only goes a little bit further than that similarity.
Q: Is there an established writer you admire and emulate in your own writing? Do you have a writing mentor?
I admire Donald Miller’s transparency, appreciate Dave Egger’s fluid language, and enjoy the real-life storytelling seen in Earnest Hemingway’s writing.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
I hope that my books portray truth in a creative way and that they inspire readers to chase faith, passion, and adventure. I hope that if I leave any legacy, that it is one of a faithful Christ follower, loving husband and father, and bold missionary.
Q: Now that you are a published author, does it feel differently than you had imagined?
I had always heard, but now know, that all of the work you put into your book only increases once it’s published. There’s much more work to be done when the book is finally on the shelves. I enjoy it, though, because it gives me the chance to spend more time writing and talking about the book. It’s a long journey, but worth the endurance.
Use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
Thank you for this opportunity to talk about my first novel, Jungle Sunrise. A synopsis, author information, a video trailer, and reviews can be found at www.JungleSunrise.com. The book can be purchased at Amazon.com.
I believe that new readers will agree that through characters such as, Grace Cervantes, the beautiful photographer who rescues Jonah from himself; Basil Cosgrove, the anthropologist with his own agenda; and a missionary, Memphis Jones, the strong, brave hero who lives with natives and hunts jaguars while taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth, Jungle Sunrise is a story for every reader who has ever felt dead inside or unexpectedly awakened. It’s an inspirational and adventurous escape novel with a love story to match.
Interview with Sharon Donovan – Author of Mask of the Betrayer
Sharon Donovan lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her family. Prior to the loss of her vision, she worked as a legal secretary in the Court of Common Pleas. Painting was her passion. When she could no longer paint, a new dream arose. Today, instead of painting her pictures on canvas, Sharon paints her pictures with words. Mask of the Betrayer is her first suspense. Echo of a Raven is a CTRR award and The Claddagh Ring is a CAPA nominee. To read about Sharon and sign up for her newsletter, visit her website:
Q: What compelled you to write your first book?
Ten years ago, I lost my vision. Totally devastated after being an artist and legal secretary, I felt the walls closing in on me. I began listening to audio books and for hours, lost myself in romantic suspense novels and thrillers. Needing to channel my own creative muse, I learned how to use a computer with adaptive software, converting text to synthesized speech. Then I enrolled in creative writing classes, joined writing groups and attended writing conferences to craft my new art. Echo of a Raven is a narrative non-fiction about my struggles with diabetic retinopathy and how I found light at the end of a dark tunnel.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
When the whispers in the night, the whispers of her lover, are the whispers of a killer, will Margot escape before she becomes the next victim?
Deep in the foothills of Red Rock Canyon, a serial killer stalks. He leaves his signature—a skull mask on the corpse. But when the homicide cop realizes the crimes are the reenactment of a case never solved ten years ago–all fingers point to Michael DeVeccio. And when Margot realizes she is married to the killer, her life becomes a living nightmare.
Mask of the Betrayer is book one in the sequel series. It’s a psychological thriller and illustrates the fragility of the mind. Michael DeVeccio is a cold-blooded sociopath who kills with no remorse. He’s been getting away with murder for years and has been trained by his uncle to kill the betrayer with a Ninja death star and cover the corpse with a skull mask. But when Michael begins killing off the members of his own family one by one, who will stop him? What makes him do such morbid things? Dark demons lurk behind his handsome façade. If you love suspense and enjoy a book with twists and turns that will chill you to the bone, I think you will like my book.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
The sequel to Mask of the Betrayer. It’s entitled Vendetta and the drama continues!
Michael DeVeccio is the most complex character I have created to date. He is a sociopath and is totally devoid of all emotions. He uses people for his own gain, zeroing in on their Achilles heel so he can use it to his advantage and then throw them away without a second’s glance. He fancies himself king of the world and rules his world with an iron fist. He has the right to decide who will live and who will die. What would cause someone who seemingly has it all to kill for the thrill of it?
The mind has always fascinated me. It can bend. It can snap. it can break. To better understand the psyche of the mind, I took psychology classes and learned so much about mind control. Brainwashing is a very calculated and cunning method of programming, and this book gives a prolific account of one man’s downfall. Michael was a sweet and loving child until he turned twelve and his whole world as he knew it turned upside down. Michael DeVeccio would make a great case study. I just hope I never meet the madman!
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
I always put a bit of myself into my characters, or model them on someone I know. This makes characters real and gives them a personality that readers can connect with. For instance, Margot Montgomery, the heroine of Mask of the Betrayer, drinks the same hazelnut coffee that I do, has the same moral values and has a passion for the arts and writing. Jazz music moves her and crawls beneath her skin the way it does me. I just hope that I never fall for a demented and twisted sociopath like Michael DeVeccio. The hot looking detective with the don’t mess with me attitude, Diego Santiago, well now, that’s a different story!
Q: What about now: who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
Lisa Jackson, running a close second with Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, Tami Hoag and James Patterson. I love suspense and romantic suspense. Oh, and did I mention J.D. Robb and RORK???!!! Wink.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
I hope they say that Sharon Ann Donovan made a difference. I write stories of inspiration to inspire hope in readers. When I’m feeling shall we say less than inspirational, I just run out and murder someone in the wonderful world of suspense. I want to be remembered as an author who painted pictures with words.
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I will be on virtual book tour with Pump it up Books for the month of August promoting my thriller Mask of the Betrayer.
I am doing a book signing on August 19th at Northland Library, Pittsburgh, PA at 7:00
Use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
The best place to keep up with me is my website: www.sharonadonovan.com
Here you can read book reviews, news, enter contests and get release dates. You can also sign up for my monthly newsletter.
Visit my blog where my sexy cyber butler Oliver, who, incidentally, is the romantic hero in my soon to be released suspense book Charade of Hearts, part of the Jewel of the Night series by Wild Rose Press
http://sharondonovan.blogspot.com
Or write to me. I love to hear from readers! sharonad@comcast.net
Mask of the Betrayer can be purchased at online book stores or through the publisher, Whimsical Publications
http://www.whimsicalpublications.com/sharon_donovan/mask_of_the_betrayer.html
To see a book video by Triad Productions, visit my website: www.sharonadonovan.com
Spotlight on Live to Tell by Lisa Gardner
About Lisa Gardner
Lisa Gardner is the New York Times bestselling author of twelve novels. Her Detective D. D. Warren novels include The Neighbor, Hide, and Alone.
Her FBI Profiler novels include Say Goodbye, Gone, The Killing Hour, The Next Accident, and The Third Victim. She lives with her family in New England, where she is at work on her next D. D. Warren novel, Save Me, which Bantam will publish in 2011.
You can find Lisa online at http://www.lisagardner.com/.
About Live to Tell
He knows everything about you—including the first place you’ll hide.
On a warm summer night in one of Boston’s working-class neighborhoods, an unthinkable crime has been committed: Four members of a family have been brutally murdered. The father—and possible suspect—now lies clinging to life in the ICU. Murder-suicide? Or something worse? Veteran police detective D. D. Warren is certain of only one thing: There’s more to this case than meets the eye.
Danielle Burton is a survivor, a dedicated nurse whose passion is to help children at a locked-down pediatric psych ward. But she remains haunted by a family tragedy that shattered her life nearly twenty-five years ago. The dark anniversary is approaching, and when D. D. Warren and her partner show up at the facility, Danielle immediately realizes: It has started again.
A devoted mother, Victoria Oliver has a hard time remembering what normalcy is like. But she will do anything to ensure that her troubled son has some semblance of a childhood. She will love him no matter what. Nurture him. Keep him safe. Protect him. Even when the threat comes from within her own house.
In New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner’s most compelling work of suspense to date, the lives of these three women unfold and connect in unexpected ways, as sins from the past emerge—and stunning secrets reveal just how tightly blood ties can bind. Sometimes the most devastating crimes are the ones closest to home.
Read an Excerpt!
Thursday night, Sergeant Detective D. D. Warren was out on a date. It wasn’t the worst date she’d ever been on. It wasn’t the best date she’d ever been on. It was, however, the only date she’d been on in quite some time, so unless Chip the accountant turned out to be a total loser, she planned on taking him home for a rigorous session of balance-the-ledger.
So far, they’d made it through half a loaf of bread soaked in olive oil, and half a cow seared medium rare. Chip had managed not to talk about the prime rib bleeding all over her plate or her need to sop up juices with yet another slice of bread. Most men were taken aback by her appetite. They needed to joke uncomfortably about her ability to tuck away plate after plate of food. Then they felt the need to joke even more uncomfortably that, of course, none of it showed on her girlish figure.
Yeah, yeah, she had the appetite of a sumo wrestler but the build of a cover girl. She was nearly forty, for God’s sake, and well aware by now of her freakish metabolism. She certainly didn’t need any soft- middled desk jockey pointing it out. Food was her passion. Mostly because her job with Boston PD’s homicide unit didn’t leave much time for sex.
She polished off the prime rib, went to work on the twice- baked potato. Chip was a forensic accountant. They’d been set up by the wife of a friend of a guy in the unit. Yep, it made that much sense to D.D. as well. But here she was, sitting in a coveted booth at the Hilltop Steakhouse, and really, Chip was all right. Little doughy in the mid¬dle, little bald on top, but funny. D.D. liked funny. When he smiled, the corners of his deep brown eyes crinkled and that was good enough for her.
She was having meat and potatoes for dinner and, if all went as planned, Chip for dessert.
So, of course, her pager went off.
She scowled, shoved it to the back of her waistband, as if that would make a difference.
“What’s that?” Chip asked, catching the chime.
“Birth control,” she muttered.
Chip blushed to the roots of his receding brown hair, then in the next minute grinned with such self-deprecating power she nearly went weak in the knees.
Better be good, D.D. thought. Better be a fucking massacre, or I’ll be damned if I’m giving up my night.
But then she read the call and was sorry she’d ever thought such a thing.
Chip the funny accountant got a kiss on the cheek.
Then Sergeant Detective D. D. Warren hit the road.
■■■
D.D. had been a Boston PD detective for nearly twelve years now. She’d started out investigating traffic fatalities and drug-related homi¬cides before graduating to such major media events as the discovery of six mummified corpses in an underground chamber; then, more recently, the disappearance of a beautiful young schoolteacher from South Boston. Her bosses liked to put her in front of the camera. Nothing like a pretty blonde detective to mix things up.
She didn’t mind. D.D. thrived on stress. Enjoyed a good pressure-cooker case even more than an all-you-can-eat buffet. Only drawback was the toll on her personal life. As a sergeant in the homicide unit, was the leader of a three-person squad. It wasn’t uncommon for them to spend all day tracking down leads, interviewing informants, or revisiting crime scenes. Then they spent most of the night writing up the resulting interviews, affidavits, and/or warrant requests. Each squad also had to take turns being “on deck,” meaning they caught the next case called in, keeping them stuck in a permanent vortex of top- priority active cases, still- unsolved old cases, and at least one or two fresh call- outs per week.
Didn’t sleep much. Or date much. Or really do anything much. Which had been fine until last year, when she’d turned thirty-eight and watched her ex- lover get married and start a family. Sud¬denly, the tough, brash sergeant who considered herself wed to her job found herself studying Good Housekeeping magazine and, even worse, Modern Bride. One day, she picked up Parenting. There was noth¬ing more depressing than a nearly forty-year-old single, childless homicide detective reading Parenting magazine alone in her North End condo.
Especially when she realized some of the articles on dealing with toddlers applied to managing her squad as well.
She recycled the magazines, then vowed to go on a date. Which had led to Chip—poor, almost- got-his-brains-screwed-out Chip—and now had her on her way to Dorchester. Wasn’t even her squad’s turn on deck, but the notification had been “red ball,” meaning something big and bad enough had happened to warrant all hands on deck.
D.D. turned off I-93, then made her way through the maze of streets to the largely working-class neighborhood. Among local offi¬cers, Dorchester was known for its drugs, shootings, and raucous neighborhood parties that led to more drugs and shootings. BPD’s local field district, C-11, had set up a noise reduction hotline as well as a designated “Party Car” to patrol on weekends. Five hundred phone tips and numerous preventive arrests later, Dorchester was finally seeing a decline in homicides, rapes, and aggravated assaults. On the other hand, burglaries were way up. Go figure.
Under the guidance of her vehicle’s navigational system, D.D. ended up on a fairly nice street, double lanes dotted with modest stamps of green lawn and flanked with a long row of tightly nestled three-story homes, many sporting large front porches and an occa¬sional turret.
Most of these dwellings had been carved into multiple-living units over the years, with as many as six to eight in a single house. It was still a nice-looking area, the lawns neatly mowed, the front-porch banis¬ters freshly painted. The softer side of Dorchester, she decided, more and more curious.
D.D. spotted a pileup of Crown Vics, and slowed to park. It was eight- thirty on a Thursday night, August sun just starting to fade on the horizon. She could make out the white ME’s vehicle straight ahead, as well as the traveling crime lab. The vans were bookended by the usual cluster of media trucks and neighborhood gawkers.
When D.D. had first read the location of the call, she’d assumed drugs. Probably a gangland shooting. A bad one, given that the deputy superintendent wanted all eighteen detectives in attendance, so most likely involving collateral damage. Maybe a grandmother caught sit¬ting on her front porch, maybe kids playing on the sidewalk. These things happened, and no, they didn’t get any easier to take. But you handled it, because this was Boston, and that’s what a Boston detec¬tive did.
Now, however, as D.D. climbed out of her car, clipped her creden¬tials to the waistband of her skinny black jeans, and retrieved a plain white shirt to button up over her date cleavage, she was thinking, Not drugs. She was thinking this was something worse. She slung a light jacket over her sidearm, and headed up the sidewalk toward the lion’s den.
D.D. pushed her way through the first wave of jostling adults and curious children. She did her best to keep focused, but still caught phrases such as “shots fired…” “heard squealing like a stuck pig . . .” “Why, I just saw her unloading groceries not four hours before . . .”
“Excuse me, excuse me, pardon me. Police sergeant. Buddy, out of the way.” She broke through, ducking under the yellow tape rop¬ing off portions of the sidewalk, and finally arrived at the epicenter of crime- scene chaos.
The house before her was a gray-painted triple-decker boasting a broad- columned front porch and large American flag. Both front doors were wide open, enabling better traffic flow of investigative person¬nel, as well as the ME’s metal gurney.
D.D. noted delicate lace curtains framed in bay windows on either side of the front door. In addition to the American flag, the porch con¬tained four cheerful pots of red geraniums, half a dozen blue folding chairs, and a hanging piece of slate that had been painted with more red geraniums and the bright yellow declaration: Welcome. Yep, definitely something worse than gun-toting, tennis-shoe-tossing drug dealers.
D.D. sighed, put on her game face, and approached the uniformed officer stationed at the base of the front steps. She rattled off her name and badge number. In turn, the officer dutifully recorded the info in the murder book, then jerked his head down to the bin at his feet.
D.D. obediently fished out booties and a hair covering. So it was that kind of crime scene.
She climbed the steps slowly, keeping to one side. They appeared recently stained, a light Cape Cod gray that suited the rest of the house. The porch was homey, well kept. Clean enough that she sus¬pected it had been recently broom swept. Perhaps after unloading groceries, a household member had tidied up?
It would’ve been better if the porch had been dirty, covered in dust. That might have yielded shoe treads. That might have helped catch whoever did the bad thing D.D. was about to find inside.
She took another breath right outside the door, inhaled the scent of sawdust and drying blood. She heard a reporter calling for a state¬ment. She heard the snap of a camera, the roar of a media chopper, and white noise all around. Gawkers behind, detectives ahead, re¬porters above.
Chaos: loud, smelly, overwhelming. Her job now was to make it right. She got to it.
Read the Reviews!
“Boston police detective D. D. Warren returns in another gripping thriller… In addition to telling a compelling story, Gardner also explores an issue that is rarely discussed in fiction: children who are psychotic. Gardner never sensationalizes her story, and the book ends with a resolution that is creatively and emotionally appropriate. An excellent novel.” — Booklist, starred review
“Gardner has another hit on her hands” – Kirkus Reviews
“The lives of three women collide in Gardner’s amazingly chilling new thriller… The devastating, sometimes tragic consequences of childhood mental illness are the backdrop for this electrifying tale of murder and family secrets.” – Jill M. Smith, RT Book Reviews – 4-1/2 Stars – Top Pick
Lisa Gardner’s LIVE TO TELL VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR AUG ‘10 will officially begin on August 2nd and end on August 27th. You can visit Lisa’s blog stops at http://www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com during the month of August to find out more about this great book and talented author!
Book Review: Red Dust by Fleur McDonald
About Red Dust
After the death of her husband, Adam, in an horrific plane crash, Gemma Sinclair defies community expectations – and Adam’s dying words – by taking on the daunting task of managing the 100,000-hectare station he bequeathed her.
As if Gemma’s grief and the job of looking after Billbinya Station aren’t enough, a wave of innuendo sweeps the community that Adam’s death was no accident.
Struggling to uncover the truth of these rumours while battling to keep Billbinya afloat, Gemma wonders if she’ll ever find peace – or love – again.
The Long Story
I have always said that I am not one for reading books with mystery, but I think I will have to change that claim after practically devouring Red Dust.
Red Dust starts out with Gemma Sinclair grieving for her dead husband and feeling confused about his last words – the ones that warned her that ‘they’ could be coming after her, too… But Gemma barely has time to grieve, let alone work out whatever her husband meant. That is, until stock stealing comes to light – and Gemma is a main suspect.
With the incredible amount of sadness and loss Gemma felt right from the beginning, I immediately sympathized and identified with her as a woman. Fleur McDonald did well with creating a main character who is all woman but still has the Australian spirit of not taking any bullsh*t from anyone.
Her abilities with character creation extends out to a cast of ‘good guys’ who are easy to love and ‘bad guys’ who make the reader feel like stomping them in the mud.
International readers who are concerned about dealing with Australian terms shouldn’t be worried. While I did have to ask my husband about a couple things – ‘damper’ is bread you make over the campfire – there aren’t any terms that will throw readers off so much they’ll have to stop reading. Even if you don’t have a resident Aussie to pester, you’ll still be able to read and enjoy the book.
My one small nitpick came towards the beginning of the book with two characters named Jack – Gemma’s father and the farm hand she hires on. However, with her father being a minor character, I only briefly paused at the common name and nothing more.
Fleur has a talent for weaving in romance that makes the story richer while not altering the focus of the book. I’m a sucker for romance in books, so I was happy to see touches of it here and there without it distracting from the big mystery everyone was trying to solve.
Besides the story told itself, the thing I enjoyed most about this book was learning about outback farm life. I’m decently acquainted with farms, but Fleur throws you right into the action of shearing time without turning it into a lecture. The story still flows and moves all while you’re ‘observing’ farm life, and the dusty background of reality makes it even easier to lose yourself.
The Short Story
Red Dust is a beautiful book about the lives of Australian outback people – especially farmers – that takes you right into the lives, dreams and hearts of the people involved. I highly recommend this book.
***
Red Dust
Fleur McDonald
http://fleurmcdonald.com/
ISBN: 9780741756296
Length: 348 pages (large print)
