Review for Murder & Obsession

Blurb:

Detective Steven Quaid is ready for the new challenges as Anchorage’s top detective, but not until he marries the woman of his dreams on New Year’s Eve. Determined to give Sarah the wilderness honeymoon she desires, he turns his grandfather’s cabin into the perfect honeymoon retreat.

After the final details are complete, Steven treks into the mountains to hunt. On his return to the cottage, he’s greeted by several police officers and a bloody crime scene.

Accusations fly and Stephen flees into the wilderness. His heart racing and his thoughts No, not Sarah, etching onto his soul.

The wilderness is unforgiving, but Steven faces it head on, in the forms of a massive Grizzly and a black bear. Caught between the two, he barely survives their ‘tug of war.’

Found on death’s door by his uncle, Steven continues his investigation as he heals from multiple injuries. The answers don’t come quick or easy.

Enlisting the aid of his number one suspect, Steven’s led into yet another dangerous situation…

A sniper, who’s made a promise, he intends to keep.

The struggle this time is more than personal…

This one just may cost him his heart.

 

My review:

Detective Steven Quaid wants to give his fiancee, Sarah the Alaskan honeymoon she has longed for at his grandfather's mountain cabin. He returns one October day from hunting and finds several police officers at the cabin. Plus a horrifying crime scene that tears his heart from his chest. Steven flees into the wilderness when he's accused of killing Sarah. Between the bears and the harsh elements, Steven barely survives to start his own investigation. With the help of friends who believe in him, they peel back the layers of the crime to discover something even more frightening. Will he be able to find out what happened to Sarah or will the bears be the least of his worries as he digs deeper into this nightmare?

This third installment of the Detective Quaid Mysteries blew me away. The story is intense and the investigation goes deep. The reader is taken to amazing settings on this journey, and I felt as though I was there. Great details that are genuinely both beautiful and harsh. The characters match this rugged and lovely environment, and even with the big cast, each individual stands out in their own way. I really loved Sarah in this book, more so than the previous two. She still has her compassionate and mystical nature, but she's so much stronger now. Truly admirable. Steven is equal to her strength, pushing through what sometimes seems impossible. The author does love to torture her characters! Be prepared for a fierce adventure that will make you feel like you've had a run-in with a bear. And it will leave you wanting more.

 

Buy the book!

 

Find Yolanda here!

Hooray! Seismic Crimes is here!

Today is the release of Chrys Fey's first novel!

BLURB: An Internal Affairs Investigator was murdered and his brother, Donovan Goldwyn, was framed. Now Donovan is desperate to prove his innocence. And the one person who can do that is the woman who saved him from a deadly hurricane—Beth Kennedy. From the moment their fates intertwined, passion consumed him. He wants her in his arms. More, he wants her by his side in his darkest moments.

Beth Kennedy may not know everything about Donovan, but she can’t deny what she feels for him. It’s her love for him that pushes her to do whatever she has to do to help him get justice, including putting herself in a criminal’s crosshairs.

When a tip reveals the killer's location, they travel to California, but then an earthquake of catastrophic proportions separates them. As aftershocks roll the land, Beth and Donovan have to endure dangerous conditions while trying to find their way back to one another. Will they reunite and find the killer, or will they lose everything?

DIGITAL LINKS:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / KOBO / The Wild Rose Press

ALSO AVAILABLE IN PRINT!

Review for Cloaked

Blurb:

Raised by an overly protective wulfkin pack, Daciana leaps at the chance to venture into the human world for her one-year independence ritual. But after someone steals the endangered bear cubs she’s been assigned to protect, she must locate them or lose her job and return home in disgrace. The sexy inspector on the case isn’t making this any easier. He knows nothing of her kind, and wulfkin rules forbid relationships with humans.

Newly divorced Inspector Connell Lonescu trusts no one but himself. He’s convinced relationships are a waste of time and thinks burying himself in work will ease the pain. Yet he’s attracted to the gorgeous and mysterious Daciana, even if there’s something slightly odd about her. Can Connell learn to trust the sexy but secretive woman? 

Cloaked is the prequel to Cloaked in Fur, book 1 in The Wulfkin Legacy Series. Find out how Daciana and Connell fell in love and set in motion the paramount events that forever change their lives and those around them.

My review:

Daciana wants nothing more than to be free to live as she chooses, but she only has a year of freedom from her over-protective wulfkin pack. When two bear cubs are stolen from her place of work, she feels responsible and is determined to find those responsible. The inspector assigned to the case is gorgeous Connell Lonescu. He's a distraction she doesn't need but desperately wants. Will they survive their investigation and get a chance to see if there's more than lust between them?

This is the fantastic prequel novella to Cloaked in Fur. It has all the aspects of what I loved from the novel: lush details, incredible characterization, and heart pounding action. Plus a little dose of steaminess! What I liked best is seeing how Daciana and Connell met. While I adored Daciana before, this tale let us get into Connell's head too. I loved his edgy, noir-ish narration.

You don't need to read this novella first before Cloaked in Fur. In fact, it adds to the tension and depth having read it after. I highly recommend you wrap yourself up in T.F. Walsh's wulfkin world. It's top notch paranormal romance. It left me craving more in the series, and pastries. Custard filled pastries. Yum.

Cloaked is only 0.99c

Grab Your Copy: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Google Play | iTunes

Publisher: Crimson Romance

You can find T.F. Walsh at her site!

A detective with no way out

Musa Publishing is proud to announce the release of Milo James Fowler's most recent science fiction novella Yakuza Territory.

Take a moment to discover what happens when a hardboiled detective story is set in a science fiction world:

A detective with no way out.

A telepath with something to prove...

World-weary detective Charlie Madison has seen more than his share of war. When he stops by the 37th precinct late one night to check on his old friend Sergeant Douglass, the place is as quiet as a morgue. The last thing he expects to find: half a dozen Russian gunmen with a score to settle.

What starts out as a vicious Alamo-style battle soon evolves into something more sinister as Madison's past comes into play. Will his ties to a branch of the Japanese mafia be a help or a hindrance? And who is the strange man in holding? Why are the Russians determined to break him out?

Struggling to survive the night, one private eye must rely on his wits to solve a mystery where he's outnumbered, outgunned, and trapped inside a police station with a soulless killing machine.

Available from Musa Publishing

Add Yakuza Territory to your Goodreads bookshelf

Get to know the man behind the book:

1. When did you start seriously pursuing writing as a career?

I've been writing since I was a kid, but I started submitting my work for publication in the summer of 2009. I'd always thought I would pursue publication at some point—probably after I retired from teaching or turned 40. My first story was published in January 2010, and I've had another 96 accepted for publication since then. I won't turn 40 for a couple more years, and I'm still teaching full-time. Doesn't look like I'll be retiring anytime soon!

2. How did you create the character Charlie Madison?

When I was a kid, I learned to type on an old-school manual typewriter. That's where I learned to write, too. My first novels were messy, full of typos and plot holes. But they were fun. And at age 15, that's what it was all about for me. Private eye Charlie Madison was one of the first characters I created, based on Box 13 and Dixon Hill, and The Double Murder was his big debut. By the end of it, I had over a hundred pages of snappy banter, mob hits, double-crossing dames, car chases, and even some alligators on leashes. It was a horrible parody, and I knew it.
 

Halfway through Write1Sub1 2011, I came up with the first Charlie Madison story I'd written in decades: Girl of Great Price. It wasn't anything like his original case, but he was the same quick-witted, intrepid detective I'd known before. I transplanted him into a more serious and gritty "future noir" sci-fi setting, and once I'd envisioned that world, I knew I'd be back. Immaterial Evidence soon followed, and Yakuza Territory will be available from Musa Publishing on November 7th.

3. Are you working on more Charlie Madison stories?

I'm outlining the follow-up to Yakuza Territory, and it's going to be full of assassinations, kidnappings, killer robots, and maybe even a mad scientist. The working title is The Gifted Ones, and it follows the origins of the mysterious suprahumans who have appeared in all three Charlie Madison detective stories so far.

Author Bio:

Milo James Fowler is a teacher by day and a speculative fictioneer by night. When he's not grading papers, he's imagining what the world might be like in a dozen alternate realities. He is an active SFWA member, and his work has appeared in more than 90 publications, including AE SciFi, Cosmos, Daily Science Fiction, Nature, Shimmer, and the Wastelands 2 anthology.

Visit www.milojamesfowler.com and join The Crew for updates about new releases as well as exclusive promotions.

An Interview with Crime Writer Yolanda Renee

I'm excited to have the wonderful Yolanda Renee here today. She's the author of MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE, a fantastic tale of crime. Her next book in the series, MEMORIES OF MURDER comes out in a few weeks, and you can win an e-copy! Continue reading to find out how.

1. Your newest book, MEMORIES OF MURDER will be released in just over a week on October 4th. In three sentences or less, get us hooked!

World damnation is a psychotic man’s goal, but two obstacles stand in his way: greed and a dedicated detective.

2. How would you commit the perfect murder?

Believe it or not I've thought about this, probably too much, oh dear, did I just say that as if I've been planning to kill someone. NO! I'm not, but I have thought about it, because I write it. I own books on it, and I've Goggled the hell out of it, so I'll be the first suspect if anyone one close to me dies.

However, if all that weren't the case – I'd most likely choose the typical female weapon – poison. Poison is less messy, if you choose the right one. And I'd try to do it so that the individual dies with the help of poison but during an accident and hopefully forgo the autopsy. I'd also make the poison atypical, so if there is an autopsy the poison won't be easily found. Did I mention I have a Book of Poisons?

3. What three words best describe your protagonist, Detective Steven Quaid?

Passionate, honorable, determined.

4. Are there any real or fictional people who inspired Steven Quaid?

Of all the characters I've created Steven Quaid was an enigma – I had no idea where he came from and just recently figured it out. My first movie star crush was for Steve McQueen when I was a young girl – he had the most beautiful blue eyes, loved motorcycles and fast cars, and was just so cool. Detective Steven Quaid, also has blue eyes, owns a motorcycle and is damn cool. Although, Quaid looks nothing like McQueen, the essence of the real man (or the actor) is there!

5. Why crime stories?

I've always loved murder mysteries along with the great romances so it was a natural progression. Also, I'm very analytical and like to understand the why of things, especially murder.
 
6. What is the most interesting thing you've learned while researching for your books?

In Memories of Murder, I researched Satanism, and found a plethora of information on cults, believers and their temples. I was amazed by the religion, not to mention the mythology surrounding Lucifer and Lilith. Did you know there are over 40 names for the Devil?

Although the most shocking thing I discovered were the number of people named Lucifer. But then again, Lilith is a popular name too. My own grandmother was named Lilly. It is just a name, right?

I didn't want to insult anyone, or their beliefs, so I created my own Satanic religion based on my characters beliefs in a book I called Dominion, it's referenced in my book as a book that Lucifer, the antagonist, has written. Dominion details his beliefs, ceremonies, and prayers. I created a calendar of Blood Sabbaths, rituals and ceremonies, a full wedding ceremony, and the Summons Prayer.

7. Writing crime, you have characters that lie. Are you a good liar?

I'd like to think so, but my husband says I'm not. He's wrong. See how good I am, he believes he's right!
 
8. What's the biggest challenge to writing about murder?

The biggest challenge is creating empathy, while making the act realistic, without being too graphic.

9. What was your favorite childhood game? Your favorite game now?

I was always very competitive, and as a child loved playing cards, and board games, especially Monopoly. We didn't have video games and watching TV was for the adults except Saturday mornings. We would explore the universe pretending the tree was our spaceship, or fight in the old west with the garage serving as Tombstone. Oh dear, there I go aging myself again.

Today, I'm unbeatable at Monopoly, but my husband is the better card player, he counts cards, the cheater!

10. People always describe a writer's style as a flavor. If your books were a flavor, what would they taste like?

My books would be the flavor of dark chocolate, sensual and sweet without being excessive, and sinful yet good for you!

Thanks Christine, for the opportunity to discuss my newest release.

It was a pleasure to chat with you, Yolanda. I can't wait to read your new book!

MEMORIES OF MURDER blurb:
Decades ago, the seeds were planted …

Today, dark, fathomless eyes rake the image before him. One final task and the transformation is complete. Steady fingers screw intricately carved horns on each side of a stiff brow, and a gargoyle suitable for Notre Dame scowls from the smokey mirror in satisfaction.

A jagged smile rips through his smooth, hairless face, and inked, reptilian scales caress his naked body.

A laugh of hideous resonance emanates from his gut as the demons of hell welcome Lucifer into their fold.

In a dungeon-like chamber, his Lilith awaits. The kidnapped daughter of a nun, groomed to fit the final piece in the complex puzzle for world domination. Will Lucifer marry his bride, on the summer solstice?

Only two things stand in his way ...

His greed ...

And ...

Detective Steven Quaid.

An adventurous spirit took Yolanda Renee to Alaska where she hiked the Brooks Range, traveled from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, and learned to sleep under the midnight sun.

She claims her vivid imagination as a blessing, a habit, a hobby, a calling and sometimes a curse.

She now resides in Central Pennsylvania with her husband, two sons, and Boston terrier, Patches.

You can stalk Yolanda at these places: Blog * Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest 

You can enter to win a copy of MURDER, MADNESS & LOVE on Yolanda's blog, but I'm also giving away an e-copy of MEMORIES OF MURDER to one random commenter! You have until the end of the week to comment. Then I'll pick someone through Random.org. Don't miss out on this chance to win a great crime story.