Oh I love this new cozy series about twin sisters (a mystery writer and a book seller) who move to Ireland after inheriting a home and a bookshop (wait a minute – that’s my dream come true!!) and end up being involved in solving crime. The plots are so clever and the characters are interesting and fun. I love how the sisters are multi-dimensional with backstories and unique traits. These novels would make a great British mystery series for Brit Box or Acorn TV!
You don’t need to read them in order, but I did. And more are coming – yay!
Thank you for my copy and for having me as part of the tour!
Here’s the scoop:
Irish scones, shamrock shortbread, a local literary festival… and a rather dead author? Join Mercy McCarthy on her next case!
Mercy and Lizzie McCarthy are settling in to the charming seaside village of Shamrock Cove on the west coast of Ireland. Lizzie throws herself into organizing a book festival and mystery writer Mercy even agrees to come out of her bookish hidey-hole to get involved. But then the event’s star author is found dead. James Brandt was killed by a falling bookshelf in his own cottage…
The local detective is not convinced by Mercy’s suspicion of murder but when someone else turns up dead, the police cannot ignore it. There’s just one problem: Mercy and Lizzie’s beloved dog Mr. Poe sniffs out the second body in the storeroom of their own bookstore. And now all the gossips seem determined to pin the murder on Mercy!
Convinced the police are focusing on a red herring in this real-life case, Mercy needs to act fast to clear her name. A meddling mayor, a cheerful chef and a bashful botanist make her suspect list, but it’s not until Mercy discovers a tatty old photograph in the local library archive that she is onto the killer’s trail.
With the police keen to shut her out of the murder investigation, can Mercy play this case by the book, or will she be the next to fall off the shelf…?
A totally gripping and twisty cozy crime novel, perfect for readers who love Agatha Christie, Carlene O’Connor or Faith Martin! This incredibly fast-paced and fun murder mystery will whisk you off to Ireland and won’t let you go until the final page!
Author Bio:
Bestselling author Candace Havens has published more than 25 books. Her novels have received nominations for the RITA’s, Holt Medallion, Write Touch Reader Awards and National Reader’s Choice Awards. She is a Barbara Wilson Award winner. She is the author of the biography Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy and a contributor to several anthologies. She is also one of the nation’s leading entertainment journalists and has interviewed countless celebrities from George Clooney to Chris Pratt. Candace runs a free online writing workshop for more than 2000 writers and teaches comprehensive writing classes. She does film reviews with Hawkeye in the Morning on 96.3 KSCS, and is a former President of the Television Critics Association.
What a fabulous and interesting read! I knew next to nothing about Marguerite “Peggy” Guggenheim, though I know the Guggenheim Museum. This book was a beautiful tribute to a unique and adventurous woman. The prose in this novel is so beautiful. I felt like I was in Peggy Guggenheim’s head and feeling her emotions. Such a tragedy that Rebecca Godfrey has passed and not seen her work come to fruition.
Highly recommended! One of the best books I read this year.
Thank you for my copy to review through Net Galley.
About Peggy
A dazzling, richly imagined novel about Peggy Guggenheim—a story of art, family, love, and becoming oneself—by the award-winning author of Under the Bridge, now a Hulu limited series starring Riley Keough and Lily Gladstone
“Godfrey brilliantly resurrects the avant-garde adventurer Peggy Guggenheim as a feminist icon for our times.”—Jenny Offill, author of Dept. of Speculation
“Magnificent . . . Readers will be won over by Godfrey’s incandescent portrait of a singular woman.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review
Venice, 1958. Peggy Guggenheim, heiress and now legendary art collector, sits in the sun at her white marble palazzo on the Grand Canal. She’s in a reflective mood, thinking back on her thrilling, tragic, nearly impossible journey from her sheltered, old-fashioned family in New York to here: iconoclast and independent woman.
Rebecca Godfrey’s Peggy is a blazingly fresh interpretation of a woman who defies every expectation to become an original. The daughter of two Jewish dynasties, Peggy finds her cloistered life turned upside down at fourteen, when her beloved father perishes on the Titanic. His death prompts Peggy to seek a life of passion and personal freedom and, above all, to believe in the transformative power of art. We follow Peggy as she makes her way through the glamorous but sexist and anti-Semitic art worlds of New York and Europe and meet the numerous men who love her (and her money) while underestimating her intellect, talent, and vision. Along the way, Peggy must balance her loyalty to her family with her need to break free from their narrow, snobbish ways and the unexpected restrictions that come with vast fortune.
Rebecca Godfrey’s final book—completed by her friend, the acclaimed writer Leslie Jamison, following Godfrey’s death in 2022—brings to life the woman who helped make the Guggenheim name synonymous with art and genius.
About the Author
REBECCA GODFREY (1967-2022) was an award-winning novelist and journalist. Her books include The Torn Skirt, finalist for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, and the award-winning true crime story Under the Bridge, a Disney+ limited series starring Riley Keough as Rebecca Godfrey. Godfrey earned her MFA from Sarah Lawrence College and taught writing at Columbia University. Born and raised in Canada, she lived with her husband and daughter in Upstate New York.
I really enjoy this Martha’s Vineyard murder mystery series. The novels are well-crafted and move at a good pace. This one is the second in the series and I appreciate Ms. Ray sending it to me and Author Marketing Experts inviting me to be on the blog tour.
The first book in this series, Widow’s Walk, was a great read as well, and readers should know that these titles can be read as stand-alones. I should add that I really like the female protagonist in these stories, Kyra Gibson. I’m always a fan of mysteries with plucky women at the helm!
Here’s the scoop:
London based lawyer Kyra Gibson returns to Martha’s Vineyard and the beach house she inherited for an extended summer holiday. Still reeling from her father’s brutal murder and the role she and the handsome detective, Tarek Collins played in uncovering it, Kyra is hopeful for some peace and quiet. But when a summer squall reveals the wreckage of the pirate ship, Keres, rich with rumored treasure, all hopes of peace are dashed. Conservationists and treasure hunters descend on the exclusive island to lay claim to the ship. When two of the salvagers are killed, Kyra and Tarek’s friend, pub owner and amateur historian, Gully Gould is arrested for murder.
Determined to prove Gully’s innocence, Kyra, Tarek, and reformed playboy Chase Hawthorn team up to clear their friend’s name. But someone wants the treasure for themselves. And with someone willing to kill for it, there is more than just danger lurking along the island’s caves and coves. There is death.
Author bio:
Raemi A Ray’s travels to Martha’s Vineyard and around the world inspire her stories. She lives outside Boston. When not writing or traveling she earns her keep as the personal assistant to the resident house demons, Otto and DolphLundgren.
My friends at Smith Publicity sent me this sweet children’s picture book. I can see young ones wanted to read this one again and again! It’s the perfect choice for the young dinosaur lover in your life.
Thank you for reaching out and for my copy which I will share with my school library!
Here’s the scoop:
The Day I Had a Dinosaur:
(MamaBear Books; 6/11/2024)
A fun-filled friendship story about our favorite prehistoric reptiles… Dinosaurs! When Luke and his friends have “real-life” dinosaurs for a day, there can only be one outcome, the best-osaurus day ever! Join these kind-hearted friends as they adventure through their day, ensuring that no dinosaur is left out, and everyone has fun working together.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR AND FOUNDER OF MAMABEAR BOOKS
Ashley Wall, M.Ed, is a Texas native, former teacher, and mother of two. Ashley has a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction and a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Education. She is a passionate reader and writer who has been in the education field for over a decade.
Although she no longer calls herself a school teacher, Ashley has a passion for inspiring children through education and fostering big imaginations. Motivated by her own children’s huge imaginations and through playing make believe with them, Ashley created her book series featuring a fun-loving group of friends with larger-than-life adventures. Ashley has written three books, with another on the way, and she hopes her books will inspire children’s love for reading, develop their imaginations, and encourage acts of kindness and friendship.
When she’s not writing, Ashley loves spending time with her family and friends, reading with her two young children, puzzling, watching college football, and traveling.
ABOUT MAMABEAR BOOKS MamaBear Books is a family owned and operated boutique children’s book publishing company, founded by Jeff and Ashley Wall. Their goal is to meet the needs of children’s imaginations, creativity, and literacy through beautifully written and illustrated picture books. They focus on creating engaging stories and loveable characters for families to enjoy for generations.
MamaBear Books is partnering with the Barbara Bush Foundation to help promote literacy in children across Texas and the United States.
My friends at Books Forward sent this to me and I just could not stop reading it. It is a fascinating account of a missionary family in India during British colonial rule with a secondary viewpoint of their Indian servant “Arthur”. It was reminiscent of one of my favorite novels: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (so – big compliment there!!). This novel is a mash up of genres – part historical fiction, part romance, part coming-of-age story, part mystery. It was beautifully written and the characters are unforgettable.
Highly recommended!! Thank you so much for my copy!
Here’s the scoop:
Whisk away to India in this compulsive novel of two unlikely people who discover hidden truths about a high-ranking British official set against the backdrop of colonial rule. Sleeping in the Sun (October 22, 2024, She Writes Press) transports readers to the past where a young American and his Indian servant must face the reality behind a faithful family friend and the consequences of knowing this truth. A must-read for fans of The Poisonwood Bible and The Inheritance of Loss.
While originally a part of her MFA thesis at Pacific University, this explosive novel dives into the author’s own grandfather’s story of living as a Christian missionary in British India. Through her extensive research on the British Raj, the work of her grandfather’s missionary group, the effects of colonization in India, and the rich descriptions of India in the early 20th century, Joanne’s story weaves a cinematic tale of discrimination and privilege showcasing the enduring impact of imperialism and the spark of revolution.
In the last years of the British Raj, an American missionary family stays on in Midnapore, India. Though the Hintons enjoy white privileges, they have never been accepted by British society and instead run a boarding house on the outskirts of town where wayward native Indians come to find relief. Young Gene Hinton can’t get out from under the thumb of his three older brothers, and the only person he can really relate to is Arthur, his family’s Indian servant. But when Uncle Ellis, a high-ranking British judge, suddenly arrives and announces he’ll be staying indefinitely in their humble house, far from his prestigious post in Himalayan foothills, life as Gene knows it is interrupted. While his brothers are excited at the judge’s arrival, he is skeptical as to why this important man is hiding out with them in the backwaters of Bengal.
Also skeptical is Arthur. Then an Indian woman appears on their doorstep—and, after growing close to her, he learns the sinister truth about the judge. Torn between a family that has provided him shelter, work, and purpose his whole life and the escalating outrage of his countrymen, Arthur must decide where his loyalties lie—and the Hintons must decide if they can still call India home.
“Sleeping in the Sun”
Joanne Howard | October 22, 2024 | She Writes Press | Historical Fiction
Paperback | 9781647427986 | $17.99
Joanne Howard is an Asian American writer from California. She holds an MFA in writing from Pacific University. Her poetry received an honorable mention from Stanford University’s 2019 Paul Kalanithi Writing Award. Her fiction has been published in The Catalyst by UC Santa Barbara, The Metaworker Literary Magazine and the Marin Independent Journal and her nonfiction has been published in Another New Calligraphy and The Santa Barbara Independent. She lives in Santa Rosa, CA. Find out more at her website.
Books Forward also share an Interview with Joanna Howard, which I’m including below. These are not my questions, but they are good ones and I find her answers so interesting. I do admit to being fascinated by how authors craft their stories!
An Interview withJoanne Howard
What message do you hope to convey about colonialism and identity through the Hinton family’s story and interactions?
It’s definitely not a favorable portrait of colonialism; even though the main character, Gene, is a young boy with a naive view of the world, I didn’t want it to come off as unserious or easy going on the British Raj. But I also didn’t want history to be front and center to the book, but rather serve as a backdrop for the human story going on between the Hintons, Arthur, and the judge. Even though the novel is influenced by these huge forces of historical events, what I still hope readers take away is the detail of the everyday. When doing my research, my grandfather’s diary was filled with trivial but relatable things like feeling bored over the school break, being bewildered by the girls in his class, or getting jealous when one of his brothers got a new pair of glasses. I wanted to be sure to zoom in on details like that and see how they may actually convey the messages of the novel better than a more straightforward historical account.
How does the Hintons’ family story relate/differ from your own family’s history?
It certainly wasn’t as traumatic as the novel’s plot turns out, but there was still a lot of tension and uneasiness during that time period. And as my grandfather and his brothers moved to America and established families of their own here, the question remained: how do they think of India? Can they call it home? My grandfather was born and raised in India, and his first language was Bengali, but for the rest of his life he never returned to India because he knew it would have changed so much, and the India of his youth no longer existed. So this idea of “is India home?” I think was a question in real life for my grandfather and for the Hintons.
How does your background as an Asian-American writer influence your portrayal of cross-cultural interactions and historical events in your novel
I was able to draw from my own experience as a mixed-race Asian American to inspire this dual reality that the Hintons occupy, and to a lesser extent the space Arthur occupies as a converted Christian Indian who both works for the Hintons but wants to stay connected to his Indian identity. The novel’s setting where a range of racial identities all interact with each other is a huge aspect of the story, and I’m glad I could bring my personal experience to the work.
What are some of the most significant historical and cultural details that you included in the novel to bring the British Raj setting in India to life?
When it comes to bringing the setting to life, it’s all in the little details, from the hand-cranked ceiling fans (punkahs) to the nightly ritual of shaking out the bedding for any critters, all things that I found in our family archives. I also loved including a scene at the Gope Gargh (The Old Gope as the Hintons call it), which is now an ecological park that preserves the ruins of an old fort from the Mahabharata. I visited this park on my trip to India and was inspired by the mythical atmosphere and the way the forest had grown over the ruins of ancient civilization.
What did your research process look like when building the world of Sleeping in the Sun?
I have some amazing family members who have taken on the task of archiving a lot of our first-hand accounts, from autobiographies to diaries to just a treasure trove of well-preserved photographs. So I had a lot of historical material to work off of when it came to bringing the Hinton family to life. For Arthur’s character, I just tried to expose myself to as many literary works that matched his background and the time period, and two books especially inspired his character: The Autobiography of an Unknown Indian by Nirad C. Chaudhuri and Pather Panchali by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay. And lastly, I took a 3-week trip to India in 2018 to visit some of the locations that appear in the novel.
What advice would you give to a writer who is trying to write beyond their own lived experiences? What is important to remember regarding sensitivity in writing?
My view is that art does not require permission, but it does require respect and compassion, especially if it’s a loaded topic like colonialism that may still leave scars on potential readers. I think writers should be able to write whatever they want, and we see plenty of celebrated works out there that don’t align with the author’s lived experience or identity. It becomes problematic when there is a kind of deception on the author’s part where they try to sell themselves as part of that identity, or when there is a disproportionately large amount of publishing dollars allocated to an author from a more privileged background while works by own voices don’t get that same amplification. Historical fiction specifically is tricky because it is often pointed to as a source of truth for what that time period was like, when I don’t think it should be, since it is fiction after all.
But as for what a writer can do: do your research, write with respect, and work with a sensitivity reader who can catch any of your blindspots. Understand that you will never be able to relate 100% to the identity or community you are writing about, and that’s ok. If you have done it well, the work should stand on its own merit, regardless of who the author is.
My friends at Books Forward sent me some information on this new novel, featuring the author’s ancestor who came to American from Norway and was institutionalized in a mental hospital for most of her life.
The Blue Trunk traces the journey of Marit Sletmo as she comes to America and the quest of her great great niece, Rachel, as she seeks to discover Marit’s story, while writing her own.
Here’s the scoop:
When Ann Lowry inherited an ancestor’s blue travel trunk, she had no idea that this artifact was about to take her on a three-year journey of discovery. She was told that the trunk’s previous owner, a great-great aunt, had been institutionalized for insanity. Despite meticulous genealogy research, she was unable to uncover any facts about her and concluded that she must have spent her entire adult life in an asylum. Lowry was inspired to write The Blue Trunk, (Sept. 10, 2024, Koehler Books) to help reclaim her ancestor’s voice and shed light on these all-too-common institutionalizations. Seamlessly weaving historical fiction with contemporary life, Lowry’s tale explores identity, strength, and connection across decades.
Rachel Jackson’s idyllic life takes a dramatic turn when she discovers a woman’s scarf in her politician husband’s computer bag. But in an election year, seeking answers to questions of infidelity is not an option. When her mother gives her a family heirloom, a travel trunk owned by an ancestor, she finds a distraction. As she immerses herself in its contents, she discovers a woman whose life is vastly different from her own. Or is it?
Determined to dispel the notion that her ancestor Marit was insane, Rachel sets out to unveil her unknown story. In the interwoven narratives of these two women, who are bound by blood and a shared struggle, The Blue Trunk is a poignant exploration of identity, love, and unwavering strength.
Here’s a bit about Anne:
Ann’s journey into the realm of storytelling was foretold by a Sedona psychic in 2001. That prophecy became a reality two decades later when Ann discovered a family heirloom, a travel trunk from Norway, which sparked the genesis of her debut novel, “The Blue Trunk.”
A writer her entire life, Ann holds a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Minnesota. Her career has been dedicated to teaching and helping others navigate communication and resolve conflicts. Ann is fascinated by the dynamics of relationships, discord, and the intricacies of the human condition. Ann successfully completed the Loft Literary Center’s Novel Writing Intensive course in 2022.
Alongside her passion for fiction, she has contributed to academic journals, penned thought-provoking opinion pieces, crafted engaging content for online platforms, and provided insights on the federal management of disasters.
When Ann isn’t immersed in the world of writing, she finds solace in the pool or the lake. She cherishes playful moments with her rescue-turned-therapy dog, Loki, and also enjoys reading, golfing, and indulging in the art of cookie and bread baking. Fly fishing is her newest hobby. Most of all, she savors precious time with her family.
Ann and her spouse, Karen, and fur child, Loki, live in Timnath, Colorado, where they enjoy the beauty of nature daily. Learn more about Ann at: www.annlowry.com
I loved this story because not only was it a story within a story, but it had a focus on strong women, as well as resilience and identity. I loved the ending and was so hopeful that the story was largely based in fact. So I asked if I could do a Q&A with Ms. Lowry, and here it is!
BBNB: Hi there! I really enjoyed your novel so much. I’m curious. Is there really a blue trunk? And how did you first get interested in your ancestor’s story?
Yes, there is a blue trunk. It still sits in the foyer of my home in Colorado and has the name “Marit Sletmo” painted on the front. My mother inherited the trunk and while I was aware of the fact that my great-great aunt used it when she immigrated from Norway, I knew nothing of her life until I suggested naming my daughter “Marit.” My mother reacted to my suggestion with horror telling me that Marit was “insane” and that she and her sisters were never allowed to talk about her. Needless to say, I didn’t name my daughter after her. But I thought of her, of course, every time I saw the trunk. A few years ago my mother gave me the trunk and I started researching her on genealogy websites. But my research came to a dead end rather quickly. I concluded, sadly, that Marit likely spent her entire life in an institution. I knew I wanted to reclaim her life by writing a novel about her.
BBNB: As a person who studied psychology in college, your novel reminded me of the truly inhumane ways that people with mental illness were treated. How did you research that part of your novel?
The National Institute of Health and the Library of Congress have good information. But probably the most compelling information for me came from information gleaned from investigative journalist Nelly Bly. In 1887, Bly had herself committed to the “lunatic asylum” on Blackwell’s Island in New York. She spent ten days there and documented the horrific conditions that existed there at that time and noted that some women were sane but had been committed by family members who wanted them out of the way.
BBNB: Is Marit’s journey very similar to your own great aunt’s? Did you have that level of detail of her life or did you have to use some creative license? Did you have to track down clues to find answers like Rachel did in the novel?
Most of the book is fiction because I reached a dead end early with my genealogy research. I had an autograph book that she had signed in Wisconsin (my only clue) and I knew that she had indeed made it to the United States and that she could speak English fluently (given the poem she wrote in the autograph book). But I learned through my research that asylum patients were not always included in the census and that they sometimes weren’t issued death certificates. Census data and death and marriage certificates are ways that you can track ancestors and I couldn’t find anything for her. She essentially became “unknown.” I had originally named the book “The Life I Wished for You” because a lot of it was from my imagination, but my publisher prefered The Blue Trunk (also a fine title). I wanted Marit to have a good life. Her created life isn’t easy in the book, but she is resilient and strong and in order to portray that, I needed her to have some challenges. Ultimately she overcomes her challenges and thrives.
BBNB: I have to ask: did your great aunt have a happy ending like Marit? I do love happy endings…
Unfortunately, I don’t think she did. I suspect she spent her remaining life in an institution. But she has a happy ending in the novel and that was important to me. I love what she became (in the book) and love the fact that if you now search her name, you will find it. She is no longer unknown.
BBNB: Are you working on something new right now (or “write now”)?
I am! I am writing about four women friends who were WASP’s during WWII. The women of the Women’s Air Corp flew planes across the country for the military plane repositioning. They were amazing and brave women. In spite of their service, they weren’t awarded military benefits until President Jimmy Carter awarded veteran’s status in 1977. The book is loosely based upon the life of my real aunt who was a WASP and flew six different planes during her tour of duty. That said, the book is mostly about family drama, romance, and being a strong and resilient woman.
Thank you so much for my copy and for answering my questions.
I loved this story and I look forward to more novels by Ann Lowry!
Okay – this was a twisty, suspenseful thriller that kept me guessing and guessing. Hard to put down, I was happy with the ending! The story toggles between a mother, dealing with her missing daughter who went on a road trip with her best friend, and the road trip as it happened.
So. Many. Secrets. (that’s all I’ll say!)
Book Description:
It’s her first trip away. But she never came home…
The old camping bus pulls up outside my house in the middle of the night. Rain is pounding against the windows, thunder rattling, but I’d recognize the sound of the engine anywhere.
Confusion races through me. My daughter Willow and her best friend must be back early from their trip. I jump up and rush to meet them.
But when I pull open the door, it’s not Willow on the doorstep. It’s a man, holding her keys. Blood roars in my ears as he explains he was hired anonymously to drive it back.
My heart is pounding. I don’t understand. Where is my daughter?
I push past him and run out into the rain, wrenching the door of the bus open. It’s empty. The girls are gone.
And in the back, there are signs of a struggle. Clumps of Willow’s hair on the floor. Their belongings trashed. I stop breathing.
Where are they? What’s happened to my daughter? And churning in my stomach is the most terrifying question of all: What will it take to get her back?
A jaw-dropping, unputdownable psychological thriller packed with twists that will leave you breathless. Perfect for fans of Shari Lapena, Lisa Jewell and Lucy Clarke’s One of the Girls.
Author Bio:
Forensic psychologist by day, author by night, Ellery Kane has been writing professionally and creatively for as long as she can remember. Real life really is stranger than fiction, so Ellery’s writing is often inspired by her day job. Before writing the Rockwell and Decker series with Bookouture, Ellery published the Legacy series for young adult readers and the Doctors of Darkness series of psychological thrillers. She was previously selected as one of ten semi-finalists in the MasterClass James Patterson Co-Author Competition. A Texan at heart, Ellery currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area.
I love this series of cozy mysteries featuring Lady Eleanor Swift. They remind me of Rhys Bowen’s Lady Georgie mysteries or Fliss Chester’s Cressida Fawcett historical cozies. I love the elements of 1920’s fashion and fun. This one was a true “murder on the Nile” locked room mystery. One thing I love about this series, though, is that while I’m working to figure out the clues and who the murderer is, I’m often laughing out loud at Lady Eleanor and her antics.
Thank you for my copy and for having me as part of the tour!
Book Description:
A cruise down the Nile, a camel ride around the pyramids, lunch in the shadow of the Sphinx… And a very dead body!
1924. Lady Eleanor Swift and her butler Clifford are touring the great, ancient sights of Egypt on a much-anticipated extended vacation. But when the pair arrive at the docks in Cairo expecting to board the luxurious paddle steamer advertised in their brochure, they are baffled by the crumbling old cruiser waiting for them. And things only go from bad to worse as death stalks the decks of the SS Cleopatra…
Two days into the trip one of their fellow passengers, Lieutenant Baxter, is found shot dead in his locked cabin. Immediately suspicious and desperate to see justice done, Eleanor discovers a half-finished note addressed to her hidden in Baxter’s travelling trunk. In it he asks her to deliver a vitally important letter to the authorities at their next stop down river: a priceless treasure worthy of a king has been stolen and an innocent man’s life hangs in the balance.
But before the sands of time wipe away all evidence on board, Eleanor must uncover who among the other travellers wanted Baxter dead. Was it the anxious archaeologist who doesn’t have an alibi, the reptile expert with a passion for the murderous Nile crocodile or the art dealer with a devious secret?
With the killer readying to strike again much closer to home, can Eleanor dig up the truth before she’s trapped in a tomb under the pyramids forever?
A gripping and twisty 1920s murder mystery set in Egypt, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss!
Author Bio:
Confident woman at office with laptop computer, mobile phone, and schedule notebook.Gradients, Blending tool, Clipping mask is used.
Verity Bright is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing partnership that has spanned a quarter of a century. Starting out writing high-end travel articles and books, they published everything from self-improvement to humour, before embarking on their first historical mystery. They are the authors of the fabulous Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery series, set in the 1920s.
I’m always happy to take part in Bookouture blog tours! This one was a psychological thriller that had me reading the entire thing in one sitting as I could not put it down and I needed to know what happened! Need I say more? Here’s the scoop:
Clutching my husband’s hand, I screech with delight as the rollercoaster loops through the air. I feel young and free for the first time in years, but as we roll to a stop and I look for our three beloved children in the crowd, I panic. I can only see two. Where is my daughter?
Today was meant to be special. A final fun family day out before five-year-old Summer joins her big siblings at school. But in an instant, we’re plunged into a nightmare. We scream her name as we frantically search the amusement park for a glimpse of her flaming red hair.
When the police ask about strangers, grudges and enemies, I have no answers, just questions. Why did I think I could leave my children alone, even for a minute? What kind of mother am I?
I feel in my heart that Summer is out there somewhere. But as I obsess about finding her, my family is falling apart. My eldest daughter Merritt is withdrawn. My son Gus is angry. And after seventeen years of marriage, my husband has never felt more like a stranger. Where does he go when he says he’s working late? Who is he constantly messaging?
I must fight to hold my family together, but I’m terrified Summer’s disappearance will destroy us all. Will I ever forgive myself for letting her out of my sight? Will I ever hold her tiny hand in mine again?
A completely gripping and emotional page-turner about every parent’s darkest fear. Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Jojo Moyes and Kate Hewitt.
Author Bio:
Jen Craven is the author of emotional and suspenseful women’s fiction, stories where one decision changes everything. A former college instructor, she loves dark campus novels, which led to her contemporary debut, Best Years of Your Life, published in August 2022. Her writing style blends poignancy with drama to create what-would-you-do narratives of the human experience. Aside from fiction, Jen has personal essay bylines in national outlets, including The Washington Post, Huffington Post, Today’s Parent, Scary Mommy and many more. She writes from northwestern Pennsylvania, where she lives with her husband and three children. When not working on her books, she can be found thrift shopping, taking long walks, and beating her kids in backgammon.
“Despite evidence to the contrary, I do not think of myself as a particularly courageous soul. I am not content to bask in my accomplishments nor do I spend much time tooting my own horn. I wasn’t raised that way. I was taught to downplay my successes. To steer clear of vanity. I was raised to be humble. So, as I sit down to write this, I hope you’ll forgive me for saying something completely out of character here, but I feel the need to tell you that 779 kilometers is a long way to walk – and I walked every single step…
…As you travel along with me on my journey, I invite you to take the opportunity to explore the spaces around you. Notice the way the sunshine peaks peek through the leaves of the dogwood tree. Listen to the gentle whirr of the wings of the hummingbird. Smell the salt in the sea air. Use your senses. Pay attention to the things that we are often too busy to see. To hear. To smell. Let them take you inward. See where the path leads you.
Buen Camino.”
So if you know me, you might know that my husband and I hope to walk the Camino when we retire in a few years. It was We Love Memoirs Day on August 31 and Suzanne’s publicist at PR By the Book had reached out about whether I’d like to read/feature her new novel. Since I’m a little obsessed with the Camino, I said yes (even though my tbr is hovering around 200 right now and I’ve just started a new full time job and was named to a selection committee for a major children’s book award so that’s another 90 books to read). What first amazed me about this book is how much Suzanne and I had in common. It actually was almost weird. I grew up in the North Bay Area (Napa) and Suzanne lives in Sonoma County. We both have grown children. She was turning 60 (I’m turning 59 – shhh! don’t tell). We both are Italian and Catholic. We both grew up in similar families (those Suzanne’s seemed like they had more means than mine did). We both went to BC. We both had loving but “complicated” relationships with our mother. We even both have great husbands and kids that we are close to!
So it was probably no surprise that I loved this book so much! Suzanne’s journey is personal, physical, and spiritual and I related to it so much. I loved “walking along” with her and hearing about the people she met and her thoughts and ruminations while on the Camino. I have friends who have walked the Appalachian Trail (it took months – a friend and her 15 children – see the blog “32 Feet Up”) but the Camino can also be a pilgrimage and I find that so compelling. This was a quick read for me, but a memorable one. Thank you for reaching out to me and for my copy so that I could share in Suzanne’s journey.
Here’s some information about the author:
Throughout her 30 year career as a licensed clinical social worker, Suzanne Maggio has helped hundreds of families improve their relationships by encouraging them to open their hearts and share their stories. She now trains the new generation of helpers as a university lecturer in Psychology, Counseling and Social Work. The granddaughter of Italian immigrants, she grew up understanding the importance of family and the pleasures of gathering around a dining room table laden with good company and delicious food. Passionate about travel, cooking and sports, Suzanne is an avid baseball fan. She attended her first New York Mets baseball game at the age of eight with her grandfather, a former sports writer from Italy. In 2016 she won a silver award from Travelers Tales for “Yo Soy,” a story about the search for identity while traveling in Nicaragua. Her work has been published in Sonoma Family Life, an award winning parenting magazine and Junior Baseball Magazine.
She lives in Northern California with her husband, where they raised their two sons and where they now manage three rambunctious dogs and a brood of demanding chickens.
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