Saturday, December 4, 2021

Nancy Drew for Christmas


Thank you "The Sleuth: The Original Nancy Drew Fanzine" for featuring and reviewing my Nancy Keene Mysteries in a 6 page spread in the November/ December 2016 issue. 

Written as homages to the Nancy Drew books, these five humorous and PG-rated cozy mysteries star teenage sleuth, Nancy Keene, and especially target women baby boomers who grew up reading and loving the series. Gently poking fun at Nancy’s obscure knowledge, perfectionism, and need for control, these books take place in some of my favorite travel destinations.

Here are the titles in the Nancy Keene Mysteries:

The Buried Treasure on Route 66

The Ghost in the Plantation

The Stolen Mask

The Stolen Masterpiece

The Missing Bachelor Farmer


They are available online at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Google Play, Smashwords, and Kobo.

Some of them are also available as paperbacks at Amazon. 

Here are the buy links at your favorite online retailers: 

Amazon: https://amzn.to/343kcWE

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/2PjoPGI

Smashwords: https://bit.ly/2LCXnmy

Google Play: https://bit.ly/2RynyP8

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2RwhN4g


Saturday, November 27, 2021

Small Business Saturday

 



It’s “Small Business Saturday”—a big day for all kinds of indie business people, including those of us who write and sell their books. Sandy and I don’t have a brick-and-mortar bookstore, but our 33 books are available online at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Google Play, Smashwords, and Kobo.

We write in several genres including murder mysteries, cozy mysteries, time travel stories, historical fiction, train stories, romance, and more.

Here’s our Amazon page where you can see the titles and descriptions of our books. After reading any book, posting a 1-5 Star Rating for it or a short review (of a few sentences) at the online store where you purchased it is greatly appreciated.

 https://amzn.to/3nUltwo

 


Sunday, November 7, 2021

Our Trip Aboard Amtrak's Coast Starlight

 

My husband and I just came back from a wonderful trip aboard the Coast Starlight, traveling from LA up to Seattle and back.

 Highlights: viewing the unspoiled California coastlines from our sleeper car bedroom, admiring the fall leaves in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, and being lucky enough to see the snow-capped top of Mount Shasta peeking through the clouds as the train rolled on and we ate a delicious lunch in the diner car. 

 It was our second trip on the Coast Starlight; we traveled to Salinas two years ago and when I came home, I wrote this bittersweet love story about two ex-lovers who unexpectantly meet again aboard the Coast Starlight.  


Love Gets a Second Chance 

Here's where you can purchase it for $2.99. 

Amazon:

https://amzn.to/3CIiBIk

Barnes and Noble: 

https://bit.ly/37EUcVK

Apple: 

https://apple.co/3fVje7N

Smashwords: 

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1098394

Kobo: 

https://bit.ly/3fUUtIU

Google Play:

https://bit.ly/3wsaUDI


Sunday, October 17, 2021

Amtrak's Coast Starlight

 



I'm so excited about traveling aboard the scenic Coast Starlight a week from tomorrow. This Amtrak route on America's west coast has been described as one of the most beautiful train rides in America.

I'll be traveling from Los Angeles to Seattle and look forward to seeing unspoiled views of the California coastline, fall foliage in the forests of Northern California and Oregon, and the splendor of Mount Shasta and Mount Rainer in Washington. 

This is my second trip on the Coast Starlight and I booked a bedroom in one of the sleeper cars. All meals are included in the price. My room has a sofa that converts into a double-size bed, its own private bathroom and shower, a locked door from the inside, and two comfortable seats on each side of a small table that are right next to a large window where I can watch as the countryside roll by.  

In this time of COVID, the privacy of my own room where I don't have to worry about social distancing or wear a mask, as I would if I were traveling business or coach, is especially appreciated.

I write murder mysteries with my husband (under the pen name Louise Hathaway) and one of my cozy mysteries takes place on the Coast Starlight. I began writing this when I last traveled on the train ride.

Here's what it's about:

In this intriguing cozy mystery, two sisters, one a homicide detective, the other an erotic romance writer, travel aboard Amtrak's scenic Coast Starlight from Los Angeles to Seattle when a famous movie star on the train is murdered. Then, to make matters worse, a forest fire in Oregon stops the train dead in its tracks with the killer still onboard. With a cast of characters who seem to have a motive for murder, will two detectives be able to figure out the killer's ingenious plot in time before someone else ends up dead?


Only $1.99 at the following online bookstores: 


Amazon: https://amzn.to/33NmnzD

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/32RJMR7

Apple: https://apple.co/3kDNe85

Smashwords: https://bit.ly/3ckxp35

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3kCJnIj

Google: https://bit.ly/33QCw7o

Also Available in paperback for $5.99 at Amazon: https://amzn.to/2YXJyJk






Wednesday, August 11, 2021

Love Gets a Second Chance

 


Are you a fan of the movie "The Notebook" or the TV series "Last Tango in Halifax"? If so, I hope you'll enjoy this romance that was inspired by both of them.

In this love story, a couple in their late 60s are reunited after being away from each other since high school. In her late 60s, Madeline has been diagnosed with cancer and told that she has only a few months to live.

She takes a scenic long-distance train trip aboard The Coast Starlight, where she once again sees Jay, her first love, and they pick up right where they left off and have a wonderful time in Seattle, where he proposes and gives her a whole new lease on life. How long does she have left to live? 

Readers will be pleasantly surprised.

Here's where you can purchase it for $2.99. 

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3CIiBIk

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/37EUcVK

Apple: https://apple.co/3fVje7N

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1098394

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3fUUtIU

Saturday, June 5, 2021

Train Stories


Do you like to take long-distance train rides? My husband and I are train buffs and have taken The California Zephyr from LA to Denver, the Coast Starlight from LA to Salinas, and the Sunset Limited from LA to New Orleans. It's a great way to see the country and for writers, like we are, it's a wonderful opportunity to have some peace and quiet in order to write without interruption.

We have written 3 novels that take place on trains while we were in our bedrooms aboard Amtrak's sleeper cars. Two are time travel stories and one is a cozy mystery. We hope you'll take a look. They are available at your favorite online bookstores including, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Google Play, Smashwords, and Kobo. I've included the Amazon buy links for each of the three novels. Here are their titles and descriptions:

Travelers in Time Aboard the California Zephyr

Do you like trains? Do you like history? If so, take a look at this time travel tale about modern Amtrak travelers who go back in time to the days when the transcontinental railroad was being built. Our passengers become part of a real-life special excursion train and meet Rutherford B. Hayes, George Pullman, and Robert Todd Lincoln. How will our time travelers cope with their new surroundings? Will they ever come back to the 21st Century? Will they want to come back? Find out and take a trip into history.

https://amzn.to/3jniXex


Travelers in Time: A Search for the Missing

In this time travel tale, two sisters go back to the 1860s to search for their missing parents who had earlier gone on a time travel trip of their own and decided not to return home, much to their daughters' surprise. The sisters have many adventures during their journey and meet several interesting characters along the way.

 There is a lot of history and research that went into this story--not to mention, a lot of heart and soul. The story takes place during the building of the transcontinental railroad and the world of post-Civil War America. Meant to be enjoyed as a standalone story, this book is part of the Travelers in Time series.

https://amzn.to/3o5qqj8


Murder Aboard the Coast Starlight

In this intriguing murder mystery, two sisters, one a homicide detective, the other an erotic romance writer, travel aboard Amtrak's scenic Coast Starlight from Los Angeles to Seattle when a famous movie star on the train is murdered. Then, to make matters worse, a forest fire in Oregon stops the train dead in its tracks with the killer still onboard. With a cast of characters who seem to have a motive for murder, will two detectives be able to figure out the killer's ingenious plot in time before someone else ends up dead?

https://amzn.to/3fUr8yM



Wednesday, March 17, 2021

Happy St. Patrick's Day


 St. Patrick's Day in Savannah, Georgia 

Our cozy mystery, Honeymoon in Savannah: A Detective Santy Mystery, takes place in Savannah, Georgia during the St. Patrick’s Day "Season", as the locals call it.  Before we left for our trip to the beautiful city, my husband and I read that in Savannah, St. Patrick’s festivities go on for days.  It’s almost as big as Boston’s celebration of it. So, here's an excerpt from our book that takes place on St. Patrick's Day when the honeymooners go to see a performance by The Lady Chablis, AKA The Empress of Savannah, famous for her role in the bestseller, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. 

After Detective Santy and her husband Ron got out of bed and dressed, they headed into town to see a performance of the African American comedienne/drag queen, Lady Chablis. It took about twenty minutes to get to downtown and they encountered hordes of St. Patrick’s revelers. They found a parking place about six blocks south of the club and stepped into the craziness. The crowds were even worse than they were the day before.  Drunks were everywhere, and young women screamed as if they were at a frat party. It was semi-controlled chaos. People threw beads down on the crowds from balconies. Many drank beer openly as they walked down the streets.  Firemen and other uniformed people tried to keep things safe.  Police cars zoomed from place to place.  Ron said, “This must be what Mardi Gras is like.”  They jockeyed their way through the hordes of people and arrived at Club One just in time for the 9:00 show.

They told the doorman that they had reserved tickets, and after he checked their names off his list, they walked inside.  The first thing they saw was a crowded dance floor flooded with dry ice smoke and loud Euro-beat music played.

Her husband Ron told her, “Yikes! We’ve reached gay-bar-hell,” as he saw three scantily-clad men dancing on risers. “Is this what we’re in for?” he asked the detective. “I don’t know if I can make it for two hours of this.”

“Oh Ron, open up your mind! What are you afraid of? Think one of them is going to hit on you?”

He smirked back at her, and she grabbed his arm and guided him to another door and stairs that led up to the cabaret level.

When they arrived upstairs, Ron said, “Phew! Bless you, my dear! Good thing someone knows what they’re doing and where they’re going!”

She told him, “I read all about the club before we got here.  I can’t believe the crowds.  I’m glad that it isn’t as crazy up here as it is downstairs!”

The cabaret room was a relatively small space: about 100 feet by 60 feet. The stage was tee-shaped with chairs and tables filling in each side of the tee. The room couldn’t hold much more than maybe a hundred people, tops. The first two rows of seats had small shared tables for the “high rollers” like them who had made reservations. Two reserved seats had their names on sheets of paper taped to the backs of the chairs. Their table was down in front just about dead center.

When Ron saw how close they were to the stage, he said, “Uh-oh.  I hope she doesn’t pick us out of the crowd to make fun of.”

Clarissa told him, “This should be interesting.  You’re sitting right next to the stripper pole.”

He answered back, “Oh, just great!  I’m definitely toast!”

A spotlight in the rear illuminated the entire width and depth of the stage. Ron went to the small bar and ordered two glasses of wine for them.  When he was returning, the lights dimmed. Here we go, he told himself.

The first act was The Lady and three others in the revue. The curtain parted, and they began lip-synching I Will Survive in all their drag glory.

Clarissa said, “There she is, The Lady. Oh my god. There’s the friggin’ Lady Chablis.”

Each singer took turns lip-synching and moving around the audience. People were up at the stage almost immediately offering one-dollar-bill tips.

Ron told himself, we don’t have to do that, but then felt a bit guilty because the emcee had announced before the show that the ladies were playing for tips.  After a few of the singers received tips from everyone else, the detective and Ron sheepishly got out all their spare bills. Luckily, they had quite a few ones on them. Soon, they were playing right along with everyone else. The show continued with several solo performances, including The Lady herself. About halfway through, Chablis came out and did her “standup.” She took her microphone and said to the crowd, “Hey, bitch!”

“Hey, bitch!” the crowd yelled back at her.  She moved amongst the audience looking for victims. Fortunately, they were spared. There was too many other low hanging fruit in the crowd for her to lampoon.

A gay couple from Australia kept her busy for most of the night. A woman asked The Lady to retrieve tips from her bra. Chablis objected and told the woman, “What do ya think you’re doing, girl?!  I ain’t no lesbian!”

Several fawning young men adorned her with some big tips. Towards the end of the show, a good-looking black man who was about thirty asked his friends to get a picture of him tipping The Lady while she sang. He stood at the edge of the stage in front of Clarissa and Ron and waved the cash teasingly at The Lady. He appeared to be wishing to prolong the moment. The Lady one-upped him and leaped into his arms. For a short while, they embraced before he deposited her back on the stage on her butt. Her pearl necklace flew off across the stage. They both seemed taken by the moment. The young man almost rose to the stage for a final dance but pulled back at the last moment.

Singing Elton John’s “Your Song,” the Lady signed off for the night, but not before she walked over to Ron and planted a big red kiss on his cheek during her tip collection. They thought it was hilarious.

The performance was only an hour and they were left with a feeling that they wanted more.  They were ready for two hours and this was a surprise. “Oh well,” Clarissa said.  “We did get to see one more person besides Martha from the Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil cast and I’m happy for that.”

They wandered out into the Savannah night and found that the revelers were still at it. There was the same amount of craziness, only everyone was drunker than before. Back at the hotel, they got a bottle of wine from the Marriott market and retired to their room to indulge themselves in two hours of post-show talk and drink.  Ron said to her, “I really think The Lady is a good judge of who’s who in the audience. She knows who she can mess with and who she should stay away from. Pretty cool.”

His wife agreed and asked, “Are you ever going to wash her lips off your face?”

He laughed at himself.  “Listen to us, being Lady Chablis-groupies.”

“Yeah!  We are a bit star-struck.  Too funny.  What a great way to end a great day!” she told him, snuggled next to him in the spoon position, and drifted off to sleep.

###

Would you like to read more about Savannah and the murder of a famous Savannah chef, who just happens to be Detective Santy's cousin?  If so, check out "Honeymoon in Savannah: A Detective Santy Mystery" 

Our book is available at Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble, Google Play, Kobo, Smashwords, and Scribd


Here's the link to purchase:

http://books2read.com/georgia