Monday, March 18, 2024

Meandering on Mondau with Janet Lane Walters #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #reading #writing #Thoughts

Meander 1  - Reading - Finished the three BWL offerings and found the last two interesting. Also learned a bit. Am now reading a Mary Balogh, Once again her characters are interesting and different.

Meander 2 - Thoughts - Mr. Trump gave a disturbing bunch of remarks last evening or the one before. Why is the man so filled with hate? Why is he so hung up on dictators? I can't understand this in a man who has everything, money, wife, homes yet all he feels is hate. Does he hate himself?

Meander 3 - Writing - Have one and a half chapters to go. This urinary tract infection is holding me back because I'm so tired. Hopefully the antibiotics will take this all away,



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Sunday, March 17, 2024

Haunted Dreams is featured today as Sunday's Book #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #romance

 

Rachel Lange is a Cancer and a student in a Master’s program in Child Psychology. Her dreams are haunted by an abusive relationship and by an estrangement from her father, her only close relative.

Zach Majors is an attorney and a Libra. His dreams are haunted by his experience in Afghanistan and by the problems of his young sons, one who has nightmares nearly every night. He has come to Fern Lake to try to help his sons grow and to feel safe.

Between Rachel and Zach, the attraction is instant but they each have problems to overcome before they can think about the future. She has formed a rapport with the angriest of Zach’s sons. Together this pair must find peace within themselves and bring healing to their families.

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Saturday, March 16, 2024

Books by Eileen Charbonneau are featured on Saturday's Blurbs #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Civil War #WWII #Salem trials #Newfoundland #Historical #Romance



 Ursula's Inheritance | Universal Book Links Help You Find Books at Your Favorite Store! (books2read.com) 


In 1864 New York, plantation heiress Ursula Buckley’s inheritance yields secrets of her past, some unknown, even to her. Will her young marriage survive both the civil strife and the anguish embedded in her own heart?


At first, war widow Kitty Charente thinks she’s showing one of her boss’s salesman a day out on the town. But Luke Kayenta is a Navajo code talker, and Nazi Agent Helmut Adler is hunting him in 1942 New York City. 


Seventeen-year-old Newfoundlander Charlotte Jaddore loves nothing more than learning sacred healing arts from the elders of her Mi’kmaq and Beothuk grandmothers. But the year is 1692 and her American cousins in Salem, Massachusetts have been accused of witchcraft and need her help. 



 

Friday, March 15, 2024

Books by Karla Stover are featured on Saturday's Blurbs #BWLAuthor #Parlor Girls #Feather for a Fan #Wicked Tacoma

 

From PARLOR GIRLS: available through BWL Publishing and Amazon.

“As madam of Chicago’s most exclusive brothel, it wasn’t often that Minna felt at a disadvantage but she did sitting in Madam Julie’s Shanghai Club. “I have a client who wants to be entertained by one of your girls,” she said.

“And that girl is?”

“Suzy Poon Tang.”

Madam Julie smiled and nodded. “Suzy is very popular and brings in a lot of business.”

“Mr. Smith, as he calls himself, is only in town for a short time and he’s become comfortable at the Everleigh Club, plus, he likes our food. Our arrangement would be temporary and we will, of course, compensate you.”

The Madam rang a small bell and asked that Suzy join them.

Suzy was in her mid-twenties, about five-foot two and 110 pounds. Her thick, black hair was cut short and parted in the middle. She had dimpled cheeks and, other than lipstick, wore very little makeup. Her small firm breasts and slightly rounded buttocks created a perfect hourglass figure. She smiled showing perfect white teeth. Suzy had a reputation among both men and women.

Minna sent word to Mr. Smith, the New York millionaire and offered use of the Japanese Parlor. The next day they were gone.

“How did Suzy and Mr. Smith make out,” Minna was asked at breakfast the next day.

“Apparently better than we anticipated,” Ada Said. “They eloped.

 

From A Feather For a Fan available through Five Star Publishing and Amazon

“The store’s front door opened and a short, balding man carrying a medical bag came in. Before he could say a word, Mr. Money hailed him. “Doc, you gotta do something about this here tooth. I’m in a pain even whiskey can’t cure.”

“Well, that is bad, then, isn’t it?” said the doctor with a twinkle in his eye. He put his medical bag on the counter, opened it, and took something out. “I’m going to get right to work and I’ll have that tooth out quick as you can say John Jacob Jingle Heimer Schmidt.”

Mr. Money eyed the shiny object. “What’s that, Doc?”

“It’s a dental key. Now, stay where you are and open wide so I can see what miscreant molar is causing you pain.” After a few “ums” and “I sees,” the doctor tapped a tooth. Mr. Money gave a howl and sat bolt upright.

“Holy crawdad, Doc, that hurt,” he said and tears poured down his cheek.

“I imagine it does. That’s as rotten a gnasher as I’ve ever seen. But I’ll have it out lickety split.”

“Well, now, mebbe it ain’t so bad after all.”

“Nonsense, man, the tooth’s gotta come out. It’s probably septic already.” He held up a peculiar looking instrument. “It’s mostly for lockjaw patients, holds their mouth open so I can get some food down ‘em, but I use it for extractions, too.” With practiced hands, the doctor pinched Mr. Money’s nose shut and grabbed is chin. Unable to breath, Mr. Money had to open wide, where upon, Dr. Spinning shoved the mouth gag in place. Then he straddled his patient’s chest and applied the forceps. “Did this very same procedure last week using a bullet mold.”

“Oh, dear,” said Mrs. Money. “I’ll get some sal volatile.”

“He won’t like this next part any better.” The doctor retrieved his medical bag, took out a small glass tube and opened a jar. He fished around and then held up something slimy. “It’s a Dalmatian bloodsucker. Best there is. Now, look here, I’m going to put the little guy in this tube.” He handed Mrs. Money the tube. “You just hold it right there on the gums where they’re all red and nasty looking and the leech will eat all that bad tissue away.” The doctor wiped off his tools, put them back in his bag, and pushed open the door. “I’ll be back and check on the job. Hold on as best as you can to the tube, leeches love to make a run for it right down the throat”

Wicked Tacoma

From Wicked Tacoma available through The History Press and Amazon

“He was an avid reader who liked to live among scholarly people; he preferred peace and quiet, art and good companions; he owned several volumes of rare books, visited used bookstore in the cities he traveled through; collected rare coins and corresponded with other numismatics; he liked golf, nightclubbing and dancing; and in his book, Persons in Hiding, J. Edgar Hoover called him, “the shrewdest, most resourceful intelligent and dangerous in existence.”

“Send me to Alcatraz; all my friends are there.” Ed Bentz

 

Eileen Charbonneau is visiting and talking about her latest release with Jude Pittnam #Canadian #mystery #historical #Newfoundland

 


1. Tell me about your latest release or the book you wish to feature? Genre?


Spectral Evidence is book 6 in the Canadian Mysteries Series, which each contain a mystery set in a Canadian province. Ours (co-author is Jude Pittman) was Newfoundland. Spectral Evidence is set in the years 1692-3. It is YA-appropriate.  

 

2. Where did the idea arise?

 

Jude and I brainstormed different time periods, historical events and local cultures. We hit on the intriguing maritime ties between Newfoundland and Massachsetts Bay Colony in the 1690s. I love the town of Salem and visit often. We also found a rich heritage of nature-based spirituality...outlawed with devestaing results in Salem, but more tollerated in Newfoundland.  We started to "what-if" our plot from there. 

 

3. How much research was involved? Did you stay on point or be distracted by wanting to look at just one more thing?

 

Yikes, did we live in the fascinating research for this one! Thankfully, the more we researched the more ties we found as we explored the Salem witchcraft trial documents, the colony of Avalon, its flora and fauna, native cultures and centuries of codfishing trade by many nations. On top of that it was a time of conflict as King William's War was in full swing. Our Salem-accused of witchcraft couple were real-life Philip and Mary English. They were merchants. Philip was a French-speaking outsider from the island of Jersey. We gave him a fictional cousin who is a ship captain named Martin Jaddore, based on St. John's, then a small community on the Avalon Peninsular of Newfoundland. Martin is the widower father of Charlotte, our 17 year-old heroine, whose mother came out of the native Beothuk and Mi'kmaq communities, both rich in spirituality and healing women. Father and daughter come to Salem to bring 3 of the English children up to their home and away from the maddness infectiing Salem.  But a merchant is soon murdered, and the game is afoot! Will spectral evidence be seen as a factor in the crime as it has been with heart-rending results in Salem?

 

4. How long did you take to write the book?

 

About 6 months. Book deadlines are good for achieving daily word counts! We had a beautiful cover when we barely had a plot, so I was happy to incorporate the heroine's lovely grey dress into our story!

 

5. Now a bit about you. How long have you been writing? What is your Sun Sign?

 

I have been writing almost all of my adult life and discovered the great pleasures of novel-writing when a young mom living in the storytelling South-- Atlanta, Georgia. I am a determined and fiery Aries, with just enough Year of the Rabbit loyalty and compassion to keep me from being completely insufferable.

 

6. Do you write in a number of genres of stick to one?

 

I enjoy writing historical novels for both adults and young readers. Spectral Evidence was the first time I've delved back in time to the 17th century---they didn't even call puffins puffins back then--the were "sea parrots!" And the  caribou rules the islands as the famous Canadian elk were not introduced to Newfoundland until many years later. Writing in different time periods feels like time traveling to me. But I have written contemporary mysteries, too.

 

7. Where on the internet can you be found?

 I enjoy hearing from readers, and treasure them. 
facebook: Eileen Charbonneau Auth

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Melodic Dreams is featured today on Thursday's Opening Scene #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Romance #music composer #occupational therapy

 Chapter 1

 

To the sounds of her nephew banging notes on a xylophone, Maria emptied the last box of kitchenware she’d found at the thrift shop less than a block from the apartment complex. She paused and laughed. She knew that song, the theme from Jeopardy, her mother’s favorite program.

She drew a deep breath. So much to do to make this one bedroom apartment into a home for her four year old nephew. Beds to make, clothes to unpack. She needed to buy curtains to cover the blinds and add color to the ecru walls. She’d been fortunate that the woman from the Human Resources Department at Fern Lake General had found this place.

Last night, she and Jamie had slept on the green carpet in the living room pretending to be camping. This morning the furniture and other purchases from the thrift shop had been delivered.

Jamie finished his rendition with a sweep of the hammer over the keys. She leaned against the counter and loaded their bowls from lunch into the dishwasher.

Maria drew a deep breath. Inside, she quivered with tension she refused to allow to show. She must succeed.

Enough dawdling. There was a man she needed to see. Her gut clenched.

“Jamie, put your toys away. We’re going to see your father.” And pray the man agrees to pay for Jamie’s pre-school while she worked. Two weeks from today, she started at the local hospital as an occupational therapist.

“Will he like me?” Jamie asked.

She hated the worry in the boy’s voice and in his brilliant green eyes. She ruffled his dark curls. “What’s not to like?”

“He never came to see me.”

Maria sucked in a breath. She could have tried to locate the man years ago, but her mother had been adamantly opposed. “He didn’t know about you. Nana didn’t know his last name.” Maria brushed hair from her face. They could have learned. She couldn’t tell Jamie about his grandmother’s anger. Guilt curled in her thoughts.

Jamie looked up. “How did you know?”

“When we were packing to sell Nana’s house, I found some papers in a suitcase your mama left. I saw his name and looked for him.”

Jamie nodded. “Uncle Carlo said my mama runned away ‘cause my dad was mean.” His eyes widened.

She put her fingers on his lips. “What does Uncle Carlo know?”

“Just TV and beer.”

Maria popped toys in her huge bag and walked to the door. They rode the elevator to the semi-enclosed parking area and her battered ten year old blue sedan. She fastened Jamie into his booster seat.

Twenty minutes later with only one wrong turn, she pulled into the U-shaped driveway leading to a huge house at the top of the rise. She rehearsed what she planned to say when she saw Jamie’s father. She swallowed against a lump in her throat. How would he react when she handed him the folder with her reasons for being in Fern Lake?

“Is that the house?” Jamie pointed up the hill. “Looks like a castle.”

She agreed. The gray stone building rose three stories above the ground. Shrubbery lined both sides of the driveway. She turned in her seat and winked at her nephew. “Maybe we’ll meet a prince.” Or an ogre, she added silently.

“Don’t want to stay here. Want to live with you.”

His voice was shrill with fear that she needed to change. She touched his hand. “You will. I’m your guardian.” Except for the widened emerald green eyes, he looked like his mother without her selfish nature. “We need your dad’s help to pay for your pre-school while I work.”

Maria hoped for more than financial aid but she couldn’t tell Jamie she wanted his father in his life. Jamie needed a man, someone more honorable than her brother. She wanted Jay Lockley to spend time with his son. She’d always thought not looking for him had been unfair but she’d been unable to fight her mother and start a search in the days after the accident. Then, college had absorbed her time. Would the man understand?

Maria sighed. If Jay Lockley spent time with Jamie, she could focus on her new career. Was she selfish to want time for herself? Since her sister’s death, Jamie had been her responsibility. And her joy. Though her mother had watched her grandson while Maria attended college and worked, most of her spare time had been spent with the child.

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Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Seppal - Moon Rising #MFRWHooks #romance #swords #sorcery #romantasy

 






Join the authors at #MFRWHooks for some great excerpts. Mine is found at https://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com and is from Seppal a romantasy

BLURB:

In Seppal, the prophecy has been heard and the Three and Three are awaited.

Ranal’s dead mam once told him one day he would learn why he had been born. He has found two companions, boys like himself who have no home and become seaweed gatherers like he has been. His two friends are developing strange skill. He can see no change in himself but he desires a sword. Then they will be three, Seer, Healer and Warrior

Amera returns to the clan after spending the summer with the king windsteed stallion and six yearlings. What she finds is the slaughtered herd and also the clan. Only one person remains barely alive and tells her Bethera, her cousin and almost sister has been taken by the priestesses and their guards. Not knowing what to do, Amera follows the king stallion to a sheltered glen and a huge cave complex. When the stallion calls her, she follows him to the priestesses’ keep and manages to rescue her cousin and another young girl. During the next few years, her friends develop talents and are becoming the Seer and the Healer. Amera wants to become the warrior but she can’t imagine how she can gain a sword.

Now the Three and Three must join to bring justice, healing, order and change to Seppal.


EXCERPT:

     Silence brought Ranal awake. Last night when he’d curled in his blankets for sleep, the wind and rain of the first autumn storm had begun. Slowly, he uncurled from his cocoon and walked to the opening leading to the hilltop above the hidden underground shelter. Before leaving his home, he grabbed three burlap sacks,

Alone. Eerie silence surrounded him. His mother had died during the last days of summer. Her body had been sealed behind a wall of rocks he had carefully fitted together. A small cell-like room had become her final resting place.

An ache of sadness caused his heart to flitter. For a moment, loneliness filled his thoughts. After drawing several deep breaths, he lifted the sacks. Mam had been his only companion for the thirteen years of his life. Not long enough but she had taught him how to survive.

He held the sacks over his shoulder and climbed the stone steps to the surface. The flight had been embedded in the sloping wall.

When he emerged, a slice of sunlight pierced the heavy cloud cover. A grove of trees thrust dark shapes that merged with the gloomy atmosphere. He walked to the narrow path leading to the shore. He hugged the wall of rocks promising safety. The other side was a steep drop to the ground. The earth beneath his feet slick from the rains made each step an adventure. When he reached the end, he released a held breath,

Ranal began collecting seaweed and hoped to finish before scavengers from town made their way to the shore. First he separated the strands of blue from the tangled clumps. When he filled a bag, he set his spoils at the foot of the path. Next he collected red strands. He finally filled a bag with green. Before dragging the filled bags up the path, he pressed each one to remove as much water as possible.

When he reached the top of the path he pushed several rocks to cover the opening. He dropped the sacks on the flat rock facing the entrance and hurried down to make himself presentable for his trip to the market. He washed in the fountain pool. Then he dressed in his best clothes. He realized he had grown. The breeches allowed his socks to show and the tunic sleeves bared his wrists.

A smile crossed his face as a memory unfolded. Mam had studied him from her sick bed. “The day will come when you’ll be tall and muscular. You’ll become a handsome man. Don’t grow up too soon.” But he’d had no choice.

He reached for the boots he’d worn days ago and found his toes were cramped. Ranal shrugged and went to the room where heaps of robes and lines of boots were stored. He had no desire to wear one of the black robes that were women’s wear. He left the room to comb his hair and braid the dark strands into a single plait.

Ranal strode up the steps to the plateau. Gray clouds roiled like the waves of the sea. After hoisting the sacks, he walked to the edge of the mesa. Before descending. He recalled Mam’s words. “Never take the same way down or up. Don’t make a path anyone can follow. Someday, you will learn why you were born. You must remain safe until that day comes.”

He scanned the slope and planned his descent. With the bags over his 

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

The Ending of the Love Plot featured at Tuesday's Writer's Tip #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #writing #Plot #Love

 Thenending of the Love plot can be tricky. Think of some of the great love stories that don't have hppy endings. Anna Karenina is one and very much one I remember reading at a young age. I also talked about the ending and thought it wads dumb. My third grade teacher was upset that I read such a book. MY father said Not in his house. I could read anybook on the shelves. I thought the ending was dumb. I was and still am looking for thehappy ending where love rules and wins over all obstacles. Perhaps why I will never write the Great American Novel. So remember while using the love plot though a happy ending is great so can an unhappyone.

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Monday, March 11, 2024

Meandering on Monday with Janet Lane Walters #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor Reading #Writing #Thoughts

 Meander 1 - Reading  -Just finished Eileen Charbonneau and Jude Pittman'sSpectral Evidence and enjoyed it very much. Have finished also Racing with the Moon, a different type of mystery and enjoyed it. Will review later.. Am reading No Time For Hate. Just scratched the surface and will finish in a day or two. Then it will be back to reading older books.

Meander 2 - Thoughts - Politics are really soemthing else these days. That poor woman the Repos had tocounter Biden's Address - which was brilliant. Hers not so much- acutally the reverse of brilliant. Now we know what the Repos think of wemen - Keep them in the kitchen and give them a mostluy eradicated southern drawl and have them whimp, whine and cry but say nothing about what they would do to make this a better place to live. Guess they don't think that's important.

Meander 3 - Writing - On Chapter 14 of Draft two of Keltio. To finish that and then start on what I hope is the final draft.

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Sunday, March 10, 2024

Melodic Dreams is featured today as Sunday's Book #BWLAuthor "MFRWAuthor #romance #occupational therapy #music composer

 

When Maria and a child she says is his arrives on Jay’s doorsteps, he is in the middle of composing a musical. Though the four year old has his eyes, Jay can’t be sure this isn’t a scam.

He believes his dead wife took steps to rid herself of the child. A need for his assistance to help with childcare while she works is Maria’s reason for arriving in Fern Lake. She also believes her nephew should know his father.

Can Jay accept and learn to love his child and deal with the attraction to a woman who physically looks like his dead wife? Can Maria deal with his trust issues and a threat from her own family?

Reviews

Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2015
Janet Lane Walters has done it again. Another sexy read. I always look forward to her books.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2015
Entertaining read!
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Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2015
This story tugged my heartstrings. Part of that is because I identify so closely with the heroine Maria. I've was a single parent once myself and I know how demanding that can be. Maria takes on the same demands to parent her nephew Jamie. He's a lovable four-year-old for sure but I still admire her. Especially when she extends herself even further and tries to unite the boy with his estranged father Jay who misunderstands her intentions entirely. Which is maybe understandable since she's financially distressed and he's wealthy. Meanwhile Maria and Jay are attracted to each other from the start but that only complicates the situation more. Plus Maria injures herself and... Well I'm not going to spoil the story for you. I was rooting for this trio to become a family from the start. Each of them needs the other and they all need to be together. But there are obstacles to overcome. Substantial obstacles. That's what makes this such a compelling read. That and the chemistry between Maria and Jay which is hot and gets hotter still all the way through. I recommend this as Janet Lane Walters' best novel yet.

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