On the outskirts of Pittsburgh, PA, there is the Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Oakmont. Every May the owners host a Mystery Festival where they invite from 20 to 30 authors (some new, some established) to attend. Last year we met two new authors who wrote wonderful stories. Sarah Strohmeyer wrote "Bubbles Unbound," a must for Janet Evanovich fans; and Andy Straka wrote "A Witness Above," a murder mystery whose main character is into falconry. I enjoyed both books and was surprised that they were so good since they were both "firsts." These two authors will be at the festival again this year with new books - and Michael Connelly is coming too! (For festival info go to www.mysterylovers.com)
I have just finished reading a delightful set of easy-reading mysteries with a modern, very real female hero and her wonderful male partner! A writer in many genre, AnnieMae Robertson's Georgie Anderson and Michelangelo Deegan Mysteries: Murder Most Graphic; Murder Sets the Scene; and Murder goes to a Reunion are great fun to read, with plenty of chills and heartskips. I highly recommend everyone read these. They are newly released, and are available online at Barnes&Noble. I read Robertson has a new Literary Fiction novel, Love Songs, soon to be released. Check these books out. She's my new favorite. A reviewer wrote, "Robertson really tells it like it is" and she really does!
Iam a military wife living in Germany, our selection of books are very slim. I did find a delightful tea lovers mystery by Laura Childs I think anyone that likes cozies will love her books.
My name is S. L. Cullars, and I am the author of Celia: A Haunting Mystery, a tale of murder, romance and suspense.
Thebestreviews.com says: "Celia is an emotional, edge-of-your-seat paranormal mystery that grips your imagination and your curiosity and draws you inexorably into the story..."
Read an excerpt at www.sharoncullars.net
Below is the press release:
Long buried family secrets, a ghostly face in the mirror, a murderer bent on silencing his victims
Celia, S. L. Cullars’ thrilling debut, is a haunting mystery set in the lush southern beauty of North Carolina.
The novel centers on Cheryl Thompson, a self-made African-American woman in her late 30’s who suddenly finds her stable world turned upside-down. For as long as Cheryl can remember, her family has told her that her aunt Celia died in an automobile accident. But then one rainy day, while visiting the home of her recently deceased grandmother, Cheryl sees a familiar face in her car mirror - it’s Celia’s face, staring back at her.
At first, Cheryl chalks it up to a hallucination, probably stemming from grief over her grandmother and the strain of being newly divorced. However, Cheryl sees Celia again, this time in one of the mirrors in her grandmother’s home. Again, Cheryl reasons it away. All thoughts of insanity finally flee, though, when she happens on a burial while visiting her grandmother’s grave. For some reason, she feels compelled to walk over to the burial and stand there with the mourners, all of whom are white. The looks of curiosity don’t dissuade her, until one man in the group looks at her with hostility and then fear. “Celia,” he calls. Cheryl flees from the site, cold with horror and the knowledge that Celia is actually haunting her.
Thus begins Cheryl’s desperate quest to solve the mystery shrouding Celia’s death. Naive yet determined, Cheryl doesn’t forsee the obstacles that stand in her way, including her other aunt, Gladys, whose reluctance to discuss Celia’s death suggests secrets of her own.
Cheryl’s only ally in her investigation is Arthur Blevins, the handsome attorney who handled her grandmother’s estate. And as they search for the truth behind Celia’s death, Cheryl and Arthur find evidence of murder... and unexpected romance.
Combining lyrical language and genuine surprise, Celia will have readers believing in love, family and justice.
I just finished a thriller by the Swedish author Liza Marklund. called The Bomber.
Journalist Annika Bengtzon, head of the crime desk of an evening newspaper investigates the bombing of an Olympic stadium in Stockholm. Her own research as a reporter is a main part of the book. But also the tensions at work where some people don't agree with her being the head of the crime desk. I thought it was a great book to read, a great mix of thriller and physchology. I'm going to look for more books by Marklund for sure!
That's a good book, Gerdje, isn't it ? Anf I'm not at all bitter or even slightly twisted that Bomber is the only Marklund translated into English, while there's at least four in Dutch (at least according to the poster outside the bookshop we visited in Den Haag)
It is Rik!!! But according to the website I checked for the English title, there's more of hers in English (unless they only translated the title yet **g** ). Maybe you should learn some Swedish or Dutch then ... ;-)
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