First Reads, Yo!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Author's Note
New Releases (That I'm Excited About)!
Two Writers You Should Read
Events
It's Contest Time!
Other Writing
First Reads, Yo!
Happy New Year, everybody!
Look, I'm here to help you with your resolutions. Together, we can achieve your goals.
Unless those goals involve losing weight or finding a new job or becoming a better person. I have absolutely no idea how to do any of those things.
But if you made a goal to read more crime fiction this year, then I'm your boy! And you can start right now, because my new thriller, No Home for Killers, is an Amazon First Reads pick for January!
What does that mean, besides the fact that I can only help you with this one, hyper-specific goal? It means that, if you're a member of Amazon Prime, you can download No Home for Killers for free all through January! And even if you're not, you can purchase the book for a very low, reduced price. The print and audio versions will be available February 1st, but you can give your Kindle some vigilante/family-conflicted goodness now. Just click HERE to order your copy.
You can learn more by watching this little promotional cartoon I made. I have a book deadline and I keep making these cartoons. Way to prioritize, me. (I've been placing them on social media, but figured I'd add them to Youtube for the non-social shorties):
I hope you check my book out, and of course I hope you like it. If you do, please take the time to leave a review. Reviews are the lifeblood of publishing and writers wither without constant praise and attention. In fact, even if you don't like it or haven't read it, go ahead and leave a positive review. Is it right? No. But does it feel good to break the rules? You're a criminal, girl.
I love you very much.
EA
I had the excitement of scratching off a bucket list item last week! My short story, "American Lovers," was published in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine! EQMM is widely considered one of the best crime fiction publications of all time, so this was a huge honor. "American Lovers" is the story of a historian who discovers his wife is having an affair with one of his assistants. Hilarious hijinks ensue. I mean, murder.
In 1997, Eve Foster’s daughter, Kelsey, runs away to New Mexico and vanishes without a trace. Eve is convinced that she’s the victim of a serial killer who’s been hunting women in the region—but Kelsey’s body is never found.
Years later, Eve dies, leaving everything to her adopted twin daughters. The majority of the wealthy estate in Vermont goes to Lisa, the “good daughter,” while Connie inherits only a small stipend and a property in New Mexico. Connie, often the target of Eve's cruelty, suspects this was another of her mother's vindictive games.
Connie arrives in New Mexico to find a small, dilapidated red house in the desert, and the home’s mysterious caretaker, Jet Montgomery, living in a shack on the property. She learns there's been a string of women murdered in the area—murders that no one will talk about.
Before Connie can get to the truth, her mother’s sadistic mind games come creeping back from the grave—and now the danger becomes all too real. With a serial killer on the loose and a trove of deadly secrets coming to the surface, Connie is in a desperate race to save herself and what little is left of her shattered family.
Public defender Julia Geary’s star is rising, and now she’s got her first murder case defending local denizen Ray Belmar in the death of a homeless man. But Julia’s professional and personal challenges are mounting. First, she’s assigned an intern whose arrogance is insufferable. Then, her widowed mother-in-law, whose home Julia and her son Calvin share, announces her plans to re-marry, meaning they’ll have to find a new place to live. And to top things off, Julia’s boss removes her from the case, saying that she’s lost perspective, replacing her with an attorney who advises Ray to plead guilty.
Julia can’t shake the suspicion that the murder, and the subsequent killing of a homeless woman, is linked to the death of a state legislator who had been crusading for political reform. With the help of Duck Creek’s homeless community and her old friend, Sheriff’s Deputy Wayne Peterson, she launches her investigation—but then the anonymous threats start pouring in.
Just as Julia begins to uncover the ways the system is shockingly stacked against those on the fringes of society, she makes an even more damning discovery. Someone close to her is harboring a dark secret they are desperate to protect—even if that means silencing Julia once and for all.
The year is 1975. Danny Jacobs is an ambitious, young American journalist who's just arrived in Bombay for a new assignment. He's soon caught up in the chaos of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's domestic "Emergency."
Willy Smets is Danny's enigmatic expat neighbor. He's a charming man, but with suspicious connections. As a monsoon drenches Bombay, Danny falls hard for Sushmita, Smets's beguiling and clever lover—and the infatuation is mutual.
"The Emergency," a virtual coup by the prime minister, is only the first twist in the high-stakes drama of Danny's new life in India. The assassination of a police officer by a Marxist extremist, as well as Danny's obsession with the inscrutable Sushmita, conspire to put his career—and life—in jeopardy. And, of course, the temptations of Willy Smets's seductive personality sit squarely at the heart of the matter.
Democracy is fragile and the lines of loyalty and betrayal often cross and cannot be untangled.
Transit, J.D. Smith's debut fiction collection, ranges from Central Mexico to the Asian side of Istanbul, with stops in Houston, Chicago and Washington, DC. Working in flash fiction, the traditional short story and a series of linked stories, Smith takes on race, ethnic identity, class and disability, along with the power dynamics of how they play out in everyday life. He also skewers the pretensions of those who think they are-somehow-above the fray.
Heartbreak leads to a drunken foray into vigilante justice, and the stresses that underlie achievement in high school come to light. A brick from a nineteenth-century city hall in Illinois finds a new place in twenty-first century Texas. Commerce shapes character, but not without resistance. Smith's fictional world has more than a little in common with other parts of the world-what some continue to call the "real world," with all its sham and venality. Decisions made in a moment, with incomplete information and uncertain judgment, have permanent consequences. The sins of the fathers are indeed visited upon both sons and daughters.
When Denton’s most loved TV presenter returns home to find his wife dead at the dining table, it shatters the close-knit community. Beautiful and absolutely besotted with each other, Beau and Claudia Collins were idolized for being the perfect couple. But the devastating scene Detective Josie Quinn finds in their remote hideaway has her asking what dark secrets lurk beneath the surface of this seemingly flawless marriage?
Beau is grief-stricken by the loss of his kind-hearted wife who gave so much to others as a therapist, but Josie needs to know the significance of the small wooden puzzle box found clutched in Claudia’s hand. A prop in a popular game Beau played with his viewers to test the strength of their relationships, is it a twisted calling card, or a challenge from the killer? The broken body of one of Beau and Claudia’s assistants is found the next day, a matching little box left in the dirt beside her. It’s clear that if Beau doesn’t start telling the truth about the flaws in his marriage, those dearest to him will die.
Caught in a cat and mouse chase with disturbing revelations and a mounting body count at every turn, Josie and her team work night and day to keep Beau’s loved ones safe. What kind of calculating monster would do this? A faded newspaper article about a tragic accident is the break Josie desperately needs. But she may already be too late, an innocent child is in danger…
The Florida Panhandle Barback Games are coming up and Chloe’s been drafted to represent the Sea Glass Saloon—competing in various obstacle-course events that conclude with rolling an empty keg up a hill. The rivalries are so fierce that some of the participating bars even stoop to bringing in ringers.
Meanwhile, Chloe’s friend Ann—a descendant of the famed pirate Jean Lafitte—asks her to come along for a boat ride as Ann dives into the Gulf of Mexico. She’s found some old papers that may identify the location of sunken treasure. Instead, she finds a sunken body—of one of the ringers hired for the Barback Games. Now that murder is in the mix, Chloe has to figure out whether one of the competitors went overboard . . .
How have I not had Wendy Tyson in this space before? She's one of my oldest friends in publishing. We were in the same debut class and Wendy has made a significant career with cozies and series that have earned both praise and fans. She's doing something a little different with her newest book, a darker psychological thiller written under the pen name Liv Andersson. I've been a fan of Wendy's for years and she BRINGS IT with Little Red House.
And a writer Wendy Tyson recommends?
Anything by James Ziskin. I first discovered Ziskin's work when we debuted together at ThrillerFest, and I quickly became a fan. Known for his fantastic Ellie Stone mysteries, his latest Bombay Monsoon is an atmospherically rich work of international intrigue featuring Ziskin's trademark smart plotting and compelling, complex characters. I can't wait to see what he does next.
To learn more about these authors, click on the photos above.
Book Launch: No Home for Killers!
Hey! You! Come to my virtual launch event! I'll be in conversation with extraordinary writer Kathleen Barber, and there will be a performance by jazz singer Sara Jones and a custom cocktail demonstration from mixologist Chantal Tseng. Yes, that's right, it'll be just like a Noir at the Bar! And I'm no dummy, Damn straight I'm going to launch my book with the best people in the biz! Come tune in on 1/31! To register and view, visit HERE.
It's contest time! The monthly contest winner wins copies of the books listed in my "Two Writers You Should Read" segment. And the winner is...
jrog_____54@gmail.com
Congrats, and keep your eye out for a separate e-mail from me!
Okay, I didn't do the writing for this, but I was interviewed by the Writers Center magazine! The Writers Center has become a DC institution, and they host a wonderful series of workshops and readings, and it was so nice to discuss writing and books in their pages. It's only in their print issue but, if you're local to the DMV, you should check out the Writers Center
Until next time, much love and happy reading!