I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the BEGIN AGAIN by Marilyn Jeulin Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
K-Pop’s bad boy, Cho Tae-Hyung, has kept a low profile since his last scandal threatened to derail his whole career. Back on tour with his bandmates, the K-pop Second Gen group, Talisman, he’s more than willing to make amends with the fans in Korea and Internationally. However, scandals seem to follow him even when he tries to lead a quiet life. Every new headline about Tae-Hyung threatens to keep him away from the only woman he’s ever loved.
Seok Sarah is ready to move on from Spencer Choi. The British Korean model is everything she wanted on paper. However, Sarah’s heart gravitates toward Tae-Hyung, constantly replaying memories of their erotic entanglements. To escape the aftermath of the disaster she created, Sarah moves to Seoul to open a Tour Guide Start-up with none other than Tae-Hyung.
And to make matters worse, a visit from Spencer threatens to expose her and change how people see her.
Born in the Wild West and raised in a tropical paradise, Marilyn has always thirsted for a good story and adventure. She’s a massive fan of Anne Rice, Stephen King, and GRR Martin. And when she’s not reading, she’s an avid gamer.
She currently lives in Central Florida with the Frenchman and their two children in a house that looks relatively normal until things go bump in the night.
She also writes Young Adult Paranormal stories under the name, Marilyn Almodovar.
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the THE SACRED MEANING OF EVERYDAY WORK by Robert H Tribken Blog Tour hosted
by Rockstar
Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
(An
earlier version was published in 2021as Sacred Rhythm: A Christian Spirituality for Our 21st
Century Work Lives by Robert Tribken.)
It’s time
to engage problems and opportunities with a new sense of purpose.
Work can
sometimes feel like a pressure cooker, with painful levels of stress,
interpersonal conflict, and the risk of burnout. We can lose track of our goals
and maybe even feel as though our work is pointless and going nowhere.
Developing a deeper sense of purpose will help us overcome these problems and
perhaps even flourish in our work lives.
Many of us have a deep, intuitive desire to connect with something deeper than
ourselves; for many, this means a deeper awareness of God and the divine
mystery as we go through the week. And we have a closely related desire to
contribute to the greater good and the well-being of other people through our
work.
These powerful desires can profoundly affect our work lives if we let them
guide us to our deeper purpose.
The Sacred Meaning of Everyday Work will help you find this
new sense of purpose and deal with your challenges and opportunities with
wisdom, strength, and courage.
The author offers practical insights from multiple sources, including the
Bible, contemporary research, and experience in business. He invites you to
consider these in light of your own faith or spirituality and your own work
experience.
This book will help you:
Find deeper purpose and meaning
in your work and see its spiritual connection.
Cultivate the character
strengths like courage, integrity, and compassion you need to lead in a
time of uncertainty.
Overcome work-related problems
like stress, burnout, and interpersonal conflict.
Adopt short spiritual practices
that help you relax, turn your attention toward God, and focus on the work
at hand with new energy.
Understand how your work
contributes to the greater good and the well-being of other people.
See how the values you bring to
your work can encourage the teamwork essential for success.
Learn what the Bible actually
says about your work’s positive value and its contribution to human
flourishing.
Your work is important for yourself, your family, your coworkers, and society
as a whole. Finding its sacred meaning will help you work with a new sense of
purpose.
About Robert H Tribken:
Rob Tribken has been in business for over four decades and is
the founder of several businesses. Along the way, he has had to deal with many
of the most difficult issues people face in their work lives.
Over the years, Tribken became interested in the connection
between faith, spirituality, and work. Several decades spent working in
business combined with several years studying theology and becoming acquainted
with organized Christianity convinced him that there is a great need to find
better ways for churches to minister to people in the vocational aspects of
their lives. He launched the Center for Faith and Enterprise to meet this need
and help people experience a new sense of purpose, fulfillment, and
effectiveness in their work lives.
Tribken’s educational background helps him explore the
connections between faith, spirituality, and work. He earned an MBA from The
Harvard Business School and an MA in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary.
Tribken is pursuing a Doctor of Ministry in Faith, Work, Economics, and
Vocation at Fuller. He has also spent considerable time researching positive
organizational psychology and has incorporated findings in his writings.
Tribken has led retreats, taught classes, led groups engaged
in contemplative practices, and spoken on the subjects of spiritual practices,
connecting faith and work, business as a calling, and the role of business in
ending poverty. In addition to his work with the CFE, he has been involved with
several other non-profit organizations dealing with the connection between
faith and work. In past years, he has served as a volunteer Chairman of the
Board of Partners Worldwide, a board member of the Max DePree Center for
Leadership, and an advisor to entrepreneurs.
Fire and Ice is happy to be hosting a spot
on the MANDATE THIRTEEN by Joseph J. Dowling Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my
post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
In a world with dwindling birth
rates, all young women must submit to compulsory fertility checks at the age of
thirteen. For those able to conceive, a docile existence inside the Birthing
Schools beckons—far worse if they fall into the wrong hands.
When the clandestine Baby Farmers, and their brutal leader Miko, arrive to
snatch his daughter, Michael must make a split-second choice: risk his own
freedom to protect hers… or lose her forever. Mandate Thirteen is
a gritty dystopian thriller for fans of Children of Men, A Handmaid’s
Tale, and The Running Man.
“An action-packed, cross-country adventure between father and daughter as they
dodge authorities, reconnect with old acquaintances, and meet new people (good,
bad, and crazy), forging connections at every stop. I loved every aspect of
their journey and how they learned so much about themselves on the way. This is
dystopian in every way that matters. A worthy addition to any library.” Preye,
Literary Darlings
About Joseph J. Dowling:
Joseph always knew he would write seriously one day. That
moment arrived in 2020, when his thriving hospitality business was temporarily
shuttered. With time on his hands, he quickly fell into an obsession and became
a keen student of the craft.
Since finding the passion, Joseph can’t imagine life without
stories rattling around his head. Eager to make up for lost time, he’s been
fairly prolific, and his short stories have appeared in several anthologies and
literary magazines. Even better, his rejections are getting nicer by the week.
Joseph lives in London with his wife and their Scotty dog.
Mandate: THIRTEEN will be his first published novel. Scroll to the bottom of
the page on his website to sign up for his newsletter!
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF by Drēma Drudge Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out
my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
Briscoe Chambers is not only the
manager of her country music star husband, but a graduate student trying to
complete her Virginia Woolf thesis by fall – the same time her cheating
husband, Michael, has an album due to avoid being in breach of contract. No
problem, right?
Except his co-writer will be Velvet
Wickens, his idol who has been opening shows for him. And who happens to be the
one he’s cheating with. Now Briscoe has been asked by their record label to
ensure the album gets finished on time. To accomplish this, they must all live
together for the duration of the writing of the album.
And by the way, Briscoe knows.
Fans of the writing of both Taylor
Jenkins Reid and Virginia Woolf will enjoy this novel that has plenty of sweet
tea, country music, Virginia Woolf, and heartache.
Reviews:
“Southern-Fried
Woolf is an uproariously funny, deeply insightful, and engagingly
complex novel on many levels.” – Rick Neumayer, author of Journeyman and Hotwalker
“A
celebration of how books and music can help one transcend life’s daily trials,
Southern-Fried Woolf is a quick-witted and erudite novel, drenched in a love of
literature and music.” Self-Publishing Review
“Drema
Drudge has taken a typical novel outline and made it into an even more exciting
and unique story. From Briscoe’s thesis being woven into each chapter to being
a part of every thought and emotion she has, the story captivates the audience
from start to finish.”- Literary Titans
“Drudge
pitches us into Nashville’s vivid world, full of fascinating characters and
expertly depicted settings. You can almost taste the sweet barbecue beans and
hunks of honeyed cornbread.”- Maggie Humm, author of prize-winning
novels Talland House and Radical Woman: GwenJohn
& Rodin
“A
cleverly plotted, character-led novel combining country music and Virginia
Woolf. Now there´s a mix!”- A ‘Wishing Shelf’ Book Review
About Drēma Drudge:
Drēma Drudge
is the award-winning author of the novels Victorine (March 2020) and
Southern-Fried Woolf (January 2023). A graduate of the Naslund-Mann Graduate
School of Writing, she and her husband, musician and writer Barry Drudge, have
two grown children, a new granddog, and live in a picturesque town in Indiana.
They also host the podcast MFA Payday. Learn more about Drēma and get a free
literary fiction short story at: www.dremadrudge.com.
Check out Drēma’s
blog and get recipes from SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF! https://dremadrudge.com/blog/
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the SCAVENGER HUNT by Chad Boudreaux Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out
my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
Blake
Hudson just wants to serve his country well as a lawyer for the United States
Justice Department—but when an unknown threat begins plotting his downfall, he
must find who is setting him up before it costs him his life.
Scavenger
Hunt is a
suspense novel chronicling the plight of Blake Hudson, a Justice Department
lawyer assigned to a clandestine counterterrorist group created to bypass
onerous legal requirements. After the group mysteriously disbands, Hudson
becomes the scapegoat and is transformed from hunter to hunted. As he searches
for answers and attempts to piece the puzzle together, people are following
him, trying to kill him.
Written for
fans of fast-paced thrillers, dry humor, political gamesmanship, and Clue-like
twists and turns, Scavenger Hunt carves out a distinct niche
best described as a hybrid of the Robert Ludlum classics and works by Brad
Meltzer. Blake Hudson’s story addresses issues that have shaped recent
elections and continue to frustrate interest groups and government leaders, while
featuring the inner workings of the U.S. Department of Justice
Building—arguably the most important and misunderstood agency in the federal
government. Author Chad Boudreaux’s unique voice and page-turning storytelling
packs a plot-driven punch that readers won’t be able to put down.
About Chad Boudreaux:
Chad Boudreaux has a broad range of government, legal and
corporate experience. Prior to serving as the Executive Vice President and
Chief Legal Officer of the nation’s largest military shipbuilder, he served as
Deputy Chief of Staff for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, where he
advised Secretary Michael Chertoff on almost all significant matters facing the
newly established Department.
Before working for Homeland Security, Boudreaux served in
several high-ranking positions at the U.S. Justice Department, where he was
hired the night before the September 11, 2001 attacks. During his time at the
Justice Department, Boudreaux focused most of his time on matters relating to
terrorism and homeland security.
His career in the government lead him to write his debut
novel, Scavenger Hunt, coming out January 2023.
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the OBSERVER by Robert Lanza & Nancy Kress Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out
my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
A
mind-expanding journey to the very edge of science.
Caro Soames-Watkins, a talented neurosurgeon whose career has been upended by
controversy, is jobless, broke, and the sole supporter of her sister, a single
mother with a severely disabled child.
When she receives a strange job offer from Nobel Prize-winning scientist Sam
Watkins, a great uncle she barely knows, desperation forces her to take it in
spite of serious suspicions.
Watkins has built a mysterious medical facility in the Caribbean to conduct
research into the nature of consciousness, reality, and life after death.
Helped in his mission by his old friend, eminent physicist George Weigert, and
young tech entrepreneur Julian Dey, Sam has gone far beyond curing the body to
develop a technology that could solve the riddle of mortality.
Two obstacles stand in their way: someone on the inside is leaking intel and
Watkins’ failing body must last long enough for the technology to be ready.
As danger mounts, Caro finds more than she bargained for, including murder,
love, and a deeper understanding into the nature of reality.
A mind-expanding journey to the very edges of science, Observer will
thrill you, inspire you, and lead you to think about life and the power of the
imagination in startling new ways.
About Robert Lanza:
Robert Lanza is an American scientist
and author whose research spans the range of natural science, from biology to
theoretical physics. TIME magazine recognized him as one of the “100 Most
Influential People in the World,” and Prospect magazine named him one of the
“Top 50 World Thinkers.”
He has hundreds of scientific
publications and over 30 books, including definitive references in the fields
of stem cells, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine. He is a former
Fulbright Scholar, and studied with polio-pioneer Jonas Salk and Nobel
laureates Gerald Edelman (known for his work on the biological basis of
consciousness) and Rodney Porter. He also worked closely (and co-authored
papers in Science on self-awareness and symbolic communication) with noted
Harvard psychologist BF Skinner. Dr. Lanza received his undergraduate and
medical degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was both a
University Scholar and Benjamin Franklin Scholar.
Lanza was part of the team that
cloned the world’s first human embryo, the first endangered species, and
published the first-ever reports of pluripotent stem cell use in humans.
Lanza and his colleagues were also
the first to demonstrate that nuclear transplantation could be used to reverse
the aging process and to generate immune-compatible tissues, including the
first organ tissue-engineered from cloned cells. One of his early achievements
was his demonstration that techniques used in preimplantation genetic diagnosis
could be used to generate human embryonic stem cells without embryonic
destruction.
He and colleagues have also succeeded
in differentiating human pluripotent stem cells into retinal cells, and has
shown that they provide long-term benefit in animal models of vision loss.
Using this technology some forms of blindness may be curable, including macular
degeneration and Stargardt disease, a currently untreatable form eye disease
that causes blindness in teenagers and young adults. Lanza’s company received
FDA approval to carry out clinical trials in the US using them to treat
degenerative eye diseases, as well approval for the first human pluripotent stem
cell trial in Europe. The first patients reported improved vision in the eyes
treated with the cells, which The Guardian said “represents a huge
scientific achievement.”
Dr. Lanza and his colleagues
published the first-ever report of human pluripotent stem cells transplanted
into human patients. The patients who received the stem cell transplants say
their lives have been transformed by the experimental procedure–they report
that they can use their computers, thread a needle, or even go to the mall or airport
on their own.
Lanza has also been a major player in
the scientific revolution that has led to the documentation that nuclear
transfer/transcription factors can restore developmental potential in a
differentiated cell. One of his successes was showing that it is feasible to
generate functional oxygen-carrying red blood cells from human pluripotent stem
cells. The blood cells were comparable to normal transfusable blood and could
serve as a potentially inexhaustible source of “universal” blood. His
team also discovered how to generate functional hemangioblasts – a population
of “ambulance” cells – from hES cells. In animals, these cells
quickly repaired vascular damage, cutting the death rate after a heart attack
in half and restoring the blood flow to ischemic limbs that might otherwise
have to be amputated.
Lanza and a team lead by Kwang-Soo
Kim at Harvard University have also reported a safe method for generating
induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Human iPS cells were created from skin
cells by direct delivery of proteins, thus eliminating the harmful risks
associated with genetic manipulation. The Editors of the prestigious journal
Nature selected Lanza and Kim’s paper on protein reprogramming as one of five
“Research Highlights.” Discover magazine stated, “Lanza’s
single-minded quest to usher in this new age has paid dividends in scientific
insights and groundbreaking discoveries.” Fortune magazine called him
“the standard-bearer for stem cell research.”
Dr. Lanza has received numerous
awards, including being named one of TIME Magazine’s “100 Most Influential
People in the World”; the 2013 Il Leone di San Marco award in Medicine
(The Italian Heritage and Culture Committee, along with Regis Philbin [in
Entertainment]); including an NIH Director’s Award (2010) for “Translating
Basic Science Discoveries into New and Better Treatments”; the 2010
‘Movers and Shakers’ Who Will Shape Biotech Over the Next 20 Years
(BioWorld)(along with Craig Venter and President Barack Obama); the 2007 100
Most Inspiring People in the Life-Sciences Industry (PharmaVOICE, “For his
discoveries ‘behind the medicines making a significant impact on the pipelines
of today and of the future'”; the 2007 Outstanding Contribution in
Contemporary Biology Award (Brown University, “For his groundbreaking
research and contributions in stem cell science and biology”; the 2006
All-Star Award for Biotechnology (MA High Tech, for “pushing stem cells’
future”); the 2005 Rave Award for Medicine (Wired magazine, “For
eye-opening work on embryonic stem cells”); and Lanza is listed in Who’s
Who in America, Who’s Who in the World, Who’s Who in Medicine and Healthcare,
Who’s Who in Science and Engineering; Who’s Who in American Education, and
Who’s Who in Technology, among others.
Dr. Lanza and his research have been
featured in almost every media outlet in the world, including CNN, TIME,
Newsweek, People, as well as the front pages of the New York Times, Wall Street
Journal, Washington Post, among others (his work has also been the cover story
of US News & World Report, Wired magazine, and Scientific American).
In 2007, Lanza published a feature
article, “A New Theory of the Universe” in The American Scholar, a
leading intellectual journal which has previously published works by Albert
Einstein, Margaret Mead, and Carl Sagan, among others. His theory places
biology above the other sciences in an attempt to solve one of nature’s biggest
puzzles, the theory of everything that other disciplines have been pursuing for
the last century. This new view has become known as Biocentrism. In
biocentrism, space and time are forms of animal sense perception, rather than
external physical objects. Understanding this more fully yields answers to
several major puzzles of mainstream science, and offers a new way of understanding
everything from the microworld (for instance, the reason for Heisenberg’s
uncertainty principle and the double-slit experiment) to the forces, constants,
and laws that shape the universe. Nobel laureate E. Donnall Thomas stated
“Any short statement does not do justice to such a scholarly work. The
work is a scholarly consideration of science and philosophy that brings biology
into the central role in unifying the whole.”
You can read more about Dr. Robert
Lanza’s work at:
Nancy Kress
is the author of thirty-four books, including twenty-six novels, four
collections of short stories, and three books on writing. Her work has won six
Nebulas, two Hugos, a Sturgeon, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. She
writes frequently about genetic engineering; including the acclaimed
science-fiction novel Beggars in Spain. Kress’s fiction has been translated
into Swedish, Danish, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Croatian,
Chinese, Lithuanian, Romanian, Japanese, Korean, Hebrew, Russian, and Klingon,
none of which she can read. In addition to writing, Kress often teaches at
various venues around the country and abroad, including a visiting lectureship
at the University of Leipzig, a 2017 writing class in Beijing, and the annual intensive
workshop TaosToolbox. Kress lives in Seattle with her husband, writer Jack
Skillingstead, and Pippin, the world’s most spoiled Chihuahua.
In 1715, Lady Blythe Hedley’s father is declared an enemy of the British crown because of his Jacobite sympathies, forcing her to flee her home in northern England. Secreted to the tower of Wedderburn Castle in Scotland, Lady Blythe awaits who will ultimately be crowned king. But in a house with seven sons and numerous servants, her presence soon becomes known.
No sooner has Everard Hume lost his father, Lord Wedderburn, than Lady Hedley arrives with the clothes on her back and her mistress in tow. He has his own problems–a volatile brother with dangerous political leanings, an estate to manage, and a very young brother in need of comfort and direction in the wake of losing his father. It would be best for everyone if he could send this misfit heiress on her way as soon as possible.
Drawn into a whirlwind of intrigue, shifting alliances, and ambitions, Lady Blythe must be careful whom she trusts. Her fortune, her future, and her very life are at stake. Those who appear to be adversaries may turn out to be allies–and those who pretend friendship may be enemies.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR LAURA FRANTZ
ADVANCE PRAISE
“A masterful achievement of historical complexity and scintillating romance sure to thrill readers with its saga of love under siege.”— Booklist, starred review
“A deeply atmospheric story of faith, love, and sacrifice that is as captivating as it is enthralling.”— Sarah E. Ladd, bestselling author of The CornwallNovels
“Marked by majestic Scottish scenery and a memorable trip to Edinburg, The Rose and the Thistle is a delightful historical romance set during a tumultuous time.”— Forward Reviews
Christy Award-winning author, Laura Frantz, is passionate about all things historical, particularly the 18th-century, and writes her manuscripts in longhand first. Her stories often incorporate Scottish themes that reflect her family heritage. She is a direct descendant of George Hume, Wedderburn Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland, who was exiled to the American colonies for his role in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, settled in Virginia, and is credited with teaching George Washington surveying in the years 1748-1750. Proud of her heritage, she is also a Daughter of the American Revolution. When not at home in Kentucky, she and her husband live in Washington State.
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the A CROWN FORGED BY VICTORY’S CONSEQUENCE by Marlayna James & Aaryanna
Abbott Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out
my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
About The Book:
Title: A CROWN FORGED BY VICTORY’S CONSEQUENCE (The
Blackened Tablet Series, #1)
The Blackened Tablet Series is an epic fantasy quest story
with corrupt politics, wondrous magic, and illicit encounters in a supernatural
world where no one is safe.
Three hundred years ago, the sacred tablet granted by their
god, Jezabet, turned black, and eight kingdoms broke free, plummeting into the
bottomless sea. There was no warning, and no one knows why.
Now, a strange illness plagues Aldersward. Crowned Prince
Aedyn’s sisters, Achelle and Annora, his father, and countrymen are desperate
and grief-stricken. All hope is lost…
Until someone dreams, and Aedyn leaves behind his mistress
and his betrothed to cure their nation. He enlists his friends; a brazen
playboy, a gentle strongman, and an ancient mentor. Together, they set out on a
perilous journey-few believe they will survive.
This isn’t a fairy tale-s3x becomes currency, murder is
ordinary, and love doesn’t conquer all.
Everyone loves a hero-good triumphs evil. But few dare to
question how victory ripples into consequences. Explore this exciting concept
in the Blackened Tablet Series.
About Marlayna James:
Marlayna
lives in Canada where she writes romance, erotica, women’s fiction, and
fantasy. She loves video games, TV, reading, and writing.
About Aaryanna Abbott:
This is
another of my pen names. For every pen name, I use a different part of who I
am. I imagine this is how she looks.
What’s this
part of me like?
I was a
daddy’s girl. The very epitome of spoilt.
I love to be
wild and crazy—experience everything the world has to offer. I’m adventurous
and my carefree disposition is contagious.
I’m loyal to
a fault and don’t care what expectations or labels society has bestowed upon
me. I believe one’s truth is more valuable than anyone’s perception.
This part of
me writes for escapism—to be free of my mundane day to day and live in a
magical world almost as real to me as earth. Except in my imaginary world, I
control all things and it pleases me to no end.
In the tradition of C. S. Harris and Anne Perry, a fatal disaster on the Thames and a roiling political conflict set the stage for Karen Odden’s second Inspector Corravan historical mystery.September 1878. One night, as the pleasure boat the Princess Alice makes her daily trip up the Thames, she collides with the Bywell Castle, a huge iron-hulled collier. The Princess Alice shears apart, throwing all 600 passengers into the river; only 130 survive. It is the worst maritime disaster London has ever seen, and early clues point to sabotage by the Irish Republican Brotherhood, who believe violence is the path to restoring Irish Home Rule. For Scotland Yard Inspector Michael Corravan, born in Ireland and adopted by the Irish Doyle family, the case presents a challenge. Accused by the Home Office of willfully disregarding the obvious conclusion and berated by his Irish friends for bowing to prejudice, Corravan doggedly pursues the truth, knowing that if the Princess Alice disaster is pinned on the IRB, hopes for Home Rule could be dashed forever. Corrovan’s dilemma is compounded by Colin, the youngest Doyle, who has joined James McCabe’s Irish gang. As violence in Whitechapel rises, Corravan strikes a deal with McCabe to get Colin out of harm’s way. But unbeknownst to Corravan, Colin bears longstanding resentments against his adopted brother and scorns his help. As the newspapers link the IRB to further accidents, London threatens to devolve into terror and chaos. With the help of his young colleague, the loyal Mr. Stiles, and his friend Belinda Gale, Corravan uncovers the harrowing truth—one that will shake his faith in his countrymen, the law, and himself.
ADVANCE PRAISE
“[An] exceptional sequel . . . Fans of Lyndsay Faye’s Gods of Gotham trilogy will be enthralled.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Victorian skulduggery with a heaping side of Irish troubles.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Charismatic police superintendent Michael Corravan is back in a gripping sequel about the mysterious sinking of the Princess Alice. Odden deftly weaves together English and Irish history, along with her detective’s own story, in a way that will keep readers flipping pages long into the night.” —Susan Elia MacNeal, New York Times bestselling author of Mother Daughter Traitor Spy and the Maggie Hope series.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Read an exclusive interview with author Karen Odden
Even as I did so, I heard the twins, Colin and Elsie, their voices raised as they talked over each other—Elsie with a sharp edge of frustration, Colin growling in reply. Odd, I thought as I pushed open the door. Since they were children, they’d baited each other and teased, but I’d never known them to quarrel.
Colin sat in a kitchen chair tilted backward, the heel of one heavy boot hooked over the rung. He glared up at Elsie, who stood across the table, her hand clutching a faded towel at her hip, her chin set in a way I recognized.
“Hullo,” I said. “What’s the matter?”
Both heads swiveled to me, and in unison, they muttered, “Nothing.”
They could have still been five, caught spooning the jam out of the jar Ma hid behind the flour tin. Except that under the stubble of his whiskers, there was a puffiness along Colin’s cheek that appeared to be the remnants of a bruise.
Colin thunked the front legs of the chair onto the floor and pushed away from the table. “I got somethin’ to do.” He took his coat off the rack—not his old faded one, I noticed, but a new one—and stalked out the door, pulling it closed behind him.
I raised my eyebrows and turned to Elsie. She grimaced. “He’s just bein’ an eejit, like most men.” Her voice lacked its usual good humor; she was genuinely angry.
Jaysus, I thought. What’s happened? But I’d give Elsie a moment. “Where’s Ma?”
“Went down to the shop for some tea.” She stepped to the sideboard and moved the kettle to the top of the stove. The handle caught her sleeve, pulling it back far enough that I caught sight of a white bandage.
“Did you hurt your wrist?”
She tugged the sleeve down. “Ach, I just fell on the stairs. Clumsy of me.”
The broken window and Colin’s abrupt departure had been enough to alert me to something amiss. Even without those signs, though, I wouldn’t have believed her. I knew the shape a lie took in her voice.
“No, you didn’t,” I said.
Her back was to me, and she spoke over her shoulder. “It’s nothing, Mickey.”
I approached and took her left elbow gently in mine to turn her. “Let me see.”
Reluctantly, she let me unwrap the flannel. Diagonal across her wrist was a bruise such as a truncheon or a pipe might leave, purple and yellowing at the edges.
I looked up. “Who did this?” My voice was hoarse.
Her eyes, blue as mine, stared back. “Mickey, don’t look like that. It was dark, and I doubt he did it on purpose.”
“Jaysus, Elsie.” I let go of her, so she could rewrap it. “Who?”
“I don’t know! I was walking home from Mary’s house on Wednesday night, and before I knew it, twenty lads were around me, fightin’ and brawlin’, and I jumped out of the way, but one of them hit my wrist, and I fell.”
“What were you doing walking alone after dark? Where was Colin?”
She gave a disparaging “pfft.” “As if I’d know. Some nights he doesn’t come home until late. Or not at all.”
Harry’s words came back to me: “Out . . . as usual.”
I cast my mind back to my own recent visits. Colin had often been absent, partly because he’d been working on the construction of the new embankment, but that had ended in July. So where was he spending his time now? And where had he earned the money for his new coat?
We both heard Ma’s footsteps on the inside stairs.
“Don’t tell Ma,” Elsie said hurriedly, her voice low. The bandage was completely hidden by her sleeve. “She has enough to worry about. Swear, Mickey.”
Even as I promised, I wondered what else was worrying Ma. But as the door at the top of the inner stairs opened, I had my smile ready.
Ma emerged, carrying a packet of tea from the shop. “Ah, Mickey! I’m glad ye came.” Her face shone with genuine warmth, and she smoothed her coppery hair back from her temple. Her eyes flicked around the room, landing on Elsie. “Colin left?” The brightness in her expression dimmed.
“Just now,” Elsie replied. Their gazes held, and with the unfailing instinct that develops in anyone who grew up trying to perceive trouble before it struck, I sensed meaning in that silent exchange. But before I could decipher it, Elsie shrugged, and Ma turned to me, her hazel eyes appraising.
“You look less wraithy than usual.” She reached up to pat my cheek approvingly. “Elsie, fetch the preserves. I’ll put the water on.”
“I’ll do it, Ma.” I went to the stove, tonged in a few lumps of coal from the scuttle and shut the metal door with a clang. As Elsie sliced the bread, I filled the kettle and Ma took down three cups and saucers from the shelf.
The tension I sensed amid my family derived from something drifting in the deep current, not bobbing along the surface, driven by a single day’s wind and sun. Something had changed.
Karen Odden earned her Ph.D. in English from New York University and subsequently taught literature at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She has contributed essays to numerous books and journals, written introductions for Victorian novels in the Barnes & Noble classics series and edited for the journal Victorian Literature and Culture (Cambridge UP). Her previous novels, also set in 1870s London, have won awards for historical fiction and mystery. A member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime and the recipient of a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts, Karen lives in Arizona with her family and her rescue beagle Rosy.
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers (December 13, 2022)
Length: (400) pages
Format: Hardcover, Trade paperback, & eBook
ISBN: 978-0764239502
Tour Dates: December 5 – December 19, 2022
BOOK DESCRIPTION
When all of Venice is unmasked, one man’s identity remains a mystery . . . 1807 When a baby is discovered floating in a basket along the quiet canals of Venice, a guild of artisans takes him in and raises him as a son, skilled in each of their trades. Although the boy, Sebastien Trovato, has wrestled with questions of his origins, it isn’t until a woman washes ashore on his lagoon island that answers begin to emerge. In hunting down his story, Sebastien must make a choice that could alter not just his own future, but also that of the beloved floating city.
1904 Daniel Goodman is given a fresh start in life as the century turns. Hoping to redeem a past laden with regrets, he is sent on an assignment from California to Venice to procure and translate a rare book. There, he discovers a city of colliding hope and decay, much like his own life, and a mystery wrapped in the pages of that filigree-covered volume. With the help of Vittoria, a bookshop keeper, Daniel finds himself in a web of shadows, secrets, and discoveries carefully kept within the stones and canals of the ancient city . . . and in the mystery of the man whose story the book does not finish: Sebastien Trovato.
ADVANCE PRAISE
“This lyrical dual-narrative historical from Dykes (Set the Stars Alight) dives into the histories of Venice, Italy, and Venice Beach, California.”— Publisher’s Weekly
“Introspective, surprising, and achingly beautiful.”— Booklist starred review
“Dykes’s pen is fused with magic and poetry. Every word’s a gentle wave building into the splendor that is All the Lost Places, where struggles for identity and a place to belong find hope between the pages of a timeless story.”— J’Nell Ciesielski, bestselling author of The Socialite
“Luscious writing, authentic characters, and an ending that satisfies to the core of the spirit, this novel is another winner from Amanda Dykes.”— Heidi Chiavaroli, Carol Award-winning author of Freedom’s Ring and Hope Beyond the Waves
Amanda Dykes’s debut novel, Whose Waves These Are, is the winner of the prestigious 2020 Christy Award Book of the Year, a Booklist 2019 Top Ten Romance debut, and the winner of an INSPY Award. She’s also the author of Yours Is the Night and Set the Stars Alight, a 2021 Christy Award finalist.