INK SPOT NEWS ~ Midnight Ink May Releases

Here are Midnight Ink's May releases... check out these great books!






Chip Off the Ice Block Murder
By: Jessie Chandler 
A Shay O'Hanlon Caper #4

Death Runs Adrift

By: Karen MacInerney 

The Gray Whale Inn

Mystery #6

“MacInerney’s charming sixth offers beautiful scenery, an 

assortment of appended recipes, and one of her strongest mysteries to date.”

—Kirkus Reviews

Jailhouse Glock
By: Lizbeth Lipperman 
A Dead Sister Talking Mystery #2
"Lipperman’s blend of a girls-club feel and small town 
sleuthing makes for an attractive, lighthearted package."
—Publishers Weekly

Fleur de Lies
By: Maddy Hunter 
A Passport to Peril Mystery #9

"A river cruise down the Seine with a group of octogenarians could be magical for Emily's tour group.  Or it could mean murder for one of the passengers.  Don't miss the ninth trip (after Bonnie of Evidence) in this always entertaining series." - Library Journal 

The Day She Died
A Novel
By: Catriona McPherson 
"McPherson’s second stand-alone is a tour de force, a creepy 
psychological thriller that will leave you breathless."
—Kikus Reviews (starred review)

Anastasia in Barcelona

by Lois Winston

Back in May my husband and I took a Mediterranean cruise, traveling to Toulon and Villefranche, France and La Spezia, Civitavecchia, and Naples, Italy. The cruise left out of Barcelona, Spain. Since neither of us had ever been to Spain, we flew in a day early and hopped aboard one of those double-decker sightseeing buses for a whirlwind tour of the city.

I’ve seen those buses just about all my life in New York. I’m constantly accosted by tour guides whenever I walk around Times Square (something I try to avoid!) So I had a very negative opinion of them. I changed my mind in Barcelona. We were able to plug into an audio system that gave us lots of information about the city as we drove around and were able to get on and off the buses at our leisure throughout the day as we explored various sights. The bus stops are clearly marked, and I don’t think we ever had to wait more than five minutes for one to pull up to take us to our next destination.

Parc Güell

Barcelona is a city of amazing architecture, everything from Gothic churches to Antoni Gaudi's Modernista masterpieces  to modern skyscrapers. However, it was Gaudi’s work, especially his mosaic covered Parc Güell, that made me fall in love with the city.

Parc Güell staircase leading up to terrace and marketplace

Wouldn’t it be great, I thought, to send Anastasia on an adventure in Barcelona? And that’s just what I did in Mosaic Mayhem, the second Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mini-Mystery which is now available.

ceiling of Parc Güell's Sala Hipostila marketplace

Anastasia is thrilled at the prospect of three days in Barcelona. She thinks all she has to worry about are making sure her passport is still valid and finding someone to care for her semi-invalid mother-in-law while she’s gone. However, within hours of arriving, she’s staring down the barrel of a gun and trying to convince a Spanish crime syndicate they’ve kidnapped the wrong woman. So much for a romantic getaway...

mosaics decorating terrace of Parc Güell

Mosaic Mayhem is available as an ebook from the following vendors:

Amazon

Nook

Kobo
Bookstore Without Borders

***

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in the series, received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” Other books in the series includes Death By Killer Mop Doll, Revenge of the Crafty Corpse and the ebook only mini-mysteries Crewel Intentions and Mosaic Mayhem. Lois is also published in women’s fiction, romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Visit Lois at www.loiswinston.com, visit Emma at www.emmacarlyle.com, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog, www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com. Follow everyone on Twitter @anasleuth.

Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction

by Lois Winston

One of the most common questions authors are asked is, “Where do you get the ideas for your books?” My ideas for characters, scenes, and plots often bloom from actual people and events. Often something will happen in my own life, or an event will occur that I read about in the newspaper or see on the news, and I store it away for future reference, knowing it’s too good not to use in a book.

Case in point: March 6, 2011. My husband and I are watching “Sunday Morning” on CBS. Bill Geist is interviewing a woman by the name of Laura Bell who creates paintings out of dryer lint. Her masterpiece is a 14-foot x 4-foot replica of Leonardo daVinci’s “The Last Supper,” which took her 7 months of lint collecting and 200 hours to create. “Ripley’s Believe It or Not!” bought the piece for $12,000. Really. I’m not making this up. You can see a video of the interview here. 

Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, had debuted two months prior to this interview appearing on television. I had already turned in Death by Killer Mop Doll, the second book in the series and had begun work on Revenge of the Crafty Corpse.

In Revenge of the Crafty Corpse, Lyndella Wegner, a 98-year-old resident of an assisted living facility is a consummate crafter with a penchant for anything X-rated. The moment I saw Bill Geist’s interview of Laura Bell, I knew Lyndella had to create lint paintings. Her piece de resistance is a three-foot tall, two-dimensional reproduction of Michelangelo’s masterpiece, “David,” down to every anatomical detail, minus any censoring of a certain body part.

Now, some might read Revenge of the Crafty Corpse and scoff at the idea of anyone painting with lint. Some readers might think Lyndella is a totally unrealistic character. Painting with dryer lint does sound kind of absurd, doesn’t it? But go back and look at the title of this blog post: Truth is Stranger than Fiction. Laura Bell and her $12,000 check from Ripley’s certainly proves that. 

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series. She's also published in women's fiction, romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Visit Lois at her website or Emma's website, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog.

CREWEL INTENTIONS

by Lois Winston

I don’t like change. I much prefer the security and comfort of habit. So when I’m forced to make a change, the decision is one that takes much soul-searching and deliberation on my part. I’m not the kind of person who climbs a mountain just because it’s there. I need a really good reason to step out of my comfort zone, lace up my hiking boots, and ascend upwards into the unknown.

Unfortunately, the publishing industry is fraught with change lately. Gone are the days when an author had a home for life and the people she worked with at the publishing house became like a second family to her. These days there’s a lot of divorce going on in publishing. More and more authors are being dropped because their sales aren’t strong enough. Or authors decide for various reasons that they need to leave their publisher. Both situations are very scary for the author. No matter which party institutes the divorce proceedings, fear of the unknown can overwhelm an author.

Several months ago I realized I needed to institute a change in my life. I didn’t want to, but after countless weeks of soul-searching, I knew it was time to climb the mountain. So I laced up those hiking boots and decided not to sign another contract with Midnight Ink for more Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery books.

However, Revenge of the Crafty Corpse, which came out in January, will not be the last book in the series. Hopefully, Anastasia and I will find another home. We’re looking. Along with all the negative change in the publishing industry lately, there are also opportunities opening for authors that never existed prior to a few years ago. If all else fails, I’ll be able to publish more Anastasia books on my own. Anastasia has a lot more of her story yet to tell, and I fully plan to tell it.

To that end, I recently published Crewel Intentions, an Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mini-Mystery. Crewel Intentions is a 10,000 word short story that takes Anastasia on a side adventure.

Crewel Intentions sells for $1.99 and is available only as an ebook. I plan to write more mini-mysteries. I’m also working on Book 4, the next book in the main series. Time will tell if that book is published by a traditional publisher or in the brave new world of indie publishing. It all depends on what I find at the top of the mountain.

Crewel Intentions Blurb:

In this short story addition to the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack receives a desperate phone call from former American Woman fashion editor Erica Milano. Erica is now in Witness Protection and living under a new identity in Western Pennsylvania. But someone is stalking her, and Erica has compelling reasons why she can’t go to the police or notify her Witsec handlers. Anastasia is the only person she can trust to help her, and she knows Anastasia won’t let her down. After all, Erica once saved Anastasia’s life. But will Anastasia be able to return the favor before the stalker strikes?

Crewel Intentions is available for Kindle, Nook, and Kobo.

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in the series, received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” The series also includes Death By Killer Mop Doll, Revenge of the Crafty Corpse and Crewel Intentions, an Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mini-Mystery.

Lois is also published in women’s fiction, romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. In addition, she’s an award-winning crafts and needlework designer and an agent with the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency. She’s also the author of the recently released Top Ten Reasons Your Novel is Rejected. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com, visit Emma at http://www.emmacarlyle.com, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog. 

YOU CAN'T SAY THAT IN A COZY!

You Can’t Say That In a Cozy!

by Lois Winston

If you’re looking for a cozy mystery with no foul language, please don’t buy one of my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries.

How’s that for a way to start off a blog post? One of the rules of cozy mystery writing is that readers can be assured of no offensive language. But I don’t write cozy mysteries, even though my publisher categorizes my books as cozies. I write humorous amateur sleuth mysteries. And I sometimes use four-letter words.

I make no apologies. I write dialogue appropriate for the characters in my books. My Mafia loan shark is not going to say, “Golly gee whiz,” or “Gosh darn it!” He’s going to let the expletives fly.

I recently received an email from a reader who was disturbed that Anastasia’s teenage sons also used a few expletives. They’re certainly not channeling Axel Foley, but teenage boys will be teenage boys, and having raised two of the species, I know that they often test their boundaries.

Anastasia doesn’t tolerate such language from her sons, and they know it. They quickly apologize. However, I thought their use of such words was necessary for a realistic portrayal of the scene. I explained this to the reader and told her I couldn’t promise that she wouldn’t come across the words that offended her in future books. My aim is not to offend my readers, but since I try to write realistic characters, and people have varying levels of tolerance for naughty words, sometimes I do wind up offending.

Network television has strict censorship rules. That’s why many movies that are broadcast will contain lots of bleeping. In the TV series Battlestar Gallactica the writers got around the censors by using the euphemistic “frack” and “fracking” to substitute for the F-word. However, a rose by any other name, as Shakespeare noted, will smell as sweet. And an F-word by any other name is not going to make people wonder why everyone on a space opera is talking about drilling for natural gas in shale rock. We all knew what all the “frack” and “fracking” meant.

I recently watched a Live from Lincoln Center tribute to Marvin Hamlish on PBS. When it came time for one of the stars to sing “Dance Ten; Looks Three” from A Chorus Line, otherwise known as the "T*** and A**" song (click the link for the lyrics if you don’t know what I’m talking about), the singer substituted various words for the T-word. They couldn’t bleep out the offensive words later because the show was being broadcast live, and apparently, no one ever thought it would be necessary to add a 7-second delay to a Live from Lincoln Center broadcast. After all, who’s going to pull a wardrobe malfunction on Live from Lincoln Center?

I found it rather strange that you can utter the A-word on PBS but not the T-word. The resulting performance was quite humorous, though, given that the lyrics ranged from “pits and a**” to “Schlitz and a**, among others.”

I’ve received other emails from readers who begged me to remove the four-letter words from my books. I’ve even seen some 1-star reviews of my books on Amazon and Goodreads solely because of my use of expletives. Some reviewers made my books sound like I was peppering every paragraph with curse words. I knew I’d used the words judiciously, so I took another look at my books to see just how often I used the words that these readers objected to. Here’s what I discovered:

Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun

Word count: 68,700 words

Number of times “F” word is used: 6

Number of times “S” word is used: 25

Death By Killer Mop Doll

Word count: 72,500 words

Number of times “F” word is used: 6

Number of times “S” word is used: 10

Revenge of the Crafty Corpse

Word count: 68,200 words

Number of times “F” word is used: 5

Number of times “S” word is used: 10

Really? People are complaining because .021% - .045% (if I’ve done my math correctly) of the words used in my books are four-letter words? I will continue to be polite to the people who  implore me to change my vulgar ways. However, I’ll still continue to use both the F-word and the S-word when scenes warrant them.

How do you feel about expletives in fiction? Do you tolerate blue language when it’s used appropriately and judiciously, or would you prefer euphemisms used no matter the circumstances?

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in the series, received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” The series also includes Death By Killer Mop Doll and Crewel Intentions, an Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mini-Mystery. Revenge of the Crafty Corpse is a January 2013 release.

Lois is also published in women’s fiction, romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. In addition, she’s an award-winning crafts and needlework designer and an agent with the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency. She’s also the author of the recently released Top Ten Reasons Your Novel is Rejected. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com, visit Emma at http://www.emmacarlyle.com, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers character blog, www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com. 

Mother + Mother-in-Law = Conflict

by Lois Winston

Mama here. Yesterday was the official release day of Revenge of the Crafty Corpse, the third book in author Lois Winston’s eponymous mystery series about my daughter – the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. Lois left us all hanging at the end of Death By Killer Mop Doll. That nasty communist, otherwise known as my daughter’s mother-in-law Lucille, wound up having a stroke.

I was hoping we’d be rid of her at last. But apparently, Lois has no intention of relieving the Pollack household of that huge nuisance. She claims conflict is good for fiction. It might be good for fiction, but it’s wreaking havoc on my social life. After all, I’m the one who has to share a bedroom with the pinko prude. She may not have had sex since Eisenhower was in the White House, but I’m too young to give up such pleasures.

At least I’m rid of her for a month while she recuperates from her stroke and subsequent surgery. Good thing, too, because I’ve met someone special.

Things are looking up, though. Less than twenty-four hours after Lucille is settled into the Sunnyside of Westfield Assisted Living and Rehabilitation Center, someone does away with her roommate. And because someone overheard Lucille threatening to strangle the woman, she lands at the head of the suspects list.

Now if I could only convince my daughter to mind her own business and let the police handle the investigation...

But no. Anastasia decides Lucille might be a lot of things – none of which are remotely admirable – but she’s not violent and definitely not a killer. I suppose she’s forgotten about that time the Bolshevik attacked me with her cane.

Anyway, I’m hoping for a decidedly different outcome this time around. But even if Lucille doesn’t wind up behind bars for the rest of her life, I just might have found myself a new husband. You’ll have to read Revenge of the Crafty Corpse to find out.

Blurb:

Anastasia Pollack’s dead louse of a spouse has left her with more bills than you can shake a crochet hook at, and teaching craft classes at her mother-in-law’s assisted living center seems like a harmless way to supplement her meager income. But when Lyndella Wegner—a 98-year-old know-it-all with a penchant for ruffles and lace—turns up dead, Anastasia’s cantankerous mother-in-law becomes the prime suspect in her murder. Upon discovering that Lyndella’s scandalous craft projects—and her scandalous behavior—made her plenty of enemies, Anastasia sets out to find the real killer before her mother-in-law ends up behind bars.

Buy link

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, a 2011 release, was the first book in the series and received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum” Death By Killer Mop Doll and Crewel Intentions, an Anastasia Pollack Mini Crafting Mystery, were released in 2012. Revenge of the Crafty Corpse is a January 2013 release. Lois also writes romance, romantic suspense, humorous women's fiction, and non-fiction under her own name and as Emma Carlyle. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com, visit Emma at http://www.emmacarlyle.com, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers character blog, www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com.

KILLER FIRST LINES

by Lois Winston

I'm a firm believer in books needing killer first lines. No, I don't mean the killer should appear in the first line of a mystery, nor that the murder should occur at the very beginning of the book. I'm talking about first lines that grab hold of a reader and don't let go, the kind of first lines that pique a reader's curiosity and make him or her want to keep reading.

I learned the importance of killer first lines years ago when I attended a workshop given by a literary agent. He spoke about the importance of the first few pages of a book, how it's your one and only chance to impress editors and agents. Because if they're not impressed after a page or two, they're not going to keep reading.

From that day on, I decided that not only would my opening pages be free of back-story, unimportant details, filler, and boring descriptions, I'd make sure that I hooked the reader with my opening sentence. And I developed a philosophy about first chapters:

The first sentence of a novel should make the reader want to read the second sentence. And that second sentence should make the reader want to read the third. And so on, until you have a paragraph that becomes a hook that grabs the reader and won’t let go.  That first paragraph should do for the first page what the first sentence did for the first paragraph, and the first page should do for the subsequent pages in the chapter what the first paragraph did for the first page.

Of course, not all readers are going to be hooked by what I write. Taste is subjective, after all. However, once I went back and revised my first chapters, based on this agent's talk, I began receiving more requests for full manuscripts from editors and agents and less rejections. Eventually, those requests led to offers of publication.

I recently proofed the galleys for Revenge of the Crafty Corpse, the third book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. The first line is:

"If that damn woman doesn't shut up, I'm going to strangle her!"

Have I hooked you?  

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, a January 2011 release, is the first book in the series and received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum” Death By Killer Mop Doll was released this past January. Revenge of the Crafty Corpse will be a January 2013 release.

Lois has also recently embarked on an indie publishing career, releasing some of her earlier romance, romantic suspense, and chick lit books under the pen name Emma Carlyle. Now through the end of October, Lois is donating $500 to breast cancer research for every 1,000 Emma Carlyle books sold. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com , visit Emma at http://www.emmacarlyle.com , and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers character blog, www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com.

SUMMER IN THE CITY

Public Library, Newark, NJ

Hot town, summer in the city
Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty
Been down, isn’t it a pity
Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city

The Lovin Spoonful sang those lyrics back in the summer of 1966. For those of us who grew up in the city, the song certainly rang true.

Today marks the first day of summer, and as I thought about a topic for my Inkspot post, my thoughts drifted to those hot summer days of my childhood.

I grew up in Newark, NJ back before community pools or recreational centers. Swimming involved families either sending their kids to camp, driving down the shore, or paying to belong to either a private swim club or the local Y. My family had no money for any of these luxuries. Six of us were crammed into a tiny two-bedroom apartment. My parents slept on a sofa bed in the living room. My sister and I shared one bedroom; my brothers shared the other.

Summers in the city were brutal. Fans were nearly useless. All they did was blow around hot air. Eventually, my parents bought a small air-conditioner for the living room, but it did me and my siblings little good since we were all sent outside first thing in the morning and only allowed back in the apartment for lunch and potty breaks.

What I remember most about those summers were the hours and hours I’d spend at the library. The library was such a magical place for me that I never thought twice about having to walk over a mile in 90+ degree heat to get there. Once I arrived, I was transported to far away places, sometimes wonderful, sometimes not so wonderful, but always an escape from the realities of summer in the city.

What did I read? Everything. Back then the librarians ran summer reading programs and kept track of the books we read. After finishing a book, we’d give a brief oral report to the librarian. She’d record the book and hand out certificates at the end of the summer. I don’t know what happened to my certificates. My parents probably threw them out when we finally moved to the suburbs. What I do remember, though, is that every summer I read the most books of anyone taking part in the summer reading program. Perhaps those long ago summers of reading at the library played a role in me becoming an author. I’d like to think so.

How did you spend the summers of your youth?

Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries series. The first book, Assault With A Deadly Glue Gun, was a January 2011 release and received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist and has been nominated for a Book of the Year Award by ForeWords Reviews. Death by Killer Mop Doll, the second book in the series, was released in January. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com and Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog, http://anastasiapollack.blogspot.com.

KICK BUTT HEROINES

In my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, my reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack pays homage to Stephanie Plum. They’re both Jersey girls, and as Anastasia finds herself mired deeper and deeper in caca, on several occasions she wonders, what would Stephanie do?

Personally, I thinks she’d be better off wondering, what would Fiona do? Not Shrek’s wife, although in the last movie Shrek's Fiona did let loose her inner kick-butt heroine. I'm talking about the other Fiona. Fiona Glenanne, the kick-butt love interest of Michael Westen in Burn Notice. Fiona is a former member of the IRA, a woman who cooks up explosives at her kitchen sink as easily as Anastasia scrambles an egg. Fiona is also a precision marksman (or markswoman) who is equally adept at picking locks, tracking down bad guys, and driving like the proverbial bat out of hell. You don’t want to mess with Fiona.

If Anastasia were more like Fiona, she’d have a lot less problems. Fiona wouldn’t put up with Ricardo the loan shark for more than five seconds. She also wouldn’t put up with all the family melodrama Anastasia deals with from her communist mother-in-law and her (supposedly) Russian princess Mama. Fiona believes in family, but she doesn’t believe in taking crap from anyone.

Most of all, Fiona doesn’t like being told what to do. Everyone is always telling Anastasia what to do.

Anastasia doesn’t get to watch much television, given her family and work schedule. However, I’m seriously thinking about sitting her down to watch a few episodes of Burn Notice. She might learn a thing or two that could help her deal with all that caca flying at her from every direction.


What about you? Do you have a favorite kick-butt heroine? Is it Katniss Everdeen or Lisbeth Salander? Or maybe it's the newly kick-butt version of Snow White from Snow White and the Huntsman? Then there's Merida, the heroine of the upcoming Brave. (Thank you, Pixar, for finally remembering the girls!)

Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries series. The first book, Assault With A Deadly Glue Gun, was a January 2011 release and received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist and has been nominated for a Book of the Year Award by ForeWords Reviews and is a finalist for a Daphne du Maurier Award. Death by Killer Mop Doll, the second book in the series, was released in January. Visit Lois at http://www.loiswinston.com and Anastasia at the Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog, http://anastasiapollack.blogspot.com.

Lucky 13

A guest post by Joanna Campbell Slan

To celebrate the release of Ready, Scrap, Shoot, the fifth book in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery series (aka "Scrap-n-Craft Mystery series"), I wanted to do something really special. Something fun, something extra for my fans. So I've joined together with a dozen other mystery writers, and we're turning Friday the 13th into a lucky day for anyone who loves to read. Yep, today you can download thirteen great reads for free on Kindle.

One of the reads is a short story featuring my protagonist, Kiki Lowenstein. I named it "Kiki Lowenstein and the Purple Passion," and it's been getting five-star reviews on Amazon.

Is it lucky for you? Undoubtedly. You'll get to load up your Kindle with a fresh crop of books (and a short story!). If you don't have a Kindle, you can load the app onto your computer for free.

Will it be lucky for me? I dunno. It's a brave new world out there for authors with the advent of so many ways for readers to access our work. Since all thirteen of us are pitching in to promote our reads, I'm sure I'll attract at least a few new fans.

So why not check out these thirteen offerings? And let me know…does this sound like a good promotional idea to you? Why or why not?
 
Sink or Swim by Stacy Juba- After starring on a hit game show set aboard a Tall Ship, personal trainer Cassidy Novak discovers that she has attracted a stalker. Can she trust Zach Gallagher, the gorgeous newspaper photographer assigned to follow her for a local series? As things heat up with the stalker and with Zach, soon Cassidy will need to call SOS for real. "Easy read and extremely well written." -Stephenie LaGrossa, Survivor; "I could not put this book down." -Book Club Queen

Darker By Degree by Keri Knutson - A missing girl. A mysterious break-in. A brutal murder. Actress Maddie Pryce is looking for her big break, but finds herself at the center of a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. Soon she's tangled up with a persistent detective, a driven director, a playboy producer, and an unstable ingenue. Can Maddie unravel the clues before her next role is as a serial killer's victim?
 
Diary of Murder by Jean Henry Mead - Dana Logan's wealthy sister, Georgi, dies and Georgi's husband claims it was suicide. Dana knows her sister would never take her own life and sets out to prove it was murder, with her friend, Sarah Cafferty. During their investigation, they stumble over more bodies and place their own lives in jeopardy when they encounter a vicious drug ring.

Ghost Island by Bonnie Hearn Hill - Is Aaron a dream, or is he something much more deadly? Livia Hinson has just begun a Seminar at Sea when a storm hits their boat. Now, she is stranded with the other students on an island off the coast of California. Far away from her foster home and her heartbreak, Livia finds Aaron, the perfect love. But the only way they can be together is in her dreams.

One Small Victory by Maryann Miller - The story of one woman's courage. Suspense novel by Maryann Miller, based on a true story of a woman who infiltrated a drug ring and helped bring down a major distributor in her small Texas town. Don't discount what a mother can do to protect her children. First published in hardback, now available as an e-book and as a trade paperback.

Rock & Roll Homicide by RJ McDonnell - The 1st novel in the Rock & Roll Mystery Series finds PI Jason Duffy helping the widow of a slain rock star after she climbs to #1 in the police suspect charts. Duffy, an inexperienced former club musician, sorts through suspects ranging from band members to the Russian Mafia in this rocking whodunit. 4.67 Star Average.
 
Southeast Asian Quartet by William S. Shephard - Suspense and murder in Southeast Asia in the style of Somerset Maugham, these four tales evoke Singapore, Borneo, Malaya and Indochina. Perhaps you'll solve the disappearance of Jim Thompson, the Thai Silk King, missing for 35 years. Draw up a chair at the Raffles Bar and join us!

Taken by Debra Lee - Welcome to the fictitious little town of Watery, Pennsylvania where the district attorney's personal secretary, Mary Murray never planned to become a single mom or a suspect in her infant's disappearance, but she plans to find Jena before she suffers the same fate Mary's younger brother had when he was taken twelve years earlier.

The Four Last Things by Timothy Hallinan - Hired to follow a young woman, private eye Simeon Grist becomes mired in murder and a million-dollar religious scam in The Four Last Things, the first in a series of highly-praised LA private-eye novels written in the 1990s by 2011 Edgar nominee Timothy Hallinan. The Drood Review called it "One of the 10 best books of the year." Publisher's Weekly: "Very satisfying;" Booklist: "a sure winner"
When a Man Loves a Woman: Enhanced Multimedia Edition by Alina Adams - Can a man and woman ever truly be just friends? What about if one of them is married? What if one of them suddenly isn't anymore? Originally published as a paperback by Dell in 2000, the 2011 e-book re-release multimedia edition now features all the text of the original, plus a bonus musical soundtrack to compliment the story! A romance from mystery author Alina Adams.

Willowtree: A Bruce DelReno Mystery by Mike Bove - Bruce DelReno, retired postman, golf and food nut, finds a body near the golf course. He believes the murder is connected to others and involves his Apache friend. Together, they stay a step ahead of the police in trying to solve the cases. They uncover dark secrets of a close knit group of friends in the town of Willowtree, Arizona. This is a fun read with some interesting characters.

"Kiki Lowenstein and the Purple Passion: A Kiki Lowenstein Short Story" by Joanna Campbell Slan - When a customer's daughter is falsely accused, Kiki Lowenstein foils a nasty plan to ruin the girl's reputation. Mystery, crafts, recipes, humor, romance/short story.

Whispering by Gerrie Ferris Finger - Will Cleo Snow admit to making love with charming World War I fly-boy Graham Henry to clear him in the disappearance of an island woman who claims he plans to marry her? Will Graham compromise Cleo to clear himself? With her spirit firmed by deceit, Cleo vows to uncover the truth and keep her secret.

Please mark your calendar for Give Your Child a Free Kindle Book Day on April 19 - in which numerous books for children, pre-teens, and young adults will be free.