Tampa Book Buzz

terri garey’s book signing july 12

Local author Terri Garey (Dead Girls Are Easy) will sign copies of her new book A Match Made In Hell on Saturday, July 12, from 1-3 p.m. at the Westshore Plaza Waldenbooks.

A spooky old house and a closet full of family skeletons leaves unwilling “ghoulfriend to the dead” Nicki Styx wondering if her life will ever get back to anything approaching normal. Things go from bad to worse when the Devil himself shows up, on the lookout for a hot new girlfriend with the power to help him harvest lost souls. Demons may be a ghoul’s best friend, but with this particular hottie, it could be a match made in hell! A Match Made In Hell is the sequel to last year’s hauntingly funny Dead Girls Are Easy (currently nominated for Best First Book and Best Paranormal Romance by Romance Writers of America).

Visit www.tgarey.com for more info.

update about local author ann turner cook

I received an email from the Tampa Writers Alliance about local author and TWA member Ann Turner Cook. Micanopy in Shadow, Cook’s fourth murder mystery in the Brandy O’Bannon series, has just been published. She’s got some book signings coming up: Saturday, July 12, from 6-8 p.m. at the Carrollwood Barnes and Noble (11802 N. Dale Mabry Hwy.), and Tuesday, July 22, at 2 p.m. at the auditorium at University Village (12401 N. 22nd St.).

For more info, visit www.annturnercook.info.

news and notes:haase, smith, darling, mize, lynsky

• Local filmmaker and author Eric Haase recently received some well-deserved attention from the Tampa Tribune.
• Local author Joy V. Smith interviewed Nancy Fulda, creator and editor of Anthology Builder, in the June issue of Expressions.
• Local author and Tampa Writers Alliance president Michael Darling (Hoplite Renegades) is trying to build an organization that “pairs non-profits with local authors for a win-win situation. During these times of economic uncertainty, charitable organizations find it harder and harder to raise the funds they need for community programs. Local authors are often looking for effective, inexpensive methods to sell their books and get exposure. Authors can help organizations draw interest to what they are doing. Organizations can help authors obtain more exposure and sell books.” For more info on Darling’s idea, contact him at darling(at)HopliteRenegades.com (h/t JimSam, Inc.)
• Local author William Mize is recording an audiobook of his book Resurrection Angel one chapter at a time. Check it out at www.williammize.com/audiobooks.
• Author Ed Lynskey wrote to let me know that his third P.I. Frank Johnson mystery, Pelham Fell Here, is due out this month from Mundania Press. Here’s the synopsis: “MP and part-time gunsmith Frank Johnson finds his cousin Cody Chapman killed by a twelve-gauge shotgun. Enraged, Frank wants some answers, and fast. Was Cody involved in an arms smuggling scheme? The mystery grows when a pair of murderous deputy sheriffs ambush Frank. Killing them in self-defense, Frank must take it on the lam while he continues his investigation. Eventually he discovers a group of Neo-Nazis, holed up at a remote castle, who may be behind his cousin’s murder. Luckily, a couple of bounty hunter pals throw in with Frank to even up the odds.” For more info, visit www.mundania/com/books-pelhamfellhere.html.

case study by local author c.r. cardin

Local author C.R. Cardin has a new book out:

THE SCIENCE OF CSI… THE INTRIGUE OF ALIAS… THE SUSPENSE OF 24…

Publicist contact info: Sandy Lawrence, Perceptive Marketing, sandylawrence(at)perceptivemarketing.com, 281.807.1300

Cardin’s website offers a reader group discussion guide, a transcript of one of her interviews and her blog.

news and notes:rant online game, wallon, martini, guzzo and greco

• Random House in the U.K. has an online game centered around Chuck Palahniuk’s book Rant. Click here to learn more.
• Local author Tiva Wallon wrote to let me know that there will be a group author event at the Clearwater Barnes and Noble (US 19 and Sunset Point Road) on June 8 from 2-4 p.m. The first 25 customers will get free goody bags.

  Wallon’s 11th book, Mr. Teddy Bear, will be released on July 24. It will be available as an e-book at www.thedarkcastlelords.com, with hard copies available by request. Here’s a description of her new book:

  Ted Dorn was one of the worlds most gifted men and everyone wanted a piece of him. Was it so wrong of him to pretend to be simple-minded when the woman of his dreams came into his life?

  Sara Collins was all about work and being left alone. When she moved into her new apartment she met the very handsome Teddy Bear and immediately came to the conclusion the lights were on but no one was home! What normal man had toys scattered all over his apartment? All he wanted to do was play!

  Sara couldn’t help but fall in love with Ted. He was warm and funny and made her feel things she thought were long since gone from her life. A terrible accident in Teddy Bear’s apartment took away Sara’s memory and her eyesight. Then a top secret microchip was stolen and the only common denominator was Sara. She always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  Ted and his father had the FBI haul Sara away in cuffs. She was interrogated, accused of theft and espionage and left in tears. Deep in Ted’s heart he knew Sara was innocent. He’d jumped the gun partly because of his father’s suspicions. Some how he had to find a way to make Sara see he believed in her, trusted her and knew she was innocent.

  Ted had always been able to fix anything, until now when it involved Sara’s broken heart. He’d been called the Wizard so now was the time to work his magic.

  Can love fix what mistrust destroyed?

  Join Ted and Sara as they battle their way through broken hearts, lies, espionage and more.
  Visit www.tivawallon.com to learn more.

• A copy of Steve Martini’s new book Shadow of Power has just landed in my mailbox. Here’s the description that came with it: “Author and law professor Terrance Scarborough is controversial, to say the least. His latest book presents evidence that the roots of slavery were deeply and deliberately imbedded in the Constitution. In the midst of a highly charged book tour and mass public unrest, he announces the existence of a letter written by Thomas Jefferson (the “J Letter”) revealing a deep secret about slavery at the nation’s founding. However, on the day Terrance is set to reveal the document, he’s found murdered in a San Diego hotel room. The last to see him alive - a young hotel employee with unsavory connections and radical beliefs - is quickly arrested for the murder. As a favor to the boy’s father, protagonist Paul Madriani takes the case. Although it looks like an open-and-shut conviction, he begins an unrelenting search for the truth - uncovering a shocking set of clues that leads right to the Capital. As more astonishing conspiracies are revealed, Madriani must race against time to save his young client’s life, rewriting history in the process.” Learn more about Martini’s book here.
• Local filmmaker and writer Paul Guzzo has just been commissioned to write former Tampa mayor Dick Greco’s memoirs. I’ll keep you posted on any details I receive.

news and notes:williams, mitchell, smith

• Jacksonville author Gary Williams (Fish of Souls, The God Tools) wrote to let me know that Half-Red Skull, his fourth novel, is now available. Here’s the description: “A serial killer is terrorizing Northeast Florida. The murderer’s callingcard: each victim has one-half of their face colored red. On Amelia Island, reporter Fawn Cortez is planning her wedding while trying to reconcile her father’s tragic death. When she learns of a startling ancestry, it will take her intuition and persistence to unravel the clues and understand the bizarre link between the severed skull of an 1800s Seminole Indian, the modern-day murders and her father’s lifelong search for a legendary treasure. But dark secrets abound. Fawn will soon discover that those she depends on the most . . . cast the deadliest shadows.” Visit www.authorgarywilliams.com or www.floridanovels.com for more info.
• Local author Maria Mitchell recently published a poetry book called Something On My Mind, which is available through AuthorHouse.com. The poems are “about love, life, friendships and God…and were written from the heart and soul.” To read an excerpt or get more info, click here.
• Local author Joy V. Smith is one of the children’s writers included in the brand new e-book I Wish Someone Had Told Me That! 64 Successful Children’s Authors Give You The Advice They Wish Someone Had Given Them. You can see a video preview at http://write4kids.com/wishbook.html. Read Smith’s interview with BestBookTour.com here.

book buzz:the swap by antony moore

The Swap by Antony Moore

Have you ever given away an incredibly valuable object by accident?  Pudgy, lonely comic shop owner Harvey Briscow did.  When he was twelve, Harvey traded his Superman One comic book to “Bleeder” Odd for a really cool piece of plastic pipe.  Now an adult, Harvey regrets losing this priceless comic book and is obsessed with how different his life would be if he hadn’t traded it away.

Harvey reluctantly decides to attend his school reunion, where he encounters the now successful, well-adjusted Charles “Bleeder” Odd.  Harvey gives in to his obsession and breaks into Charles’ home to steal Superman One, only to stumble across a dead body.  This discovery puts Harvey in the middle of a murder investigation and disrupts his bland, orderly life.

Half thought-provoking black comedy and half entertaining murder mystery, The Swap is an entertaining read.  And then the ending pulls the rug out from underneath your feet.  Without giving anything away, I can say that The Swap ends without wrapping things up in a neat package (which drives me crazy!).  With the addition of one final “wrap-up” chapter, The Swap would have been perfect.  As it is, it’s pretty darn good.

Book Buzz Barometer: B+

(Columbia Pictures and John Calley Productions have already acquired the rights to adapt The Swap into a feature film.  Paul Giamatti would make a great Harvey Briscow!)

book buzz:resurrection angel by william mize

Resurrection Angel by William Mize

Denton Ward is a brilliant, gentle man whose psychic abilities and shattered childhood have changed him into an alcoholic recluse, grumpily holding on to his remaining sanity through cigarettes, alcohol and prescription medicine. Monty Crocetti is a punk-rock spitfire of a woman, a former prostitute who is now a private investigator with a big mouth and an even bigger heart. Denton and Monty are friends, lovers and partners. Together they investigate the case of Lisa Rappaport, a young heiress whose problems begin with amnesia and end with murder, with a possible virgin pregnancy in the middle.

This book is riveting. Most of the story unfolds through the main characters’ rapid-fire dialogue. This unusual technique gives Resurrection Angel a fast-paced vibrancy that makes it hard to put down. Mize brings two potentially unlikeable characters together to form an unique sleuthing team that readers will love. I have the sequel Everlasting Life on my bedside table and I can’t wait to dive back into Mize’s world.

Mize’s website is www.williammize.com.

Book Buzz Barometer: A  (Added 8/6/07 because I forgot to include in my original post; sorry about that!)

book buzz:letters from a dead armadillo by wendy boucher

Letters From a Dead Armadillo by Wendy Boucher

I liked Wendy Boucher’s first book, but I loved her second one. Letters From a Dead Armadillo is a fast-paced mystery about three students who find themselves in the middle of a murder investigation at their Tampa law school campus.  Determined to solve the crime on their own through their amateur sleuthing skills, Sally, Brooke and Karen seem destined to end up either going to jail themselves or becoming the murderer’s next victims.

Boucher has a knack for creating characters that are realistic and well-rounded.  Her characters gossip, eavesdrop, skip class, argue, have affairs, tell secrets and care deeply about each other.  I’d want to spend time peering into their lives even if they weren’t sneaking into the library late at night trying to uncover potential evidence about their friend’s mysterious death.  But they are, and it’s a wonderful read.

Book Buzz Barometer: A

Boucher’s website is www.wendyboucher.com.

book buzz:at her command by marcia james

At Her Command by Marcia James

Kids driving you crazy?  Bad day at the office? Pour yourself a cup of tea, turn off your phone, settle into a comfy chair and escape into Marcia James’ racy, riveting, R-rated e-book At Her Command.

(Note: This book is definitely for adults only.  It’s set in a sex club and is far more graphic than anything else I’ve written about here.  If this doesn’t sound like your cup of tea, please skip this review.)

Dominique Petracelli is an undercover DEA agent posing as dominatrix Mistress Bella at the sex club Xecutive Branch so she can investigate drug trafficking charges and mob connection allegations.  Meanwhile, Dalton Cutter is a Metro Police Department detective also investigating the Xecutive Branch.  He’s willing to go undercover as a sex-club customer because he’s determined to avenge his partner, who was murdered during his own undercover investigation of the Xecutive Branch.

Dalton poses as a submissive customer and is assigned to Mistress Bella, Dominique’s dominatrix persona.  Neither is aware of the other’s true identity and they find themselves strongly attracted to each other.  It’s easy to guess how Dominique and Dalton will end up — especially with the all-too-similar side story of undercover detective/Xecutive Branch masseuse Suzi and club customer/undercover FBI agent Calvin — but  James has the readers wrapped around her little finger and eager to devour every single word.

While this book might not be for everyone (given the subject matter), readers willing to explore Marcia James’ lusty, steamy thriller will find themselves…um…satisfied.

James’ book is available at Cerridwen Press.