Guest: Alicia Dean - Precarious: Martini Club 4 @Alicia_Dean

My friend and freelance editor, Alicia Dean, visits to tell us about her new release, PRECARIOUS: MARTINI CLUB 4. I'm thrilled to have her here to tell us how this series came about.

Precarious is the second novella in a series I wrote with three author friends (see below for info on the other stories). The four of us used to meet weekly at a martini lounge in Edmond (sadly two of the friends moved out of state, and now the martini lounge is closed) and we came up with the idea to write separate stories about four friends. We set them in the 20s, because the martini lounge had a retro feel and we thought it would be fun to write about prohibition and the roaring 20s. We decided we’d continue to write stories in the series in the following decades, but we chose not to write stories set in the 30s because, with the depression, it didn’t seem like it would be much fun. We skipped to post war 1947 and our heroines are the offspring of our 20s heroines (other than in Perilous, Amanda McCabe’s story, where the heroine is a niece of her 20s heroine). I enjoyed researching the time period, but it was tricky to write a suspense set in that year, because I was unsure of police procedures and how far forensics had come. Next, we’ll be writing stories set in the 1950s. Anyone who knows me knows what a huge Elvis fan I am, so I’m particularly excited to delve into his decade.

Myself and my fellow MC4 friends hope you enjoy our stories!

Blurb - Precarious:

Boston ~ 1947

Iris Taggart should be ecstatic.  She’s engaged to one of  the wealthiest men in Boston, and he dotes on her. But, her marrying a rich man is her mother’s dream, not hers. Iris longs to be a nurse and care for others, and she’ll never have the career she wants if she marries a Boston Blue Blood. It just isn’t done. 

Dante Morello returned from WWII a war hero, and now he’s a Boston detective working the South End Slayer case where a deranged killer is butchering the poor and homeless. Dante’s investigation leads him to reconnect with Iris—a girl he’s known most of his life—who is volunteering at the soup kitchen where the murderer finds his victims. When Dante learns Iris is in the killer’s sites, he’ll do whatever it takes to protect her, and not just because she’s woken something in his heart he thought he’d never feel.

But neither of them is prepared for how precarious life can be. When secrets are exposed, and a madman’s full intent is revealed, will their love…and their lives…be destroyed?

Excerpt:

Dante stood and rolled down his shirt sleeves, then slipped on his jacket, not bothering to straighten his tie. “Hello, Iris. Is there something I can do for you?”

“Y-yes.” She held something tightly in her fists and shoved it toward him. “I-I found this.”

He peered at the object—a woman’s scarf, which looked as though it had been dragged through a tar pit—then lifted his brows. “And?”

She drew in a deep breath, her breasts rising with the action. He forced his gaze back to her face. “I found it at the clinic.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets, waiting. He’d offer her a seat, but then she might stay all day, rambling on and on about whatever popped into her pretty head. On one hand, that sounded like the perfect way to spend his day. On the other, he had a killer to catch.

“The bastard left it there for me.” She didn’t apologize, or even flinch, at her use of the curse word. She thrust the scarf out again, and this time he took it. “Have you heard any news? Any new victims? It belongs to Alma Vernon. She’s dead, isn’t she?” The sentences fell on top of one another. Her eyes filled with tears and she shook her head. “Mercy me. I don’t understand what’s happening.”

Dante tightened his fist around the scarf, battling the rage rising inside him. “How well did you know Ms. Vernon?”

“I saw her frequently at the kitchen. Then, a few days ago, she had a seizure, and I treated her.”

“Morello!”

Shannon’s shout drew Dante’s attention away from Iris, and for a moment, he was peeved at the interruption. Although she was bearing potentially disturbing news, seeing her lovely face was a balm to his soul.

“What is it?”

“We got a report of another victim.”

“Dammit to hell.” Dante shot a look at Iris but didn’t apologize for his language. He was damned well frustrated and feeling more incompetent each day. He said to Iris, “I’m sorry. I have to go. We’ll talk later.”

She nodded. Her lovely blue eyes swam with unshed tears, and her lips trembled. He wanted to stay, to hold her and comfort her. It was obvious that the killer was either fixated on Iris, or working his way through victims until he got to her. Either option opened a cold pit of fear in his chest.

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085BR3N7P/ 

Check out the other Martini Club 4 ~ The 1940s Novellas:

Pampered by Kathy L Wheeler https://www.amazon.com/Pampered-Martini-Club-4-1940s-ebook/dp/B07ZS2F7QK/

Perilous by Amanda McCabe https://www.amazon.com/Perilous-Martini-Club-4-1940s-ebook/dp/B081K789BV/

Priceless by Krysta Scott https://www.amazon.com/Priceless-Martini-Club-4-1940s-ebook/dp/B081M76DLK/

Author Bio:

Alicia Dean began writing stories as a child. At age 10, she wrote her first ever romance (featuring a hero who looked just like Elvis Presley, and who shared the name of Elvis’ character in the movie, Tickle Me), and she still has the tattered, pencil-written copy. Alicia is from Moore, Oklahoma and now lives in Edmond. She has three grown children and a huge network of supportive friends and family. She writes mostly contemporary suspense and paranormal, but has also written in other genres, including a few vintage historicals.

Other than reading and writing, her passions are Elvis Presley, MLB, NFL (she usually works in a mention of one or all three into her stories) and watching (and rewatching) her favorite televisions shows like Ozark, The Walking Dead, Dexter, Justified, Sons of Anarchy, Haven, Vampire Diaries, and The Originals. Some of her favorite authors are Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, Stephen King, Lee Child, Lisa Gardner, Ridley Pearson, Joseph Finder, and Jonathan Kellerman…to name a few.

Find Alicia Here:

Email: Alicia@AliciaDean.com

Website: http://aliciadean.com/

Blog: http://aliciadean.com/alicias-blog/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAliciaDean/

Twitter: @Alicia_Dean_

Instagram: AliciaDeanAuthor

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/alicia-dean

Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/aliciamdean/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/468339.Alicia_Dean

#WeWriWa ~ THE SPY: Why Was d'Sernin Ever Hired? #sfr

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

I'm sharing snippets from The Spy: An Outer Rim Novel. It's the 4th book in my series featuring strong women on the frontier of space. 

Because this is a work in progress, suggestions are greatly appreciated. Genna is in Commission Vorinda's office while d'Sernin's handler reports.

 Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. 

Vorinda glared at the handler, “Tell me about the rumors regarding d’Sernin.”

After fumbling with the plexi-sheet, he said, “Two years in a Menacan penitentiary, theft and conducting confidence schemes.”

“Yes, yes, what else?”

D’Sernin was a con man? That made sense—being a confidence man would help undercover work. Genna raised her eyebrow, not that either man looked at her—they stared at each other in a classic pissing match.

“Another year in a penal colony on Marin 5,” he went on, though not quite as bold as before, “That time for killing two men. He, along with several others, escaped in the most brazen breakout in Coalition history—he’s still wanted for that,” the handler rubbed his sweaty upper lip then looked like he was gathering up his gumption, “Sir, with his record, I do not understand why he was ever hired.”

“That’s enough,” Vorinda’s voice came out hard and sharp, like a dagger ready to plunge into an opponent’s jugular.

By the Matriarch, the commissioner was going to explode like the volcano on Traish, the one everyone thought was extinct.

Tentative blurb:

Rookie agent must rescue veteran before his cover is blown.

Genna Nogaro, new to the Coalition of Planets’ Intelligence Commission, is assigned to bring in an undercover operative in Hallart’s organization. More experienced agents died before getting him out. Were they killed by the intergalactic gangster or has the operative gone rogue?

Quintall d’Sernin, con man extraordinaire, infiltrated the mob and moved up to be the gangster’s right-hand man. Hallart has his tentacles throughout the Coalition—business, industry, and government. Quin’s finally worked himself into a valued position. All he needs is the key to mob structure in order for Coalition forces to take down the entire organization.

Genna will pose as a new recruit to distract Hallart long enough for Quin to find the key. If they work together, they can accomplish more. But Quin and Genna’s lives are jeopardized by a mole in the Intelligence Commission. Will their true roles be revealed before they accomplish their goal?

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

Please stay safe during this pandemic.

#WeWriWa ~ THE SPY: Master of Disguises #sfr

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

My apologies for last weekend. I lost track of days. Seriously. I didn't realize it was Sunday until late in the afternoon. With all the closures here, our lives are disrupted--as I'm sure yours are. Thanks for understanding.

I'm sharing snippets from The Spy: An Outer Rim Novel. It's the 4th book in my series featuring strong women on the frontier of space. 

Because this is a work in progress, suggestions are greatly appreciated. Genna is in Commission Vorinda's office. While Genna was thinking about d'Sernin and his sister, the new handler droned on.

“. . . master of disguises,” The handler interrupted Genna’s thoughts, “He can be anyone—you could pass him on the street and never recognize him.”

“Are you speaking of d’Sernin or Hallart?” Vorinda asked.

She should have paid more attention, but the handler liked to hear himself speak, plus he was sucking up to Vorinda and made the mistake of assuming the commissioner didn’t notice.

“Both--d'Sernin employs disguises,” During his lengthy discourse, the handler barely glanced at her. Initially, he’d dismissed her as being unimportant; instead, he concentrated on Vorinda. “But it’s rumored Hallart is a transformer. The gangster can change shape, be anyone or anything he wants--like the Coalition President.”

Tentative blurb:

Rookie agent must rescue veteran before his cover is blown.

Genna Nogaro, new to the Coalition of Planets’ Intelligence Commission, is assigned to bring in an undercover operative in Hallart’s organization. More experienced agents died before getting him out. Were they killed by the intergalactic gangster or has the operative gone rogue?

Quintall d’Sernin, con man extraordinaire, infiltrated the mob and moved up to be the gangster’s right-hand man. Hallart has his tentacles throughout the Coalition—business, industry, and government. Quin’s finally worked himself into a valued position. All he needs is the key to mob structure in order for Coalition forces to take down the entire organization.

Genna will pose as a new recruit to distract Hallart long enough for Quin to find the key. If they work together, they can accomplish more. But Quin and Genna’s lives are jeopardized by a mole in the Intelligence Commission. Will their true roles be revealed before they accomplish their goal?

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

Please stay safe during this pandemic.

#WeWriWa ~ THE SPY: He Stole His Sister's Ship? #sfr

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

Thanks to all who visited last week. I'm sharing snippets from The Spy: An Outer Rim Novel. It's the 4th book in my series featuring strong women on the frontier of space. 

Because this is a work in progress, suggestions are greatly appreciated. Genna is at headquarters meeting with the Commissioner of the Clandestine Sector of Coalition of Planets Intelligence. In last week's snippet, Commissioner Vorinda announced the name of the missing spy--Quintall d'Sernin.

From the moment the commissioner mentioned him, she thought the name Quintall d’Sernin sounded familiar. One hundred mins later—after info, strategy, do’s and don’t’s, and meeting d’Sernin’s newest handler—Genna finally remembered. He was Celara d’Enfaden’s brother, different last names, same parents. According to rumors, she’d changed hers so as not to be associated with her con man father and her criminal brother.

Memories of d’Sernin surfaced. She recalled how he’d abandoned his sister on a deserted, barren planet, where Genna and Servary had found and rescued not just Celara but Servary’s best friend, Trevarr Jovano, Coalition Admin on Mag Prime. If she remembered correctly, d’Sernin also stole his sister’s ship, a cargo hauler. That was pretty low in Genna’s book. What kind of sibling did such a thing?

Tentative blurb:

Rookie agent must rescue veteran before his cover is blown.

Genna Nogaro, new to the Coalition of Planets’ Intelligence Commission, is assigned to bring in an undercover operative in Hallart’s organization. More experienced agents died before getting him out. Were they killed by the intergalactic gangster or has the operative gone rogue?

Quintall d’Sernin, con man extraordinaire, infiltrated the mob and moved up to be the gangster’s right-hand man. Hallart has his tentacles throughout the Coalition—business, industry, and government. Quin’s finally worked himself into a valued position. All he needs is the key to mob structure in order for Coalition forces to take down the entire organization.

Genna will pose as a new recruit to distract Hallart long enough for Quin to find the key. If they work together, they can accomplish more. But Quin and Genna’s lives are jeopardized by a mole in the Intelligence Commission. Will their true roles be revealed before they accomplish their goal?

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

#IWSG: March - Traditions

Happy Insecure Writers Support Group Day. IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going. We are rockin' the neurotic writing world!

A huge thank you to the awesome co-hosts for this month: Jacqui Murray, Lisa Buie-Collard, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, and Shannon Lawrence!

I started off February on a roll. In 2 weeks, I wrote over 12,000 words. Then, I broke my foot. The obvious question is how? I stepped wrong, I guess. You would think since I have to be off my foot I'd be writing up a storm. Hah! I wrote 600 words since then. So, I need to get my mojo back. Hopefully, next month I can say I finished the darn book. 

This month's optional question: Other than the obvious holiday traditions, have you ever included any personal or family traditions/customs in your stories?

Christmas is a time of many traditions—old and new, especially when new members are added to the family. Our daughter combined our traditions with her husband’s, same with our son. One thing hasn’t changed is the Christmas tree.

In my book, Romance Rekindled, I used what is our holiday tradition in this excerpt where Sam sees Flo’s (Abby’s mother) house. Bethany is Abby’s daughter. Sam is George’s son.

Sam had only been in this house once, shortly after he arrived in west Michigan. The living room was tastefully decorated for the holidays. The tree in front of the window had to be ten feet tall. With its twelve-foot ceiling, the room would have dwarfed a smaller tree. Intrigued by what looked like a mishmash of ornaments, he walked closer to examine them.

“I made that decoration when I was in kindergarten.” Bethany had come up behind him and pointed to what looked like a butterfly made of wallpaper and a hairclip. “Mom made that one in preschool. And Gram made this one in grade school.”

The last two ornaments, a Shrinky Dink star—Sam remembered making those—and a pinecone with glued glitter were amateurish and charming. Nadine would’ve disdained them, opting for matching ornaments, ribbons, and lights. Not this record of children’s growth. His mother would have approved, though.

“Mom and I helped Gram decorate. She won’t let Gram get up on a ladder.”

“Good thing,” George said. He, too, had come over to admire the tree. “Can’t have my sweetie falling.”

“Oh, you.” Flo swiped her hand against his arm in a playful, yet intimate, gesture. “I love my tree. So many wonderful memories.”

That’s how I feel about our tree—so many memories. As our kids married, I passed many of their handmade ornaments to them for their trees.

Abby Ten Eyck likes her life the way it is. She runs a successful business, has a well-adjusted teenage daughter, and has managed to keep men at bay since her divorce fifteen years ago. Just before Christmas, she’s hit with change. Her mother decides to sell the family home. Then she’s arrested, with an unknown man. Could this new man in her mother’s life create more upheaval? Or could his handsome son be just what Abby needs to revive her dormant feelings?

Sam Watson embraces the transition from frenetic Wall Street to a small Michigan resort town. His health is worth moving close to his dad who seems over the moon in love. But it’s the daughter of his father’s girlfriend who fascinates him. Abby Ten Eyck reminds him of his driven self. He must help her slow down before she burns out. Like he did.

Amazon  ~  Amazon UK  ~  iBooks  ~  Kobo  ~  Smashwords  ~ Nook

Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.

#WeWriWa ~ THE SPY: The Bravest Man I Know #sfr

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

Thanks to all who visited last week. I'm sharing snippets from The Spy: An Outer Rim Novel. It's the 4th book in my series featuring strong women on the frontier of space. 

Because this is a work in progress, suggestions are greatly appreciated. Genna is at headquarters meeting with the Commissioner of the Clandestine Sector of Coalition of Planets Intelligence. Last week's snippet ended with Genna's thought: She’d heard of agents being undercover so long they abandoned their ethics.

She had to try again. “Why are you so sure your agent hasn’t turned?”

“Because I know him better than anyone. Our agent is the bravest man I know. And I want you to save him.”

She gulped. By the Matriarch, her orders scared her to death. But, Vorinda must really trust her. “Sir, who is this agent?”

“Quintall d’Sernin.”

 Tentative blurb:

Rookie agent must rescue veteran before his cover is blown.

Genna Nogaro, new to the Coalition of Planets’ Intelligence Commission, is assigned to bring in an undercover operative in Hallart’s organization. More experienced agents died before getting him out. Were they killed by the intergalactic gangster or has the operative gone rogue?

Quintall d’Sernin, con man extraordinaire, infiltrated the mob and moved up to be the gangster’s right-hand man. Hallart has his tentacles throughout the Coalition—business, industry, and government. Quin’s finally worked himself into a valued position. All he needs is the key to mob structure in order for Coalition forces to take down the entire organization.

Genna will pose as a new recruit to distract Hallart long enough for Quin to find the key. If they work together, they can accomplish more. But Quin and Genna’s lives are jeopardized by a mole in the Intelligence Commission. Will their true roles be revealed before they accomplish their goal?

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

Meet the Author: April Kelley Jones @akejones #fantasy

My good friend, Patricia Kiyono, "introduced" me to today's guest. April Jones is a fellow Michigander, and she writes fantasy. Here's a little about her and her journey to publication.

I spend most of my writing time as an editor and book coach. There’s something about stories (any story, any format) that I can’t help but be drawn to. I have just as much fun walking a writer through their plot holes as I do writing my own story, so it can be tricky to block off time for writing my own stories. The Curse Breaker took just under two years from start to finish to complete. Having worked for several publishers, I thought I would have to collect rejections for a while before I found the right publisher. However, I was at a writing convention chatting with a friend about my intentions to pitch my book to one of the publishers there when he suggested that I send it to his publisher instead. When I got home from the convention, I took a couple of weeks to comb over my story for imperfections before I sent it off to Dingbat Publishing. In less than a month I had a reply. It took all my courage to open that email, haha, but when I did I saw the words, “I love this!” and “Tell me there’s a second book!” (Spoiler, there is so I hope you like dragons). So to all the writer friends out there, keep the faith. It might take several rejections to find the right place for your novel, but maybe all it will take is the right friend’s suggestion and a little bit of courage.   

Book Blurb:

Eris's sister is missing, and Magic is definitely to blame! Eris knows only Magic can bring her back, but even as a Light Magic born, is she strong enough to save her sister?

Knox is cursed to spend his days as a corpse and his nights trying to find the prophesized girl who can break the curse. If he can't find her by his 20th birthday, he'll stay dead forever.

Eris and Knox will discover there are scarier things in their path other than curses and half-truths. If the Queen of the Underworld has her way, everything and everyone will die. The only thing standing in her way is the curse breaker, and Eris will have to choose between saving herself or everyone she loves.

Excerpt:

The Queen paced in front of her blood-red throne. After so many years, she was finally going to meet the thief who had stolen her amulet. And when she did, she was going to slowly sever every one of their limbs, one by one, before feeding their soul to Madame. The thought made her smile a wicked smile. That would teach them to steal from the Queen of the Underworld. Stupid humans were always trying to prolong their lives in the most feeble ways. Tonics, magic, deals. Death was something that could never be avoided entirely, but they didn’t seem to think that universal rule applied to any of them.

Three more months and her amulet would call to her like it always did when she could get free of this place, and then she would have her revenge. Whoever they were, they had been granted twenty years that did not belong to them, and she would make sure they paid for that stolen time. That was part of her job, after all, not that she was complaining.

“I apologize for being late, your Majesty.” Madame hurried in, a little out of breath.

The Queen turned and stared at a slightly disheveled Madame. Normally her long hair was braided and wrapped elaborately around her head, causing her to look like a long-lost ancient queen from the human world.

“We can discuss that in a moment. I called you here because I have a proposition for you.”

“I am but your humble servant, your Majesty.” Madame feigned humility they both knew she did not possess.

The Queen rolled her eyes and continued. “If you can find the insect that stole my amulet before three months are up, I will give you a special treat.”

“I will find the human. I will make it suffer.” Madame smiled.

“No. You will not touch a hair on its head. Bring it to me, and I will deal with it.” Madame looked disappointed but nodded.

The body of a girl suddenly appeared in the air in front of them, along with one of her servants. Madame examined the girl for a moment, but then seemed to lose interest once she realized the girl was neither alive nor dead. The Queen walked over and swept the girl’s long black hair back enough to see her face. She scrunched up her nose at the young girl’s beauty.

Snapping her fingers again brought new servants running.

“Take her and put her with the rest of the cursed.”

The women gently plucked the girl from the air. The Queen wondered how many bodies lay waiting in the limbo between life and death. Not that she would forgive the vermin that had stolen her amulet, but she would enjoy watching the human be tortured by all the souls it had trapped prematurely in the Underworld. Eternity would not be long enough for all the lives that heartless human had taken trying to break the curse that came with stealing something born from the Underworld’s power. Since the human had not been able to break it thus far, she continued to collect bodies stuck in the in-between, their lives connected to the cursed one’s. When that insect finally died, so would all of those souls, and she would have a lovely new collection of pets.

The Queen smiled to herself as she watched one of the servants wrap her arms around the girl’s legs while the other wove her arms around the girl’s back. Slowly they carried her out, leaving the Queen to her thoughts again.

Buy Link:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084DLCY8Z?pf_rd_p=ab873d20-a0ca-439b-ac45-cd78f07a84d8&pf_rd_r=K7GRY0P45ACKY78G6QT2

Author Bio:

April Jones has read, written, or edited her way through numerous fictional worlds. When she's not teaching or writing, she spends her time trying to learn other languages or keeping her mischievous cat from eating the pet fish. She received her bachelor's in English and her M.F.A. in creative writing.

A Tennessee native, April currently lives in Michigan with her husband and three children. You can find her poems and short stories published in various literary magazines across the internet and in print. You can also check out her debut novel, The Curse Breaker. For more information visit her website thepathtostory.com

Social Media Links:

Facebook: Facebook.com/editorapril
Twitter: @akejones
Instagram: aprilkelleyjones
Website: thepathtostory.com