Setting by JQ Rose and a #NewRelease + #Giveaway

I'm happy to welcome J.Q. Rose back to my blog. She's here to tell us about her latest release, and she has a give-away.

Setting

Thank you, Diane, for hosting me today. I’m happy to be here to meet and visit with your readers. Anybody ready for spring yet? Reading is a great escape from the gray, cold weather while we wait for spring flowers to pop up.

Then how about a free e-book to a lucky commenter? Pick one of my mysteries from BWL Publishing. My latest release is Terror on Sunshine Boulevard, but if you’ve read that or enjoy romantic suspense, then choose Dangerous Sanctuary or Deadly Undertaking. Click here to find out more about each one. BWL Publishing Author Page http://bookswelove.net/authors/rose-j-q/

Winner will be announced tomorrow (Friday) night after 10 pm. Please leave your email address in the comment.

Note on Friday: And the winner is: Darcy Flynn. J Q Rose will be in touch, Darcy.

I follow the old adage to write what you know. That’s why I chose the settings I did in those three books. Dangerous Sanctuary setting is a church. Deadly Undertaking setting is a funeral home. (Yes, my family was in the funeral business.)

I chose a Florida retirement community for Terror on Sunshine Boulevard because that’s where my husband, Gardener Ted, and I spend winters. We have either been RVing in FL or living in the senior park for many years and met a lot of wonderful characters. How could you not write about them? Throwing them together results in a story alive with humor and drama.

We think of the winters as a getaway from our home responsibilities in Michigan. There’s something fun to do every day. It’s kind of like attending summer camp in the winter!

I don’t participate in all the activities, but I do many of them in the book—except I am not a golfer. You must realize the book is fiction and what happens in the book may or may not be made up. You’ll have to decide what’s true and what isn’t. I’m not telling….

I chose this setting because I love the idea of a fun winter of golf, pickle ball, pool parties and dances juxtaposed against the death and fear blanketing the community. The murders yank the fun out from under people who have worked all their lives to enjoy the good things in life. I love the contrast of the bright fun-in- the- sun feeling with the darkness of murder and mystery.  Even the title includes the opposing views—terror and sunshine.

Excerpt: Terror on Sunshine Boulevard by J.Q. Rose

Scene—Gloria joins a group of women at her exercise class.

Gloria noted several circles of women around the room. A flashback to eighth grade when her clique of classmates stood in the hall before class. Memories danced through her mind of best friends, gossip, and popularity contests. Odd how things were still the same nearly fifty years later.

 “Good morning, everyone.” She smiled widely as she greeted her friends. But instead of the usual happy chorus of “Good morning Gloria,” her friends in the circle weakly smiled with the acknowledgement of her presence. Silence fell over the group. Everyone’s eyes lasered in on her. Gloria felt uncomfortable. What were they waiting for?

Finally her friend Pamela asked, “Well, are you going to tell us about George McDonnell?” Her voice a higher pitch. “Did Jim hear anything yet?” Pamela’s voice ratcheted even higher.

Gloria turned to face Pamela. “No, I haven’t heard anything. Why? Is he sick?”

“No, he’s dead.” Rosemary, Pamela’s best friend, waited a beat for Gloria to absorb the news. “Jim’s one of the first responders for the park. Wasn’t he called to the scene yesterday?”

“Uh, no. We were gone all day.” The unexpected news slammed her like a wild pickle ball, nearly knocking her off her feet and stinging her heart. George was younger than she was for Pete’s sake. He couldn’t be dead. That was incomprehensible to her. She and her husband had just visited him last week. He was a healthy man for his age. Tears stung her eyes when she remembered how excited he was about a fishing trip he’d planned.

Pamela gave her an understanding smile, flashing her perfect teeth—all her own—and touched Gloria’s back.

***

Back of the Book:  Rescuing a naked woman lying in a geranium bed or investigating mysterious murders are not the usual calls for first responder Jim Hart. He expects slip and fall accidents or low blood pressure emergencies in his retirement community of Citrus Ridge Senior Community and Golf Resort. The ghastly crime scenes turn the winter time fun into a terrifying season of death and mystery when the authorities cannot track down the predator responsible.

Jim and his wife Gloria could escape the horror and grief by returning to their northern home, but concern for their friends and residents keep them in Florida. With the entire community in a dither over the deaths, the Harts participate in the normal winter activities of golfing, dancing, and pool parties with their friends to distract them from the sadness and loss.

Can Jim and Gloria work with the authorities to discover who or what is killing the seniors on Sunshine Boulevard and stop the increasing body count?

Tagline: Rescuing a naked woman lying in a geranium bed? Investigating mysterious murders? These are not the usual calls in a Florida retirement community for volunteer first responder Jim Hart.

Terror on Sunshine Boulevard is available for purchase at these digital booksellers.

Universal Link for major online retailers: https://books2read.com/u/4XoN8e

About J.Q.

After writing feature articles in magazines, newspapers, and online magazines for over fifteen years, J.Q. Rose entered the world of fiction. Her published mysteries are Deadly Undertaking, Dangerous Sanctuary, and Terror on Sunshine Boulevard released by Books We Love Publishing. Blogging, photography, Pegs and Jokers board games, and travel are the things that keep her out of trouble. She spends winters in Florida and summers up north camping and hunting toads, frogs, and salamanders with her four grandsons and granddaughter.

Connect with J.Q. Rose online at

J.Q. Rose blog http://www.jqrose.com/

Facebook http://facebook.com/jqroseauthor

Books We Love Author Page http://bookswelove.net/authors/rose-j-q/

Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/jqrose