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The Killer in Me by Winter Austin-Review & Interview

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The Killer in Me (Benoit and Dayne Mystery 1) by Winter Austin-Review & Interview

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date September 14, 2021.

What price is too great to stop a killing spree?

Elizabeth Benoit ran for sheriff to wipe out the corruption in the good old boys network of Eckardt County, but she has yet to break in her shoes when a stranger’s body is found in a ravine. With her ex back in town, a new deputy detective on the edge of losing control, and a crooked ex-sheriff out for revenge, Elizabeth’s resources are stretched thin. And then the second body drops.

Fearing a serial killer on the loose, Elizabeth launches an investigation that lays bare more than one family secret: The Kauffmann matriarch is full of advice, but her progeny have a mean streak that leaves a path of destruction in their wake. The Meyer patriarch has his own agenda, and the Kauffmanns have been a thorn in his ambition for too long.

Elizabeth and her deputies are about to face off against odds that are not in their favor. Only one source can tip the scales, but will she sell her soul for his help?

••••••

REVIEW: THE KILLER IN ME is the first instalment in Winter Austin’s contemporary, adult BENOIT AND DAYNE MYSTERY murder, suspense series focusing on small-town Sheriff Elizabeth “Ellie’ Benoit, and former Chicago police officer Lila Dayne.

Told from third person perspective THE KILLER IN ME focuses on a series of murders in the small town of Eckardt County, murders in the wake of the ousting of a corrupt police department. Elizabeth Benoit’s return to Eckardt County comes with the new position of sheriff, a position in which she is hoping to dismantle years of corruption at the hands of the former people in charge but when several bodies begin surfacing in and around Elizabeth’s jurisdiction, Elizabeth needs all hands on deck in an effort to take down a potential serial killer, taking aim at the people she has sworn to protect.

Meanwhile, former Chicago PD police officer Lila Dayne, arrives in town just in time to jump head first into the first of four murder investigations but informing the families pushes Lila over the edge, bringing with it memories she won’t soon forget. Struggling to move on from a past without any closure, hoping for a much slower pace than her previous assignment, Lila’s ongoing pain and physical reminders, are too often at the forefront on her current investigation.

THE KILLER IN ME introduces the players in Winter Austin’s Benoit and Dayne Mystery series: Sheriff Elizabeth Benoit, Deputy Lila Dayne, Deputy Rafe Fontaine, Deputy Ben Fitzgerald, Deputy Brent Meyer, and Deputy Kyle Lundquist, as well as Elizabeth’s ex-husband, Delta force specialist Joel Fontaine, ME Dr. Olivia Remington-Thorpe, and former Eckardt County Sheriff Kelley Sheehan. The requisite evil has many faces.

Winter Austin pulls the reader into a complex story of betrayal and vengeance, power and control, murder, mayhem, greed and extreme dysfunctional family dynamics. The premise is intriguing, haunting, twisted and tragic; the characters are impassioned and determined. We learn some of the history between Elizabeth, her ex-husband Joel, and his brother Rafe, as well as a little bit about the past events that forced Lila from Chicago to Eckardt County, a past that is likely to follow Lila wherever she goes.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC:  Hi Winter and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of THE KILLER IN ME.

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Winter:  I’m a long time Midwestern gal with a penchant for the macabre. Always nose-deep in a mystery/suspense or a comic book when I was growing up. I was that girl classmates looked at cross-eyed because I was weird for my small rural town upbringing. If I wasn’t reading, I was writing or dreaming of writing. I have a thing for action movies, especially if the heroine is the kick-butt one holding her own and saving the dude’s life.

 Today, I’ve raised 4 weirdos just like me, and been married over twenty years to a veteran who is now teaching. And my writing has gone from romantic suspense to full on mystery/suspense with female leads.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Winter: The deciding factor in my decision to become an author came about in the fourth grade when I earned a spot to go to a young writer’s conference with a story, that ironically, was a mystery. I was horse crazy kid who found and fell in love with Walter Farley’s THE BLACK STALLION, and upon learning that he’d written that book while in college and became an author at an early age cemented it for me. Fast forward to high school, I returned to that same young writer’s conference, and on the suggestion of an English teacher, I began to pursue that dream. It wasn’t until my twin sons were born and with nothing better to do, I began writing—a mystery. (See a theme here?)

 Over time, lots of self-learning, years of dogged determination, and few writer’s conferences more I made it. I’ve had people tell me, without having ever read a word I wrote, that I couldn’t be a writer/author because it wasn’t a legit job and I wouldn’t earn a living at it. I wasn’t out for the $$, I did it because if I didn’t it would consume me. It was also a great learning tool for my kids, as they watched me struggle through and finally succeed. It taught them to never give up, and never let anyone tell you who or what you could be.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Winter: Publishing the book was never an issue. When Tule’s editorial team saw the tidbits I had, they wanted it and the series.

Writing the story, however, was a challenge, because I hadn’t done a lot of developing on the story line and the characters, which is something I need in order to write, and that takes time. Sometimes a story needs to stew in my head for a bit before I get all the pieces together. Also, I had just decided to get my long overdue college degree right before I signed with Tule, and that meant juggling college courses along with a day job and family obligations. Then Covid hit. But that gave me more time at home to write when I wasn’t working. Eventually the book came together and here it is today.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of THE KILLER IN ME?

Winter: The premise of THE KILLER IN ME is about family dynamics, long-standing feuds, and the lines one is willing to cross. It’s the dark, dirty secrets of a rural small town come to life.

TRC:What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning THE KILLER IN ME?

Winter: THE KILLER IN ME is my tenth novel that dealt with police procedure. Most of my research was done long before, but I still consult with law enforcement and forensics personnel all the time as I write. The plot, however, took me way longer than any book has before. Tule contracted the series based on a few pages and an idea of how the series might go. I usually have the ending and the antagonist in mind before I start writing, I had none of that. As I wrote it things began to fall into place for me and eventually, I figured out what I needed. Though there were a few hours lost when I was trying to find out if an ME could figure out if and how long a body had been cold, not frozen, just cold, and how it would mess with the timeline of death.

TRC: Is any of the premise based in reality or fact?

Winter: To be frank, yes it’s both in fact. You see a lot of ID network shows on small town murders and it always stems back to 3 things; Money, Love, and Hate/Envy. I chuckle every time I see some comment online about that isn’t how small towns are, most of this coming from people who have lived in cities all their lives and believe that romance novels and other venues depict how small-town life is like.

Misogynistic/Patriarchal behavior, the likes of which Elizabeth and Lila must deal with in the book, are still on full display even today. And family feuds that date back decades can be found. Murder happens. And so does corruption. We might not be in the deep south or the mountains of the east, but we have our own crime escapades here in the Midwest.

TRC: How many books do you have planned for the series? Will Elizabeth Benoit be the lead heroine in each of the stories?

Winter: Right now, I’m trying to finish book 2 and book 3 is contracted. I don’t know how many books this series will go, I hope a lot, but that depends all on the readers. ?

Elizabeth and Lila Dayne are the main female leads, and they will be leads in all of the books. Book 2 has a surprise new lead, female as well, but I don’t want to give it away who it is.

TRC: Believability is an important factor in writing story lines especially stories of mystery and suspense. How do you keep the story line believable? Where do you think some author’s fail?

Winter: I try to keep it as real as I can. But I also take fictional licence where I want, because I can. Reading is an escape, and just like watching a movie, I want the reader to suspend disbelief and just flow with it. I read a lot in the genres I write in, but I’m really into action thrillers where the lead characters do things that feel and seem impossible, but it works because of who that character is. Oddly enough, that old line, “truth is stranger than fiction” is true. Weird things can happen in real life, but if you were to write it in a book no one would believe you. So, take licence where you can and have fun with it. If I get too bogged down in the minute details of making it all factual, I lose the love of writing what I’m writing. I’m not doing this to teach someone something, leave that for the textbooks. Enjoy! Have fun! And pretend that just for once, a woman can be more than what the world has told her to be.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Winter: Personally, for me, I love a good cover, especially for my own books. But in the end does it drive me toward a book? No. Let the meat of the story be your deciding factor. Does the back cover blurb convey exactly what I want to read? That’s where I think a lot of readers go.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Winter: It’s all character. All. The. Time. If I step in and control the story it blows up and dies. Which is exactly what has happened to me in the middle of writing book 2. I got in the way and now I’m having to unravel the mess I made. As much as I love to say my books are mystery and suspense driven, the reality is everything I write is all character driven. They dictate what I do with them.

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavour?

Winter: This is where Voice comes into play. If a writer hasn’t finetuned this part of their writing process it will make the characters fall flat and the reader won’t find a way to connect with them. As a writer, you need to draw on your own life experiences, what were you feeling at this moment, have you ever been in a situation that you’re putting your characters and how did you feel at that moment.

When I’m writing, if I don’t feel the character’s emotions, then I know the reader won’t. Writing action scenes or fight scenes I’m practically buzzing along with the character as they are in a tense situation. I’ve bawled my eyes out during certain scenes in past books and I later learned so did my readers.

As my editor always says, when she gets a draft from me, or opens a Winter Austin book, she expects to be swept right into a Winter Austin experience.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Winter: Most of the time I do, and it really depends on what’s going on in that particular scene. I have an eclectic taste in music ranging from instrumental soundtracks from TV shows and movies right up to heavy metal. But there are times I just need silence, those are rare, but they happen.

While writing THE KILLER IN ME I listened to tracts by Tommee Proffit and The Sweeplings. During the editing process I was listening to the soundtracks from Yellowstone seasons 1-3. This is a trend for me, music with singing okay while writing. Instrumental music only during editing. YouTube Music has become my best friend.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Winter: That writing is easy. That we just sit around and the words flow right onto the page. We have all the time in the world to just daydream and write. I wish!

Writing is not easy, it’s ugly and stressful. And there are times when you put your heart and soul, blood and tears, life and death into those books, then the check comes, and you just die. Or worse, you find out people are stealing your work in some fashion or another and you just want to scream.

We are not just authors, as in my case, I’m my own agent, publicist, promoter, financer, and secretary. When I’m not working my day job or tending to family obligations, and I’m not writing, I’m promoting that next book. I’m lining up reviews. Working with the publishing team to get places. Then reaching out to potential new readers and enticing them with my books. And somehow in all of that, I need to read my writing partner’s books, and other authors’ books to keep my imagination fuelled.

This is a job. And it needs to be treated as such.

TRC: What is something that few, if anyone, knows about you?

Winter: More people are beginning to see it. I play on this card a lot because it drives interest toward my books. My daughter shows cattle. We have long been a 4-H/FFA family and her career is falling into showing and raising cattle. She works on the family farm and is building up a small herd of her own.

We travel all over the state of Iowa to show—as a unit, she, me, and my husband—and soon we’ll be traveling out of state to show. The end goal for her is to show at the Grandaddy of them All in Denver, the National Western Stock Show.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Winter: I’m writing book 2 for this series, called Hush, My Darling. And working on edits for a second book in another series for another house that is a military romantic thriller.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Winter: THE KILLER IN ME is available now at all retailers for purchase. You can hang out with me at many of the social media platforms.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: Pesto, I would eat this on everything if I could.

Favorite Dessert: Peanut Butter Thumbprint cookies—you will be stabbed if you steal one from me.

Favorite TV Show: Yellowstone & Blue Bloods

Last Movie You Saw: Black Widow & Gunpowder Milkshake

Dark or Milk Chocolate: Dark all the way, baby.

Secret Celebrity Crush: Phillip Winchester & Sullivan Stapleton—have to pair them up. ?

Last Vacation Destination: My last official vacation for myself that didn’t include a trip to the Iowa State Fair was Boulder and Denver, CO with my bestie and writing partner.

Do you have any pets? Oh, yes. 2 dogs, 1 inside kitty and a handful of farm cats. Chickens—but they’re not really pets just livestock. And rabbits.

Last book you read: The Lost Ones, by Ace Atkins

Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of THE KILLER IN ME. We wish you all the best.

 

 

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Run Lab Rat Run (Modified 1) by Shawn C Butler-Review & Interview

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Run Lab Rat Run (Modified 1) by Shawn C.  Butler-Review & Interview

RUN LAB RAT RUN
by Shawn C. Butler
Release Date August 11, 2021
Genre: adult, dystopian, sci-fi, futuristic

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 11, 2021.

Media’s eyebrows were once blue for nine weeks, her bones nearly dissolved and she spent a month smelling like salted pork, but no one ate her and she never died. She came close enough to require CPR and a genomic flush on several occasions, but she’s nearly indestructible. That’s what they told her on the bad days in the lab, but she knew it was a lie.

Genetic test subjects like her usually died by thirty, and they always died in pain.

But on her 21st birthday, she’s given a chance to escape the lab—she just has to run in the deadliest race on Earth so the company that owns her can do illegal off-book testing on her. If she finishes the race, and the tests work, she and her family will be safe and she might live forever. If she doesn’t, they’ll be deoptimized and dumped back, in natural slums to starve and die. In her world, the worst thing to be is merely human.

Or is it?

••••••••

REVIEW:RUN LAB RAT RUN is the first instalment in Shawn C. Butler’s futuristic MODIFIED sci-fi, dystopian series focusing on twenty-one year old ‘Baseline’ Media Conaill.

Told from first person perspective (Media) RUN LAB RAT RUN follows twenty-one year old ‘Baseline’ Media Conaill as she is invited to participate in the Modified Marathons, the most dangerous ultra-marathon in the world for enhanced runners but Media is not quite an enhanced human, our heroine is a human guinea pig; an embryonic lab rat sold by her parents to TTI, the TrumaniTech Corporation, in the aftermath of the Chrome Wars. Flagged for exceptional characteristics, Media would become the ward of TTI, a ‘baseline’ subjected to all sorts of entry level genetic modifications. As a Beta, Media would be the one of the few early-stage human subjects but in doing so, her lifespan would be greatly affected, not expected to live beyond thirty years. In an effort to release her brother and her family from obligations to TTI, Media accepted the invitation to the marathons, marathons that would prove to be more challenging and revealing than she could have ever imagined. With each successive leg of the marathon, Media’s endurance, speed and power increase, raising red flags with the officials, competitors, and ultimately the world outside.

RUN LAB RAT RUN is a story of both speculative and science fiction wherein the modification of human DNA becomes the norm for the rich and famous, and the old ‘normals’ or non-modified humans are treated with disdain and discrimination, relegated to the slums and less than optimal living conditions. Open to the best of the best, the Modified Marathons is akin to the ‘Hunger Games’™ such that to win means to save the lives of the people back home. Working together, each team selected has a mentor, a coach, and a various modified human competitors. Many will die; aggression and individual targeting the norm; success is the exception to the rule especially in a world struggling with the affects of global warming and environmental disasters.

Shawn C Butler pulls the reader into a world of genetic enhancements and mutations, artificial intelligence, robots and implants. There are examples of anthropomorphism, super human strength and speed, backroom deals, manipulations, secrets and lies all in an effort to create the ultimate warrior –for good or evil.

RUN LAB RAT RUN is a cautionary tale; a complex, thought-provoking and twisted story of specieism and discrimination, competition, power and control. My only complaint would be the lack of background information regarding the Chrome Wars, the environmental disasters, and the history as to how and why the world of enhanced human modifications came to be.

RUN LAB RAT RUN ends on a bit of a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC:  Hi Shawn and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of RUN LAB RAT RUN.

Shawn: Thanks!

TRC:  We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Shawn:  I’ve spent most of my adult life in the tech space, fascinated by what technology can do to improve business and human lives. But I’ve never really seen myself as a technologist. What I love are solutions; finding ways to fix things that have been broken for years. What I soon realized about the high-tech industry is that solutions are secondary to profit, and that search for profit (while a vital part of capitalism) tends to create as many problems as it solves. Sometimes more.

I think I started writing to express my frustration with this, first blogging and then long-form work. Maybe if I do this right, I won’t go back into tech…but we’ll see. When not working, I love to hike and run, travel and generally be outdoors. Also, I love ice cream. It’s a good thing I run a lot.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Shawn:  I’d guess the usual answer is that I read a lot of science fiction when I was young, and that got me started. And that’s true. But what I loved about SF compared to other genres was that it was usually focused on envisioning challenges and then finding solutions. It’s like the crime fiction of the future. Here’s the body or challenge. Here are the available tools. Here’s what happens if you solve the problem, or if you fail. The fact that the challenge is often existential—alien invasion, meteors, plagues, raging cyborgs, just makes it all the more entertaining.

In parallel, I blog about ultra-running and long distance day hikes. It was kind of inevitable that I’d try to blend science fiction with the outdoors at some point. Run Lab Rat Run is that point.

TRC:  What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Shawn:  Run Lab Rat Run is based on three things. First, advances in genetic engineering that I see deriving from CRISPR—leading inevitably to designer babies. Second, ultrarunning super-athletes. And third, the Barkley Marathons, a real race that drives incomprehensibly fit and fantastic athletes to miserable fates. Finding a way to combine all three in a way that would appeal to the average SF reader was difficult. Most of us don’t care much about lactate thresholds or fartlek training. And I didn’t want the result to be a caricature future where silly people do silly things just to make the story interesting. I think I got it right, but we’ll see.

TRC:  Would you please tell us something about the premise of RUN LAB RAT RUN?

Shawn:  Recent developments in genetic engineering mean that we’ll have the ability to eliminate many genetic diseases within a few years. Soon after that, it’ll be possible to genetically alter animals almost at will. And then human modifications will follow. The rich will travel to less regulated countries and come back pregnant with enhanced babies. Monetary class and genetic caste will be inextricably linked.

Run Lab Rat Run is about the resulting hierarchical world, where the “modified” rule over impoverished and nearly obsolete “natural” human beings. It’s like Gattaca, with a lot more rules and a deadly race in the middle—a race that gives one company CEO the chance to do illegal tests away from corporate oversight, and one runner the chance to earn her freedom. If she doesn’t die in the process.

TRC:  What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning RUN LAB RAT RUN?

Shawn:  I don’t write hard science fiction, but realism is important to me. So I researched enough to have a general working knowledge of all salient topics, and then asked more intelligent people to read what I’d created so it didn’t sound ludicrous. RLRR research was more about the history of racial discrimination and caste systems than about genetics, but I spent a good deal of time on both. A few months, probably, with a lot of ongoing research as I wrote the book.

TRC:  How much of the story line is based in science fact vs science fiction?

Shawn:  When I sat down to write RLRR, I wanted a book that was science fiction only in the sense that it was a possible view of our near future. All of the technology and technical advances are meant to be predictions of what I think will happen. They are not fantastical, but all based on what’s occurring today projected forward. The world of RLRR is meant to be the real world, just 50+ years from now.

I believe we are headed toward a class system based on levels of genetic and technical modification, and that designer babies will be here much sooner than we think. This is the Pandora’s Box opened by CRISPR and related genetic engineering systems.

The sole exceptions to my rule about realistic technologies in the book are the Black Hole Drones, which rely on a flight technology that seems fanciful at best.

TRC:  Believability is an important factor in writing and reading science fiction / speculative fiction. How do you keep the story line believable in a genre that crosses the line between reality and fantasy?

Shawn:  I guess the question is what you mean by “believable.” Run Lab Rat Run is based almost entirely on projected technology, so it’s not hard in this case. Other things I’m working on are a little more fantastical, but to me believability is about internal consistency and respecting the reader. Build your world completely and honestly. Tell your story without factual lapses, leaps of faith and plot holes, and I think most readers will come along for the ride. I never thought the world of, say, The Expanse was objectively believable, but once I accepted the world as defined, I was on board for the duration.

TRC:  Is RUN LAB RAT RUN part of a series or a stand-alone. ?

Shawn:  RLRR the first in a trilogy about this particular protagonist and snapshot in future time, but it’s also part of a larger Modified meta-series that starts “today” with Beasts of Sonara (due out later this year). The trilogy of RLRR can be read on its own, or with other books in the Modified universe, but it doesn’t matter what order you read them in.

TRC:  Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Shawn:  I do. I’ve bought a lot of books over the years, and with many of them the cover was definitely part of the decision process. I don’t know if I’d every have read Larry Niven as a kid if not for the fantastical PAJ cover art. It’s not everything, of course, but it undeniably helps.

TRC:  When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Shawn:  I think this has a lot to do with the planner vs. pantser question. I’d like to be more of a planner, doing nice outlines like bumpers the characters obey. But honestly, I write almost randomly to see what happens (including what the characters do), and then see if there’s a plot there. It’s not the most organized model in the world, but I get really bored and distracted following strict outlines.

TRC:  The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

Shawn:  This is different for all of us, but to me it’s about getting readers invested in a character or situation so they feel a connection to them. The stakes must feel personal, like of the way people attach themselves to football teams or other sports. And that only works if you create realistic people with character and flaws in situations with real stakes.

I suspect some writers fail at this when they make something so unrealistic or poorly structured that it’s impossible to sustain believability, and thus lose their trust and connection to what’s going on in the book. I remember thinking this about the book It, when the kids end up having an orgy in the sewer system (spoiler?). It was just so bizarre and unnecessary that it ruined my confidence in the author, the story and the characters. Not like Stephen King cares, of course, but what the heck?

TRC:  Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Shawn:  I have in the past—usually techno, EDM or classical. I find music with lyrics distracting and for some reason a bit melancholy. Now I primarily try to write in coffee shops with ambient noise to help me concentrate, and forego the music. Also seems a bit less lonely. I don’t think the music ever impacted the storyline, but it might have impacted the energy level in some passages.

TRC:  What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Shawn:  I don’t know. Maybe the modern one is that most of them make money. It seems like almost no one does unless they’re very lucky. A second misconception is that any one “type” of person makes a good or bad author. Anyone, man or woman, Black or white, straight or gay, can write a great novel in any genre. I love seeing more diversity in what’s coming out.

TRC:  What is something that few, if anyone, know about you?

Shawn:  I once ate an entire raw white onion and chased it with a quart of orange juice. The result was like Coke + Mentos, except in my stomach and with more acid. When I exhaled, it smelled like burning plastic. It was not a pleasant experience. Not my brightest moment. Also, I am the Highlander.

TRC:  Who or what influenced your path towards science fiction?

Shawn:  I don’t know if it was a specific person or thing. When I was a kid, I’d stay up all night on weekends watching horror movies and science fiction. Then I read all the SF I could get my hands on, meaning the usual classics like Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, Niven, etc. It was just what I loved. When I started writing, it never occurred to me to write anything else. I read a lot of mystery back in the day, too, so I’ll probably try my hand at mysteries in the future.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Shawn:  I’m polishing Beasts of Sonara, which is due out in November. This is the first book in the modified universe, and a very distant prequel to RLRR. After that is a stand-alone sci-fi horror novel that’ll be…different. I can’t wait to see that one in print.

TRC:  Would you like to add anything else?

Shawn:  I can pretty much guarantee you Run Lab Rat Run is the best ultrarunning science fiction novel you’ll ever read.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food

Salt and things covered in salt, with guacamole. And salt.

Favorite Dessert

Ice cream, German chocolate pie or hot cinnamon rolls.

Favorite TV Show

The Expanse? Honestly, any great bit of art whether it’s social commentary like Flea Bag, fantasy like the first season of Penny Dreadful or the first six seasons of Game of Thrones, etc. My favorite changes daily.

Last Movie You Saw

The last good movie was Palm Springs. Lots of nonsense since then.

Dark or Milk Chocolate

Yes, as long as they’re European.

Secret Celebrity Crush

Anna Kendrick. Not really a secret. Anna!!! Such a nerd, I am.

Last Vacation Destination

Denali National Park in Alaska.

Do you have any pets?

I have several house plants with minimal needs—pathos, the house cats of the plant world.

Last book you read

Hail Mary by Andy Weir, like everybody else. That’s great science fiction. Before that I had a weird month where I read all of the Jack Reacher novels. Still not sure what that was all about.

TRC:  Thank you Shawn for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of RUN LAB RAT RUN. We wish you all the best.

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A Terrible Fall of Angels by Laurell K Hamilton-Review & Giveaway

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A Terrible Fall of Angels (Zaniel Havelock 1) by Laurell K Hamilton-Review, Interview & Giveaway

A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS
Zaniel Havelock #1
by Laurell K Hamilton
Release Date: August 17, 2021
Genre: adult, paranormal, Urban Fantasy

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 17, 2021

Meet Detective Zaniel Havelock, a man with the special ability to communicate directly with angels. A former trained Angel speaker, he devoted his life to serving both the celestial beings and his fellow humans with his gift, but a terrible betrayal compelled him to leave that life behind. Now he’s a cop who is still working on the side of angels. But where there are angels, there are also demons. There’s no question that there’s evil at work when he’s called in to examine the murder scene of a college student—but is it just the evil that one human being can do to another, or is it something more? When demonic possession is a possibility, even angelic protection can only go so far. The race is on to stop a killer before he finds his next victim, as Zaniel is forced to confront his own very personal demons, and the past he never truly left behind.

The first in a new series from the author of the Anita Blake and Merry Gentry series.

•••••••••

REVIEW:For those of you who’ve read other works by her, this is different from what your use to.

Angels that walk among us and Demons that no longer hide in the shadows!

Unhappy with the life he life was going, Zaniel Havelock left the College of Angels, walking away from all his friends and everything he’d had become comfortable with. But the one he he couldn’t seem to give up was his ability to communicate with the angels.He now uses those said talents to aid him in his job in the police force, but it’s a branch not many get on. It’s the paranormal unit of the police force. Zaniel works alongside colleagues with different faiths and special skills (psychic’s mainly) This task force is charged with keeping the peace between humans/angels/demons. And it’s not an easy thing to do most days.

So we have a new case for Zaniel to work…..At first glance it’s a case for homicide, but upon closer inspection there seems to be an angelic side to this case.

Could an Angel have killed the victim? Why?

We also have demons to contend with, and like angels there are demons that are different from their kind. What are they up to? And when they start doing things they shouldn’t be able to do, Zaniel has no choice but to reach out to old friends. But with old friends come the old betrayals and secrets, and it’s those secrets that he’s keen to see kept buried!!

There is a religious tone to this book, but not enough to put me off from reading it. And with a new book/series comes the obligatory backstory and world building, which happens to be one of my favourite parts in a book.

Now It makes a change to see a male in the lead in this authors work, it’s usually a kicka$$ female. And the use of bedroom antics is missing too. It seems to be focusing on the detective work rather than orgies and bed hopping! a story a lot good versus evil. About personal choices and how the wrong choice can take you down a path that’s hard to turn from. It’s a murder/mystery story with an angsty romance thrown in (Zaniel is married!)

So who did kill our victim? Is there something more going on? I’m hoping we don’t have to wait too long for the next book out.

Copy supplied by the publisher

? Reviewed by Julie B.

TRC:  Hi Laurell and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS.

Laurell: Thank you so much, I’m so excited to finally be able to share the book with readers.

TRC:  We would like to start with some background information. For our followers who do not know Laurell K Hamilton, would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Laurell: I pioneered the genre of Urban Fantasy which would become Paranormal with the Anita Blake series and then the Merry Gentry series. I also created the idea of reverse harems, though I preferred the term hisem. I write mysteries set in alternate modern America where the supernatural is a given. In the Anita Blake series, it would be like waking up tomorrow with vampires, zombies, shapeshifters and more are real, and everyone knows about them. Anita starts out as a consultant for the local police and a vampire hunter because vampires are considered too dangerous to be imprisoned. If they kill someone, a warrant of execution is issued and a vampire executioner hunts them down. Anita also doesn’t date vampires or any supernaturals at the beginning of the series. Twenty-eight books later, a lot has changed.

For Merry Gentry, Celtic myth and folklore is real and the fey were kicked out of Europe after the last Great War in the 1700s. President Thomas Jefferson offered them a new home here in America where they used the indigenous site of the Cahokia mounds in Illinois as their new fairy mounds, their sithens. For those who aren’t familiar with the Cahokia, it was an abandoned site long before America was a country. Merry is the first faerie princess born on American soil, but when A Kiss of Shadows begins, she’s hiding from her relatives int the Unseelie court because there were too many assassination attempts. She’s in Los Angeles working as a private detective for Grey’s Detective Agency that specialises in supernatural problems, magical solutions.

TRC:   What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing your first book? The new series?

LAURELL:  The book that launched my career, Guilty Pleasures was the first Anita Blake novel. It was rejected over two hundred times, because in the late 1980s there was no market for mixed genre. The fact that vampires in my world weren’t secret but just legal citizens and known to everyone were the reason a lot of horror editors rejected it. I got some lovely rejection slips. Horror editors thought it was fantasy, who thought it might be science fiction, who thought it was mystery. A lot of editors loved the book, but they couldn’t figure out how to market it, so they passed. This was before self-publishing or online publishing was really an option if you wanted a career. Admittedly it was also a time when there were enough traditional publishers to have two hundred separate rejections from major houses. Times have changed a lot since Berkley first offered me a contract for the first three Anita Blake Novels. As for publishing my newest book, A Terrible Fall of Angels, there was no problem with my publisher because I’m one of their bestselling authors with two bestselling series already under my belt. It’s my 41st novel.

TRC:  Would you please tell us something about the premise of A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS?

LAURELL:  The powers of Heaven and Hell have a treaty to prevent Armageddon, which is publicly known and part of history. This treaty saved the world from the final battle that would have ended everything as we know it. There are rules about how many demons can come up to Earth and what they can and can’t do to torment humans. Detective Zaniel Havelock and the other members of the Metaphysical Coordination Unit are part of a group that literally polices the angels and demons that come into contact with the mortal world. The nickname for their unit is the Heaven and Hell Squad. They are also called in when other supernatural crimes happen, but Zaniel’s ability to communicate with angels makes him the go-to expert whenever Celestial beings are involved.

How many books do you have planned for the ZANIEL HAVELOCK series?

LAURELL:  Between four and thirteen. Of course, when I started the Anita Blake series, I thought thirteen and I’m working on book twenty-nine, so I won’t really know until I get there.

TRC:  What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS?

LAURELL:  The sticky note with the first line of the book was up on my office wall for almost ten years. I hadn’t been reading, watching, or even thinking about angels at the time, at least in the front of my head. I’ve learned to pay attention to my subconscious and those signals from my muse, so I started searching for nonfiction books about angels, rereading Biblical teachings or insights about the angelic and other world religions. A lot of people forget that when you speak of angels, messengers of God, for Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, you’re talking about the same angels. I also researched the lives and folklore around the saints and prophets. As I was finally sitting down to write Zaniel’s story I found books on modern new age and magic about angels. The changing attitude towards them from Biblical times to now was fascinating to me both as a person and as a writer.

TRC:  Do you plan a cross-over story line between the new series and your Anita Blake series?

LAURELL:  No, though an interview question from the local Kirkwood Library did give me an idea where all my universes could collide. I don’t think I’ll do it, but it’s intrigued me.

TRC:  Do you have plans to continue the Anita Blake series or are you going to concentrate on ZANIEL HAVELOCK?

LAURELL: I’m currently writing the next Anita Blake novel and I have no plans to stop writing Anita.

TRC:  Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

LAURELL:  I think covers have become even more important in the age when so many people decide what to read from a thumbnail image online.

TRC:  When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

LAURELL:  I’m a character driven author. I’ve thrown out entire plots, and up to a third of a novel because a character had a better idea.

TRC:  The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writers fail in this endeavour?

LAURELL: Robert Frost said it years ago, “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader.” If the writer doesn’t care deeply about what they’re writing how can they make anyone else care? A lot of writers make the mistake of jumping on trends and writing what’s hot without giving themselves a chance to find their own unique voice as a writer. Even if the writer makes a living or a career out of imitating a style that’s not truly their own, they are still cheating themselves and the readers. They cheat themselves by having missed the stories and worlds that only they could have written. They cheat the readers because if you are only imitating someone else’s voice/world/character then it shows. It can be fun, but it’s never as good as the original. It’s like the difference between a masterpiece and a good copy. The imitation never moves you as much as the original art. Some part of you knows a fake when you see it or read it.

TRC:  What is something that few, if anyone, knows about you?

LAURELL:  I’m a huge Disney fan.

TRC:  On what are you currently working?

LAURELL: The twenty-ninth Anita Blake novel, but I will have to stop briefly to finish a short story I’m writing for the anthology, No Game for Gentlemen. I’m also making notes on the next Zaniel Havelock book, and the next Merry Gentry novel.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food – tea

Favorite Dessert – cupcakes

Last Movie You Saw – the new Suicide Squad

Dark or Milk Chocolate – Milk

Last Vacation Destination – Florida Keys

Do you have any pets? – Two cats, two Japanese chins, all rescues.

Last book you read – The Wizard’s Butler by Nathan Lowell

TRC:  Thank you Laurell for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS. We wish you all the best.

LAURELL: Thank you for inviting me.

Laurell K. Hamilton is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series and the Merry Gentry, Fey Detective series. With more than 40 novels published and 20 million books sold, Laurell continues to create groundbreaking fiction inspired by her lifelong love of monster movies, ghost stories, mythology, folklore, and things that go bump in the night. She lives in St. Louis with her family. In her free time, Laurell trains in Filipino martial arts with a specialization in blade work. Learn more online at laurellkhamilton.com, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

 

Laurell K Hamilton’s publisher (Penguin/Random House)  is graciously offering a paper copy of A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe.

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10. Giveaway runs from August 17-21, 2021

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Corvus Ascending by Dale Sale-Review & Interview

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Corvus Ascending (Corvus Ascending 1) by Dale Sale-Review & Interview

ebook only 99¢ USD->  Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date

When wisecracking star-sailor Gus Johansson hauls a 1400-year-old accident-prone robot out of the sea and boards a long-lost sentient spaceship his beach bum retirement goes from boring to blazing.

Captain Harrison “Hazy” Grey is out for revenge and convinced that he can finally get his Admiral’s flag, if only he can capture that ship; and he doesn’t care who he has to kill to do it.

Gus must assemble a team of old friends and add some new ones to escape. Maybe he should have stayed on the beach.

••••••

REVIEW:CORVUS ASCENDING is the first instalment in Dale Sale’s TALES OF CORVUS sci-fi adventure series focusing on the crew of the space-ship Corvus.

Told from third person perspective CORVUS ASCENDING follows former Chief Warrant Bosun and star-sailor Guster Johansson as he is tasked with captaining a sentient spaceship that has returned from the depths of the sea. With his trusty side kick, a 1400 year old robot named HAM, Gus Johansson begins to amass a crew of oddballs and renegades but not before our hero finds himself a prisoner of Captain Harrison Grey and the ruling Governance, who sets their sights on acquiring the spaceship Corvus. Outfitting the Corvus for potential war, Gus and the crew find themselves the target of Captain Grey, a target that must out maneuver a mad man desperate to claim the Corvus for his own.

CORVUS ASCENDING is a fast paced, sci-fi adventure ala Star Wars™, Star Trek™, Battlestar Galactica ™ and Babylon Five™. Dale Sale meshes together AI, cyborg and robots, a sentient star ship, a holographic constructed intelligence (CI), and an eclectic assortment of humanoid personas resulting in a quirky yet talented crew whose journey has only started. The premise is captivating; the world building includes some scientific and fictionalized terminology; the characters are diverse, distinctive and unconventional but such are the personalities of every entertaining story of science fiction.CORVUS ASCENDING begins slowly but accelerates at ‘warp speed’.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC: Hi Dale and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of CORVUS ASCENDING.

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Dale Sale: I served in the US Coast Guard for over 30 years. I was a Chief Warrant Officer (like my characters) for over 20 years. I served at rescue stations, large and small patrol cutters, a construction tug, and 4 different icebreaker tugs. Lots of sea time, lots of time to dream up ideas.

Social Media links:  Website / Goodreads/ Facebook / Amazon Author page / Newsletter

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing? In writing Science/Speculative fiction?

Dale Sale:I grew up reading the classic science fiction authors: Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein as well as great pulp writers like Robert E. Howard. The experimental stuff from the 1960s and 70s just doesn’t do it for me.

I did a lot of technical writing in the Coast Guard. I worked at the school that trains mechanics and electricians writing curriculum and reviewing lessons. I was happy to go back to sea after that, lol.

TRC: For those who do not know, what is the difference between Science Fiction and Speculative Fiction?

Dale Sale: All Science Fiction is Speculative Fiction, but all Spec Fiction is not Science Fiction. I would say that Spec Fiction is the big tent and Science Fiction is one of the bleacher sections inside. Spec Fiction could be anything from Atwood’s Handmaid’s Tale to King’s The Stand. For example: one of the hardest science fiction books recently is Weir’s The Martian. It is very detailed and follows real principles of science and physics. Contrast that to Man in the High Castle which is an alternate history. Both could be called Speculative Fiction but only The Martian is Science Fiction.

One of my pet peeves is searching for Science Fiction and seeing Epic Fantasy or Urban Fantasy lumped in there.

TRC: Why do you think there are a limited number of female / women authors of Science Fiction, and what do you think can be done to increase the female / women readership?

I am hoping that as more women enter the STEM fields it will encourage them to also write and read science fiction. I think that people want to write what they know about and that women without a STEM background may not be comfortable writing those stories. I enjoy writing strong female characters. They definitely aren’t damsels in distress.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing your first book?

Dale Sale: The oddest problem I had actually occurred because of my name. Amazon’s bots always think that I am trying to trick them using my name, Sale, to fool the algorithm. I have to send a copy of my driver’s license to prove that is my legal name.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of CORVUS ASCENDING?

Dale Sale: The main character, Gus Johansson, has been involuntarily retired and put out to pasture on an out of the way planet. Gus is bored and feeling sorry for himself. While fishing he drags an ancient robot out of the sea that is connected to a sentient spaceship. An old enemy, Captain Harrison Grey, wants the ship for himself and will do whatever it takes to get it. Gus has to assemble a team of misfit veterans and his robot friends to avoid destruction.

TRC: How many books do you have planned for the TALES OF CORVUS series?

Dale Sale: This first story arc will be three books. I do plan to continue writing in the Corvus Universe, but I want to branch out from the large ensemble cast of the first three books to focus on some smaller first-person stories. I’m thinking about writing a set of adventures for a female detective character from the second and third books.

TRC: What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning CORVUS ASCENDING?

Dale Sale:  started with a loose plot and let the story unfold. I do research as needed during the writing process.

TRC: Do you believe that science fiction/ speculative fiction should be based in factual statistics or information?

Dale Sale:  I’m really trying to keep from breaking physics too badly in this story. As such, there are no faster-than-light spaceships, instant communications, super aliens, or teleporters etc. I don’t think those are bad things, but that’s not the story I’m telling. I used several online calculation tools to help with orbital mechanics and asked questions of some actual scientists about the orbital behavior of asteroids.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Dale Sale:I did use a professional cover designer. I feel that a trope heavy genre, like military science fiction, should convey that basic genre information on the cover. You really need a good cover.

TRC:  When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Dale Sale:I do use a loose outline for the story, but the characters often start thinking for themselves. One of my characters owns an arms manufacturing plant, she decided to load her fancy space yacht full of guns in the next book and take them to the underdogs in the big battle. I was just writing along and there she was!

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

Dale Sale:I think dialogue is key to expressing your characters emotions. You really need to avoid exposition data dumps and let characters talk. Exposition is common in science fiction because writers are trying to compress the world building and get right to the story.

TRC: What is something that few, if anyone, knows about you?

Dale Sale:I play the concertina, poorly.

TRC: Who is your favorite author (living or dead)?

Dale Sale:Philip K. Dick, that guy was one strange dude.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Dale Sale:I’m working on book three of the series. It should be out by June. I need to tie up some loose ends and plot lines.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Dale Sale: I would love to hear from readers. You can email me at author@DaleSaleBooks.com. I have some free stories available at www.DaleSaleBooks.com if you sign up for my newsletter.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: Good pizza with a nice porter for the beverage

Favorite Dessert: Anything sweet

Favorite TV Show: Black Mirror

Last Movie You Saw: The Old Guard on Netflix

Dark or Milk Chocolate: Dark

Secret Celebrity Crush:  Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow

Last Vacation Destination: No vacations due to the Covid, booo.

Do you have any pets? : I got volunteered to take care of my stepdaughters Pomeranian “temporarily” 3 years ago.

Last book you read:  Reading Deacon King Kong now

TRC: Thank you Dale for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of CORVUS ASCENDING.

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The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall-Review & Interview

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The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall-Review and Interview

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 7, 2020.

The Dearly Beloved traces two married couples whose lives become entangled when the husbands become copastors at a famed New York city congregation in the 1960s.

Charles and Lily, James and Nan. They meet in Greenwich Village in 1963 when Charles and James are jointly hired to steward the historic Third Presbyterian Church through turbulent times. Their personal differences however, threaten to tear them apart.

Charles is destined to succeed his father as an esteemed professor of history at Harvard, until an unorthodox lecture about faith leads him to ministry. How then, can he fall in love with Lily—fiercely intellectual, elegantly stern—after she tells him with certainty that she will never believe in God? And yet, how can he not?

James, the youngest son in a hardscrabble Chicago family, spent much of his youth angry at his alcoholic father and avoiding his anxious mother. Nan grew up in Mississippi, the devout and beloved daughter of a minister and a debutante. James’s escape from his desperate circumstances leads him to Nan and, despite his skepticism of hope in all its forms, her gentle, constant faith changes the course of his life.

••••••••

REVIEW:THE DEARLY BELOVED by Cara Wall follows the lives of four people, two couples and their relationships both in and out of the church.

Told from third person perspectives THE DEARLY BELOVED, set against the turbulent times of the 50s, 60s and 70s- following the end World War II, the Korean War, and the drama and protestations of the Vietnam conflict-THE DEARLY BELOVED is a story of opposites attract including the opposition to church and faith. Lily lost her parents at the age of fifteen, and in the ensuing aftermath walked away from church and God. Meeting Charles, a devout man with aspirations of the cloth found Lily struggling with a direction in life, a direction that would take Lily towards a path in opposition to her husband’s faith, and those of the Church for which he attends.

Nan grew up following the preachings and ministry of her beloved father but never expected to fall in love with a man who struggles with his faith. Charles earlier years brought with it the pain of hardship and the aftermath of war, but a life focusing on God gave Charles a purpose and a path, albeit a path that meandered both in and out of the spiritual belief.

THE DEARLY BELOVED is not a story of God and religion, but a story of faith, doubt and belief. Both couples will struggle with family, friendships, and acceptance. Lily is a woman intent on following a path of protests and equal rights, while Nan battles to accept that Lily will never be the friend she was hoping to find.

Cara Wall’s story will resonate with readers regardless of their religious beliefs. A journey of four unlikely friends, whose personal relationships, are in opposition to their professional lives, THE DEARLY BELOVED is a thought provoking and character driven story about the humanity of faith ( as religion is a man-made construct); the conflict and arrogance of a belief system that seemingly goes against the reality of the world; and the promise of acceptance, the optimism and judgment, and the perception that faith, belief and prayer are the balm to a world in pain and sin.

There are struggles and battles, a crisis of confidence between man and God, and a crisis of faith between man and church. The character development of Nan and Lily is lacking, to some degree, as neither one is willing to accept that which they do not understand including the belief in, or lack of belief in a higher power, while James and Charles waiver in their own beliefs as the personal struggles and hardships of both couples come to fruition.

Copy supplied by the publisher

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC: Hi Cara and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of The Dearly Beloved.

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Cara: I am a native New Yorker—I was born in New York City and grew up here and in London.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Cara: I was always a voracious reader and as soon as I realized that real, living people were writing books, I knew I wanted to do that, too. I went to a wonderfully supportive high school, Emma Willard—which, coincidentally, is the school the main character attends in Elizabeth Gilbert’s City of Girls. So many of my teachers there encouraged me to write: my freshman English teacher told me “I was not using the talent I so obviously possessed”, which I took as a challenge, the English department let me write a novel instead of taking senior literature, and my sophomore Creative Writing teacher introduced me to Writing Down The Bones, by Natalie Goldberg, which is the book that absolutely convinced me to be a writer. Because of their support, I never doubted that I had potential—even when I couldn’t figure out how to use it effectively.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Cara: My greatest challenge as a writer is ALWAYS getting myself to sit down to write. There were many years during the creation of this book when I did not write at all, because I was working, raising my child, and focused on the daily chores of being a grown up. Even now, I have to bribe myself with cookies to start typing.

Once I wrote it, the process of getting this book published was absolutely lovely! I met my wonderful agent, Wendy Levinson, at a mom’s night out for our kids’ school, and she found my incredible editor, Marysue Rucci. I have loved every moment of working with these two women.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of THE DEARLY BELOVED?

Cara: The Dearly Beloved follows two couples from their courtships through their first life crises. I have always been fascinated by the ways we create relationships with one another and wanted to explore the complications of the “after the happily ever after”. The two couples meet when the men become co-ministers at a church in New York City in 1963, and the women dislike each other at first sight. It was fascinating to spend so many years exploring how these two couples learn to live and work together, to support each other, even though they would never have chosen to be friends.

TRC: What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning THE DEARLY BELOVED?

Cara: The characters in The Dearly Beloved are inspired by the two ministers I grew up with in my childhood church, so I had a pretty clear physical picture of them from the very beginning. I don’t write chronologically—I’m not a linear thinker—so I had many character sketches and scenes written before I started even thinking about a plot. I did quite a bit of research on autism, New York in the 1960’s, and how ministers are trained. But I did all of that during the process of writing, not before, so the most accurate answer to your question is that I just jumped into the book without a plan, and it grew on its own.

TRC: Do you believe authors should be historically accurate when writing an historical, fictional story line?

Cara: This is a hard question. Every author has to create a whole world for the reader, and I was a history major, so I find researching the details of historical time periods incredibly fun. I do think it’s the historical author’s job to represent history accurately—food, clothing, architecture, smells, sounds, current events. But there are so many wonderful ways to write historical fiction that subvert what we know of a time period; I’m thinking especially of books and stories that give minor historical characters time on center stage. Still, even if a writer chooses to revise history, I believe every author of historical fiction needs to have a good grounding in the details of their chosen time period—otherwise why write historical fiction?

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Cara: I think the synopsis on the book jacket is more important than the cover, but the deciding factor for me is always recommendations from friends.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Cara: The characters, every single time.

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writers fail in this endeavor?

Cara: An acting teacher once told me that the purpose of art is to give people the gift of living through emotional experiences they could never have in their ordinary lives. She went on to say that the only way to give people those experiences is for the actor to live through them, fully and openly, on stage. “If you don’t cry, they won’t cry,” she said.

Writers need to truly feel what their characters feel in any given moment. You can’t just assume a character is happy, you need to sit with the character—or inside the character—and really tune into what’s happening in their body, in their mind, in their heart. It’s often very surprising. A character may, indeed, be happy but also angry, resentful, or bitter. This complexity is what brings characters to life on the page.When I write, my characters are real people to me, with strengths, weaknesses, biases, hopes and hatreds that are completely different than my own. I have to get to know them and then write THEIR stories for them, as carefully and truly as I can. It takes an inordinate amount of time, vulnerability, and empathy.

Another thing I learned in acting school is that it is crucially important to know what your characters want—not just in the big picture of the plot, but in each moment you choose to include on the page. This is especially important for dialogue. Conflicting desires make for electric conversations between characters. Put two people who want very different things in a room and give them a time limit to try to resolve the problem. The whole page will crackle.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Cara: I don’t ever listen to music when I write—I’m not a huge music person and it would really distract me.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Cara: I have no idea! What is the biggest conception people have about authors?

TRC: What is something that few, if anyone, know about you?

Cara: I studied flamenco dancing for four years, and still get my castanets out every once in a while.

TRC: Who is your favorite author (living or dead)?

Cara: That’s an impossible question to answer! But some of my favorite books are A Little Life, by Hana Yanagahiri; The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert; State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett; Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward; and Me Talk Pretty One Day, by David Sedaris.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Cara: I am working on a book about a painting that is left on the steps on the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It follows two storylines: one in the present, about the people trying to figure out why the painting is significant, and one in the past that follows a painter in Italy in the years after World War II.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: chocolate

Favorite Dessert: molten chocolate cake

Favorite TV Show: Sherlock

Last Movie You Saw: Hamilton

Dark or Milk Chocolate: dark—but only barely

Secret Celebrity Crush: Benedict Cumberbatch (not so secret)

Last Vacation Destination: Lake George

Do you have any pets? Sadly, my partner is allergic to everything.

Last book you read: Heavy, by Kiese Laymon

TRC: Thank you Cara for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of THE DEARLY BELOVED. We wish you all
the best.

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Winter’s Divide by M. LaVon-Review & Interview

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Winter’s Divide by M. LaVon-Review and Interview

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N (paper) / Amazon.au /Amazon. uk /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 14, 2020

The end of the world didn’t happen with one single event or happen without warning. No, it happened a little at a time, in plain sight, with everyone watching and doing nothing to stop it.

As the pandemic that threatens to end human civilization makes landfall in the United States, Cate Winter’s life is turned upside down. After she and her sons fall ill with the mysterious virus, her husband, Tom, disappears. Weeks later, when Cate wakes up from a coma, she is alone—and the world has been torn apart.

One-third of the human population across the globe is dead and domestic militants and vigilantes are forcing the government into a civil war. And soon Cate begins to uncover secrets, secrets that have shattered her image of a picture-perfect life and entered her into the most heart-wrenching fight for survival. Can Cate uncover the truth—in time to save the survivors?

•••••••

REVIEW:WINTER’S DIVIDE is the first instalment in M. LaVon’s adult, post –apocalyptic series focusing on the aftermath of a viral pandemic that has killed over thirty per-cent of the world’s population in the year 2025.

WARNING: WINTER’S DIVIDE contains scenes of graphic violence, bloodshed and assault that may not be suitable for all readers.

Told from numerous first person perspectives including Cate Winter, Cate’s chief of staff Liz Hutchenson, and Liz’s brother, arms dealer Adam Hutchenson, WINTER’S DIVIDE follows our heroine after she wakes from a six week coma caused by a virus of unknown origins. With her husband missing, and her two teenaged sons by her side, Cate returns to her family owned company WMS (Winter Medical Solutions) in an effort to help contain the fall-out of a pandemic that is destroying the people and country she loves. But all is not well in the world she once lived, as several hundred survivors have gathered at the Winter Estate compound in the hopes of finding a safe harbor in the face of the upcoming war. As Cate and her team battle to survive, the enemy presents itself with an all too familiar face.

WINTER’S DIVIDE is a timely release in the face of the 2020 Coronovirus pandemic. From the inability to contain the virus, to the conspiracy theories surrounding government intervention and a biological weapon used to contain the hordes, WINTER’S DIVIDE is a dark, gritty and oft-times graphic depiction of a world gone mad-think The Walking Dead ™ without the zombies. From anarchy to rogue bands of militia controlled by a faceless, psycopathic enemy who sits in the high tower of power and control, chaos and disorder ensue when the Free Nationalists (FN) declare war against the US government, attacking military bases, research facilities and government organizations. No one is safe: no one can be trusted; family and friendship are just two more f-words to add to the list.

M. LaVon pulls the reader into a raw and startling world of what ifs and whys. A cautionary tale of survival in the aftermath of a civilization gone mad.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC: Hi Mandy and welcome to The Reading Cafe.

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Follow: Amazon author page / Goodreads

Mandy: Personally—I am a mom of two super active school age boys and have a pretty cool husband who supports my ever-evolving artistic passions. I love crafts, including decorating theme cakes, painting, writing, and creating. Professionally—I am a communications professional who loves to help others tell their story. I manage executive level communications, employee engagement, and operations for a tech company. I have a master’s in communications from the University of Washington (Go Huskies!).

TRC:Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Mandy: My mom—She had a passion for poetry and would read to us when we were young. I would try and write poems, short stories and such, attempting to mimic what I had heard. She always loved reading my writing. But I had some challenges, I am dyslexic, and for most of my life I was terrified to put my work out there for people to see. Creative writing has a certain level of inherent vulnerability. You are sharing a part of yourself. So, I focused on technical and formal writing, finding comfort in writing for other people.

My mom really pushed me to write for myself. She battled breast cancer for 17 years. In her final year, I wrote an article about my professional journey as a dyslexic communicator, and she cried and I cried, and she insisted I finally write a book and “show the world…”. As her health began to take a turn, sitting in her hospital room on my birthday, I jotted down the first few lines of Winter’s Divide.

Then the cancer spread, and her eyesight began to deteriorate, I would write a chapter then read it to her. I read her the last chapter a couple of days before her journey came to an end. She was very proud. My mom was my best friend and my biggest fan, it meant a lot to share that experience with her.

TRC:What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Honestly, the writing part was exhilarating. It poured out and I loved every moment. It was an escape from my own personal painful reality, imagining life without my mom. As for publishing—terrifying and exhausting. I put it out to a few agents, but ultimately chickened out and published it myself. There are elements of the story that are real and raw, and not as commercially appealing for a broader audience. I felt those elements were important enough to talk about and take a risk.

TRC:Would you please tell us something about the premise of WINTER’S DIVIDE?

Mandy: I am a big fan of the dystopic/post-apocalyptic/end-of-things genre, there are a lot of stories that are really centered around men and young adults, I really wanted to tell the story from a different perspective. Being careful to not share a spoiler—There were certain social undertones I felt were important to dive into, to spark debate and conversation about things that make us uncomfortable, like politics, equality, mental health, etc. I also wanted to write a story where the line between good and evil was harder to define.

TRC:How many books do you have planned for the series?

Mandy: I currently have 3 planned for this series. Book 2 is almost done and will hopefully be out in the fall. It is a continuation of the story and picks up shortly after Winter’s Divide ends.

TRC:What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning WINTER’S DIVIDE?

Mandy: I had the basic idea for Winter’s Divide for a few years, but I did not start writing right away. I am a bit of a nerd when it comes to research, I studied a lot. Mostly around the catalyst for what would be the end-of-things. After the first sample chapter, that defined the tone I wanted, I plotted out the sequential key moments and built from there over the course of a few months.

TRC:With the recent outbreak and pandemic of the Coronavirus, how significant to, or similar in retrospect, is your story line premise to real-life events?

Mandy: I have heard from several of my early readers, asking how I have felt in light of the current circumstances and remarking on the eerie coincidences within my book. Honestly, the timing is not at all what I had imagined for my book launch period. I thought I would be casually reading excerpts, sipping a glass of wine, and chatting with readers about the shocking reality I created. Not living out aspects of my story, isolating in my home and watching life as we know it shift to a ‘new normal’.

Though there are several areas in my book that feel too close to home right now, thankfully, it is fiction. And our current situation is not as dramatic as I depict in the book. As I wrote it, I did know that it was a story on the border of being more realistic fiction, but I think that is what makes it relatable. However, I could not have imagined this level of relatability.

TRC:The story line contains a number of triggers for more sensitive readers. How, if at all, were you affected by your own writing and the imagery presented?

Mandy :  In some spots, it was really rough to get through and there were times I really had to grit my teeth and stop myself from sugar-coating the description. When I first set out to write this book, I had a very long conversation with my sister (super bibliophile), about the story arc, what I wanted to convey, and the tone I wanted to set. I wanted it to be gritty, real, raw, and brutal. Not like anything I had ever written. I wanted to describe the primal side of survival from a female perspective. My sister was my gut check for every twist and turn, making sure I was being true to my vision.
Every challenging moment, positive or not, was intentional and purposely positioned throughout the book. They are meant to be shocking and thought provoking.

TRC:Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Mandy:  Yes! Totally. I actually did a cover survey with some of my early readers, and the high contrast black and white was the favorite. The cover art I chose was intentionally out of the norm for the genre. I wanted to differentiate the book and give it room to breathe in a sea of similar covers. Book 2 has a similar cover to connect them.

TRC:When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Mandy: I love this question! Like I mentioned before, I was very planful of my overall story outline. But when I was struck by something, a feeling, inspiration to dig deeper, to follow the breadcrumbs a character was leaving, it was hard to ignore. There were certain points where I made some choices that would support a future for those characters. The future of the characters really laid the groundwork for book 2.

TRC:The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

Mandy: Be there with their characters—I am not going to lie, there were moments where I found myself crying my eyes out, and my husband was like “um… why are you crying? You wrote it”. But when you imagine it, you are there, you are beside them for every moment and you define how they go on. You pick them up and make them go on sometimes. It is hard to ignore those emotions.

I hope people connect with the characters as much as I did. I am an avid reader as well, and I appreciate the books that give me chills, tears, make me laugh out loud, or break me into a million little pieces… Just know if you cry, are mad, or angry when reading Winter’s Divide, I was right there with you.

TRC:Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Mandy: 100%, yes! I love a good climactic movie scores and dramatic instrumentals when I write. Especially, something moody and emotional. When I commute to work, I put on my playlist and use that moment of solitude to get deep in the mood and lost in imagining the story. When I know I am going for a certain feeling, I am very deliberate with the music I listen to. Some of my go to artists for Winter’s Divide included: Paul Cardall, Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, David Tolk, James Blackshaw, Max Richter, Ahn Trio, and Bon Iver. Also, the playlist at the back of the book is true to that character. It is a very unexpected compilation, but intentionally colorful and mood setting.

TRC:What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Mandy: That every writer is 100% just a writer. Many of the writers I know and from my personal experience, have day jobs and families. We write between kids and work. I write with kids running around or late at night after I have read a bedtime story or folded laundry. I work a normal full-time job during the day and write when I can. I have been known to crank out a chapter or two on my phone notepad at a baseball game. Just a normal, average, working mom with a passion to share stories.

TRC:What is something that few, if anyone, know about you?

Mandy: I am super artsy, but have no musical talent whatsoever. I played the flute in Junior high and was so bad they moved me to tuba.

TRC:Who is your favorite author (living or dead)?

Mandy: Ugh! Hardest question! I have a lot of authors that I love for different reasons; for how they made me feel, what thoughts they inspired, what sleep I lost, how hard I cried… If I am not writing, I am reading. Elizabeth Barrett Browning. just because at one point in my childhood I wanted to be her.

TRC:On what are you currently working?

Mandy: Book 2! I am excited to bring the next phase of the story to life coming in the fall.

TRC:Would you like to add anything else?

Mandy: I know these are difficult times for everyone. We will get through this. Be thoughtful of each other. Help your healthcare workers out and social distance, us this time to read a good book. The team here at the Reading Café has provided some amazing suggestions.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food – Spaghetti Squash, with a taco top! (Baked spaghetti squash with turkey taco meat, beans, cheese, salsa… baked until the cheese is melty, then add all the taco fixings, trust me, it is so good!)

Favorite Dessert – I am not a big fan sweets, but I can’t say no to a good tiramisu.

Favorite TV Show – I love Blacklist and the new Lost in Space, and no surprise Handmaid’s Tale

Last Movie You Saw – Harriet, love it, cried throughout

Dark or Milk Chocolate – Milk Chocolate with salted caramel

Secret Celebrity Crush – Tom Ellis or Russell Wilson

Last Vacation Destination – Nashville, TN

Do you have any pets? – Sadly no, but I love animals (especially big, soft, lazy ones)

Last book you read – The Wolves of Winter by Tyrell Johnson, really enjoyed it

TRC: Thank you Mandy for taking the time to answer our questions. We wish you all the best and congratulations on the release of Winter’s Divide.

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Rogue Sentinel by Tom Wither-Review, Interview & Giveaway

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Rogue Sentinel by Tom Wither-Review, Interview & Giveaway

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date December 31, 2019

Lieutenant Commander Mathews’, an experienced Tier One Operator is sent on a solo mission to capture an American who has joined ISIS, planning operations that have killed hundreds. After an extended close surveillance while undercover in Jordan, Mathews and his trusted NCO, Senior Master Sergeant Simms attempt to capture the man known as ‘al-Amriki’ – The American. As they close in, weapons at the ready, they inexplicably receive orders to let al-Amriki go – from the President of the United States. Why is the President of the United States letting a known terrorist live, and what can be done by Mathews to stop The American from killing more innocents?

Supported by David Cain, chief of the Counter Terrorism Shop in Fort Meade, MD, Mathews locates and positively identifies Objective FULLBACK – called ‘al-Amriki’ (The American), and begins to surveil him to establish a pattern of life to enable a capture operation. After locating and tracking him for several days, Mathews, supported by trusted NCO, Senior Master Sergeant Simms, executes the operation to capture al-Amriki. Mathews and Simms stand toe-to-toe with al-Amriki in a deadly standoff when Mathews receives the order to abort the mission. After being recalled to the U.S. embassy in Jordan, Mathews is told why – ‘al-Amriki’ is a CIA deep cover operative, and Mathews is ordered to help him identify and eliminate the senior leadership of ISIS. Al-Amriki arranges a covert meeting with the heads of ISIS to enable the strike, but his cover has been blown – now Mathews and Simms need to save al-Amriki’s life – and their own!

••••••••

REVIEW:Rogue Sentinel begins with Lieutenant Commander Mathews, along with his girlfriend, on a trip to San Diego for some R&R. Mathews is still having a hard time with the fact that he lost a team member on a previous mission. When his girlfriend tries to get him to talk about the loss, it leads to Mathews losing his temper a bit and yelling at her. When Mathews is contacted and advised he’s been tagged for a mission to Jordan, they cut their trip short and head back to base. The trip back is tense between the two of them and only gets worse once they land.

Mathews is briefed on his mission: he is going in solo to capture an American who has joined ISIS, and is the mastermind behind some of their attacks. As Mathews readies for the mission, things between him and X go from bad to worse when she tells him he’ll have to find someone else to feed his fish while he’s gone. Mathews heads to Jordan, knowing that he has to keep his focus on the task at hand. But, he does hope that she’s waiting on him when, and if, he gets home.

al-Amriki (The American) has established himself as one of the top minds in ISIS. Even though some do not trust him, Akil, to whom al-Amriki reports to, trusts him almost implicitly. Once Mathews arrives in Jordan, it doesn’t take long, to his surprise, to run into al-Amriki face to face in a local shop. al-Amriki is suspicious of Mathews but stays the course. As Mathews reports back to his superiors, the decision is made for him and a fellow soldier, Simms, to go in under the cover of darkness to capture their target. Once they gain entrance to al-Amriki’s modest house, they are literally feet away when the mission is called off, which leaves Mathews furious and al-Amriki shaken. What follows leads Mathews and Simms down a covert path that will see them not only working with al-Amriki, but fighting against some of the top leaders of ISIS.

Rogue Sentinel is a story full of intrigue and surprises. The characters are well written and relatable. However, there is a lot going on in this book. Lots of secondary characters and lots of acronyms that lost me at times. Parts of the book almost read like a screenplay with it’s descriptive dialogue. Once I got used to the author’s way of telling his story, I really enjoyed the book. Mathews was a great character. HIs real life issues with losing a teammate on a mission makes him believable and relatable. His support team was great as well. I loved the action sequences and the interactions between the characters. Rogue Sentinel deals with real life, modern day life and death issues faced every day by members of our military. If you’re a fan of the intelligence and military world, you’ll enjoy this one. Well done, Tom Wither!

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed By Vickie K


TRC: Hi Tom and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of ROGUE SENTINEL.

Tom Wither: Thank you very much.

TRC: We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Tom Wither: I’m originally from Connecticut, but reside in Maryland, outside of Baltimore. Professionally, I’ve worked for Air Force intelligence for more than 30-years, and while I’ve be a writer since 2002, my writing career was officially launched in 2012 when I signed my first contract. ROGUE SENTINEL is my third novel.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Tom Wither: I’ve always been a reader, and when I was in my teens, my mother introduced me to the novels of James Clavell and Robert Ludlum. As much as I enjoyed Clavell’s Asian Saga novels (Tai-Pan, Noble House, and Shogun especially) Ludlum’s thrillers, particularly the Bourne Identity and the Parsifal Mosaic really caught my attention. Later, as Tom Clancy began to find success with his Jack Ryan novels, I devoured those as well. After 9/11, as the intelligence community was being castigated in the media, I coupled my love of reading with a desire to give people an ‘insider’s view’ of intelligence and military operations, driven by characters reflective of the real world people I’ve had the privilege of working with and the realities of modern warfare.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Tom Wither: The biggest challenge is mapping everything in a story, so everything is synchronized – all the plot elements and activities across the global scale of my novels need to line up, especially in the massively interconnected world we enjoy. For instance, I can’t have a character sending an e-mail during a sunny late afternoon in Washington D.C. and then have another character reading that e-mail moments later in downtown Kabul in a setting I describe as a sunny day, when in fact, it’s 2 AM in the morning the following day. When it comes to publishing, the challenges vary. I’ve worked with two publishers so far and I do my very best to be responsive to their timelines, which can be challenging if a publisher needs a quick approval on a manuscript change or I’m having a disagreement with an editor – at the end of the day, it helps to keep in mind that the goal for both author and publisher is to see the book in print and deliver a story they both think readers will enjoy.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of ROGUE SENTINEL?

Tom Wither: Sure. Lieutenant Commander Mathews’, an experienced Tier One Operator is sent on a solo mission to capture an American who has joined ISIS, planning operations that have killed hundreds. After an extended close surveillance while undercover in Jordan, Mathews and his trusted NCO, Senior Master Sergeant Simms, attempt to find the man known as ‘al-Amriki’ (The American). Supported by David Cain, chief of the Counter Terrorism Shop in Fort Meade, MD, Mathews locates and positively identifies al-Amriki. Mathews begins to surveil him to establish a pattern of life to enable a capture operation, resolved to make al-Amriki pay after the recent death of one of Mathews’ men. After tracking him for several days, Mathews and Simms execute the operation to capture al-Amriki. As Mathews and Simms close in, weapons at the ready, the CIA intervenes – ‘abort immediately!’ Why does the CIA want them to stop and allow a known terrorist to escape only to kill more innocents? The mission has changed…but action only grows. How can Mathews stop al-Amriki and deal a death blow to the Islamic State?

TRC: Do you plan on writing any more story lines focusing on Lieutenant Commander Matthews, or any of the characters found in Rogue Sentinel?

Tom Wither: I’ve written two other novels featuring Mathews, THE INHERITOR and AUTUMN FIRE. They first two novels of a trilogy that will close out with the story called SWIFT JUSTICE. These three novels take place before ROGUE SENTINEL, and l’m still working on crafting SWIFT JUSTICE. I also have two other projects under development – my project names for them are PALADIN 6 and PROJECT JANUS.

TRC: What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning ROGUE SENTINEL?

Tom Wither: I’m a detailed researcher and plotter, but I do leave room for creative license. I gather as much information as I can about the technology, aircraft, military vehicles, weapons, skills, and locations that I want to use in my stories – I’ve even traveled to some of the locations; either during my military career or on my personal time, to experience first-hand the sights and smells of the environment. Where it’s possible and permitted, I also take photographs or use publicly available imagery. When it comes to fictional elements, I’ll hand draw building designs or floorplans, and make sketches of areas where combat scenes will take place, then build the assault or action plans for the scenes, all of which I overlay on the real-world location – not quite storyboards, but good references I can use when writing. I also create a detailed outline for each chapter in the book to help synchronize locations and timing, include the scenes I want to have in each chapter, and then use that as the guide as I draft and re-write each chapter. ROGUE SENTINEL’s outline was close to 30 pages long, while AUTUMN FIRE’s outline was closer to 80 pages (I’ve become more concise in my outlining over time).

TRC: Is any of the story line based in reality e.g. characters, events

Tom Wither: Yes. The story itself it set against the coalition fight against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, led by Combined Joint Task Force Inherent Resolve (https://www.inherentresolve.mil/), a coalition of military forces that are still working to eliminate the remnants of the Islamic State, even after the re-taking of the territory ISIS held in Iraq and Syria.

TRC: How do you manage to keep the military story line authentic without ‘over simplifying’ details, or inundating the reader with overwhelming or confusing military jargon?

Tom Wither: I try to strike that balance in a few ways. I do my best to use a limited amount of internal dialog by characters in specific situations to explain the military technology, weapons, etc., and sometimes the jargon. I also try to leverage context in the conversation between characters to explain military jargon or technology. Lastly, I like to create a situation where one character who is unfamiliar with a term or technology as another character explains it. The first character acts as a proxy for the reader, who receives the explanation as well, which I also feel draws the reader further into the story.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Tom Wither: I think so, yes. The cover image needs to give a potential reader a clear and focused ‘at a glance’ look at the story inside. If the cover does not represent the story, it effectively deceives a potential reader (or fan), souring them on your work. It’s a key element that publishers must focus on getting right for each book. Also, the imagery and the colors used can make a book stand out on a shelf, and promise adventure, romance, exotic locales, etc. If a cover doesn’t attract a reader and get them to read the flyleaf or the synopsis on the back, you have little chance of gaining a new fan.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Tom Wither: It’s my world, and I build plot first, and then characters to experience the story and react to the events I want to take place in the plot. Once I have the plot elements I want sketched out, then I can design the characters to experience that plot and let them feel the joy and the pain of the storyline. Horrific car bombings in San Antonio, Texas part of the plot? I need a police officer on patrol discovering one of the rigged cars parked on the side of the road, who stops to check a text from his wife to bring milk home for his kids, just before he looks in the cargo area of the car as the timer on the bomb inside reaches zero. I want you to want Mathews to catch the car bomber, and you’ll keep turning pages the moment the husband, father, and first responder dies without ever knowing why or who took his life.

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavour?

Tom Wither: I think I might have partially answered this in the last question. I think a reader turns the page because they care about the characters and what’s happening to them. I think the challenge for any good writer is to make your reader identify with the characters by making them relatable – they need to be real and flawed and challenged by a plot that makes a reader want to turn the page, and another page, and so on.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Tom Wither: No, the background noise would be distracting. I re-read my outline for that scene, visualize it, and then use that image and the dialog I come up with to write – background noise would distract me from concentrating on the process of getting the creative image out of my head and onto the paper. I do usually have CNN on with the volume muted. It lets me keep an eye on world events that might inspire another book idea.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Tom Wither: The biggest misconception I’ve come across so far is that everyone I’ve spoken to at signings, etc. thinks that publishers pay for every author to go on actual book tours, traveling the country signing their books.

TRC: What is something that few, if anyone, knows about you?

Tom Wither: I’m a pretty open book to my friends and family. Certainly, the government knows a great deal – I’ve been vetted several times for security clearances. Once you fill out a form nearly 100 pages long that covers everything you’ve done since you were in your teens, there isn’t much left to tell people.

TRC: Who is your favorite author (living or dead)?

Tom Wither: Choosing just one is tough. I’m a fan of James Clavell, Robert Ludlum, Clive Cussler, Eric Van Lustbader, Tom Clancy, Kevin J. Anderson, and Michael Stackpole. If we go by longevity and number of times I’ve read his work, James Clavell wins hands down.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Tom Wither: I’m currently completing a series bible for a project I’m calling PALADIN 6. Once it’s complete, my agent plans to offer to the streaming services for consideration. I’ve also completed a synopsis for my next novel, a project I’m calling PROJECT JANUS, and I’ll start work on the chapter outline for it as soon as the series bible for PALADIN 6 is complete. At that point I’ll spend time working on JANUS and SWIFT JUSTICE.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Tom Wither: I’d just like to say thank you to Sandy and team at The Reading Café for taking the time to interview me; and my thanks to Vickie for reviewing ROGUE SENTINEL. I hope The Reading Café patrons enjoy the story and my other work. Best of luck to everyone who participates in the giveaway.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food – How about meal? Filet Mignon w/twice-baked potatoes and broccoli.

Favorite Dessert – Chocolate Mousse

Favorite TV Show – Mission Impossible (the 1960s & 1970s series)

Last Movie You Saw – Star Wars – The Rise of Skywalker

Dark or Milk Chocolate – Milk

Secret Celebrity Crush – (Only one?) Salma Hayek

Last Vacation Destination – South Dakota

Do you have any pets? – Not at the moment. I am a big fan of German Shepherds. Grew up with one, and raised one.

Last book you read – Clive Cussler’s SHADOW TYRANTS

TRC: Thank you Tom for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of ROGUE SENTINEL. We wish you all the best.

Tom Wither is graciously offering a hard cover copy of ROGUE SENTINEL to FIVE (5) lucky commenters at The Reading Cafe.

1. If you have not previously registered at The Reading Cafe, please register by using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

NOTE: If you are having difficulty commenting after logging onto the site, please refresh the page (at the top of your computer).

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3. Please LIKE Tom Wither on Facebook

4. Please LIKE The Reading Cafe on FACEBOOK and then click GET NOTIFICATION under ‘liked’ for an additional entry.

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8. Giveaway open to USA only

9. Giveaway runs from March 15-20, 2020

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A Bloody Arrogant Power by Malcolm J. Wardlaw-Review & Interview

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A Bloody Arrogant Power /Death by Decent Society by Malcolm J. Wardlaw-Review & Interview

 

IMPORTANT: A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER was re-written and relaunched in July 2020 under a new title and series: DEATH BY DECENT SOCIETY

 

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 7, 2019

The Public Era collapsed seven decades ago. Generations have grown up in what came after. They think it’s normal.

Donald Aldingford is lucky. A barrister, he is trusted by the ruling elite of sovereign landowners. He neither knows nor cares what goes on outside the Central Enclave of London.

Then he starts to care. A young woman from the slums enters his life. For the first time, he travels outside the Central Enclave. He sees discharges perish on the public drains. He sees glory trusts bombard the slums. These sights force him to question the rule of the sovereign elite.

But he must keep these doubts to himself. Should his sovereign masters even suspect him of disloyalty, they would despatch him to the Nameless Gone.

And then revolution breaks out. Whose side will he take?

To find out, follow the twists and turns of this intricate dystopian mystery.

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REVIEW:A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER is the first instalment in Malcolm J. Wardlaw’s SOVEREIGNS OF THE COLLAPSE dark, dystopian series following in the aftermath of the ‘Glorious Resolution’ of 2038-2040.

Told from several third person perspectives including barrister Donald Aldingford A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER is a character driven story line that looks at the fascist-type governmental control between the have and the have nots in the former United Kingdom. The year is 2106, and barrister Donald Aldingford is approached by a woman who claims his younger brother Lawrence has been sentenced to work in the slave labor camps on trumped up charges against the sovereign elites. As Donald begins to investigate the claims, he soon discovers the real world beyond their cloistered existence in the Central Enclave of London. From the genocide-like massacres of the ‘surplus people’ to the absolute rule of the all powerful sovereigns, Donald is caught between two worlds that will ultimately come to battle for power and control.

A BLOODY ARROGAN POWER is a sociological study of the ‘isms’ that looks at the suppression of the masses using any means necessary including murder, starvation, and ethnic cleansing. From the time of the Glorious Resolution, those in control (the powerful elite and self-appointed sovereigns) continue to gain power, while the proletariat, and ultimately the ‘surplus’ people are left struggling to survive with the potential of another revolution on the horizon. No one is safe; everyone is suspect; a well-placed lie could mean termination of one’s liberty and life. A dystopian world where gold and silver are the currency of choice but a life bargained for, is ultimately, a life lost to the powerful few.

A thought-provoking, gritty and dramatic look at the potential and frightening possibility of the economic and political collapse of the world as we know it. Malcolm J Wardlaw uses detailed exposition and complex language to bring A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER to life. A Bloody Arrogant Power ends on a cliff-hanger, you have been warned.

Copy supplied for reivew

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC: Hi Malcolm and welcome to The Reading Café.

Congratulations on the recent release of A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER.
Thank you!

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Malcolm: I’m Canadian by birth, but get dual British nationality through my parents. At the moment I’m based in Edinburgh, UK, where I’ve lived since 2002. Before that I moved around quite a bit: Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, London, New York, Switzerland, Germany and back to the UK to live in Glasgow for a while. I’m an engineer by profession, so I tend to roam about according to where there’s work for a guy who designs industrial plants. I’m 56 years old. Besides writing, my other big interest is bicycling. I have published research over the years that corrects various damaging myths about bicycling (not that this stops the perpetuation of those myths). I also read a lot of history books.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Malcolm: The basic influence was being a natural born scribbler. I’ve been a scribbler since I was about 7 when I wrote my first biography (of a cuddly toy cat called Passy, who is still around somewhere looking rather mangy). Up until I was about sixteen I scribbled reams and reams of trashy war stories – never with the least ambition to get published, just for the hell of it. After that, ah, other interests took over until I was in my late twenties, when I wrote a novel about a bored engineer living in a crappy industrial town in Yorkshire who gets on his motorbike to find adventure. It was so bad. I put it at the bottom of a box. I scribbled more novels through my thirties – perhaps ten of them. I did hope to publish something, but I could never figure out how to take a raw draft and re-craft it up to a decent standard. This stumped me for many years until I resolved to slog away to the bitter end, allowing myself no pity. A Bloody Arrogant Power was the eventual result of so many redrafts and edits that I long ago lost count.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing this story?

Malcolm: In writing it? The biggest challenge was starting off without any real idea where I was going, and hoping for the best. This made the writing process haphazard in the extreme, but against that, I would not have been able to build an economically and socially coherent world simply by thinking about it. It required dramatic exploration to enable me to see how a new world will likely develop on the far side of the last financial armageddon to come.

As for publishing the story, the biggest challenges arose from there being so many skills and so much know-how required to take even the first step as an Indie writer. To begin with, every accomplishment is a mistake. You have to go back and do it again, and again, and again. Very frustrating! But at length, some competence sticks.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of A BLOOD ARROGANT POWER?

Malcolm: This answer is rather long, but it’s important to understand A Bloody Arrogant Power has a serious basis.
Our global economy is foredoomed to collapse due to inherent flaws in the nature of legal tender and the social contract of affluence. A Bloody Arrogant Power imagines the world on the far side of this terminal disintegration.

Considering legal tender, in our system money is created when banks issue debt. This means that as the economy grows, debt must also grow. The debt can never be paid back, since to do so would suck money out of circulation and cause a depression. That means our economic system is actually a constant race to stay ahead of our own debt. We can do this provided we can lay our hands on cheap resources, in particular cheap oil. However, as the quality of oil reserves declines, the extraction costs go up. This means the world has to borrow more and more to make up the difference.

Concerning the social contract of affluence, this is based on a simple formula: houses + cars + easy credit + cheap foreign holidays = social calm. Every society that has achieved affluence has used this formula. It is simply the real-world action corresponding to the debt-based legal tender. The purpose of the social contract is to pacify the people whilst the top crust of oligarchs harvest immense wealth off the “farmyard” of industry. Mrs Thatcher openly admitted as much to General Pinochet back in the 1980s. Democracy adds to the illusion of a “fair and representative society”.

Now, you can appreciate that all is hunky-dory provided the economy keeps growing at least as fast as debt. The people are happy with their houses, cars and cheap holidays abroad, and the banking system holds together. But if that balance breaks down, then society muct eventually suffer a crisis.

Unfortunately, our system has been in progressive decline since the early 1970s as debt has grown and grown. Today, the only thing keeping the global system going is its own momentum, a temporary glut of Asian savings and the terrifying consequences should the tower of debt collapse.
It’s a perilous situation that all politicians ignore – they keep it right out of public discourse. But at the back of any thinking person’s mind is the certain knowledge that the situation is only a reprieve. There is no way out. It’s only a matter of time before a last, terrible crisis erupts.

A Bloody Arrogant Power is set seventy years after “The Glorious Resolution” that ended our times (the Public Era). Generations have grown up in the new world, knowing nothing else. The fantastic technical achievements we take for granted today are viewed in complete bafflement by those inhabiting a largely de-populated, simple, peaceful, callous world.

TRC: Do you have plans to write a series based upon your post-apocalyptic world? If so, how many books do you anticipate?

Malcolm: I plan to write a series of four. In addition, I will write two prequels.

TRC: What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning A BLOOD ARROGANT POWER?

Malcolm: As noted above, I did no research or plotting, and paid a high price in spending years fighting my way out of a mess. Despite this, I believe the world of A Bloody Arrogant Power is more richly imagined than if I had tried to work it all out beforehand. It’s not the kind of thing you can just work out on paper. You have to get into the world and think about the detail of specific daily situations. How do they surface roads without abundant oil? (England has very limited onshore oilfields) What happens to the motorways in a society built around secretive private landowners who feed trespassers to the pigs? How are cars made if rolling mills no longer exist to make (cheap) sheet metal? How are carrier pigeons flying across private land shot down? How do people cope in the total absence of mains water, gas or electricity?

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Malcolm: It’s fundamental. I had great difficulty choosing a base image for the cover of A Bloody Arrogant Power. My problem was that this world does not feature the usual dystopian/post-apocalyptic tropes. There is no nuclear war or pandemic. There is no oppressive state, because there is no state at all, and there is no police force in the sense we understand it. There are no laws as such, just unspoken rules everyone is indoctrinated to obey if they wish to survive. In many respects it is a medieval world, and yet in other respects it is not: they have contraception, aircaft, motor ships, trucks, armoured cars and radar-guided long-range artillery. It is probably closest to the Nazi economy of late in ww2, when slave labourers built ballastic missiles. But it’s very hard to get across such an esoteric message on a cover (without giving the impression it actually is about some Nazi world). I am not entirely satisfied with either the cover or the title, but will stick with them for the moment.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Malcolm: Ummm. What a tough question. Perhaps the best way I can put it is to say I drop the characters in a predicament, and the characters devise their own plans for getting back to safety. It means unexpected things do happen, and I have to revise my general plan of how I wish to push events to a climax.

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

Malcolm: I think it involves an element of magic, to be honest. I had no idea how my writing would be received by other people until they read it. You need to be in there with the characters. You must be fired up by a genuine fascination with the scene. What are the characters standing on? How warm or cold is it? What do they think is about to happen? What emotion is ruling them in this scene? How do their plans relate to their experiences?

One of the most skilful authors I have ever read in this regard was actually a non-fiction writer describing his career as a submariner in the Second World War. His style is sparing and rarely mentions any emotion, but simply by clear description of the situation and the consequences of dangers he puts the reader down there in a steel tube deep beneath the sea (One of Our Submarines by Edward Young). Akira Yoshimura similarly has a sparing style, with a knack of capturing exactly the vivid detail that nails the experience of a scene.
If writers fail, it is because they do not capture vital details in effective prose, they smear events into lazy abstractions, they fall into the passive voice, their characters are too bland, and life is too easy for them. Effective drama is about the intensification of normal life. It’s hard, but it’s also fascinating. Without that eagerness to enagage with the drama, the story falls flat. Any writer can feel this by instinct, if they have the right instincts.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Malcolm: No. I write in silence. Noise distracts me.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Malcolm: They don’t understand how hard it is to sustain engaging narrative. It’s taken me a long, long time just to get where I am now. My family are mostly academics. They think I’m just messing about.

TRC: What is something that few, if anyone, knows about you?

Malcolm: That would be telling!

TRC: Who is your favorite author (living or dead)?

Malcolm: I can’t give one name. George Orwell, Yvgeny Zamyatin, Boris Pasternak, Akira Yoshimura, Edward Young, Gustave Flaubert and Ernst Junger are all authors I admire enormously. I expect many will find my choice ludicrous, but there it is.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Malcolm: Book 3 of the Sovereigns of the Collapse series. It is drafted, but needs editing.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Malcolm: If your readers have got this far, I think they’ve done pretty well.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food – Christmas dinner!

Favorite Dessert – chocolate ice cream

Favorite TV Show – I rarely watch TV, but David Attenborough’s programmes are outstanding.

Last Movie You Saw – Official Secrets

Dark or Milk Chocolate – please don’t force me to choose!

Secret Celebrity Crush – Nicole Kidman

Last Vacation Destination – Nice, France.

Do you have any pets? – No

Last book you read – The Unofficial History of the Falklands War by Hugh Bicheno

TRC: Thank you Malcolm for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of A BLOODY ARROGANT POWER. We wish you
all the best.

Malcolm: Thanks! I hope I’ve not written too much.

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