Book Talk with Fran Lewis

An Unsettling Crime for Samuel Craddock: A Samuel Craddock Mystery

 

 

 

When the Jarrett Creek Fire Department is called to douse a blaze on the outskirts of town, they discover a grisly scene: five black young people have been murdered. Newly elected Chief of Police Samuel Craddock, just back from a stint in the Air Force, finds himself an outsider in the investigation headed by the Texas Highway Patrol. He takes an immediate dislike to John Sutherland, a racist trooper

 

Craddock’s fears are realized when Sutherland arrests Truly Bennett, a young black man whom Craddock knows and respects. Sutherland cites dubious evidence that points to Bennett, and Craddock uncovers facts leading in another direction. When Sutherland refuses to relent, Craddock is faced with a choice that will define him as a lawman—either let the highway patrol have its way, or take on a separate investigation himself.

 

Although his choice to investigate puts both Craddock and his family in danger, he perseveres. In the process, he learns something about himself and the limits of law enforcement in Jarrett Creek. This is the prequel for the series and you will meet Samuel Craddock and want to read more. Join me in the chatroom: Fran Lewis; Just reviews/MJ magazine

Shows Promos:

 

Force Ten: Doubling the Penny

 

In his debut novel, Redemption Road, author, Mark Shaff, shared a story of terror and murder for a family whose world was turned upside down. Shaff sought out a new publisher for his work and signed with LeRue Press in 2015. His second novel in the Marcus Diablo series is a much-anticipated sequel to Redemption Road encompassing the tone of current events including a severe Internet outage and an international plot full of intrigue.

"We were intrigued with the story, but also with the dedication and persistence to achieve perfection that Mark displayed. New authors don't always take criticism well," said publisher, Janice Hermsen. "Mark was open to our suggestions and willing to work with editors to write and rewrite to make this comparable to any best-selling author's work. We are pleased to have the opportunity to present his work and look forward to his success as an author."

 

n the debut Marcus Diablo novel, Redemption Road, Marcus' wife, Annie, is murdered during a terrorist attack on the United States. Now in the highly-anticipated sequel, Marcus Diablo and Force Ten are back. As Marcus struggles to raise his sons and heal their broken hearts, he must reconcile his feelings for the woman who has fallen in love with him and his boys. When an attack on the nation's Internet system brings all communications, transportation and financial networks to a halt, Marcus is forced to define his role as a full-fledged member of Force Ten-the world's most respected and effective private military contracting firm. Join us in the chatroom with your questions

The Darkness of Evil (The Karen Vail Novels

 

FBI profiler Karen Vail is on the hunt for an escaped serial killer in the latest jaw-dropping thriller from USA Today–bestselling author Alan Jacobson.

Jasmine Marcks was a teenager when she discovered her father was a killer. First, there was the strip of bloody duct tape; then, the bloodstain on his shirt; and finally, the long nights away from home that always coincided with gruesome deaths. Roscoe Lee Marcks killed fourteen people before he was finally put behind bars. But as renowned FBI agent Karen Vail soon learns, Marcks’s reign of terror isn’t over yet.

After writing a book about growing up as the child of a serial killer, Jasmine receives a letter—a single blank sheet of paper mailed from the maximum-security prison Marcks now calls home. The page hides a threatening message from a father who wants vengeance against the daughter who turned him in to the police. So when Marcks breaks out of prison, Agent Vail calls on a legendary retired profiler to help her find Marcks—and keep him from making his own daughter his fifteenth victim.

Alan Jacobson created Karen Vail—one of the most compelling heroes in suspense fiction, earning acclaim from James Patterson, Nelson DeMille, and Michael Connelly—after seven years of working with two senior profilers at the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s legendary Behavioral Analysis Unit. Over the years, Vail has tangled with the worst serial killers America has to offer. But none compares to Roscoe Lee Marcks.

Cat Flock is about to take over her grandmother Grace's PI detective agency but first she needs to train with her in many different ways. From a guru whose methods of meditation are quite unique to a grandmother that can literally read her mind what happens when she dream slips and things spiral out of control. Will this affect her life and how? Will she be able to understand and learn what these dreams mean? What happens when a little girl named Ruthie enters her dreams on a plane ride and then she disappears? Who is after Ruthie and her mother? Will Cat be able to save her? Join me in the chat room to find out. Fran Lewis Just reviews/MJ magazine

Lucidity

by David Carnoy

on Tour February 1-28, 2017

Synopsis:

Dreams and deception collide in David Carnoy’s page-turning tale of murder, manipulation, and mistaken identity.

After his “gripping thriller debut” (Kirkus) Knife Music and sophomore “page turner” (Examiner.com) The Big Exit, David Carnoy’s Detective Hank Madden returns in this bicoastal caper that pits dreams against reality, where nothing can be taken at face value.

Twenty years after the unsolved case of Stacey Walker’s disappearance went cold, a Silicone Valley executive hires the retired Menlo Park Police Detective Hank Madden to find her body and track down her missing husband, the prime suspect in her unsolved murder. Four months later, author Candace Epstein is pushed in front of a car near Central Park. Her editor Max Fremmer becomes entangled into the investigation of her attempted murder, though he is adamant that he is uninvolved. As he digs into Candace’s background to clear his own name, Fremmer grows suspicious of his client’s connection to a nefarious institute for lucid dreaming on the Upper East Side and its staff whose stories never seem to add up?all while an unexpected link emerges to Detective Madden’s investigation in California.

As similarities arise between the cases on each coast, Detective Madden and Fremmer forge an unlikely partnership to expose what misconduct lurks beneath the façade of the Lucidity Center?but can they unravel the secret that links their investigations together in time, or are they only dreaming? Carnoy’s Lucidity stuns with complex detail that will keep readers guessing until the final, satisfying jolt.

The Riverman

by Alex Gray

Tour January 9 - February 15, 2017

 

When a dead body is fished out of Glasgow’s River Clyde the morning after an office celebration, it looks like a case of accidental death. But an anonymous telephone call and a forensic toxicology test give Detective Chief Inspector William Lorimer reason to think otherwise. Probing deeper into the life and business of the deceased accountant, a seemingly upright member of the community, Lorimer finds only more unanswered questions.

What is the secret his widow seems to be concealing? Was the international accounting firm facing financial difficulties? What has become of the dead man’s protégé who has disappeared in New York? And when another employee is found dead in her riverside flat these questions become much more disturbing. Lorimer must cope not only with deceptions from the firm, but also with suspicions from those far closer to home . .Fran Lewis: Just reviews/MJ network/MJ Magazine

MOOD AND TONE IN YOUR NOVELS: HOW DO THEY APPLY TO YOUR WORK: AUTHORS DAVID MORRELL AND JON LAND TAKE CENTER STAGE AS WE TALK ABOUT HOW THEY USE THESE TWO LITERARY ELEMENTS IN THEIR WORK. THERE MIGHT BE A SURPRISE THIRD AUTHOR JOINING US.

 

The mood is the atmosphere of the story, and the tone is the author's attitude towards the topic. We can identify both by looking at the setting, characters, details, and word choices. By doing so, it will help us find meaning in the story or passage and help us feel more connected to the writing

What is the difference between the tone and the mood?

Tone and mood are often confused, so now would be a good time to make sure you understand the difference between the two. If tone is the author's attitude toward a subject, then mood is how we are made to feel as readers, or the emotion evoked by the author.

What is the mood of the story?

The curious thing about tone is that it may change, but it must never waver. Mood - is the feeling a piece of literature arouses in the reader: happy, sad, peaceful, etc. Mood is the overall feeling of the piece, or passage. It could be called the author's.

What is the mood of the book?

The mood is basically the atmosphere the writer wants you to imagine as the scene unfolds so as to evoke emotions in the reader. The mood of a story is how the story feels. It's atmosphere of the story, if the mood of the book is happy or sad the book would be the mood. Its easy to confuse mood and tone.

Fran Lewis: JUST REVIEWS

Vector:  Tradecraft: Phase Zero : Michael Shusko

Creating fear within the United States is nothing new to those in Homeland Security or anyone in counterintelligence. There are many sleeper cells in our country and some members of different terrorist groups manage to infiltrate our companies, are educated in our schools and then take orders from those they are affiliated with in order to take us down. But, what happens when biomedical researcher Jawad Khattib is on to something that would radically impact our safety and kill millions of Americans? His research is so outlandish and dangerous that before he realizes the impact it has had on his own body, the illnesses he felt and the fact that he could barely breathe, this researcher enters the ER of Massachusetts General Hospital, and dies right there on the spot. Speculation has it that he died from radiation poisoning according the preliminary autopsy report. But, when working the DHS Agent

Lee Jansen and toxicologist Dr. Emma Hess both realizing that there is more to this case and his death than they are aware of. Test, cultures, scans, x-rays, blood work and a thorough autopsy and there are many anomalies and nuances that do not add up drawing their attention to the fact that perhaps he was creating a dirty bomb. In that case DHS and other counterterrorist organizations will become involved. Leaving Boston and rushed to help Emma Hess both soon realize the bond between them both intellectually and professionally. As resident Manny Ortiz in the ER is well versed in radiation poisoning due to his time in Iraq,  a horrible fact might just be discovered as he and Emma are inclined to believe that there is much more here than just a dirty bomb and radiation poisoning. WAIT UNTIL YOU LEARN THE TRUTH. THIS BOOK WILL MAKE READERS REALLY THINK. FRAN LEWIS

Concrete Smile

by Bernard Maestas

Book Blast December 13, 2016

on Tour February 1-28, 2017

 

A crooked conglomerate makes a move on fictional Newport City by first attempting to incite a war between its existing criminal organizations before taking over with its own "in-house" group. Hired by a major gang leader to avert the war, freelance information broker Kevin recruits his ex-enforcer, ex-con brother Chance, and Kaity, a reporter with a vendetta, to uncover the conspiracy.

Author Bio:

Bernard Maestas lives in paradise. A police officer patrolling the mean streets of Hawaii, he has a background in contract security and military and civilian law enforcement. When not saving the world, one speeding ticket at a time, and not distracted by video games or the internet, he is usually hard at work on his next book.

 

Fran Lewis: MJ Magazine

Homicide detective Frost Eaton doesn't like coincidences. When a series of bizarre deaths occur in San Francisco when seemingly random women go crazy and end their own lives after being treated by Dr. Frankie Stein, for their phobias, Frost decides to take a closer look. What about her therapy might have triggered their strange behaviors and deadly outsomes? What about Frankie does this killer who is taunting her with emails and calls want? Why does he call himself NIGHT BIRD? As the Night Bird gets closer and taunts and terrorizes them both Frost and Frankie have to race the clock to take this killer down before the body count rises even more. Join me when I interview award winning author Brian Freeman the author of the Jonathan Stride series. Fran Lewis: Just reviews/MJ Magazine