BookSpeak Network

On this episode of The Milford House Mysteries, hosts Joan West and Sherry Knowlton get into the holiday mood with a discussion of holiday and winter mysteries.  They'll talk about Christmas-themed mysteries, suspense and thrillers. They'll mention some favorite books that use a holiday backdrop to increase the suspense or ramp up the emotion. Plus, they'll discuss some new novels, which may not focus on the holidays but would be excellent presents for your favorite readers. Or to buy for yourself.  Join us for Booked for the Holidays!!Milford House Mysteries Hosts - Sherry Knowlton is the author of the Alexa Williams series of murder mysteries including Dead of Autumn, Dead of Summer, and Dead of Spring. Joan West is the author of the Carlisle Crime Cases series including Dying for Vengeance, Courting Doubt and Darkness, Darkness at First Light, and Had a Dying Fall.

Stories and Poems of a Strange but Beautiful LifeThis collection of poems and short stories by Melanie Simms (all previously published in magazines, newspapers, and poetry journals) related to personal situations and experiences throughout her life. Included in this volume: The Fortune CookieLife Signs and Fortune CookiesIsaiahThe Snow ManWaiting for JackOnline LoversThe VisitorLittle Green MenOne More HeroThe Recipe Box

Spiritual Counselor, Annemarie Heckert, joins me again for this holiday special. Annemarie will be available to answer your calls live. Our loved ones are always with us, angels guiding us, we are always loved and held. Perhaps there are  "Messages from the Other Side" waiting for you.

Guy Graybill blasts the liquor industry and its detrimental effects on society, covering topics past and present similar to T. S. Arthur's 19th-century classic Ten Nights in a Barroom. The book covers a broad sweep required to address today's great social challenge from the intemperate use of alcohol. This book takes a very fresh, modern approach, separating the drunken/alcoholic segment of America from the young non-drinkers and the exemplary drinkers, putting the intemperate drinkers in a smaller niche. Graybill argues society is ripe for condemnation and legislation.Ultimately, Graybill's goal is to push for the deglamorization of alcohol and the effort to reduce the danger of that 17% of the American population who create the danger and mayhem. Each chapter slams a different aspect of the problem: The ever-present danger of drunken individuals, the negative effect of alcohol on every system of the body and on the unborn, the glamorization of alcohol where it is utterly inappropriate, and the legislators' disregard for every American's right to "domestic tranquillity."

Sought after by clients from around the world, Dr. Shari Auth, has been a leading holistic health practitioner in New York City for over two decades. Her signature treatments combine ancient wisdom from global traditions with scientific knowledge and deep intuition to treat a wide range of conditions including chronic and acute pain, mental health, women's health, insomnia, digestion, and postural issues, among others.?Dr. Auth has studied the healing arts globally from China to India, Peru, Thailand and beyond – becoming steeped in ancient healing practices that have woven the rich tapestry of her healing practices today. She is a licensed and NCCAOM certified Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. She has a Master’s in Herbology and is a Board Certified Chinese Herbalist also with extensive training in Vedic and Western herbs. Among her many other accreditations, she is a licensed massage therapist, guild-certified in the Rolf Method of Structural Integration and a Faculty Member of the Swedish Institute, NYC. She founded The Auth Method of Therapeutic Massage and has trained thousands of practitioners on this method. From her work at Deepak Chopra’s Center in Southern California to her own wellness practice in New York City, Shari has attracted celebrity clientele with her signature blend of acupuncture, herbs and bodywork. Fo more information, visit https://www.shariauth.com

Finally, there is a book that reveals the truth about the worst air disaster to strike a Marine Corps fighter squadron during the Second World War. Marine Fighter Squadron 422 was a group of twenty-four typical young Americans trained to fly the famous F4U Corsair into combat with the legendary Japanese Zero. When they arrived in the Pacific, they suddenly found that not all their enemies carried guns in savage Banzai charges. Their two most dangerous and merciless adversaries were the fury of a tropical typhoon and the cold heartless whims of a Marine Corps general. Together, these two foes seal the fate of VMF-422 and cause the greatest disaster ever to strike a Marine squadron.Aviation historian Mark Carlson has written the first full account of a group of ordinary young men who were suddenly challenged beyond their experience and which forever changed the lives of the survivors. The Marines’ Lost Squadron is the dramatic true story of a desperate and courageous fight for survival against the forces of nature and a conspiracy of silence. The Marines’ Lost Squadron is a saga of courage and conspiracy, patriotism and pride, fate and futility in a struggle to survive the ferocity of a huge typhoon in the midst of the Second World War.  ex communi periculo fraternitas

Rachel Grundon is a clairvoyant Medium who has been pursuing her desire to help others using her healing gifts as a creative and psychic channel. Developing a deep, intuitive connection with her clients, Rachel works directly with individuals to facilitate a deep-healing process through self-actualization and self-empowerment. She fully acknowledges the lack of personal fulfillment in those entangled in the “daily grind”, and works with individuals to uncover their true life’s purpose.For more information, visit http://www.rachelgrundon.com/lux-convergence

What would a mystery or suspense novel be without a villain? The villain is one of the most important characters in this genre and is usually a driving force for the plot, even though he or she may not be fully revealed until the end of the book. In developing the villain for their stories, authors consider a wide range of characteristics and rely on a combination of research and imagination.  In this podcast, Joan and Sherry discuss the types of violence that villains -- both fictional and real -- may commit and the challenge of writing a believable bad guy/girl.Join Joan and Sherry for this episode of the Milford House Mysteries  Violence in Villains.Joan West is the author of the Carlisle Crime Cases series including Dying for Vengeance, Courting Doubt and Darkness, Darkness at First Light, and Had a Dying Fall.  Sherry Knowlton is the author of the Alexa Williams series of murder mysteries including Dead of Autumn, Dead of Summer, and Dead of Spring.

Jack the Ripper Suspect Dr. Francis Tumblety highlights the most recent groundbreaking discoveries concerning one of Scotland Yard's top Jack the Ripper suspects in the 1888 Whitechapel murders investigation, Dr. Francis Tumblety.  Among the discoveries is over 700 pages of never-seen-before sworn testimonies revealing not only a picture of an antisocial narcissist with a single-minded lifelong drive for exploitation but also damning evidence that he may indeed have been the Whitechapel fiend.Michael Hawley has published over a dozen research articles in journals dedicated to the Whitechapel murders/Jack the Ripper mystery and published online articles for numerous websites.  He was awarded Article of the Year for 2016 for the most popular Jack the Ripper website, which is based out of London, England. He was honored to lecture at the Jack the Ripper Conference (RipperCon) in Baltimore, Maryland, in April 2016, and the Jack the Ripper Conference in Liverpool, England, in September 2017.  Hawley is also the author of The Ripper's Haunts (Non-fiction, 2016) with the top book reviewer and author, Paul Begg, stating "Hawley's Magnum Opus" is "head and shoulders above the new Ripper offerings in 2016," and "for that matter, 2015,"  He was a commander and naval aviator in the U.S. Navy (retired) and resides in Greater Buffalo, New York. Find him at http://www.MichaelLHawley.com

Sherry Knowlton goes it alone without co-host Joan West in this episode called One Writer's Journey.  Knowlton will talk about her journey to becoming a suspense author.  She'll talk about her life-long love of books, her background in various types of writing, and her later-in-life leap to suspense novelist.  She'll also talk about some of her literary influences and favorite authors.Sherry Knowlton is the author of the Alexa Williams series of murder mysteries including Dead of Autumn, Dead of Summer, and Dead of Spring. Joan West is the author of the Carlisle Crime Cases series including Dying for Vengeance, Courting Doubt and Darkness, Darkness at First Light, and Had a Dying Fall.