Obsidian Titles You Don’t Want To Miss

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Bailey Cates, Juliet Blackwell, Laurie Cass, Michelle Rowan, Obsidian Novels

A Vision in Velvet
Juliet Blackwell

Lily Ivory hopes to score some great vintage fashions when she buys an antique trunk full of old clothes. But she may have gotten more than she bargained for.…

As soon as Lily opens the trunk, she feels strange vibrations emanating from a mysterious velvet cloak. When she tries it on, Lily sees awful visions from the past. And when the antiques dealer who sold her the cape is killed, Lily suspects a supernatural force might be behind his death.

Then Lily’s familiar, Oscar the potbellied pig, disappears. Lily will do anything to get him back—including battling the spirit of a powerful witch reaching out from the past. But even with the aid of her grandmother, unmasking a killer and saving Oscar might be more than one well-intentioned sorceress can handle.

Read an Excerpt

(A Witchcraft Mystery #6)
Obsidian, July 2014
ISBN-10: 0451240901
ISBN-13: 9780451240903
336 pages Paperback
$7.99

 

Tailing a Tabby
Laurie Cass

In the bookmobile, librarian Minnie Hamilton and her rescue cat, Eddie, roll out great summer reads to folks all over the lake town of Chilson, Michigan. And when real-life drama turns deadly, Minnie makes sure justice is never overdue.

The bookmobile is making its usual rounds when Minnie and Eddie are flagged down by a woman in distress. The woman’s husband, a famous artist, needs emergency medical care. After getting him into the bookmobile, Minnie races the man to the hospital in time…but his bad luck has only just begun.

After disappearing from the hospital, the artist is discovered slumped over the body of a murdered woman. Minnie knows that her new friend didn’t commit the crime, but the evidence paints an unflattering picture. Now this librarian and her furry friend have to put the investigation in high gear and catch the real killer before someone else checks out.

(A Bookmobile Cat Mystery #2)
Obsidian, July 2014
ISBN-10: 0451415477
ISBN-13: 9780451415479
352 pages Paperback
$7.99

 

From Fear to Eternity
Michelle Rowen

Newlywed vampires Sarah and Thierry de Bennicoeur have their whole undead lives ahead of them. And with Thierry’s job as a consultant for the Ring sending them across the globe to solve one vampire crisis after another, eternity may never have a dull moment.

Sarah was hoping the honeymoon would literally last forever, but when Thierry receives a mysterious invitation to an auction held in an old Beverly Hills mansion, it’s clearly time to get back to work. Thierry hopes to win a powerful amulet containing a wish-granting djinn that has eluded him for centuries. Unfortunately, Atticus Kincade, head of the vampire council, also has his eye on the item.

When the auction’s host reveals his unpleasant history with Thierry, and Sarah discovers a talking head in the freezer, things get even weirder than usual. But when the amulet goes missing, and everyone is suddenly trapped inside the mansion, the undead guests find themselves in mortal danger—and Sarah had better be careful what she wishes for.

(An Immortality Bites Mystery #3)
Obsidian, July 2014
ISBN-10: 0451466136
ISBN-13: 9780451466136
336 pages Paperback
$7.99

Some Enchanted Éclair
Bailey Cates

FLOUR POWER

When Hollywood invades Savannah’s historic district to film a Revolutionary War movie, magical baker Katie Lightfoot, and her witches’ coven, the Spellbook Club, take a break from casting spells for casting calls. One of the witches snags a part as an extra, while Katie’s firefighter boyfriend, Declan, acts as on-set security. Katie and her aunt Lucy decide to stay out of the action, but after the movie’s “fixer” fires the caterer, the Honeybee Bakery comes to the rescue, working their magic to keep the hungry crew happy.

But when someone fixes the fixer—permanently—and a spooky psychic predicts Katie will find the killer, the charming baker and her fellow conjurers step in to sift through the suspects…before someone else winds up on the cutting room floor….

(A Magical Bakery Mystery #4)
Obsidian, July 2014
ISBN-10: 0451467418
ISBN-13: 9780451467416
336 pages Paperback
$7.99

Magna cum Murder XX Oct. 24-26 in Indianapolis, IN

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Ball State University, Crimefest, Indiana, Magna cum Murder

Dying to know how to write about crime? Live near Indiana? Then register for this informative conference. You benefit in so many ways attending an event where authors network. Regular Attendance – $275 per person. Includes Friday reception; Saturday luncheon and banquet dinner; Sunday luncheon; weekend of panels and signings.

John Gilstrap

Ball State University will sponsor Magna cum Murder XX Crime Writing Festival in association with CRIMEFEST at the Columbia Club in Indianapolis, IN on Oct. 24-26. Mystery/Thriller author John Gilstrap is the Guest of Honor. His latest protagonist is Jonathon Grave, former Delta Force. Robert Wilson, the author of the Bruce Medway series and the Javier Falcon series, is the International Guest of Honor. Other registered authors include Jeffrey Deaver, William Kent Krueger, Parnell Hall, Marian Allen, Sandra Balzo, and so many more talented authors.

How it began…

Back in 1993, a survey of Ball State alumni requested more university sponsored weekend events. The Associate Dean of Continuing Education, Joanna Wallace, suggested a mystery weekend. She and Kathryn Kennison started planning the first event hoping they’d at least have a good turn out of Ball State alumni and a few mystery authors. But to their surprise, 40 popular mystery authors signed on and 265 guests registered. Not bad for a first-time event where the organizers had no experience planning an informative and interactive conference.

Today, the organizers are finding both avid crime fiction readers attending, as well as those interested in academic roundtables and academic papers. Publishers, agents and vendors are also active participants.

CRIMEFEST is a British hosted convention for crime novel lovers. Guests are popular crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world.

 

 

Guest Blog Post – Michael Phillip Cash Talks About Writing a Great Horror Story

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Horror Author, Michael Phillip Cash, Save the Cat

How do you write a great story? Really. How is it done? Do you map out your work? Do you write on the fly? I get these questions EVERYDAY from fellow writers and interviewers.  Everyone wants to know the “secret” to great storytelling. I have to whisper this…I have that secret.  OK, are you totally excited now?  You should be. Because I really do have the secret to writing a killer story.  And I learned it.  From a screenwriting book.  Yup, a screenwriting book, that took those ideas from another book about stories.  The screenwriting book is called “Save the Cat” by Blake Snyder and it really is the last book you will ever need on writing a great story.

“Save the Cat” was inspired by “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” by Joseph Campbell.  Another amazing book, but a bit difficult to digest. But Blake’s book, “Save the Cat” is it.  If you want to learn how to write a great story, read “Save the Cat.”  “Save the Cat”  breaks down stories by beats.  Every story has to hit a beat, or it won’t go anywhere.  You’ll just be writing, and writing, and writing…and just like a treadmill, going no where fast.  No, you have to “beat” out your story before you put your fingers to your laptop.  Every story in the history of the world follows these beats.

Let me give you an example. Horror writing. Sounds easy, right?  Just write about some dumb teens in a random place, a killer and everyone dies….blah, blah, blah. There are actually 3 distinctive elements every great Monster in the House story needs.  It’s called Monster in the House because it’s exactly that…you need a monster.  Duh.  A man-eating shark, an alien, bugs, Freddy, something that will SCARE the living daylights out of people.  You need a HOUSE.  But not just any house. You need a house that people cannot leave.  Like Amityville in Jaws. Or Nostromo in Alien.  Third and final thing…probably the most important thing, you need a SIN.  A sin that allows the monster to eat the people.  In Jaws for example, the sin is committed by the mayor. He knew there was a shark but kept the beaches open (for profit).  Greed is the sin for the shark to eat the people.  Your story has to be primal.  You have to be able to explain it that will affect people emotionally.

These are all lessons you will never learn in school.  You need to read “Save the Cat” and learn from Blake (who tragically passed away a few years ago).  Write out the beats to your story, and you will be able to write in no time!

Michael Phillip Cash is an award winning and best selling author of horror, paranormal, and science fiction novels. Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island, The Hanging Tree, and Schism: The Battle for Darracia have all been named to Foreward Reviews Book of the Year Awards. Cash currently resides on Long Island with his wife and children.

GWN Blog Tour with Michael Phillip Cash

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Michael Phillip Cash, Stillwell, The Flip

 

Michael Phillip Cash is an award winning and best selling author of horror, paranormal, and science fiction novels. Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island, The Hanging Tree, and Schism: The Battle for Darracia have all been named to Foreward Reviews Book of the Year Awards. Cash currently resides on Long Island with his wife and children.

Grab a cup of coffee and sit back and read what Michael has to say about his writing.

Was there a novel, movie or television show that inspired you to write horror, paranormal and science fiction?

Michael: It wasn’t one movie or TV show that inspired me to write. It was Quentin Tarantino who was my inspiration to write in general. I love his work and read all of his screenplays dozens of times. However, if there was one movie that inspired me it was the original Star Wars trilogy.  That led me to reading Joseph Campbell and how to use hero archetypes in my work…and that lead me to “Save the Cat” which taught me how to tell ridiculously awesome stories.

Why do you delve into the supernatural? Have you ever gone in a haunted house, on a cemetery walk or accompanied an investigative team in Long Island?

Michael: I am a HUGE believer in the afterlife. I have had several encounters and signs from ghosts that prove there is something beyond our Universe.  I feel the supernatural teaches us how to live life.  It teaches us to transcend our own lives and push our limits, because the only thing that can ever stop is physical death.  Of course I’ve done the normal “college days” drive-bys to the Amityville Horror house and The Hanging Tree on route 106, but I believe every house you visit is haunted.  Don’t forget there are more dead people than living, so my belief is there have to be ghosts everywhere.

Before you ever wrote “The Flip” and “Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island” you wrote “Brood X” about an overwhelming cicada invasion. You delve into a science fiction battle of good vs. evil. Is it difficult to write multi-genres or more liberating?

Michael: I feel the greatest storytellers in the world genre skip. “Inglorious Bastards” and “Django Unchained” are two totally different genres – but they have the same writer/director, Quentin Tarantino. There are too many stories to tell to just stick with one genre.  I feel there are formulas, and if you are good at what you do, you can tell a story in any genre.  I just finished a paranormal comedy screenplay.  I want to write another fantasy novel.  It is so liberating not to be stuck with one specific genre.

Tell me more about “The Flip.” I’m going to scan the local houses being flipped in my suburban neighborhood after hearing about your book.

Michael: The Flip is a novel about a couple who are trying to make a living flipping homes on the North Shore of Long Island. They encounter some visitors from a century ago that have a link to the house they are going to flip and it turns a bit ugly.  The main question I wanted to ask is, when we move on from a home, a place, an environment, does our energy still stay there?  Is there a past, present and future happening all at the same time?

What leads Brad and Julie Evans into believing that there is spiritual presence in the old Victorian Mansion? What do they begin to experience? Do they need to call for help?

Michael: I don’t want to give away too much. But its more about the spirits who are being disturbed than Brad and Julie. The main ghost, Tessa, is not your typical ghost that says BOO. She’s a horny old ghost who thinks she can seduce men, living or dead. There is tons of paranormal activity happening throughout that really sent chills up my spine when writing.  And yes, they MUST call for help. And help comes from a few characters in my previous best-selling book, “Stillwell.”  These characters became very real for me.

Why isn’t Hemmings House on Bedlam Street at peace?

Michael: What place is ever at peace? When someone loves something so much and doesn’t want to let it go, does that energy stay until that person leaves for good? You have to read to find out these questions.

Let’s talk about “Stillwell.” When Paul Russo’s wife dies, his family, like any other, has to deal with her loss. How does Paul learn his wife didn’t make it to heaven?

Michael: Paul first sees his wife in a dream. But that dream suddenly turns into a nightmare when he learns his wife’s soul is being held hostage by an evil foul demon. That is the catalyst that starts the story for Paul to learn how to get her soul to cross to the other side.

Is he confronted by the being holding her captive? What does he or it demand?

Michael: Of course he confronts the demon, on several different occasions. The beast wants one thing and one thing only, Allison’s soul. And it will stop at nothing to ensure she doesn’t cross over.  Paul has to figure out the best way to defeat this demon.

Can Paul set things right or is his own soul at risk?

Michael: Paul’s entire existence is at risk. His kids, his in-laws, his home, his business, his mental health.  Everything is on the line if he doesn’t make things right for his soul and his wife’s.

What has been the most difficult part about writing these genres?

Michael: It can be very easy to come off as corny. I’m not trying to reinvent the paranormal wheel, but I’m trying to steer clear of being too cliché. And it can become very easy to be cliché when writing about things that go BOO.  I want to add elements of history, love and spirituality (stuff that you don’t really read when reading a ghost story), than just write a hack ‘em up, gratuitously gory story. I’m not a fan of blood and gore and I think authors just put it in there to be different, when really, all they are doing is being cliché.

Who published your novels and how have they assisted in promoting them?

Michael: I owe all my success to the team at createspace.com. I self-publish all my own work, but the Create Space team really gets my book to the format I like.  I have total control – from the cover, to the price, to the marketing. They are owned by Amazon, which has basically allowed a normal guy like me with a love for writing to have his novels around the world in 24 hours after hitting SUBMIT.  If you or anyone has a dream of becoming a novelist, it has never been easier. Go to createspace.com and just do it!

What are you currently writing?

Michael: I just finished a paranormal comedy screenplay called Pokergeist. I’m debating whether or not I want to convert it to a novel.  I just finished another paranormal novel called “The After House.” It takes place on the North Shore, has a haunted house, but this time it involves a whaling theme, which is synonymous with living on Long Island.  I would also like to delve into a monster novel (without sounding too cliché) and I have a few more paranormal stories up my sleeve that I’m hoping my fans will enjoy.

Berkley Prime Crime Mass Market Originals for August

Well Read, Then Dead
Terrie Farley Moran

First in a new series!

Nestled in the barrier islands of Florida’s Gulf Coast, Fort Myers Beach is home to Mary “Sassy” Cabot and Bridget Mayfield—owners of the bookstore caféeacute;, Read ’Em and Eat. But when they’re not dishing about books or serving up scones, Sassy and Bridgy are keeping tabs on hard-boiled murder.

Read ’Em and Eat is known for its delicious breakfast and lunch treats, along with quite a colorful clientele. If it’s not Rowena Gustavson loudly debating the merits of the current book club selection, it’s Miss Augusta Maddox lecturing tourists on rumors of sunken treasure among the islands. It’s no wonder Sassy’s favorite is Delia Batson, a regular at the Emily Dickinson table. Augusta’s cousin and best friend Delia is painfully shy—which makes the news of her murder all the more shocking.

No one is more distraught than Augusta, and Sassy wants to help any way she can. But Augusta doesn’t have time for sympathy. She wants Delia’s killer found—and she’s not taking no for an answer. Now Sassy is on the case, and she’d better act fast before there’s any more trouble in paradise.

Includes a buttermilk pie recipe!

Can be purchased in mass market paperback or eBook format.

 

Murder in the Mystery Suite
Ellery Adams

First in a new series!

WHO WOULD RESORT TO MURDER?

Tucked away in the rolling hills of rural western Virginia is the storybook resort of Storyton Hall, catering to book lovers who want to get away from it all. To increase her number of bookings, resort manager Jane Steward has decided to host a Murder and Mayhem week so that fans of the mystery genre can gather together for some role-playing and fantasy crime solving.

But when the winner of the scavenger hunt, Felix Hampden, is found dead in the Mystery Suite, and the valuable book he won as his prize is missing, Jane realizes one of her guests is an actual murderer. Amid a resort full of fake detectives, Jane is bound and determined to find a real-life killer. There’s no room for error as Jane tries to unlock this mystery before another vacancy opens up…

Can be purchased in mass market paperback or eBook format.

 

Death by Devil’s Breath
Kylie Logan

Cold-blooded murder can be hot as hell…

In Las Vegas, the stakes are high—and so is the Scoville scale. Maxie Pierce and the Chili Showdown are in town for a very heated contest devoted to judging the legendary and notorious-for-being-self-combustible Devil’s Breath chili. The guest judges are casino performers with a taste for chili and an eye for publicity.

Maxie is already going mad organizing the event, dealing with her snide half sister, Sylvia, and trying to figure out her hothead of security, Nick. But when a local hack comedian drops dead in the middle of the Showdown, it isn’t the spicy dish—it’s poison. And Maxie is going to have to shuffle through a full deck of suspects to pick out the culprit.

INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES!

 

Book Fair and Foul
Erika Chase

For the mystery book lovers of Ashton Corners, burial plots tell the most intriguing stories.

The members of the Ashton Corners Mystery Readers and Cheese Straws Society are all chipping in as Molly Mathews, now owner of the bookstore the Book Nook, prepares the first annual Mystery Book Fair. While gossip circulates about the guest authors, club member Lizzie Turner is unpleasantly surprised to see a certain book publicist make an appearance. It seems Lizzie has a history with Ashley Dixon—a chapter of her life she’d rather leave closed.

But when someone gives Ashley a death sentence, Lizzie becomes the prime suspect in a murder mystery she can’t put down. Now Lizzie and her fellow book buffs have to read between the lines of the publicist’s past and catch the real killer before Lizzie is written off for good.