Victoria Marshal's Blog
March 5, 2013
Book Spotlight A Luring Murder
The irreverent detective is back, and this time she’s on vacation.
God help us all.
St. Paul, Minnesota Homicide Detective Catherine O’Brien and her loving husband Gavin are vacationing on one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes. When a local is murdered Catherine is tapped to help the small town Sheriff until the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension arrives to take over the investigation.
Catherine is surprised when her partner Louise and Diggs the forensic pathologist, whose crush on Louise is only dwarfed by his own genius, show up to assist instead of the BCA.
Before long Catherine and Louise discover this sleepy little town has a dark side hidden beneath its placid lake charms. Somewhere in the tangle of cheating and deception is a motive for murder.
A Luring Murder, the second book in the Catherine O’Brien series is available now wherever books are sold.
EXCERPT
CHAPTER ONE
When I went to bed last night, I was spooned against my husband on my first vacation in ten years. Never mind that the vacation, fishing at a Minnesota resort, is at the top of my personal list of hells.
By morning I was damp, shivering and alone under the covers. My husband, and two other men I’d never seen before stood next to the bed and stared at me like I was the prize winning pig at a State Fair.
Gavin, my loving husband, leaned into my ear and whispered, “There’s been a murder, Catherine.”
If there’s one word in the English language that could take you from zero to awake in less than a second the word is murder. I was on my feet and out the door in seconds.
Now I stood sentinel – playing gatekeeper to the crime scene and oracle to the sheriff and deputy of this podunk little town.
Thankfully, my duty would end as soon as the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension arrived. Then I could get back to my God forsaken vacation.
“Detective O’Brien.”
I turned on my heels to face the middle-aged man puffing his way up the hill toward me.
“You can call me Catherine you know, Sheriff. I’m not here in an official capacity. I’m a tourist in this town. Remember?”
His lips twisted up into a blushing, no-I-don’t-think-I-could-do-that, grin. At least he’d stopped calling me ma’am – the moniker he’d been using since my early morning verbal ice bath.
Sheriff Anderson held his baseball cap, with the local Sheriff’s department logo ironed on the front like a cheap truckers hat, in both hands and twisted the bill in a reflexive gesture. Anderson stared at me as if he’d forgotten why he’d come to see me.
“Have you come to release me from my guard duties?” I said.
“Ah, sorry but no.”
I doubted very much if he were sorry. While I played goalie to the fiendish gawkers who just wanted a peek at the body, he campaigned for his next run at sheriff. Every local who approached with concern, and a smidge of morbid curiosity, left with the assurance that the case was well in hand and a suspect would soon be in custody.
Apparently, (since we hadn’t yet found any evidence that would help us track down a killer) the truth had no place in Sheriff Anderson’s reelection campaign. Anderson seemed to make up the details as he went along. He doled out lies to the locals as easy as a traveling carnival barker who claimed their midway games weren’t fixed.
“I was wondering,” he said. “If you know how much longer before the BCA arrives? The resort owners are upset about us locking up their fish house.”
The fish house was situated near the beach surrounded by trees on all sides, and Mrs. Peterman had haunted the trees since early morning. Not wanting me to see her, Mrs. Peterman wove through the trees like a timber wolf hunting prey.
“Mr. and Mrs. Peterman will just have to get over it,” I said. “Even when the BCA arrives the fish house will be locked up for as long as it takes to gather all the evidence.”
Anderson screwed his hat onto his head then stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans like a pouty child.
“Well, maybe I’ll just have Mrs. Peterman come talk to you about the fish house then.”
A cowardly answer, though not completely unexpected.
“You do that, Sheriff,” I said. “Was there anything else you needed?”
I hadn’t had coffee yet today, because my host for the next two weeks believes that tea is the preferred way to open your eyes in the morning. To me, it was what you drank when you had diarrhea.
My level of patience was directly tied to the amount of coffee coursing through my veins. My tank was dangerously low, and I was in no mood for Mrs. Peterman.
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February 17, 2013
Burn Out
The one thing that no one talks about when you’re a wanna be writer is publicity burn out. Or maybe they do and I didn’t get the memo.
I was not prepared for what happen after Beauty Queens was released. After a few months of blog tours, interviews, constant twittering, and updates I got worn out. Finally a just shut down.
I’m crawling back out of my hiding spot. I now know my limits and I will honor them. Forgive me for shutting everything off but it was necessary.
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August 15, 2012
Out and About at the Zoo
As a mom I can tell you there is no better compliment to a children’s book than to have your child say, “read it again” when you finish reading a book. This is exactly what happened when I finished reading Out and About at the Zoo to my 3-year-old.
The story is a short one and I’m sure from the title you can guess what it’s about. My little one couldn’t get enough of the friendly, illustrated animals that inhabit Ms. Linsdell’s zoo. Unlike some illustrated children s books that look like they’re trying to win a modern art prize; Ms. Linsdell’s illustrations are very approachable for children. The story is uncomplicated, which makes it easy for younger readers to follow along.
Overall, Out and About at the Zoo is a fun read for kids, which makes it priceless for this mom. ~V
Buy your copy of Out and About at the Zoo Today!
Out and About at the Zoo
Written and illustrated by Jo Linsdell
Rhyming text and colourful pictures accompany this fun day out discovering different animals at the zoo.
About the author:
Jo Linsdell is a freelance writer, author and illustrator. Originally from theUK, she now lives inRome,Italy with her husband and their two young sons.
Author website: www.JoLinsdell.com
Release Date: 1st June 2012
Product details:
ISBN/EAN13: 1477446591 / 9781477446591
Page Count: 32
Binding Type: US Trade Paper
Trim Size: 6″ x 9″
Language: English
Colour: Full Colour with Bleed
Related Categories: Juvenile Fiction / Stories in Verse
Purchasing links:
Contact details:
Email: webmaster@jolinsdell.com
Reviews:
5 Stars
“Out and About at the Zoo by Jo Linsdell is a delightful story set in rhyme about a boy and his mum. The two spend the day at the zoo and meet many animals along the way. Your child will enjoy reading this book time and time again. The colorful illustrations make this book a joy to read. Pick up a copy of this book and share a day at the zoo memory with your little one”.
By Kate Mueller, Author of Bella’s Birthday Surprise
5 Stars
“Out And About At The Zoo is a cute book that describes a child’s memory filled trip to the zoo. Are you heading to the zoo and you would like to tell your kids what animals they will see there and what they might be doing? Then Out And About At The Zoo would be a great choice. Easy to understand and easy for children to read along with. It is filled with simple yet colorful pictures that even held my one year old’s attention!
Would also make a good gift for young readers who are just beginning to read!”
By Virginia L. Jennings, Author
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August 8, 2012
Parenting Life Lesson
Rest In Peace Goldie
This morning I had another parenting life lesson, my 3-year-old’s beloved goldfish Goldie died, again. He had died once before, though she didn’t know it, late one evening a few months ago. This sent her father and I into a panic. Did we really want to have the life and death talk with her so young? The answer was a resounding no, because both of us were too cowardly to face her tears.
My husband made a mad dash to the nearest 24hr Wal-Mart to procure Goldie 2.0. The next day when our little one didn’t notice that Goldie 2.0 was slightly larger with a fancier tail the two of us were high-fiving each other for saving the day.
This morning when I noticed Goldie 2.0 being very still at the top of its bowl my breath caught in my throat. This was early morning not late at night after she was in bed. There would be no way I could surreptitiously replace Goldie 2.0 with Goldie 2.1. She was going to notice!
So I did the only thing I could do. I gathered my courage (aka – a few cups of coffee) then I called my daughter in to have a talk with her. The talk started with, “I have something to tell you,” which she already at this age knows that means something important.
Her little face grew grave as I explained that Goldie had died. I explained to her as best as I could what death meant in the context of our personal, religious beliefs and even offered to bury Goldie in the garden, (which was a big deal because the first Goldie went to septic city – she doesn’t need to know that). I ended the conversation with a hug.
With so much earnest she said to me, “I’ll miss Goldie, Mommy.”
A lump formed in my throat, and I whispered, “I know you will, Sweetie.”
Her little brows drew together. “That makes me sad, Mommy.”
I fought back the tears that sprang to my eyes. “It makes me sad too, Sweetie.”
I hug her tight again, and she gave a heavy sigh.
Then she looked at me with the serious countenance only a 3-year-old can manage with any authenticity and said, “Can we get a dog now?”
“Not today, Sweetie. Mommy has a headache.”
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June 16, 2012
What I Learned From My Dad
My dad is the ultimate do-it-yourself-er. He’s never met a fix-it challenge he wouldn’t take a crack at before calling in a professional. The man has nearly chopped his thumb off on a fan blade (which he sewed back together himself BTW), impaled himself in the keester on a length of wood flooring, and fallen through the ceiling over a stair well leading to the basement.
Yes, it is a miracle that he’s still alive. Our affectionate nickname for him is sparky for electrical reasons.
I own that I am sparky’s daughter. I once blew every fuse in my house rewiring a lamp (in my defense, it was a really old house and a really old lamp). So in honor of Father’s Day here are a few things I’ve learned from old sparky that I never will forget and you shouldn’t either.
1) If it’s broke – fix it.
2) If it’s not broke take it apart and see if you can figure out how it works.
3) If you break it while exploring how it works it was a cheap piece of crap to begin with.
4) Now that the cheap piece of crap is broken, see number 1
Happy Father’s Day Daddy! I love you so much, even if you did take my keyboard apart and it never worked right again. The cheap piece of crap.
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June 1, 2012
June is Audiobook Month!
Bookended by Beauty Queens Audiobook Preview
Happy Audiobook Month everyone! I am so happy to announce that Bookended by Beauty Queens is now available as an audiobook download.
Click the above link for a preview. I hope you enjoy!
Download you copy today from:
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May 25, 2012
HAPPY TIARA DAY!
ATTENTION: All Honorary Beauty Queens, former Beauty Queens, current Beauty Queens, Wanna Be Beauty Queens, or just plain Queens! It is time to dust off your tiaras! May 24th is International Tiara Day (no I’m not kidding it’s real) and in honor of the occasion, I am sponsoring a contest for a $50 Amazon Gift Card and an autographed copy of Bookended by Beauty Queens!
Here’s what you need to do to WIN! Round up a photo of you (or your kids that would be fun too) with your tiaras – wearing them, hugging them, adoring them – be as creative as you want. Then PIN it to my Show Me Your Tiara Pintrest Page!
If you’re not on Pintrest don’t panic post a photo to your Flickr account, Blog, or wherever (except Facebook because they’re mean and won’t let me pin from their pages) and send me a link so I can pin it for you. You can also email your photo with your permission to pin to: contest(at)beforethefallbooks (dot)com and I we will post it for you!
A winner will be chosen by a panel of my Queens and Honorary Queens. The contest is open until Midnight on June 1st so get your entry in today!
Good luck and HAPPY TIARA DAY TO ALL!
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May 19, 2012
Telling Grammar by Kat Duncan
Ever get a feeling that something’s wrong with your writing, but you can’t quite put your finger on it and neither can your critique partner? Ever get a rejection that says something like: “This story didn’t grab me the way I thought it would?” My critique partner told me recently: “Hey, you really made big difference in that opening scene. Wow! It really sings now. The scene is so alive. You must have made a lot of changes.” Me: “No, I only changed a few words and re-wrote a couple of sentences.”
It’s true. My partner was blown away by a few simple changes. Most of them were either word choice changes or grammatical changes. How did I do it? For a long time, I didn’t really know. Maybe I’m just instinctively good at grammar (don’t hate me). But that wasn’t good enough for me. I had to try to understand what makes writing bad versus good and good versus great. Luckily, I’m a tutor by trade so I have lots of opportunities to read what people write and try to help them understand what they want to say and how to say it better. I haven’t gotten all the answers (yet!) but for the last few years I’ve been pulling my ideas together into grammar workshops. Now, I’ve taken all my grammar lessons and put them together in an ebook, Telling Grammar. This grammar book contains practical, useful solutions that you can start using in your writing the moment you learn about them. No short lists of “do this, but never do that”, no drawn out lectures about subjects, predicates and complex clauses. And I promise you won’t ever make you diagram sentences!
What you’ll get instead is a sensible explanation of what works grammatically and why it works. Not the kind of scholarly details you’d find in a textbook (although I do provide the correct grammar terms for the die-hards out there). You’ll get real, practical applications and examples geared mostly to romance writing because that’s what I’m most familiar with. For those of you who are really old-school, there are practice exercises that you can try on your own (answers provided).
This ebook is for writers who don’t “get” grammar and for those who think they don’t want to get it. Proper use of grammar makes a story flow smoothly, page after page. Poorly constructed sentences and paragraphs ruin the pace of your novel and make editors and agents pass up your manuscript. This book makes it easy for you to try out techniques that work and it explains why they work so you don’t go back to making the same old mistakes. In this book are techniques that show you how to blend different grammar constructions to make action, emotion, and tension come through.
At only $2.99 it’s a good investment in your writing skills. Telling Grammar is available at:
Smashwords
I’d love to give away two copies of this ebook today. Just comment to be entered into the random drawing. Looking forward to sharing grammar ideas with you!
About Kat Duncan!
Kat Duncan is a creation extremist who is doing her best to identify human creativity and free it from captivity, one student at a time. As a young child, Kat once tried to confess the telling of her stories to her parish priest because she thought they fit the definition the nuns gave for telling a lie. With her lies fully sanctioned and blessed by church authorities, Kat writes stories to entertain and enlighten. She is a Fulbright Scholar who spent a year in West Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall. Kat has a master’s degree in education and over a dozen years of experience teaching students from elementary through college and beyond. Her stories span a range from realistic historicals to quirky suspense. Visit her at: http://www.katduncan.net
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May 9, 2012
Show Me Your Tiaras! You Could Win $50 from Amazon.
ATTENTION: All Honorary Beauty Queens, former Beauty Queens, current Beauty Queens, Wanna Be Beauty Queens, or just plain Queens! It is time to dust off your tiaras! May 24th is International Tiara Day (no I’m not kidding it’s real) and in honor of the occasion, I am sponsoring a contest for a $50 Amazon Gift Card and an autographed copy of Bookended by Beauty Queens!
Here’s what you need to do to WIN! Round up a photo of you (or your kids that would be fun too) with your tiaras – wearing them, hugging them, adoring them – be as creative as you want. Then PIN it to my Show Me Your Tiara Pintrest Page!
If you’re not on Pintrest don’t panic post a photo to your Flickr account, Blog, or wherever (except Facebook because they’re mean and won’t let me pin from their pages) and send me a link so I can pin it for you. You can also email your photo with your permission to pin to: contest(at)beforethefallbooks (dot)com and I we will post it for you!
A winner will be chosen by a panel of my Queens and Honorary Queens. The contest is open until Midnight on June 1st so get your entry in today!
Good luck and HAPPY TIARA DAY TO ALL!
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Author Victoria Marshal answers the Dames’ Dozen
Hi All,
So excited to be part of the Dames’ of Dialogue today. What a fantastic group. Please click over and join us if you can!
Author Victoria Marshal answers the Dames’ Dozen.
via Author Victoria Marshal answers the Dames’ Dozen.
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