Monday, December 23, 2019

Book Feature: Tetrastatum by Dr. Richard & Tim Smith




Title: TETRASTATUM
Author: Dr. Richard & Tim Smith
Publisher: Epigraph Publishing
Pages: 300
Genre: Time Travel Thriller

In their debut novel TETRASTATUM, authors Dr. Richard and Tim Smith combine heady concepts about the universe with a thrilling science fiction story about the search for a new kind of time travel. The result is a stunning mixture of dense cosmology and old-fashioned storytelling that will appeal to a wide readership, from science professionals to lay fans of science fiction.

“Dr. Richard” and “Tim Smith” are the pseudonyms of Dr. Richard Connor and Marcus Rodriguez, respectively.

TETRASTATUM (‘the fourth state’) is the culmination of my 30 years working in the field of photonics,” Dr. Richard says. “I am an avid reader of sci-fi, and I wanted to create a new type of work that is both educational and entertaining in the genre. TETRASTATUM gives the reader a unique understanding of the existing laws of physics and extends them to provoke further thought from novice readers as well as advanced experts in the field.”

Kirkus Reviews notes that “authors Dr. Richard and Smith … tell their cerebral story with a heady mix of dense theory and absurdist humor.”

The Independent Review of Books declares:  “TETRASTATUM is like nothing you have ever read before. This is an impressive work of science fiction …”

The San Francisco Book Review adds that, “These recurring themes of characterization and distortion feed into the concern that is being voiced over the current state of our political climate…The layering of these themes is ultimately what gives TETRASTATUM a relevance that will keep readers turning pages and asking questions.”

“The book ultimately explains how human perceptions alter the future and puts forth a model based on quantum physics to explain ‘reality’,” Dr. Richard continues.  He calls science fiction “the perfect genre to explore socio-political ideas within the context of futuristic technologies and scientific theories.”

Dr. Richard and Smith are currently working with Norith Soth on adapting TETRASTATUM into a screenplay. Mr. Soth has penned work for Justin Lin (“Fast and Furious”), Stephen Chin (“War Dogs”), and Norman Reedus (“The Walking Dead”).

order your copy below

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EXCERPT


“Well, Dr. Smith, your colleague…uhm, whom you claim is watching us on some monitor-type device, has quite an imagination.  Images, imagination, create that which brings wonder into the realm of understanding.  I concede that I didn’t contemplate the idea of two spheres and two sets of waves when I derived my equations.  I missed the duality, nature’s constant.  But I confirm that this appears to be mathematically accurate and a plausible theory as to the nature of reality, itself.”  –Dr. Erwin Schrödinger




 

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meet the author


Dr. Richard has been involved in the field of Photonics for over 30 years. He received his BA in physics (honors) from the University of California Fullerton. He was in a full scholarship PhD program in physics at the University of California Irvine and a PhD program in philosophy at Claremont Graduate School. Dr. Richard completed his two dissertations (involving human interpretations of laser and electro-optical images) while under top secret clearance. He also has an advanced placement teaching credential, an advanced certification (from the University of Wisconsin) in laser and optical design; and other advanced certifications in fiber optics, computer programming, technology business development, financial products, dance, anatomy and physiology.

website & social links

WEBSITE → https://www.tetrastatum.com

FACEBOOK → https://www.facebook.com/istarsfx




 

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Book Feature: WIDOW'S RUN by TG Wolff




Title: WIDOW’S RUN
Author: TG Wolff
Publisher: Down & Out Books
Pages: 236
Genre: Mystery/Thriller

One night in Rome. One car. One dead scientist. Italian police investigate, but in the end, all they have are kind words for the new widow. Months later, a video emerges challenging the facts. Had he stepped into traffic, or was he pushed? The widow returns to the police, where there are more kind words but no answers. Exit the widow.

Enter Diamond. One name for a woman with one purpose. Resurrecting her CIA cover, she follows the shaky video down the rabbit hole. Her widow’s run unearths a plethora of suspects:  the small-time crook, the mule-loving rancher, the lady in waiting, the Russian bookseller, the soon-to-be priest. Following the stink greed leaves in its wake reveals big lies and ugly truths. Murder is filthy business. Good thing Diamond likes playing dirty.

"TG Wolff's novel is for crime-fiction fans who like it action-packed and hard-edged. Written with feisty panache, it introduces Diamond, one of the most aggressive, ill-tempered, and wholly irresistible heroines to ever swagger across the page." --David Housewright, Edgar Award-winning author of Dead Man's Mistress

ORDER YOUR COPY

Amazon → https://amzn.to/2NgYhGg

______________________

Teaser:




Excerpt:

“Dixon.” It was the resigned statement you used when a kid straight up beat you at your own game.
“Hey Diamond.” Chips crunched in my ear. “How’s Italy?”
“How’d you get this phone number?”
“I called myself from it last night.” A bag crackled in the background.
“When and where was I?”
“When you went to the bathroom. You said make yourself comfortable.”
I wasn’t gone three minutes, not three minutes. “And you took it as an invitation to steal my phone number?”
“You know, for emergencies and stuff.” Either he had shoved another fistful of chips into his mouth or he had wadded up the bag into a ball and was gnawing on it.
“Dix, you put one more chip in your mouth and I’m going to swim across the Atlantic and give you a chip bag colonoscopy.”
He laughed. “That’s something old people get, right? Something like a camera up the butt?”
It’s hard to physically intimidate someone who lived day in, day out with violence. You know. Been there, done that, got the black eye. The one he’d gotten for his birthday still had days until it would fade.
“Yeah, Dix. I hear it comes with good drugs though. So, who is she?”
This time he glugged liquid, finishing it with a sloppy lip slap. “Who is who?”
“You know who.”
“Do who know you?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Dix, you’re making my head spin. You texted me you know ‘who she is.’ Tell me who she is while I’m still young enough to care.”
“Oh. Her. Ilsa Dumanovskaya. I’m not making it up either. Musta sucked to spell her name in kindergarten. Least her parents gave her a short first name.”
I leaned against an ice-cold plaster wall, prepared to commence head pounding. “Why should I care?”
“Because of Doc.” Doc. That was the nickname the kids at the YPF gave Gavriil. He liked the stories I brought home and showed up one afternoon. It wasn’t even “take your husband to work day.” I found him arguing with the science teacher over a chemical equation. They got past their chalkboard differences, created a bouncy-ball polymer, then had contests to see which formula bounced higher. The kids loved it. Gavriil came in once a week for lecture and the occasional spontaneous laboratory experiment.
“She’s the woman he met in Rome.”
My chin snapped up. My heart beat in double time. I had her face, now I had her name. I signaled Carlo for pencil and paper. “Give it to me.”
“She owns a bookstore. I have the address for her store and her apartment. Do they call them flats?”
“No idea. Give me the address.” My mouth watered with the taste of deep-fried quarry.
“Three-twenty-one valle Didochachiata.”
My pencil stayed still. “That can’t be right.”
“Maybe I’m not saying it right. Three-twenty-one Vya Deedoshakiata. Better?”
“No. Carlo? Can you figure out this address?” I handed over the phone and recommenced pacing.
Carlo alternated between speaking and listening. Then he laughed. Of course, he and Dix would understand each other. Gibberish was an international language.





 

Teaser




About the Author



TG Wolff writes thrillers and mysteries that play within the gray area between good and bad, right and wrong. Cause and effect drive the stories, drawing from 20+ years’ experience in Civil Engineering, where “cause” is more often a symptom of a bigger, more challenging problem. Diverse characters mirror the complexities of real life and real people, balanced with a healthy dose of entertainment. TG Wolff holds a Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering and is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

Website → www.tgwolff.com

Twitter → @tg_wolff

Facebook → www.Facebook.com/tina.wolff.125

 

Monday, December 2, 2019

Q&A with 'Christmas in Newfoundland' Mike Martin

Mike Martin was born in Newfoundland on the East Coast of Canada and now lives and works in Ottawa, Ontario. The Walker on the Cape was his first full fiction book and the premiere of the Sgt. Windflower Mystery Series. Other books in the series include The Body on the T, Beneath the Surface, A Twist of Fortune and A Long Ways from Home, which was shortlisted for the Bony Blithe Light Mystery Award as the best light mystery of the year. A Tangled Web was released in 2017 and the newest book in the series.is Darkest Before the Dawn which won the Bony Blithe Award in 2019. A new book in the series, Fire, Fog and Water is being released in October.
Mike is currently Chair of the Board of Crime Writers of Canada, a national organization promoting Canadian crime and mystery writers.

website & social links

Website → www.sgtwindflowermysteries.com

Twitter Link: → http://ww.twitter.com/mike54martin

Facebook→https://www.facebook.com/TheWalkerOnTheCapeReviewsAndMore/



Tell us about your book! What is it about and what inspired you to write it?

Christmas in Newfoundland is a collection of stories and mysteries, some fictional based on the character in my mystery series, Sgt. Windflower and some personal memories and recollections.

Tell us about your publishing process. What was it like? Did you go indie or the traditional way?

I have always been an indie person. I am not opposed to traditional publishing but I am too impatient to wait for their timelines and other processes.

How did you choose the title for your book? Did it come to you right away, before you started writing it, or did it come later?

The title always comes last, for me. I don’t even think about it until the book is finished the first major draft.

Tell us about the cover design process. Did you have a basic idea of what your book cover would be like? 

We used a class of high school students who are in a visual arts program to produce illustrations for the book and choose one for the cover which embodied the essence of the stories.

Who is your cover designer and how did you find him/her?

Mag Carson came to me via my publisher, Ottawa Press and Publishing.

How was your experience working with the designer?

I enjoyed working with her because she tries to capture the story behind the story in the cover.

What has been the readers’ response to your cover?

People who see it absolutely love it. It calls the reader to come inside and visit. That’s the whole purpose of the book.

What tips would you give to authors who are looking for a cover designer?

Find someone who will help you think about the story behind the story, and not just try and give you a cookie-cutter design

Anything else you’d like to say about your book?

I hope you enjoy it!!

about the book


From the author of the award-winning Sgt. Windflower Mysteries comes “Christmas in Newfoundland: Memories and Mysteries,” a welcome addition to the Sgt. Windflower family of books.

Christmas in Newfoundland is a special time. In the depths of long winter nights memories are made and stories are told. Of Christmas by candlelight and horse and buggy rides to church. Of shopping on Water Street in St. John’s before malls and the Internet.

In later years, Sgt. Windflower came to work and then to stay in the quiet town of Grand Bank by the Atlantic Ocean where the salt air froze in the wind and the Mounties were welcomed to warm themselves by every fire.

Come and warm yourself by the fire and hear their stories. Some memories and some mysteries. Enjoy some holiday time with Sgt. Windflower and all the familiar characters that you’d come to know and love. Good food, good friends and always another chair at the table.

order below

Amazon → https://amzn.to/32hC9zY



Thursday, November 21, 2019

Q&A with James D. Bell, Author of 'Maximilian's Treasure'



James D. Bell is an award-winning author and retired Judge who received the highest bar association approval ratings ever given to a Mississippi Circuit or County Judge. He is listed in Preeminent Lawyers, Outstanding Lawyers of America and Top 100 Attorneys of North America.  He is the author of two novels, Vampire Defense and Maximilian’s Treasure.  His short story, The Adventures of Sherlock Hound, was published in Mardi Allen’s collection, Dog Stories for the Soul, alongside stories from Mark Twain, John Steinbeck, Willie Morris and others.  The son of a Choctaw mother and a Mississippi businessman, Judge Bell is devoted to his wife, Joanne.  They live near Jackson, Mississippi and have four children.  Judge Bell returned to law practice but is frequently called back to the bench by the Mississippi Supreme Court for short term assignments. 
Interview:
Tell us about your book, Maximilian's Treasure! What is it about and what inspired you to write it?
A stately Choctaw elder told my friend and me that he believed Civil War gold was buried on his farm in Mississippi.  He believed that Maximilian, the Emperor of Mexico, sent gold to support the South’s war effort, and that none other than Jesse James, then a member of the Confederate Cavalry, was with the shipment.  The war ended when the gold was near his farm and was hidden there.  He asked us to help him look for the treasure.  This was too far-fetched to believe, but my friend and I said, “Why not?”  We travelled with him to his farm and had a great day listening to his stories while we searched with him.  You might think this unusual.  It’s not.  It’s just another day of law practice in Mississippi, where the unusual and outlandish is an everyday occurrence.
This was one of many stories from forty years of law practice that I am desperate to tell.  My best friend and I were young lawyers defending citizens charged with crimes in Mississippi.  We attracted a bit of attention because we kept winning cases.  Jack was a loyal friend, an intrepid investigator, and a great researcher.  Together we regularly accomplished what at first seemed impossible.  Jack died twenty years ago; too young; too soon.  I miss him.  I brought him back to life in my novels.
In Maximilian’s Treasure rumors of hidden gold inspire a battle for possession of a Choctaw family farm.  Two young lawyers, John Brooks and Jackson Bradley, agree to help the family keep their farm.  Early legal success prompts the drive-by murder of the patriarch of the family.  The grandson chases the suspects whose bodies are found on the farm, scalped.  At the same time, clues to a vast treasure are found on the farm.  Jackson, pursued by fortune seekers, adventurers, an exotic beauty and a homicidal maniac, follows the clues to a Caribbean reef and then to the Chiapas jungle.  John stays behind to defend the grandson and continue the fight for the farm.  His efforts are complicated by arson, murder, race riots, and the realization that he lost his one true love.  The adventures of John and Jackson rush toward an intertwined triple climax.
Tell us about your publishing process. What was it like? Did you go indie or the traditional way?
I went with a small publisher, which permits me to have a close working relationship with the publisher.  I took a course, How to Sell What You Write, at Millsaps College taught by a successful author and publisher, James Dickerson of Sartoris Literary Group.  I followed his formula and he offered to publish my first novel!  That novel, Vampire Defense, became Sartoris’ best-selling fiction and Sartoris was happy to publish my second novel, Maximilian’s Treasure.
How did you choose the title for your book? Did it come to you right away, before you started writing it, or did it come later?
I had a different working title at first, but it was soon obvious that Maximilian’s Treasure is the right title for this story.
Tell us about the cover design process. Did you have a basic idea of what your book cover would be like?
I started with an enlarged photograph of a gold Maximilian coin before I hired an artist who designed a beautiful, exciting cover that captures the essence of the book.
Who is your cover designer and how did you find him/her?
Eric Summers (eric@thatsummersguy.com) designed the cover and did a great job.  He was recommended by my publisher.
How was your experience working with the designer?
Great!  He read the book and picked a scene that captures the essence of this romantic adventure.  The characters Jackson and Natalia, an exotic beauty, are in an embrace near a waterfall.  Jackson is peering through a waterfall trying to discover what is concealed behind it.  Natalia in ceremonial garb, dagger in hand, is looking over his shoulder, confidently ready to confront an approaching threat. 
What has been the readers’ response to your cover?
Everyone says, “Wow!  I want that book!”
What tips would you give to authors who are looking for a cover designer?
Readers will judge your book by the cover.  Be creative.  You want your cover to communicate relevant information about your story in a powerful way to the prospective reader.  Find a gifted artist like Eric who is willing spend the time necessary to understand the story.
Anything else you’d like to say about your book?
Maximilian’s Treasure is packed with hidden treasurers to be discovered.  So, if you love mystery, adventure, romance, justice, belly laughs and hidden treasures, it’s all waiting for you in Maximilian’s Treasure. You’ve got to read it!



Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Book Blast: Streetcar Sandwiches by Curtis Orloff - Win a $25 Gift Card






Title: Streetcar Sandwiches
Author: Curtis Orloff
Publisher: Authorhouse
Genre: Performing Arts/Screenplay
Format: Ebook/Paperback/Hardcover


Streetcar Sandwiches is a screenplay showing the efforts the owner of a sandwich shop in Uptown New Orleans undertakes to keep her business running. Not only does she have to deal with a menagerie of all types of employees, she has to comply with onerous and often conflicting regulations from several government bureaus. How she handles what turns into an ordeal threatens to change her naturally optimistic and pleasant personality. It leads directly to an outcome that could only have occurred in the Big Easy.

PURCHASE HERE


GIVEAWAY

Curtis IS GIVING AWAY A $25 GIFT CARD!

  
Terms & Conditions:
  • By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
  • One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Gift Certificate to the e-retailer of your choice
  • This giveaway begins November 18 and ends on November 29.
  • Winners will be contacted via email on November 30.
  • Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone! 

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway







Monday, November 18
A Book Lover
My Bookish Pleasures

Tuesday, November 19
The Hype and the Hoopla
Write and Take Flight

Wednesday, November 20
Harmonious Publicity
Book Cover Junkie

Thursday, November 21
Fiction to Fruition
From Paperback to Leatherbound

Friday, November 22

She Writes
A Title Wave

Monday, November 25

All Inclusive Retort
The Literary Nook

Tuesday, November 26
Voodoo Princess
C'est La T

Wednesday, November 27
The Revolving Bookshelf
The Dark Phantom

Thursday, November 28
The Book Refuge
The Book Czar

Friday, November 29
The Zen Reader
I'm Shelf-ish