06 December 2017

Mamá Graciela’s Secret by Mayra Calvani Book Tour!

Mamá Graciela’s Secret
Publication date: October 10, 2017
Written by Mayra Calvani
Illustrated by Sheila Fein
MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing
www.maclaren-cochranepublishing.com
36 pages, 3-7 year olds
Reading guide at: www.MayrasSecretBookcase.com

Description:
Mamá Graciela’s TENDER, CRUNCHY, SPICY bacalaítos fritos are the best in town...
Local customers (including stray cats!) come from all over the island to enjoy her secret recipe. But when the Inspector discovers that Mamá secretly caters to so many cats and he threatens to close her tiny restaurant, Mamá must come up with a plan to save it—and all of the animals she loves.
About the author:
Mayra Calvani writes fiction and nonfiction for children and adults and has authored over a dozen books, some of which have won awards. Her children's picture book, Frederico the Mouse Violinist was a finalist in the 2011 International Book Awards; her anthology Latina Authors and Their Muses was a First Place winner at the 2016 International Latino Book Awards; her nonfiction book, The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing, was a Foreword Best Book of the Year winner. Her stories, reviews, interviews and articles have appeared on numerous publications like The Writer, Writer's Journal, Multicultural Review, Bloomsbury Review, and others.

She lives in Belgium with her husband of 30+ years, two wonderful kids, and her three beloved pets. When she's not writing, editing, reading or reviewing, she enjoys walking with her dog, traveling, and spending time with her family. www.MayrasSecretBookcase.com


About the illustrator:

Born in Queens, New York and living in Los Angeles since 1987, Sheila Fein has always been inspired by the changing world around her. Earning her BA in Design from Buffalo State College of New York, her concentration was on drawing, painting, printmaking, and photography. Sheila's education as an artist has taken her everywhere from Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia to Bath University in England. Today, Sheila Fein runs two figurative workshops, Imaginings Sketch in LA and People Sketchers in Thousand Oaks. She has been featured in numerous collections, magazines, books, solo and group exhibitions. Her paintings and drawings reside in public and private collections. Sheila loves to make the imagination of others a reality and has done so through her commissioned Fein Fantasy Portraits and Interactive Paintings. In addition to being a fine artist Sheila works as an illustrator. She just completed the book "Mama Graciela's Secret" for Maclaren-Cochrane Publishing.

Book info:
ISBN:HC 978-1-365-86153-6
SC 978-1-365-86155-0
ISBN Dyslexic Font Version:
DY HC 978-1-365-86154-3 DY SC 978-1-365-86156-7
**This book also has version printed in the Dyslexic font, the typeface for people with dyslexia. Go to www.dyslexiefont.com to find out more about the typeface.
Suggested Retail Price - 17.99 Hardcover & 13.99 Softcover 40 % Discounted Price – 10.80 Hardcover & 8.40 Softcover
Available through - Ingram - Discount 40% Returnable – Yes
MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing – Discount 40% - Orders@maclaren-cochranepublishing.com Returnable – Yes
Publishing company Contact Info: MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing 1024 Iron Point Rd 100-1478 Folsom CA 95630
916-897-1670
Tannya@Maclaren-cochranepublishing.com www.maclaren-cochranepublishing.com
MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing 620 Buchanan Way, Folsom, CA 95630 916-897-1670 www.maclaren-cochranepublishing.com

Honey-Baked Homicide (A Down South Café Mystery) by Gayle Leeson Book Tour and Giveaway!


Honey-Baked Homicide (A Down South Café Mystery) by Gayle Leeson

 
Cozy Mystery 3rd in Series Setting - Virginia Berkley (December 5, 2017) 
Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages 
ISBN-13: 978-1101990827 
E-Book ASIN: B06XJM6VGH
The owner of a delightful Southern café tastes the sharp sting of suspicion in this delectable comfort food mystery . . . It’s fall in Winter Garden, Virginia, and business at Amy Flowers’ Down South Café has never been better. So when struggling beekeeper Stuart Landon asks Amy to sell some of his honey, she’s happy to help. The jars of honey are a sweet success, but their partnership is cut short when Amy discovers Landon’s body outside the café early one morning. As Amy tries to figure out who could possibly have wanted to harm the unassuming beekeeper, she discovers an ever-expanding list of suspects—and they’re all buzzing mad. She’ll have to use all of her skills—and her Southern charm—to find her way out of this sticky situation...

 

About the Author

Gayle Leeson is a pseudonym for Gayle Trent. I also write as Amanda Lee. As Gayle Trent, I write the Daphne Martin Cake Mystery series and the Myrtle Crumb Mystery series. As Amanda Lee, I write the Embroidery Mystery series.
The cake decorating series features a heroine who is starting her life over in Southwest Virginia after a nasty divorce. The heroine, Daphne, has returned to her hometown of Brea Ridge to open a cake baking and decorating business and is wrestling with the question of whether or not one can go home again. She enjoys spending time with her sister, nephew, and niece, but she and her mother have a complicated relationship that isn’t always pleasant. Daphne has also reconnected with her high school sweetheart and is pursuing a rekindled romance while desperately trying to put her past behind her.
Kerry Vincent, Hall of Fame Sugar Artist, Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show Director, and Television Personality says the series is “a must read for cake bakers and anyone who has ever spent creative time in the kitchen!”
Says Dean Koontz, #1 New York Times bestselling author, “One day I found myself happily reading . . . mysteries by Gayle Trent. If she can win me over . . . she’s got a great future.”
The Embroidery Mystery series features a heroine who recently moved to the Oregon coast to open an embroidery specialty shop. Marcy Singer left her home in San Francisco, along with the humiliation of being left at the altar, in order to move to Tallulah Falls and realize her dream of owning her own shop. She takes along her faithful companion, a one-year-old Irish wolfhound named Angus O’Ruff. She makes many new friends in Tallulah Falls, but she also makes a few enemies. Thankfully, her best friend Sadie MacKenzie and her husband Blake run the coffeehouse right down the street from Marcy’s shop, the Seven-Year Stitch; and Detective Ted Nash always has her back.
Publishers Weekly says, “Fans of the genre will take kindly to Marcy, her Irish wolfhound, Angus O’Ruff, and Tallulah Falls. This is a fast, pleasant read with prose full of pop culture references and, of course, sharp needlework puns.”
Pat Cooper of RT Book Reviews says, “If her debut here is any indication, Lee’s new series is going to be fun, spunky and educational. She smoothly interweaves plot with her character’s personality and charm, while dropping tantalizing hints of stitching projects and their history. Marcy Singer is young, fun, sharp and likable. Readers will be looking forward to her future adventures.” (RT Book Reviews nominated The Quick and the Thread for a 2010 Book Reviewers’ Choice Award in the Amateur Sleuth category)
I live in Virginia with my family, which includes her own “Angus” who is not an Irish wolfhound but a Great Pyrenees who provides plenty of inspiration for the character of Mr. O’Ruff. I'm having a blast writing this new series!

Webpage: http://www.gayleleeson.com http://www.gayletrent.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GayleTrentandAmandaLee/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GayleTrent 
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/gayletrent/pins/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gayletrentleeson/ 
Purchase Links:
Excerpt from HONEY-BAKED HOMICIDE by Gayle Leeson

We were on our way back home when we saw an old pickup truck speeding in the direction of Landon’s Farm. In fact, it appeared to be Mr. Landon’s truck, but neither Ryan nor I could see well enough in the dark to determine if it was.
Ryan drove until there was a wide enough space on the shoulder of the road to pull over. Then he took out his cell phone and called the police station.
“Hi, it’s Ryan. I’m out on Route 11 just outside of Winter Garden. What appeared to be an antique Chevy truck just passed me going in the opposite direction. The vehicle is speeding, and I’d like for you to alert the officer on call—maybe contact the county dispatch as well.”
He ended the call and placed the phone back in the car’s center console.
“I’d hate for Mr. Landon to get a speeding ticket,” I said.
“We’re not sure that was Mr. Landon . . . or even if that was his truck. If it was, whoever was driving it took the expression drive it like you stole it to heart and deserves a ticket.”
“I hadn’t thought of that—that it could be his truck but not him driving. Maybe someone did steal Mr. Landon’s truck. How awful.”
Ryan picked up my hand and kissed it. “We don’t know anything for sure right now. Given what we know about Mr. Landon, I doubt that was him or his truck.”
“But we don’t know for sure. There could be something wrong. Let’s turn around and drive out to Mr. Landon’s place to see if we can help.”
“We can’t. I’m off duty, and we’ve already sent help his way. If anything’s wrong, the police will get Mr. Landon the help he needs.”
“I hope so,” I said. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this. I can’t imagine Mr. Landon ever speeding down the road like that.”
“Would it make you feel better to call the man?”
“No. He might think I was crazy to call him at this time of night to ask him if he was speeding down the road. And like you said, it probably wasn’t him . . . or his truck.”


When I arrived at the café the next morning, I was surprised to see Stu Landon’s truck haphazardly parked at the far right corner of the lot. I took my usual spot in the parking space farthest away from the front door to the left of the building. Gathering my keys and purse and stepping out of the car, I could see Mr. Landon sitting in the driver’s seat of his truck. I gave him a smile and a wave, wishing he’d have let me know he’d planned on being here this early so I wouldn’t have kept him waiting.
He didn’t wave back, and I wondered if he was angry. Or maybe he hadn’t seen me. Then again, he could simply be preoccupied.
I unlocked the door, put my purse under the counter, and waited for Mr. Landon to bring in the honey I’d requested yesterday. When he hadn’t come inside after a couple of minutes, I went to check on him. Maybe he really hadn’t seen me arrive . . . or noticed my car in the parking lot. Unlikely, but I guess it was possible.
I walked over to Mr. Landon’s truck. No wonder he hadn’t seen me. His straw hat had slid down over his eyes. Had he been waiting on me for so long he’d fallen asleep?
I rapped my knuckles lightly on the window. “Mr. Landon?”
When he didn’t respond, I knocked a little harder. Still, no response. I was getting concerned. What if Mr. Landon had suffered a stroke or something?
I heard a car pull into the lot. I glanced over my shoulder and was glad to see Luis parking beside my Beetle. Luis was our busboy and dishwasher. He could help me get Mr. Landon out of the truck and inside the café if need be.
After knocking on the window again and still getting no response from Mr. Landon, I carefully opened the door of the truck. Mr. Landon began sliding out onto the pavement. Was that blood on his shirt?
“Luis! Can you help me?”
I heard Luis’s feet pounding the pavement as he ran to us. “What’s going on?” He gasped. “Amy, he’s bleeding.”
“I see that. And right now, he’s falling out of the truck. Could you help me get him?”
“I don’t think we should. Let’s put him back inside the truck and call for help.” He stepped between the door and Mr. Landon and gently pushed the man toward the passenger side of the truck.
Mr. Landon fell over and I could see that his throat had been cut. I was barely aware that I was screaming until I felt Luis’s hands on my shoulders.
“I don’t think there’s anything we can do for him,” he said. “Let’s get you inside.”
“No. No, we have to stay with him. We have to wait here until help comes.”
I heard Luis talking, but it wasn’t to me. He’d called 9-1-1.
“Thank you,” I said as he returned his phone to his pocket.
“You shouldn’t be looking at this.” He gently turned me away from Mr. Landon’s truck. “The man is dead.”
We walked a few feet away from the truck.
“You’re shaking,” he said. “You need to sit down.”
He needed to sit as badly as I did. Still, I wasn’t about to leave Mr. Landon until after the paramedics arrived.
“I’m fine,” I told him, knowing fully well that neither of us was fine.
I was relieved when I heard sirens approaching. Poor Mr. Landon was almost out of my incapable care.

TOUR PARTICIPANTS
December 4 – Bibliophile Reviews –  REVIEW, GUEST POST
December 4 – The Montana Bookaholic – SPOTLIGHT
December 5 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews  – REVIEW
December 5 – A Holland Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 6 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
December 6 – Books,Dreams,Life – SPOTLIGHT
December 7 – Cinnamon, Sugar and a Little Bit of Murder – REVIEW, RECIPE
December 7 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW  
December 8 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
December 8 – Teresa Trent Author Blog – INTERVIEW
December 9 – The Power of Words – REVIEW
December 9 – Moonlight Rendezvous – REVIEW, RECIPE
December 9 – A Blue Million Books – INTERVIEW
December 10 – Bookworm Cafe – REVIEW
December 10 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, GUEST POST
December 11 –Queen of All She Reads – REVIEW
December 11 – The Ninja Librarian – REVIEW, INTERVIEW
December 12 – Varietats – REVIEW
December 12 – A Chick Who Reads – REVIEW
December 13 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT
December 13 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW
December 14 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW
December 14 – Valerie’s Musings – GUEST POST
December 15 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 15 – Book Babble – REVIEW
December 16 – Sapphyria’s Books – REVIEW
December 16 – Laura’s interests – CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 17 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
December 17 – Island Confidential – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

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Front Page Murder A Crampton of the Chronicle Mystery By Peter Bartram Book Spotlight!


ABOUT THE BOOK…

FRONT PAGE MURDER
A Crampton of the Chronicle mystery

It's December 1963 and Archie Flowerdew is sitting in a cell at Wandsworth Prison waiting to be hanged. On Christmas Eve. It's not exactly how he planned to spend the festive season. But, then, Archie was found guilty of murdering fellow comic postcard artist Percy Despart.

It seems there's nothing that can stop Archie's neck being wrung like a turkey's. Except that his niece Tammy is convinced Archie is innocent. She's determined he will sit down on Christmas Day to tuck into the plum pudding. She persuades Brighton Evening Chronicle crime reporter Colin Crampton to take up the case.

But Colin has problems of his own. First, that good turn he did to help out Chronicle sub-editor Barry Hobhouse has come back to bite him on the bum. Then Beatrice "the Widow" Gribble, Colin's trouble-prone landlady, needs him to sort out her latest faux pas - she's accidentally sent a Christmas card to her local butcher suggesting she's available for hot sex. And that's before Brighton cops clap Colin and girlfriend Shirley Goldsmith in jail on the charge of harbouring a fugitive from justice.

And, anyway, the more Colin investigates Archie's case, the more it looks like he is guilty… Pick up the third full-length novel in the Crampton of the Chronicle mystery series to get you in the mood for a murderous Christmas!

Front Page Murder e-book is on special offer until the end of December for 99p/99c

For readers who want to start the series at the beginning, there's a deal which includes Headline Murder, Stop Press Murder and Front Page Murder in e-book formats for £4.97/$4.97. This offer also closes on 31 December.

Front Page Murder on Amazon.com:
https://www.amazon.com/Front-Page-Murder-Crampton-Chronicle-ebook/dp/B0768381WF/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1510134438&sr=1-2

Front Page Murder on Amazon.co.uk:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Front-Page-Murder-Crampton-Chronicle-ebook/dp/B0768381WF

Crampton of the Chronicle 3-book series on Amazon.com

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076BRZ9YR/ref=series_rw_dp_sw

Crampton of the Chronicle 3-book series on Amazon.co.uk
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Front-Page-Murder-Crampton-Chronicle-ebook/dp/B0768381WF

AN EXTRACT FROM FRONT PAGE MURDER

By Peter Bartram

My news editor Frank Figgis took a long drag on his Woodbine, blew a perfect smoke ring and said: "Have you ever attended a hanging before?"
  "I once watched my mother put up some curtains in the outside lavvy," I said.
  "The real thing is not so pretty."
  "Neither were the curtains. She'd knocked them up out of old blackout material."
  Figgis harrumphed. We were in the newsroom at the Brighton Evening Chronicle. It was a brisk December morning and only ten days until Christmas.
  Figgis had stopped by my desk to let me know that it would be my byline - Colin Crampton, crime correspondent - on the story telling our readers that Archie Flowerdew had been hung by the neck until dead for the murder of Percy Despart.
  "The whole business sounds a bit ghoulish to me," I said. "Especially as Archie is for the drop on Christmas Eve."
  "At least you won't need to be in the room when the hangman pulls the lever and the poor sap falls through the trapdoor." Figgis stubbed out his ciggie and tossed the dog-end into my waste bin. "In the old days, reporters got to watch the show from a front-row seat."
  "Instead, I'll be standing around outside the prison gates waiting for them to post the Notice of Execution," I said. "What's the point of that? We know in advance what the notice will say. It just feels like morbid curiosity."
  "It's traditional. Hangings and Notices of Execution go together like Christmas pudding and heartburn," Figgis croaked. His sixty-a-day habit had left him with a voice which sounded like ancient bedsprings wheezing under the weight of a bouncing sumo wrestler.
  "It's not traditional for Flowerdew," I said. "It's his first hanging. He doesn't get a dress rehearsal."
  "The hangman does," Figgis said. "The day before, the hangman tests everything with a sack of sand about the same weight as the victim. He leaves the sack hanging overnight to stretch the rope. You could mention that when you come to write your piece."
  "Any other gruesome titbits you'd like me to include?"
  "Certainly not. This is a family newspaper. Just look on the hanging piece as the last chapter in a long-running story."
  I nodded. It was certainly that. Since the day Despart's body had been discovered in his studio, the story had provided the paper with a string of headlines.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

Peter Bartram brings years of experience as a journalist to his Crampton of the Chronicle crime mystery series, which features Colin Crampton, crime correspondent of the 1960s fictional newspaper the Brighton Evening Chronicle. Peter began his career as a reporter on a real-life local newspaper not far from Brighton. Then he worked as a journalist and newspaper editor in London before becoming freelance. He has done most things in journalism from door-stepping for quotes to writing serious editorials. He’s pursued stories in locations as diverse as 700 feet down a coal mine and Buckingham Palace. Peter's "Swinging Sixties" murder mysteries combine clue-solving with comedy - the laughs are never far from the action. Other books in the series, which has already logged more than 100 5-star reviews on Amazon, include Headline Murder and Stop Press Murder.

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