Guest Post
What a fuss Marie Kondo caused when she suggested that ideally we should have no more than 30 books!
Stylist called the uproar the “biggest backlash of 2019.” Of course, that was pre-COVID and Ukraine. Life was simpler then.
Marie
has gone on to clarify that 30 was a “ballpark” number. Her bigger
point was that we should ask ourselves whether the books spark joy in
our lives or not. I understand what she means. I have a lot of books
that I don’t enjoy, but I keep them because I need them for research. I
have a few that I keep because they are really, really old, and I like
looking at them. They don’t spark joy so much as they make me marvel at
how publishing has changed. And then there are my books. The ones I’ve
written.
Do
they spark joy? I sure hope so. Early on I decided that each and every
one of my covers should make the reader say, “Awwwwww.” I’m particularly
thrilled with the little yellow kitten on the front of INK, RED, DEAD.
His name is Martin. He reminds me of Puff, as in Dick and Jane and Sally
and Spot and Puff, the stars of the first book I ever read.
After all, reading is a joyful activity.
If you like books that spark joy, I hope you’ll give INK, RED, DEAD a try. You
can enjoy it as a stand-alone, although it is part of a growing series
of books. Readers call this: a fun cozy mystery, a good enjoyable read, a
delightful story, plenty of suspects, (with a) great ending. Why not
take a break from grim reality and peep into Kiki’s world?
**
About Ink, Red, Dead
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting - Missouri
Spot On Publishing (September 30, 2013)
Paperback : 221 pages
ISBN-10 : 1543209998
ISBN-13 : 978-1543209990
Digital ASIN : B006KZ5M84
On a sweltering day, ace scrapbooker Kiki Lowenstein has to cancel a crafting party when she discovers Marla Lever, their hostess, nearly dead of the heat. Not only is Marla seriously "under the weather," she's also a hoarder, and her home is a house of horrors, complete with a corpse in the cooler. Meanwhile, Detective Chad Detweiler works a cold case that involves women disappearing all over St. Louis. The attraction between Kiki and Detweiler heats to a red-hot fever pitch, but will it boil over and leave both of them feeling burned?
REVIEW
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
This is my first Kiki book but I must say that I am now hooked so I will be reading more. Kiki works for a scrap booking store which is a first for me. This is very intriguing. The owner's daughter has been made Manager even though she is not even close to being qualified. She decides that events elsewhere is what they have to do so they go to Marla's house where they are in for a huge surprise. Not only is Marla a stuff and cat hoarder she herself is pretty much unconscious in her bed requiring emergency care that ends with her in a coma. Of course the event had to be cancelled which caused a whole uproar with the new boss. As the mystery plays out regarding who could have hurt Marla we also get lots of personal growth amongst the characters with their interactions. Makes for quite the fun read as it all plays out making it a great choice for cozy fans. I look forward to more. I really liked it so I give it 4/5 stars.
About Joanna Campbell Slan
“Our best friend, our next-door neighbor, and ourselves with just a touch of the outrageous.” That’s how RT Book Review describes Joanna’s protagonist, Kiki Lowenstein. The truth is that’s a pretty good description of
Joanna Campbell Slan as well.
Joanna is a New York Times Bestselling, USA Today Bestselling, and Amazon Bestselling author as well as a woman prone to frequent bursts of crafting frenzy, leaving her with burns from her hot glue gun and paint on her clothes. And the mess? Let’s not even go there.
Otherwise, Joanna’s a productive author with more than 80 written projects to her credit. Her non-fiction work includes how to books, a college textbook for public speakers, and books of personal essays (think Chicken Soup for the Soul).
Currently, she writes five fiction series: The Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series (Agatha Award Finalist, contemporary, St. Louis setting, crafting), the Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series (contemporary, Florida setting, DIY, and recycling), the Jane Eyre Chronicles (Daphne du Maurier Award Winner, 1830s England, based on Charlotte Brontë’s classic), the Tai Chi Mystery Series (contemporary, senior citizen female amateur sleuth and Washington, DC setting), and the Friday Night Mystery Club Series (traditional mystery, 1980s setting, Midwest).
A former TV talk show host, college teacher, and public relations specialist, Joanna was one of the early Chicken Soup for the Soul contributors. She won a Silver Anvil for her work on the original FarmAid concert to benefit farmers.
In her ongoing quest never to see snow again, Joanna lives with her husband and their Havanese puppy, Jax, on an island off the coast of Florida. You can email her at
jcslan@joannaslan.com or visit her website at
https://linktr.ee/jcslan
Author Links
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
No comments:
Post a Comment