I know this holiday means different things to different people, but for the Stevens family, it is a special time. Why?
Well, one of my daughters was born on Memorial Day. While her birthday doesn't fall on the Monday holiday this year, it is close enough to use as a landmark.
The other reason the holiday is special for us? It's the weekend most of the campgrounds in our state open. And this year, we got the beach. That's right. We're camping at the beach this weekend. In fact, as you read this, I'm probably already setting up the camper, getting ready to enjoy four days of sand and sun. Well, at least sand. The forecast calls for rain half the weekend.
So, what do we do on a rainy camping trip? We have a ton of camper-sized board games and various playing card games. We all bring a stack of books. And, I plan on using the weekend to rewrite the red herring in my murder mystery based on some beta feedback.
Speaking of feedback, I want to thank those of you who responded to my last newsletter with suggestions about my character's nickname. Based on your feedback, Melinda found the perfect term of endearment for Pat. Unfortunately, I'm not going to share it until season six.
That's my final goal for this weekend. I'm hoping to finish rewriting season six while we're away.
How about you? Do you celebrate Memorial Day? What are some of your favorite traditions.
Hartfield Chronicles
Season 4 of Hartfield Chronicles has arrived!
When Melinda is invited to join a new dance class, she sees this as her big break, a chance to advance her skills. Before she can accept, however, another kind of break stops her in her tracks.
Pat wants to be the supportive boyfriend, but his efforts seem to be making Melinda uncomfortable. He can’t go to his own friends for advice, because they can’t understand.
After Melinda calls for another type of break, she and Pat must examine their relationship to determine whether they are meant for each other.
Hartfield Chronicles follows the lives of Melinda, Pat, and their friends as they navigate their way through boarding school life. Each episode features two stories, one from Melinda's point of view and one from Pat's, along with an excerpt from Melinda's writing journal. New episodes are published every Friday.
Here's what you missed:
Episode 79: Melinda and Pat go Christmas shopping with their friends
Episode 80: After causing problems at one of Melinda's basketball games, Pat decides to skip the second
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Sophie Mae discovers the impossible has become reality.
A chatty elephant. A boy who flies. Sophie Mae questions the magician’s true intentions.
You’ll love this Middle-Grade Historical Fantasy for its fast pace and fun characters.
Prequel - The Creditor
A Possessive Savior
Paying off her father's debt was the plan, but things rarely go according to plan.
Paying off her father's debt was the plan, but things rarely go according to plan.
She was supposed to pursue her dreams of being a singer, but her father's huge debts are weighing her down. Seeing him constantly harassed in his rundown restaurant by men she figures have been sent by their creditor embarrasses her. There is no college dream for her, and she is almost twenty.
She goes in search of a job and meets the creditor unknowingly instead. Love clears all debt, and in her case, this may be true, especially if the creditor falls for her.
Innocence Lost
Her son went to summer camp. He may never come home.
Mackenzie Jones returns to her son's summer camp to deliver something he left behind. But the mountain retreat that should overflow with kids and counselors is a ghost town. Cabins locked. Lights off. Not a soul to be found.
Jones reports her son's abduction to police and is met with disbelief. How could an entire summer camp disappear?
This short story bridges the gap between The Mommy Mysteries and The Killers Club, detailing the kidnapping scheme that took Mackenzie Jones from homemaker to special agent.
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Escaping the Duke
The Secret Crusaders Book 1
Ignore powerful dukes who sabotage your plans.
Welcome to book 1 in the debut series The Secret Crusaders from the talented Melanie Rose Clarke!
Priscilla Livingston has dedicated her life to social causes, fighting to right the cruel injustices the world ignores. Under the guise of a lord, she sends messages to Edmund Hawkins, the powerful Duke of Bradenton. He doesn’t know his informant is a lady, even as he investigates to uncover her identity. When her father demands she find a husband, she cannot choose Edmund, who would demand total surrender.
But when he catches her spying, she may not have a choice.
Edmund is intrigued by the beautiful lady caught snooping through a dangerous lord’s home. Lady Priscilla may act the perfect duke’s daughter, but fiery mystery burns beneath the flawless façade. He sees the passion she cannot hide, the spirited woman who would make the perfect duchess. He will discover her every secret.
Then he will make her his.
Read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
Something Shady at Sunshine Haven
The Accidental Detective Book 1
She’s pursued the most dangerous news stories around the world. But can she survive going home?
Injured in a bombing, war correspondent Kate Tessler returns to her hometown in Arizona to recover. For the first time in her life, she's starting to feel her age of nearly fifty despite living like a teenager again: staying in her childhood bedroom with only a cat for company, trying to understand why her sister resents her so much, and running into people who still refer to her as Kitty. The hardest part? Seeing her once-sharp and witty mother stuck in an Alzheimer's unit.
When an old friend asks her to investigate suspicious deaths at the nursing home, Kate limps into action. Is a self-appointed "Angel of Mercy" killing patients to end their suffering? Are family members hastening their inheritance? Is an employee extorting money and removing the witnesses? Kate uses her journalism skills to track clues, but the puzzle pieces simply won’t fit.
If Kate can't uncover the truth quickly, her mother could be next on the killer's list.
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A couple of months ago, I sat down to write the next book in the Hartfield Chronicles series. I was excited to write about the main characters separating for their summer vacations. I may even end up writing more POVs than just Melinda and Pat.
However, something life-altering is going to happen to one of the characters. That person will lose a loved one. But it didn't quite make sense for the two to meet at the beginning of the summer. In order for this death to have such an impact, they needed to have a history. They needed to already know each other before the story begins.
They needed to meet during spring break.
Three books ago, I wrote a novella sharing Pat and Melinda's spring break adventure. It was the perfect opportunity to go back and introduce the character who will die in my new story.
So, on the last day of March, I decided to do Camp NaNoWriMo for the month of April. As usual, I promised myself I had to finish one project before starting NaNo, so I had a late start. That's more or less how I do NaNo lately.
My goal was to add about 40,000 words. But, not filler. I wanted this new character to make at least a subtle impact. To become a character everyone loves. (Yes, I still plan on killing said character in the new book.)
But beyond introducing a new character, I wanted the spring break book to tell a story. I wanted to learn more about my characters. In fact, one of the new subplots is Melinda learning enough about Pat to give him a nickname.
And that's where I am getting stuck. Pat has a beautiful nickname for Melinda. He always has. (In the current season of Hartfield Chronicles, it will change. But the new one is even better.) But Melinda doesn't really have one for Pat.
So, that is my question this week. What term of endearment would you recommend a teenage girl use with her boyfriend?
Hartfield Chronicles
Season 4 of Hartfield Chronicles has arrived!
When Melinda is invited to join a new dance class, she sees this as her big break, a chance to advance her skills. Before she can accept, however, another kind of break stops her in her tracks.
Pat wants to be the supportive boyfriend, but his efforts seem to be making Melinda uncomfortable. He can’t go to his own friends for advice, because they can’t understand.
After Melinda calls for another type of break, she and Pat must examine their relationship to determine whether they are meant for each other.
Hartfield Chronicles follows the lives of Melinda, Pat, and their friends as they navigate their way through boarding school life. Each episode features two stories, one from Melinda's point of view and one from Pat's, along with an excerpt from Melinda's writing journal. New episodes are published every Friday.
The vampires think they've won the war. The truth is, it hasn't even started.
There’s a vampire war on, and it’s time to choose sides.
Cassie doesn’t know why she fainted on stage, or why she woke up with a two-hour hole in her memory. She doesn’t understand the twin puncture marks on her neck, and can’t comprehend why she’s suddenly terrified of being in the spotlight. All she knows is that her ordinary life has completely changed…for the worse.
Then she meets Isaiah, a mysterious man with a dark past. He has answers to her questions, but he’s reluctant to give them and put her in more danger. Only when Cassie proves herself does he trust her with what he knows: there’s a vampire war in Detroit, and those who don’t take sides will be caught in the crossfire.
Now, it’s up to Cassie and Isaiah to put a stop to things before the warring vampires claim more victims. Falling in love isn’t part of the plan, of course, but some things can’t be helped.
Hash Browns and Homicide
A fun cozy mystery adventure with savory recipes
Going undercover just got complicated... What could go wrong on her first secret assignment? A lot, as it turns out.
Piper Sandstone, a newly promoted detective on the Chicago police force, is dressed to kill. And bad things are about to go down.
When three dirty cops are suspected of a crime, Piper finds herself going undercover to get intel to put them behind bars.
How will she lure the officers in and get them to talk? And what is the connection between the recent murder of a drug dealer and these suspects?
To get the answers she needs, Piper must trade in her jiu-jitsu gi and Doc Martens for a pair of high heels and a killer dress. But will her disguise help her or usher in the fate that awaits if she blows this assignment?
Now, Piper’s skills will be stretched to the limit as she and a forensic specialist race to connect all the dots and expose the cops before this cat and mouse chase turns deadly.
Would you like a free book in exchange for an honest review?
Defining Life
A sweet young adult romance novella
Two teenage cancer survivors are on a quest to define life, because if they don't, they might as well fail their class project entirely.
At sixteen, Heather is a cancer survivor. At ten years old, diagnosed with a fatal disease, she became inseparable with Aaron, a boy with cancer who seemed to have abandoned her after remission. Now Heather is a junior in high school, and Aaron is the school’s golden boy. It's as if the two have never met, and neither Heather or Aaron have spared a glance in each other’s direction.
Until the day their English teacher assigns the class's final project of the year. Follow Heather and Aaron on their quest to define life in this sweet young adult romance.
Please be aware that this is a novella of about 30,000 words.
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They Came from the Trees
A YA Sci Fi Alien Invasion
Lovestruck teens fight to stay alive during an apocalyptic alien invasion.
The invaders need the mentally strong and the physically able—the rest of the human population are simply landfill. Who are these creatures and what are their intentions? Sheldon, a fifteen-year-old high school dropout, has no interest in finding out—at least not yet. Instead, he fights for his life as these ruthless aliens take over the little town of Hidden Trail. Sheldon takes refuge in an abandoned school with a beautiful girl named Cara and a couple of kids who happen to have profound ideas about the motives of the alien invasion. The group is soon picked up by some edgy teenagers who are preparing to escape to the water. However, when Cara goes missing, Sheldon deviates from the plans and discovers more about the rapidly evolving aliens and their horrifying yet curious vision. The lovestruck teen soon questions the morality of the human spirit, and wonders what it might be like to submit to the utopian idealisms of this new alien race.
The Nanny
Family Secrets Book 1
Kevin
I need someone to help me with Tyler, a six-year-old boy, who was brought to my doorstep. I was told that I was his father and that he needed to be taken care of. I don’t know the first thing about being a father. I don’t know anything at all. When my brother, Jonathan, suggests Shelly, our sister, Jenny’s best friend, as a caregiver for Tyler, I begin to think that maybe she could also be my companion. However, will she run if she discovers even a little of the truth about my family? That’s a chance I’m going to have to take.
There’s no way that I can keep quiet – I must warn her about my father.
Shelly
Jenny and I are best friends, however I’ve never met her parents, and I’ve only met one of her brothers, Jonathan. After all these years, I’m finally going meet Kevin Adams, and possibly work for him. But, why am I only setting foot inside their family’s home for the first time, now. The story behind Tyler is a mystery, too. Maybe if I can at least get him to like me, he might open up. I’ve been told he’s a quiet child, but that’s alright – I’ve dealt with quiet kids before. I’m eager to have the dinner interview that Kevin has set up, and while Jenny is more than happy about this opportunity, there’s a mystery surrounding her parents? Why are they in the house and what’s their little secret?
Everyone has skeletons in their closets – even little ones.
Madam Mom
Attorney Sam resents having a spoiled, rich-bitch heiress dropped onto his plate. Tisha believes the sexy, blonde male at the airport is an intrusive butt-in-ski, but decides to share a wild, one-time fling with the appealing stranger.
Sam and Tisha unravel a sordid deception and form a special bond, but Tisha’s been betrayed by men before. A killer targets her.
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