Today marks 200 years since one of the truly great literary romances was published. I re-read PRIDE AND PREJUDICE every year, just to remind myself what inspired writing sounds like. N.B.–All your frustrated novelists–several publishers turned Jane Austen down when she submitted this masterpiece. There’s hope for us all!
This is all about, DIE LAUGHING, a cape cod mystery.
I’ve been a mystery buff since birth. I cut my teeth on Christie, sashayed through Sayres and worshipped at the well-shod boots of The Great Detective.
Small wonder that I’m a mystery writer! My first published novel (INTRUSION) combined romantic suspense with a medical mystery.
I switched to a third person cozy for my latest, DIE LAUGHING, and back again to first person for my next two. Odd as it may seem, my characters dictate which point of view best fits them.
As a reader, I adore unearthing clues, evaluating motives and finding the murderer. Any author who deprives me of that pleasure is guilty of foul play! Each of my novels allows astute readers to unmask the culprit. In the process, I want them to enjoy the ride while keeping their tongues firmly in cheek. Droll observations and wry humor are my weaknesses and strength.
In the Christie tradition, I set DIE LAUGHING in a small Cape Cod town. It’s not St. Mary Mead but passion, greed and jealousy still abound. Now picture this:
A Cape Cod village, a grisly murder, and a priceless comic book collection. Mix these ingredients, stir in a side of romance, and serve a cozy mystery that thriller author C.E. Lawrence calls, “a rollicking good story.”
Die Laughing presents a cast of intriguing characters with secrets to hide and motives for murder.
Author Kevin Symmons had this to say about Die Laughing, “Agatha Christie meets Susan Isaacs … on steroids!”
I hope you enjoy it. A visit to Cape Cod is always interesting.
Author web site & blog: http://arlenekay.com
Author blog site: http://www.mysteryminx.com
Author twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AKMysteries
View video Die Laughing – YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kh-YgdzxBW0
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Thanks Arlene for being our second guest post writer. Your story is very interesting. I want to visit Cape Cod, but they only way that will happen in the near future will be by reading one of your books!
This guest post is the second in a regular series in 2013 where I will be showcasing emerging writers on this blog.
You can help by clicking through to their sites, buying their books, sharing this site on Twitter or Facebook and coming back, or by Following this site (click the button above right), to see who is next in a few days.
And if you are a writer and want to be featured send me an email lob@yourasms.com and I will send you the submission guidelines.
I’m not a complainer–not really. But MUST advertisers fill the airways with pitches for erectile dysfunction (trendily repackaged as ED), female sanitary products, catheters, canes and the like? And must these canny purveyors of merchandise always do so at DINNER time? I’ve learned to accept ads for funerals (final expenses, if you please), even though they typically suggest that the inconsiderate sod (usually a husband) saddled his poor family with disposing of him when the GOVERNMENT should pay. I mourn the demise of propriety and mystique–too much candor may be damaging to my health.
Did you ever meet someone and wonder if he/she was a potential killer? This morning found me in a Salon, minding my own business, trying to improve myself, and contemplating the homicidal impulses of another patron. She was a mystery fan, this odd stranger, so naturally I flogged my novels to her, despite the fact that the state of her hair (& her conversation) seemed a bit off. The clues added up the more we spoke: no car, no job, compulsive smoker.When she described a bad hair day at a Newbury St. Salon, and said she wanted to attack the stylist & kill her, I glanced at her oversize purse with some alarm. Most of us have experienced an occasional blip in the path to beauty, but homicidal thoughts do seem like an over-reaction. When she finally left, everyone in the place sighed and rolled their eyes. Probably not dangerous but certainly medicated or should be. Not to worry. For a writer EVERYTHING is material. This person’s aberrant behavior will show up in my next novel.
Fans of the execrable “Rizzoli & Isles” television show go no farther. Tess Gerritsen’s deftly crafted plots and characters bear no resemblance to the cartoonish portrayals and cringe-worthy dialogue on the small screen. She masters the intelligent police procedural and keeps readers turning every page with her. Gerritsen masters the big 3 of mysteries: engaging characters, lively pace and a cracking plot that only the most astute crime buff will solve. (I did).
SILENT GIRL seamlessly blends the raucous streets of Boston with the often unknowable mystique of China town. Maura Isles is a secondary character here, yielding center stage to a resurgent Jane Rizzoli and an intriguing protagonist and Sifu named Iris Fang. In tackling the coldest of cases, Jane probes a heinous mass murder that may be related to the disappearance of young girls. The author does a fine job with strong, flawed female leads whose qualities mesmerize us. The males in the mix are also captivating including her loyal partner Frost, the amorous Korshak, and an intriguing new detective named Johnny Tam.
I enjoyed this novel and recommend it to anyone (regardless of genre preference) who values a quality read.
This morning I spent 90 minutes chatting with a delightful ‘woman of a certain age’ at our dog training class. This sprightly lady discussed philology, Alexander Hamilton and the impact of Abigail Adams on the American Revolution. When we lamented the defeat of the recent ballot initiative on assisted suicide, she shrugged and said. “it’s easy enough to get what you need when the time comes.”
Imagine my surprise when she told me she was ninety years old, and not as sharp as she used to be!
Does anyone remember the angst of College mixers? Girls stepped timidly off the bus and walked the gauntlet of gaping, drooling adolescent males with snarky attitudes and lascivious thoughts. The nuns warned us that these dances were ‘occasions of mortal sin’ to which the bolder girls responded: “I hope so, Sister.” We were cautioned to avoid international intrigue–those Roman hands and Russian fingers that led straight to HELL. Most of us tried to pass the evening with minimal humiliation and a brave face. Success was equated to the number of partners one danced with even if they were closer to neanderthals than prince charming. The lucky ones met a decent guy with working brain cells who came calling the next week.
Everyone pitied the poor wallflowers who huddled on the sidelines wearing their cloak of invisibility.
These memories cascaded down on me last week when I faced yet another author book-signing. Despite the lively poster and carefully arrayed books, my worst fears materialized: It was college mixer time again, only this time, I was one of the wallflowers, gazing pitifully at each customer who brushed past me, hoping that my dazzling wit would captivate them and sell books; glancing furtively at my watch.
Now I empathize with those girls too shy to successfully navigate the college mixer. They’ve taken their revenge on me by sweeping down the aisles without even offering me a smile. Now I know what they suffered: I am a literary wallflower!
Book launch December 1st, Cape Cod Cozy with a side of romance, and a dash of comics.
”Mistress”–semantics or sexism?
I’ve heard all the elaborate explanations and I’m unconvinced. For once, even the Bard’s inspired words (‘a rose by any other name’), leave me cold. The latest tempest in a particularly steamy teapot, has the word “Mistress” bandied about with such abandon that even Madame Pompadour would blush!
Paula Broadwell is most certainly not a ‘kept’ woman as the word mistress implies. Despite claims that it is merely a semantical distinction, I sense sexism and an unhealthy dose of contempt in the use of this term to designate a BAD woman, without a corresponding term for her male counterpart.(dupe or idiot spring to mind). She apparently was the General’s lover, paramour or sex partner. The same is allegedly true for him. As media lackeys (both male and female) trumpet the same tired jargon, the message seeps into the American consciousness. MISTRESS–hussy,strumpet, vixen, the kind of woman society should scorn and revile. Coupled with the strong presumption that the man in question was either duped (fog of war–please?), or beguiled by her charms, the stage is set for a modern replay of the Garden of Eden. This time around, the temptress holds a biography not an apple.
Can an idol have feet of flesh? Even fine writers occasionally dip a toe into the sea of mediocrity, right? Not so when the name is Nelson DeMille, known for deft dialogue, superior plotting, and characters that just won’t quit!
DeMille’s latest “The Panther” is another master work that thrusts the reader into the familiar world of John Corey, my very favorite series character. True, Corey is snarky, but that quirk is offset by his bravery and devotion to his country and long-suffering FBI wife. Any writer who longs to immortalize his/her creations, must take a lesson from any of DeMille’s many novels. His characters literally leap off the page, confounding us with emotions (often politically incorrect), that we may recognize in ourselves. No one does dialogue better–No One! So grab “the Panther” and while you’re at it, refresh your memory with John Corey’s other exploits (The Lion; The Lion’s Game). You’ll cheer, worry, and obsess about the plot lines and the fate of those involved. Writers will learn something; readers will be glad they found him.