The Contessa’s Brooch
P.J. MacLayne
(Harmony Duprie Mysteries, #4)
Publication date: May 12th 2019
Genres: Adult, Mystery
A firebug is stalking Oak Grove and internet researcher Harmony Duprie is on the case. It starts as a simple data analysis project for Police Chief Sorenson, but things get personal when the house she renovated is targeted.The arsonist is in it for the glory, posting videos of his exploits on social media. So, Harmony calls for backup from her favorite computer hackers, Eli, Lando, and Scotty. Complications arise when Fiesker, a fire investigator with a chip on his shoulder, is brought in to unmask the culprit and put an end to the fires. Then there’s the mysterious emails being sent to the town’s firefighters. And who is leaving a trail of Celtic brooches behind?Harmony finally gets a break when Jake, her ex, stumbles across information that might lead to the guilty party.Can Eli, Lando and Scotty help Harmony track down the pyromaniac before someone gets hurt? Or, worse yet, killed?
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo
—
EXCERPT:
I stripped off the flimsy plastic gloves that came with the dye and tossed them in the garbage can. Jake was still Jake, but a new and improved version with black hair. The beard might make a difference but would take a week or two to grow.
Still, I stepped back and walked around him to admire my work.
He studied himself in a hand mirror. “I hate it,” he said. “I don’t look like me. But I guess that’s the point.”
“It brings out the color of your eyes.” A little flattery might help. But that gave me another idea. Glasses. “Wait here.”
Like there was any place for him to go in my small apartment. There were several pairs of my old glasses stuck in a drawer. The prescription would screw with his vision, but if they changed his appearance, we could pick up a pair of low-level cheaters from the drugstore.
The first ones I found sported pink frames, bought on a whim, worn two or three times. While they would be a fun joke to play on Jake, I didn’t think he’d find them amusing. I dug deeper. The perfect pair with heavy black frames was in there somewhere.
When I found them, he was pretending to comb his hair while staring at himself in the mirror. The lines on his forehead made it clear he wasn’t happy. I thrust the glasses at him.
He slipped them on and grinned. “I forgot how blind you are, Angel.” He squinted in the mirror. “I can’t see a darn thing!”
My eyesight wasn’t that bad.
He slipped them down his nose so he could peer over the top. “Makes me look like a professor.”
Not the ones I had in college. He was better looking. But I wasn’t about to say that out loud and inflate Jake’s ego.
Q&A with P.J. MacLayne and a giveaway!
Tell us a little about yourself.
I'm a reformed poet who has taken to writing stories as my creative outlet. By day I’m a computer geek, by night I spend my time in front of a different computer crafting my tales. When I'm not writing, you might find me exploring the back roads of the mountains and plains near my home.
For those readers who aren’t familiar with your books, tell us a little about the Harmony Duprie Mysteries and Harmony herself.
When I started writing the first book, now called The Marquesa’s Necklace, I thought I was going to write a paranormal romance. Then I thought I was going to write a romance series set in the little town of Oak Grove. But Harmony quickly let me know I was wrong, and the book turned into a mystery which turned into a mystery series. It may have been the first time, but it wasn’t the last she let me know I wasn’t telling her story the way it needed to be told.
The Contessa’s Brooch is the 4th book in the Harmony Duprie Mysteries.
What was your inspiration for this story?
I wanted to write a mystery without any murders. Oak Grove, the small town where Harmony lives, has its share of crime, but not enough murders to have one in every book! Plus, I wanted to give Harmony a chance to show off her intellectual skills and not have them buried by physical action. I think it was harder to write this book because I had to make sure all the little piece fit in place and I couldn’t solve the mystery with a car chase.
What do you like the most about Harmony? What do you dislike about her?
I love Harmony’s loyalty to her friends and her community. Of course, that loyalty is often what brings trouble to her life. Which keeps me busy telling the stories!
What don’t I like about her?
The same thing that annoys many of her friends, her resistance to change. There are so many things I’d like to have her try, but I know they wouldn’t be true to her character, so I can’t. Her experiences are slowly breaking down some of the barriers she’s erected, but not fast enough to allow me to stop worrying that it’s going to get her into more trouble that I can get her out of.
What’s next for Harmony?
I see at least two more books coming. There’s an overall story arc I’d like to resolve. The problem is that the minor character involved (Jake, her ex) isn’t telling his secrets. Yet. I’ll get him to share one way or another.
What do you want readers to get from your book?
How about several hours of enjoyment and an escape from their everyday lives? I don't expect anyone to learn any major life lessons from the Harmony stories, but I hope when they close the book or shut off their ebook reader there's a little smile on their face.
Blurb:
A firebug is stalking Oak Grove and internet researcher Harmony Duprie is on the case. It starts as a simple data analysis project for Police Chief Sorenson, but things get personal when the house she renovated is targeted.
The arsonist is in it for the glory, posting videos of his exploits on social media. So, Harmony calls for backup from her favorite computer hackers, Eli, Lando, and Scotty. Complications arise when Fiesker, a fire investigator with a chip on his shoulder, is brought in to unmask the culprit and put an end to the fires. Then there’s the mysterious emails being sent to the town’s firefighters. And who is leaving a trail of Celtic brooches behind?
Harmony finally gets a break when Jake, her ex, stuumbles across information that might lead to the guilty party.
Can Eli, Lando and Scotty help Harmony track down the pyromaniac before someone gets hurt? Or, worse yet, killed?
Excerpt:
Freddie showed up in twenty minutes flat. Without Fiesker. He plunked himself into an empty chair and said, “So?”
“Do you recognize them?”
He snorted. “Not from the picture you sent. Who are they?”
“I don’t know. Neither did the person who took the picture.”
“Are you deliberately trying to annoy me, Harmony?”
“No, just trying to not get your hopes up.” I got up and closed the office door. “They may or may not have something to do with the fires. All we have to go on is snippets of an overheard conversation. No names, no nothing. The picture may not be useful without more information.”
“Where were you when you heard them talking?”
“Not me. Jake. And he was working so, he only got bits and pieces. He doesn’t recognize them either.”
Freddie rubbed his forehead. “How does this tie into the fires?”
“What do you remember about the fire on Green Street?”
“What fire on Green Street?”
“Exactly my point.”
Buy Links
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RMTQZY6
B&N https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-contessas-brooch-p-j-maclayne/1131525589?ean=2940161353110
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-countessa-s-brooch
Itunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1462857561
Draft2Digital UBL: https://books2read.com/u/bxzyKP
And a Giveaway!
Want to win signed first edition paperback copies of the first three books in the Harmony Duprie Mysteries? Or the second prize, a $10 amazon gift certificate? Enter the rafflecopter for your chance! (US and Canada only for the paperbooks. If a winner is from elsewhere {hi to my friends in Australia!} you’ll receive ebook editions as well as signed postcards. Or, we’ll talk and figure out something else!)
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/eafcc5491/?
Author Bio:Born and raised among the rolling hills of western Pennsylvania, P.J. MacLayne still finds inspiration for her books in that landscape. She is a computer geek by day and a writer by night who currently lives in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. When she's not in front of a computer screen, she might be found exploring the back roads of the nearby national forests and parks. In addition to the Harmony Duprie Mysteries, she is also the author of the Free Wolves adventures.
GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway
0 comments:
Post a Comment