#Spotlight - THE LAST DINNER PARTY by Carly M. Duncan

 THE LAST DINNER PARTY 

by Carly M. Duncan

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Inside the Book:

When Jeanie D’Alisa is found murdered in her bedroom after hosting a dinner party in her home, detectives Anna Cole and Kristy Hicks are called to investigate the crime. Known within her community for her generous, yet unpredictable nature, Jeanie’s secrets unfold as family, friends and neighbors become suspects. Anna and Kristy discover stamped passport pages revealing travels unknown and a curious relationship between Jeanie and the charming salesman who frequents the apartment building. Meryl, Jeanie’s devoted and needy friend, further complicates the investigation when she phones Jeanie’s sister who is studying abroad and lies to her about the cause of death. Through a muddied pool of misdirection and betrayal, will Anna and Kristy be able to assemble the clues in order to bring Jeanie’s killer to justice? The path to solving the mystery becomes tangled with faces of loved ones who are revealed to be foes in this story about the lengths people will go to in order to save themselves.

Publisher: Createspace
Pages: 390
Genre: Mystery

• The Last Dinner Party is available at Amazon.
• Pick up your copy at Barnes & Noble.
• Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

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Meet the Author

Carly M. Duncan is a television producer and writer. Working in television, she has prolifically created visual narratives for more than a decade for networks including TLC, Discovery Health, MTV, NatGeo, Travel Channel, FYI and more.

Her writing career officially began when one of her short stories, First Place, was published when she was a high school student in California. Her first two novels, Marcie and Behind You, are mysteries that touch on family bonds and the events that can strengthen or destroy them.

Her third novel, The Last Dinner Party, introduces a pair of female detectives who will return in future stories. In addition, she is a mentor and editor to other writers as well as an avid reader. Her favorite authors include Agatha Christie and Stephen King.

Carly lives in New York with her husband and two daughters.

• Visit Carly M. Duncan website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
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Tour Schedule:

Monday, January 4 – First Chapter Reveal & Tour Kick Off at Pump Up Your Book

Tuesday, January 5 – Guest Blogging at The Story Behind the Book

Wednesday, January 6 – Book Featured at Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’

Thursday, January 7 – Interview at C.A. Milson’s blog

Friday, January 8 – Interview at The Book Connection

Friday, January 8 – Book Review at Books, Reviews ETC.

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Monday, January 11 – Book Featured at Books Can Be Deadly

Monday, January 11 – Book Feature at Jody’s Book Reviews

Tuesday, January 12 – Book Featured at Bound 2 Escape

Wednesday, January 13 – Book Featured at Fiction Zeal

Thursday, January 14 – Book Featured at Readsalot

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Monday, January 18 – Book Review at Vic’s Media Room

Tuesday, January 19 – Book Featured at Carol’s Notebook

Tuesday, January 20 – Book Review at Books Can Be Deadly

Wednesday, January 20 – Book Featured at CBY Book Club

Wednesday, January 20 – Book Review at Hezzie D’s Books and Cooks

Thursday, January 21 – Guest Blogging at Lori’s Reading Corner

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Monday, January 25 – Book Featured at Reviews by Crystal

Wednesday, January 27 – Book Review at fuonlyknew

Thursday, January 28 – Book Review at 3 Partners in Shopping

Friday, January 29 – Book Featured at Archaeolibrarian – I Dig Good Books!

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Monday, February 1 – Interview at Examiner

Tuesday, February 2 – Book Review at Deal Sharing Aunt

Wednesday, February 3 – Book Review at Cheryl’s Book Nook

Thursday, February 4 – Book Review at Ashley’s Bookshelf

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Monday, February 8 – First Chapter Reveal at Read My First Chapter

Tuesday, February 9 – Book Feature at Confessions of an Eccentric Bookaholic

Thursday, February 11 – Book Featured at Crystal’s Chaotic Confessions

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Monday, February 15 – Book Feature at My Bookish Pleasures

Tuesday, February 16 – Book Review at Stormy Nights Reviewing

Wednesday, February 17 – Book Review at Confessions of the Perfect Mom

Thursday, February 18 – Book Featured at The Writer’s Life

Friday, February 19 – Book Review at Books Can Be Deadly

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Monday, February 22 – Book Review at Absurd Book Nerd

Tuesday, February 23 – Book Feature at Around the World in Books

Wednesday, February 24 – Guest Blogging at Around the World in Books

Thursday, February 25 – Book Review at Books, Food and Me

Friday, February 26 – Book Review at Ali – The Dragon Slayer

#GiveAway - Blind Chess by Cristelle Comby

Blind Chess

by Cristelle Comby

Cristelle Comby will be awarding all four books of the series, signed by the author (International Giveaway) to a randomly drawn winner during the tour. Please use the RaffleCopter below to enter. Remember you may increase your chances of winning by visiting the other tour stops. You may find those locations here. 

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Interview:

Crystal: Today I have the pleasure of hosting Cristelle Comby. Welcome Cristelle! I'm so happy to have you here today. Would you share a little bit about yourself with us today?

 Cristelle: Well, what can I say, I’m a thirty something Swiss writer. I’m an overall nice girl, with an uncomplicated life and an (healthy) addiction to chocolate (it’s in the genes). I’m the writer of the Neve & Egan cases, a series of novels centred on a duo of Private Investigators in London. 

Crystal:  Do you have a favorite scene you would like to share with us?

Cristelle: I love the ending of Blind Chess, when Neve and Egan are finally reunited. I spend quite some time editing it, until I got the tone right. 

Crystal:  Where did you come up with the idea for Blind Chess?

Cristelle: It is the direct continuation of Danse Macabre, book three of the Neve & Egan cases. It picks up where the other left off, with Neve badly wounded and in the hospital. Egan’s on his own and he has to pick up the mantle and investigate alone.

Crystal: What are you currently working on?

Cristelle: I’m taking a break from this series and working on something new. I’m trying out a new genre, Urban Fantasy and mixing in a little bit of Greek Mythology. It’s shaping up nicely.

Crystal:  Do you have any special routine that you follow when you are writing? 

 Cristelle: Yes, I’m very meticulous about outlining. I spend a long time on it; it helps me have a clear vision of where the story’s going. I only start writing when the outline’s finished – it’s a personal rule of mine.

Crystal:  Did you have to do a lot of research for this book or any other? If so do you have a fascinating fact that you have learned you would like to share with us?

Cristelle: I’ve been to London a couple of times, locations scouting. This year I tried walking about the Tube with my eyes closed (to enact a scene from the book). It was a little scary and totally surreal. I felt like a fish, swimming in a bank of fishes. I just followed to current and let it carry me in the right direction.

Crystal: Who are some of your favorite authors that you like to read?

Cristelle: Jim Butcher, his Dresden Files series is a personal favourite. I also love Patrick Rothfuss’ Kingkiller Chronicles and Brandon Sanderson’s Reckoners series. My greatest discovery of 2015 was A. G. Riddle’s Departure. 

Crystal:  Is there a genre you haven't written that you would like to try?

Cristelle: Urban Fantasy which is a favourite of mine and I’m trying it out right now. I love this genre. It’s the ‘it’s so close to real life, it could happen’ genre. Real-life with a sprinkle of supernatural.

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BLURB:

It is supposed to be Neve and Egan. Two partners, a team. What happens when a member of this team of Private Investigators is shot, prognosis unknown?

As Alexandra Neve lays comatose and defenceless, Ashford Egan must take on their enemy alone, and find the cagiest criminal Scotland Yard has seen in decades. Determined to succeed, Egan will stop at nothing. He’ll hit on married women, plant bugs, hire hitmen. And he’ll do it all blind, which makes things ten times as difficult.

Double-crossed by friends, convinced there is corruption in those sworn to uphold the law, Egan is forced to form unlikely alliances as he moves forward in a game that requires skills, nerves of steel, and a willingness to play against all odds.

GENRE: Mystery & Detectives

Amazon Buy Link

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EXCERPT:

The journey to the Lantesks’ home gives me time to weigh my options. There are two ways to play this: continue to pretend to be Mr. Bono, the nice accountant, and flirt some information out of Mrs Lantesk; or use the weapon in my pocket and approach the situation in a considerably less charming manner. 

I entertain the possibilities of option one while I walk up the main street, but decide on option two as I turn into the Lantesks’ drive. I don’t have time to be gentle anymore; I can’t afford it. 

I tighten my grip on the weapon, straighten my back and force a resolve I don’t feel onto my face.

Car doors are being slammed in the distance as the first commuters start their daily routines. The hour is still early though, and the chances I’ve been seen are slim. The wind keeps up its assault as I take the last steps towards the house, gun in hand, safety catch on.

I smile as I think of DI Langford. He’d have a fit if he could see me. So far, I am only a thief on the run, but I am about to add a few more charges to my rap sheet. ‘Eyes on the prize,’ I remind myself as I reach for the doorbell.

My finger is inches away from it when I hear the gravel screech behind me. Someone is walking up to me. No, I mentally correct myself instants later—several individuals. I count at least two pairs of feet. 

This isn’t good. I turn around, extend my weapon, finger on the trigger, as I do my best to guess where to aim.

The weapon is kicked out of my hand in a matter of seconds. I can’t even understand how. All I know is that my fingers hurt, my wrist feels like it is broken, and the weapon has tumbled to the gravel at least a foot away on my right.

An instant later, someone’s fist hits me in the shoulder. It sends me tumbling backwards and I hit the Lantesks’ house wall violently. My cane flies out of my hand and I feel some of the wall plaster come loose upon impact. It crumbles to dust under my fingers as I try to get back up on my feet.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Cristelle Comby was born and raised in the French-speaking area of Switzerland, in Greater Geneva, where she still resides.

Thanks to her insatiable thirst for American and British action films and television dramas, her English is fluent. 

She attributes to her origins her ever-peaceful nature and her undying love for chocolate. She has a passion for art, which also includes an interest in drawing and acting.

Blind Chess is her fourth new-adult novel in the Neve & Egan series.

Links :

Website: http://cristelle-comby.com 
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Cristelle 
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&field-author=Cristelle%20Comby&search-alias=digital-text&sort=relevancerank   
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/CristelleComby 

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

#GiveAway - Guaranteed to Bleed by Julie Mulhern

Guaranteed to Bleed

by Julie Mulhern

Julie Mulhern will be awarding $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner during the tour. Please use the RaffleCopter below to enter. Remember you may increase your chances of winning by visiting the other tour stops. Those locations may be found here. 

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Interview: 

Crystal: Today I have the pleasure of hosting Julie Mulhern. Welcome Julie! I'm so happy to have you here today. Would you share a little bit about yourself with us today? 

Julie: Like my heroine, Ellison Russell, I am from Kansas City, Missouri. Like my heroine, I am the personal maid of an evil genius masquerading as a Weimaraner. Unlike my heroine, I am happily married.

Crystal: Do you have a favorite scene you would like to share with us?

Kizzi roused herself enough to try to pat her daughter’s knee. She missed. For one ephemeral instant she leaned forward in space and hung there—a lob shot in tennis, a perfect chip in golf. In the next heartbeat, she fell, wedging herself between the brass coffee table and the couch with her glass still firmly gripped in her hand. The contents sloshed, but not a single drop spilled. 
I gasped. CeCe did too. We both rose from our chairs. 
Not Alice. She crouched. “Oh, Mother. How could you?” 
I wondered the same thing and more. How could Kizzi let Alice intrude on CeCe’s grief? How could Kizzi come here and get sauced? How could she not see that her daughter was disturbed?  
With an ease that spoke of heart-breaking regularity, Alice shoved her forearms beneath Kizzi’s armpits then stood, lifting her mother with her. When they were both standing, Alice pushed her mother back onto the couch then offered CeCe and me an apologetic smile. “Mother has a problem with balance.” 
Mother had a problem with gin.


Crystal: Where did you come up with the idea for Guaranteed to Bleed?

Julie: Guaranteed is the second book in the Country Club Murders series. Don’t you love the title? A friend who remembered how madras fabric used to be “guaranteed to bleed” suggested it.

Crystal:  What are you currently working on?

Julie: I am currently working on book four of the Country Club Murders. It is scheduled to release in October. Book three, Clouds in my Coffee, releases on May 10th

Crystal:  Do you have any special routine that you follow when you are writing?

Julie:  I roll out of bed early—so, so early—every morning, let the evil genius out in the backyard, push the button on the coffee maker, and sit down at the kitchen table to write.

Crystal:  Did you have to do a lot of research for this book or any other? If so do you have a fascinating fact that you have learned you would like to share with us?

Julie: I do a fair amount of researching the 70s which is such fun. I’ve even researched the phrase “guaranteed to bleed”. Brooks Brothers bought 10,000 yards of madras and started making clothes. Their customers complained about the fabric bleeding and fading. In an inspired marketing maneuver, they declared their fabric was “guaranteed to bleed”.

Crystal:  Who are some of your favorite authors that you like to read?

Julie: I adore Gretchen Archer, Susan Boyer, and Phoebe Fox.

Crystal:  Is there a genre you haven't written that you would like to try?

Julie: I’m incredibly happy writing mysteries and I’ve signed a contract for an additional six country club murders so it looks as if I’ll be writing what I love for quite a while.

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BLURB:

With his dying breath, Bobby Lowell begs Ellison Russell, “Tell her I love her.”

Unable to refuse, Ellison struggles to find the girl the murdered boy loved. Too bad an epically bad blind date, a vindictive graffiti artist, and multiple trips to the emergency room keep getting in the way.

Worse, a killer has Ellison in his sights, her newly-rebellious daughter is missing, and there’s yet another body in her hostas. Mother won’t be pleased.

Now Ellison must track down not one but two runaway teenagers, keep her promise to Bobby and elude the killer—all before her next charity gala committee meeting.

GENRE: Mystery

Guaranteed to Bleed buy links:
Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo  

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EXCERPT:

I hobbled up the long, bricked walkway that led to CeCe Lowell’s door. The Parisian sales girl had sniffed and told me that pain was a small price for beauty. My feet disagreed. That the navy of my pumps exactly matched the navy of my dress was of little import to toes crammed into pointy shoes. They’d stopped whispering their discontent. They were yelling.

I ignored them and rang the bell.

CeCe answered it herself.

The poor woman looked as if she hadn’t slept. She also looked disappointed, almost as if she was expecting someone else. It was a fleeting impression. One I dismissed when she grabbed my good wrist and pulled me into a hug.

She released me. “Thank you for coming,”

“I tried to call.” Five times over the course of an hour I’d received a busy signal. Then the need to find the name of the girl Bobby had loved and to offer CeCe my condolences had compelled me to don my too-tight shoes and drive to her home.

“I left it off the hook.” She rubbed her red-rimmed eyes. “She kept answering it.”

Who? One of CeCe’s sisters? “If now is a bad time, I can come back later.”

“No!” She snatched at my wrist again. “I mean no, of course not. I’m glad you’re here. Come in. May I offer you coffee?” She led me toward the living room.

Something was off. Wrong. Grief thicker than fog wrapped around her yet she seemed manic, desperate. I understood why when I crossed the threshold into CeCe’s living room. 

Kizzi and Alice Standish shared a flowered couch.

Kizzi lived behind a curtain sewn from dry gin martinis. Her daughter Alice was nuttier than the little bowls of mixed almonds and cashews the club puts out for bridge snacks. Word on the golf course was that Howard Standish was considering having them both committed—to different facilities, of course.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Julie Mulhern is a Kansas City native who grew up on a steady diet of Agatha Christie. She spends her spare time whipping up gourmet meals for her family, working out at the gym and finding new ways to keep her house spotlessly clean and she’s got an active imagination. Truth is she’s an expert at calling for take-out, she grumbles about walking the dog and the dust bunnies under the bed have grown into dust lions. She is a 2014 Golden Heart® Finalist.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JulieKMulhern
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/juliekmulhern
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/juliemulhern/
Website: www.juliemulhern.com


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