I’m happy to welcome Wild Rose Press author Cara Bertoia. Today, Cara shares her creative journey and new release, Casino Queen.

Here’s Cara!

When I was younger, I always wondered what was wrong with me. Even though I would have good jobs, friends and a beautiful place to live I couldn’t settle down. I would pack up and move on a whim. I changed careers every few years. Then I found this word, that described me perfectly, torschlusskpanik. The German word for the feeling that opportunities are slipping away. I didn’t just travel to places, I lived there. My wanderlust started in college. I spent a semester at the University of the Americas in Mexico.

I grew up in a strait-laced Southern family, but was always fascinated with casinos. In my twenties on a summer hiatus from teaching in North Carolina, I drove to California and became a dealer at Caesars in Lake Tahoe. I discovered that after teaching high school, handling an unruly gambler was a piece of cake. My mother highly disapproved of my working in a casino, “a place so bad it has ‘sin’ in the middle.”

Eventually, I succumbed to pressure from the family and returned east to take a high-tech job in Boston. I also began working on my MFA in writing at Emerson. My goal was to write the first realistic novel about casino life from the perspective of an experienced table games dealer. I am always amazed that normal and sometimes quite intelligent players become absolutely clueless in the casino. They repeat superstitious nonsense and no amount of logic can change their position, maybe my novel will.

While in Boston I was offered the opportunity to join Princess Cruises as a croupier. Jumping at the chance, I spent the next five years circling the globe. Sometimes life exceeds your dreams. I was awed by the wonders of Venice, the fjords of Norway, and the Northern Lights in Leningrad. At Princess Cruises the ship traveled across the globe, and I only had to pack my bags once every six months.

I met my husband when we worked on a cruise ship together. He jumped ship to be with me, and we moved to Palm Springs, and got married. I worked at the Agua Caliente Casino. I think life in Southern California was so exciting it tempered my wanderlust. Palm Spring was two hours to the mountains, two hours from the coast, two hours from Los Angeles and San Diego. Palm Springs was beautiful, a town in the desert filled with flowers surrounded by majestic mountains.

The best advice I ever got was from my father, a man not known for lecturing. He said, “You have to make your own mistakes, no one can make them for you.” Contrary to popular opinion, I decided that since I was probably going to fail anyway, I would try everything. Every failure was a badge of honor, but pretty soon I was racking up successes and gathering experiences. You never know things might just work out.

No one applauded my career in the casino industry, but it was a good choice for me. I made a good money, lived in beautiful places, and traveled the world. Best of all I never got laid off like my co-workers in high tech. In these precarious times, sometimes the safe career just isn’t that safe.

I worked in Native American casinos for twenty years. The casino industry had been good to me, but I always witnessed an underbelly just perfect for a thriller. Millions of dollars passed through the casino every week, casino fleas operated their personal side businesses on the gaming floor, and you never know who might walk in the door itching for a fight. That is what led me to my new career as a mystery writer. My hope is that after reading Casino Queen you will never walk into a casino the same way.

I will leave you with this quote: In life as in cards, you can’t play the last hand. You have to play the cards in front of you now. Cara Bertoia

Blurb

Caroline Popov, alone, heartbroken, and deeply in debt ends up in glamorous Palm Springs, California. Native American casinos have just opened, thousands of people from all over the world came to work there, money flowed like water, and real estate became the new status symbol. And then came The Great Recession, and suddenly the partying stopped.

Alone, desperate and deeply in debt, she lands a job at the Palm Oasis Casino. She is mentored by the charismatic tribal chairman, John Tovar. Embraced by casino culture, Caroline works her way up to casino manager of the Night Hawk, in the High Desert town of Joshua Tree. There, she is responsible for managing multicultural team members, satisfying the demands of challenging guests, growing revenue while rooting out corruption. As she moves up through the ranks of management, her bond with John deepens.

In the process of uncovering the underbelly of corruption her list of enemies grows. Sometimes you have to gamble like your life depends on it. With her life on the line can she pull out a win?

Excerpt

“Why did I transfer you up from Palm Springs to be my Casino Queen?” The charismatic Tribal Chairman John Tovar asked.

“Casino Queen, really? Apparently, you are the only person in America who isn’t watching the show about the seven kingdoms on cable. The queens always get killed in the most horrific ways. They are hanged, beheaded, poisoned, burned alive in an explosion, or have their throat slit,” an exasperated Caroline Popov answered.

“I promise that won’t happen to you.” He gestured for her to take a seat at an empty ‘Mystic Mermaid’ slot machine, then sat across from her. They swiveled their chairs to face each other. John tried to act serious, but a smile kept pulling at the corner of his eyes. “According to the Mazurie decision, Native American tribes are considered sovereign nations. Therefore as leader of the tribe, I am King of the Shotowa.”

He continued. “Believe me, when I met the Queen of England I was introduced as the leader of the Shotowa nation. Let me be clear, as soon as you drove into this parking lot you entered the nation.” He gestured toward the uniformed officers standing at the door. “We have our own army.”

She decided to play along with the flow of his logic. “You mean security guards.”

“Precisely, trained courtesy of the United States Marine Corps. The tribe issues its own currency, gaming chips made of ceramic clay, stamped with our logo. At the cashiers’ cage, our central bank, those chips can be exchanged for U.S. dollars. Anyone can find food in our three restaurants or the team member dining room for employees. An underground well supplies us with water. We provide hotel rooms for shelter. Any guest who comes to stay with us will find their basic human needs covered by the Shotowa Tribe. Never forget we are a sovereign nation. I am the King, and I anoint you Queen of the Night Hawk.”

Buy Links

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In the News

I am being featured in the April issue of The Big Thrill. I had a wonderful conversation with Susana Kuehne about my writing process.

The Big Thrill is a monthly publication of the International Thriller Writers Association. They say they have 200,000 hits a month. But all the big names are in there. I don’t know why they picked me, but I am very happy. Most of my readers thought my novel was a suspense novel. Check it out. Here is the link. My author interview will appear April 1.
The Big Thrill

This is the link from a book blog. Little Miss Book Lover 87. Vikkie Wakeham is a member of the Squadpod a group of book influencers.
Little Miss Book Lover 87

Parting Words

My husband and I met when we were working for Princess Cruises. In April, we have booked a cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Copenhagen. The first part of the cruise is six straight sea days. One of my friends said she would jump over board if she had to be at sea that long. We can’t wait. For me there is nothing as great as standing on the deck of a ship in the middle of the ocean. After the cruise we will travel across Europe to visit his family and mine. I plan to tweet about my travels. You can follow our journey online. I know people are curious. Is it okay to cruise again? We’ll let you know.

I love to interact with my readers. Send me a picture with Casino Queen and I will post it on my social media sites.

Here are our social media links:

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Amazon Author Page | Goodreads | BookBub | Email

Palm Springs, Where It All Started…

I’m happy to welcome author Carol Preflatish. Today, Carol chats about her creative journey and new release, Witch Hunt.

Here’s Carol!

Q. What was your inspiration for this novel?

A. One of my favorite series to read is the late Robert B. Parker’s Jesse Stone series. That was my inspiration for the Nathan Perry Mystery series.

Q. What’s the best part of being an author? The worst?

A. The best part is being able to create something that people like. It’s really a rush to do that. The worst part is all the work after the book is released. All the marketing there is to do. It would be great to be successful enough to just hire a publicist to handle all of that.

Q. Describe your writing space.

A. My desk is in the corner of my living room. When I first moved in, I was facing the wall when I wrote. That was a little too closed in for me. I turned the desk so I can now look out the window. I also really enjoy sitting on my couch with paper and pencil and write. If I get stuck with a scene, I can move to the couch and sometimes it helps me get my muse again.

Q. Which authors have inspired you?

A. I love Lisa Gardner. Her books are so good and I love seeing her photos of when she’s out hiking.

Q. Besides writing and reading, what are some of your hobbies?

A. I’m a huge photography nut, especially nature photography.

Q. What are you working on next?

A. My next Nathan Perry book will be a modern-day retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I’m about halfway through and I’m loving how it’s going.

Blurb

Is it 1692 all over again? When a millionaire’s daughter is found hanging from a tree in the Mystic, Massachusetts cemetery, witchcraft is suspected. Police detective Nathan Perry is assigned the case and works closely with an attractive female private investigator hired by the father to find who murdered his daughter.

Mystic is known for its history of witchcraft in the area. It’s what brings tourists to town, and when another murder occurs, there is rising pressure on Nathan to solve the case quickly.
Nathan’s investigation pulls him into an unfamiliar world rife with covens, magic, and lore to find the killer. A small town gripped in fear is depending on him to prevail.

Witch Hunt is a stand-alone novel that is part of the Nathan Perry Mystery Series.

Excerpt

“Five-thirteen – Central Dispatch,” the female voice said over Hank’s hand-held radio.

Hank picked up the radio. “Dispatch – Five-thirteen. Go ahead.”

“Five-thirteen, can you and six-nineteen meet five-ten at Bridge Road at the cemetery just west of Water Street.”

“On our way,” Hank said into the radio. He looked at Nathan. “I wonder what that’s about?”

“I suppose we’ll find out when we get there, but I have a bad feeling about it,” Nathan said. The two officers stood. Nathan waved some money in the air to catch Ginger’s attention, and then placed it on the table. He took one more bite of his sandwich before leaving. Hank took half of his sandwich with him.

Bridge Road, located on the east side of town, started the rural part of Mystic. When they reached the street, they saw two Mystic Police Department patrol cars parked on the side of the road next to the cemetery, emergency lights flashing brightly.

“This can’t be good,” Nathan said. He and Hank walked up to the other officers standing by their cars.

“That uniform looks good on you, Detective. You should join us working boys more often,” Wally, the older of the two officers, said.

“You know I work much harder than you do any day of the week,” Nathan joked.

“That’ll be the day. No matter, I’m glad you’re here,” Wally replied, more serious now.

“What’s up?” Nathan asked.

“Take a look over the hill,” the younger officer said.

This was the oldest and largest cemetery in Mystic, having some historic gravestones in it. They walked through the oldest part to reach the top of a small knoll, where they stopped. Nathan looked toward the back part of the cemetery and saw it. About fifty yards away, a female body hanging from the tree.

“What the hell?” Nathan said.

“Exactly what I said. Come and see,” Wally said, leading the other two officers to the tree. “I thought it was a mannequin at first. I figured this fell under your job description, Nathan.”

“Yeah, I’m afraid it does.” They reached the tree. Nathan looked up at the body. She was young, with long black hair, and dressed in a white dress. “Anything been touched?”

“No, but I did photograph the tree and body from all sides before calling the coroner.”

“How did you find the body?” Nathan asked.

“It was a cell phone call. The dispatcher said the person didn’t identify themselves, just that something had happened out at the cemetery. With it being over the hill, we didn’t see it at first. You can’t see it from the road. Then, we walked over the hill and found her. You know, they say there’s a bunch of witches buried out here,” Wally said.

Nathan looked at Wally. “Is that true, or just a rumor?”

“It’s just something I’ve heard since I was a kid,” he replied.

“Let’s keep that to ourselves, okay?” That’s all that the public needed to think about, a witch being murdered at the cemetery.

“Yes, sir.”

Nathan heard cars stopping out on the highway. “Wally, could you check on the traffic? Your partner might need help, if word got out. I don’t want any civilians seeing this. Can you also call Mallory Duncan to come out here? She’ll need to collect evidence.”

“Yes, sir.” Wally walked back toward the road, leaving Nathan and Hank at the scene.

“What do you think?” Hank asked.

“I think we have a sick person running around here.”

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes

Author Bio and Links

Carol Preflatish, from southern Indiana, is the author of the Nathan Perry Mystery Series, as well as several romantic suspense novels, and two non-fiction books. When she’s not writing, she loves to read, watch Indianapolis Colts football, and do just about anything outdoors.

An avid photographer, Carol has had many photos published in her local newspaper, as well as in “Golf Journal,” the official publication of the United States Golf Association. A few little-known facts about Carol are that she’s a licensed amateur radio operator, and is a collector of celebrity autographs, stamps, and coins.

Carol is a member of Sisters in Crime, SinC’s Guppies chapter, and the Louisville, Kentucky SinC chapter.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon Author Page | Goodreads | Instagram | LinkedIn

I’m happy to welcome Wild Rose Press author Terry Segan. Today, Terry shares her creative journey and new release, Precious Treasure.

Here’s Terry!

Thanks for hosting me today, Joanne. My writing journey is a true example of how the twists and turns of life can surprise you. I only began writing about fifteen years ago. (And I’m approaching the big 6-0 this year—that’s still considered middle-aged, right?) While I’d attempted crafting stories before, it was never the right time.

I’ve worked as a secretary all my life in several different industries (movie studio, airline, office of a large theme park to name a few), but it wasn’t until I became a stay-at-home mom that my fingers flew across the keyboard for pleasure. My first jaunts were a couple of articles for an online travel newsletter, which led to my creating short fiction stories. My venture into a full-length novel came shortly afterward.

About six years ago I joined a local writers’ group, and that’s when things got real for me. I guess you could say I found my tribe. They’ve given me inspiration, guidance, and friendship. Getting together with other writers, all in different stages of their writing careers, was the component I’d been missing. Now, at any given time, I’m juggling two or three projects, while getting great feedback from other authors.

If you were to pin down my genre, I fit best in the paranormal mystery section. My first book, Photographs in Time, involved matchmaking mixed with time travel and murder. Just released on March 9 by The Wild Rose Press is my second book, Precious Treasure. You can read more about this one below.

Tagline

Eight years ago her husband disappeared. Does a hundred and fifty-year-old journal hold the answer as to why?

Blurb

Janie Holcomb prays for closure once the courts declare her missing husband dead. Instead, she’s sent spiraling down a dangerous path.

When her lawyer delivers a package held in trust, she finds a cryptic warning along with a Civil War journal promising buried treasure. While seeking a connection between her spouse and the decades-old diary, Janie attracts the spirit of a Confederate soldier pleading for help.

Enlisting her brother’s assistance to chase down clues, they discover that not everyone they know should be trusted. Janie overlooks potential threats when the promise of new love stirs her emotions. Will her digging uncover the answers she craves or doom her to a similar fate?

Sneak Peek from Precious Treasure

Janie dragged herself out of bed and into the bathroom. Turning on the tap to fill the sink, she bent over and splashed cold water on her face. The refreshing drops rolled down her forehead, cheeks and chin, pulling her out of her funk. Sightless, Janie reached for the hand towel hanging nearby and dried her face as she stood upright. Opening her eyes, she leaned in to examine the damage of the late night on her complexion. Her reflection looked back, as well as that of a young man standing behind her. Janie’s heart leapt to her throat as she whipped around and found no one there. Looking back in the mirror, she saw only herself.

This is too much, she thought. First nightmares and now hallucinations. Janie shook her head. With the assault of information thrown at her in the last twenty-four hours, her imagination cartwheeled out of control.

Knowing the visions were a result of the wine, newspaper articles and journal, didn’t calm the raised hackles on the back of her neck. The foreboding in Brian’s letter snaked its way up her spine threatening to encircle her throat and squeeze tight. His writing had a tone of uncertainty and fear—uncharacteristic of the man she had married.

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Author Bio and Links

Terry Segan resides in Nevada. The beach is her happy place, but any opportunity to travel soothes her gypsy soul. The stories conjured by her imagination while riding backseat on her husband’s motorcycle can be found throughout the pages of her paranormal mysteries.

Author Website | Facebook Page | Instagram | Twitter | Amazon Author Page

I’m happy to welcome author S.S. Turner. Today, he shares his favorite films and new release, Secrets of a River Swimmer.

My top ten favorite films (it will become very clear who my favorite director is from this list!):

1. Vertigo

2. North by Northwest

3. To Catch A Thief

4. Rear Window

5. In Bruges

6. Lord of the Rings trilogy

7. Being John Malkovich

8. Hot Fuzz

9. Man Up

10. Notting Hill

Blurb

As Freddy gazes at the majestic river gushing past him in the depths of a Scottish winter, he’s ready to jump in and end his life. But what happens next is not what Freddy expects. From the moment he enters the river, Freddy starts a journey which is more beautiful, funny, and mysterious than he could have imagined. And through this journey Freddy’s story becomes interweaved with a cast of unforgettable characters who are equally lost and in search of answers. Eventually they all unite in their quest for an answer to the biggest question of them all: will the river take them where they want to go?

In the tradition of inspirational works of fiction like The Alchemist and Life of Pi, Secrets of a River Swimmer is at once a profound exploration into living with meaning and an affecting story of people on the cusp of change.

Excerpt

From Page 21-22

My thoughts drift to picture what life as a gillie must be like. I imagine you start the day by carrying all the fishing equipment your fat and wealthy clients will need for a day of luxurious and fully-catered fishing. You carry everything while they take it easy, and you locate the best spot to fish for the largest possible salmon. Your local knowledge about fishing spots has to be extraordinary. You then set up the fishing rod, position your client in the right spot, and talk them through what they need to do to catch that magic fish they’re all searching for. Of course, your clients are always searching for the largest catch of the season, so they can go home and brag to their friends and family about what skilled fishermen they are. It’s obvious to you, if not to them, that the subtext is being able to sing to the world that they have massive willies, bigger than everyone else’s.

Beyond fishing, you’re forced to listen to whatever the hell it is your clients want to talk about for the eight long hours you’re on the river. Your clients are all obscenely wealthy, so it’s more than likely you’ll hear a lot of moaning about all the small things in life they’d like changed. Many of them will complain about local wind farm developments, council plans to develop their neighborhood, and, of course, the big one: immigration. They all believe immigrants are responsible for all the problems in the world. These people are your quintessential NIMBYs, and will always complain about progress if it affects them in any way, no matter how minor. You do whatever you can to bring the conversation back to fishing because it’s an easier conversation for you, and less productive grounds for their complaining. They’re slowly sucking the life out of you with their negativity, so you carefully select your words to bring the conversation onto a more positive pathway. And, of course, your ultimate back-up plan, as it is for many British people, is to pull out the ultimate conversation filler when you’re at rock bottom: the weather. Yes, it’s a desperate move and the equivalent of holding up a white flag, but needs must.

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | AppleBooks | Indigo | Kobo

Author Bio

S.S. Turner has been an avid reader, writer, and explorer of the natural world throughout his life which has been spent in England, Scotland and Australia. Just like Freddy in his first novel, Secrets of a River Swimmer, he worked in the global fund management sector for many years but realized it didn’t align with his values. In recent years, he’s been focused on inspiring positive change through his writing as well as trying not to laugh in unfortunate situations. He now lives in Australia with his wife, daughter, two dogs, two cats, and ten chickens.

Website: https://www.thestoryplant.com/secrets-of-a-river-swimmer

Giveaway

One randomly chosen winner will win a $50 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card via Rafflecopter. Find out more here.

Follow S.S. Turner on the rest of his Goddess Fish tour here.