"Look to the East" with Maureen Lang in Bookland Heights

Look to the East:

At the dawn of the First World War, the French village of Briecourt is isolated from the battles, but the century-old feud between the Toussaints and the de Colvilles still rages in the streets. When the German army sweeps in to occupy the town, families on both sides of the feud are forced to work together to protect stragglers caught behind enemy lines.

Julitte Toussaint may have been adopted from a faraway island, but she feels the scorn of the de Colvilles as much as anyone born a Toussaint. So when she falls in love with one of the stragglers—a wealthy and handsome Belgian entrepreneur—she knows she’s playing with fire. Charles Lassone hides in the cellar of the Briecourt church, safe from the Germans for the moment. But if he’s discovered, it will bring danger to the entire village and could cost Charles his life.
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Review: "This is an intriguing historical tale with a romantic subplot enhancing the deep look at life during an occupation. Julitte is terrific as the lead protagonist who holds the insightful story line together as her love with Charles is pure and in stark contrast to a village filled with the seven deadly sins. Readers will enjoy this cautionary tale that resonates today at a time when outright lies by leaders are acceptable because the mean no longer matters if the end is achieved." --
Harriet Klausner
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A chat with the author, Maureen Lang:

BH: What or who most influenced your writing?

ML:I’ve been writing since I was ten so I’ve had many influences over the years. Perhaps the very first to make an impact were the authors who wrote the Nancy Drew series—and many influences since!

BH: What is the one thing you want readers to know about your book(s) and/or writing?

ML: I’m hopeful that the underlying theme in all of my books reflects the love of God. That’s my hope, anyway!

BH: What is your next project and when can we expect to read it?

ML: My next book in this Great War Series is called Whisper on the Wind and will release summer 2010. It’s the story of two people who get involved in a secret press, rebelling against the censors of the German army occupying Belgium in 1914. And they do it romantically, of course!
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Brought to you in part by:
BUY: WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty , BUY: Wendel Wordsworth, BUY: Cynthia's Attic

The Fabled City of God, Bruce Golden & "Evergreen"

A heretic priest launches an expedition into the unexplored regions of the frontier forest world of Evergreen, in search of the fabled City of God. A young man seeks his mother's killer amidst a rough and tumble camp of off-world lumberjacks. A woman is torn between love for her husband and lust for her stepson. A guilt-wracked man finds himself recruited by a colonial rebellion despite his desire to withdraw into narcotic dreams. An exobiologist studies primate-like creatures she believes have the capability to evolve into the first extraterrestrial sentient species. All the while the vegetal consciousness that is Evergreen contemplates the human colony.

As their personal conflicts unfold, and secrets are revealed, the expedition discovers the ruins of an ancient village, and evidence that a Neanderthal-like intelligence once existed on this world. The mystery of what happened to that species reveals the truth about Evergreen.

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Bruce, what or who most influenced your writing? Robert Heinlein, Mark Twain, Robert Howard, Rod Serling, Edgar Allan Poe, and Jim Morrison were my main influences as a youngster.
What is the one thing you want readers to know about your book(s) and/or writing? I'm always trying to do something different--something unexpected. In Evergreen I tackled a theme not often seen in science fiction.
What is your next project and when can we expect to read it? Dancing with the Velvet Lizard is a collection of all my short stories. It should be out in mid 2010.

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Brought to you in part by:
BUY: WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty , BUY: Wendel Wordsworth, BUY: Cynthia's Attic

Holli Castillo Spices Things Up With "Gumbo Justice"

Nights in New Orleans can be as dangerous as they are steamy, especially for a smart-mouthed, competitive Assistant District Attorney like Ryan Murphy. If the criminals she prosecutes aren't trouble enough, she has an overprotective police captain for a daddy and four cop brothers to contend with, as well as a possible romance with a hot detective-- or two. And then there's the small problem of a psychotic serial killer, who may or may not be trying to help her on her way to the top.

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Review:

"Holli Castillo has the pulse on law enforcement beyond the headlines in pre-Katrina New Orleans. Her background as a public defender lends her debut novel authenticity and a strong voice to prosecutor Ryan Murphy. Part police procedural, part legal drama, Castillo is a welcome addition to both genres."- Sunny Frazier, author of WHERE ANGELS FEAR and others in the Christy Bristol Mystery Series.

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Who or what most influenced your writing?
My background as a prosecutor and public defender, and I also had a family and teachers who encouraged me to write.

What is the one thing you want readers to know about your book(s) and/or writing?
I do my best writing in the wee hours of the morning, when most people have gone to bed.

What is your next project and when can we expect to read it?
I am working on the as of yet untitled follow up to Gumbo Justice. Hopefully, it will be out in the next year.

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Brought to you in part by:
BUY: WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty , BUY: Wendel Wordsworth, BUY: Cynthia's Attic

Morgan Mandel and her Killer Career

Killer Career Blog Tour with author, Morgan Mandel!

KILLER CAREER is about a lawyer who wants to quit her day job and be a writer. Sounds tame, right? Not when her mentor is a New York Times bestselling author who not only writes about murders, but also commits them. And what about her law partner? Does he mean more to her than she thought? Will he let her go without a fight?

Did I mention she has an elevator phobia? The bad guy knows that, too.

Sometimes it’s not easy to be a writer, but most of us know that already.



BH: Welcome to Bookland Heights, Morgan. We always like to give our readers a glimpse into the author's world, so here goes. What or whom most influenced your writing?

MM: I enjoyed reading mysteries by Mary Higgins Clark, Dick Francis and Sidney Sheldon, but a library presentation by Chicago-North RWA authors hooked me into the writing addiction.

BH: What is the one thing you want readers to know about your book(s) and/or writing?

MM: My books are very dear to me, but so are all of my online friends. I’ve never met many of them in person, yet I feel I know them very well.

BH: Hope we're included! What is your next project and when can we expect to read it?

MM: After my best efforts to launch KILLER CAREER and set it on its path, I plan on publishing the first book in the Our Little Rascal series, about my special needs dog. I’m also halfway through writing Forever Young, a thriller targeted for the Boomer generation. I hope to get one or both books out within a year.

To find out more about Killer Career and Morgan Mandel's Blog Tour visit her website and her blog

The next stop on the tour is on Monday, August 17 at http://thelittleblogofmurder.com/, hosted by Jeffrey Marks.

BUY Killer Career on AMAZON.COM, BN.COM

Also available at Bookstores, Libraries, Mobipocket.com

HOW I NAMED MY BABY By Morgan Mandel
It’s not easy to name a novel. The title needs to be catchy enough to attract readers, yet descriptive enough to portray what’s inside.
When I was writing KILLER CAREER, its name was Deadly Dreams. That was an okay name. Still, for some reason, maybe because the word, dreams, was in the title, the name lacked energy.
The book was done. It was with my editor. Everything would soon be finalized. I had to think up something and fast, but for the life of me, I couldn’t come up with the right words.
I brainstormed with friends, one of them being the multi-published Robert W. Walker, a fellow member of Acme Authors Link. He came up with a few suggestions, one of them being Career Killer. I kind of liked the name. Its meaning could be taken more than one way and had alliteration going for it. Still, for some reason it didn’t ring true.
Then it hit me. Switch the two words around. Make it KILLER CAREER. Yes, that sounded exactly right. I’d found a name in the nick of time.
So now you know how I named my baby. Thanks, Rob, for the inspiration.

Brought to you in part by: BUY: WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty , BUY: Wendel Wordsworth, BUY: Cynthia's Attic