An Interview with Jennifer Apodaca
Author of Dating Can Be Murder

(GWN Online - Oct. 13, 2002) It was Jennifer Apodaca's book cover that captured my attention. After logging onto Kensington's website, I noticed the "Dating Can Be Murder" cover, read the teaser and was hooked. After contacting her, I received an advanced review copy and booked her on a chat. In no time at all, I fell in love with her characters, adored the protagonist's sense of humor and was eager to see if she could snuff out her husband's killers.  

Take a few minutes from your busy schedule to learn more about her. If you get a chance, order the book through Amazon.com.

Denise: When your three sons were born you went back to college to earn a marketing degree. What led you toward a career as a writer?

Jennifer: I always loved reading and toyed with the idea of writing. But I thought writers were some kind of special people while I was average. It wasn't until I went back to college that I began to realize that writers aren't average types with a tremendous love of reading and willingness to dedicate themselves to the craft of writing--and willing to deal with rejection.  

Denise: What was the first genre you tried to write?

Jennifer: Historical Romance.

Denise:What about the genre sparked your interest?

Jennifer: Historic romances were hugely popular when I first started writing. I really enjoyed them. The experience of being swept away to the past and experiencing a little bit of history through the characters was intriguing.  

Denise: Many romance writers switch back and forth to mystery. Are the genres similar in structure?

Jennifer: Interesting question. Romances are built around the question of will the hero and heroine get together. To answer that question, the writer (hopefully) carefully develops the hero and heroine as they overcome obstacles to end up together. I always say that there is no better place to learn characterization than in writing romances.

So when a romance writer crosses over to mysteries, they bring characterization with them. That is not to say that many straight mystery writers don't have fabulous characters. I'm just pointing out that characterization is usually the strong point of a good romance writer. Bringing that into a mystery where the central question revolves around who killed the victim can really add interesting layers to the book.

I also think many romance writers cross over to mystery to expand their talents in plotting. Or they are like me and keep stumbling over dead bodies in their manuscripts until they finally realize they are more of a mystery writer than a romance writer!


Denise: How did mystery with a twist of humor creep into your writing schedule?

Jennifer: Humor is how I usually deal with frustration and heartbreak. The more I struggled as a writer, the more humor that ended up in my work. And truthfully, the more I learned about writing, the more that humor showed up. It's my natural voice, but for some reason, I was purposely editing my humorous side.

Also, when I started seriously pursuing a writing career, I was also going to college. We are talking about two entirely different forms of writing. My college papers were written in a structured format with complete sentences in a formal style that can be a little dry. I sort of had to train some of that out of my writing for popular fiction. In today's market, we want to engage the reader right away to draw them into the story, not educate them on some theory or idea.

Denise: Where did you send your first manuscript?

Jennifer: Harper Collins. I think the editor's name was Abigail Kaman, or something like that. I sent her three chapters and camped out by the mailbox for the next few weeks. Then came "the letter" asking for the entire manuscript. I was on my way! The rejection came exactly one hour before I was due to give a speech in my college speech class on "Crafting a Novel". I was devastated. But after a few minutes of utter despair, I pulled myself together and went to class. I gave my speech and got an A. It only took me eight more years to actually publish!

Denise: What did they like about your work that earned you an acceptance?

Jennifer: They liked that Sam was trying to become a "new woman" and thought the dating service angle was interesting. Mostly they really liked the "voice" of the book. I was told that Kensington had been "looking for something like this" but I never asked exactly what they meant by that. I was so shocked by the offer that I mostly held my breath and hoped they didn't call back with an "I'm sorry but we didn't mean YOU, we meant to call a real author with talent."

In my view, now that I've had a little time to think about it, I think what earned me the acceptance was that I stopped writing to publish. I still wanted to publish, but I began to write books that I wanted to read. It sounds so simple, doesn't it?

Denise: Tell us about "Dating Can Be Murder," the first book in the Samantha Shaw Mystery series.

Jennifer: The back cover reads:

After her no-good husband bit into some peanut candy--and dropped dead in mid-chew--Samantha Shaw decided to start living it up (finally). She's had her breasts done (va-voom!), dyed her hair (blonde of course), and pumped up her wardrobe (think up-to-here skirts--and barely there sweaters). Now, it's goodbye, soccer mom...and hello, sexy...

The inside jackets synopsis:

If she thinks really hard, Samantha Shaw can remember a time when she believed in true love. When buying Heart Mates--the dating service her now-deceased, condom-selling husband did business with--seemed like the right thing to do. When she thought bringing lonely hearts together would go a long way toward mending her own broken one.

Now she's thinking, Only fools fall in love. For her romantic reveries ended the day she found a stash of sexy panties--each with a Post-It note rating the wearer--hidden in her dead husband's car. The startling discovery left the disheartened Sam with one question: What else was the cheating creep hiding?

Try an illegal drug trade--and a whole lot of money. That's just some of the scum that surfaces after a man walks into Heart Mates and threatens to kill her--and her kids--if she doesn't come up with the money her spouse stole.                         

On that disturbing note, Sam decides it's time to really get down to business. Inspired by the savvy heroines of the romance novels she reviews as a hobby, she comes up with a catchy new slogan ("Get Hot With Heart Mates"), buys some sexy new outfits, and sets out to make Heart Mates the hottest dating service in town--all while trying to keep her mind off Gabe Pulizzi, the mouth-watering P.I. helping her track down the thug who threatened her.

Trouble is, when she finally finds him, he's very much dead--and it's clear that someone is deadly serious about getting the money she doesn't have. It's enough to make most women start shaking in their stilettos. Not Sam. She's got a business to run, missing money to find, and a life to save...her own.

Denise: What changes Sam's life and puts her in the defensive mode? Who does she turn to when she's threatened?

Jennifer: Sam is the one who decides to change. The catalyst for that is when she found a stash of panties-with post it notes rating the wearer-in her dead husband's car. Sam could no longer hide from her husband's unfaithfulness, and more importantly, from the woman she had become. Sam didn't like that woman much, and made a conscious decision to change.

She turns to several people when she's threatened, her best friend, Angel, her retired magician grandfather and the local police. But the one who comes across with the best advice, among other things, is the local Private Investigator, Gabe Pulizzi, that she hired to do standard background checks on her dating service clients.

Denise: Because Sam was emotionally hurt from her husband's extra-marital affairs, why then would she attempt to bring singles together?

Jennifer: Good question! This is one of those characterization issues that's vitally important. Sam was burned by her husband, but there's a part of her that still believes in true love. We know this because she reviews romance novels and loves them. Also, Sam's grandparents had a long and wonderful marriage until her grandmother died. But Sam's mom failed to find love, as did Sam. So Sam's a mass of conflicts and trying to work it out through her dating service. She touches on this issue in the second book DYING TO MEET YOU. Also, Sam's stubborn determined nature won't let her fail. Heart Mates needs to succeed.

Denise: Tell us about "Dying to Meet You." Any idea when the projected release date is?

Jennifer: DYING TO MEET YOU will be released in hardcover May 2003.

The back cover reads:

Samantha Shaw doesn't think much of marriage-when she thinks of it at all. (Not surprising, since her own ended so badly.) And she's wary of men-including her own bad-boy amor, ex-cop Gabe Pulizzi. But she hasn't completely given up on romance. Good thing, considering she has a dating service to run-even though she does have a murder to solve, too…

The inside jacket synopsis:

When Samantha Shaw-the irrepressible proprietor of a dating service called Heart Mates-shows up to look at a brochure her ex-client Faye Miller has designed, she sees something she definitely wasn't expecting: Faye's corpse. And the scene only gets worse when Detective Logan Vance arrives. His hostile, arrogant attitude ticks Sam off-big time…   

Sam vows to walk away and forget the whole thing-until the newspapers connect Heart Mates with the murder. Now, unless Sam finds a lead she can run with, her clients will be running scared. But her P.I. boyfriend, Gabe, wants a piece of the action. Not exactly what she had in mind.

When she's not dodging assassination attempts-or tangling with Detective Vance-Sam digs through the files at Heart Mates and unearths some very interesting dirt on Faye's dating history. Faye stepped out-once-with Dominic Danger, co-owner of The Smash Coffee Shop. Nothing strange about that…except Sam suspects Dominic just might be gay. And his "friend" and business partner seems oddly jealous of the lovely Faye.  Then there's Faye's estranged husband, who wasn't exactly thrilled to discover that she was cheating on him. Sam knows she's got to figure out the truth about Faye's murder-fast. Because her business depends on it-and so does her life…  

Denise: How do you promote your novels? Do you have a website? And where can we order the book from?

Jennifer: I do have a website at www.jenniferapodaca.com thanks for asking! There are links to Barnes and Noble, and Amazon to order the book. Or you can usually get it in your local bookstore.

I pretty much do whatever promotion comes along, like sending out review copies, doing book signings and appearances, newspaper interviews, chats on writer and reader friendly sites like gottawritenetwork.com. My publisher, Kensington Publishing does some promotion and works hard to get the books placed in publications that will have bookstores, libraries and other sources ordering copies.

But the most important thing is to write the books. Readers have a right to expect that I've done my best with each book.

An Interview with Deborah Donnelly
Author of Veiled Threats
Conducted by Denise Fleischer, GWN Online

Denise: Tell us what it was like being a sea captain's daughter and living in Panama, Cape Cod and points in between.  
  
Deborah: Moving to different places was certainly interesting -- I spent the second and third grades in Maracaibo, Venezuela -- though it was also disruptive for the shy kid that I was. I read a LOT.

Denise: Has your Bachelor's degree in English Literature and Master's degree in Library Science been beneficial to your writing career?  
 
Deborah: Definitely. Reading the big stories by some of the best writers was a wonderful foundation for my own writing. And library work gives you a real appreciation for the mental freedom that comes from being well organized.  
 
Denise: Before you settled behind a computer to create your Carnegie Kincaid mystery series, what type of jobs paved the way to your future?  
 
Deborah: I worked as a librarian for several years, and then as a freelance business writer. Later, I was on the communications staff of the biotech company Immunex, and then at Starbucks HQ in Seattle. All grist for the mill.

Denise: Of all the genres out there, why did you choose to become a Mystery author? When you're not writing, what Mystery authors do you gravitate towards?  
 
Deborah: I've always enjoyed mysteries, and it's a popular form of fiction that (often) focuses on psychology and relationships. So for me it's a way to write interesting stories that, unlike literary fiction, might actually earn a little money.  I don't read much when I'm writing -- mostly gardening and cooking magazines, just to calm my brain down -- but I love the Ellis Peters books (both Brother Cadfael and Detective Felse). One of my contemporary favorites is the Bill Slider series by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles -- it's a London police series with some terrific character development.

Denise: Is "Veiled Threats" your first published novel? How many publishers did you send it to before Dell accepted it? Do you have any idea what type of press run it had and how many copies have been sold? Do you know how many books will be in the series?  
 
Deborah: "Veiled Threats" was the first novel I've ever written, though I've published short stories and essays. Many, many publishers turned it down -- it took longer to sell than it did to write! It's selling pretty well, and I've just signed a contract for books #3 and 4 in the series. I hope there'll be even more than that. 

Denise: What inspired you to select a wedding planner as your main character? What traits did she adopt from you?  
 
Deborah: It was an off-the-cuff decision at the time. My best friend and I had recently planned our own weddings, and then I took a mystery-writing course where the instructor asked us about our sleuths in the very first class.  So Carnegie was born by accident. She has a lot of my traits -- like being a wise-ass -- but, this being fiction, she's younger, she's single, and she rushes into situations where I myself would definitely fear to tread.

Denise: Carnegie Kincaid's dream to become a successful businesswoman is within her grasp when she agrees to plan the wedding of a prominent Seattle family. What turn of events occur to make her life a perfect nightmare?  
 
Deborah: As it says in the title, there are veiled threats, some spooky violence, and then a kidnapped bride. 

Denise: Can you tease us with the plot without giving away the ending?   What characters enter her life and have her wondering who is a friend or merely an enemy in disguise? Does she have a love interest?
 
Deborah: I'll do better than than tease: I'll respond to all three questions by inviting you to read the first chapter of VEILED THREATS at www.deborahdonnelly.org.  There's also a chapter of DIED TO MATCH, the second book of the series, which comes out in October. 

Denise: How have you promoted your first novel? Do you book your own signings? What yahoo e-groups do you belong to? How have they been helpful? Have you been a speaker at a Mystery Convention?  
 
Deborah: I've been setting up signings with the help of my publicist at Bantam Dell. Next spring I plan to tour with Roberta Isleib and Libby Hellman, two other new authors whose sleuths are (respectively) a video producer and a pro golfer. Add the wedding angle to that, and we're calling it the "Sex, Lies and Videotape Tour" -- I'll be posting our signings on my web site.
 
As for e-groups, I keep in touch online with Murder Must Advertise and Sisters in Crime.

Denise: What how-to books have helped you along the way?  
 
Deborah: Annie Lamott's BIRD BY BIRD is one of my favorites -- it's a good book about life, whether you're writing or not.  

Denise: Thanks for your time Deborah!!

An Evening with Mystery author Christine Duncan

Netera: Christine Duncan is the author of the Kay Berreano mystery series, which is set in a fictional Denver battered women's shelter. "Safe Beginnings" is the first book in the series. It's published by Wordbeams.com. You can learn more about Christine from her website at www.ChristineDuncan.com. Christine, why don't you start by telling us a little about your writing background.

ChristineDuncan: I was number eight of ten kids, and we were not exactly the bunch in Seventh Heaven. We were loud, boisterous and argumentative.  Did I mention loud? So I began writing early on as a way to get a word in edgewise. My mother thought it was nice, but not a way to make a living. So, she discouraged me, a lot.  It wasn't until I got a job with a religious publisher after the kids were born, and got a chance to write there, that I admitted that I wanted to write--aloud.

Netera: Christine, while most writers wouldn't want to tackle the difficult subject of a battered women's shelter, you have. Why? What inspired you?

ChristineDuncan: I researched battered women from the time I was about eight. One of my sisters married an abusive guy.

RobinDOwens: Which one was she in the line up?

ChristineDuncan: Number 4. She wouldn't admit to the abuse either. She had every excuse in the book. She fell off the motorcycle. She ran the vacuum over her foot. I was scared for her, and her kids. Even at a young age, I knew she was lying. And that's when I started learning everything I could.

Netera: Did she go for help?

ChristineDuncan: No,  she never did. She didn't leave him for years.

RobinDOwens: How much older was she than you?  How many kids did she have?

ChristineDuncan: Eleven years older. Four kids

RobertLayden: Christine, I write only short stories. Each one sort of . . .destablizes me, i.e., I live in it.

ChristineDuncan: Yes!

RobertLayden: How is it to live in a novel?

ChristineDuncan: That is what it's about. Living in a novel can be terrifying.  If you tell the truth.

Netera: Christine, why did you make this novel a mystery?

ChristineDuncan: I wanted to preach. The first couple of books I wrote, I did preach. People don't want that.

RobertLayden: Well, I'm sort of talking about stability of one's personality.

RobinDOwens: How many books have you finished?

ChristineDuncan: I've got three finished.  As to stability? Robert, a good writer writes until he feels it.  You must be good.

RobinDOwens: Nice answer.

ChristineDuncan: No, the truth.

RobertLayden: I'm okay, am always in there imaginatively.

ChristineDuncan: Then your reader will be.

Netera: Why make it a mystery, though?

ChristineDuncan: Because I wanted to entertain, but I needed relief from the very real pain of battered women--a puzzle.

Netera: Why not a fictional account?

ChristineDuncan: I think some people could do that. But I wanted to make it real and yet give a break to the reader. All of this is fictional.

Netera: Tell us about Kay Berreano.

ChristineDuncan: Kaye is a strong woman. The woman I want to be when I grow up. But she deals with the same stuff we all do. Kids, money problems, a love life crisis, she does it all. It was important to me that she not be superwoman.

RobinDOwens: How is she associated with the shelter?

ChristineDuncan: She's a counselor.

RobertLayden: Christine, when you reread something you read yesterday are you ever surprised at what a character says?

ChristineDuncan: All the time. My characters take over. Then my critique groups complain that it doesn't relate to the synopsis. I never know who does it until I get there. The murderer is never who I think it is.

RobertLayden: Really, you don't plot it out?

ChristineDuncan: I try.  But I always veer away.

RobertLayden: Works in a short story - I didn't know about a novel.

ChristineDuncan: Plotting works for many people.  I try.  It's not how my mind works I guess.

Netera: When fire breaks out in the shelter, who is assigned to the case, Christine?

ChristineDuncan: The fire causes investigators from the arson squad at Denver PD and the fire department to respond. Kaye is attracted to the police arson investigator. But it's called Safe beginnings for two reasons. Safe is attached to the battered women's movement. And Beginnings is the name of the shelter.

RobertLayden: What about unity? Where's it come from?

ChristineDuncan: As to what you said about unity, Robert, I have to say, I must work on that subconsciously. Clues that I never saw being planted end up being there. I don't say it makes sense. But my characters tell me the story.

Netera: And the name of the investigator? Who does he suspect started the fire and why?

ChristineDuncan: The name of the investigator is Pete Farrell. He does carry over to the next three books (I'm starting book four). He thinks Kaye knows who did it initially, and that she is protecting someone.

Netera: What does Kay try to prove that Farrell's wrong about?

ChristineDuncan: She has no choice.  She only knows who couldn't have done it. He later thinks that the victim must be a suicide. But Kaye was the woman's counselor and she really picked up no sign of that either.

Netera: What do you believe are the strongest elements of your book?

ChristineDuncan: The characters. Kaye is someone you know, I hope, and like

Netera: How do you bring your characters to life?

ChristineDuncan: I try to give them charcteristics of people I know.

Netera: And you still have friends?

ChristineDuncan: LOL! No, I don't model them after people.  I just think of how someone I know might react.


RobinDOwens:  I'm confused about the number of books.

ChristineDuncan: I have three written, one published and one I'm working on.

RobinDOwens: Is Safe Beginnings #1.

ChristineDuncan: Yes, but not the first I ever wrote. Those first two are buried deep, so no one ever finds them.

RobinDOwens: Ok. How many in your series?

ChristineDuncan: There are three written in this series.

cltrvultr: Is the book available in bookstores or just online?

ChristineDuncan: It's available from Wordbeams right now. Soon it will be available from Amazon, and B&N.

RobinDOwens: Is it a print on demand, too, or trade paper back?

ChristineDuncan: It's an e-book.

Netera: And the URL for more info?

ChristineDuncan: http://www.Wordbeams.com/Safe.html

Netera: And how are the orders coming along? And promotion?

ChristineDuncan: The book seems to sell well, I am surprised because with all that's going on...

Netera: reading helps quiet our nerves.

ChristineDuncan: I know that many people read for comfort though and a cozy mystery can help take the mind off lots.

Netera: After listening to the news and going to prayer vigils you need something to calm you down.

RobinDOwens: Have you been having trouble writing?

ChristineDuncan: No.  I can write. It's promotion that's hard.

Netera: People are having trouble focusing.

RobinDOwens: I meant in the last week.

ChristineDuncan: What about you, Robin?

Netera: You need to learn how to network with websites and egroup listserves.

ChristineDuncan: I can write anytime.  It's easier somehow.

RobinDOwens: Awful.  And promo takes a lot of time.

ChristineDuncan: Yes, it does.  And this last couple of weeks, I haven't wanted to. But writing helps.

RobinDOwens: Someone helped stir some ideas in me, so I think tomorrow will be productive. What are you working on now, Chris?

ChristineDuncan: I'm working (this week) on something more dark than my usual. I think it will end by being short--I hope so.

RobinDOwens: Will this piece be part of your book?

ChristineDuncan: No, this piece is...exorcism.

Netera: What made you write about that, Christine? I know quite a few people in the world who are possessed.

ChristineDuncan: I'm just trying to work through all the stuff conjured up this past couple of weeks.

RobinDOwens: Lord knows how it will affect everyone's writing. What do you plan on doing with this piece?

ChristineDuncan: I think it affected our mindsets, as well as the writing.  Nothing is quite the same.

Netera: Everyone thank you for giving it your all in getting here tonight. Christine and I really appreciate it.

Netera: My last question, what do you enjoy writing more: setting, characterization or dialogue?

ChristineDuncan: Dialogue. My characters won't shut up. They talk to me in the middle of the night.

Netera: I have that happen, too. Maybe I can introduce mine to yours and they'll leave us alone.

ChristineDuncan: But then what will we write?

pjp2001: Chris, what do you expect from people you have made human? LOL...they're like children arent they?  I get saddened when mine move out after book is done. I miss them.

ChristineDuncan: My characters are better behaved than my children.

Netera: We all go through that, funny you should mention that.

Netera: FYI: if all goes well with this chatroom, next week's guest is Phillip Tomasso, from MMA.

ChristineDuncan: I'll be here.  He should be fun. Good night all.

This transcript is the property of GWN Online. It can only be posted on other websites with permission from Netera@aol.com

STUART AUTHOR PAUL MCELROY PENS TREASURE COAST MYSTERY THRILLER

Paul McElroy, president of Charter Industry Services, Inc. announced that his first novel Treasure Coast DECEIT is available. The 320-page novel features several colorful characters and highlights many Treasure Coast communities including Port Salerno, Port Sewell, Stuart, Port St. Lucie, Jupiter, Fort Pierce and even Club Med. These locations and the colorful characters are intertwined in a sinister plot of deception involving drug running, murder, covert military operations, organized crime, the CIA and manatee barbeques. Manatee barbeques? You bet!

What motivated you to write a mystery novel featuring the Treasure Coast?

"I have lived in Martin County for thirteen years. I am intrigued by the history of the area and the unique people that I have met some of whom have become models for my novel's characters."

Who are some of those characters and how do they fit into the plot?

MACK, the male protagonist is a CIA agent working undercover in Chicago investigating the mob's involvement in the illicit narcotics trade. He is fingered as an agent and sent to Stuart under the Federal Witness Protection Program. Mack takes up residence in a cottage perched above a boathouse at Port Sewell Marina. Mack suffers from nightmares and flashbacks of covert operations that took place in Southeast Asia in the early 1960's. But, Veterans Administration doctors tell him that he is suffering from delusions because his military medical file shows no record of combat operations.

TINA, his new "handler" in Stuart, is a feisty red headed assistant state attorney who owns the marina and as he soon learns - his soul. The red headed bombshell torments Mack with the slogan, "Boys are dumb!" Twice divorced Tina is unable to maintain a relationship with a man. She lives in a condo in The Breakers, drives a silver-blue BMW convertible and adheres to the strategy of "tease 'em and release the little ones" when she is out on the town. She spends weekends on her sailboat docked in Port Sewell Marina and likes Absolut vodka martinis. Her salary is a pittance compared to the income from her trust fund. She keeps her job because she enjoys sending bad boys to the slammer.

RAT, a shell-shocked Army tunnel rat, stranded in Stuart by Hurricane Andrew lives on a derelict sailboat anchored off of Shepherd's Park. He uses a vintage VESPA motorbike to collect road kill. His slogan is "Meat is just meat when its cooked. Nobody cares what it is - or was." Rat discovers a previously unknown fish species that lives under the old Roosevelt Bridge and can only be caught on a full moon at dead low tide with chicken necks for bait. He named the fish "cat-snapper" because it has the head of a catfish and the body of a red snapper. McElroy displays a mounted "cat-snapper' on his office wall to prove to doubters and skeptics that the species really does exist in the St. Lucie River.

BEAR, a roly-poly, black-bearded commercial fisherman, flagrantly gill nets mullet in the North Fork of the St. Lucie River in defiance of the net ban. Frustrated by two drug runners in a black speedboat who run over and destroy his gill net three nights in a row he develops a plan to confront them. The night before he executes his trap he is caught red-handed by the Florida Marine Patrol with a dead manatee hidden under the pile of gill nets in his boat. He planned to barbeque on Memorial Day

Are the characters in your book real?

"Of course they are! How could I write about their adventures if I didn't know them? I am honestly humbled that they allow me to enter their world. When I write about their exploits I enter their world and mentally travel into another dimension - much like Alice walking through the looking glass. But, I can't go there just any time that I feel like it - it's their world and they decide when I can safely enter it. They must invite me to enter only when they are ready."

What inspires you to develop situations and write dialogue between the characters?

"First, I cross over the reality fence and enter the characters' time and space dimension. I must confess that I utilize props many of which are on loan from the characters. Rat's fluorescent orange helmet, with the long purple ostrich plume, sits on the top shelf of my bookcase and a painting of Rat seated on his blue VESPA motorbike hangs on the wall. A scale drawing and floor plan of Mack's cottage and boat house is taped to the wall next to the computer printer. All of the characters are here right now and begging me to enter their world and tell their story."

What do you mean they are here right now?

"Rat is tugging on my pant leg asking me to go cat-snapper fishing under the old Roosevelt Bridge - it's a full moon and a dead low tide tonight. I can hear Tina's faint pleas for help coming from the back of an antique shop on Colorado Avenue. Mack is frantically struggling with his emotional terrors trying to find his way through a labyrinth of nightmares and confrontations with his veiled past."

McElroy invites prospective readers to look for TREASURE COAST DECEIT in local bookstores in the near future. In closing he added, "Come with me, step through my looking glass and enter the dimension of TREASURE COAST DECEIT and the world of Mack, Tina, Rat and Bear."

For a sample chapter of TREASURE COAST DECEIT via email contact McElroy at his web site www.TreasureCoastMysteries.com or email him at MTALLPAUL@aol.com.