Perks
Perks: Every job
has at least one. Even trash collectors get first dibs at the garbage people
throw out. Since WWK has some new
contributors, I thought I would mention some of the things I have gained from blogging here.
I enjoyed writing
reviews of excellent books in my blog. I wanted to identify books worth reading
for readers. Also, It’s been a great way to find books for me. For example, I got to
review Leslie Budewitz’s Books, Crooks
and Counselor, winner of the 2011 Agatha award for best non-fiction of the
year. And now I have an essential
reference for anyone wanting to write about legal matters. Leslie is
informative and actually funny.
How many legal tomes make readers laugh out loud? Her publisher was kind
enough to offer another book for review, Editor-Proof
your Writing, by Don McNair, which offers the distilled wisdom of the
author’s years of experience with writing and editing. It is thoughtful and
relevant.
I was able to get
an ARC of Hank Phillippi Ryan’s The Other
Woman before its publication date.
That book won the Mary Higgins Clark award in 2013. I’m enthusiastic about the book and I
want to read its sequel.
I wrote one of the
first reviews of Michelle Black’s Séance
in Sepia, which was a finalist for the 2012 WILLA literary award. It was
fun to see other people find the book and realize what a truly special work it
is. It recently became available
as an audio book.
I’ve been
privileged to write about both of Suzanne Adair’s Michael Stoddard American
Revolution Thrillers, Regulated for
Murder and A Hostage to Heritage. I am an American History buff. Her series is fast-paced,
well-researched and, even though I’ve read many mysteries, the author offers
surprising twists and turns I do not expect.
A promising newcomer
to mysteries (assuming you don’t count her multiple award-winning books of
poetry and her cookbook) is Linda Rodriguez whose initial offering, Every Last Secret, won the Malice
Domestic First Traditional Novel Competition and had been nominated for a number
of other awards. One reason, of
many, I liked first novel was what it did not have. You know that moment in so many novels when the heroine,
knowing the killer is at large and after her, walks into the dark room/parking
garage/apartment lobby for no reason other than the author wants her too? You won’t find that in Every Last Secret. The author’s cop acts like a cop. I advise you to get in
on the series now. Her second book
in the series, Every Broken Trust, is
now out. It looks to be every bit
as enticing as her earlier work.
It has truly been a
pleasure to work with all of the authors mentioned above. I look forward to meeting more authors over time,
That's one of the reasons I love to interview authors, Warren. I read books. When I love them, I seek out the author to ask questions. Although I want to inform readers, interviewing authors has taught me about writing, and by asking questions, I've learned from them.
ReplyDeleteIt's a reason I like to read reviews, too, Warren. I always look forward to reading yours. I already knew I wanted to read Linda's second book, but you gave me some others I'd like to try, too.
ReplyDeleteWith so many books and so little time, we all lean on book reviewers to help us decide which books to choose. Thanks, Warren!
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