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Terry Ambrose

Writing is like a good barbecue sauce, if it ain't bold, it ain't worth doing.

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You are here: Home / Archives for paranormal

paranormal

Review of Doggone It by Maggie Toussaint

October 20, 2016 By Terry 1 Comment

Doggone It by Maggie ToussaintFrom the publisher

Dreamwalker Baxley Powell can’t remember the last time she had such a crappy weekend. A twilight encounter with a ghost dog left her numb and disoriented, her dreamwalker abilities are wiped out, and the sheriff just summoned her to a double homicide.

With no access to the spirit world, Baxley bluffs her way through the crime scene where a movie star’s assistant and a charter boat captain were strung up and bled dry. In a haunted house, no less. Figuring out who killed these people will be a real challenge without her ability to speak to the dead.

Just when Baxley thinks her powers are returning, her dreamwalks malfunction. With the sheriff pushing her to solve the case quickly, Baxley teams up with a dognapping medium to boost her powers.

Suspects include Bee’s good-for-nothing brother, the assistant’s replacement, and, of course, his stalker. All of Sinclair County is on edge, and the media circus isn’t helping. At stake are the movie’s funding, the sheriff’s job, and Baxley’s senses.
Can Baxley safeguard her abilities and solve the case before the killer strikes again?
Haunted houses, lost pirate treasure, conniving in-laws, supernatural baddies, and a determined ghost dog test amateur sleuth Baxley Powell’s mettle in Book 3 of Toussaint’s Dreamwalker Series.

My review of Doggone It

Ready for a walk on the paranormal side? Toussaint’s third foray into the wild world of the paranormal. It is filled with ups and downs, touching emotion, and high tension.
The dialogue between the characters is believable. In fact, enough so that I found myself becoming irritated with the demanding sheriff as he pushed Baxley into difficult situations when she obviously wasn’t ready.

The writing in “Doggone It” is direct, and can be sparse at times. There’s little fluff in this paranormal whodunnit with the irrepressible Baxley and her band of paranormal supporters.

Filed Under: One Step Ahead - Featured, Reviews Tagged With: book review, mystery, paranormal

A Ghostly Demise author likes her mysteries light

October 8, 2015 By Terry 11 Comments

Tonya Kappes - A Ghostly DemiseUSA Today bestselling author Tonya Kappes has a new release in her Ghostly Southern Mysteries series, A Ghostly Demise. When it comes to the paranormal, there are two distinct camps: believers and nonbelievers. Kappes is a believer and discusses how her own experiences help her to write this funny mystery series.

“I wrote my Ghostly Southern Mystery Series for readers to get lost in a good mystery with some laughs along the way,” Kappes said. “I don’t want them to think so hard they are exhausted after reading. I want them to have a good time trying to solve the murder. I want them to know they can sit down, read a couple of pages of one of my books where they will giggle, get a mystery and get lost from their day-to-day grind.”

But, murder is only one part of the equation for Kappes. Her other ingredients for A Ghostly Demise included ghosts and laughs. Kappes said, “I have a girlfriend who’s family owns and operates a funeral home. Some of their stories were not only fascinating, but also hilarious. I began to play the what if game. What if I had a sleuth who was an undertaker? What if the mystery had to do with who killed her client? What if the client couldn’t cross over until the sleuth helped solve their murder? It all fell into place and I was off and writing.”

When Kappes decided to write about the life of an undertaker, she decided to learn more about the job. “I had to do research on what a day in the life of an undertaker looked like. I definitely learned a lot and so glad I’m a writer and not the undertaker.”

Some people don’t believe in spirits or ghosts, but I do. First hand, I experienced a ghost in my 100-year-old home.

Kappes is from a small town in central Kentucky where she said there were some unusual people. “I loved incorporating some of those quirky characteristics to make the town itself come to life in the series. I think the town is as much of a character as the main sleuth. I use a lot of southern charm because it’s what I know. I think it layers the story and pulls the reader into the plot, leaving them wanting to come back to Sleepy Hollow and the gang in the Ghostly Southern Mystery Series.”

Not only did Kappes learn about undertakers, but unwittingly took up residence with a ghost. “Some people don’t believe in spirits or ghosts, but I do. First hand, I experienced a ghost in my 100-year-old home. After I bought the home, I quickly made the screened in back porch into a walled office. Immediately things started to go bump in the night. All the water faucets turned on every morning around 3:33 a.m. Items that I use every day would turn up missing, like my hair dryer, clothing iron, camera and would show up in my kitchen cabinets on the dishes I use every day.

“My dogs would turn their heads and watch something in the air as they wagged their tails. After much research and talking to the elderly in the historic neighborhood, I discovered that a young girl lived in the home in the early 1900s and had special needs. She loved the back porch and looking out into the wooded area behind the house. She lived with me for five years.”

Double Trouble Contest Code: #GhostlyFun

Kappes said she wasn’t bothered by living with the ghost, but ran into problems when it was time to move. “I had decided to move into another historic home in the area and put my house up for sale. Houses in this area sell in hours. I had contract after contract fall through and three months later the house was still on the market. I sought professional help in the paranormal area and was informed that Martha Meyers—my young ghost—loved my family and wouldn’t let us sell.”

“I found out where Martha was buried and ‘took’ her back to her grave and let her know we were selling the house and she needed to rest in peace. My house sold two hours after I got back from the graveyard. My story was even featured on Fox’s Darkness Radio with paranormal ghost hunter and member of Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures Dave Schrader. It was a lot of fun.”

Learn more about Tonya Kappas, A Ghostly Demise, or other books in the Southern Ghostly Mystery series on her website at tonyakappes.com.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, One Step Ahead - Featured Tagged With: cozy mystery, paranormal

Behind the story with Lisa Wiedmeier

December 7, 2013 By Terry 2 Comments

Cheyenne by Lisa WiedmeierLisa Wiedmeier, the author of four novels, said she never considered herself to be a writer. During this interview, the author who describes herself as “taming the wilderness of her imagination one story at a time,” discussed what encouraged her to write the Timeless Series. “[It’s] about overcoming obstacles, holding strong and fighting the good fight without giving up. Becoming the person you were meant to be.”

Wiedmeier discovered that meant she should become a writer despite several challenges. “English wasn’t my strongest subject in school. I’m dyslexic; even speaking clearly at times can be a challenge. But, I’ve made up for it in other places. My mind is like a playground where I roam freely, my special world to make and break anything to my heart’s content.”

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The ability to explore imaginary worlds allows Wiedmeier to look everywhere for inspiration. She said, “A lot of things inspire me to write, my surroundings, new faces, or in this case rings. The Timeless Series came about because of two simple rings. I looked deeper and saw a story emerging. I took what was unique and twisted it into a tale of mystery, romance and adventure.”

While her stories are pure fiction, Wiedmeier describes herself as “real.” She likes conversing on social media and her blog to create relationships with her fans. She also doesn’t use a pen name to write. “I write under my own name, my real name,” she said. “I know, I should have probably chosen something easier to spell like Lisa Lynn, not to mention easier to find, but I wanted Wiedmeier on my books. I wanted to make my husband proud that I slapped his last name on there. Of course, now he tells me I shouldn’t have, go figure.”

“I want to connect with the people who read my work. I want to get to know them, to develop a relationship with them. I want to be their friend.” She quipped, “Okay, in reality I want them to be my friend, but who’s taking sides? I have days where I write a whole forty-five words, and it sucks, big time. I’m just as real as the next person. From time to time I need words of encouragement and need that cheering section telling me I’m not that bad, that I don’t really suck all the time.”

Her cheering section is there because Wiedmeier’s fans connect with her characters. “When I write, the emotions pour out, the laughter, the crying, the heartache…those are my personal feelings in my work that I share with you. I cry when my characters cry. I’m lonely when they’re lonely. I’m at my end when they’re at their end. They’re all a part of me, the real me, and I think that’s why my fans love the characters so much. They can connect with them as I do, and I love that.”

The latest book in the Timeless Series is “Cheyenne.” Wiedmeier’s description of the book is concise, “Murder, romance, secrets, hidden pasts and deception from every angle, but who’s telling the truth?” In the book, Cheyenne Wilson’s life is thrown into turmoil after her adoptive parents are killed in an accident. Cheyenne is a Timeless, a being that ages one year for every hundred human years, once they reach their twenties. She’s part of a royal bloodline. Destined to gain great power, but walled in by danger and with few she can trust, Cheyenne must come to terms with her true identity and choose between a forbidden love or destiny.

How did Wiedmeier discover she was meant to be a writer? “Prior to 2009, I’d never written more than checks for my bills. I hadn’t picked up a book in over twenty years to read for enjoyment because I didn’t have time. I was too busy doing other things…like raising my children, growing my business, and life in general. Then suddenly I hit a brick wall. Everything I held near and dear to me didn’t matter anymore. My husband saw it coming and told me to slow down, but I didn’t. I’m a do-er, always have been. You can’t ask a do-er to slow down because it’s not in their DNA.”

It was during that time Wiedmeier realized she had a desire to write. She said, “I found a passion, a drive that had been kept in the dark for many years. My writing passion is here to stay, and I hope to produce many more books for readers to enjoy. I am currently working on the fourth novel and will continue with the series as long as the fans desire it.”

More information

Learn more about Lisa Wiedmeier on her website at www.lisawiedmeier.com, where you can also find links to her Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest accounts.

Filed Under: Author Interviews Tagged With: interview, paranormal, romance

San Diego paranormal author pits dark vs. light in new series

November 2, 2013 By Terry 2 Comments

Hot HolidayLinda Thomas-Sundstrom is an award-winning author of both light and dark paranormal romance and urban fantasy. For this interview the teacher-by-day/writer-by-night talked about her new series and why she loves writing it. Thomas-Sundstrom said, “I write paranormal romance for Harlequin’s Nocturne imprint, both full novels and novellas, and love that, but I also wanted to get back to my urban fantasy roots in between book releases from Nocturne. Some friends and I decided to turn out a new fantasy series of novellas, and mine were born. These are not short stories, but novelettes, and the fast pacing of the novella format is what I love best.”

The second novelette in the series, “Hot Holiday,” was released on Nov. 1. In “Hot Holiday,” the Dark Side has put out a hit on Santa Claus and sent their secret weapon, a Recruiter named Wanda, to seal the deal. But Wanda might not be fully prepared for Santa’s hot, heavenly bodyguard. With a lead-in like that, one has to wonder where the idea for a hit on the man in the red suit came from—and how he got a bodyguard. Thomas-Sundstrom said, “I’m fascinated with the concept of darkness, and our fear of things that go bump in the night. I write about those things in most of my books. For this series, I was driven to explore not only the blatant differences between dark and light, good and evil, black and white, but the grey ground in the middle, where both dark and light sometimes have to touch down and then deal with the discomfort.”

Shaking things up—unsettling both sides—is what Thomas-Sundstrom says she wants to do. She might have accomplished her goal. She added, “My new series is titled ‘Dark vs. Light,’ and the Urban Fantasy genre gives me the freedom to twist this grey zone any way I want to. Not heavy stuff, but slightly quirky. ‘Trapped in Stone’ was the first release, in September, and November 1 was the release date for ‘Hot Holiday.’”

As a writer with a day job, Thomas-Sundstrom has the tricky task of keeping her life in balance even as she strives to unsettle both the dark and light sides of the universe. When asked how she did it, she said, “I barely do [smiling]. But, I am getting better at juggling, though. I teach at two colleges, have a family, volunteer in my community, face really tight deadlines, and care for what amounts to a ranch in the country. All of which I am profoundly grateful for. By remembering how grateful I am, and managing my time as best I can, the balance seems to work most of the time. Plus, there just is no time left in this schedule to even consider a nervous breakdown.”

More information

“Hot Holiday is delightfully entertaining all the way through . . . enchanting . . . with potent scorching desire and unique characters that are unquestionably Linda Thomas-Sundstrom’s best to date.”— Single Title reviews — Amelia.

Linda Thomas-Sundstrom’s website is at www.lindathomas-sundstrom.com.

Filed Under: Author Interviews Tagged With: interview, paranormal, romance

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