Tag Archive for: Brianna Sullivan Mysteries

Mind Over Murder

/in /by

By Evelyn David

Frank Herbert, the science fiction author, once said,
“Without change, something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens. The
sleeper must awaken.” 

While the two halves of Evelyn David aren’t moving into
writing sci-fi, we did make a conscious decision to try, for our newest
project, something entirely different. It’s not that we don’t love Mac Sullivan
and gang, and adore Brianna Sullivan and her whole crew in Lottawatah. And of
course, we are positively cuckoo crazy about Whiskey and Leon, our
canine stars. 

We even started a new Mac-Rachel story, and we’ll get back
to it, but about a third of the way through we hit the proverbial brick wall.
The Southern half sent the Northern half, the first two chapters of a book we’d
begun a few years ago. Bingo! We started writing, like a house on fire (or in
this case, two houses afire). The scenes unfolded so fast that we could barely
keep up. 

New characters, new setting. What has stayed the same is our
love affair with mysteries – and this one is a doozy. MIND OVER MURDER will
thrill you, chill you, delight you. As always, there’s a healthy dollop of
humor, because, well, that’s us. There’s also a terrific romance because we’re
suckers for a good love story. 

Nothing bad ever happens in Seamont, New York,
a quiet village 20 miles outside The Big Apple. Nothing, except for the brutal
murders five years earlier of Lee and Vera Chang. But the local police made a
quick arrest and life returned to suburban normal in Seamont. Except Valentine
Zalmanzig Cohen knows differently. She knows, without a shadow of doubt, that Alex
Fletcher, the man sentenced to life in prison, didn’t kill the Changs. Val is a
psychic. But the local cops don’t want anything to mess up their slam-dunk
case. 

Five years later, when the Bermans, a middle-aged couple who
had just bought the Chang house are also brutally murdered, the police come
knocking at Val’s door. Is it a copycat killer? Has Fletcher hired a hit man to
mimic the crime so he can appeal his own conviction? Or is there a serial murderer
loose in quiet Seamont?  

Val doesn’t want to relive the gruesome murder scenes that
cloud her mind, but she wants to stop this killer once and for all. Things go
from bad to worse after a brutal attempt on her life results in the loss of her
psychic abilities. Val discovers that when all is said and done, she has to
rely on her wits to save herself before the killer strikes again.  

Evelyn David and Valentine Zalmanzig Cohen invite you to find
out whodunnit and why in this
spine-tingling, roller coaster of a ride, new mystery. 

MIND OVER MURDER will be available for sale in late June.
Thanks for all your continuing support and encouragement. You make it possible
for us to take on new challenges. 

Marian and Rhonda, the collective Evelyn David
—————

Evelyn David’s Mysteries 

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Fireworks – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Leaving Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)
Book 3 – Lottawatah Fireworks (includes the 8th, 9th, and 10th Brianna e-books)
Book 4 – Leaving Lottawatah (includes the 11th Brianna e-book and some special features.)

Sullivan Investigations Mystery series
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords


EVELYN DAVID AUDIOBOOKS 

I TRY NOT TO DRIVE PAST CEMETERIES
THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER IN LOTTAWATAH
THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT(S) OF LOTTAWATAH
UNDYING LOVE IN LOTTAWATAH
 
 
A HAUNTING IN LOTTAWATAH
MURDER OFF THE BOOKS
 
 
MURDER DOUBLES BACK

Odds and Ends

/in /by

by Rhonda – the Southern Half of Evelyn David

Let’s catch up.

Amazing that it’s already February. Time is just
rushing by for me. The past twelve months have been so busy at both my day job,
my writing job, and my home life. I’m having a little trouble keeping up.  

In Oklahoma it’s been cold, cold, cold. Single
digits temperatures and multiple snow events. You’d think the outside weather
would inspire me to do some serious writing, but instead I just want to curl up
with a blanket, a cup of hot tea, and a good book. At heart I’m a reader first,
writer second. I’m very late to the party, but I just read Outlander by Diana
Gabaldon. I enjoyed it very much and I’ve purchased the sequel Dragonfly in Amber,
but have not had a chance to start it. 

While my favorite tv shows (Major Crimes and The
Black List) are either on hiatus or done for the season, I’ve become a big fan
of Netflix and my Roku. I’ve finished several British series – Waking the Dead,
Calling the Midwife, The Bletchley Circle, Island at War and a rewatch of Foyle’s
War. I’m working on MI-5. I think there are about 80 episodes of that series,
so it will take me awhile. Looking forward to new episodes of House of Cards,
produced in house by Netflix. 

Anyone watching the Winter Olympics? I’m planning
to watch the ice skating and maybe some of the snowboarding events. Have to
admit that I’m not as invested in watching as I was twenty years ago. Maybe I
just kept up with the athletes more. My co-author’s son, sports reporter Sam Borden, is in Russia covering the events. His blog about his adventure is very engaging. He’s almost as good a writer as his mother. I recommend you check it out.  

On the home front this past year there have been
roof repairs, new hot water heater, new washing machine and a few other things
I’ve put off doing/replacing. If I don’t get a new mattress soon, I’m going to
permanently cripple myself. Speaking of which, there is good news – not on the new
mattress quest but on the maiming myself point. Thursday night I thought I
broke my little toe on my left foot again, stubbed it against the corner of a
dresser, but now I think it’s just a bad bruise or sprain??? Any way my painful
limp has made way to cautious but mostly pain-free walking now.  

I did accomplish something this month. My 93-year-young
aunt has written a book about her life growing up in the 1930s rural Indiana.
I’ve formatted and published it for her. It’s her first book! It’s available in
both Kindle and trade paperback formats –The Laughing and the Weeping by Bettie
B. Dossett. Her delight in the physical act of holding the trade paperback version
reminded me of how I felt when Evelyn David’s first book, Murder Off the Books
was published. There is a certain special joy that is indescribable.  

The collective “Evelyn David” has been occupied getting our Brianna Sullivan Mysteries published in audiobook format. The
first four are available now at Audible (through Amazon) and iTunes. Our
wonderful narrator, Wendy Tremont King, has provided a delightful voice to
psychic Brianna Sullivan. The fifth book, A Haunting in Lottawatah, will be out
as an audiobook in the next month or two. Can’t wait for that one! Should work out really well in audio format.

Speaking of ebooks – I heard a news report about that 25% of readers now have access to ereaders or tablets. Amazing! Also there is something new coming – sound tracks for ebooks. Not someone reading the book for you, but a sound track! Music, sound effects, etc. Not sure if I’m ready for that. Although for our haunted house book – creaking stairs, rattling chains….

——————–

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Fireworks – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

AUDIOBOOKS
I TRY NOT TO DRIVE PAST CEMETERIES

THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER IN
LOTTAWATAH

THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT(S) OF
LOTTAWATAH

UNDYING LOVE IN LOTTAWATAH


The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)
Book 3 – Lottawatah Fireworks (includes the 8th, 9th, and 10th Brianna e-books)

Sullivan Investigations Mystery series
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords


Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

Happy Labor Day from Evelyn David

/in /by
 
 
 

Enjoy the Holiday!   

 
From a funeral home make-up artist, to a small town reporter, to a psychic doing ghostly social work,
our characters work hard for their money.
Check out our mysteries – available in 
e-book, trade paperback, and now two in audiobook formats!
 

Audible    iTunes

Audible    iTunes

 

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Fireworks – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)
Book 3 – Lottawatah Fireworks (includes the 8th, 9th, and 10th Brianna e-books)

Sullivan Investigations Mystery series
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords


Zoned for Murder – stand-alone mystery
Kindle
Nook
Smashwords
Trade Paperback


Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

Lottawatah Fireworks!

/in /by
 
We are proud to announce the publication of the 10th Brianna Sullivan Mystery, Lottawatah Fireworks. A novella-length story, Lottawatah
Fireworks continues the spooky, yet funny saga of reluctant psychic Brianna
Sullivan, who planned to travel the country in her motor home looking for
adventure, but unexpectedly ended up in Lottawatah, a small town in Oklahoma.

In Lottawatah Fireworks, Brianna’s fiancé
surprises her by buying a ramshackle hunting lodge, ready to call it home. The
cabin comes complete with no plumbing, no electricity, and the ghost of a
recent murder victim. It’s up to Brianna to find the truth of who killed the
man and why. In the process, the bonds of friends and family are sorely tested.
Visit Lottawatah for mysteries, love, laughter, romance and all the ghosts you
can shake a stick at.

Excerpt from Lottawatah Fireworks:
 
“You’re gonna love it.” 
That was at least the tenth time he’d said that
and I didn’t believe him anymore than I had the first nine times. 
I wish I could have had more faith in his
reassurances, but I was too pissed at Cooper to do much more than grunt at his
enthusiastic tour guide spiel. Yesterday, while I was off in the wilds with his
mother and great aunt, Cooper had bought an adjoining plot of land where he
proposed to build our dream home. He had bought this land, forty godforsaken
acres, sight unseen by me. Bought this land despite the fact that, as my old
next door neighbor Molly Goldstein, who I think was 120, used to say, it was in
Yenavelte. Mrs. Goldstein spoke Yiddish, made the best Matzoh Ball soup in the
world, or at least in all of Chicago, and most of all, understood that nobody
wanted to live in Yenavelte, the middle of nowhere, most of all not me, her
little Brianna, who was such a Shaineh Maidel, pretty girl. 
I loved Mrs. Goldstein. Cooper Jackson, not so
much. 
He kept repeating how much I was going to love the
location (I repeat Yenavelte); enjoy the large pond full of catfish (yeah
right); delight in the acres where we could run some cattle. I actually laughed
out loud at the last one. Only thing I knew about cows is they made cow patties
and I had stepped in one on a visit to a friend of Cooper’s. The smell alone
was enough to make me a vegetarian. I’d had to throw out the shoes. 
He was still talking. “Those blackberry
bushes that my Great Aunt likes so much….” He took one hand off the
wheel and turned me sideways. “They’re just about 5 miles that way as the
crow flies.” 
“Wonderful.” It was clear he didn’t have
a clue about what I wanted. I thought we’d end up in a nice little bungalow in
Lottawatah proper, if there is such a thing as a proper Lottawatah. Or a lake
lot if we could afford it. Jack Fulsom had offered us a deal on one of the lots
in his development by Lake Eufaula. And instead, Rest in Peace Mrs. Goldstein,
I was in Yenavelte. So what if he’d spent summers with his
genetically-challenged second cousins just down the road.  
After traveling the same dirt road that I’d been
on yesterday, Cooper made a sharp right just before we got to the place Sassy
had parked the Cadillac for the berry picking expedition. He stopped and got
out of the truck, unhooking the gate of a barbed-wire fence.  
We bounced along a well-worn dirt track for about
two miles when Cooper pulled up in front of a large, rambling shack, and I’m
using that term very lightly. It did have four walls, but the front door was
hanging off the hinges, no window had any glass panes, and the piece de
resistance was the antlers hanging above the entry. Welcome Home. 
Cooper bounded out of the truck like a little kid
about to enter the Magic Kingdom. 
“Brianna, old man Barnicle…you know the guy
who owns the gunsmith shop in town?” 
“No.” I didn’t have a clue who he was
talking about. And didn’t really care. 
“Barnicle’s Gun Repair. It’s a block down
from Tiny’s. Has an old ship’s cannon by the door. Puts a stuffed pirate out
there on top of it at Halloween.” 
“No.” It dawned on me that for some
reason it was important to Cooper that I know where that damn gun shop was.
Like if he could just get me to acknowledge the store, he’d feel free to
continue his explanation of why he’d made such a foolish mistake in buying this
place. 
He stared at me in consternation. “Come on!
You must have seen it. There’s a fruit stand across the street.” 
Wonder if they sold blackberries? I couldn’t stand
any more of this conversation. This insignificant chatter that avoided the main
event; the discussion about why we were in this spot right now. 
“Oh, yeah. That gun shop.” I lied. But
better the sin of a lie than the homicide I was contemplating.  
Cooper smiled, satisfied enough to move on.
“Brianna, old man Barnicle was practically giving this property away. He
used it as a hunting lodge, but his arthritis is getting so bad, he just can’t
handle the upkeep.”  
I think a sound exited my mouth, but I’m not sure.
I couldn’t focus on anything but the fact he’d purchased this place without
talking to me first. 
“What do you think?” 
I’m sure Cooper really didn’t want to know what I
thought. I was still choosing my words when he swept me up and carried me
across the threshold, such as it were. 
And past the threshold? Not good. It wasn’t much
to look at. And what was there was hard to see in the dim light. I glanced
around the main living area. On a positive note the back part of the lodge was
better lit. The sun was peeking through the huge hole in the roof, illuminating
all the trash piled up on the floor.  
My mind slipped past his last question and went
back to his statement about poor arthritic Mr. Barnicle and his reasons for
selling. “Upkeep? What was he keeping up?” 
Cooper somewhat unceremoniously put me down. 
“Use your imagination, Brianna.” His
tone expressed his annoyance with me. “This house isn’t staying. The
land’s what’s important. We’ll knock down the house and build us a new
one.” 
Yeah. Okay. I took a breath. “A new one that
has wood flooring?” 
Cooper grinned. “Not at first.” 
I headed for the door.  
He grabbed me, pulled me close, and gave me a
quick kiss. “I’m kidding, of course, it’s going to have a floor, even
indoor plumbing. Might spring for electricity.” 
“Hey!” I pushed at his chest. “Do I
really look like a country girl to you?” 
He laughed and swung me around. I could almost
catch his enthusiasm. I might even have cracked a smile, except for the young
man sitting on the floor in the corner of the room. He wasn’t nearly as excited
as Cooper about our moving in. Of course, he was dead, and from the looks of
it, had died in that very spot, a big hunting knife sticking out of his gut. 
I could see faint stains on the floor. Blood. The
murder wasn’t that old. The ghost nodded to me and then said quite firmly,
“You’re not welcome here. Get out!” 
Oh goody. No doors, no roof, no toilets, and a
resident angry ghost. Yeah, there’s no place like home.
 
———-

For more read LOTTAWATAH FIREWORKS.

 
Evelyn David
 
 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Fireworks – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)
Book 3 – Lottawatah Fireworks (includes the 8th, 9th, and 10th Brianna e-books)

Zoned for Murder – stand-alone mystery

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

April’s Fools

/in /by
My co-author and I like our mysteries with a side of humor and a small scoop of romance.  In honor of April Fools Day we thought we’d share three favorite scenes from our psychic Brianna Sullivan Mysteries series:

from I TRY NOT TO DRIVE PAST CEMETERIES –

Detective Jackson didn’t introduce himself. I guess he figured that if I was who I said I was, I’d know his name.

He cleared his throat.

I must have missed a question; he seemed to be waiting for an answer. Trying to be cooperative, I gave him one. “Yes.”

Have you noticed that most people prefer “yes” as an answer over “no”? Of course I can imagine instances where that wouldn’t hold true but I think as a general rule …Okay he’s saying something again. Darn, I missed it.

I nodded. “Nods” generally work well too.

He motioned for me to precede him into a small room.

In my particular case I’ve found it’s helpful to do what’s expected. People are wary enough without me smiling inappropriately–or failing to answer a direct question in some fashion. It’s no comfort to them if I explain that I was busy talking to someone else–someone they can’t see.

“Have a seat.” Detective Jackson pasted on a smile. I’m sure it’s the same one he uses for small children and blithering idiots.

I glanced at the chairs, identical to the ones in the lobby. “Must I?”

He paused, caught half-way between standing and sitting. “Huh?”

Less than a minute and I’d screwed up. He’s probably never had anyone refuse to sit–at least not someone who’d asked to meet with him. I could see his eyes change. In my mind I could see him wielding a black felt tip pen; scratching my name across a folder and the word “crazy” appearing in big block letters.

I sat down.

He sat down.

And we began.

from THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER IN LOTTAWATAH

The corndog I’d had for lunch was just a memory by the time I locked up the sales office and got back to my motor home, I was checking out the contents of the refrigerator when Cooper came barging through the door. Apparently we were past the “knocking” stage.

“I’m not fixing you dinner.” My proclamation was met with a patented Cooper smirk.

“Thanks. I appreciate that.” He tossed a cream-colored square down on the counter. “I need a date for a thing this weekend.”

“Did you come by to use my phone? Or do you want me to place an ad for you?” Never pays to be too available. Men take you for granted. Then they don’t take you anywhere.

I pulled a single Lean Cuisine from the freezer, ripped the cardboard off, and stuck it in the microwave.

“It’s my high school reunion. Starts Friday night. A weekend of all you can eat barbeque, football, and beer.”

“Football? It’s 100 degrees outside.”

“The game probably won’t last long.”

“How many years?”

“Not even one – twenty minutes tops before George Willis passes out from heat stroke and the game is called.”

“How many years since you graduated?”

“Twenty. Want to go with me? Jack’s letting us use the old pavilion.”

“Depends.” The microwave dinged. I tested the rice and mystery meat dinner for doneness with my finger–desiccated on the edges and icy in the center. Kind of like my mood. The guy hadn’t even picked up the phone and called me for two days and now he acts like nothing is wrong.

“On what?” He was standing behind me now, his mouth on that spot right behind my ear, his arms wrapped around my waist.

My stomach grumbled. Obviously part of me wanted to give in. If we made up now, there would still be time to go into town and have meatloaf at the diner. Or I could maintain my pride, tell him to go put his boots under someone else’s bed, and leave me to eat my microwaved delicacy in peace.

Easy decision. Meatloaf tonight and I’d worry about my pride next week. Plus I really did want to go to his reunion. What better place to learn a man’s deepest and darkest secrets?

from UNDYING LOVE IN LOTTAWATAH –

Great Aunt MaryEllen dogged me all the way to the Soak & Spin. She … Look, I’m just going to call her Aunt MaryEllen from now on, and you’ll have to remember the great that precedes it when I mention her. Aunt MaryEllen obviously had some unfinished business that had called her back from the great beyond. The problem was before we’d gone more than a dozen yards from Matilda; she’d forgotten her reason for the visit.

Numerous questions later, I had arrived at work without any helpful information beyond the fact Aunt MaryEllen liked gin, cigarettes, and dancing. And fashionable clothes of the best quality. Nice clothes, nothing like I was wearing according to her, well except for the gloves of course. Aunt MaryEllen was not going to be my favorite relative.

“You mentioned someone called Harry Grady? Is he about to show up too?” I tried to remember anything my grandmother might have told me about Aunt MaryEllen. There was something about her leaving home under less than desirable circumstances. People of my grandmother’s generation didn’t speak about certain things–especially to impressionable teens.

“You’re a mite slow, aren’t you dear? You probably get that from your grandmother. As a child poor my poor dear sister was always talking to people who weren’t there.” Aunt MaryEllen crossed her arms over her chest. “Harry Grady is dead.”

“So are you, but here you are.” I wasn’t in the mood to placate the testy old lady. She’d insulted me and my grandmother. Plus my feet were frozen.

I opened the Soak & Spin door. “If you ever remember what you wanted, I’ll be here until 7 pm. If not, well, tell all the family hello from me when you get …” I looked up, then down. I wasn’t sure what direction the old lady came from.

“He broke my heart. Harry broke my heart.”

Leon, Miss Pearl’s elderly bulldog got up from his favorite spot near the dryers. He bared his teeth, then started barking. Not at me, we’d reached a détente a few weeks ago over a box of dog treats. He was barking at Aunt MaryEllen.

“Heart? What?” I glanced back. Aunt MaryEllen looked irritated.

“Are you deaf in addition to being slow? I said he broke my heart!”

Leon barked louder. Apparently he wasn’t deaf.

Distracted, I looked at the furious dog; worried the old guy was going to give himself a heart attack. Miss Pearl, the woman signing my paycheck, doted on that slobbering, incontinent fleabag.

When I turned back to Aunt MaryEllen a few seconds later she was gone.

I sighed, not because she was gone, but because I knew she’d be back.

I didn’t even have to be a psychic to figure that one out.

Rhonda
aka The Southern Half of Evelyn David

P.S. My eye problem has been cured and I’m enjoying normal vision again. Or close to it. Can’t wear my contacts for another two months – but I can deal with glasses that long. Probably. Thanks for all the good wishes.

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Undying Love in Lottawatah

/in /by

 
Love is in the air? Brianna’s not so sure. Celebrate Valentine’s Day with the psychic from Lottawatah. Read an excerpt from UNDYING LOVE IN LOTTAWATAH
 
***
Chapter 1
 
The first valentine I ever received
was from Charlie Riggins in first grade. It read, and I can still quote it in
its entirety. “Roses are red, Violets are blue, I don’t smell, but you
sure do.”

Needless to say the romance was over.
My only regret was that I had given him my genuine fake three dollar bill that
my great-uncle Sy had given me for Christmas that year. Needless to say I wasn’t
too fond of Sy either since even at the age of six, I knew there weren’t any
three dollar bills in circulation.

Anyway, my Momma always told me that
Valentine’s Day was a made-up Hallmark holiday and I shouldn’t get swept up in
the commercialization, yadda, yadda, yadda. To be honest, I often tuned out
when my mother would get on her high horse about these issues. And let’s be
honest, the woman absolutely expected a card and an increasingly expensive
present when the made-up holiday of Mother’s Day popped up every May.

But I was trying to tamp down my
expectations about Valentine’s Day and my main squeeze, Deputy Cooper Jackson.
He’s not what I would call gift-imaginative. My Christmas present had been a
bottle of J Lo’s Miami Glow perfume and I wasn’t sure what the message was
since I immediately remembered that Charlie Riggins had made a comment about my
smell too. Besides this cologne was a mixture of Pink Grapefruit, Coconut
Water, Passion Fruit, Heliotrope, Sheer Amber, Crystal Musk, Vanilla Orchid and
Blonde Woods, so essentially I was going to smell like a fruit bowl. His other
gift was a new toaster oven because he likes English muffins in the morning and
my toaster has two settings, light and burnt.

So like I said, I didn’t have high
hopes for Cupid’s Day. And yet, it was less the pink frilly card that had me
worried and more the deadline I had set for myself., After six months, I was
still hanging around Lottawatah, Oklahoma, and it was time for me to figure out
if I was staying or firing up Matilda, my motor home, and hitting the high
road. I thought I’d make a decision by the first of the new year, but then had
resolutely, pun intended, decided that Valentine’s Day was the drop-dead
deadline for the move it or lose it decision.

I was still muddling over the do I or
don’t I question, when a quick glance at the clock almost made the decision for
me. If I was late for my job at Pearl’s Soak & Spin one more time, I’d be
unemployed and would almost certainly have to hit the road in search of gas and
food money. Lottawatah’s economy, if it ever had one, had crashed long before
the rest of the nation. Jobs, as Miss Pearl had reminded me, didn’t grow on
trees. Although logging wasn’t out of the question if push came to shove.

I grabbed my coat and dug my hands in
the pockets for my gloves, and came up empty. I frantically looked around what
is lovingly called the living room in Matilda (also known as the dining room,
kitchen, and driver’s seat), when I remembered that I’d left them the previous
night at Cooper’s apartment.

Mutt Jeffrey, the gravel-voiced host
of the morning drive show, had already cheerfully informed me that it was going
to be “downright cold” today. Mutt is happiest when the weather is at
its worst. I had to walk a mile into town to get to the Soak & Spin, and
wasn’t looking forward to frozen fingers when I remembered an old pair of
gloves that had belonged to my Great Aunt MaryEllen. They’d been passed down to
my grandmother, MaryEllen’s younger sister. I don’t have many memories of my
grandmother, except she had a gap between her two front teeth and could whistle
loud enough with them to summon a cab from the next county. I’d tossed most of
the old clothes, keeping only a few mementos in an old shoe box. I’d stored the
chocolate brown, elbow-length cashmere gloves in Matilda’s glove compartment. I
had dreams of someday owning a dark mink coat to wear with them.

I pulled them on, flung open the door,
and stepped out into the frigid Oklahoma air. A gust of wind nearly blew me
over.

“Where’s your hat? Your brain’s
gonna freeze.”

I did a full 360 before I caught a
glimpse of her. At first I thought it was Grandma, but ghosts usually appear as
they did at death. Which is why wearing good clothes when you kick the bucket
is always a plus. No this wasn’t Grandma, although she had the same gap-toothed
smile. Guess orthodontia wasn’t a big priority during the Great Depression era,
judging the date from the clothes. This was a woman about 60, wearing a
brown-checked coat, felt cloche hat, and I’m pretty sure, a pair of brown
cashmere gloves.

Crap. Hello ghost of Great Aunt
MaryEllen. She’d died in the early ’80s, hit by a cab while crossing the
street.

“Don’t be getting any dirt on
those gloves. They’re genuine cashmere, you know. Harry Grady brought them to
me from the French Quarter in New Orleans.”

Ghosts don’t seem to be affected by
the cold. MaryEllen was leaning casually against Matilda, looking like she had
all the time in the world for a chat.

“Think you could walk with me.”
I motioned for her to follow. “I’ve got to get to work and I’m betting you
have something you need to tell me.”

Don’t they all? Why on earth, pardon
the pun, was Great Aunt MaryEllen, dead more than 30 years, picking a freezing
winter day, with me late for work, to show up?

My name is Brianna Sullivan. I’m a
psychic. My limited talents include communicating with ghosts, finding lost
objects and people, and an occasional success with water well witching. I’d
never planned on making a career of this woo woo stuff, but a girl’s gotta eat.

 

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

Introducing Brianna Sullivan Mysteries: Books 1-3

/in /by

By Evelyn David

Once upon a time Brianna Sullivan, a reluctant psychic from Chicago, gave up her job as a lost baggage finder at a major airlines and cashed in her savings to buy a motorhome. She named the motorhome, Matilda. Throwing off the burdens and responsbilities of full time employment, she began her journey across the United States, stopping from time to time and doing enough odd jobs to pay for the gasoline that Matilda guzzled like there was no tomorrow. One of her first stops was in the tiny Oklahoma town of Lottawatah where the population of living persons to the number of ghosts walking around was about equal.


Vol. 1 – Brianna arrives in Lottawatah, Oklahoma

After assisting the Lottawatah police in a couple of murder investigations, I TRY NOT TO DRIVE PAST CEMETERIES, Brianna decided to stay awhile and enjoy the small town atmosphere and the small town police detective who’d tweaked her interest. And to be honest, the gas prices had skyrocketed and she couldn’t afford to stay on the road until she earned some serious cash.

Vol. 2 – Brianna attends Cooper’s school reunion

In the second volume of the series, THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER IN LOTTAWATAH, Brianna sweats through an Oklahoma summer, heats up her romance with Detective Cooper Jackson, and finds out where all the bodies are buried (literally) when she attends Cooper’s 20th High School reunion.

Vol. 3 – Brianna meets Cooper’s family and enjoys a Thanksgiving meal with both the living and the dead

Brianna continues her adventures in Lottawatah in the third volume of the series – THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT(S) OF LOTTAWATAH. This book contains two short stories one set during Thanksgiving and the other during Christmas. In the first –  Giving Thanks in Lottawatah – Brianna joins Cooper Jackson’s family for their traditional Thanksgiving meal, complete with relatives long passed over to the other side. The second story – Bah, Humbug in Lottawatah – details how Brianna solves a crime everyone already thought was solved, brings the real killer to justice, and gets an innocent man home in time for Christmas.

 
These mysteries and the others in the Brianna Sullivan Mysteries series are available in ebook or print format. For “buy links” see below. 
 
 
The Brianna Sullivan Mysteries series – 9 books to date. 
 

Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle (exclusive to Amazon this month)
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

For a limited time we are offering a boxed set of E-books
of the first four in the series –

The Ghosts of
Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books

Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Our holiday gift to you – leave a comment on this blog entry before Dec. 16 at midnight Eastern time with a contact email address for a chance to win a trade paperback version of our stand-alone mystery – ZONED FOR MURDER

Creating Lottawatah

/in /by

 
Despite what readers from eastern Oklahoma believe,
Lottawatah, Oklahoma doesn’t exist except in the Brianna Sullivan Mysteries
series. I’ve given several library talks concerning the reluctant psychic stuck
in a small town, adjacent to Lake Eufaula, just south of Interstate Highway
I-40. Everyone thinks they know exactly where it is, some are certain that
they’ve been there.

But, really guys, Lottawatah doesn’t exist. I made
it up. Well, sort of. There is a road named “Lotawatah” (note: we
changed the spelling so we’d have deniability in the case any angry
Lotawatahians showed up, offended and seeking compensation for the pain and
suffering our portrayal of his/her road had allegedly caused.) 

Anyway, the real Lotawatah Road intersects I-40 a
few miles west of the lake. Anyone who has driven I-40 east from Oklahoma City
to Ft. Smith, Arkansas has seen the road sign. I’ve driven by it hundreds of
times. I loved the name, I loved saying the word. And believe me, if an author
loves something, it’s going to show up in a book.

My co-author and I have written nine Brianna
Sullivan Mysteries. The first book in the series, I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries,
had psychic Brianna stopping in Lottawatah for gas and fried pies – not in that
order. A ghost hopped in her motor home, begging for her help with a
kidnapping. Brianna made the mistake of trying to convey that information to
the local police, met the surly but handsome Cooper Jackson, and the rest is
history.

Creating the town of Lottawatah was done one or
two businesses at a time per book. As you leave I-40 and drive into Lottawatah
proper, you’ll pass by Tiny’s Diner.
It’s your typical small town diner; abeit a little more rundown than most.

Good EATS…World Famous Apple P…rust Me. The diner
hadn’t had any glory days, even in its glory days. The linoleum was butt ugly
when it was first installed, maybe 30 years earlier. Flecks of brown on a tan
background. Maybe the idea was to hide the dirt…it wasn’t working. I slid onto
the cracked red vinyl stool at the Formica counter and looked expectantly at
the guy with a stained t-shirt, standing behind the counter.

I ordered a cheeseburger, fries, and a piece of
their world famous pie, then surreptitiously rubbed the grease from the menu on
my jeans. I briefly wondered if they sold wine, but decided that a healthy
glass of Maalox would be the perfect beverage to accompany my dinner.

The next place Brianna visited was the Lottawatah
Police Station.

I shifted on the chair and finished the last stale
peanut in the cellophane bag I’d purchased from the station’s only vending
machine. 10 pm. I’d been waiting more than three hours. Most of the police
force, all 8 of them if you include the secretary and maintenance man, had been
marching in the Fourth of July parade over on Main until about an hour ago. I’d
been stuck with the pregnant staff sergeant whose swollen ankles precluded her
joining the Independence Day celebrations.

Even in a small town, a girl has to go somewhere
to get her roots touched up and find clues about whodunnit. Sheer Artistry
Hair Salon was just the place.

Margo stole a side glance at Sunny, before turning
back to me. “Candy and I had a little chat while she did my nails this
afternoon. She mentioned you’d been asking around about me and Martha. You’re a
smart woman Brianna. Sheer Artistry
is the place to go to find out where all the bodies are buried.” Darn,
Beverly. Between her and Candy, the women were unstoppable gossip machines. The
whole town probably knew my business.

Since Brianna arrived in Lottawatah in her motor
home, she needed somewhere to park it and a part-time job to cover expenses.
She found both at a resort on Lake Eufaula.

Ghost or no ghost. Cooper or no Cooper, it was
time to get to work. I pulled on my uniform, a pair of khaki shorts and a green
polo shirt, with LEC in block letters next to a pine tree and a fish. I
thought it suggested that the area was full of dead fish lying next to trees,
but Jack Fulsom, the owner, testily informed me that I was missing the high
concept nature of the design. High concept my behind! But in exchange for a
free full hookup for Matilda, and a commission for every time-share sale I
made, I was more than willing to sing the praises of this new, promising condo
and cabin lakeside resort. And that meant wearing the cheesy t-shirt. I walked out
of air-conditioned Matilda into air so thick you could chew it. The sales
office was down a pine-canopied path near the water. I might be getting a free
hookup for Matilda, but I wasn’t getting a lake view.

Jobs in Lottawatah don’t last too long. By February,
Brianna was working at a new job and our fictional town of Lottawatah got
another new business.

If I was late for my job at Pearl’s Soak and
Spin one more time, I’d be unemployed and would almost certainly have to
hit the road in search of gas and food money. Lottawatah’s economy, if it ever
had one, had crashed long before the rest of the nation. Jobs, as Miss Pearl
had reminded me, didn’t grow on trees.

Even though Tiny’s Diner was the local
hotspot, every town needs more than one place to eat.

By the time Will Dobson let me answer the phone,
we’d pulled into the local barbeque joint’s parking lot on the edge of
Lottawatah. Actually you could be at one end of town and almost see the city
limits on the opposite side. Will Dobson had decided that we were going to get
on I-40 and head west towards Oklahoma City. The shortest route was right
through Lottawatah.

Will just laughed as I struggled with the dog. He
didn’t notice I snagged my cell phone off the truck floor during the fracas.
Outside, I bent down, like I was going to set the dog on the ground, but
instead I ran, Leon under my arm like a furry football. I managed enough for a
first down before sliding out of bounds under Arnold–the six foot high concrete
pig, beloved mascot and icon of the Pig Palace Barbeque Joint. Will
Dobson got off one shot. Arnold lost his manhood, but Leon and I just kept
sliding until we buried up in a snow bank.

That’s all the time (and word space) that I have
for our short tour of Lottawatah. To learn more, check out the books. Or you
can take that exit off I-40 and see if you can find it. I dare you!
 
Rhonda
aka The Southern Half of Evelyn David
 
 
 

 

 

__________________________________________

 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Trade Paperback (exclusive to Amazon)
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle (exclusive to Amazon this month)
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

TRICK OR TREAT – A HAUNTING IN LOTTAWATAH

/in /by

A HAUNTING IN LOTTAWATAH
by Evelyn David

Excerpt-

It might surprise you to learn that most older houses and public
buildings are haunted by a ghost or two. Or at least that’s been my experience.
Some are just hanging around, doing the same thing repeatedly like a faded
video programmed to play an endless loop. They have no awareness of the living.
Others are very different. They can interact with the living and if they want
to be seen or heard, they’re usually not shy about confronting me – day or
night.

Beverly and I had been in the Foreman house almost two hours and I hadn’t
seen anyone. I was beginning suspect that Ghost Ned wasn’t that “into me”
after all.

The second floor was in slightly better shape than the downstairs. At
least it was marginally cleaner. It had been remodeled sometime in the last 50
years with bathrooms added to each of the five large bedrooms. The living Ned
Foreman had told me the plumbing in the house actually worked. I’m sure we’d
have cause to verify that statement for ourselves before much longer.

A wall for a probable sixth bedroom had been removed and the space now
served as an upstairs sitting area. The removal of the wall also allowed
natural light from the window in the former room to light the landing area.
Beverly and I agreed this would be a good spot to set up camp.

Leon found a spot of fading sunlight on the old wooden floor and caught a
nap. I’d been watching his reactions as we’d toured the house. Except for his
barking after the door in the library had slammed, he’d seemed his normal
placid self. If there were ghosts around, they were of no concern to him so
far.

Beverly and I made multiple trips to the car for our gear, some folding
chairs, and an ice chest. In less than an hour, we were ready. Good thing too,
the sun was starting to set.

Battery-powered lamps created a six foot island of light. Beyond that,
the house was in shadows. Another hour and we wouldn’t be able to see anything
without the lamps and our flashlights.

“These recorders are voice activated, right, if I turn them on?”
Beverly was testing one of the hand held units I’d ordered on line.

I’d just taken a bite of one of the chicken sandwiches from Tiny’s that we’d brought to keep us from
starving to death during our overnight stay in the house. I nodded and
continued chewing.

Beverly began talking into the recorder. “My name is Beverly Heyman.
I’m 29-years-old. I’m a dispatcher for the Lottawatah Police Department. I used
to sing part-time in a country band. I’m married to Mort Heyman. I got married
right out of high school and I have six children. Ashley is 11. Sophia is 9.
Jason and James are 7. Melissa is 3 and Mort the III is almost four months old.
We own two cats, Popcorn and Cupcake. The twins named them after their favorite
things.”

She turned off the recorder. “So the way this works is that I just
play it back and we listen for other voices?”

“According to what I’ve seen on television.” I grinned. “I
haven’t actually needed to use one before. Play it back and let’s listen. Next
time we might have to ask them some questions.”

“Right, sorry.” Beverly smiled. “I was nervous.”

Awake if not alert, Leon ambled over and nudged my knee. I tore off a
piece of my sandwich and handed it to him. He’d had his dinner, but,
apparently, was still peckish. I’d need to take him outside for a short walk
soon. Of course with the length of his legs, all walks were short.

“Let’s hear it.”

“Okay, here goes.” Beverly pressed play and we listened.

“These recorders are voice activated, right, if I turn them on? Why are you here? My name is Beverly
Heyman. I’m 29 years old. I’m a dispatcher for the Lottawatah Police
Department. I used to sing part-time in a country band. Sing? I’m married to Mort Heyman. I got married right out of high
school and I have six children. Ashley is 11. Sophia is 9. Jason and James are
7. Twins? Melissa is 3 and Mort the
III is almost four months old. You
shouldn’t leave your babies. Go home
now. We own two cats, Popcorn and Cupcake. Meow, Meow.  The twins named
them after their favorite things.”

Beverly’s voice was clear. The second voice was scratchy, older, but
clearly also female.

The surprise, to me, was the cat. I knew there were shadow animals, but
hadn’t actually heard one before. I’d have to ask if Georgia had a cat while
she was living.

“Whoa! Who does she think she is?” Beverly’s face turned white.
“Why does she get to have an opinion about how I take care of my kids?”

Beverly was missing the point at the moment, but it
would come to her. We weren’t alone. Ned Foreman wasn’t alone. There was at
least one other ghost in the house.
 

A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle (exclusive to Amazon this month)
The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)
_____________________

 

 

 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Trade Paperback (exclusive to Amazon)
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle (exclusive to Amazon this month)
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

Strange Stuff

/in /by

 

I’m always on the lookout in the news for interesting bits
for our next novel. This week lots of strange stuff showed up on my radar –
most of it would be unbelievable in a work of fiction. Still maybe we’ll find
some way to use it. 

In Tulsa, OK – woman survives being trapped in a home
freezer for 4 days. Details are a little hazy over how she got in there. Police
reports say foul play is not suspected. Most surprising to me is that she had
that much extra room in her freezer. I know if I buy two gallons of ice cream
at the same time, the frozen peas have to be tossed to make space. 

In Rockhill, SC – ex-boyfriend found living in woman’s
attic. And this was twelve years after they broke up. When he got out of prison,
he looked her up. Or rather down – he was sneaking looks at her through the
heating vents. Apparently he just moved into the crawlspace, making a human
nest amongst her winter coats. She heard noises but thought she had
“poltergeist stuff going on” in her house. 
Moral of the story – when things go bump in the night, don’t call a
psychic – call an exterminator. Works equally well for both cockroaches and
ex-boyfriends. 

I don’t know what to say about it – some people just have
too much spare time on their hands. Pretending to be Bigfoot could get you some
attention – I’ll give him that. But pretending to be Bigfoot (although dressed
in a camouflaged costume) and standing in the middle of the highway traffic
means you’re just not playing with enough marbles. Usually that would be enough
of a story – but the reporter goes on to hint at a conspiracy. Maybe someone
paid this idiot in an attempt to get a pseudo- reality television show to film
in their community. See, you really couldn’t use this stuff as a plot in a novel
– readers would never buy it.
 
What’s the strangest story you’ve heard lately? Got any that you think would make a good mystery plot?
 
Rhonda
aka The Southern Half of Evelyn David
 
_____________________

 
 
 
 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Trade Paperback (exclusive to Amazon for 90 days)
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 



Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords