Celebrating Harry Truman and Death on the Menu #bookgiveaway

LUCY BURDETTE: Key West is famous for being the home of the Harry S. Truman Little White House. The president spent a lot of working vacations on our island, and this modest place where he worked and relaxed (playing poker with members of his cabinet and members of the press) couldn't be more appealing. I have a good friend, Bill Averyt who is one of the tour guides at the Little White House and he was immensely helpful. Not only did he give me extra private tours of the backstage areas of the building, he was loaded with plot ideas. Since the new mass market paperback edition of DEATH ON THE MENU hits bookshelves today, and since a lot of us are focused on the next presidential election, I thought it might be fun to have Bill visit with some interesting facts about Harry Truman, with a book as prize for leaving a comment of course!

LUCY:  Harry Truman spent a lot of time in Key West at the Little White House, often with other government figures and the press in attendance. But Bess Truman did not love it, so she often didn't come. (And that didn't seem to bother anyone.) Tell us something about what life was like when Harry was in residence?

Bill: Truman brought down to Key West the officials and the staff members whom he wanted to work with at that time.  It all depended of course on what the problems and the crises of that moment were, but typically the top officials would include people like the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of State, military officials, the Secretary of Defense (the Defense Department was created in the late 1940s; before that time we had a Secretary of War), admirals and generals, plus experts like Clark Clifford.

Truman alternated work and relaxation--usually a brisk walk in the morning and a swim later in the day on "Truman Beach"--this no longer exists, the area is now part of the Fort Zachary Taylor state park.  Truman also frequently held press conferences.  He liked to play tricks on the reporters, grilling them sometimes with trivial questions like the ones he often had to answer, like "what did you have for breakfast" and "have you called your wife today".

Truman wasn't really a fisherman.  Bess was, and he would go out deep sea fishing with her when she visited.

LUCY: One of things I admire about Harry Truman is how he stepped up after becoming president following the death of President Franklin Roosevelt. Maybe no incoming president can really understand what the job will be like until he or she gets there, but some handle it with more grace and wisdom than others. Tell us a little about what he faced and how he handled that after assuming the job?

BILL: Truman had had no substantial foreign policy experience before his assuming the presidency and this was cause for a lot of apprehension when he was sworn in.  After he was sworn in the evening of April 12, 1945, he received his first national security briefing the morning of Friday, April 13--yes, Friday the Thirteenth.  Then, that morning, his security advisors told him of the existence of the atom bomb.  He had no previous knowledge of this.

Truman had to deal quickly with immense questions:  Nazi Germany collapsed in May; Truman met with Stalin and Churchill in Potsdam from mid-July to early August to decide on the occupation policy for Germany and the establishment of governments in the liberated countries of Eastern Europe.  

Just at this moment, scientists in New Mexico successfully tested the first atom bomb.  Truman had to make the momentous decision to use it against Japan, which quickly surrendered after the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.  

In the following months, it became clear that the USSR would install Communist governments in Eastern Europe.  The Cold War was on.  Truman was instrumental in creating the North Atlantic Treaty Organization with our allies.  He obtained Congressional approval for the Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Western Europe.

Truman had to handle many major crises and challenges.  His performance was not flawless.  There were a lot of stumbles in early months and minor embarrassments throughout his administration, such as petty corruption among some of his advisors.  But in retrospect, most historians consider him one of our most capable presidents.

LUCY: And there is a cat on the premises of the Little White House named Barkley. Tell us about that?


Bill: Barkley is the LWH official cat; the guides feed Barkley every day at the back door.  Barkley is named after Truman's vice president (after the 1948 election-there was no Vice President from April 1945 to Jan 1949).  But ... Barkley is a girl cat.  Never mind, this is Key West!

Lucy again: if you have other questions about Truman and the Little White House, we'll try to answer them. But here are a couple of questions I have about this bit of history...Is anyone really prepared to take on the job of president of the US? What characteristics do you think are most important for this job? Can you imagine learning of the atom bomb in your first security briefing???

About the book: Lucy Burdette, Death on the Menu from Crooked Lane Books

Food critic Hayley Snow is thrilled to be working at a three-day international conference at the Harry S. Truman Little White House. But things get off to a bad start when Hemingway’s Nobel prize gold medal (which belongs to Cuba and is on display for this weekend only) disappears. And they only get worse when a body is discovered in the storeroom. Hayley must spring into action before the killer adds another victim to his menu. 

“There’s a lot to love about this series—deft plotting, likable characters, and an ending that always satisfies. But one of the things I love the best is how the author transports her readers to Key West with every page, describing real landmarks and restaurants with such realism that I feel I’m actually there. Magical and delicious fun!”—Suspense Magazine

"Fascinating details about the Truman Little White House, Cuban American history and relations, Cuban food, and Hemingway’s years in Key West are woven through this atmospheric cozy."—Booklist

“Burdette’s loving descriptions of food and the appended recipes are an added fillip for readers who enjoy some history and romance with their mysteries.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Tightly plotted, with plenty of island-style red herrings and mouth-watering food-prep descriptions, DEATH ON THE MENU is also full of friends helping friends, and the sweetness of love.” –Kingdom Books 

Not only is the mass market edition for this book available now, ebook editions of both DEATH ON THE MENU and A DEADLY FEAST are on sale for $1.99 and 2.99 for a limited time only

What We're Writing #bookgiveaway @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: I have so much going on that I hardly knew what to write today. A DEADLY FEAST (food critic mystery #9) comes out on May 7, the new trade paperback edition of DEATH ON THE MENU comes out today (it's gorgeous, I can't help saying,) and yesterday I sent a completed manuscript for the happiness book to my agent. Whew! (As for how book ten in the series is coming along, don't even ask.)

With eight books published in the Key West series, soon to be nine, Miss Gloria has become the character I probably hear most about. At first I envisioned her as an old lady living on houseboat row. I needed her as a throwaway character who would get bashed on the head and propel the plot along. Here, I’m a little embarrassed to admit, is Miss Gloria in the first book, AN APPETITE FOR MURDER. Hayley is a murder suspect in a case of poisoned key lime pie and is living up the dock from Miss Gloria. This is Hayley talking:

Two boats in along the wooden finger and more often than not one season ahead of the rest of the world, Miss Gloria had strung Christmas lights on her porch. They winked a cheerful welcome. She was watching the news in her living room, one eye on the dock. I waved and called hello through the screen.

“Your place looks fantastic,” I told her.

She smiled modestly and ducked down to stroke her feline, a slim black cat named Sparky. “How’s Evinrude settling in?”

“He’ll never be a sailor,” I said with a laugh, “but we’re surviving.” Then, since Miss Gloria hardly ever left her boat, it occurred to me to wonder if she’d be able to vouch for me with the police. I hopped over onto her porch, her boat rocking almost imperceptibly under the change in weight. “Did you happen to notice that I was here this morning working?”

“This morning?” she asked, looking puzzled. “I don’t know, were you? That nice young policeman came by, though. He’s got such a strong chin.”

“I know,” I said glumly. Her touch of dee-mentia, as she called it, wasn’t going to help me in this situation.

Only as the books evolved, it became clear to me and everyone else that Miss Gloria Does Not Have Dementia. Reviewer Phil Jason had this to say about her in DEATH ON THE MENU (from the FLORIDA WEEKLY):  "Miss Gloria is also a comic character, an older woman who doesn’t take her limitations seriously and becomes a kind of role model for senior citizens."

I love that so much! So here she is in the ninth book, A DEADLY FEAST:

Miss Gloria had been clucking and exclaiming during the whole phone conversation. It was hard to tell who was in trouble and in what way, but I’d hear soon enough.

She hung up and ran her fingers through her white hair until it stood up in little whipped-cream peaks. “You’re not going to believe this one,” she said.

“Do tell.” I grinned. She’d tell me anyway, even if I didn’t ask.

 “You know how I’m supposed to cover the nine thirty–to– eleven thirty shift tomorrow at the Friends of the Library book sale, right?” The Friends of the Library organization raises funds to support the Key West Library, and Miss Gloria was a stalwart volunteer.

“Right,” I said. “You and Mrs. Dubisson sit at the front table near the bake sale and sample all the cookies. You’ve got the winning record for selling canvas Friends’ totes and hard-cover mysteries to customers who thought they were done shopping.”

She looked delighted. She loves when people pay attention to what she’s told them—and honestly, who doesn’t? “That’s it. But now, Marsha—she’s the president of the Friends’ board of directors—called, and they’re desperate for help setting up at seven thirty am because the stomach flu appears to have felled half our volunteer force.” She shook her head. “Old folks. Sometimes they are just too fragile to rely on.”

I looked up from my phone to see if she was kidding. People who don’t know my roommate well tend to dismiss her as a frail elderly woman. Before Miss Gloria roared into my life with more energy than most of my peers, I would have thought that too. Now she was positively vibrating and grinning like a monkey.

LUCY AGAIN: In order to celebrate everything going on, I would love to give away a copy of the new paperback of DEATH ON THE MENU. You will be entered if you leave a comment (and your email, which will help me find you!) What book characters have become role models for you?

Read more about Lucy and the Key West mysteries on her website, or Facebook, or Instagram, or Bookbub...


The winner of a copy of CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR is Flora Church. Flora, please email Hallie (Hallie “at” HallieEphron dot com) with your mailing address.

Happy Valentine's Day and a #giveaway @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: It’s Valentine’s Day and T-bone and I would like to celebrate the day with you by giving away an advance review copy of A DEADLY FEAST. 

Now comes a spoiler alert! If you haven’t read DEATH ON THE MENU and don’t want to know what's happening with Hayley Snow's love life, you can skip over the rest of this post and go directly to leave a comment for the drawing. 

For the rest of you…

Yep, it’s official, Hayley is getting married. (Or we hope she is anyway, she has some rocky moments to get through first.) As with many of us, she kissed some frogs before she found her prince. And to be honest, it took some forthright reader comments before I realized that her last boyfriend was a dud of a match. D-U-D, as my sister-in-law used to say.

My John could tell you that I was even worse than poor Hayley at recognizing that the best guy was right in front of me! Here’s a picture of those early days after we met playing tennis.

Gosh we were babies! I have a special warm place in my heart for Valentine’s Day, because that’s when John proposed with a very cute poem. I won’t bore you with with all the verses, but it ended something like: “Honey bunny don’t leave me in the lurch, let’s go do it in the church!"

 Even with exactly the right man in my sights, I had a few freak-outs along the road to destiny with true love. Hayley is nervously nutty too. "Til death do us part" is kind of a scary notion, don't you think? I'll leave you with a little snippet of Hayley’s spinning bride mind from A DEADLY FEAST. She's finished a food tour run by her friend Analise, and is observing the other customers...  

Once I’d finished writing down my thoughts and filling in some notes from the other stops on the tour, I scrolled through all those scribbles, trying to settle on what my angle would be for this piece. When nothing brilliant came to mind, I relaxed for a couple minutes, observing my fellow diners.

The group consisted of one couple, plus another man and woman who hadn’t said much to each other or the rest of us, so I assumed they were unrelated. Or if they had come together, maybe things had gone super-sour between them, and now they weren’t speaking to each other. That was my nervous bride-mind talking. Based on their tans and casual clothing, I guessed them to be local residents.

The couple did not pass the test that my roommate and I used to amuse ourselves back in college: Do these two people “go together” and how did they meet? Both perhaps in their late 40s, the woman was dressed in slightly upscale tourist attire, linen capris and a flowing white shirt, while the man wore a black leather vest, chains on his belt, boots with multiple zippers, and well worn jeans with holes at the knees that any stylish teen might have drooled over. He had a dark beard and sunglasses. Physically, they were not a match. But I guessed from the wedding rings that they were married, and from the way they held hands and shared food, that they were devoted to each other. Maybe her more than him. And that brought my next thought—was it better to be the adored, or the adoring? These kinds of observations were especially interesting to me these days, with my marriage to Nathan approaching quickly. 

And now for the giveaway: Leave a comment, are you a fan of Valentine’s Day or not so much? And tell us why if you're willing...

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A DEADLY FEAST will be published in May by Crooked Lane Books, but you can certainly pre-order it now! Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Indiebound, or wherever you like to buy your books…

And the winner of Rhys Bowen's new book is Sally from PA. Email her at RhysBowen at comcast dot net with your address!

And the winner of TRUST ME is: Well, Hank says: Too hard to pick a cat name! So THREE winners, because you are all fabulous: Kay, Rickie (for Trusty) and Andrea. Email Hank me at hryan at whdh dot com and I will send you TRUST ME!
(And you will be the first to know what I choose--a or when the kitty tells me what SHE chooses...)

Jungle Reds books under your tree?

HALLIE EPHRON: Just in case Santa brought you a gift card and you're wondering what to get, here's a few of the latest books from the Jungle Reds to fill your now empty stocking.

Jenn McKinlay

HITTING THE BOOKS

It's murder by the book in the latest hit Library Lover's mystery. When a stack of library materials is found at the scene of a hit and run, library director Lindsey Norris finds herself dragged into the investigation as the police try to link the driver of the stolen car to the person who borrowed the books.

Rhys Bowen

THE VICTORY GARDEN

As the Great War continues to take its toll, headstrong twenty-one-year-old Emily Bryce is determined to contribute to the war effort. She is convinced by a cheeky and handsome Australian pilot that she can do more, and it is not long before she falls in love with him and accepts his proposal of marriage. When he is sent back to the front, Emily volunteers as a “land girl,” tending to the neglected grounds of a large Devonshire estate. It’s here that Emily discovers the long-forgotten journals of a medicine woman…

Deborah Crombie

GARDEN OF LAMENTATIONS

On a beautiful morning in mid-May, the body of a young woman is found in one of Notting Hill’s private gardens. To passersby, the pretty girl in the white dress looks as if she’s sleeping. But Reagan Keating has been murdered... #17 Duncan Kincaid & Jemma James mystery

Hank Phillippi Ryan

TRUST ME

Hank’s first standalone. An accused killer insists she's innocent of a heinous murder. A grieving journalist surfaces from the wreckage of her shattered life. Their unlikely alliance leads to a dangerous cat and mouse game that will leave you breathless.

Julia Spencer Fleming

THROUGH THE EVIL DAYS
Friday, January 9th. A middle-of-the-night call wakes Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson and her husband, Police Chief Russ van Alstyne: a farmhouse has erupted in flames, killing the couple sleeping indoors. A tragedy for the Adirondack mountain town of Millers Kill.
But a darker, more evil current quickly emerges…

Lucy Burdette

DEATH ON THE MENU

The latest Key West Food Critic mystery. Food critic Hayley Snow is thrilled to be working at a three-day international conference at the Harry S. Truman Little White House. But things get off to a bad start when Hemingway’s Nobel prize gold medal (which belongs to Cuba and is on display for this weekend only) disappears. And they only get worse when a body is discovered in the storeroom. Hayley must spring into action before the killer adds another victim to his menu.

Hallie Ephron

YOU’LL NEVER KNOW, DEAR

Lissie Woodham was only seven years old when her little sister Janey disappeared. They had been in the front yard, playing with their dolls, custom creations made for them by their mother Miss Sorrel, a famous dollmaker. Lissie wandered off for a moment. When she returned to the yard, Janey was gone, and so was her doll. Forty years later, the doll comes back.

Happy Day After Christmas!! AKA Enjoy Leftovers Day.

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The Peak of Summer

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: If August is the top of the ferris wheel of summer, this week is the very tip, the moment before the wheel begins to fall back to earth. It's the arc of a baseball just before it descends into the waiting glove, the three-scoops cone about to start dripping onto your hand - but not yet, not yet.

For those of us in the civilized regions of the country, it's still two weeks before the school buses call us all to duty - three before Labor Day puts the final coda on the summer of '18. Its the perfect time to assess what you've done and, more importantly, what you want to do before the first cool breezes of September start to blow.

For me, I've done more traveling than I planned this summer, some celebratory (being there for the Jungle Reds appearance at Brookline Booksmith) some fun (time with extended family in the mountains of Vermont) and some sad (My mother's death and funeral.) I've cooked less than in previous years, giving away a lot of my wonderful CSA produce. I've read more, however, and had many lovely lunches and dinners with friends.

What's left on my summer bucket list? More open-faced tomato sandwiches. Fresh-picked corn from the local farmstand. The last concert of the Portland Chamber Music Festival, this coming Saturday. I went to this past Saturday's performance and it was amazing! So I'm very much looking forward to the evening.

We usually see several Shakespearean plays each summer, but with the sad demise of Maine Shakespeare, its been more difficult this year. Instead, Youngest and the Smithie and I are going to see a family favorite, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, at the Lakewood Theater on the shores of Wessenrunsett Lake in north-central Maine. 

The big event for me isn't very summery - it will be moving Youngest into her dorm at the University of Maine (Orono) at the end of the month. So I guess I'm looking forward to lots of runs to Target and Bed Bath & Beyond to buy dorm stuff.

Afterwards, however, one of my bffs and I will celebrate with our annual visit to Old Orchard Beach, Maine's largest white-sand sea shore. When our kids were little, we would park our butts in our chairs and watch them run in and out of the surf. This time around, instead of packing  a picnic for seven, we'll have grown-up snacks and Mojitos - made from Lucy's recipe, of course! - in the cooler.

How about you, Reds? What are you trying to get done on these last days of summer? 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Ah, ah, ah. I have to write five million blogs and articles about Trust Me. Do seventy five billion interviews about Trust Me. FINISH A WHOLE NEW BOOK. Plan a launch party, confirm a book tour, have the launch party (you're invited! August 28 at Brookline Booksmith!)  Keep up on social media. Sleep, see my husband, remember to go outside, remember to do laundry, think every single solitary minute about whether people will love TRUST ME. 

It got a starred review from Booklist, YAY! Which called it "A knockout." So, that's good. And Library Journal says: It's sure to be a late-summer hit! So, yay.
So no lazy-hazy says for me. Just crazy! But TRUST ME, wonderful. Now, back to writing A WHOLE NEW BOOK!

JULIA: Okay, so we're crossing you off the "Lazy haze of summer" list and putting you on the "New York Times Bestseller" list.

INGRID THOFT: Where did the summer go?  I feel so old saying that, but it’s true.  I feel like I’m just getting in the summer groove, only to have it end in a few weeks.  So what are my plans for the remaining days?  I have a lot of writing to do, particularly because September is full of travel, which always translates into less productivity.  I have some niggling errands to run: the cobblers for a pair of shoes, the tailor for the lining of a purse that has become a black hole, and Goodwill to donate various items that need a new home.  We also have some events on the social calendar including a cookout we’re hosting on the 39th floor roof deck of our building, and a Tuscan-themed dinner our friends are cooking.  There aren’t many weeks left, but there’s a lot to look forward to!

JULIA: I have to mention that August has been very good to Ingrid so far - her novel DUPLICITY is a finalist in the fiction category of the Washington State Book Awards!

LUCY BURDETTE: I knew the summer would be hectic and it certainly has been! Book launched, family hosted, friends seen, family reunion, golf played, and of course you know about losing my precious Tonka. All that said, there is more good stuff I need to cram in. We have a dear niece coming to CT with her little kids--will want to see plenty of her. I have a number of events still planned--are you near CT? Hope to see you at one of them. Our garden is bursting so I'm *hoping* to get some pickles made etc. And I want to play more golf because I'm playing well for the first time in several years and it's so much fun when that happens. And reading--I want to read and read and read! Rhys's new book and Hank's and Jenn's, just to name a few. Oh, and write a little too???

HALLIE EPHRON: Summer has been super hectic for me, too. I've been at Yale teaching at their annual summer writing conference, in Oregon teaching at Willamette Writer, in Sacramento giving a writing workshop for their Sisters in Crime chapter, and just back from NYC presenting at the Writer's Digest NYC Conference. I love my life!  In NY I got to see my kids and 2 grandbabies who live in Brooklyn. 

THREE more weeks of summer and I plan to enjoy doing nothing. I have some writing to do, but mostly I shall eat lobster (they're so cheap this year), eat local peaches, take walks, slow down and sit out in my backyard. And I have Rhys's FOUR FUNERALS AND MAYBE A WEDDING and Lucy's DEATH ON THE MENU to read, so life is good.

JULIA: Yes! They're on my nightstand right now!


JENN MCKINLAY: The Hooligans go back to school during the first week of August (no idea why they do that in AZ - we all hate it) so summer is pretty much over for us. Wah! Now it's school, homework, activities, go, go, go. *Sob*

JULIA: That is just wrong, Jenn. So very wrong.
 
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Only three more weeks??? I would say, YAY, only three more weeks, if I didn't have so much writing to do. We are so over summer here. We always are here in Texas by August, but after our record-breaking heat in July we are just dreaming about cooler weather. The bucket garden is pretty shriveled, although we may get some fall tomatoes. We certainly didn't get any summer ones--it was too hot. We did have a good peach season but that's finished as of this last weekend. I'm just back from my one August trip/event, so nothing on the calendar for me except writing until Bouchercon! 

JULIA: How about you, dear readers? What are your plans for the last days of summer?

HURRAY for our Faux Hemingway Contestants

LUCY BURDETTE: FOUR FUNERALS AND MAYBE A WEDDING and DEATH ON THE MENU are launched, thanks to so many friends, readers, and fans! We had a mini-reunion of Reds at the Brookline Booksmith and a fabulous second event at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison CT. 

And now for the faux Hemingway contest--you made us howl with glee and appreciation!

Marla Bradeen:

"A Meowable Feast"

He was a six-toed cat who had now gone three hours with nary a bite. He was thin and getting thinner. He could feel his fur losing its luster, his orange stripes fading. Everything about him was getting dull.

Except his eyes. They were the color of an elusive marlin swimming at sea, and allowed him to see in the dark of night.

"Meow," he said. He touched his human's face with six, cramped toes.

His human grunted and turned away, dragging the pillow over his head.

The cat sat and waited. He would try again, because cats are not made for defeat. Perhaps next time he would use his claws. But he knew his human wouldn't wake until the bell tolled at daylight. He had learned long ago that when the sun rises, the human also rises. This time of year the days were short, and the nights stretched long.

His stomach rumbled. He was now almost into the fourth hour of starvation.

Some days nine lives seemed like a blessing. Other days, like a curse.

Ann Mason

I am into plagiarism this morning, so here comes my bad Hemingway discovery, courtesy of Norman Lessing, who made me laugh:

"The Snow Spiraled Down Like Dandruff
The snow spiraled down like dandruff, flaking the head and shoulders of hatless Angelenos. It was
strange weather for L.A.—especially strange for August. The man came into Harry’s Bar & American
Grill. He shook snowy pearls from his matted hairpiece. The woman wore leather pants. She twisted
around on her stool. It made a noise like stepping on a frog.
She looked at the man, oddly. “Dandruff?”
“Nay, but my name is Robert Jordan.” He spoke in the pure dialect of bullrings the world over. “I know
naught of a sucker called Druff”….
He spat an oyster at the spittoon. It missed. The shiny opalescence put him in mind of the eye of a
slaughtered bull, left overlong in the sun. “And what of the girl,” he said, “the close-cropped one?”
“Nay, but the earth moved for her twice more, Ingles. Then it stopped.”
“It is a matter of small wonderment. After forty-two years.”
Norman Lessing

Margaret Turkevich

Fish thrashed in the farm pond. Big fish. Hybrid blue gills. A large hand surfaced. Bigger than a fish. Blue gills all over it.
“Seen the new fish guy? Wonder if the blue gills got him. They bite on anything.”

Flora Church

Madeleine lay under the mosquito netting and watched the smoke of her cigarette curl away, each puff more languid than the last, the spirals spelling out a message of 'more'. More what, she wondered? Coffee? Cheetohs? The man (she thought of him as The man now, the last of the whiskey flaming in the fire burning away whatever had been left, the tatters of her feelings for him). The man was out in the bush again, his gun bigger than his ego, after the lion which had roared in the night, challenging him to bring his gun and new khaki shirt, his polished boots—not that he had ever done the polishing—his beaters and yes the whole damned camp to chase forever across the endless veldt in search of the one thing he could never reclaim. His soul? Or so he said. Madeleine snorted, stubbed out her cigarette and threw back the netting. For Gawd’s sake, he was a dentist from New Jersey, with too much money and no—none at all—common sense. She hoped the lion ate him.

AJ Pompano, with apologies to…

A Clean, Not-So-Well-Lighted Place
It was very late and everyone had left the Truman House except a young food critic who stood in the shadows the boxes of the storeroom made against the electric light. In the evening the house was busy with diplomats. But now the police had removed the body and the young girl wanted to get her own take on what had happened because she was curious and now at night it was quiet and she felt the difference.
Her mother still in the kitchen had catered the event. She knew that the young critic was about to get in over her head. And while she was a good daughter she knew that if the girl became too involved there would be more death on the menu. 

Rhys Bowen

It was hot in the plaza. damned hot
"Rodrigo" said the old man. "My son, come with me."
"I ?" Said the youth.
"thou," said the old man. " today we face our destiny in the sun and the blood and the sweat. Today is the day we stuff the olives."

Coralee Hicks

The old woman was thin and guant with wrinkles on the tips of her fingers from the wash water. Everything about her was old except for the soap that stood pristine near the wash board. She was an old woman who washed alone and had gone eighty four days without a shirt,
the first 40 days the girl had been with her but after 40 days her parents told her she was unlucky. It made the girl sad to see each day the laundry hung without a shirt and she always went down to hand close pins. The laundry hung unfurled moving in the sodden plodding wind.

Donamae Kutska

A good and fine weapon senor, who is its maker? The barman reached for the gun but it recoiled when it growled at him. 

Pat D

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He sauntered in. He sat. He stared. He stared at me. He slowly blinked. And stared. He groaned. Four o'clock. Dinnertime for the dog.

Amanda LeRougetel



And our winner is Marla Bradeen for A MEOWABLE FEAST!! Please email me lucyburdette at gmail dot com with your snail mail address and we'll get those books in the mail!