ABOUT THE BOOK
A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT by Marlene M. Bell
Category: Adult Fiction (18 +), 368 pages
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Ewephoric Publishing
Release date: October 2024
Content Rating: G. No profanity or intimate situations
Celebrity chef Laura Harris dwells on the horror of finding her mentor’s body in the groundskeeper’s disheveled bed—pillow and bedding half covering her open eyes—purple bruising around her mouth. A grisly snapshot in time revealing the Texas woman’s last moments during her attack. The elderly matriarch from the small town of Stenburg has left the physical world, and Laura is shattered.
She is catapulted headlong into the pursuit of a casual executioner, one bold enough to come and go from the crime scene with ease, dropping bizarre crumb trails designed to mock the deceased. But Laura herself doesn’t go unnoticed. As she digs deeper, she is followed and bombarded by warnings to leave the state.
When the victim’s attorney informs Laura that she’s to inherit the entire Stenburg fortune, the last act of kindness has made Laura the main person of interest in the investigation.
Message by message, Laura is methodically taunted by someone so deranged and driven they’ll do whatever it takes to dislodge Laura from Texas – permanently.
This is the perfect book for mystery lovers! There are intriguing characters, multiple twists and turns, and questions until the end! Laura's elderly friend had changed her will shortly before she was murdered, and guess who the new beneficiary was? Laura's new inheritance offered the perfect motive! Would she succeed in proving her innocence?
Marlene M. Bell is a very talented author! Her fast-paced story kept me turning the pages, and I was also impressed with her amazing descriptive powers. I could see the Texas countryside covered with wildflowers, taste the savory food prepared by a renowned chef, and smell the spicy scent of the cologne once worn by Laura's mother. I also felt the strong attraction between Laura and Brent. Hopefully, there will be more books that will explore their romantic relationship!
I received a copy of this book from the author via iRead Book Tours. I was never required to write a positive review. These are my own thoughts.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT
The Challenges of writing a mystery series
When I began to write fiction, I started with the idea to author a single romance novel. Within a couple of years pounding out the first draft, I realized the twists and turns in a crime mystery felt right for my abilities more than romance, so I stayed with a genre I could excel in. My characters’ romantic relationship was too difficult to keep in line as authentic, so I kept their relationship more to the backseat while concentrating on a whole host of villains causing havoc with the mains in the series. I truly enjoy writing villains…
Mystery manuscripts do have their challenges, especially if the writer sits in front of a blank screen and hasn’t outlined where the story begins, its middle, and the ending. That’s how I started my international mystery series; flying by the seat of my pants without a plan in my head. This caused the story to develop at least five different subplots—taking the focus away from the main plot and my protagonist’s goal in the book. I hadn’t defined the central plot as supporting characters steered the story in every direction. Theirs, not my main character’s. I’d allowed the secondary players to take over the book! It’s clear to me now, but at the time, I had no clue how to write fiction and which genre best suited my writing style. I love using red herrings and challenging the reader to work out who the killer might be. A murder mystery/crime-based series is where I eventually settled in the early years of my writing career.
A mystery should be mysterious and stay that way. An inciting event occurs in the first chapter where most of the book is spent on finding the perpetrator of a crime, murder, or mystery in general. Learning from the mistakes of my first novel, I outline each new book on 3x5 cards in general chapter notes to keep my focus from wandering. I want to make the killer seem cagey and not easy to spot among the other characters in each novel. Most times, I enjoy writing each character in a way that any of them could be the murderer. If I can fool my developmental editor from uncovering the villain, I’m on the right track with readers. A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT had my editor stumped.
Keeping the reader in angst as they work out the puzzle will have them returning for future books because mystery fans love that challenge. Have you ever read a book and figured out who had committed the crime by the novel’s midpoint? I have, too. Telling myself the writer couldn’t have made it that easy to spot. Could they? Unfortunately, some do.
HERE'S THE MYSTERY CHECKLIST I use while outlining a new story:
1. Make the story more interesting by using all five senses when describing events and places visited. (Describing smells in one of my favorites.)
2. Plan each character’s possible motive to make them a credible suspect.
3. Give each suspect a list of quirks where they stand out from the others.
4. Add in questionable people that a reader will love to hate. (At least in the beginning.)
5. Make the novel plausible and not too outlandish in deeds or personalities. Unless you’re after humor in the story. (Harlan Coben comes to mind.)
6. Toss in red herrings, throwing off the reader’s calculations while taking them in a different direction.
7. End the novel on a satisfactory note for the reader.
8. Tie up all loose ends and leave no questions unanswered after THE END.
9. If possible, bring in a pet to help with the investigation occasionally but never, ever, kill off any pets!
Lastly, if I’ve created a love interest for my main character, have that relationship end in a happily ever after scenario. If I can carry out all of the above in every series installment, or standalone, then I’ve written the best mystery with the reader in mind.
Thank you for the opportunity to talk to your readers, Connie!
Enjoy A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT!
Mystery at a killing pace
Marlene M. Bell has never met a sheep she didn’t like. As a personal touch, her fans often find these wooly creatures visiting her international romantic suspense, thriller, and cozy mystery books as characters or subject matter.
Marlene’s multi-award-winning Annalisse series boasts numerous Best Mystery honors for all installments including the newest IP Best Regional Australia/New Zealand, and Global Gold Award for the fourth cozy mystery from down under.
connect with the author: website ~X ~ facebook ~ instagram ~ goodreads
Connie, thank you for your nice review and for joining the iRead Tour for A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT! I'm so glad you enjoyed the romp through East Texas.
ReplyDeleteThank you
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a great read. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSounds really good.
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