Anyone murder mystery reader who love to linger in vintage clothing stores will love

BURNING HEARTS.

Now in paperback. http://tiny.cc/vlu1vw

Can a sheltered young seamstress, disillusioned by the horrors of WWII, escape an arsonist/murderer who has killed her employer and mentor, while trying to decide if she can trust the dashing war hero who’s ridden into town on his Harley—who some say is the murderer?

Excerpt:

Chapter One

Long Island, New York

September 1946

Erica Brogna hurried down Hill Street, eager to sketch her new design, a forest green taffeta dress with a swirling skirt for a twenty-fifth wedding anniversary — her first significant assignment. She paused to inhale the salt scent on the ocean breeze, and her gaze lingered on a copse of red, rust, and gold maples near Ada’s house and dress shop.

She smiled, pulling her cardigan tight around her, and dropped the newspaper Poppa asked her to bring to her mentor and employer. She retrieved the paper and saw Bess Truman smiling as she entered Walter Reed Army Hospital. With the war over, the First Lady visited broken soldiers in long-term care. Erica slapped the paper closed before rage and depression overtook her. So many boys had not come home.

Chin jutted out, she smoothed the pleats of her skirt and marched toward Ada’s house.

She’d think on pleasant things and hand the paper over without a fuss as she did every morning.

Nothing would ruin this day.

She climbed Ada’s wooden front steps and opened the door.

Smoke filled the living room Ada had turned into a fabric shop. Erica waved a hand in front of tearing eyes. Gray vapors, like swirling fog, partially obscured bolts of fabric stacked against the opposite wall.

“Ada! Ada, answer me please.” Dropping the newspaper, Erica rushed toward the stairs, trampling Bess Truman’s image. “Ada can you hear me?”

Coughing, she grabbed on to the cutting table in the middle of the room, steadied herself, and reached for the phone — no dial tone. Perhaps the fire melted the line.

She yanked the collar of her blouse over her nose and mouth against the smoke. The stairs loomed before her, seeming as impossible to scale as Mount Everest. She lunged forward, gripping the baluster, and thrust herself up two steps. Since Ada wasn’t outside, she had to be upstairs.

As Erica climbed, the smoke thickened and swirled around her. It was darker with each step.

One hand clasped the rail and pulled, and she advanced a few more steps. Heat blasted against her skin from above, and soft crackling sounds drew her gaze to the upstairs landing.

Squinting into the smoke, she lost her grip on the banister, missed the next step, and fell backward tumbling to the bottom.

The back of her head smacked against the baluster, and wooziness followed sharp pain.

She tried to stand but couldn’t get her bearings.

Will triumphed over ability. She hoisted herself, ignoring the dull throb at the back of her skull. Her palms stung, the skin scraped off during her fall. She took a deep breath, and a coughing fit seized her. Shallow breaths were the better alternative.

Planting her penny loafer on the bottom step, Erica began her climb again, shaken but with new resolve. If she could reach the top of the stairs, she could also make it to Ada’s bedroom.

Halfway up, the scratches on her palms pulsated as the temperature rose. So did her knees — must’ve scraped those, too. The pungent smoke shrouding her darkened, and grit clung to her skin. She couldn’t see the banister or the top of the stairs and each breath took effort.

Poppa’s lectures on fire drills flashed into mind — stay low in a fire to get fresh air. She dropped to her knees and crawled, ignoring her pain. A sickening smell made her stomach lurch.

Inch by inch she crept, now three quarters of the way up. Hot, putrid air assaulted her windpipe, and she doubled over, her insides trembling.

Heaving herself forward, she maneuvered up one more step, but the smoke pushed back, choking her. She sobbed, knowing she couldn’t make it to Ada, and scrambled down, hoping she could find help.

As everyone knows, the United States military is so bad arsed that when they wake up in the morning and their feet hit the floor Satan and his minions tremble, saying, “Oh, sh*t, they’re awake.”

After all, it’s a well known saying and popularly held belief that God Himself anointed the American military to take care of things He needed a few strong hands on the ground for. Our politicians have not always lived up to that edict from above, but our soldiers and sailors have.

We’ve all seen the photos that rip your heart out of the wives of fallen soldiers hugging tombstones, clinging to  the casket before burial. We’ve seen the confused and frightened look of toddlers, the resolute gaze of tweens and teens determined to support their bereft mothers. And it’s broken our hearts.

We’ve seen veterans with missing limbs honoring their fallen comrades in arms and it’s brought tears to our eyes.

Yes, by all means, we do gather with family and friends for picnics, barbeques, and family feasts. Grandmothers wip up their menus that are tried and true family favorites. Dads show their prowess at the grill. This is all as it should be. We celebrate living.

We are a nation that can do both with gusto. Remember and honor our dead and at the same time revel in life.

Father God, look down on our nation. Send your Holy Spirit to our land to guide us in your will and your way. Amen, in Jesus name.

But then AMC uncancelled it and I can’t contain my glee.

The audience became hugely upset when at the end of the first season Rosie Larson’s killer was not revealed. When the producers assured the killer would be revealed by the end of the second season, many testy viewers didn’t return. With poor ratings, the show was cancelled.

However there was enough interest on many fronts and the show is coming back. In its third season, the show will depart from the coattails of its Danish predecessor Forbrydelsen. The third season will be entirely an American crime fiction tale. The producers have announced characters who have built up a loyal viewer following will continue on their journey. It will still be rainy and deadly. For the new season, a serial killer preying on homeless street kids is on the lose in show’s Seattle.

The new season will air Sunday, June 2nd on AMC at 8/7 central. Crime fiction enthusiasts, be there or be square.

Our news reports are filled with stories of mass shootings, kidnap and the vilest rape imaginable. I can’t help wondering, with great pain in my heart, how the surviving victims of these awful crimes can face Mother’s Day. How can the survivors?

Although recent statistics show, amazingly, that violent crime and homicides are actually decreasing and are at a five-year low, those stats are cold comfort to those who have suffered at the hands of a violent criminal.

As the justice system swings into gear and punishes the criminal, we think, well that ought to bring the survivors some relief. Often it does not. In today’s world, if the crime is ratings worthy, the media will replay the footage over and over. This can often make things emotionally more difficult for survivors.

On holidays and especially on Mother’s Day, victims may experience feelings of extreme loss. The more recent the crime, survivors may experience anger, rage, or even numbness, shock, and confusion. These feelings are not normally associated with Mother’s Day, but they are exceedingly normal to victims of violent crimes. If we know an individual who is a victim of a violent crime, we must allow them the freedom to authentically feel what they truly feel on this emotionally charged day. That is not to say we can’t try to bring some warmth and love into the day. We should do that. Sometimes what is helpful is simply helping victims maintain a normal day-to-day routine. Maintaining the mundane can offer some relief and calm fears. So, it might be more appropriate not to make such a big deal out of Mother’s Day, but rather to just be there as a loved one or friend on this particular holiday and simply to assist in maintaining a sense of normalcy.

The Christian response is always to pray. Indeed, do pray for the crime victim and even for the perpetrator. Pray that the crime victim will one day be able to forgive. Forgiveness brings great release. As Christians we want to let the precious ones who have been the victims of crime know of the great healing and peace of Christ, but pushing this on the person who has experienced a horrific crime will probably not be at all helpful and may be extremely hurtful. The best thing for Christians to do is let the crime  victim see Christ through our loving attitude and actions. And of course, pray, pray, pray.

What I love about this story is it’s reminiscent of a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys type mystery, but updated….very now.

So Let’s find out what it’s all about…

Margaret McWhorter enjoys a laid-back Freshman year in high school flirting with Jimmy Willmore, swimming and hanging out with friends—until that day. Her brother, Sean, suffers a stroke from taking a steroid. Now he’s lying unconscious in a hospital. Margaret’s angry at her dad for pushing Sean to be a great quarterback, but a fire of hatred burns inside her to make the criminals pay. Looking for justice, she takes Jimmy and her best friend, Emily, through a twisted, drug-filled sub-culture. A clue sends them deep into the woods behind the school where they overhear drug dealers discuss Sean. Time and time again they walk a treacherous path and come face to face with danger. Even the cop on the case can’t stop them from investigating. All the while Margaret really wants to cure Sean, heal the hate inside, and open her heart to love.

This novel fascinates me and I couldn’t help but ask Gail a few questions…

Nike: What motivated you to write about illegal drug use?

Gail: When I thought of all the problems teens face today, illegal drugs struck me as being one of the biggest. I also wanted to write a mystery and to have the main characters participate in sports. One of the reasons teens give for taking steroids is to make them bigger and stronger to enhance athletic performance. That gives them an advantage they can use to win or be the best.

Nike: Is the story based on a true life experience?

Gail: The sports part is. We’re a sports oriented family. The steroid part isn’t. The theme of the book—we don’t have to be number one for God to love us rattled around in my head for a long time. When I was in college a girl there tried to commit suicide because her grades weren’t as good as she or someone thought they should be. The pain she must have felt gnawed at me. Sadly, later I saw several more lives destroyed over situations in which people couldn’t achieve number one status, or could no longer be the best. After I married, had a child and began to work closely with children, I saw a big difference in those who believed they should do their best as opposed to those who were driven to be better than everyone else. The premise of having to be number one and steroid use fit well into a book involving sports and mystery.

Purchase Links:

Amazon. http://tiny.cc/lxssww

Smashwords. http://tiny.cc/pyssww

Front Porch Romance. http://tiny.cc/rzssww

All Romance Books. http://tiny.cc/40ssww

Award-winning author Gail Pallotta’s a wife, Mom, swimmer and bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends and family. She’s been a Sunday school teacher, a swim-team coordinator and an after-school literary instructor. A former regional writer of the year for American Christian Writers Association, she won Clash of the Titles in 2010. Some of her published articles appear in anthologies while two are in museums. Readers can find her on the internet on the staff of Clash of the Titles, http://www.clashofthetitles.blogspot.com and at her blog, http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com. Her Web Site is http://www.gailpallotta.com