Welcome to the fifteenth edition of
The Write Spot, a bi-weekly author series spotlighting the many and varied
places where writers write.
My guest this week is author Anne
Cleeland, who has generously offered to send a very special prize to one lucky reader of The Write Spot. Read on for details.
Anne
Cleeland is a lifelong Southern California resident, and currently makes her
home in Newport Beach. An attorney by trade, she's been reading mystery and
romantic suspense since her Nancy Drew days, and especially loves Agatha
Christie and the other Golden Age British mystery writers. Her Acton and Doyle mystery series features
two Scotland Yard detectives, and if you're a fan of Masterpiece Mystery, I think you'll enjoy this series.
Anne
also writes historical fiction because she loves historical novels, too. Being
a romantic at heart, all her stories have a strong romantic element.
She
has four grown children, three wonderful grandchildren, and one nutty dog. This is Anne's Write Spot:
Tell us what makes this 'The Write
Spot' for you.
I
love sunlight! I think I'm at my best
when there's a lot of light in the room, so my desk is right against a large
window that gets a lot of morning sun.
I love flowers, too, so I plant some flowers in the stand outside and
change it up, depending on the season. (And note there is a pelican, too.)
Love the pelican! Other than your computer or laptop, what's the
one thing you couldn't be without in your Write Spot?
Here's
my Regency clock. When I'm not writing mysteries, I write historicals set in
the Regency period (early 1800s) and when I was on a trip to London about four
years ago, I walked past a clock shop, and saw this clock in the window. I had
to use my "emergency" credit card to buy it, but it was worth every
penny. I love to think that I have
something that dates all the way back to the era I write about.
What are you working on now?
I
am serializing a historical on my website (for free!) and posting one chapter
per week – I think we're up to chapter 26, now.
It's called The Bengal Bridegift.
Take a look: annecleeland.com.
I
am also finishing up the fifth book in my Scotland Yard mystery series; it's
called Murder in All Honour. Hopefully, soon I will have a publish date
for the fourth book, Murder in
Containment. I've had to change
publishers, and so that's goofed up the schedule. I hear from a lot of
impatient fans – sorry-sorry, everyone!
Where can readers find out more about
you and your books?
Thanks
so much for having me, Cheryl!
My pleasure, Anne. Thank you!
Available now: Anne Cleeland's captivating mystery series, following the perilous exploits of two
Scotland Yard detectives as they track down London's most elusive killer. Giveaway! Anne will send the first three books in the series to one lucky reader of The Write Spot – details below.
First-year
detective Kathleen Doyle and Chief Inspector Michael Sinclair, Lord Acton, are
a most unlikely pair. An Irish redhead of humble beginnings and modest means,
Doyle is the antithesis of Acton, the British lord who has established himself
as a brilliant but enigmatic figure with a knack for solving London's most high
profile homicides. But Acton senses something exceptional beneath Doyle's
awkward naivete and taps her to help him with his investigations. And her
spot-on intuition is just what he needs to solve a chilling string of murders.
When
a horse trainer is found dead at a racetrack, Doyle and Acton begin
interviewing witnesses and the victim's associates, but the killer continues to
strike and they're left with more questions than answers. Their investigation
is further muddled by their colleagues at CID Headquarters, whose career-driven
jealousies and workplace blunders could jeopardize the case – and their nosing
into the nature of Doyle and Acton's after hours relationship could lay bare
the most classified information of all.
Perhaps
the trainer was the target of a jilted lover on a killing spree. Or maybe the
victims were collateral damage in a political coup gone awry. As the murders
pile up, Doyle and Acton uncover something far more sadistic than they could
have imagined, and now that they know too much, they'll find themselves
squarely in the crosshairs of a cold-blooded killer.
Despite
their investigative prowess, Chief Inspector Michael Sinclair, Lord Acton, and
rookie detective Kathleen Doyle stir more than a few feathers at CID
Headquarters when their relationship comes to light. But office politics
quickly become trivial when a rash of underworld murders shatters London's
normally austere facade. With a growing list of successfully solved cases to
her name, the ever-dauntless Doyle shakes off the gossip and sets out to
investigate the escalating turf war.
As
the body count climbs, Doyle uncovers a seedy world where fractious members of
the Russian mafia and an Irish terrorist group are fighting for control of a
lucrative underground business. But their crooked deals and volleying acts of
revenge are almost too much for Scotland Yard to keep up with, and when Doyle
notices that Acton seems unusually troubled by the crimes, she begins to wonder
what sparked the conflict in the first place.
Perhaps
there's nothing more to the murders than under-the-table business dealings gone
awry. Or perhaps a single act of vigilante justice fanned the flames that
ignited a vicious turf war. As Doyle and Acton fight not to become the next
victims, they'll find that the truth may be best left unspoken, and retribution
may be best left to fate.
While
Acton and Doyle, two of Scotland Yard's finest, pursue a self-appointed judge,
jury, and executioner, Acton's own questionable methods may prove their
undoing…
The
victims are all criminals who eluded justice – until they ran afoul of an
avenger whose modus operandi is a bullet to the back of the head. The key to
the vigilante's identity lies in connecting the cold cases to an event that may
have triggered retribution after all these years.
Meanwhile,
Doyle finds herself shadowed by a mysterious figure. After the man steps
forward to rescue her from harm, she wonders why he is invested in protecting
her. But when she learns he's in contact with Acton's nemesis, she fears she’s
being used in a plot against her husband.
The
stakes are high, and both Doyle and Acton must work independently to outwit the
players – before their lives are brought crashing down like a house of cards.
Giveaway!
Here's
your chance to catch up on Anne Cleeland's wonderful Scotland Yard series
before book four, Murder in Containment,
is published! Anne has generously offered to send copies of the first three
books in the series to one lucky reader of The Write Spot.
To
be entered in the random drawing, just leave a comment* and be sure to include your
e-mail address so I can let you know if you've won.
My trusty sidekick, Sam the Cat, will help
choose a winner when he wakes up next Wednesday morning – and we all know cats like to wake up verrrry early, so please leave your comment before 12:01 AM Eastern
Time on February 24.
Good
luck!
UPDATE: The giveaway has now ended. Congratulations to the lucky winner, Prentiss G!
About The Write
Spot:
I've always been fascinated by what goes on behind the scenes. Whether it's
backstage photos from my favourite play, a peek into the kitchen where a chef
is working her culinary magic, or simply a glimpse through an uncurtained
window into a stranger's private world, there's an undeniable thrill of
discovery, a sense of secrets shared. It's no surprise, then, that I'm
immensely curious about where other writers do their work. I've blogged about
it before in this post about my own 'write spot' and so enjoyed the comments, I
was inspired to launch a regular feature here at stillpoint. Watch for The
Write Spot every other Wednesday and join me as I discover the many and varied
places where writers write.
stillpoint is the blog of
Canadian author Cheryl Cooke Harrington
Labels: Anne Cleeland, author, author spotlight, authors, books, Cheryl Cooke Harrington, fiction, giveaway, interview, mystery, reading, Regency, The Write Spot, writers, writing
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