Killers! by Thomas A Burns, Jr. - Book Tour + Giveaway
Crime Fiction
Release Date: Aug 9, 2021
Her dead father once asked, “What did you do to make God sad, Nattie?”
Natalie McMasters is a twentysomething college student who just wants to get on with her life, and she’s got to wonder. Her dear friend lies dead and the crazed killer responsible now has Nattie on his short list. Her only choice? Cancel him before he cancels her!
Nattie assembles an unlikely squad to find the killer: her wife Lupe, her husband Danny, an aging FBI agent and an even more ancient Tai Chi master. Jointly and separately, they embark on a totally lit road trip across the Old South, meeting danger and death at every turn. Unexpected help is provided by a voice from the grave. But her adversary has a badass squad too, and friends and loved ones fall along the way.
Naked and afraid in a primeval swamp, Nattie must confront her greatest enemy one last time. How will she ever get the W?
Author Interview
If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would
they be?
Scientist, writer, editor
Tell us 10 fun facts about yourself!
1. I became a professional author late in life,
at 65.
2. My favorite place to visit is France.
3. I live with my wife and youngest son (16) in
Wendell, NC. We have a four-year-old Cardigan Welsh Corgi and four cats
4. I went to high school in Manhattan, commuting
from my home in New Jersey every day.
5. I have a masters degree in microbiology and have
worked as a toxicologist. Comes in handy for plots involving poison.
6. I’m an NRA-certified rifle, pistol and shotgun
instructor. Comes in handy for plots involving guns.
7. I speak, read and write French, and have spent
two months in France.
8. I found my grandmother’s birthplace in Galway,
Ireland and traveled there a few years ago to spend a wonderful day with my
Irish family.
9. After college, I spent a summer with my best
friend driving from New Jersey to Fairbanks, Alaska along the Alaska Highway.
10. The Natalie McMasters Mysteries began as a
short story, Stakeout!, that you can read for free on my website. I tried to
sell it to the mystery magazines and failed, so I wrote the first novel,
Stripper!, and published it on Amazon.
What creature do you consider your "spirit
animal" to be?
A cat, most definitely. Cats are elegant, independent,
predatory survivors.
Yes. I loved reading as a kid. I started with the Hardy
Boys, then moved on to Rick Brant and Ken Holt. I also loved Edgar Rice
Burroughs, Lester Dent who wrote Doc Savage, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. These
guys were my heroes. I got away from fiction writing in high school and
college, and severely curtailed my mystery reading for many years due to job
responsibilities. I wish I had tried to make it as an author when I was
younger, instead of focusing on making money.
2.
Casablanca (1942) with Humphrey Bogart, Claude
Rains and Ingrid Bergman
3.
Rocky (1976) with Sylvester Stallone, Talia
Shire, Burt Young and Carl Weathers
4.
The Karate Kid (1984) with Ralph Macchio, Pat
Morita, Elisabeth Shue and Martin Kove
5.
The Pearl of Death (1944) with Basil Rathbone,
Nigel Bruce, Dennis Hoey and Mary Gordon
It would have to be Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe. He has Fritz
Brenner, one of the best chefs in New York City working in his home. I would
also expect the dinner conversation to be exceptional.
What fictional character would you want to be
friends with in real life?
The great detective, Sherlock Holmes, of course.
Perhaps I could take Watson’s role on those nights he had to be home with his
wife.
What fantastical fictional world would you want to live in
(if any) given the chance?
The Dungeons and Dragons setting known as the Forgotten
Realms, in the city of Silverymoon. Of course, I would have to be a high-level
wizard.
I can think of no time in human history better to
be alive in than right now. We all have amazing potential to be whatever we
want to – we just have to act to achieve it. Technology has contributed much to
our lives, with more to come. This is the best time humanity has ever experienced.
What is your favorite genre to read?
Crime fiction, without a doubt. I love it all;
cozy mysteries, hard-boiled detective stories, police procedurals and even
paranormal mysteries. It gives an author great opportunities to explore the
breadth of human behavior and allows for the creation of fantastic characters.
Six months.
How do you select the names of your characters?
They just come to me. I do check, however, that I
do not use similar names in the same book, or even names with similar initials,
or that sound similar, to avoid confusing the reader. I also like to refer to a
given character in a consistent manner (e.g., first name, last name, title,
nickname) in a single book to avoid ambiguity.
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Writer’s block does not exist in this dojo, does
it? Write, even if you think you’re writing dreck. You may find out later that
you’ve done something great.
About The Author
Contact Links
Twitter: @3Mdetective
Instagram: 3mdetective
Purchase Link
Giveaway
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