Greg McKenzie Mysteries Boxed Set

Readers unfamiliar with the Greg McKenzie mystery series can get a jump start with the first four books now available for the Kindle in a boxed set. With ebooks, of course, it's a virtual box. The books—Secret of the Scroll, Designed to Kill, Deadly Illusions, and The Marathon Murders—are $2.99 each for the Kindle, but the four-book set is only $7.99, a one-third savings. You'll find it HERE.

The set follows the adventures of Greg and Jill McKenzie from their fateful trip to the Holy Land, through a trek about Perdido Key and the Gulf coast in search of a murderer, an agonizing venture around Nashville involving a missing client and an assassinated Washington bigwig, and a puzzling 90-year-old cold case that leads to more murders.

A retired Air Force Office of Special Investigations special agent in charge, Greg puts his experience to work in the first two books. By the end of book two, it is apparent that Jill possesses her own talents in the investigative field. After that, it's the adventures of a partnership known as McKenzie Investigations.

Those who finish the boxed set have more to read, namely book five with the title A Sporting Murder. This episode follows Greg and Jill on a tantalizing case that finds them narrowly escaping death in an explosion only to come face-to-face with an armed murderer on Christmas Day.

If you've finished the exploits of the McKenzies, you'll find more exciting reading in the two Sid Chance mysteries. And then there is the global sweep of action in the trilogy of Post Cold War political thrillers featuring former disgraced FBI Agent Burke Hill and a cast of unique characters that will transport you from one side of the world to the other.

You'll find them all HERE at my author page on Amazon.

Designed to Kill Is Free Today

If you're new to retired Air Force investigator Greg McKenzie, and his wife, Jill, here's your chance to get started for free. Today (Saturday, Sept. 14) through Monday (Sept. 16), the second book in the series, Designed to Kill, will be available in ebook format for the Kindle at no cost.

Don't have a Kindle? No problem. Download the free version to your Windows computer or tablet, Android phone or tablet, iPhone, iPad or MAC, Blackberry or Windows phone. Just go to the Free Kindle Reading Apps Page and pick your device.

Designed to Kill is a tale of greed that leads to murder. It involves a high-rise condo on the beach at Perdido Key, Florida designed and engineered by the son of Greg and Jill's best friends from the first book in the series, Secret of the Scroll. A party in the 15th floor suite celebrating completion of the project ends abruptly when the balcony falls, killing two celebrants.

The investigating sheriff's officer tells Tim Gannon his balcony caused two deaths. The next morning Gannon is found dead of a gunshot wound at the nearby Gulf Islands National Seashore. The deputy says "suicide" and the medical examiner agrees.

Tim's dad, Sam Gannon, Greg's best friend, disagrees. He asks Greg to go down to Florida and find out what happened. As Greg digs into the case, assisted by Jill, he finds lots of disturbing facts.There are plans missing, an obstinate contractor, a too-slick developer, and an inspector angry over a disrupted love affair.

When Mafia goons rough him up, Greg realizes it's time to target a murderer. But who? Jill's help with the case leads to a partnership that goes through the next three books. And there's another in the works.
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Submerged, a Terrifying New Thriller

My guest today is Cheryl Kaye Tardif, the international bestselling author of Submerged, a terrifying new thriller that will leave you breathless. Born in Vancouver, BC, Cheryl is an award-winning, best-selling Canadian author who now lives in Edmonton, Alberta. She writes mystery, paranormal, suspense and thriller novels set in Canada. You can learn more about her at her website.
Having worked for over twenty-five years in advertising, promotion and sales, Cheryl is noted for her for her book marketing and promotion skills, which she makes available for other authors. For more information on this aspect of her career, check out her Shameless Promoter - Book Marketing Blog.

Her new thriller Submerged is a tale of two strangers submerged in guilt, brought together by fate. Here's what Andrew Gross, New York Times bestselling author of 15 Seconds, said:

"Submerged reads like an approaching storm, full of darkness, dread and electricity. Prepare for your skin to crawl." 

After a tragic car accident claims the lives of his wife, Jane, and son, Ryan, Marcus Taylor is immersed in grief. But his family isn't the only thing he has lost. An addiction to painkillers has taken away his career as a paramedic. Working as a 911 operator is now the closest he gets to redemption—until he gets a call from a woman trapped in a car.

Rebecca Kingston yearns for a quiet weekend getaway, so she can think about her impending divorce from her abusive husband. When a mysterious truck runs her off the road, she is pinned behind the steering wheel, unable to help her two children in the back seat. Her only lifeline is a cell phone with a quickly depleting battery and a stranger's calm voice on the other end telling her everything will be all right.

Here are some more reviews:

"From the first page, you know you are in the hands of a seasoned and expert storyteller who is going to keep you up at night turning the pages. Tardif knows her stuff. There's a reason she sells like wildfire—her words burn up the pages. A wonderful, scary, heart-pumping writer." —M.J. Rose, international bestselling author of Seduction

"Tardif once again delivers a suspenseful supernatural masterpiece." —Scott Nicholson, international bestselling author of The Home

"From the first page, Cheryl Kaye Tardif takes you hostage with Submerged—a compelling tale of anguish and redemption." —Rick Mofina, bestselling author of Into the Dark

"Cheryl Kaye Tardif's latest novel SUBMERGED will leave you as haunted as its characters." —Joshua Corin, bestselling author of Before Cain Strikes

"Submerged will leave you breathless—an edge of your seat, supernatural thrill ride." —Jeff Bennington, bestselling author of Twisted Vengeance

Click this Kindle link for the ebook edition of Submerged. It is also available in paperback.

It's Freebie Time Again

Starting at midnight tonight, Pacific Standard Time, my fourth Greg McKenzie mystery, The Marathon Murders, will be free to download for the Kindle until midnight Wednesday, February 27. You'll find it at this link.

Some people glance at the name and think the story involves marathon runners. A good look at the cover should take care of that. It shows a skeleton seated behind the wheel of a Marathon touring car from the early twentieth century. The book involves a 90-year-old cold case, the murder of the assistant treasurer of Marathon Motor Works, a company that built a popular line of automobiles in Nashville from 1910 to 1914.

Actually, the company took its name from an event at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis. Its car models were given such names as Runner and Winner. An industrious entrepreneur bought the rundown, long-vacant plant and office buildings a few years ago and restored them to provide space for artists, photographers, musicians, and other small businesses. That's where I got the idea for my mystery.

In The Marathon Murders, a construction worker finds some old company records from 1914 hidden behind paneling in the wall of a former office. The envelope includes the name of the assistant treasurer, Sydney Liggett, and a note indicating he planned to turn it over to the District Attorney. The job foreman finds Liggett's grandson, age 84, in a local nursing home. He promises to bring over the papers, then disappears.

McKenzie Investigations, run by senior sleuths Greg (retired OSI agent) and Jill McKenzie, are hired to find the missing papers. What they encounter is a string of murders committed to keep the secret of the 1914 documents hidden. The chase takes them to a small rural county near Nashville where things get pretty tense.

The book gave me the opportunity to highlight the work of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which provides a vital investigative arm to law enforcement agencies outside the major cities. Midwest Book Review said: "This fourth installment of the Greg McKenzie Mysteries is proof positive the series remains strong and fresh and is a major contender in the mystery venue." If you're new to the Greg McKenzie series, this is an opportunity for a free look. Just click the link above (after midnight).

With book sales slowing, look for new outlets

There’s been quite a bit of talk lately in the newspapers, on TV, and across the web about the deteriorating state of the publishing industry. Publishers are cutting staffs and accepting fewer manuscripts, booksellers are selling less, many are folding their tents. A Waldenbooks in the mall where I walk is closing in a week or two.

Sounds bleak for writers, doesn’t it? But there are still lots of mystery fans out there, buying books and reading them. And one area that continues to buck the trend is the ebook market.

I now have all four of my Greg McKenzie mysteries in the Kindle Store, where they can be downloaded for reading with Amazon.com’s Kindle device. I haven’t done any promotion yet to encourage purchases, but I sold 30 books last year.

I priced the Kindle versions at $8.94. Amazon sells them for $7.15. I get $3.13 per sale. I’m obviously not getting rich with it, but the $93.90 I made last year buys a lot of postage stamps.

I don’t have my mysteries with any of the ebook publishers, but I am looking into that as another alternative. I’ve heard Fictionwise is one of the top ebook publishers, but they want you to have at least ten titles before they will take you on.

Meanwhile, I’m looking to ways to promote sales of the Kindle version. If you have come across any good schemes to do the job, I’d like to hear from you. I’ll pass along via these pages whatever I find.

These days an author must use every available resource to get his or her book out there. If you own the ebook rights, exploit them.