Essentially Yours - A Tall Pine Mystery - Aaron Paul Lazar, Author

Steak and Tomato Soup
(An Aaron Lazar special)

1 large Vidalia onion
One pound Portabella Mushrooms
Garlic Cloves
Olive Oil
2-3 large Chard leaves or similar greens
Japanese radish (Daikon or mild rutabaga would work)
Handful of fresh sugar snap or snow peas
Beef stock - either use 4 large cans of good stock or enough powder to flavor the broth
1-2 pounds of steak
1/2 cup Barley
1 lb. hard Tofu
1 pkg. fresh bean sprouts
3 Tbsp. fresh chopped Cilantro
3 cups Tomato based product such as frozen tomatoes, pureed, spaghetti sauce, salsa, etc. (A little ketchup adds a zesty flavor!)
Seasonings:  Garlic powder, onion powder, Thai fish sauce, sugar, soy sauce, salt, red hot pepper to taste

Saute one large thinly sliced Vidalia onion, one pound thinly sliced Portabella mushrooms, and a few cloves of garlic, chopped in olive oil.  Add freshly ripped greens from two or three large leaves. (I used chard from the garden).  Chop 1/2 fresh Daikon radish into cubes, add to fry pan (from garden).  Add several handfuls of fresh snow peas, ends cut off but peas left whole.  Start heating stock pot using good quality beef stock.  I used four large boxes of liquid stock to fill the stock pot about 3/4 full.  When onions are translucent, transfer all ingredients to stock broth.  Cut 1-2 pounds sirloin steak into cubes.  Saute in same fry pan, add just a little more olive oil if needed.  Brown steak in batches and add to stock pot.   Add 1/2 cup barley.  Chop one pound hard Tofu into 1/2" - 1" pieces.  Add to pot.  Add one package fresh bean sprouts to stock pot.  Add two - three tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro to stock pot (from garden).  For seasonings I added the following: Garlic powder, onion powder, Thai fish sauce, sugar, soy sauce, salt, red hot pepper to taste.  Add at least three cups tomato base product such as tomato sauce, plum tomatoes, tomato paste, salsa, spaghetti sauce, etc. (even ketchup would work! I also cut up four ripe tomatoes into chunks and added them to the soup).  Adjust ingredients for flavor and cook until barley is soft.  This soup tastes best the next day after flavors have melded.

Essentially Yours - A Tall Pine Mystery - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds, A Book and A Dish

**Hurrying up the cement path, I climbed the stairs to the front door that lead to her kitchen and knocked on the glass, "Callie! Are you in there?"  An answering whine came from Beau, who jumped up and scratched at the glass from the inside.  I knocked again, tried the door and found it locked.  Running around the back side of the house near the road I hammered on the door.  "Callie!"  In the distance, I heard some shouting down the road, but my tunnel vision didn't allow it to penetrate.  Anyway, I figured it was neighbors arguing with each other over something stupid like a property line.  I bent down to get her door key out of the ceramic turtle that lived under her shrubs, and opened the door.**

**I sank onto the bed and sighed.  Callie never went out, so what happened to her?  Had Willow called the copy again when she spied her sister on her way back in the pontoon boat?  Had they come and picked her up and dragged her off to jail?  Shutting Beau securely inside, I stomped toward her house.  A siren screamed in the distance, growing louder with each step.  A cop car screeched to a stop beside the ambulance.  And a coroner's van rolled up behind them both.  Oh my God.  Willow killed Callie.  She finally did it.**

Marcie, Callie and Sky, Callie's brother, have been friends since childhood.  Whee you saw one you saw the other two.  Marcie and Sky actually became more than friends.  They became lovers.  But this all ended when Marcie decided to pursue her singing career and Sky joined the military.  Then Sky came up missing and assumed dead.  Marcie and Callie continued to be best friends even after Marcie married Quinn.  And when Callie received a strange package that was supposed to have come from Sky, even with her agoraphobia, Marcie was the first person she ran to.

Callie's sister Willow had always shown resentment toward Callie so when she saw her leave on the pontoon she knew she was without license so calling the police was the perfect thing for her to do.  And now the police are at Willow's home and Marcie just knows that Willow finally lost it completely and killed Callie.

I really enjoyed traveling with Marcie and Quinn as they searched the Adirondacks trying to find their friends as well as the truth about Sky.  Could he really be alive after all these years?  The package sent to Callie contained bottles of oils.  Some of which, due to his native American heritage, Quinn recognized as being great healers.  But what is the connection?  This book kept me on the edge from page 1.   But why are the drug companies trying to stop the research behind the oils?

Is this a believable story?  Very possibly so.  For years I've believed there are cures for certain ailments but if released it would put a crimp on the drug companies.  This story brings that possibility to life.  And the oils have fascinated me enough to make me want to learn more.

Buy your copy today
Essentially Yours
Other Books By this Aaron Paul Lazar

Missing Clayton - Bev Irwin, Author

Lemon Cranberry Tea Cookies

(A Bev favorite)

 

Glaze

1. 2 lemons
2. ¼ cup (50 mL) granulated sugar

Cookie Batter

1. 1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
2. ¼ cup (50 mL) whole wheat flour
3. 1 tsp. (5 mL) ground nutmeg
4. ¼ tsp. (1 mL) each salt and baking soda
5. 5 tbsp. (75 mL) margarine
6. ½ cup (125 mL) granulated sugar
7. 1 egg white
8. 3 tbsp. (45 mL) plain yogurt
9. 1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla
10. 3 tbsp. (45 mL) dried cranberries

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 1 or 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Finely grate peel from 1 lemon and set aside. Squeeze juice from 2 lemons. You should have about ½ cup (125 mL) of juice. Place juice in a small saucepan and boil until reduced by half. Stir in ¼ cup (50 mL) sugar until dissolved.

In a small bowl, stir flours with nutmeg, salt and baking soda. In a medium bowl, beat margarine with remaining ½ cup (125 mL) sugar and lemon peel until combined. Beat in egg white, yogurt and vanilla (it may appear curdled). Stir in flour mixture just until combined.

Roll dough into 1-inch (2.5 cm) balls and set about 2-inches (5 cm) apart on a baking sheet. Press gently, flattening slightly to form a cookie. Press a cranberry in the centre of each.

Bake, one baking sheet at a time, in centre of the preheated oven until the bottom is golden brown for 7-9 minutes. Place cookies on a rack set over a baking sheet. When cookies are cool enough to handle, dip tops into lemon glaze. When glaze looks dry, re-dip. 

Missing Clayton – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

Clayton awoke to shivers running up and down his body.  The blanket had slipped while he slept, and now, only partially covered him.  The short-sleeved puppy-dog T-shirt he wore left his arms exposed and goose bumps covered the bare area.  He reached out a hand and grasped an edge of the blanket.  It was threadbare; several small holes scattered across its length.  The blanket gave him little warmth in the dampness of the dirt hole.  He pulled the blanket up to his chin and curled himself into a tight ball.  Shivers traveled along his arms and legs.  His body felt like a block of ice, and his forehead felt hot, so hot.

He wanted to go home.  He wanted to be in his own soft bed with his mother tucking the blankets around him, blankets that were thick and warm and had no holes in them.  He wanted his mother hugging him.  More shivers.  Grabbing the edge of the blanket, he tucked it around his limbs.  He shut his eyes.  He wanted to keep them closed.  He tried to go back to sleep.  At least then he didn’t have to think about anything.  He didn’t have to think about why he was here.

What did I do?  Did I do something bad?  Why won’t Mommy come and get me?  Why is she leaving me here?  Why?  Mommy, please come.  I want to go home.

Five-year-old Clayton Kingsley and his mother Jenny have moved to a new home.  Jenny left her abusive husband and obsessive mother and took Clayton to a serene bedroom community that she thought would be the perfect place to raise her son.  At least that was until the day Clayton came up missing.  She had only left him for 5 minutes to go inside and make peanut butter sandwiches for lunch.  Jenny searched every place a child could hide and still no Clayton.  He neighbor Steve took up the hunt but still had no luck finding the child.  Who could have taken him that quickly and left no trace, no clues?

Tyrell was a loner who lived in what could only be described as a shack in the woods.  After high school he had joined the army and served his time but before he left he had met Patty.  They married and had a child and what Tyrell thought would be a happy marriage.  But when he came home after being wounded everything had changed.  Patty had changed.  She was no longer the quiet, mousey girl he had married.  She kept her hair bleached and when she saw the limp from his war injuries, she called him names.  Eventually she took their son and left.  Could he be the one who took Clayton?

Steve the next door neighbor had a police record.  He had helped his friend kidnap the friend’s newborn child when the mother planned to give it up for adoption.  The child’s mother went to one of the police deputies to report the missing child and Steve’s friend ended up being beaten pretty badly and eventually dying.  The deputy who came after the baby later accused Steve of possibly kidnapping another child that came up missing.  And now Clayton is missing.  Coincident?  Could Steve be the one who took Clayton?  He lived close enough to snatch him quickly and without being caught.

Missing Clayton kept me wanting more.  The suspense kept me on the edge in hopes that Jenny would find her child before it was too late.  And when she was taken to the morgue to identify a child's body, it had me holding my breath.  This is an experience that has to be one of the hardest things a parent can do and go through.

 

  

Kidnapped by the Cartel - Karen D. Scioscia, Author

 

 

Salmon Tacos
(A true favorite!)

For Salmon:
2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 lb. center-cut salmon filet
½ tsp. smoked paprika
½ tsp. all-purpose seasoning
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For Salsa:
5 mini red bell peppers
6 pineapple slices, about 1/2” thick
¼ cup sliced green onions
¼ cup diced red onion
1 dash of lime juice
Chop all and mix together

For “Sour Cream”:
1 cup Greek yogurt
¼ cup mayonnaise
3 cloves garlic, crushed
Juice from ½ a lime
Mix all together

More fixings:
8 cups mixed field greens
Olive Oil
Red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat grill to medium.  Place the salmon on a plate and rub with about 1 Tbsp. olive oil.  Season with the paprika, all-purpose seasoning, salt and pepper.  Cook salmon with skin on.  Remove skin before cutting.  Set aside.

To serve:  Warm tortillas slightly in a pan, cut salmon into strips, add salmon and salsa inside tortilla. Along with the salsa, add in mixed greens, olive oil and red wine vinegar to taste. Add “sour cream” mix.

This is also fantastic with tilapia instead of salmon, and mango instead of pineapple.
 

 Kidnapped by the Cartel - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish
 

 

Day three in hell began with Steve finally falling into a fitful sleep around three o’clock in the morning. He woke up at five. It took almost an entire pot of java to clear his head. He sat at the kitchen table, reviewing the situation. The previous night he had called all of Amanda’s friends listed in their address book, and no one knew anything. Or at least they weren’t saying. Someone has to know something. Other occasions when Amanda had “seemed to vanish,” someone had known where she was. This time, all of the players appeared clueless… Where the hell is Amanda?

 

Amanda couldn’t believe a stranger had driven away with her car and she’d done nothing. While upset by this, she remained consumed by her desire for drugs. I won’t freak out, Amanda thought, trying to calm herself. These guys said I can get my car back when I want. I’ll just have them take me to my car after I get high… “Where are we going? Amanda murmured, desperate for drugs. She knew she was in bad shape. Neither man answered. They could see that the girl was too messed up for the question to matter… Where the hell is Amanda?

 

Amanda Tate’s parents Steve and Diane had tried everything to control her addiction to drugs but to no avail. She had been in and out of rehabs only to meet others that could help her score once she got out. When Amanda called Steve asking that he pick her up he knew she was strung out and took her straight to the center only to be turned away because they had a full house. The only option he had was to take her home and guard her well as her body brought itself down from the drugs. He just didn’t count on her slipping out while he and Diane went to the store. And when calls to her cell phone were answered by a Spanish speaking man in Mexico he knew his daughter was in deep trouble.

 

Kidnapped by the Cartel a parent’s worst nightmare. Author Karen D. Scioscia takes us into the bowels of Tijuana, Mexico where young girls are kidnapped, drugged, tortured and used. We as Americans have always heard about young girls running off to Hollywood only to end up on drugs and becoming prostitutes to support their habits. What we don’t hear about are those that go south and end up in Mexico where drugs are plentiful and free – but for a price. As long as you’re in with the Cartel you can count on only the best drugs to sniff, snort and shoot up. They are hooked so deeply into the drugs that they will do anything to keep them coming. But what if you want out? There is only one way out for these girls and that is by death. Either the drugs will get them, they will serve their use and no longer be useful or they try to run. Either way the end is almost always the same… death.

 

Amanda’s story is fiction but it is based on a true story and taken from the notes, recollections and interviews of people and agencies involved in an abduction of family member of the author. Even if there was no truth to this story its one that I have no doubt tells the true happenings going on every day within the areas controlled by the Cartel. This is a book that every parent should read and pray that your daughter nor granddaughter is never put into this type of situation. That goes true for your sons and grandsons too because it’s not just the girls that are used but the boys are too.

Divorcee.Biz - Eileen Thornton, Author

 

Simple Chicken and Rice Casserole
(Eileen Thornton's Special) 

 

Long Grain Rice, drained

Cooked, small diced vegetables, (carrots, turnip, parsnip) and peas

Cooked chicken sliced or diced.

                 ****

Boil the rice until it is cooked. Add the diced veg and peas and mix well. Add the cooked chicken and season with salt and pepper.

Turn into a casserole dish and place in a pre-heated oven  (180 C)  until it is heated right through. Stir occasionally to make sure the chicken is piping hot.

 

 

Divorce.Biz – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

 

“We had twenty people requesting meetings last night,” Connie told Jenny, as she and Sadie strode into the office.  “That’s great news,” Jenny replied.  “I know it’s early days, but it looks like our venture into the business world is working out well.  Hopefully we’ll hear from more people today.”  “It was only twenty people, Jenny.”  Sadie flopped into a chair.  “Don’t get too excited.  We haven’t hit the headlines of the Financial Times.”  “There’s no need to be so grumpy, Sadie.  I was only saying it’s good because it means we earned three hundred pounds last night.”  Jenny paused.  “So what’s eating you this morning”  “Sorry, Jenny.  I didn’t mean anything.  Yes, I suppose from that point of view it is good news.”

 

But Sadie did have something else bothering her.  Connie’s ex-husband Andrew had appeared at the launch celebration for Divorcee.Biz and even joined.  Sadie knew how much he still loved Connie and how much she loved him but his onetime slip-up with another woman had put an end to their marriage.  It was up to her to show Connie just how much they both still loved each other and get them back together. 

 

Divorcee.Biz is a divorcee only dating service that was just a thought in Connie’s mind until she mentioned it to her three best friends.  Her idea was to create a service that would require a fee to join and a fee to set up meetings/dates.  The fee would not only pay the bills for the four friends but due to the amount being charged it would appeal to only the most serious.  Along with the meeting fee and the fact that they would be setting up the meetings for the customers, this should keep the members safe.  But would it work?  But just as important to the making of money was the desire of all four women to find mates of their own.  All four had gone through divorces of their own, for various reasons, and were wanting to find that perfect match for themselves.  Someone unlike their ex-spouse.  Boy were these ladies in for a big surprise with their new venture.

 

Divorcee.Biz, to me is ‘Sex in the City’ gone UK.  I used to watch that show every week just to see what would happen to the 4 best friends next.  The ladies Connie, Sadie, Jenny and Lucy all remind me of the characters in that weekly show.  They are full of hopes and dreams of finding Mr. Right.  And as much as I loved Sex in the City, I’ve found that I love Divorcee.Biz just as much.  It kept me cheering each girl along through her own search and crossing my fingers when she would meet someone.  I’ve felt laughter as well as pain and must say that I thoroughly enjoyed Divorcee.Biz.

 

Seasons in Purdah - Anjuelle Floyd, Author

Chocolate Hazelnut Cake

(I love chocolate. I am also diabetic.

This recipe is great for anyone who is watching the sugar intake and/or trying to lose weight and wants to eat more healthily, but like I, has a sweet tooth, or two.)
Anjuelle Floyd

Ingredients:

Cake

 

1/2 cup chopped pitted dates 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, “natural” or Dutch-process 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules 1/2 cup boiling water 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, plus 2 tablespoons for garnish 2 slices firm white sandwich bread, crusts trimmed 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 2/3 cup sugar, divided 2 tablespoons canola oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 large egg 3 large egg whites, or 2 tablespoons dried egg whites, reconstituted according to package directions

 

Glaze

• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate, finely chopped (1/3 cup)
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
• 1/4 cup boiling water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

Preparation:

1. To prepare cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom with parchment or wax paper.

2. Combine dates, cocoa and instant coffee in a small bowl. Add boiling water and stir until the cocoa has dissolved. Cover and let stand until the dates have softened and the mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, spread hazelnuts in a shallow baking dish and bake until fragrant and lightly toasted, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool.

4. Grind bread into fine crumbs in a food processor. Measure to make sure you have 1/2 cup. Transfer to a large bowl. (No need to wash the workbowl between steps.)

5. Place 1/2 cup of the hazelnuts in the food processor. Add flour and salt; process until the nuts are finely ground. Transfer to the bowl with the breadcrumbs.

6. Scrape the cooled date mixture into the food processor. Add 1/3 cup sugar, oil, vanilla and whole egg; process until smooth, stopping several times to scrape down the sides of the workbowl. Scrape the mixture into the bowl with the breadcrumbs and nuts. Mix gently with a rubber spatula.

7. Beat egg whites with an electric mixer in a clean large mixing bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 1/3 cup sugar, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form. Add one-fourth of the beaten whites to the batter and whisk until blended. Fold in the remaining whites with a rubber spatula just until blended. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly.

8. Bake the cake until the top springs back when touched lightly, 25 to 35 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Coat the rack with cooking spray and invert the cake onto it to cool completely.

9. Meanwhile, to prepare glaze: Combine cocoa, chocolate, corn syrup and instant coffee in a medium bowl. Add boiling water and stir with a wooden spoon until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar (to the chocolate mixture), beating with an electric mixer, slowly at first, then gradually increasing speed, until the glaze is smooth and thickened. (The mixture may seem lumpy at first, but it will smooth out.) Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until the mixture is set, about 30 minutes.

10. To finish the cake, place it bottom-side up on a serving plate. Place several strips of wax paper under the bottom edge to protect the plate from drips. Spoon on glaze and spread it evenly over the top and sides of the cake with an icing spatula or knife. Arrange the remaining 2 tablespoons hazelnuts around the top outside edge. Discard the wax paper before serving.

Seasons in Purdah – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

 

“James’ entry into Sahel’s life had at the very least unleashed an ability to communicate with those living on other levels of life. Through holding James’ hands, Sahel had entered James’ thought space and experienced the images punctuated with the smells and sounds of his memory. It was a powerful talent, one that, during the ensuing days, had put Sahel at ease and peace with her vulnerabilities, not simply as a person without physical sigh, rather an individual who wanted to love and to be loved. Sahel’s lack of sight had opened portals leading to a source of connection with others, a wellspring that provided a sense of purpose bathed in compassion. It also bestowed an awareness of the need for boundaries.”

Sahel Ohin Denning had a degree in psychology but as it’s been said in many ways – a doctor can’t seem to heal himself. As for Sahel, due to an accident she lost her sight but not her emotions. She found herself feeling some of the same feelings her patients had felt giving them reason to seek out her help. But how could she help others when she couldn’t even help herself. These emotions led her to do the unthinkable. She attempted suicide. Had it not been for her husband Titus’ early arrival at home she would have succeeded. Titus is a heart surgeon and blames himself for her loss of sight. Their best friend Carl is a neurosurgeon who feels surgery will allow her to regain her sight. But to his dismay, Sahel and Titus refuse the surgery. Sahel then meets James who asks one question of her … “Do you believe in reincarnation?”

Through her lack of sight Sahel finds herself being able to communicate with James’ fiancé who committed suicide after the death of her father. James is able to communicate through Sahel with his beloved letting her know how much he loves her and that he forgives her for what she has done.

But James himself is dying and wants to reunite with his beloved at the end with hopes of her helping him cross over into her world. Through Sahel’s help, this is accomplished but with much strain on Sahel’s her own health, pushing her to have the surgery she doesn’t want.

Seasons in Purdah is a beautiful story of three people who love each other with all their hearts. Sahel, Titus and Carl grew up together and were best friends but both men loved Sahel and she loved them equally, yet in different ways. After dreaming of a life during another time and place and then learning that Titus as well as Carl had the same dream at the same time, Sahel, when Sahel is attempting to answer James’ question “Do you believe in reincarnation?” seeks understand the question as well as its answer. She must clarify whether the reality of her life. Is her life an aspect of Titus and/or Carl’s dream(s) or are their lives but an aspect of her dream? Is Sahel experiencing a life she has already lived? Or is she living one of the many lives that awaits her in the future? Or is she dreaming this present life from a life based in the future?

And so, what do you, the reader, believe?

After following the three of them through the trials of life and the trials of their‘dreams’ I must give it a second thought before I can answer.

Seasons in Purdah is a very beautiful, loving, yet intriguing story that would make a great ‘Lifetime’ movie for television.

Dead Man Talking - T. M. Simmons, Author

Boiled Live Crawfish
(A T.M. Simmons Speciality)

One sack live crawfish, 35-40 lbs.
A Dozen Medium Lemons, Halved
2-4 lbs. of Crawfish Boiling Spices
6 Large Onions, Peeled
5 lb. Red Potatoes
1 dozen ears frozen sweet corn
1 – 12 oz. container of squeeze butter or margarine
17 oz. container of Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
3 - 4 gallons water
Outside propane fish cooker
Large cooler

It's best to use an outside propane fish cooker. If you cook crawfish in your kitchen, the spices will make you sneeze and can make it hard to breathe.  Wash crawfish off with a hose while still in the bag.   Pour crawfish into a metal tub or plastic swimming pool. Rewash.  Bring the water to boil over the propane flame.   Add spices, lemons, onions, and one half of potatoes, and corn.  Bring back to boil.  Fill fish basket with live crawfish. (Discard any dead ones, as they may have gone bad.)  Slowly lower into boiling water and cover with lid.  Bring back to boil and cook for 3-4 minutes. Pour crawfish from basket into cooler.  Remove corn, also, and put in cooler. Let potatoes cook longer.  Squeeze butter/margarine on crawfish and corn, then sprinkle with creole seasoning and stir with a metal scoop.  Keep cooking until all the crawfish are all cooked, adding corn with next batch and taking first batch of potatoes out when they are done. Add rest of potatoes and cook while finishing the crawfish. Continue squeezing butter and adding seasoning.  Give everyone a disposable plastic tray and enjoy! We cover a table with an oilcloth and newspaper to dump our shells on. Twist off head and suck out spices. Remove tail meat and eat.  You can dip the crawfish tails into your favorite seafood dip, if you wish. I like melted Brummel and Brown yogurt butter.

 

Dead Man Talking – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

 

A second later Katy continued with a resigned sigh, “He says his death was a murder, but not deliberate murder. That he can’t find eternal rest until the deed is exposed.” That got to me. The ghost must have known it would. How can you have an undeliberate murder? I never could ignore a murder mystery with a death riddle attached. “Interesting,” I mused. “Are you coming then? In the morning, not next week?” I chewed my lip and contemplated. “Ask Sir Gary why he doesn’t come over here and talk. I’ll leave a light on.” “I’ve already told him that,” she ground out. “Hell, I even got out a map and showed him where you live! But noooo. He insists you come here!” A stubborn ghost. He’d probably been that way in life, because Twila and I firmly believe a person’s living personality follows into death. One crotchety old man –

 

Alice was contacted by her cousin Katy to help her remove her resident ghost who calls himself ‘Sir Gary.’ Apparently he had died due to drowning but wasn’t quite sure that it wasn’t without help. He just couldn’t remember how nor who had murdered him and until he could resume that memory he simply couldn’t cross through the light into the other side. Sir Gary has taken to acting up around Katy demanding that she have Alice come to solve his mystery and help him end his half life existence. In his eyes, Alice is a paranormal writer and solves murders all day long through her writing making her perfect for the job. Alice, on the other hand, has a deadline to meet for her latest book and just can’t get away for a few days. That all changes when Katy and Sir Gary find a headless body floating in Katy’s pool giving her home yet another ghost to deal with. And this one is mad! He can’t find his head so he can’t see nor communicate leaving him nothing else to do but rant and rave until it’s found. Katy now has Alice’s attention and she is on her way, as are her aunt Twila, her ex-husband Jack and eventually her neighbor ‘Granny.’

 

I’ve now read all of T. M. Simmons’ Dead Man books – Dead Man Haunt, Dead Man Hand, and now Dead Man Talking. Each is equally as good as the other and each is filled with ghosts, murder, suspense and lots of laughter. When I read the part about the traffic jam and its cause I busted out laughing out loud. When Jack, who was a non-believer became a believer I laughed. When Jack and Alice go to a biker bar undercover, I laughed. This book, as well as all of the Dead Man books are filled with so much humor that it becomes a ‘fun filled suspense.’ And for the suspense, I never did guess who killed the man in the pool until I read it near the end.

Shadows of Doubt - Mell Corcoran, Author

Grilled Cheese
(One of Mell's Favorites)

 

Who doesn't love a good grilled cheese sandwich?  Being the food addict that I am, I always love to find a new twist for an old favorite but how can anyone possibly improve on a grilled cheese sandwich?  Granted, mine are more fried than grilled, but still!
 

One day I was surfing channels while trying to work my way through a particularly convoluted scene I was writing and came across a little piece on Harry's Bar in Venice, Italy. I think it was actually one of Giada De Laurentiis' show but  this segment was on the infamous bar where Hemingway was practically a fixture for a time.  He made numerous references to Harry's in his work "Over the River and into the Trees".   Naturally, when the owner began showing Giada how to make Harry's Bar pierini, their pan seared cheese sandwich, I scrambled for pen and paper and headed to the grocery store that afternoon to give it a whirl.  Needless to say this is an ultimate comfort food of mine.  If I may be so bold as to say that it is much like my book, a simple concept that everyone can't help enjoying, but this one is given a surprising and intense complexity that you can't help but fall in love with.
 

The original recipe calls for the addition of 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper as well as a half a pound of smoked, boiled ham but I found I love this sandwich without them.  Try it both ways and you pick your favorite version. 
 

1/2 pound Gruyere or Swiss cheese, coarsely grated, at room temperature.
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard or 1 tablespoon prepared Dijon mustard
salt to taste
Cream if needed to thin the mixture
10 slices good, dense white bread, crusts removed.
Olive oil for frying
 

Combine cheese, egg yolk, Worcestershire sauce and mustard in a food processor until smooth.  If the mixture is too thick to spread smoothly, add a touch of cream to get the right consistency.  Add olive oil to a heavy frying pan until it is very hot.  While the oil is heating up, spread the cheese mixture onto the slices of bread, slap them together and place a few in the hot oil to start the frying!  Don't over crowd the pan, work in batches.  Turn sandwiches once, when they are golden brown and crisp.  Repeat with remaining sandwiches, adding more oil as necessary.  Cut sandwiches in half, serve hot in paper napkins for that Harry's authentic touch.  As they say in Venice, buon appetito!
 

 

Shadows of Doubt – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

 

He circled her slowly, enjoying the cool feel of plastic as it crinkled under his bare feet. The poor girl was exhausted, he could tell by hr soft low whimpers that came fewer and further between now. She had struggled so hard the first several hours after her arrival, it was a wonder she was awake at all. As if by some subconscious need to comfort her, he reached down and twirled one of her long, glossy ginger curls around his finger. She stiffened instantly at his touch and tried to hold her breath, the panic and fear ushering in a second wind. A smile spread wide across his tight, think lips. Who was he kidding, he didn’t have a comforting bone in his body. He existed solely for moments such as these, where the foreplay of pain was danced out like a carefully choreographed tango. Ah, how he loved to tango. He stopped in front of her and closed his eyes, swaying his hips to the music that began to play in his head, lost for a moment. The silk robe danced across his skin like a soft caress as he moved, prompting him to hum his tune aloud. The robe he donned this time was a deep jade color, in honor of his guest’s stage name. He wore it open and loose, unabashedly. Despite a few minor inconveniences, it had all worked out rather delightfully, after all.
 

Tallulah Louella Donovan, known simply as ‘Lou’ is a police homicide detective. She and her partner Vinny took what started out as a normal call where someone had reported finding the body of a young woman. The body was found on the railroad tracks and both legs had been severed. But there also appeared to be a cut on the victim’s leg that didn’t come from a train running over her. Plus, there was no blood in the area nor in the body. This lead them to believe that she had been killed somewhere else and placed on the tracks. And to make it worse, this wasn’t the 1^st body to be found with cuts on the body and no blood found at the scene. But what became the true mystery was that each case was taken away from Lou and Vinny and turned over to the LAPD leaving them to do their own investigation on the side.
 

Maximiliam Augustus Julian, known as Max, left his home and business in Washington, DC and traveled to Los Angeles to straighten out the problems of corruption that apparently were taking over his territory out west. Part of that corruption lead him to discovering that it was one of his own people that was cutting and killing young girls in LA. In fact, it was the same person that he had been tracking for some time for committing the same crime in other locations. One way or the other, he vowed to get him this time. But when he meets Lou, some goes off inside and she becomes more important than anyone else.

 

Shadows of Doubt kept me guessing until about half way through the book as to who Max really was. There were times that I thought I knew but wasn’t 100% sure. The suspense of learning just who he and his team represented, the chase of the killer, the connections between families and the devotion of love made this book a real page turner. I hope that Author Mell Corcoran will award us with a continuation, especially since the ending left plenty of room for just about anything to happen. This was an enjoyable book to read.