Reviewers say THE SECRET IN THE WALL is a "delight"

Interrupting Slang-o-rama this week to announce that Santa arrived early for me this year with two wonderful reviews of THE SECRET IN THE WALL from major review publications Kirkus Reviews and Publishers Weekly. Kirkus Reviews sums up with:

"A convoluted mystery, based on true events and replete with rich period detail, that’s a delight to read."

(You can read the full Kirkus review here, but be aware: spoilers lurk within.) The Publishers Weekly review (also containing some spoilers) notes:

"Appealing characters match satisfying puzzles. Historical fans will be delighted."

"Delight" seems to be the watchword for this, the eighth book in my Silver Rush series. And truly, I could not be more delighted!

Can be pre-ordered from all the usual places (release date: mid-February 2022).
Go to my home page and scroll down for "buy" links.

Reviews come in and an ARC giveaway!

Well, I'm not being nearly as consistent as I had hoped, but I shall keep working on getting better at posting here, on my Silver Rush blog...

First, if you would like to get in the drawing for one of three ARCs (Advanced Reader Copies, otherwise known as "uncorrected proofs") of What Gold Buys... you have a week to enter the giveaway I'm hosting on Goodreads, and I encourage you to go for it! The odds are much better than striking silver in the Leadville mining district in 1879! :-) (Now don't ask me what those odds were, because I'm assuming here...)

So just click on the "Enter Giveaway" link below and good luck! But before you go... (keep reading below the widget)...

Goodreads Book Giveaway

What Gold Buys

by Ann Parker

Giveaway ends August 15, 2016.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

.... Reviews are popping up, ahead of publication. Since I consider them all valid data points (each reviewer approaches a book with different expectations, preferences, and so on, as do readers), I'm providing links to the three I've rounded up so far, along with a short pull-quote from each.

• Publishers Weekly starred review! (yes, that rates an exclamation point) "Emotionally and historically convincing."
•  Kirkus Reviews. "Better history than mystery, drawing the reader into the stunning beauty and harsh realities of life in 1880s Colorado."
• Historical Novel Society. "I haven’t read the first four but was so taken by Parker’s protagonist, Inez Stannert, that I’ll rectify that asap... I can’t wait for the sixth in the series." 

So please enter the Goodreads giveaway, if you are so inclined... and if you want to increase your chances of winning an uncorrected proof (which has hilarious goofs, such as Inez drawing her "Smooth revolver"... yes, a smooth move, but that should be *Smoot* ), sign up for my very occasional newsletter right here. I will be giving away ARCs to a couple lucky folks on this list, once the Goodreads giveaway is over on August 15.

And here, just for fun, is a couple of photos I took last year in the House with the Eye Museum in Leadville, the City in the Clouds...

The original stained glass "eye" from 1879. 

Guns, cards, and chips... note the "woman's purse gun" on the far right.

Oh, those cold calls

I'm a tad behind the curve, I think, with Leaden Skies coming out in July, but I finally settled in to doing a serious round of calling to set up events for the first month and a half after its release. For many of these, I'll be part of a "group event" (usually two or three, sometimes four authors) ... which is a great way to go about these things, in my view.

I don't know about other authors, but I really have to psych myself up to pick up that phone and call. (Usually requires a cup of coffee at hand, a pad of paper and pen for taking notes, and a bit of chocolate for encouragement and courage).

Sometimes the calls go well, and sometimes not so. On the plus side, I had three great chats today: One with the chief librarian at Lake County Public Library in Leadville about my trip up there in early August (it's all coming together, little by little), another with the editor of Colorado Central magazine (the monthly magazine for people who choose porches over porsches) and a third with Chris from Clues Unlimited Mystery Bookstore in Tucson.

Then, of course, there are the not-so-great calls. But I try to be philosophical: If someone isn't interested, that's okay, It does no good to brood. Just move on to the next one on the list.

For some great tips on how to approach newspapers and so on, I recommend reading Tips for Book Reviews by Betty Webb, on the Murder Must Advertise site. Great advice, no matter what kind of books you write!