by Connie di Marco
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Mystery
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Astrologer
Julia Bonatti never thought her chosen profession would bring danger into her
life, but her outspoken advice in her newspaper column, AskZodia, makes her the
target of San Francisco ’s
recently-arrived cult leader, Reverend Roy of the Prophet’s Tabernacle. The followers of the power hungry preacher
will stop at nothing to quell the voices of those who would stand in his way
and Julia’s at the top of his list.
She’s willing to bet the charismatic Reverend is a Mercury-ruled
individual, and she knows all too well that Mercury wasn’t just the messenger
of the gods, he was a trickster and a liar as well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My Review:
It's a truly engrossing mystery, captured me from the first page and I couldn't put it down. I was attracted by the cover but the story has not disappointed me.
Julia Bonatti is a famous astrologer, she tries to help people solve their daily problems with the help of stars and planets. But Reverend Roy of the Prophet's Tabernacle thinks she's a witch and her adivce demonic His followers try to hinder her activities, even threatening to kill her. In addition to defense herself, Julia tries to help her friend Dorothy who's taking care of her elderly aunts. One of them accuses Dorothy of wanting to kill her and the other one wants to become a follower of Reverend Roy. Things get even more complicated when their old gardener is found dead and a strange guy comes to town claiming to be their nephew.
The plot is well developed and intriguing, full of twists, the pace is fast and the characters are believable.
For lovers of astrology and cozy mystery this is a must read but it's a really pleasant reading even for people like me who doesn't know this discipline. I really enjoyed it and I was curious to read the responses that Julia gave to her customers. This is a fascinating world. I look forward to reading a new adventure of Julia.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
Wizard had curled into a fetal position on top of a fuzzy
throw close to the fireplace. The wind
was buffeting the windows so hard the rain sounded like gravel being thrown
against the glass. The logs were blazing
and I thanked my stars I could snuggle inside tonight with Wizard and
work.
Samantha had forwarded about fifty emails from the newspaper
to my own AskZodia email address. As a
weekly column, there was space for only three or four questions and answers,
but now, the editor was considering running it as a daily feature. To keep the column interesting to as large a
group of readers as possible, I like to pick a range of ages and problems.
Dear Zodia
I’ve worked as a bookkeeper in the corporate world my entire
life. I’m 65 and my company forced me to
retire. I’m in decent shape
financially. I have a good pension and savings, but I don’t know what to
do with myself. I’ve tried to find
part-time work but no luck. I’ve never
felt so lost and useless. Do you see any
kind of work on the horizon for me? My
birth date is May 4, 1944 at 10:43 PM in Baltimore .
~
Discarded
Poor guy. Worked his
whole life and now shoved aside. The
man’s birth chart showed Venus as the oriental planet, that is, the planet
rising first before the Sun, a position that can sometimes offer a strong clue
to the profession. This man was a
natural artist, perhaps a craftsman, with his Mars in Virgo. He was someone with artistic yearnings and
capable of patient, detailed work.
Dear Discarded:
Your true artistic abilities have never been recognized,
much less nourished. A whole new world
can open up for you if you would pursue some form of craftsmanship to produce
beautiful things. Jewelry design,
working in precious metals, is just one possibility that comes to mind. Please take some classes, perhaps at a local
university extension and try your hand.
I think you’ll be amazed at your abilities and imagination. Believe me, you won’t look back.
~ Zodia
I worked through several more questions and responses and
then saved them all. This was hardly a
perfect way to practice astrology, but hopefully, my quick judgments and
answers would be spot on and help someone head in the right direction. I clicked back to the inbox and realized
three more emails had arrived while I had been working.
I didn’t recognize the various senders. My AskZodia address had been set up only for
Samantha, but these new emails weren’t from her. My private clients use Julia.Bonatti and my
friends use JuliaB. None of them would
even know of my AskZodia address. I
hesitated. I’m a hopeless non-techie
person and rely on my computer for business so I’m very fearful of
viruses. I clicked on the button to open
the reading pane and scrolled down. A
jolt of fear shot through me. The
message read, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Connie di Marco
is the author of the upcoming Zodiac Mystery series from Midnight Ink featuring
San Francisco
astrologer, Julia Bonatti. The Madness
of Mercury, first in the series, will be released on June 8, 2016. Writing as Connie Archer, she’s also the
national bestselling author of the Soup Lover’s Mystery series from Berkley
Prime Crime. You can find her excerpts and
recipes in both The Cozy Cookbook and The Mystery Writers of America
Cookbook. She is a member of Mystery
Writers of America, International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. You can visit her at her website: www.conniedimarco.com, or Facebook.com/ConniediMarco
(Author) and Twitter: @askzodia.
Buy links for The
Madness of Mercury:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1Q3yZXs
Barnes &
Noble: bit.ly/1UapU0B
Indie Bound:
bit.ly/1SBPKeq
Goodreads:
bit.ly/1ou4EXV
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Mercury
by Connie di Marco will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn
winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
The Madness of Mercury sounds like a fun cozy mystery. The cover art is adorable. Thank you for the giveaway.
RispondiEliminaHi Jen - Great to see you here. Thanks for visiting and best of luck!
EliminaThanks so much for hosting me today! Mille grazie!
RispondiEliminaThis is a fun excerpt, learning more about Julia's work.
RispondiEliminaHi Sally, thanks for stopping by today! I hope you enjoy the astrology as much as the mystery!
EliminaI love astrology...my chart showed very interesting personal characteristics and future possibilities. I always check my daily horoscope and...do my friends match their Zodiac characteristics? My husband sure does!
RispondiEliminaThanks for joining in on the giveaway...
kat8762@aol.com
Hi Kathleen - that's wonderful! You really can tell attraction from a look at charts! Best of luck!
EliminaAwesome review - thanks for sharing!
RispondiEliminaYou're welcome, Victoria! I hope you get to meet Julia and share her adventures. Best of luck!
EliminaI enjoyed reading the excerpt. This book sounds like such an interesting and intriguing read. Looking forward to checking out this book.
RispondiEliminaHi Ally - thanks for following along! Best of,luck to you!
EliminaRainy day in Michigan, hope your day is terrific, Thanks for the giveaway!
RispondiEliminaHi James - thank you and best of luck!
EliminaHi Kim - Glad you liked it! Best of luck to you!
RispondiEliminaI enjoyed the entire post. Thank you for sharing!
RispondiEliminaHi Ree - thanks for visiting! Best of luck. I hope you get to meet Julia soon!
Elimina