Dear Reader,
I hope this post finds you safe and well. I've been a busy, busy bee--a tale for another time. I am, however, very happy that I get to introduce the latest in the Piper Blackwell Series, The Dead of Jerusalem Ridge. This latest in the un-cozy cozy series by USA Today best-seller Jean Rabe comes out July 15, 2020 with Boone Street Press. Ms. Rabe is an impressive author with backlist of books and accolades long enough to make a girl drool with envy. One day. ;)
Until then, come check out an excerpt of The Dead of Jerusalem Ridge.

​​About the book: Sheriff Piper Blackwell’s three-day vacation with old Army buddies ends in tragedy. At the same time, a vile hate crime along a county road enrages her department. Their forces divided, Piper and her deputies must solve both cases before tensions boil and threaten the rural fabric of Spencer County, Indiana. Only eight months on the job, the young sheriff must weave together clues to uncover both a killer and a secret that could scar her soul.
 
"Piper Blackwell is a smart and capable small-town sheriff, a thoroughly modern woman who leads a colorful cast of characters in this entertaining read. Well-crafted and suspenseful, THE DEAD OF JERUSALEM RIDGE adroitly threads the needle between Cozy, Procedural, and Action-Thriller. Jean Rabe's fans⸺both old and new⸺won't want to miss this one.
⸺ Baron R. Birtcher, multi-award winner, and LA Times Bestselling author

Find The Dead of Jerusalem Ridge here:
Amazon:
Ebook
Paperback
Barnes & Noble
Kobo

​3 p.m. Saturday, September 5th
 
The rain felt good, but it complicated things by erasing the tracks she’d been following. Coming down in a syncopated pat-a-pat-a-pat, soaking through to her skin, it pleasantly cooled her. The temperature was in the low nineties, and before this deluge blossomed she’d been sweating under all her gear.
Piper crawled through the spurge, coming to a swath of mud that stretched toward a row of beech trees with silver-gray bark that matched the color of the sky.
Pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat.
Shit, Piper thought. She’d have to risk cutting across open ground, making herself a visible target. Shit and two is four and four is eight.
She sucked in a breath, the fragrance of goldenrod making her stifle a sneeze. The raindrops were large, dimpling the mud in front of her.
Listening.
Nothing but the rain and the shush of small branches rubbing together in the wind.
One more breath and she skittered forward, staying low, the mud plastering the front of her khakis and long-sleeved tee, feeling the ooze slip past the collars of her favorite L.L. Bean hiking boots to invade her socks.

​There’s a tour-wide giveaway! Open to US residents only.

​About the author: My home is filled with dogs and books. Lots of dogs and books. I wear worn out sandals to work every day. I'm a mystery writer living in a tiny Midwestern town that has a gas station, a Dollar General, and a marvelous pizza place with exceedingly slow service. I am always working on a new project or three. I have forty-some books published in the fantasy, science fiction, urban fantasy and mystery genres. But I'm concentrating on mysteries now. In my spare time I dabble in roleplaying games and boardgames. And at every opportunity, I toss tennis balls to my cadre of dogs.
My web page: www.jeanrabe.com 
I am on Twitter at: @jeanerabe 
My Amazon author page at: https://www.amazon.com/Jean-Rabe/e/B00J1QR5U2/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_1
 
I have a newsletter filled with tidbits about weird news items, pics of my dogs, discussions of upcoming books, reviews of things I’m reading, and writing advice. You can subscribe here: http://jeanrabe.us14.list-manage1.com/subscribe?u=89364515308e8b5e7ffdf6892&id=9404531a4b

,Dear Reader,
How are you? I hope all is well. With this horrid flu strain going around, I just hope you're staying well and taking precautions to not catch this. No more wet willies. No more Eskimo kisses. No more licking the faces of those we meet. Our lifestyles are forever changed. Though, in all seriousness, wash your hands and keep them away from your face--ah! Stop that! Quit rubbing your eyes!
My heart truly goes out to those that have lost a loved one to this. To those trying to prepare for possible quarantine as they look out for their fellow human beings--debt or death. What a choice.
Aside from assassin germs, it's lovely outside. Beautiful temperature, trees are in bloom, the roadworkers are measuring out a full teaspoon of asphalt to drop into the freakin' sinkholes that have our roads looking like Swiss cheese. Spring is upon us!
The other night, while we were going down the road, I could hear the spring peepers out in the woods and I just love that. Of course, I am a little worried about going outside, getting snotted up from pollen and being accused of being a Typhoid Mary. Poor Mary never lived that down.
I can't seem to gather my thoughts well enough to sit down and read. I have some really good books to read, highly recommend them and yet, my gray matter is exhausted and completely comfortable staring into space. Or sleeping. Whichever way makes my eyelids feel more comfortable at any given moment.
Oh, I hope you all stay safe, happy, and healthy. Lots of good vibes!
Love,
​Echo

Dear Reader,
How are you today? Any good plans for the weekend?
Walked the puppy outside under the watchful eye of a fluffed up mocking bird. It's chilly and crisp and bright with a clear blue sky--all in all, just a day that I'm appreciating.
I was just reading an article about the latest in flu strain-fashion (man, there seem to be so many) and my heart is going out to all of those infected and their loved ones, especially those currently in mourning.
Reader, I hope you stay healthy and happy.
Our family's been doing the hospital (not contagious, knock on wood) dance and so have some of my friends, which does lead me to the question--is there a sale on pregnancy tests?
I had to take one before a doctor at urgent care would give me an antibiotic for the cold. (Good news, no immaculate conception here.) I thought it was--well, honestly, a little insulting, but who am I to thwart new protocol?
But then a friend of mine went and got a hysterectomy. She's had to go back to the ER multiple times in the month since and first thing they do? Pregnancy test. Multiple visits. Multiple tests. Pre and post op. Even the day after the surgery. They obviously know she's smuggling a baby in there somewhere and they're going to make her admit it. It makes me wonder--was there a sale? Did they overestimate the latest baby boom and are now trying to get rid of the tests to help clear up storage space? At this point, I'm little curious if they're even worried about gender. Maybe it's an Oprah-esque-- "You get a pregnancy test! And you get a pregnancy test! And you get a pregnancy test!" type of moment. Men, women, children--everyone gets one!
It seems I have developed a writing partner. He's my fuzzy little buddy, stretching out across my lap and putting little white hairs on my clothes and keyboard. It's a wonder this little sucker isn't bald. But apparently, I don't ever have to do this writing thing alone. He's got my lap. :)
I think I'll go do some plotting on an idea I've got and maybe follow this little guy's example and catch some z's.
I hope this finds you well. Stay safe!
Love,
Echo

Dear Reader,
I hope this post finds you happy and healthy and filled with good cheer.
It's chilly, but sunshiny here--the type where you're happy to take the puppy out, but find yourself searching for a warm patch of sunlight and a tree to brace against to cut the cold.
Things here are--well, not going especially well, but they're moving and in a positive direction which I'm appreciating. I have a friend in management and she's really generous about sharing any articles with me that she finds helpful, and I often find the subject matter transferrable to my own day-to-day, though sadly, I can't seem to put my ideas into practice. Bypassing a deadline, or any of life's multitude of little minutiae details can sometimes drive me batty and they just don't seem to understand that I'm in charge. I've had this conversation with the sink dishes. Occasionally, I even slap the crap out of them with a rag and a towel, and, when they're really asking for it, I rub some bleach powder into their little dishy eyes. And yet those dirty bastards keep reappearing. Really, you've got to admire their tenacity. I'm a little bit of the mindset of "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em," but I just don't fit in the sink.
Alas, enough of my ramblings. I'm off to tackle the day!
May your day be well!
Love,
Echo
 

Dear Reader,
I hope you're feeling fit and healthy and all is going well. We don't really have sunshine here as much as an overcast not-quite rain, so if you have our sunlight, I hope you're enjoying it! But our weather was dry enough to do some tinkering around in the yard earlier, which I enjoyed.

Right now our house is filled with the smell of the hamburger I'm cooking and I'm salivating over the idea of Worcestershire sauce and mushrooms and hamburger, though not necessarily this hamburger. The ones I'm cooking now, are some of those preformed burgers with "extra value" on the package. I'm not too sure how much value I want with my burger. *Side note, they are decidedly not hamburgers. More like hamburger flavored meat. Not exactly what I was craving, but apparently I just need a Worcestershire/mushroom delivery system.
​
Question: (not hamburger related) does anyone know of anything to help with nausea? My mom always has it and my friend has had a really bad case of it for the past few weeks. So far, promethazine, Zofran, Dramamine, and ginger aren't cutting it. Any other ideas? I figured you might know.
I'd better get going. I've been pretty physically active today, but my job by it's nature demands that I stop flitting around and do some typing.
On with the day!
Stay well, dear Reader. I'm wishing you goodness!
Love,
Echo