Melanie
will be awarding the winner's choice of a backlist eBook to a randomly drawn
commenter during the tour.
Follow
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The tour dates can be found here:
BLURB:
Fueled
by grief after his fiancée is brutally murdered, Detective Sam Walker focuses
on finding her killer -- a calculating predator who binds books with human
skin. Dani Barrington, the newest member
of NOPD's Victim and Witness Assistance Unit and a survivor of another
frightening attack, helps him discover the terrifying link between the
monster's known victims. Despite his
anguish, Sam is struck by Dani's strength and determination, especially when
her inquisitive nature makes her the
killer's next target. He must find a way
to protect her or risk losing the one woman who can bring his dead heart back
to life.
Excerpt:
Kristen
was gone.
She
wasn't at work. She wasn't at home. She hadn't gone out to run an errand. She
had simply... vanished.
New
Orleans Detective Sam Walker stood in the center of his fiancée's cluttered
bedroom and struggled to piece together the timeline of her disappearance. Last
night they were supposed to meet for dinner, but he'd caught a case. They'd
talked on the phone around eleven, and he'd asked her to meet him for lunch
today.
He
hadn't spoken to her since.
She
was supposed to arrive at the Victim and Witness Assistance Unit for work at
nine a.m., but never made it. One of her co-workers had called him about ten
o'clock. He'd tried Kristen again, but she hadn't answered.
So
he'd come here and found her car in the driveway.
Yet
she sure as hell wasn't here.
Her
bed was meticulously made, the way she left it every morning, dumping him out
if he'd stayed over. A damp towel lay beside the bathroom sink. Soulful jazz
drifted from the iPod dock on her nightstand. What terrified him most, though,
was the spot of blood marring the door frame and the lone pink sandal lying in
the living room floor beside her purse, keys, and cell phone.
His
heart lurched. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think. Simply could not absorb
that she was missing. They'd been engaged for five months and three days, with
only a month to go until the wedding. They should be mulling over the guest
list, squabbling about where to go for their honeymoon, and deciding where they
wanted to live.
Instead,
Sam stared at an empty bed.
"There's
no sign of forced entry, so she either let the guy in or he jumped her when she
went after the paper this morning." Major Sabbatini's voice seemed to come
from far away. "I'm thinking she fought him off and ran, and he caught her
here in the bedroom."
"She
would have clawed him." Hell, she would've drawn blood with those nails.
Sam should know. He had the marks on his back to prove it. Moisture blurred his
vision as he eyed the smudge on the door jamb. "She... she just had her
nails done a couple of days ago. They're like talons."
"We'll
check the blood for DNA. You know that. What were her plans for today?"
"Um...
just work, far as I know. She and I were supposed to have lunch." Sam
shook his head. "Then tonight, she was going to a wedding shower. I
just--"
"When
was the last time you spoke with her?"
"Late
-- last night." Sam's eyes fell on a partially-filled mug on the table
beside Kristen's favorite chair, where she liked to read. A hard knot formed in
the center of his chest. "She didn't... even finish her coffee. She loves
coffee."
"We're
gonna find her, son."
"You
don't know that." Sam's voice cracked. He turned to his boss. "What
if I never see her again?"
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Melanie
Atkins a multi-published author of romantic suspense, an editor for an online
publishing company, and an avid reader. Writing is more than an escape for
her—it’s a way of life. She grew up in the Deep South listening to tall tales
and penning stories about her cats. Now she writes gripping stories of love,
suspense, and mystery with the help of her furry little feline muses.
Melanie
is an active member of Romance Writers of America®, the Magnolia State Romance
Writers (MSRW), the Published Author Network (PAN), the Electronic and Small
Press Authors' Network (ESPAN), the Electronically Published Internet
Connection (EPIC), Sisters in Crime (SinC), the Red Dog Writers, the Gulf Coast
Writers Association, the Southern Writers, the Mississippi Authors Guild and
the Byram Writers’ Group. She currently serves as Past President of MSRW.
www.melanieatkins.com
www.wordpress.melanieatkins.com
