What a fantastic way to start off the New Year…I am thrilled to be hosting today’s guest. I was so excited when Deb from Joan Schulhafer Publishing contacted me to read and review this book. Today’s author has been on my “authors to read” list for quite a while and can’t wait to read her latest novel. So without futher ado, please help me give a very warm welcome to NYTimes Best Selling author, Ms. Mary Burton!!
MARY BURTON
A Central Virginia native whose family’s Richmond roots run as deep as the nation’s, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Mary Burton also resided in Alexandria, Virginia, where she is now setting her novels SENSELESS (Janaury 2011) and MERCILESS (February 2011). She graduated from Virginia’s Hollins University and began a career in marketing. After a decade she left her job and began writing. Her first novel, a romance, was published in 2000.
Following that book, Burton wrote sixteen novels and novellas for Harlequin and Silhouette before entering the dark world of multiple murderers and their motives with Senseless, Merciless, Dying Scream, Dead Ringer and I’m Watching You, as well as her novella Christmas Past, which appears in the 2008 New York Times bestselling holiday anthology Silver Bells.
Her commitment to realism has led to eye-opening interviews with law enforcement, to forensic seminars and to the firing range. She is a graduate of the Henrico County Citizens Police Academy and the Richmond FBI Citizen’s Academy, and has participated in Sisters in Crime’s Forensic University program. Recently, she attended the Writers Police Academy in Jamestown, North Carolina. There she attended seminars on autopsies, undercover work and the motives behind murder.
Mary Burton is an avid baker and an accomplished cook. When not writing, researching or baking, Mary practices yoga, enjoys her miniature dachshunds Buddy and Bella, volunteers at the University of Richmond’s Culinary Arts Program, attends professional conferences, and visits with readers and booksellers.
Mary Burton is now at work on her next novel set in Alexandria.
Visit Ms. Burton at her website here.
A Tasty Guest Post
Happy New Year!
This is my favorite time of year. I love the new beginnings and the excitement of the year ahead. This year I’m thrilled to see the release of THE SEVENTH VICTIM my seventh romantic suspense for Kensington.
THE SEVENTH VICTIM is set in Austin, Texas and tells the tale of a photographer Lara Church who is the lone survivor of a serial killer called the Seattle Strangler. She’s been moving around the country for seven years using her 150-year-old bellows camera to take images. But as the book opens, she’s decided to stop running from her tragic past and to rebuild her life. What she doesn’t realize is that the killer never forgot her and he’s now arrived in Austin to finish the job he started all those years ago. When the killer strikes again in Austin, Texas Ranger James Beck takes the case and soon a killer, who shows his victims no mercy, ties the two together.
I really enjoyed researching the Austin area. It’s a fun eclectic place that’s not only the center of government for Texas, but also home of the Texas Rangers. Recently I returned to Austin and had the chance to visit many of the places that are featured in THE SEVENTH VICTIM. I strolled down Congress Avenue just as Lara might have done, I drove down I-35 following the route my killer took and made my way into Hill Country so I could see where Lara lived.
There’s no substituting a walk in my character’s shoes down Congress Avenue, or through the halls of the state capitol, over the rugged terrain at Enchanted Rock. I pick up the sights, smells and sounds that I hope add a richness to the story.
The tradition continues! Baker extraordinaire and bestselling author Mary Burton is once again sharing her favorite holiday recipes. This treat honors the protagonist of her next novel, THE SEVENTH VICTIM, with a recipe both delicious and memorable.
Lara’s Church Lady Maple Cookies:
1/2 pound (two sticks) butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup toasted walnuts (optional)
Cream together butter and brown sugar.
Add the egg and mix well.
Add the maple syrup and vanilla.
In a separate bowl mix together flour, salt and baking soda.
Slowly blend dry ingredients into butter- sugar mixture.
Spoon cookies onto a greased baking sheet, leaving room between them because they will spread.
Bake at 325 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
Sit back and enjoy!
It’s true. I’ve forgotten how many people I’ve killed already but the number keeps rising—least in my novels. I’m delighted to say that no one has yet expired as a result of my passion for baking.
This one’s a family favorite that the kids expect to see multiple times during the holiday season.
I hope your family and friends enjoy Lara’s Church Lady Maple Cookies as much as mine do.
Happy Holidays!
Mary
ABOUT THE BOOK
If At First You Don’t Succeed
It’s been seven years since the Seattle Strangler terrorized the city. His victims were all young, pretty, their lifeless bodies found wrapped in a home-sewn white dress. But there was one who miraculously escaped death, just before the Strangler disappeared. . .
Kill
Lara Church has only hazy memories of her long-ago attack. What she does have is a home in Austin, a job, and a chance at a normal life at last. Then Texas Ranger James Beck arrives on her doorstep with shattering news: The Strangler is back. And this time, he’s in Austin. . .
And Kill Again. . .
He’s always craved her, even as he killed the others. For so long he’s been waiting to unleash the beast within. And this time, he’ll prove he holds her life in his hands—right before he ends it forever. . .
Be on the look out for my review in the near future.
THANKS TO JOAN SCHULHAFER PUBLISHING,
I HAVE ONE (1) COPY OF THIS BOOK TO GIVE AWAY.
OPEN TO U.S. AND CANADA RESIDENTS
DISCLAIMER
I received a copy of this book, at no charge to me,
in exchange for my honest review.
No items that I receive
are ever sold…they are kept by me,
or given to family and/or friends.
