Guest Author, Partners In Crime Tours, Showcase

Guest Author Helga Zeiner

CMash July 8, 2012 1 Comment

Today I am elated to have the opportunity to reintroduce you to my guest. Please indulge me so that I can explain why I am beyond thrilled.

Helga was a guest author back in May. At the time, I was behind in my requested review reading schedule and was unable to read and review her book. However, we traded emails regarding her showcase. She asked me about Partners In Crime Tours and decided to book a tour. I have since read her book and it is riveting!! Could not put it down.

Not only is she an amazing writer but a very kind, generous and thoughtful person who I now consider a friend. And today is her kick off and first stop as she starts her 2 month tour. Please meet author and friend, Ms. Helga Zeiner!!

HELGA ZEINER

Helga Zeiner is a Canadian and German citizen

At the age of 18, Helga completed her arts degree at the Art School of Bavaria, and then left Germany.

She lived and worked for two years in Australia, and twelve years in Hong Kong.

Since 2004 she has lived with her husband Manfred in the wilderness of British Columbia, about 5 hours north of Vancouver. There they own over 500 acres which they have developed into a gated cabin community, the Rainbow Country Estate.

For as long as she can remember, Helga has been writing novels, usually in her spare time. Today most of her time is devoted to writing, but she also manages the land development company, is politically active, enjoys outdoor sports and loves smoking cigars.
You can visit Helga at her Website, and on Facebook, and Twitter.

GUEST POST

“How did I research this subject”

Since Section 132 was published, I have been complimented quite often on the extensive research I had undertaken for this novel. Although the story is fictional, it is based on true events which took place in Canada and America. I therefore felt compelled to get all the relevant details right before I could create a tale that would grip the reader and transport him into this weird and freaky world.

Readers have asked me how on earth one researches a polygamous sect. Go under-cover? Infiltrate them somehow? Get in touch with and interview women and teenagers who managed to escape? Or did I maybe, just maybe, write from personal experience? Had I possibly been a sister-wife myself?

Well, it’s not quite that spectacular. It simply took years of painstaking, traditional subject matter research. I worked diligently on collecting supporting facts. I read many books, biographies, anything I could find about the history of the Mormon religion and their off-shoot cult FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Later Day Saints), the biography of its founder Joseph Smith, of their Prophet Warren Jeffs, as well as many accounts of women who had escaped the cult.

I closely followed a court case at the BC Supreme Court which had to decide if polygamy should be made legal in this Canadian province. This case was brought before the courts by the Bishop of the Canadian polygamous sectBountifulwho argued it on the grounds of religious freedom. Luckily, the judge ruled that polygamy is harmful to women and children and will therefore continue to be illegal.

Eventually I got hold of the ‘Book of Mormon’ and the attached “Doctrine & Covenants’ written by Josef Smith. There I found “Section 132’ which covers the holy covenant of ‘The Principle of Plural Marriage’ (polygamy!) and provides the religious justification for the strange rule that one man must have several wives. It was quite a read!

In the course of this research I got in touch with a wonderful group of University Women who have formed the ‘Bountiful Round-table’ as well as the ‘West Coast Leaf Lawyers Association’ – both groups are actively working toward their goal of banning polygamy in our society altogether.

Finally, I was contacted by members of a fairly clandestine organization who had heard about my efforts. As they are pro-active in rescuing women who try to escape the cult, they have met with some serious opposition in the higher echelons of the FLDS and have made quite a few enemies. They checked me out thoroughly before allowing me to join their closed group. I was honored to be able to collect further data this way. You can imagine what valuable insights, sometimes heart breaking and infuriating, I could gather through those channels.

All in all, it has taken me several years before I even wrote the first sentence. Although I have taken liberties with the truth and let my imagination run rampant, which is my prerogative as a novelist, there is still a very chilling element of authenticity in this story.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Lillian is only 13 when her parents marry her to a middle-aged Bishop of a fundamentalist sect who practices polygamy. She is forced to live with her new husband’s many wives and children on his compound tucked away in the Canadian wilderness.

The hardships of poverty and isolation have crushed the will of just about everybody in his flock. They suffer in silent submissiveness, trying to please their despotic leader. He justifies the humiliating treatment of his dependents by citing ‘Section 132 of the Doctrine & Covenants’ of his fundamentalist religion.

Until, one day, Lillian had enough. But it is dangerous to try and escape the Bishop’s iron rule. He practices blood-atonement, which is quietly sanctioned by the ‘Gatekeepers’, an American secret society within the Fundamentalist Mormon Church.

Lillian must find out-side help if she ever wants to leave the Bishop’s compound – but how can she do this if she is locked up without any means of communication?

Lillian doesn’t know how life outside a compound functions. She only knows that she can not live like this much longer. Many questions plaque her troubled mind.

Why do her sister-wives put up with this hardship, knowing only a bleak future lies ahead of them? Where do the child-brides come from, the Bishop keeps adding to his family? Where do some of his daughters disappear to, once they come of age? Lillian’s defiance grows with every injustice she witnesses – until she can’t hide her rebellion any longer.

Her desperate struggle to escape draws the reader into a very dark, very dangerous place. But not all is hopeless. When land developer Richard Bergman buys the neighboring property, Lillian’s luck seems to be changing …

Read an excerpt:

Martha knew the Bishop was coming for her. His boots stomped toward the office, and when he unlocked the door, she moved back to the opposite wall, trying to melt into it. The room was only about ten feet deep, and he was threateningly close as soon as he had entered. She saw the gun strap slung over his shoulder. Marion was beside him, her face still wet from crying, but already setting into a mask of acceptance and denial. Empty eyes buried in a stone hard expression. With only minimal movement of her body, she looked like a motionless statue, placed there only as an accessory to her husband, an extension of his wrath, coming alive only to cater to his demands. For the moment, he needed nothing of her except to observe him in all his glory as the executor of the faith.
Martha was not scared of him, but she was terrified of the unknown. What cruelty had he planned for her? Would she have to suffer long? It would be easier to bear if she knew what to expect.
She didn’t have to wait long.
“Get out of here, you worthless piece of shit!” he snapped at her. He slipped the gun strap off his shoulder and casually swung the hunting rifle in front of his massive torso like a trophy. “Here, see this! Fear this! It is the Lord’s instrument of vengeance. He has appointed me to be his executioner. Commanded me to exterminate filthy vermin like you. Get out, you slut, so I can punish you for your sins!” He came closer, lowered the weapon and prodded her thigh with the tip of the rifle. Martha jumped sideways and was forced to move forward and slide past him to the door.
He directed her with his weapon. “Bitch! Out with you! Outside! We don’t want a mess in here. Out you go, you miserable creature! I’ll show you who your master is. Move it, bitch, don’t drag your feet.”
Martha moved a little faster. She was numb, didn’t even feel herself walking past Marion who remained grotesquely frozen in her stance.
The Bishop kept pushing her forward, down the hallway, to the back entrance of the house. “Go, go, go. Let’s have a little target practise. You’d better move a bit faster, or it won’t be fun at all. Outside you go.”
He pushed her through the back door and out into the yard. “When I count to three, you run. If you make it over there, I’ll let you live. The Lord will decide.”
The distance from the house to the trees was much larger than she remembered. But it didn’t matter; he would get her anyway. Best to go slow, otherwise he might miss and only injure her.
“One!”
Martha took a deep breath. He slammed his rifle painfully into her back. She nearly lost her balance.
“Two!”
She forgot her resolution to be an easy target and instinctively started to run.
“Threeeee….”
She ran as fast as she could, trying to get away from his horrible ‘eeeee’. She practically flew over the ground, driven by her survival instinct, until she stumbled, lost her balance and fell face down on the ground. A sharp slash whipped viciously through her whole body, ripping her insides apart. She was surprised to hear herself groaning, although the excruciating pain of a moment ago subsided into shocked numbness. He had not finished her! Mixed into her total confusion of being shot at, lying on the ground and not feeling any pain, was the realization that something did not fit into the whole scenario. Something did not make sense. She had heard him counting and his final endless, blood curling “eeeeeeeee” still rang in her ears. She was on her knees now, slumped forward to steady herself with her hands, and turning sideways to look behind her.
He was also on the ground, holding his side with one hand, the rifle lying next to him. His “eeeeee” had evaporated into a whimper. At the same instant Martha saw the shape of a woman running away from him. Nothing but billowing skirts in a hasty retreat, impetuously heading for the protection of the trees. Anna! Already she had reached the trees. A safe haven for the fleeing Anna; as it would be for her, if she could reach it before he recovered from the injury Anna had inflicted on him. He was already shaking his head like a wounded bear, groaning in an effort to get the nasty foreign object that incapacitated him out of his flank. Martha did not see what had injured him so badly that the air had been knocked out of his lungs, but it must have weakened him considerably. He was wheezing, coughing and gurgling in his angry attempts to regain his stability and was slowly steadying himself.
If only she had not been hurt – if only she could reach the cover of the forest before he recovered from the surprise attack. She forced herself to try and scramble to her feet, surprised that she was still in one piece and not cut into two like she had thought. Where did it hurt? Even more surprised, she realized that she was not hurting at all. Her brain finally solved the mystery that had puzzled her before. No shot had been fired! On his last count she had only heard his scream but no shot – no bullet had been flying in her direction. She had stumbled and fallen, that was all. The pain had been imaginary.
By now her legs were firmly on the ground, holding her weight, and she started to run. She looked back once and increased her efforts to reach the tree line when she saw that he was already on his knees, groping blindly for his weapon. She literally flew across the yard, her skirt bunched up high, with her feet barely touching the ground. The forest. The trees. There they were. She ran past the first few trees, getting deeper into the woods before she pressed herself behind one wide trunk, panting heavily. She dared to look back. He was nowhere to be seen. He had moved. Where to? She knew her panting was too loud, but she could not stop it, her lungs were screaming for oxygen.
It was mercifully dark in the forest, but he only needed to follow the wheezing sounds she made to find her. Anger welled up inside her. She wanted to live! Why hadn’t Anna finished him! She must have been too weak. If only she had a weapon. The frustration of being so helpless made her even more angry. I will fight him, she thought. This time, I will scratch his eyes out before he can hurt me again. Martha slid down the tree trunk until she cowered on the wet cold ground, making herself as small a target as possible. She concentrated on the sounds of the night. He was injured and furious, he would not approach like a seasoned hunter but would storm through the darkness in search of her. When she heard him coming, she could hide or run away from him. She wasn’t quite sure what she would do, but this time she would not make it easy for him.

Book Details:
Published by POW WOW Books
Publication Date: July 1, 2011
Genre: Suspense
ISBN-10: 0986879800
ISBN-13: 978-0986879807
Number of pages: 458
Purchase links: Amazon link B&N link

THANKS TO THE GENEROSITY OF AUTHOR, HELGA ZEINER,
I HAVE ONE (1) EBOOK EDITION TO GIVE AWAY.

CLICK HERE TO BRING YOU TO THE
GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE. OPEN TO ALL.

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.
ADDENDUM
I do not have any affiliation with Amazon.com,
Barnes & Noble and/or any other retail/wholesale
outlets either online and/or elsewhere.
I am providing this link solely for visitors
that may be interested in purchasing this Book/EBook.
I do not receive any monetary compensation from any parties

Author, Giveaway

EBOOK GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE “SECTION 132” by Helga Zeiner ENDED

CMash July 8, 2012 15 Comments

JULY 8th to JULY 22nd, 2012

SECTION 132
by HELGA ZEINER

SYNOPSIS:

Lillian is only 13 when her parents marry her to a middle-aged Bishop of a fundamentalist sect who practices polygamy. She is forced to live with her new husband’s many wives and children on his compound tucked away in the Canadian wilderness.

The hardships of poverty and isolation have crushed the will of just about everybody in his flock. They suffer in silent submissiveness, trying to please their despotic leader. He justifies the humiliating treatment of his dependents by citing ‘Section 132 of the Doctrine & Covenants’ of his fundamentalist religion.

Until, one day, Lillian had enough. But it is dangerous to try and escape the Bishop’s iron rule. He practices blood-atonement, which is quietly sanctioned by the ‘Gatekeepers’, an American secret society within the Fundamentalist Mormon Church.

Lillian must find out-side help if she ever wants to leave the Bishop’s compound – but how can she do this if she is locked up without any means of communication?

Lillian doesn’t know how life outside a compound functions. She only knows that she can not live like this much longer. Many questions plaque her troubled mind.

Why do her sister-wives put up with this hardship, knowing only a bleak future lies ahead of them? Where do the child-brides come from, the Bishop keeps adding to his family? Where do some of his daughters disappear to, once they come of age? Lillian’s defiance grows with every injustice she witnesses – until she can’t hide her rebellion any longer.

Her desperate struggle to escape draws the reader into a very dark, very dangerous place. But not all is hopeless. When land developer Richard Bergman buys the neighboring property, Lillian’s luck seems to be changing …

THANKS TO AUTHOR, HELGA ZEINER,

I HAVE ONE ( 1 ) EBOOK EDITION

OF THIS BOOK TO GIVE AWAY.
HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO WIN.

*USE THE RAFFLECOPTER FORM BELOW
IN ORDER TO BE INCLUDED IN THE GIVEAWAY*
BE SURE TO INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL

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PLEASE NOTIFY ME IF YOU HAVE
WON THIS BOOK FROM ANOTHER
SITE, SO THAT SOMEONE ELSE MAY
HAVE THE CHANCE TO WIN
AND READ THIS BOOK.
THANK YOU.

*GIVEAWAY ENDS JULY 22nd AT 6PM EST*

WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN BY RAFFLECOPTER AND NOTIFIED
VIA EMAIL AND WILL HAVE 48 HOURS TO RESPOND
OR ANOTHER NAME WILL BE CHOSEN

DISCLAIMER / RULES

Giveaway copies are supplied and shipped to winners via publisher,
the giveaway on behalf of the
above. 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.

I am not responsible for lost or damaged books that are shipped
from agents. I reserve the right to disqualify/delete any entries
if rules of giveaway are not followed

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Book Review, Partners In Crime Tours

Review “Section 132” by Helga Zeiner

CMash July 8, 2012 3 Comments

Section 132 by Helga Zeiner
Published by POW WOW Books
Publication Date: July 1, 2011
ISBN-10: 0986879800
ISBN-13: 978-0986879807
Pages: 458
Review Copy from: Author
Edition: Kindle
My Rating: 5

Synopsis:
Lillian is only 13 when her parents marry her to a middle-aged Bishop of a fundamentalist sect who practices polygamy. She is forced to live with her new husband’s many wives and children on his compound tucked away in the Canadian wilderness.
The hardships of poverty and isolation have crushed the will of just about everybody in his flock. They suffer in silent submissiveness, trying to please their despotic leader. He justifies the humiliating treatment of his dependents by citing ‘Section 132 of the Doctrine & Covenants’ of his fundamentalist religion.
Until, one day, Lillian had enough. But it is dangerous to try and escape the Bishop’s iron rule. He practices blood-atonement, which is quietly sanctioned by the ‘Gatekeepers’, an American secret society within the Fundamentalist Mormon Church.
Lillian must find out-side help if she ever wants to leave the Bishop’s compound – but how can she do this if she is locked up without any means of communication?
Lillian doesn’t know how life outside a compound functions. She only knows that she can not live like this much longer. Many questions plaque her troubled mind.
Why do her sister-wives put up with this hardship, knowing only a bleak future lies ahead of them? Where do the child-brides come from, the Bishop keeps adding to his family? Where do some of his daughters disappear to, once they come of age? Lillian’s defiance grows with every injustice she witnesses – until she can’t hide her rebellion any longer.
Her desperate struggle to escape draws the reader into a very dark, very dangerous place. But not all is hopeless. When land developer Richard Bergman buys the neighboring property, Lillian’s luck seems to be changing …

My Thoughts and Opinion: Since I believe in honest reviews, I feel that I need to start this critique with some caveats as to how I came to read this book, what happened in the interim and how my personality/thought process played a role in the review.

First, author and friend, Melissa Foster (Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda, Come Back To Me and Traces of Kara) contacted me, which she has done on several occasions, to recommend and ask if I would read, review and host an author showcase for one of her peers. I, in return, emailed Ms. Zeiner and offered a spotlight on my blog but was honest and stated that I didn’t know exactly when I would be able to read and review her book due to back log. She accepted and we agreed upon a date, May 29th that she would be featured. With emails back and forth to gather information for the spotlight, Helga asked about Partners In Crime Tours since her book is categorized as suspense. She decide to book a tour through Partners In Crime Tours, and at that time, I still hadn’t started reading her book. I am sure that some people will think that I give books high ratings because they decide to tour with our company (my partner being Molly from Reviews By Molly). That is not the case. I believe in honesty and integrity and will judge and write a review accordingly, no matter what.

Second, how my personality had a bearing on this book. I have always had a hunger for knowledge to learn about different cultures, religions, and life styles other than what I know and practice. Not to judge, condemn or condone but to learn and understand. Even though this was a fictional story, the details of a different religion and culture, was an eye opening education for me. With all that being said, now to my review.

My first thought when I started reading this book was “oh no…480 pages”. I admit, I am one of those readers, who prefer books that are approximately 300 pages. It is definitely a mind over matter issue thinking it will take me many days and/or weeks to read. However, once I finished reading the Prologue, I was hooked. Ms. Zeiner’s writing style was impeccable. It flowed smoothly even with the vast amount of minute details. Even with the minuscule depictions, it didn’t get boring or preachy whereas you wanted to just skim over certain parts. Those tiny descriptions allowed this reader to be transported into the plot and vividly create the imagery of the story. The characters were brought to life due to the specific graphic depiction. Believable and explicit. As I stated earlier, it was classified as a “suspense”, however, it wasn’t a typical standard “suspense” as one would think of like a “who done it”. It was more of a suspense whereas there was page turning apprehension as the chilling predicaments, compelling incidents, staggering events and outcome of the theme. What I thought would take me above average time to read because of the length of the book, took me days because I couldn’t put it down. One of my thoughts while reading this novel, was that with the definitive, distinct, precise and tenacious facts of this particular topic, that the author had put in years of research, was an embedded covert individual or had lived the lifestyle, because of it’s convincing nature. These 480 pages impacted and will stay with me for a very long time. Highly recommend! Extraordinary!! Powerful!!

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.

(2012 Challenges: EBooks, FreeReads, Where Are You, A-Z, 52 in 52, Outdo Yourself, 100+)

Meme, Sunday Memes, Sunday Salon

Sunday Salon

CMash July 8, 2012 7 Comments

Facebook link

Hello Sunday Saloners!!! Another week has flown by and am very disappointed in my reading, or I should say lack of. But the big news is the new look, which was unveiled yesterday. So, what do you think? Like, dislike, like the old look better, any suggestions, etc., etc. Would love to know your thoughts. And now to my week.

Reading: This is awful, and I’m quite embarrassed to say, that another week has gone by and I still haven’t finished my current read. Not because it’s not keeping my interest and/or is an awful read. Quite the opposite. It’s because I haven’t had the time to really sit and read, for a few reasons. I have spent a lot of time in front of the computer, busy with blog to-dos and organizing tours. Plus my DH, took some time off this past this week and since he isn’t a reader, doesn’t understand the concept when one has a book in hand, it means conversation can’t take place lol. It was like he had a GPS implanted for when I would pick up my book lol. Plus I haven’t rectified or found the solution to be able to read while wearing my CPAP mask (for sleep apnea).

Blogging: I did have a productive week computer wise. Drafted up a lot of future posts for showcases, giveaways and work for Partners In Crime Tours. I also spent a ~~wee~~, ~~some~~, more time than I should have, on shopping. If only my favorite sites didn’t send me emails with great bargains, I might have had more time for reading lol.

Real Life: Exciting week for deliveries. Haven’t had one of these weeks in a while. Between the mail and UPS, I received some great books, which I will share tomorrow. I think it is so funny how excited I get when I see that big brown truck stop in front of my house. It’s like Christmas morning lol. The holiday was a quiet day. I was hoping to spend the day reading on my reading float with a frozen mudslide but my DH wasn’t able to vacuum the pool due to a broken hose so I spent a couple of hours reading in my ac’d reading room, the only day this week while the hubby was out. And I did have that planned frozen mudslide lol!!!!

So how was your week? How was your holiday? Did you get a lot of reading done?

Giveaway, Winners

And the winner is……

CMash July 7, 2012 1 Comment

…..of Clean Break by David Klein

35 Karen Leave a Blog Post Comment

An email has been sent to the winner and she has 48 hours to respond with her mailing address or another winner will be chosen. Thank you to all that entered.

Uncategorized

The Unveiling !!!! The New Blog!!!!!

CMash July 7, 2012 6 Comments

For a while, well quite a while, Gina, from Hott Books and Hott Designs, has been itching to give me a new look. And lately I have been thinking that since I am coming up on my 3 year Blogiversary, I also wanted a change, for a modern, book themed looking blog. And that’s exactly what I told Gina, along with some color choices, and voila!!!…my new blog. I saw the final look at the same time you did!! So…be honest….what do you think? I know I love it but there will be some tweaking along the way, so would really love your input for ideas.

I think she did an extraordinary job!!!!! Knowing her work, she does the graphics for my Partners In Crime Tours tour banners, I knew that she was going to do a fantastic job, and she did!!! She also asked for your input, since it really is for you, how you feel when you visit, what you like or don’t like when looking at it, because as you know, as editors of a blog, we work behind the scenes. It’s our followers that see the actual blog look so I want you to like what you see when you visit. So let us know what you think!!

Gina: Fantastic job, Thank you so much for all the work you put into designing the new look. I truly do love it!! Your work is amazing!! And if anyone is thinking of changes for your own blog, click on her design button on the left sidebar.

P.S. If by chance you have my old blog button on your blog, don’t forget to grab the new one. Would greatly appreciate it!!!!!

Gina

After All This Time… She’s Finally Doing It!

GHott July 7, 2012 3 Comments

Happy Saturday!

It’s taken me years, but I’ve finally gotten CMash to commit to a new blog design. So, now the poor girl must bow to my every whim while I completely take over.

So, don’t freak if, for a few hours the site looks a bit messy… I’m sure even Monet’s works looked a bit odd before they were done.

If you have any questions or something looks truly disastrous, please, let me know: gina at hottbooks.com

Guest Author, Showcase

Guest Author Luba Lesychyn

CMash July 7, 2012 2 Comments

Question for you!! What’s better than a good mystery? Well, if you are like me, then it would be a good mystery and chocolate!! And those were the 2 words I saw when Carissa contacted me about today’s author. Plus there will be two (2) separate giveaways, a Grand Prize, which the publisher, Attica Books is sponsoring and a giveaway here!!! Make sure to follow all directions for both!! So have a seat, grab your box of chocolates and please help me give a warm welcome to author, Luba Lesychyn!

LUBA LESYCHYN

Soon after finishing her graduate studies in history, Luba landed on the doorstep of Canada’s largest museum, the Royal Ontario Museum where she worked for more than 20 years. Moving from positions in the education and programs departments to the museum’s consulting branch, she concluded her career in the office that managed the museum’s recent controversial architectural renovation. After leaving the museum, Luba worked for several years in an administrative and research capacity for a private museum consulting firm with offices in Toronto and London. She currently works in the educational sector and teaches yoga in her home town of Toronto.

Theft by Chocolate is Luba’s debut novel though she has been amusing people with her writing since the age of eight. Her love of chocolate precedes this age and she has been in and out of chocolate rehab for most of her adult life. When not writing or looking for her next chocolate fix, Luba can be found in dance classes, trekking to remote waterfalls in the mountain rain forest in Puerto Rico, running through the streets of Paris or any other number of calorie-burning activities that help offset her chocolate intake.

GUEST POST

Inspired by True Events – Really!

I had long completed the first draft of Theft By Chocolate when I had a chance encounter with an individual that would send me back to my computer to completely reconfigure the plot of my sassy museum mystery about a capricious woman of a certain age looking for chocolate, love and an international art thief in all the wrong places. While working as an executive assistant at a city college in an office that was managing the construction of a new campus, I happened to mention my writing to a security consultant working on our project.

In particular, I brought up the fact that I had worked for the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto for the greater part of my career and that I had drawn on my experiences at the museum for inspiration for the story that revolved around a heist. The consultant’s eyes widened almost to the size of saucers and he whispered to me, “We need to have a chat about this.” Somewhat taken aback, but intrigued to the max, I suggested we get together sooner than later to have our “chat.” I was already a third of the way into a major rewrite of the novel and I did not want to delay our discussion.

Within a week we sat down at a table of a retro diner where “my informant” proceeded to tell me his family had worked in the security industry for decades and that he had insider information about the infamous opal collection theft that had taken place at the Royal Ontario Museum in the late 1980s (my employment at ROM started after the theft had taken place). It was common knowledge that the thief was never identified nor apprehended and that the jewels had eventually turned up in a black market in Hong Kong.

What was not common knowledge, as the security consultant continued to share with me, was that the thief had used an ingenious technique that stunned the security industry around the world. The culprit managed to circumvent what was considered state-of-the art technology in its day, a technology that was being used universally, not just in museums and art galleries, but in banks and businesses. International law keepers realized it wouldn’t be long before thieves around the world heard about the daring robbery and how it was executed. Basically, the planet’s riches, both great and small were suddenly at risk.

It was this piece of information and some additional material gleaned from rare newspaper articles about the theft that formed the crux of the final version of Theft By Chocolate. My work is fiction and includes characters derived from my imagination, but the real events provided a strong backbone upon which I was able to add imagined flesh. Still, the mysterious and unique real-life theft continues to haunt me. I may just have to put on an investigative journalist’s hat some day to determine whether, after more than three decades, some new information might be uncovered which could shed new light upon the events that shaped Theft By Chocolate.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Mystery, Mayans and Mayhem: looking for chocolate, love and an international art thief in all the wrong places.

Chocolate addict Kalena Boyko wasn’t prepared for this. Heading to work at Canada’s largest museum as an administrator, she hoped for quiet and uninterrupted access to her secret chocolate stash. Instead she’s assigned to manage the high-profile Treasures of the Maya exhibition with her loathed former boss Richard Pritchard.

With no warning, her life is turned inside out and propelled into warp speed as she stumbles across an insider plot that could jeopardize the exhibit and the reputation of the museum.

After hearing about a recent botched theft at the museum and an unsolved jewel heist in the past from security guard and amateur sleuth Marco Zeffirelli, Kalena becomes suspicious of Richard and is convinced he’s planning to sabotage the Treasures of the Maya exhibition. Her suspicions, and the appearance of the mysterious but charming Geoffrey Ogden from the London office, don’t help her concentration. The Treasures of the Maya seem cursed as problem after problem arises, including the disappearance of a key artifact – the world’s oldest piece of chocolate…

THANKS TO AUTHOR, LUBA LESYCHYN, I HAVE ONE (1)
EBOOK EDITION TO GIVE AWAY. OPEN TO ALL.

CLICK HERE TO BRING YOU TO THE
CMASH BLOG GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY SPONSORED BY ATTICA BOOKS:

Theft By Chocolate Giveaway at Every Blog Stop

Please leave a comment below and your email address to be entered to win an ebook copy of Theft By Chocolate, the new release by Luba Lesychyn. In five days, a winner will be chosen at random and notified via email. Available in any ebook format. Remember to write your email address in the comments so that you can be contacted if you win!

$150 Gift Certificate Giveaway of Grand Prize on July 31st

Do you love chocolate as much as Kelana, the heroine in Theft By Chocolate? Here’s your chance to indulge in $150 US worth! The Giveaway Grand Prize is a gift certificate to a delectable chocolate online retailer. Winner chooses from one of three sites: http://www.chocosphere.com/, http://www.hotelchocolat.co.uk/ , or http://www.dlea.com.au/. To be eligible for the Grand Prize, enter the Rafflecopter below. Remember to sign up for Luba’s email announcements (worth five entries). On occasion she’ll send out exclusive announcements for special events, blog posts, giveaways and free swag! On July 31^st, the winner will be chosen at random and notified via email.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLAIMER
No items that I receive
are ever sold…they are kept by me,
or given to family and/or friends.