About the Author:
An enrolled descendant of the Karuk Tribe of California, I enjoyed a forty-year investigative career in law enforcement and private and corporate investigations. I attended the Institute of American Indian Arts, earning an MFA-Creative Writing.
As a corporate and private Investigator, I conducted investigations throughout the Americas and Asia. For about five years, I kept my investigative skills honed by volunteering as a Missing Person investigator at a California Police Department.
My short stories and poems have been published in numerous anthologies. My debut novel, The Mona Lisa Sisters, was released in 2020. Robbers and Cops followed in 2022. New Liberty-A Hector Miguel Navarro Novel, the first in the series, will be out shortly.

Something unique that isn’t in your regular bio: “My father was exceptional, and his skills led to a unique experience in my teens. Dad was a horseman, a good part of his life. Pop even rode with the 11th Calvary, the Blackhorse Regiment, up to and into World War II. 
Pop bought three wild donkeys in my fifteenth year, and we trained them to be pack animals. Pop made the saddles and all the equipment needed by a beast of burden. We spent over three weeks on the John Muir Trail and more weeks in the backcountry of California. In all my years, I’ve never met a man like my Pop.”
 
You can contact me at:
Email              gdcramer@outlook.com
Blog                 https://gdcramer.com/george-cramer-blog/
FaceBook      https://facebook.com/george.cramer.56211
LinkedIn         (99+) George Cramer | LinkedIn
Amazon           Amazon.com: George Cramer: books, biography, latest update

​Perhaps the most exciting place and time to have ever lived was Brooklyn in the Roaring ‘20s. This is why I chose to set my historical PI mystery there and then. It was a time of Prohibition and speakeasies, jazz and the shimmy, moving pictures and baseball—and above all else, a full-throttled expression of living life to the fullest.
 
In Velma Gone Awry, I attempt to bottle this ebullience of esprit within the pages of a mystery novel. 8 Ballo is a PI in 1923 Brooklyn, living and working in Bushwick, when he is hired to find the missing adult daughter of a German businessman. Thus, the caper begins, and the high jinks ensue.
 
8’s first stop in his search is at the Algonquin Round Table presided over by Dorothy Parker, who is an acquaintance of Velma. The wisecracking wit of Parker and the other members of this esteemed literary circle are put out on display. Through the course of the book, 8 and Parker become good friends, as she aids him in finding the where and why of Velma.
 
After Dorothy goes off elsewhere with the group for cocktails, 8 meets and interviews the very-hungover married couple, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. He will also travel out to visit them later in the book in Great Neck, or should I say East and West Egg, setting for The Great Gatsby.
 
Next is a visit to Harlem to speak with Coleman ‘Bean’ Hawkins, who at one point had a dalliance with Velma. This legendary jazzman weaves his way through the pages, as do other prodigious musical talents of the era such as Fletcher ‘Smack’ Henderson, Ethel Waters, and many more.
 
Places such as Coney Island are brought to life as 8 searches for Velma. The carnival atmosphere with the rides, the debauchery, the circus acts, and the illegal speakeasies permeate the pages. The sheer energy of Coney Island, with the recent advent of the nickel train, which brought the poor as well as the rich to the beach, is caught in all of its vibrant colors, smells, and sounds.
 
Speakeasies and rum running can’t take place without gangsters, and the likes of Meyer Lansky, Bugsy Siegel, Charlie Luciano, and Arnold Rothstein have appearances. Rothstein is credited with fixing the 1919 World Series and the other three became incredibly powerful, first beginning Murder Incorporated at the Candy Store in Gravesend and the Back Room in lower Manhattan. The Back Room is still in operation, retaining its 1920’s speakeasy flavor, and I recently got a tour of the back of the Back Room, through a special bookcase doorway into the secret lair where these Italian and Jewish gangsters plotted.
 
Of course, New York City in the 1920’s wouldn’t be complete without a cameo from Babe Ruth, in all of his brash bravado style. Travel to the top of the Hotel Bossert, into the old Sicily of Williamsburg, the upscale Brooklyn Heights, and the neighborhood of Bushwick. Trolleys, new Yellow Cabs, Tommy Guns, corruption, and vice mix with entertainment and excitement.
 
The flavor, bustle, excitement, and verve of Brooklyn and New York City in the Roaring 20’s is brought to life in Velma Gone Awry. Follow 8 Ballo and his gang of friends as he tries to uncover where she’s gone and why. And find out why he has a numeral for a name. 

About the Author:

Matt Cost was a history major at Trinity College. He owned a mystery bookstore, a video store, and a gym, before serving a ten-year sentence as a junior high school teacher. In 2014 he was released and began writing. And that’s what he does. He writes histories and mysteries.
 
Cost has published four books in the Mainely Mystery series, with the fifth, Mainely Wicked, due out in August of 2023. He has also published four books in the Clay Wolfe Trap series, with the fifth, Pirate Trap, due out in December of 2023.
 
For historical novels, Cost has published At Every Hazard and its sequel, Love in a Time of Hate, as well as I am Cuba. In April of 2023, Cost will combine his love of histories and mysteries into a historical PI mystery set in 1923 Brooklyn, Velma Gone Awry.

Contact the Author:
Email:               matthew-cost@comcast.net
Website:         https://www.mattcost.net
Twitter:           @MattCost8
Facebook:       https://www.facebook.com/matt.cost.3
Instagram:       https://www.instagram.com/mlangdoncost/
Goodreads:     https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13910694.Matthew_Langdon_Cost

​Welcome to Matter of Inquiry!
 
This week on the mystery blog, I’m talking with suspense writer Lis Angus and taking a look at her featured book, Not Your Child. Before we get started, Lis, please tell readers a little about yourself.

Bio:
I grew up in the western Canada province of Alberta. After high school I spent two years in Germany, then finished university in Ottawa, where I met my husband. We raised our two daughters in Toronto, and now live in a small town south of Ottawa.
I’ve been writing all my life, from childhood on, but abandoned fiction writing after my teen years. My early career was spent working with children and families in crisis, then later I was a telecommunications consultant and policy advisor, conference organizer, business writer and editor. I had always wanted to write a novel; after I retired I decided it was time, and plunged into writing a first draft. Meanwhile I took writing classes and joined a local writing group. I also joined the Sisters in Crime “Guppy” chapter, where I learned a lot from other writers.
My debut novel, NOT YOUR CHILD, was published in April 2022 by The Wild Rose Press, so this month is its one-year anniversary. I’m excited to celebrate this milestone—and meanwhile I am working on a second book, another standalone suspense novel.
 
Something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio: “Somehow, I’ve managed to take boat rides on several of the world’s great rivers: the Nile, the Amazon, the Danube, the Rhine, the Yangtze, the Thames. And I also toured the countries they’re in, of course. My usual travel companion is my husband, but the trip to China was with my two sisters. My older sister had dreamed of visiting China since she was a child, and we finally made it happen, and even visited sites in Tibet.”

Author links:
Website: https://lisangus.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lisangusauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lisangus1
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisangus459/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59436824-not-your-child

INTERVIEW:
 
JLB:  What is the hardest part of writing for you?
LA:  I’m still developing my craft as a fiction writer, so every stage takes effort. Getting the first draft down is a big milestone: as someone said, “you can’t edit a blank page.” Once I have something on the page—or on the screen—I can start to work on it. I revise scene by scene, and section by section: first working on big issues like character, plot, and structure, then refining to improve the flow. If I make a significant change, like eliminating a story line, I call that a new draft, though within a draft I might rewrite every scene a few times. At one point with NOT YOUR CHILD, I threw out the final 25% of the book and changed the ending completely.
 
JLB:  Do you use critique groups or beta readers? Do you find them valuable?
LA:  I definitely use beta readers. I have several that I rely on to help me identify places in my draft that are unclear or need revision. However, it’s important to let them know what kind of feedback I’m looking for: if I want to know if a plot twist works or a character is believable,  I’m less interested in finding out about spelling mistakes.
 
JLB:  How many books do you read in a month? Which genre(s)? Favorite authors?
LA:  I always have a book on the go, and I generally average two or three novels a week. I regularly update my library request lists. I mainly read within the crime fiction spectrum —from domestic suspense to thrillers to police procedurals. I like atmospheric novels that go beyond plot to delve into the relationships between characters. I admire many authors: a few that come to mind (in no particular order) are Jane Harper, Adrian McKinty, Tana French, Lisa Unger, Ruth Ware, Chris Pavone, Karin Slaughter, Michael Koryta, Nicci French.
 
JLB:  Do you read reviews of your own books? Do you respond to them? Are you affected by them?
LA:  I do read my reviews, both by professional reviewers and by readers.  I’ve been lucky that they’ve mostly been positive, so that encourages me. I love to know that my work is resonating with readers, and I try to thank them for the feedback. Occasionally there’s a review from someone who hasn’t  enjoyed the book, but I figure I can’t please everyone, and I certainly don’t try to change their mind.
 
JLB:  What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date?
LA:  I’m currently working on my second novel, another standalone suspense. I’m hoping to have a draft to submit by the end of the year. Optimistically, I’d hope for a release sometime in 2024.
 
JLB:  Which of the trivia questions did you choose?
LA:

• ebook or print?  I prefer the feel of a print book, but sometimes an ebook is just more convenient, especially when travelling.
• most beloved comic book character:  Hobbes (from Calvin and Hobbes) —he breaks me up!
• have you written a book during NaNo? NOT YOUR CHILD started as a 2017 NaNo project, though it took four years and numerous drafts before it found a publisher.  And the book I’m currently writing started as a NaNo project too.
• How long does it take you to write a book? Too long! I’m not a fast writer, and I’m also something of a perfectionist.
• Favorite childhood book. I adored Trixie Belden. But another series I loved is one you may not have heard of: Freddy the Pig, who solved mysteries on Mr. Bean’s farm in Centerboro.

JLB:  Good luck with your writing, Lis. Thanks for visiting with those of us who love a good crime story. Now, let's take a look at your featured book.

Not Your Child
Genre: suspense
 
When Ottawa psychologist and single mother Susan Koss discovers that a strange man has been following her twelve-year-old daughter Maddy, she fears he’s a predator. But it’s worse than that. The man, Daniel Kazan, believes Maddy is his granddaughter, abducted as a baby—and he’s obsessed with getting her back.

Susan insists on a DNA test to disprove Daniel’s claim, but the result is one she can’t understand or explain: it says she’s not Maddy’s mother.

Then Maddy vanishes. Susan’s convinced Daniel has taken her, but he has an alibi, and two searches of his house turn up nothing. The hunt is on—police are on full mobilization, and Susan fears the worst.

 
​Buy links:
Note: There’ll be a special ebook 99¢ sale on NOT YOUR CHILD from April 12-26, to mark the book’s one-year anniversary.
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Your-Child-Lis-Angus-ebook/dp/B09QRST379?maas=maas_adg_8A6B91EC58EC3F0283D1E75DECA38D55_afap_abs&ref_=aa_maas&tag=maas
Universal book link: https://books2read.com/notyourchild