Only a couple more weeks until Passage to Greenland will be available as an eBook on Amazon! Although this is the first time I’ve ever produced a novel in only six months – it usually takes a full year, – this one has gone through more transformations than any of the others. Despite my comments in my May blog about hoping my editor wouldn’t find too much at fault, it was not to be, but thanks to my excellent beta readers, the final result is a great deal better than the original.
At least the speed of this year’s novel goes some way to make up for the lack of a new book last year. Having spent nearly all of 2022 preparing and giving presentations as a cruise lecturer, it might come as no surprise that Passage to Greenland is the first of a new series entitled Murder at Sea. Here is the blurb:-
A body in the lift, a stolen handbag and a break-in
Amanda’s hopes of an enjoyable, relaxing cruise are dashed when she finds a body in one of the lifts. The captain and his staff appear to be treating the woman’s death as a heart attack, but Amanda is far from convinced. It doesn’t help that the dead woman appeared to have upset everyone with whom she came in contact, but is that sufficient grounds for wanting her dead?
The questions keep coming. Who stole Doreen’s handbag? Why did someone break into her cabin? Who is the mysterious Mr Brown Suit?
With a ship full of suspects, this is as a much as a whydunit as a whodunnit. This is the first in a new series of British cozy crime novels set on a cruise ship by the author of the popular Fiona Mason Mysteries and the Aunt Jessica Mysteries. There’s a touch of humour with plenty of unexpected twists and red herrings that will keep you trying to solve the puzzles until the last page.
I though you might like a short extract:-
The woman was standing framed in the doorway. The red dress hugged her voluptuous figure like an Argentinian tango dancer. She slowly scanned the restaurant and a slow smile spread over her expertly made-up features when her eyes homed in on the handsome chaplain sitting at an empty table. She whispered something to the waiter at her side. As she slowly sashayed in our direction, a magnificent diamond pendant nestled in her generous cleavage caught the light. She could not have made a more dramatic entrance with a red rose clenched between her teeth!
The waiter led her to the singles table. The Rev. Parker-Scott managed to push himself to his feet, but the startled look of blind terror on his face suggested he was far from comfortable with the prospect of an evening spent in the company of the cruise ship’s answer to Mae West.
‘I see our merry widow has arrived,’ said Shirley, with a deep chuckle. ‘And I think our Mona may have set her sights on our good chaplain.’
‘I take it you have come across her already?’ I asked.
‘Oh yes. We were on the same tour in our last port. She sat next to us at lunch in the restaurant. She made no secret of the fact that she’s looking for husband number three. Apparently, she met her last one on a cruise ship. It’s the best place to get to know all about someone in a relatively short space of time according to her.’
‘But she must be a good fifteen if not twenty years older than he is,’ I protested.
Shirley chuckled. ‘Haven’t you heard; cougars are the in thing? Older women on the prowl looking for sex with young handsome men. They can be the hardest to shake off your tail. And let’s face it. You can’t run far on a cruise ship in the middle of the Atlantic.’
A Chance for You!
I am looking for a few more advanced readers. If you are able to read Passage to Greenland IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS and provide a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads on July 17th when the book goes live, I’m happy to send you a free copy. Either message me via the website or email me on judith@cranswick.org.uk (Please don’t ask for a copy and then have it sit on your kindle or tablet until you forget about it.)
For those who cannot managed to read it in that time, Passage to Greenland is now available for pre-order at the discounted price of £2.99. On July 18th it will go to it’s normal price of £4.99.
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