INTRODUCING...

Every now and then I get the privilege to introduce a close friend's book. I have been waiting a while. I knew the day I met Amanda that her debut wasn't that far away and I AM SO EXCITED!! You are going to seriously enjoy this series. I have an advance copy and LOVE IT !!

AMANDA REID !!

FINDERS KEEPERS

Adulting isn’t easy, but everything is finally falling into place for Sunny Flannigan. New apartment all of her own? Check. Dream job as a physical therapist? Check. Ex-boyfriend Cace Navarro back in the picture after her meddling older sister kept them apart for seven years? Check. Her crazy power to find things leading her to a stash of stolen goods in a library’s restroom? Womp, womp.

Just when everything seems to be going right, Sunny finds someone sabotaging her carefully planned world, sending Sunny and her boyfriend on the run from the police. Can she and Cace figure their way out of the web before Sunny loses her newfound semi-adult kind of life?
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A gust of chills stole through her, then a fine vibration buzzed in her fingers. The feeling, the one Granma taught her never to ignore said, Left. Turn left. Ugh. Not now. All she wanted was to shower and fall into bed. She could ignore the Gift's urge and continue straight. But it would only nip at her conscience, keep poking at her until she tossed and turned in bed, then went to find what needed to be returned to its rightful owner anyway. Without doubt, the person would come across her path in the future and Sunny would know. She bumped down her turn signal with a sigh. Left it was or she’d get no rest at all.

Flannigan DNA strikes again. She huffed a laugh.

A subtle pressure against her body directed her the way the Gift wanted her to go, to the interstate. Once southbound, she exited toward Killeen. Twenty minutes and numerous turns later, she pulled into the Killeen public library's mostly deserted parking lot. For a couple of moments, she let her ten-year old truck idle in the shade of a live oak while gloriously cool air slid over her body. She fisted her hands against the thousand needles pricking them. The closer she got, the worse it became if she resisted. Sunny reached for the door's handle and braced for the heat shimmering off the pavement from twelve hours of Central Texas' August sun.

The operating hours posted on the door said the library closed at seven. She flipped her wrist to read her fitness tracker—fifteen minutes to close. Better shake a leg. Sometimes it took a little longer to find the item. And if she had to wait all night, she'd never be able to sleep with it niggling at her. It’d only get worse during tomorrow, too. She couldn’t afford to lose focus during her shift. Those veterans deserved every minute she had with them. Worrying about finding something like a watch or a marble or a photo dishonored their bravery and sacrifice.

She scurried inside. Then shivered in delight. Ah, blessed cool. How Lacey loved the heat, Sunny would never know.

"We're closing in fifteen minutes." A fifty-ish librarian behind the counter pointed at her wrist which didn't even have a watch strapped to it. Thick copper-colored braids crossed over the top of her head. The only thing missing was the dirndl to go with the old-fashioned hair style.

"I'll be ready by seven." Sunny flashed the woman a smile. "Promise." A humph followed her, but Sunny wouldn't be put off. She slung her small bag across her body. If only she had a tote bag in case it exceeded the size of her tiny purse. She stopped with a hitch in her breathing. It sounded as if she would steal this thing. She immediately discounted the idea of turning into a thief, even for the Flannigan Gift. Besides, she’d never had to steal anything yet. Either it was out in the middle of public, like in a drain or buried in the dirt, or it was in a place where she could ask the person to hold onto it, like an antique store. She’d only had to pay for something twice. For heaven’s sake, she was in a library, right? It was probably a book that someone accidentally donated to the library. She’d check it out, then pay the fee when she ‘lost’ it. Easy as pie, as Mina would say.

She continued on, passing stacks to her left. Non-fiction. Fiction. Romantic suspense. Her favorite author grabbed her attention from the end of a row, and her fingers strayed to the plastic covered book. She pulled back, the pressure urging her forward like a hand to the small of her back.

Five more steps and the Gift’s force moved to her front, near her stomach. Her feet halted and the sensation eased.

She looked left and right. No. It didn’t want her moving either of those ways, the Gift held her right in place.

Dern. The sign on the door dead ahead made her stomach clench, despite the increased tingling in her fingers, a sure sign she was close. "The men’s bathroom?" she murmured, then glanced over her shoulder at the circulation desk. The librarian had her head turned away, perusing a computer screen. Sunny took a couple more steps towards the door sporting the women's room sign. Nope, the urge pushed her back to the men's door.

You have got to be kidding me. But if she didn’t find it, she’d get no rest. She whipped her head around looking for a witness. Coast is clear.

She slipped inside.

MEET AMANDA

I’m an author of light paranormal cozy mysteries, launching my first book in October 2019, with urban fantasy romance to be added to my list in 2020. Since I was little, I’ve been a reader and lover of mystery, sci-fi, romance, and paranormal books. Some of my early favorites were a Wrinkle in Time, Dune, and Lord of the Rings. Classics, right? I found my first romance book in my aunt’s closet around thirteen years of age and quickly decided it needed to be added to my repertoire. As do many readers, I had always dreamed of writing. I finally learned the secret, and I’ll let you in on it--do it. Sure, there’s a lot to learn about writing, but the first step is to put that story on the page. Then comes the rest.

As for me beyond writing, I was a career Army brat and lived in exotic locations like Tehran, Iran and DeRidder, Louisiana as a child. I obtained an International Politics degree from Penn State, and dreamed of a career in the State Department, but due to unforeseen circumstances I learned of much later, I ended up as a federal agent. I spent 24 years investigating murders, fraud, identity theft, drug dealers and many other crimes before retiring in mid-2019. As you can imagine, it’s given me a wealth of inspiration for my mystery and urban fantasy stories. I do like to help people get law enforcement right in their stories, so don’t hesitate to message me if you have a question and I’ll do my best to help.

Peace, love and murder, y’all!

STAY CONNECTED

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THE Q&A

ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?

AMANDA: Of late, not as much as I’d like. Usually, I read two to three books a week. I thought once I’d retired, I’d have plenty of time even with my writing. However, as I’m racing downhill to get everything in place for my first book’s publication, I find I’m schlepping off to bed, exhausted and unable to focus on the words-and that leaves me quite unsatisfied. First thing I’m going to do is pick up the first one on my TBR pile on Wednesday. It’s all about the goals.

ANGI: What’s your favorite thing about your book’s hero?

AMANDA: I love how strong Cace is emotionally in two ways. Though this is told from Sunny’s point of view, you can see he’s gone through quite a lot as a veteran. I’ll be exploring more of his emotional scars in subsequent stories. I also love how he’s willing to understand not only how much he hurt Sunny years ago, but he also comes to understand how he needs to communicate with her if they are going to have any relationship at all. I think we all know how important talking to your partner is, and how relationships will fail without it. He’s a smart man!

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

AMANDA: Tough one. I have so many “favorites.” If I had to have only one with me on a desert island, it would be Star Wars, Episode IV. I’m a paranormal/sci-fi geek along with my love for romance. Combine those two genres, and you’ve got galaxies far-far away plus Han and Leia fighting their attraction.  If you were a nice person, you’d allow me to bring two movies, and I’d add Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back. “I love you.” “I know.” Is there anything better than that? Besides, it’s a better structured story than A New Hope, but for sentimental reasons, IV comes first in my heart.

ANGI: Would you put yourself in a Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?

AMANDA: Action Adventure. As a retired federal agent, I enjoy the on-the-run, fast-paced adventures. I think my skill-set would be better suited to it, for sure.  Yet, the slower-paced Fairy Tale might be better suited to my blood-pressure.

ANGI: Favorite TV rerun you watch every time you channel surf? 

AMANDA: The First 48, an hour-long reality crime drama. The premise is that the odds of solving a murder are astronomically better if you can do it within the first forty-eight hours. After that, results tail off dramatically. It follows real police departments through those two days after the case is called in.  The evidence, the help they get or don’t get, the victims, the families, the witnesses, the suspect interviews—all of it is about as close to real police as you’re going to get in a murder drama. If they miss their two-day window, the show will follow up if the suspect is arrested before original air-time.  Can you tell I love it?

ANGI: Favorite date night…fancy or at home? 

AMANDA: Fancy-ish. My husband and I are creatures of habit and have a couple of favorite restaurants we like to go to from when we first started dating. A tapas bar with great sangria, a sushi restaurant with lychee martinis, and a steak house for special occasions like anniversaries. Otherwise, unless we’re traveling, we’re really rather homebodies.  We spend a lot of weekends on the road to the family’s cattle ranch in central Texas. There’s so much to do there, it’s hard not to make the road trip. But if we’re staying home and hitting a date night, those three are our go-tos!

ANGI: Geek or Jock?

AMANDA: Yes!  I like what are traditionally considered ‘geeky’ things like sci-fi, renaissance fairs, reading, science TV shows. I also like ‘jock’ stuff, like football, hockey, and shooting guns.  Can’t a girl just have a guy who is both???

ANGI: The most daring thing you’ve ever done… Care to share?

AMANDA: One might think it was signing up to be a federal agent with all it entails, but, no. It’s even contemplating hitting the ‘publish’ button to go live with my first book, Finders Keepers, tomorrow.  People may not know how personally creators take their works. To let my very first book, Finders Keepers, out of the nest to fly on its own is terrifying.  Will people like it? Will they hate it? I’m running for cover just writing this! And that’s coming from someone who investigated and arrested people for murders, drug trafficking, frauds, robberies and other crimes. That someone would be less scared of getting shot is what makes human nature so fascinating!

ANGI’s GOTTA ASK:  SHOW ME YOUR FAVORITE SHOES…

THESE ARE OMG SHOES !!

AMANDA’S GOTTA ANSWER:  Though we’re exiting summer, these little babies are holding a special place in my heart. I love the texture and the embroidery on top of the weave. So cute! And surprisingly comfortable. I wore them several days during a conference in New York, and had nary a twinge. Since I believe the taller you are, the skinnier you look, I adore heels, but my feet, not so much.

  

UP NEXT for AMANDA:

GHOSTS, PIES & ALIBIS

A Flannigan Sisters Mystery #2

The Flannigan Gift. Ha! Mina Flannigan Shaffer never believed in anything paranormal, let alone the claims her Grandmother and sisters had visions and other psychic abilities. This skeptic’s more focused on running Sweetie’s Tea Cup Cafe, rehabilitating her life, and spending time with her family after a recent split and reunification with her husband.

But her careful plans are upended when she learns she can see ghosts. Even worse? The spirit of a man who nearly caused her to lose her small-town diner blackmails her into figuring out who shot him. Now, this reluctant sleuth is hot on the trail of a murderer who is willing to kill again to keep their secrets. The suspects are piling up and Mina’s time is running out faster than icy sweet tea on a hot Texas day.

IN HONOR OF MY FRIEND’S DEBUT BOOK, I’m giving away a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card !!  You must leave a comment to open the Rafflecopter to enter. ENDS: Tues, Oct. 29^th !!

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Amanda, Angi, Fenley, & Susan

Your host, Angi Morgan

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AMANDA WANTS TO KNOW:  I’ve been a long-time believer in ghosts ever since we lived in a house the whole family believes to be haunted. Do you believe in the paranormal—ghosts, psychic abilities—or do you just enjoy reading about them?