BOOK TOUR

I'm excited to be a stop on the book tour for

18 CALIBER

Book 6 in the Maizie Albright Star Detective Mysteries

by Larissa Reinhart

#WannabeDetectiving While ex-celebrity Maizie Albright's dreams of becoming a for-real private investigator have not exactly been dashed, they have been slightly thwarted. Her ex-manager and still-mother, Vicki Albright, has taken the helm of Nash Security Services while rebuilding her entertainment management company. Sometimes with the same clients. Like Chinese action star, Lili Liang, who's making the film Unlucky 18 in Georgia.

Thus far, Lili's living up to her movie title. Her kung fu coach is missing. Her boyfriend's disappeared. And her director, who gambled on her with the part, might be gambling with her life.

Maizie's luck is also running out. Maizie and Nash find themselves struggling to balance a new partnership and new relationship between missing persons' cases, wild goose chases, and tracking a bullet into dangerous places. Sometimes it's enough to make a girl NOT want to put a ring on it. When it comes to facing an 18-caliber killer, what will Maizie put up as the target? Her heart or her life?

📚🕮📚🕮📚

!!!GIVEAWAY!!!

1 lucky reader will win a

$20.00 Amazon Gift Card

Enter using the Rafflecopter form at the end of this post.

Winner will be chosen after April 27 at the end of the tour.

This giveaway is through Great Escape Book Tours, not Lisa Ks Book Reviews.

A Word From Larissa Reinhart

Pairing 18 CALIBER with 

My Favorite Chinese-Themed Films

Thanks so much for having me here, Lisa K! I always love your support of books and authors here and on Facebook. :)

I love Asian movies and TV shows. You might not know this, but I’ve lived in Japan four times and my daughters are Chinese. I haven’t traveled as much as I’d like in Asia, but I’ve been to Hong Kong several times, China, all over Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Now that I’m living at home, I try to recreate my favorite meals at home for my family and we watch Asian TV and movies.

What does a list of my favorite Chinese movies have to do with my new release, 18 CALIBER, Maizie Albright Star Detective #6?

Good question, readers!

To catch anyone up who hasn’t read the series (although you can read them as stand-alones), Maizie Albright is an ex-teen star who crashed and burned in Hollywood and was forced by a kindly California judge to return to her hometown of Black Pine, Georgia, to live with her father and find a new career. She’s relieved to comply with his wishes to get out from under the thumb of her ex-manager (and still-mother) Vicki Albright and pursues a chance to live out her favorite (and most famous) role as a private investigator.

As you can guess, an ex-celebrity who’s worked as an actress since she was in diapers is perfectly suited to become a detective and she lives her dream perfectly. With no screwups or blunders. No chance of her mother following her to the mountain resort town in hopes of enticing her back to the small (or silver) screen.

And of course, she wouldn’t fall in love with her deliciously hunky mentor, Wyatt Nash, of Nash Security Solutions.

You’d guess wrong, but that’s the fun and games of Maizie Albright “where Hollywood glitz meets backwoods grit.” ;)

In 18 CALIBER, Chinese action star, Lili Liang, is making the action film Unlucky 18 in Georgia. When she hires Maizie and Nash to find her missing kung fu trainer, Maizie suspects her mother might be dealing in a dirty and dangerous business partnership that might involve murder.

Along with the mystery, I had a lot of fun blending in behind-the-scenes movie magic with the cast of a (fictional) major kung fu movie, Unlucky 18, with a Chinese cast set in the US. I even created the synopsis for the fake script which I’ll share with my VIP Readers (check my website if you’re interested in joining).

Here’s my top (mostly) 10 list of Chinese movies I’ve enjoyed over the years. I’m sure many will be familiar to you, but I’ve been watching them for about thirty years, so there might be some you’ve forgotten about. This time of staying at home is perfect for catching up on movies!

1.       CRAZY RICH ASIANS (2018) (I also enjoyed the book!) You’ll enjoy this peek into the lives of rich Singaporeans in this fun romantic comedy. My favorite scenes center around the food and sites of Singapore. This was the first “adult” movie I took my daughters to see at the theater and we’ve watched it many times since. The book has (of course) a lot more details including funny footnotes about the culture which I enjoyed as much as the story.

2.       THE JOY LUCK CLUB (1993) (I also loved the book!) Bring tissues. A beautiful story and beautifully made movie about four Chinese-American immigrant mothers and their daughters. It’s especially poignant for our family since my girls are adopted from China.

3.       THE FAREWELL (2019) Bring more tissues but also be prepared to laugh. Awkwafina (also in Crazy Rich Asians) plays a granddaughter who takes her dying grandmother to China. Only the family doesn’t want to tell the grandmother she’s dying.

4.       CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON (2000) set the standard for flying kung fu. It has mystery, action, romance, and is gorgeously directed by Ang Lee. Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yun-fat remind me of James Ivory’s (Book by Kazuo Ishiguro) butler and housekeeper in Remains of the Day. Except they can kill you.

5.       EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN (1994) is a Taiwanese movie, also directed by Ang Lee. A chef and his three daughters deal with romance, careers, and family life. Watch it for the food!

6.       KUNG FU HUSTLE (2004) is a Hong Kong kung fu comedy extravaganza. If you love ribald comedy with a lot of action, you’ll enjoy this movie about con artists and gangsters set in 1940s Canton, China. It’s hilarious.

7.       INFERNAL AFFAIRS (2002) If you liked the action movie The Departed, you’ll like the original Hong Kong thriller. The story of a police officer who infiltrates the Triad gang and another officer who’s secretly working for the Triad. A gritty crime thriller with wonderful twists.

8.       BEIJING BICYCLE (2001) a tale of a poverty-stricken boy from the countryside who moves to the (very big) city but instead of striking it rich, becomes a poor bike messenger. When the bike is stolen by another penniless boy hoping to impress a girl, the bike becomes a symbol for each of their struggles to survive. A coming-of-age tale. More tissues needed.

9.       THE STORY OF QUI JU (1992) The wonderful actress Gong Li plays a pregnant woman searching for justice after their village elder fights with her husband and kicks them out of their village. She wants an apology, she ends up on a bureaucratic odyssey. A dramedy comedy. The scenery will stay with you.

10.   My ties: RAISE THE RED LANTERN (1991) for an incredible drama about life as a concubine in the 1920s (also starring Gong Li). IP MAN (2008) for the story about Bruce Lee’s teacher and grandmaster of Wing Chun kung fu. TO LIVE (1994) another Gong Li movie about a family’s struggles during the Cultural Revolution. SHAOLIN SOCCER (2001) another Stephen Chow film (Kung Fu Hustle) where brothers use martial arts to defeat a rival soccer team. It’s silly, crazy, and funny but well made.

11.   And finally, if you’re interested in the state of the one-child policy in China, watch ONE CHILD NATION on Amazon Prime. It’s a hard watch, but very honest.

I hope you enjoy my list and you find some new-to-you movies to put in your video queue!

Are there any Chinese movies you’d include in your top 10 that I didn’t cover? My husband would have added Bruce Lee to the list and I didn’t have a single Jackie Chan movie. These are movies that have stuck with me over the years.

Thank you! ~ Larissa

Books in the Maizie Albright Star Detective series:

15 MINUTES

16 MILLIMETERS

NC-17

17.5 CARTRIDGES IN A PEAR TREE

18 CALIBER 

 Other Series by Larissa Reinhart:

A Cherry Tucker Mystery 

Finley Goodhart Crime Capers

A Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Larissa writes the Cherry Tucker Mystery, Maizie Albright Star Detective, and Finley Goodhart Crime Caper series as well as romantic comedies and women’s fiction. She loves to tell funny stories about Southern women looking for love (and sometimes dead bodies) in all the wrong places. You might have seen Larissa and family with their little dog, Biscuit, on HGTV's House Hunters International "Living for the Weekend in Nagoya" episode, but they’re back in Georgia now. Visit LarissaReinhart.com to learn more.

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Purchase links:

 (Not live yet) 

 Amazon: http://smarturl.it/kindle18 

 Barnes & Noble: http://smarturl.it/Nook18 

 Kobo: http://smarturl.it/Kobo18 

Apple Books: http://smarturl.it/iBooks18

  

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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

April 14 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
April 14 – A CHICK WHO READS – REVIEW
April 15 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT
April 16 – Mysteries with Character – REVIEW
April 16 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – SPOTLIGHT
April 17 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
April 18 – Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews – REVIEW
April 19 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – GUEST POST
April 20 – Christa Reads and Writes – REVIEW
April 21 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT
April 22 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
April 22 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW
April 23 – Literary Gold – CHARACTER GUEST POST
April 24 – Diane Reviews Books – SPOTLIGHT
April 24 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT
April 25 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT
April 26 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
April 27 – TBR Book Blog – REVIEW

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