BOOK TOUR
I'm so happy to be a stop on the blog tour for
THE GUN ALSO RISES
Book 1 in the Resale Boutique Mysteries
by Sherry Harris
TO RECOVER A PRICELESS MANUSCRIPT . . .
A wealthy widow has asked Sarah Winston to sell her massive collection of mysteries through her garage sale business. While sorting through piles of books stashed in the woman's attic, Sarah is amazed to discover a case of lost Hemingway stories, stolen from a train in Paris back in 1922. How did they end up in Belle Winthrop Granville's attic in Ellington, Massachusetts, almost one hundred years later?
WILL SARAH HAVE TO PAY WITH HER LIFE?
Before Sarah can get any answers, Belle is assaulted, the case is stolen, a maid is killed, and Sarah herself is dodging bullets. And when rumors spread that Belle has a limited edition of The Sun Also Rises in her house, Sarah is soon mixed up with a mobster, the fanatical League of Literary Treasure Hunters, and a hard-to-read rare book dealer. With someone willing to kill for the Hemingway, Sarah has to race to catch the culprit—or the bell may toll for her . . .
LKBR: Hi, Sherry. Thank you for being here today!
SH: Thank
you so much for having me!
LKBR: Please
tell us a bit about your book/series.
SH: I
write the Agatha Award nominated Sarah Winston Garage Sale mysteries. Sarah is
a recently divorced woman who lives far from her family and suddenly finds
herself in need of a career after years of moves with her husband who was in
the Air Force. When Sarah organizes a garage sale for a friend a new career is
born.
LKBR: How did
you come up with the concept?
SH: In a
different way than most authors. My editor at Kensington had an idea for a
mystery series with a protagonist who ran garage sales. Through a series of
fortunate events I was asked to write a proposal for the series and it sold!
LKBR: What are
your future plans for this series? Any hints or spoilers you can give us about
the next book?
SH: Last
September I turned in the eighth book in the series Sell Low, Sweet Harriet. It introduces a new character who may end
up having her own series someday.
LKBR: Is
writing an energizing experience, or does it take a lot out of you?
SH: Usually
it is energizing. When I sit down at the keyboard I often can’t type as fast as
my brain is spilling out ideas. The whole writing process still fascinates me –
where do all those words, characters, and plots come from?!
LKBR: Once you knew you wanted to be a
published writer, who was the first person you reached out to for help?
SH: I blog with The Wickeds a
group of mystery authors including Jessica Ellicott, Julia Henry, Edith
Maxwell, Liz Mugavero, and Barbara Ross. They advise me, support me, and I
can’t imagine my life without these fabulous women and authors.
LKBR: What sort of research do you
do for your books? Is it more computer based or hands on?
SH: Most of my research has
been computer based or picking someone’s brain. However, I attended Fairfax
County Citizens Police Academy which included an amazing ride along with a
police officer who one of my characters is based on. I also did a police ride along
in the small town of Bedford, Massachusetts which is the town I based
Ellington, Massachusetts on.
For The Gun Also Rises I found a fascinating bit of history about
Hemingway and lost manuscripts which became the center of the book.
LKBR: What is your
writing process? Place, time of day, by the hour or word count?
SH: Count is the driving force, but I like to
write in the afternoon. I’m not a morning person (unlike my protagonist) and
try to take care of the business end of writing in the mornings.
LKBR: How do you come up with character
names?
SH: It is
so hard. Some of my characters names
are based on the names of friends. Carol Carson and Stella Wild are
combinations of names of some college friends. Other names like Officer Scott
Pellner just pop into my brain.
LKBR: Is it difficult to write
characters of the opposite sex? Do you have someone you use for advice?
SH: All
of the men in my books are based on my husband—just kidding. I haven’t found it
difficult, but I write in first person so I’m always in Sarah’s head. I’ve only
written one short story which included a male’s point of view.
LKBR: Do you
read reviews of your books? If you do, and a review is bad, what effect does it
have on you? (I know some reviews are mean as opposed to constructive.)
SH: Yes,
darn it all, I can’t resist reading them. For the first book a bad review was
devastating. My daughter painted a saying for me that is: You can be the
sweetest juiciest peach in the whole world and there’s still going to be
someone who hates peaches. So if I read a bad review I may be seen wandering
around my house muttering, “Not everyone like peaches. Not everyone likes
peaches.”
LKBR: What are
3 things readers may not know about you?
SH: I had
a one day modeling career (Talbots), I’m a patent holding inventor, and I was
the teacher’s pet when I took ballroom dancing lessons.
LKBR: Where can
readers go to learn more about you and your books?
SH:
Website: SherryHarrisAuthor.com
Blog: https://wickedauthors.com/
Instagram: Sherryharrisauthor
LKBR: Thank you
so much for letting us get to know you better, Sherry!
SH: Thank
you for asking such interesting questions!
📚📖📚📖📚
!!!GIVEAWAY!!!
3 lucky winners will receive 1 print copy of
THE GUN ALSO RISES
Winners will be chosen after January 22
at the end of the tour
See Rafflecopter form below for more information.
USA only
Enter using the Rafflecopter form at the end of this post.
This giveaway is through Great Escape Book Tours, not Lisa Ks Book Reviews.
MY REVIEW
I
love garage sales/yard sales. Well, I love the thought of them. I don’t love
getting up early in the morning to go to them or prepare for them. So, I live
vicariously through the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mysteries. (And I don’t have
to be afraid of finding a dead body or getting myself killed. 😉)
I
have adored this series since the first book. I won’t lie, I didn’t really care
for the character of Sarah Winston at first. For some reason I just didn’t
click with her. But I have become quite fond of her as the series has advanced.
A
fabulous story, THE GUN ALSO RISES is packed cover to cover with mystery,
excitement, and just plain great writing. It’s a fast-moving book which made it
hard to tare myself away from it. It truly shows without a doubt author Sherry
Harris knows what it takes to keep her readers coming back for more. As
wonderful as she writes, it’s safe to say you’ll never see one of this author’s
books at a garage sale.
Note: When I write a review of a series book, I
always go back and read my reviews of past book(s) in the series. I want to
make sure I don’t repeat myself. When I did so for the Sarah Winston Garage
Sale Mysteries, I saw that everything I wanted to say about THE GUN ALSO RISES
I had already said in those past reviews. I chose to write them in this review
anyway, because they still hold true.
About the Author
Agatha Award-nominated author, Sherry Harris, started bargain hunting in second grade at her best friend’s yard sale. She honed her bartering skills as she moved around the country while her husband served in the Air Force. Sherry uses her love of garage sales, her life as a military spouse, and her time living in Massachusetts as inspiration for the Sarah Winston Garage Sale series.
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