Beyond the Book

Welcome to Beyond the Book. Today I'd like to introduce my Blue 52 heroine Kathryn Sinclair.
Kathryn's parents died ten years ago in a car accident, leaving Kathryn and her brother Chris to mourn them. Until she met Hank Lovinggood, Kathryn didn't date much. Her entire life was centered around her work.

Kathryn is a world-class physicist. The physics community universally acknowledges her as the greatest physicist in the world. Here's the first meeting between Hank and Kathryn.

 “Mr. Lovinggood, Dr.Sinclair is here to see you.”

Hank rose to his feet. He didn’t know what he had expected, a person his grandfather’s age maybe, but the woman who appeared in the door behind his secretary looked almost as beautiful as his mother. In fact, as impossible as it seemed, she might be even more beautiful. She was about five six and had dark hair and eyes even bluer than his own. He guessed she might be about his age. Her figure would make a blind man stare, but the expression on her face attracted him as much as her physical appearance. Intelligence, curiosity, and life shone from her eyes. She glowed with an eagerness he didn’t understand.

As she approached his desk, she held out her hand. “Mr. Lovinggood, how are you? I’m Dr. Kathryn Sinclair. Thank you for seeing me.”

She had a firm handshake and looked him right in the eye. “Not at all, Dr. Sinclair. Please, have a seat. May I get you a cup of coffee?”

“Yes, that would be lovely.”

Hank filled a disposable cup with coffee. The cups biodegraded in three months’ time, so nobody hesitated to use them. The trashcans overflowed with cups by the end of the day. “Cream or sugar?”

“Black, thanks.”

He handed the coffee to Dr. Sinclair and got a good look at her legs in the process. Nice. She wore a well-cut, red suit that looked expensive. He liked her short little skirt, but the neckline of the jacket didn’t plunge quite enough.

Hank flushed. He was no hormone-riddled teenager. The woman hadn’t come here for him to ogle her. “My secretary told me that you wanted to talk to me about a crime,” he said as he seated himself behind his desk, unconsciously smoothing his tie and sitting up straight.

“That’s right, I do.” She didn’t wait for him to prompt her to tell her story. “The crime was committed a long time ago, but there’s no statute of limitations on murder, right?”

Hank nodded. “You want to talk to me about a murder?”

“Oh, yes. A man and his wife were brutally murdered, and the murderers framed the wife to take the blame.” Dr. Sinclair paused to take a sip of her coffee. “Their names were Lovinggood.”

Blurb:

"First Lady Kills President Lovinggood"

December 29, 2018

Thirty years later Hank Lovinggood embarks on a quest to prove his mother's innocence and punish the killers who took his family from him.  Together Hank and lovely physicist Kathryn Sinclair confront an implacable, twisted, merciless enemy who'll do whatever it takes to hide the truth forever. 

Buy link:

 http://www.amazon.com/Blue-52-Elaine-Cantrell-ebook/dp/B00H1MHC24/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1402368222&sr=1-1&keywords=blue+52+by+elaine+cantrell

Saturday Sample: Blue 52

Today's excerpt comes from Blue 52. In this excerpt, my hero recruits a retired Secret Service agent to help him prove that his mother didn't kill his father. First a blurb, then an excerpt. Sorry, no picture. Blogger wouldn't cooperate with me.




Blurb:

"First Lady Kills President Lovinggood"

December 29, 2018

 

Thirty years later Hank Lovinggood embarks on a quest to prove his mother's innocence and punish the killers who took his family from him.  Together Hank and lovely physicist Kathryn Sinclair confront an implacable, twisted, merciless enemy who'll do whatever it takes to hide the truth forever. 



Excerpt:


"Damn, Hank," Rudy exclaimed as he paced around the room. "Do you know what you’re saying?"


"I do."


"Do you have any evidence?"


"Sort of." Hank told Rudy about Scott’s files, his conversation with Shirley Grissom, and his meeting with the Stantons at the cemetery.


"Damn, Hank," Rudy said again. He finally sat back down. "You can’t just go around saying things like that. You have to be able to prove it, and what you have isn’t enough."


"I know. I was hoping you could tell me something that would help the investigation."


Rudy strode toward the kitchen. "I need another beer. Want one?"


"No, I’m fine."


Rudy returned from the kitchen with another beer and a thoughtful expression on his face. "Glass and Tate weren’t usually assigned to your dad. A day before your mother and dad were supposed to leave for the Colorado mountains to go skiing with Stanton, five or six of your father’s agents got food poisoning. Glass and Tate were replacements for two of the sick agents.


"As far as I know, they were good men. I’ve also heard they worked like the devil himself to save your parents."


"Where are they now? I guess they’re retired, right?"


Rudy leaned back in his chair. "Well, now, that’s a funny thing. Tate committed suicide about a year after your father was murdered, and Glass died in a house fire."


Hank’s mouth went dry. "When?"


"Five or six months after your father died."


Hank’s eyes flashed, communicating his excitement to Rudy. "It all makes perfect sense to me. Stanton used Glass and Tate to kill my parents, but he didn’t trust them to keep his dirty secret. He killed them as soon as he thought he could get away with it. I think I need to see some financial records. I’d like to see if their lifestyle changed after Dad was murdered."


"That would be helpful. Men have done murder for money almost as long as the human race has existed." Rudy thought for a moment. "What about Baker and Watson? They were the ones who came to relieve Glass and Tate. They were present when the shots were fired."


"I think I need to investigate them too. My uncle’s files didn’t mention them by name, but their presence makes them suspect as far as I’m concerned."


"Let me help you." Rudy’s eyes shone with excitement. "I’m not sure I buy your theory, but I’ll find out everything I can about Glass and Tate. If you’re right, I’d love to be in the history books as one of the men who uncovered the best kept conspiracy in history."


Hank held out his hand. "Welcome aboard." Buy link:


http://www.amazon.com/Blue-52-Elaine-Cantrell-ebook/dp/B00H1MHC24/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1391831905&sr=1-1&keywords=blue+52+by+elaine+cantrell

Snippet Sunday: Blue 52

Welcome to Snippet Sunday. I hope you're enjoying the holidays so far. My decorating is finished, and I've shifted into shopping mode. Don't forget to scroll down to this past Tuesday's release party for Blue 52. I'm offering decorations for a small theme Christmas tree as one of my prizes, and besides that I'd love for you to read chapter one of Blue 52.  You can find more snippets to read at https://www.facebook.com/groups/SnippetSunday/

In this excerpt, Hank and Kathryn are... Well, you'll figure it out.

“I’ve never compared you to your father,” she whispered. “I’ve never even met your father, but I know you, Hank, and I like what I’ve found out about you.” Her eyes locked with his as she slid across the bed to within a hair’s breadth of him.

“You smell faintly of lilac,” he muttered.

Kathryn ran her hand through her hair, releasing the lilac fragrance into the air. “That’s the shampoo I used on my hair. Do you like it?”

“Uh huh. I like that clingy little robe too. I’m trying not to stare, but those curves of yours are getting to me.”

Blurb:

"First Lady Kills President Lovinggood"

December 29, 2018

 

Thirty years later Hank Lovinggood embarks on a quest to prove his mother's innocence and punish the killers who took his family from him.  Together Hank and lovely physicist Kathryn Sinclair confront an implacable, twisted, merciless enemy who'll do whatever it takes to hide the truth forever.


Buy Link: http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1171&zenid=47e2ee98cb5cd893307c4baeedc1ce4a