Who or What Killed Mr. Tweeble? by J. Q. Rose #MFRWHooks #florida

 

Book Hooks--excerpts from novels

   Book Hooks Blog Hop #MFRWHooks

Hello and welcome to the Focused on Story Blog. 

Today we're joining the Book Hooks Blog Hop sponsored by 

the Marketing For Romance Writers Group. 

Each participating blogger shares an excerpt from their book. 

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Snowbirds are in Florida enjoying warm sunshine and gentle breezes. So I am sharing an excerpt from Terror on Sunshine Boulevard, a story about a snowbirding couple from Michigan who are lucky to spend their winters in Florida participating in all the fun activities in a community of snowbirds. 

But not so much fun this winter because the season is filled with terror, death and mystery.

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Terror on Sunshine Boulevard by J.Q. Rose
Scary, Mystery, Paranormal

"Fun in the Sun, Fright in the Night!"--amazon reviewer

BACK OF THE BOOK:  Rescuing a naked woman lying in a geranium bed? Investigating mysterious murders Not the usual calls for first responder Jim Hart. He expects slip and fall accidents or low blood pressure emergencies in his retirement community of Citrus Ridge Senior Community and Golf Resort. The ghastly crime scenes turn the wintertime fun into a terrifying season of death and mystery when the authorities cannot track down the predator responsible.

 Jim and his wife Gloria could escape the horror and grief by returning to their northern home, but concern for their friends and residents keep them in Florida. With the entire community in a dither over the deaths, the Harts participate in the normal winter activities of golfing, dancing, and pool parties with their friends to distract them from the sadness and loss.

 Can Jim and Gloria work with the authorities to discover who or what is killing the seniors on Sunshine Boulevard and stop the increasing body count?

EXCERPT: Terror on Sunshine Boulevard by J.Q. Rose

A few nights later, Mr. Tweeble woke up with a start when his dog Jingles began barking loud enough to wake him even if he wasn’t wearing his hearing aids.

Jingles, the star, in Terror On Sunshine Boulevard.

“Jingles! Jingles! Hush up, will you? It’s three o’clock in the morning. You’re going to wake the neighborhood with your barking.”

He remembered Jingles barking and whining like that when he drove his electric scooter near George McConnell’s house that afternoon. He had finally picked up the feisty terrier and put him on his lap to join the other curiosity seekers near the house. The dog jumped off and raced the other way until he was brought up short on his leash and howled until his master turned the cart around and left the area.

Jingles’ pitiful yowling broke into Mr. Tweeble’s memory.

Fearing his dog was sick, Mr. Tweeble rolled himself out of bed, fumbled putting on his glasses, and shuffled into the kitchen. Using the night light in the hood vent over the old stove to see the dog, he discovered the animal scampering back and forth near the back door.

“Jingles, come ‘ere, boy. Are you sick?” Mr. Tweeble picked him up and gently held the dog close to his chest. He switched on the ceiling light and studied the precious face he dearly loved. He checked Jingles’ brown ears and his brown and white furry body for any injuries and then cradled him to his rotund belly.

“It’s all right, little guy. Come on. Come on to bed with me. You must want to go out to chase a rabbit, eh?” As he slowly shuffled his way back to his bedroom with the dog, he wondered what was wrong. Mr. Tweeble made a mental note to check behind the couch for an “accident” in the morning.

He lay down on the rumpled bed and enfolded the trembling dog in his arms. Suddenly Jingles wriggled free and sprang up barking non-stop. He leaped from the bed and raced out of the room. A flash of searing yellow light filled the room blinding Mr. Tweeble, and the smell of his own scorched flesh burned his nostrils.

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Click here to download Terror on Sunshine Boulevard from your favorite online bookseller. Also available in paperback at amazon and Barnes and Noble.

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Author J.Q. Rose

 ABOUT J.Q. ROSE- Whether the story is fiction or non-fiction, J.Q. Rose is “focused on story.”  She offers readers chills, giggles and quirky characters woven within the pages of her romantic suspense novels. Using her storytelling skills, she provides entertainment and information with articles featured in books, newspapers, and online magazines. 

Blogging, taking photos of their garden, nature, and family, Pegs and Jokers board games, travel and presenting workshops on life storytelling are the things that keep JQ out of trouble. She and her husband spend winters in Florida and summers up north with their two daughters, two sons-in-law,  four grandsons, one granddaughter, two grand dogs, four grand cats, and one great-grand bearded dragon.

↪Click here to visit bloggers participating in the #MFRWhooks  Blog Hop. Have fun!! 

Thank you for visiting.

Travelogue: Signs of Spring from South to North

Lilies blooming in our Florida yard mid-April 2015

Hello and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog. Yes, we are back home in beautiful Michigan. The countryside is just waking up to spring. We arrived to sunny skies and warm temperatures (about 70 degrees F/21 C). Of course we won't mention the rain, cool temps, and  snowflurries forecast for mid-week. We are delighted with this rare treat.

The Snowbirds-Author J.Q. Rose and hubby, Gardener Ted

We had an uneventful 1300 mile trip from Florida to the North country. And that's the way we like it!

Our route home from Florida to Michigan
Find lots of maps at mapofusa.net

We left lush, green Florida landscapes and colorful flowers and the beaches teeming with sun-loving visitors. We knew we'd pass through spring in its various stages as we drove north. Take a peek at the signs of spring we spotted on our journey home. 

Please remember these photos were shot "on the way" north. Yes, through the windshield of our 70 mph speeding pick-up truck. You may have to squint to focus in on some of them!

We had to say good-bye to our Florida neighbors and their beautiful geraniums. 

Nickajack Lake picnic area near Jasper, Tennessee.
The park has a lovely campground.
Can you imagine how busy this place must be in the summer? 

I bet there are a LOT of fish in this lake.

On this trip we discovered the annual National Cornbread Festival 
which is held in South Pittsburgh, TN, just a few miles from Nickajack Lake.
The Lodge Cast Iron factory is located in this small town.
This company is world-renowned for their quality cast iron cookware.
Hey, if you have no plans this weekend, April 25-26,
you can attend the cornbread festival!! 

You can see we are in leafless country,
but with buds showing on the trees and green grass growing.

Yes, we endured traffic congestion in some of the cities we passed through.

And lots of construction!! The orange barrels kind of ruined the scenic areas!

Redbud trees, a sure sign of spring in Tennessee.

This flowering tree graced out motel room in Indiana.
Gorgeous yellow forsythia were also blooming.

The farmers are getting ready to plant, definite signs of spring in Indiana.

At last, we are near home. All the fruit orchards are nothing but branches and trunks.
No signs of life.

Notice the sparse green grass and no leaves on the trees. But spring will come.

The promise of spring is alive and well in our yard.
The hyacinths are growing and the tulips are budding.

Daffodils are a welcoming sight. They just make my heart happy with their bright yellow blossoms. Pure spring joy.
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So how far are you into spring? Flowers, leaves or no leaves, or are you in the part of the world just entering fall? What IS your favorite season of the year?

Be sure to fill in the "Follow by E-mail" box so you won't miss a blog post on the J.Q. Rose blog. Thank you!

Six More Weeks of Winter Weather, This Week, and Free E-book

Here's a cup of coffee to warm you up! Sounds like there will be six more weeks of winter weather.
Actually I am sitting here at the laptop with iced tea because in Florida it's 80 degrees. Okay, don't throw rotten tomatoes at me. I am thrilled to be a snowbird and in fact, my first mystery novella is a story about snowbirds. Some of you may recall Sunshine Boulevard. It's a fun read to escape with whether it's 80 degrees or 0 degrees. Check out the video below for you viewing pleasure...!!

Available at a MuseItUp Publishing and all major online booksellers.

 

THIS WEEK

 



 

Wednesday, February 5-- I am looking forward to participating in the Insecure Writers Support Group blog hop. The IWSG is a grand group of supportive authors who share their thoughts the first  Wednesday of every month. Join us to discover so much knowledge about writing and publishing and sign up to be a part of the gang too. Check out the new IWSG Website for all kinds of helpful information for writers!

 

 

Thursday, February 6-- I am honored to have award winning Carolyn Howard-Johnson sharing her information about Editing is Marketing and a chance to win her e-book, The Frugal Editor. Her outstanding series of books for authors, How to Do It Frugally, has won awards and praise. You don't want to miss out on her wealth of knowledge. She loves to answer questions. Plus your comment will enter you into the random drawing for her e-book. So you're invited to get in on the discussions on Thursday through Sunday. Winner will be drawn after 9 pm on Sunday evening.

Cabbage Patch Kids Visit, This Week, Giveaways

Happy Monday to you!

This snowbird and her mate have finally settled into their winter nest in sunny (and very hot) Florida. On the way South, we stopped to visit friends in Cleveland, GA, home of the Cabbage Patch Kids Doll Co.

What a delightful place to visit. In this magical location, Cabbage Patch Babies are born.

Cabbage Patch Kids became a household name (if you had girls in your household anyway) in the early 80's. In fact the company is celebrating its 30th birthday this year. Yes, we had two little girls in our family. They saw a display of the dolls in a store in our area and fell in love with these unique "kids." To be honest, I thought the dolls were ugly...shhh...don't tell the girls.

 In fact lots of little girls fell in love with them. In fact, the company could not keep up with demand. My mother made it her mission to find dolls for our girls. She didn't want them to be disappointed on Christmas morning. She worked her magic and eventually did provide two dolls for our daughters. Our girls loved their dolls and to this day still have them packed away in their homes.

This doll store is unique in that the cabbage patch babies are "born" right there from a Mama Cabbage. (Yes, please suspend reality here and enjoy the fun!)

 The nurse checks Mama Cabbage vital signs.

And a few minutes later out pops Nichole Denise. She was named by one of the little girls in the audience. The name and birth certificate are included with the purchase of the doll.

The day was perfect except I wish my now grown daughters were with me to share the experience!

This Week:

Tuesday through Thursday, October 22-24, I will be participating in the Who's Your Hero Blogfest. Come back tomorrow or the next couple of days and tell us who your hero is and you could be one of two winners in the drawing for two  prizes...an e-copy of Saving Sam by J.L. Campbell and an e-copy of Girls Succeed!

Friday, October 25--I will be posting on my publisher's website, MuseItUp Publishing blog in the afternoon.

Hobby Hoedown will continue after Halloween, so ya'all come back! Here are the hobbyists in November.

Nov.
7	Heather Greenis	curling
14	Margaret Mendel	photography
21	Jane Lebak	knitting
28	THANKSGIVING

All Month:

Breast Cancer Awareness month

Lavender Dreams

Ten short stories in this anthology to entertain you. More importantly, the authors and cover artist have generously donated these stories and their royalties to help raise funds for cancer research each year.

Authors:

MuseItUp Publishing Authors: Barbara Ehrentreu, Gloria Oren, Lisa J. Lickel, Nan D Arnold, Nathaniel Tower, Rosemary Gemmell, Suzannah Safi, Tanja Cilia, Vicki Batman

Buy Link at MuseItUp Publishing

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Christmas in October continues at Penny Estelle's blog. Win 50 prizes!

Christmas in October

Every Monday and Thursday during October,

six different authors will be spotlighting their books. 

Some lucky commenter is going to win over 50 different prizes. 

It could be you!  All you need to do is comment.

 The more you comment, the more chances you have of winning

all of these fabulous prizes.

Penny's blog. 

Ho!  Ho!  Ho!

Travel With Me Along the Interstate Through Tennessee and Kentucky

I took a "blogcation" this week because my husband and I traveled from Florida back to our home in Michigan. We are snowbirds and enjoy the sunny winters in Florida and the fun summers in Michigan. I combined a few slides from our journey for your viewing pleasure.


I love experiencing the gorgeous coming of spring in every area we drive through--Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, to the Midwest states where spring has just begun and finally into Michigan where usually the season is just waking up. But not this year. As the rest of the country has experienced early springs, so has Michigan with spring blossoms turning on their bright colors and the countryside carpeted in refreshing green grass.


I am sharing some of the sights I saw as we traveled through Tennessee and Kentucky in this little movie I made using Picasa.

 Happy Springtime wherever you are!!

Welcome to Florida

What a wonderful welcoming sign to the Sunshine State...NOT! This is the first thing I saw when I jumped out of our truck at a rest area south of Gainesville, FL. It kind of makes one want to jump back in the vehicle and turn north. Let me think about a choice between SNAKES or SNOW...Hmmm...would you believe we chose the snakes?? Yes, we are snowbirds flying toward sunshine and away from the snow....


We are now settled in and looking forward to a fun Florida winter with sunshine, games, and friends.  Poisonous snakes are not in our future, I hope!

Snowbird Heading Home

Here I am under the palm tree in our back yard in Florida.

This snowbird is headed north...not flying away on snow white wings, but rather plodding along in our big blue truck. It is heavily loaded with all our possessions plus more stuff we just had to bring along for the kids. I have been offline while we traveled.

I love Florida in the winter. It is a great place to be to escape the snow and blizzards of the north country. But I am so ready to return home for kisses and hugs. Emails, Facebook and phone calls, not into texting yet, will never replace the actual touch, smell, and loving embrace of my family.

We surprised our grandsons at McDonald's in Muskegon. When our eight year old saw us, he raced across the parking lot and jumped into Grandpa's arms. Thank goodness he didn't knock gramps down! We were all thrilled to be together.

Go hug someone you love right now.

Snowbirds Christmas

Wishing all the snowbirds a Happy Snowbirds Christmas! Snowbirds are folks who migrate south in the winter. I am a snowbird who lives in Florida during the winter to escape the snows and blizzards and ice up north. In fact the main characters in my ebook coming out in March 2011 are snowbirds who live in a retirement community in Florida.

I am sharing this video, Southwest Florida Christmas, with you--a parody on a Christmas song written for snowbirds (and anyone who knows a snowbird) and Florida residents.I hope this entertaining piece gives you a giggle and helps to make your Christmas merrier!

For more snowbird fun, check out my ebook, Sunshine Boulevard by J Q Rose from Muse It Up Publishing.