You're in luck today, kids--below is a small excerpt from my upcoming novel, "Murder At Castle Rock." Please note that this comes from the rough draft (I haven't received my manuscript back from my editor yet to make revisions), however, I retain all rights to this content and it may not be duplicated without my permission.
Here's a quick description of book's premise:
As the manager and booking agent for Atlanta’s famous Castle Rock concert venue, Amelia “Ame” Grace is ready for the most exciting week of her career: she’s booked three shows and a live DVD-filming for the comeback tour of none other than the eighties Pop Rock Prince himself, Bobby Glitter! Before the rock star can take a bow on the first night, however, trouble steals the show as Castle Rock’s owner takes a deadly tumble from atop the venue’s rear tower. To make matters worse, the police suspect foul play—and all signs point to two of Castle Rock’s own employees. Ame is in a race against time to clear the names of her friends and uncover the truth before the killer decides it’s curtains for her too!
Below is an excerpt from the book itself. Enjoy!
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Sighing heavily, I flipped around to lean my back against the door and stared out into the open courtyard. The vast green lawn stretched on for at least a quarter-mile and was enclosed by a grey ashlar wall that matched the structure of the castle. The wall was lined with alternating hickory and maple trees, each spaced about twenty feet apart. The trees were my favorite part of the courtyard, especially during the fall. During the spring and summer, their leaves made a solid wall of vibrant green, and in the winter the brittle, bare branches jutted in every direction like protective barbs to ward off those punk neighborhood kids who might dare to climb the wall and sneak in the back door for a free concert. It was in the fall, however, that the trees gave their most breathtaking display. As the red maple and orange hickory leaves danced in the wind they looked like a moat of fire hovering above the castle wall.
Most of my co-workers took their breaks from work in Piedmont Park just a few blocks away, but not me—this courtyard was my own private park. I often took walks along its perimeter when I needed an escape from my constantly ringing office phone. Sometimes I’d pretend that this was my castle and courtyard, and I’d pace the length of the fence, mapping out in my mind the additions I would love to make. Lately I had been envisioning an outdoor stage along the wall, facing inward to the lawn. While our capacity in either High Court or the Dungeon was one thousand, we could easily fit up to two thousand or more concert-goers in this space. This would allow us to book bigger, better acts and maybe even double our business. I had been working up the nerve to pitch these concepts to Parker, and if all went well with Bobby Glitter Week, that success might be just the thing to butter him up before I approached him with my ideas.
Sometime later I could feel the bass and the roar of the crowd vibrate through the door as Bobby and his band returned to the stage upstairs for their encore. One show down, I thought, pulling a cigarette from my jacket. Two to go. I fished a lighter from the depths of my jean pocket, then lit my cig and took a long, slow drag. It felt good to finally have a few moments to myself, just me and my thoughts in this dark and peaceful courtyard. I blew a smoke ring and tilted my face upward to watch its progress as it slowly drifted higher and higher into the night sky. Through the haze, a dark object appeared to be falling from the heavens—no, it was falling from the rear tower! What the..
Time screeched to a halt, and in an instant that felt like a lifetime, the shape of the dark, falling mass came into focus. It had arms and hands with open palms and splayed fingers. It had legs that were eerily limp even as they moved downward in a rapid free fall…and in the moonlight, I could just make out a head of thinning chestnut hair…
Before I could react, Parker Deering’s body careened into the flat ground of the loading dock with a sickening splat, a mere fifteen feet from where I was standing. The horrible sound of bones crunching upon impact sent my lunch on a mad dash back up from my stomach.
I doubled over and retched.
Then I screamed.
*******************************************************************************************
Stay tuned for more news about the upcoming release of "Murder At Castle Rock" by Anne Marie Stoddard!
Here's a quick description of book's premise:
As the manager and booking agent for Atlanta’s famous Castle Rock concert venue, Amelia “Ame” Grace is ready for the most exciting week of her career: she’s booked three shows and a live DVD-filming for the comeback tour of none other than the eighties Pop Rock Prince himself, Bobby Glitter! Before the rock star can take a bow on the first night, however, trouble steals the show as Castle Rock’s owner takes a deadly tumble from atop the venue’s rear tower. To make matters worse, the police suspect foul play—and all signs point to two of Castle Rock’s own employees. Ame is in a race against time to clear the names of her friends and uncover the truth before the killer decides it’s curtains for her too!
Below is an excerpt from the book itself. Enjoy!
******************************************************************************************
Sighing heavily, I flipped around to lean my back against the door and stared out into the open courtyard. The vast green lawn stretched on for at least a quarter-mile and was enclosed by a grey ashlar wall that matched the structure of the castle. The wall was lined with alternating hickory and maple trees, each spaced about twenty feet apart. The trees were my favorite part of the courtyard, especially during the fall. During the spring and summer, their leaves made a solid wall of vibrant green, and in the winter the brittle, bare branches jutted in every direction like protective barbs to ward off those punk neighborhood kids who might dare to climb the wall and sneak in the back door for a free concert. It was in the fall, however, that the trees gave their most breathtaking display. As the red maple and orange hickory leaves danced in the wind they looked like a moat of fire hovering above the castle wall.
Most of my co-workers took their breaks from work in Piedmont Park just a few blocks away, but not me—this courtyard was my own private park. I often took walks along its perimeter when I needed an escape from my constantly ringing office phone. Sometimes I’d pretend that this was my castle and courtyard, and I’d pace the length of the fence, mapping out in my mind the additions I would love to make. Lately I had been envisioning an outdoor stage along the wall, facing inward to the lawn. While our capacity in either High Court or the Dungeon was one thousand, we could easily fit up to two thousand or more concert-goers in this space. This would allow us to book bigger, better acts and maybe even double our business. I had been working up the nerve to pitch these concepts to Parker, and if all went well with Bobby Glitter Week, that success might be just the thing to butter him up before I approached him with my ideas.
Sometime later I could feel the bass and the roar of the crowd vibrate through the door as Bobby and his band returned to the stage upstairs for their encore. One show down, I thought, pulling a cigarette from my jacket. Two to go. I fished a lighter from the depths of my jean pocket, then lit my cig and took a long, slow drag. It felt good to finally have a few moments to myself, just me and my thoughts in this dark and peaceful courtyard. I blew a smoke ring and tilted my face upward to watch its progress as it slowly drifted higher and higher into the night sky. Through the haze, a dark object appeared to be falling from the heavens—no, it was falling from the rear tower! What the..
Time screeched to a halt, and in an instant that felt like a lifetime, the shape of the dark, falling mass came into focus. It had arms and hands with open palms and splayed fingers. It had legs that were eerily limp even as they moved downward in a rapid free fall…and in the moonlight, I could just make out a head of thinning chestnut hair…
Before I could react, Parker Deering’s body careened into the flat ground of the loading dock with a sickening splat, a mere fifteen feet from where I was standing. The horrible sound of bones crunching upon impact sent my lunch on a mad dash back up from my stomach.
I doubled over and retched.
Then I screamed.
*******************************************************************************************
Stay tuned for more news about the upcoming release of "Murder At Castle Rock" by Anne Marie Stoddard!
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