Dirty Martini - Another great one by JA Konrath

Last week, I finished reading "Dirty Martini" by J.A. Konrath. DM is the fourth book in Konrath's series about a female Chicago detective named Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels.

The plot hinges around Jack's hunt for the Chemist, a nut-job who is poisoning food at restaurants and grocery stores throughout the Chicago area. The action is quick, the humor is good, and the story is great.

I really liked it - a lot! Buy it and read it. You won't be dissappointed.

However......

I am currently writing my first novel about a retired detective residing on a remote Caribbean island. I've been working on this story for quite some time. Long before I ever read any of the Jack Daniels series of books and long before I ever knew of JA Knorath.

Yes, I have been working on this book for quite some time.

I need to proclaim at this pint in time that I used the term "Collateral Damage" long before I read it in Dirty Martini. I don't want anyone thinking that I get ALL of my ideas from Mr. Konrath.

And on my last trip to the Caribbean, I was stung by a bee. As I watched a welt form on my lower abdomen, I tried to remember the last time I had suffered a bee sting. At the time, I wasn't sure I had ever been stung before. That thought led me to wonder if I might be alergic to bee stings. But alas, apparently, I'm not.

I had been looking for some "ailment" to give the hero of my book, and I thought making my protagonist alergic to bee stings might add a little tension to his life, especially on an island that has bees. So, I began working this into my hero's life.

Guess what?

Without spoiling any of the story, let's just say that my jaw dropped when I read in Dirty Martini that Ms. Daniels just happens to be alergic to bee stings......

Dirty Martini really is a fun and enjoyable book. I'll soon be cracking open Fuzzy Navel, the next book in the series.

And I can't wait to see what other traits Jack Daniels has in common with my hero.

Welcome!

Greetings, and welcome to my Blogspot.

As you can see, this is my first entry. I'm not sure exactly how this is all going to work, but I figured I should get with the 21st century and have a blog. Hopefully, the world will become a richer, wiser place from my ramblings, but I won't be making any promises.

The main reason I decided to start a blog was to practice my writing skills. I am in the process of writing my first novel, and I need all the help, pracitce, and encouragement I can borrow, beg, or steal. All of my author "friends" have a blog, so I figured "when in Rome".....

My posts will probably be focused on my trials and tribulations while writing this novel. Hopefully, my experiences will help others traveling along the same road. Or maybe a reader with wisdom beyond mine cane chime in and get me back between the white lines.

Who knows? We'll just have to see how it works.

And hopefully, it all works out great.

Thanks for stopping by.