Lee Hanson Continues to Give Her Great Debut Novel Free! Cool Writer and Lady!

Julie was pleasantly drifting off when the unmistakable sound of smashing pottery snapped her back. Her eyes popped open.

"Shit, Sol! What did you do now?"

Quickly rising, she scooped up the newspaper, dropped it on the outdoor table and hurried inside. Her living room/

library was arranged more for work than leisure, with a large cherry...desk sitting in front of a wall of books. Her big Bengal cat lay there peering over the edge...wh

Sol was a year old when Julie adopted him directly from his overwhelmed owner. A genetic throwback, the exotic-looking spotted cat was twice the size of a typical housecat and couldn't be let outdoors. Now, for her trouble, he was gleefully crouched on her desk like a leopard cub that had just whacked a rabbit."Damn it, Sol. How come I'm not the alpha cat here? How come that only works with dogs?"

Castle Cay:

Julie O'Hara

   Mystery Series

By Lee Hanson

Now this is a writer that I wish I'd had a chance to read earlier! Of course, Sol is a major reason, even if he's not part of the mystery team, don't you think? But, more importantly... This writer loves dots! Finally, somebody who shares my "need" to express ourselves through the use of dots! Cool!

But most importantly, because she's a great storyteller and her debut is a mystery that you will enjoy, as long as you don't have any biases against today's world, at least in my opinion... LOL

She shook her head, thinking back on it.
There was never any magic, John,
I just see what people aren't saying...
~~~

Julie O'Hara had just received word that a close friend of hers was dead. Marcus Solomon had been a rising star in the art world. He had been found by his partner David Harris at their home. At the time of the announcement, they were not sure of the cause of death.

Julie was devastated. Marcus had AIDS but he was doing well. She knew he would not have killed himself, At 38 his work would keep him, going for as long for as possible...

She was headed for Boston and thought she'd probably head for Key West after the funeral.  

Julie is considered a body language expert and has helped with cases for police and lawyers, especially. I've always been interested in this subject and took a -few classes. so it was intriguing to watch Julie pinpoint issues of concern for people with whom somebody was having communication. Of course, Julie did not claim it was any special expertise...

Her first job was one that would really require it--a car salesperson! And that was where she met her husband and then faced the grief of his death...

Week three was a bonanza. Julie had three "full-sticker" sales to three happy customers, all walk-ins. She was about to receive the biggest paycheck she'd ever earned, and even though the women in the office still wouldn't give her the time of day, Julie sensed a grudging respect...if not friendship...from the salesmen... That is, until the beginning of week four when Dan O'Hara, the chauvinistic and charismatic New Car Manager, came roaring back from an award trip to Hawaii and crash-landed into Julie's life....

They had gone to hear the Boston Pops...Dan rose, smiling, and executed a deep theatrical bow in front of Julie...Laughing, Julie went into his arms. Then he was leading her up the stairs. He grabbed the canvas there and spread it on the darkened deck. In the next moment, they were standing entwined again, Julie's back against the deck railing...

"Don't stop," said Julie in a rush of breath...

~~~

                                      

Wouldn't you just know that they'd fallen in love?! Only to face disaster...

On their honeymoon, her new husband had gone swimming and although Julie tried to save him, he was already dead even as she had brought him back in... 

That had been eight years ago and she now had her own business... Joe Garrett, a P.I. and her landlord was slowly becoming a close friend...

Now Julie was staying with friends in Boston with whom she had formerly worked. She remembered her last conversation with Marc when, having drunk to celebrate his reviews, happily exclaimed that his success was going to be an upset for his parents and for Avram, his brother.

Castle Cay, their destination, was an outer island in the Abacos chain, a group of cays - or "keys" as Marc pronounced it-- in the Northeast Bahamas. The Island was privately owned by the Solomon family, who had made the whole trip for a fabulous wedding gift. 

Now that island seemed to be in the middle of what was happening... There had been talk of selling the island and they'd received a major offer from a cruise company But there was also much talk on the news about drug traffic in the area...

Julie noted his posture.. He sought
to give her an impression of relaxation.
He leaned back in his chair and smiled
but, at the same time, he made a hi gh
steeple with his hands. Just the finger-
tips were touching. It was a smug
gesture, creating a wall between them.
Further,  there was controlled
aggression in his eyes...
~~~

Julie was devastated when they started thinking that Marc's partner had been involved...she was glad she had come to visit right after the funeral. No matter what, she felt Avram was involved in some way... He now had almost total control of the family business!

There are a variety of issues going on in this novel but, at the end, all of it ties in together, although I missed one of the main criminals that came out of the woodwork, so I didn't mind that! LOL... Besides, I'm really not an expert in solving mysteries. If I get them, it's because it's a cozy or a simpler mystery to start with...

In any event, I thoroughly enjoyed this and certainly the final outcome! If it sounds worthwhile, now is the time to pick it up while it is still free...

Highly recommended.

GABixlerReviews

Like my fictional body language expert, Julie O'Hara, 

I'm adept at 'seeing' what people aren't saying...

For forty years, I studied the nuances of body language. I learned to spot the telltale, fleeting facial expression, the shift in posture, tone of voice or cadence. I took every course, read everything I could find on the subject. In time, I became so good at it that what folks really wanted was as clear as if they were speaking out loud.
And I became a multi-million dollar saleswoman.
I was also an avid reader with a strong desire to write, but I was married and supporting a family... I was simply making too much money to try something as harebrained as that! So I waited impatiently for retirement to scratch my nagging writer’s itch.

Toots and me

 (I'm the one on the right)

My only regret now is that I didn't retire earlier! I've had such fun writing these novels, dear reader. I may physically be in a quiet suburb of Orlando, but now I get to live vicariously through my intrepid body language expert, Julie O'Hara... and it's a trip!
The fact that so many thousands of folks are enjoying Julie, too, well... that's a blessing.
Again, thank you so much for taking the time to visit my site. I’ll try my best to add some interesting and informative stuff. In the meantime, rest assured that I am working on another engrossing story to puzzle and entertain you… and PLEASE, leave a comment or a review.
I really do care what you want... but I can't 'see' if you're smiling from here...

Lee

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