FRAMED by Nikki Andrews

Worldwide Release for FRAMED by Nikki Andrews

 Framed is a quick, fun read.

When a lost painting by local artist Jerry Berger surfaces at the Brush & Bevel, a New Hampshire art gallery, the owner, Ginny Brent, sets out to gather facts about the ten-year old mysterious death of Berger and his model Abby. As Elsie Kimball and Sue Bradley, employees at the Brush & Bevel, aid Ginny in her efforts to track the provenance of the Berger painting, they unearth some surprising and damning evidence about the deaths of the artist and his appealingly-nude model. The mystery lies not only in the cause of the deaths, but in the life of the painting itself.

Andrews’ intimate knowledge of the framing and art industry provides fascinating background information for the mystery.  She fleshes out the novel with quirky New Englanders—from a fishmonger to a local policeman, a jeweler who is deathly afraid of frogs, a customer with terrible taste in art and several bar (that’s bah) owners.

Framed propels the reader to the last page with just enough light-touch humor to soften the edges of a grisly double death. The novel is surely artfully framed.

Writers Enjoy Collegiality

– Writers Enjoy Collegiality

In a recent blog interview I was asked, “What are the highs and lows when it comes to writing?” Ironically, for me, the two are inextricably entwined. I dread the high-tech requirements for marketing and promoting. On the other hand, meeting other writers through blogs, web-loops, Facebook, Twitter, GoodReads, and other electronic media has widened my writing world tremendously. I feel I know quite a few writers I will never actually meet in person—those who have shared interviews and reviews, blogged about and commiserated with me via chat groups.

NIKKI ANDREWS comes to mind as her Worldwide Release of Framed, a cozy mystery published by The Wild Rose Press (my publisher) occurs this week. Nikki graciously interviewed me re my cozy A Red, Red Rose on her blog this January. I reviewed Framed and gave it a 5-star rating on Amazon. It’s a fun, quick read—full of humor and feminine smarts as colleagues in a framing shop help solve a decades-old murder.

PETER GREEN is another author friend who gave me a dynamite review on Amazon when A Red, Red Rose first came out, published by L&L Dreamspell.  I love the fact he compared me (favorably!) to an all-time favorite Southern Gothic writer, Carson McCullers. I had the opportunity to read and review his memoir about his father’s World War II experience in Ben’s War With the U.S. Marines,  which chronicles Ben Green’s  patriotic resolve to find ways to serve his country while enjoying life and practicing his own particular talents involving radio. It’s a book for everybody—not just war buffs.

NANCY MEANS WRIGHT’S Broken Strings was another fun read/review I did for a fellow Dreamspell author who reciprocated with a review for A Red, Red Rose. And there’s CINDY SAMPLE who has become as close to real-life friend as is possible through Facebook, e-mails, and the Dreamloop. I read and reviewed Cindy’s Dying for a Daiquiri, set in Hawaii, while I was in Hawaii—making it all the more memorable.

So many other authors have interacted with me through technology. My very first guest blog via  “Romance Bandits” put me in contact with readers all over the world—the UK and Australia responding to my blog hours before Eastern Standard wake-up time. Also SUSAN WHITFIELD afforded me a guest spot on her blog the first day of my free Kindle promo for A Red, Red Rose. And what a treat to be able to respond to a blog at Wild Women Authors about the creator of the cover of my book—Tina Lynn Stout.

So, Techno-dunce or not, I’ve certainly “met” a lot of talented and dedicated folks in the literary world through electronics. Just call me ambivalent.