Review of The Case of the Mystified M.D. by A. K. Arenz

A walk in the park with a playful puppy that unearths a severed hand would send most people screaming away in horror. Not Glory Harper. The gutsy grandma is back and ready to rise to the challenge of another adventure.

Professor Zeke Wallace is missing, and Glory finds herself right in the middle of the search for a solution to the mystery. It doesn’t take long for her to discover that the God-bashing professor had more than his share of adoring female companions along with a host of other secrets.

When Glory loses her job, she gains an unlikely ally in her effort to piece together the puzzle surrounding the professor’s death. As she digs deeper into the clues that reveal the life of the unscrupulous professor, she puts her own life and that of her loved ones in danger. Always close by and keeping an eye out for the middle-aged sleuth’s safety is love interest Rick Spencer, her beautiful blue-eyed detective friend, who doesn’t always appreciate her involvement in the case.

The author shows us her characters with such realistic interaction that the reader can identify with then as people they encounter in their own communities. She captures the warmth of small town Tarryton as viewed through Glory’s eyes, yet bravely explores its imperfections as Glory delves into the motives behind those responsible for blackmail, arson, and murder.

Ms Arenz has again succeeded in bringing us a delightful tale of mystery and suspense mixed with a dash of humor and a generous helping of family loyalty.

Refer to my previous post of 8/13/08 for an interview with Ms Arenz and a review of her first book in the series, The Case of the Bouncing Grandma.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Introducing a New Blog

Today, I would like to introduce you to a new blog that has recently entered the scene in cyberspace.

The author does not claim to be a writer, but he has a story to tell.

He doesn’t worry about sentence structure, but his words come straight from the heart.

He writes from one point of view – that of the person he knows best – himself.

He writes about the person he strives to know better – our awesome God.

His purpose is to pour out his own soul, but his posts will surely touch the souls of others.

He writes about the trials he has been through for almost a decade, and the hopes he holds for the decades to come.

He is someone I am blessed to know. He is my pastor.

Take a moment to check out his blog, My journey Home. I guarantee it will be worth your time.


Thanks for reading my blog!

Why Do We Love Those Hateful Characters?

I picked up a book the other day at the library that is a little different from my normal reading selections. The story takes place in London in the early 1900’s. The back cover intrigued me because the main character is a woman physician who chooses to set up her practice among the London poor.

One of the main characters, and the man who becomes the physicain's love interest, is a gangster who has a reputation for extorting businesses, stealing, corruption, and all manner of other evil deeds. Yet, during a scene when he and his cronies are lifting a shipment of guns to be smuggled, I found myself rooting for the villain. When the watchman approached, I held my breath with the mobster as he narrowly escaped discovery.

What techniques did the author use to elicit such sympathy for a villain character? He revealed bits and pieces of backstory. He drew a picture of the life this man lived as a child and the traumatic events that shattered his world and contributed to his current behaviors.

The author uses the perpetrator’s point of view, putting us inside his head and making his motives and his law-breaking activities almost justifiable. Even though we know his crimes are wrong and harmful to others, we forget that in our desire to see the character overcome the obstacles that stand in the way of him accomplishing his goal.

The character has weaknesses. He has hardened his heart against relationships, yet the reader sees cracks in that wall of emotionless when we see him become attracted to the female physician who saves his life.

The reader also glimpses the villain through the eyes of those who love him, who knew him before he became a hardened criminal. He is viewed as a person worth saving.

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Close Call

We’ve had freezing rain here for the past couple of days. I love winter and snow, but this stuff is downright dangerous when it comes to driving.

Saturday morning, when my coworker arrived at work, I asked her about the road conditions. She and I live in the same town. Since she had to be to work at 7:00 AM, she drove in through a thick fog in addition to the constant freezing drizzle.

She told me she was concerned about me and we joined hands to say a prayer for my safe travel home. She asked for angels to surround my vehicle as well as any other drivers out there.

After about twenty minutes of scraping and defrosting, I headed for home. The fog had dissipated, but I hadn’t gotten far when I realized my windshield wiper was covered with ice, so every time the blade passed across the glass, it left a film of ice. I pulled off at the convenience store down the street and cleared it off.

As I make a left back out onto the highway, there is a bridge that passes over a railroad track, another highway, and the Arkansas River. I was headed up that overpass when I saw a pickup coming toward me out of control on the icy road. He was literally traveling sideways and came within inches of hitting my pickup. Even though the other vehicle took me completely by surprise, I remained calm and didn’t do anything stupid, like hit my brakes. He skidded past me, did another 360 on the way down the other side as I watched in my rearview mirror, finally straightened out, and went on his way.

I know those angels my coworker prayed for were out in full force. Not only did they prevent our vehicles from colliding, I’m sure one of them was sitting next to me, preventing me from hitting my brakes, which I’m sure would have spun me out of control as well. I never heard any reports of an accident, so I assume the other driver survived unscathed as well.

If I hadn’t had to stop at the convenience store to clean off the wiper blades, I probably would have been traveling faster than I was after making that left turn onto the highway. After working all night, my judgment may have prevented me from slowing down as much as I should on an icy bridge.

Isn’t it wonderful that God answers prayer?

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Can You Jump My Stump?

It’s cool and rainy here on Patti’s porch today and my creative juices are flowing as slow as sap in a snow-covered tree. It’s one of those days when I feel like sitting around and reading email, my crit partners’ submissions, or a good book while keeping an eye on the baseball playoffs. (GO ROCKIES!)

I had a couple of post subjects in mind, but putting the words on paper in any kind of logical order just isn’t working, so I’m going to fall back on a piece I wrote and meant to post months and months ago. It’s strictly for fun and I hope anyone who drops by will enjoy puzzling it out.

So, join me on the porch, bundle up under your favorite coat or jacket, enjoy a cup of coffee (or tea) and try to jump my stump!

This paragraph is unusual. It has a distinct quirk about it that is not obvious. It will not jump out at you right away, so study it for as long as you wish to find what is atypical about it. A lot of thought has brought about this short writing illustration so that you may grasp what it is I am hoping to do with words. As you approach this conundrum, stay in control of your thoughts and maintain a calm ability to think it through. Do not allow frustration to sway you from your task! You know it says nothing, but must admit it is still intriguing, owing to its unknown trait. I am boasting about this stab at trying to stump you and will, in fact, award a gift to a smart scholar who can crack this cryptic oddity.

DO NOT LEAVE ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS SECTION OF MY POST WHERE OTHER CONTESTANTS CAN SEE! Please submit answer to pattishene@pattishene.com and supply an email contact addy to win by Oct 30th! Good luck!

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Interview with author Darlene Franklin

Darlene, welcome to Patti’s Porch. It is a pure pleasure to have you here. You are in a position where many of us would like to be, that if a multi-published author. Give us a bird’s eye view of your latest releases.

Pat, I can’t quite believe I’m a multi-published author. When I went to the ACFW conference two years ago, I only had 1 book in print. Now I have six, with six more to come. God is good!

In addition to Beacon of Love, I’ve had two other books come out this year. A String of Murders is the second book in my cozy mystery series, Dressed for Death. My heroine lives in a small Oklahoma town and operates a vintage clothing store. In A String of Murders blackmail threats lead to murder. The book is available through Barbourbooks.com .

Lucy Ames, Sharpshooter is my contribution to the Wild West Christmas anthology, which I wrote with Kathleen Y’Barbo, Lena Nelson Dooley and Vickie McDonough. Four sisters each have a different cowgirl skill. Lucy is, of course, good with a rifle, and becomes a star act in a Wild West show.

I just finished reading Beacon of Love and thoroughly enjoyed it. Your depiction of the hurricane that struck Capernaum Island brought back memories for me, since I grew up on the east coast. Have you ever witnessed a hurricane firsthand?

I believe a hurricane hit New England when I was a little girl, but I have no memories of it. People who’ve survived hurricanes shared generously of their memories, feelings, and experiences, to give my story its authenticity.

One of the characters in this book is forced to face his greatest fear. Tell us about the fears you faced when you were a beginning writer. How did you overcome them?

My biggest fear, I suppose, was, am I meant to write? And connected with that, am I any good?

Marlene Bagnull told me early on that I had something more important than skill: I had passion and a message to share. I decided that I didn’t have to know whether I should write for the rest of my life; all that mattered was if I was sure I should be writing this project at this time. And the answer was (and has continued to be) yes.

Sometimes people tell me I’m a gifted writer. I don’t know about that. I’m a writer who persisted for 15 years before I had a book published.

What do you like most about writing?

Having written? I love story telling. I love the creative process. I love looking at something I’ve polished and realizing “that’s good.”

What do you like least?

The struggle to stay focused and productive.

How big a part have critique groups played in your writing journey?

Oh, wow, I wouldn’t be anywhere without critique groups. I’m fortunate to have you as a critique partner now, Pat.

I learned how to write in the crucible of a face-to-face critique group. ACFW didn’t exist back then or so many of the tools available to writers now. We learned how to write by figuring what worked or didn’t work in each other’s stories. I missed the group fiercely when we disbanded after the founder died.

Now I’m a part of two online groups. One is specifically for (multi-)published authors and helps me with aspects of writer peculiar to our needs. Our 19th century group, Pat, helps me with historical aspects I may get wrong, as well as shaping our stories.

With critique partners, you invest in each other. You believe in each other, you support each other, you give each other the in-depth help we all need. Everyone needs a critique group.

What kind of music do you like? Do you listen to music while writing?

I don’t listen to music while I’m writing. I don’t listen to music much at all, which is strange, because I am a musician. I love Broadway musicals and those are the DVDs I tend to buy: Rent, Hairspray, Phantom of the Opera, Fiddler on the Roof.

Darlene, it has been a delight to have you here today. I wish you much success with your future writing endeavors.

Below is my review of Darlene’s book, Beacon of Love.

Judith Morrison’s heart stirs with strange emotions when Sam Hathaway returns to Capernaum Island. Feelings of insecurity plague her spirit in the face of her poor culinary skills. Her lack of talent in the kitchen can be remedied with adequate instruction and guidance, but her father, the lighthouse keeper, won’t tolerate his daughter’s association with a coward who fears the water.

Dr. Sam Hathaway returns to Capernaum Island in response to God’s call to provide medical
services to the residents of his home. Ghosts of the past haunt him as he faces memories of his father’s death at sea. Sam is attracted to Judith, but wonders if her heart already belongs to another man, one who meets her father’s approval.

A fierce hurricane threatens the island, but Judith’s dedicated father refuses to leave the lighthouse, and Judith will not leave him. Sam is forced to confront his deepest fear to protect the woman he loves, earning the respect of her father as well.

Franklin has crafted a warm love story in Beacon of Love, presenting characters who resonate with courage against their own weaknesses and the daunting forces of nature. Her portrayal of the hurricane that attacks Capernaum Island absorbs the reader with scene after scene of page-turning action.

To My Dear Readers

I want to thank those of you who have signed up for my blog posts through Feedblitz for sticking with me. Also, I know there are some folks who just stop by to check in from time to time. My thanks go out to you as well for coming back. I know there have been many long stretches of time when I haven’t posted anything. In fact, close to three months passed this summer when I failed to post. Not the most stellar reputation for a blogger, or a writer either.

Recently, I blogged about commitment and accountability. It’s time I heeded my own words. I’m going to make a serious effort to blog at least every third day from now on. I have some book reviews set up, and most of them will be accompanied by an interview with the respective author. I also want to start writing more about writing.

However, I still enjoy writing about the little things that happen in my life and the lives of my family members. There were some things that happened over the past couple of months that I still want to write about. I tried catching up by “cheating”, entering a post and logging it in with a date long past. Guess what. I found out my readers don’t’ get the Feedblitz notification when I do that!

I also want to apologize to people who have emailed me through the site who never heard back. I have to admit I am bad about checking that email account. The last time I checked, there were about a hundred messages from Facebook. It wasn’t until I looked more closely that I found a couple of personal messages. I will answer them.

Thanks again for reading my blog!