Today’s top pick is a dynamite debut novel, Poison Pen, a forensic handwriting mystery by Sheila Lowe. The book first appeared in paperback in 2007, and now it’s installment #1 in a four-part series.
In addition to her fiction-writing credentials, Sheila is a court-qualified forensic handwriting examiner based in Southern California. Her experience covers cases that involve handwriting authentication (forgery identification) and personality assessment. Sheila also teaches “Introduction to Handwriting Examination” at the University of California, Riverside, and she offers an online course in gestalt graphology and lectures around the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom.
Sheila’s novels feature handwriting expert Claudia Rose, whose career mirrors Sheila’s. Her wacky friend Kelly Brennan, a family law attorney, and semi-retired psychologist Zebediah Gold round out the cast of characters.
As usual, each book listed here has gone FREE within the past 24 hours, except for the Bargain books in the yellow section below. Warning: Kindle book promotions can end without notice, so before downloading click the link “See Kindle price at Amazon” to verify that the book is still free. (Prices and availability may differ outside USA.)
Poison Pen (Forensic Handwriting Mysteries)
Mystery > Women Sleuths
Author: Sheila Lowe
Before her body is found in her Jacuzzi, publicist to the stars Lindsey Alexander had few friends, but plenty of enemies. Yet, police are willing to accept the words scrawled on crumpled piece of paper nearby as evidence of suicide.
When handwriting expert Claudia Rose is called onto the case, she has a different opinion. And when her instincts push her to investigate further, Claudia finds herself entangled in a far darker scenario than she could have imagined.
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Taboo (CSI Reilly Steel #1)
Mystery > Police Procedurals
Author: Casey Hill
Forensic investigator Reilly Steel, Quantico-trained and California-born and bred, imagined Dublin to be a far cry from bustling San Francisco, a sleepy backwater where she can lay past ghosts to rest and start anew.
She’s arrived in Ireland to drag the Garda forensics team into the 21st-century plus keep tabs on her Irish-born father who’s increasingly seeking solace in the bottle after a past tragedy.
But a brutal serial killer soon puts paid to that. A young man and woman are found dead in a hotel room, the gunshot wounds on their naked bodies suggesting a suicide pact. But as Reilly and the team dig deeper, and more bodies are discovered, they soon realise that a twisted murderer is at work, one who seeks to upset society’s norms in the most sickening way imaginable…
Write Time: Guide to the Creative Process, from Vision through Revision
Writing, Research & Publishing Guides > Authorship
Author: Kenneth Atchity
In this foundational guide to the writer’s mind and productivity used by thousands of writers worldwide since its original publication — called by the New York Times “the best…book on writing” — Dr. Atchity shows how the detailed steps of the creative process interface with the writer’s greatest asset, time, to provide both creative success and peace of mind.
For nearly a decade, thousands of writers — aspiring and professional — have relied on this book, the first to apply time-management principles to the specific needs of writers of fiction, nonfiction, and drama. Expanding his focus now, Kenneth Atchity adds a substantial new chapter, “Breaking into Show Business,” and new material about recapturing the “high” of creativity and maintaining confidence despite setbacks. He shows you how to transform anxiety into “productive elation,” how to separate vision from revision, and how to develop your own writing agenda.
This book, based on his writing seminars, research into dreams and creativity, and film development, is, as the New York Times states, “crammed with the sort of useful advice that it seems to take some people years to learn.”
Arbitrage: The authoritative guide on how it works, why it works, and how it can work for you
Business & Investing > E-commerce
Author: Chris Green
Arbitrage is the practice of taking advantage of a price difference between two or more markets, striking a combination of matching deals that capitalize upon the imbalance, the profit being the difference between the market prices. This is the complete, authoritative, and exhaustive manual outlining the Arbitrage business model. It has been compiled and made available to anyone interested in buying products to be resold online.
In this book, Chris Green will give you the keys to the Arbitrage Kingdom with the mindset of unlimited opportunities and abundance and not one of scarcity. Empires are being built by using powerful new programs like ScanPower to source and evaluate items for resale. Pair this with Amazon’s amazing fulfillment program called Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) to outsource the storage, shipping, and customer service of your items, and you have a completely scalable, nearly risk-free business model with a near-zero entry cost. The techniques described in this book can be used by anyone, anywhere to build a small side business or large empire. The only limit is you imagination.
Of Moths and Butterflies
Historical Romance > Victorian
Author: V.R. Christensen, B. Lloyd
Archer Hamilton is a collector of rare and beautiful insects. Gina Shaw is a servant in his uncle’s house. Clearly out of place in the position in which she has been discovered, she becomes a source of fascination . . . and curiosity.
A girl with a blighted past and a fortune she deems a curse, Gina has lowered herself in order to find escape from her family and their scheming designs. But when she is found, the stakes suddenly become dire.
All Gina wants is the freedom to live her life as she would wish. All her aunts want is the money that comes with her. But there is more than one way to trap an insect. An arranged marriage might turn out profitable for more parties than one.
Mr. Hamilton is about to make the acquisition of a lifetime. But will the price be worth it? Can a woman captured and acquired learn to love the man who has bought her?
The Language of Sparrows
Christian Fiction
Author: Rachel Phifer
Brilliant and fluent in too many languages to count, 15-year-old Sierra Wright can’t seem to communicate what is important to her in any language. Though April Wright stubbornly keeps an upbeat attitude about her daughter’s future, she has let her own dreams slip away. Just across the bridge lives old Luca, scarred from his time in a Romanian gulag years before. Though he has seemingly given up on people, Sierra is drawn to him despite his prickly edges.
No one else is comfortable with the unpredictable old man spending time alone with Sierra, not even Luca’s son. Yet it is this unconventional relationship that will bring two families together to form friendships and unearth their family stories, stories that just might give them all the courage to soar on wings toward a new future.
Secrets & Sins
Contemporary Fiction
Author: Eros
Everyone has a dirty little secret, and it’s always about a very nasty sin. What would you do to keep yours concealed? What price are you willing to pay? Would you lie, cheat, steal, have sex or even kill? FBI Agent Steven Bing has come to learn that people would do the unthinkable.
JoJo, Brad and Lawaun are in the fast lane of sex, money and murder, while Wanda Dunkin is smart, rich and gorgeous, and all she is looking for is to have a good time and great sex.
So, what do they all have in common? How about their Secrets and Sins!
A Soul For Trouble (The Soulbearer Trilogy)
Romance > New Adult & College
Author: Crista McHugh
When you’re a witch named Trouble, chaos follows.
Arden Lesstymine (known to everyone as Trouble) likes attention as much as the next girl, but this is getting ridiculous. When an insane stranger is murdered at the inn where she works, Trouble becomes the next Soulbearer for the disembodied god of chaos, Loku. Yes, it comes with the ability to channel the god’s limitless power, but at the cost of her sanity — literally. Now she has a sexy but cynical knight claiming to be her protector, a prince trying to seduce her to his cause (and his bed), and a snarky chaos god who offers a play-by-play commentary on it all, whether she wants to hear it or not. To make matters worse, a necromancer wants to capture the soul of Loku for his own dark purposes, and the only way he can get it is by killing her first.
Shine
Christian Living > Spiritual Growth
Author: Nancy Segovia
The Bible tells us we need to “shine before men,” but what does this mean and how do we do it? Nancy Segovia lays out a series of simple steps you can to take to walk the talk: to love God above all and your neighbor as yourself. Using parables, folk tales, and struggles from her own life, she provides uplifting insights into the Christian walk that can make your first steps easier. She examines scripture for clues on what it means to shine, how to reflect God’s love, and what to do when the muddy messes of life blot out God’s light in you. You will relate to her failings, those “Duh!” moments when spiritual understanding begins to dawn. Most important, you will learn how to apply that understanding; you will learn how to turn your talk into your walk and how to help others to do the same.
The Hidden Europe: What Eastern Europeans Can Teach Us
Travel > Essays & Travelogues
Author: Francis Tapon
Francis Tapon yearned for a European adventure, but Western Europe seemed too tame and passé. So he traveled for 3 years visiting every Eastern European country—all 25 of them.
The Hidden Europe cleverly mixes insightful facts with hilarious personal anecdotes. It’s profound, yet light. Francis Tapon is a sharp observer who helps you distinguish a Latvian from a Lithuanian, while not confusing Slovenia with Slovakia.
You’ll also learn:
– Why Baltic people are human squirrels.
– When and why Poland disappeared from Europe.
– Why Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia broke up.
– Why Hungarians are really Martians.
– How Slovenians learn languages so quickly.
A Guide to The Present Moment
Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism > Zen
Author: Noah Elkrief
Do you want to stop living with anxiety, shame, unworthiness, depression, anger, guilt, sadness, worry, or fear? It certainly seems as though these emotions are inevitable, and directly created by our circumstances, our situations, and the people in our lives. However, it is possible to discover that all your unwanted emotions are actually created by the thoughts in your mind. More importantly, each of these emotions can vanish in an instant if you just stop believing the thoughts that create them.
This Book Will Help You To:
- Experience peace in situations that used to be filled with anxiety and stress
- Lose the sense of lack in your life, and live with a sense of a wholeness, worthiness, and completeness
- Enjoy less arguments, resentment, and disappointment in your relationships with others
- Experience the freedom to act how you feel without worrying about others’ opinions
- Live in the moment or live the power of now (i.e. spiritual awakening)
- Experience the fulfillment you have always been searching for
Out of the Black
Crime Fiction > Kidnapping
Author: John Rector
Regularly $9.99, Today $1.99
To keep the light of his life, he’ll have to do some dark things.
After Matt Caine loses his wife in a car accident, all he has left is his daughter, Anna. But just as the little girl—who survived the accident—finally starts thriving, Matt’s former in-laws threaten to take her away via a bitter custody battle. Desperate to keep Anna and in debt to some dangerous local thugs, Matt has no good options. But he does have Jay, one very bad friend.
Just out of jail and plagued by drug addiction, Jay tempts Matt with a foolproof kidnapping scheme. But what sounds like the perfect solution to all his problems eventually leads Matt through a nightmarish maze of betrayals and reversals, pushing him to his breaking point—and beyond. Now, with his entire life hanging in the balance, Matt makes a pledge of brutal payback.
Kitty and The Midnight Hour (Kitty Norville)
Horror > Dark Fantasy
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Regularly $7.99, Today $1.99
Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station and a werewolf in the closet. Her new late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged is a raging success, but it’s Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf-hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew?
Soul Catcher (Outsider Trilogy)
Fantasy > Paranormal & Urban
Author: Leigh Bridger
Regularly $12.95, Today $1.99
From the gothic eccentricity of Asheville, North Carolina, to the terrifying recesses of the Appalachian wilderness, from modern demonology to ancient Cherokee mythology, Soul Catcher follows the tormented journey of folk artist Livia Belane, who has been stalked through many lives by a sadistic and vengeful demon. Livia and her loved ones, including her frontier-era soulmate and husband, Ian, a Soul Hunter, have never beaten the demon before. Now, in this life, it’s found them again.
What You’re Really Meant to Do: A Road Map for Reaching Your Unique Potential
Job Hunting & Careers > Guides
Author: Robert Steven Kaplan
Regularly $25.00, Today $1.99
How do you create your own definition of successand reach your unique potential?
Building a fulfilling life and career can be a daunting challenge. It takes courage and hard work. Too often, we charge down a path leading to success” as defined by those around usand ultimately, are left feeling dissatisfied.
Each of us is unique and brings distinctive skills and qualities to any situation. So why is it that most of us fail to spend sufficient time learning to understand ourselves and creating our own definition of success? The truth is, it can seem so natural and so much easier to just do what everyone else is doingfor nowleaving it for later to develop our best selves and figure out our own unique path. Is there a road map that will enable you to defy conventional wisdom, resist peer pressure, and carve out a path that fits your unique skills and passions?
Harvard Business School’s Robert Steven Kaplan, leadership expert and author of the highly successful book What to Ask the Person in the Mirror, regularly advises executives and students on how to tackle these questions. In this indispensable new book, Kaplan shares a specific and actionable approach to defining your own success and reaching your potential.
… See the rest of today’s Editor’s Picks here on page 2