Hi,
readers! We
have a real treat in store for you today, a new release by Melanie Robertson-King, a talented author!
Congratulations on your latest book! We wish you lots of success with it. :)
Let's check out the details, shall we?
Here is the blurb for It Happened in Gastown, book two in the It Happened Series.
Trainspotting meets Hot
Pursuit...
Hilary Dunbar is a uniformed constable with the Vancouver Police with an
agenda to rid the streets of drugs, especially the bad ones the notorious
dealer, Carlos Navarra, is trafficking.
Heroin addict, Erik Layne, has lived on the streets of Gastown for as
long as he can remember, having left home and Toronto as a rebellious teenage
addict. His and Hilary’s paths cross when she finds him unconscious in an alley
after injecting a batch of the contaminated drug. He must fight for his life to
keep from dying, not only from the tainted smack but also from the man who
provided it.
A domestic disturbance call goes wrong, and Hilary suffers life-changing
injuries as a result. As luck would have it, she and Erik are hospitalized in
the same ward at Vancouver General Hospital. When she sinks into a deep
depression, it’s he who pulls her out of her doldrums.
But will Hilary’s obsession with bringing down Navarra and others like
him destroy their relationship and, more importantly, jeopardize their lives?
Release Date: December 1, 2019
Genre: Sweet Romance, Romantic Suspense
Sounds like an intriguing read here!
Purchase Links:
Here is an an excerpt...
Out on routine patrol, Constables Hilary
Dunbar and her partner Lukas Stephanopoulos drove north on Cambie Street
towards the Gastown Steam Clock. As they passed the end of Blood Alley, she
shouted, “Back up. Something’s down there.”
“Your imagination getting the better of
you again?” he teased, but pulled over to the curb and slowly reversed until
they blocked the mouth of the narrow passage.
Originally they called the lane Trounce
Alley. Some maps still referred to the laneway as that. Others labelled the
back street Blood Alley. Given the appearance, Hilary thought the latter more
appropriate.
Window down, she trained the beam from
the powerful spotlight mounted on the cruiser’s mirror into the alleyway. “See,
beyond those dumpsters.”
“Likely just garbage.”
“Wait here, I’m going to take a closer
look.”
Before exiting the car, she plucked a
pair of nitrile gloves and the naloxone kit from the glove compartment. Once
out, she shoved them in the pockets of her trousers. With the fingertips of her
right hand brushing her gun holster and gripping the barrel of the torch in her
left, she sidled towards the object.
Graffiti tags covered the walls of the
buildings as well as the wooden hydro poles. The farther into the confined
space she crept, the hairs on the nape of her neck bristled beneath the bun in
which she styled her black hair. Whatever was down there wasn’t rubbish, as
Luke said. The pong of stale urine made her eyes water.
Past the second dumpster, the body of a
young man leaned against the wall. Disheveled and filthy, his body odor was
strong enough to make the foulest of skunk spray seem mild. At first glance, he
appeared dead. His skin had a bluish tinge, and weeping sores dotted his face.
Dark circles surrounded his eyes. Inching forward, Hilary squatted beside him.
A blood-filled syringe protruded from
his left arm. Flashlight held under her chin, she donned the synthetic rubber
gloves she brought with her and felt his neck for a pulse. The rhythmic
throbbing beneath her fingertips, barely discernible.
The naloxone. The kit had been made
available to officers who wanted the medication. Luke was against carrying the
opioid blocker in the cruiser, but Hilary persuaded him. Now was the time to
use it. She took the package out of her other trouser pocket, peeled the
wrapper open and placed the nozzle in the victim’s left nostril and pressed the
plunger.
She keyed the mic on her handset and
started to speak. “Constable Dunbar.” As though on cue, the nearby Steam Clock
began whistling — no sense in trying to outperform the contraption. Wait for
the completion of its proclamation of the top of the hour — Westminster chimes
followed by singular whistle blasts counting out the time. Soon relative quiet
returned and Hilary tried again. “Constable Dunbar. Badge 8652. I need an
ambulance at Blood Alley and Cambie Street. Suspected drug overdose. Have
administered four milligrams of Narcan nasal spray. No response as of yet.”
By now, Luke had the cruiser’s roof
lights on. Blue, red and white alternating then running from the driver’s side
to the passenger’s side of the vehicle.
The wail of the siren grew louder. In
minutes, paramedics jumped out and trundled a stretcher and medical equipment
to the stricken person.
Hilary stood back, letting them do their
jobs. “I gave him Narcan,” she said, handing the spent plastic bottle to
one of them.
“He’s alive ... just. You found him in
time. We’ve bagged the needle so they can run tests on the contents at the
hospital. Figure out what he shot into his veins.”
What people are saying about book one...
"It is fun to read her adventures and see her solve her problems at work and also meet people who care about her as a person. I felt like I was there in the stores along with Serenity Layne."
— Joan Y. Edwards, Amazon
"I
enjoyed getting to understand why these characters are the way they
are. If you are expecting a predictable happily ever after ending, you
may be surprised."
— Laura S Reading, Amazon
"Award-winning read! It Happened in Dufferin Terrace by Melanie Robertson-King has received a Chill with a Book Readers' Award."
— Pauline, Amazon
"I
met a cast of characters that I will not soon forget. Each one has
special needs that touched my heart and had me hoping that life would
turn out right for them."
— Beverly McClure, Goodreads
Wow, intriguing! Love the suspense. ;)
Let's chat with the author for a bit...
Melanie, it's wonderful to have you here on Writing in the Modern Age! Glad you could stop by!
Can you tell us a little bit about your background? When did your first book come out and where can we get it?
I'm the daughter of a Scottish
national who came to Canada as a British Home Child. My heritage is important
to me, so much so that three of my books are set in Aberdeen City and
surrounding Aberdeenshire where my father was born.
My first book, A Shadow in the Past, came out in 2012. I've since got my rights to
it back and have brought out a second edition. It's available for Kindle and on Kobo.
Nice!
A lot of readers love origin stories. What inspired you to start writing?
I started writing the year between
elementary and secondary school (grades 8 and 9) over my summer holidays.
Always having been an avid reader, it seemed like the perfect transition. Back
in those days, my writing left much to be desired, but the pencil illustrations
I created, were much better. This was back in the early 1970s. Graphic novels
(at least known by that term) didn't exist in those days. I wish I would have
kept some of those notebooks.
All right.
Let's try something else.
How did you come to write romance?
Everyone loves a happy ending, and
I'm no exception, although my favorite go-to read is crime fiction. Even my
early attempts at writing, were romance. Girl meets boy. Girl thinks boy is a
jerk. Boy proves her right. Boy rescues girl, and you and your readers know the
rest.
Well, the decision you made certainly appears to agree with you! I say do whatever makes you happy.
And isn't it great how the muse works? :)
So, let's try something else.
What do you feel sets It Happened in Gastown apart from other books in the genre?
I think having a police officer and
a heroin addict as the main characters gives it a bit of an edge. They couldn't
be more opposite. I don't want to say much rather than risk throwing a spoiler
out there. If anyone wants to find out what happens, they'll have to buy the
book.
Sounds like a plan!
Thanks for visiting us, Melanie! Love the premise of your book!
Catch book one in the series, It Happened on Dufferin Terrace, here...
Just 99 cents for a limited time! ♥
About the Author:
A native of eastern Ontario, during her pre-school years, Melanie
Robertson-King lived in a winterized cottage on the shore of the St Lawrence
River. Before starting school, her family moved to Brockville, where she
received her education, including a post-secondary degree in Computer
Programming.
Growing up as an only child, Melanie was an avid reader and remains so to
this day. She knew then one day she would be a writer. When she wasn’t talking
about her dream of becoming an author, she wrote stories and began honing her
skills at an early age.
Melanie’s father was a Scottish national. He came to Canada as a ‘Home
Child’ through the auspices of The Orphan Homes of Scotland. She promised
herself that one day, her feet would touch the soil in her father’s homeland.
That first trip was in 1993, and she’s not looked back since, having returned
to the auld country many more times and is looking forward to her next trip,
possibly as soon as 2020. On one of her many trips to Scotland, Melanie had the
honour of meeting Princess Anne (The Princess Royal) at the orphanage where her
father was raised.
Encouraged to study Highland Dancing, she competed locally. Her final
competition took place during the summer of 1969, a few short months after her
father’s death, at the 1000 Islands Highland Games. In that last event, she won
the Silver Medal in the Sword Dance.
Melanie began her professional writing career in non-fiction. One of her
articles graced the cover of an international publication. At the same time,
she continued to develop her writing voice: short stories (both fiction and
non-fiction) as well as novel-length work.
Since her debut novel was published in the summer of 2012, Melanie has written
seven more books (including two for children) and released the second edition
of her first.
It
Happened in Gastown is Melanie’s ninth book, and the second in the “It
Happened” series of sweet romances set in picturesque locations across
Canada.
Her short story, Cole’s Notes, has been re-edited and is
available as a free read through her website and blog.
When not sequestered in her cave writing, plotting or editing, you’ll find
her out and about. Favorite haunts (pardon the pun) are cemeteries (the older,
the better) since they have more character, and perhaps a few more characters. She
also loves travel and photography.
Melanie and fellow authors, Wendy H. Jones and Chris Longmuir, make up the
infamous trio – the Princesses of Pandemonium.
Author Links:
Melanie's Books:
