Anne from Sweet Karoline

Good evening and welcome to Nighthawk Talks. Tonight we have Anne Williams direct from Los Angeles and the pages of Sweet Karoline by Catherine Astolfo.

Anne, you've been described as the Ice Queen. How would you describe yourself?

I’m very smart. I worked hard at becoming the Executive Assistant at Grace Productions here in Los Angeles. I’m also loyal, a trait that is a rare commodity it seems.
 
My worst trait is that I trust too easily.


Like when you partnered with Catherine Astolfo to tell your story? At what point of the book did you start getting nervous about the way it was going to turn out?

Oh, my, right from the first sentence. Talk about spilling your guts and misleading the reader!

Misdirection is the prerogative of crime writers. They can be damned twisty sometimes. I should know.

The title of the book is Sweet Karoline. I know that you trusted and loved your friend, but was there any point in your life you thought that Karoline was sweet? What was your first clue that she wasn’t?

All my life I was grateful to Karoline for rescuing me and befriending me. She kept all those crazy stalkers away. She was smart and generous and friendly. I thought she was wonderful. We lived this amazing, hedonistic, self-absorbed life. I really liked that life! It was Karoline who was responsible for most of our lifestyle. Then suddenly she went crazy and turned on me. I mean…Just realized I never said she was "sweet" here. That word could be replaced with nice or lovely or pleasant or  fresh - but I don't think any of those apply to Karoline. She was more like a little bull dog.

A dog that turned rabid? Never mind. Forget I asked. Tell us about Ethan Byrne. He’s right there with you, from the opening line of the book.

Ethan is the kind of man who doesn't judge by appearances. I mean, certainly I'm a beautiful woman and he couldn't help but get turned on. However, my beauty isn't the only reason he was interested in me. He could see through all the layers to the real me - the loveable, intelligent, but flawed person behind the perfection. Ethan's not very good-looking but he's tall and smart and confident and strong. Anyone would be happy to have him, but fortunately for me, he's mine! Oh, did I mention that he's terribly rich, too?

Interesting about him being rich. When Ethan Byrne showed up at your door to investigate Karoline's murder and then just happened to be around when you had your breakdown, I had to wonder if you contrived to have that last event happen just so you could get to know him better. Was that just good luck or did you manipulate events?

You are ridiculous. It was fate that brought us together.

Fate?

I think this interview is over.

I'm afraid if you want to know more about Anne Williams, you'll have to read Sweet Karoline by Catherine Astolfo. Be warned, once you start, you won't want to stop.

Jake Carmedy from Deadly Legacy

Let's give a warm welcome back to Jacob Carmedy of Deadly Legacy.

It's just Jake. I can produce three pieces of ID to prove that if you like.

Sorry, Mr Carmedy. Chief Thorsen referred to you as Jacob and... what now?

What?

You're scowling at me. I said sorry.

Only the chief gets away with calling me Jacob -- partly because I can't stop him and partly because he's earned the right to call me whatever he damned pleases. I also feel weird when someone calls me Mr. Carmedy -- but that's my bad not yours. I've been out of the regular forces for ten years now and it still feels weird being called mister. Call me Jake or Carmedy, okay.

Once a soldier always a soldier?

I still have reserve status, but yeah, I guess so. Maybe not for everyone...

Do you think it's a bit cliche having a former military man as a detective? Former Army Ranger becomes FBI agent in Bones. Former Army Ranger becomes bounty hunter in the Stephanie Plum novels. All those former SEALs and Marines in NCIS.

Do I care if you think it's cliche? I don't think so. I was a MP and security specialist. What was I going to do? Become a baker? If it makes you happier, I'm not a Ranger, Marine or SEAL. I am Canadian. Anyway, part of the reason I find it strange to be called Mr. Carmedy is because Joe only used "mister" and "ms" with civilians. You might as well say, "once a cop, always a cop."

Fair enough. You still keep your uniform in good order.

Like I said, I still have reserve status. I also keep my hair short, my face clean-shaven and my nails trimmed and filed. But so does every male professional worth his salt. What is this obsession with my military background.

Sure, I like khaki and olive. The colours work for me and I don't have to worry about putting the wrong shirt with the wrong trousers. Everything I own matches. Almost everything I own is equally practical in the office or in the field. You can't say that about the Zoot suits and Berber-style clothes that are in fashion right now.

You seem a little sensitive about this topic.

Certain people seem to have made it their holy mission to get me wearing more colour.

Kate Garrett?

<laugh> No. That maybe the one thing she doesn't want to change. Hell, she even likes me in uniform. And I have to say, she looks fine in her dress blues. Nothing like a woman in uniform, I always say.

Deadly Legacy is free March 4-7, 2013. Pick it up and learn more about Carmedy and Garrett.

Kate Garrett of Deadly Legacy

Welcome back to Nighthawk Talks, I’m your host Nighthawk...

You’re a bird.

Well, yes.

Common nighthawk, aka chordeiles minor. Owl-like insectivore. You look more like a crow. No, a raven. I remember my father telling me that ravens have longer tails and hookier beaks.

Nighthawk is my name, not my species... Never mind that!

Tonight we welcome Detective Kate Garrett.

Is Nighthawk your real name?

No my real name is “Quoth” - YES, it’s my real name!

Calm down, ma’am, it was just a routine question. How long have you been a virtual radio host?

I’m supposed to interviewing you, Detective Garrett.

You haven’t asked me anything yet.

Tell us about your father.

Which one?

Joe Garrett, of course. How many father’s do you have?

Well there’s Joe of course - everyone knows Joe. Then there’s my step-dad David. He’s a physician and counsellor at the university. I guess a lot of people know him too, but not as well as he knows most people. The Chief, Igor Thorsen, is my godfather. I used to call him Papa Igor when I was younger. Not so much now he’s my boss.

You say “everyone knows Joe”. He must cast an awfully large shadow on your life.

Well, he is taller than me, but compared to the Chief...

You know that’s not what I meant.

Yeah, but I get tired of the question. It’s almost as bad as “How are you feeling?” How am I supposed to be feeling when my Dad dies? As for living in his shadow... think of it more like shade. Sometimes I get a little lost in it, but mostly it provides protection.

Fair enough. What are the benefits of being Joe Garrett’s daughter? You didn’t exactly have a normal childhood with your father being injured and turning to alcohol, and your mother having an affair with another man

If you think that’s abnormal, you’ve never looked at family services stats. Anyway, my childhood was happy. It was my teen years that were ... challenging. I got through them. Even if I was willing to talk about what I went through – which I’m not – you’re prying into events that involve people who are not here to speak up.

Does that mean you won’t tell me about your new partner, Jake Carmedy? He called you the “damned woman.”

He did, did he?

He thinks you’re crazy to leave the police force.

Police services. Even in your time, it’s police services.

What do you think about Mr Carmedy?

I have generally found Carmedy to be polite and professional with people other than myself and, it seems, with you.

He walked out on the interview when I suggested he was attracted to you.

(Sputtered laughter.) According to this wiki, ravens are supposed to be highly intelligent problem solvers. So, before you ask me something that will make me walk out, why don’t we end this interview and have an off the record chat over coffee.

That’s an offer I can’t refuse. If you want to learn more about Kate Garrett, dear listener, you’ll have to pick up Deadly Legacy by Alison Bruce.

In 2018, rookie detective Kate Garrett lives in the shadow of her near-legendary father Joe. When Joe dies unexpectedly, he leaves Kate half interest in Garrett Investigations, his last case that ties to three murders, a partner she can't stand and a legacy to live up to.



Don't forget to check out the Reader Appreciation contests at Imajin Books... where SUMMER SIZZLES!

Igor Thorsen from Deadly Legacy

I usually leave this blog up to Nighthawk, but I thought you might be interested in knowing a bit about Igor Thorsen's origins. He was inspired by the picture of a viking on a gift bag from York, UK. I visited the newly found viking digs with my parents in 1976. Getting that close to an active archeological site was amazing. And that viking on the bag... well I developed quite a crush on the guy. 

Someday I'd like to go the Jorvik Viking Centre and see how the place has changed over the years... but mostly I need to replace my bag.

I'm Nighthawk and this is no place for authors. Instead, I have a real character: Igor Thorsen, Chief of Detectives, City Police Services, brought back from the future. 


Welcome Chief. You're a close friend of Joe Garrett, our previous guest, right?

I’ve known Joseph most of my adult life. He was a community cop back when I was partnered with him as a rookie. Even then, everyone knew Joe and Joe knew everyone. He wasn’t so much older than me, but it took me a while to figure it out. He seemed like he’d been a cop forever.

You also know Joe's daughter Kate.

I’ve known Kathleen all her life. I drove Joseph to the hospital so he could be there when she was born. He was so proud and he wanted her to be proud of him. She was the reason he took the detective’s exam. I don’t think he was all that ambitious for himself. He preferred dealing with people over collecting evidence.

Is it true that Joe pushed Kate to follow in his footsteps?

He was pleased when she chose to become a police officer. I think he wanted her to become a detective. He never came out and said it, but he was always setting her puzzles to solve and playing observation games with her when she was growing up. I know that’s what she thinks he wanted.

Kate didn't get a lot of time to process her father's death.


Life doesn’t stop just because you lose someone you love. You know about the murder of Delano Gage, but my detectives had another dozen or so violent crimes to investigate at the same time. Even so, I gave Kate time off.

I soon saw that wasn’t what she needed. She needed distraction and I needed the manpower. Having her babysit one of the potential targets of our killer seemed like a good idea at the time. To be honest, I didn’t take the threats against him seriously. He was like the boy crying wolf to get attention. But there’s always a real wolf eventually.

In your future, police sometime use consulting detectives. How do you feel about that?

Funnily enough, Joe was one of the biggest opponents of the consulting detective idea. He embraced community policing – not all our colleagues were on board with it – and like I said, he didn’t originally want to be a detective. The hours stink. You’re always on call, even when you’re not supposed to be. You’re always having to upgrade your skills... and it’s nowhere near as glamorous as say Tactical. Sorry. I didn’t mean to go on a rant. The point is that Joe didn’t like the idea of consulting detectives until he became one.



That's not what I asked, Chief. What do you think about consulting detectives working with the police?

The reality is, we don’t have the budget a big city has to have all the detectives we need all the time. Even the OPP is stretched with the cutbacks we’ve had over the years. Like the idea of consulting detectives or not, there are times when I need to engage them. Most of them are former cops, which takes the sting out. Joe’s the only one I’ve brought in on violent crimes though.

You must really miss your friend.
<grunt> I’m really pissed off at Joseph. Not only have I lost my best friend, but because of his death, I’ve had to give up one of my most promising detectives... temporarily. Kathleen Margaret Garrett will be back in my department, legacy or no legacy. You can count on it.

Will she? Maybe we'll ask Kate Garrett that question. Later.

Deadly Legacy, by Alison Bruce, is available in Kindle format and paperback.

Alison Bruce is on a virtual mystery tour of blogs for the coming week. Check out links here. 

Nighthawk is seeking interesting new characters to interview. Direct message @alisonebruce on Twitter if interested.