According to Luke

Rosanne Dingli's According to Luke is an outstanding traditional mystery with an interesting premise. Ms. Dingli's quiet style enthralls the reader with possibilities as Jana Hayes searches for clues to authenticate an ancient icon.
The narrative is seamless with each tiny thread leading to broader questions. Questions posed in fiction that have valid evidence in verifiable fact.
Jana works for Johan Berg at Zona Scientifika in Venice is far from her home in Australia, but she is not lonely in her dingy apartment. She is within walking minutes away from the riveting intricate work she loves.
She discovers through x-rays a seconded painting hidden behind a black madonna that was sent to the firm by the Catholic church to its establish providence. The bearer of the precious artifact is a young priest, Rob Anderson, who is a fellow Australian. There is an instant recognition between Jana and Rob, but as strangers passing, Jana's work is almost finished.
She arrives at the lab to discover all of her notes and work files have vanished. Her friend and colleague, Anita Schneider, is dead. She was murdered during the break-in.
Jana and Rob set off across Italy on a journey both personal and professional. They are aided in their quest by Bryn Awbrey, a Welsh bibliophile, who becomes involved in their search for the truth, no matter what it may cost them.
The reader is drawn into the story and will remain there through the exciting climax to the end. Then you may find yourself doing some reading in the Bible.
This title has been compared to a famous book of the symbolic seaching, but I see traces of the early traditional mystery writer, Mary Roberts Rinehart.
Rosanne Dingli is at work on a related title to be published in the near future, which will again involve the wily Bryn Awbrey who lives with books and never forgets a page or reference. You can visit with her on Twitter @RosanneDingli or on her website at http://www.rosannedingli.com.
Nash Black, author of the Ono County of Death series.

The Past Never Ends

Jackson Burnett's The Past Never Ends is a treat for fans of traditional mysteries. The reader learns all the facts at the same time Chester Morgan uncovers them. The clues along with the red herrings are there, but Burnett's twists gives an experienced reader a challenge.
Tanya Everly, stripper/prostitute, had few friends, but those who loved her want answers as to why she died.
Alan Kinman has little money, but he is willing to hire Chester Morgan to gain access to records of her death, which are marked "accidental death-closed."
Chester spends valuable-billable time on the case to the despair of his helpmates, but each way he turns his way is blocked. In frustration he turns to the law and the courts.
This is were Mr. Burnett lifts a complex legal mystery above the ordinary. He executes a skill in turning 'the law' into a character in its own right. This technique is so exceptional it makes for fascinating reading.
Enjoy The Past Never Ends. It is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kindle.
Nash Black, author of Sandprints of Death.

Cover of Snow

Thriller, chiller, suspense, or literary mystery, it doesn't matter what genre it's finally labeled. Jenny Milchman's Cover of Snow will be one of the most talked about must reads of 2013. It is a unique debut novel that covers all the emotional bases with the sharp finesse of a seasoned craftsman.
Nora Hamilton endures her worst nightmares when she discovers her policeman husband's body. He hung himself after spending a never-to-be-forgotten evening making love to her. They were close and shared their lives with a deep understand of strength of their love for each other. His chosen career was on track and her small business was growing. Brendan had no reason to commit suicide.
Goaded out of her grief laden stupor by her sister Nora demands answers of those she has come to accept through Brendan as family and friends. Her faith in her husband is fractured when she begins to ferret out long held secrets that have held residents of Wedeskyull, NY in a morass of hatred and fear.
When the reader is presumptuous enough to anticipate a relationship or a result Ms. Milchman will execute a 300 degree turn toward the unexpected. Cover of Snow is not a thriller that travels previously explored roads, it's as treacherous as the ice and snow buried back roads that are never plowed in upstate New York. They are the perfect physical and symbolic enhancements of the storyline.

Cover of Snow will be released January 15, 2013 by Ballantine Books wherever books are sold. You can visit with Jenny on her website http://www.jennymilchman.com or contact her on Twitter @jennymilchman.
Nash Black, author of Sandprints of Death. 

Time of Death

Ellis Vidler's Time of Death had me hooked from the beginning because of an experience I shared with Alex Jenrette, the protagonist.
Not withstanding having a tree fall on your home and the displacement of its aftermath this second title that uses the psychic abilities of the McGuire women is excellent.
The terrorist tension Ms. Vidler creates with the murders, conflict of interest, budding romance and the well-crafted narrative makes a compelling read.
Alex, an artist, who has inherited psychic tendencies when violence is near her comes to the island home of her aunt, Isobel Devore.
Wanting to occupy her time recording the natural beauty of the protected landscape she takes her camera and sketchbook to the beach.
She climbs a tree to use an overhead perspective for her studies and becomes a hidden witness to a murder even she does not know has occurred, but her hands recognize violent death.
Alex's "gift" has brought her pain and trouble, but when a killer seeks to eliminate all witnesses her life and that of her beloved aunt are endangered. Her car is forced off the road and they are nearly killed. She garners her resources to fight back.
A failed marriage in her recent past protects her from the charm of a man she meets by chance. This is the one man she cannot have.
Connor Moran is a federal attorney who has been working for over a year to bring a man to justice. He will not jeopardize his case to listen to a woman, no matter how personally fascinating, who sees things.
Time of Death is a read that will keep you up at night turning the pages. It did me.
You can visit with Ellis Vidler at http://ellisvidler.com  or @EllisVidler on Twitter . Her good reads are available from Amazon.
Nash Black, author of Sandprints of Death.

Novel Ideas

J. C. Allen's Novel Ideas is the most profound futuristic novel I have read in a long time.
It begins as an adventure when Penny Reed refuses to become a ward of the state after her father's death. She steals her father's sailboat and travels across the Pacific to find a grandfather she has never known.
Forrest Reed, a well known author, has withdrawn from the world and has refused to write books for publication for a public who considers reading passe. He doesn't know he has a granddaughter and does not believe the fiery twelve-year-old who breaches the defences of his secluded island and bruised heart.
Set in the year 2044 of absolute socialism when all personal assets belong to the state, their personal conflict and resolution are the bone structure of a complex novel with intricate themes.
When finishing it I remembered a joking statement I made to our state representative when my home state passed an educational reform act still in place today. I asked him if education officials were going to stand outside of the hospital delivery room door to assume control of a child before it was placed in its crib.
An old friend, he understood my penchant for sarcasm. Today he is deceased, just before he died he attended a book signing and say, "You were right." I'm left watching an educational establishment holding citizens hostage.
Novel Ideas is the perfect gift for readers of any age who relish an intriguing read, It is available on Amazon Kindle for $2.99.
Nash Black, author of SANDPRINTS OF DEATH

When the Past Haunts You

L. C. Hayden's When the Past Haunts You will keep you up at night as Harry Bronson confronts his past relationship with a sister he blames for their parent's early deaths.Carol Bronson, Harry's wife, makes him answer a phone call from his estranged sister, Lorraine. She has frantically been calling him for a week with a plea for help before she is murdered.Harry flies to PA to confront her. She has asked that they meet on a covered bridge in a state park that was part of their childhood. An assassin kills her as she rushes to Harry's arms. He holds her as she dies and her last words to him are, "Don't leave me."
Harry is assisted by his friend from the Dallas Police Force, Mike Hoover, as he hunts for a killer while learning about a sister he never knew who was loved by many people.
L.C. Hayden is an award winning author who delivers a great detective novel with enough twists and turns to draw a county road map. You can visit her at http://www.lchayden.com. Her books are available in bookstores and on Amazon.
Nash Black, author of Sandprints of Death.

Slow Curve on the Coquihalla

R.E. Donald, a Canadian author, introduces a unique character in Hunter Rayne in Slow Curve on the Coquihalla. Hunter is a twenty-year veterin of the Mounties who had worked his way up through the ranks to detective when he made a major change in his life's work to become a long haul truck driver.
Randy Danyluk, a trucker/owner, is discovered dead at the foot of a ravine. His daughter is struggling to keep her father's business afloat and her marriage from going sour when her husband's brakes fail on the same wicked stretch of road that claimed her father.
Although Hunter intended to leave the investigating behind and seek a new life the daughter begs him to find the answers behind the mysterious accidents.

The series is set in British Columbia and western Washington as Hunter and crime crosses international boundaries with the spinning hum of eighteen wheels burning up the blacktop.

Ice on the Grapevine is the second offering in this new series that has been nominated for several awards and received outstanding reviews.
The second story finds two hard-luck individuals who have found each other and are making a new life for themselves. That is until they arrive in the US with a frozen corpse in their trailer. Arrested and held in separate seclusion they both clam up as they are afraid they will incriminate the other. They refuse to give the police any information and put their freedom at risk to save each other.
Ellie, Hunter's dispatcher, asks him to finish deliving their load and discover who left a man to freeze to death while the couple was on the road.
R.E. Donald is garning legions of fans with her new entry in traditional semi-amateur detective fiction with fast page turners, intricate ploting, and memorable characters. Her books are avilable as Kindle editions.
Nash Black, author of Sandprints of Death.