Vocal Expressions

This is the first thriller I’ve read by Nick Stephenson and it certainly won’t be the last. I’m a huge fan of thrillers and I found that this author truly delivered on action, suspense and a gripping tale of greed and betrayal.    Let’s meet Leopold Blake, a billionaire and an expert criminology consultant for the FBI. He is hired by Jean Dubois, the Louvre’s senior art director to perform a full security sweep of the place. However, Leopold discovers the theft of a painting (The Virgin and Child with St. Anne) and sets out to find out who stole it.  Unbeknownst to Leopold and his bodyguard, Jerome, Jean Dubois and a few others are gunned down by a ruthless German assassin. The assassin plants Leopold’s fingerprint onto the abandoned rifle and leaves the scene, making Leopold a wanted man by the French police for questioning.   The stakes ramp up when NYPD police sergeant, Mary Jordan gets caught up in the chaos, thinking she’d enjoy a vacation with Leopold ...

Author’s Bio: A ward-winning novelist John DeDakis is a former editor on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer." DeDakis is the author of six novels in the Lark Chadwick mystery-suspense-thriller series. In his most recent novel, Enemies Domestic, Lark is a White House press secretary forced to make her extremely personal abort-or-not-to-abort decision in a highly toxic and polarized political fishbowl—all while dealing with an attack on the presidency itself.    DeDakis, a former White House correspondent, is a writing coach, manuscript editor, and regularly teaches novel writing at literary centers and writers’ conferences around the country. He is also the host of the live video podcast “One-to-One with John DeDakis” on Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Website: www.johndedakis.com      Deliah Lawrence: What inspired you to write your book? John DeDakis: I was intending to go in an entirely different direction with the book until the Supreme Co...

Author’s Bio: L inda Murphy Marshall has a Ph.D. in Hispanic Languages and Literature and an MFA in Creative Writing. Her memoir, Ivy Lodge: A Memoir of Translation and Discovery received a starred review from Kirkus. She is an Associate for the National Museum of Language and a docent at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.  Her second memoir , Immersion: A Linguist’s Memoir , comes out September 24, 2024 and has already garnered a gold medal (2024 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Winner in Travel/Travel Guide) and has been reviewed by Kirkus ("A fluent and far-reaching celebration of communication and world travel.").  Her essays have appeared in numerous publications, including the Los Angeles Review, Dorothy Parker’s Ashes, The Catamaran Literary Reader, Maryland Literary Review, Brevity’s Nonfiction Blog, and elsewhere.   Deliah Lawrence: What inspired you to write your book? Linda Murphy Marshall: I wanted to write the truth about my life and my chil...

This is the second Z.L. Arkadie contemporary romance I’ve read, this time with an interesting trope (enemies to lovers). For starters, the book is divided into three parts: 1 – High School Crush, 2 – A University Night and 3 – The Plan. This provides context of the longstanding family feud between the Groves and the Valentines – two wealthy families in the tech industry.   Let’s meet Paisley Grove, a high school software designer who has won several awards and now on her way to the prestigious Albrecht Institute of Technology in Boston on a full scholarship. Not having lots of friends because she’s new to the high school, she’s thrilled to be invited to a party the night before graduation. Breaking her rule of not drinking, she accepts a drink that is spiked and is nearly sexually assaulted. Fortunately, Hercules Valentine (“the most stunning and enigmatic boy” she has a huge crush on) comes to her rescue. She wants to thank him at graduation, but he doesn’t show up due to a fami...

Author’s Bio : C.L. Merklinger, the author of Interloper - The first novel in the Realms and Realities Series - grew up with an insatiable appetite for reading and all things scary.  Inspired by Horror Authors such as Ray Bradbury; Stephen King; Dean Koontz; and Edgar Allan Poe, she was also deeply influenced by great Mystery Character Authors such as Lawrence Sanders, Agatha Christie and Mary Higgins Clark.   Following her passions for Horror and the Paranormal she pulls from her experiences as an Empath which inspired her to write this series.  C.L. resides in the Chesapeake Bay area of Maryland where she dabbles in many hobbies.   Deliah Lawrence: What inspired you to write your book?  C.L. Merklinger: I’ve always wanted to write, but never took the time to do so.  This book is a result of a perfect storm.  I had a dream one night that I woke up from and felt the need to take notes on.  The next day, a podcast I listened to, Morb...

Author’s Bio: Elizabeth Smith, who goes by Libby, lives in Parkville, Maryland with her husband Dennis. Her previous book, Twin Strokes , is about a young girl who suffered with a rare illness called Guillain-Barre Syndrome.   Smith, who enjoys writing children’s stories, senior jokes, articles and essays, has three children and two grandchildren. Her hobbies include, reading, writing, baking, walking, swimming, and listening to a variety of music. Among her favorite authors are Jan Karon, Adriana Trigiani, Matthew Kelly, Francine Rivers, and the late, Erma Bomback.   While growing up in the country, a treasured time during the summer was hiking to the nearby bookmobile. “I have fond memories of walking inside and smelling the fragrance of the books and slowly feeling the crinkly plastic covers like they were gold,” said Smith. “It was intoxicating.”   Smith also enjoyed tea...