The Cursed Canoe
by Frankie Bow
The Cursed Canoe has a little something for everyone: a slick mystery, and intrepid heroine, some comic relief.
~Back Porchervations
…an enjoyable light read…
~Cassidy Salem Reads & Writes
It’s written really well, is very engaging and entertaining with the right dose of humor and sarcasm. The plot is clever and well woven, the dialogue is brilliant.
~LibriAmoriMiei
The author’s writing is impeccable. Suspense mixed with humor. The dialogue flows with an island accent.
~Laura’s Interests
It’s well written; the characters are nicely rounded, and the situation with the college finances are all too understandable.
~Author, Jemima Pett
The author gives us the seedier side of Hawaii in her Molly Barda Mystery series. It’s not the tropical paradise the tourists see, but rather the harsher reality of island life-high cost of living, high humidity, and the horrors of Academia.
~Cozy Up With Kathy
The Cursed Canoe: A Molly Barda Mystery
2nd Book in Series
Cozy Mystery
Print Length: 338 pages
Publisher: Hawaiian Heritage Press (February 23, 2016)
ASIN: B01C5JYVXA
Professor Molly Barda investigates a mysterious paddling accident, and realizes it isn’t just business majors who cheat to get what they want. Whether it’s moving up in the college rankings, getting a seat in the big canoe race, or just looking out for themselves, some people will do whatever it takes-including murder.
1. To start with can you tell us a little about yourself and the project we are seeing today?
Have you ever wished someone ill—and then had your wish come true?
Professor Molly Barda finds herself in the awkward position of hoping lightning strikes Kathy Banks, her liaison and tormentor in the Student Retention Office—and then watching Kathy keel over right afterward. Kathy did nothing but make Molly’s life difficult. Now Molly has to deal with her guilt, but that’s quickly eclipsed by the fact that there’s a murderer still out there. The Cursed Canoe is #2 in the Molly Barda Mystery Series.2. What advice do you have for new authors, like me?
First, read in your genre. You need to know the conventions and clichés. It can be eye-opening to see your daring, original idea staring up at you from the page of someone else’s book. Second, get organized, and back up your files. Have a system to store your drafts, your research, any pictures or manuscripts you like. Dropbox works for me; other people like Google Drive.3. What is an underrated book, series or author that you think everyone should read? More people should read E.F. Benson’s Mapp and Lucia stories. I’m re-reading Lucia’s Progress. It’s a hundred years old, and the commentary on human nature (human pettiness, especially) is still fresh.
I love this peek into the character of Elizabeth Mapp, who takes her friends down a peg whenever the opportunity arises:
[Diva] had taken the plunge at last after tortures of indecision, and had had her hair cropped quite close. The right and scathing thing to do, thought Elizabeth, was to seem not to notice any change in her appearance.
And here is Elizabeth’s reaction to having dined lavishly at the home of her rival, Lucia:
it was a very mistaken sort of hospitality which gave guests so much more than they wanted to eat or should want to drink.And when the two rivals confront each other, the best use of a sports metaphor, ever:
Lucia emitted the silvery laugh which betokened the most exasperating and child-like amusement.“Dear Elizabeth!” she said. “How can you be so silly?”
“Did you say ‘silly’ dear?” asked Elizabeth, white to the lips.
Georgie intervened.
“O, dear me!” he said. “Let’s all have tea. So much more comfortable than talking about rates. I know there are muffins.”
They had both ceased to regard him now: instead of being driven from one to the other, he lay like a ball out of court, while the two advanced to the net with brandished rackets.
4. What would your dream library look like? I have to admit—I’m hooked on e-books. So my dream library would be a quiet café and my e-reader
5. How do you write your books? My approach is: 1) be purposeful and organized, but 2) no guilt. Writing should be a challenge, not a chore. I begin with a title I like, hoping it will inspire the story. (Sort of how I imagine country songs are written. Once you have “Eighteen wheels and a dozen roses,” it seems the song would practically write itself .) Once I have the title, I draw up an illustrated character table and follow the book in 90 days schedule from the Author Marketing Institute. But I can’t always get the muse to punch a time clock. There are stretches of time when I just can’t squeeze anything good out of my brain. Right now, for example, I’m working on polishing manuscripts that are already in the pipeline. In a couple weeks I think I’ll be ready to start a new project.
About The Author
Like Molly Barda, Frankie Bow teaches at a public university. Unlike her protagonist, she is blessed with delightful students, sane colleagues, a loving family, and a perfectly nice office chair. She believes if life isn’t fair, at least it can be entertaining.
In addition to writing murder mysteries, she publishes in scholarly journals under her real name. Her experience with academic publishing has taught her to take nothing personally.
Author Links
Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Frankie_Bow
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frankie.bow.1
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/frankie-bow/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7809288.Frankie_Bow
Purchase Links
Tour Participants
June 1 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST
June 2 – Babs Book Bistro – SPOTLIGHT
June 2 – fundinmental – REVIEW
June 3 – Books Direct – GUEST POST
June 4 – Back Porchervations – REVIEW
June 5 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 5 – Christa Reads and Writes – GUEST POST
June 6 – Cassidy Salem Reads & Writes – REVIEW
June 7 – LibriAmoriMiei – REVIEW
June 7 – A Blue Million Books – INTERVIEW
June 8 – Lori’s Reading Corner – GUEST POST
June 9 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW
June 10 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too,! – SPOTLIGHT
June 11 – Jemima Pett, Author – REVIEW
June 12 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, GUEST POST
June 13 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
June 14 – I Read What You Write – REVIEW, INTERVIEW – unable to post
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