Guest Blogger, Jennifer (J.B.) Stanley

Please join me in welcoming author Jennifer (J.B.) Stanley as a guest blogger today at Thoughts in Progress.

Jennifer has a new book just out, “Stirring Up Strife.” It’s the first book in her new A Hope Street Mysteries series.  She will be giving away a copy of her book to one lucky person who comments on her post between today and 6 p.m. (EST) on Wednesday, Feb. 3.  Sorry, but the giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only.

In “Stirring Up Strife” readers get an extra bonus with a recipe section in the back of the book. Since her books share recipes, Jennifer is sharing her thoughts on exercising. Jennifer, how do you really feel about exercising?

Exercise is Dangerous!

It’s January and the gyms are full. I’ve been trying to keep up with a routine. Lift weights twice a week and do cardio three times a week. Things were cruising merrily along until my last session on the treadmill.

First of all, I hate treadmills. I prefer to walk and clumsily jog along outside. I prefer fresh air and the ability to ignore people while I suffer. The gym is filled with the scent of sweat and too many super-fit women in tight clothes. I never feel like I belong there.

However, it’s been so cold in Richmond (really, I’m talking in the 20s, folks. We’re supposed to be the mild South, not frigid South Dakota!) that I haven’t been able to exercise outdoors.

So I hop onto a treadmill, get my headphones set up, and plug into some awful techno music, which is supposed to motivate me into moving my rear. It did for about 15 minutes and then I started getting bored. I also started smelling something odd.

Yes, it was the scent of burning rubber. That’s a very distinctive smell and I wondered where it was coming from.

The man on the next machine started giving me weird looks and I thought, “Hey, buddy, I’m not making that odor.” But guess what? I was! Or, my machine was.
You see, I’d dropped my towel onto the treadmill and it had whisked along to the end of the conveyer part and gotten jammed. My towel was melting onto the rubber part of the belt!

I stopped the machine, confessed my crime to the unhappy trainers at the front desk, and slunk away in shame.

I went home, opened a book, and ate some cookies. Exercise is dangerous. Reading cozies is safe. Give mine a try if you need a little January inspiration!

WELCOME TO THE HOPE STREET CHURCH…where good folks study The Good Book, but everyone loves a good mystery!

Cooper Lee can repair a copy machine—but can she repair her life? That’s one of the many Big Questions that lead this newly single Richmond girl to Sunrise Bible Study at the Hope Street Church. Cooper hasn’t attended church in ages, but after getting dumped by her long-time boyfriend—and moving in with her family—she could use some new friends, and a new outlook on life. Happily, the members of the Bible group are anything but cookie-cutter, which suits Cooper just fine. There’s a blind folk artist, a playboy meteorologist, an investment banker with a sweet tooth, an ambitious realtor, and a cute shy web designer who just might be “the one” for Cooper. But the member of Hope Street Church who invited Cooper to join this motley crew—an office worker who got her wedding ring stuck in a copier—is something else altogether: She’s dead And her husband is suspected of murder!

The Sunrise gang jumps into action, vowing to solve this unholy mess—with God’s guidance—and Cooper’s snooping…Includes heavenly recipes from Mrs. Lee’s kitchen!



Oh, Jennifer I don’t think I will ever look at a treadmill quite the same again. However, I'll agree that reading a cozy mystery while eating cookies is a perfect way to spend a cold winter day.

Jennifer will be stopping back by during the day to answer any questions you may have and respond to your comments.

Just a little background on Jennifer.  She has a BA in English from Franklin & Marshall College, an MA in English Literature from West Chester University, and an MLIS from North Carolina Central University. She taught sixth grade language arts in Cary, NC, for the majority of her eight-year teaching career. Raised an antique-lover by her grandparents and parents, Jennifer also worked part-time in an auction gallery. An eBay junkie and food-lover, she now lives in Richmond, VA, with her husband, two young children, and three cats. More information on Jennifer can be found on her Website www.jbstanley.com. She also blogs with the Cozy Chicks.

Jennifer also authors a Super Club Mystery series, as well as a Collectibles Mystery series. The next book in her Hope Street Church Mystery series will be “Path of the Wicked," and is slated for an April release.

What are your feelings on exercise? Does a good murder mystery story and a little sweet snack hit the spot for you?

*****

I have two winners to announce:
A.F. Stewart is the winner of Kim Smith's electronic copy of "Buried Angel." Please send an e-mail to mcbookshelf@gmail.com with your name and e-mail address so I can forward it for the giveaway.
Peg Brantley is the winner of Robin Burcell's "The Bone Chamber" giveaway. Please send an e-mail to mcbookshelf@gmail.com with your name and mailing address so I can forward it for your book.
Thanks to everyone who commented on both of these posts.