Cozy murder mysteries are
always fun to read so I’m delighted today to be participating in author Mary
Marks’ Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for her recent release, KNOT OF THIS WORLD, the eighth installment
in her Quilting Mystery series.
There’s an excerpt for
your reading pleasure and a tour-wide giveaway you can enter. Let’s begin the
fun.
Knot of This World
By Mary Marks
*Cozy Mystery
*8th in Series - A Quilting Mystery
*Publisher: Kensington (July 28, 2020)
*Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
*ISBN-10: 1496720512
*ISBN-13: 978-1496720511
*Digital ASIN: B07ZPJ5BLM
*Cozy Mystery
*8th in Series - A Quilting Mystery
*Publisher: Kensington (July 28, 2020)
*Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
*ISBN-10: 1496720512
*ISBN-13: 978-1496720511
*Digital ASIN: B07ZPJ5BLM
Quilter Martha Rose must
patch together the clues to solve the murder of a cult leader in the California
mountains . . .
Has Martha’s fellow quilter
and dear friend Birdie Watson become unraveled? Birdie and her new husband have
decided to join the Mystical Feather Society, a spiritist group living on a
commune in the mountains of Ojai, California.
Before her free-spirited
friend makes a huge mistake, Martha organizes a surprise visit to check out the
commune. While white-robed members conduct a seancé in a glass yurt, their
leader—Royal St. Germain—is nowhere to be found . . . until, that is, Martha
and her friends discover him shot in their Winnebago. Now Martha must track
down the killer and debunk the cult—before it's bye bye Birdie . . .
EXCERPT
Birdie reached for a cup
of coffee. “I believe everyone has their own spiritual journey in this
lifetime. What we don’t learn now, we’ll have a chance to learn next time
around. That’s why Denny and I are going to live in the Mystical Feather
commune.”
“What’s that?” Lucy put
her sewing in her lap and sat at attention. Lucy claimed she had ESP and was
deeply interested in metaphysics.
“It’s a spiritual
discipline started in the nineteen thirties by Madam Natasha St. Germain. She
was a famous medium who encountered her true spirit guide while fasting and
meditating. He revealed many secrets of the spirit world and instructed her to
bring those truths to the material world. When she came out of her trance, she
discovered her guide left plumage—three white feathers, to be exact—on the
table as a sign. So, she established the Mystical Feather Society.”
“Fascinating.” Jazz moved
a little closer to Birdie. “What is a spirit guide?”
Birdie sat up a little
straighter. “It’s a spiritual entity that’s assigned to each individual before
birth. It manifests itself as a person, an animal, or a being of light. Its
mission is to protect the individual and help them fulfill their life’s
purpose.”
“You mean like a guardian
angel?” Giselle snorted.
“I don’t believe in
angels.”
Lucy frowned at my sister.
“Don’t be so sure of yourself. There are many famous people who’ve been guided
by these entities. James Van Praagh.
Alison Dubois.” She turned
back to Birdie. “Who was Madam St. Germain’s spirit guide?”
Birdie smiled softly. “An
albino raven.”
Giselle laughed out loud.
“Hence the white feathers? Oh, come on. How can you believe all that nonsense?”
“To you it may be
nonsense, dear. But not to us. Denny and I received our own sign when we went
walking in the hills around Sedona at the vernal equinox in March. We spotted
three white feathers on the path in front of us.”
The more she spoke, the
more my gut clenched.
“Where is the commune?
What, exactly, is involved in joining?”
“The actual commune is not
far from here, in the mountains of Ojai, California. Denny and I aren’t getting
any younger, dear, and neither one of us has any heirs. So, we’ll be selling
the ranch in Oregon, our house here in Encino, and the one in Arizona. The
money will go into the Mystical Feather Society Trust, which runs the commune.
We’ll be well taken care of until our spirits leave our bodies.”
When my sister glanced at
me, I could tell she was as disturbed as I was. Jazz also looked alarmed. Even
Lucy’s smile faded. “Oh, hon, I sure hope you know what you’re doing. That’s a
big commitment to make.”
Giselle murmured,
“Especially on the word of an albino raven.”
Birdie seemed unflappable.
Either she didn’t hear the comment or she chose to ignore it. She pointed to a
photo in a silver frame of me holding my new baby granddaughter wrapped in the
pink quilt I made for her. “Oh, Martha dear, Quincy’s baby is precious. What’s her
name?”
“Daisy. She’s five months
old and bright as a button. I practically have to pay my daughter to let me
babysit.”
Birdie sighed. “I hope to
see her before we move to Ojai. Once we arrive in the community, we’ll be
pretty much incommunicado.”
An alarm started clanging
in my head. “What do you mean? You can’t have visitors? You can’t use a phone?”
“Well, there will be an
orientation period in which we’ll learn the secrets of the Mystical Feather.
Then we’ll receive instruction on the techniques of meditation in order to
contact our own personal spirit guides.” She smiled. “During that time, we must
have no distractions from the outside world. I hope you understand.”
“When do you plan to go
there?” Jazz scooped up Zsa Zsa and held her protectively against his body.
“As soon as our properties
are sold. Then there will be a formal welcoming ceremony in which we turn over
to the community all our earthly goods and they will embrace us as full
members. We already have a buyer interested in the ranch, and our real estate
agent thinks she can sell the other places within the month.”
Giselle frowned. “But,
Birdie, aren’t you in your seventies? At this time of life, why is it important
to meet your spirit guide? Let’s face it. Isn’t his work pretty much over?”
For once, I was grateful
for my sister’s ability to shoot right at the heart of the matter. Everyone
else must’ve felt the same way because all motion had stopped and all ears were
focused on what our friend might say.
Birdie laughed. “Ask me
that question again when you’ve reached my age, my dear. Where there’s life,
there’s always a thirst for knowledge and enlightenment. Take my arthritis, for
instance. It’s merely a symptom of a stressful existence. Once I’ve become an
Adept, my guide will help me completely reverse the disease.”
For the rest of the day, I
scarcely heard the conversations. My stomach churned and my heart sat heavy in
my chest. Hadn’t Birdie just described typical cult tactics? Make outlandish
promises, isolate the individuals from their normal support network until
they’ve been thoroughly indoctrinated, and keep them dependent by seizing all
their resources.
How could I prevent Birdie
and Denver from making such a terrible mistake?
KNOT OF THIS WORLD is available for purchase
at the following sites: Amazon
- B&N - Kobo
- Google Play - IndieBound
Meet
the Author
 |
| Author Mary Marks |
Her first novel, Forget
Me Knot, was a finalist in a national writing competition in 2011. She is
currently a reviewer of cozy mysteries for The New York Journal of
Books at www.nyjournalofbooks.com.
For more on Mary and her
writing, you can connect with her on the following sites:
*Website: https://marymarksmysteries.com/
*Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mmarks2013
Thanks so much for
stopping by today. You can follow along with Mary on her tour by visiting the
sites below. Be sure to enter the giveaway too. Would you jump in and check out
anything new and “unusual” your friend was about to join?
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
August 17 – I’m All About Books –
SPOTLIGHT
August 17 – The
Avid Reader – REVIEW
August 17 – Literary Gold –
SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT
August 18 – Diane Reviews Books –
SPOTLIGHT
August 18 – FUONLYKNEW –
SPOTLIGHT
August 18 – My Reading
Journeys – REVIEW
August 19 – Sapphyria’s Books –
REVIEW
August 19 – Island Confidential –
SPOTLIGHT
August 19 – Carla Loves
To Read – REVIEW
August 20 – Celticlady’s
Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
August 20 – Socrates
Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
August 20 – Ascroft, eh? –
CHARACTER INTERVIEW
August 21 – Hearts
& Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
August 21 – Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting –
REVIEW
August 21 – Paranormal
and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
August 22 – Brooke Blogs –
SPOTLIGHT
August 22 – Lisa Ks Book
Reviews – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
August 22 – Christa Reads and
Writes – REVIEW
August 23 – Cozy Up With
Kathy – CHARACTER GUEST POST
August 23 – Reading,
Writing & Stitch-Metic – GUEST POST
August 23 – Baroness’ Book Trove –
SPOTLIGHT
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Is it wrong of me to say I wouldn't mourn for many murdered cult leaders?
ReplyDeleteAnd hooray for cozy murder mysteries. It is cool and damp today - perfect cozy time.
Dead cult leader - new twist. And as always, cozies have the best titles.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really interesting premise, Mason. There are lots of possibilities in a plot like that, too, so I can see how the story could go in more than one direction. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds interesting. I don't remember ever hearing of a cozy where the victim is a cult leader.
ReplyDelete