Thursday, October 8, 2020

Trending Topic #Murder

Join me today to learn more about author Sarah Burr’s latest release, TRENDING TOPIC #MURDER, the first installment in her Trending Topic Mystery series, on her tour with Great Escape Virtual Book Tours.

Trending Topic #Murder

By Sarah Burr
*Cozy Mystery, 1st in Series - Trending Topic Mystery Series
*Publisher: Camel Press (September 8, 2020)
*Paperback: 218 pages
*ISBN-10: 1603816305
*ISBN-13: 978-1603816304
*Digital ASIN: B08DH78VXM 
 
Meet 28-year-old celebrity blogger Coco Cline, who has started her own social media consulting company in her hometown of Central Shores, Delaware. Her new clients, Peter and Olivia Chen, are ten days away from the grand opening of their specialty consignment shop when Coco finds their store clerk Stacy dead behind the register. 
 
Worried that a cloud of suspicion will ruin their chances of a successful business launch, the Chens ask Coco to work alongside the inexperienced, small-town police force to speed up the investigation. Using her celebrity status and social media savviness, Coco realizes Stacy’s seemingly ordinary life was all an act. Following a trail of cryptic online posts and muddied gossip, Coco and her friends discover Stacy’s questionable relationships just might be the reason for her untimely demise. 
 

Here's an excerpt for your reading pleasure.

Choosing to ignore the unintended jab at my worn-out appearance, I picked up my fork and took a few bites of creamy macaroni to appease her worries. If the success of a viral post ever started going to my head, all I had to do was come to Mom and Dad’s for a reality check. To them, my online popularity was a foggy concept that hadn’t quite yet clicked into place, and honestly, I was extremely grateful. Sitting here, I could just be their daughter. “It’s been interesting, for sure.” I shot a look at Dad. “You two need to promise to keep this between us until an official statement has been made.” I stared them down until they both nodded in agreement.

Even more confused, worry now saturated Mom’s expression. “What’s going on?”

I walked them through the traumatic morning of finding Stacy’s body and dealing with the police, leaving them speechless at the conclusion of my story. “It’s hard to believe something like this could happen in Central Shores.” I shook my head at the thought.

Dad was the first to recover from the gruesome details. “Are they sure it was murder? Could something have dropped on her head when she was in the shop?”

“I’m having a hard time remembering the scene clearly. I was so focused on Stacy and that horrible gash that I didn’t really take a look around. Something must have told the police she was killed intentionally. One of the new cops on the force said the assailant walked right out the back door.” I rubbed my temples, massaging the memory in my mind.

“Oh my goodness, Delia, you could have been in the shop with him!” Mom gripped her face, her blue eyes widening with tears of fright.

Placing my fork on the table where I ate breakfast every morning growing up, I reached for her trembling hand. “I’m fine. A little shocked, that’s all.” Looking at the clock over the kitchen sink, I pushed my chair back. “Hudson will be home in an hour or so. I’d better get going. I need to stop by the urgent care clinic. The detective recommended I check in.”

My mother made moves to protest, but Dad reached over and squeezed her arm. “Be safe, kiddo, and let us know if you need anything.”

I nodded, heading toward the front door, surprised by the lump forming in my throat. Not one to normally show an abundance of fragile emotion, I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. As much as I wanted the horrible image of Stacy out of my head, pushing her away felt disrespectful. Adding to the fact I hardly knew her, even though I saw her every day for nearly a month, I was racked with guilt over the whole thing. If I hadn’t waited around before letting myself in, perhaps I would have thwarted her attacker, or at least taken him by surprise. Why was she alone at the store? Olivia and Peter were always there to supervise her work. How did the culprit get in and out of the store if all the doors were locked? As I slid into the driver’s seat, I realized I hadn’t yet asked myself the biggest question of them all. Who could possibly have killed her?

Trending Topic #Murder is available at the following sites:

Amazon  - Barnes & Noble - Target

Meet the Author

Sarah E. Burr grew up in the small town of Appleton, Maine and now lives outside New York City. Since she was seven, Sarah has wanted to be Nancy Drew, but she wasn’t stumbling across any mysteries in corporate America. Deciding it was time to follow her dreams, Sarah left her career in healthcare information technology three years ago and started writing mysteries of her own.

The Trending Topic Mysteries is her first traditionally published series. Sarah also writes the Court of Mystery series.

Sarah attended Elmira College and graduated with degrees in Political Science and Philosophy & Religious Studies.

She loves to weave these themes into her writing. When she’s not spinning up new stories, Ms. Burr is off seeing Broadway musicals, reading up a storm, video gaming, and enjoying walks around the city.

For more on Sarah and her writing, you can connect with her on the following sites:

Webpage: https://www.saraheburr.com

Blog: https://www.saraheburr.com/blog

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorsaraheburr/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsaraheburr/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahEBurr

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54713602-trending-topic-murder

You can follow Sarah on her tour by visiting the sites below. Thanks so much for stopping by today. Isn’t it fun to see a blogger as the main character?

October 7 – Literary Gold – CHARACTER GUEST POST

October 7 – Baroness' Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT

October 8 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

October 9 – Nadaness In Motion - REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, (SPOTLIGHT)

October 10 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT  

October 10 – MJB Reviewers – REVIEW

October 11 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 12 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 13 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

October 13 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 14 – Ruff Drafts – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

October 14 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews- REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

October 15 – I Read What You Write – CHARACTER GUEST POST

October 16 – Christa Reads and Writes - REVIEW

October 16 – Celticlady's Review – SPOTLIGHT

October 16 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW

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4 comments:

  1. OOooh. Yet another book which is right up my alley. My very broad alley. Thank you.

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  2. This one sounds interesting! I like the social media twist, and it takes place in Delaware, where I spent several years. Solid premise for a story, too! Thanks for sharing, Mason.

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  3. Clever way to capitalize on social media and hashtags.

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  4. Thank you so much for spotlighting "Trending Topic #Murder" -- I'm thrilled to be featured! ~ Sarah E. Burr

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