Welcome to my stop on author Christine Finlayson’s Virtual Book Tour
for Tip of a Bone, presented by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours. Please leave a comment or question for
Christine to let her know you stopped by.
You can follow the rest of Christine’s tour here, several of the other stops have a giveaway.
“Unlucky in
Love” by Christine Finlayson, author of Tip
of a Bone
My husband
hasn’t yet asked this question, but I’m expecting it: “Honey, why do the
characters in your books have such miserable love lives? I thought we were
happily married!”
We are—going
on fifteen years. But what’s the fun in writing about serene couples? The truth
is, we authors love to fill our
characters’ lives with drama—and the more trouble we can put them in, the
better. Really, the only way a blissful relationship will make it into my books
is as a set-up: a marriage that seems perfect on the surface—right up until it
starts to crack.
I’ve been
thinking recently about Gillian Flynn’s novel, Gone Girl. When my mystery came out, Flynn’s appeared on the same bookstore
shelves (Fi and Fl in alphabetized-by-author). People kept talking about Gone Girl, so of course I had to read
it. Although I disliked the husband and wife characters, I kept going, compelled
to see what awful things they’d do to each other next.
It’s like
rubbernecking after a car crash. We keep turning pages to see what kind of torment
our favorite characters will get into—and how they’ll escape. You might say
it’s reality television captured in a book, and it’s high entertainment.
When I
started writing Tip of a Bone, I wanted
to give my main character, Maya Rivers, a drama-filled life. Readers have
described Maya as feisty, fearless, and willing to take serious chances, but
they’ve also called her flawed and vulnerable, leaving room for trouble to seep
in.
Maya begins
the story in recovery mode: she’s just moved to a small town on the Oregon
coast, bringing a broken heart from her failed marriage. She hopes to re-connect
with her estranged brother Harley, whom she hasn’t seen in years.
But life
keeps throwing curveballs. A young woman disappears in the forest, setting the
town on edge. Maya’s brother gets embroiled in one dangerous situation after
another and refuses to listen to her advice. Ultimately, he’s accused of a
serious crime and Maya wants to prove
him innocent—but isn’t sure he is. She feels lost and betrayed, the perfect
setup for her personal life to go haywire. (You’ll have to read Tip of a Bone to see just how bad it
gets.)
In the story
I’m writing now, a novel of suspense, I’ve ratcheted things up a notch, giving
my main character not only a recent divorce, but a child custody battle, a
vindictive ex, and an arrest for a crime she didn't commit. Watch out. J
Whenever I
get stymied in creating romantic troubles or life drama for my characters, when
imagination can’t take me far enough, I head online. There’s inspiration galore—just
read any advice column or watch a reality dating show. In comparison, you may
end up feeling very, very lucky in love!
Tip of a BoneBy Christine FinlaysonPublisher: Adventure PublicationsRelease Date: August 26, 2013Genre: Suspense/Contemporary MysteryLength: 264 PagesISBN: 9781591934400ASIN: B00EGWE5HCAbout the book:Buried bones, a missing eco-activist, and a deadly fire? It’s not what Maya Rivers bargained for when she moved to the coastal city of Newport, Oregon to reunite with her brother, Harley. Yet when Harley is accused of an unthinkable crime, Maya insists on adding “amateur sleuth” to her career options. It isn’t long before she discovers an eerie clue . . . but the closer she gets to the truth, the closer a murderer follows.
A sister attempting to reconnect
with her brother and a conservation group trying to save the forest take center
stage in Christine Finlayson’s Tip of a Bone. An entertaining contemporary mystery filled
with interesting characters, plenty of action and even a little romance, Ms. Finlayson’s story kept me turning
the pages to discover what would happen next.
Set in Oregon’s picturesque coastal area, Ms. Finlayson’s debut release
is a book mystery lovers will want to check out.
Recently divorced, Maya Rivers
heads to Oregon’s coast to reconnect with her brother Harley. Working at local “seafood “diner; Maya worries
about Harley’s involvement with a local conservation group being blamed for
some escalating vandalism. When the local police show up at her place of
business and Maya discovers Harley was killed in a fire the police are claiming
he set, Maya begins her own investigation to prove her brother was murdered and
didn’t commit arson.
Ms.
Finlayson does a wonderful job developing Maya’s character; she’s a
loving and loyal sister, even when she’s trying to talk Harley into changing
his life, and she’s tenacious to a fault, all while trying to get her own life
in order. The secondary characters in
the book are also interesting and well developed and the mystery is well
written, takes plenty of twists and turns from start to finish and keeps Maya
busy throughout the book.
While Maya is a likeable person, and a great character, she did leave a little bit of something to be desired as an
investigator. She makes quite a few
rookie mistakes, which almost get her killed.
I’ll admit there were a couple of times I wanted to shake her and ask
her if she’d ever watched any of the classic “who done it” shows or current detective
shows on TV.
Will Maya solve the mystery of
what happened to her brother on the last night of his life? Will she uncover
who’s behind the “eco-terrorism” going on in town? You’ll have to read Tip of a
Bone to find out. I
enjoyed it and hope we get to see Maya and some of her friends in another of Ms. Finlayson’s books.
My
Rating: 4 out of 5 Crowns
About
This Author
Christine Finlayson borrowed
from her “past lives” as a waitress, barista, environmental educator, and water
scientist when creating her debut mystery novel, Tip of a Bone—a tale that
takes place on the stormy Oregon coast. In her spare time, Christine loves to
run on forest trails, watch waves break, compete in triathlons, and photograph
anything Northwest-weird or wild. She’s now working on her second book, a novel
of suspense.
Christine’s an active member of
Sisters in Crime, Friends of Mystery, Oregon Writers Colony, and Willamette
Writers.
Author
Links:
Webpage: http://www.christinefinlayson.com
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book as a part of a book tour in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Maria, thank you so much for hosting me here today--and for your thoughtful review of Tip of a Bone. You've brought up an interesting point -- in the story, Maya doesn't have a TV (she just moved and is too impoverished to get a new one) but before the next book, she may want to brush up on her skills via YouTube. After all, she's no longer a rookie investigator--she has experience, so can learn from her mistakes!
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited to here that we'll see Maya again....I really liked her and I know when she gets experience under her belt that she will be a tenacious and fabulous investigator!
Deleteugh...I meant to type "hear" not "here"....sigh...it's been a long day:)
DeleteNice to see the review --I enjoyed Maya as a character. She seemed so focused on finding the truth that she didn't stop to think about her own safety. Looking forward to reading the next book!
ReplyDeleteI, too, wanted to shake Maya and say, "Don't do that!". I loved the book, and got up at 5 am to finish it before going to work. Suspenseful and interesting.
ReplyDeleteLoved how much Maya cared about some of the people in her life and charged full bore to help them at risk to herself.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bruce and Anonymous (x2), for taking the time to comment. Yes, Maya is definitely focused--and tenacious. She's like a bulldog who can't let go of what happened, until she can "make it right."
ReplyDelete