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THE MAD SEASON
by Al Blanchard
A Steve Asher Mystery
ISBN 0-9718758-1-2 (289 pages) $19.95
Jacket Blurb:
What begins as just another day at North Middle School quickly turns into an
unforgettable nightmare as faculty begin to turn up dead with letters of the
alphabet carved into them. And school teacher Steve Asher is right in the thick
of things, having received a strange phone call from Principal John Webster
arranging an early morning meeting to discuss how to handle a situation.
"No big deal," he'd said. But now he was dead. Asher becomes convinced
that withholding evidence from the police is the only way the hideous crimes can
be solved. But is he hampering the investigation and endangering the lives of
his friends as he follows the twisted trail the killer leaves behind?
The Mad Season has all of the plot twists, humor and page turning suspense the reader has come to expect from Al Blanchard the award winning author of Murder at Walden Pond and The Iscariot Conspiracy.
Excerpt:
Dave nodded and looked toward the wall. I could tell by his
expression something else was bothering him.
I smiled. "What's really on your mind?"
"What do you think of Mildred?"
"Ah," I said. "That's what this is about. I
thought she was a nice lady, but what's more important is what you
think."
He nodded. "She's the first woman I've gone out with
since Edna died. A lot of my friends told me to start dating again, but it never
felt right until I met Mildred. She makes me feel like I can be myself. She
makes me laugh."
"Not as much as I do, I'm sure, but probably a close
second." I smiled. "I think Edna would want you to be happy."
He nodded. "I haven't mentioned to Brenda that her old
man is dating again. What with her divorce and trying to raise Brandon by
herself I didn't want to burden her."
"Brenda would probably be thrilled that you found
someone who makes you happy. Besides, you're too young to stop having
sex."
Dave's face turned red. I put my hand on his shoulder.
"I like it when we have these father and son talks, but I'm never sure
which part I'm supposed to play."
Author Biography:
(photo by Linda Rosenthal)
Asher and Al
Al Blanchard is the author of numerous short
stories and two mystery series, one featuring eighth-grade history teacher Steve
Asher, and the other James Callahan, a Boston Homicide Detective. Mystery writer
William Tapply stated Blanchard’s first novel, Murder at Walden Pond,
was "an intriguing puzzle and an insightful commentary on human
nature."
Al got his start by rewriting "Matlock" and "Murder She
Wrote" episodes in his head. As a kid he was fascinated by Perry Mason and
devoured each of Agatha Christie’s novels. He wrote a science fiction short
story when he was ten. The story was lost long ago, but Al still remembers the
plot.
Before becoming a fulltime writer Al owned an art gallery, a music store, a
restaurant, taught computer literacy to blind adults and geography to
seventh-graders in a public school.
Al started writing short stories during the nineties and decided to expand his
storytelling to longer venues, thus the birth of his two mystery series.
Music has always inspired Al as a writer. He listens to Dylan, Springsteen, Tom
Petty, Jimmy Buffet and other "musicians who paint stories with their
songs."
Al’s favorite authors are Michael Connelly, Lawrence Block and "anyone
who has a knack for storytelling and surprises me. It’s all about getting lost
in the story and not wanting to come out."
Al has lived his
entire life in Massachusetts. He has traveled widely, once driving across the
United States on Route Twenty. He has visited Europe numerous times. His dream
is to reside on a Caribbean island and write, eat lots of fish and sample as
many rum drinks as he can, not necessarily in that order. Currently he lives in Massachusetts with
a music collection that has grown
to alarming proportions.
Al continues to
write short stories while putting the finishing touches on another Steve Asher
novel. His next project will be a new James Callahan novel. "Writing two
series characters keeps me fresh."
Visit Al’s website at www.alblanchard.com.
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