Monday, November 13, 2017

BOOK TOUR AND GIVEAWAY: Dangerous Changes (An Emily Lazzaro Mystery) by Joyce T. Strand

BOOK INFORMATION
  • Paperback: 309 pages
  • Publisher: McCloughan and Schmeltz (November 6, 2017)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0996145494
  • ISBN-13: 978-0996145497






















NEW RELEASE….
A series of events rattle Emily Lazzaro: a near-death encounter with a pickup on a narrow mountain road, the murder of a would-be client, and an ex-fiancé who won’t let go. Can she survive a police investigation, pressure from her ex’s company, and the suspicions of a possible new love-interest—so that she can make the changes to create a meaningful new life in a special town in southern California? 

Available to buy from...... 

About Emily Lazzaro

Emily Lazzaro is the daughter of Wayne Lazzaro, the winemaker for the Hilltop Sunset winery in the previously published three Brynn Bancroft mysteries. She moved with her fiancé to Ramona, Calif., a rural community near San Diego, following graduation from college with a degree in hospitality. Her fiancé was eager to purchase a vineyard and develop a winery in the up and coming Ramona wine region, which suited Emily’s goals.

However, after moving to Ramona, it becomes apparent to Emily that she is not a good match for her fiancé. She discovers that he does not respect her opinions and insists on making decisions without her input. So she breaks off the engagement.

She decides to remain in Ramona despite her fiancé living there with his new vineyard. She appreciates the unique rocky terrain and proximity to the ocean and San Diego, along with the mixture of fine wineries, artists, and equestrian activities.  She makes her living doing people’s taxes, and when Dangerous Changes opens, we discover she is looking to make a career change.

Review: This is the second series I have read by this author. (I haven't read her original series which featured Jillian Hillcrest.)  The main character of this current series is the daughter of a character from the previous series, just as the main character of the second series was a secondary character in the first series. I enjoy how that adds to the continuity from one series to the next. However, it is not necessary to have read any of the previous books to be able to enjoy this one.

For a good section of the book, I was surprised by how clueless Emily seemed to be when it came to her ex-fiance and the company he works for...but eventually she redeemed herself in my eyes.  There are so many twists and turns in the story that it keeps your attention from beginning to end.  By the end of the story, all the different plotlines came together and everything in the story made sense.

I am looking forward to finding out what happens next in Emily's life. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good mystery.


I received this book through Beck Valley Books Book Tours, I have volunteered to share my review and all the opinions are 100% my own.

Rating: Four stars


About the Author
Joyce T. Strand is the author of who-done-it contemporary and historical mysteries set in San Francisco, Napa-Sonoma wine regions of California, or Ventura, California.

Her most recent novels, Overcast Sunset and Landscape for Murder, feature protagonist Brynn Bancroft, a financial guru in transition to winemaker from corporate executive. Brynn Bancroft is a minor character in Strand’s first three novels On Message, Open Meetings, and Fair Disclosure—three mysteries solved by Jillian Hillcrest, a publicist in Silicon Valley whose boss was Chief Financial Officer Brynn Bancroft.

Her first historical mystery, The Judge's Story, tells the story of a Superior Court Judge with a passion for social justice as well as the law who strives to discover the truth behind the mystery of a robbery-murder in a small California town in 1939.

All of her novels are inspired by actual events and/or real people, although they are definitely fictionalized.

Much like her protagonist Jillian Hillcrest, Strand headed corporate communications at several biotech and high-tech companies in California’s Silicon Valley for more than 25 years. Unlike Jillian, however, she did not encounter murder in her career. She focused on writing by-lined articles, press releases, white papers, and brochures to publicize her companies and their products.

She lives with her two cats and collection of cow statuary in Southern California, and enjoys exploring and writing about the growing wine region in the Ramona Valley near San Diego.

She received her Ph.D. from the George Washington University, Washington, D.C. and her B.A. from Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA

Find the author on the following sites....

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NOW FOR THE AUTHOR'S GIVEAWAY !!
1st Prize: All-New Fire 7 Tablet with Alexa, 7" Display, 8 GB, Black (value $49.99)
2nd and 3rd Prizes: (1 each) $25.00 Amazon Gift Certificate

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2 comments:

Beck Valley Books said...

Thank you for sharing your review of Dangerous Changes today xx

Joyce Strand said...

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my latest mystery. I'm pleased that you've also read the Brynn Bancroft series. For sure, Emily needs to "smarten up!", but perhaps she has learned a lesson or two for her second story.