Rufus: Just Saying: Ghost Haunting in Kentucky?
28 February 2018
Rufus and Hank are a bit upset. They overheard me saying Ghost Haunting would be here on Friday. Now they think our house is about to be haunted!
Kath: Ally, could you please explain to my dogs that I’m talking about your new book Ghost Haunting http://amzn.to/2F2grp2. Boys, stop barking! Listen to Ms. Shields!
Thank you.
Ally: It’s all right, guys. Really. Ghost Haunting is just a story in a book. Kind of like the dragon stories Kath writes. In fact, this is my third book in the Maggie York Paranormal Mystery series set in New Orleans, Louisiana. No ghosts are coming anywhere near your home. I promise. Doggie swear.
Kath: Thank you, Ally. Rufus has taken off to go run around trees and sniff for chipmunks. Hank is sitting on my foot. I promised we would watch your trailer on You Tube so he can see for himself that the book does not take place in our house. Could you give us the link for your trailer? It’s so good! What was your favorite part of making it?
Ally: The YouTube link is https://youtu.be/RD2foDCyXKM. Book trailers are a tremendous amount of work. But I had a lot of fun playing with the photos in Canva, and I loved finding a vocal (thanks, danosongs.com) that I thought fit the story. I hope Hank enjoys it. 🙂
Kath: I have another question. I understand you have a new furry person in your home. Princess Abby? Could you tell us a little about her? Will she and Ranger ever appear in your books?
Ally: You mean the little Abyssinian kitten (now half grown), who has taken over our house? She’s a blue aka gray with the silkiest fur. And she is full of mischief and love. After tearing around—up and down the halls, over the furniture—harassing both the dog and me, she is just as persistent about cuddling. Min Pin Ranger loves her in spite of himself. 🙂 They are virtually inseparable. She imitates everything he does, and I’m not real sure she knows she’s a cat!
I doubt if Ranger or Abby could possibly be described in a book. It would take a series of videos to do them justice! And they hardly sit still long enough to get a photo.
Kath: Just in case, my dogs and cats will keep reading your books looking for Abby and Ranger. You never know.
Thank you, Ally!
It looks like Rufus and Hank are going to keep an eye on the mailbox until your book arrives! Don’t tell them that I pre-ordered a Kindle copy for my iPad. We do NOT need any chewing on the iPad to get at the story.
For readers who have not turned to the video yet, here’s a peek at Ghost Haunting:
Book Blurb:
Her most dangerous suspect may not be flesh and blood…
Since recovering from a sniper’s bullet, homicide detective Maggie Girard has been able to see ghosts. With her partner, Josh Brandt, away on an undercover assignment, Maggie begins looking into two apparent suicides with odd paranormal elements. Surely the reports of ghostly sounds at both scenes were imaginations running wild. But she quickly discovers things aren’t as they seem. These were murders…and something otherworldly is involved, a malignant entity unlike any she’s encountered before. Something far more dangerous than a mere ghost.
The investigation takes another wild turn when a powerful stranger with quicksilver eyes begins showing up at the murder scenes. She can’t decide if he’s an ally or an enemy…or whether he’s even human. When the strange deaths continue and the mystery deepens with no end in sight, she knows something is very wrong in New Orleans…and she can’t fix it alone. For the first time she’s facing an enemy who could kill her with a single touch…
Kath: Because we’re all such fans, I’m including an excerpt from you new book- Ghost Haunting.
An early March night in New Orleans’ French Quarter
It started as an ordinary Thursday at Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop pub. A noisy crowd on the downside of the week. Although the evening air was seasonably cool, an old-fashioned fan struggled to keep the packed room from becoming overheated, and the occasional breeze from the patio provided welcome relief. The lights were dim; the blended scent of beer and bourbon was strong. As the evening wore on and blood-alcohol levels climbed, voices rose, punctuated by unrestrained laughter.
A group of men sat at a corner table, their faces more disgruntled than most, and they drank rather freely. Conversation was sparse as often occurs among those who don’t know each other well enough to discuss everyday happenings. Yet some common bond had brought them together.
One of the men stole a look at his companions, then frowned looking down into his beer mug. “This sucks. Week after week of the same stupid jabber,” he finally said. “I hate it.”
Others nodded in agreement.
“Don’t we all,” a companion grumbled. “It’s not just boring, it’s damned insulting. As if things were my fault. Freakin’ mouthy bitch.”
Into this atmosphere, a dark red fog seeped through the bar’s front shutters, sending fingers of vapor slithering across the room, lightly touching each occupant. Somehow it went unnoticed, along with its faint but distinct tinny odor. As the strange haze covered the room and spilled onto the patio, a shared uneasiness swept through the crowd. Laughter faltered.
Still…no one remarked on the phenomenon, a strong indication of its invisibility and the general lack of real awareness. Perhaps in response to this inattention, doors and shutters were silently opened and closed. A few patrons took notice of that. But it was the barely discernible, sinister laughter that drew the first comment.
“Did you hear that?” The query was sharp.
A few nervous titters. A half-hearted laugh.
“Lafitte’s ghost,” was the only response.
“But I saw a woman’s face,” another voice insisted.
Several patrons glanced over their shoulders, more curious than alarmed. The majority were caught up in a spreading mood of irritability…and they disregarded the oddities. Grumbled comments and angry looks grew into heated words—about anything, about nothing—and then two separate fist fights started. The barkeeper came from behind the counter to break them up.
The corner table of men wasn’t immune to any of this. A dark-skinned, well-dressed man rubbed his forehead at the sudden onset of a headache and tried to shrug off a weight on his shoulders. As the haze wrapped around their table, a loud disagreement over who bought the last round of beer turned into shoving and punching. A beer bottle fell over, splashing its contents, and then a chair crashed to the floor. A sandy-haired man rose, threw a twenty dollar bill on the table, and left, shaking his head. Gripped by unreasonable fury, the others barely noticed his departure, their dispute growing louder and harsher, fists flying hard and fast. One man grabbed a chair and lifted it above his head.
The fog abruptly morphed into a dense cloud, no longer touching anyone in the bar or patio area, but hovering near the ceiling over the corner table. The rest of the establishment quieted. Patrons resumed their seats looking sheepish, slightly dazed, and mumbling apologies, or they hurried to pay their bills and leave.
The man holding the chair looked at it as if he didn’t know how it got into his hands and set it down. Still irritable and exchanging barbed insults, the men sat down again, and they began to talk…often crude, sometimes mocking, but in earnest now. And the dark red cloud lowered as if it were listening or becoming part of the conversation. As if it were sentient.
When tempers flared again, and the table grew too unruly, the bartender told them to leave. But it was too late. Something had already changed in those few minutes. Evil had entered the room, found what it wanted, and was satisfied…for now
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B3V4WCN
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/ghost-haunting
B & N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ghost-haunting-ally-shields/1128068541?ean=2940159134004
ibookstore: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/ghost-haunting/id1353284721?mt=11
GooglePlay: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Ally_Shields_Ghost_Haunting?id=SQJODwAAQBAJ
Etopia Press: http://www.etopiapress.com/brands/Ally-Shields.html
YouTube Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/RD2foDCyXKM
Bio:
Ally Shields is a Midwesterner with a love for mysteries and a fascination with the paranormal. Her books reflect it. After a career in Juvenile Justice, she began writing full time in 2009. Her first urban fantasy was published in 2012, and to date she has fourteen published novels. Ally lives near Des Moines with her Min Pin buddy Ranger and a sweet-and-sassy cat named Abby. Ally loves to visit with her grandchildren and will travel almost anywhere. Visit her website and/or find her on Twitter (@ShieldsAlly).
Author Contacts:
Website: http://allyshields.com
Blog: http://allyshields.com/blog.html
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShieldsAlly
Facebook: http://facebook.com/AllyShieldsAuthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6527209.Ally_Shields
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Ally-Shields/e/B009AKNDZU
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/100652807699295011703/posts
Newsletter: http://allyshields.com/contact-menewsletter.html
