One of my favorite people, Rena Koontz, takes time out from teasing us all with her pictures from Venice Beach (bare feet in the sand as we all shiver here in Ohio), to stop by for a visit today. Her book, The Devil She Knew, is on sale for only 99 cents until January 16. If you haven't snagged your copy yet, now's the time.
The research for this book deserves its own story. Here's Rena to talk about how she did it.
He’s dead now – the real Tony DelMorrie, that is.
Yes, the mob guy in my romantic suspense, “The Devil She Knew,” was a real-life
Mafioso. A “made guy,” sometimes called a wiseguy, is someone who has been
officially inducted, usually as a soldier, into a Mafia family. That was Tony
in real life. And I met him.
My husband and I were out with a friend in downtown
Cleveland one Saturday night, dropping in and out of various fun spots, when we
wandered into Tony’s coffee shop – yeah, the same one depicted in the book. My
husband, then an FBI agent, knew who Tony was but never expected him to be
there, working the floor like a Las Vegas nightclub entertainer. Gold chains
ringed his bulging neck and dripped down onto black chest hairs. I could see
them because Tony had his shirt partially unbuttoned – a flashback to disco
days.
Heavy, gold rings weighed down his fingers and dug into my
own when he shook my hand. It was his pleasure to meet me, he said, adding that
such an Italian-looking face as mine belonged in his café. I feared he would
notice how sweaty my palms were or the crack in my voice when I thanked him.
And then Mrs. DelMorrie came to the table. The TV show
depicting mob wives is not exaggerated. She was fake nails, fake lashes, fake
boobs and a hair color that rivaled a Sherwin-Williams sample palette. She
batted her eyelashes at the men and called me “hon,” insisting I sample a piece
of red velvet cake, the house specialty. “It’s the best you’ll ever eat, Hon.
With your figure, you don’t even have to worry about calories.”
Yes, they were both charmers. No, the cake wasn’t the best.
The icing was so sweet I could feel my arteries clogging as I swallowed. But I
wasn’t about to decline the offered piece. I chewed fast, anxious to make an
exit.
I knew Tony’s reputation and was privy to inside knowledge
about his character. It’s what helped me make him so real in my book – because
he was real.
“The Devil She Knew,”
is my second romantic suspense released by Crimson Romance. If this blog has
piqued your interest about the story, now is a good time to order. It’s
discounted to 99-cents between Jan. 8-16
on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, The Crimson Romance store
and other e-book retailers.
For more about “The
Devil She Knew” or me, check out my website, http://www.renakoontz.com.
Purchase Links:
Purchase Links:
barnes&noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-devil-she-knew-rena-koontz/1115218299?ean=9781440567810
crimson romance - http://www.adamsmediastore.com/ebook-devil-she-knew-epub
google play -https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Rena_Koontz_The_Devil_She_Knew?id=6_sagekPToQC
Thank you, Becky, for allowing me to share a tidbit about my
book.
