Salt Island
Fantasy Island in time for summer! Or is it? From the first paragraph through the relentless twists and turns to the last—I couldn’t put Salt Island down.
“Imagine hearing nothing but seagulls and rolling surf for hours at a time. No talking, dogs barking, TVs, cars,empty enough to hold a thought in your head, idle enough to inspire daydreams. And when the shudder of fear shakes you back to earth, you’re still in your proverbial hammock, drinking in the countenance of paradise with the same hungry, cynical eyes. Could it be real, this place? Was it actually as safe as it seemed? Yes but for the ephemeral shadow in my heart, warning me that nothing was as it seemed, asking what the hell I was doing here.”
I was lucky enough to attend Lisa Towles’s book launch at a local B & N recently and hear her talk about writing the E & A Investigations series. Previously Towles wrote standalone thrillers, but these characters, Mari Ellwyn and Derek Abernathy had more to investigate. Mari is a fine arts gallery owner and moonlights as an investigator. Derek is a former investigator and police detective who she asks for help in book 1. It’s not perfect to start, but the characters develop pitch perfect chemistry, “I liked the feel of his weight nudging the right side of my body right now, as some kind of tacit assurance that the strands of my life, one of them anyway, was still at least partially intact”, as they come to trust and rely on each other to get the job done. “We share a deep love of the same two things. Puzzles and justice.”
They are close, but not every secret is revealed. Mari, especially, carries a dark secret, something she’s compelled to uncover. Their investigation into corporate espionage and eco terrorism twists seamlessly through Mari’s personal investigation into her past. And throughout both, the surprises and suspense will keep you reading into the wee hours—or a sunburn at the beach! Wear your dark glasses and use plenty of SPF 50+—you’re in for a hot, exhilarating ride.
Author Lisa Towles at B & N
Book Synopsis:
Having established their new official partnership, the private investigation team of Mari Ellwyn and Derek Abernathy are tested to the extreme with two new cases involving high-stakes corporate espionage and eco-terrorism. Someone is trying to sabotage billionaire CEO Jack Darcy’s IPO deal and reputation, and now his glamorous wife – media darling and entrepreneur, has gone missing. Thryve, Darcy’s high-profile environmental startup, is lauded by investors as one of the best innovators of the decade. But a journalist has learned Darcy’s dirty little secret and is hell-bent on exposing it to investors and the world at large.
Pulled from their Southern California headquarters, Derek heads to the Central Valley to investigate two suspicious deaths from an explosion on a local farm. The deeper he digs, the more questions emerge about what the murdered farm workers may have witnessed – toxic chemical dumping linked to an oil and gas company. A shadow witness is gathering evidence but disappears before Derek can get to her. As Mari considers her next move in a much broader conspiracy of corporate corruption and environmental abuse, her partner’s gone undercover to find the missing witness, and now he’s off-grid.
Mari must reckon with powerful ghosts from her past – her missing father and the truth about his double identity and secret agenda. She embarks on her own investigation to the British Virgin Islands, one of her father’s secret haunts during his time as an active CIA operative, and uncovers details too painful to bear – about her father, herself, and her future.
Secrets can’t say buried forever, but now Mari is alone, exposed, and time is running out.
The follow up to Towles’s Hot House is already receiving a plethora of accolades. Check out what the reviewers are saying:
The Reviews Are In!
“Towles is a master when it comes to parallel story lines. Readers will love the quick pace and snappy dialogue of this thriller, and Mari is a character who jumps off the page and into your heart.”Literary Titan
“Likeable, interesting characters and a confident narrative keep the pages turning of this crime thriller, in a series that harkens Evanovich, Grafton, and Millhone.”RECOMMENDED, The US Review of Books
If you haven’t read any of Lisa Towles’s thrillers before, try one! I’ve read them all. Read my review of Hot House and an interview with author Lisa Towles here.
Meet the author:
No spoiler, but keep on the lookout for Towles’ November standalone release—Terror Bay. It’s going to be another hit!
This action-packed memoir/travelogue formed the real-life backdrop to what later became the successful JadeAnne Stone thriller series. Starting in the summer of 1991, Saints and Skeletons takes you through the back roads of Mexico, Belize, and the Peten region of northern Guatemala, where author, teacher and former journalist Manwaring camped out in ruins, sampled exotic foods, smoked loco weed atop pyramids, drank mescal out of the still, skinny dipped in Zipolite, found lost cities, and learned to make a killer margarita. In the process, she also experienced love, betrayal and loneliness. As doors opened and walls crumbled in her heart, skeletons tumbled out and, occasionally, saints appeared just when Manwaring needed them most.
Building a Better Story 