Monday, July 8, 2013

5th Grave Past The Light- Darynda Jones Blog Tour




 
 

Blurb:

Never underestimate the power of a woman

on a double espresso with a mocha latte chaser high.

—T-shirt

Charley Davidson isn’t your everyday, run-of-the-mill grim reaper.  She’s more of a paranormal private eye/grim reaper extraordinaire.  However, she gets sidetracked when the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, moves in next door. To further complicate matters, Reyes is her main suspect in an arson case.  Charley has vowed to stay away from him until she can find out the truth…but then dead women start appearing in her apartment, one after another, each lost, confused, and terrified beyond reason.  When it becomes apparent that her own sister, Gemma, is the serial killer’s next target Charley has no choice but to ask for Reyes’ help.  Arsonist or not, he’s the one man alive who could protect Gemma no matter who or what came at her. But he wants something in return. Charley. All of her, body and soul. And to keep her sister safe, it is a price she is willing to pay.

Charley Davidson is at it again in Fifth Grave Past the Light, the sexy, suspenseful, and laugh-out-loud funny fifth installment of the New York Times bestselling series by Darynda Jones.

Excerpt:


Ask me about life after death.

—T-shirt often seen on Charley Davidson,

    a grim reaper with questionable morals

 
The dead guy at the end of the bar kept trying to buy me a drink.
Which figured. No one else was even taking a second look and I’d
dressed to the nines. Or, at the very least, the eight- and- a-halves.
But the truly disturbing part of my evening was the fact that my
mark, one Mr. Marvin Tidwell, blond real estate broker and suspected
adulterer, actually turned down the drink I’d tried to buy
him.
Turned it down!
I felt violated.
I sat at the bar, sipping a margarita, lamenting the sad turn my life
had taken. Especially to night. This case was not going as planned.
Maybe I wasn’t Marv’s type. It happened. But I was oozing interest.
And I wore makeup. And I had cleavage. Even with all that going for
me, this investigation was firmly wedged between the cracks of no and
where. At least I could tell my client, aka Mrs. Marvin Tidwell, that it
would seem her husband was not cheating on her. Not randomly,
anyway. The fact that he could’ve been meeting someone in par tic ular
kept me glued to my barstool.
“C-come here often?”
I looked over at the dead guy. He’d finally worked up the courage
to approach and I got a better view of him. I figured him for the runt
of the litter. He wore round- rimmed glasses and a tattered baseball
cap that sat backwards on top of muddy brown hair. Add to that a
faded blue T-shirt and loosely ripped jeans and he could’ve been a
skater, a computer geek, or a backwoods moonshiner.

His cause of death was not immediately apparent. No stab wounds

or gaping holes. No missing limbs or tire tracks across his face. He

didn’t even look like a drug addict, so I couldn’t tell why he’d died at

such a young age. Taking into account the fact that his baby- faced

features would make him look younger than he probably was, I estimated

him to be somewhere around my age when he’d passed.
 

He stood waiting for an answer. I thought “Come here often?”

was rhetorical, but okay. Not wanting to be perceived as talking to

myself in a room full of people, I responded by lifting one shoulder

in a halfhearted shrug.
 

Sadly, I did. Come here often. This was my dad’s bar, and while I

never set up stings here for fear of someone I knew blowing my

cover, this just happened to be the very same bar Mr. Tidwell frequented.

At least if it came to a knockdown drag- out, I might have

some backup. I knew most of the regulars and all of the employees.

Dead Guy glanced toward the kitchen, seeming nervous before he

refocused on me. I glanced that way as well. Saw a door.

“Y-you’re very shiny,” he said, drawing my attention back to him.

He had a stutter. Few things were more adorable than a grown

man with boyish features and a stutter. I stirred my margarita and

pasted on a fake smile. I couldn’t talk to him in a room full of living,

breathing patrons. Especially when one was named Jessica Guinn, to

my utter mortification. I hadn’t seen her fiery red hair since high

school but there she sat, a few seats down from me, surrounded by a

group of chattering socialites who looked almost as fake as her boobs.

But that could be my bitterness rearing its ugly head.

 
Unfortunately, my forced smile only encouraged Dead Guy.

“Y-you are. You’re like the s-sun reflecting off the chrome bumper of

a f-fifty- seven Chevy.”

 He splayed his fingers in the air to demonstrate, and my heart was

gone. Damn it. He was like all those lost puppies I tried to save as a

child to no avail because I had an evil stepmother who believed all

stray dogs were rabid and would try to rip out her jugular. A fact that

had nothing to do with my desire to bring them into the house.

“Yeah,” I said under my breath, doing my best ventriloquist impersonation,

“thanks.”

“I’m D-Duff ,” he said.
 
“I’m Charley.” I kept my hands wrapped around my drink lest he

decide we needed to shake. Not many things looked stranger to the

living world than a grown woman shaking air. You know those kids

with invisible friends? Well, I was one of those. Only I wasn’t a kid,

and my friends weren’t invisible. Not to me, anyway. And I could see

them because I’d been born the grim reaper, which was not as bad as

it sounded. I was basically a portal to heaven, and whenever someone

was stuck on Earth, having chosen not to cross over immediately after

death, they could cross to the other side through me. I was like a giant

bug light, only what I lured was already dead.

I pulled at my extra- tight sweater. “Is it just me, or is it really

warm in here?”

His baby blues shot toward the kitchen again. “Hot is m-more

like it. S-so, I— I couldn’t help but notice you t-tried to buy that guy

over there a drink.”

I let my fake smile go. Freed it like a captured bird. If it came back

to me, it would be mine. If not, it never was. “And?”

“You’re b-barking up the wrong tree with that one.”

Surprised, I put my drink down— the one I bought myself— and

leaned in a little closer. “He’s gay?”
Duff snorted. “N-no. But he’s been in here a lot lately. He l-likes

his women a little . . . l-looser.”
“Dude, how much sluttier can I get?” I indicated my attire with a
sweep of my hand.
“N-no, I mean, well, you’re a l-little—” He let his gaze travel the
length of me. “—t-tight.”
I gasped. “I look anal?”
He drew in a deep breath and tried again. “H-he only hits on
women who are more s-substantial than you.”
Oh, that wasn’t offensive at all. “I have depth. I’ve read Proust.
No, wait, that was Pooh. Winnie- the- Pooh. My bad.”
He shifted his non ex is tent weight, cleared his throat, and tried
again. “More v-voluptuous.”
“I have curves,” I said through a clenched jaw. “Have you seen
my ass?”
“Heavier!” he blurted out.
“I weigh— Oh, you mean he likes bigger women.”
“E-exactly, while I on the other hand—”
Duff ’s words faded into the background like elevator music. So
Marv liked big women. A new plan formed in the darkest, most corrupt
corners of Barbara. My brain.

Cookie, otherwise known as my receptionist during regular business
hours and my best friend 24/7, was perfect. She was large and in

charge. Or well, large and kind of bossy. I picked up my cell phone

and called her.
“This better be good,” she said.
 “It is. I need your assistance.”
“I’m watching the first season of Prison Break.
“Cookie, you’re my assistant. I need assistance. With a case. You
know those things we take on to make money?”
Prison. Break. It’s about these brothers who—”
“I know what Prison Break is.”
“Then have you ever actually seen these boys? If you had, you
would not expect me to abandon them in their time of need. I think
there’s a shower scene coming up.”
“Do these brothers sign your paycheck?”
“No, but technically neither do you.”

Damn. She was right. It was much easier to just have her forge my
name.
“I need you to come flirt with my mark.”
“Oh, okay. I can do that.”
Nice. The F-word always worked with her. I filled her in and told
her the deal with Tidwell, then ordered her to hurry over.
“And dress sexy,” I said right before hanging up. But I regretted
the sexy part instantly. The last time I told Cookie to dress sexy for a
much- needed girls’ night out on the town, she wore a lace- up corset,
fishnet stockings, and a feather boa. She looked like a dominatrix. I’d
never been the same.

Author Bio:
NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious Golden Heart®, a Rebecca, two Hold Medallions, a RITA ®, and a Daphne du Maurier, and she has received stellar reviews from dozens of publications including starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, and the Library Journal. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike, and she is ever so grateful for the opportunity to carry on that tradition. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press: The Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of almost 30 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com






Links To Author:


·         Darynda Jones Website  


·         Facebook


·         Darynda’sWorld

·         Twitter

Links To Purchase Books:

·         Amazon

·         Barnes& Nobles

·          Audible

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway



1 Autographed copy of Fifth Grave Past the Light to one lucky winner.

 

Giveaway

 

Hashtag:        

#5thGrave
 

36 comments:

  1. I think the house that I lived in when I was a child was haunted because every night when we would lay down for bed me and my sister would hear running up on the third floor which was weird because we only used that space for storage. What else was weird was in the summer or when ever it was hot you would think that the third floor would be super hot because heat rises well not in this house it would always be cold like we had AC up there which we didn’t and when ever we would play up there it always seemed like someone was watching you like you were never alone and when ever you were up there you always had the feeling to run or get down from there as fast as you could it was a little creepy. Me and my sister still talk about it to this day I don’t fear ghost or the unknown. It almost gives me a feeling like there is something beyond death and that you should not be afraid and that if a ghost is there it’s for a reason and you should never be scared! With that being said I sooooo can’t wait for this book I’m sending my boys to their grandparents so MAMA can read and not have to do anything else. OH CHARLEY AND REYES HOW I HAVE MISSED YOU SO GALD YOUR BACK!!!!!!!

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  2. Can't wait till tomorrow for the book to come out! Thanks for the great give away!

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  3. I never seen a ghost,but I do believe in them

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  4. I haven't seen a ghost and I can't wait for tomorrow!!!

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  5. Thank you for the giveaway! I saw one as a child. I could hear an office chair rolling around on the second floor. I didn't realize I was home alone at this point and crept upstairs planning to startle whoever was up there. The door was open and I peeked through the crack to see who it was. A young girl was sitting with her back towards me in the chair and I thought it was my sister so I jumped around the corner of the door and yelled "Boo!" No one was in the room or sitting in the chair. I hightailed it out of there and turned the TV up to drown out the sound of the chair that started rolling around again after I went back downstairs.

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  6. I think i did see a ghost a few years back, at the office. The building is like 100 years old and we bought a new photo camera that we tested taking random pictures in the rooms there. The surprise was when we copied the pictures on the computer :D A series of 4 pics taken in the same corner on a bookcase had a ghostly child's face in them. you can actually see how he vanishes if you flip them :D We asked around and found out that a family with many children had lived there once, but nothing more.
    Oh, and there were the noises too. Some creepy bumps and cracks on Sunday evenings when no one but me and 2 other co-workers were there. :D

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  7. No, I think if I did, I would die of a heart attack!

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  8. I never seen a ghost..but I did see an Angel. LOOOOVE your review.

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  9. My dogs have seen something that raised hackles. I saw something shimmery. I hope it was a ghost and not a spider.

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  10. Wow, we have some great stories here!!!! Thanks for having me on today and good luck, all!

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  11. I just love this series so much! Great excerpt from the book. Good luck to everyone on the giveaway! :-)

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  12. I have never seen a ghost. But would love to. Mariannewestrich at Yahoo dot com

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  13. I have never seen a ghost but I do believe in them. Some great stories here. Thanks for the awesome review!! One More Day :)

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  14. Would love to enter the giveaway. The link provided goes straight to a Rafflecopter admin page, and I don't see how to enter. Am I missing something?

    SO EXCITED FOR FIFTH GRAVE! :D

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    1. I am so sorry. I had some issues with the Rafflecopter widget. It should be fixed now. Good Luck :)

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  15. I believe in ghosts, but I have never seen a ghost and its staying that way.

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  16. I don't think I've ever seen a ghost, although I have dreamed of people who are dead....

    Can't wait for the book!!!!!!

    Kim

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  17. So excited for this book!!

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  18. I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE THIS SERIES! yes i've seen ghosts and in particular shadow people which i was informed later were demons...freakiest thing ever that i had to go thru for years! thx for this giveaway!

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  19. Thank You everyone for stopping by to see my post :) A huge Thank You to Darynda for allowing me the opportunity to be included in the blog Tour!!

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  20. Happy Release Day (tomorrow) Darynda!!!

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  21. When I sit in the living room from the corner of my eye on occasion I swear I see my cousin down the hallway. I think it's just him checking in from time to time.

    can't wait til tomorrow for Fifth's release!!

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  22. I have a cornea transplant if you've seen the horror movie "The Eye" where the girl can see some sort of angel of death or grim reaper and peoples ghosts well for me its great craic winding people up who've seen that movie :D God help me if ever did see a ghost though I am such a wimp I'd probably faint! lol
    Thanks for the giveaway!

    amieesnow@gmail(dot)com

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  23. I have never seen a ghost. My grandmother, as she was dying, saw something - or someone. She said, "Take my hand. Take my hand and pull." And she wasn't speaking to my mother, the only one (or only corporeal one) who was with her.

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  24. First of all, thanks for the awesome giveaway, Darynda is amazing and I love this series. To answer your question, I've never "seen" a ghost but I have definitely felt the presence of ghosts before. I'm a true believer in things existing that we can't see and I love the paranormal. Can't say it doesn't scare and creep me out from time to time, but I do love reading about it :)

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  25. :D No,I don't :D

    Thanks for the amazing giveaway! :)

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  26. Honestly I have never seen a ghost. But I do believe they are all around us.

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  27. Yes I have seen a ghost and thanks for the giveaway!!

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  28. Never seen a ghost...dont think I ever want to see a ghost...
    Great review!

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  29. Congrats on this all new release! Cannot wait to read it. But to answer your question, yes I have seen a few ghosts before. In Illinois there is a cemetery that's haunted by the rather well known White Mary. An unfortunate girl in a white prom dress seen walking next to the cemetery, usually on stormy days, who might ask or accept for a ride and then just vanish before she gets to the end of the cemetery. Well I saw her one stormy night and she looked up when I stopped the car to turn and look at her. But I didn't offer her a ride. I just was staring at her unable to believe what I was seeing. And as I watched she turned and walked into the wall surrounding the cemetery and disappeared into it. I guess she was mad I didn't want her in my car.

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  30. This book was fabulous and so is this terrific blog! I have never seen a ghost but I have seen an angel..when I was about 5-6 I had a beagle named Shannnon. She was my best friend and one day my parents had to take her to the vet to have her put down cuz she was HIGHLY allergic to flea bites. When my dad told me, I didn't believe them at first..until that night when they didn't say "haha just kidding here she is!" I cried myself to sleep that night. I woke to a VERY bright, warm light. I knew instinctively that it was Shannon even though I couldn't see a face, I knew it was my dog. She told me not to cry anymore that she was in a better place and she would always be in my heart. Then she told me to go back to sleep and someday, we would be back together again. I woke up..smiling to say the least. Thanks so much for letting me share!

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  31. Darynda is awesome! Hope everyone enjoys Fifth Grave!

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