Tying the Knot

A paranormal mystery by E.C. Bell

Marie Jenner just wants a Vegas holiday.

When psychic Crystal Demoines tells James Lavall that his uncle’s spirit is trapped in Las Vegas, Marie is thrilled. All she’ll have to do is help Jimmy “anything for a buck” Lavall move on to the next plane of existence, and then she and James can have the holiday of her dreams.

But she never dreamed that a lieutenant of the drug kingpin from Edmonton would be staying at the same hotel as her and James, and that James would become his new best friend. Or that she’d have to find Jimmy’s girlfriend Rita—who disappeared the same night Jimmy died—before he would finally move on. Or that the most powerful man in the hotel would be looking for Rita too. To find the money she stole.

And Marie never dreamed that she’d be planning a Vegas wedding in the middle of it all. But she is.

Looks like her dream vacation is about to become a nightmare.

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Excerpt

WE DROPPED THE rental car off with the valet and got the keys for our room on the sixth floor.

“Can you remember what room your uncle died in?” I asked as we waited in a small crowd at the bank of elevators. A couple of people glanced at us, looking fairly aghast, and I wished I hadn’t said anything.

“Room 214,” James replied. “According to Crystal.”

The crowd around us backed away, and I guessed that people didn’t want to hear about someone dying here. Even though it was the truth.

The elevator opened and two men walked out. They pushed past us like we weren’t even there, and I glared, trying to think of a truly cutting remark to make. But I stopped, because there was something familiar about one of the guys. At least I thought there was.

Seeing people out of context sometimes made it very hard to connect the dots, memory-wise, but I was certain I’d seen him somewhere before. Not recently, but when I opened my mouth to ask James if he recognized him, he gently placed his hand on my arm like he could read my mind.

“Not now,” he said.

So I shut my mouth and watched the men walk past. They were dressed in suits, and I blinked when I realized I could see the outline of a gun under the armpit of one of them.

Who the heck were they?

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n Interview with E.C. Bell

-What inspired you to become a writer?

I loved telling stories when I was growing up, and found it was easier to keep track of them if I wrote them down. (I also liked messing with my English teacher’s heads, to be honest.)

I started with short stories, but soon realized that the stories I was writing were longer and more complicated. So, I started writing novels. I started with a bloody awful Western that I never finished, and then a bloody awful romance (which I did finish, but luckily never sold.) and then I started writing urban fantasy. And oh, I do like that genre!

Then I found Canadian authors who inspired me. Who wrote unashamedly about all things Canadian, and they pushed me to own where I live. And write about it.

So I guess my short answer to the question is, I liked my own stories enough that I wanted to keep them. Which meant I had to write them down. And then, eventually, when I was brave enough, I decided to share them with the world.

-If you could visit your book’s world for a day, what one thing would you do?Honestly, I’d go to Marie Jenner’s office and hang around with her. She is as much of a coffee snob as I am, so I’m pretty sure I’d like her brew—and I REALLY want to meet the next ghost who walks through her door!

-It’s two in the morning. What does your protagonist reveal in confidence? (Don’t worry, we won’t tell.)Marie is pretty tight mouthed, but I think if you pressed her, she’d talk about her experiences with Arnie, the ex boyfriend who drove her out of her home town and forced her to live in Edmonton. She’s carrying a lot of baggage about that guy.

-Which of your characters would you go out for drinks with?Syliva Worth, the cop who befriends Marie. She’s a complicated character, and think we could have a few laughs with a couple of drinks under our belts.

-You’re in a tavern, and a dwarf challenges you to a duel. What do you do?Honestly? First I’d try to figure out how Marie and I ended up in a tavern with a dwarf, and then I’d point to Marie and say, “She’s my second. Duel with her.” Poor girl, I make her do things I’d never have the courage to do! I’m surprised she hangs around with me anymore!

-Is there a genre you could never write? Which and why?I don’t think I’d try a straight romance again. When I first decided to write novels, I wrote a romance, thinking it would be easy, but it is a lot harder than it looks! I found that I kept adding elements to the story that were definitely not romance, and I couldn’t quite convince the main character to “happily ever after” with the guy I’d chosen for her. So… I leave that genre to others who are more gifted than me.

About E.C. Bell

E.C. Bell is the author of the award winning paranormal Marie Jenner Mystery series. She lives in Alberta, Canada, and when she’s not writing, she’s scouting out new locations for her upcoming novels or renovating her round house where she lives with her husband and their two rescue dogs.

That’s right. Her house is round.

Join her mailing list on her website for news about new books, upcoming appearances and, occasionally, recipes.

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And Twitter @ ApocalypseWoman

Marie Jenner Mystery series books, in order:

1. Seeing the Light
2. Drowning in Amber
3. Stalking the Dead
4. Dying on Second
5. Hearing Voices
6. Haunting the Haunted
7. Tying the Knot

Giveaway

E.C. Bell will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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