Is It Worth Hosting a Book Launch?

"Taste and See" available for free at http://amzn.to/1RB4jtk
Article by Lorilyn Roberts

NOTE: This article was posted last year, but it's still relevant today. Hopefully I can help authors to make wise and informed decisions when it comes to book marketing.

Is It Worth Hosting a Book Launch?

Is it worth the financial cost, emotional energy, physical labor, and mental stress to host a cyber-book launch in today’s ever-changing, highly competitive book market world? If anyone were in a position to answer this question, I suppose it would be me. I lead a Christian book marketing network, the John 3:16 Marketing Network, and have been involved in many book launches over the past three years. In 2013, not counting the book launches I coordinated for other authors in the network, I hosted three book launches of my own:  One in March, one in August, and one in December. For the most part, I conducted the launches using the same methodology with each, with one significant difference for the December launch which I will explain later. Some of this will be technical because I want to give hard facts and real data. If you want to be encouraged, inspired, or challenged, read another one of my blog posts. If you want the raw facts, read on.

First, what did I do that was the same for each launch?  For all three launches, I had at least twenty reviews of my book. I advertised on similar sites, and I list some of those sites and point out the ones that were the most helpful below. I was featured as a guest blogger on eight to twelve blogs for each launch. I had a book trailer for each book. I posted on Facebook and used Twitter extensively. My followers were roughly the same on both accounts for all three launches. I have over 27,000 twitter followers on @LorilynRoberts and 19,999 followers on @John316Network. I’m not sure how many fans I have on Facebook—more accurate would be the number of people who saw my posts, and that was proportional to the Facebook advertising I bought. I advertised at http://bit.ly/Lorilyn_Fan_Page  and http://bit.ly/John316FanPage. To be honest, the $800 I spent on Facebook advertising I could never correlate to a spike in sales on Amazon. (Please note the figures I am giving are for sales from Amazon U.S. Kindle).

I also used Rafflecopter to promote all three book launches.

The launches were all sponsored by the John 3:16 Marketing Network. Authors in the network sent out Facebook and twitter posts promoting the books. In each case, other books by authors were being launched at the same time as mine. The launches ran from the 1^st of the month through the 16^th. I am including figures for the whole month on each launch because some of the promotions I ran did not occur until after the 16^th.. With the August launch, I will include the September figures because they were significant.

There are a lot of variables in terms of which books are more successful than others, not even based on content or quality. I am assuming the books are good or else we wouldn’t be launching them. The books must meet certain criteria to be considered for a launch. Despite my experience and involvement in many launches, I realize now, painfully, that I can’t cookie cut a launch and tell an author, if you do A, B, and C, your launch will be successful. What works for one person may not work for someone else. In my case, all three launches yielded vastly different results. Let me give the figures, and then I will see if I can address some of the variables.

How many books did I sell with each book launch? I checked my KDP report from Amazon for the following figures.

In March, I launched a YA fantasy novel, Seventh Dimension – TheDoor.  

Free on Amazon Kindle

I sold 393 books for 99 cents in March. In April, one month after the launch, I sold 154 books. In May, I sold 104 books. In February, before my launch, I only sold 31 books. I did do some pre-launch promotions using KDP Select where I gave away several hundred Kindle copies of Seventh Dimension – The Door for free. Basically, as a result of my book launch, for 90 days following the launch I sold 651 books. Some of those books were priced at $2.99. I tend to raise the price after the launch to see if I can carry over the sales at a higher price point. Clearly, as a result of my book launch, I was able to sell more copies of Seventh Dimension – The Door than I had previously.  Before February, my sales had been dismal, so I won’t go back and give you those paltry figures.

My sales of Seventh Dimension – The Door, continued to be around a hundred each month, until December. For December, I have only sold 34 copies. Actually, sales of all my books are down for December.

Let me go to the second book I launched, Children of Dreams, AnAdoption Memoir. 

I had given away about 20,000 copies of this book on a couple of previous “free” promotions through KDP Select. But I had sold very few copies at $2.99. I had never listed it at 99 cents. So for the August launch, I reduced the price to 99 cents. In August, using the same promotions I had used before on Seventh Dimension – The Door, I sold 2,462 copies. In September I sold 1,694 copies, and in October I sold 856 copies.

There was one thing different about this launch, however. I was able to feature Children of Dreams on BookBub, but it wasn’t until after the official launch, so that meant the high number of copies I sold spilled over into October. The September 20^th advertisement forced me to keep the book at 99 cents through September. To increase my chances of BookBub featuring my book, I reduced the price of Children of Dreams on Smashwords to 99 cents, and their distribution system reduced it to that same price on other sites as well. 

After BookBub featured Children of Dreams, however, when I raised the price back to $2.99 on Smashwords, the websites they distributed to wouldn’t, despite Smashwords and I both contacting the noncompliant sites. I ended up having to unpublish Children of Dreams from Smashwords to get the price back to $2.99 on all sites. Amazon wouldn’t increase the price, insisting they wanted to price match it to everyone else’s. 

The bottom line is I lost control of the price of my own book. I doubt that I will ever reduce the price of Children of Dreams to 99 cents again on Smashwords.  But I did sell about 1500 books through Smashwords as a result of the BookBub promotion. 

On Amazon, during that three-month period, I sold 3,012 books (again, I’m not including Amazon sales through Canada, England, et cetera).

For December, however, I haven’t even sold a hundred copies of Children of Dreams, so whatever spike I had in August from the book launch and BookBub promotion has run its course.

Now, this brings me to my third book launch for 2013. I launched a children’s picture book, The Donkey and the King. 

Free on Amazon Kindle

The launch ran from December 1 through December 16. A couple of my promotions ran after Thanksgiving, so I am including those numbers in the total. I am currently running a free promotion on this book that started the day after Christmas, so my official book launch numbers on this launch run from about November 26 through December 25. I sold 74 books at 99 cents.

I also spent more money on the December launch. With it being a children’s book at Christmastime, I thought I would probably sell more books and recoup my costs.  In reality, my December launch was a big disappointment compared to my previous two launches.

Where have I advertised on my book launches?  I will give all the places I advertised for The Donkey and the King because I paid for more advertising with this book than with the previous two books:

 http://www.goodkindles.net/p/submit-your-book.html

 http://bookgrow.com/feature-your-book/

 http://bestindiebooks.com/great-indie-books/submit-book/

 http://www.freebookshub.com/authors/

 http://pixelscroll.com/feature-your-product-2/

 http://bestebookreaderlovers.com/kindle-authors-how-to-promote-your-book/

 http://www.fkbooksandtips.com/for-authors/

 http://digitalbooktoday.com/join-our-team/

 http://bargainebookhunter.com/guaranteed-0-99-placement-form/

 http://www.christianebookstoday.com/advertising/

 http://bargainbooksy.com/sell-more-books/

 http://www.thekindlebookreview.net/advertise-here/

 http://www.submityourbooks.com/paid-promo/

 http://www.recycler.com/Listing/AdPlacementConfirmed/0271e74e-e343-4c93-b027-  7c339ab47aa0

 http://digitalbooktoday.com/register-dbt-28-day-book-display-ad/

 http://tracker.kindlenationdaily.com/tracked-books (promotions at bookgorilla.com)

The Donkey and the King was featured on all the above sites. I submitted it to BookBub and ereadernewstoday.com and they declined to feature it. 

Now, a few comments are in order.  BookBub declined to feature my Seventh Dimension – The Door book also. They did feature Children of Dreams and that significantly impacted my total book sales.

If you can feature your book on BookBub I would recommend it.  While the fee was around $300, I made close to $2,000 in sales, so I covered my cost in advertising. The problem is BookBub is very selective about which books they will choose. If they accept your book, you are almost guaranteed to sell a lot of books. You aren’t just buying exposure, which is what I tell myself when I spend money for advertising that produces no measurable sales.

Ereadernewstoday.com declined to feature The Donkey and the King, though they did advertise Children of Dreams and Seventh Dimension – The Door. They take 25 percent of the profits, so I am sure they keep track of those books which sell well and those that don’t. They aren’t going to feature your book if they don’t think they can make money off your book. In each case, I did sell some copies as a result of advertising with them, but I don’t know what those numbers were. I only know I sold copies because they sent me a bill for their 25 percent fee afterwards.

Which sites out of the ones I listed above do I recommend besides BookBub?  The site I recommend as the best is http://www.fkbooksandtips.com/for-authors/. I have advertised on this site with six different books in six different genres at different times of the year and have always seen a significant spike in sales that I can directly correlate to their advertisement. Which other sites would I recommend?  Based on my most recent experience, none.

The fact is, since I lead a network of authors that promote book launches, right now I am reluctant to direct any launches for others or host my own launch. If I can’t come close to guaranteeing that an author will hit best-seller status in his main subcategory, then I can’t in all fairness recommend a book launch, must less charge for it.  And while the charge is not high, any amount seems unethical.

Now, that brings up one more variable. We have used the Rafflecopter for all the launches since April. Everyone would have a free opportunity to win the grand prize (by law this is required), and all a participant had to do was give me his email. That way, I could contact the person who won. I also used the Rafflecopter to build my opt-in list. For full disclosure (also legally required), I used the business model of Rafflecopter so that people knew they were opting in for my very infrequent e-zine. For each launch until December, I picked up about a hundred new subscribers. I also included a few options, like follow me on Facebook and Twitter, and garnered a few more fans.  But if you bought the books being launched, you would get ten chances to win whatever prize we were offering, which varied. One month it was a Kindle Fire. Another month it was a $100 Amazon gift certificate. 

For December, however, the Rafflecopter was handled differently. We had seven books launched and offered a $200 Amazon gift e-card. We used a mommy blogger service that featured our Rafflecopter prize on 25 mommy bloggers, all of whom had to have at least 2,000 followers. We did not feature buying the books on the Rafflecotper as an option. The options were for people to follower the mommy bloggers’ on Facebook, twitter, and their blogs, and in return, the mommy bloggers featured our books on their blog.

I know we had thousands of readers who saw our books on the mommy blogs. I had a few options I included for the network but I did not include any option as mandatory; e.g., that you had to sign up for my opt-in list.  My options were basically to follow the John 3:16 blog and my personal blog. And the coordinator for the mommy bloggers set up a link on Facebook so that prospective readers could follow us on Facebook.

The numbers were mindboggling on the social networking sites. Basically, we doubled our numbers on both blogs. I wished I had written down the exact figures before and after, but I didn’t think the result would be so dramatic. The followers on my blog at http://LorilynRoberts.blogspot.com were about 180 before the launch and they are now at 399.  On the John 3:16 blog at http://John316mn.blogspot.com, we have 500 followers. We had about 250 before the launch, and we picked up about 500 fans on Facebook. We also had more than 21,000 entries on the Rafflecopter, five times higher than the next highest number of entries on a previous launch.

I paid $100 for the coordinator’s fee. Based on the fans and followers we picked up, the cost was well worth it.  But how many books did we sell with all that exposure?  Well, I don’t know.  But my sales were dismal and only one author out of seven reached best-seller status. Her book was for young adults, and I can’t make the correlation that her success was tied to the mommy bloggers. I have a feeling her boost came from the promotion I sent out to my opt-in list on the last day when she reached best-seller status. My readership includes a lot of YA readers since I write in that genre also, but it’s hard to say. I am thankful that for all the work put into the launch by myself, Joseph Young—who handles the landing page—and the many authors in the network who contributed their time and effort into hosting and tweeting the December multi-author book launch, that one author reached her goal.

Who is the coordinator for the mommy bloggers that can work magic with social networking, even if all that tweeting and Facebooking doesn’t translate into book sales?  She is Bobby Anne. You can find her at www.BlogWithMom.com
and www.AdvertiseWithBloggers.com

I have asked myself many times, what can we do to make the launches more successful?  How can we guarantee success?  After all, that’s what the John 3:16 Marketing Network does, is we launch Christian books.

We already have a lot in place, with three years’ experience hosting book launches. An author has to have ten good reviews for starters. He has to have a good book cover and a well-edited book. I also make sure an author is ready to launch—does he have his book categorized properly on Amazon? Did she include relevant search words when she uploaded her Kindle book on Amazon? Is the Author Central page filled out with a bio, twitter feed, blog feed, and book trailer? Does the author even have a book trailer?  Hosting a launch is intense and requires a lot of preparation.

After my experience with the December book launch, I can’t guarantee even with a great book, advertising on professional websites, being hosted on many blogs by John 3:16 members, lowering the book price to 99 cents, having fifteen or more rave reviews, being featured on multiple blogs with large followers, and tweeting to thousands of twitter and Facebook users, that an author can sell enough books to cover his cost. And no businessman worth his reputation would recommend someone spend money on something with doubtful profits. Is it worth it?  The way the book market is now, I don’t think so. I know others will disagree with me, but I don’t come to this conclusion in a mindless vacuum. I have data to support it.

Today I can’t tell you how to have a successful book launch at a price most of us can afford. So I am not coordinating any launches until I do know. That means members in the John 3:16 Marketing Network can host their own launch if they are risk takers, try different approaches, and see what works for them.  I do recommend this:  You must individualize your launch.  I don’t think you can use a “one size fits all” style launch anymore.  I get emails in my inbox all the time, listen to how this author sold thousands of books and if you do what he did, you can, too, and you pay some exorbitant price to see how X author sold 10,000 copies of some obscure book of which I’ve never heard.

To be honest, sometimes I am tempted. Maybe they know something I don’t know. Hopefully I have become wiser—wise enough to know that whatever they did most likely won’t work for me, and there are no shortcuts or magic formulas to make my book fly off the shelf. If they sold so many books and made so much money, why do they want to charge for the information anyway? The reality is, I think the best way to sell a lot of books is to write a lot of books. And when I say a lot, I mean like twenty or more. And that means I need to write more and market less, and quit worrying about launching books. If I couldn’t achieve best-seller status on one of my books, how can I help anyone else anyway?

In the meantime, book marketing is changing every week. What works today may not work tomorrow. Advertising sites come and go. They are a dime a dozen now, it seems, and even if they aren’t expensive individually, you can spend a lot of nickels. I never set out to spend $800 on Facebook advertising. You get caught up in the moment, hoping that this time something magical will happen and those dollars will produce sales. While I can say I have never gone into debt advertising or selling books, I do regret some of my foolish choices and hope by being transparent and open, I can save you a few bucks by not repeating some of my mistakes.

My intent has never been to make money off marketing. I am not a marketing guru, but I do care about Christian authors. My goal with the John 3:16 Marketing Network has always been to provide an environment for authors to help each other—by being informed and sharing what works and what doesn’t. My advice right now is to save your marketing dollars and focus on writing.

I also don’t think it’s sufficient to be featured on a blog to promote your book. You need to be featured on a blog with followers interested in your type of book. And that takes research—a lot of research. If the blogger writes books, you might need to read one of his books before approaching him to host you on his blog. It has gotten that competitive.

If I sound too negative, I don’t mean to be. I am excited about the future as I have several books rattling around in my head that I can’t wait to write.  And once I am ready to market them, there will be new ideas to embrace and fresh paths to discover. And that makes marketing exciting and new all over again. As a person who gets easily bored with the status quo, I wouldn’t want it any other way.

My newest book Seventh Dimension - The City, A Young Adult Fantasy, Book 4 is currently featured on Amazon Scout - something knew I am trying for marketing. If you want to help me, you can click on "nominate" at bit.ly/LR_KindleScout. If Kindle Scout offers me a contract, you will receive a free Kindle book when "The City" is published. Also, you can read the first 5,000 words and tell me what you think - leave a comment here and even if I don't win a contract, I'll send you a free ebook when it's published.

To learn more about Lorilyn Roberts and her books, please visit her website at http://LorilynRoberts.com. 

Be sure to sign up for her email list for new book notifications and free and discounted offers. You can also receive a free ebook of her memoir Children of Dreams by joining her email list. Go to http://LorilynRoberts.com and click on the "sign-up now" button at the top of the screen.

Kindle Scout Book - Read First Five Thousand Words and Nominate "The City" - Receive FREE Kindle Book if Amazon Selects It

I need your help. For the last six months I have labored tirelessly to write "The City." Please click here and read the first 5,000 words. 

If you like "The City," Please consider nominating it by clicking on the "nominate" button. Even if Amazon doesn't choose my book, just your vote will help me to garner exposure. If Amazon does select "The City," your nomination will mean Amazon will send you a free Kindle copy when they publish it. 

https://t.co/LQ3cT59d23 Read 1st 5000 words on Kindle Scout and vote. #CR4U #John316 #IAN1 #amreading #thriller pic.twitter.com/m9x7KGDS3d

— Lorilyn Roberts (@LorilynRoberts) February 25, 2016

Free Book 2-10 and 2-11, The Presence of Shadows by Kara Howell

Free Kindle Book for Limited Time by Deborah Bateman

Book Review of The Dividing Stone by Anita Estes

The Dividing Stone

Anita Estes

January 19, 2016

Tate Publishing

ISBN  978-1681872001

Print $16.99

Amazon

About the Book:

A sinister, dark force hovers over the unsuspecting valley when Margo Pierson discovers a tattered letter illuminating a mysterious ancestor and warning them of “a diabolical evil that stalks this town.” Through preoccupied with preparations for the prestigious craft show, Margo, the young potter, is catapulted into a quest to unearth the truth and expose the uncanny murder of her namesake Unwittingly, she and her companions stumble upon an ancient stone that holds the secret to both the past and present dangers. Caught off guard by her nemesis, Bill Guiles, he kidnaps Ms. Pierson and attempts to erase all she discovered of the secret society, Will their plans be thwarted? Will havoc be the new order? Will relationships be ruined and marriages annihilated? As the forces of good and evil engage in a spiritual battle in the heavenly realm, can Margo survive and foil the deadly curses set in motion centuries ago?

Come join Margo Pierson and friends for a roller-coaster ride and supernatural adventure of your life.

My review:

Ms. Estes’ debut inspirational fiction is filled with darkness and terror, evil and demons battling for control. Using the cover of the church and secret societies, demons hold sway over those who have denounced faith, or who are weak-willed. Even Margo and her husband Chris’s friends are close to tragedy in this story of spiritual battle.

Told in multiple viewpoints, The Dividing Stone whips the reader from heaven to earth to the realms of the demonic in fast action. Detailed, brittle, even gory in places, the story unfolds as Margo gradually closes in on the truth of the events surrounding her ancestry in a quaint New England community. Little does she know the forces unleashed that fateful day of a long-ago suspected suicide have never left and are simply waiting to finish what they began when Margo finds a cursed piece of antiquity.

debut suspense novel from Anita Estes

Anita Estes debut novel

ISBN 978-1681872001

January 19, 2016

Tate Publishing
buy from Anita's blogpage

buy print book on Amazon

Peppered with mystery and intrigue, The Dividing Stone engages the reader in a dynamic interplay of supernatural forces, reflecting the  multifaceted reasons for the demolition of marriages and division in the church. It explores the spiritual and human dynamics involved in the treacherous plot to destroy believers, and the extraordinary power of prayer to overcome evil. 

From the back:

A sinister, dark force hovers over the unsuspecting valley when Margo Pierson discovers a tattered letter illuminating a mysterious ancestor and warning them of "a diabolical evil that stalks this town." Though preoccupied with preparations for the prestigious craft show, Margo, the young potter, is catapulted into a quest to unearth the truth and expose the uncanny murder of her namesake. Unwittingly, she and her companions stumble upon an ancient stone that holds the secret to both the past and present dangers. Caught off guard by her nemesis, Bill Guiles, he kidnaps Ms. Pierson and attempts to erase all she discovered of the secret society. Will their plans be thwarted? Will havoc be the new order? Will relationships be ruined and marriages annihilated? As the forces of good and evil engage in a spiritual battle in the heavenly realm, can Margo survive and foil the deadly curses set in motion centuries ago?

Come join Margo Pierson and friends for a roller-coaster ride and supernatural adventure of your life!

The Dividing Stone

No one can escape it. 

Read an excerpt:

Margo stared at the tattered piece of brittle paper in disbelief. A gust of wind almost tore it from her hands, but the cold blast quickly died. Her eyes raced across the faded, amber-colored letter as she struggled to absorb its meaning. She stood transfixed and read the vehement warning written with a fountain pen in red ink. 

There is a diabolical evil that stalks this town. 

The next sentences were barely legible, but she could make out a phrase: “a true-blood Dubier.” 

The name sounded familiar from her research. Margo thought it might be one of the founding town fathers. She backtracked and deciphered a few preceding words. “They are closer than you think. Beware!”

New Book Release: The Dividing Stone by Anita Estes

Set on a quest to discover her mysterious ancestor, Margo Pierson, is catapulted into a battle to overcome a sinister society bent on annihilating Christians. 

On a hunch, she and her husband uncover a cryptic stone that thrusts them headlong on a path of destruction. While others are caught off guard, Margo senses an evil presence and comes face to face with the master manipulator, Bill Guiles. 

Through his devious devices she gets tangled in his web, until she is rescued by an unlikely character. In a struggle to posses the stone, the dark secrets of its origin  are revealed.

Enjoy a flavor of The Dividing Stone by Anita Estes

The Dragon Master of the Dark Abyss breathed fire and summoned all his minions. He roared with a fearsome anger like rolling thunder. “You fools! What bumbling idiot allowed that book to fall into her hands?"

Margo raced over and gasped at what was on the other side. “Oh no!” She couldn’t believe her eyes. Encased in a ring of open rectangular designs stood bands of stylized symbols. “Hieroglyphics?"

                                                                            

“Well, in the six months I’ve been a Christian, I’ve been saved by an angel and from the jaws of a bear.” He gulped his black coffee. “I never thought someone like me would’ve been helped by something I didn't even believe in, and now by...prayer!"

Learn more about Anita Estes by visiting her website. Click here.

Wakulla Book Review: Christian Olympics by S.E. Gregg

       

“The Christian Olympics” by author S.E.Gregg is a pretty good read.The book covers a wide variety of issues confronting Christians. 

The book is interesting and thought provoking in its analogy of a Christian's life being like the Olympics. Struggles with life's little problems are broken down into categories such as competition, preparation, and exercise.

In reading this book, I was encouraged to realize that my struggles in life can be likened to a race where I can do better through diligent training, spiritual exercise, and a commitment to overcoming adversity. 

I enjoyed the book as a father because it addresses parenting and related subjects helpful to anyone with teenagers. 

Finally,the book is well written with reasonable scriptural references. I especially enjoyed the presentation of the material in an uplifting and meaningful manner as opposed to  some books whose authors are more dogmatic or demotional view to express their points.

I would suggest new Christians, newly married, and new parents read this book - and yes, athletes too!

Wakulla Book Review by Richard P.

Purchase your Kindle copy from Amazon by clicking here

*~*~*~*

I want to personally thank all the men who are reviewing the books written by JOHN 3:16 AUTHORS. I am thankful that we are able to bless them and appreciate the encouragement given to us by their reviews. 

Each WEEK (usually on Tuesday), we are posting reviews from 

Wakulla Correctional inmates of John 3:16 books. 

Inmates are loving the new books from John 3:16 authors. 

Chaplain Steve Fox is adding the new books to the prison library in this initiative to "change lives to ensure a safer Florida."

                                                                                                  

limited time sale for Sid Frost's new mystery, Murder in Sun City

 Murder in Sun City

ISBN-13: 978-0-9903181-2-5

Kindle US

$2.99 Regular price

$1.99 1/3/2016--1/10/2016

Kindle UK

£1.99 Regular price

£0.99 1/3/2016--1/10/2016

CHRISTIAN BOOKMOBILE NOVEL No. 5

Sun City is typically calm…until Liz shows up in her red double-decker bookmobile and starts cruising. When she finds one of her patrons dead, the police call it an accident and a day…but Liz has her suspicions and isn't about to give up. Lieutenant Bratton has met his match.

James Jones is a Vietnam War veteran who continued to fight the battles long after the war ended and everyone went home. His encounters are mostly in his head today, but if the military took senior citizens, he'd sign up without batting an eye. Combat was what he did best and he is lost without it. Now, as a soldier of fortune, James ends up in Sun City also.

This is the story of what happens when Liz and James cross paths.

My review:

Sid Frost is not only one of my favorite people, he's become one of my favorite authors. In this mystery, the fifth in his bookmobile series, Sid draws his readers into the life of librarian Liz Seido Helmsley who has found her true love in a British ex-pat farmer named Samuel, married and moved to Sun City. She takes the beloved red double-decker mobile library introduced in The Vengeance Squad Goes to England, and it’s not long before Liz and the library give her the opportunity for a mobile library route in this squeaky clean retirement community.

But wherever Liz goes, trouble seems to proceed her. This time it’s with a library patron found dead. Neighbor’s stories about the deceased don’t add up, and when Lt. Joe Bratton of the local police wants to wrap up the case as a simple accident, Liz decides to dig a bit deeper. Sharon Coleman turns out to be a lady of many oddities and mysteries, and Mr. Coleman even more so. With the help of her newly graduated grandson Michael and the blessing, mostly, of Samuel, Liz embarks on her own investigation to help Lt. Bratton whether he needs it or not, and make sure the Coleman’s daughter receives her proper inheritance.

One of Sharon’s secrets, an apparently homeless veteran with PTSD, James Jones, complicates everything. As the story progresses and the twists and turns lead the reader deeper into the corkscrewed life of the Colemans, about the only sympathetic figure left, so it seems, is Princess, Sharon’s pet pooch.

Murder in Sun City is a fun mystery, highly recommended for those who enjoy cozy mysteries featuring characters with a lifetime of experience, and plenty of exciting turns. I especially appreciated the treatment of those who suffer from PTSD and may not be in full control of their faculties.

About the Author:

Sidney W. Frost was born and raised in Austin, Texas, served in the U.S. Marines in California, worked in the space industry in Los Angeles and Houston, and is now living in Georgetown, Texas. 

He is active in his church and is a former Stephen Minister and Stephen Leader.

He has loved choral music from an early age, and was in 42 Austin Lyric Opera productions. He and his wife, Celeste, sing in their church choir as well as the San Gabriel Chorale. They have also participated in several Berkshire Festivals in and out of the United States. He loves to travel and has visited 33 countries.

He has a Master of Science degree from the University of Houston and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California at Long Beach. He has worked in the Information Technology business for many years, and in May, 2011, retired after thirty years as an Adjunct Professor of Computer Science at Austin Community College. He received the adjunct teaching excellence award in 2005. He now teaches writing courses, most recently a class on memoir writing for the Senior University of Georgetown.

He is the author of four Christian novels, set in and around Austin, Texas, and three non-fiction books. Awards for his first novel, Where Love Once Lived, include First Place in the 2007 SouthWest Writers Contest and First Place in the 2007 Writers' League of Texas Novel Manuscript Contest. Visit Sid’s website http://sidneywfrost.com, and Amazon author pages. http://amazon.com/author/sidneyfrost