Book Blurb:
Excerpt:
“Mrs. McClintock, allow me to introduce you to Nelly Dean Knight, our new weather reporter.” Wait. What? Weather reporter? Who? Me? She clamped her slightly gnarled fingers tightly over mine and gave my hand a firm shake. “Edwina McClintock. Head honcho of this establishment.” She let go of my hand and swept hers across the room. “To save us both a lot of time and aggravation, here’s how it works around my shop. I run a tight ship. I don’t put up with crap from anyone…so don’t even try wasting my time. Show up when you’re supposed to. Come to work prepared. Do your job right. Around here, it’s my way or the highway. Follow my rules, and we’ll get along fine. If not, you and the little still left of your broadcasting career will be history faster than you can say Cactus City.” She narrowed her eyes. “We clear?” Clear? As mud. Who the hell does she think she’s talking to? I spoke through gritted teeth. “So, if you bothered to read my resume, you’d see I am an award-winning investigative reporter, not a weather girl, as you disrespectfully referred to me. I dunno who’s supposed to take that dead-end job, but it sure as hell isn’t me.” She grinned impishly. “You have spunk and guts, young lady. Good on you. So, here’s the thing. I don’t need an investigative reporter. Truthfully, not enough goes on out here in the middle of nowhere to investigate. She shook the resume at me. “We can do each other some good. You need a way back into the industry, which I can provide, and I need someone who understands the importance of accuracy in reporting.” I grinned. “You don’t need a reporter. The receptionist is qualified. How hard is it to say it’s going to be beastly hot today and a little less hot tonight?” “Lives and livelihoods depend on the weather here. Use your investigative skills to go into the field and report how our severe and often unpredictable weather impacts the residents and the economy. The weather reporter is critically important to the community we serve.” The madame missed her métier. She should have gone into sales. “Show me the compensation package.” I scanned it, then held out my hand. “Thanks for the offer, but I’ll make a lot more as a mortuary cosmetician.” She wrinkled her nose. “Good grief. Talk about a grim career choice. That one wins the gold medal.” I grinned. “Grim, yes, but since death is inevitable, you’re never out of work.” “Before you go, just to be sure you understand how much you’re walking away from, let’s go over the offer.” I rolled my eyes. “Go over it all you want, but the numbers don’t lie. I earned double the salary in Newark.” “Consider the benefits we include. It’s not how much you earn; it’s how much you keep.” She grinned. “And this is a helluva lot better gig compared to preparing corpses for funerals.” She had me there.
Named Best US Author of the Year by N. N. Lights Book Heaven, award-winning cozy mystery author Susie Black was born in the Big Apple, but like her protagonist in The Sunny Knight Mystery Series, she now calls sunny Southern California home. She reads, writes, and speaks Spanish, albeit with an accent like Mildred from Michigan went on a Mexican vacation and is trying to fit in with the locals. Since life without pizza and ice cream as her core food groups wouldn’t be worth living, she’s a dedicated walker to keep her girlish figure. A voracious reader, she’s also an avid stamp collector and ardent sailor. Susie lives with a highly intelligent man and has one incredibly brainy but smart-aleck adult son who inexplicably blames his sarcasm on an inherited genetic defect. Looking for more? Contact Susie at: E-mail: mysteries.authorsusieblack@gmail.com
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