Don Pendleton's "Joe Copp Mystery Thrillers"

Finally! I now have all six of Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Private Eye mystery thrillers on sale as Kindle and paper with new covers. It has taken me much longer than anticipated to get those six books ready for publication again in print. I am happy with the new covers and I think they look great in print, and others have told me the same thing. I know Don would love them if he was still here--and as some of you know, he died in 1995. I work hard to keep his works available not only for his old fans, but for new readers.

~Linda

Interview with Andrew E. Kaufman, Author of "While the Savage Sleeps"

My Interview with author, Andrew E. Kaufman

Linda: Andrew, congratulations on publishing your novel, While the Savage Sleeps, a forensic paranormal mystery thriller. It sounds like a fascinating novel. In reading your biography I see you received university degrees in journalism and political science and then went on to become an Emmy-nominated writer/producer in TV news media. So my first questions are: When did you become interested in writing? Did you write as a kid?

Andrew: For as long as I can remember I've always had a fascination with and a love for the written word. My mother (to whom I dedicated the book) was an avid reader, and I think that had a significant influence on me. Plus, I've always been a communicator and yet somewhat introverted. For me, writing seemed to work in both respects.

Linda: Who or what has influenced your writing and in what way?

Andrew: That's a tough one. I think for me, as far as writing goes, the influence was a cumulative process: One part actual life experiences, one part the many things I've read throughout the years. I don't think any one has had more of an influence than the other. More, my writing is reflection of all of those.

Linda: Who have been your favorite writers over the years? What books do you believe have influenced your writing? What books have most influenced your life and/or your world view?

Andrew: Every single one of them! It doesn't matter whether or not I enjoyed them; in certain ways they've all helped shape me and my writing. I've greatly admired many writers, and that, I think, drove me to be better myself. In others, I may not have admired them so much and as a result decided to avoid writing in the same manner. But yes, there are some writers I've enjoyed more than others. Dennis Lehane comes to mind, and Jonathan Kellerman, too. Both have a very unique voice, which to me is of the utmost importance. You could throw a page in front of me from either of them and I'd be able identify it in a heartbeat.

Linda: I love to ask writers how they receive their inspiration. Many feel their inspiration comes from beyond them at times as they are working with their characters. Have you experienced that in your writing? Do you visualize your scenes? Do you “walk” in your character’s shoes?

Andrew: I've been told by people who have read While the Savage Sleeps that my writing is very visual, that the scenes seemed to play out in their heads like a movie. I think that's because I'm very big on capturing the mood and visuals when I write. In my mind's eye, I'm constantly zooming in, panning, pulling away, and examining things—not in a lingering sense or to the point of distraction, but just enough to give people a sense of where they are while they're on that page. As for my characters, I think they are all extensions of my own personality. In order to portray them effectively and give them dimension, I think you have to really get inside their heads (or maybe it's the reverse, or both). If you don't do that, you end up with very flat characters. My protagonist, Cameron Dawson, has had a particularly difficult life. In order to effectively get that across to the reader, I needed to feel his pain as if it were my own. I was able to do that, but it was a very difficult and emotional process. There were times I literally had to take a break from him and move on to something else because I felt emotionally drained. I suppose for an author, portraying a character can at times be like getting into an acting role.

Linda: Tell us about While the Savage Sleeps, and how the idea for the story began.

Andrew: Believe it or not, it came to me in a dream; no joke. I'd been struggling for quite some time, trying to figure out my plot but not having much luck at all. I remember waking up one morning—or rather, sitting straight up in bed—and saying to myself: “That's it! I've got it!” I suppose my subconscious, or maybe something else, had been trying to tell me something. Perhaps the only way to get me to listen was while I was asleep and my defenses were down. Either way, it worked. The idea resonated strongly, and a novel was born.

In a nutshell, While the Savage Sleeps is the story of two strangers: distance separates them, a dark secret connects them, but a voice from the grave will draw them together. It begins in the fictional town of Faith, New Mexico where strange things are happening. People are disappearing and for others it's far worse. The answer lies not in their backyard but miles away where Kyle Bancroft's life is turning upside-down. She's seeing, hearing, and dreaming things she can't explain: flashbacks to World War II and an eerie hospital ward with locked doors, empty gurneys, and gutteral screams. To make matters worse, a ghostly green-eyed girl is complicating Kyle's vision with an urgent message: time is running out. Kyle’s otherworldly encounters are driving her straight toward Faith, where she and Cameron will need to find out whether the child speaking from the grave is dangerously evil or trying to help them uncover a secret the town has been hiding for more than fifty years.

Linda: You have taken what is becoming the new direction in publishing...self publishing, e-publishing, as many of us are doing. Why your decision to do so? Your book is available at Amazon Kindle. What other plans do you have for it? Will it also be in print soon?

Andrew: I feel very strongly about this. I spent more than a year querying agents, trying to find representation, and I had quite a few requests for the manuscript, as well as a lot of positive feedback. The comments were indeed very encouraging, things like: “It's very well written.” and “Compelling story.” and “Has tons of potential.” But in the end, many of them felt it was a genre that fell a bit too far outside their areas of expertise. Agenting these days has become extremely specialized. Most are very specific about what they feel they can sell. Because While the Savage Sleeps mixes two sort of unlikely bedfellows, forensics and the paranormal, I think that made it difficult to pin down, where genres are concerned and thus, a not-so-good candidate for agent representation. But I believe e-books and self publishing are about to change everything. This isn't your father's “vanity press” anymore. Amazon and many others are now paving the way for indie authors and allowing them to find their audiences, or perhaps visa versa. Regardless of what the naysayers think, this is a great time to be an author because it's a whole new game. Just look at Joe Konrath. He's selling his e-books hand over fist. As for print, yes, I'm currently in the process of working out the details on that and hope to have a hard copy available by the end of summer.

Linda: With your years of experience in writing, research, and skill as a journalist, how would you compare that to your experience of writing a novel?

Andrew: Two completely different worlds. When I wrote for television news, the stories were often 15 to 20 second blurbs—not exactly the most nurturing environment for creativity. Even when I produced special series, they were often only about a minute-thirty, and that was with soundbites. But on the other hand, it did teach me some valuable skills. For one, I learned to be economical with words. I admit I did go the other direction for a bit, a little crazy with words, but that I think was to be expected (I was verbally frustrated), however, I did come back around and tone it down. TV news also taught me to research my stories well. For While the Savage Sleeps, I actually attended an autopsy. I wanted my scene to not only be factually correct, I also wanted the readers to get a sense of the mood and nuances in that setting. I have to admit it was a truly nauseating experience, one I'd rather not have to experience again, but I don't think the book would have been the same without it.

Linda: One more question—what is your favorite quote?

Andrew: “And the time came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” –Anais Nin

Linda: That’s a great quote. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to interview you for my blog, Andrew. Again, congratulations on getting your book out there, and the best of luck with it.

Andrew: The pleasure was mine. Thank you for having me!

Visit Andrew E. Kaufman's website and his blog.

~Linda

Free PC Kindle Reader and New Kindle Price

Amazon has recently dropped the price of their ebook reader, the Kindle.

It now sells for $189...an attractive price...

and you can now download FREE an app, A Kindle reader, for your computer, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPad...



With Amazon's increased royalty rate for authors that just went into effect, it would be my guess that more and more books in the $2.99 to $9.99 price range are going to be available as authors choose to take advantage of the greater royalty.

~Linda

Words

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind."
--Rudyard Kipling 1865 – 1936

Lower Kindle Price, Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Thrillers

I have been working on the print format for six Joe Copp Private Eye novels by Don Pendleton. I had recently put them up at Kindle but in doing new covers and new trade paper I have to go through them again for the proper format for print. So it takes time.

I have lowered the price on the Kindle editions of the Joe Copp Thrillers. They are now going for $6.99 each. So if you want a good hard-boiled detective read, those just might be the books for you.

I'm so pleased with the Kindle sales of my books that I may just have to splurge before long for my own Kindle. I've heard from two frineds that they just love their Kindle.

The Joe Copp Mystery Series was Don Pendleton's first hardcover books, after many books published in paperback. The Copp books were published by the late Donald I. Fine, a longtime N.Y. editor and publisher. They were soon after realeased in paperback. I put them back in print through the Authors Guild Back in Print program about ten years ago. And now in the coming weeks they will again be released in print with new covers...the same covers my web desinger, Judy Bullard and I designed for Kindle editions.

If you need any Kindle, POD, ebook covers, check Judy's work out. She does excellent covers. She recently designed several for author Mark Terry.

Here are a few reviews of Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Private Eye Series:

“This Joe Copp adventure reads like an express train. A throwback to the vintage Spillane era, Pendleton knows how to keep us turning the pages.” ~Publishers Weekly

“Pendleton has a great new character in Copp. His style is fresh, the pace is brisk, and there are enough twists to please any mystery fan.” ~St. Petersburg Times

“Pendleton, author of the long-running paperback Executioner series, shows in his first hardcover that hardboiled writing can be insightful as well as action-packed.” ~Library Journal

“A fast-moving, even blurring, story of murder behind the floodlights.” ~Book World

"Pendleton mines another bestselling vein with the cases of ex-cop/private eye Joe Copp, the toughest operator this side of Mike Hammer."
~ALA Booklist

Read more about Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Kindle books Here

~Linda

Lee DeWyze Wins American Idol

"Master of Fantasy: Frank Frazetta's Legacy"

American Artist Frank Frazetta passed away on May 10, 2010, at the age of eighty-two.

His art career covered many years, and he was noted for work in comic books, paperback book covers, paintings, posters, record-album covers and other media.

The book cover above, of my late husband Don Pendleton’s paperback novel The Godmakers (written under Dan Britain) is a Frank Frazetta cover. The book was published in 1970.

I found it interesting to see the evolution of Frazetta’s art through the years, not only of his own style, but of the apparent social/cultural changes that have taken place. It is a brief look at art history over fifty years or so.

From Time Magazine:

Master of Fantasy: Frank Frazetta's Legacy

Self-Publishing Debate

I’m beginning to find rather amusing these ongoing and, at times, heated discussions of self publishing vs. standard publishing. Oh, some refer to it as vanity publishing...a term I now consider to be misplaced in some instances. If you receive royalties, I believe that to not be vanity publishing.

More than ten years ago, the Authors Guild, Inc.(I’ve been a member since 1990) began to offer their members the opportunity to put there out of print books back in print. Many authors have done so. I did so with my late husband, Don Pendleton’s two mystery series, 12 books in all: the Joe Copp Private Eye Thrillers and the Ashton Ford Psychic Detective series. The Back in Print program was in conjunction with iUniverse.com (a company somehow connected at the time with Barnes and Noble) and apparently now under the umbrella of Author Solutions/Author House.

At the time I published Don’s 12 books with the Back in Print program, the set up cost per book was $99 and the royalty rate was 25%. I also published several other books with iUniverse over the next two years or so, at the $99 setup, and did my own covers, and had a royalty rate on those new books at 20%.

They’ve made profit...and I have heard from others, “but you didn’t get anything up front like you would with a publisher.” No, you do not get an advance when publishing this way, an advance against royalties. And in some cases, depending on the size of the advance you receive, it could be all you ever get, or if you earn out more royalty above the initial advance (usually part on signing, part on delivery of the mss), the publisher may distribute it to you over a long period of time while keeping some of your earned royalty money as a protection for them against returns by booksellers.

In the last few years since I published with iUniverse, their rates have increased significantly...about 500%. And things are not as good with this new company—they were slower to post royalties, and are not posting Kindle royalties (I paid $99 bucks recently to have two book put at Kindle by iUniverse). That was a mistake on my part as I could have done it for FREE myself, as I’ve discovered how easy it is to do. I’ve now put 31 books at Kindle myself, and I love that as I can watch my daily sales through my account at Amazon Kindle.

I have also ended my agreement with iUniverse on the Joe Copp and Ashton Ford mystery series, and will be putting them in print with createspace.com shortly. I did new covers for all 12 and put them at Kindle where they are selling nicely. Those same covers will be done soon for the new PODs.

I also published two books with createspace.com, my PI novel, Shattered Lens: Catherine Winter, Private Investigator, and The Cosmic Breath: Metaphysical Essays of Don Pendleton. That was quick and easy at $39.

So what I am so amused at is the apparent belief by many (agents, publishers, and authors) that books published in this way have no value. You can read what many are saying in their blogs, and in comments about POD and ebook publishing....if an author decided to bypass the agent—the mainstream publisher, then the manuscript must be “junk” and not worthy of publication. Why does a writer’s group disallow an author membership if he or she has published in this way? Why are some well-known writers against this kind of publication? Why do they care? They have made their money via their choice. (or have they actually gotten ripped off by mainstream publishers and don’t care to admit that—and believe me, it can happen).

Personally I prefer having control over my books, and if it means not having to go through the marketing process of a well-written manuscript, whether at the agent level or the publisher level, which can take many, many months or longer, it is well worth it to me. I get irritated when an agent takes months to reply, or will only reply to a query if interested, often leaving the author hanging will waiting a reasonable time, Yes, my books may suffer lack of distribution, but I have decided that I will do all I can to let people know of my writing and those who are meant to read it, will. The others who want to complain and prejudge the quality of work with a self-published tag on it, well, that is their problem.

Authors write for a variety of reason and expectations from publishing their work can be varied. And the rewards of writing have nothing much to do with bucks but with heart-felt feedback. Those are the things that stay with an author, the joy of sharing—the meeting of the minds, the author’s with the reader’s. The moment you learn you inspired someone with your words, that’s all that really matters. I’ve enjoyed that many times over in the last twenty years. And my husband, Don Pendleton was able to enjoy that for his long career, and even today, I still receive emails from his fans on how his books inspired them.

For some quality self-published works, take a look at Jon Guenther, H. Charles Dilmore, Summer Bacon, Stephen Tremp, Don Pendleton, Linda Pendleton, Greg Pendleton, and in the coming weeks, a memoir by Athena Demetrios. I’m sure some of you know of others who could be added to the list. I know the list of quality, interesting, and inspirational, self published books must be very long. It has to be as there is a lot of talent in this world.

Some mainstream publishers and booksellers who are getting in the game of offering publishing programs for a fee, now includes Harlequin, Thomas Nelson, Barnes and Noble (just announced), Hay House, of course, Amazon, and I would bet the list is growing day by day.

So why the negative reaction by some agents to authors who self publish? Seems obvious....they may be out a job one day.

What is not obvious is why another published author cares if one of his peers decides to self-publish....

Oh, maybe that’s it. They don’t consider self-published authors “peers” in their “elite” world? Could that be it?

All that said, do I believe in spending a lot of money putting your book out there? No, not really. Any aspiring author about to publish should carefully research, consider all alternatives, and not be “taken in” at a vulnerable time—vulnerable—yes, as it feels great to hold your book in your hand, or to see it listed for Kindle download or other downloads as ebooks.

It’s a sense of pride of doing what we love to do, and doing it well. As Joseph Campbell once said, “Follow your bliss.” And if that bliss is writing, do it!

~Linda

Is Lee the Next American Idol?

Fox American Idol Photo

Lee DeWyze really sang well tonight. I have liked him from the beginning of the season and actually hope he will be the winner. I like Crystal, also, and the duet they sang last week was excellent. And I assume they will have the opportunty to record together, as they both are excellent. Her voice is very unique.

So I am voting...still have more than an hour left. I have believed for several weeks that the final two would be Lee and Crystal.



Time will tell...Casey is popular, too...



Who do you think will win?

~Linda

Mary Higgins Clark, Author of Suspense

“An education is the best gift a parent can give a child.” ~Mary Higgins Clark, Author

Best-selling suspense author, Mary Higgins Clark has released her new book, The Shadow of Your Smile. In this first short video she speaks of the inspiration for her story, and in the second, she offers advice to aspiring writers. In the third video she talks about her book, I Heard That Song Before, a psychological thriller. She reveals in these videos how she comes up with her ideas for her stories. Very interesting.

This weekend, the 82 year-old author spoke at the commencement exercise at Mount Saint Mary College, a private, liberal arts 4-year college located in Newburgh, in the Hudson Valley area of New York. She received an honorary degree, adding another to the many she has been given. She had graduated from Fordham University at about the age of 50 after attending night classes for six years and five of her own children graduated from college and two with law degrees.

She told the nearly 700 graduating students: “Make your story something more than a best-seller. Write it so it becomes a classic.”

How well she knows. She has sold over 100 million books and has won many awards. I read about her life at Wikipedia and her earlier life had been difficult in some ways and I would imagine her memoir, Kitchen Privileges, would be a good read. She will be appearing later this month at the Book Expo in New York.








~Linda

Novelist Barry Eisler and INSIDE OUT

Novelist Barry Eisler has a new thriller, INSIDE OUT, coming out next month, and with his personal background and political interests this should be a great read. It’s all about torture, government cover-ups, a mixture of fiction and reality, written by someone in the know, who for three years was in a covert position with the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, and is a lawyer. He also blogs often about civil liberties and torture.

In the first video he reads one of his sex scenes...(language warning for tender ears)

and in the second video he tells us why he wrote the story.

Guess we need to buy his book! I may buy the audio recording...

The book, audio, and Kindle editions are available at Amazon for preorder. It will be out in late June. It’s getting great professional reviews, take a look.









My previous post about Barry


~Linda

Novel Writing Guide by Jon Guenther

"HEY, DID YOU HEAR THE NEWS?"

Author Jon Guenther has a new blog for writers...aspiring writers...or those interesting in the art of writing...

Novel Writing Guide
Your ultimate guide to creating, writing and publishing a novel by Jon Guenther.

Take a look as he has some excellent comments and ideas--and this will be an ongoing series of instruction and information.

~Linda

Don Pendleton's Last Novel, Roulette

I see Amazon has dropped the price of my Kindle edition of our crime novel, Roulette by Don and Linda Pendleton. This turned out to be Don Pendleton's last novel. Also our first fiction collaboration. It's also available in paper at amazon and other online bookstores.

Review of Roulette: “Great story. I could hardly put it down. So real, so credible, a delightful page turner.” ~Ken M., California



Roulette by Don and Linda Pendleton

Husband and wife police detectives, both married more to the badge than each other, have inevitable conflict within their marriage and their careers are put to the test when a psychopathic killer invades their community.

In the early morning hour of a spring day, Helen Carter, twenty four-year-old housewife and mother of two small children, is awakened by a ski-masked intruder at her bedside. Paralyzed by fear, she works desperately to steel herself against the inevitable rape and harrowing attack that is already in progress. Helen Carter is to become only the first victim of the Sunrise Rapist. She is a very lucky young woman. Following the brutal attack of the second victim of the Sunrise Rapist, the perpetrator is immediately tagged the Sunrise Killer, and the quiet and peaceful community of San Remo, California, becomes a hotbed of fear and outrage.

The San Remo Police Department, already caught up in a difficult political climate, now has its hands full with a killer in their midst. Detective Rebecca Storm, the only woman in the detective bureau, and the sole member of the Sex Crimes Unit, finds that the Sunrise Killer will not only challenge her career, her marriage, but her very life.

Her husband, and fellow officer, veteran Detective Sergeant Peter Storm, already caught up in the infighting of the police department and city management, is drawn deeper into his career battles and challenges as the Sunrise Killer makes his appearance in San Remo.

What is ahead for the San Remo Police Department, and especially for two of its detectives, is many sleepless nights as the Sunrise Killer increases his maniacal assault on the innocent women and children of San Remo. But the killer’s reach goes far beyond his actual victims and their families. The lives of those dedicated to preserving peace within the city and pursuing the serial killer are challenged to the limits, both in their personal lives and in their professional careers.

The story is fast-moving, often riveting, often disturbing, as the cops are repeatedly challenged by a psychotic serial killer who has them all in his grip.

Copyright © 2010 by Linda Pendleton.

New Book by Susan Boyle Coming Soon

Coming this fall, the autobiography, The Woman I was Born to Be by Susan Boyle.

Boyle said: "When I strutted onto the stage for that audition, I was a scared wee lassie, still grieving for my mother, not caring how I looked. I think I’ve grown up a lot in the last year, become more of a lady, and I’m not so frightened anymore.

"I’m writing this book to try to show that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, and I hope it will benefit other people. My story demonstrates that you shouldn’t just look at the label, you should look at the whole person, emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually, and I hope that telling it will show that dreams are not impossible, if you’ve got courage and a willingness to go on no matter what the circumstances."

Gay rights and Patient Rights

SUBJECT: Respecting the Rights of Hospital Patients to Receive Visitors and to Designate Surrogate Decision Makers for Medical Emergencies

Today President Obama issued an important memorandum concerning hospital visitation rights and medical directives. In some ways, it could be considered historic, giving not only patients the respect and honor to their decisions, but to give gays and lesbian couples and unmarried heterosexual couples visitation rights that have either been denied, or could be denied. It's all about equality....

“Every day, all across America, patients are denied the kindness and caring of a loved one at their sides,” Mr. Obama said in the memorandum to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, adding that the rules could also help widows and widowers who rely on friends and members of religious orders who care for one another. But he says gay men and lesbians are “uniquely affected” because they are often barred from visiting partners with whom they have spent decades.

Hopefully our President’s memorandum will make the necessary changes to the law concerning hospital care and it appears it will have to be honored by any hospitals participating in Medicare and Medicaid. And it should be that that participating hospitals may not deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.

This could affect thousands of people so hopefully it will move forward quickly.

Have any of you ever had a problem with visitation of love one or fear of being denied visitation or the acceptance of a directive?

Read the President’s memorandum here.

Mystery writer, Sue Grafton Interview

Mystery writer, Sue Grafton, has had a very successful run with her Kinsey Millhone series of novels. Known as the alphabet mysteries,"A" is for Alibi, “B” is for Burglar,” and so on up until "U is for Undertow" her December 2009 book, Grafton has continued to put out a good book with each story. I personally have not read them all, but did read a few of the early alphabet.

I did hear her speak at a mystery writers luncheon some years back and very much enjoyed her talk. Thinking back it may have been in the very late 1980s. At that time her series was fairly new as the first book was published in 1983—but even so, she was already an international best-selling author.

In this recent interview here from Borders, she addresses the reason she is not interested in her books becoming films, and many writers often hold her view on that. And Grafton is even more in the “know” as she worked in Hollywood on films for fifteen years.

Enjoy...





~Linda

Don Pendleton's "Heart to Heart" Novel

Don Pendleton’s fifth Ashton Ford novel, Heart to Heart, is now available at Kindle.

I have enjoyed again reading and getting Ashton Ford ready for Kindle. Don was able to explore metaphysical ideas and the paranormal with his Ashton Ford character.

Don Pendleton wrote this for his readers about his Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective series:

"Through this character I attempt to understand more fully and to give better meaning to my perceptions of what is going on here on Planet Earth, and the greatest mystery of all the mysteries: the why of existence itself. Through Ford I use everything I can reach in the total knowledge of mankind to elaborate this mystery and to arm my characters for the quest. I try to entertain myself with their adventures, hoping that what entertains me may also entertain others–so these books, like life itself, are not all grim purpose and trembling truths. They are fun to write; for some they will be fun to read."

Heart to Heart, is an adventure that Ashton Ford never intended to share because it involved many tender depths of his own heart. It all started with the sudden appearance of a gentleman reported to have died over 150 years ago—and a mind-blowing mystery high above the sea in Laguna Beach, California. There, in a magnificent mansion, Ford finds himself surrounded by luxurious comfort and the flesh and blood “ghosts” of people from the past. Ford’s keen and awesome talents must now pierce the secret of the mansion, while his heart, at the mercy of an ageless and beautiful sculptress, follows a dangerous path of its own.

For Ford, his beliefs about reincarnation and reality would never be the same as he sees into the past, and sometimes, into your heart as well as his own.


Soon, I will have the sixth Ashton Ford book, Time to Time ready for Kindle.

Read about the other books in the series, here and here.

~Linda

Don Pendleton's Psychic Detective Series of Novels

Private Investigator Ashton Ford has special powers, powers that some call supernatural. A former naval intelligence officer, highly knowledgeable in cryptology and philosophy, Ford will shatter your ideas of reality and take you into a mystical world of vision, intuition, and psychic truth. A phenomenal psychic, unparalleled lover, and a true Renaissance man, Ashton Ford can see into the future and even into the distant past using his psychic powers to assist special clients who are in crisis.


Eye to Eye:
In the second book of the Ashton Ford series, Eye to Eye, the most brilliant astronomers and space scientists of the United States and Russia have mysteriously vanished and officials of both countries are frantically searching for answers. Under the shadow of the world's largest telescope, tailed by agents, and with a lovely lady scientist's life in peril, Ashton Ford takes on the most baffling case of his life, and one that will offer him glimpses into worlds that not even he has ever seen.

Mind to Mind:
In this third book of Don Pendleton’s Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective series of novels, what intrigued Ashton Ford about this sadistically brutal "Jane Doe" case was that there were no clues except a few satanic symbols. The silent, mysterious beauty of the woman, why someone wanted her dead, or why the entire left hemisphere of her brain had been surgically removed, leaving her mute and helpless is the central mystery to be solved. It was the toughest case of Ford's career to reach that silent mind with his own and combat the evils of a deadly sex cult and the mysterious beings who threatened her life. In the bargain, he had to discover from which dimension of time and space these mysterious beings emanate. Many of his answers come to him in Ojai, a small community in the mountains not far removed from Los Angeles, a place always thought to be a paradise, that is, until that image of an enchanted place is shattered by paranormal images that defy explanation.

Life to Life:
In Don Pendleton’s fourth novel of the Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective series, Life to Life, Ashton Ford discovers his sense of an orderly universe is threatened by ideas of spirit communication and past lives.

Reverend Annie was a powerful, stunningly beautiful psychic who gave spiritual guidance to thousands of troubled souls and was preparing to extend her ministry throughout the world. But when her family and followers began dying in mysterious, horrifying ways, she had to call on Ford to discover the truth behind their deaths. Soon, Ford found that the lovely reverend was the center of a centuries-old mystical group now threatened by malevolent and divisive forces. Ford had to wage a cosmic battle in a shadowy realm of the unreal and the unearthly–a world that challenges all that we know.

Now at

Kindle: Heart to Heart and Time to Time.
Read about the first Ashton Ford book, Ashes to Ashes.

All six of the Ashton Ford books are available in paper, AND NOW ALL AT KINDLE editions. Coming later this spring, there will be new editions in tradepaper of Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Private Eye series and the Ashton Ford Psychic Detective series with these new covers designed by Linda Pendleton and Judy Bullard.

If you are looking for someone to design your Kindle, POD, covers contact Judy.

Read about Ashes to Ashes , the first Asthon Ford book.

Read about my novel, both in Kindle and tradepaper, Shattered Lens: Catherine Winter, Private Investigator, and I love the reviews I've received.

All six of Don Pendleton's Joe Copp, Private Eye Thrillers are also now Kindles.

I have put a number of our books into Kindle format and I don't have a Kindle yet!--but I have heard people who have a Kindle, love it.

~Linda

Don Pendleton's Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective Series

“Ashton Ford is a spectacular character...” ~Booklist

Now on Kindle, in addition to print.

Meet Ashton Ford...Psychic Detective...

Private Investigator Ashton Ford has special powers, powers that some call supernatural. A former naval intelligence officer, highly knowledgeable in cryptology and philosophy, Ford will shatter your ideas of reality and take you into a mystical world of vision, intuition, and psychic truth. A phenomenal psychic, unparalleled lover, and a true Renaissance man, Ashton Ford can see into the future and even into the distant past using his psychic powers to assist special clients who are in crisis.

In this first book of Don Pendleton’s six book series, Ashes to Ashes, Ashton Ford is hired by a beautiful and vulnerable heiress in need of a sexual surrogate. Ignoring danger signals, Ford cannot resist the chance to aid the distressed woman, but soon finds he is faced with more than he bargained for. In his search for justice, he is plunged into a world of untold dangers, including murder and mayhem, ghosts and apparitions, and splintered reality.

Don Pendleton wrote this about his Ashton Ford novels: "Through this character I attempt to understand more fully and to give better meaning to my perceptions of what is going on here on Planet Earth, and the greatest mystery of all the mysteries: the why of existence itself. Through Ford I use everything I can reach in the total knowledge of mankind to elaborate this mystery and to arm my characters for the quest. I try to entertain myself with their adventures, hoping that what entertains me may also entertain others–so these books, like life itself, are not all grim purpose and trembling truths. They are fun to write; for some they will be fun to read."

All titles to be at Kindle soon.
Titles in the Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective Series: Ashes to Ashes; Eye to Eye; Mind to Mind; Life to Life; Heart to Heart; Time to Time.

Don Pendleton's (Joe) Copp on Fire, Now at Kindle

"Pendleton emphasizes fast-moving, gritty action."
–Library Journal

All six novels of Don Pendleton's Joe Copp Mystery Trillers are now available at Amazon's Kindle.

The last one to become available is Copp on Fire:

From Hollywood's corporate halls to the famous back-lots, Private Investigator, Joe Copp acts his way through someone else's script until he's face to face with the ruthless star of the whole bloody show. Copp writes his own script and turns the production on its head in his search for truth and justice.

The Joe Copp series is also available as trade paper.

Don Pendleton is creator of The Executioner, Mack Bolan series of action/adventure and is known as "the father of the action/adventure literary genre.

He is also known for the phrase "Live Large!" --a theme of his Mack Bolan character. The Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Volume II (H-O) gives derivation credit for "live large" to Don Pendleton and his Executioner Series.

Typical of Don Pendleton's writing style, the Joe Copp stories are hard-hitting, fast-moving, gritty, filled with authentic dialogue, and capture keen insight into the inner-workings of the characters.

~Linda