Laura Wetsel launches her debut mystery, Burnt Ends
Author Guest Post + Book & Author Info + a Giveaway!
Read my author interview with Laura! Click the link here.
Burnt Ends by Laura Wetsel
Murder is juicier with a side of barbecue sauce.
Private Investigator Tori Swenson gets a strange accidental death case that looks like murder at one of her uncle’s drive-ins and decides it’s time to get revenge on her estranged family. Pretending to want a reunion, she appears at her uncle’s party to secretly investigate them. When her uncle suddenly dies, Tori’s case takes a sinister turn that makes her a suspect in her uncle’s death and the killer’s next target. To uncover who dethroned the barbecue king, Tori will have to face her own fiery demons while pursuing a killer who wants to make dead meat out of her.
For fans of Knives Out and the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.
Genre: Mystery (private investigator)
Published by: CamCat Books
Publication Date: September 24, 2024
Number of Pages: 320
ISBN: 9780744311211 (ISBN10: 0744311217)
To purchase Burnt Ends, click any of the following links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | CamCat Books
Guest Post by Laura Wetsel
Burnt Ends and the Carnivorous Reader
If a book is food for the mind, then Burnt Ends is just what it claims to be—deadly, delicious, and with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
At first, the reader, like the story’s heroine, Private Investigator Tori Swenson, will doubt that Luis’s accidental death at Uncle Charlie’s BBQ Drive-In was just an accident, especially when Tori suspects her uncle of killing her father all those years ago to steal his barbecue drive-in empire. Like our PI, the reader will approach the charred meat chunks steaming beneath the blanket of thick, blood-red sauce with curiosity and caution. Each looks like something to inhale in one bite, but there are many burnt ends and a danger of going too fast.
What if the reader chokes on Tori’s decision to seek revenge? Gets indigestion from her feverish confrontation with her estranged uncle and cousins? Scalds their tongue on Uncle Charlie’s sudden and unexpected death? Then again, it is the growing danger itself that speaks to the reader’s carnivorous cravings. For what fun is there in reading without the risk of getting burned?
At the start of the story, the ravenous reader might resist temptation and maintain their manners by reaching for a napkin, fork, and knife. This last instrument will be useful not only to guard against the story’s unexpected twists, but also to cut through the many walls—some seen and others illusory—that must be breached to get to the tender truth of what really happened to Luis Mendoza.
But as the reader consumes morsel after morsel and tumbles deeper and darker into Tori’s troubled past while pursuing a killer who wants to make dead meat out of her, they will find their initial cravings have not diminished but only intensified. It will be impossible to be civil, and throwing their utensils aside, the reader will grab the platter of burnt ends and devour them with their hands, unconcerned with the sticky mess on their faces or the tendons caught in their teeth, until they at last reach the story’s end and find satisfaction in an empty bowl of barbecue sauce.
Laura Wetsel – Author of Burnt Ends
Laura Wetsel holds bachelor’s degrees in Russian and English literature from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a master’s degree in Russian literature from Northwestern University.
She lives in Washington, D.C., with her two cats, Sasha and Ginny Wolf.
While this story is fictional, Burnt Ends was inspired by Laura’s uncle, who ran a successful burger drive-in chain in Ohio, as well as her experience living in Kansas City, Missouri.
To learn more about Laura, click on any of the following links:
www.LauraWetselBooks.com
Goodreads
Twitter/X – @LauraWetsel
Visit all the Stops on the Tour!
09/23 Showcase @ Silvers Reviews
09/24 Interview @ Literary Gold
09/24 Showcase @ Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense
09/25 Showcase @ Books, Ramblings, and Tea
09/26 Review @ Novels Alive
09/27 Review @ Guatemala Paula Loves to Read
09/28 Showcase @ Catreader18
09/29 Review @ Ink. Readsalot
10/01 Review @ Because I said so
10/03 Interview @ Words by Webb
10/10 Showcase @ Celticladys Reviews
10/11 Showcase @ fuonlyknew
10/15 Review @ ashmanda. k
10/16 Guest post @ Cozy Home Delight Book Reviews
10/18 Guest post @ The Mystery of Writing
Haha, I love this! – “If a book is food for the mind, then Burnt Ends is just what it claims to be—deadly, delicious, and with tongue firmly planted in cheek.”
What a fun appetizing guest post1 This book sounds great!
That’s my favorite quote too!