On my blog this week, I'm welcoming a guest—award-winning author Dr. Randy Overbeck who is sharing information about his latest release, Scarlet At Crystal River, A Haunted Shores Mystery.
Darrell and Erin
thought they were heading to Florida for a carefree honeymoon, but the ghosts
of two immigrant children haunt them, pleading for help.
When readers pick up a Christmas story today, even a Christmas mystery, they will likely encounter brilliant Christmas lights , a decorated Christmas tree or even a Santa Claus—in addition to a murder victim or a detective, of course. In fact, listening to the incessant stream of cheerful, holiday songs, readers might think it was always so. Not true. Not so long ago, during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, children and adults were told stories of a different kind of “spirit.” In England—the same country that gave us such holiday traditions as Christmas cards and mistletoe—children and adults gathered around a fireplace on a wintry Christmas eve and were frightened into the Christmas “spirit” via a few creepy ghost stories.
The most famous of these eerie Christmas tales is, of
course, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol with its four specters to
scare straight Ebenezer Scrooge. But Dickens is hardly alone. Henry James’s
most famous work, The Turn of the Screw, which also takes place on
Christmas eve, is the tale of a governess who encounters the ghostly figures of
a man and a woman.
In the same British holiday convention, A.M. Burrage’s eerie short story “Smee” is about a group of young people messing around on Christmas Eve who decide to play a game of hide and seek in a spooky house in which a young girl died years before. What could go wrong?
The list goes on and on.
This tradition of sharing ghost stories on Christmas eve is
thought to emanate from the pre-Christian celebration of the Winter Solstice, a
time when light dies and the veil between the living and the dead is the
thinnest…and many of these threads continue even into our time. For years, the
BBC hosted “Ghost Stories for Christmas,” spooking late night audiences into
the ‘70’s. Even the recent hit series, Downton Abbey—which portrayed life in
England in the first half of the twentieth century—featured a Christmas episode
where family members are gathered around a Ouija board, trying to access a
spirit.
My new title, Scarlet at Crystal River, continues
this fine tradition of spooky Christmas ghost stories. During the Christmas
holidays, Darrell and Erin travel to Florida for their honeymoon, but, once
there, the ghosts of two murdered children interrupt their romantic excursions.
The newlyweds are driven to find out what really happened to the two kids, even
when they are shot at, driven off the road and nearly killed.
This year, why not continue a centuries-old tradition and grab an alluring Christmas ghost mystery to read by the burning yule log this holiday?
Merry Christmas to
all and to all a good fright!
Blurb
All Darrell Henshaw wanted was to enjoy his honeymoon with
his beautiful wife, Erin, in the charming town of Crystal River on the sunny
Gulf Coast of Florida. Only a pair of ghosts decide to intrude on their
celebration. And not just any ghosts, the spirits of two young Latino children.
Unwilling at first to derail the honeymoon for yet another ghost hunt,
Darrell finally concedes when a painting of the kids comes alive, weeping and
pleading for his help.
When he and Erin track down the artist, they discover the children’s family were migrant workers the next county over. But when they travel there, their questions about the kids gets their car shot up and Erin hospitalized. Torn between fear and rage, Darrell must decide how far he will go to get justice for two young children he never even knew.
Specs
- Release by Wild Rose
Press—September 13, 2021 www.thewildrosepress.com
- Paranormal mystery
- 364 pp.
- Mild
Reviews
“Scarlet at Crystal River is an eerie paranormal mystery
I couldn't stop reading. Randy Overbeck is a masterful writer of the
paranormal, drawing the reader in before instilling shivers down the spine. 5+
stars." ★★★★★+—N. N. Light's Book
Heaven
“A rollercoaster of a mystery, hurtling up and down hills and sharp corners until the very end, when the reader is left slightly breathless, waiting for their hearts to beat back to a normal rhythm. ★★★★★—ReadersView
“Scarlet at Crystal River is a suspenseful paranormal novel with compelling characters and an enigmatic mystery that drives the story to a riveting conclusion. Overbeck is a master at building tension–-this is easily a one-sitting read.” ★★★★★—Literary Titan
“This is another masterpiece from Randy Overbeck. His excellent writing style has left me speechless for one more time. He writes in a way that makes you feel what the characters feel and you have no choice but to partake in the journey with them.” ★★★★★—Ioanna’s Reviews, Greece
Author Biography
Dr. Randy Overbeck is an award-winning educator, author and
speaker. As an educator, he served children for four decades in a range of
roles captured in his novels, from teacher and coach to principal and
superintendent. His thriller, Leave No Child Behind (2012) and his
recent mysteries, the Amazon No. 1 Best Seller, Blood on the Chesapeake,
Crimson at Cape May and Scarlet at Crystal River have earned five
star reviews and garnered national awards including “Thriller of the
Year--ReadersFavorite.com, “Gold Award”—Literary Titan, “Mystery of the
Year”—ReadersView.com and “Crowned Heart of Excellence”—InD’Tale Magazine. As a
member of the Mystery Writers of America, Dr. Overbeck is an active member of
the literary community, contributing to a writers’ critique group, serving as a
mentor to emerging writers and participating in writing conferences such as
Sleuthfest, Killer Nashville and the Midwest Writers Workshop. When he’s not
writing or researching his next exciting novel or sharing his presentation,
“Things Still Go Bump in the Night,” he’s spending time with his incredible
family of wife, three children (and their spouses) and seven wonderful
grandchildren.
Social Media Handles
https://twitter.com/OverbeckRandy/media
https://www.facebook.com/authorrandyoverbeck
https://www.instagram.com/authorrandyoverbeck/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-KOC0LH2GQRSAjwxOFr5rg
Tik Tok @authorrandyo
Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLhuf7RGtCs
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.com/Scarlet-Crystal-Haunted-Shores-Mysteries/dp/1509237879/ref=sr_1_
https://www.bookbub.com/books/scarlet-at-crystal-river-by-randy-overbeck
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