BooksChatter: ☀ The Madness of Mercury: Zodiac Mysteries [1]

Thank you for joining us on the Virtual Book Tour for the upcoming The Madness of Mercury, a Mystery by Connie di Marco (8 June 2016, Midnight Ink, 312 pages).

This is the first book in the Zodiac Mysteries series.

"This smartly written début from di Marco sets the stage for a promising series."—Kirkus Reviews

"Connie di Marco begins a fascinating new series . . . The writing is clever and compelling and the protagonist is smart and gutsy. The villains are seriously sinister and the darkly intricate plot will keep you turning the pages."—Kate Carlisle, New York Times bestselling author.

PREVIEW: Check out the book's synopsis and excerpt below. Read several excerpts with Amazon Look Inside.

We have a total of three giveaways for this tour!
Author Connie di Marco will be awarding:
- one $20 gift card for Amazon/B&N;
- one e-book copy of the Madness of Mercury to one of our readers in the USA; and
- one $20 gift card from Amazon.com, or one of two digital copies of The Madness of Mercury to randomly drawn winners via Rafflecopter during the tour via GoddessFish Promotions and Partners In Crime Tours.

Please do take part: comment on our post and follow the tour where you will be able to read other excerpts (☀), interviews (ℚ) and reviews (✍).

Synopsis | Teaser | About the Author | Giveaways & Tour Stops

Synopsis

Astrologer Julia Bonatti never thought her chosen profession would bring danger into her life, but her outspoken advice in her newspaper column, AskZodia, makes her the target of San Francisco’s recently-arrived cult leader, Reverend Roy of the Prophet’s Tabernacle.

The followers of the power hungry preacher will stop at nothing to quell the voices of those who would stand in his way and Julia’s at the top of his list.

She’s willing to bet the charismatic Reverend is a Mercury-ruled individual, and she knows all too well that Mercury wasn’t just the messenger of the gods, he was a trickster and a liar as well.

Teaser: Excerpt

There are those among us who prey, who hunt under the guise of trust. They kill not just the physical body but the psyche, the dream of the soul. They are the clever ones, the dexterous and silver-tongued. They sway the weak, the old, the gullible, and the infirm. They are the tricksters of the universe and work through enchantment.
They are ruled by Mercury, a god of great cunning, a thief and a prowler. Having no place of his own, Mercury was given rulership of borders, secret passageways, and crossroads where suicides are buried. He alone escorted souls to the underworld because only he could move freely in the world above and the world below. In our time, he leads unwary travelers astray to meet their own twisted shadow in the dark night.
It was a new client whose predicament recalled this mythology to me. My name is Julia Bonatti—Julia Elizabeth Bonatti—and I’m an astrologer. For too long, I had worked with practical daylight interpretations of the natal chart. For too long, I had happily delineated charts concerned with mundane issues. What’s the best time to plan our trip? When should I invest? I’ve thought of returning to school, can I afford it? It was Evandra Gamble and her family and the events surrounding them that indelibly marked me, that caused me to know the dark side of the god.

[...]

Thirty-Six

[...] I glanced down at the map with one eye on the road. I had covered a lot of ground. The turnoff to Ardillas was ten miles away. My cell phone rang and I glanced at the number. It was Don. I hit the button to answer.
“Julia. Where are you?”
     “On the 101 about ten miles from Ardillas.”
     “Listen. I’ve dug up some newspaper articles from the New Orleans area about a couple who got involved with the Prophet. Then I discovered they had written a book, an exposé really, about six years ago.”
     “That’s great. I’d love to get my hands on that.”
     “Julia . . .”
     “Maybe I could locate them and talk to them.”
     “That might be difficult.”
     “Why?”
     I was greeted by silence. “Don? You there?”
     “I’m here, Julia.” Don was silent but I could tell the line was still open. “They were murdered about a year after the book came out.”
     A cold knot formed in my stomach. “Murdered? How?”
     “Home invasion, at least that was the official verdict. No one was ever charged. A lot of people still harbor the suspicion it was an execution for betraying the Reverend Roy.” Don was quiet for so long I wondered if I had lost reception. “I think you should turn back.”
     I wasn’t used to being worried about, much less someone asking me not to do something. Don had a point, but I know what a stubborn cuss I can be. Just his asking nicely felt like an order and it put my back up. It’s not a trait I’m proud of, but I have an irresistible tendency to do the exact opposite of what I’ve been told to do. Sheer contrariness, I guess. Don’s pleas were falling on deaf ears.
     “I can’t. I can’t see the point of turning around now that I’m almost there. Don’t worry. I plan to talk to the Sheriff and scope things out. Maybe I can get help from that quarter. Mostly, I just want to locate Eunice. And if I can get in and talk to her, then I can at least tell Dorothy where things are at.
     I heard his exasperated sigh. “Stay in touch, okay?”
     “I will.” I clicked off just as the sign indicating the town’s one exit sped closer. I flicked on my turn signal even though no other cars were near – force of habit -- and moved over to the far right lane. The exit appeared and I turned off, heading east onto a lonely two lane road.

The Madness of Mercury
Available for Pre-Order Now!

About the Author

Connie di Marco is the author of the new Zodiac Mystery series from Midnight Ink, featuring San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti.

Writing as Connie Archer, she is also the author of the national bestselling Soup Lover’s Mysteries from Berkley Prime Crime. Some of her excerpts and recipes can be found in The Cozy Cookbook and The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook.

Connie is a member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. She grew up in New England and now lives on the other coast.

Follow Connie di Marco:

Giveaways and Tour Stops

Enter to win one digital copy of The Madness of Mercury (for our readers in the USA only)
Remember to comment to win!
a Rafflecopter giveaway Enter to win one $20 gift card from Amazon/B&N
Remember to comment to win!
a Rafflecopter giveaway Enter to win either one $20 gift card from Amazon.com, or one of two digital copies of The Madness of Mercury. Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway
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a Rafflecopter giveaway