BooksChatter: ☀☄✉ The Infernal Detective: Riga Hayworth Paranormal Mysteries [4]

Thank you for joining us on the thirteenth day of Bewitching Book Tours Haunted Halloween Spooktacular which runs every week day until the end of October and showcases 26 different authors!

Today we are featuring The Infernal Detective, an Urban Fantasy by Kirsten Weiss (12 May 2013, Misterio Press, 285 pages).

This is the fourth book in the Riga Hayworth Paranormal Mysteries series. “A high-voltage, cleverly spun mystery, that I couldn't put down. Riga Hayworth is addictive.” - Diana Orgain, Best-selling author of The Maternal Instincts Mysteries

Don't miss the Spooktacular Guest Post by Kirsten Weiss, Do You Dare Visit these Haunted Places?

PREVIEW: Check out the book's synopsis, trailer and excerpt below. Read the first four chapters with Amazon Look Inside.

The authors will be awarding a Kindle Fire, Amazon Gift Cards, Books and More to randomly drawn winners via Rafflecopter during the tour. Please do take part: comment on our post and follow the tour where you will be able to read flash fiction (⚡), and guest blog posts (✉).

Synopsis | Trailer | Teasers | The Series | Author Q&A | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

Synopsis

Murder. The undead. Irritating relatives.

When Riga Hayworth finds a dead body in her bedroom, it’s par for the course. When the corpse drives off with her fiancée... That’s a problem.

Riga knows dead. More intimately than she’d like. So when a murdered photographer walks away from her pre-wedding party, she believes there’s necromancy afoot. And when she discovers that several of her wedding guests are under the influence of dark magic, she’s certain. But how can she catch a killer and stop a necromancer when even her nearest and dearest are lying to her?

Marrying romance, mystery, and the metaphysical, The Infernal Detective is a fast-paced urban fantasy, where nothing is quite as it seems, and magic lies just beyond the veil.

Teasers

Excerpt | Guest Post: Do You Dare Visit these Haunted Places? |

Excerpt

Chapter 2

      Riga snapped shut her jaw.
      The bedroom was empty. The body, which had once lain beside the bookcase, was gone. Donovan was gone. She turned in a slow circle, disbelieving. Gone.
      She threw open closet doors, stormed through the master bathroom, even checked beneath the bed.
      Nothing.
      Riga rubbed her arms and glared at the fluffy white throw rug, denuded of its corpse. This couldn’t be happening. But it was, and denial was an indulgence she couldn’t afford.
      Riga walked to the window, her gaze unfocused. In the darkness, her reflection gaped back at her, overlaid upon the inky lake and the wavering trail of the moon. She shook herself, and moving to the bureau, cursed under her breath for not using her head. Riga picked up her cell phone from the dresser, called Donovan.
      No answer.
      She sank upon the bed, her head bowed, clutching the phone.Dark magic. A missing corpse. A missing Donovan. And not just any dark magic – necromancy, the worst sort of magic, magic driven by death, pain, fear… Necromancy would explain the missing corpse. Her vision blurred. Good God. What had happened to Donovan?
      She leapt to her feet, pacing. Think! If he’d left the house, the security cameras would have picked it up. If only she’d been watching the live feed rather than the past…
      She raced downstairs, tripping over her long gown.
      “Riga!” Dot materialized in the foyer. Her over-sized eyes blinked up at Riga from behind her spectacles. “There you are.I’ve been looking all over for you.”
      “I’m a little busy right now.”
      “But your Mr. Mosse asked me to tell you…” She steepled her wrinkled hands beneath her chin. “Oh, what was it now?”
      Riga clenched her fists to stop herself from grabbing her aunt by the shoulders, and realized she still gripped her phone.“Donovan? When did you see him?”
      “Five, or ten minutes ago, I believe. He was running after that young photographer, said he’d be back, and you shouldn’t worry.Oh, and he called the Sheriff, told him not to come.”
      “He was… running? And the photographer was running too?”The photographer had been dead. And she knew dead. Absently, Riga patted her aunt’s hand. “Thanks. I’ll look into it.”
      “But Riga, there’s something we need to talk about…”
      Unhearing, Riga turned her back on her aunt and strode to the security room. Cam Mitchell had been dead. Been dead? He was dead. The photographer was dead. Dead. But if a necromancer had reanimated him… Then none of them were safe.
      She gnawed her lower lip. No. It was too far-fetched. But could that have been why Donovan’s father had tried to keep them from the room? Had a necromancer been there the entire time? Necromancers used death to fuel their magic – a nasty combination that sent most of them mad, made all of them dangerous. Had Cam been some sort of sacrifice? And if so, to what purpose?
      The guard, Thomas, looked up from his seat at the monitors.“Problem?”
      “There was a mistake. The cops aren’t coming. I need to see the last ten minutes of footage.” She put her phone down upon the narrow table.
      “Sure.” The guard fiddled with the controls and the screens flickered, scenes jumping backwards.
      “There! Stop.” Riga pointed to one of the screens – an image from the garage of the photographer, chestnut-colored hair mussed, jaw clamped shut. He was handsome, Riga thought with surprise, with a rangy build, high cheekbones and solemn, deep set eyes, alight with intelligence.
      She rocked back on her heels. Intelligence. So he wasn’t a zombie. Had she been mistaken? Had life been inside him? But it made no sense. Donovan had felt for a pulse and found none.And she hadn’t been mistaken about that residue of dark magic, of necromancy. She shuddered at the memory.
      [...]

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Guest Post: Do You Dare Visit these Haunted Places?

We’ve all been there – those dark woods, the fog-shrouded cemeteries, the lonely, creaking houses. And we’ve all wondered – if even for a moment – if maybe there’s something… else.  Something beyond. Something haunted. Some of us even seek out those spectral places.

For me, a deep, dark Sierra night, one of the settings for my urban fantasy The Infernal Detective, conjures all sorts of threats – natural and supernatural. My sister’s old apartment in Davis, California, is one of the most haunted places I know. But it’s also not a tourist attraction. So if you’re looking for a haunted spot to holiday, here’s a round-up of the top five around the world. 

(Note: My selection was completely unscientific. I searched the Internet for haunted places and included on my list the five most frequently mentioned.) 

5) The Screaming Tunnel, Niagra Falls, Ontario, Canada. This old tunnel runs beneath a railroad. Stand in it at midnight, light a wooden match, and you’ll hear a woman’s scream. The match will blow out too, which may not be such a mysterious occurrence in a tunnel.

4) Beechwood Lunatic Asylum, Victoria, Australia. Nearly 9,000 inmates died during the asylum’s operations from 1867-1995. Add to that the super-spooky architecture, and it’s little wonder the place is hosting night tours.

3) Highgate Cemetery, London, UK. All that history plus creepy gothic architecture? No wonder London is jam-packed with haunted graveyards. But Highgate Cemetery is probably the most famous, with its crooked tombstones, headless angels, and rumors of vampire and occult activity.

2) Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA. The sight of the bloodiest battle in the American Civil War, the spirits of dead soldiers are frequently sighted in the fields and roads around the town. A friend of mine claims when he and his girlfriend once drove through Gettysburg at night, a man dressed in Confederate battle gear suddenly appeared in front of their car. He slammed on the brakes, but couldn’t stop in time. The car went through the apparition. I’m still not sure if he was pulling my leg or not.

1) Bhangarh Fort, India. This fort came up the most frequently in my research, winning the number one spot. It’s said to be cursed by a black magician who was unable to win the love of a fair maiden by traditional means. She managed to reverse his dark love spell. In retaliation, he cursed the entire town’s inhabitants, so their souls cannot be reborn.

Have you visited any of these spots? Are there any haunted spots on your bucket list? Tell us in the comments!

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The Infernal Detective
Available NOW!

The Series: Riga Hayworth Paranormal Mysteries

|| [1] || [2] || [3] || [5] || [6] || [7] ||

Click on the book cover to Look Inside the book on Amazon and read an excerpt.

The Metaphysical Detective [1]

Tarot, Wine... and a Dog Named Dog.

When Riga Hayworth finds her new client dead, she smells a set up of metaphysical proportions. Now, to find a killer, Riga must travel from San Francisco to the underworld... and make it back alive.Riga's client, Helen Baro, believes her husband is trying to kill her.

One problem: her husband died in a car crash last year. Is Helen mad? Is someone else trying to harm the woman? Or is this really a case of attempted murder from beyond the grave? But then Helen is found dead, leaving a strange haiku and tarot for a clue, and Riga is hurled into an investigation that threatens the detective and those she loves.

An urban fantasy based in the San Francisco Bay Area, the Metaphysical Detective explores the power of the archetypes through the double lens of tarot and Greek mythology.

[Published 24 October 2011, 284 pages]

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The Alchemical Detective [2]

**FREE when you sign up to Kirsten Weiss's Newsletter**

Where Alchemy, Demons, and Good Wine Collide... with a Lake Monster Named Tessie.

A psychic has been murdered in an occult ceremony and the police pay a visit to Riga Hayworth, metaphysical detective. But this time, she’s not a consultant on the case. She’s a suspect. There’s a storm on the horizon.

Riga’s lost her magic and has come to Lake Tahoe to recover and spend quality time with her new love. But life for Riga is never that simple. A psychic’s been murdered, and the police believe Riga has a connection to the crime.

They’re right.

And if that’s not enough, Riga is drafted as the host of a reality TV show about the local lake monster, and her niece is rejecting her metaphysical abilities. Juggling demons, daimons, and angry tarot card readers, Riga must catch a killer before she becomes the next target.

The Alchemical Detective is an urban fantasy exploring the world of alchemy and the imagination.

[Published 23 May 2012, 270 pages]

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The Shamanic Detective [3]

A Fast-paced Urban Fantasy

When Riga Hayworth’s lover is arrested, she’s determined to unearth the truth, no matter the cost. But life - and death - get in the way. All Riga wants is to clear the name of her almost-fiancée, Donovan Mosse. But a death faerie has other plans for her, and Riga is forced to protect a shaman with a house full of murderous relatives. The only way to stop this killer is to figure out who he, or she, is before the next strike. As the two cases become entangled, Riga must choose between facts and faith, and decide just how far she’s willing to go for love.

The Shamanic Detective is a paranormal mystery set in Lake Tahoe, exploring shamanism, the shadow, and the world of the fae.

[First published 8 October 2012; this edition 23 December 2013, 283 pages]

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The Elemental Detective [5]

Mermaids, menehunes, and murder.

Riga Hayworth just wants to relax with her new husband on their Hawaiian honeymoon. But a body on a Kauai beach pulls them into a murder investigation, sending the supernatural world into an uproar. When Riga detects traces of magic at a murder scene, she knows she can’t ignore the call. There’s necromancy afoot, and she must prepare for the battle to come. But can Riga fight the forces of nature? Or will they destroy her and everyone she loves?

Book five in the Riga Hayworth series of paranormal mystery novels, The Elemental Detective is a fun, fast-paced urban fantasy blending romance with the supernatural, and exploring the magic of Hawaii.

[Published 16 December 2013, 268 pages]

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The Hoodoo Detective [6]

Hoodoo, Haunts, and Horror.

Riga Hayworth just wants to wrap up her supernatural TV series exploring the magic of New Orleans. when she stumbles across a corpse, she becomes a police consultant on a series of occult murders, murders that become all too personal.

[Published 31 October 2014, 249 pages]

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The Hermetic Detective [7]

A Monstrous Assassin. A Metaphysical Detective.

Housebound with five-month-old twins, Riga Hayworth just wants to get back in the metaphysical detecting game. But when she’s called to help an elderly woman, haunted and alone, a deadly threat follows Riga home. Can Riga prevent a tragedy and protect her family?

The Hermetic Detective is the seventh and final book in the Riga Hayworth series of paranormal mystery novels. If you love urban fantasy, don't miss this action-packed read. Buy this book to finish the epic series today!

[Published 31 October 2015, 196 pages]

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About the Author

Kirsten Weiss worked overseas for nearly twenty years in the fringes of the former USSR, Africa, and South-east Asia. Her experiences abroad sparked an interest in the effects of mysticism and mythology, and how both are woven into our daily lives.

Now based in San Mateo, CA, she writes genre-blending steampunk suspense, urban fantasy, and mystery, mixing her experiences and imagination to create a vivid world of magic and mayhem.

Kirsten has never met a dessert she didn’t like, and her guilty pleasures are watching Ghost Whisperer re-runs and drinking red wine.

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