Carmen DeSousa

Coming Soon! If you haven't read  The Depot , please skip this sample and grab the FREE book via one of the links at the bottom of this post. Since we are close to publishing, this is the last week of chapter one. You can catch up   here . Excerpt: “Friends?” Mark uncrossed his arms and sat on the edge of the brick wall, hoping she’d loosen up a bit. Normally when he crossed his arms in reaction to a witness’ pose and then uncrossed them, they’d follow suit. Jay remained where she was, however, her arms folded over her chest to protect her from anyone getting too close. If she were sitting, she’d have her legs crossed too, he suspected. “Did Buck belong to a book club?” he asked. She bit down on her lip, her head lowering in her distress. “No. Buck was homeless. We have many homeless people who loiter around the library, especially as the temperature starts to drop . They stay as late as possible, then usually find a place to sleep for

Inevitably, on every author interview I agree to do, a familiar question always pops up. Although the interviewer may word it in different lengths, tones, and bluntness, they usually ask the same question :  Are your stories based on people you know or real events? Since I’ve been an author for a while and know my answer, I sought out other authors and researched to discover if this really was a common occurrence. The question: are all novels, especially debut novels, based on an author’s or a close friend or relative’s experience. I actually heard a quote that all debut novels were in a sense ‘autobiographies’. I couldn’t find the actual quote , but the question was valid enough to make me search for answers. Of course, we could come back to the famous quote ...  “Write what you know.” -- Although sometimes attributed to Mark Twain, this quote is untraceable. I’ve heard the quote hundreds of times in college, on book writing blogs, just abo

Coming Soon! If you haven't read  The Depot , please skip this sample and grab the FREE book via one of the links at the bottom of this post. This is week five; plus I've added a few paragraphs since last week. You can catch up  here . Excerpt: Mark closed his eyes and inhaled a deep breath, attempting to calm himself before going inside to do his job . The sweet scent of jasmine hit him and he inhaled again, turning to look for the source. He hadn’t seen the familiar vine around the entrance, and he didn’t suspect that he could smell Mrs. Davis from outside unless she’d suddenly started dousing herself in all sorts of jasmine products. “Are you the detective?” A soft voice at his six startled him. Rarely was someone able to sneak up behind him . Mark whipped around to see a stunning redhead at the end of the stone walkway.  She was leaning against the wall as if she’d been standing there all morning, just waiting until he fi

Rebekah's Quilt Sara Barnard An Amish Settlement. An English stranger. The Blizzard of 1888. Rebekah's mother, Elnora Stoll, is the finest quilter in all of Gasthof Village but it seems Rebekah has inherited none of her skill. It's not until the arrival of a mysterious English stranger that a lifetime of questions are answered and Rebekah, her special friend Joseph Graber, and the entire settlement of Gasthof Village learn the true meaning of what it truly means to be Amish. Download  Rebekah's Quilt Amazon US Amazon UK For more links and additional great reads, visit... 5 Prince Publishing   Thanks for stopping by, please visit my  bio  for more information about what I write and what I like to read and share.  Until next time, happy reading! Carmen DeSousa I  love  talking about all things books, so please connect with me via one of the  links  below. Twitter Facebook Goodreads