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Thursday, February 12, 2015

Tarnished Remains by Paty Jager #cozymystery

What would you do if you were digging in the dirt and came up with a boot still attached to a skeleton?

That's how the second Shandra Higheagle Mystery, Tarnished Remains starts. Potter Shandra Higheagle is on her mountain digging in a pocket of clay she uses for her pottery. She pushes the shovel in the clay and comes up with a boot and bones.

Before I started writing this series I visited a potter who uses natural clay that he cleans and purifies before using it in his wares. I gave my amateur sleuth this same trait and put her on a mountain in Idaho where she makes her vases that are sold as art. The other unique thing I gave her was her ancestry. She is half Nez Perce but was kept from her Native American roots after her father died in a rodeo accident.

Tarnish Remains released on February10th.

Shandra Higheagle is digging up clay for her renowned pottery when she scoops up a boot attached to a skeleton. She calls in Weippe County detective Ryan Greer.  The body is decades old and discovered to be Shandra’s employee’s old flame
.
Ryan immediately pegs Shandra’s employee for the murderer, but Shandra knows in her heart that the woman everyone calls Crazy Lil couldn’t have killed anyone, let alone a man she loved.

Digging up the woman’s past takes them down a road of greed, miscommunication, and deceit.  Will they be able to prove Crazy Lil innocent before the true murderer strikes again? 

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/tarnished-remains

patyjager.net
Writing into the Sunset

8 comments:

  1. Paty, the tidbit you gave us sounds intriguing! Can't wait to read more!

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    1. Karen, I'm glad the story piques your interest. Thanks!

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  2. Paty, I look forward to reading this release. Congratulations on getting this book completed while building your home and moving in. Obviously, you are super efficient.

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    1. Caroline, I wish I was super efficient. I'm more determined and focused. ;) The hard part is getting number three ready to publish by my deadline.

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  3. Paty,
    This story sounds absorbing. I can hardly wait to read it!

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  4. Sounds like an excellent story with a fascinating main character. I like the pottery connection as well as Shandra's Nez Perce ancestry. I'm looking forward to reading Tarnished Remains.

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  5. Thank you Sandra! I had fun coming up with Shandra and all the interesting things about her.

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