Hello, beautiful readers! Today I have the honor of sharing with you best-selling author, Randy Overbeck. If you love ghost stories and mysteries, you are going to LOVE Randy's books!
Randy is having a Haunted Shores Mysteries Blog Tour, and this is one of the stops. If you leave a comment below, you will be entered for a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card! So, make sure you leave a comment at the end.
In honor of the tour, the entire Haunted Shores Mysteries series is on SALE! Blood on the Chesapeake (which I've read and loved) is on sale for $0.99! Crimson at Cape May is $1.99, and Scarlet at Crystal River (pre-publication price) is $2.99! Make sure you click on the titles and pick up your copies today. :-)
WICKED
“CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY does a great job of showcasing how even the most prominent members of a community cannot be excluded from suspicion when the evidence points toward their involvement, especially in the wake of cases such Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein.”—ReadersView.com
There is more than one kind of
wickedness in the world. Our earth has birthed murderers and psychopaths,
embezzlers and robbers, child abusers and sex traffickers. These evils persist
in almost every culture and society around the globe and stretch across the
centuries.
But there exists wickedness and
evil that, though not as obvious, is just as threatening. That wickedness is
where my words reside.
I realize readers come to my novels, BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE or CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY, in search of a little mystery or a great beach read or even a bit of romance—and they say they are hardly ever disappointed—but I also try use my fiction to raise important social issues and expose very real wickedness.
The first
novel in my series may illustrate. In BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE, the narrative
thread of the cold-case murder is intertwined around the issue of racial
injustice. So, when I selected my antagonist for this story, I wanted to be
sure he was a reflection of the real world of racial bias, of wicked racial
bigotry.
Dr. William “Bud” Williams, the villain of my tale—or at least one of them—is, by most social norms, a good guy, a really good guy. He comes from a well-heeled family, is a respected town physician and serves children as president of the local school board. He heralds from a long line which goes back to the town founders and Bud is a man you’d want to know and have on your side to get anything done in Wilshire.
But, like thousands of other privileged white males, Williams’ belief system is skewed to assure him he is more gifted and more privileged than …well, others, especially those with a different skin color. While he displays the appropriate social graces, his sense of superiority still seeps out and, though he tries to keep it under wraps, his racial bias rears its inevitable ugly head from time to time.
Sadly, Williams’ wickedness is hardly atypical. Many in the fictional town of Wilshire—and in our real world—share his prejudiced “sensibilities.” But, as the reader learns, Williams’ wickedness is more blatant than most, as he hides an ugly secret from his past. When Bud was only a teenager, he and a few of his friends decided another classmate needed to be taught a lesson. The guy was fooling around with a white girl and he was, well, black. Back then, things got out of hand and somehow, the young black kid ended up at the end of a rope. But it was an accident and a long time ago.
Now, the adult, Dr. William “Bud”
Williams has long ago dismissed any guilt for the act. That is until Darrell,
our hero—who also happens to be a high school teacher and coach and a
sensitive—exposes the secret and secures justice for the murdered young man.
My hope is that the crafting of this
credible antagonist will help expose this strain of wickedness, a
particularly insidious type of wickedness which all too often goes unacknowledged
and unchallenged in our world.
Not all wickedness is obvious. But all wickedness, especially racism, poisons the human condition. The poison of racism may not destroy our nature outright, but it is toxic enough to rot the soul from the inside out.
"The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who
are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."
~Albert Einstein
Check out my second novel, CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY, for my exposure of an even greater wickedness.
Meet the Author
BIO
Dr. Randy Overbeck is an award-winning educator, author and speaker. As an educator, he served children for more than three 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 and B & N No. 1 Best Seller, Blood on the Chesapeake and Crimson at Cape May 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.
BLURB—CRIMSONAT CAPE MAY
No matter how far you run, you can never really escape a haunted past.
Darrell Henshaw—teacher, coach, and paranormal
sensitive—learned this lesson the hard way. With his job gone and few options,
he heads for Cape May to coach a summer football camp. The resort town, with
gorgeous beaches, rich history and famous Victorian mansions, might just be the
getaway he needs. Only, no one told him Cape May is the most haunted seaport on
the East Coast. One resident ghost, the Haunted Bride, stalks Darrell, begging
for his help.
He can’t refuse.
Joining forces with Cassie, a street-wise teen and
another sensitive, he investigates the bride’s death and discovers her
murder is connected to a far greater horror. But can Darrell and Cassie expose
those behind the crimes before they end up being the killer’s next victims?
REVIEWS—CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY
“With both elements of mystery and suspense, readers across genres will find this second book about Darrell Henshaw intriguing…I highly recommend it.” ★★★★★—Literary Titan
“It’s a ghost/mystery story filled with suspense and action. The plot is so engrossing it had me hooked from the very first page.” ★★★★★—Nana’s Reviews, Greece
“An exciting paranormal mystery I couldn't put down… A great read. Highly recommend!” ★★★★★—N.N. Light’s BookHeaven
“Rollicking good…Darrell is a wonderful protagonist, an ordinary man put into extraordinary situations and rising to the challenge..” ★★★★★ —Over My Dead Body magazine
“I loved everything about this book. As a ghost story combined with a mystery, a romance, a social injustice and stunning historical details, Crimson at Cape May has something for everyone.” ★★★★★—ReaderViews
“Masterly spooky adventure…an
accomplished work of haunting mystery fiction that fans of the genre won’t want
to miss out on. Highly Recommend.” ★★★★★—ReadersFavorite.com
BOOK TRAILER—CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY
How to reach Randy Overbeck:
randyoverbeck@authorrandyoverbeck.com
PURCHASE LINKS—CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY
https://www.amazon.com/Crimson-Cape-Haunted-Shores-Mysteries/dp/1509231633/ref=sr_
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/crimson-at-cape-may-randy-overbeck/1137088608?ean=9781509231638
https://www.bookbub.com/books/crimson-at-cape-may-by-randy-overbeck
TRAILER
Social Media Handles
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-KOC0LH2GQRSAjwxOFr5rg
https://www.tiktok.com/@authorrandyo
To follow along with the rest of the tour, please visit the authors' tour page on the 4WillsPublishing site. If you'd like to book your own blog tour and have your book promoted in similar grand fashion, please click HERE. Thanks for supporting this author and his work!
