Sarcastically Yours, Jen

Lucky Secrets by B.T. Polcari

Genre: Young Adult Cozy Mystery

Topic: Convince us why you feel your book is a must read

At a certain level, books offer readers the ability to check out for a period and get lost in another world, another time, another life, another reality. Some call it entertainment. I call it escapism. But both are good things. For me, I cannot think of a better way to put Life and all its drama on hold than to read a book that will pull me through the story while making me chuckle here and there, possibly with even a little LOL moment, and at the same time exercise my brain a bit. But just a bit. After all, I’ve got Life lurking, waiting for me to close the book and reengage in the real world.
I wrote Lucky Secrets to appeal to both readers looking for an entertaining lighthearted story and those looking for a puzzle or mystery to solve. In this case, there are many puzzles to solve, and one big mystery, but only if the reader chooses to engage. As the US Review of Books writes about Lucky Secrets, “Fans of escape rooms, the board game Clue, and the Netflix murder mystery franchise Knives Out will enjoy attempting to solve the riddles and clues alongside the characters.” However, if a reader just wants to sit back and be entertained, the story will do the heavy lifting and carry the reader on a fun ride full of twists and colorful characters. As Kirkus Reviews states, “There are lots of unnerving, shady characters…even better than Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum, and their cohorts.”
Ultimately, reading should not be work. It should be easy. By that I mean the prose should flow for the reader. Its job is to make the actual process of reading effortless so the plot and characters can shine. A certain word or phrase should not be so jarring or unnatural, or a sentence so poorly structured, that it brings reading to a screeching halt and yanks the reader out of the story. To me, this defeats the whole purpose of reading. Escapism. As Nathaniel Hawthorne once said, “Easy reading is damn hard writing.” And trust me, I toiled during the writing and editing of Lucky Secrets so the reader can just focus on being entertained. It was indeed damn hard writing, but I believe as a result, it is also easy reading. Hopefully you will agree.

Excerpt :

Winston forced a smile. “The founder imparted to me that every contestant was personally selected because each of you has a secret that absolutely must remain—a secret. Especially from law enforcement.” He glanced at me and raised an eyebrow. “Since the winner of the contest will become fabulously wealthy, it would seem, everyone is here because of a potentially—lucky secret.”
Zoe’s head whipped toward me. With eyes wide, she mouthed law enforcement. I threw her a little headshake, even as my body exploded in tingles. I have no such secrets—anymore. I think. A picture popped in my head of the open safe-deposit box with the gold artifact, gold bar, and emeralds. With my name on the signature card. Somebody obviously manufactured a secret for me. But why? And is it the same for all the contestants? Were they also blackmailed into coming for something they didn’t do? Or were they…
Excerpt Three:
Karsh Azarian’s pretentious voice came from the end of the table. “It would appear I am now the only courageous one going it alone.” He held a glass of red wine aloft in our direction, a smug grin splashed across his stupid goateed face. “As it should be, I suppose. Fair play and what not.”
Across from me and next to Olivia Fantucci, Scooter Jablonsky’s attention bounced between Karsh, Jimmy, and I. Then he pointed with his half-full drink glass toward Frederick Volkov and Rod Toft, who were seated on our side of the table to Azarian’s right. “Hey, Freddie boy, y’all been quiet tonight. Whatsa matter, your contest off like a herd of turtles?”
Volkov fixed his hound-dog eyes on Scooter. “Quite the contrary, Burl. Tell me, have you and Spencer made it out of your rooms yet, or are you still wrasslin’ with that devilish first clue?” Volkov finished with an amused laugh and clinked glasses with Toft. “Cheers, my friend.”
Scooter was about to blow when Spencer Fernsby inserted himself in the conversation. “Frederick, throughout my career, I have seen your kind come and go. Usually to prison for insider trading and fraud, I might add.” He raised a water glass to his lips. “My goodness, it would be quite difficult to win the contest from a jail cell, don’t you think?”
Volkov jumped to his feet. Even from my vantage point, I could see the blue vein throbbing in his forehead. “Are you threatening me, Fernsby?”
Fernsby smiled warmly, a contrast to his suddenly stone-cold blue-gray eyes. “That certainly wasn’t my intention. My respectful apologies.”
Jimmy whispered in my ear, “The plot thickens.”

About the Author

B.T. Polcari is a graduate of Rutgers College of Rutgers University, an award-winning mystery author, and a proud father of two wonderful children. He’s a champion of rescue pups (Mauzzy is a rescue), craves watching football and basketball, and, of course, loves reading mysteries. Among his favorite authors are Richard Osman, D.P. Lyle, Frederick Forsyth, and Michael Connelly. He is also an unapologetic fantasy football addict. He lives with his wife in scenic Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Links To Lucky Secrets

• Goodreads
• Amazon

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