A Slice of Cake With... Arthur Daigle

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Arthur Daigle. 

Arthur Daigle was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois.  He received a degree in biology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and has worked in such diverse fields as zoo intern, a research assistant at the Morton Arboretum, grading high school essay tests and working at a garden center.  In addition to his writing, Arthur is a gardener and amateur artist.  He has published several novels, including William Bradshaw King of the Goblins, William Bradshaw and a Faint Hope, William Bradshaw and War Unending, William Bradshaw and Fool's Gold, William Bradshaw and Urban Problems and Dr. Moratrayas Mad Scientist and Goblin Stories.

What kind of books do you write?

The works of Jim Henson and Brian Froud inspired my writing.  I was impressed by the good humor and gentle nature in their movies and books, and I tried to copy it in my goblin books.  My goblins are silly and a touch crazy, but at heart decent beings who have a soft spot for other underdogs like children and widows.

Can you describe your writing why?

The original Clash of the Titans movie has a line that stuck with me over the years, where a former playwright says he used to write tragedies until he learned the world already had enough of those.  I took those words to heart in my writing.  I could write horror or obscenity-laced action scenes, but there’s enough ugliness, hate and cruelty in the world, that there is no need for me to add more.  I want to make people laugh long enough and loud enough that for a little while the world looks like a better place, that the ugliness fades to the background where it belongs, and maybe my readers will be inspired to help make the world more beautiful.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

“Gentlemen,” Will began with a smile, “I’ve been thinking we should have regular meetings to keep everyone up to date on what’s going on in the kingdom.”

“You mean like who’s invading us this week?” Domo asked.

“Ideally no,” Will replied.

“We have been invaded a lot,” London said.

“Not that we’re complaining,” Brooklyn added.  “You get lots of exercise roughing people up in an invasion.”

Tell us about your latest project

William Bradshaw is King of the Goblins, despite his best efforts to escape the job.  He’s survived invasions, assassination attempts, an army of immortal madmen and all the craziness his goblin followers can throw at him.  But this time Will may have met his match.

A hundred years ago Sarcamusaad the Walking City marched into the ocean on a mission of vengeance.  Many thought it lost in the inky depth, never to be seen again, but their hopes are in vain.  Sarcamusaad is soon to return and march across a continent, destroying all in his path.  Following in the grand tradition of Will’s rotten luck, this walking disaster is headed straight for his ramshackle kingdom. 

Facing this threat is going to take courage, strength, wisdom, all traits goblins are low on, but Will isn’t giving up.  He’ll need help from new friends and old ones to face Sarcamusaad.  As great as this threat is, Will faces on more challenge, for there are those who see opportunity in disasters and think nothing of taking advantage of this situation.

See the action, excitement, craziness and rampant stupidity common to goblins everywhere in William Bradshaw and Urban Problems!

What is your favourite cake?

I’m a fan of anything with fruit in it, but I can’t resist pineapple upside-down cake.  It’s a favourite of mine going back many years.

A great cake choice, thanks! You can find out more about Arthur and his books on Amazon and connect with him on Facebook.

Join me next week when I'll be having a slice of cake with Rachel Brooks.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Brenna Singman

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with author Brenna Singman.

Brenna R. Singman is a fiction author and online writing coach. She was born and raised in NJ becoming the suburban princess to her family’s urban New York lineage. She had been writing fiction since childhood, updating novels and short stories piece by piece on fictionpress.com since she was 13. However, she never dreamed of pursuing writing as a career except a few fleeting moments in college. She never let herself believe how important those thrilling moments were as she created worlds, characters, and conflicts in her head.

In 2013, she graduated from Kean University in Union, NJ with a B.A. in theatre with teaching certification, and she transplanted herself to Atlanta, GA in pursuit of a life of teaching theatre (and enjoying warmer weather!). She learned quickly that neither classroom teaching nor theatre was her truest passion, and she took on a few menial jobs that “paid the bills”. Her writing continued to fall by the wayside, only propped by events like NaNoWriMo.

It wasn’t until early 2017 at 26 years old that she was inspired by other struggling artists who didn’t let excuses stand in their way and even live streamed their creative process! She couldn’t deny her passion for writing any longer. Brenna began live streaming her writing on July 1, 2017 and slowly built the Virtual Write In. She writes every weekday, making herself available for conversation and encouragement, but NEVER for self-deprecation nor excuses.

Now, apart from novels, Brenna writes collections of flash fiction pieces and short stories of various genres on fictionpress and hosts her daily writing group on twitch.tv where she gets to do what she loves most among fellow authors on a similar journey. When she’s not writing, Brenna is likely baking, playing board games, or taking long walks with her brother while contemplating the vicissitudes of life.

What kind of books do you write?

I write books that give young protagonists responsibility and make them face the consequences of their choices. With a touch of magic, of course! I like to set high fantasy style magic in a contemporary setting. As fun as it is to get whisked away to another world, there’s something about letting myself believe in magic at my own front door that sparks more plot bunnies.

Can you describe your writing why?

I write to get thoughts out of my head that I’m not well versed in expressing otherwise. A lot of the plots I come up with, at their core, are issues that I want to talk about. Sometimes they’re situational, sometimes it’s something happening in current events and I don’t want to start an argument so I suss it out through fiction. Most often I use the characters to explore my opinion on a matter while feeling out opposing viewpoints where my thoughts are challenged. No matter what, I like to share a lesson, and it’s particularly important for me to seek out lessons that kids and teens can grasp.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

From Dual Nature (Principles of Magic #1). In a conversation where protagonist Kitty learns more about magic.

“...It’s a much more modern way to form these diagrams. The old ways were drawing lines in dirt and chanting at the moon in a circle of lavender and iron filings. I promise this is preferable, but some people still like to dance in the woods these days. I don’t care as long as their intent is clear and good.”

“Like witchy stuff?” Kitty asked.

“Can’t blame the pilgrims for not having internet in the 17th century.”

Tell us about your latest project

My debut novel, Dual Nature, released on August 5th, 2019, which is also my birthday! It’s a YA contemporary fantasy about an overachieving thirteen year old who thinks she can tackle anything that crosses her path, including learning magic! But she faces off with a spell gone wrong that forces her to stare down her buried fears or she isn’t the only one who’ll face the consequences. 

This story and these characters have been with me for over a decade, and it’s baffling and incredible that I can finally hold the book in my hands and see these characters come to life.

What is your favourite cake?

Carrot cake cheesecake. Number one. No questions asked. Two perfect desserts combined into one!

That's a new one on me, Brenna - but it looks yummy! You can keep in touch with Brenna and her writing via her website and on Twitter.

Join me next week when I'll be having a slice of cake with Arthur Daigle.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

All Trick, No Treat Giveaways #2

Halloween brings out the ebook giveaways! Just click on the image of the giveaway you like the look of to check it out and fill up your e-reader.

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Charles Freedom Long

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Charles Freedom Long. 

Charles has lived and worked in the U.S, Canada, England and Africa. He learned that what we might think is "the way it is," ain't necessarily so. So his books, all of which have won national-level awards, are meant to both entertain and crack open new doors of thought, to take readers to another realm of existence, where life continues beyond the change we call death. To provoke thinking outside our normal conventions. 

What kind of books do you write?

I write about what might be: Psionics, aliens and other worlds, ongoing communication between the living and the dead and how that might affect the life and philosophy of a world.

Can you describe your writing why?

I see humans acting as if nothing beyond this current lifetime on this current planet exists, and where we could be heading if we allow arrogance, greed and religious fundamentalism to continue to divide the human race into illusory camps, a world where fear dominates and where logic, love and science have taken the backseat. As a medium, I speak with “dead” people all the time. As a psychologist, I see what our lack of introspection and extrospection does to our souls. I wonder what other, more enlightened species who might be observing us must think about us. So I write entertaining fiction to bring these thoughts into the light.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

From Witches’ Gambit—opening pages.

“Call me Vitok.” 

Aidan Ray’s hand stopped in midair. She placed the white queen down on the chess board in front of her and looked around the living room. Rain drummed on the windows. The lights were dim, but bright enough against the darkness outside to see the shape forming in the center of the room. 

It was light, pure blue light, somehow full of substance, enthralling. A swirling column, shimmering with energy. The voice rumbled out of it. Every light wave vibrated with the sound. 

Without taking her eyes from the specter, she put her hands into a prayer mudra. Visions were one thing, visitations quite another. And this, she thought, is no earthly visitation. 

A head appeared, atop the ethereal body, crowned with gleaming blue light waves swirling out like pinwheels to all sides. 

Right in the middle of the head, where a face should be, a dark red, fist-sized eye pulsed. A concentric bright red second band jutted out from that. A thin, shimmering violet ring around that, an orange circle, and a bright yellow fifth glimmering halo band completed the multicolored sphere. Five penetrating lights, focused on Aidan like a superluminal spotlight. 

The five-part spherical eye probed Aidan’s blank face. Shocked or not, she knew her expression admitted nothing. She had long ago learned anything anyone discovered about what she thought or felt was a threat. In the litigator’s jungle in which she thrived, only the strong survived. 

Aidan caught her breath. Screwing up her courage, her voice quavering, she asked, “Those lights where your face should be, what are they?” 

“Eyes. We have five eyes.”

Aidan forced her blurring vision to focus. Eyes? 

The thing spoke again.

“I am Nord,” it continued. “From the planet Narr. You, Aidan Ray, have been chosen to represent your species in a matter of grave significance.” 

Me? My species? What is this?

“The rest will unfold.”

Drawn like a moth to the flame, Aidan rose unsteadily up out of her chair, took a deep breath, and boldly reached out her hand to touch the shimmering light form. 

Her hand went into the body, tingled and glowed blue, and she felt a mild electric shock, but otherwise, felt nothing. Nothing but light. 

“Yes,” the voice said after a fleeting pause. “This is what my present body is like. Far less dense than yours.”

What was that pause for? He seemed to be calculating before he answered. Why?

Aidan withdrew her hand from the light, turned it this way and that to see it was unharmed, and then spewed a torrent of questions. “Why are you here? What is this about? Why me? Why now? Why...” 

“You, Aidan Ray, sixth generation Terran medium, who dances with the dead, have been chosen to save your race from annihilation.”

She fell back into her chair like she’d been hit by a rocket. Annihilation? 

Aidan heard herself saying “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”

 “You knew the situation was bad, Aidan Ray. You see what others ignore. You do more than merely speak with the Terran dead. You are one with them.”

The blue radiance faded. For a moment or two, little lights whirled around the space it had occupied then disappeared, and Aidan was left staring at empty space again. A cooling, refreshing sensation of soothing hands on her shoulders massaged away her shakiness.

 “Well met, Aidan Ray,” resounded through the room. “We have much to discuss.” 

Tell us about your latest project

My current WIP is about twin aliens, Zakan and Javek, from a race of grey-furred, fourteen- fingered, twelve-toed, meter-high Meercat-like beings, known as Chret. The twins, a rarity on their homeworld, Saecula, where all forms of industrialization are shunned, are chosen by the planetary Goddess Amara to save their twin planet, Saetana, where the God Kharv is worshipped, and unfettered industrialization is rampant.  Greed and arrogance have led the inhabitants of Saecula to despoil the planet, and they now seek to invade Saecula and plunder its untapped mineral wealth. The twin brothers must find a way to somehow remove the tyrant Rhondal on Saecula, and enable both worlds to stop hating each other and live together. They must do this before the galactic police, the militant Krieg, take action on their own to destroy Saetana, an event which would irrevocably bring about the ultimate annihilation of the entire Chret race.

What is your favourite cake?

New York Cheesecake is now and will be forever irresistible. 

A classic, for sure! You can keep up to date with Charles at his website.

Join me next week when I'll be having a slice of cake with Jennifer Anderson.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Tuesday poem - Acronyms

I'm living in a swirl of acronyms
They flutter around my head like
a cloud of tweety birds from those old cartoons
ADD
DCD
ASD
EP
ECHP
These are the things I must get to grips with
A new language I must conquer
Research to do and things to find out
I cannot just acknowledge these letters and hope
I must uncross my fingers
And leap into this unknown chasm
How can I help? What can I do? Who needs to know what?
The fundamentals
are
the same
He is my boy and I love him
Why would that ever change?

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Jennifer Anderson

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Jennifer Anderson.

Jennifer Anderson hails from the US. Illinois to be exact, the opposite end of the state from Chicago. There, among the cornfields and coal mines, she grew up exploring new worlds through books, while dreaming of creating her own worlds. With a degree in advertising, Jennifer became a copywriter, working mostly in broadcasting. She eventually landed at famed WSM Radio in Nashville, Tennessee and was married on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. From there, she went on to write, produce, and edit syndicated country music radio programs. A few years ago, she decided to finally pursue her childhood dream of writing fiction. BUKU is her first novel. 

Jennifer lives in the Nashville area with her husband Mike, where she anticipates visits from her grandkids, snuggles cats, neglects housework, and heads up a mission project that encourages creativity among at-risk children. Sign up for her newsletter at jenniferandersonwriter.com and read her 4 best personal stories, including the hilarious tale of giving a ride to Star Trek star William Shatner.

What kind of books do you write?

I am a newbie author, so I only have one novel out, BUKU, and its prequel novella. They are action-adventure dystopian stories set in an apocalyptic world with elements of spirituality and romance. I think I covered it all!

Can you describe your writing why?

I am motivated by my ten-year-old self. I decided as a child that I wanted to write books one day. I loved reading and getting lost in someone else’s world, and I was convinced I could create those worlds myself. It took me a long time to find the time and the patience and the courage to do it, but I am delighted I finally did. 

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

This is from BUKU: 

The debate going on in her head was a spirited one. A part of her - the part of her that had learned to survive at a young age in a hostile world, that had been threatened by Mayor and beaten by Blue, perhaps the part of her that was her mother - that part told her to do her penance. Be strong and take it. Or be weak and give in. Whichever. The end goal was to save as many lives as possible. 

But the voice that always urged her to run free - the one that told her to dash across a field of buku to save a stranger, that accepted the secret gifts of the underground malcontent, that reminded her a weapon against the buku had yet to be found - that voice told her to fight. 

It had no real plan. It wasn’t particularly logical, and it had no response when she protested that people would die if she challenged Mayor and Blue. It simply reminded her that people were dying already. 

It didn’t shout, the voice in her head. Or argue at length. It merely whispered persistently. Insistently. Incessantly.

Fight. 

Tell us about your latest project

BUKU is my first and only novel so far, although there is a prequel novella called BUKU: Micah’s Story. Both are on Amazon. (BUKU has 54 positive reviews!) You can also get Micah’s Story for free by subscribing to my newsletter at jenniferandersonwriter.com. BUKU takes place high in the Rocky Mountains, because the world has been overrun by a new species created in a lab. Buku were supposed to solve the world’s energy problems. Instead, they destroyed everything. 

Iris is a medic trying to keep everyone alive. That’s not easy to do since the men who run her village value power above all else. She crosses paths with strangers and decides to help them, which puts her and them in danger from the powers that be. Turns out the strangers may know the secret to defeating buku. The story is about Iris finding enough strength.. and faith… to save the people she loves. 

What is your favourite cake?

My great-grandmother’s carrot cake! The secret is the topping – which is a mixture of evaporated milk, brown sugar, butter, pecans and coconut. You spread that over the top, brown it in the oven, and all of that rich flavour soaks down into the cake. It is awesome… even better than second and third day than it is the first.

Oh. My. Goodness! That sounds amazing! You can find both of Jennifer's books on Amazon.

Join me next week when I'll be having a slice of cake with Jennifer Anderson.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

All Treat, No Trick Book Giveaways

This is my monthly round-up of spooktacular giveaways. All you have to do is click on the image banner to visit the giveaway and check out the books on offer - happy reading!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Book Review September 2019

Here is my round-up of the books I read in September 2019.

The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton - 5 stars

Recap: Elodie Winslow discovers a leather satchel containing a photograph of a young woman and an artist's sketchbook from the childhood story her mother used to tell her.

Review: This book has layers! There are lots of interwoven storylines that connect individuals to the house and each other and it was very satisfying to keep peeling those layers back. The overall narrator is a ghost which adds a layer of sadness to the turn of events. It's almost a heart-warming tragedy with equal measure of love and hope against sadness and loss. I really enjoyed reading it.

The Lost War: Eidyn Book One by Justin Lee Anderson - 5 stars

Recap: Aranok, the King's envoy is meant to be on a rescue mission but he gets sidetracked as reality doesn't match up with what he was told. Strange beasts, demons, a plague of blackened and knights with unusual powers lead him on a new quest.

Review: Great fantasy writing with an interesting cast of characters. You do have this sense that you're missing something and so the ending is both a combination of I knew it and omg I didn't expect that! Traditional fantasy tropes are expanded on - there's a healthy payment for use of magic and injuries do slow characters down, we've got zombie like plague victims as well as the actual killer dead plus a great deal on the view that God is the provider of all good things - in fact the religious stuff did turn me off a little and almost lost a star. The ending made up for it. 

A Light in the Dark by Terry Poole - 4 stars

Recap: A ghost goes to the beach!

Review: This is a very short glimpse into a larger world the author has created and as such you barely have time to get stuck into anything but what stood out for me was the tenderness of the main relationship, the interesting ghost angle and the sadness of the little boy. I don't read M/M love stories so it's not my genre however good writing is good writing. Hopefully in the longer book, the characters have more time to differentiate a little more - it's hard to squeeze all that in with a story when writing such a short book.

The First Wave by Lana Melyan - 3 stars

Recap: Nicky is waiting for her powers as a witch to manifest, meanwhile her parents are keeping secrets from her.

Review: It's YA so aimed at angsty teenagers, everybody drinks a phenomenal amount of coffee and it feels very familiar - we've been here before! That said my interest is piqued at what the secrets could be and it ticks all the boxes for a quick read. It's a short novella but paced well, we have all the tropes - less powerful best friend, mentor figure in the Gran, an ex-boyfriend who still has an interest plus two good looking dangerous potential love interests and *gasp* one of them is a vampire! But if you enjoy reading this genre then you're going to love the book, I just wanted a little more - I liked it but I didn't love it. Hopefully, book two will ramp up the plot and hook me further.

The Legacy by Lana Melyan - 3.5 stars

Recap: Nicky finds out her family secret.

Review: As soon as we met the tree in book one, I knew it would be the hiding place so deeply satisfied with that. I can't shake the feeling that the best friend will be revealed as working for the other side because we keep getting told she's harmless with bare!y any powers. The Nathan-Nicky dynamic is odd, more so because I think they're actually distant relations, if I read that correctly. Still lots and lots of coffee but a bit more magical world building this time. I like the fact that the author described it as a tv series in book form because it does feel like I'm two episodes into a show, deciding whether I'm going to carry on watching it or not. So I might just watch one more because the writing isn't bad and the scene has been set so let's get stuck in!

Sniper Squad by Meg Buchanan - 4 stars

Recap: Under Jacob's orders, Jack is a mole in the VTroopers and Ela is an elite recruit within the Resistance - neither one allowed to talk to the other. But the Administration know what Jacob is planning and they'll do everything in their power to stop him.

Review: Splitting Jack and Ela up added great tension to the storyline and there's a more desperate, ruthless edge to the action with a few shocking moments. Fast paced and easy to read, an intense sequel with lots of potential for upcoming disaster in book three!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Kristin McTiernan

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Kristin McTiernan.

Kristin McTiernan was born the daughter of a career military man and spent her childhood bouncing from one country to another. Her love of writing surfaced early, and upon discovering the double threat of comic books and Star Trek in middle school, Kristin spent the majority of her spare time creating new worlds and interesting people to populate them. Following in her parents’ footsteps, Kristin enlisted in the Marine Corps at 17 and, upon her discharge three years later, settled into a life pursuing her love of words. She achieved her bachelor’s degree in English from Emporia State University in her home state of Kansas and her master's in curriculum design.

Kristin has been a professional editor since 2008, perfecting doctoral dissertations, novels, and creative nonfiction.She published her first book, Sunder, in 2015 and continues to publish both time travel and supernatural fiction, loving every minute of it.

What kind of books do you write?

I write about women who find themselves in weird situation. My current series is about a woman combatting male Central American witches with shadowy motives. I also have a time travel/alternate history series taking place in a North America settled by the Spanish and ruled by the Vatican.

Can you describe your writing why?

They say if the story you want to read doesn’t exist, then write it. I love the spec fic and supernatural genres but so often I find myself rewriting someone else’s work in my head… even if I liked it 😊 After I finish a book, I always wonder if it’s my last one. But before long, I’m back at the keyboard.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

I nodded back, waiting for her to continue with her concerns. When none came, I said, “Can I ask what changes you’ve noticed? How he’s ‘shifted’ toward the other boys?”

Debby pressed her lips into a razor-thin white line and stared at me without blinking, clearly doing some complicated verbal calculation in her head.

“He’s been… a little clingy. More insistent that a particular boy should play with him or sit next to him instead of near someone else.”

I nodded but didn’t say anything. And I kept on nodding, letting the silence get uncomfortable. Because I knew Debby had more to say. Something she really didn’t want to.

“He… uh… sometimes says things. About the other children. Things he has no way of knowing.”

“Such as?” I prompted her, determined to make her say it out loud.

“Well, Sean was sitting by him and Nino casually mentioned that you had wanted to name him Sean before he was born. But his daddy decided Antonio was better. Then Sean said something unkind about the name Antonio. I talked to him about saying unkind things,” she added. “But then Nino said Sean’s parents had actually wanted a girl and his mother cried for days when she found out she was having a boy.” Debby’s eyes widened. “Apparently, that was true,” she whispered. “And I can’t imagine how Nino would know that.”

I craned my neck to look into the next room where my beautiful boy sat at a table, alone, coloring like he had no cares in the world. When he concentrated, he looked so much like his father it sometimes took my breath away. Luis and I both had brown eyes, but different shades. And Luis could deny it all he wanted, but Nino’s eyes were mine. Even if everything else belonged to his father.

“I’ve been working with him on being kind also,” I said, not even trying to give her a straight answer. “He sometimes says things he shouldn’t.”

Stone faced, Debby whispered, “Enrique had that problem too. When he was young.” 

I blinked, never quite ready to hear that name being said aloud. Unlike me, she’d known Enrique from a very young age. For some reason, it was only now dawning on me that plump, simple Debby might know more than I did about my son’s homicidal brother.  

“He’s not like Enrique,” I said, maybe sharper than I should have.

“I know he isn’t. As you can see, all the class hamsters are still in one piece.” She smiled when she said it, but she was not joking.

Tell us about your latest project

Books 1 and 2 of the Black Magic series are out now, following Tess Cooper, a woman living like a witness to a mob hit. She has a stalker, one who happens to be a brujo (male witch). Since she is not a witch herself, and literally no one believes her plight, she has to make a deal with another, more powerful brujo… her stalker’s father.

What's your favourite cake?

Italian cream cake! I had it once at a friend’s bachelorette party and I’ve never been the same since.

Looks delicious, Kristin! You can find out more about Kristin and her writing at her website.

Join me next week when I'll be having a slice of cake with Jennifer Anderson.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.