Something fun for readers (I hope)...

Reviews.  Back in the stone age (remember the days before ebooks and audiobooks?) I didn't worry too much about reviews. They just showed up from RT (which announced it's over and done with...I'm sad) and other professional sources. 

Occasionally we'd hear from a reader, but it was mainly professional review publications that mattered.

These days, writers rely on reviews from readers. It makes such a bit difference at sites like Amazon and Goodreads.  It's not professional reviewers, but readers that can really make a book.  (So if you read one of my books, please consider sending a quick review to your favorite online site?  But keep reading, that's not the main point of this blog post...)

When I wrote my first Quincy Mac book, Steamed, I had family reviews for it. They're still some of my favorites. For second book in the series, Dusted, I had writer friends write funny reviews.  In Spruced Up, Christmas characters and for Swept Up, I even some fake movie reviews.  

So I need some for the new Maid in LA book, Polished Off. I thought maybe asking online friends would be fun? So write your best Maid in LA review and email or message me...or post it here. I'll use what I can!

Examples from Steamed:

Reviews from the author's family:

"Hey, at least it's not a romance." Holly's son.

"Dear God, not another cop character. Any police procedural inaccuracies are all Holly's. They are not the fault of her personal police models. Of course, the fact that she portrays cops as hunks is totally accurate." Holly's husband and two brothers (aka...the cops)

*"Holly is a fantastic writing talent...not that I'm biased."
~Holly's favorite daughter*

*"Holly Jacobs is an auto-buy for me. Not that I buy her books...she gives them to me."
~Holly's favorite daughter*

*"Holly makes me laugh...so do her books." ~Holly's favorite daughter*

*DISCLAIMER:
Holly has three daughters...she has no favorites.

If you've got a minute, I'd love to see your funny, or serious review!

Holly

PS.
My books are available as ebooks, paperbacks, hardbacks, audiobooks and available through Kindle Unlimited.  They're also available in a lot of other languages. I hope there's something for all of you!

Find my books at:

Amazon

Audible

BAM

Kobo

B&N

iBooks

Google Play

In Erie, you can find my books on the shelf at Werner Books! Stop in, check them out and tell them I said hi!

Heading to the beach...a new release, some romance and a few dead bodies!

A new release is always exciting, even if the new release is just a boxed set of three of your older releases. Yesterday, my 2nd annual Beach Read Bundle came out.  I spent a lot of time with the-powers-that-be trying to decide which books to include.  I wanted light, frothy read that readers could take on their summer vacations.  And I love that they priced it at less than the cost of two books.  Three for less than two.  That means even if you've read one of the books, it still pays to buy the bundle for the other two. (I'm feeling all mathy!)

So which books are in this year's limited time boxed set? It doesn't really take a detective to figure it out.  LOL

First up is the first Maid in LA book, Steamed.  I'll be honest, these stories have some of my all time favorite reviews.  LOL  The 5th Maid in LA book, Polished Off, comes out in June, so this one seemed like a great way to introduce LA's favorite Maid to new readers.

Which led us to choosing Can't Find NoBODY for the second book.  Yes, it includes both my love of Mondays, a bit of glee and a disappearing body.  Think a Weekend at Bernie's romance.  This one's a nice cross between cozy mystery and romance.

Which led to the third story...Confessions of a Party Crasher.  The heroine's lost her job and comes home...to a crazy mother who turns her into an inadvertent party crasher.  This is a romantic comedy, but I love that it has a serious message... sometimes what you think you want isn't what you want at all!

What I really want is for all of you to have a wonderful summer.  I hope you get to visit a nearby beach (and take me...or rather one of my books along).  You can bet I'll be on Presque Isle for some beautiful Erie sunsets. (I took this pic last year...it truly is gorgeous out there!)

So please, pick up 

Holly Jacobs' 2018 Beach Read and let your friends know it's out. Remember it's only available until the end of summer.  And if you've read all three of those books, THANK YOU!!  Please consider checking out some of my other work at:

Amazon

Audible

BAM

Kobo

B&N

iBooks

Google Play

In Erie, you can find my books on the shelf at Werner Books! Stop in, check them out and tell them I said hi!

Thank you all for all your support.  
Keep an eye out.  I'm doing another cottage tour soon...we've been busy!  And even though I don't have any official classes this summer, I'm still busy.  So watch for more of my arting! And my friend Susan and I are doing a few videos for you soon. If you've subscribed to my blog, you won't miss any.  I'm posting our teaser.

And please, if you have a few moments, leave a review for any of my books you've read!
Have a great day...dare a say, a gleeful day? LOL

Holly

  

Spruced Up: A Maid in LA Holiday Novella

Thanks to everyone who's picked up the first two books in my Maid in LA series, Steamed and Dusted!  Quincy Mac is a character who I dreamed up years ago.  I loved the idea of a normal woman thrown into extraordinary circumstances.  In Steamed she accidentally cleans (and steams) a murder scene, and in Dusted, her business is at risk because an employee (Theresa, the worst employee ever!) has dusted an expensive work of art and broke it.

But neither of those mysteries has prepared Quincy for her Christmas mystery, Spruced Up…she's going home to Erie, PA for Christmas!  

Spruced Up is on sale at Amazon this week!  

Now, this is not a huge mystery…maybe that's not the best thing for a writer to admit, especially a mystery writer! LOL But it does move Quincy's character forward, and I think it's a heartwarming holiday story.  I wanted to be sure that Quincy doesn't become one of those amateur sleuths who falls into giant mystery after giant mystery.  I also didn't want her tripping over dead bodies in every book—I think that if you're finding a dead body around every corner, your party invitations might fall off quickly!  With Quincy, I wanted to portray a real woman.  She's got teen sons, so there's rarely any food in her refrigerator.  She comes from a family of physicians and has always felt as if she was a slight disappointment to them. She frets and worries and is a mom, a friend and a daughter. She worries about her 'baby-pooch' and about her romance.  She frets about her friends and her family.  She excited about going home for Christmas and seeing family and old friends!

I hope you enjoy Quincy's homecoming and holiday!  

Holly

PS A Valley Ridge Christmas is out this month, too!  I guess I'm in a Christmas state of mind!

Holly Jacobs' November Newsletter

Hi, everyone!  And welcome to all the new people who've joined my mailinglist over the last couple months!

Quincy’s third story, Spruced Up, is out! It’s a novella, so it’s shorter than normal, and since it's a Christmas mystery, there are no dead bodies, or even anything as big as a stolen/forged painting.  I hope you enjoy going home for Christmas with Quincy…there’s a bit of a surprise at the end.  

I’ve started working on her fourth book, Swept Up.  The opening line?  “Oh, no.  Not again.”  Don’t you want to know what’s happening…again??

ON SALE: Amazon has the first two books on sale this week. Book #1 Steamed, Book #2 Dusted.  

I’ve heard from a lot of readers that they want my eBook-only stories available for Nook, too.  And like I keep promising, they’ll all make it there eventually.  I’m starting with the Nothing But… series of short stories.  I hope you enjoy these short stories!

Nothing But Love and Nothing But Heart are out now for both Nook and Kindle.  Watch for Nothing But Luck for Nook soon!

And heads up: Next month is the final book in my Harlequin SuperRomance Valley Ridge series, A Valley Ridge Christmas.  It’s coming out in the US, in Australia and as an e-Book only release in the UK.  And Harlequin is re-releasing an anthology I was part of, Dashing Through the Mall, at WalMart.  If you didn’t catch it the first time around, I hope you’ll check it out.

Wishing all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you all count your blessing, and as you do, you realize how much you have to give thanks for!  I know how very lucky I am…and having so many of you following my work from mysteries, to romance, from comedy to drama, well, know I give thanks for you all on a regular basis!

Holly

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

www.HollyJacobs.com

STEAMED: A Maid in LA Mystery, OUT NOW!!

DUSTED: A Maid in LA Mystery, OUT NOW!!

SPRUCED UP: A Maid in LA Holiday Novella, OUT NOW!!

A VALLEY RIDGE CHRISTMAS,  12/13 

ONE TRUE THING, 6/14

Free Kindle Book

Steamed: A Maid in LA Mystery 1

Dusted: A Maid in LA Mystery 2

My second Maid in LA book, Dusted: A Maid in LA Mystery, came out last week!!  Yeah, I'm a bit excited about it!!  To celebrate it's release, the first book in the series, Steamed, is free on Friday and Saturday.  If you haven't picked it up, I hope you join Quincy on her first adventure, and after you've read that, I hope you pick up her second.

And I might as well say, I hope you're anxious for her third story, Spruced Up.  It will be out in November.

So who is Quincy Mac?  She's a mom of three teen boys.  She owns a successful cleaning service, Mac'Cleaners.  She's a sister and daughter.  She's a good friend. She went to LA hoping to become a star.  Though that didn't happen, she's built a good life.

Then she accidentally cleans a murder scene in Steamed.  And her career as her amateur sleuth begins.  Not only does she solve that mystery, she finds a new boyfriend.

In her second book, Dusted, she's trying to save her business when they find that three clients have had artwork stolen and replaced with forgeries.

And in the Christmas novella, Spruced Up, Quincy's heading home for the holidays...back to Erie, PA. Yes, you all know I'm from Erie and it had to find it's way into the story somehow!

I hope you'll pick up Steamed and give Quincy and her gang a try.  And please, feel free to pass this offer on to your friends!

As always, thanks for all the support!

Holly

PS I've heard from readers, asking that the books be released in other formats.  They will be eventually. But for now, they're just available on Kindle.  If you don't have the free Kindle app, you can get it for your computer, tablet or phone.  I will absolutely post when the books start making the move!

An Interview with Holly Jacobs

Quincy Mac, A Maid in LA, budding writer and amateur sleuth interviews her author, Holly Jacobs

QM: Hi, Holly.  You know that having a fictional character interview you is... Well, it's a little nuts.  And take it from me, I know nuts.  I've been watching my business partner, Tiny, go a bit more insane every day as she gets ready for her wedding.

HJ: I have four kids…they assure me on a regular basis that I’m a bit…uh, unique in my thought processes.  Anyway, thanks for taking time away from your busy writing and cleaning schedule to help me out with this rather unique interview, Quincy.

QM: Us writers have to stick together, though I feel a bit full-of-myself referring to myself as a writer.

HJ: So do I most days. Sometimes I pinch myself. It’s such a dream to spend my days telling stories I love, and creating characters I love—you’re one of those.

QM: Well, thank you! I guess my first question would have to be, after writing so many romances, why try your hand at mysteries?

HJ: Well, you do have a bit of romance in your books.

QM: (Blushing slightly) Yes, I do…thanks for that.

HJ: You’re welcome.  And I started out writing comedic romances for Harlequin Duets.  Even now that I tell far more emotional books, I think my humor comes through.  So telling a funny story about a maid who accidentally cleans a murder scene wasn’t much of a stretch.

 

QM: Speaking of stretching…did you have to give me three boys and the stretch-marks to show for it?  Not to mention the baby-pooch.

HJ: Hey, I just write it as I see it.  And I prefer writing real women—

QM: Real fictional women?  That does seem like a bit of an oxymoron, doesn’t it?

 

HJ: Hey, I’m a rebel.  But seriously, when I hear from a reader who tells me that a character felt so real they felt like she was an old friend…Well, that’s a big compliment.  Probably the biggest compliment a reader can give me.  Look at it this way, you’re like the Velveteen Rabbit.  More real because of your baby-pooch and stretch-marks.

QM: Let’s just say we can agree to disagree on the baby-pooch.  And onto my next question…Why a maid?

HJ: I really enjoy having characters who work at real jobs.  A barista.  A farmer.  A librarian.  I’ve written cops, nurses, store owners and stay-at-home-moms.  Again, it has a lot to do with that realness we were just talking about.  I know a lot of nurses and cops…but very few billionaires. 

QM: Most of your books are set in your hometown, Erie, PA.  Why set my story in LA?

HJ: Well, you are from Erie, and you’re going home in your Christmas novella, Spruced Up, so I do have that local connection I love to do.  But given the circumstances of Mr. Banning’s death, you sort of had to be based in LA.  I mean, I think Erie has just about everything, but I don’t think we have any Mortie winning writers here.  And in Dusted, having those Lifestyles-of-the-Rich-and-Famous clients using your cleaning services…well, that worked well in LA, too.

QM: This isn’t really part of the interview, but just something I’ve wanted to say, thanks for writing me as a strong female character who doesn’t wait to be saved, but rather saves herself.

HJ: I know you have three sons, Quince, but I have one son and three daughters.  I like to write strong female characters for my girls. Capable women who can kick butt and save themselves if they need to, but can also open themselves up to someone else.  I think the best relationships have partners who take turns being the saver and the savee.

QM: So in Steamed, I solved a murder.  In Dusted, I figured out who stole a bunch of artwork and replaced it with forgeries.  In those two books, I’ve made friends, dealt with family and helped Tiny get through a wedding.  What’s next?

HJ: Well, as I mentioned, in November’s novella, Spruced Up, you’re heading home to Erie for Christmas.  And your mom and dad’s medical practice has a bunch of supplies that have gone missing.  You’re going to figure out who’s taking them and why.  And there might be a special holiday moment.

QM: No murders or whack-a-doodles with guns in this one?

HJ: None.  That doesn’t mean you’re not going to have your work cut out for you.

QM: Well, anytime I go home, it’s work.  It’s hard to be the family black sheep.  I mean, everyone’s a doctor.  Everyone. Except me.

HJ: And your uncle.

QM: Yeah. Although things have been a bit better with my mom since her last visit to LA.  Maybe this trip will be different. 

HJ: Maybe. But I’m not saying.

QM: If it’s not, I’ll know who to blame.

HJ: Hey, I just write it as I see it. 

QM: Well, thanks for letting me do the interview.  I still think people are going to think you’re nuts.

HJ: Hey, I’m the one that delivers them Monday Glee on a regular basis.  I like Mondays.  If that wasn’t their first clue that I might be a bit different, then maybe…

QM: Maybe they need to read a few more mysteries so they can pick up on the clues better!

HJ: That was blatant, Quincy.

QM: My author didn’t write me as subtle.

HJ: Okay, I guess it’s my turn to say, I hope you’ll check out Quincy’s first two books:

Steamed:A Maid in LA Mystery

Dusted: AMaid in LA Mystery

And that you’ll watch for Spruced Up, her Christmas novella.  It should be out in November.

Thanks everyone!

Holly (and Quincy)

Friends' Friday #6

Sorry I missed last week's Friends' Friday! We were in Blue Mountain, Ontario. I climbed the mountain...and survived.  It was a near thing! LOL  I got home and went to work cleaning up the sequel to Steamed: A Maid in LA Mystery, Dusted (I'm posting the cover here...I'm so jazzed with it!). Yes, Quincy Mac is back with another investigation and I'm having so much fun with this second book!  Thanks to everyone who's picked up a copy of Steamed and sent me a note, or posted a review!

So here we go...back to Friends' Fridays.  Here are weeks One, Two, Three,  Four and Five in case you missed them.  Hope you find a new-to-you author this week!





When I get together with Shirley Jump, there's always a lot of laughter.  She's a sweet lady and her books reflect that!












I had a chance to work with Winnie Griggs on a writing group's board. I'm not sure how she juggled work, her writing and the board's work, but she did it brilliantly.  She's such a talented, hardworking lady!








Talking about Judith Arnold is fun because her books rock, but talking to her is even more fun! And reading her books?? The most fun of all!









Jeannie Watt doesn't just write about cowboys and ranches, she lives in a Nevada ranching community.  She's definitely takes the writing advice, 'write what you know' to heart!








I wrote two Duets with Bonnie Tucker. Our stories were separate, but tied.  I can't tell you how much fun it was to work with a friend. I met Bonnie at my first writing conference and we've been friends ever since!

I hope you find a new-to-you author this week!  Thanks to everyone who's dropped me a note saying how much you're enjoying my Friends' Fridays.  I still have plenty of friends to go, so stay tuned!

Holly