Thank
you for hosting this stop on my Murder on Mars (A New Orleans
Mystery) book tour!
Murder
on Mars, a mystery suspense begins with sixteen year old Ava Lopez
arriving in New Orleans after learning that a good friend of hers has
disappeared. She begins to track him down by piecing together what he
had been doing the last few days before he had gone missing,
discovering a hidden world within the city.
I
visited New Orleans one summer in August and found it to be a
charming place. During the short time I was there I heard some of
the most amazing music. I knew that when I began working on Murder
on Mars
I had to feature this and I worked on capturing the mood and feel of
what I was lucky enough to hear while I was in town.
I
wrote three characters into my story with the purpose of using them
to convey what I had learned. Each of them had different backgrounds
and stories of their own who came together to form their band. While
I was in New Orleans I learned music was something to be learned and
to be shared, music was life.
Young Adult Paranormal Suspense
Title: Murder on Mars (A New Orleans Mystery)
Author: M.M. Shelley
A paranormal force has lured Ava to New Orleans, where shadows lurk behind every
corner and an unknown power has yet to be unleashed. There is a darkness in New Orleans, one that has
brought sixteen year old Ava Lopez to the city in search of her best friend,
Dyson. A dark crime has been committed, and there are supernatural forces
involved. Three sisters who whisper "fate" are awaiting the arrival
of the Guardian. Shadow People fiercely haunt the city, unchallenged, but Ava
senses that Dyson may be involved with their crimes. She must discover the
secret that the Shadows are so determined to keep hidden. Ava will have to risk
everything, because where the Fates are concerned there are no second chances.
Read an excerpt:
Read an excerpt:
Ava caught the red eye into New
Orleans Louisiana; it was the earliest flight she could make out of
New York City. If it had been for anyone other than Dyson there would
have been no way she would have dropped everything she was doing to
fly out to New Orleans. She had never given the city much thought
before; Dyson had mentioned it briefly to her once before saying that
his great aunt Caroline lived in the Garden District and from time to
time he would visit and stay with her.
Dyson was Ava’s closest friend; in
fact at times he was her only friend. She had met Dyson in the first
grade. Ava had transferred from a school in Los Angeles, California
and it had seemed that before she arrived everyone had heard the
stories of her father; they all knew who she was and who her father
was. Her fellow students couldn’t wait to tease and ridicule her,
everyday they would find a new way to torture her in class or in the
halls.
Ava wore her black hair in a pony
tail which placed her widow’s peak on prominent display; her
classmates would say that she looked like Eddie Munster. They also
teased her mercilessly about the cleft in her chin and every time
they did she had turned her nose up at them. They had also liked to
call her Lupus, because her last name was Lopez. And at the lunch
table they would sit next to her and poke at her food so she couldn’t
eat.
Through it all she would pretend
that everything they did to her didn’t affect her, she never
reacted, and she kept her feelings to herself; never letting them see
her cry.
They soon began calling her the ‘ice
princess’ because of her lack of reaction and because of the glares
she would send their way if she found something annoying or not to
her liking. Ava had mastered the art of looking down her nose at
someone and it made them feel small, so, finally the other students
gave up and moved on to easier targets.
Dyson had never been one of the ones
who had teased her; in fact he had kept his distance from her. One
morning as she sat in a swing at the end of a school day waiting to
be picked up from school, Dyson walked over and sat in the swing next
to her.
He told her that his car was late;
that his parents were in town and whenever they were the car was
always late. He took out some licorice and offered her some. Ava was
a bit hesitant but helped herself to a piece. Before she took a bite
she waited for him to take one; it was to make sure there was nothing
wrong with it.
As his car arrived a window in the
back seat rolled down and a woman peered out shouting at him to hurry
up and get into the car. Dyson took his time as he handed Ava the
rest of the licorice before turning his sharp blue eyes onto his
mother. He wore his blonde hair in a disheveled mess just to irritate
her and he ran his hand through it for good measure before he kicked
up loose dirt spraying rocks at the car. The gravel hit both the car
and his mother. Dyson ran along the car and got in on the passenger
side, choosing to sit next to the driver rather than with his mother.
Ava sat on her swing and watched in
bewilderment, a smile slowly found its way onto her face. Her father
never picked her up from school, he couldn’t as he lived back home
in Los Angeles. He knew how the school and the other parents felt
about him, the only reason he sent Ava to school so far away was to
give her a better life away from the one he was living, at least
that’s what he told her time and again, but she knew better.
Her mother Lucia had died shortly
after Ava was born on January twenty third; Lucia was beautiful, she
had long thick black hair and green eyes. Ava had inherited her
mothers’ dark hair but everything else came from her father,
Martin.
Ava and Dyson were now attending
school at Clairman’s Academy, only Dyson hadn’t return from his
spring break trip from New Orleans. The last few weeks before he had
left Dyson had been acting oddly; as he kept to himself and he was on
his phone constantly either receiving texts or phone calls. No matter
how many times Ava hounded him he wouldn’t say what they were
about.
And then she got a call from Felix
telling her she needed to get to New Orleans as soon as possible. He
wouldn’t say why.
Felix was a friend of Dyson’s; one
Ava had met a few times when Felix had been in New York. He was easy
to talk to and he had a friendly laugh, that was the first thing she
thought of when she heard his voice over the phone, his laugh. It was
catchy and easy on the ears; he had a way of making anyone feel
welcomed.
If Dyson was in any kind of trouble
she would be there for him as he had been there for her. He had been
the one she had turned to after the murder of her father.
Ava closed her eyes and leaned her
head back against the head rest of her seat. She didn’t want to
think about that day, she forced it back into the darkest part of her
mind and swiftly popped in her earphones to listen to the in-flight
movie, hopefully it would help her get some sleep. It was a romantic
comedy, she hated those, they were all the same just different
actors, but she would rather watch that than let her mind wonder to
places she would rather it didn’t. She opened her eyes just as the
male actor who had dreamy bedroom eyes and a lazy smile ask his lady
love for a dance. She agreed and quickly melted into his arms. Ava
yanked the earphones out and pushed the button for the flight
attendant who came by. She seemed to have a smile permanently
pressed onto her face. The flight was full, first class was sold
out, which left Ava in coach.
Ava didn’t wait for her to speak
as she quickly said, “I need a Pepsi.” The flight attendant
nodded her head and left at a brisk pace. Fortunately Ava had the
aisle seat, nothing worse than being stuck at the window and having
to climb over people if she needed to step out. She pulled out her
laptop and lowered the tray. The attendant returned with her drink,
and Ava signed into her account after paying the charge for the use
of WI-FI.
The flight was a good three hours
and she arrived after four a.m. Even though it was early there was a
live band playing near baggage claim. The band was exuberant and
soulful at the same time; it was their way of welcoming visitors into
their city. Ava paused for a moment to listen, she loved music, but
unfortunately couldn’t play any type of instrument or sing for that
matter, but she did admire those who were able to. She dropped a
twenty dollar bill into a black hat as she made her way out of
baggage claim and to the taxi stand.
There was a tall slim man leaning
against a cab and as she neared he seemed to become excited, probably
because he was about to get a fare so early in the morning. He pushed
against the cab and stepped forward offering his help with her
luggage. She had three bags with her; a large suit case, a carry on
and her laptop bag which she wore strapped across her body.
Even though she was only sixteen
years old Ava looked older, maybe it was because she was a fan of
make-up and fashion. Fashion was a way for her to escape and pretend
she was someone else, she went through many looks during her years at
Clairmans Academy, and at times her looks might have been outrageous,
but they were fun none the less.
She was dressed in a pair of trim
black pants that hugged her curves and a silk blouse that was form
fitted, her coat was dark grey a mix of a military cut with ruffles
on the back just above the hem.
“Where are we going?” he asked
her as he stowed her luggage in the trunk. Before she could open the
passenger door he had whisked around her to open her door, and waved
her into the cab.
“Le
Pavillon Hotel,” she said as she took a seat.
Author Bio:
M.M. Shelley is a storyteller, word smith and dreamer. She has traveled
the world extensively in search of the magic which is often overlooked in every
day life. M.M. Shelley is a native of southern California, and a student of mythology from
which she gets much inspiration.
Thank you for hosting!
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