When my husband got
tired of trying to kill himself in racing cars, light aircraft, helicopters and
all the other stuff men turn to in their hour of mid-life crisis, he suggested
that we try boating. We were at home in Andorra, up to our ears in snow and the
heating was on the blink, so pretty pictures of sleek motor cruisers cutting
through the calm, crystal clear waters of the Mediterranean seemed rather
appealing. And safe. We fell for the hype and before we knew it, we were the
owners of an ancient boat in need of a considerable amount of tlc.
For Andre, that was
the start of an on-going love affair with the sea and all things nautical. For
me it was more a hate-love-hate situation. When the sea is actually as calm as they make it out to be in those glossy ads
then boating is a dream. But those days are few and far between. Most of the
time you’re tossed about like a loose coin in a washing machine, feeling sick
and wondering what the hell you think you’re doing.
Still, never waste an
experience, that’s my motto, and one good thing to come out of hours of staring
at endless expanses of sea was The
Hunter Files, my series of marine crime mysteries. The first, Unfinished Business, was released by
Carina Press last October, written under my other persona, W. Soliman. The
second, Risky Business, sees the
light of publication today.
Charlie Hunter is,
like me, a Brit. He shares my husband’s passion for boating and, at forty,
having taken early retirement from the police, plans to live aboard his trawler
yacht in Brighton marina and spend his days restoring it to its former glory.
Sound familiar?
Charlie’s dream life
doesn’t get off to a good start when, in Unfinished
Business, a woman involved in one of his first cases as a detective accosts
him, trying to persuade him to look for her missing sister. Charlie, a soft
touch when a pretty woman turns on the tears, reluctantly agrees. Mind you, if
he’d known his investigation would lead to a gang of ruthless Russians, leaving
him and Kara fighting for their lives, he probably would have stuck to boating!
But I’m getting ahead
of myself here. Writing this book was a departure for me, since it’s in the
first person, obviously from a male perspective. Andre came in useful here,
both with technical boating issues and likely male reactions in given
situations. Can’t say more than that!
Risky Business is all about a guy serving time for the murder
of a bookie. Some of you might think he did the world a service but that would
be mean! The guy’s daughter admits that her dad was a bit of a villain but
murder just isn’t his style, especially since the guy who got topped was a
friend of his and there had been no falling out amongst thieves. Charlie has a
look into things. He’d had his doubts about the conviction at the time. He
should have known that the guys involved didn’t believe in taking any prisoners
and finds himself fighting to save his own life…
Risky Business by W. Soliman available from Carina Press and
all on-line book stores.
Read the first chapter
on my website at www.wsoliman.com
Enjoy, Wendy
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