Mississippi Bluff, A Southern Country Novel 3rd in Series.

A Mississippi Bluff is a Texas Hold ’Em poker strategy, seventy-five percent bluffing and twenty-five percent odds. Jo Lane doesn’t gamble on anything but love and her life. In the past, gambling on love has been a no-win for her. However, she’ll have to bluff her way out to win the latest game on her life.

With a deranged clown and a contract assassin after her, the odds don’t look good for the young Special Agent Lane. The clown is seeking revenge—but for whom? The contract assassin is desperate to get his hands on something in Jo’s lost airline luggage. The assassin plans to take her out of the picture as soon as he gets his hands on it—but who hired him?

Sam Hunter is new in town. He’s looking for his missing young niece, April, and requests Jo’s help in finding her. After much thought, she agrees to try to tap into her God-given ability to locate April. The more she digs into April’s history, the more confused Jo becomes. Something isn’t adding up—but what?

Jo’s love life takes a toll on her emotions, leaving her heartbroken. After she’s made up her mind that she’s through with the game of love, a new player sits down at the table, and he’s all in. Is she willing to take the risk and bet it all, or will she fold and walk away?

The stakes are high in Mississippi Bluff, the third book in A Southern Country Novel series.

Mississippi Bluff Available at Amazon 

Goodreads Book Giveaway Famous in a Small Town (An Entering Southern Country Novel)

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Famous in a Small Town

by Diana Anderson

Giveaway begins Friday, April 18, 2014 and ends Sunday, May 18, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

  I'm giving away five autographed copies of Famous in a Small Town (An Entering Southern Country Novel) the first in the trilogy. Famous in a Small Town is a dark, southern, mystery thriller.
Check my Goodreads profile for the book trailer. Sample pages can be read on Amazon.
Happy reading!

Famous in a Small Town
The quiet town of Cypress, Mississippi is turned upside down when a former citizen, Raven Sawyer, returns for a funeral. Raven’s fictional novel goes viral when the town folk realize that she’s the author, and soon they’re thinking that her book is not fiction but truth. Every little dirty detail is revealed in her book and has the people of Cypress wagging their tongues and shaking their heads at a few of the upper-class citizens and—the Sheriff. All Raven wants is to get through the funeral and go back to New York, but Sheriff Cal Rayburn can’t allow her to leave after she discovers and turns over evidence that may be connected to a double homicide that he’s investigating. At least, that’s the excuse he’s giving her, and he’ll go to any length to keep her in Cypress until he can make her believe that the affair, that she thinks he had six years ago, never happened. When more dead bodies turn up, Cal feels they’re connected to the double homicide, but with the evidence he has, he can’t make a connection. He’s left with more questions than answers. He’s told that Raven’s novel may have answers to questions that could help with his investigation, but what it reveals is more than what he wants to know.
Famous in a Small Town is book one of An Entering Southern Country Novel trilogy. It has murder, lies, fiction, and truth—and more twists and turns than the back roads of northwestern Mississippi. Enter at your own risk.

Remember When

 

Remember When

The latest attack on Thera Logan's life wasn’t the first one and won’t be the last. Someone wants her dead, but until she realizes that these attacks aren’t just random acts of violence or mere coincidences, she leaves herself wide-open.

After her divorce from Nolan Logan, she decides to move from Seattle, Washington back to her hometown of Tahlequah, Oklahoma to live with her father and try to start a new life. She is surprised to find her old childhood sweetheart, Caleb Sutherland, has moved back home too.  

Old sparks fly until Caleb starts asking too many questions, and then the mystery surrounding Caleb’s return coinciding with hers draws her suspicion. Caleb is determined to get answers to pertinent questions that he feels only Thera can answer, and he’ll go to any length to get them . . . even deception.

He’s not the only one asking too many questions. Her ex-husband pops in for unexpected visits, wants to reconcile, and is being far too inquisitive.

Confusion fogs Thera’s world. What does Caleb really want? Why the sudden interest from Nolan? And who is stalking her? What does she possess that is more important to someone than her own life?

Her fears and suspicions of Caleb and Nolan’s annoying persistence to reconcile put her into flight mode, but fleeing will only set into motion a deadly rollercoaster ride leading up to an event that leaves her totally helpless. Her only way back is to remember when. 

Amazon.com Remember When 

Famous in a Small Town Book Trailer

"Famous in a Small Town" Book Trailer is now on YouTube. Special thanks to MELTDOWN for supplying the music "Raven's Flight". You guys rock!

Faded Rose

Rose Daniels is ready for a change. Her decision to divorce after twelve years of a failed marriage gives her a short moment of hope for her and her son's future, but Mother Nature throws a wrench in her plans and so does the Hughes County Sheriff when he arrests her for the murder of a local woman. She's lost so much already, but she could lose more... her son and her life.

Faded Rose is now available for Kindle and in paperback.

Faded Rose

Southern Out of the Way Places

My husband and I live in the country in northwestern Mississippi. A beautiful area. Lots of deer, wild turkey's, and great fishing.

     Last Saturday, I was restless. I wanted to go out for a drive and get away from the house for awhile. So my husband and I took off on a short road trip. We headed down the back roads from our house on our way to Sardis Lake. We drove down Highway 310 and stopped at a little bait and grocery store called T & T.. Near the store, a family was having a yard sale. We browsed around the sale. My husband bought me two antique lamps, an antique hand mirror, and an old hand carved quilt rack. I was thrilled. I've always wanted a quilt rack and having one that someone carved by hand made it extra special.




     We put the items in our car and went inside T & T and ordered a hamburger with all the fixin's. While we waited, we purchased our drinks. I was surprised that they carried Mexican Cokes in their refrigerated case. For those of you who don't know, Mexican Cokes are made with real sugar and not corn syrup. In 1984 Coca Cola changed from real sugar to corn syrup. The taste took me back to my childhood and so did the hamburger.













     While waiting for our hamburgers, my husband watched a College football game on the wide screen television, and I looked around the store. They carried items that I hadn't seen in many years. Stage Planks and Chick-O-Stick. I didn't buy either one, but it wasn't because I didn't want to. I had splurged on my diet with the hamburger, chips, and Coke. I'll be back one day to T & T's.

 My husband loved the wall decor.














      We drove on down to Sardis Lake. The lake was down. We need more rain in this area. But that didn't stop the fishermen. There were quite a few on the lake that day.

     All in all, we had a nice outing. So if you are ever in northwestern Mississippi, take a drive down 310 toward Sardis Lake. Stop in at T & T's Bait & Grocery and get the best hamburger in the state of Mississippi and while you're there, have a look around. Some real nice folks run the place.

     Now back to editing my next novel. Y'all have a great week!

Happy Valley

At first, I was skeptical about putting my novel on Amazon.com, but I've sold several and have had some good reviews. The reviews are from people I don't know.  My friends are still reading my novel and I'm waiting for their feedback.
Happy Valley A Southern Country Novel is the first in the series. The story is mainly based in Northwest Mississippi.  Happy Valley is a mystery with humor.
"Jo Preston could write a book on survival. Her titles could be: How to Survive Five Years in a Mental Institution, How to Cheat Death, How to Overcome Heartbreak and Rejection, How to Live With Crazy Relatives, or How to Run From a Serial Killer. Yes, she could write a book... if she survives all of the above."

http://www.amazon.com/Diana-Anderson/e/B008FU5U66/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

If you read my novel, please leave a review at Amazon.com.  Thanks!

My Facebook page is: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Diana-Anderson/432120250141271

Now that I've told you about my novel, let me tell you about where I live.  Although I was born and raised in Oklahoma, I've lived in this area of Mississippi since 1979.  My husband and I moved to the country in 2006.  Being raised a farm girl, I was long over-do and ready for the move.
A sign over our driveway reads, "God's Country" and it is a taste of heaven on earth.  I love having my morning coffee on the patio.  I'm never alone.  Many mornings, deer walk between our yard and the woods that surround our home.  Casey, our Jack Russell Terrier, is more interested in the squirrels and lizards though.  We have chickens, which is more of a hobby as most are pets.  However, fresh eggs are good.  We keep a bird feeder in view of our kitchen window as well as hummingbird feeders.  I love watching the blue buntings and have managed to get a few photos of the skittish little creatures.  We have a creek down below our home and when we get a good rain, you can hear the rushing water.  At night, the whippoorwill sing, tree frogs croak, and crickets chirp.  We are so far away from the city that the night skies are lit up with stars, like diamonds on black velvet.  I remember the first few nights after we moved in.  I couldn't sleep because it was so quiet. Now, sleep is wonderful.
Life is good here out in this neck of the woods.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

The Flower Beds Will Have to Wait

Okay, here I go. My first blog.

I've been searching for a local writer's group and have come up with zilch. Where are all the struggling novelist in Mississippi? One group, I was able to locate, was further down south near the Gulf. I don't think it'd be wise of me to go for a once a month Tuesday luncheon. That's quite a drive. Others don't have a website or much on the website that they do have. It can be rather frustrating trying to get some feedback.

From research on the internet, most of what I'm getting is the Catch-22. You have to have an agent to get published and to get an agent you have to be a published author. (Insert head tilt here.) So it seems, no matter how much sweat you pour out onto the keypad of your laptop while your eyes feel like daggers have been poked into them from the eye strain of working and polishing your manuscript, day in and day out for over two years, it may have been time better spent weeding your flower beds that have been neglected. My flower bed needs mowing.

I try to wake up every morning with a positive outlook. As long as I'm not looking out my window at my flower bed. A pot of coffee and back at it. I've written the darn thing in first person and third person... just in case. I've sent it to several agents and have had one reply. Yes, the old form letter, not for us.

I've tried mental telepathy. Desperate times means taking desperate measures. I've stared at the agents photos on their website at least once a week and try to convince them what a good novel it is. Maybe there is too much aluminum in the building material at their location. Whatever, it doesn't seem to be working.

I'm curious as to what literary agents really do all day. With the Catch-22 thing, it makes me wonder, if just maybe, they spend their days trying to steal established authors from other agents.

I think my manuscript is a good story and I'm very critical of my writing as well as my artwork. I'm my worst critic. I'm critical of the books I read and get frustrated trying to find a good read. You buy a novel and it's really good, so you purchase another novel by that same author and it's a huge disappointment. Seems like they are in a big hurry to sell another and add filler that you end up skipping over. Gotta get that 100,000 word count in. Filler reminds me of minced fish in fish sticks. I actually threw a book across the room after reading three pages. I won't meantion the fairly well known author here, but geez lady, how did you get into the business? I've been known to kiss some ass when needed, but after reading that mess, I'd say a tad more than ass kissing was involved. And it's a shame. Really! What? Are you going to return the book to the store and get your money back? To me, there should be a standard a writer must uphold to all of his or her readers. A high standard. After all, if it weren't for their loyal fans, they'd be history.

It's not all about money. It's not all about fame. That's just the perks. For me, it's really all about someone enjoying my story. I love to make people laugh and cry with a story. I want to touch a heart and encourage the soul. I want to take them away from their weary day, their worries, and travel to another place. A place with characters that are real and dreams do come true.

Am I going to give up? No. It's been a life long dream of mine since I was a youngster. I was telling stories when I starting talking. Got into a lot of trouble weaving those tales. I didn't have books to read when I was very young and didn't have anyone reading to me, but I told myself bedtime stories. And when I was school age, I read a lot. And then I started writing. Married with children put my personal dream on hold. No regrets mind you. My kids are all grown with little ones of their own and now, it's Mom's turn.

The flower beds will have to wait.