D.L. BOLK - MOSTLY MYSTERY REVIEWS

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	Prior to the release of her debut novel WHEN HEROES FALL (AmErica House, ISBN: 1-58851-099-9) in November 2001, D.L. Bolk was a technical writer for many years. She is a past president of Maryland Romance Writers, a chapter of Romance Writers of America (RWA), and was the Maryland Regional Representative for the National Association of Women Writers. In July of 2000, her paranormal romance, SAVING CINDERELLA placed first as a Category winner in the Unpublished Division - Historical/Paranormal/Time Travel of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense, sponsored by the RWA, Kiss of Death Chapter (KOD). She invites you to visit her website www.dlbolk.com and can be reached at author@dlbolk.com..

ALL SHOOK UP
Mike Harrison
ECW Press
ISBN: 1-55022-688-6; Pgs: 243

Private detective Eddie Dancer's world goes crazy when he agrees to track down a bank robber, who according to Dancer's client, (the bank robber's partner) took off with all the money from their last job.

Dirty dealing is the order of business, and Dancer is left trying to identify the power behind the double cross. Dancer soon discovers that what seemed like a simple case of double cross, is part of a conspiracy involving a murderous cast of players. Each new discovery brings Dancer closer to a truth that commonsense tells him (if he wants to remain healthy) he should back away from.

When a prostitute Dancer has befriended becomes a victim of the scum he's investigating, rather than back away, Dancer calls on his buddy Danny "Many Guns" (a man with many skills) for assistance.

ALL SHOOK UP is the first book in the Eddie Dancer Mystery Series. Eddie Dancer and Danny "Many Guns" are a hot ticket, and sure to please hard-boiled mystery fans.

Reviewed by: D.L. Bolk

BLOOD FATHER
Peter Craig
Hyperion
ISBN: 1-4013-0045-6; Pgs: 308

John Link isn't father of year material, nor is he your standard white knight. An ex-con John is walking the straight and narrow when his seventeen-year-old daughter Lydia explodes into his life. On the run from both the good guys and the bad guys, Lydia has no one to turn to but the father she hasn't seen since he was locked up when she was a child.

In an effort to save his daughter's life, John returns to the life and contacts he had prior to being locked up, and opens doors he thought forever closed.

BLOOD FATHER is the story of an unusual father and daughter team, who through a series of misadventures discover the true meaning of love, and prove that blood is thicker than water.

Peter Craig has a voice the reader won't soon forget, and BLOOD FATHER is a story that will linger in the mind long after the novel ends.


Reviewed by: D.L. Bolk

GODS AND GODDESSES IN LOVE
Agapi Stassinopoulos
Paraview Pocket Books
ISBN: 0-7434-7094-X

Author Agapi Stassinopoulos provides an interesting look at the Greek goddess that can be found in every woman.

With the use of two quizzes Stassinopoulos first matches the reader up with the goddess who best represents the reader's personality type. She then pairs her up with the god best suited for her.

The chapters focus on the seven goddesses and eight gods, and shows their weaknesses and strengths. It also includes interviews with modern couples.

Do you want to find out if you should be spending time with Hermes or Hades? Step one -- discover the Goddesses within yourself.

For fact finding or just for fun, Gods and Goddesses in Love is a fast, easy to understand fun novel.


Reviewed by: D.L. Bolk

PROJECT BETA
Greg Bishop
Paraview Pocket Books
ISBN: 0-7434-7092-3; Pgs: 278

Greg Bishop's PROJECT BETA is a chilling look at the life of Paul Bennewitz. Bishop tells Bennewitz's story through interviews documents and photographs.

Bennewitz claimed to have intercepted alien signals, and in turned tried to convince the government to take action on his discovery. Was Bennewitz, a noted electrical physicist, the victim of government sanctioned misinformation? Did someone deliberately feed Bennewitz false information, which ultimately destroyed his reputation and his life?

PROJECT BETA is a novel with more than enough cloak and dagger, smoke and mirror intrigue to satisfy the reader and send chills up and down the spine.


Reviewed by: D.L. Bolk

SHROUDED IN THOUGHT
N.S. Wikarski
Northgate Press
ISBN: 0-9720335-1-3; Pgs: 317

SHROUD IN THOUGHT, the second novel in the Evangeline LeClair Mystery Series, N.S. Wikarski takes the reader back to the mid 1890's and another adventure with her irrepressible amateur sleuths Evangeline LeClair and her side-kick, Frederick Ulysses Simpson.

When the body of a factory worker is discovered in the Chicago River, Freddy a local reporter is sent to cover the story. Although the incident is labeled an accident, a suspicious Freddy determines that the girl was murdered. Now all he has to do is prove it. He engages the help of his friend (and hopefully on Freddy's part--one day girlfriend) Evangeline to help him solve the murder.

Uncovering the young woman's killer isn't the only problem Evangeline is working to solve. Acting on behalf of the Civil Federation she is investigating claims of unfair wages and living conditions brought from labors of the Pullman Palace Car Company.

SHROUDED IN THOUGHT is a first-rate, top of the line, cozy that provides the reader with plenty of atmosphere, and page turning what-ifs. Even the best armchair detectives will have a tough time trying to name the killer. And some (like this reader--who thought she'd figured it out) will be caught by surprise.


Reviewed by: D.L. Bolk

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