Posts Tagged ‘mystery adventure’
new rural mystery series
Last year, I published 5 novella-length ‘urban mysteries:’ Office Green; City Grotesque; Hollow Hotel; Dancing with Trees; and Roundabout. These are quick reads, set in cities of the Atlantic provinces (Halifax, Saint John and Fredericton). In each book, a young woman is faced with a problem to solve.
~
~
You can purchase these books at Dog Eared Books in Oromocto, and at The Write Cup Bookstore Cafe in Saint John. They are also available at the Fredericton public library and on Amazon.
~
This year I will release five novellas in my ‘rural mysteries.’ To begin the series, I considered the various aspects of the rural landscape that interest me and I have built my novellas around these elements:
Rural communities: human communities are a main features of the rural landscape. Towns, villages, and dispersed rural housing are fundamentally different from the urban landscape. Communities include more than housing. Convenience stores, schools, churches and small businesses give these spaces character and help to knit people in rural communities together.
Roads: roads are the circulatory system of the rural human landscape. They connect populations, allow transport of goods, and make most areas of our landscape accessible.
Trails: trails reach into areas not accessible by roads. They enable humans to move through both built and natural areas, and provide exercise and adventure opportunities.
Gardens: Vegetable and flower gardens are an enjoyable feature of the rural environment. They return us to a time when we produced our own foods and provide focus for spending time in the out-of-doors.
Fields: Hay fields, pasture and meadows are some of my favourite parts of the rural landscape. They are a key part of the agricultural landscape and also provide places where native plants can flourish and migrate.
Woodlots: Before communities and the agricultural landscape developed, the Atlantic provinces were mostly forested. Woodland areas provide habitat for wild life, wood for heating, building, and forest products, and spaces for people to reconnect with nature and enjoy wild life.
~
In the next posts, I will introduce you to my five rural mysteries, their covers, characters and a glimpse of their stories.
~
All my best,
Alexandra Tims (a.k.a. Jane)
what is a ‘Meniscus Peripheral?’
On the cover of each of my new Urban Mystery novellas is the subtitle ‘A Meniscus Peripheral.’ What is this strange thing? Some new treatment for failing knees? A more accurate way to read your measuring cup?
~
~
No. A ‘Meniscus Peripheral’ connects each of my Urban Mysteries with another series I write, the Meniscus Science Fiction Series. The science fiction series tells the story of Humans who have been kidnapped and taken, against their will, to the planet Meniscus, somewhere out in the Galaxy.
~
The novellas in the Urban Mystery Series (Office Green, City Grotesque, Roundabout, and Hollow Hotel) are written in the same universe as the Meniscus Science Fiction Series.
~
~
In the Meniscus series, the aliens of planet Meniscus, the Dock-winders and Gel-heads, visit Earth seven times (in 1982, 1988, 1995, 2008, 2013, 2020, and 2023), harvesting Humans for transport to their planet and to a life of enslavement.
~
Some of these Humans escape to the wilds of Meniscus, sharing adventures and building new Human communities.
~
Look for titles in the Meniscus Science Series, starting with Meniscus: Crossing the Churn.
~
~
In A Meniscus Peripheral, the world of Meniscus and the associated alien abductions are always mentioned, but not explained. Each of the abducted Humans mentioned in the novella are living on Meniscus, alive and well.
~
For example, in Roundabout, the story begins with a car, deserted in the middle of a traffic circle. The owner of the car is identified as Mary Fitzgerald, a twenty-year-old student of the Community College, studying Information Technology. No one ever sees Mary Fitzgerald again. But…
~
On Meniscus there is a character named Aagle, also known as ‘The Stone.’ She is a formidable member of the Blood-Let resistance movement. She was abducted from Earth in 2020 as she was driving around the Victoria Circle in Fredericton!
~
~
Reading the two series together will reveal more about the backgrounds of some of the characters on planet Meniscus.
~
Both series of my books are available at ‘Dog Eared Books‘ in Oromocto and, soon, at ‘2nd Story‘ in Harvey. Drop in sometime to enjoy browsing through these great local book stores! Reading is so much fun!!!!
~
All my best,
Jane (a.k.a. Alexandra)
nichepoetryandprose 