Flower Girl Murder by Keith Hirshland: Interview & Giveaway

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7 years ago

Flower Girl Murder by Keith Hirshland

Publisher: Keith Hirshland (February 15, 2018)
Category: Mystery Thriller, Detective/Police Procedural
Tour dates: May/June, 2018
ISBN: 978-0692046685
Available in Print and ebook,256 pages

Daisy Burns was a likable, devoted wife and mother who spent her spare time volunteering at school events. Everyone loved Daisy. So why would someone shoot her three times and dump her body behind a Planned Parenthood chapter in North Carolina?

With no witnesses and few leads, Raleigh detective Marc Allen turns to the press for help—specifically, veteran news anchor Lancaster Heart. Heart agrees to broadcast the police department’s plea for information in his nightly newscasts.

Elderly viewer and longtime social worker Blanche Avery is positive she recognizes the photograph on the television as an older version of her friend Daisy— the young, heavily pregnant girl she met years before who made the decision to give her child up for adoption.

When Tanner Goochly Jr.—a member of a notorious crime family—becomes the victim of another point-blank shooting, Allen races to discover the connection between the murders. Could it be that Daisy was somehow involved with an illegal enterprise, or was she hiding something else, another secret to be discovered?

The body count is rising, and the suspect pool is widening. As Allen’s investigation reaches a fever pitch, he realizes that a mother’s choice could have killer consequences.

Praise Flower Girl Murder by Keith Hirshland

“Keith Hirshland gets better with each book. A wonderful crime mystery with fun twists. And if you have ever spent time in Carolina or Northern Nevada there are quite a few local tidbits to enjoy mixed in. I look forward to more from the media guy turned novelist! This is his best book yet!”-Bruce, Amazon Review

Praise Big Flies by Keith Hirshland

“Big Flies by Keith Hirshland is a great read. I found myself intrigued by this talented writer’s style. A mystery woven into another mystery. The suspense was great. I enjoyed following the characters throughout the book. This novel was realistic, stunning, and one that all readers can easily connect to in one or more ways. Brilliant, clever, and mysterious. Keith Hirshland has a way that lured me in deep. I couldn’t stop reading it. ‘Big Flies’ is one mystery I highly recommend to all. 5 Stars.”-Danielle, Urban Book Reviews

“Mr. Hirshland’s style is both engaging and entertaining. He has written and delivered a thoroughly wonderful tale of mystery and intrigue. Will the author continue to write fiction? If this first novel is any indication, I certainly hope so!”-LuAnn, Back Porchervations

“Get ready, sit back, and enjoy this book, because the author really has a way with words as well as a fun and fascinating plot at hand. If you love action and surprises, you will get your fill here. If you enjoy things on the humorous and witty side, this book will fit the bill that way as well. Big Flies has plenty of great characters (both past and present), good buddies to enjoy you’ll want to be pals with too, a bit of mystifying romance, and some vivid and marvelous scenes. There will be mystery stacked upon mystery, some cool 8 track tapes with great choices in music thrown in, and fantastic, detailed twists. Get swept up in this fabulous, fun mystery by Keith Hirshland!”-Jean, Snap Out Of It Jean

“I really enjoyed following along with each person as you discover more about each one along with how four unsolved mysteries may be linked to everything. I admit that the beginning was a touch slow as you start learning about Chester and Leland, but then the story takes off like a flash. This is a great adventure and one that I recommend you check out. You will not be disappointed. 5 Stars.”-Jessica, J Bronder Book Reviews

Interview With Keith Hirshland, Author Flower Girl Murder

TR: Describe the room you are sitting in as though it was a scene in one of your books.
– Which character do you love to hate?
– Using the title of your book as an acrostic, describe your work or yourself.
– Using only adverbs, describe the writing process for you.
– You are sitting in a coffee shop. What does your writer mind see?

KH: The space was comfortable, made even more so by the books, framed photographs and tchotchkes placed with care on various shelves. But the longer he sat, waited, in the 15’ x 9’ space the less at ease he felt. Large windows made up most of two of the four walls which meant he was an accessible target from a couple of directions. The door was the only way in or out and hiding places were abundant on its other side. It was a cozy room, impeccably decorated. A perfect killing place.

I guess I love to hate Tanner Goochly. He has no redeeming qualities, has neither compassion nor empathy and was the only character in the book whose demise was a foregone conclusion.

Sporadically, Imaginatively, Reactively, Everywhere, Happily, Personally

TR: Where do you get the names for your characters for ‘The Flower Girl Murder’?

KH: Naming characters is always a challenging exercise for me. In the past I have combined first and last names of various friends (after seeking their permission, of course) or borrowed surnames and given names from characters in other books. And sometimes I just make them up… Tanner Goochly came to me out of the blue and I thought it was the perfect name for a ne’er do well from North Carolina. Marc Allen, my detective, is a combination gleaned from dear friends. My next book is about a copper who solves cases out of the police’s Department of Redundancy Department so, without question, his name had to be Murphy Murphy.

TR: How completely do you develop your characters before beginning to write?

KH: Not at all. I guess I have a sense for what they look like and what makes them tick but, at least so far, most of them develop as I write. In several cases the character I initially thought would be a protagonist or, at the very least, essential to the story winds up as something completely different. It’s an adventure and my characters go along for the ride.

TR: What is your favorite scene in the book? Why?

KH: I gave this quite a bit of thought and I kept coming back to the scene in which Hank Hickox comes to grips with his lot in life. He’s a character who, I hope, elicits a wide range of reactions depending on the reader. I feel like he’s the most complicated character in the book.

TR: What writers have you drawn inspiration from?

KH: Wow, good question. I’m a big fan of Michael Connelly and Nelson DeMille for a number of reasons but one is they have both created compelling main characters. Harry Bosch (Connelly) and John Corey (DeMille) are terrific. I aspire to create a character as memorable as either of them. I also draw inspiration from Christopher Moore, Terry Pratchett and Jasper Fforde because they are all so darn clever. There are so many talented writers.

TR: Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from The Flower Girl Murder’?

KH: I went back and forth about this answer. It’s funny because I can “see” the characters doing what they’re doing while I write. I thought while I was writing Big Flies, and still believe today, that it would be a cool movie and saw several actors playing the parts of my characters in that book. Flower Girl was different. Teri Hickox is the lead character and after bandying about a half a dozen names I decided that Margot Robbie should play her when the movie gets made.

TR: Tell us about your cover. Did you design it yourself?

KH: I had an idea for it. Something involving a daisy because Daisy Burns is the “flower girl” who gets murdered. I pictured a flower with a missing petal, or petals, and some blood but that was as much as I could “see”. My son is in a rock and roll band and his girlfriend, Olivia Oyamada, is responsible for all of their album cover, tour posters, and promotional, artwork. I asked her if she would like to take a stab at designing the book cover and mentioned the things I mentioned here. She came back with a couple of versions and we all liked this one. I am really lucky she agreed to give it a shot.

TR: What are you currently working on?

KH: I mentioned Murphy Murphy above. The story is in the vein of Jasper Fforde’s “Thursday Next” series. At least that was the inspiration. Our intrepid detective, Murphy Murphy, is put on the case of a rock band called Serious Crises that finds possessions belonging to various band members have gone missing. In addition to solving the mystery Murphy Murphy has to endure a steady stream of redundant phrases and situations offered up both intentionally and unwittingly by characters along the way. I’m having a ton of fun with it.

TR: What book/s are you reading at present?

KH: I just finished Bernard Cornwell’s Fools and Mortals and am about to start Jo Nesbo’s Macbeth. I guess I’m on a Shakespeare kick right now. I read mostly on airplanes and we are about to take a trip to Tokyo so I hope to get a few books finished on those flights.

About Keith Hirshland

Award winning author, Keith Hirshland is an Emmy Award–winning sports television producer with more than three decades of experience producing shows that aired on ESPN and ESPN2. Among the first forty people to be hired by the Golf Channel in 1994, Hirshland was in the middle of the action when it premiered in 1995. He provided his talents for the golf network for close to two decades.

The Flower Girl Murder is Hirshland’s second novel and third book. Big Flies, his first mystery novel, was published in 2016. It is the winner of the New Apple Awards: Solo Medalist Award and runner up for the 2016 Shelf Unbound Best Indie Book of the Year. Cover Me Boys, I’m Going In: Tales of the Tube from a Broadcast Brat is a memoir about his experiences in the television industry. It was Book Talk Radio Club’s Memoir of the Year”.

Hirshland lives in New Jersey with his wife and Bernese mountain dog.

Website: www.keithhirshland.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KeithHirshlandAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BigFliesBook

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Giveaway Flower Girl Murder by Keith Hirshland

This giveaway is for one print copy or ebook copy of the book. Print is available to the U.S. only but ebook is available worldwide. This giveaway ends on June 29, 2018 at midnight pacific time. Entries are accepted via Rafflecopter only.

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