The Musings of a Book Addict

Thursday, March 28, 2019

Final Cycle by Elaine L. Orr

Genre: Adult, Mystery
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I have found a new mystery author to love. Mystery is my favorite genre. It has been since I was in elementary school. When we are preparing for state testing, I usually agree to guest posts only. So why take on a book by an unfamiliar author? I read the premise of the book and was intrigued by a body found in a dryer. Especially since she was not well liked. Then there is the mention of a second murder. I needed to know how they connected, if they did. This author is so talented that I had the wrong person pegged all the way through. The characters are well thought out. I would recognize them on the street from the way they are portrayed. The setting is so realistic I asked my husband if it was a real place, then looked it up online. It could be any number of small towns in southern Illinois. To me this is a author who has definitely done some research to make the reader feel a part of that world. This is the second book in the "Logland Mystery Series". I have not yet read the first one, "Tip a Hat to Murder." It is next on my reading list. You don't have to read them in order as they read well as stand-a-lone books. The third one in the series, "Final Operation", comes out June 7th. This will make a nice and early birthday gift to myself. Yes, I did pre-order it. I look forward to checking out some of this author's other books.

Elaine L. Orr

Elaine L. Orr writes three mystery series. The Jolie Gentil cozy mystery series, set at the Jersey shore, includes "Behind the Walls," which was a finalist for the 2014 Chanticleer Mystery and Mayhem Awards. In the River's Edge mystery series, Iowa nice meets murder. "From Newsprint to Footprints," was followed by "Demise of a Devious Neighbor." The latter was a 2017 Chanticleer finalist. "Tip a Hat to Murder," the first in the Logland mystery series, was followed by "Final Cycle." A police procedural with a cozy feel

Elaine also writes plays and novellas, including the one-act, "Common Ground," published in 2015. Her novella, "Biding Time," was one of five finalists in the National Press Club's first fiction contest, in 1993. "Falling into Place" is a novella about family strength as a World War II veteran rises to the toughest occasion. "In the Shadow of Light" brings the tragedies of the U.S. Mexico border to life through the eyes of children and their parents.

Elaine conducts presentations on electronic publishing and other writing-related topics. Nonfiction includes "Words to Write By: Getting Your Thoughts on Paper" and "Writing When Time is Scarce and Getting the Work Published."

A member of Sisters in Crime, Elaine grew up in Maryland and moved to the Midwest in 1994. She graduated from the University of Dayton with a BA in Political Science and from the American University with an MA in Government. She worked for GAO and the National Academy of Public Administration for many years, and for two Iowa members of the U.S. House of Representatives -- one Republican and one Democrat.

Elaine did some journalism course work at the University of Maryland and has taken fiction courses from The Writer's Center in Bethesda, MD, the University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival, and Georgetown University's Continuing Education Program. She is a regular attendee at the Magna Cum Murder in Indianapolis and the Book Bums Workshop in West Liberty, Iowa. She has served as a preliminary judge for the Raleigh Fine Arts high school literary awards (2016-19).

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Dr. James Baird Guest Post: Epigenetics & Genetic Happiness

ISBN-10: 1793389004

ISBN-13: 978-1793389008

Independently published

Paperback: 276 pages

January 8, 2019, $13.99

Genre: Health/nutrition

Also available for Kindle

The science of epigenetics has shown us that genes aren’t destiny. Now we know that you are in far more control of your own physical and emotional well-being than was once believed possible. Dr. James Baird’s newest book reveals how to use those research results to increase your personal happiness. Written for the general reader, Epigenetics & Genetic Happiness explains the science behind feelings, thinking processes, self-esteem, relationships, conflicts, love, and other important aspects of human life. This book explains why so many of our efforts to achieve happiness fail and provides therapies you can use to improve your own physical and emotional well-being.

Introduction

These days, there’s a lot of interest in your genes. Multiple services offer to trace your genetic background for you and tell you where the genes you’ve inherited came from. Medical companies race to improve DNA testing that will indicate your vulnerability to physical disorders and identify mutations in your genes that may cause illness or disease.

There’s also a growing interest in the study of mechanisms that can switch genes on and off. Although you can’t control your genes directly, you can have some control over which genes are dormant and which are active. That science is called epigenetics.

The word epigenetics was coined back in the 1940s to refer to the influence of genetic processes on human development. It took a while for the topic to attract much attention but in 2006, over 2,500 articles about epigenetics were published.

Then interest grew. By 2010 - the year that I brought out my book Happiness Genes: Unlock the Positive Potential Hidden in your DNA – that number jumped up to over thirteen thousand publications. Unlike many of those, my books have always been designed to make topics clear to everyday readers.

In 2012, the International Journal of Epidemiology declared “Epigenetics: the next big thing.” By then, I had published Obesity Genes and their Epigenetic Modifiers, offering applications for the new discoveries.

Interest continued to grow, and in 2013, there were over seventeen thousand publications on topics related to epigenetics. In 2015, I published Behavioral Genes: Why We Do What We Do and How to Change based on the abundant research at that time.

Now new research findings regarding human lives and cultures have led to this new book, Epigenetics and Genetic Happiness How to Increase Your Well-Being. We’ll look into ways that you can actually bring about changes in your biological mechanisms to shape the sense of well-being that’s so basic to your personal happiness.

Dr. James Baird

James D. Baird, Ph.D. has more than forty years of experience as a successful inventor and graduate engineer. A pioneer in the new science of ultrasonics, Baird has earned several patents and as a successful entrepreneur founded Dynasonics, Inc. a design and manufacturing company of ultrasonic sensors and computers.

His inventor background instilled in him a persistent curiosity about how things work, translating from mechanisms to life. His passion for understanding the bioengineering that makes us human combined with his religious and spiritual beliefs has led him to research the subject of happiness for more than 20 years, and in the process, earned him a Ph.D. in Natural Health.

As a natural health advocate with an inventor's curiosity, he was intrigued by the paradox that "diets don't work." In an effort to uncover the reasons and provide an answer, he wrote his third book, The Mindful Meals Diet (iUniverse 2007), which explained how genetic factors are the basis of unhealthy eating habits that lead people to become overweight. His program incorporated self-hypnosis and mind/body strategies to develop healthy eating habits (www.mindfulmealsdiet.com).

From his research of genetics in diet evolved the understanding that humans have a spiritual nature and that faith is genetic. This confirmed his belief that the expression of spirituality is genetically motivated and results in natural happiness. Results from researching genetic behavior and the new science of epigenetics inspired Baird to write the HAPPINESS GENES.

Intrigued by people's behaviors, Baird used his 20 years of researching in behavioral genetics to write BEHAVIORAL GENES- why we do what we do and how to change. [published 2/13/15] This book describes the genetic roots of our most common behaviors providing understanding of why we do what we do. While other books note that the genetic heritability component of behaviors is unchangeable, Baird shows that genes aren't destiny. Using evidence that epigenetic modalities, such as: meditation, mindfulness, and cognitive therapy can modify behaviors, practical therapies are described in the last chapter of the book.

Monday, March 25, 2019

Guest Post by Frankie Y. Bailey

Dining with Murder

By Frankie Y. Bailey

When my Lizzie Stuart mysteries were published by Overmountain Press, the authors writing under the imprint, were asked to contribute a recipe to a small collection that could be offered to readers as a giveaway. I had an obvious choice. In Death’s Favorite Child, the first book in my series (being reissued by Speaking Volumes), the victim dies after eating a lethal substitute for the “yummy balls” her aunt made for her. I asked a friend to come up with a recipe (see my website) for the nonexistent snack I had described. But this was not the only appearance of food in that book. Lizzie was on vacation in Cornwall, England. I drew on the research I’d done in London and in the coastal town where a friend and I met for a holiday.

In that book, Lizzie shares meals with her best friend, Tess, and the other guests at the private hotel. These are the people who will be among the “the closed circle of suspects” common in whodunits. She also has dinner with Philadelphia homicide detective, John Quinn. Like Lizzie, Quinn is on holiday in Cornwall. Like Lizzie, he is drawn into the murder investigation.

In A Dead Man’s Honor, Lizzie has moved to Gallagher, Virginia, the fictional city that will become her home base. In this book, I introduce readers to “Miss Alice,” a woman who knew Lizzie’s grandmother when they were both children. Miss Alice continues to reign over the Orleans Café. As a crime historian, Lizzie spends time in libraries reading old newspapers and going through archival collections looks for clues. But she also knows the value of oral history interviews. Miss Alice is her source when she has a question that she is not able to answer or when she needs more context (See recipes from the Orleans Café on my website).

In A Dead Man’s Honor, there are other characters with whom Lizzie shares intriguing conversations during meals -- including the soon-to-be victim and John Quinn. It is giving nothing away to say that as the series has evolved, Lizzie and Quinn have gotten to know each –and shared both romantic moments and conversations about murder as they ate. In Book Six, they will be in Santa Fe for Thanksgiving dinner before coming home to Gallagher.