Remember back a few weeks, when I mentioned I’d be hosting Phyllis Zimbler Miller for a second turn in the spotlight? Well, here we go!

The song “All the Right Moves” by One Republic makes me think of my cozy mystery CAST THE FIRST STONE: A REBECCA STONE MYSTERY because of the theme of competition that runs throughout the book. These lyrics from the song capture this:

“All the right friends in all the right places
“So yeah, we’re going down
“They’ve got
“All the right moves in all the right faces
“So yeah, we’re going down.”

In the story Los Angeles business reporter Rebecca Stone must finally face the fellow Wharton student who broke off their engagement in order for him to focus on making it big on Wall Street. The following words from the song are similar to the thoughts that have plagued Rebecca since then:

“Do you think I’m special?
“Do you think I’m nice?
“Am I bright enough to shine in your spaces?”

Now Rebecca may finally get the answer to these questions.

Ready for the blurb? Here you go…

Cozy mystery CAST THE FIRST STONE introduces shomer Shabbat Los Angeles business reporter Rebecca Stone:

While investigating the murder of a Wharton professor spending the summer term at UCLA, Rebecca Stone must grapple with telling her former fiancé that she has now become an observant Jew.

Kosher recipes from the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION by Rabbi Karen L. Fox and Phyllis Zimbler Miller (available on Amazon) are included in this cozy mystery.
See the followup outing for amateur sleuth Rebecca Stone in TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE: REBECCA STONE MYSTERY SHORT STORIES.

You know, I may need to present this to my book club… Hmm….

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A number of years ago, I signed my book club up for every publisher and agent and other group who was taking book club registrations. I was, as always, upfront with our focus: Jewish Lit.

I got a few suggestions for books. I got a lot of postcards from people who’d just snag my name and not bother to look at what our group is all about. I even got a few books.

And then… silence. For years.

A few weeks ago, Kensington Press was kind enough to send me two books: Scrapped and Chihuahua Confidential (written by Mollie Cox Bryan and Waverly Curtis, respectively).

Hmm, I thought. They look cute, but they’re not Jewish-themed. We’ll read cute, so long as it’s Jewish-themed. That’s our thing. Jewish lit.

Kensington was kind enough to send me a catalog of their other upcoming cozy mysteries, and it features a work of Jewish lit. From Herring to Eternity, by Delia Rosen. It looks like it’s part of a series, and we prefer to read series in order — which isn’t a problem, except the setting is what makes this Jewish-themed. That means it’s not a Jewish-themed series. Possible strike out, right there. It’s not due out until August, so I’ll discuss it with my group, but I’m not optimistic.

Well, thanks for the thought, I told myself. It was nice of them to send me two books.

This week, I picked up an advance copy of Joanne Fluke’s new Hannah Swensen Mystery, Red Velvet Cupcake Murder.

Still not Jewish-themed.

I’m still appreciating the thought.

If you know of any Jewish Lit not already on our book club page (did you even know that was there? I bet not!), throw the titles my way. I’ve been so busy lately, I haven’t been able to keep up with the search.