As I approached the launch of UNLEASHED, the first murder mystery novel in my Sydney Rye series, I thought a lot about my first dog, Nova. Nova was a giant wolf like creature the height of a Great Dane, the snout of a Collie, with one blue eye and one brown, who shed excessively, was aggressive toward children, and afraid of almost everything else. I adopted him from a pound in East Harlem when I was in my early 20s. Everything about the decision screamed mistake. But adopting Nova turned out to be for the best. Not only did he save my life one dark night in Brooklyn, he also inspired Blue, my character Sydney Rye’s dog. I never could have imagined such a wild, loyal creature without having known Nova.

So as an ode to Nova and all great dogs waiting for new homes in shelters, I’ve decided to give a percentage of all my book sales from today 10/18 to 11/18 to PAWS. PAWS is dedicated to saving Philadelphia’s homeless, abandoned, and unwanted animals. They are also the only no kill shelter in the city.

Here is a quick blurb about UNLEASHED:

When Joy Humbolt loses her job and breaks up with her boyfriend she impulsively adopts a giant mutt named Blue. Soon a dog walking business on the exclusive Upper East Side of Manhattan is thrown in her lap. On her first day, Joy discovers a dead body and is quickly sucked into a hidden world of political power, wealth, and secrets.

While Joy tries to expose the murderer, she will learn just how far some people will go for money and how far she is willing to go to protect her family.

Here is what reviewers on Amazon are saying about UNLEASHED:

• “It is well written with depth and details. It is fast paced, full of adventure, murder, loneliness, family, secrets, dog walker business and of course finding a murderer.” -April Renn “My Book Addiction and More”
• “I loved the peaks and valleys of the story, from high intensity chase scenes in underground tunnels to the slow moments where she is trying to figure out her next step, it was all believable and a fun ride.”  –
  K. Durham “Kritters Ramblings”
• “A magnificent mystery that just would not let me out of its grip until the very end; there are plenty of twists, and enough appealing secondary characters to appease even the most discriminating armchair sleuth. Highly entertaining!” -L. Jenkins “Laurie’s Thoughts and Reviews”
• “This was a well paced and involving novel. I literally read it in one sitting today (well if you ignore the break to make lunch), so if it wasn’t an e-book you would call it ‘a real page turner’.” –
  Timothy T. Scanlon “No what you Right”
• “A great book for someone that loves mysteries and animals!” -Marta M. Rawlings

For me, Unleashed represents years of imagination and critical thinking. Writing it has been a fulfilling and exciting experience that I hope you as a reader will enjoy.