Wednesday 26 July 2017

Author’s Inspiration ~ David O. Stewart #HistFic #HistoricalMystery #Giveaway @hfvbt

Book Blast ~ Historical Virtual Book Tour Presents....


The Babe Ruth Deception

 By

David O. Stewart


As the Roaring Twenties get under way, corruption seems everywhere–from the bootleggers flouting Prohibition to the cherished heroes of the American Pastime now tarnished by scandal. Swept up in the maelstrom are Dr. Jamie Fraser and Speed Cook…

Babe Ruth, the Sultan of Swat, is having a record-breaking season in his first year as a New York Yankee. In 1920, he will hit more home runs than any other team in the American League. Larger than life on the ball field and off, Ruth is about to discover what the Chicago White Sox players accused of throwing the 1919 World Series are learning–baseball heroes are not invulnerable to scandal. With suspicion in the air, Ruth’s 1918 World Series win for the Boston Red Sox is now being questioned. Under scrutiny by the new baseball commissioner and enmeshed with gambling kingpin Arnold Rothstein, Ruth turns for help to Speed Cook–a former professional ballplayer himself before the game was segregated and now a promoter of Negro baseball–who’s familiar with the dirty underside of the sport.

Cook in turn enlists the help of Dr. Jamie Fraser, whose wife Eliza is coproducing a silent film starring the Yankee outfielder. Restraint does not come easily to the reckless Ruth, but the Frasers try to keep him in line while Cook digs around.

As all this plays out, Cook’s son Joshua and Fraser’s daughter Violet are brought together by a shocking tragedy. But an interracial relationship in 1920 feels as dangerous as a public scandal–even more so because Joshua is heavily involved in bootlegging. Trying to protect Ruth and their own children, Fraser and Cook find themselves playing a dangerous game.
Once again masterfully blending fact and fiction, David O. Stewart delivers a nail-biting historical mystery that captures an era unlike any America has seen before or since in all its moral complexity and dizzying excitement.

“(The Babe Ruth Deception) cleverly mixes real-life people and historical events. The problems of the unlikely sleuths will particularly appeal to baseball fans.”

Kirkus Reviews

“This is so much more than a baseball book. There’s a lot of the Babe, but it’s a history book, a mystery book, a complex book that beautifully details an era in America. I loved it!”

Tim Kurkjian, ESPN Baseball Contributor and Author

Author’s Inspiration


My Ten Best Mystery/Thriller Writers
By David O. Stewart
To wrap up my month-long blog tour marking the paperback launch of my historical mystery, The Babe Ruth Deception, I want to honor ten mystery/thriller writers who made me want to write that type of book.  The list reflects my tastes, freely acknowledged here:
·      Not a lot of gore or mass violence.  They’re distractions.
·      Smart, polished writing.
·      Close, loving attention to the people in the story, not just the story – unless the story’s totally amazing.
John Le Carré  -- The master.  From The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1963) through Russia House (1989), Le Carré captured the tensions, hypocrisies, and terrors of the Cold War.  With the fall of the Soviet Union, he reinvented himself, exploring the same themes around the globe in great yarns like The Constant Gardener (2001), The Tailor of Panama (1996), and Our Kind of Traitor (2010).  Witty, ironic, the Muse of Moral Ambiguity.
Elmore Leonard – The master, American version, who packed more description into fewer words than anyone.  Try this character from Tishomingo Blues: “all the way cool.”  You could use more words, but why?  He did Detroit-based stories (Split Images, City Primeval), Florida stories (Maximum Bob, Out of Sight) and anything he damn well pleased.  Get Shorty may be perfect. 
Eric Ambler – This British espionage writer created dense atmosphere, quirky characters, and compelling yarns.  The early books (Journey Into Fear, The Mask of Dimitrios) explore devious men wandering through the world-gone-mad of fascism and communism.  His later books widened his scope.  A favorite is his last, The Care of Time (as in “time will take care of him”).
Rex Stout – I haven’t yet joined the Nero Wolfe Literary Society (yup, there is one!), but I can’t resist the fat epicurean sleuth who loves orchids and never leaves his Manhattan townhouse (well, hardly ever).  Sidekick Archie Goodwin is the perfect counterweight.  Try The League of Frightened Men, or Too Many Cooks, or any of them.
P.D. James – A Scotland Yard investigator who writes poetry?  What can I say – it works in her Adam Dalgleish books (Cover Her Face, The Private Patient).  James also made time for a woman protagonist, An Unsuitable Job for a Woman.  Thoughtful, carefully-observed stories that draw you in deeper and deeper.
Olen Steinhauer – I know, I know, this the first writer on my list who’s still alive.  In fact, still in his 40s.  Concentrating on spy stories, Steinhauer already has produced a great trilogy (loved The American Spy) and excellent stand-alone books (try The Cairo Affair).  The tension crackles, the intrigue is compelling.  An entire book told through a single dinner between former colleagues?  He pulled it off, beautifully, in All the Old Knives.
Robert B. Parker – The Spenser books.  I rest my case.  One of the few recurring-character series that I just kept coming back for.  They’re so good that they’re still coming out even though Parker died seven years ago (written by Ace Atkins).  The novels go down fast, with the smoothest pacing.  Try Early Autumn or The Judas Goat. 
Josephine Tey – Her novel The Daughter of Time showed that an investigator could unearth secrets from the historical past (in her case, the 15th-century killing of the princes in the Tower of London).   That inspired my first mystery, The Lincoln Deception.  Though I haven’t been crazy about her other books, Daughter of Time is perfect.
Arthur Conan Doyle – It’s crazy to have him down this low on the list.  Sherlock Holmes will always be with us.  The dog that didn’t bark.  There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.  When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.  Great stuff. 
Charles McCarry – Another espionage writer, also alive (!).  McCarry’s first novel, The Miernik Dossier, was extraordinary.  His novel about the Kennedy assassination, The Tears of Autumn, is the best guess I’ve seen as to what happened in Dallas in November 1963. 
That’s my list so far.  Great writers didn’t make the cut:  Raymond Chandler, John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, Agatha Christie.  Hey, it’s MY list.  Who’s on yours?
David O. Stewart is the author of the Fraser/Cook mystery series, The Lincoln Deception (2013), The Wilson Deception (2015), and The Babe Ruth Deception (2016). 


Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away two paperback copies of The Babe Ruth Deception! To enter, please see the Gleam form below.

Giveaway Rules

• Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on July 27th. You must be 18 or older to enter.

 • Giveaway is open to residents in the US & Canada only.
• Only one entry per household.

• All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.

• Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.



Links for Purchase




  

About the author


David O. Stewart, formerly a lawyer, writes fiction and history. His first historical work told the story of the writing of the Constitution (“The Summer of 1787”). It was a Washington Post Bestseller and won the Washington Writing Prize for Best Book of 2007. His second book (“Impeached”), grew from a judicial impeachment trial he defended before the United States Senate in 1989. “American Emperor: Aaron Burr’s Challenge to Jefferson’s America” explored Burr’s astounding Western expedition of 1805-07 and his treason trial before Chief Justice John Marshall. “Madison’s Gift: Five Partnerships That Built America” debuted in February 2015. He has received the 2013 History Award of the Society of the Cincinnati and the 2016 William Prescott Award for History Writing from the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America.

Stewart’s fiction career began with the release of “The Lincoln Deception,” an historical novel exploring the John Wilkes Booth conspiracy. “The Wilson Deception,” the sequel, is set at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. “The Babe Ruth Deception” occurs during the Babe’s first two years with the Yankees while he remade baseball and America began the modern era with Prohibition, bootlegging, and terrorism.
Stewart lives with his wife in Maryland.
Useful Links


The Babe Ruth Deception by David O. Stewart

Publication Date: June 27, 2017
Kensington Books
Hardcover & eBook; 304 Pages
Series: A Fraser and Cook Mystery (Book 3)
Genre: Fiction/Historical/Mysteries/Baseball




2 comments:

  1. Thank you so much, Mary Anne, for hosting David's blog tour & guest post! I hope your readers enjoy the post & good luck to all who enter the giveaway.

    Amy
    HF Virtual Book Tours

    ReplyDelete

See you on your next coffee break!
Take Care,
Mary Anne xxx