Blog Tour De Troops Starts Today!

Did you know that over 300 overseas troops have requested books?

 And the Indie Book Collective is going to make sure they get them.  

 This Veteran’s Day weekend, November 11th-14th, any reader can participate in the charity that gives back to the troops!

 Over 50 authors will be giving away free eBooks, one for each person who leaves a comment on their blog and one for a soldier or veteran.

 The purpose: To give away as many books as possible to the soldiers and veterans who request them.

Just visit the Indie Book Collective blog from November 11th-14th to see each day’s authors and join in on the blog hop. You’re guaranteed to get tons of books and so will our brave men and women who serve our country with honor!

There are over 50 authors participating, and you don’t want to miss this event.  I have read and reviewed one of the books up for grabs on the Blog Tour De Troops, so read the review then visit the author’s site to get the book!

Dance of the Winnebagos

by Ann Charles

Publisher: Corvallis Press

My Rating: 

My Review:

Dance of the Winnebagos is a fun, entertaining, mystery novel.  Claire is on a month long trip with her grandfather and his buddies in small town Jackrabbit Junction, Arizona.  Harvey, Claire’s grandfather is meeting up with his army buddies for some card games and women-chasing.  Claire keeps busy working at the small general store doing odd jobs, and trying to help the owner, Ruby figure out a way to keep the RV trailer park the mines left to her by her deceased husband.  Mac is Ruby’s nephew and he is trying to help Ruby figure out how much the mines are worth to help her come to a settlement with the bank and a mining company who would like to buy the mines. When Claire’s dog is dog-napped from the mines one night, Claire and Mac discover that there might be more in the mines than copper.

I really enjoyed Dance of the Winnebagos.  This book is full of colorful characters and a mystery that is not easily uncovered.  Claire’s grandfather and his buddies are always making crass jokes and inappropriate comments.  They are a group of funny, dirty, but likable old men.  At first, I wan’t Mac’s biggest fan, he was not the most friendly person and he just wanted to finish his job and go on vacation.  However, as he got to know Claire, he warmed up and I got to like him more.  Mac and Claire spark a bit of romance, and that fit very nicely into the story as well.

What I really like about Ann Charles’ work is her opening lines.  She has a way of writing opening lines that grab you, make you curious about the story and you want to keep reading. The opening line of Dance of the Winnebagos is:

“If Claire Morgan had known she’d be chaperoning a senior citizen sock hop, she wouldn’t have given up smoking.”

From page one, line one, I was hooked on the story, and I was not disappointed.  The villain in the story is obvious, she has her own point of view throughout the story. However, the mystery is not easy to unravel.  There are many different pieces to the puzzle, and unraveling the mystery with the characters is very fun.  The setting is different, a trailer park in the desert with old mines.  Digging around the old mines is a great place for the curious heroine and reluctant hero to get lost and run into trouble.

With unexpected events, humor, and mystery Dance of the Winnebagos is a highly entertaining, charming read.  Readers who enjoy mysteries and books with humor will love this book, I know that I will be watching out for book two in the series.

So, would you like to read this book?  Follow the links to Ann Charles’ blog and Visit the IBC (Indie Book Collective) to participate in the Blog Tour De Troops.  Don’t forget to spread the word!!