I am thrilled beyond words to be able to blog about The Tampa Connection because it was written by a good friend of mine and former Rivers Edge Elementary teacher, Russ Tomlin. I met Russ when I transferred schools six years ago and had known him for almost three years before I discovered that he had written a book called The Twisted Rose. He allowed me to read the manuscript and I devoured it in three nights, staying up well past my bedtime in order to do so. I just couldn't put it down and needed to know how it all turned out. Those three nights turned into three mornings of book talks between Russ and myself as we chatted about the plot, the characters, and our favorite parts. It was at that time that he mentioned that he was about to (or maybe already had...I can't quite recall) go to Tampa to do research for his next book. Eager to know what happens next, as I always am, I mentioned to Russ that if he ever needed or wanted someone to read his next book, I would happily volunteer. Well...this summer, he took me up on his offer and sent me The Tampa Connection.
As I sit here and type this blog post, I can tell you readers that I have now read The Tampa Connection two times (so technically this post should be for books #19 and #20). The first time around, I read it in the sections that Russ sent to me. It took about 5 months to finish reading all 600+ pages and it made me crazy to read it in pieces! Russ intentionally (I think it was intentional, anyway) sent me cliff-hanger sections and then I had to wait for the next section to arrive via email to find out what had happened. The second read has been a straight-through read, thank goodness! Russ hand delivered a box with the entire book inside so that I could read it on paper (even though I love my Nook, I still LOVE a book on paper) and I could read it at my own pace, stopping when I needed to and not when the sections ran out. It goes without saying that I enjoyed the straight through read better and am so glad that I did not live back when serial books were in fashion. They would have driven me mad!
I finished the book for the second time today and Russ gave me permission to blog, so here I sit typing away. I promised him, however, that I was not going to give any details about The Tampa Connection as it is not yet published. Russ is in the process of finding a publisher, so if anyone out there who reads this blog happens to have any publisher connections, please let me know.
Here's the good news for my blog readers...Russ self-published The Twisted Rose so it is available for you to read (through Amazon, I believe) and you'd have to read it first anyway, as The Tampa Connection is a sequel. I have my own autographed copy of The Twisted Rose on the bookshelf in our family room and while I am usually all for loaning out my books, I am not going to be so free this time. Obviously, if I loan you my copy then you are not buying a copy from Russ (which you should do to support this retired teacher who is an amazing author). And, I don't want anything to happen to my autographed copy. It's very special!
So, go get a copy of The Twisted Rose and read it. You won't be sorry--it is a powerful story. And, by the time you finish it, with a little luck, The Tampa Connection will be in the works so you can find out the rest of the story!
Best of luck to my friend Russ! Thanks for sharing your stories, your writing, and your friendship with me. It has been an honor to read your creation! My fingers are crossed that a publisher will pick this book up soon!
Happy reading everyone!
:) Dodie
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