# Be Careful Who You Love



## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

When I left McKarey's Bluff ten years ago, I never planned to return. Ariel Morgan had refused to marry me and there was nothing left to stay for. Now Ariel is dead, supposedly by her own hand, and her younger sister, Rachel, is spiraling toward that same fate. Rachel used to be in love with me, maybe even more than Ariel. But she was a kid then. Now I'm returning to save a woman. And McKarey's Bluff is a small town haunted by more than Ariel's death. Years ago fifteen prostitutes disappeared. Sometimes the ghosts come back, not that I believe in them. But something isn't right here, and I'm seeing things I can't explain. I came to save Rachel, but I'm not even sure I can save myself anymore.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Here is the book trailer for The Mach Band Region.


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## ASparrow (Oct 12, 2009)

Sounds like a neat story, and I love your cover concept. 
The sphinx moth bugs me though. It's in a standing posture, not flying. 
Sorry. Can't help myself, being an entomologist and all.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Yeah, that cover was a bit tricky.  I tried capturing the moth in flight because I wanted to use a candle as well.  No go.  He was just a little quicker than I was so I ended up taking his picture as he was still and then merging two photos together.  Let's just say I'm learning a whole lot more about Photoshop than I ever thought I would.  And thank you for the interest in the novel.


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## ASparrow (Oct 12, 2009)

Maria Hooley said:


> Yeah, that cover was a bit tricky. I tried capturing the moth in flight because I wanted to use a candle as well. No go. He was just a little quicker than I was so I ended up taking his picture as he was still and then merging two photos together. Let's just say I'm learning a whole lot more about Photoshop than I ever thought I would. And thank you for the interest in the novel.


As gruesome as this sounds, you can 'relax' a dead moth with the vapors of nail polish remover (ethyl acetate), after which it's possible to pose any insect in flight position, let dry and voila, one has a flying dead moth. Just in case this ever comes in handy.

I love Lepidoptera symbolically ever since I saw Mourning Cloak butterfly spiral up around a casket and out a church steeple window at a funeral once.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Okay, now that is cool information.  I might just have to tinker with the cover....  Thanks for sharing.


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## Carol Hanrahan (Mar 31, 2009)

Maria,
Downloaded the sample.  Thanks for offering it at a great price!


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Carol,

Thanks for taking a look.  I hope  you enjoy.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Another good review on Amazon.  Check it out.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Here's a snippet from _The Mach Band Region_

"Is there any possible way that Ariel's death wasn't a suicide?"
Owens cocks an eyebrow and shakes his head. "You got a few loose gears rattling in that head of yours? She jumped off the Bluff, Matt." He sips his coffee. 
"Was anyone with her?"
He sets the coffee mug down. "Not to my knowledge. Her sister said she went out there alone and we found her car at the scene."
I pour more ketchup on my fries, not because I like ketchup that much but it gives my fingers something to do. "But maybe she wasn't alone, and maybe that person pushed her." My voice sounded strained, and while I didn't know exactly what to believe, it was easier to accept Rachel's death as a homicide than a personal choice.
"By who? Everybody loved that girl. She didn't have any enemies." He grabbed a steak finger and dipped it into the small plastic bucket of gravy.
"It was just a thought," I protest weakly.
"Yeah, well, I've already had that thought and looked into it so do me a favor and think something else."


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

The Mach Band Region focuses on the idea that while love can be a saving grace, it can also be a curse.  Many of the characters do not recognize the power of love, either good or bad until it is too late.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

For those of you who like romance but also thrillers, The Mach Band Region has a mix of both.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Here's another excerpt from The Mach Band Region

    Cordelia's face slowly emerges from the mass, and her mouth opens in a rapacious leer.  All but the center of her eyes appear glowing white.  The pupils are black coals.    She still wears the soiled, ripped white gown.  Its tattered edges wisp through the air as though a breeze wafts in.  Clumps of her white hair also dance unnaturally in the still air, and as I stare at her pitted cheeks and unholy eyes, I feel silence stifling me.  I know I have to speak.  The silence unhinges me.
    "Rachel, wake up now!" I yell, shaking her even harder.  Nothing.  I blink once or twice, wondering how long I can remain conscious.  Then I realize it doesn't matter.  I start to stand, using the sword as a walking stick so I can regain my balance before leveling the blade's edge just ahead of me where the ghost stands.
    Cordelia looks at the sword and laughs this deep throaty howl.  "I fear nothing.  And you fear everything."  She waves to the side and the sword goes with it, clattering to the wooden floor about twenty feet away.  Then she steps toward me.  Her bare feet barely skim the floor so she appears to float.
    "What do you want?" I ask, centering myself in front of Rachel.  My empty fingers ball into a fist.
    "You, Matt McKarey."


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

I have set up a Facebook fan page for the Mach Band Region at http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/The-Mach-Band-Region/120510917976676. Please check it out.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Currently Amazon has The Mach Band Region on sale for .79.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Hi, Maria. . . .I think you joined KindleBoards before Betsy and I had hit on the idea of Welcoming everyone . . . .and Congratulating them on each book! So, Welcome! And Congratulations!

(And, of course, with that, comes the obligatory rules recitation. . . .though I know you know the drill!)

We invite you to use your book cover as your avatar and have links to your book and website in your signature. Be sure to read the fine print below. Don't forget to bookmark this thread so you can update it. Although self-promotion is limited to the Book Bazaar, most of our authors have found the best way to promote their books is to be as active throughout KindleBoards as time allows. This is your target audience--book lovers with Kindles!

Thanks for being part of KindleBoards! Feel free to PM us if you have any questions.

Betsy & Ann
Book Bazaar Moderators

_The fine print:
Please add to your existing book thread when you have news about your book rather than start a new one, it helps the members who are trying to follow you. You may have a separate thread for each of your books. We recommend you bookmark your post so that you can find it in the future.  You may respond to all posts, but if there have been no member posts, we ask that you wait a week before "bumping" the thread by posting back-to-back posts of your own. And we ask that Amazon reviews not be repeated here as they are easy to find at your book link. Also, full reviews from other sites should not be posted here, but you may post a short blurb and a link to the full review instead. All this, and more, is included in our Forum Decorum. From time to time our site rules may change; be sure to check Forum Decorum (http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,36.0.html) for the current guidelines and rules. _


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

I am the featured author at Kolina Topel's blog. Drop in and leave a comment. You could win the omnibus edition of Sojourner. http://www.kolinatopel.blogspot.com/


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

The Mach Band Region is still priced at .79.


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## Kristen Tsetsi (Sep 1, 2009)

Maria Hooley said:


> Here is the book trailer for The Mach Band Region.


I love the image at 0.33 seconds.


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## PhillipA82 (Dec 20, 2009)

Looks interesting...


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Thanks, Phillip A82.

And I like that image, too.  No, I didn't take it, but I thought it fit the trailer.


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## Thomas Troxel (Jun 4, 2010)

Love the cover but the moth would look alot cooler next to one of those bug killing jars used in a high school science class


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Hmmm.  That's something I hadn't thought of.  As it was this cover was so hard to come up with.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

I've just re-released The Mach Band Region after a re-edit and a brand new cover by Ronnell. Here's the link.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

If you like ghost stories, you might give The Mach Band Region a try.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

According to Matt in The Mach Band Region, everyone is haunted.  Pick up a copy of the novel to find out why.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Just my weekly promotion for The Mach Band Region.  Have a great week!


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Perhaps today would be a great day to curl up with a ghost story?  Give The Mach Band Region a try.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Just my weekly promotion for The Mach Band Region.  Have a great weekend!


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Like a good mystery with your ghost story?  Try The Mach Band Region.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Just my weekly promotion for The Mach Band Region.  Have a great week!


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

I'm giving away two copies of one of my novels over at Goodreads. You can enter at http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/10056-her-only-hope.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

If you enjoy a good mystery, check out The Mach Band Region.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

What happens when you take a man who doesn't believe in ghosts and surround him with them?  Pick up The Mach Band Region and find out.


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## Maria Hooley (Jul 21, 2009)

Here is the revised book trailer for The Mach Band Region. Have a great week!


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