Dead and Gone by D.L. Michaels #BlogTour @QandA with DI Annie Parker

Welcome to my turn of the blog tour for Dead and Gone by D.L. Michaels. My thanks also to Melanie Price and Aria for the opportunity to be part of the tour.

In a world bulit on lies, who can you ever trust? A nail-biting thriller introducing DI Annie Parker. For fans of Angela Marsons and Tess Gerritson, Dead and Gone delivers twists at every deliciously unredictable turn.

Paula Smith could have had it all. Hugely successful in her fashion business, she lives the kind of life she could never have imagined. Her world should have been an idyllic one if it weren’t for her husband Danny who is resentful of her success and increasingly prone to alcoholic rages. Paula knows she should leave him but she if she did, he would pick up the phone to the police and her life would come crashing down around her.

Sarah has found the kind of happiness with Martin she never thought possible. He is everything she could have wished for in an man. Caring, sensitive and loving, yet he has a secret that could threaten everything they share. But he is not the only one with a secret….

DI Annie Parker, mother, grandmother and widow, has plenty of baggage of her own, but she’s still determined to be the best police officer she can be. When she and her sergeant Nisha Patel hear about a 20-year-old murder that nobody knew about, nothing will stop them from tracking down the killer, even if it brings them up against one of the most dangerous crime families in the country.

Amazon: mybook.to/DeadandGoneMichaels
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2qtnHEX
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2JHQy0l
iBooks: https://apple.co/2qwKOh5

D.L. Michaels is a former award-winning TV executive, who married in Tuscany, has one teenage son and lives on an old converted farm in the Peak District. Favourite writers include Harlan Coben, Patricia Cornwell and Nicci French.

Have you always wondered about the life of a Detective as well? Well, I know DI Annie Parker doesn’t have a lot of time so I asked her 5 quick question before she had to dash out of the police station again:

1. Do you ever have sleepless nights about a case you’re working on?
I never lose sleep over an offender, but I do over victims. The type of crimes I deal with tend to be committed by career criminals, people who know everything about their offences, the risks involved in committing crimes and are prepared to give up their liberty if they are caught. Their victims though are completely unprepared for what happens to them. They not only suffer at the moment of the offence but they carry on suffering for the rest of their lives. And I lose sleep knowing that even when we have caught the person who hurt them, their ordeal isn’t over.

2. Are you a night owl or a daybreaker?
Depends what case I’ve been working and what’s happening in the family. In recent times, I’ve been burning the candle at both ends because both professionally and personally, life has been challenging. When it comes to fun, I’m a night owl. I don’t want a good day every to end. I want to squeeze every bit of happy juice out of a fun moment. The one thing that life teaches you is that good times aren’t guaranteed. Poor health, tragedy, criminal activity and bad luck can strike at any time. Make the most of the good times.

3. What is your drive? What made you want to become a detective?
On leaving school, I applied for three jobs. A vet’s assistant, a stewardess and a police officer. My first choice was stewardess, but I got turned down for that, and for the job at the vet’s! So, you could say that I stumbled into the career. But I love the job. Loved it from the moment I made my first arrest, from the moment I first gave evidence in a Crown Court and saw someone convicted on evidence that I had gathered and hard work that I had put in.

4. Do you think it’s possible to be a brilliant detective and still have a stable and well-balanced family life?
I’d like to think so. I had a long, happy marriage until an accident killed my husband, Jack. I’m sure if he were still alive he’d tell you that we’ve had our ups and downs, but I was worth sticking with.

5. What is your biggest vice?
Anything made of grapes and fermented. I’d even drink homemade wine. It’s my release valve. I don’t have to get drunk, but just uncorking a bottle, glugging it into a glass and letting it hit my taste buds washes away the stresses of the day.

Quick extra question: 6. How do you relax after a hard day’s work in the field?
Gradually. I like the drive home. It gives me time to mentally file things. Once I get through the front door, I get the news of the day from my son, Tom and if I’m lucky time-wise a hug, kiss and bedtime story with my granddaughter, Polly. After that, a glass of wine, some telly (anything but the news) and a book by the bed usually gives me the strength to face whatever the next day can throw at me.

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*** Don’t forget to check out the other stops on the blog tour! ***