Monday, November 25, 2013

My newest book will be available on February first.  I am impatient and hate to wait, but today I got a copy of the final cover.  Now I have that to help me wait for the publication date.  I am excited about this story because writing it presented all kinds of new challenges.  I hope you all enjoy the fun.


Friday, October 11, 2013

This is what Debdatta Sahay at Bood Reviews By DDS had to say about the latest Alicia Trent Mystery, Antique Legacy.  Once again, thank you Debdatta for taking the time to review this book.

While the almost castle crumbles around them, Alicia desperately searches for the answers she wants and needs. Every creepy room demands a thorough search. Someone is trying to kill her, and she doesn't even know why, let alone, who. Each room she searches is a challenge and each is either fascinating or horrifying. The huge cat now follows her everywhere, even into closed rooms. If she can discover his secret before one of the murder attempts succeeds, maybe she can find the answers she needs.  


 I absolutely love this series….

Alicia is on for another adventure. When she receives a legacy from her family, that she never knew existed, at first she is surprised. Then slowly as it sinks in, she is nervous and apprehensive. She has inherited a house in England and now that she is on her way to check out her inheritance, she also gets to meet her ‘family’ for the first time. Nothing is as she expected. The house is in a patched up condition, the family is not so heart warming but there are lots of antique pieces for her to look up… There are also weird things happening all around that makes it very clear that Alicia is is unwelcome at her own house. But she has a responsibility to decide what to do of her inheritance.

Alone in a different country all together, will Alicia come out alive or is she way over her head?

This book, I have to say, is the one with the darkest storyline in the series. For one, Alicia was all alone – without Barry or Lawrence or Nick to help her out. The action that takes place in the story is also darker than the others. Without giving away any spoilers, all I can say that the series has developed to a point where things get much more complicated. The look into Alicia’s heritage is fascinating though the same cannot be said about her present family members. None of them seem to be particularly likeable even though some of them do redeem themselves in the end. There’s a bit of development in Alicia relationship status that was out of the blue too. And, I have to say that the climax was the best – I didn’t see it coming!

The author’s narration style remains the same, making it easy to get into the story.  I did miss the other characters though. After following the series from the beginning, I have come to like the other’s in Alicia’s life as much and do expect to see more of them each time. Overall, the book keeps up with the rest of the series – its got action and drama that keeps the pages turning!


Wednesday, October 9, 2013

It seems like it has taken longer than usual, but finally I have my next novel finished and submitted to the publisher.  I hope to soon have a date for publication.  This one is called Dowager Diaries, Book One, The Black Cane.  When I have a date for publication I'll tell you a little about the black cane's owner Amelia.  She's quite a lady.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

In case you haven't read it yet here is a review of the most recent book in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series.

Antique Legacy Review


Alicia Trent received a large antique chest at her workplace Eclectic Treasures in Arizona. The shipping label said it came from India. Accompanying it was a letter explaining the mahogany chest was from her uncle Albert Trent, and that he was bequeathing twenty acres in England as described in the enclosed deed, including a house and its contents. Also contained in the chest was a couple of albums and family photos of people Alicia did not recognize.

As soon as she could make arrangements, she headed to England to check out her inheritance. Family members of her Uncle Albert were still living in the large country house that was in obvious disrepair. One wing of the mansion had totally collapsed. The agreement per the letter was that she had the right to evict the current residents, lease the house to them, or list it for sale. During her stay Alicia started a room by room cataloguing of everything she found in the massive home to determine what she would keep, sell, or throw out.

During her stay, she learned much about her family history, shocked at what she uncovered. As can be expected, her newly discovered relatives were not happy to see her and treated her accordingly. The animosity expressed by the family kept Alicia on the alert, and she was physically attacked more than once causing her to fear for her life.

While all that was going on, she also was struggling with relationship decisions – should she choose Lawrence or Nick as she cared for both? Unfortunately, life made the decision for her.

Antique Legacy by Eileen Harris closely follows Antique Discovery by a matter of weeks and is in fact a continuation of the story about Lawrence and Nick. The author has provided a smooth transition from story to story throughout the series. Each book can be read on its own, but readers may want to start at the beginning to understand the big picture.

Harris has a smooth writing style that makes each book an easy read although there is plenty going on to keep readers turning pages to find out what happens next. Most of the action takes place in England, but the author keeps Alicia and the rest of us up to date with what is happening back home.

Antique Legacy is an intriguing book with interesting characters and a well-plotted, sinister mystery story. It looks as if the author is planning more books in this series and they will hopefully continue the thread about Alicia and her interesting life as an antique specialist.

Harris also wrote the book Desert Shadow which is not part of this series, but could easily become one on its own.

A special thank you goes to Eileen Harris for providing us a copy of Antique Legacy for our review. If you are interested in any of her books, they are available on Amazon.com.

g Mystery Books Site

BellaOnline's Mystery Books Editor

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Poetry For Thought



9th Annual Independence Day Poem


        Liberty & Justice
               For All

I spy
with my little eye
people trying to get away
with murder
and more than murder

approved force
is not
legitimate force

forcing invisible corpse-sized
vivisections of containment
written in code and law

pathetic patriotism
standing in for paternalism
perverting the impulse toward loyalty

no more pretending our exchanges
are consensual, not coerced,
purchased

who for the benches
and who for the podia?!


information wants to be ubiquitous
not proprietary

if copying is stealing
then every baby owes a debt of atoms and bits

it's unprostitutional
to want to be free

a citizenry should be
a self-assembling mob of tolerance,
shifting alliances that acknowledge
and adapt to change

I want interstitial citizenship—
there is power, too, in the stutter

               Michael C. Rush

Friday, June 21, 2013

These are the kind words Edie Dykeman at BellaOnline had to say in her review of Antique Discovery.  This is the third book in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series,  Hopefully we will begin seeing reviews on the fourth book Antique Legacy soon.  Thank you Edie for your interest in my writing.

"Antique Discovery is the third Alicia Trent Mystery by Eileen Harris, and the series continues to entertain. She is also the author of Desert Shadow, another intriguing story.

Much of the fun is that characters from the two previous books show up in this one as well. Barry and Lawrence return and so do Laudine who is from Pennsylvania, and who we met in Antique Forgery.

Harris writes in such a way that the characters start to feel like old friends and that we are getting updates on how they are doing. She spins a great mystery tale by keeping the ultimate surprise until the end although there are quite a number of reveals along the way.

Harris also sets up the next novel with a few hints in the last chapter of the current story providing readers with the feeling of continuity to the series. Fans of the series will certainly look forward to the next Alicia Trent installment!"

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Tomorrow, the month long time that I have been the Special Feature on Debdatta Sahay's comprehensive blog on books will end.  She is finishing the month with an interview she did with me.  She asked, and I answered the things she was curious about.  I have to admit I will miss having her probe my mind and the minds of my characters, but once again I thank her for her interest and for finding the things I love to write fun to read.  Here is the link to her post.
http://www.b00kr3vi3ws.in/search/label/Giveaway

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Debdatta Sahay's blog is still featuring my published novels all this month.  The current post is a peek into the forth book in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series called Antique Legacy.  If you are interested in taking a look here is the link.
http://b00kr3vi3ws.blogspot.in/search/label/Giveaway

Monday, May 6, 2013

This is the latest review of Antique Discovery. It is always wonderful to learn that someone loves a book you've written. This book as well as the others in the series (Including #4) are available in paperback and ebook at Amazon.com.

 Antique Discovery Book Review by Debdatta Dasgupta Sahay Posted on: May 3rd, 2013 by David M. Assigned categories: Book Reviews, IHB Contributor Writes Antique Discovery (Alicia Trent Series #3) by Eileen Harris Antique Discovery [Kindle Edition] By Eileen Harris

Alicia Trent is back! The story starts with Nick and Barry planning out a vacation for Nick and Alicia. Seeing this as an opportunity to spend some quality time with Nick, Alicia agrees. It is only after planning the whole thing out that Alicia realizes that the date of clock’s prediction would fall within their prediction. But as we know, the clocks prediction always comes true, and this time was no different. While experiencing the desert feel on a ranch turned holiday resort owned by Nick, Alicia gets entangled in another new mystery. A murder takes place on the ranch and the victim was a very shady person. What was he doing at the resort? Who is his accomplice on the outside? Who is the man who has made his home in a secluded corner within the ranch boundaries? Everyone on the ranch seems to have a secret to hide… And then Alicia and Nick make a very important discovery. I have had immense pleasure reading the first two novels in the series – Antique Magic and Antique Forgery. Needless to say that I was eagerly awaiting for this one. The prediction provided at the end of the last book was enough to keep my interest fired throughout the waiting period. Ms.Harris has, yet again, delivered a wonderful piece of work. The consistency in her writing – both characters and plot – never ceases to impress me. Also, I can never rave enough about Ms.Eileen’s style of writing – simple language, ordinary words – yet an extraordinary product. She even described the resort (ranch area) so well that I could probably draw you a map of it. Having been in two tight situations already, Alicia appeared to be more prepared this time. But what awaited her on the date of the prediction and the days that followed were things that she couldn’t have imagined in her wildest dreams. Of course, being with Nick on his known turf provided them with some advantage. Then Lawrence made an appearance at the most crucial moment of the adventure, while Laudine did her part too. Yes, Laudine does make an appearance along with her mouth watering dishes. While the mystery was wrapped up nicely, developments in the personal front of both Alicia and Nick’s life, separately, left me surprised. I won’t tell you what developments they were because that would be big spoilers, but believe me if you have been following the series then while the development in Nick’s life will make you happy, the one in Alicia’s life will leave you shocked! Overall, it’s a great addition to the series and one that has raised my expectation of the upcoming fourth book. If I haven’t made it clear already, I would recommend everyone to get their hands on not only this book, but the whole series.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Debdatta Dasgupta Sahay has a wonderful website that reviews new novels by a wide range of writers. In the past she has reviewed several of my books. Each month she chooses one writer to be the special feature author for her blog. I was extremely flattered when she chose me for her May special feature. She is covering all four books in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series, as well as the stand alone book Desert Shadow. Debdatta does a great job both with her website and in giving her readers a good look at the books she reviews. As part of this up close and personal look at the characters in the books, we are giving away a full set of the Alicia Trent series. Wrangling a book from the mind to publication is always a big job, and recognition like Debdatta gives to authors is always a joy. So, Debdatta, thank you for your continued interest in what I do. Here is a link to her page:

http://b00kr3vi3ws.blogspot.in/2013/05/EileenHarris.html

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Someone Dropped The Ball

As everyone knows, because we read it everywhere, generating sales for a new book in today's market is difficult. April 1st my fifth book was published. I am happy to say that today, finally, it is available through Amazon. Unfortunately, the listings for it and my other four books have, for some unknown reason, changed. At the moment they all show only the ebook as being available. They are supposed to show both the ebook and the paperback versions. Hopefully my publisher, Wings ePress, is working to solve this problem as I notified them April 3rd that it had occured. It is possible to order the paperback version by going to wingsepress.com rather than Amazon. I know most of you are used to purchasing books from Amazon, but for the moment I can only hope you will be patient with this glitch. I apologize for any inconvenience this problem has caused.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Flash Fiction Challenge: The Secret Door

Flash Fiction Challenge: The Secret Door

I'd been running for what seemed like hours. The stitch in my side burned. The spasms pulled me into a hunched misery, and the sweat ant tears in my eyes had blurred my vision to near blindness. The back streets of London were a maze, and I had no idea where I was. I knew I wasn't going any farther without falling. For the first time I couldn't hear the rapid, heavy footfalls behind me, so I stumbled to a stop, knowing it wouldn't, but hoping a moments respite would give me the strength to run again.

I half leaned and half fell against the wall behind me. The wall shifted. Too late I realized it was a door not a wall. I managed not to fall, but my bumbling gait caused the few people inside to look up in surprise. You could see their revulsion pass across their faces at what they perceived to be one more drunk. I confirmed their suspicions by the conscious effort I made to straighten my tortured body as I walked deeper into what seemed to be and Indian restaurant. Wiping my eyes on my already damp shirt sleeve, I walked deeper into the building hoping not to draw the notice of the people in the next room. As I walked I took in my surroundings. I saw the family pictures on the wall, the displays of drinks and food, and the cracked linoleum. Typical decor for this part of London.

The room I entered was small with just a few tables and one diner. If I could order something to drink and rest for a moment, maybe I'd have the strength for one more run. There was no way I could eat. The overwhelming smell of spices nauseated me. The room mirrored my struggle. Also seeming to be on it's last legs, making one last try to survive. For the first time I looked looked at the lone man seated to my right. He was slumped against the wall behind him. At first I thought the flies were after the congealed food on his plate, and then I saw the blood. His chest was ruined. Oh so slowly I raised my eyes to his face. I knew this man, this dead man. That he was here, that he was dead, was impossible. If Chad hadn't made it, what hope was there for me?

Monday, April 1, 2013

It wasn't an April Fool's joke!  Today my fourth book in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series was published.  It should be available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble very soon.  It is available now through the publisher's website wingsepress.com  This book is called Antique Legacy.  I am happy to note that to me number four is just as thrillingto see in print as number one was.  I hope the readers find the story just as thrilling also.  Thank you, to everyone that made this possible.

I am also excited to report that I just finished my next book.  The Black Cane isn't part of the Alicia Trent Series.  It features Amelia Armstrong and the other members of the Dowagers Club.  Hopefully after a little more spit and polish we will see it in print also.

Friday, February 22, 2013

With Antique Legacy coming out April 1st, today I received a copy of the final cover art.  I decided with this, the fourth book in the series, it was time to let everyone see Alicia.  This is the point in the publishing process where I want to get my hands on the finished book.  Alas, I still have to wait.

Monday, February 11, 2013

The fourth book in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series will be published April 1, 2013.  This is the second time I've had a book published on April Fools Day.  I hope my publisher isn't trying to tell me something. lol  In this book life changes dramatically for Alicia.  She also gets the chance to learn something about her father and his family.  Since her father died when she was very young, and her mother refused to discuss him or his family, Alicia is naturally curious.  As always, the book abounds in murder, mayhem, and mystery with a wee bit of magic thrown in.  I don't have the finished cover art yet but will post it here when I receive it.


Friday, February 1, 2013

Today Antique Discover is available for purchase through my publisher Wings.  It always takes a few days to show up on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble.  Hopefully it will be available both places soon.  This is the third in the Alicia Trent Mystery Series.  For those of you who read the first two I hope you enjoy this one as much.  I am now ready to ship the fourth manuscript in that series to the publisher.  It is called Antique Legacy.  I showed you the cover for this book early on but thought I'd put it up here again.  I think the cover artist, Richard Stroud, did an exceptional job with this one.

Thursday, January 24, 2013






The Author Bio in my books says, "Eileen Harris lives and writes off the grid in the Arizona high desert.  I've had several people ask me what that means.  Well, by "off the grid" I mean we have no services provided by any public agency.  No city water, no garbage pick-up, no city sewer, no maintained roads, and the biggie no electricity.  We have our own well, an incinerator, a septic tank, equipment to maintain the roads, and a solar system.  We also have no traffic noise, sirens screaming down the street, no neighbor's barking dog, no pollution, and pure drinking water.  Like anything else our lifestyle is a trade off.  We have to drive seventy miles round trip to go to the grocery store and sadly no one will deliver us a pizza.  In this case I believe the saying a picture is worth a thousand words is absolutely true, so I am including a few to show you what we see from the picture window in our living room.

Saturday, January 12, 2013

It's nice to wake up in the morning and find something like this in your email inbox.  I want to thank Edie Dykeman, Mystery Books Editor and Bellaonline for taking time to review this novel.  Here is part of that review:

"Desert Shadow was written by Eileen Harris, author of the intriguing Alicia Trent Mystery series including Antique Magic and Antique Forgery. The topic of human trafficking in the area along the Mexican-American border has been a subject of much debate for decades. Harris has successfully used the theme to highlight how far smugglers will go to bring illegal aliens into the country and how far others will go to protect those who are being misused.

The author’s strong sense of place brings the desert alive. Readers will feel the beauty and experience the danger inherent in such wide open landscape. Harris is able to describe the sounds and hushed movement taking place in the middle of the night in the high desert region to such a degree that readers are likely to feel shivers down their spine. The author is well acquainted with the area and it shows throughout the story line.

Desert Shadow is a captivating page-turner as well as a fairly quick read. I haven’t heard whether this is the first in a new series or not, but more stories from this area of the United States and this author would be welcomed.

A special thank you goes to Eileen Harris and Wings Press, Inc. for providing a complimentary copy of this book for our review. If you are interested in purchasing any of her books, they are available at Desert Shadow."

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