Happy Saturday readers. Boy, have I got a treat for you.
Author Joe Cosentino is here today interveiwing his wonderful character Cassie Castle, from his Jana Lane mystery series. Please join with me in welcoming him back.
Interview
with Senator Cassie Castle in SATIN DOLL,
a
Jana Lane mystery by Joe Cosentino, published by The Wild Rose Press
I
am pleased to have Cassie Castle with me a character from Joe Cosentino’s SATIN
DOLL, a Jana Lane mystery, published by The Wild Rose Press. It’s an honor to
interview the only female US senator in 1983, the junior senator from Ohio.
It’s my pleasure to be here, inside Joe
Cosentino’s head.
Why do some people call you a satin doll?
I wore a satin
dress at a charity fundraiser once and the press went mad. Ever since, I’ve
been the satin doll. It’s cost me a great deal in new satin dresses and pants
suits.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I wake early
and read the newspapers; have breakfast with my sister/assistant Lenore; go to
my office and meet with the leaders of various political, social, religious,
and business groups; answer letters from constituents, and then head to the
Senate Chamber.
Do
you ever think your father is looking down at you beaming with pride?
Sure. His portrait sits on the wall over
my desk. Seriously though, my father was the greatest senator this country ever
had. I miss him dearly, and when I’m faced with a crisis, which happens quite
frequently in the senate, I think about how Dad might have handled it.
Like
your father, you are a strong advocate for the less fortunate, particularly
women, children, racial minorities, the poor, and gays and lesbians. Not to
mention a staunch protector of the environment.
I was brought up to believe that it is
our duty to try to help those less fortunate than us, and not to endanger our
lives with polluted air, water, and soil.
And
yet you are dating Senator Maxmillion, the Republican senior senator from your
state, and the majority leader of the Senate. Max’s priorities seem to be quite
different from yours, and more in line with Benjamin Topower of the
Multitopower Conglomerate and others in the top one percent financial bracket.
Love makes fools of all of us.
Do
you think your relationship with Max might hurt your chances of becoming the
Democratic nominee for Vice President? I hear the dashing young senator from
New York, Sancho Ramirez, is also vying for the nomination.
Some of my colleagues in both parties
don’t approve of my relationship with Max. And Sancho is certainly making it
known that he is interested in being nominated.
And
Sancho is dating your friend, Washington news reporter Tamaya Stormcloud. Has
Tamaya dug up any secrets on anyone in Washington?
She has secrets on all of us I’m afraid.
How
does Jana Lane, American’s most famous ex-child star, fit into the picture?
Picture indeed. Jana is shadowing me as
research for her new film, Madam Senator.
We both graduated from Vassar College. We’ve hit it off and have become fast
friends.
Did
you read the first Jana Lane mystery? In PAPER DOLL Jana
uses the skills she learned as a child star to figure out who attacked her at
eighteen on the studio lot and who is attacking her at thirty-eight in her Hyde
Park, New York mansion.
Once
I found out Jana would be shadowing me, I read up on her. I loved PAPER DOLL,
as did the critics: “Paper Doll is a superbly crafted
mystery with an eclectic cast of characters that will engage you and elicit
some very emotional responses as you are completely caught up in the events
that unfold in these pages. Everyone has secrets and the people in Paper Doll
have them in spades!” Fresh Fiction
"Mr. Cosentino has produced a
masterpiece of mystery (Paper Doll)" "The story gripped me from the
start and there were enough twists and turns, with a bit of romance thrown in
for good measure, to keep hold of me until the end of the book."
"Great book, can’t wait for book 2." Readers’ Favorite
Next, in PORCELAIN DOLL Jana makes a
comeback film, His Obsession. In the process of filming, she uncovers who is being
murdered on the set and why.
Another terrific novel. Again the
critics agreed:
“Beautifully
written and intensely detailed, Porcelain Doll is one not to be missed.
Flirtatiously decadent with a strong moral undertone, set in a decade of
extraordinary social change this is a story of its period that is as poignant
today as it was then. Joe Cosentino controlled the emotions that the book
encouraged with a deft but delicate touch. Suspenseful and mysterious,
Porcelain Doll is a masterful creation, one that was impossible not to be
affected by.” Carol Fenton, BooksLaidBare Reviews
“Murder,
mystery, and suspense are high inside of this brilliant masterpiece by Joe
Cosentino.” “Every page fills the readers with intrigue.” “Edge of your seat
mystery that lures readers instantly.” “Once you read it, you can't put it
down.” Danielle Urban Universal Creativity Inc. And she was nominated for an Oscar for His
Obsession.
And
now in SATIN DOLL, Jana and her family head to Washington, DC and become
embroiled in murder and corruption at the Senate Chamber. Besides you, tell us
about some of the other people Jana encounters in SATIN DOLL.
There are some familiar faces from the
first two books like Jana’s old-world, loyal, and hysterically funny agent,
Simon Huckby, who produces the AIDS benefit Jana hosts at the Ford Theatre. Atta
girl, Jana. And Jana’s best friend and lawyer, Congressman Jackson Mitchell and
his partner Adam, host Jana and family at their rustic home on a lake. And
there are some new faces too like the gray fox Senator Maxmillion, who I love,
and Benjamin Topower, Max’s wealthy super pack contributor, who I don’t. We’ve
already mentioned Sancho Ramirez, my competition.
Joe
Cosentino writes you, Max, and Sancho as quite charismatic and captivating.
Thanks, Joe.
Have
you always been interested in politics?
I’ve always had a strong desire to
advocate for people. I must have inherited that from my father. Dad could speak
to someone and make him/her feel as if he/she is the only person in the room. I
also want to make the world a better place. The issues I am concerned with are
on the liberal bent. However, I believe all the political characters in both
parties are treated equally in showing our good points and bad.
As
in the first two Jana Lane mysteries, Jana is tempted by a gorgeous man, this
time Detective Chris Bove.
Read how Joe describes Bove in the book.
Can you blame her?
Frankly,
no. And Jana’s husband goes through a major personal event.
I love that part of the story. It still
brings tears to my eyes when I read it.
I
love your banter with Tamaya, and Jana’s with Bove.
Joe will be pleased.
Since
the book takes place in 1983, Jana gets to dance to songs like “Flashdance…What A
Feeling” and “Maniac.” She also wears layered hair, shoulder pads, and lace
gloves. I loved that period!
And we also experience a number of
historical events like Karen Carpenter’s passing, the still new AIDS epidemic
and the devastation it caused when ignored by our political representatives,
and dangerous proposed legislation by conservatives like the Protect the
Children Act, which was a disguise to try to make gay people second class
citizens. And once again Jana uses the skills she learned as a child star to
trap the murderer.
Can
someone read this novel before reading the previous two Jana Lane mysteries?
Yes, readers get a complete mystery with
each novel full of revealed secrets, plot twists and turns, and a white knuckle
ending leading to a shocking conclusion.
What’s next for Jana Lane?
In CHINA DOLL (releasing late May), Jana
heads to New York City to star in a Broadway play, co-starring the gorgeous
Peter Stevens, and she is faced with murder on stage and off.
Are
you in that novel too?
Alas, I’m only in SATIN DOLL. However,
Detective Bove reappears in RAGDOLL, where Jana is offered the leading role in
a new television mystery series. And again life imitates art.
How
does Joe Cosentino think up all these terrific storylines and surprise endings?
Characters like me are in his head
helping him.
Does
Joe have another mystery series?
Yes, the Nicky and Noah comedy mysteries
published by Lethe Press. Each novel is loaded with wacky
humor and romance in a fast-paced whodunit. Since Joe is a
college theatre professor/department head, and theatre departments are havens
of mystery, secrets, romance, and high humor; the series takes place at an
Edwardian style New England college. In DRAMA QUEEN (Divine Magazine’s Best
Mystery of 2015) theatre college professors are dropping like stage curtains.
With the inept local detectives, it is up to Directing professor, Nicky
Abbondanza to use his theatre skills (including playing other people) to solve
the murders, while he directs a murder mystery onstage. Complicating matters is
Nicky’s intense crush on Assistant Professor of Acting, handsome Noah Oliver,
the prime suspect in the murder. In DRAMA MUSCLE Nicky
and Noah have to use their theatre skills to find out why musclemen are
dropping like weights in the Physical Education department while Nicky directs
the Student Bodybuilding Competition. In DRAMA CRUISE (not released yet), Nicky
and Noah go on a cruise to Alaska, and discover why college theatre professors
are going overboard like lifeboats while Nicky directs a murder mystery dinner
theatre show onboard ship.
Has
he written other novels as well?
His MM romance novellas are published by
Dreamspinner Press. They are AN INFATUATION, A SHOOTING STAR, A HOME FOR THE
HOLIDAYS, and THE NAKED PRINCE AND OTHER TALES FROM FAIRYLAND. Joe also has an
MM series COZZI COVE: BOUNCING BACK and COZZI COVE: MOVING FORWARD taking place
on the Jersey Shore and published by NineStar Press.
How
can readers contact you?
Through Joe. He loves hearing from
readers. It gives him a break from listening to characters like me. They can
contact Joe at: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com.
SATIN DOLL, a Jana Lane mystery by Joe Cosentino
published by The Wild Rose Press
purchase links:
Blurb:
Murder,
corruption, and scandals rock Washington, D.C.... America’s most famous
ex-child star, Jana Lane, is playing a US Senator in a 1983 film. Just as she
and her family arrive in DC, two Washington power players are murdered, and
Jana is caught in the web of intrigue and political scandal. Jana falls under
the spell of the breathtakingly handsome detective assigned to the
case, ex-professional football player and food aficionado, Chris Bove.
Will Jana and Bove uncover the murderer’s identity and shocking secrets
before Jana and her family become the Capitol’s next victims?
Excerpt:
Jana felt
goosebumps as she looked over at the dias for the presiding officer—a rotating
senator elected by the majority/Republican party. Her eyes spanned the one
hundred desks in a semicircle, where senators sat by order of seniority with
the majority leader (Josiah Maxmillion noticeably absent) and minority leader
(Ben Stevens present) sitting front and center on each side.
The meeting
resumed. Jana stood in awe and listened as senators took to the floor, yielding
and accepting time to and from one another, making their case for or against
the vast expense of taxpayers’ dollars.
After ten
minutes had gone by, Jana realized she had left her notepad in Cassie’s office.
Wanting to write copious notes about her meeting with Max and about the senate
debate, Jana hurried through hallways and around corridors. Again flashbacks
from her nightmare rendered her unable to move, but she commanded her legs to
obey and miraculously found her way back.
Upon entering
Cassie’s office, Jana noticed Cassie’s secretary and Lenore were not at their
desks. Probably on their lunch breaks. Since Cassie’s office door was
open, Jana peeked her head inside and gasped at the sight of Tamaya Stormcloud,
lying motionless on the Persian rug, surrounded by a pool of blood.
Author’s Bio:
Bestselling author Joe Cosentino won Divine Magazine’s awards for best mystery novel, best humorous novel, and best contemporary novel of 2015. He is the author of the Jana Lane mysteries: Paper Doll, Porcelain Doll, Satin Doll, and China Doll (The Wild Rose Press); the Nicky and Noah mysteries: Drama Queen, Drama Muscle, and the upcoming Drama Cruise (Lethe Press); the Cozzi Cove beach series: Cozzi Cove: Bouncing Back and Cozzi Cove: Moving Forward (NineStar Press); and the romance novellas: In My Heart anthology (An Infatuation & A Shooting Star), A Home for the Holidays, and The Naked Prince and Other Tales from Fairyland (Dreamspinner Press); and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). As an actor, he has appeared in principal roles in film, television, and theatre opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com
Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen
Amazon: Author.to/JoeCosentino
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