Here is a sneak peek at the cover for SCARED STIFF, which is scheduled for release on August 31, 2010. Things get ever more interesting for me when I get called out to the scene of a homicide on Halloween and find a body displayed among the holiday decorations. Here’s the cover flap description: 

Halloween night in Sorenson, Wisconsin, usually resembles any other small town: trick-or-treaters, costume parties, and lots of cheerfully scary decorations. But Deputy Coroner Mattie Winston is finding this year a little different, because among all the fake carnage is a very realm, very dead body.

When Mattie and her boss/best friend, Izzy, are called to the home of waitress and part-time model Shannon Tolliver, they find the ghoulish decorations just a bit too authentic. For among the fake blood and skeletons is the corpse of Shannon herself – and the evidence screams murder.

Since the whole town knows Shannon recently had a very public argument with her estranged husband, Erik, he’s suspect #1 for tall, dark, and blissfully blue-eyed homicide detective, Steve Hurley. But Mattie believes Erik truly loved his wife and is incapable of such a brutal act—even though he owns the exact same caliber handgun as the murder weapon.

Determined to unearth the truth—and maybe spend a little quality time with Detective Hunky—Mattie puts her scalpel-sharp medical skills to work and digs a little deeper. What she uncovers is stranger than anyone could have imagined. It seems Shannon’s murder is just the tip of a very deadly iceberg. Now, in order to solve a case that’s getting more dangerous by the minute—and to save Erik from the slammer—Mattie will have to risk everything to catch a killer who, if cornered, is capable of doing anything. And this time it’s not just Mattie’s life that’s on the line…

Stay tuned because I understand my creator, Annelise Ryan, has some fun stuff in store when the book comes out, like a rocking contest to guess my real name. And the prize for winning? Well rumor has it–and you know how I love rumors–that it will be a very cool electronic device. Plus I hear there will be other prizes too. So bookmark this site and check back regularly for details.

Today Annelise got her first glimpse of the paperback cover for WORKING STIFF. It’s a little different from the hardcover version below, with brighter colors for the trim even though the basic picture is the same.  (I have a sneaking suspicion that those chalk body outlines are going to become a prominent part of my life.)  I’ve been told the goal with this cover was to come up with something that looked a little more fun and hip. What do you think…did they succeed?

Rumor has it the paperback version of WORKING STIFF will include a sneak peak at the next installment in the series, SCARED STIFF, which opens on one of the creepiest, scariest Halloweens I’ve ever had. Part of the horror came from the discovery of a real dead body amidst a display of fake ones. But far scarier was the blind date I was on. It was enough to make  lifelong celibacy seem like a very reasonable option.

While you’re here, say hi to my creator, Annelise Ryan (she will pop in here from time to time to answer questions) and check out WORKING STIFF, available now in a bookstore near you.

I’m dying to hear (that’s coroner humor for you) your thoughts, comments and questions about my escapades as a Deputy Coroner, a nurse, or a woman scorned. So fire away. And stay tuned for news about the next book in the series, SCARED STIFF, coming your way in August 2010.