The Story Behind Teddy

As some of you may have already guessed, many authors use their imagination to come up with characters for their stories like I did with Jillian's companion, Teddy. Here's how it happened.

Since living in the Bay Area of California has always been one of the most expensive places to buy a house, we rented for the first twelve years of our daughter's life. Like most children, Holly wanted a dog in the worst way and begged us to get her one. We promised when we bought a house we'd buy her a puppy.

The very week we moved into our new home, Holly began her search online for the perfect puppy, and soon found one - a female Maltese in Florida. After two flights, Chloe arrived in Oakland where we picked her up in Cargo at the airport. She pranced out of her crate and into our hearts.

But there was a problem - Chloe's food did not arrive with her. She wouldn't eat any dog food we bought, began to lose weigh and grew lethargic. The vet suggested Pedialite to keep our precious puppy hydrated and wished us luck.

That night our luck changed when my husband brought home Taco Bell for dinner. Our son, Michael, offered Chloe a bit of cheese from his Cheesy Gordita Crunch, and Chloe ate it. Then he offered her bits of lettuce, meat, and tortilla, and she liked that too and began to perk up. From that day forward, we fed Chloe a diet of ground meat, veggies, fruit and grains which she eats to this day.

When I created the character of Teddy, I modeled his diet after Chloe's. The tricks and commands Jillian teaches her little companion are the ones I taught Chloe.

When readers ask why I don't use a Maltese for his character, I tell them that Chloe was simply too heavy for the tote -- too much good food, I guess. Fortunately, my neighbor had a handsome little Yorkie the entire neighborhood loves. When it came time to make my author photo, I borrowed Romeo (and his owner to care for him) for the shoot.

He was such a good boy! The little fella posed for so many shots, at one point he fell asleep in my arms. My friend rewarded him for his good behavior with a peanut butter flavored chew toy which he got stuck in his fur.  

And so the antics of Teddy began. You can start following Jillian and Teddy's adventures by reading Book 1 Murder in Half Moon Bay - my free ebook gift to you. 

Amazon,  Kobo, Nook, and Smashwords

Have a wonderful week, dear readers.

~Nancy Jill

Let's Get to the Story

"The Ruby of Siam"

Who? Jillian Bradley and Teddy, of course. (It is their series.) The thief Lucas Sansurin, his wife Mai, Jillian's garden club friends Ann Friedman and Nicole King, Jillian's fiance and a host of good guys and bad guys
What? A jewel heist goes wrong and the necklace is up for grabs
Where? London
Why? Jillian is determined to fufill a cryptic request.
When? Two weeks before Jillian's wedding.

Available now for $3.99 on Kindle, Nook, Kobo and Smashwords. 

 $8.09 Paperback (Amazon)

From the back cover...

When Jillian and Teddy travel to London with her wedding attendants, they find themselves embroiled in a jewel heist with a man left stabbed to death. Can they solve the crimes in the midst of Jillian’s wedding plans? An old acquaintance from San Diego offers his help, but will it  be enough to solve the mystery? Perhaps the jewel has a curse.

Thank you for your readership, good reviews, and sharing with friends. You help spread the word about my books in the best possible way! I appreciate it.

Have an awesome week!

See you in my books!

 ~Nancy Jill 

Mystery novelist Nancy Jill Thames began publishing Christian fiction in 2010. The author of seven books in the Jillian Bradley series, she is an award winning blogger and listed numerous times on the Author Watch Bestseller’s List. In addition, she won first place in her church's 4th of July celebration for her chocolate cream pie.

When she isn’t plotting her next book, she spends time with her six grandchildren, tags along with her husband on business trips, and plays classical piano for her personal enjoyment. She is an active member of the Leander Writers' Guild, American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW),  CenTex Chapter ACFW, and supports the Central Texas SPCA with a portion of her book sales. She resides with her husband in Leander, Texas.
CONTACT INFORMATION jillthames@gmail.com

If you would like me to sign your ebooks please click the link. 
I love technology! Authorgraph 

Enjoy Book 1 MURDER IN HALF MOON BAY on your ereader for free!

Kindle  Nook  Smashwords  Kobo

THE FIRST BOOK'S ON ME!

 

FREE BOOK! 

WEDNESDAY -SUNDAY

 AUG 8-12, 2012

As a way of introducing you to the Jillian Bradley Mysteries, I'm giving the first book away as a free kindle book for the next five days. I hope you'll take advantage of this offer (a $2.99 value) and get to know Jillian and her friends. I plan on writing eight books in the series so I hope you'll read all of them if they are your "cup of tea." Have a great week! See you next Wednesday for a new post.

Here's the preview -

MURDER IN HALF MOON BAY

Click to order for free!

Did the woman jump or was she pushed over the balcony? When the shocking murder disrupts the West Coast Garden Club Society's second annual conference, Jillian Bradley and her garden club friends join with Chief Frank Viscuglia to find the killer. Jillian and her friends move through the Ritz-Carlton hotel to private mansions searching for the truth, pausing for afternoon tea along the way, of course. The unlikely team helps the chief uncover a series of mysterious events that lead to solving several murders, both past and present. Could it be the mean spirited conference director? Perhaps it's the wealthy widow on the make for her next husband; or maybe the killer is the haughty business woman who shows no regard for her brow beaten husband.

"Murder in Half Moon Bay," first book in the Jillian Bradley Mystery series, introduces Jillian's little companion 'Teddy,' a Yorkie who falls prey to danger but rises to become sleuth dog in the next book.

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NICE REVIEW BY SCARLETT RAINS

Something’s fishy at the Ritz…and it doesn’t sit well on a cracker!  

---

 

Murder in Half Moon Bay

My Review

By Scarlett Rains

Murder in Half Moon Bay, (Jillian Bradley Mysteries, No. 1) is an entertaining, fast-paced, read. Nancy Jill Thames’s clever protagonist, Jillian Bradley, doesn’t miss a beat.  She, and her garden club friends, arrives at the West Coast Garden Club Society’s Annual Conference in Half Moon Bay expecting to relax, spend the weekend gleaning gardening tips, whiling away pleasant hours surveying plant specimens, and sampling great food.  Jillian quickly realizes there is something fishy going on at the Ritz…and she’s not talking about fertilizer! The soil at the Ritz-Carton doesn’t need enrichment.  Bodies are popping up over there faster than bean sprouts on steroids!  Good thing Jillian is not only a gardening expert, but a VERY good listener, a keen observer of detail…and a list-maker.  Put all that together, stir in the ‘contributions’ of Teddy (Jillian’s little Yorkie –who may just be telepathic!) and you’ve got yourself a great potting mix for a budding detective. 

As Nancy Jill Thames’s delightful story unfolds, a botanist might prove more useful than the FBI or the local police department.  All sorts of cross-pollination seems to be going on, what with social butterflies flitting around, landing in who knows whose room, and things taking root where they never should have been planted!   I’m not one for spoilers, but there are weeds that need pulling at the Ritz-Carlton and Jillian’s just the gal for the job. She and her friends waste no time. They get to work, digging in the dirt, to solve the mystery.

I enjoyed Thames’s family-friendly mystery very much.  This charming book earned 4/5 hearts. I would have given it 5/5, but one of the plot points troubled me.  As brilliant as Jillian clearly is, I couldn’t see a police chief allowing her to question suspects, until later in the series —after she establishes her stellar reputation as a sleuth. That trifle aside, Murder in Half Moon Bay is the sort of book to enjoy on a rainy day, snuggled in a recliner with a nice cup of Jillian’s favorite, Lady Earl Grey, tea.  I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a clever mystery that’s not soaked in blood and gore.  I look forward to reading all of the Jillian Bradley Mysteries.

Book Description (per Amazon)

Publication Date: April 10, 2012

When a shocking murder disrupts the West Coast Garden Club Society's second annual conference, gardening columnist Jillian Bradley joins with Chief Frank Viscuglia to help in the investigation. Could it be the mean spirited conference director? Perhaps it's the wealthy widow on the make for her next husband; or maybe the killer is the haughty business woman who shows no regard for her brow beaten husband.

Set in beautiful Half Moon Bay at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Jillian moves through the exclusive hotel property, local nurseries, colorful restaurants, and private mansions searching for the truth, pausing with her friends for cups of afternoon tea along the way. She uncovers a series of mysterious events that lead to solving several murders, both past and present. With the help of her garden club friends and her Yorkshire terrier 'Teddy', Jillian discovers not only a killer, but a far greater menace that could threaten us all.

Product Details

·         Paperback: 178 pages

·         Publisher: CreateSpace (April 10, 2012)

·         Language: English       

      ISBN-10: 1452882088
·         ISBN-13: 978-1452882086

HEAR THE SUNSET...GET READY

PACIFIC BEACH

BY

NANCY JILL THAMES 

AVAILABLE SOON

Fifth in The Jillian Bradley Mystery Series

Gardening columnist Jillian Bradley is attending the Lovejoy Family Reunion, held at The Pacific Terrace Hotel in the quaint surfing town north of San Diego. This happy gathering of Jillian's eclectic relatives takes a terrifying turn when two other hotel guests, a young starlet and her mother, are found brutally murdered.


 

 When Jillian's nephew, Chase Campbell, is arrested as a prime suspect, Jillian must move quickly to find the real killer and prove Chase's innocence. There is no shortage of suspects, including an unsavory doctor who attended the popular teen star and a mysterious guest at the party where the starlet died. But why was her mother murdered with her?

Working at Jillian's side to find the perpetrator of these bizarre killings are her faithful assistant, Cecilia Montoya, and Teddy, Jillian's Yorkie companion, who sniffs out  his own clue.

HAPPY FRIDAY!