Proof of Life is here

Proof of Life

My new book, Proof of Life, was released

on May 7th, with more than eighty people celebrating with me at Orozco’s de Ventura Mexican restaurant. With dishes from his mother’s own recipes and excellent service, not to mention the ambiance, I have a feeling that our wonderful host, Guillermo Orozco, is going to be serving many new diners.

It was a perfect event for a hermit like me. I got to sit at my table and sign books, hand out mini Ouija boards, angel wings, and crystal necklaces, while everyone else chatted up a storm and enjoyed the food.

Four delicious flavors of Bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cakes made a perfect dessert. But I can’t help thinking there’s something wrong with calling yourself “nothing” even if it is a good pun. Still, if you’re in the mood for a couple of bites of something sweet, my favorite is always white chocolate raspberry.

Fellow authors, Peter Sexton and James Frances Gray were there, too, with thei

r books. Both were generous sponsors of the event. Check out their websites!

The prizes

I went a little crazy at one of the local New Age shops and gave away all kinds of cool stuff. Plus,
Amy Herron and Dianne Maggio won character names in the next Beyond the Veil mystery, The Third Door.

Several people donated prizes and had an opportunity to introduce themselves at the mic. Authors AJ Llewelyn, Mike Kennedy, and Connie Hood gave away copies of their books, plus Connie gave me a gorgeous

double moonstone ring (my goal is to lose enough weight for it to fit my fourth finger).

Stephen Joyce gave away a trip (not a timeshare!), Anna Crowe, who narrates some of my audiobooks, gave a month of free audiobooks. Tracey Bolton gave away a bag of goodies. Mary Gabriels, who helped make this party work, gave a jacket embroidered with “Claudia Rose” and one with “Proof of Life.” Linda McCarthy of BNI–and though she couldn’t be there in person, my friend Suzanne Bank sent a certificate for an energy clearing. There were so many prizes, I have forgotten some. So, if you brought a prize and I’ve left you out, please forgive my bad memory. Remind me and I’ll add you in here.

I have an embarrassment of riches in supporters. Friends came from all over to help me celebrate. As always, big thanks to Debbie Mitsch of Mystery Ink for being my bookseller and schlepping all those boo

ks up from Orange County. More thanks are due to Mary Gabriels, who does a fabulous job of making things look great (check out the purple “veil” behind my table). She also stood by the door and got everyone to sign in. I hope the read makes it all worthwhile.

The photos

Finally, I love the cool miniature library from Nina Nelson. She sent me a

kit that contained at least 9 million parts. For about thirty seconds as I gazed at that box of wood and paper, she was not my friend. But once it was done and it was so adorable–including teeny-tiny copies of my books (the covers, anyway), it was worth getting all that glue on my fingers. Thank you, Nina
:-).