Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
(Now in Audiobook!)
Publisher: White Whisker Books (October, 2019)
Category: Murder Mystery, Crime Thriller, Las Vegas
ISBN: 9781499124551
Tour Date: Mid October-November, 2019
Available in: Audio Book & ebook, 176 Pages
Description Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
First published in 2014, In A Death in Vegas, the president of BenBugs, a company that specializes in beneficial bugs for organic gardening, discovers a young woman dead in his Las Vegas hotel suite. She had worked as a sexy lady bug at his convention booth—and he had nothing to do with her death.
While that’s being investigated, the FBI raids his booth on a money-laundering scam that he knows nothing about, either. Soon, the coroner doesn’t have good news. The police and FBI are against him—and his wife cannot be found. He flees to find the answers.
Highly acclaimed, Death In Vegas is being released as an audio book in October, 2019!
Trailer Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
Praise for Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
"Patton is easy to like right from the start. I felt myself feeling sorry for him. In a sense I started routing for him with all of his luck not going his way. I found this mystery to not only be a mystery but a mystery dosed with a bit of comedy and a love story."-Becky Willis, What You Talking Bout Willis
"DEATH IN VEGAS he reaffirms the fact that Christopher Meeks can take the most quirky combinations of crime and humor and mold them with his magic pen into a novel that simply defies criticism. He has the gift to mold characters with such extensive backstories that after only a few pages as each new character is introduced they become part of the surround-sound family into whose story we have wandered. Meeks is a thorough-going Pro! "-Grady Harp, Amazon Hall of Fame
"The only certainty about a Christopher Meeks novel is that the readers' senses will be delighted with his originality, superb writing, warmly sympathetic characters and clever plotting. A Death in Vegas neatly fits in the cozy mystery genre and becomes literary fiction in the hands of this deft wordsmith." -Linda Hitchcock, Midwest Book Review
"A suspenseful story that culminates in a life-or-death situation. Five Stars!" - Jim Chambers, Amazon Top-10 Reviewer
"You can always count on Christopher Meeks for a well-written novel; this time Meeks excels at bringing almost a farcical edge to the humor in A Death in Vegas." - Lori Lutes, She Treads Softly
A Death in Vegas - DAY ONE
The following excerpt comes from the chapter entitled “Day One.” Patton Burch, 42, runs with his wife a company specializing in beneficial bugs—insects such as ladybugs to help with organic gardening. Patton has a booth at a convention in Las Vegas, and his wife hired a model to dress up as a ladybug in front of their booth. The first day of the convention has just ended.
There at the curved bar in a lounge chair sat a ladybug—or, rather, Chatterley, the woman they’d hired to be a ladybug at his booth all day. He smiled. Her costume was designed like a sleeveless French maid’s outfit with black platform shoes. Her long red stockings that ended mid-thigh and the tight red bodice each featured black dots. A black tutu spread like a lace umbrella from her waist, and her shoulder-length dark hair curled like a movie star’s. Chatterley had pulled in many people all day. The booth’s traffic was the best ever. Even the geeks at the electric-death rat zapper booth across the aisle had stared at her continuously. Sex sold.
On the barstool, Chatterley sat on one leg and had taken off her antennae and wings, talking intensely with another woman her age, mid-twenties. The woman wore black pants and a white halter-top and appeared concerned. Should he approach them? No. They were probably into some boyfriend problem or fretting over which dance clubs to hit that night, and who was he but Chatterley’s latest employer? He knew a hello would be awkward. He needed to stay focused, think more about Jones-Bradbury.
He left the restaurant. He’d go back to his original idea, the Stratosphere. In front of the hotel, a yellow cab pulled up, and Patton waved to it. The driver nodded. Just as Patton approached the rear door, a hairy, bearded man in a sleeveless black t-shirt and black leather pants raced over and opened the door, shoving his tattooed girlfriend in. “Hey,” Patton shouted. “That’s my cab.”
“I don’t see you in it,” said the guy, glaring and sizing him up. “Get another.”
“No. The driver nodded at me, and it’s my cab. There are rules.” Patton pointed to the woman in the back. “Get out. This is my cab.” The woman with far too much mascara looked raccoon-eyed at her boyfriend. The man, either a bass player for a metal band or a bad conceptual artist, spun around and punched Patton hard in the shoulder. Surprised, Patton turned to a doorman in a red uniform and shouted, “Are you seeing this?”
The doorman shouted back, “Get the next cab,” and hurried inside.
The bearded man was moving into the car, and Patton knew that he probably shouldn’t do anything, but this wasn’t right. He grabbed the man’s arm and said, “This is my cab!”
“Fuck you,” the man said before smashing Patton in the stomach with a hard left fist, then a right into the side of Patton’s head. “Go back to the slots with your grandpa-goes-to-the-mall shoes.”
The man shoved himself into the cab and shouted, “The Stratosphere.” The taxi took off.
Now on the ground, Patton held his head and stomach, forcing back nausea. His ears were ringing, and he was sure he was going to vomit right on his black tennis shoes. Grandpa goes to the mall?
He felt hands gently lift him under each armpit. “Are you okay?” came a sweet female voice. “My God, we saw the whole thing from inside.”
Patton set his eyes on Chatterley, who continued lifting on one side, her friend on the other. Chatterley looked like a spotted angel in her ladybug costume.
“Yeah, what was that guy’s problem?” said her friend.
The doorman was now there, breathing hard. “I just heard,” said the man. “Are you okay?”
“Of course I’m not okay,” Patton said, coughing. “You chickened out.”
“I had to go inside.”
“Who’s your boss?”
“Would you like a free drink at the bar?” the man said. “I know the bartender.”
“Mr. Burch, let’s go to the bathroom first. There’s a little blood by your ear,” said Chatterley, now guiding him forward. Patton shoed the doorman away.
A flash went off. Chatterley’s friend handed him his own cell phone, which had a camera. “I found it on the ground,” she said. “Thought you might want a picture in case you sue.”
“This is my friend Faith. Faith, Mr. Burch.”
“Call me Patton,” he said. He stood on his own power now, breathing deeply, pain now morphing into embarrassment. What the hell made him think to grapple with someone as big as a Bonneville?
“Faith and I worked together at a small local casino.”
“I still work there,” Faith said. “Patton?” said Faith. “As in the general?”
Patton rubbed his stomach, which felt as bruised as old bananas. “Yes. Patton is my mom’s favorite general from World War Two.” He extended his hand to finally shake. “You know your generals.”
“Thanks to my dad,” said Faith. She caught sight of someone over his shoulder, and smiled. “My friend’s here. Gotta go.” Faith waved to the someone.
Patton turned. Walking up the sidewalk, a young man in baggy tan shorts and a gray sports shirt smiled as if he had pulled all cherries on a slot machine. His glow could run the city lights for a week.
Faith squealed, then reached into her small purse and pulled out a single key on a keychain with a single silver heart on it. She put it in Chatterley’s hand. “Take it,” said Faith. “I won’t be home anyway.”
“Thanks,” said Chatterley. “
“See ya,” Faith said and ran off with a smile.
“Nothing like young love,” said Chatterley, looking after her friend wistfully.
“What’s with the key?” he said.
“I’m staying at her place tonight. Mine has problems.”
“Problems?”
“Here,” she said. “Let’s get you cleaned up in a bathroom.”
“That’s okay. I’ll just go to my hotel,” said Patton.
“Don’t be silly. You’re bleeding. Get inside.”
About Christopher Meeks:
Award winning author, Christopher Meeks has had stories published in several literary journals, and he has two collections of stories, Months and Seasons and The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea. He also has a new short story collection coming soon.
His novel The Brightest Moon of the Century made the list of three book critics’ Ten Best Books of 2009. His novel Love at Absolute Zero, also made three Best Books lists of 2011, as well as earning a ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Finalist award.
Chris's two crime novels, Blood Drama and A Death in Vegas have earned much acclaim. He has had three full-length plays mounted, and one, Who Lives? had been nominated for five Ovation Awards, Los Angeles’ top theatre prize. Mr. Meeks teaches English and fiction writing at Santa Monica College, and Children’s Literature at the Art Center College of Design. To read more of his books.
Mr. Meeks teaches English and fiction writing at Santa Monica College, and Children’s Literature at the Art Center College of Design.
Website at: www.chrismeeks.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Christopher-Meeks-212382392140974/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christopher.meeks1
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MeeksChris
A Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
Guest Review by Betty B.
For anyone that loves a good mystery, this is a must read. Patton is the president of a small, beneficial bugs company called BenBugs. His company attends a Las Vegas garden show where Patton's key motive is to obtain more buyers for his products. In order to make sure his booth gets the attention that he wants, he hires a beautiful young woman to dress up like a lady bug and talk about his product.
For the first day, all goes very well, but that evening the woman, Chatterley, spends the night in Patton's hotel room, claiming that she has nowhere else to go and thinks someone is following her. The next morning when Patton wakes up, he realizes that Chatterley is dead and now he is the prime suspect in a possible murder case.
I really enjoyed this book from the very start and I knew immediately that I was going to give it a good rating. Christopher Meeks is a master of the genre, even though this is only his second mystery. He releases brain-twisting mysteries with likable protagonists and thrilling plots. He breathes life into his characters in a way that few writers are capable of and even fewer ever seem to try to do. Generally, in this kind of story the main protagonist is a bit of a, shall we say, jerkface. But I really liked Patton and I appreciated the intricacies of his character. I like that he seemed to really love his wife and want to do right by Chatterley. It was nice how he seemed to care about her and be saddened by the fact that she had passed at such a young age.
Of course, as with all mysteries, you have to decide for yourself if the narrator of the story knows more than he is letting on. I won't give you any spoilers there. You should definitely read this one yourself to find out the truth of what really happened to poor Chatterley. 5 out of 5 stars.
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Giveaway Death In Vegas by Christopher Meeks
This giveaway is for the winner’s choice of one print or ebook copy of the book. Print is open to the U.S. only and ebook is available worldwide. There will be 3 winners. This giveaway ends November 1, 2019, midnight pacific time.
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