Welcome to the Blog Tour for An Ode to Poison by Lisa E. Betz, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About the Book
Title: An Ode to Poison
Series: Livia Aemilia Mysteries #3
Author: Lisa E. Betz
Publisher: Breakthrough Christian Publishing
Release Date: October 21, 2024
Genre: Historical Mystery
What do death by poison, a ruthless senator, and a poetry party have in common?
They combine to draw Livia Aemilia into her most dangerous investigation yet. She must risk setting foot in the house of her worst enemy, Senator Tiberius Gracchus, to investigate the death of his wife. (Don’t worry, she has a plan.)
The victim’s sister is convinced Gracchus is the killer. If so, proving his guilt in Rome’s law courts could put a stop to his nefarious threats forever.
Livia is sure this investigation is God’s plan to protect her family from their malicious enemy. And maybe it will finally convince her husband Avitus that God is real.
The more Livia and Avitus dig, the more it looks like they will finally bring Gracchus to justice. Until another victim is poisoned, and everything they think they know is turned upside down.
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More Books in This Series
Excerpt
Livia was not fond of poetry. Let that be stated from the start. She was not looking forward to tonight’s celebration of stuffy poetry in flowery language recited by snooty women and hosted by a friend of her sister-in-law, Hortensia, the snootiest of them all. Worse yet, their hostess had insisted every attendee pen at least one brief ode or epigram. Even Livia.
“You like flowers,” Hortensia had said when she’d invited Livia. “You can write a nice ode to a rosebush.”
Like that was going to happen.
But Livia had married into this exalted stratum of society and the sooner she got to know these women the better. She couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity to mingle with Hortensia’s peers at a function where no men were present, providing a rare opportunity to observe these women when their husbands weren’t watching.
So Livia had written the stupid poem. It wasn’t an ode to a rosebush. Or a marigold. Or a butterfly. Since poetry was a deadly bore, she’d written an ode to deadly poison (a topic intended to disqualify her from the “honor” of reciting her literary masterpiece).
The hostess gathered the women and started the recital with a brief ode to Erato, the muse whose inspiration the poets relied upon tonight (although Erato might deny responsibility for some of the poems that were offered).
The poetry was as tedious as Livia had anticipated, but Calida supplied an irreverent whispered commentary that had Livia stifling chuckles. Between poems, Salvia and Livia worked out an arrangement for communicating without their husbands’ knowledge. By evening’s end, they had a plan and a budding friendship.
The hours spent composing the deadly ode hadn’t been wasted after all.
About the Author
Lisa E. Betz is an engineer-turned-mystery-writer, entertaining speaker, and speaking coach. She inspires others to become their best selves, living with authenticity, and purpose, and she infuses her novels with quirky characters who thrive on solving tricky problems. Her Livia Aemilia Mysteries, set in first-century Rome, have won several awards, including the Golden Scroll Novel of the Year (2021). She and her husband reside outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with Scallywag, their rambunctious cat—the inspiration for Nemesis, resident mischief maker in her novels. Lisa directs church dramas, hikes the beautiful Pennsylvania woods, eats too much chocolate, and spoils her grandsons.
Connect with Lisa by visiting lisaebetz.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will receive a signed set of all 3 Livia Aemilia Mysteries in paperback!
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight November 4, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on November 11, 2024. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!
Thanks for hosting me on your site.
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing about An Ode to Poison today :)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the excerpt. I think Livia has an odd sense of humor.
ReplyDelete