New Novel Explores Possibility of Life After Death, Extends Best-Selling Milford-Haven series into Paranormal Genre
Can a journalist haunt her own life? Can a person be living life with no clue she’s actually passed on? Can she make herself heard by someone who’s still alive?
These are among the key questions posed by best-selling author Mara Purl in her new book, What the Soul Suspects. The story tracks the progress of Christine Christian, a character who suffers memory loss from a minor head injury. Yet as the tale continues, Christine’s ongoing disorientation leads to more confusion.
She meets with investigator Deputy Delmar Johnson of the SLO County Sheriff’s Department, thinking they’re working the same case from two angles. He, however, is investigating her disappearance, and the “meeting” takes place in a lucid dream.
Both the journalist and the investigator are in for major shocks.
When author Mara Purl launched her novel series, it began with two protagonists: artist Miranda Jones, and journalist Christine Christian. But during the prologue—even before Chapter 1 began— Christine met with an accident. Following a lead in pursuit of an important story, she took a nasty fall and was never heard from again.
The narrative then follows painter Miranda Jones. Faced with a difficult life choices, Miranda follows her heart, using her intuition—even when it seems to be leading her away from parental advice, comfort and success. But Miranda’s story—which has legions of followers in the Women’s Fiction genre—leads to adventure, success, and eventually, personal happiness.
“Thematically both characters are of key importance to the series,” Purl commented. “Miranda represents ‘heart’—intuition becoming a reliable guidance system. Each book in the series has the word ‘heart’ in the title. But in the background, there was the question: what about logic? Christine represents the ‘head’— logic overriding intuition, stubborn resolve suppressing warning signals. And there will be more books focused on Christine as the series continues.”
The series now has six novels following the progress and adventures of Miranda and several other characters. And although an investigator had nominally reviewed the case of the missing journalist, her case has gone cold. No body has ever been discovered, and Ms. Christian often traveled internationally for extended periods.
"It was time to get back to Christine," Purl confirmed. "She's a character with a rich background that’s mostly been unexplored until now. She’s had many adventures that will be explored in some upcoming flashback stories. But first, we needed to see where she is now.”
The result is a tale that’s “spooky . . . with wisdom,” as one reader put it. “The story takes Christine on a breathtakingly beautiful journey to four lighthouses in California’s sumptuous Central Coast,” explained the author. “These visits offer guidance and inspiration, and yet they’re rather terrifying at times.”
Book reviewer and host of The Authors Show Linda Thompson wrote: “Mara Purl is a master at drawing you into a story and keeping you in it until the very last page.”
Reader comments:
"I LOVE this book! Spooky stuff told in a very provocative way . . . with wisdom! It's a wonderful book, so rich and nuanced with exploration of time, space, mind-states and special sensitivities. Much as I've enjoyed Mara Purl's writing in the past, there's something really special about this book that sparkles with conviction, mystery and beauty. There is something so elegant and inviting in this prose . . . really magical! It's not just the substance of the story but also the way it's being told. We're really there with Chris . . . as she drives through the Central Coast. I'm swept up into her world. It captivated me!" – Marilyn Harris, Singer, Songwriter, Composer
"Cool ghost story with two compelling characters, lots of real-world and metaphysical intrigue and even a dose of Laura Nyro. What’s not to like! I found the prose style to be precise and painstakingly visual. The overall atmosphere of the narrative, almost a third major character, also comes to life effectively, as do the lighthouses and spiritual Native American influences, and the notion, at the end, of Chris actually teaming up with Del from the Afterlife to catch her murderer is quite provocative. Purl's imagination and craft keep getting better and better." – Mark Kudlow, screenwriter
“The voices and personalities are clear and well crafted. The plot unfolds with just the right amount of mystery and strangeness, but never too bizarre as to be unbelieveable. I was yearning for more...thus showing me that it was very compelling from beginning to end. I kept thinking ‘great insight’, ‘very wise’, or ‘aha!’ as I read. I love learning new things in a story!” – Laurie Jameson, WILLA Award-winning author
“The book is so intriguing and very good! It was so fun to read about an area that I actually lived in. I think you described it beautifully and I felt as if I was there once again.” – Antoinette Burns
For her Milford-Haven Novels, Mara was named 2019 Top Female Author for Fiction by the Authors Show To date, her book series has won more than 40 book awards, and has topped multiple best-seller lists on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Her novels, novellas and novelettes with their gorgeous watercolor book covers and engaging mix of romance and mystery are sought after by her mostly female readers, where Mara has become a trail blazer for both Women’s Fiction and Small Town fiction.
About Mara Purl:
Mara Purl, who has appeared on stage and on-camera since childhood, played the recurring character “Darla Cook” on NBC’s “Days of Our Lives.” She then founded a production company and created “Milford-Haven U.S.A.”, a serial drama loosely based upon Cambria. The show, co-starring a well-known L.A. based cast including Erin Gray, Linda Purl, Ed Begley, Jr., Michael Horse, and several others, became the first American radio drama to air on BBC radio, where it enjoyed a following of 4.5 million listeners. Purl’s story later came to the attention of New York publishers, who began publishing her novel series in hardcover in 2011. Since then, Book one “What the Heart Knows” and book two “Where the Heart Lives” have both become national best-sellers, as have her novellas, “When Hummers Dream” and “When Whales Watch.” and her latest, “When Otters Play”. Her Milford-Haven saga has won more than 30 book awards.
Mara has an on-line following of 17 million when she does her blog tours. She is a frequent guest on radio talk shows, and also speaks for the American Heart Association, for women’s organizations, for writers’ conferences and for colleges and universities. Mara and her books have a large following nationally and particularly in California. Along with her work as an author, speaker and performer, she consults on other authors’ book projects.
Contact:
Mara Purl
http://www.marapurl.com
marapurl@marapurl.com
bellekeep@gmail.com
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