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Monday, August 12, 2013

THE FREIGHT TRAIN OF LOVE

will make scheduled stops Sept 23 through 29 on the 
ALL ABOUT MURDER THING 
And because of this, price for the e-book is an
unheard of $1.99, one week only.  Click on the
clickable link below to purchase, but do it before
this Sunday evening, because after that the price
goes back up to 2/3 the cost of a Starbucks Vente
Latte: 

http://www.amazon.com/Freight-Train-Love-ebook/dp/B00EOY1LLK/ref=sr_1_1_title_1_kin?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1379972392&sr=1-1&keywords=the+freight+train+of+love
 


The Freight Train of Love by John Klawitter
When true love comes along, you’re just a bug on the tracks.


 

A CLASSIC WAR ROMANCE, ACTION/THRILLER, MURDER MYSTERY The heroine of The Freight Train of Love, Clair Moore, is an ex-NFL cheerleader with a wicked fastball, now doing very well in the real estate market in Southern California. She has fallen for an older man, the highly successful action-thriller novelist Jack Larch. Jack was born in the thick of WWII, but even though he is a so-called boomer baby, he doesn’t see himself that way. Jack thinks he’s found the fountain of youth. With three or four wives behind him, as Jack’s on-again off-again girlfriend of the past ten years, Clair is understandably hesitant to commit, even though she has a growing affection for the cranky old genius. But Jack’s wildly carefree youth is now coming back to haunt him in violent and murderous ways…spelling disaster not for Jack himself, but for anyone showing they might be falling for him.

Here are a few lines from The Freight Train of Love:

His small study desk was the usual mess. I paid his bills, gathered his checks for deposit and read his letters, which were mostly fan mail except for one. This one must have slipped behind the others, because it was dated right after New Years day, the first week in January. It was sad, in a way, because it was from the widow of an old army buddy, informing Jack that his friend had died. See there, how little I knew about the Jack-ster! He’d had another actual friend beside me, and I hadn’t even known it. I stacked the open letters in a pile with the silver letter opener on top of them. Jack would come up later in the day, put the letter opener on the shelf where it belonged and sweep the letters into the waste can without reading them.

Hey, I was done! I jumped to my feet and snapped off the green shade reading lamp on his desk. Then I bounded down the stairs, headed for the door. Free at last! I could practically taste the orange Jamba Juice I was going to have for breakfast.

 I paused on the way out. “Can I drive your new bird?”

“You can drive my bird any time,” Eddie chuckled, but I pursed my lips at him. That wiped the quick grin off his face. Eddie’d had his shot with me, and he’d blown it.

  I gave my voice that school-girlish, pleading tone, and push my full red lips into a sexy pout, “Please, Jack. Please, please, please, please…?”

It was a good act, but Jack was definitely not in the mood. “No, Clair-Bear,” he growled at me. “Christ, my new car’s a classic.”

I tossed my honey-blonde curls. “Jack, don’t be such a bastard. It’s not new and it’s not a classic.”

“Marilyn Monroe owned that car, and she hardly ever drove it. It was her personal car.” “Jack, a couple days ago you put my car on life support.”

There wasn’t much he could say to that. He sighed, “If you have to go out, take the Jag.” I looked over at Eddie. We’d developed our own language. He did a little sideways tilt of his head and a brief squint of his face combined with a shrug that meant Let it pass. “No bird for you, Clair,” Jack said again for effect. I gave Eddie another look, this one that said I was thinking I’d like to tell Jack where to stuff his bird. But I pulled myself back from the edge, the way I generally did with the Larch-ster. The cream-yellow Jag was a sweet little number in its own right (Jack ran around telling everybody it was once owned by one of the stars on General Hospital), and, after all, I needed a ride, and the Jag was light-years better than a taxi.

“Oh, all right,” I told him, giving my voice just enough push so he could figure I was not amused. I put on a show, flouncing through the study like I’d gotten a mad on. My real aim was to make my getaway before Jack had time to change his mind, but then I remembered the letter from his dead friend’s widow. I paused, framed in the doorway that led from the study to the great room, a huge dining hall with a giant fireplace and a long, heavy table that could seat twenty-six people if they owned the right film credits or maybe had been nominated for an Oscar.

“You got a letter from Miami,” I told him.

“The town sent me a letter?”

I’ve already told you; Jack can be a real bastard. I bit my lip, struggling to keep my temper. “No, Jack. The girl.”

“It’s Mi-a Mi-i. Mia My.” He repeated the name for emphasis, then paused, thinking about it. “Jesus, now you read my mail?”

“I’ve read your mail for years, remember? You let it pile up. Checks from publishers, threats from crazy people—everything.”

“Yeah, yeah. What did Mia My say?” Jack wasn’t really listening. His mind was miles and continents away. He was in the southern hemisphere, marching along with Dunk Stingray as the heroic fellow sauntered out of the barren Andes foothills after dispatching three Bulgarian assassins.

“Her husband died,” I told him. I have no idea how those three words will affect Jack. I was just passing on the news from a letter he obviously hadn’t cared enough about to open, even though it had been sitting on the cluttered oak secretary desk in his bedroom for months. He was in another of his foul moods, I had his permission to use the Jag, and all I wanted now was to get out of the study before some other bad thing happened.  But I wasn’t fast enough.

Jack stood up with a sudden jerking motion and shouted without turning around to face me. He was half-crouched over and his sudden piercing cry was that of a man with a big spear or stage-four cancer in his guts. The harshness in his voice startled Eddie, and it was more than enough to freeze me in my tracks. “What?! NO!! It can’t be!! How?” Jack screamed his anguish, talking more to God or the devil than anyone in the room. “How could this happen?!”

As I’ve said, I’d been around Jack for quite a while, competing with the fast young crowd that wants to hang with ‘the new Hemingway,’ as he likes to be called. In that moment I’m sure I looked every bit my nearly thirty-six years…and more. My eyes darted from Jack to Eddie. I was feeling uncertain, and even afraid—not of Jack , but for him.

“Some rich kid lost control of his daddy’s SUV,” I told him. “From what Mi-a Mi-i wrote, I think he saved her when he pushed her out of the way.”

Jack sagged back in his chair. “Yeah,” he said to himself, talking in a low, defeated voice, “That’s something he would do.”

I was staring at Jack, shaking my head, the fun sucked out of my day. Eddie looked out the window and didn’t say anything. I walked back across the huge open area and sat next to Jack in the leopard print chair I use when I have to over-the-shoulder proofread for him, and after a while I gently ran one hand through his unruly stand up hair. “Jack, I honestly didn’t know,” I told him. “You never write him.”

“I send Christmas cards,” he grumbled. He glared at me as if everything was my fault, “Go do your shopping.”

I knew him well enough to let the thoughtless, abrasive side of his personality slide on by. It was part of survival in The House of Jack. I didn’t move. I could hear the antique windup clock ticking in another room as the silence lengthened between the three of us. “What the hell, Jackie-poo,” I said after a while. “I’ve got more purses than I know what to do with.”

To read the reviews on The Freight Train of Love: http://www.amazon.com/Freight-Train-Love-Michael-Klawitter/dp/0983037213/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363105591&sr=1-1&keywords=john+klawitter

And for more about the author click on: www.johnklawitter.com 



 
 

39 comments:

  1. Jean Patton
    skpetal at hotmail dot com
    What an interesting sounding book, enjoyed reading the excerpt.
    Blog follow GFC JeanMP
    Reader
    USA

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They say you can't go back, but I'd like to...still, thinking I'd do everything differently, I'd probably do it all the same, all over again.
      John K.

      Delete
  2. Name: Kim Cornwell
    Email: zipstersclue04@gmail.com
    Comment- love meeting new authors
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: I'm a reader!
    I live in the United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With me, writing is certainly beyond a habit; it may be a disease. If so, then I would hope to bear my affliction with grace.

      Delete
  3. Kendra Hale
    kendrahale@yahoo.com
    great
    Twitter not found
    Facebook unable to friend
    Blog followed
    reader
    USA

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My twitter is twitterpated.
      My Facebook won't even friend me.
      My website is my name.
      John Klawitter

      Delete
  4. Name: Catrina Barton
    Email: bidelia78@yahoo.com
    Comment: Awesome giveaway! Thanks so much for the opportunities.
    Twitter: not found
    Facebook: unable to friend
    Blog: followed
    I am a reader, and a published author
    I live in the USA.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. One of the bits of swag I'm getting rid of is a cutting continuity from Snow White.

      Delete
  5. Thanks for the giveaway!
    cjburright@live.com
    Followed your blog - I'm a U.S. reader and author

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You should contact J.Richard Jacobs and submit a story or two to his next Twisted Tails Anthology. I think he's on #VIII now.

      Delete
  6. Name: Sue Sattler
    Email: proudarmymom32(at)yahoo(dot)com
    Comment- Okay now I'm intrigued after that excerpt, I have to read this! :D
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Reader
    I live in the United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I write about Hollywood people, most of them in show business but not famous, rather just on the edge.

      Delete
    2. Time to giveaway another prize. We are giving away a signed copy of Free Fall by bestselling author Catherine Mann. And the winner is Sue Sattler! Congrats! This is just way too much fun! You would think I'm winning the prizes. LOL!

      Delete
    3. Yeah! Thank you so much. I've had so much fun on this blog hop, the book is like an added bonus! :D

      Delete
  7. Thanks for sharing the great excerpt, sounds great. Thanks for sharing the hop and the giveaway. Facebook - sent friend request; blog followed by GFC; Reader, US

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is the best blog hop ever. They really know how to bring it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Enjoying blog hop. Live in US. Reader and reviewer
    jrs362 at Hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is the 2nd blog hop in which I've participated, and by far the best.

      Delete
  10. Name: Amy Hart
    Email: amhart311@gmail.com
    Twitter: followed @momof3harts
    FaceBook: followed Amy Hart
    Blog: Followed
    I am a reader and live in the USA

    The blog hop is interesting...

    ReplyDelete
  11. A blog hop is interesting for writers because it is a good sidetrack to get around writer's block. One can conveniently say to one's worried significant other, "Well, I'm connecting with my fan base." And then there's that moment of incredulity when she mutters, "What fan base...?" and goes off to the gym or something.

    ReplyDelete
  12. The Freight Train of Love sounds like it has it all! Murder mystery, romance, suspense, action, etc. all the good stuff rolled up in one book! The excerpt was just enough to really get the reader (the reader being me in this case) pulled into the story, then it just stopped! This book is now on my must read ASAP list! Thank you for the excerpt!

    Have a great day one and all :D

    Name: Shelly Hammond
    Email: booski24@hotmail.com
    Comment: Above
    Blog: Followed (GFC Shelly Hammond)
    Are you a reader or Author: Reader of everything!
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I honestly tried writing according to formula but I just could not. The stories of real people I loved and hated kept getting in the way, in a sense, demanding to be told.

      Delete
    2. Shelly you have won a signed Arc copy of Born in Blood by Alexandra Ivy. If you don't know what an arc is that means the book isn't even out yet! How exciting! Congrats!

      Delete
  13. Name: Catrina Barton
    Email: bidelia78@yahoo.com
    Comment: Great giveaways! Thanks for the opportunities.
    Twitter: Followed
    FaceBook: Followed or Liked
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Author
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sunny Saturday here in Southern California. I'd like to go outside and swim in the pool, but my muse won't let me. Work, work, work.

      Delete
  14. Name: Kathy Osborn
    Email: koala571@msn.com
    Comment: Wonderful giveaway and blurb. Thanks for the hop.
    Blog: Followed GFC
    Are you a reader or Author: Reader
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is almost too hot for hopping today. Wish autumn would get here.

      Delete
  15. Thanks for participating in the hop.

    I am a reader residing in the US.

    pjmillion (at) comcast (dot) net

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is no better place to be, no matter what Putin writes in the NY times.

      Delete
  16. Name: Catrina Barton
    Email: bidelia78@yahoo.com
    Comment: Enjoying the hop. Thanks. 
    Twitter: Followed
    FaceBook: Followed or Liked
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Author
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. From my back yard I can see 75 miles across the valley Wish my inner sight was as good.

      Delete
  17. Name: Amanda Arrington
    Email: alarrington84@gmail.com
    Comment: enjoying the hop!
    Twitter: Followed
    FaceBook: liked
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Reader
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
  18. Virginia Horton
    lead AT hotsheet DOT com
    This book sound interesting
    Following this blog GFC Quilt Lady
    Reader
    USA

    ReplyDelete
  19. Name:Cheryl Lynne
    Email:cheryllynne@rocketmail.com Comment: Great blog hop! Blog: Followed GFC
    Are you a Reader or Author: Reader What country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Beautiful sunrise across the San Fernando Valley. Our house is nestled in trees but the view is long and to the east, towards Universal, Warner Bros and Disney, all that promise and hope of stardom and fortunes to be made.

      Delete
  20. Name: Amanda Arrington
    Email: alarrington84@gmail.com
    Comment: still hopping
    Twitter: Followed
    FaceBook: Liked
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Reader
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's a cool thing to say. "Keep on hopping." Once, when I worked at HB, I created a character, "Herbert The Horrid Hare" That was his motto.
      John K.

      Delete
  21. Smokey smell in the air this morning. Fire somewhere, but I can't be sure where. Our house is in a fire zone, and we have fire insurance, but if the house goes I lose two unpublished novels and a novella.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Name: Catrina Barton
    Email: bidelia78@yahoo.com
    Comment: Thank you for taking time to participate in this hop. It's been a blast!
    Twitter: Followed
    FaceBook: Followed or Liked
    Blog: Followed
    Are you a reader or Author: Author and Reader. :P
    What Country are you in: United States

    ReplyDelete