Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Killer of Killers Advertised on USA Today

I make a habit of going online in the morning and getting my news on the USA Today website. I was pleasantly surprised to see my novel, Killer of Killers, being advertised there. I'm concluding that the printing company, Lulu, is putting the advertisement on there, because not just Killer of Killers is being advertised. There's about a dozen or so books being advertised, and I feel honored, because Lulu prints thousands of books.

But it seems that Killer of Killers, (the new cover design KOK btw,) is one of the top featured books that are being advertised. Maybe that's the reason I saw a spike in sales recently. I had posted that KOK rose in the Amazon rankings by more than a million spots recently. So that could be the reason why. And I was thinking that perhaps some of my students convinced their parents to buy it. But now I think it's more likely the USA Today ad is responsible.

I figure it this way. I teach five classes with about 30 students in each class, which means I have a total of 150 students. Multiply that by three, for the three Trimesters, and I have 450 students per year. That number must pale in comparison to the amount of people who go online to read USA Today. (That number is probably in the millions.) So logic dictates that the USA Today website ad will result in more sales than the 450 parents whose kids tell them about my book.

Still, you never really know for sure. It could be true that more parents buy my books than readers of USA Today. Doesn't matter, though. Who cares where the buyers come from. As long as they buy it. And (hopefully) enjoy it. And (hopefully) write a nice review about it. Someone named Joumani gave KOK and The Vase five-star ratings recently. Well, Joumani, if you are reading this blog, let me thank you for that. I do appreciate that.
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