Mafia Romance Series Spotlight: Unorganized Crime/Unorganized Secrets by Judy Serrano

 

Title: Unorganized Crime (Unorganized Crime Series Book 1)

Author: Judy Serrano

Pages: 283

Genre: Mafia Romance/Crime Fiction/Romance/Adventure

As Jazz finds herself falling from a helicopter, Gage St. Claire comes to her rescue. Organized crime is once again the culprit of her parents’ situation, and as usual, she is caught in the crossfire. Gage pulls her out of the water and helps her escape to safety. The love between them is undiscovered as he tries to leave her behind in an attempt to keep her safe and move forward with his black ops pursuit. Jazz becomes an undercover cop with wiping out organized crime forever as her goal. After Jazz exposes one of the largest crime families in the country, quite by accident, she is hired to expose crime syndicate leader Michael Giambetti Jr., otherwise known as Achilles. Achilles earned his nickname because he has no weaknesses. He has no weaknesses, that is until he meets Jazz. Achilles has been untouchable, and if she were to break this case, she could finally prove herself as a serious undercover officer. Her job is not an easy one, and people around her are not who they appear to be. Will Gage come back for Jazz, or will he be lost to her forever? Will she crack the case on her own? Read as this courageous upstart stumbles through another adventure.

Here’s what reviewers are saying about Unorganized Crime!

“Serrano is brilliant! Her words grab your interest. This is a real page turner, and one you can’t put down. Serrano’s writing is very versatile. This story combines action, romance, and suspense with many twists and turns. She will have you at the edge of your seat and keep you guessing where the adventure will lead. I highly recommend!”

— Bonnie Still

“This book was so exciting to read . Judy Serrano is a talented person and author. She writes books in a way that draws you into the story from the first page to the last. I love the characters in Unorganized Crime. It is a stand alone book but if you have not read the Easter’s Lilly series you need to. The way she writes her book makes you feel like you are part of the story and I absolutely like that. The way she makes you feel connected with the character’s. I hope to read more books about Jazz and Gage !!!“

— Myra Sharp

Unorganized Crime is available at Amazon.

Title: Unorganized Secrets (Unorganized Crime Series Book 2)

Author: Judy Serrano

Pages: 294

Genre: Mafia Romance/Crime Fiction/Romance/Adventure

With Achilles still on the run, Gage and Hawk do what they can to protect their own. Gage and Jazz make their relationship official, while Hawk decides it’s time to do the same. When Hawk shows up at Elizabeth’s doorstep, she is gone, and his son, whom he has never met, is also missing. The mystery surrounding Elizabeth takes Hawk to a dark place. When he opens the door to Elizabeth’s past, who will he find behind it?  

Unorganized Secrets is available at Amazon.

About the Author

 

Judy Serrano graduated from Texas A&M University-Commerce with a master’s degree in English. She is the owner of Make Cents Editing Services and is an English teacher at a local high school. Judy writes romantic suspense, Mafia romance, and paranormal romance. She is the author of The Easter’s Lilly Series, The Linked Series, Ivy Vines, Visions and the Unorganized Crime series. Although originally from New York, Judy resides in Texas with her husband and six cats.

Website & Social Media:

Website ➜ www.judyserrano.com 

Twitter ➜ http://www.twitter.com/AuthorJSerrano 

Facebook ➜  https://www.facebook.com/JudySerranoAuthor/

Goodreads ➜ https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4792103.Judy_Serrano

📙 A Bookish Word or Two with Jayne Lisbeth, Author of Raising the Dead #abookishword

 

 

On A Bookish Word or Two, we have a guest post by Jayne Lisbeth, author of RAISING THE DEAD.  

Jayne Lisbeth was born in NYC and continued her life’s journey from Long Island, to New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, California and Tampa, all places featured prominently in her writing.  Her first book, a memoir, Writing In Wet Cement has been published internationally by London based publisher, Austin Macauley. Jayne’s second book, Raising the Dead, a work of historical fiction, mystery, friendship and the supernatural, was published in 2023, also by Austin Macauley.  Ms. Lisbeth publishes monthly “Food for Thought” blogs on her website, Jaynelisbeth.com. Her “Food for Thought” blogs are based on her reflections of  life, friendship, love, and topical subjects of interest. Ms. Lisbeth’s non-fiction, poetry, and short stories have been published from Vermont to California to Tampa, Florida where she has received awards at the local level. She has been published locally in Pages of Our Life, volumes I and II which is currently part of the USF, Tampa, Geriartic Studies Programs. Ms. Lisbeth’s short stories have been published in the LEC Phoenix Anthologies, 2015-2023. Jayne’s interests include writing, reading, exploring, traveling, calligraphy, gravestone rubbing, entertaining and cooking.  Jayne’s author’s website is Jaynelisbeth.com. Ms. Lisbeth and her artist husband, Tim Gibbons, are the owners and founders of Funky As A Monkey Art Studio, providing art in public places and launching new and emerging artists in exhibiting their art.

Author Links  

Website | Amazon Website | Publisher’s Website | Facebook | Instagram

The Inspiration Behind Raising the Dead

By Jayne Lisbeth

The story behind all my books focuses on the evolution and distillation of women’s lives through their loves and friendships. This is the engine that steers the ship of words I sail on. 

There are several backstories to Raising the Dead. First is my lifelong obsession with cemeteries. Their peacefulness has always beckoned me, their silent beauty. The many stories under, and on, tombstones, goads my imagination. My favorite hobby is creating gravestone rubbing prints, combining my love of history and art. I discover stories under and above each tombstone with names and dates carved in stone. I imagined a book to be written by spirits romping through cemeteries, preserving their family histories to those listening.  

I am a lifelong diarist. Over the years I revealed and discovered myself, friends and lovers. Now, my journals are a useful research tool. They are the zeitgeist of each era I have lived and learned through. All these times contribute to Raising the Dead, which is set in the early 1970s. 

In Raising the Dead my main protagonist, “Emeline,” is much like many adrift young women I have known. Emeline is bereft after the deaths of her parents. She has moved from her beloved childhood home on the California Delta, across the country to Virginia with her new husband. She meets “Felicity,” an older woman who becomes her dearest friend and mentor. The mystery of Raising the Dead arises with the sudden disappearance of Felicity, who Emeline has come to rely on. Emeline is heart-broken. She is determined to discover the whereabouts of her dearest friend and “other mother,” Felicity. Through the help of new friends Emeline makes, both living and dead, the mystery of Felicity is unraveled

The story behind the Raising the Dead evolves from a dear friend and mentor in my life who departed this world too early. She encouraged my writing and mentored me in every step of my own journey. Raising the Dead is a tribute to this remarkable woman. Her life is woven from the yarn which becomes the tapestry of my novel. Combining all these aspects of my backstory, Raising the Dead is a tale of friendships, history, a love of cemeteries and spirits. The final message of Raising the Dead is the importance of enduring love. 

Adding to this mix is my love of antiques and their restoration. My many years living in California are also a driving force, as well as my love of birds, wildlife, nature and the fauna of life.  

Readers and reviewers of Raising the Dead all agree they “could not put the book down.” The ending of my novel does not disappoint. Raising the Dead is a heart-warming tale of the haunting journey of a young woman maturing into womanhood.

Raising the Dead is available at Amazon.

📙 A Bookish Word or Two with P.K. Eden, Author of The Mirror #abookishword

 

On A Bookish Word or Two, we have a guest post by P.K. Eden, authors of THE MIRROR.  

P.K. Eden is the alter ego of multi-published and award winning authors Patt Milhailff and Kathye Quick whose debut novel FIREBRAND was lauded as comparable to the Harry Potter series, garnered 5-Star reviews, and won numerous  Reviewer’s Choice Awards.

Born long, long ago in a place not so far away, Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, Kathryn Quick has been writing since the Sisters in St. Casmir’s Grammar School gave her the ruled yellow paper and a number two pencil.  She writes contemporary and career romances, romantic comedies, historical romances as well as urban fantasy. 

Kathye has twenty fiction books in print with various publishing houses and one non-fiction compilation of her town’s history at the behest of the Manville Library Bord.  She was honored to have been named an Amazon top 100 Romance Author for Ineligible Bachelor published by Montlake Romance. Other works include a three book  Grandmother’s Rings Series – Amethyst, Sapphire and Citrine, a rom-com series that follows three siblings as they use their Grandmother’s Rings given to them by their mother to find their soulmates. 

Because she has been fascinated by King Arthur and his knights for almost forever, her series Beyond Camelot, Brother Knights, is her vision of how the majestic kingdom may have survived after Arthur. Two books are written in this series with the third and final still in concept.

She is a founding member of Liberty State Fiction Writers and has been a part of Romance Writers of America and New Jersey Romance Writers.

She is married to her real-life hero, Donald, and has three grown sons, each having romantic adventures of their own. Her two grandkids, Savannah and Dax, happily cut into her writing time but she still manages to get a few pages done each day.

Website & Social Media:

Website ➜ www.Kathrynquick.com  

Twitter ➜ https://x.com/KQuickAuthor

Facebook ➜ https://www.facebook.com/KathrynQuickBooks/

Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/kathrynquickauthor/

Goodreads ➜ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/217228581-the-mirror

***

Thanks to novelist and editor, Dr. Nathasha Brooks-Harris who invited Patt Milhailff to write for several TRUE CONFESSION lines of magazines where she learned tight and entertaining writing and resulted in the publication of more than two hundred short stories and articles.

One of Patt’s most gratifying experiences was when she moderated a standing room only workshop at the African American Romance Slam Jam in 2004 and has since enjoyed speaking engagements at libraries, book clubs and other forums. 

She was awarded 2009 Author of the year and 2010 Mentor of the year by Romance writers of America, New York City Chapter, a terrific organization that helped her to obtain valuable lessons and insight while on her writing journey. 

Patt is also featured in A Dream Deferred, A Joy Achieved, a non-fiction novella by Charise Nesbit a co-producer at Tyler Perry Studios, about foster care, as well as being included in two of Times Bestselling Author Zane’s anthologies. 

Patt is one half of the writing duo P.K. Eden along with Kathye Quick, authors of Firebrand,  that received a five star Affaire de Couer Reviewer’s Choice Award. 

She is also a member of Liberty States Fiction Writers the home of a magnitude of talented writers and fellow authors and is the author of nine novels.  

Patt was raised, and educated in New York City, residing in  New Jersey, and has since relocated to Delaware.

Social Networks for P.K. Eden:

Follow on Twitter: https://x.com/PKEdenAuthor 

Follow on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/P.K.EdenAuthor

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p.k.edenauthor/

 

The Inspiration Behind The Mirror

By P.K. Eden

When I was a child (a long time ago in a state far away), fairy tales fascinated me. Snow White, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty. All those wonderful takes of Princesses and magic things in a extraordinary world of fairies and magic and evil things. I could listen to the stories at bed time over and over and never get tired of them.

As I got older and started to use my imagination to write fiction, first romance like rom-com, historical romance, and the like, I found my mind drifting to those wonderful objects in the fairy tales I loved so much. Snow White’s Mirror, Rapunzel’s Tears, a Spinning Wheels that could turn straw into gold. Imagine if they were real. I found what could be a niche for a story like that in the urban fantasy genre.

I put my imagination into overdrive, bought a book called Tales of the Brothers Grimm, which by the way are very grim and gloomy, often downright scary. Nothing like the modern-day adaptations we love today. Still, I was determined to bring my vision to print.

So the what ifs  began. Most authors know that’s how our storylines start. What if the magical objects in the fairy tales were real? What if the Brothers Grimm wrote their tales to shield that fact from humanity so they wouldn’t be used or exploited? What if the Brothers Grimm formed a secret group to protect the objects? What if a faction of this noble group, called the Primogen Sentinels, went rogue and wanted to use the objects for personal gain? 

Enter the direct descendants of the Brother Grimm, Siene and her brother Reed, a Sentinel from each of the seven continents, Lucian Davalos, the leader of Taltos, the rogue faction, and his mercenaries, a PhD whose research could just ruin Taltoian  plans by counteracting the effect of Snow White’s poison apple, sprinkle in an adventure that spans three continents, a touch of a love story, and an unexpected conclusion, and there you have it. The what ifs turned into a plot for The Mirror. 

If you’d like to know how this all turns out, I invite you to become a Primogen Sentinel and follow Siene and Reed Dower – the European protectors, Dr. Ben Michaels – PhD and scientist, Thumbelina who would rather be called Lina, Lucian Davelos – leader of Taltos, a host of Watches, Seekers, Cleaners and their antagonistic counterparts, as they race for the artifacts across North America, Europe and Africa; one group to save the objects from discovery, the other to use them for personal gain.

If you do, please let me know if you enjoyed the story. 

Thanks for letting me join you today

Kathryn Quick  (1/2 P.K. Eden) – the other half – Patt Mihailoff - is busy plotting Book Two in this series. If you are concerned about climate change and love Native American characters, you might want to check back and see what we are planning for 2025/2026.

The Mirror is available at Amazon.