Since she didn’t think any rules applied to her, apparel
industry big-shot Bunny Frank had no problem breaking them all. Ruthless,
driven and power hungry; from bribery to bullying to extortion, Bunny Frank did
whatever it took to make her buying office in the Los Angeles garment center
the biggest and best no matter who she had to step on to succeed. Nobody said
no to Bunny Frank; at least nobody with a brain. Rejected and publicly
humiliated by the only man she ever loved, Bunny plotted her revenge and didn’t
care how many careers she destroyed to make him pay.
The last thing swimwear sales exec Holly Schlivnik expected was to discover Bunny Frank’s corpse trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey with a bikini stuffed down her throat. With no shortage of suspects, the mystery wasn’t who wanted Bunny dead. Who didn’t? When Holly’s colleague is arrested for Bunny’s murder, the wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth jumps into action to find the real killer. Nothing turns out the way Holly thinks it will as she matches wits with a wily killer hellbent on revenge.
Excerpt
Angela Wellborn and
I nodded politely to one another as we entered A Jolt of Java together the next
morning. I cautiously wished her a good morning and took it as a good sign when
Angela told me to have a nice day. With any luck, maybe I’d save the account.
I worked my way
around the table distributing the group’s coffees. When I handed Sonia her cup,
the good vibe I had from Angela quickly disappeared. Sonia’s complexion was
gray as day-old oatmeal. Her red-rimmed eyes said it all.
I squeezed her arm.
“What happened?”
Sonia’s eyes
filled. “I didn’t get it.”
“Did they tell you why?”
Sonia twisted her
lips into a bitter smile. “My references didn’t pan out.”
Bunny Frank sat at
a table across from us sipping a latte and reading the West Coast Apparel News.
Sonia walked the short distance to Bunny’s table. Bunny folded the paper and
gave Sonia a shit-eating grin.
Sonia growled,
“You’re a miserable excuse for a human being. You couldn’t bring yourself to do
the right thing for once in your life. You had to lie and destroy a fabulous
opportunity because you could.”
Bunny drew a circle
in the air and put her index finger through it. “Bullseye, Wilson.” She wiggled
her thumb and flashed an evil smile. “Gotcha right under here and I always will.”
Sonia grabbed the
latte out of Bunny’s hand and poured the drink over Bunny’s head. The
concoction flowed slowly like lava down Bunny’s face and meandered into her
cleavage. Too stunned to react, Bunny sat still as a statue as the foam seeped
from her décolletage and stained her white knit top.
Sonia crushed the
empty paper cup and threw it on the table. The crowded room was silent as a
tomb as all eyes swiveled to Bunny’s table. Not a soul missed Sonia snarl, “I
promise I’ll get even with you. I will make you pay if it takes me
forever.” Sonia spun on her heel and
stomped back to our table. She pointed to the barista’s station. “Anyone for a
refill? This round is on me.”
****
When the elevator
doors opened, I had to stop myself short not to step on her. There was Bunny
Frank-the buying office big shot-lying diagonally across the car. Her legs were
splayed out and her back was propped against the corner. Her sightless eyes
were wide open and her arms reached out in a come-to-me baby pose. She was trussed
up with shipping tape like a dressed Thanksgiving turkey ready for the oven
with a bikini stuffed in her mouth. A Gotham Swimwear hangtag drooped off her
lower lip like a toe tag gone lost. Naturally, I burst out laughing.
Before you label me
incredibly weird or stone-cold, let me say genetics aren’t all they’re cracked
up to be. If you’re lucky you inherit your Aunt Bertha’s sexy long legs or your
father’s ability to add a bazillion dollar order in his head and get the total
correct to the last penny. Without even breaking into a sweat, it’s easy to
spout at least a million fabulous traits inheritable by the luck of the draw.
Did I get those sexy long legs or the ability to add more than two plus two
without a calculator? Noooooooooo. Lucky me. I inherited my Nana’s fear of
death we overcompensated for with the nervous habit of laughing. A hysterical
reaction? Think Bozo the clown eulogizing your favorite aunt.
I craned my neck
like a tortoise and checked around. Then I clamped a fist over my mouth. Cripes,
how could I possibly explain my guffaws with Bunny lying there? The
disappointment was simultaneously mixed with relief when there was no one else
in the parking lot. Where was security when you needed them?
I toed the elevator door open and bent over Bunny. I’d seen enough CSI episodes to know not to touch her. She was stiff as a board and I attributed the bluish tinge of her skin to the bikini crammed down her throat. I was no doctor, but I didn’t need an MD after my name to make this diagnosis. Bunny Frank was dead as the proverbial doorknob. It was no surprise Bunny Frank had finally pushed someone beyond their limits. The only surprise was it had taken so long. The question wasn’t who wanted Bunny Frank dead. The question was who didn’t?
Available on
Amazon ~~ Apple Books ~~ Kobo ~~ Target
About the Author
She reads, writes, and speaks Spanish, albeit with an accent
that sounds like Mildred from Michigan went on a Mexican vacation and is trying
to fit in with the locals. Since life without pizza and ice cream as her core
food groups wouldn’t be worth living, she’s a dedicated walker to keep her
girlish figure. A voracious reader, she’s also an avid stamp collector. Susie
lives with a highly intelligent man and has one incredibly brainy but
smart-aleck adult son who inexplicably blames his sarcasm on an inherited
genetic defect.
Facebook ~~ Twitter ~~ Instagram ~~ Goodreads ~~ BookBub
Cute cover.
ReplyDeleteHello Anna, Thanks so much. I am thrilled you like the book cover. That cover has garnered a lot of attention. In fact, several readers have reached out to me and said they were so taken with the book cover that they bought the book to see what was inside. If you end up reading it, I hope you enjoy it. Thanks again for taking time to read the blog and for your comment.
DeleteThank you. The cover has got the book a lot of attention and spurred sales. Glad you liked it too. Susie Black
DeleteThanks so much.
DeleteSusie Black
This is a cute cover
ReplyDeleteHi Marisela, Thanks so much for taking time to read the blog and your comment. The book cover has received a lot of positive attention and a number of sales.
DeleteBrenda, thank you so much. If you do read Death by Sample Size, I hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeletefun cover
ReplyDeleteHello, Thanks so much for reading the blog post and making a comment. I've had a wonderful response to that book cover and it has definitely spurred on readership of the book. I'm pleased you found it to be fun. Thanks again, Susie Black
DeleteSounds good.
ReplyDeleteHello Tori, Thanks so much for taking time to read the blog post and make a comment. I hope you'll give Death by Sample Size a look and decide to read it. So far, the reviews have been excellent. Thanks again, Susie Black
ReplyDeleteI liked the excerpt.
ReplyDeleteHello, Thank you so much for reading the blog post and making a comment. I am thrilled you liked the excerpt. I had a lot of fun writing this story. If you end up reading my book, I am confident you'll enjoy it. Thanks again. Susie Black
DeleteI can’t wait to read your book. I love the cover❤️❤️
ReplyDelete