Tag Archives: Mark S. Bacon

The Woke and the Dead Virtual Book Tour

The Woke and the Dead banner

 

The Woke and the Dead cover

Nostalgia City Mystery #5

Mystery

Date Published: 03-13-2025

Publisher: Archer & Clark

 

 

A public war between a governor and a theme park lights the fuse on a story
of hate groups, murder, corruption, racism, and political espionage.

Ex-cop turned theme-park cab driver Lyle Deming finds the body of a park
visitor during an LGBTQ event. The dead man catered gay weddings. Was it a
hate crime?

Arizona governor Rod Gudgel, running for reelection, calls it a random
shooting. He mocks Nostalgia City theme park for its inclusiveness, uses
homophobic and racist slurs, and later challenges the safety of its
rides.

Park CEO, “Max” Maxwell lambasts the governor’s prejudice and
insensitivity, and the fight is on—in public and undercover.  Maxwell
drafts Lyle to investigate the murder while Kate Sorensen, his 6’-2½” public
affairs VP, goes on the offensive in the media.

When an assault rifle attack kills and injures park employees demonstrating
for gay rights at a Gudgel campaign office, Nostalgia City mourns, and Kate
slams the governor’s unsympathetic response to the slaughter. While the FBI
and sheriff’s deputies investigate the crime, the governor redoubles his
efforts to regulate the park out of business.

Looking for a shooting suspect, Lyle gets a little too close to an armed
hate group—with a possible connection to the governor. His lady friend Kate
flies to Montana where she digs into the governor’s unseemly past uncovering
a trail of malfeasance dating back two decades and arousing Gudgel allies
who want to stop her at all cost.

With Lyle’s wry humor and Kate’s stick-to-itiveness the story moves quickly
as mysteries and subplots multiply and loop together threatening the park,
their relationship, and their lives.

 

The Woke and the Dead tablet

EXCERPT

The Woke and the Dead – Mark S. Bacon

 

CHAPTER 43  

Lyle listened to Jim Croce singing “Time in a Bottle” as he accelerated. He wanted to get to the barbecue early to make it easier to meet people as they arrived. Apparently, a handful of other guys had a similar idea. 

Lyle parked in front of a broad adobe Southwest territorial style home. A gravel drive led around the side of the house and continued through heavy oak gates opened wide. Brick-bordered cactus gardens connected by narrow gravel paths circled the backyard that covered a half acre or more. In the middle, conversation groups of teak tables and chairs, shaded by umbrellas, surrounded a curving, lighted swimming pool. 

At the far side of the pool, a clutch of five men in casual clothes stood talking near a fire pit. As Lyle approached, his shoes crunching on the gravel, they all looked up and the conversation ebbed. The words, “I mean it, man,” died in the air. 

“C’mere Lyle.” The guy Lyle remembered as Ed, the wild Suburban driver, motioned to him.

Lyle recognized Wylie, the supervisor—and dead shot—from the shooting range. The man extended his hand.

“Lyle, I’m Wylie,” he said with his dimpled-chin smile. “We owe you a thanks for your quick thinking to help save Bobby’s life. Saved him from his own carelessness.”

“Jake and Ed helped. Took all of us to get him treated.” 

“Glad you could make it here tonight,” Wiley said. “You can meet the guys and find out about us. And about our mission for the country.”

“That’s why I’m here.” Lyle studied Wylie’s face, wondering if his name was an appropriate adjective.

“We tol’ him some about CB,” Ed added. 

Wylie pointed to a galvanized tub loaded with ice and beer in bottles. “Help yourself, Lyle.”

Floodlights along the edge of the house and around a ramada next to a large, smoking barbecue supplemented the setting sun. Lyle looked at the three other men in the group and introduced himself. For a moment he forgot where he was. The clink of glasses, the smell of meat searing on the grill, the light shimmering on the pool surface made him imagine a barbecue with guys who might be in the same bowling league, softball team, or Kiwanis Club. But they were hate group members, possibly killers. He tried to remember the faces.

Lyle wandered to the ice tub and helped himself. He planned to circulate and collect information—casually. His back to the fire pit, he set his beer bottle on a table. He pulled out his phone and, pretending to do something innocuous, he took several pictures of the group. Enlarged, the photos might provide decent mug shots. 

“Keeping up on Instagram?” a voice behind him said.

Lyle lowered his phone and turned it off in one motion. “Hey, Jake. You just come from work?” Lyle pointed to his shirt and tie.

“Yeah, working late on specs for a new commercial development. Citizens are worried about more traffic.” 

Lyle turned halfway round, looking at the grounds. “This is a beautiful place.”

“Wylie does all right. So you took the invitation to come.”

“I’m interested in the Cadre Brave and would like to know more. What are you guys concerned about?”

“I guess concerned is a good way to describe the group.”

“So help me understand. What’s wrong with the country? What does Cadre Brave want to change?” Lyle picked up his beer and held it in front of him.

“It’s like what Ed and I said the other day. We want to maintain American values. They’re slipping away. The values that our forefathers fought and died for. You think George Washington fought so drag queens could read books to students?”

Yes, exactly. He helped guarantee freedom of self expression. “Did they have drag queens then? The guys did all wear wigs.”

“Seriously, it’s what our heritage represents,” Jake said. “But today, values and priorities are shifting. Back in Washington and here. 

“Look, I’m not a racist, but can’t you see how our cities, our culture, are being diluted by the mass of immigrants, illegals?

 

About the Author

Mark S Bacon

My first three mysteries were published by Black Opal Books with my debut
novel earning recommendation from the American Library Association.

I started writing mysteries after a writing career in journalism and
marketing. Prior to my novels, Ether Books of the UK published a collection
of my flash fiction mysteries and many of my shorts have been published in
online literary magazines. During my business career I wrote two books for
John Wiley and Sons, one of which was a Library Journal Best Business Book
of the Year. I have an MA in journalism and a golden retriever.

I write the kind of mysteries I like to read.  I appreciate stories
with twists, turns, and puzzles which appeal to the head. But I also like a
mystery that appeals to the heart with a fast pace and challenges and
threats that put the protagonists in peril.

 

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter: @baconauthor

Blog

Goodreads

 

Purchase Links

Amazon

B&N

Kobo

Apple Books

Smashwords

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

RABT Book Tours & PR

Comments Off on The Woke and the Dead Virtual Book Tour

Filed under Book Tour

Dark Ride Deception Virtual Book Tour

Dark Ride Deception banner

 

Dark Ride Deception cover

A Nostalgia City Mystery, #4

 

Mystery

Date Published: 09-30-2021

Publisher: Archer and Clark Publishing

 

photo add-to-goodreads-button_zpsc7b3c634.png

 

Computer genius Tom Wyrick has invented mind-bending technology that will
make theme park rides challenge passengers’ senses, their grasp of the
material world. His Perception Deception Effect will rocket Arizona’s
Nostalgia City theme park decades ahead of the competition. But the secret
technology is missing. And so is its creator. Is he dead? On the run?

An FBI agent theorizes the People’s Republic of China is responsible
for the disappearance. The Nostalgia City CEO, however, is convinced a rival
theme park is behind the theft. He drafts ex-cop turned theme park cab
driver Lyle Deming to fly to Florida to find the missing computer scientist
and recover his secrets.

Does this have anything to do with the severed human finger Lyle finds in
his cab?

Back at Nostalgia City, a sprawling re-creation of an entire small town
from the 1970s, a movie company is shooting a Vietnam era crime story.
It’s a welcome distraction from the tech theft until the film company
announces its last-minute replacement star is Cory “Psycho”
Sievers, fresh out of rehab and aching to exact revenge on Hollywood. When
another actor is found dead, park executive Kate Sorensen, a 6’ 2
½” former college basketball star, is persuaded to
investigate.

Shrugging off jet lag and chronic anxiety, Lyle goes undercover using a
parade of false identities—from attorney to maintenance
worker—to snoop behind the scenes at other theme parks. Although
he’s generally tech savvy, he’s flummoxed by Perception
Deception science. He gets help from a Nostalgia City engineer who speaks
the jargon, but Lyle must rein in his assistant’s enthusiasm for
corporate espionage.

In the meantime, Kate confronts the mentally unstable actor. But she may be
forced to give up the murder case—Lyle’s in trouble.  Kate
and Lyle have little time to explore their relationship as both their
investigations turn deadly, threatening them and the future of Nostalgia
City.

 

Dark Ride Deception standing book

EXCERPT 

 

Chapt. 34

 

Lyle felt like he was back in an interrogation room at the Phoenix PD only he was on the wrong side of the table.  He sat in front of Galvan’s desk and eyed the beefy guy with a crew cut who was not introduced.  You sat next to Lyle

“So as you now know, I work at—or maybe I used to work—at Nostalgia City. In any event, I’m a cab driver.”

Galvan chuckled.

“I can show you my ID and commercial license.”

“This is not the time for your name, rank, and serial number,” Yoo said. “Tell us what you were doing here.”

Yoo still prodded, Galvan had large dark eyes, and the crew cut looked at him like he was a suspect in a one-man lineup. “Okay, I’m just looking for a Nostalgia City employee. What’s the harm?”

“And you thought he might be working here?” Galvan said.

“Possibly.”

“And what does he do at Nostalgia City?”

“I’m not sure.”

“I believe Tom Wyrick is a programmer for you,” Galvan said, her voice light and conversational as if she were asking if he enjoyed his flight to Florida.

Hell, how do they know he was a programmer? Amber, the receptionist. My mistake. She was the only one I told who Wyrick was. But how did they know I talked to her? I never mentioned her name to anyone. Surveillance cameras. They went back and looked at video of the time before I showed up in HR. Damn these guys are good. Least I know what they know about me, which is pretty much everything. 

“Wyrick is a programmer and he disappeared. The park is worried about him so they asked me to look around.”

“And you were chosen, not because you drive a cab, but because of your previous occupation.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I was a sergeant. Phoenix police, homicide.” Did the crew cut’s gargoyle expression soften slightly? 

“Actually, Mr. Deming,” Galvan said, “the only thing we don’t know for sure is what Wyrick was working on when he disappeared. But I can guess. There’ve been stories. And you were asking around in our attractions development building next door.”

This lady has a complete picture of my actions and motives. As complete as I would have liked for any perp I detained as a cop. He gave a shrug of surrender and leaned back in his chair.

Galvan turned to the thickset guy next to her. “Thanks for coming over Bill. It’s like we thought. I just have a few more questions for our cab driver. I’ll give you a call later.”

Bill got up slowly, pushed his chair out of the way, and came around the desk. He looked at Yoo and made a slight motion to the door. When they left, Galvan got up and took Yoo’s seat opposite Lyle.

“Are you working for Maxwell? Hiring an ex-police detective sounds like something he’d do.”

Lyle couldn’t read Galvan’s body language. She sat back in the chair, put a hand on the arm, and crossed her legs. Relaxed maybe, but her brown-eyed stare held his attention. 

“Yes and no. I am working for Max, but he didn’t hire me. I went to work at the park because it was a break from police work. It takes it out of you. I like driving my taxi.”

“You’re not driving it now.”

“I sometimes do special assignments for Max.”

“So one of your programmers has gone rogue and you want to find him before he sells your secrets.”

Lyle could play the game, too. His noncommittal expression was as good as anyone’s. 

“Does it have to do with your perception deception effect?”

Why don’t I just call Joseph Arena and have him explain the technical details to you?

“You don’t have to worry. That term was in one of the trade mags recently. No one knows what it means.” She shifted in her chair and leaned forward. “I sympathize with you. We all want the latest and the best, and we all try to protect our own proprietary ideas.”

“Which is why Yoo followed me.” 

“That’s right,” she said. “I’m sorry if he got too rough. He’s young. It didn’t sound like you were looking to steal anything. I despise anyone who would steal secrets for profit. Your secrets, our secrets, anyone’s. Our engineering team is inspired, and like Edison said, it’s ninety-nine percent perspiration. Is this Wyrick going to sell your secrets to the highest bidder or what?”

“Could be.”

“Well, I would not buy stolen technology. I can’t say for certain that Mr. Danneman wouldn’t be interested, but if anyone wanted to sell us new tech, it would have to come through me. And it hasn’t.”

Lyle was beginning to like Tracy Galvan. Intelligent, attractive. These Atlantic Adventures folks were sharp, straightforward people. Except Amber.

“I know that Maxwell and Mr. Danneman have butted heads—maybe that’s putting it mildly,” she said. “‘No love lost’ is the expression. Is that why you’re here instead of Sea World or the Magic Kingdom?”

Lyle nodded. She knew it all. “I don’t think there’s anything else I could tell you that you don’t already know, except how perception deception works. And I don’t have a clue. I really do drive a cab.”

She smiled.

“I appreciate your frankness,” Lyle said. She was telling the truth. “I could have saved a lot of time by just talking to you first.”

“So where are you going to look next?”

“Does this mean…”

“No, we’re not going to press charges. This is just our little secret. I enjoyed seeing what you did, even at our expense. Very inventive. Should keep security on their toes.”

“Glad I could provide some entertainment.”

About the Author

Mark S. Bacon

Mark S. Bacon began his career as a Southern California newspaper police
reporter, one of his crime stories becoming key evidence in a murder case
that spanned decades.

He is the author of the Nostalgia City mystery series that began with Death
in Nostalgia City.  The first book introduced ex-cop turned cab driver
Lyle Deming and PR executive Kate Sorensen, a 6’2½”
former college basketball star.  Death in Nostalgia City was
recommended for book clubs by the American Library Association. His second
mystery, Desert Kill Switch, earned the top fiction award in the 2018 Great
Southwest Book Festival and was a Top Shelf Magazine Indie Award
nominee.

After working for two newspapers, Bacon moved to advertising and
marketing.  He wrote nonfiction business books including Do-It-Yourself
Direct Marketing, printed in four languages and three editions and named
best business book of the year by the Library Journal.  His articles
have appeared in the Washington Post, Cleveland Plain Dealer, San Antonio
Express News, Orange County (Calif.) Register, Denver Post, and many other
publications.  Most recently he was a correspondent for the San
Francisco Chronicle.

He earned an MA in mass media from UNLV and a BA in journalism from Fresno
State.  He gets many of his ideas when he’s walking his
dog.

 

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Blog

Goodreads

 

Purchase Links

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

iBooks

Amazon UK

a Rafflecopter giveaway

RABT Book Tours & PR

Comments Off on Dark Ride Deception Virtual Book Tour

Filed under BOOKS