Venetian Bind

 

 

Venetian Bind
by Lawrence E. Rothstein

About Venetian Bind

 

Venetian Bind
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Venice
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wild Rose Press (May 15, 2024)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 236 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1509254153
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1509254156
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CX5T3CP5

 

In Venetian Bind, Detective Marko Korb and his associate Kelan Su, a Chinese-American woman, must hunt down a murderer and prevent a devastating terrorist attack in the romantic city of Venice.

Korb, a fat, egotistical, and brilliant detective, and Kelan Su, a former Chicago police officer, licensed attorney, and martial arts expert, arrive in Venice to investigate the murder of Stefan Pakulić, a former Serbian paramilitary leader and accused war criminal.The daughter of a Bosnian expat who had rescued Korb from Pakulić’s clutches during the war is a suspect in the killing. Korb is torn between finding the murderer and his sympathy for the Serbian’s killer—the Venetian bind.

The investigation leads to Pakulić’s connection with Italian neo-fascists planning a terrorist action in Venice. It takes Korb’s genius and the intrepid sleuthing of Su to find the murderer, forestall the terrorist action, and protect the daughter of Korb’s rescuer.

 

About Lawrence E. Rothstein

I am a retired lawyer and university professor who has published in constitutional law, privacy law, political theory and labor law. Born and raised in Chicago, I am now residing with my wife and family in beautiful southern Rhode Island.  I have lived and traveled widely in Europe.  As an avid reader of crime fiction, I have always wanted to write detective novels. As a lover of food and cooking, I include many scrumptious meals and some recipes in my novel and on my website.

 

Q&A With the Author: Lawrence E. Rothstein

Who is your favorite author and why?

Sara Paretsky is one of my favorite authors. I particularly like the way her detective,V. I. Warshawski vigorously pursues every lead no matter how dangerous the quest. I also appreciate the vignettes of Chicago where I was born and raised and where my detectives, Korb and Su are based. Paretsky is a master of subplots. In the process of solving the mysteries, V. I. confronts current social issues of extreme importance; to wit, political corruption, sex trafficking, immigration opponents, and her own familial skeletons in the closet. 

What is something unique/quirky about you?

I hate shoes and socks. The moment I get home I remove them and work my toes in a rug or carpet. It relieves tension and tiredness. I remain barefoot at home and in minor excursions outside around my home. By the way, if Bruce Willis’s character in the first Die Hard movie can be believed, working one’s bare toes in a carpet or rug also can relieve jet lag.

What was your inspiration for writing this book?

I love to read mysteries, particularly those with recurring characters. Due to my experiences in criminal law as a lawyer and as a university professor teaching law courses, I particularly appreciate cerebral detectives and legal maneuvers. But I also like bold, active investigators, often doing the legwork for cerebral types. I started writing mystery/legal scenarios as hypothetical cases for my law courses. The ideas come from the news, particularly legal news, legal research, my travels, and other detective stories. I love working out complex plots often with legal and political elements. When I write, my recurring characters come first and they lead me to the case plots  those characters would find interesting and for which my detectives would be sought after by clients. I always have some ideas on where the case is going and what procedures would be followed from my legal experience, but my detectives seem to inspire scenes and activities that show off their particular virtues and personalities as the investigations proceed.

I also love food and wine. These are passions shared with my characters and my family. Below is a picture of three dishes from Venetian Bind with citations to the recipes.

What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

I enjoy trying to think through the personalities of my detectives. Often I seem to be following their advice rather than creating the process of an investigation. I also enjoy finding the humor in the characters’ relationships and writing about it. Finally, I very much enjoy the vicarious touring of Venice, a city I love, and sampling its cuisine.

Do you have any other books you are working on that you can tell us about?

I am working on a series of mysteries with the same central characters. My second novel presently with my editor is Ripped Genes concerns the murder of a medical scientist and head of a research institute who fraudulently patented and monopolized access to a gene associated with a rare genetic disease. The detectives work with an attorney, a school friend of Kelan’s, who is representing the mother of a child with the disease and the head of a support group for those with children who have the disease. The detectives must maneuver around the cover-up of the institute’s financial shenanigans by mobsters and shady politicians. in Ripped Genes, I introduce the third member of the Tri-Star Investigations team, Desmond St. Clair, a Tortolan, former British SAS commando, a tech wizard, and talented chef.

I am working on The Tell-Tale Art involving the murder of a Jewish art gallery owner that might be related to a hidden cache of art stolen from Jews by the Nazis. this novel will take the reader from the mean streets of Chicago to a promenade through the sights and cuisine of the south of France.

Anything more you would like to say to your readers and fans?

I only hope that my readers enjoy reading my novels as much as I enjoy writing them. 

 

Webpage: www.Rothsteinsmysteries.com;
Facebook page:  www.facebook.com/Rothsteinsmysteries;
GoodReads:https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209521954-venetian-bind

 

Purchase Links:    Amazon   B&N   

 

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