Fleece, Navi, Dead by Joanna Campbell Slan – How I Came to Memorize a Poem for Christmas + Giveaway

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Fleece, Navi, Dead by Joanna Campbell Slan
Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series Book 16

The BIGGEST Kiki book yet!
Introducing the Miss Fits, ordinary women who do extra-ordinary things!

Every holiday season, Kiki Lowenstein plans 12 days of classes, her Holiday Craft Extravaganza. And every year, it nearly kills her.

This year is no exception. As the holiday season approaches, Kiki over-schedules herself and winds up running herself ragged. To make life even more stressful, she must fend off a stalker, a man determined to possess the object of his affection. But that’s only one problem.

Kiki’s ace full-time employee, Clancy, has HUGE decisions to make. How do you put aside your hurt and disappointment when you’ve been betrayed? Why should you upend your whole life because of another person’s mistake? Is it selfish to think of yourself first? As Clancy ponders questions, Kiki stands on the sidelines, knowing this is not her choice to make. And yet…Kiki feels Clancy’s agony.

Meanwhile, both of Kiki’s older kids are having problems with teachers. Kiki wonders, “At what point does being an involved parent tip over into being a helicopter parent?” There’s also a staff shortage that leaves Kiki in the lurch, both at home and at the store. Kiki might have found an answer to that dilemma when a mysterious woman applies for a job. Her name is Nona, and she claims to be an old friend of an old friend. But is she?

Nona seems too good to be true. Sadly, that might be the least of Kiki’s problems with the woman. Because Nona isn’t what she seems to be. Nona is a Miss Fit.

Goodreads | Amazon


How I Came to Memorize a Poem for Christmas

By Erik Detweiler (from the Kiki Lowenstein Mysery Series)

My name is Erik Detweiler, and I am seven years old. I live with my Daddy and my Mama Kiki. I call her that because my real mother died, so I have had two mothers, and it’s good to tell them apart. I also have an older sister, Anya, and a younger brother, Ty. That means I’m the middle child. Anya takes care of me some, and I take care of Ty some, because that’s what families do. They take care of each other.

My teacher this year is Mr. Reicher. He doesn’t like me, and he’s mean to me. I think it is because I am biracial. That’s a way of saying that I am part Black and part White, which is silly because my color is actually Brown.

For our school’s Holiday Festival, Mr. Reicher told me to memorize a poem. He wanted me to say it all by myself at a big meeting. My parents would be there, watching. Mr. Reicher thought I would forget the words. He thought I would embarrass myself. When he introduced me, he stood off to the side of the stage, and he snickered.

But I didn’t embarrass myself. I had practiced and practiced and practiced. To make sure I didn’t get distracted, Anya danced around me and made faces while I said my poem. It’s called, Stopping in the Woods on a Snowy Evening, and it’s by Robert Frost. It’s a story about a man driving a sleigh on a snowy night. I think it’s also about loneliness and promises, but that is only my opinion. I like the poem. It makes me feel peaceful.

When I got up on stage, I remembered every line. I used my voice and my hands to tell the story. Even when Mr. Reicher coughed, I stayed focused on my poem. When I finished, I bowed from the waist. People clapped and clapped and clapped. Mr. Reicher looked angry, but I didn’t care.

Since then we’ve been told that Mr. Reicher has lost his job. When I come back from Christmas vacation, I will have a new teacher. I am glad. I did not like Mr. Reicher. I think that if you do not like children, you should not be a teacher. Maybe you should be a plumber or a cook in a restaurant, but not a teacher.

This is part of what happens in Fleece, Navi, Dead: Book #16 in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series. The book got its name because I learned to say, “Merry Christmas” in Spanish, see? I learned how because I wanted to wish everyone a very merry Christmas.

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About the Author

Joanna Campbell Slan is an Award-Winning, National Bestselling, and USA Today Bestselling author. Her personal essays appear in five of the New York Times Bestselling Chicken Soup for the Soul books, and one was adapted as a television segment for the PAX TV network. Joanna has penned seven scrapbooking technique books, and she has written for Creating Keepsakes, Memory Makers, and PaperKuts magazines. Joanna has traveled around the world to teach scrapbook journaling.

Joanna has also written more than 30 works of fiction. RT Reviews has called her “one of mystery’s rising stars.” Her first mystery in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series—Paper, Scissors, Death—was shortlisted for the Agatha Award. Joanna’s series featuring Charlotte Brontë’s classic heroine Jane Eyre began with Death of a Schoolgirl, which won the 2013 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence for historical romantic suspense. As the editor and publisher of the Happy Homicides anthologies, Joanna has been on Amazon’s list of Top 100 Mystery Authors.

Joanna’s college textbook—Using Stories and Humor—has been endorsed by Benjamin Netanyahu’s speechwriter as his favorite resource and has been endorsed by Toastmasters.

The Public Relations Society of America honored Joanna with a Silver Anvil (their highest award) for her work on the first FarmAid. Joanna has been accredited by PRSA as a professional public relations practitioner. She is a certified teacher of Zentangle® and certified in Personal Profiles. Slan founded the Best of British Scrapbooking and Cardmaking contest.

In her past life, Slan was a television talk show host, an adjunct professor of public relations at Illinois State University, a sought-after motivational speaker, and a corporate speechwriter. Sharing Ideas Magazine named Joanna “one of the top 25 motivational speakers in the world.” She has spoken in Australia, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and all over the United States, to audiences of all sizes.

Joanna is married to David Slan, CEO of Steinway Piano Gallery-DC and Steinway Piano Gallery-St. Louis, and a professional poker player. The Slans have one son, Michael, and a daughter-in-law, Chelsea Edwards. They live with their Havanese puppy Jax on Jupiter Island, Florida.

Author Links
Website — https://joannacampbellslan.com/
Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/JoannaCampbellSlan
Facebook Group — https://www.facebook.com/groups/1602372550058785
Twitter — https://twitter.com/JoannaSlan
Amazon Author Page — https://amzn.to/30so9It
Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/JCSlan/
Goodreads — https://www.goodreads.com/joannacampbellslan
Bookbub — https://www.bookbub.com/profile/joanna-campbell-slan
LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/JoannaSlan
Pinterest — https://www.pinterest.com/joannaslan/

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3 comments / Add your comment below

  1. Thank you for being part of the book tour for “Fleece, Navi, Dead” by Joanna Campbell Slan.

    I enjoyed reading the guest post and can’t wait for the opportunity to read the book. Love the cover and the title!

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