Book Tours: Guest Post Murder at Eastern Columbia

I’m hosting a guest post today for the book tour for “Murder at Eastern Columbia”. Enjoy.

Guest Post

“Murder at Eastern Columbia,” the first James Murray Mystery, takes place in downtown Los Angeles in 1931. It’s unique in many ways. Perhaps the most unusual aspect is that it’s really two novels in one: chapters about the daily life of the main character, James Murray, alternate with chapters from the novel James is writing. These two novels, while different, follow a similar path, converging at the end.
The main character James creates for the novel within a novel is an unnamed investigator. He’s neither a detective nor a policeman; just a guy who “likes to help out,” created in the mold of the typical everyman who was a staple character of film noir movies favored by Hollywood in the 1940s.
In those films, an unsuspecting salesman or husband or store clerk finds himself involved in a murder, shady deal or blackmail scheme. He’s usually the pawn of a dame, or a femme fatale or a “nice” girl, in an adventure that takes place in the darkest of nights in the seediest sections of downtown [fill in name of city here].
I love film noir — especially when the story takes you down an unexpected path, where the person you thought was the main character suddenly disappears only to be replaced by someone completely different. These are the kinds of stories where Lucille Ball plays an unsuspecting secretary, Ralph Meeker seeks a suitcase that contains a certain glowing something, or Robert Ryan stands there with a clenched jaw.
I tried to bring that gritty, dark quality to the novel within the novel — the unexpected, the unknown and the unpredictable. I filled this part of the book with a rich cast of characters including a notorious gangster, a gorgeous raven-haired dame, the beautiful young boy whose love was his undoing, a young doctor whose specialty is cancer research, the cleaning lady with a secret addiction, the struggling piano player who just wants to keep his nose clean, the gum-popping pawn-shop clerk and the sultry Chinese apartment manager who tries to hide behind the mysteries of the Orient.
The tradition of a rich cast of supporting characters continues in the second James Murray Mystery called “Sabotage at RKO Studio,” and the third book called “Abduction at Griffith Observatory.” I plan to give life to more of the unusual and unexpected for at least two more books in the series.
So, come along for the ride — but be careful: it’s a long way down from the observation deck atop the brand new Los Angeles City Hall!

Author Bio

In more than three decades as a professional writer/journalist, Christopher has covered myriad subjects and interviewed thousands of people from the famous to the unknown. He brings his years of experience to each one of his novels.

Every work is different. Through reading his novels, you can visit the American home front in the 1940s, a future San Francisco wiped out by a killer earthquake, a romantic love affair in post-war Paris in the 1920s, a future planet where the major industry is making babies — or an exciting detective series set in 1930s Los Angeles.

In his career, his work has appeared in daily newspapers, monthly magazines, extensively on radio and the occasional dalliance with television. He has written advertising copy and radio commercials — and continues to write.

Christopher is currently working on a series of novels that take place in 1930s Los Angeles called “The James Murray Mysteries.” Books in the series are “Murder at Eastern Columbia,” “Sabotage at RKO Studio” and the newest “Abduction at Griffith Observatory.”

Other works featuring his byline include “The Babi Makers” — a science fiction tale about a world where the most important resource is babies; “Sarah & Gerald” — a novel about Paris in the 1920s; “Forever – and other stories” — a collection of short stories; “The Life Line” — the novel of the big one that levels San Francisco; “News on the Home Front” — a novel of two friends during World War Two; and “Mama Cat” — a book for children. Also, several short plays, a few radio plays and a boatload of radio documentaries.

For More Information

Visit Christopher Geoffrey McPherson’s website.
Connect with Christopher on Facebook and Twitter.
Visit Christopher blog.
More books by Christopher Geoffrey McPherson.
Contact the author.

About the Book

Los Angeles. 1931. Your name is James Murray. You are a clerk in the Junior Boy’s department at the swankest new department store in downtown. You want to be a writer, but there’s a Depression on. Suddenly, you find yourself trying to solve the murder of your best friend. Will you be able to find the murderer before it’s too late?

“Murder at Eastern Columbia” is two novels in one: two parallel stories, featuring two heroes, working two murders in two different versions of 1930s Los Angeles. Join James and his alter ego as they each try to solve the murder of the girl with sorrel-colored hair. Follow the twists and turns until the climactic scene atop the tallest building in all of LA: the brand new Los Angeles City Hall.