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Tuesday, April 30 2013

I'm celebrating the release of the Kindle version of my pshchological thriller and mystery book, Blood Brothers, by giving away a new Kindle Paperwhite 3G with case and adapter.  It is easy to enter.  Just clcik on the Rafflecopter widget below and follow the instructions.  The contest starts at 12 a.m. EST on May 1st and ends at 12 a.m. EST on May 31st.  Thanks for your interest and good luck in the contest!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Posted by: Jody Zimmerman AT 10:00 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Friday, April 26 2013

When I began writing Blood Brothers in the spring of 2003, I had three criteria:  I would write a mystery book; the two main characters would be close brothers, one gay and one straight; and the setting would be the international art market.  The mystery book evolved into more of a psychological thriller as I realized the brothers had to deal with repressed childhood sexual abuse, but the setting remained.

Works of art captivate my senses, fill me with joy, and inspire me.  My next three or four blog posts will focus on the art in Blood Brothers and pay tribute to several artists who works influenced paintings I describe in my book.

The first painting is in Chapter 1, and it is a painting of the brothers as children building a sand castle on the beach at Pawley’s Island.

“Through an array of small, thickly applied crosshatched patterns using the spectrum of visible colors, Mother painstakingly replicated the light patterns created by the mid afternoon sun on the ocean that bounce from the painting with such intensity that you can feel the August heat radiating.” 

Examine the painting, Playing at the Beach.

This painting is by the gifted artist Kevin McNamara who inspired several of the paintings by the characters Billy and his mother, Eva.

Many of the paintings in Blood Brothers contain clues, some obscure, others obvious, that shed light on the mystery. 

The beautiful painting below, River L'Indre near Monte, is another of Kevin’s.  His depiction of water is outstanding.  A similar painting is first introduced in Chapter 2 through a dream of the protagonist, Philip.

Kevin McNamara was born in Manchester, England and raised in Ireland.  He studied at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin where he received his degree in 1985.  Velasquez and the nineteenth century Russian painters Ilya Repin and Valentine Serov influence him. 

I was exposed to Kevin’s work in 2003 when I leased space in a shopping center I manage to a gallery owner who represented Kevin.  Kevin spent several months in Kentucky painting.

One afternoon I was driving to yoga through Cherokee Park along Beargrass Creek when I noticed a man strapped to a tree with a belt or a rope.  He was leaning back painting a canvas on an easel in front of him—it was Kevin and he was creating a masterpiece, River Light, Cherokee Park, Louisville.

I am fortunate to own the three paintings above as well as two others by Kevin.  Kevin has given me permission to reproduce these works on this blog.  I encourage you to visit his website at www.kevinmcnamara.us

Posted by: Jody Zimmerman AT 04:22 pm   |  Permalink   |  1 Comment  |  Email
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